#I was super into retro games back then you see but I always stayed away from this one

[wavebiders]

so excited by the prospect of you getting into aerti 👀

It's partially your fault I'll have you know! Your Aerti posting helped tip the scales of the standoff I've been having with this game since I was in middle school

[yamithediaperdork]

My little brothers revenge, Part 2

Alex woke up Sunday morning and rubbed his eyes, trying to get the sleep out of his eyes and hearing the heavy snoring of his asshole big brother.

'Man, can't believe I conked out so bad!' He thought, now rubbing his arm across his chin and mouth to take care of any left over drool. 'I guess I must of been more tired then I thought..Ugh.. and Justin's been stinking up the room again in his sleep.'

Alex put his fingers to his nose, glaring over at his brother who was a well know toxic hazard in his sleep and as such normally got his own tent when the family went out camping.

Tossing his blanket back Alex froze as the smell not only got worse in the room, but it became clear WHAT the source of the stink was as he looked down and the shot swelled diaper around his waist.

'No way..no.freaking.way!' Alex thought as he blushed beet red.

he quickly glanced over at Justin who was thankfully still asleep and then slowly got up onto his hand sand knees and crawled backwards to get out of his bed, trying not to squish the mess around any worse and fighting back whimpers that might of woken Justin up.

There was NO way if Justin saw him in a shitty diaper that he'd ever let Alex live it down, and he could easily picture Justin 'accidentally' bringing it up around his friends or even at school.

getting his feet on the floor Alex found himself forced to do a cowboy walk of sorts from the bulk of his filled diaper and as quietly as he could he made his way to the door and out into the hall, praying to every deity he could think of that he was the first one awake since it was only 8:34 am and mom and dad liked to sleep in on Sundays.

Fate was not on his side however as he made his way towards the bathroom and saw that the door was closed. before he could even think of turning around and waddling back to his room the door opened and out stepped mom.

She appeared to of smelled Alex before spotting him from the way her nose wrinkled, then she looked eyes on him and her mouth twitched as if she was fighting the urge to smirk.

"Did somebody have a stinky accident?" She asked, sounding amused but coming over.

"I..I didn't mean to.." Alex whimpered and looked down, all sorts of shame flooding though his body and he was fighting back tears.

Instantly she went from amused to trying to comfort him, even if she winced as she knelt down in front of him and cupping his chin.

"Alex it's ok, accidents happen. this this goes to prove that you're not feeling so well. Maybe I'll let you stay home while I go and get you some more diapers later." She said in a soothing voice.

"I..Yeah Ok mommy." Alex said, feeling very much like a big baby as she then picked him up, hands under his armpits and carried him to the bathroom.

"I think maybe it's for the best you're gonna be in diapers all day today too. you wouldn't wanna have a poopie accident in your Captain America briefs right?" She asked.

This was NOT helping Alex feel better but he just nodded his head, kicking his legs a little.

"Uh..Uh..Mommy? I-I can clean myself up." he said as she carried him into the bathroom and stood him in the tub.

"I'm sure you could, but it'll go faster with my help and I don't think you want Justin seeing you like this." She said with a warm smile.

"I-I guess you got a point." Alex whimpered.

Oh yeah, he was gonna get revenge on his brother and prove who was the big baby in the house alright. right after his mom changed his dirty diaper.

'God, what have I done to piss you off so much?' he silently asked as his mom started to open his diaper.

One humiliating clean up and shower later and Alex was in a clean diaper and downstairs at the kitchen table, having some toast and tea. Normally Sunday's were a sausage and bacon filled feast if you waited long enough for Mom to get up but she had been wary about putting too much into Alex's system and asked him to go simple. Alex wasn't happy about it, but since Mom had put the plastic bag with his stinky diaper in the trunk of the car and promised to get rid of it away from the house he decided to humor her.

He was in just one of his Spider-man diapers and a loose Iron man t-shirt and kicking his legs softly at the table when Justin came down stair's with a grossed out look on his face, spotting Alex before he saw mom.

"Geez Alexandra, did you crap yourself or something? Our room friggen reeks!" He complained and then fully walked into the Kitchen and saw their mother standing there, NOT looking happy.

"Excuse me, but I thought your father and I talked about you calling Alex that name." She said in a less then amused tone.

"Er..well..See, Alex likes the nick name! Yeahhh, He said it just didn't feel right if I wasn't teasing him." Justin lied, Looking to Alex for back up.

"Alex is that true?" Mom asked.

"Yeah, Not at all. I've told him to quit it." Alex said smirking big time.

"i see. Justin, How would you like it if I called Justine or Jessica all day?" Mom asked, smirking now.

"..I wouldn't like it very much." Justin muttered and looked down at the floor now.

"Mmmhmm..So keep that in mind next time you get the urge to brat..I can always go and get you a adorable pretty princess lunch box and put Justine on the front of it and make you take it to school. Your father isn't the only one who can get creative with punishments."

Threat made Anne turned back to the kitchen counter and started on making Justin some breakfast.

"Y-You wouldn't!" Justin whined.

"Wanna try me? I'm already going to the store in a bit for more diapers for Alex." She said and smirked. "As is, I think you can have a nice toast and tea breakfast like your little brother. He's not feeling so good so you'll be watching him today."

"Ahhh moooom, I was gonna go hang out with Grizz and Rayne today!" Justin whined."I'm Sure Alex is a big enough boy he can look after himself! Or Dad can watch him!"

"Your father is going and helping Mr.Nilson build his deck today, But if you stay here I'll lift the TV ban so you two can play video games. Co-op only, I don't wanna come back to you both all mad at each other like what happens every single time you play a versus game."

Her point made the brothers both sulked as neither really wanted to be stuck with the others company.

Justin huffed his way though breakfast. between having to have buttered toast and tea instead of a meat explosion and being stuck with Alex all day he knew this was gonna suck all the balls, at least till he recalled his evil plan from last night and brightened up.

'Wait, no mom..no dad..and just me and the pamper butt. Oh yes yes yes yes yes! this is gonna work out great!' Justin thought and got a big silly grin on his face.

"Well, Somebody's cheered up after his tea." Mom teased.

"Oh yeah, I just had to wake up some more you know? I think I can have LOTS of fun with Alex today mom, so don't worry if you wanna take a bit." Justin said then added. "I know you like to drive around and it'll be nice for you not to have dad bugging you to hurry up or listening to me and Alex fighting."

"Well that's nice of you, though Alex is on his last two clean diapers so I really should hurry back." Mom said, giving Justin a half hug.

"oh nonsense! Alex is just gonna wear the diapers, It's not like he needs them mom, Right little bro?" Justin asked and smirked.

With Justin was being happy and helpful alarm bells were going off in Alex's head but there was nothing he could really say in argument of mom coming back sooner without tipping off he'd pooped himself earlier or making it sound like he needed his day time huggies. It was a catch 22 and Justin's look told Alex he knew it.

"yeah mom, I'll be ok..I'm sure me and Justin will have lots of fun." Alex said, trying to sound cheery.

Aside from not wanting to sound like he needed his diapers, he knew if he tried to whine to go with her or have her come back fast he'd also sound like a whinny little mama's boy.

"Well ok, If you boys are sure. I'll be heading out in a bit then, why don't you two leave the dishes for me and go and play some video games. And since you're both being good little guys for mommy." Anne smirked as both boys made a face at that. "You can both have 3 cans of soda each. Just try and spread them out."

the ugh faces turned into surprised smiles as mom was usually a stickler on the boys sticking to juice or water and she was always careful to keep a count on the can's of pop in the fridge.

Finishing up their light breakfast, the boys put their dishes in the sink and washed up a little then each one grabbed a can of cola out of the fridge and got a Blanket set out over the floor, well Alex got the blanket over the floor while Justin made sure the curtains were drawn shut.

Naturally normally Justin would of loved to of had the curtains wide open to show off his BABY brother but with mom still home he had to play nice.

Sides he wanted to try and draw Alex into a sense of relaxation before springing his super genius evil plan on him.

Alex wasn't falling for it for a second but went and fired up one of their rare co-op two player games (Since Justin wasn't a fan of retro games) and the boy's started to play, pausing only to wave bye to mom as she headed out, telling them that she'd be back in a hour or so, and to make sure dad woke up soon as he'd promised to be over helping with the deck bright and early.

They played in peace for about half a hour, with only cries of booya, eat it and the like coming out of their mouths and Justin giving Alex tips and for the most part they actually got along for a change.

That being said, all good things have to end and Justin never put his plan out of his mind, so when it was time to go and wake they're dad up he volunteered to do it while Alex took a much needed potty break.

Stopping by their room to grab Alex's phone Justin made a quick little call.

"Ngggh.. Yello?" came the groggy voice of Max.

"Heyyy max. how's it going?" Justin asked, keeping his voice down.

"Ngggh..Justin? what are you doing calling me?" the sleepy boy asked.

"Well Alex is kinda been missing you, and I was trying to set up a little surprise for him but getting you to come over and hang out with him." Justin said, grinning ear to ear.

"...OK who are you and what have you done with Justin?" Max asked, sounding suspicious.

"Hey, I can be a nice guy every now and then. but if you don't wanna come over finnnne." Justin huffed, mentally cursing just how well Max knew him.

"...Give me like 20 minutes or so to wake up and get some food in me." Max sighed on his end of the line.

"Ok the front door will be unlocked so just come in." Justin said and hung up.

with operation:show my brother baby butt off underway, Justin went off to go and wake up dad.

With dad being his normal cheery morning self (read: grumpy as fuck) Alex did his best to stay out of his way while he made himself a bacon and egg sandwich then grabbed his tool box and was out the door.

"I wonder he even offered to help if he was just gonna be this grumpy?" Alex asked Justin.

"Because there's free beer involved after the deck is built and you know mom won't let him bring any booze into the house." Justin said, oddly keeping a eye on the time.

"heh, you missing mom already or something?" Alex teased.

"Oh no, Just arranged a little surprise for you." Justin said and smirked.

As he smirked Alex felt a pang of fear go though him, the old Justin was back and he went to scramble up to his feet to get get away.

"ah ah ah, come here huggie butt." Justin taunted and grabbed onto Alex, tugging him down and into Justin's lap, pressing on his tummy.

Which had the effect of making Alex let out a massive fart.

"Dude! really? what are you, part skunk?" Justin asked, shoving Alex back out of his lap.

"M-Maybe!" Alex said, his tummy gurgling now and as he went to get up he ended up hunching over, anther fart coming out of him.

"Heh, Uh-oh, is widdle Alex gonna go poopie in his diapies?" Justin asked, smirking and getting up to block the path to the bathroom.

"J-Justin Nooo! I don't wanna poop my diapers again!" Alex whimper, hunched over and making his way over, yet anther fart coming out and that one was totally a wet one.

"Wait..ANTHER poopie diaper?" Justin asked, then it clicked. "Oh my god, you shit yourself in your sleep! Ahahaha! You really ARE a baby!"

"J-Justin Please! I'm begging you! Let me use the pot-" Alex started but then there was the sound of the front door opening and Alex was cut off by Max's voice.

"Allo allo! whats going..uh..on.." Max said, walking into view and looking at Alex in shock. "Uhhh.."

"M-Max!?! what are you doing here?!? I Uh..Oh god, Max don't loook!" Alex wailed.

Max was too shocked to look away though as Alex lost the battle with his bowels and the back of his diaper ballooned out as wave as wave of mush filled it, making the spider-man designs fade away and the formally white parts of the diaper go a ugly shade of brown.

With the back of the diaper being destroyed the front didn't get off easy either as Alex's bladder apparently didn't wanna be left out and he soaked the diaper even as he sank to his knees.

Balls up fists coming to his eyes and rubbing them as he started to bawl, Alex almost but not quite drowned out Max's million dollar question.

"Uhhh..what's going on here?"

The living room was filled with Alex's stink, but it was the smell of victory to Justin as he took in the scene with a sick joy. Alex was too busy bawling like the big baby he was to try and defend himself so Justin spoke up.

"Sorry about this Max, I tried to get baby Alex to cover up his diapers but he said he wanted you to see what a big baby he is an-" Justin started, but was cut off.

"Yeah, Bullshit. What's really going on here, Alex, did Justin make you wear a diaper?" Max asked, wincing as he moved over to comfort his friend.

'damn it! was hoping he'd fall for that. ah well, can't win'em all.' Justin thought.

Alex was still full on bawling though, and was just finishing up his dump and the diaper had amazingly held up.

"Alex..Alex buddy it's ok.. everyone has accidents." Max was saying and Justin rolled his eyes at that.

'just my luck, most boys his age would of started tormenting the fuck out of a pamper packer and I get the kind and understanding one.' Justin fumed.

"He's in all day diapers today because he went to sleep without putting one of his bed wetter pants on yesterday and wet the bed." Justin sighed. "And apparently if he's to believed he woke up stinky too."

"...Alex is this true?" Max asked.

Alex hiccuped and sniffled, calming down slightly now but he nodded.

"So..you knew his diapers were gonna be on display and invited me over..dude, your a asshole." Max said and glared at Justin.

"eh, Guilty as charged. but if you care soooo much about widdle Alex then you can get him cleaned up. Otherwise I'm gonna leave him to sit and stink." Justin said and shrugged, turning to leave.

"Sheesh.. brother of the year aren't you.. Where's his diapers?" Max asked helping Alex stand up and rubbing the poor guys back.

"In our room, I'll toss out what's left of them." Justin said then walked off leaving the stinky diaper boy and his little buddy to clean up.

For the second time this morning, Alex found himself doing a dirty diaper cowboy walk and heading for the bathroom, whimpering and saying sorry to Max over and over again.

"Hey, it's OK dude.. I should of known your brother was planning something when he invited me over. But Uh, I've known about your bed wetting for awhile." Max said, giving a sheepish grin.

"N-No you didn't, I'm super careful!" Alex whimpered.

they made it to the bathroom and Max had Alex stand with his legs spread and the trash bin in the bathroom under him as he undid the tapes and let the diaper plop down into the trashcan.

"yeahhh well about that.. you remember three weeks ago when we were playing Avengers in your room? you pack of Iron man diapers was sticking out from under your bed. When you weren't looking i pushed them back under with my foot." Max admitted, even as his face wrinkled in disgust.

"I..but..Noooo!" Alex whined babyishly.

Somehow this didn't change facts though.

"Look, we'll talk about it in a bit, you go and get in the shower, I'll go and get rid of the 'treasure'" Max said.

With no real choice in the matter, Alex nodded and made his way into the shower to go and get cleaned up.

'Pretty sad my best friend is more mature about this then my own brother..and Justin..your gonna pay!' Alex swore as he started the water.

After taking the plastic bag and putting it in the trash can outside, Max came back in and after opening some windows to air out the living room he made his way upstairs.Hearing the shower still running and found a pack of diaper with only two in it out front of the bathroom door.

the door to Justin and Alex's room was closed but since it didn't have a lock Max barged in anyways, finding Justin laying on his bed and reading a comic book.

"Can i help you?" Justin asked, a smirk on his face.

"That was a really shitty thing you just did to Alex, you know that right?" Max asked, hands on his hips.

"Cute choice of words there, and yeah, I'm a asshole and proud of it." Justin said.

"Yeah, well I'm gonna tell your parents what you did when they get back." Max shot back.

"Oh, cute idea. Let's tell them how Alex went and crapped his diapers when he has potty privileges and make it so he has to wear to school tomorrow. Of course I'll get grounded for inviting you over and showing off his diapers but who's really gonna come out on the short end of the deal here?" Justin asked.

Max blinked and tried to come up for a counter to that but just huffed and pouted.

"That's what I thought. If Mom asks when she gets back, Alex invited you over. I'll keep hush about the poopie diaper if you two little dweebs keep me out of trouble, deal?" Justin asked, going back to his comic book, clearly knowing he had the upper hand.

"..God your SUCH a asshole!" Max huffed and then stormed out.

Alex got out of the shower on his own and got himself diapered, then went and got a t-shirt (Hulk this time for the little avengers obsessed nerd) and a pair of black short's on over it before retreating down to the living room with Max, whining as Max told him about the deal Justin had offered.

"I don't know..he was suppose to shut up about the wet bed yesterday too and went back on it..and uh.. where did you put the..you know.." Alex asked huffing and squirming.

"Uh, out in the trash can on the side of the house. why?" Max asked.

"Because it's gonna be stinking up the block in no time and I'll get busted again for sure!" Alex whined.

"Well uh.. It's not like we can just go and ditch it in someone else's trash can you know." Max pointed out, rubbing the back of his head.

"Hmmm.." Alex said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully then snapped his fingers. "Hey! you know that old nature trail by here? the one that's hardly used anymore?"

"..Yesssss though I don't think I like where this is going." Max said.

"We'll take the stinky diaper and shovel out there, and bury it! by the time the trails popular again in the summer, no one will be able to smell it!" Alex said, beaming at his brilliant idea.

So excited with his 'brilliant plan' was he, that Alex actually started out of the room to head for the back yard to go and get the shovel.

"Alex, one second. You mighttttt wanna change into something baggier and with longer legs on it, those short's aren't really hiding your diaper butt." Max said with a small smirk.

Looking down and then looking at himself in a mirror Alex could see Max was right and gave a sheepish smile.

"Oh..yeah.. good call!" He said and then went to his dresser to find something a little more concealing.

Justin had of course by this time headed down stairs, not wanting to deal with Alex's 'toddler whining' ad he put it, and was playing a video game and drinking one of Alex's can's of soda since he had gone though his three.

Looking over as the pair went to go and get their shoes on he raised a eyebrow.

"And where are you two dweebs heading off too?" He asked then chuckled. "Awww, Is Max taking widdle Alex to da park ta pway?"

Alex growled but before he could speak up Max cut him off.

"Actually we're just gonna go and play on the old trail, go and dig some holes and the like. I figured that way if Alex has anther accident you won't have to smell it right away."

"Pffftt good thinking! did you pack a diaper bag for him then, hence the book bag?" Justin chuckled.

of course he couldn't of known that the pack pack was for holding the stinky diaper once they got it out of the trash, though he really didn't care anyways.

Alex meanwhile was blushing big time and huffing like a pouty toddler.

"Ayup, though hopefully it'll just be a wet diaper." Max said.

"pffft, ok. just be back soonish, Mom will wanna know where you are." Justin said and went back to his game.

Once they were outside Alex gave max a semi hard punch to the arm.

"what the heck was that all about! you sounded like you were on his side!" Alex huffed and glared.

"Uh, OW! and we didn't want him to know what we're really doing did we?" Max asked and then swatted Alex's padded backside, making a whumping sound.

"...You didn't have to be so believable." Alex huffed.

"oh I'm sorry, did you want him following us? knowing him he'd of tugged your pants off once you were on the trail and tossed them in a tree!" Max shot back.

the thought of being trapped in public with his diaper exposed made Alex blush and squirm, and let out a muffled fart of fear.

"Ah.. do you need, to go back inside and sit on the potty?" Max asked.

"NO!" Alex growled, then paused, and looked thoughtful and wiggled his butt a little, making Max have to bite his lip to keep from laughing.

"Yeah no, I'm good." Alex confirmed a few seconds later.

The adventure out to bury the treasure so to speak was uneventful, much as Alex had predicted the trail was dead this time of the year and the only hard part was digging into the semi solid earth, the shovel being almost too big for the either shorty to really use it so they had to take turns.

Coming back they were greeted in the driveway by Anne who was less then pleased to see Alex not only outside when she was still concerned he was sick, but that he was all dirty from playing in the dirt.

At least it worked out that she'd been home for about five minutes by that time so she'd already taken his new pack of diapers (Avengers print this time) to his room but still she gave Alex a mild scolding and sent Max home.

After that it was a day of just lazing around the house but Anne had also insisted on keeping a close eye on Alex so he hadn't been able to get enough alone time to e-mail Ben.

[krakenbait]

For the ask game, any Devils jersey, but specifically the green and red retro ones, and the Toronto maple leafs!

hey there jay! i don't think we've officially interacted yet, so hello, and thanks for sending this in! let's get on to the jersey opinions.

new jersey devils reverse retros

so i did a short review of this one when i did my reverse retro breakdown during the last bunch of "lara's jersey opinions," but i'll do a full one now!

the devils were one of the teams that took the “reverse retro” idea very literally, with a one-to-one color swap of red and green from their original jerseys. now, i’m really not a fan of those original jerseys, but i actually kind of like the reverse retro version. especially after seeing it on the ice, it grew on me. 

let’s start with the stripes. the thin-fat-thin striping pattern is super common in hockey jerseys, and as such, it has a very classic hockey aesthetic. in my opinion, you can never go wrong with that kind of striping pattern, especially when it’s used on both the arms and waist stripes. it’s simple, but it always looks good. my one minor gripe with the striping is the other thin stripe on the arms. it’s a remnant from the original jersey set, where the little gap between the two white stripes was red on the original white jerseys, and it stayed red on the original red jerseys, so it’s green on these jerseys. however, it makes the top white stripe look a little out of place. the striping pattern would just be cleaner if that top white stripe wasn’t there.

now, to the shoulder yoke. shoulder yokes on jerseys can be a little more variable, as it really depends on the details and other layout of the jersey, but the one on this devils jersey works pretty well. it balances out the green with another pop of red, and the white stripe going around it makes it look clean. i also think it has something to do with the Adizero jersey template compared to past jersey templates as to why the shoulder yoke looks really good on these jerseys.  

i don’t have much to say about the devils logo. it’s a good logo! it’s simple enough that you could probably draw it (though maybe not if you’re jack hughes), but recognizable enough that if you see it, you know exactly what it is (though maybe not if you’re my midwestern friend who asked me where my devils hat is from). it’s a pretty literal logo, a stylized N and J with devil horns and a tail for a team called the New Jersey Devils, but it’s effective. part of me wishes the devils did have some kind of alternate logo, but this jersey wouldn’t have been the place for it even if they did.

ok, i’ll stop stalling now. the most controversial part of this jersey is, of course, the color scheme. before this jersey, green never really had a concrete place in the devils visual identity. it was an accent color in the original devils jerseys that the reverse retro is based off of, and those green accents gave those original jerseys a very aggressive, Christmas-y aesthetic that i was never a fan of. the red jerseys were especially offensive, so i’m glad that it was the whites the devils brought back as third jerseys for a while. when i heard the devils were going green for their reverse retro, i’ll be honest, it made me nervous. i thought it was going to be weird, and just as aggressive as the Christmas tree jerseys. the reverse retro is definitely a little weird, especially because green hasn’t really been part of the devils visual identity since 1992, but it’s not aggressive. somehow, the green and red complimentary color situation looks a lot better when the base is green and the accents are red. it also helps that there’s a fair amount of white on this jersey to balance things out, as well as the fact that the devils logo is primarily red. i know there’s some disagreement on whether the green jersey is good or bad and i definitely understand that, because i’ve waffled back and forth on it myself. but i will definitively say now that the green jersey is, in fact, good. the green base with the red and white accents works.

moving on to the toronto maple leafs’ current home and away set! my analysis of those jerseys is under the cut.

toronto maple leafs home and away set

the toronto maple leafs have gone through a lot of jerseys and jersey sets over the years--15, according to hockey by design--and that makes sense, since they are an original six team. despite the many jersey designs, the leafs have overall stayed pretty consistent, maintaining their aesthetic with the same blue and white (minus some occasional st. pats green) and similar striping patterns. their current set of jerseys are easily some of the leafs’ best of the modern era, with a simple yet striking design. 

as before, i’ll start with the stripes. the double arm stripes are kind of a hallmark of modern leafs jerseys, with most including them in the design in some form. with two thin stripes of the color opposite the base, they give the illusion of the thin-thick-thin striping pattern i applauded on the devils jerseys. similarly to that classic striping pattern, the two thin stripes are simple yet effective. there’s also the thick stripe at the waist. in general, i’m a fan of waist striping because i like how it breaks up the space of the jersey. even just a strip of color, like what the leafs have here, is good, because i hate it when the bottom of a jersey and the pants are the same color and they run together. while the strip of color is good, i almost wish the leafs kept an element from a previous jersey design, where the waist striping had two thin stripes to mirror the arms. i think that would have been a nicer bit of visual consistency that would have made these jerseys just a touch cleaner. 

there’s no shoulder yoke on these jerseys, which is a good thing, so i’ll do a quick mention of some other details. i’m always a sucker for laces on hockey jerseys. they’re a classic aesthetic thing that always brings a touch of vintage styling to a jersey (and they’re why i love hockey-style sweatshirts with laces). less good: the collar. now, Adizero collars are weird, because they’re super thick and have these weird places for colors. i spent a lot of time in nhl20 messing around creating fake jerseys for fake teams, and the collars were always a pain in the ass. however, it is possible to make the collar all the same color! the leafs should have either stuck to making the collar the same color as the jersey base or the opposite color (for contrast), not this weird half-and-half they have going on on, which looks out of place.

and last but not least, a word on the logo! the leafs have had quite a few variations on their logo over the years, with different shapes for the leaf and different patterns with the veins, etc. it might just be that this is the one i know and recognize the most, but i think the current one is easily the best leafs logo. the leaf outline is clean and easily recognizable as a maple leaf, the veins add a little stylistic flair and have some significance to the number of them, and the text is placed nicely. 

overall, it’s a clean, effective, modern jersey set for a team with a long history. it’s not my favorite jersey set in the nhl, but it sure as hell isn’t my least favorite.

send me a jersey and i’ll give my opinions!

[thehungryplaice]

5 Great Ideas For Your 80s Themed Party!

https://www.the-hungryplaice.uk/10-ideas-for-your-80s-themed-party

You want an 80s Themed Party? You've come to the right place I'm more than happy to help as I'm a big fan of the 80s! Here are 5 things that you ought to consider for your 80s Themed Party...

1. 80s Themed Food and Drink

We've got that one covered for you at The Hungry Plaice take your guests back in time with our Old Fashioned Vintage Fish and Chip Vans, we have Betty and Beryl in our fleet and we serve Hand Battered Traditional Fish And Chips, sadly without the newspaper as Food Safety stopped all that! Our van Betty was a working van on a Chip round back in the 80s and is thought to be the only one still in service all these years later so you'll be guaranteed to have something really special at your event. If you wanted to put together your own food there are some other ideas you could try... How about Chicken and Chips served from Baskets, a bit like the ones you can sometimes get in Bowling Alleys, you might be able to pick up some baskets on Ebay and then you can always sell them again once you are done. For a Cheesy Party you'll need an abundance of cheesy food and cheese balls always go down a storm, you could even consider the good old pineapple and cheese on sticks! There are lots of snacks you could have for a buffet including Twiglets, Bacon Rashers Crisps and Pickled Onion Monster Munch, there's Peanuts, Wotsits and Space Raiders. You could even make some cakes or cookies with a Retro 80s theme, there are some great cookie trays shaped like Pac-Man you can find on Ebay. Vol au Vents were big back then and they are easy to make with no end of fillings you could add, here is a basic recipe for you....... https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2219652/party-volauvents Your sweet table could have a selection of Old Fashioned Retro Sweets like Hubba Bubba, Flying Saucers, Love Hearts and Dib Dabs to take some people back to their childhood. There are some great deals on Ebay where packs are sold or you could take a trip to your local wholesalers where you can still buy them in bulk. Don't forget to have Angel Delight and some Trifles, Jelly (and alcohol flavoured jelly shots), Wall's Vienetta and Arctic Roll. Your drinks selection could include old fashioned style retro glass bottles of soft drinks like Cloudy Lemonade, Shandy or Ginger Beer and you could have a few bottles of Babychams and Blue Nuns kicking about! If you are lucky enough to have or know someone with one of those old Teasmade's machine maybe you could have that hooked up on a table so people can have a cup of tea when they're bored of downing the jelly shots!

2. Your 80s Theme

The theme of your party is the 80s but you could go for something more specific in the decade to make things more interesting. How about having a TV/Movie themed 80s Party? You could ask your guests to dress up as 80s movie characters and have your decor to match, maybe you particularly like a certain TV programme or theme like The A Team, Knightrider, Top Gun or Dirty Dancing and everything is themed along those lines or maybe have a mix up of two. Your theme could be 80s Gaming, your guests could be asked to dress up as 80s gaming characters like Pac-man, Super Mario, King Kong or Paperboy, maybe they could come dressed as a Nintendo Gameboy. Have you considered a Roller Disco theme? Everyone could bring along some Roller Skates with Huge Socks and you can have a 80s themed disco, it would be great fun to see how many times people would be falling over after a few drinks! A simple 80s theme could be just made up of colours it would be easy to use neons or bright yellows, pinks and blues, everything could be aligned to the colour scheme to ensure it all matches. You could extend your theme to any invites you send out to show your guests what to expect at the party the list really is endless.

3. 80s Fancy Dress

This is such an easy one as there is so much to choose from! If your 80s Party theme is general 80s with a Fancy Dress Code, there are loads and loads of options for clothes to wear, you really want to try to stay away from buying new at any shops and get your guests to scour Charity Shops, Ebay and Facebook, you might want to get a pile of clothes yourself to put in a box for your guests to pick and choose what they want when they arrive just be careful you wash any of those second hand clothes to keep everyone happy! There are leggings, hairbands, tracksuits velour and shell, sports jackets, ballet skirts, t-shirts with acid smiley faces, big Earrings, Jewellery, Trainers and Hairbows to name just a few things a quick search on Google will point you in the right direction! Remember to go cheap to save yourself money and then you can always sell the clothes on when you're done!

4. 80s Music For Your 80s Themed Party

I am sure we don't need to go into the various types of 80s music there is out there... If you've got loads of money to splash out on the music at your 80s themed party the obvious answer is to get a DJ in, tell them about your 80s them and insist that they play nothing else. If you wanted a really good 80s music theme there are other ways to set your music up. You could go cheap get one of your bluetooth speakers get your playlist on your phone or laptop link it all up and off you go....or how about something far more genuine 80s..... Get hold of an old Hi-fi system with a Tape Deck and find some of those big freestanding speakers and put the 80s Now Collection on loop! It might not give out the best sound quality but it could be more in line with the look of your party! You could hire one of those dancefloors with the clear box flooring which light up with different colours, perhaps you will want to add a bit of cardboard on the floor for anyone who wants to attempt a bit of breakdancing...

5. Decorations

Decorations will be key to creating your 80s themed party. There are 80s themed partywares with the normal tableware, balloons and hanging items with 80s emblazoned across and with all the 80s colours being sold online but you could go a little bit more authentic, how about looking around for 80s themed items that you could scatter about to give your party a unique 80s feel. If you've chosen a specific 80s TV or film theme, it's easy to find things you could use to decorate with that in mind I'm sure there are lots of items you could pick up to do with flying and planes for your Top Gun theme. You might want to head down to a local carboot to find an old 80s side table to put up somewhere in the room you could use it for your buffet table or fill it with some 80s goodies or food. Find an old Boombox, old gaming systems, black and white TVs, walkmans, Rubix cubes, Computers or one of the old dial telephones you could put on the side somewhere it doesn't matter if they are not working as they are only for show and if they don't work or turn on they will be much cheaper to buy. See if you have any old metal signs of 80s Brands that you could put up and cover the walls with posters from 80s Films and TV there are websites where you can add photos and print them off with A4 paper and turn into huge sized posters. Tap into the selfie craze and dot some Polaroid Cameras around the room, you could hire a more vintage Photobooth which produces the old style photos with the white edging and get a box of 80s themed clothes and items for your guests to put on, pose and take photos with.

I hope this has given you some ideas about the sorts of things you could plan into your 80s themed party, there are lots of other resources around so do some digging around to see what else you can do, if you are looking for food please check out our 80s Fish and Chip Van Hire we would be happy to send you a quote....... ......hope you have fun at your 80s themed party save me some cheese!

https://www.the-hungryplaice.uk/10-ideas-for-your-80s-themed-party

[hurricanerin]

Not Just One of Your Many Toys 1: Don’t Tell Me What to Do

Pairing: Ransom Drysdale/OFC

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: MAJOR SPOILERS, loss of virginity, power imbalance, general dickishness

Summary: Ransom and Olivia have been thorns in each other’s sides for fifteen years.  They’ve tolerated one another, coaxed each other through major milestones, and trampled on one another’s hearts.  After years spent healing from one of Ransom’s toxic outburst, Olivia finds herself subpoenaed by the Drysdale family as a character witness for his criminal trial.  Their son is out of control, and the one person with the best chance of getting through to him wants absolutely nothing to do with the man.   

NJOoYMT Masterlist

Add yourself to my taglist.

Steamier things are coming, my friends.

Listen. Or kick it retro. You won’t regret it.)

Boston, 2005

 There has never been a moment in my life that I haven’t known exactly who Ransom Drysdale is.  We met in the fall of 2005, right after my dad was promoted with General Electric and my family had moved to Boston from Puerto Rico for his new job. I was 13 and Ransom was 19, and I could’ve told you within 5 minutes of enduring his company that he was a playboy and a Grade A narcissist.  

My parents and his mom, the legendary Linda Drysdale, had closed on our new house the week before.  When my papá had mentioned to our realtor that he had 6 engineer brothers and sisters in PR also looking to move to the Boston area, Linda immediately swooped in and took over the sale.  We had moved into the new house for two days when who showed up on our doorstep with a giant Harry and David gift basket on his mother’s behalf? Ransom.  I’ve never seen my mom so taken with a man so quickly.  It was absolutely nauseating.  

My mom and I had been sitting at the kitchen table eating breakfast with my little brother when Ransom waltzed in, ruining our meal.  While he charmed my mom, I shooed Gian from the table, stuffed him into his coat and boots and shoved his toast into his hand.  

“You’re gonna miss your bus, vete,” I said with an affectionate push.

He waved me off, but I could see his smile as he scrambled out the door towards his friends.  When I turned around, Mamá was on the phone, distractedly scribbling on a notepad at the center island.  Ransom had seated himself at our table and was examining the gift basket. After retrieving a pear, he rearranged the treats so it looked as if nothing were missing.  Catching my eye, he shot me a grin, took a bite of the fruit and flaunted it in front of me.

“Want some?”

My mom’s groan of frustration cut off my retort as she hung up.  Without missing a beat, Ransom hid the pear behind his leg.

Clipping her beeper to the waist of her skirt, she motioned at my backpack.  “Ol, you need to get your school stuff and hop in the car, I have to go to the hospital early.  I need to drive you; school is on the way.  A patient needs to go into surgery now.”

I scowled and put my hands on my hips. “I’m taking the bus with my friends. You said at this school I could!”

Already gathering her coat and keys, she shook her head.  “I’m sorry, mija.  Not today.  Come on, we need to go.  I can’t leave you alone at home for that long.”

My nose started to sting.  I didn’t want to sit at school alone for an hour and have to explain to my new friends why I wasn’t on the bus like everyone else.

Carefully watching the interaction, Ransom cleared his throat.  “Mrs. Santos, I would be happy to stay with her until her bus comes.  I’m home on break from Yale for the week and would love nothing more than to get to know your daughter,” he offered, radiating charisma.

“Oh Ransom, I couldn’t ask you to do that.”

“Honestly, our house is only a few streets away, so we’re practically neighbors.  It would be no problem.”

She hesitated, glancing from Ransom to her watch. Back home, we didn’t have babysitters. Family played that role.  I couldn’t imagine leaving her 13 year-old home alone with a strange man was high on her list of things to do in the US.

Ransom read the situation well.  “Mrs. Santos, my girlfriend is just at my parents’.  Why don’t I give her a call and the three of us can clean up the kitchen until…,” he motioned at me.

“Olivia,” I snipped.

He didn’t flinch.  “Until Olivia’s bus comes,” he finished with a smile.

“I suppose… that would be alright,” Mamá agreed.  “Your family is so kind!”  Sighing in relief, she snagged me for a kiss goodbye and scurried towards the door.  “Behave, Ol! I’ll see you at dinner,” she shouted over her shoulder.

I listened to the garage door close and turned to find him thumbing through the Harry and David catalogue while dabbing pear juice from his lips with a napkin.  I glared at him for a minute.

“You and your mom are just being nice to my parents because I have a lot of aunts and uncles moving here,” I accused.

He looked up, laughing in surprise.  Nodding his head to the side, he shrugged a shoulder, “You’re not wrong.  Did they tell you that?”

“No, but I can tell.”

A soft ping sounded and he patted his pockets, pulling out a phone from his jacket.  He continued nibbling at the pear until all that was left was the core, then absently dumped it on my abandoned breakfast plate.  I walked closer and peered at the screen in his hands while he typed furiously.

“Do you have any games on your phone?” I asked.

“This isn’t a phone, it’s a Blackberry.”

“Do you have any games on your Blackberry?  Like Snake?  My mom’s phone has Snake.”

“No, it doesn’t have Snake,” he snapped as he pulled a headset from his jacket pocket and plugged it into the headphone jack. Almost immediately it rang and he slipped the earpiece on, pushing me.

“Jackson?”  He sighed at me in irritation and turned away.  “Yeah, come up this weekend.  They’re two Norwegian bitches, semi-professional skiers or something. Super hot.  They’re in the US to train but stopping to vacation in New England or whatever.”  He ran his finger along the wicker of the gift basket while he listened to his friend respond.  With an exasperated sigh, he shook his head.  “No, no, we don’t need to take them sailing for them to put out.”

I stared at him, my jaw dropping.  I knew it was rude to both stare and eavesdrop, but I had never met anyone who was so blatantly awful.

“They’ll fuck us because I’m crazy rich, bro, don’t worry,” Ransom chuckled.  He leaned back against the table and rolled his eyes as his friend prattled on, until his gaze landed on me.  His eyes widened.

“Shit,” he muttered.  “Jax, I’m not alone.  I gotta go.”

He yanked the earpiece off and tossed it on the table, leaning towards me with his elbows on his knees.  

I scowled.  “You don’t really have a girlfriend who’s coming over.”

“Olivia,” he said with a practiced smile that actually reached his beaming eyes.  Ignoring my statement, he took me in for a moment, cataloguing my appearance as his gaze came to rest on my neck.

“That’s such a pretty necklace you’re wearing, did you pick it out yourself?”

My insides tingled a little.  I didn’t like-him-like-him or anything, but he did look like a prince and he had complemented the starfish necklace my parents had given me for my birthday last summer.  It was my favorite.

“It was a present from my mom and dad, from when I turned 13 last year.”

“Christ,” he muttered under his breath.  Something about me being a kid.  I didn’t know what that meant, because he made an angry face. But that quickly went away and then his prince face was back.

“That was my friend Jackson on the phone,” he motioned at his Blackberry with his thumb, “We go to college together.  We joke around a lot,” he chuckled, rubbing my shoulder. “You do that with your friends, too, right?  Tell jokes, mess around?”

Confused and skeptical, I nodded.

“And you don’t always tell those jokes to your parents, because they don’t understand them.  You keep them between you and your friends.”

I raised my brow, trying to look formidable.  “You don’t want me to tell my mom what you were talking about.”

The friendliness in his expression melted away, the corner of his mouth tugging upwards instead.  “Exactly.”

 To this day, I wish I could say I stuck up for myself; that I told my mom how much of a jerk he was.  How he was a deceptive, womanizing liar who didn’t deserve an ounce of our time.  But, I didn’t.  Instead, I stooped to Ransom’s level.

My family had money; my mom was a physician and my dad a senior engineer for GE.  We lived very comfortably.  We had spent several months in the US in an apartment before finding the house, during which they had been earning American salaries and making more than ever.  But, both of my parents came from humble means, sent a lot of money back home to their own parents and grandparents, and did not appreciate the materialism I faced every day at the private school they sent me to.

And Ransom had… a lot of money.  He had made that clear over the phone.  I’m not proud to admit that I requested the Tiffany heart tag bracelet I had seen other girls wearing at school in exchange for my silence.  I’m even less proud that, after scoffing at my proposal, Ransom walked me right past the Tiffany & Co. on Newbury Street and in to Cartier and had me pick out a bracelet there instead.  He said he hadn’t bought Tiffany for a girl since he was my age and that he wasn’t lowering himself.  I still have the bracelet buried in my jewelry box, though I never put it on.  Considering its origins, it feels dirty to wear, but I can’t bear to part with it.

 Boston, 2007

 In 2007, we found out my dad had a mistress.  He had paid for her to move over from PR and had been supporting her in Boston for two years.  That would’ve flown in PR, but in the US, my mom’s friends wouldn’t stand for it. (Especially the female divorce lawyer next door.)  That was more or less the end of my dad’s presence in my life.  There’s a chance he might walk me down the aisle one day, but that’s only if Mamá insists on a super Catholic wedding.  

My dad leaving didn’t affect me like it did my mom and Gian. I had my friends and tennis, but Gian was younger and quieter; he and my dad spent a lot of time with little robot projects and those LEGO sets and I could tell he missed him.  Mamá was lonely at home, too; she and my dad had been together since high school.  She had spent a lot of time taking care of him, despite her working 60 hour weeks.

A few of my dad’s sisters hung around as moral support, but Papá eventually pressured them until they stopped coming to see us.  However, there was an additional isolated party within our vicinity who also needed a group of humans to latch onto; someone with the capacity to fill the role of both quasi-paternal figure (figure, not role model), and platonic spouse.

I’d seen Ransom with Mrs. Drysdale; at best, she spoiled her son.  At worst, she placated him with money, demeaned and dismissed him.  Even I didn’t appreciate how she treated him and most days I didn’t like him.  After graduating last in his class from Yale, Ransom took the year off to get away from her. Not a normal “take the year off” where you travel to learn about yourself, or work, or anything like that. Instead, Ransom bought property in the Maldives and imported $500,000 worth of Dom Perignon—the Rose Gold kind—, and flew in ballerinas from Moscow while telling his mom he was joining the Peace Corps for a girl.  When there was fraud on his black AmEx and he had to phone home for help, there was hell to pay when the call came from not Mongolia.  Linda cut him off and kicked him out.

For six months, but still.  This was Ransom.

My mother, bless her heart, would have absorbed all children needing a home if she could.  And, though he was 21, Ransom definitely qualified as such a child.  I honestly think Ransom needed the mothering, too. Growing up with a nanny paid to give you care is not a replication of a mother’s love, which he never had in the first place.

Ransom always showered Mamá with attention, asking how she was with utter sincerity while maintaining direct eye contact, thanking her for the work she did as a cardiac surgeon, and other general sycophantic niceties.  I was terrified that would change for the worst after he moved in, despite their generous age gap.  A freshly divorced woman could’ve been new prey for him.  It wasn’t that she didn’t know who and what he was—she was under no illusions.  But she had a soft spot for the broken bad boy with mommy issues and indulged him.

I watched him like a hawk when he was around her, but he never made a move.  He certainly let her wait on him; she cooked him food from scratch and listened to him talk while she cleaned up the kitchen, but he was never salacious.  I still give him props for that.  It would have been an entertaining game for him, one he would’ve easily won.  

It helped that he was gone half the time.  He still had his car, keys to the Hamptons house and access to his friends’ jets and properties.   I’m pretty sure Richard was also slipping him $50k a month because Ransom rebuilt his wardrobe pretty quickly.

I will admit I was slightly… antagonistic towards him during the beginning of his time with us.  I may have picked a few fights.  He wanted to watch Sin City because of Jessica Alba; I wanted to watch the Corpse Bride.  He left questionable-looking hair trimmings in the shower drain and you can bet I was pounding on his door.  He gave me that look when I thought I had dressed nicely, and I may or may not have launched myself at him.  But, near the middle of his stay, we learned to co-exist, and even had some decent conversations.  I chilled out when I saw how he was with Gian.  

I’m not sure Mamá ever officially asked Ransom to step up while he was living with us, I think the only conditions she had was that he tip the cleaning people an extra $150 for how bad his room was, not have his douchey friends over past 10pm, and no sleepovers with the opposite sex.  But, it was obvious to everyone under our roof that Gian looked to Ransom for companionship.  And, to my utter surprise, Ransom kind of delivered.  He took Gian to the U.S. Open and up to Lake Champlain to golf a few times, and they’d hang out at the house when Ransom was home.  

Then, one day I heard him call Gian his charity project to his friends as they sat out on the porch.  The second he came inside I punched him in the arm over that.  The weirdest part about Ransom and his awful behavior is that he only kinds of means it.  I mean, the idea was there, he had had the thought that Gian was less fortunate than him and needed his help.  But I also know he genuinely loved my little brother and was making spending time with him out to be a bigger deal than it really was.

Six months to the day, Ransom had a moving company at our doorstep at 8am sharp.  He only had a few hanging wardrobes worth of clothes to move into his new apartment; all of the furniture was being delivered by the dealer, but the man couldn’t lower himself to drive his own U-Haul.  By that time, I had developed an appreciation for Ransom.  It was kind of nice to have someone older to talk to, even though he had no conception of what real life was like.  He was okay.  I didn’t miss sharing a dwelling space with him, but I did kind of miss him.

 Boston, Fall 2009

 That fall, I was 18 and a senior at the Winsor School and Ransom was 25 and bullshitting his way through his Master’s of Science in Business Analytics at Princeton.  I preferred not to ask questions regarding his attendance or grades.  I figured the less I knew, the less I could be implicated in some scandal involving the university and bribery.

High school wasn’t a great time in my life. The kids at Winsor were spoiled and came from generations of overachievers.  You could say there were a lot of Ransoms, I suppose; self-serving, arrogant, brutal, conceited, rich kids.  I’m not saying I didn’t share some of those traits, I knew I was fortunate, but I liked to think I was a decent person.  As a result, I was relatively lonely.  I had the varsity tennis team, and that fit my basic  need for socialization.  But not once did I ever entertain the thought of a boyfriend.

As the years progressed, I waited for the mutual attraction for my peers to arrive.  It never did. At that age, even if boys had adopted the air of sophistication they had seen modeled at home and had the ability to charm, they severely lacked in a different department, like intelligence or maturity.  I shut down every advance without a second thought and didn’t look back.

Until, that is, my Senior year.  As leaving home was becoming a reality, I decided I didn’t want to go to college a virgin.  I just didn’t.  Things happen in college, things you don’t always have control over, and I liked control.  I liked control very much.  And I wanted to have control over when and how I gave it up.  And I wasn’t giving it up to some 18 year old I had dated for a three months who couldn’t kiss and also didn’t have the experience to help me enjoy the process.

But I knew someone who did.

I smirked as a key sounded in the lock, Ransom had never given his back from a few years ago.

“Ol?” his voice echoed up the stairs.

“In the kitchen!”

The old stairs creaked as he ascended, heading straight for the refrigerator without even looking at me.

“Hey,” he nodded in greeting.

“Hey.”  For the first time in my life, I was nervous talking to him.  I’d texted him, asking if he could stop by, which wasn’t out of character.  He usually popped in at least once a month to return a book, pick up a sweater he forgot that my mom had washed or have dinner with us.  He lingered, even after moving out.  The flight from Princeton to Boston was only an hour, and it meant a lot to Gian, to all of us, really, that Ransom still visited.

While Ransom dug through the fridge, pulling out some leftover chorizo, I set about throwing together some protein smoothies for us.  He had left a container of ridiculously expensive something something collagen protein at our house the last time he was there and it was expiring soon, so I split the remainder between us.  Out of the corner of my eye I saw him fuss with the microwave.

I raised a brow.  “You know how to use kitchen appliances?”

He took an exaggerated bite of a sausage slice. “Selectively,” he winked.

I bit my cheek to keep from laughing.  Ransom’s “selective” helplessness didn’t need encouragement.

I think what we worked in was companionable silence, but I’m not positive.  I was pretty geared up, so it was hard to tell.  Settling at the table, I laid plates out for both of us, chewing my lip.

“I have a favor to ask.”

“I can’t get you into Yale early decision, but I can get you in,” he said as he reached for his smoothie.

I rolled my eyes.  “I’ve already gotten into Brown on my own, which was my first choice, thank you. What I need is… different.”

“What is it?  I’ve got cash with me.”

“Ransom!  Listen to me. Just let me ask my question.”

“Okay!” he chuckled, his eyes gleaming as he swirled his glass.

“Okay,” I repeated, my heart pounding in my chest. I made myself look him in the eye. All of a sudden I wanted to cry? What if he said no?  What if he laughed?  What if he never talked to me again?

“Ol, you’re getting pale.  You look like you’re about to ask me to skin a cat.”

“Shut up,” I grumbled, seconds away from losing my nerve. I inhaled deeply, folding my hands on the table in front of me and sitting up straight.

“Ransom,” I began.

“Olivia,” he countered, his face comically serious.

“I want you to take my virginity.  Now that I’m 18—.”

“Hah—You what?  No you don’t, Olivia, you don’t—.”

“I do.”

“Ehhhh,” he made a pained face and shook his head.  “I mean, what do you mean by virginy? What have you done before?”

“Nothing.”

“But you’ve given head though, right?”

I tried to mask my embarrassment with a look of disdain.

When Ransom gaped in surprise, I kicked him under the table.

“A handjob?”

“I said nothing,” I bit out.

The corner of his mouth pulled upward and he tilted his head, his eyes narrowing.  “What about like… getting off with each other?”

I shook my head.  

“Sexting?”

“There’s no one I want to sext.”

He sighed and rubbed his eyes.

“But like…”

“I’ve never touched or been touched, Ransom.  I’ve never seen a man naked, okay?”

He sighed.  “I don’t do virgins.  It’s a personal policy.  Especially someone like you who has absolutely no experience.”

That stung, but I kept trying.  “Do you have a girlfriend?”

“No—.”

“Are you dating anyone?”

“Ol, I don’t date—.”

“Ransom, this is exactly the type of arrangement you want!” I hissed.

“This should be something you do with a boyfriend, someone your age who you care about and who cares about you.”

I groaned and stormed into the living room, plopping into an easy chair.  

“I don’t want a boyfriend.  I’m going to Brown in the fall, so dating someone now would be pointless. And in Providence, between Chi Omega, studying, volunteering, and AMSA, I just won’t have time for a relationship.”

Ransom couldn’t suppress a laugh as he tailed after me.  “You’re as heartless as I am.”

“I’m not heartless,” I argued.  “I’m practical.”

He gave me a patronizing smile.  “You’ve never done this before, you don’t know how you’ll feel afterwards.  It’s sex. Girls get attached.  I just can’t do that, babe.”

"You can!  Ransom, you can.  I won’t get attached.  I’ll leave you alone after.  I won’t text you for a month.  Please? I—,” my cheeks flamed as I looked down at my hands.  Bickering and bantering with Ransom was easy.  Acting like I disliked him was easy.  But being vulnerable with him?  That was terrifying.  “I want it to be you,” I whispered.  “I don’t trust anyone else.”

With a sigh, he perched on the arm of my chair.

“I’m going back to Princeton on Sunday.  Even if we did it tonight, we wouldn’t have 48 hours together.”

“I don’t care!” I slapped the seat of the chair. “What if—what if I get roofied and lose it to some guy and don’t even remember it?  Or—or someone, you know… one in every four women faces sexual assault in college…”

That perpetual, devious gleam in Ransom’s eyes disappeared.  Something brutal and vicious replaced it.

  “I’d kill him.  I’d kill anyone who touched you like that.”

My chest tightened.  I’d never seen him that serious before, not even when he argued with his mom.  It was a little terrifying.  But, I had carried pepper spray on me for years since moving to the city and I already knew my parents were sending me to college with a SipChip, not that I’d be going to parties anyway.  I tried another angle.

  “I know I’m not the girls you normally sleep with—blonde, white, with yachts and horses and trust funds—

Darkness cast over his face.

“Olivia,” he interrupted.  Brow creasing, Ransom lifted his hand near my face, then hesitated. With a growl, he cupped my jaw. “You’re beautiful,” he murmured, brushing the knuckle of the opposite hand against my cheek.  “And trust funds are so mundane.”

I rose from the chair and leaned against his leg. “Then why don’t you want me?”  It took everything in me to keep my voice from breaking.

Ransom shifted uneasily, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Ol, I’ve known you since you were a kid.  I can’t—I just don’t see you that way.”

“You still see me as a child?”

“I guess, yeah.”

Butterflies flapped madly in my belly, but I held my breath and stepped forward between his legs until our chests were pressed together, trapping my hand between us at his groin.  Praying that I applied what I had read correctly, I timidly felt for his cock. He grunted when I wrapped my hand around the outline of its shape and followed it with a shy stroke.

“I am not a child,” I husked in my best seductress voice.

“You said you’d never touched or been touched,” he accused through clenched teeth.

Both proud and embarrassed, I ducked my head. “I don’t like entering a situation unprepared.  I read a lot and watched some videos.”  Realizing the implications of my statement, I turned beet red.  “For research, I mean!”

That earned me a genuine smile.  Sliding one hand around my waist he pulled me closer, then used the other to firmly guide my palm over his half erect cock, rubbing it back and forth.  I blushed as I felt him harden under my fingers.

“What else did you research?”

"Stuff,” I mumbled.

Rubbing his thumb along my hipbone, his gaze fell to his lap, watching my hand work over his erection.  Then his eyes deviated to my front, trailing up my belly to my chest, which was, admittedly, heaving, and slowly made their way to my face. Looking someone in the eye had never made me clench down there before.  It was unexpected, but not unappreciated.

I could see Ransom thinking, his eyes flicking back and forth between mine as he reasoned with himself.

“You need to think this over, you need to really consider what you’re asking me and decide that’s what you want,” he murmured, his voice rough.

My pussy throbbed at the sound, and it took extra concentration not to let my eyes close.

“When have I ever made a rash decision about something this important?  I started thinking about this a year ago.”

He exhaled a laugh, shaking his head.  “Of course you did.”

When his hips gave an involuntary thrust against my palm, he gently pulled my wrist away.

“That’s enough for now.”

Tears pricked at the corner of my eyes.  “Did I do it wrong?  Is that a no?”

He massaged his closed eyelids with his index finger and thumb, exhaling shakily.  “It should be a no.  A good man would say no.”  

Drawing me against him once more, I whimpered as he ground his cock against my belly.  “But I’ve never been a good man, have I, Olivia?”

He didn’t give me an opportunity to respond. The kiss was firm, but delicate. No tongues or biting or slipping or sliding, just lips pressed together, gently massaging.  When he sucked at my lower lip I surprised both of us with a soft moan, causing him to bury his hand in my hair and tilt my head for better access.

I completely lost track of everything, because the next moment of consciousness I had was gasping for air as he pulled away. My fingers were tangled in his hair, my hand clutching his sweater like it was a lifeline, and his thigh was situated between both of mine, applying pressure to my clit that was making me see stars.  Now my mouth was wet, but I didn’t care.

Once I could see straight, I dove for his mouth again, but he stopped me with an unyielding grip on my chin.

“Change,” he rumbled.  “We’ll go to dinner at Menton, I’ll pull some strings and get us a table.  Then back to my apartment.”

I squinted, still reeling from the kiss. “We’re not going to Menton first, that makes it sound like a date.  This isn’t a date, we have one mission to accompli—.”

He gaze grew cold.  “If we do this, we’re doing it my way.  You’re going to listen to me.  I’m in charge.”

My eyes flicked back and forth between his as my entire face and neck glowed pink.  

“Okay,” I whispered.

“Say ‘Yes, sir,’” he corrected me.

“Yes, sir,” I repeated softly.

The pleased smile that spread across his lips gave me a warm feeling in my belly.

“Tonight, I’m going to destroy your pussy,” he whispered against my ear, sucking at my lobe, “I’m going to make you come like a whore.”  Moving to my other side, he spoke softly again, his warm breath against my cheek making me shiver.  “Your future husband will resent me for the rest of your lives, because I’m going to ruin you for any other man.”  Nuzzling my nose with the tip of his, he kissed the corner of my mouth.  “And you’re going to love it.”

I couldn’t help myself.  I was throbbing, there was pressure building in my belly and the man had barely laid a hand on me.  With a high pitched whimper, I sought his mouth again, but he wrapped his huge hand around my throat and shook his head as he held me back.

“Go.  Pick out something nice to wear.  Something you feel pretty in.”

Mouth dry, I nodded.  He caught my arm as I went to leave.

“And Olivia?  Not a scrap of clothing underneath.”

[stormtodoroki]

Love Sparks

Pairing: Kaminari Denki x Reader

Soulmate AU

Warnings: None

P.O.V: Reader's

Word Count: 2,644

The knowledge about how and when Quirks came along goes far beyond my family's history, at least I think. My name is Aizawa, (f/n) and I am preparing for my UA entrance exam, thankfully my mother has allowed me to come to Japan from America for schooling. She mentioned something about being able to meet my grandparents as well as my biological father, if I get the chance. She hasn't told me much about him, every time I'd ask her she'd get really mad and tell me not to ask again, but I was persistent, I just had to know. But that's not the only thing I had to know, not only are quirks a fascinating part of our lives but so is the way we find our forever person, our body's receive a shock that courses through our bodies when we make skin to skin contact with our soulmate. 

I stood at the main gates and took a few deep breaths, this was it, the beginning of my future, if I passed this entrance exam I will officially be a hero student at UA High. As I took my steps over the threshold and moved closer to the designated building I let out a shaky breath I didn't realize I was holding. What if my quirk might not be good enough to get through? What if someone has a similar quirk and they have better control over it than I do? I stopped walking all together and was about to turn around when someone crashed into me. 

"WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING YOU DAMN EXTRA! STAY OUTTA MY WAY."

I looked up to see what I could only describe as an angry porcupine, his face contorted with rage if I looked at him close enough I'd probably see steam coming out of his ears. I let out a quick apology and nodded, he tsked and walked away grumbling, boy I would hate to be in the same testing area as him, I'm just grateful that I didn't say anything back to him.  I shook my head clear and walked into the building, looking for my number I sat next to a kid who looked like he was in the wrong place, he dressed a bit too formal. I wonder if he's going to take the exam in that? 

I took a quick glance around and gulp, there's a lot of kids here, I knew how prestigious the school was and how low the acceptance rate was, but this was just insane. My attention was soon directed to the front  where- oh my gosh it's the Pro-hero Present Mic., he's giving us the run down for the practical? This should be good. 

Present Mic. walked to the middle of the stage, he turned to all of us and screamed,

"Welcome to today's live performance. Everybody say, hey!"

We were all silent. You could hear crickets chirping. 

"Well, that's cool, my examinee listeners! I'm here to present the guidelines of your practical, are you ready, there was silence, yet again as he screamed, "YEAH! "

Listening to Present Mic. screaming and talking loud like he always does began to give me a headache, rubbing my temples I tried to focus on what he was saying. A few rows or so away, I heard what sounded like muttering, I quietly turned and looked towards it, there was a boy with unruly green hair next to, I can't believe it… it's the angry porcupine from earlier who knocked into me. Though he didn't seem too happy to be next to the green haired boy.

"This is how the test will go, my listeners! You'll be experiencing 10-minute-long "mock cityscape maneuvers"! Bring along whatever you want! After this presentation, each head to your assigned testing location."

"Is that so kids from the same middle school can't help each other out?"

I heard from the duo behind me, shaking my head clear I was happy that I didn't know anyone from Japan so it'd be easier for me to take the test and not worry about  any of my friends who were also trying to get into UA, all I have to do is worry about myself. 

"Each site is filled with 3 kinds of faux villains, points are rewarded for defeating each according to their respective difficulty levels!! Use your quirks to disable, these faux villains and earn points! That's your goal, listeners! Of course, playing the anti-hero and attacking other examinees is prohibited!"

I noticed during this part of Present Mics. explanation, the boy dressed in formal attire next to me was twitching in his seat, he waited for Present Mic. to finish talking before he up abruptly stood up with his hand and paper in the air.

"Excuse me, but if I may ask a question?!"

Oh boy, this ought to be great… 

"There appear to be no fewer than 4 varieties of faux, the one on this handout, such a bland, if it is one, is highly unbecoming for you. Japan's top academy we're all here today in the hopes of being molded into model heroes."

He then turned and pointed to Green Bean. 

"And you with the curly hair, you've been muttering this whole time, it's distracting if this is some sort of game to you then please leave immediately! "

He muttered, sorry and put his hands to his mouth, I covered my mouth with my hand and fought back a giggle. 

"Alright, alright, examinee 7111 nice catch thanks, but the 4th faux villain variety gets you zero points this more of an obstacle, have you all played Super Mario Brothers, the old retro games?"

"It's kind of like a thwomp! Only one at each site, a "gimmick" that will rampage around in close quarters."

I heard quiet murmurs about the zero pointer all around me and just shook my head in pity, clearly this is a decoy. Yes, there may be a zero pointer but it's more likely to be the biggest one there is otherwise there'd be more stationed at each site. They expect us not to worry about said faux villain, yet it'll probably be the most important one in the whole exam, I'll have to keep an eye out for it. 

"Thank you, sir, I apologize for the interruption!"

With that the formal guy next to me took a bow and sat back down. 

"That's all for me, I'll leave my listeners  with our school motto, the great hero Napoleon Bonaparte once said, 'true heroism consists in being superior to the ills of life!' plus ultra!! Break a leg everyone! "

With that everyone got up from their spots and filed out in search of where they were to go.  As I looked around the battle center I was sent to a breathed out a sigh of relief, neither the formal dude or the hot head were in sight. I looked around for the green bean to ask him what the hot head had shoved up his butt, but to my dismay he wasn't assigned to my battle center either.  Looking around I see people meditating and conversing with each other, I don't need to do either. I began walking towards the front of the crowd marveling at the city front before me. I looked around and saw Present Mic. on top of a platform and smiled up at him and waved, like a buffoon he looked and and pointed to himself in confusion then waved back before pointing to the city urgently. 

I took that as my cue to go so I took a deep breath and ran in, I made in about 10 feet into the city before I heard him call out. 

"What are you waiting for?! There are no timers in real battles! Begin!"

I knew if I turned around I'd see all the kids running towards me so I decided to get some air coverage. Sticking my arms and hands out to my sides I shot up into the air leaving a trail of water spiraling down below me. I landed on a high rise and looked around the city, seeing a 1 pointer and a 2 pointer approaching I summoned a ball of water into my hands and contorted it into a spear. 

I began to run and jump the rooftops closer to the faux villains and replicated the spear before throwing them both at each bot, taking them down. As the bots were falling I hopped onto them and used my water to slide down to the ground. Looking around them I did a double check to make sure nobody made it this far and accidentally got crushed by a giant falling robot. After seeing it was clear I decided to make way to the center on food, as I began to jog I heard a scream from behind me. I turned to look and saw a 3 pointer ready to crush a girl with pink hair and what appears to be horns? I looked closer and saw her foot was stuck and she was trying to get out without using her quirk on herself. I definitely wouldn't make it to her by running, so I had to muster up my energy and use my quirk from afar, something I'm not too good at. 

"Hey! Close your eyes!"

The girl looked at me and nodded, I then stood next to one of the fallen faux villain bots and took a stray piece in a ball of water I expanded to its size, quickly I released the piece and expanded the water ball more until it was the size of the bot. I hurled the ball of water at the bot and encased it in my water ball before throwing the water ball into the air, it disappeared from the center and past the clouds. 

"Okay, I may have been a little too extreme… "

I muttered to myself, as I walked over to the girl and helped free her. 

"You good?"

She nodded and thanked me. 

"Don't mention it, just go get some more points for yourself. I'd hate for you not to be able to get in because you were stuck and couldn't stop thanking someone who saved you."

After taking down a few more bots and saving a few people I estimate that I have around 35 points right now which means I should be in good standing. I was so lost in thought that I bumped into someone, they sent a shock through me and I froze for a second before shaking my arm. 

"Oh my gosh I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hit you with my quirk are you okay?" 

'What? Wait? He hit me with his quirk?'

I cleared my head and looked at him in confusion, that wasn't just the electric shock that goes through your body when you meet your soulmate? 

"Oh…  uh. Don't worry about it. I'm all good."

'Lies, why would I be alright? You know damn well it wasn't your quirk.'

He gave me a look of uncertainty and smiled. 

"Hi, I'm Kaminari Denki. Nice to meet you uh…  what's your name?"

I scoffed internally, 'really? That's how you're gonna ask me my name? Dude just how dense are you?'

"F/n L/n. Crap, sorry. L/N, F/N. Nice to meet you as well Kaminari. Now if you'll excuse me I need to go and rack up more points so if you don't mind I'll just be o-"

Kaminari cut me off by yelling. 

"That's a zero pointer! No way! That thing is huge!"

Looking up I saw what he was talking about, I smirked. 

"U.A. definitely lives up to its prestigious name. I am impressed. Wow. This zero pointer is glorious."

Kaminari looked at me like I was insane, as if I somehow sparked a fire in him he puffed out his chest in glee and smirked. 

"All the more reason for me to prove my strength. Stand back L/N I'm gonna light this bot up."

I blinked in surprise as he ran towards the bot and he charged up- no way, he wasn't kidding. Large amounts of electricity sprayed out of his hands to the bot, it froze in place for a few moments with electricity spazzing all around the bots frame, but it didn't go down. Kaminari turned to me and gave me a thumbs up and a dumb look on his face. 

"Kaminari you fool! You fried your brain with that foolish attack!"

The bot soon was out of its shocked state and raised it's foot ready to pummel the poor dunce. I quickly mustered up my strength and formed a water ball and sent it at Kaminari, once he was inside I whipped it at me. Kaminari and the water ball collided into me just as the bot stomped down where Kaminari was seconds before. I stood up and slapped Kaminari, feeling another jolt of electricity surge through me. 

'Awh hell. This fool is my soulmate and he's too dense to realize it's not his quirk.'

I turned to the bot and watched it moved closer before turning back to Kaminari. 

"After this exam you're taking me out for ice cream for saving your fried ass not only once but twice."

I turned back to the bot and sent two water balls towards the next spots where it would step, not satisfied with the ground I sent more until the bot stepped and sunk a few feet. 

"Yes! It worked!"

I happily then made a few water spears and threw them at the bot before I took a deep breath in, closed my eyes and concentrated on a tiny ball of water in my hands, I needed to focus all my energy if I wanted to make this work. I slowly enlarged the ball in my hand and listened as it started to crackle and pop, taking another deep breath I slowly opened my eyes and smirked before shrinking the softball sized water ball and throwing it at the exposed part of the bot. Once it was a foot from contacting the bot I spread my arms out enlarging the crackling ball and watched as it downed the bot. 

I looked to Kaminari and sighed. I need to get him somewhere safe until this wears off, if I leave him here he'll be an easy target for the other bots. I'm pretty sure there's five minutes left meaning I can still get a few more points if I hurry up. I took some gummies out of my pocket and threw them in my mouth, I'm lucky we were allowed to bring things in that would help us, otherwise I'd have been out for the count when I helped that pink girl.  I led Kaminari to a safe area and smirked as a three pointer came out of the alley next to us, I jumped up with my water and formed water around my wrist as I plummeted down and punched the bot. It went down just as Present Mic. screeched. 

"It's all over! Good job everybody! 

Within moments Recovery Girl was by my side looking at Kaminari, she shook her head and gave him a kiss on the forehead. Kaminari blinked and looked around in a state of confusion before looking at me. 

"Come on Kaminari, you owe me an ice cream."

I poked his cheek and was sent another shock of electricity, which he definitely would have felt as all and leaned into his ear. 

"After all we are soulmates, and I just saved your butt."

I gave the shocked boy a knowing smile and grasped his hand and began leasing him away towards the exit. If we both somehow get into the hero course this was going to be one exciting year...

A/N: this is AU prompt was brought upon you thanks to the bnha discord server. You can find other works by member of the discord here:

https://liliesoftherain.tumblr.com/post/614256302090223616/mha-x-reader-discord-prompt-masterlist

[lovejustforaday]

My Top 10 Albums of 2019

Rose Gold - Kitty

Main Genres: Electro Pop

A decent sampling of: Chill Hop, Chill Wave, Alternative R&B, Cloud Rap, Future Bass, Synth Pop, Trip Hop, Wonky Kitty's sound keeps changing from EP to LP, but one thing that remains constant is her witty, hyper-feminine cool girl persona. On "Rose Gold", she explores a variety of electronic genres while maintaining a near-perfect chill mood and atmosphere. "Rose Gold" easily avoids falling into the traps of repetitiveness prone to a lot of lo-fi chill music thanks to Kitty's charming personality and clever lyricism on tracks like "B.O.M.B. (Peter)" and "Florida". I feel like this is definitely a late night album, one you might listen to while sneaking around your kitchen to make a late night snack while wearing your cutest pajamas. Alternatively, this is the album your stuffed animals all get up and vibe to while you're sleeping. Oh yeah, and "Counting All The Starfish" samples FF7 which is pretty cool. Highlights: "B.O.M.B. (Peter)", “Don’t Panic (Interlude)”, "Mami", "Counting All The Starfish", “Disconnect”

8/10

House of Sugar - Sandy (Alex G)

Main Genres: Indie Folk, Neo-Psychedelia

A decent sampling of: Folktronica, Psychedelic Folk, Indie Pop, Americana I admit, I was completely unfamiliar with Alex G's material until this album came along and garnered a lot of attention. I'm very excited to explore his back catalogue now thanks to this album. Fitting to its name, "House of Sugar" is somewhat like a psychedelic sugar rush, feeling at once strange and whimsical yet also sickly sweet and delirious. Under the album's upbeat folky veneer lies darker themes about loss both personal and conceptual. "Gretel" and the album title itself are both inspired by the fairytale of Hansel and Gretel, which makes a lot of sense because I really just want to get lost in the woods while listening to this album. "Project 2" is a noticeable outlier and the weakest track, forgoing conventional song structure completely for experimental synth music yielding mixed results, but even this short track manages to be oddly beautiful and adds to the overall experience. Likewise, "House of Sugar" is an exceptionally interesting musical journey even at its weakest. Highlights: "Gretel", "Sugar", "Hope", "Walk Away", "Taking"

8/10

Titanic Rising - Weyes Blood

Main Genres: Art Pop, Baroque Pop

A decent sampling of: Progressive Pop, Psychedelic Pop, Soft Rock, Progressive Electronic, Alternative Country Most acclaimed album of 2019? Quite possibly. While it's not my top choice of the year, I can definitely understand the widespread praise this album has received. At its best, Weyes Blood's "Titanic Rising" is a truly lush and cinematic experience, incorporating musical influences from the best of 60s and 70s era pop music with a moving lyrical narrative of coming to terms with depression and getting older. Mering's voice is warm and tender, and her insights about generational woes on tracks like "Everyday" and "Something to Believe" are mature and nuanced. If you're new to being an adult like I am, and you find the prospects of trying to build a fulfilling and meaningful life in the kind of world we live in scary, then listening to "Titanic Rising" will feel like a very bittersweet soundtrack written for a movie based on your own real life. Considerably front-loaded, but the concept for this album is very fresh and ambitious, and when it's good, it's brilliant. P.S. definitely the best album cover of 2019 Highlights: "Everyday", "Movies", "Andromeda", "Titanic Rising", "A Lot's Gonna Change"

8/10

Grey Area - Little Simz

Main Genres: Conscious Rap, UK Rap

A decent sampling of: Jazz Rap, Hardcore Rap

Little Simz sounds like she knows exactly who she is and what she's doing on "Grey Area", like she has her flow and writing lyrics down to a science. The album really feels like seeing the world through her eyes, and Simz holds nothing back, talking about everything from institutional racism and violence, to things like therapy, motherhood, and even video games. "Grey Area" succeeds as well as it does largely thanks to the strengths of Simz's offbeat personality, lyrical insights, and excellent delivery, while the production on the album is mostly smooth and slick in a way that never overpowers her as the main focus. I'll admit, I find at some points that the production on some of the songs falls considerably short of the standards set by Simz's own talent as a rapper, but when the production does reach that level on tracks like "101 FM" and "Venom", the pay off is brilliant. "101 FM" in particular is such an interesting and unique hip hop song, in the same way that Simz is a very interesting and unique rapper. Honestly this album is worth the listen alone just to hear what Little Simz has to say about everything.

Highlights: "101 FM", "Selfish", "Offence", "Venom"

8/10

Pang - Caroline Polachek

Main Genres: Art Pop, Alternative R&B

A decent sampling of: Electro Pop, Glitch Pop, Ambient Pop, New Age, Downtempo Of all the albums I've listened to this year, "Pang" feels like the most varied journey with an impressive collection of 14 songs in under 50 minutes. On this LP, Caroline Polachek takes the listener through her world of romantic fairytales and magic. Some of the songs are poppy bangers like the funky "So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings" and the rhythmic "Ocean of Tears", while other songs are more mood-driven and meditative like "Parachute" and "Insomnia". Many of the songs place emphasis on the vocal gymnastics of Polachek herself, who makes great use of her range and techniques like heavy breaths on "So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings". The production work of Polachek and Danny L. Harle is sophisticated and intricate, with a lot of attention to detail on tracks like "Door" and "Pang". A lot of the songs are  mysterious and cerebral, especially the penultimate "Door" which has an equally cerebral and trippy music video. Overall, I'd say that "Pang" definitely opens and closes with its strongest few tracks, but there’s enough variety and intricacies throughout its entirety to make the album experience highly engaging on repeated listens as you explore the different musical worlds that each song has to offer.

Highlights: "Door", " So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings ", “Parachute”, "Pang", "Go As a Dream", "Ocean of Tears", “Hit Me Where It Hurts”, "The Gate"

9/10

Norman Fucking Rockwell! - Lana Del Rey

Main Genres: Art Pop, Soft Rock

A decent sampling of: Dream Pop, Chamber Pop, Contemporary Folk, Psychedelic Pop, Piano Rock, Blues Rock, Americana, Pop Soul So yeah, this album happened. Lana Del Rey has always been an artist I appreciated for her unique sound and persona, but I found that her 2012 LP "Born To Die" mostly didn't quite live up to her potential as an artist, and I never really bothered with the rest of her work apart from individual songs until now. I'm so glad I checked this one out because "Norman Fucking Rockwell!" rightfully deserves the wave of acclaim it has received this year. Lana Del Rey's songwriting has become so sophisticated on this LP, and the warm, rich soft rock sound that she's adopted on tracks like "The greatest" compliments her vocals better than any other genre she's explored so far. Like most of her work, "Norman Fucking Rockwell!" explores American identity and femininity, and the songs are tinged with sadness and nostalgia. That being said, I actually find parts of this album very uplifting, especially on "Love Song" and "Mariners Apartment Complex". "Venice Bitch" is, simply put, a true masterpiece. It's the reason I checked out the album when I heard the single last year, and it damn near blows everything else out of the water with its gorgeous soundscapes and 9 minute length that could go on for an eternity if it wanted to. Regardless, there's a lot of songs here that I love, even if the LP is a little front-loaded. Lana has outdone herself this time with "Norman Fucking Rockwell!", and I already look forward to the projects she's announced for 2020. In the meantime, I should check out the LPs that I missed in her discography. Highlights: "Venice Bitch", "The greatest", "Mariners Apartment Complex", "How to disappear", "Cinnamon Girl", "Love song", "Norman fucking Rockwell"

9/10

Keepsake - Hatchie

Main Genres: Dream Pop, Indie Pop

A decent sampling of: Shoegaze, Synth Pop, Twee Pop, Jangle Pop

This album pretty clearly derives a lot of its sound from a particular era of early 90s dream pop, shoegaze, and jangle pop. So what makes "Keepsake" so special? For one, Hatchie knows her sound niche and does it incredibly well. Songs like "Stay With Me" and "Kiss The Stars" feel like lost gems from an era when they could've been heard on college radios in between the Cocteau Twins, MBV, and the Cranberries. While her sonic timbre is pure retro, Hatchie's own take on classic dream pop from a songwriting perspective is fresh and unique. Her lyrics and melodies are pure and saccharine in a way that reminds me of feel-good teen romcoms about sappy high school romances, only I mean that in the best way possible. Songs like "Without A Blush" and "Secret" feel like what I thought falling in love was gonna be like when I was 11 years old. "Stay With Me" is a rush of euphoria, and the song feels like prom again whenever I listen to it. Her pop songwriting sensibilities are well-crafted in a way that makes it look like she's been doing this for years and years, when really Hatchie only started putting out her own music in 2017. The sequencing of the tracks is well thought out, and I find "Keepsake" is at its strongest in the middle portion. There's just a certain essence of carefree youth and sentimentality that Hatchie has captured so vividly with this album. If you're looking to recapture the feeling of your best memories as a teenager, "Keepsake" will take you there. Strongest debut LP of the year, and I super look forward to whatever she does next. Highlights: "Stay With Me", "Secret", "Her Own Heart" "Kiss The Stars", "Without A Blush", "Unwanted Guest"

9/10

Djinn - Lingua Nada

Main Genres: Indie Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Noise Rock

A decent sampling of: Noise Pop, Progressive Rock, Math Rock, Neo-Psychedelia, Indietronica, Experimental Rock

Lingua Nada is that one really cool indie band that only I and a few others seem to know about. The band has a very distinct and creative sound which combines explosive noise with jerky, whacky rhythms and upbeat melodies. Last year's "Snuff" was a very raw and experimental album experience, and another year-end favourite of mine. This year's "Djinn" boasts slightly more conventional song structures, but the sonic timbres and rhythms are just as strange and beautiful, if not more. As its name would suggest, "Djinn" is partly inspired by Arabian folklore and evokes a sort of mysterious, ghostly presence on songs like the title track and "Salam Cyber". The mix of noise, acid-y psychedelics, and complex rhythms on "Habiba" and "Dweeb Weed" results in alien, otherworldly sounds. "These Hands Are Royal" is a very evocative track as well, with its propulsive beat and dusty guitar riffs giving me the distinct imagery of travelling a desert by foot. Lingua Nada never overwhelms the listener with their explosive songs on "Djinn", and the band takes time to mellow out a bit towards the end of the album with the bubbly, psychedelic indietronica bop "Yalla Yalla" and the minimalist folk tune "In Limbo". Lead vocalist Adam Lenox is buried pretty deep in the mix of guitars, and I wouldn't exactly say he has the strongest presence as a vocalist, but I can't say that this takes away much of the appeal because "Djinn" is clearly meant to be a more impressionistic experience. Lingua Nada have come out of the past two years with a strong 1-2 punch of innovative noise rock albums, and with "Djinn" they've proven themselves to be one of the most daring and multi-talented rock bands of the decade.

Highlights: "Habiba", "These Hands Are Royal", "Djinn", "Salam Cyber", "Yalla Yalla", "Proto", "Gucci Mecca"

9/10

Ginger - Brockhampton

Main Genres: Pop Rap, Contemporary R&B, West Coast Rap

A decent sampling of: Alternative R&B, Emo Rap, Conscious Rap, Indie Pop

This album feels like it's all about growth. Brockhampton have undergone a lot of changes as a band since they first blew up in 2017 between sudden fame, signing a major label, and kicking Ameer for his toxic behaviour. Last year's "Iridescence" felt like a raw, anguished, and messy response to the sudden changes the band had to cope with. Now it's 2019 and we have "Ginger", a more lowkey and sometimes deeply sad album, where members of Brockhampton are still processing many of the same problems. This time, however, the album is far more consistent, more nuanced, and overall, masterfully crafted. There's a lot of talk of male identity and what it means to be a man on "Ginger", and some of the traits brought up are moral integrity, honesty, and vulnerability, all which are part of emotional maturity and subvert machismo gender expectations. True to its album cover, "Ginger" is like a big hug for young guys struggling with depression, but anybody can get something out of this brilliant piece of art. The highlights are many: Joba's verse on "BIG BOY", Kevin's verse on "BOY BYE", and Matt's verse on "NO HALO" just to name a few. But the defining moment of "Ginger" is Dom's takedown of Ameer at the end of "DEARLY DEPARTED", a brilliant 66 seconds of anger, remorse, pain, and condemnation.  Guest rapper Victor Roberts rapping about his traumatic childhood experience with the police on album closer "VICTOR ROBERTS" is also a key highlight, and serves as a fitting note to end an album that so forwardly tackles depression and coping with traumatic life changes. The production is fantastic, from the effortlessly cool R&B jam "SUGAR" to weirder tracks like the off-kilter "IF YOU PRAY RIGHT" which is built around a cartoonish trombone riff. I simply can't praise this album enough. Brockhampton have matured as artists, and "Ginger" will go on to prove their legacy as one of the best rap groups of the 2010s. Highlights: "DEARLY DEPARTED", "NO HALO", "SUGAR", "GINGER", "BOY BYE", "VICTOR ROBERTS", "IF YOU PRAY RIGHT", "BIG BOY", “ST. PERCY”

10/10

Magdalene - FKA Twigs

Main Genres: Art Pop, Glitch Pop

A decent sampling of: Progressive Pop, Ambient Pop, Alternative R&B, Post-Industrial

It's hard to describe what makes this album so brilliant because it's so subtle. "MAGDALENE" slowly unravels to reveal its beauty, in the same way that a flower slowly blooms, petal by petal. Likewise, FKA Twigs slowly strips away all of her defenses, track by track, to reveal the heart of a wounded lover. "MAGDALENE" is all about the breakup of Twigs' highly publicized relationship with Robert Pattinson. The lyrics explore her lover's emotional distance on "home with you", her feelings of inadequacy after being thrust into the broader public eye on "cellophane", her lover's lies on "fallen alien", and the physical pain she endured undergoing fibroid surgery that rendered her feeling weak on "daybed". Like the rest of her work, many of the songs on "MAGDALENE" juxtapose the unnerving with the beautiful, with tracks like "mirrored heart" and "fallen alien" alternating between ethereal vocals backed by piano and glitchy, spine-tingling production that evokes earthquakes and mirrors shattering into hundreds of pieces. There's also a lot of empty space on this album, and a general appreciation for minimalism. Tracks like "mary magdalene" and "cellophane" are made stronger by allowing enough room for Twigs' vocals to carry the music, and boy does she ever. Twigs breathes, moans, cries, screams, whispers, and commands with her voice to utter perfection throughout. The vocal highlights are all over "MAGDALENE", but my absolute favourites include the last line of "home with you", the dark incantations of the verses on "fallen alien", and the withering refrain after the beat-drop on "cellophane". "cellophane" is the centerpiece of "MAGDALENE" and the perfect closer, like listening to the music of a dying flower as it slowly wilts away. Overall, "MAGDALENE" is a stunning piece of art. Twigs has reclaimed her pain on this album by turning one of the lowest points in her life into the most beautiful album of the year. Highlights: "cellophane", "home with you", "fallen alien", "mary magdalene", "daybed", "sad day", "mirrored heart", "thousand eyes"

10/10

[erintoknow]

be scared with me

retro-actively calling this for ockiss week even though this has been sitting as a WIP for months now @ratkingkisses​‘s Zia Basri x Ariadne Becker, Fallen Hero: Rebirth OCs ~4.2k words [AO3]

–

“Come on darling, no more dawdling!” Zia Basri pulls at your arm, her elbow locked with yours. You let her pull you along, past the doorman whose thoughts are none the wiser over your faked tickets. “Now this is a party.” Zia’s smile is broad and unguarded as her eyes sweep over the ostentatious gold and silver decorations of the wide ballroom floor.

Your own eyes fixate on the large chandelier hanging in the center of the room. In its shadow is a buffet table. Or more accurately, a series of buffet tables arranged into a rectangle. Hrm. Anyone gets any funny ideas about the lights, only the help managing the food will be crushed.

Disappointing.

No pressure pushes down on your awareness, no sensation of static drowns out the buzz of minds around the two of you. The Dampeners aren’t on then. Good. That bribe hadn’t been for nothing. That’ll make tonight much, much easier.

You glance back over to Zia, slightly above eye-height for once thanks to her high-heeled shoes. “S–stay focused.”

Zia doesn’t look at you, only the slightest quirk of her lips. “Of course.”

“I’m serious.” You hiss. “We only have the one shot at this.”

“Ari. Dear.” Zia laughs, shaking her head. “I’m a professional. Please.”

“Yeah. N–not – not helping.”

Robbing from, Henry Yasuda, one of the richest men in Los Diablos is not exactly the smartest thing you’ve ever done, but if it puts a dent in his prestige and political power it’ll be worth it. That was Zia’s pitch to you anyway. You’re pretty sure she doesn’t care about the political angle. Just getting a piece of the pie.

And, well, that money would help along several other projects you’ve had sitting on the back burner.

And it’s a very large pie.

You put your free hand to the frame of your sunglasses. Is it gouache to wear them indoors at a high society event? Probably, but fuck these guys. No one seems to be paying either of you much mind. Lost in their only little worlds, no doubt helped along by Zia’s telepathic talents. You can feel the edge of her awareness brush past yours, getting a feel for the room at large.

“Relax.”

You snap your head back to Zia, and she laughs at you.

“It’s a good plan.” She disentangles your arm from hers. “I’ll finish taking stock here. You take care of setting up plan B.” With a soft push to your back, Zia sends you stumbling out away from her.

Right.

The plan.

Stick to the plan.

You made the plan. So. Better stick to it. The plan, that is.

Yes.

Adjusting the strap of your purse you glance around, pick up the location of the restroom from a nearby mind and head off in that direction. In a fashion, the plan is the same as the original Plan. From the Gala debut. Only this time, the explosions are plan B. If the two of you can get out of this without any fighting, that would be ideal. No fighting, no hint that anything’s wrong.

And if you get caught… well, that’s where plan ‘B for bomb’ comes in. No time for thieves if super villains are attacking right? Slip out in the chaos. Ideally with the prize still.

In a locked bathroom stall, you remove the explosive charges from the false bottom of your purse and prime them for the radio signal. Back in at the top of your purse they go and you take a minute at the bathroom sink before for cover and to psych yourself up.

You’ve been over the schematics a million times. You know exactly where to place the charges to maximize noise and debris while minimizing the risk of casualties. And if something does get hurt… well, these people are all rich out of their minds anyway. A little psychological scarring builds character.

Exiting the bathroom again, you spare a thought towards Zia as you make your rounds around the ballroom. She seems to be doing okay. Thoughts calm except for – well, she’s always eager for excuse to really stretch her abilities. Show off. Showing off for you, you’re not sure. You’re the only one that knows Zia Basri as anything but a reclusive and retired industrialist. The Nemesis to your Adrestia.

You linger by a wide, double-paned window, one hand surreptitiously palming the last charge onto the rim of a potted plant. You’ve got a clear view of Zia across the bustle of the floor. Wrapped in a gown of black with pink accents, the metallic silver glint from her jewelry catching the lights. She’s chatting up another woman in a sharp black suit. Typical.

The two of you should have gone your separate ways after the escape. Your continued partnership like this is a risk. A weak point. One of you screws up, and you’ll both be damned. This is it. This is the last time you’re working with her. This time for real.

Getting close to people is a liability for… people, like yourselves. Depending on others is a liability. And Zia is arrogant about the extent of her telepathy and full of herself besides. Sure, she’s saved you a couple times at this point but it was a matter of practicality. You going down would only risk exposing her as well.

Look out for number one, that’s all that –

The woman Zia’s been talking to laughs, stepping into Zia’s personal space. Wrapping an arm around her back and – oh. They’re kissing. You grit your teeth. Zia enjoys flirting, of course she’s going to flirt here. Hardly a surprise for this to happen.

God they’re going at it. This is risky as hell. Even Zia has to know that. Look at her body language. Stiff, and – is that her hand shaking? You’re too far away to be sure. You shake your head. Try not to clench your fists as you walk over. Walk. Not storm. Relaxed, not tense. Why would you be tense? Absurd. Crazy.

“Basri. There you are.” You flash a terse smile at Zia and her new ‘friend.’

They break apart. Zia quickly stepping away and smoothing out her dress. Her companion raises an eyebrow, looking between the two of you.

“B–becker.” Zia nods at you, flashes a smile back, “Back so soon?”

“Mmhm.” You step towards her, a hand on her arm. “Can I talk with you?” You glance at the other woman. “Alone?”

“I – yes. Yes, of course.” She gives an awkward wave as you pull her away. “Loved chatting with you dear!”

You pull her along, into one of the side hallways stretching down into the wings of the building. You let go of her arm, glancing back towards the ballroom. “Are you okay?”

Zia frowns, rubbing where you touched her. “I was doing just fine until you so rudely pulled me away.”

“I–I–I can’t – Okay. Fine. We need to – to talk. Now.” You glance around, “Privately.”

“So eager to keep me for yourself, sweetheart?”

You ignore her jab, an open door to a study off the hallway catches your attention. That’ll work. Don’t pick up anyone else inside. You push Zia into the room, pulling the door shut behind you both. “What – what the fuck were you thinking!?”

The other woman smiles quietly to herself, easing out the crinkles in her dress. “I don’t understand what you mean, my dear.” She props herself up against a wardrobe, crossing her arms. “We’re here for a job. Doesn’t mean I can’t have a little fun along the way.”

“Fun!?” You grit your teeth, strain to keep your voice down. “That–that–that woman was halfway down your throat!”

Zia’s smile broadens into a smirk. “Jealous?”

You step back, “N–no! Ugh! You always do this!” Throw your hands into the air as you storm over to the room’s one window. “Suppose Little Miss Handsy got too frisky? Huh? What’re you going to do then?”

Zia yawns, waving the thought away with a hand. “Oh, I suppose I’d have to wipe the poor dear’s mind. Make her think she got a little too drunk.” She shrugs. “Nothing would happen.”

“And the security cameras? Everyone else in the fucking ballroom?”

“Please, sweetheart, You of all people should know just how powerful I am these days.”

You turn away from the window to stare her down again. “That’s not – that’s not your risk to take, Zia! W–we’re in this together!”

She doesn’t look back at you, studying her fingernails. “For as long as it’s convenient at any rate, my dear handmaiden.”

“Oh fuck off.” You storm towards her, “You can’t keep treating everything like it’s some big game!”

“Isn’t it?” Her smile collapses into a frown as she finally looks over at you. “I’m sick of hiding all the time, and I’m sick of these…” She tugs at the collar of her dress, a look of disgust on her face. “turtlenecks. All the time! One day I want to wear something flashy and not fear for my life!”

Ah. “So y–you were scared back there.”

Zia snaps back to you, letting go of her dress. “I didn’t say that!”

You shake your head, rubbing at your temples. “You were tenser then a coiled spring. I saw your hand shaking.”

“They were not.” Zia snorts. “The only scared woman here is you, dearie. Scared, and jealous.”

“I wasn’t–” you swallow the words back, heart in your throat. “Okay. You know what. Fine. Fine! I–I–I am. Jealous. I admit it.” You put a hand to your chest, as if you could hold your heart in from exploding.

Zia blinks, taken aback. You’ve called her bluff.

“At least – at least I can. Admit it. You – you cocoon yourself in your little act and you think if no one sees the real you, nothing can hurt you!” You laugh, can’t believe you’re actually saying this out loud finally. “When we first met, I thought you were so – so ‘cool’ so ‘imposing.’ That you had it all together, but you know what?” You jab a finger at her. “I–I–I see right through you now. You’re just as scared as I am. No,” You shake your head. “More scared! You’re too scared to even let yourself be scared.”

Silence stretches out between the two of you. Ah fuck. You went too far this time. You’ve blown it.

“Are you done?” Zia stares at you, her expression unreadable. Shaken? Uncertain? Or are you just projecting?

Take a deep breath. Hold. Exhale. “N–no. There’s, um. There’s one more thing.”

“Wha–” Zia doesn’t get to finish speaking as you pull her into an embrace. Her body is rigid in your arms.

“It’s… it’s okay to be scared.”

There’s silence, and then, a weak laugh. “We should… finish the mission.”

You let go of her, heat flashing across your face. God. You idiot, what were you thinking? Zia steps away, and quickly averts her head. But not before you catch a flush across her face. You try not to stare. Thoughts like smoke, melting away before you can read anything coming off her.

You cough and take a step back yourself. “R–right. The… the mission.” You run a hand under your purse strap. “Plan B is ready.”

Zia looks back to you, her usual cool demeanor coming back. “Then let’s get started on Plan A.” She sweeps a hand back through her hair. Pulling back her hand, she twirls a pair of bobby pins between her fingers before they vanish up a sleeve. “Lead the way, my dear handmaiden.”

You roll your eyes and don’t say anything. You’ve given up on the whole name thing. You could just change yours, but it’s the principle of the issue. It’d be like admitting defeat. Putting a hand on the door handle, you pause a moment to get a sense if anyone’s looking out in the hallway. Satisfied you open the door, Zia following you back outside. “Alright, first stop the security station. You ready to fish?”

Zia nods in the affirmative as you glance back to her, a smirk playing across her face. “Cakewalk.”

“Just – just try to restrain yourself. And – wait for my signal. No more diversions. Stay focused.”

“Getting bossy aren’t we?” Zia laughs as you glare at her. “Worried?”

“You wanted me to plan this. So I – I did.”

“Relax. I have total confidence in you.”

You frown at that. “We meet up at the vault.” Turning away you hesitate, glance backwards. “Be careful. I – I’m fucking serious.”

–

Sneaking into security offices is starting to become old hat. Can’t deny that you and Zia make a good team. One takes care of the CCTV and other security, the other gets the target to practically hand over the goods. If anyone’s caught on yet, there hasn’t been any sign of it.

It only takes a few carefully planted suggestions to pull the sap stuck watching the security cams into a deep sleep. Stepping around him, you plug the USB stick with the virus ready to deploy. The monitor screens flicker for a moment and then nothing. You bite back a smile as you pull the stick back out. By the time they notice anything wrong, if they notice anything wrong, it’ll be too late.

From there, it’s a matter of a few careful keypresses to turn off the laser detectors and alarm system. You’ve got maybe half an hour before someone checks on the office and resets the alarms.

Plenty of time.

Hopefully.

Closing your eyes you stretch out your awareness, find the hazy void of thought that masks Zia’s presence and give it a sharp prod. A moment passes and you feel a hard shove in return.

Okay. Great. So far, so good.

Closing the door behind you you set off down the hallway. You’ll take the long way around. Hopefully Zia doesn’t need any help. She’s a better telepath than you are. Better at manipulating people even without that advantage. She’ll be fine. She has to be fine. It’ll work out you just have to –

You pull hard against the wall as a guard walks past. Nudge his attention away from spotting you alongside the hallway. He walks past without stopping, eyes straight ahead, whistling a bored tune.

You should spend less energy worrying about Zia and more on paying attention to yourself. Cursing under your breath, you wait a second to confirm and then head off again. You and Zia both have your skinsuits on under everything, if it comes down to it. It’d be such a waste of a dress though.

The vault is further back into the mansion, away from the bustle of the ballroom and the party showing off Yasuda’s influence. As you get closer, there’s no sign of Zia. Already inside? No – you can pick her coming up the other end of the hallway. Behind schedule, but still within allowance.

Zia catches your eye and the two of you exchange nods. Trailing on Zia’s arm is Henry Yasuda himself, babbling some braggart story that Zia clearly hasn’t been paying attention to. He looks at you, eyes sliding off you face, a dazed, glossy look to them. Dreaming? Well, as long as Zia can get him to open the door.

You hang back, taking flank. “Any trouble?”

“Of course not.” Zia pulls her arm away from Yasuda, giving him a soft push towards the door. “Now, what did you want to show me, sweetheart?”

The man mumbles something, an unintelligible mix of English, Spanish, and Japanese. Presses his hand against the door, frowns, then tries again. Twice more before he finds the keypad. 

Zia snickers, “Find the right strings and they fall over themselves to help you ruin them.”

“F–focus.”

“Oh, you’re no fun.” She waves you away, pouting. “Look at him, thinking he’s getting something out of this. Adorable.”

You hold your breath. On the third try, the keypad turns green under Yasuda’s fingers and the doors click open. The two of you let him enter first, following quickly behind before the doors can shut.

Zia claps her hands together, looking around the shelves lining the walls of the modest-sized office. “Very nice.” Instead of books, a collection of jewels, fossils, and historical artifacts fill the shelves. A collection of paintings are haphazardly arranged on easels in one corner. Temporary relocation during the party? Huh. They’re either worth a lot, or not enough.

Glancing over at Zia, you grab her arm, pulling her hand back from a display box of gems. “Don’t touch anything.” You hiss. “No fingerprints.”

“You’ve got space in that purse.”

“Limited space. Com’on.” You gesture to Yasuda. “Put him out and keep an eye open while I look.”

Grumbling, Zia waves at Yusada dismissively and the man crumbles into a heap in the corner, lights out. “What’s the point of breaking in if we don’t steal anything?”

“Priorities.” There’s a desk and computer at the far end. Dipping a hand into your purse you pull out a pair of plastic gloves, snapping them on. “This is worth more, and harder to track.”

“But where’s the romance?” Zia’s eyes dip down to your hands. “I don’t suppose you…?”

“No.”

“Ugh.”

“Could have packed your own.”

Zia doesn’t have anything to say to that.

You don’t risk sitting down on the chair, pulling it back and out of the way as you jam another USB stick into an open port. A few nerve-wracking seconds later the login screen on the monitor disappears, replaced by the desktop. Fist pump in the air, just the tiniest, most restrained motion, but it catches Zia’s attention.

“Going well?”

Nod as you sort through the files, pulling passwords, account numbers, anything that looks like it might be valuable. “Fucker thought he’d be safe keeping his computer off the network.” You snicker, shaking your head. “We should be able to do some real damage before they catch on.”

“Mmm.”

“Look at some of this stuff, this folder is literally labeled ‘Blackmail’ it’s beyond parody. It doesn’t even look to be encrypted. These people really think they can just do whatever they want–”

“Look, dear, I’ve been… thinking about what you said.”

The tentative tone in Zia’s voice gives you pause and you spare a glance over to her. Your fellow super villain is pacing the walls of the room, facing away from you.

“You’re just… well, so weak–”

You frown and shift your focus back to the computer. For a moment you thought this was going to be something heartfelt. But no. It’s just Zia being Zia. What did you really expect? She keeps talking but you’re only half paying attention, waiting for the jab or the fake-out you’ve come to expect from her.”

“–but your weakness hasn’t made you any less strong; And I… well…”

A sharp piercing ringing cuts through the area. You jump, cursing as you bang your knee on the edge of the desk.

“That wasn’t me!” Zia is tense, on alert as you look over to her, quickly backing away from a shelf.

“W–what did you – I told you not to–”

“Was hardly my doing, darling, I promise you.” Zia frowns, a challenge in her stare. “You ready to go?”

You tsk, wincing at the computer screen. “C–can you buy me a minute?”

Zia glances towards the far corner of the room, then up towards the ceiling. You can feel the edge of her telepathic presence skirting around you. “I just redirected to guards who were on their way here. As beautiful and talented as I am, my dear, I can’t keep that up forever before it becomes obvious.”

“Right.” You take a breath, chewing on the inside of your cheek until you taste blood. “Right. Okay. Okay.” Check the contents of the USB. Not everything you wanted, but can you really afford to waste any more time? But – but – but…

“Ariadne!” Zia’s voice is sharp and loud, cutting through the noise both in the air and in your head. You snap your head up, find her eyes.

You nod. Take a breath. You dip down to pull the USB out of it’s port and slip it back into your purse, then log off the computer. “Okay. Let’s go.” Power-walking back to Zia, already waiting by the doors. Peeling off the plastic gloves and tucking them away as you go. One hand in your purse, finds the remote detonator, thumbing the trigger.

Zia eyes your arm and cocks her head to the side, a smirk on her face. “Time for plan B?”

“Time for plan B.”

Her grin only widens.

You press the trigger as the two of you step into the hallway. Half a second later, a soft ‘boom’ rattles the paintings hanging from the walls followed by series of screams.

Your partner in crime cackles, clapping her hands together. “Well! I suppose we should be good girls and evacuate with the rest of the sheep now.”

You bite back a smile. “I sincerely doubt anyone has called you a ‘good girl.’”

In the chaos of people fleeing the smoke, Zia and yourself are able to slip back into the crowd. Just another pair of wannabe socialites having a terrible time of it. Nothing to see here. Once outside, you’re able to slip onto the street before the police arrive. Walk a few blocks before calling a taxi cab.

The come down from after an operation is always a little surreal. That slowly sinking realization that once again, you haven’t been caught. Zia directs the cab driver back to her penthouse suite, because of course you always have to debrief there. She has standards after all. Ones much higher than a dingy corner of a refurbished workshop.

As soon as the two of you are safely inside, you drop your purse on a table and collapse onto an open couch. You can change clothes later, when the shock finally wears off.

Zia snickers from the kitchen table, something alcoholic and fruity smelling in her hand. “Tired already, my dear handmaiden?”

“Aren’t you?”

“This is the part I hate. Where all the, the uh, the doubts come filtering in.” You groan into the couch mattress. “Why did the alarm go off early? Will Yasuda remember us at all? What if there was some sort of recording device or secondary CCTV we missed? What if someone places us there and realizes we weren’t on the guest list? What if all the files are dummy data or one of them is some kind of trap? What if–”

“Ariadne.” Zia laughs, cutting you off. “Relax darling. Everything went fine. Between my talents and your planning, everything went off without a hitch. It was flawless much like these…”

You hear a a solid ‘clunk, clunk, clunk’ of something heavy being laid out on the kitchen table. Eyes wide you shot up from the couch and stare over at Zia who sits back, watching you, a sly smirk on her face. A series of brilliant blue sapphires glitter under the kitchen light.

“Oh my god.” Your voice cracks. “I – I told you not to touch anything.”

She sighs, rolling her eyes. “If we didn’t steal something they’d know you’d broken into that computer for sure.” She picks up one of the gems, turning it over in her fingers. “A common jewel thief is much less concerning than a hacker wouldn’t you say?”

You blink.

Frown.

“I…” Chewing at your cheek again you get up from the couch and walk over to the table. “You’re right.”

“I’m right?” Zia blinks, taken aback, a hand to her chest. Her surprise is gone just as quickly, cool confidence radiating back out. “Of course I am.”

“Don’t let it get to your head.” You try to scowl, but can’t keep it up under the shear pleased expression on Zia’s face.

Zia preens, brushing her hair back with a smile. “No, no, do keep going. Tell me how I’m right again?”

“I take it back.”

“Too late.”

“Fuck you.”

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you, Miss Jealousy?”

“I–” You shut your mouth and purse your lips, glaring down at Zia in her seat. “What was that you were trying to say back there, anyway? Right before you set the alarm off?”

“I–? I did not set off the alarm!” Zia scoffs, hand to her chest again. “And anyway, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Hrm.” Something in the back of your head screams at you as you step in closer. This is a mistake. You can’t trust giving someone like Zia this much power over you. And yet –

“Ariadne?” Zia stares back at you, challenging.

You dip in, a kiss on the cheek and pull back before she can make a decision either way. Zia blinks, caught in a moment of unguarded shock as she puts a hand to where your lips touched her. The full weight of her telepathic presence presses against yours. Probing, questioning. “S–still… still scared, I see.”

“Me? Scared?” Zia scoffs, pulling her hand back down, willing her expression back to something more neutral. “You’re mistaken.”

You bite your lip. Fuck. There’s too many ways this ends badly. What are you thinking? Have you completely lost your mind?

“Well then…” You offer a hand out to your partner-in-crime. “Be scared with me?”

[silverarmedassassin]

To Save Me From Tears

Pairing: Bucky x Reader  Word Count: 2853 Warnings: Jealousy. Clueless Bucky™️ A/N: This was one of the first ones I wrote! It actually helped give me the idea to write all 25 days! I’m not sure how I like the ending (I struggled a lot with finishing this for some reason), but here it is. Day four!

Summary: Another year, another Stark Christmas Party. But this year, karaoke is involved and, even though you didn’t plan on getting up there, sometimes a song is the only way to express your feelings.  

2019 Christmas Masterlist 

“You’ll save me a dance, right Sergeant?” you ask coyly as you finish tying Bucky’s tie. It was light blue, the exact color of his eyes. He smiles down at you as you flatten the collar of his black-on-black suit, those eyes crinkling edges.

“‘Course. Wouldn’t dream of missing the opportunity to dance with the prettiest girl in the room.” He adjusts his sleeves as he examines his reflection in the metal of the elevator door.

You turn around to look at yourself as well, admire the way your cranberry-colored dress sways as you do so. You couldn’t help but notice Bucky did the same, his eyes traveling up the long skirt, up to the lacey bodice. When his gaze finally lands on your face, you can see, even in the distorted reflection, that his cheeks are now bright pink.

“Come on,” he grumbles shyly, grabbing your lace-covered arm as the doors opened. “Stark won’t like it if we’re late.”

You and Bucky weren’t together. Yes, he sent you the coveted “good morning” and “good night” texts every day, and invited you as his plus one to more than your fair share of game nights with the Avengers, but it was because he was a genuinely nice guy. A nice superhero guy.

There was nothing special or super about you. You worked in the public relations department for crying out loud, slaving around the clock to fix any screw-up the team made and making sure the public absolutely adored them. Bucky would never be interested in you, not when he was surrounded by agents and literal super-humans.

Everyone else disagreed, however. Even Tony made a point to tell both of you that if a move wasn’t made soon he would be forced to interfere. And that was the last thing you needed.

That’s why you decided tonight would be the night you were finally going to say something to Bucky. It was a perfect time - after all, there’s nothing more romantic than confessing your love for someone amid the overly-crowded Annual Stark Christmas Party.

Avengers, agents, and employees like yourself were spread out across the Compound. It turns out the room Tony had built specifically for press conferences doubled as a great dance floor.

You were out on the terrace with a group of your coworkers, watching as liquored-up bodies crammed together like sardines. Outside was just as beautiful as the inside - strands of white, twinkling Christmas lights bordered the open doors, and the standing tables were adorned with crystal votives. Stark hadn’t left a single pebble unturned when it came to this party, so the state-of-the-art heaters littering the space fought off the mid-December chill. It was just warm enough to be comfortable, but still several degrees cooler than inside. Perfect for a breather.

You were only half-listening to the conversation you had found yourself in, your focus more on the happenings around you. You could hear Thor singing off-key to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You.” How they convinced the God of freaking Thunder of all people to participate in Christmas karaoke was beyond you, but you were thrilled it was happening.

You smiled as you took a sip of your spiced cider, relishing in the way you could feel the warmth travel from your tongue to your belly as you drink. Maybe after another couple of these, you would finally get the courage to go talk to Bucky.

A hand flapping in front of your face draws you from your thoughts.

“Hello, earth to Y/N,” David, one of the IT guys said.

You feel heat spread across your face and you know it’s not from the cider. “I’m sorry, what?”

David huffs and your little group snickers to themselves. “We were asking about your plans for the holidays. Since Stark gave us the next two weeks off…”

“She was busy looking for Loverboy,” Carley says. You roll your eyes at your officemate’s snark.

“I was not looking for Bucky.”

“I didn’t even mention a name! Ha! I think I know what her plans are for Christmas.” She wiggles her eyebrows at you suggestively and everyone burst into laughter.

“It’s not like that,” you whisper, turning your attention back to the crowd inside.

“The man brings you lunch more days than not, walks you to your car when you stay late, and invites you to family game night. Almost every week, may I add.” Carley points an accusatory finger at you. “I’ve been here for seven years and I haven’t even been invited. It’s been six months for you! He’s got it bad.”

You could feel the embarrassment creeping back to your cheeks. Finishing off your cider in one massive gulp, you turn to the group. “I’m going to get another drink. Anyone need a refill?”

“Classic deflection,” David mutters as they all wave you off. You knew this conversation wasn’t over, but you were happy to dodge it for the time being.

You shove your way through the crowd that was now cheering for Thor. He bows dramatically before passing the mic off to Natasha, who is deeply focused on finding a song. The familiar, sultry notes of “Santa Baby” start to chime through the hall. You’d expect nothing less from Nat.

Finally, you make it to the bar, where you find Steve and Sam in the middle of a heated debate about which era produced the best Christmas music. Steve, of course, is partial to the early 1900s, while Sam insists Michael Bublé is the best Christmas singer to ever grace this earth. You chuckle as you slide your empty flute to the bartender and wait for a new drink.

“Ah, there she is!” Sam finally acknowledges your appearance, effectively ending the frivolous debate. He pulls you in for a quick side hug before Steve does the same. “Where have you been hiding? Been lookin’ for you all night!”

“I’ve been...around. Mostly trying to dodge getting drafted for karaoke. I’m not drunk enough for that yet.” You laugh as you watch Natasha shaking her hips on stage. “I don’t think I’ll ever be drunk enough for that.”

The boys follow your gaze. “Nonsense. You’d have all the men eating out of your hand if you got up there,” Sam sasses as your drink is slid towards you.

You hum in response, ignoring the comment as best as you could. “Have you guys seen Bucky? I uh, need to talk to him.”

Sam and Steve share a knowing look. “Are you finally going to say something to the pathetic sap?” Steve laughs as he peers at you over his whiskey tumbler.

Before you can reply, a familiar, gruff laugh drifts over to where the three of you are standing. Your heart leaps a little as you turn and spot the top of Bucky’s head, hair starting to fall loosely out of the bun at the nape of his neck.

Taking another drag of your cider and straightening your poster, you get ready to make your way over to him. Before you can get more than a step away from Steve and Sam, you’re frozen on the spot. Standing across from Bucky, using one of the tall tables as a rest, is a tall blonde. Her eyes crinkle as she touches Bucky’s left arm as she laughs at something he’s said. He never let anyone touch his metal limb. A slight pang of red-hot jealousy washes over you.

This was it. This is exactly what you meant when you said Bucky would never fall for someone like you. Not when there were women like her floating around the Compound, all fit and beautiful. This woman, who you come to recognize as one of the newest agents Natasha had recruited, exudes so much confidence that you can literally feel it from where you’re standing several feet away. She’s a literal vision in icy blue, the exact color of Bucky’s eyes. And that damn tie.

Steve clears his throat from behind you, placing a gentle hand on your shoulder obviously trying to pull your attention away from the scene in front of you. You harshly shrug him off. You didn’t want his pity, nor did you want to hear the trademark Captain speech you knew always followed tense emotional situations. You watch as the woman leans closer to Bucky as he says something into her ear. She smiles again, a flash of something in her eyes and she takes a sip of her drink. You’d seen enough.

“Excuse me,” you say, downing your almost-full flute of cider and ditching it on the bartop. Before either of the men can stop you, you’re shoving through the crowd. You’re on a mission and nothing was going to stop you.

You make it to the front of the room in record time, stopping right in front of the make-shift stage where Natasha is finishing her performance. You catch her eye and she gives you a devilish smirk. “Y/N!” she yells into the mic. “Your turn!”

The crowd, despite more than half of them not knowing you, goes crazy. Good. They gave you the little needed confidence you need to pull this off. You knew exactly what song you’d be singing, exactly who you’d be singing to. You climb up the few steps of the platform and graciously take the microphone. It only takes you a few moments to find the song, and you let all nerves and self-conscious thoughts melt away as the retro beat of “Last Christmas” fills the room.

Last Christmas, I gave you my heart But the very next day you gave it away This year, to save me from tears I’ll give it to someone special

You let your gaze linger further out than just the group of people bobbing along in front of the platform. You spot Natasha by the bar, talking animatedly at Sam, who is shrinking in on himself like a wounded dog. Was she scolding him?

Once bitten and twice shy I keep my distance But you still catch my eye Tell me, baby Do you recognize me? Well, it’s been a year It doesn’t surprise me

Thank god he’s tall because there’s no way you would have been able to see Steve’s blonde head making its way through the crowd if he was as short as he was once upon a time. He’s headed straight towards Bucky, who has abandoned the blonde he was flirting with earlier to watch you.

You’re surprised when, instead of feeling triumphant in your ability to get Bucky’s attention, you’re filled with anger. Maybe a little tinge of regret for not telling him how you felt sooner. Definitely a surge of self-loathing and despair. Damn alcohol. You make eye-contact as best as you can with Bucky as you start belting the next verses.

A crowded room, friends with tired eyes I’m hiding from you, and your soul of ice My god, I thought you were someone to rely on Me? I guess I was a shoulder to cry on

You watch as Steve begins, what you can only assume, scolding Bucky. He’s yanking his hands this way and that, occasionally pulling them through his hair. Bucky breaks eye contact, briefly looking at his best friend in front of him before looking back to you.

The blonde agent is long forgotten now.

When the last line is belted out, storm off the stage and make towards the main hall. You were no longer in the Christmas spirit, and you definitely didn’t want to talk to Bucky off all people right now. You just wanted to sit on your couch with a bottle of cheap wine and wallow in self-pity. Unfortunately, it seems your Christmas wish isn’t coming true tonight.

“Y/N!” Bucky huffs as he runs up behind you, gently grabbing your arm to stop you. “I’ve been looking for you all night!”

You contemplate trying to pull away, but you know it’s no use with his strength. You take a deep breath in an attempt to bury the emotions you’re feeling before turning to face him. The look of pure excitement and happiness on his face cued you in on the fact he didn’t know you were upset.

“I’m sure you were,” you mumbled as you looked down at his hand still holding onto your arm.

“I can’t believe you got up there and sang,” he laughs, dropping his hand and using his metal one to rub the back of his neck. “I was just telling Yelena that…” Bucky trailed off when he noticed you stiffen at the mention of, who you could assume, the blonde agent you had seen him with not 20 minutes ago.

“Uh, yea well...” You shrug not knowing what to say to that. “I’m not really in the party mood anymore, so I’m going to head out. Better go find Yelena again” You know you’re being petty, but it’s more out of anger at yourself for getting your hopes up than anything. 

“What? No, I can walk you out if you’d like?” 

Before you can respond, a heavily accented voice breaks through the crowd you’d edged your way out of. 

“James! There you are!” Yelena says as she shoves her way out into the hall. “You ran off so quickly I wanted to make sure everything was okay.”

“Yea, everything’s fine. I found Y/N and didn’t want to lose her again,” Bucky turned back to you then a beaming smile on his face. “Y/N, this is Yelena. I uh, knew her back when Soldier was in control...”

“It’s so nice to finally meet you,” Yelena interjects, holding her hand out for you to shake. “I’ve heard so much about you tonight. I was about ready to come to find you myself so this sap would shut it.”

She nudges Bucky in the ribs and he grumbles in response. 

“You know, I was just about to say how happy I am that Nat brought you here, but I take even the thought back.”

Yelena snorts and rolls her eyes. “Anyway, I’m going to leave you two to it. Sam challenged Natalia and me to a drinking game. I have some ass to kick.” And just like that, the blonde disappeared back into the crowd. 

As you and Bucky watch Yelena walk away, you couldn’t help but laugh. Watching the way they interacted made you realize that you may have slightly overreacted. Thanks, insecurity. 

“What?” Bucky asks, turning to look at you. 

“I’m just realizing how stupid I am.”

You look to Bucky and are met with a look of confusion. “What do you...Oh, you though...Yelena and...” He lets out a genuine belly laugh then, one that would normally warm your entire body but now makes you want to punch him. 

“Don’t laugh at me,” you pout, crossing your arms across your chest in defense.

“I’m sorry,” Bucky gasps between laughs. “It’s just, I’ve known Yelena since she was younger. Watched her grow up, even if it was from afar. Her attitude reminds me so much of Becca that I practically see her as my little sister!”

Bucky grabbed your hand as the karaoke faded away into the live-music portion of the night. I instrumental version of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” started to float through the room. 

"I meant it when I said you were the prettiest girl in the room. I spent the entire night fighting with myself on trying to find you. Yelena was trying her hardest to get me to you but, I guess I was just nervous. The truth is,” he says as he brings his other hand to rest on your lace-covered waist, “I really like you.

“And I know everyone is always making comments about how we, ya know...I just didn’t wanna ruin anything. But,” he starts gently swaying you both the music then. The grin on his face reminds you of pictures of old footage of him back during the war, back when he wouldn’t have given a second thought about coming right up and asking you to dance. “When I saw you up there singin’, it reminded me just how beautiful you are. And how sweet, and gentle you are with me even though hell knows I don’t deserve it.

“So, I guess this is just my roundabout way of askin’ you to be my girl. Because I’d be stupid to let someone like you get away from me.”

“Buck,” you whisper as you step closer into his embrace. You blink rapidly trying to fight back the tears that are threatening to fall down your face. “I never realized how big of a sap you really are.”

This helps break the tension, and Bucky lets out a soft chuckle. “Is that a yes then, pretty girl?”

You smile as you lean in and rest your head against his shoulder. You let yourself get enveloped by the smell of the cologne you gave him as an early Christmas present specifically for tonight’s party. “Of course, Bucky. I’ll be your girl.”

[bryyo-data]

What if Samus had Metroid powers: design for a hypothetical game

I got this ask the other day and my answer was a bit of a ramble, but I've come back to it with a clear head. I decided to have a go at hypothetical game design, for a Metroid title set post-Fusion in which Samus Aran gains Metroid-like abilities due to her DNA changes! Some of the stuff below is rehashed from the ask reply itself.

Be warned! Bit of a long post, and I apologise in advance for mobile users for whom readmores don't always work.

Premise

I tried to stay vague with the story details because I was more interested in writing about the gameplay, but I failed at that and wrote a lot. Story has it's own section at the bottom. However, the basic idea is that Samus, now an enemy to the Federation and probably on the run, ends up on a world where the environment triggers the manifestation of strange powers. Metroids are known to adapt when introduced to new worlds, and Samus is essentially doing the same- her Metroid DNA, previously doing little more than sparing her from the X, is now active and granting her abilities.

New abilities

This isn't solid ideas so much as a brainstorm, but I tried to come up with a few ideas for what Samus might be able to do with Metroid DNA. None of it has any scientific basis but that's okay, there's dragons in this franchise.

ENERGY DRAIN: This is the first ability you learn, perhaps one you start off with. Samus starts the first area trapped, maybe after a ship crash, and is told how to shoot and jump etc. by the game. Or alternatively, maybe she doesn’t shoot. Let's say her weapon is down for now, hence being more trapped than usual, and she's stuck using a melee move to break through the surrounding rocks. While doing this, she comes across a biological barrier. But as she goes to use her melee attack, something unusual happens... The barrier turns to dust, and the health she lost during her crash-landing is replenished.

Henceforth, that melee thing becomes a drain attack. This power allows Samus to drain energy, killing a foe quickly and restoring some of her own health, but it isn't unlimited or easy to perform beyond the starting portion of the game. With mobile and aggressive enemies, it requires very precise timing to pull off. I would personally make it so that the game relies on this move much less than Samus Returns relied on the melee counter, but have it function in a similar way. Samus can still blast quickly through enemies like she could in Super Metroid/Zero Mission/Fusion, but if she wants to absorb health she can coax enemies into a specific position and with the right timing, perform a drain move.

If the move is a success, it will insta-kill a low-level enemy and is more rewarding than a standard kill. This might even replace normal energy drops from shooting, or at least would give much more health back than a standard drop. If she fails, she opens up to the enemy attack and risks taking more damage than usual. So if a skilled player is at low health and might die, they can take the risk of draining from an enemy. They may either stabilise themselves, or take double damage and die instantly.

If we don't replace normal energy drops altogether, this becomes less of a thing. In fact for the sake of health grinding and general convenience it's probably better to keep regular drops in- this would just become a fun extra which allows you to get past certain points in the game, like barriers, and can let you heal up quicker if you've learned how to pull it off without fail.

Regardless, this allows for OPTIONAL bullshitting past segments and sequence breaking; for example, you might be able to just get past a standard too-hot-without-Varia region by energy draining the whole way through.

Most bosses would have opportunities to use this if you position yourself right, but I'd personally cut down on flashy cutscenes when it happens. They're fun but I don't want to sacrifice the flow of the game for cinematics too much. Just a quick draining move, steal a bit of health. This move wouldn't work on mechanical enemies, because it relies on life energy specifically.

As you go along, this ability might power up, perhaps triggered either by the environments Samus moves into (since Metroids introduced to new environments will alter accordingly). Perhaps there are ways to power up every Metroid ability, or even an item that allows you to enhance one at a time by channelling your energies-something like that. An enhanced Energy Drain may steal more health and even fuel your weapon ammunition or something like that. Plus, it would make it easier to insta-kill some stronger enemies with the move.

I kinda like the idea of using an item to power up one Metroid ability at a time. To add a bit of challenge to the game, so you can't just switch to the most convenient one at any given time, maybe have it so that you can only change your powered-up ability in certain areas? Special Chozo statues? Interfacing with the other half of whatever this technology is, maybe a computer system found in a couple of rooms across the planet (with all except the first one or two being in hidden and slightly hard-to-find locations? Is that being too mean?)

(Btw just to get retro, we're giving this hypothetical game cheats- one of which is the ability to switch power at any time. Among others like immortality and fun suit colour changes.)

One thing I considered is that, similar to Aeion, Samus might have a power meter for using other Metroid abilities. This would give more function to the draining move outside of just health, and could explain some of Metroid biology too. It would imply that they specifically have to feed on life energy in order to do the things they do, and normal food wouldn't power them up the same. For that reason, Samus could power up her energy meter by draining. The amount of power she absorbs would be proportional to the enemy difficulty.

This could make certain segments trickier; for example, if there were a region similar to the end of Metroid 2 (not Samus Returns) where Metroids have killed off most of the life in the area, Samus would have to use her powers sparingly. The player might find it a bit trickier to traverse the area if they run out of power. Enemies here might be easy to kill and give a lot of power back on easier modes, but harder to kill and less rewarding on hard difficulty.

An alternative is that Samus's powers are fuelled directly by her own life energy, i.e. her health. This would essentially work like Phazon, but not in bursts; each time Samus activates a power, she sacrifices a bit of health, either continually or at once (again, same as how Aeion works, but depleting the health meter instead of a separate one). This makes it vital to locate energy tanks, which could prompt more exploration and may lead Samus to interesting locations that have hidden lore and such (see the section below for more on that). This might also be interesting from a lore perspective because it explains why Metroids are so aggressive as predators- they waste so much energy on simple things like flying, it means they have to near-constantly feed.

Which brings me to the other power-ups. I imagine Samus wouldn’t pick these up traditionally like items. There would still be items in the game, including several brand new ones not directly comparable to those in previous games in the series (obviously we can bring back some old favourites but copy-pasting the exact same items over and over again can get a bit dull even with new abilities). Most normal items would play to the normal Metroidvania game design, of “can’t access area -> locate pickup -> move to new area. These abilities might be triggered by moving into new environments, or if Samus is under stress i.e. during a specific boss fight. So you wouldn’t necessarily be hunting for them, but they could still let you get to new areas or items.

FLOATING: Samus floats, draining power continually until she stops or runs out. This one would require significant limitations; for example, perhaps as you move further away from the ground, you drain SIGNIFICANTLY more energy. This means you are welcome to try and sequence break, or get an item that you were meant to get with grapple beam, but you're wasting a LOT of energy doing so. Maybe gravity is still trying to pull Samus down once you lift off, so you have to actively fight it, and each ascent drains energy faster the higher you go. Sort of like a built-in jetpack. With that said, this would have interesting applications in world traversal.

An enhanced float may have a significantly lower cost for ascending or just maintaining the float. Because we all love some Aesthetic(tm), maybe Float+ gives Samus a faint wing-like aura when she uses it- especially if we go with the above idea that Samus uses Chozo tech to power it up. Imagine the sick fanart that could come out of that.

SHIELD: A fairly standard one ripped off of Samus Returns' lightning sheild. By sacrificing some energy, Samus can temporarily keep up a shield that will mean she takes less damage. If we go with the function of sacrificing health for Metroid abilities (rather than a separate power bar) it would require some careful balancing as well as player learning- for example, trying to ensure that (at least for stronger enemies) it's worth turning it on at all, and that the energy loss to create the shield is less than the theoretical energy loss if you took hits from the enemy.

Maybe this would be a pulse thing rather than an ongoing one; you activate it, and it lasts maybe 10-30 seconds, taking a defined amount of energy. During that time, you get an opportunity to pummel the enemies around you while not being knocked back or stunned when they hit (though you might still take e.g. 1/2 or 1/4 damage from incoming attacks). Of course, it could also function to protect Samus from things like lava, allowing her to access subsurface items if the game never gave her a Gravity Suit or equivalent.

A powered up version would obviously be something like a stronger shield, or a less costly one, or longer lasting if it's activated in pulses. Or a mix of them all. Maybe even a lightning shield effect where things that come into contact with Samus take damage, possibly even feeding her a bit of health (in TINY amounts, not comparable to the drain ability). Visually, so it looks as pretty as the powered-up float, it could maybe have an effect similar to the traditional big-shoulder Varia suit (assuming Samus is still in some form of the Fusion suit by this point).

SENSE/METROID VISION: I'm ripping this one off Samus Returns as well, but I'd change it. This would allow Samus to detect the life energies of all creatures in the area by focusing. It would also indicate how the larval Metroids, lacking eyes, locate their prey. Sensing would either come as a pulse like in Samus Returns, or a toggle on-toggle off ongoing thing, which you can't keep up indefinitely due to energy waste. Like in Skyrim where you can use the Aura Whisper shout or Detect Life/Undead etc.

Key differences include that this ability doesn’t show you hidden entrances by default; it would just indicate that "something is living in this wall" and you have to make judgements based on that info. Is this an enemy that will jump out and kill you (hence, you can avoid it)? Is it a hidden room with enemies in, and an entrance nearby? Thus, it keeps in a little challenge and exploration work.

A powered up version might be able to show other things too, including nearby items, entrances, or breakable blocks- like scan pulse from Samus Returns. That would make it useful for players who don't want to spend hours bombing every wall, or 100%ers like me who are at the endgame and getting frustrated because they can't find the last two missile upgrades. Obviously it's offset by the aforementioned fact that if you choose this ability, you can't choose another without going back to one of the set locations.

TELEPORT: I'm hesitant to include this one because it was fairly signature to Phazon Metroids, but I guess it could be passed off as "a hidden Metroid ability that Phazon unlocked". This would allow Samus to do short-range teleports for an energy cost. I dunno who's played Axiom Verge here, but there's an item which (spoilers if you haven't played it) lets you teleport through walls, and once upgraded it lets you go through bigger and bigger gaps. Samus's teleport would be more instantaneous than that one, and available to use from any position, but costly to perform.

The teleport could help her dodge enemy attacks (though like energy drain, success would rely on timing, and Samus might still take damage just before she teleports assuming there's a slight delay from inputting the command to actually jumping). It would also allow Samus to get through certain walls, though there may be some which are inpenetrable due to the material they're made of. I don't know how it would work in terms of control schemes, but maybe the player could choose their jump distance, with smaller jumps needing less energy.

A powered up version might be able to take Samus further or even have her emit an energy burst when she leaves/emerges from the jump, damaging nearby enemies- though with a greater energy cost.

METROID COMMAND: I can't think of a lore reason why this one would cost energy, unless it's some weird energy psychic thing that specifically resonates with Metroids. Anyway, let's assume Metroids aren't unique to the end-game Tourian-esque area in this game, and there are several locations where you can encounter them throughout the world. This ability would allow you to communicate with them, actually stopping their attacks and saving yourself or other nearby innocent creatures.

Maybe these Metroids are communicating with a "parent" who is actually an evil enemy (i.e. intelligent species that bonded parentally to them- see lore section below) which may result in more co-ordinated attacks than you see from wild roaming individual Metroids. But Samus can use this ability to stop their coordination, or even turn them on their handlers!

An upgrade of this... Maybe Samus turning the Metroids on their allies, including each other and the enemies commanding them? Keep it up long enough and you might be left with just one Metroid standing for you to take out. That could lead to some dark stuff as well. I can imagine Samus needing to be ruthless by using this ability for survival, but feeling baaaad about it.

The upgrade may also include things like asking local Metroids to affect the environment; bringing inaccessible power-ups to Samus, such as ones on high ledges (if she doesn't want to waste energy floating up there) or opening new passageways that Samus herself couldn't get open, either via draining or using brute strength, depending on the Metroid form.

SOMETHING TO DO WITH SHAPE CHANGING: This is one that, cool as it would be, would be REALLY hard to implement because I cannot think of an idea for how it would work. Especially because Samus is in the suit, and we're presuming that the suit itself can't really change shape along with her. But the basic idea is that Metroids famously mature and change, so what if someone with Metroid DNA could undergo controlled, temporary form changes? Or just change certain body parts? I'll come back to this one in the plot section but I'm not convinced Samus could use it herself, though it would be really cool, if potentially OP. Why have a Metroid Vampire when you can have a METROID WEREWOLF kinda I guess.

Just going for bullshit here, perhaps Samus could unlock this one close to the end in a Zero Mission-esque sequence where she's parted from her suit. She seems vulnerable and really has to rely on her Metroid abilities while being extremely energy-conscious, because she's no longer got extra energy tanks to keep her alive (going by the life=power method anyway; slightly less relevant in the separate-energy-bar method except for the fact that energy refills require enemy draining, and that move is much riskier without the suit, since it already increases damage if failed.)

At the end of the segment, she starts growing claws and being able to slash through thick wires or whatever un-drainable thing is in her way. Then she grows bigger and gets more hunched, scaled, and armoured, until she's starting to look like a warped variant of an Omega Metroid. Maybe even a Queen. Luckily she gets under control of it and reverts when she finds a power suit to fit into, something most Metroids can't do but luckily she's a humanoid protagonist and can't stay monstrous forever. Also gives a reason for her to replace her Fusion suit with a cooler classic Chozo suit!

(For real, would Nintendo even do that? Use their sex-sells tiddy out game section as the scene where Samus becomes the most un-fuckable monstrous body horror dragon alien in the game? Probably not but I can dream.)

Maybe the player can't really control this one, or there's a huge cost to doing so but when you do you become SICK AWESOME POWERFUL and take up half the screen and the final boss attack that should've one-shotted you just slides off your back. Maybe. Maybe I just think monster aliens are cool.

Ideally I would like to have maybe 4-5 unique abilities in the game. With drain as one and four others, it would be fairly similar to Aeion and could act as an off-SR388 Aeion replacement. The above ideas are by no means the limits of what could be done, but I can't think of any others at the moment. To work nicely with the game lore, ideally there would be some powers that Samus hasn't seen Metroids use before. Not only does she learn to use them herself, but the Metroids on this planet start using them too, making for some new and unique Metroid battles.

I would leave as much leeway as possible- there's a lot of ideas here, and while new abilities are fun to play with, I don't want it to be over-complicated or inaccessible. This is very much just a brainstorm! If this were a real game, the most important things would be letting the player have fun, feel badass, and tackle challenges their way so they can feel a sense of achievement from finding items or beating puzzles.

Plot

Okay I wasn't originally going to go into plot, but I got carried away. Because this is a sidescroller in particular, you don't have the advantage of Prime's scan system to pile on lore. I wouldn't do too much heavy plot and dialogue, at least not more than Fusion. If anything, LESS than Fusion to decrease dialogue time. But I might adopt Prime elements, specifically stealing the idea of scan downloads from Another Metroid 2 Remake. These would activate at key times, including new boss encounters, entering new regions, or when the player stumbles upon something interesting. In that regard, I'd hide secrets around the world; little rooms which may or may not contain items, but which add an optional lore entry to your logbook as you enter.

Some plot/gameplay stuff I would include:

So this post-Fusion game would probably be where you'd pick up the thread hinted at by Samus Returns' Chozo memories- there are evil Chozo, and either they still exist, or have left a dangerous legacy of bioweapons and robots. Perhaps there's only one or two commanders left alive, and they will stop at nothing to stay that way.

Adam exists, but his dialogue with Samus is limited. This is intended to create isolation, but also hope. When all feels down, you might stumble on a way to communicate with your ship and with Adam again, getting a bit of reassurance. Adam may be able to help direct you during these moments, but I wouldn't go to the same extent as Fusion itself (or Zero Mission's Chozo statues). He might not be able to point out direct target locations, at least not later in the game. Regardless, I don't want to totally sideline him in the title where, post-reveal in Fusion, his character really ought to be emerging properly.

Metroids have new, previously unforeseen abilities locked into their DNA. The planet this game is set on is a Chozo haven with a perfect atmosphere. It has been selected by the evil Chozo for Metroid breeding in order to bring out their full potential. As Samus arrives here, the environment starts affecting her DNA as well, and she begins unlocking her own hidden abilities, one by one.

She runs into evil Chozo, most of whom are hostile to her. If we permit some dialogue at designated points (otherwise implying that Adam and Samus's communications are largely disrupted, keeping the isolated feeling in place) she might confess to Adam that she feels horrible killing what might be the last of her kin. Though I wouldn't write a plot around pushing a theme, there may be an underlying theme of identity, with Samus's human vs. Chozo vs. Metroid identities coming into conflict. The conclusion of which might be "actually, who cares, I'm just Samus. And whatever Samus is, she's an awesome galactic saviour who won't ever be truly alone in the universe."

The main boss Chozo are not initially hostile- they may coax Samus in, pretending to be her ally until it becomes apparent that they want to use her as a pawn for their greater plans. Again, I'd minimize dialogue here. Instead, Samus's communications with these Chozo may be through things such as wall scrawlings or messages left on abandoned computers (readable through the logbook). When she actually meets them, the dialogue would be vague as to whether she read those lore snippets or not, but the players that did read them will have a deeper connection to these mysterious Chozo and greater understanding (though it may be a completely false one) of their motivations.

Adding to that, there may even be a good Chozo among the ranks, one whose wall scrawlings etc. are harder to find, implying they have to hide them. Maybe even taking the Axiom Verge route of having them in an untranslatable language, until Samus picks up a required cipher and can go back to her logbook and read them. But they give Samus reason not to trust the others. You may or may not ever meet the individual(s) leaving these messages, implying they have been taken care of since you arrived but before you met them.

This could actually give the players plot advantage- maybe at some point, Samus is offered a choice of direction. Evil!Chozo says "Meet me at the pool where we will perform the ritual to revive all the dead Chozo." but Good!Chozo's scrawlings said "If he tries to take you to the pool, you're gonna die and the Metroids will be unleashed again. Sneak in via the overhead pipe and drop some bombs on his machine, destroying it before he even gets a chance to start it up." (Something you could optionally do anyway, if you the player finds the pipe entrance and decides not to trust this Chozo. It gives you a bit of free reign to interpret the characterisation of Samus and what she would do.) In the latter case, it might prevent you from taking some initial surprise damage from the boss, or let you skip sections of the boss fight.

Evil Chozo are breeding Metroids, and forging parental bonds to them. This means the Metroids will defend them to the death just as the baby Metroid did for Samus, and also they have trained them to follow commands, mostly battle-related ones. Maybe they have figured out what SR388's Chozo could not- how to remain friends with Metroids after puberty. Thus allowing them to use matured Metroids. It would be lazy to include Alpha-Gamma-etc again because this isn't SR388, so I'd design new Metroid forms, which in-lore are supposed to be upgraded and more powerful according to the design of the Chozo that bred them here. They might superficially resemble Alphas etc. at first, but their developmental pathway ends up very different and unique.

The big ending twist is that the final boss Chozo is modified like yourself- you couldn't have guessed! Lore-wise, perhaps they were one of the ones who originally created the Metroids, not starting as one of the murderous Chozo seen in the Chozo memories. They knowingly turned on the other SR388 Chozo in order to side with the bad guys, and worked their way up the ranks once that trust was earned. Their Metroid DNA could then be explained by them having, like Samus, come off SR388 with an X infection that needed curing. Or maybe they just happened to be an expert in Metroids and thought it would be awesome to use Metroid DNA to get stronger.

Gameplay-wise, this means they can use powers like yours, but also a variety of others because they're a final boss. One of these might be a refined form of the shape-changing that I'm not convinced Samus could use. Metroids mature into new, bigger forms, and perhaps our villain has figured out how to do this in a controlled manner.

Remember the Chozo tech Samus might use to power up her Metroid abilities? Our villain upgraded theirs so all their abilities are powered up. But you're Samus Aran and you're still winning. In desperation, they use it to mutate into a giant monster, like some kind of weird bird-dragon-alien with hundreds of eyes and bioluminescence. Awesome! This is their final form, but it's not as brief as the mutant SA-X's appearance; maybe you defeat their normal Chozo form in the penultimate boss fight, then have to go up against this version of them at the very end.

Of course, they're still a Metroid-based monster. They have VERY potent draining abilities, which they will use more often on , so you have to use a combination of items you've picked up on your adventure, and your Metroid abilities, to prevent them from making the fatal strike, because if they hit you with that attack you're gonna lose between 1/2 to a full energy tank and they're gonna gain a chunk of health back. It's a mean boss design, but on lower difficulty settings it would be toned down.

Sequel potential

I’ll give this one it’s own section to break up the text walls a bit.

The idea behind having this SR388 traitor Chozo character in particular is that they are NOT the initial wave of evil Chozo. This means that whoever "turned them to the dark side" might STILL be out there. Thus, the plot is not over yet, and there's even more sequel opportunity to be had! It could essentially begin a new arc. I wonder how the next game's final boss could compare to "giant intelligent bird-alien-dragon-lamprey" though?

The game discussed so far might make no mention of the Federation at all, because that would overcomplicate things when the plot focus is on Samus, Chozo, and Metroids. A sequel could easily reunite Samus with the Federation, and let trust be regained on both sides as she saves them from the evil Chozo that are now trying to destroy and dominate everything for evil reasons.

Though we don’t want to sacrifice too much traditional fast-paced Metroid sidescroller gameplay time on plot stuff, maybe have a sideplot where the corrupt parts of the Federation are cut out? No doubt those who wanted to breed Metroids, no matter how pure or evil their intentions, are the most likely to accept help from a band of evil Chozo who have lots of Metroids and need help breeding and improving them. It could end up being a dialogue-heavy thing but it would be fun to see this subplot played out without any dialogue whatsoever; Samus just doing her thing behind-the-scenes to stop or expose these people, while they send threats after her.

One reason why I bring up sequel potential at all is because Samus is now part Metroid and the Federation know it- but they don’t know about her abilities. Now she’s saving their asses and they’re gonna have to learn about it. That might lead to a whole bunch of new conflict potential, which could either be explored in-canon or by fanfic writers afterward. Fun either way. May even lead to MORE sequels where the Feds are creating superhuman bioweapons because they learned it worked with Samus.

What happens with Samus's powers between the two games? Will she go into the next game being super OP? Probably not. So how will that be resolved? Theoretically this first game in the “arc” could be the only one, and could actually end the timeline, but it would be a bit of a shame to do that.

One possibility is that Samus has to suppress or lose her powers. Maybe they start getting out of hand, beyond her control, especially if the shape-changing thing comes into play. She may use a reverse form of the power-up technology to tone down her abilities to nothing for safety reasons. She may even use the final-boss-guy's DNA modification equipment to strip herself of her Metroid DNA. Perhaps she decides that it's not something she wants to be a part of herself any more, and takes it out.

Here's a fun tangent off the last one- what if the DNA mod goes wrong and she does something else... Like damage her Chozo DNA? What implications might that have for a future game, and for Samus's own perception of herself? What if we were left on a cliffhanger, where Samus knows she has to rush off to her next battle with the evil Chozo but when she steps into her own suit, her own second skin, it rejects her?

As an alternative, maybe something off-world- or even just the act of BEING off-world- means she loses her abilities because her body "settles down" and suppresses them outside of that world's environment. While this may seem like a cheap ending, it depends on how sequels go. Because in theory, Metroids adapt to their local environments, which means Samus might be able to unlock a plethora of brand-new and previously unseen abilities in the next game owing to her arrival in another new environment.

Conclusion? I have too much time on my hands. It's been an interesting one to think about. Aside from "Chozo will return as villains" I couldn't really speculate what will happen in Metroid 5 at this point, though I'm very tempted to say it will be made eventually. Unfortunately, word-of-god says that Metroid Fusion's ending rectified Samus's DNA and took out the Metroid stuff (hence her losing cold weakness at the very end) so it's unlikely that any of this kind of thing would make it to canon, unless they're happy for to retcon what was already a fairly unclear thing in game.

[eggoreviews]

My Top 15 Bosses in Games

Bosses are fun and great, most of the time. And often, they can make or break a game for me, which means my favourite games often have the most entertaining, impactful boss battles with high emotional stakes or just pure spectacle. Because I couldn’t pick just 10, here’s my top 15 bosses that really left a mark on me. Enjoy!

This list is probably gonna be a little weird, because it’s purely my opinion. Also, spoilers below for all the games I mention.

15. Donkey Kong (Super Mario Odyssey)

Admittedly, this is stretching the definition of the term ‘boss’, but if DK from back in the 80s can be counted as a boss, then so can this. For me, this was the best moment in all of Odyssey, which in itself seemed to be a love letter to the legacy of both 2D and 3D Mario. This retro throwback, complete with the classic 2D run-and-jump platforming from the original Donkey Kong, is amazing with the huge Metro Kingdom festival in the background and the soaring Jump Up, Superstar accompanying it. This seamless marrying of old and new proved to be my favourite part of this game, and made Odyssey one of my favourite platformers in general.

14. Void Termina (Kirby Star Allies)

I know this is a really unpopular opinion, but I personally loved Kirby Star Allies for a lot of reasons. I loved the graphics, the characters, the smooth, simple and fun gameplay, how polished and unique each section of the game was, not least the huge space section at the game’s conclusion and of course the free updates adding a wealth of new content and characters. And at the very end, you take on this thing, Void Termina, in a massive space arena. Above everything else, this is just dizzy, colourful fun and is a great culmination of everything the game’s been building up to since the first level. You spend the fight switching between firing wildly at Void Termina from your rainbow ship thing and fighting parts of the monster from the inside. As I’ve said, this made for a satisfying conclusion to an amazing platformer for me and more than earns its spot on my list.

13. Mirelurk Queen (Fallout 4)

I remember the pure shock I felt for a hot second the moment the Mirelurk Queen decided to rear its head for the first time. For the record, I’m talking specifically about the Queen that shows up when taking the Castle for the Minutemen. Seeing this hulking thing looming even above the castle walls is something that genuinely intimidated me, especially as early into my playthrough as I was, and it took a lot of my supplies (and a lot of attempts) to finally pump enough bullets into it to kill it. The frantic panic of sprinting around the ruins of the Castle trying to avoid the giant Mirelurk’s blasts of acid and keeping enough distance to stay safe balanced a good amount of difficulty with spectacle and stayed with me long after I put the game down.

12. Griffin (The Witcher III: Wild Hunt)

I’ve made it clear on my blog before that I didn’t have a standout experience with The Witcher III as a whole, but to say it didn’t have some spectacular moments is pretty much an insult. In particular, Geralt’s first throwdown with the massive griffin terrorising White Orchard was a brilliantly intense and strategic fight that greatly utilised the game’s smooth combat system and made full use of Geralt’s many abilities. I find that the game really shone most of all while in combat, maintaining a great level of intensity with balanced difficulty and a soaring soundtrack that always makes the battle experience even more memorable. Plus, look how awesome this thing looks.

11. El Luchador (Rayman Legends)

The end boss of a world in my favourite platformer of all time based entirely on the Mexican tradition of the Day of the Dead, this particular boss fight encapsulates everything I adore about this game. Fun, tight platforming, colourful and memorable design, a great soundtrack and controls that function perfectly. You spend this boss fight finding new and creative ways to bounce on this giant wrestler’s head in front of an audience of cheering skeletons as the manic soundtrack intensifies with each round of the fight. This fight, and this entire game, combines fun and creativity masterfully and I’d urge basically anyone to play it.

10. The Archdemon (Dragon Age: Origins)

Part of what makes the climactic battle with the Archdemon so memorable is how perfectly the game pulls off the intense build-up that lasts the entire plot and then still delivers an epic payoff. The Archdemon is almost straight away set up as a genuine threat that looms over everything you do in Origins and the success of your eventual showdown with the Archdemon is based entirely on your strategies and choices throughout the game. Who you manage to recruit, what races you have fighting on your side and, most importantly, which companions you take with you into the finale will all have a huge impact on your fight. And oh boy, the Archdemon is just as hulking and terrifying when you finally get to take him on. This fight is probably the most universally recognised great on my list and still stands out as one of the best RPG finales to date.

9. Marguerite (Resident Evil VII: Biohazard)

Resident Evil 7 is a truly terrifying, if fairly brief, foray into horror that Capcom haven’t quite managed since the series’ fourth entry. And I felt that the main fight with the Baker family’s deranged mother Marguerite deserves a place on this list for the raw terror it creates alone. Just when you think you’re getting used to the horrors of the Baker estate, the game ushers you into a claustrophobic greenhouse and locks the door behind you. After a jumpscare that will make you lose your shit, you’ve got to somehow dispatch this horrifying, unhinged bug woman who’s screaming obscenities and crawling on the walls and ceilings to pounce on you and spawning endless poisonous insects from the weird egg sac between her legs. As if that wasn’t awful enough, most of the time, you don’t even know where the hell she is, as she has a rather unsavory habit of crawling off into little alcoves and into walls, out of your sight, so you’re forced to frantically search around in the darkness in an attempt to spot her before she jumps on you. No other boss fight has elicited this kind of fear from me, so on that merit alone, it’s earned its spot.

8. Daud (Dishonored)

The climactic clash with the man that killed your character’s love interest, the empress, and was directly involved in framing you for her murder is just as brilliantly satisfying as you’d expect. For the first time in the game, the protector turned assassin Corvo is finally forced to take on someone who can wield the same supernatural powers he can, which makes a battle with high emotional stakes that really allows you to see the glaring similarities between Corvo and Daud. On top of this, with Daud being voiced by Michael Madsen, his provocative, yet thoughtful dialogue throughout the battle makes you think while you fight and gives you a much deeper insight into Daud’s character and helps you decide whether you’ll choose to show him mercy or not, especially during his eloquent plea for mercy at the fight’s end. As for the fight itself, it’s fast-paced and intense, while encouraging you to make full use of Corvo’s arsenal of weapons and powers to beat him back. But most impressive is the sheer difference in experience depending on whether you’ve chosen the path of merciful low chaos or murderous high chaos throughout the game, with Daud in low chaos being much more willing to offer a fair fight rather than sending his goons out after you. In a game full of changes to the world and story depending on your choices, some huge and some extremely subtle, this fight with the empress’ assassin is a truly standout moment in a brilliant game. Oh, and if you end up playing the DLCs where you take control of Daud, another emotional layer is added when you realise just how much Daud has done to save the empress’ daughter, even when on the surface he seems to be just another of Dishonored’s many despicable villains.

7. Stained Glass Demon (MediEvil: Resurrection)

Anyone who knows me knows I’m a huge MediEvil fan, specifically the oddly maligned PSP version that I personally think is amazing. For me, this charmingly gothic action platformer has a hell of a lot of high points, but the fight early on the game with the Stained Glass Demon in particular is as cool as it sounds. The game totally embraces its gothic atmosphere in this section, with the protagonist Sir Daniel Fortesque being trapped within a textbook creepy mausoleum full of undead things, and something in the giant stained glass window that seems to be very alive. Eventually fighting this thing really tests you on what you’ve learned up to this point, meaning that full use of the weapons you’ve gathered is basically essential if you want to beat this weird demon that uses glass as its main attack. By merit of how uniquely amazing this boss fight is, as well as the game it hails from, this particular demon is one of my absolute favourite boss fights.

6. David (The Last of Us)

While this isn’t a boss fight in the traditional sense, it is a gritty, tense face off with the game’s only real central villain. You play as the hardened but still terrified Ellie as you carefully navigate a restaurant while David searches for you with very murderous intent, his monologues only serving to make the experience even more chilling. With each strategic hit you manage to land, David becomes more and more enraged, searching the restaurant with more fervor with each hit you deal, eventually setting the building on fire. The tension that’s been building through the whole encounter reaches boiling point as you watch the fire slowly begin to envelop the whole room and Ellie finally catches him offguard long enough to brutally kill the deranged man with his own machete. Everybody knows how amazing this game is, and this unorthodox fight in particular stood out as a great character display and a masterclass in building tension, to only then be immediately followed by Joel and Ellie’s emotional reunion that definitely tugs at your emotions. The Last of Us has always been a must-play and this moment serves as one of many reminders that it definitely still is.

5. Xaldin (Kingdom Hearts II)

Probably the hardest boss fight on this list and also that I’ve ever had to do in general (yes that means I’ve never played Dark Souls), I initially wrote this whole fight off as total bullshit, as I figured there was no way outside of blind luck to finish this with any sort of skill. And admittedly, luck is a factor here, with Xaldin’s constant and dizzying attacks taking a hell of a long time to work out the patterns for than most other fights in the game. He’s pretty much constantly in your face, knocking off huge chunks of your health bar in one go, so it quickly becomes a mad dash for survival as you run around the castle courtyard trying desperately to find an opening. One thing I’ve always loved about Kingdom Hearts, despite how needlessly complicated most of its entire concept is, is the consistently smooth, fun combat system, that allows for many different styles of play and rewards experimentation with different abilities and magic. Nowhere does this come out more in one of the game’s many creative boss fights, most notably for me the clash with this particular member of Organization 13.

4. Morag (Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies)

This is probably my weirdest pick on the list, as in reality Morag is a fairly inconsequential boss fight in a game that most people regard as one of the worst in the Dragon Quest series. But DQ9 is one of my absolute favourite games of all time, and this boss fight in particular is tied to one of the most emotionally charged storylines I’ve experienced in an RPG. Towards the start of the game, you’re tasked with killing the Wight Knight, a supposedly evil knight that’s been terrorising a local town, specifically the town’s princess. Upon beating him, you discover that he was cursed by the witch Morag to remain with her in the ruined town of Brigadoom after falling in love with him. The princess that the knight had fallen for died in the intervening 500 years, leading his grief to cloud his judgment and he began to pursue the princess of a different town that looked almost exactly like her. In order to put his spirit to rest, the princess of the town realises who and what the knight is, and comes to Brigadoom to give him the dance he never got to have with the woman he knew 500 years ago. Okay, might be a little cliche, but this really oofed me and I thought this whole plotline was brilliantly executed, much like every other emotional moment that this game is packed with. As a whole, this boss fight, while inconsequential, is intrinsically linked to a heavily emotional subplot and is a hidden gem in an often overlooked, but amazing RPG.

3. Goro Akechi (Persona 5)

I almost gave this spot to the ever satisfying takedown of Kamoshida, but this fight just beats him out for pure emotional stakes alone. Goro Akechi is a tragic character who was horribly mistreated throughout much of his life, but at some point in his life, he made a conscious choice to become what he was. While the phantom thieves sympathise with his plight and the people that aided in him becoming the murderer that he was, they know they can’t get through to him and their only choice is to fight him off. The boss fight itself is suitably epic, with the now clearly unhinged Akechi throwing his full might at your party, but there’s still a part of you that doesn’t want to keep fighting. And that’s what makes this whole section so interesting, as your main character begins to understand that Akechi in reality is a twisted reflection of the thieves and what they could very easily become should they lose their way. And Akechi’s eventual realisation that this is the case then prompts him to make the ultimate sacrifice in the end, as his loyalties waver when he realises his father never planned to keep him around anyway. There’s a lot to unpack in this particular fight and has a lot more emotional layering to it than most other fights in the game, and it’s very rare to say that about any boss fight. Persona 5 is a spectacular experience from start to end and the effect Akechi’s final stand had was one of its most memorable moments.

2. Asriel Dreemurr (Undertale)

A once underrated indie gem that has since basically become a gaming icon in the years since, how much I absolutely love Undertale still hasn’t wavered. And in a game with a wonderfully creative combat system and therefore full of great bosses, the pacifist route’s final fight takes the crown for me. It’s the perfect culmination of everything you’ve experienced throughout Undertale, giving you a brilliant soundtrack and the opportunity to save each and everyone of the friends you’ve made along the way, followed by Asriel himself. The story of Asriel and the first human who fell into the underground is a deeply tragic one, and Asriel himself is a character stricken with grief that has distorted into anger and an obsessive desire to wield godlike power and all of this combines to make you really feel for who you’re fighting, which makes it all the more satisfying to help him come to his senses at the very end. This incredibly intense, but endlessly satisfying battle ends off with an emotional sequence of the real Asriel realising the hate in his actions and redeeming his actions by opening the barrier while he’s still himself to let monsters go free. This ending gets me everytime and there’s some wonderful themes buried in here somewhere, so the significance of this particular character and his final showdown can’t be understated.

Before I cry talking about my top pick, here’s (a lot) more I really love:

Master Hand (Super Smash Bros. series)

Lord Fredrik (Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze)

Yuga (The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds)

Yellow Devil (Mega Man)

Gohma (The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time)

Delilah Copperspoon (Dishonored 2)

Xion (Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days)

Bebuzzu (Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales)

Zinyak (Saints Row IV)

Alduin (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim)

Bowser (Super Mario Bros. 3)

1. Calamity Ganon/Dark Beast Ganon (The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild)

It probably stands to reason that my favourite boss fight came out of my favourite game. Much like the rest of Breath of the Wild, this finale left a huge impact on me and I absolutely adored all of it. After fighting your way through the ruined Hyrule Castle (which, as a sidenote, is also awesome), you finally see the horrible monstrosity you’ve been building up to fighting for the entire game and it looks as freaky as it should. Before the fight kicks off, each champion you’ve rescued makes a cameo to help you out and then, you’ve got to fend for yourself. This spectacular boss fight does everything a boss should do; it tests you on everything you’ve learned and gathered throughout the entire game, maintains a great level of emotional stakes and, most importantly, gives you a fitting finale to arguably the best adventure game ever made. Everything is topped off with a horseback battle with a giant creature form of Ganon that covers the whole of Hyrule Field (which at that point, honestly does intimidate you) in one final push to seal Ganon away. You truly feel that this is what your grand adventure has been leading up to and the sense of genuine accomplishment you feel when Ganon falls and Link finally reunites with Zelda in real life after spending all this time regaining his treasured memories of her combines that sense of accomplishment with vast emotional depth. Everything about Breath of the Wild absolutely blew me away and this wonderful ending really could not have been better. The long awaited final battle against Ganon, after experiencing everything that happened to Link and the champions after losing so tragically to Ganon a century ago, as well as the brilliantly handled subtle romance between Link and Zelda, makes this my absolute favourite boss fight, and game ending in general, of all time.

So that’s my list! Hope you agreed with at least some of my picks, or at the very least could sort of see where I was coming from. Got any great boss fights of your own that top your list? Let me know! And big thank you for reading. Have a gr8 day.

[sole-cuore-amore-e-droga]

Tel Aviv 2019: Straight outta Croatia to Eurovision with a confused angel lad and his lowkey over-enthusiastic mentor

Yeah, well, I definitely have hoped for this nation to finally finally bring back Dora as their national selection, as I myself have never really felt their internal entries since they abandoned it (well maybe except Nina from 2012 but even then by now I grew out of it softly). Not even Nina from 2016 which was tipped as a huge fan fave (though I’m so sorry for it getting completely lambasted in Eurovision, especially because of the poor clothing choice and Nina’s warbly notes here and there).

And they did! After like what, 7 solid years??? After the last Dora ending out with a disastrous end result and spawned a person to (more) stardom who even qualified a couple years back and this year he’s there to be a songwriter for his home country because of the Eurovision 2019 slogan inspiring him???? Well... yeah that happened. With having fought 15 other participants made up of familiar faces, up and coming starlets, the already legendary divas or just some people, he won as a songwriter for this next target of my review - the target that is aptly titled “The Dream” and is performed by a 19 year old up-and-coming pop star, Roko Blažević. Yep, Jacques Houdek won a NF but not with himself singing. Man did his magic game get stronger over the years since Dora 2011.

And interestingly enough, Jacques’s wizardry comes in with him being capable of selling chanceless music as something worth buying into. How can that happen???

Well, to be frank with you all, this song is not that bad, unlike everyone thinks it is. It feels like a low-rent musical ballad, sure, but it's not terribly composed or anything... well, I know I usually hate on those songs that like using mostly not the "verse - chorus - verse - chorus - bridge - chorus", but there are plenty of songs that mess with that structure that usually just omit the last two components (radio pop music) or don’t even need one, and they sound great. Here we have the omission of the last two components that more reminds me of “Grande amore” (I am not saying they’re comparable but still), as in, slow ballad in the F minor (”The Dream” even slaps a keychange on) that tries to sound majestic/dramatic, not very much so to be intense, just something theatrical I s’pose. And has a little too little time for another full verse so they just go to a bridge (and "Grande amore" had two long pre-choruses too?!?). I don’t hate this one, if I had to make a 2019 ranking this instant I’d put this in Top 30 somehow.

So what is there to be found that puts people off? They cannot be hating on Roko’s voice, which is really great for a young man like him. (In fact, God forbid I say one bad word about him, because some specific one on Twitter will have a beatdown with me because I dissed her hubby... so I’ll keep my mouth shut about any qualities of his :X) I guess it consists of several factors: 1) the song sounds dated; 2) the lyrics, especially in that chorus (I DREAM OF LOOOOOOVE, YOU DREAM OF LOOOOOOVE~ lol I actually dream of hatred, hatred will prevail >:) ); 3) the vocal volume is loud at parts; 4) the song is English-Croatian and somehow it should be sung in Croatian just to hide away the hideous understandable lyrics. My personal caveats are: 1) the song is too plodding and it shows a lot in that chorus with Roko holding his long notes (can we get tothe point FASTER?!); 2) the chorus lacks productional depth and maybe with a slight revamp (given Jacques wouldn’t be so stubborn about it!) it could have sounded the right amount of dramatic. If anything, I am GRATEFUL that it sounds more palatable than "My Friend", as THAT one was a joyful of cringey clichés tbh. The cheese became rotten and smelly and the sudden violin lead-in into the bridge still creeps me out. Goddamn it Jaq.

Not to mention Mr. Houdek is soooooo optimistic about his song, he finds everything in it perfect enough to not change it! Not the melody, not the language decisions, not the wings (did I tell you Roko wore wings on his NF performance??) - no! Did someone not tell him that Eurovision is rapidly evolving and his fantasies of coming top 3 with this song just better stay fantasies? Oh wait, it's the same man who once sang "dare to dream and make it real", of course he's stuck to his guns like super glue. Can't blame him, there were worse songs in top 3 over the years. Still though, the wings is a stupid idea. There should be something else involved if Jacques wants a performance to be memorable. Roko can't just stand there and only do what he's told to do by his guardian songwriter - granted he has to behave but still...

In the end, how would I summarize this tl;dr? I am one of a handful of folks who find this alright. There's a bigger minority who outright adores the song but I'm just there that likes this and nothing much more, honestly. Everything's just alright. Guess I'm sometimes soft enough to accept cheese, huh. But seriously, the mentoring behind the scenes... it's creepy to say the least. I'm happy Roko's having a helluva good time at least.

Approval factor: Oh I don't know with this one, statistically we can just go ahead and... try approving this? I’m not a huge fan of Croatian entries this decade, at least Slovenia redeemed themselves in my eyes last minute with “Sebi”, while even in my Croatian faves (they mostly are “Nebo” and “Crazy”, and I maaaaaybe like “Lighthouse” a bit too actually?) I see some negative qualities that completely overwhelm my liking for them. But since I legally find “The Dream” okay, I give this one a bit of a pass.

Follow-up factor: Sadly this kind of choice feels to me as a steady divedown in overall quality of what Croatia usually offers us. Well the decline was always on since “My Friend” followed up “Lighthouse” I suppose, or it's just so happens that Croatia sent the duds on this decade only in odd years ("Celebrate" was fun but tragic trash, "Mižerja" was pleasant I guess but everything here was miserable from the beginning and everyone still doesn’t get why “My Friend” qualified and “Crazy” didn’t). I like it though.

Qualification factor: I’d like to believe that this one can borderline sneak the fuck in to the finals for no reason other than Jacques knowing how to work things in his favour. Yes, I’m not writing this off completely. Although I still see some parts where this wouldn’t work out, it’s actually not 100% doomed... if anything, I at least don’t see it coming last in semi easily! It’s not as LAME as Iceland last year was. And it too was a basic love-peace-dreams message inserted into an older-timey-sounding singalong ballad and was given for a young singer that has a helluva lot of potential later ASIDE Eurovision. That is if they don't pretend Eurovision "ruined [their] careers, njeh!", of course. At least Roko can SANG live and maybe it will happen again that a singer's voice will make this surprisngly qualify over the song? We'll see. For now Jacques should just stay focused on how to make Roko's angel wings (sigh...) more memorable on stage in case the voice is not qualifying but the gimmicks are.

NATIONAL FINAL BONUS

EMA 2019 at least had positive surprises all over for a NF this non-cared-about-by-me. Dora just... did not. Really. This NF did not interest me all that much song-quality-wise, and it even had SIX MORE SONGS than EMA!!! Crazy, huh?? But it’s okay, I can talk about the show to you if you want me to:

• From the Dora participants list announcement I was mostly excited to hear like two entries, and I'll mention both of them right away separately. And it's by two artists I've heard of before a lot! Though this first one kind of made me feel like I've been somewhat betrayed... enter Luka Nižetić who has got a nice vast catalogue of songs now - soft song(s), upbeat summer songs, and so on. And I kinda liked some of those songs of his I heard (if you're looking for recommendations, give "Vječno" a listen!), but “Brutalero”, his actual Dora 2019 entry was... on a whole different level. Dude, when was ripping off “Mi gente” ever useful?? It’s the year people were chasing after “Fuego” as the Latinesque bop to copy, not this! I hate it when people rehash annoying (but catchy) songs, and it’s certainly worse when they do it as their Eurovision NF entry. Brutal. And I actually remember hyping him before hearing the song, which is a bigger facepalm-worthy moment of mine. When will I ever learn?! ;( Thank God for the juries who served this song right. IDC if the revamp version of this made it any better, I’ll be fuming over this not being an inspired song. Oh and the comic book cartoon style made this brutally laughable to me, I said what I said. It might have entertained some kids though. So to summarise, Luka’s capable of having bops out, but “Brutalero” ain’t it, sis.

• Well guess what - Friendship ended with LUKA, Now MANNTRA is my best friend! Hell yeah lol. Did I tell you I like rock music so much? So I really foresaw kind of liking Manntra's song “In the Shadows” and rooting for them based on me knowing their name (just like Luka but oop), and in fact I really did root for them in the end! I wish I supported them more than Luka instead. They’re bangin’. They’re blazin’. They’re pure awesomeness. Their costumes. THAT BREAKDOWN. Magic. Should’ve won, and if them winning were any forbidden because Croatia is just refusing to accept stuff I’d stan for, at least come second. Screw Luka, screw Lorena. Bring the rock music back. ^^

• oh yeah and the others I guess. Well, if I had to recommend a few entries, here goes: if you’re nostalgic for old-timey early 2000′s bops (in the style of “Everyway That I Can”), you go and listen to the aforementioned Lorena Bućan‘s entry, “Tower of Babylon”. If you dreamed of one of the Femminem singers becoming a 60s retro artiste (actually you did not, that sounds very utter random), go check her project’s (Gelato Sisters) entry, “Back to That Swing”. If you’re here for THE QUEEN DOMENICA, go ahead, check out “Indigo”, the ultimate shopping mall background music anthem. My actual other favourite together with Manntra was Beta Sudar though, as “Don’t Give Up” as some really nice pop I guess. You see what I mean when I said that Dora this year did not interest me all that much song-quality-wise? Well ofc some songs were nice but that's all and too much 'just niceness' is slowly breaking me honestly. I would have gladly cancelled the NF and put Manntra through internally instead. Epic boys deserve an epic platform to showcase themselves, I don’t make the rules here.

Thankfully that's that out of the way, now I'm just going to wish this sweet little angel man all the best in Tel Aviv and not to be too upset if he flops. I know Jacques would be upset, but for that he shouldn't put Roko through a similar mind process also...

[fishy12233]

Chronicles of Sturgia

Prologue Part 2: “The Wacky Week”

It was a quiet night in Citrione City. The date was Friday, May 18. There was only one week left until summer vacation.

A group of kids sneaking out in their pajamas interrupted the peaceful night in the suburbs. They quietly made their way towards a hidden treehouse; it was their clubhouse, and a secret meeting was about to take place.

The clubhouse was filled with all sorts of objects, such as walkie-talkies, binoculars, toys, spy gear, game consoles, and most importantly, piles and piles of books. In the clubhouse, the kids would talk about their plans for summer vacation, studying for final exams, and possible rumors and adventures. However, the biggest thing that the kids worked on together was a guidebook of places they’ve been to. The guidebook had information about Citrione City and the neighboring Spookyville, but there was still plenty of blank space for their future adventures. They never expected it, but the kids’ guidebook would be almost completely filled up before the end of summer vacation.

“I can help you guys study in the library on Sunday, if you want,” said Chris, with a hopeful look in his eye.

“That would be great Chris, but me and Susan still have to go to church,” said Maddie, looking a bit more gloomy than usual.

“You guys can go to the library early, then we’ll be over later. There will be plenty of time for us to be there!” Exclaimed Susan, who wore a warm smile on her face.

“Now that that’s settled, what are we, like, going to do this summer?” Asked Lisa, with a bored but energetic expression.

“None of us have plans this summer, but I’m sure we could find adventure somewhere in our town,” said Peter, who wore a thoughtful look on his face.

“We can do it! It’s going to be so much fun! We’ll go camping, exploring, eating, and just doing whatever we want!” Exclaimed Annie, who looked as gung-ho as ever.

“Alright then, so we’re still on for the park tomorrow, right?” Chris asked. He was hesitant, but hopeful.

“Of course,” said Maddie. “We’ll meet up tomorrow. Well, goodnight everyone.” Maddie quietly left, while the others followed. Everyone returned to their homes, falling into a deep, peaceful sleep.

* * *

The date was Saturday, May 19.

For every kid, Saturday morning was the time for their most important ritual: Saturday morning cartoons. While these cartoons have become rare in recent times, kids always found a channel that still played Saturday morning cartoons. All the kids in the neighborhood were watching cartoons on Saturday mornings in their pajamas while eating colorful, sugary cereals.

After the cartoons stopped playing on TV  in favor of boring adult shows, the kids would all go out to the park to play. Some played on the playground while others played on their portable gaming consoles. The kids weren’t the only ones at the playground, however. Teens who lived in the neighboring town of Spookyville would often hang out at the playground. There were a series of popular home movies that featured some of these teens as stars of a sort of horror movie parody. Many kids gossip about them, creating rumors that the events in the movies are real. However, nobody ever believes these rumors. Peter’s older sister Jessica often goes to the park to sit at a homemade stand she made that sold advice. Her business was popular among both children and teens alike. This is how Jessica knew all the latest gossip and drama. It was also how she got extra cash. Like many of the kids in Citrione City, Jessica was a schemer.

Each of the kids loved going to the park for different reasons. Maddie and Chris loved looking for bugs or reading books together. Susan always liked to set up a nice picnic with bento lunches for everyone. Peter would always walk his dog Biscuit or play super spy with Lisa. They had walkie-talkies, binoculars, and a bunch of other spy gear that a spy kid would need. They loved to spy on people in the post office or watch people from the vantage point that came with their clubhouse. Whenever Peter wasn’t walking the dog or playing super spy, he would play video games, find someone to play trading card games with, or do tricks with various skill toys like yo-yos. Annie was always volunteering on Saturdays, helping clean up the park or helping maintain the garden. Sometimes, Chris and Annie liked to feed the ducks at the duck pond. They always thought there was something shining in the water, but they weren’t allowed to dive in. Sometimes, all the kids would get together to play tag or hide and seek. One of their favorite games was sardines, a variation of hide and seek where there were multiple seekers who would go hide in the same place as the first hider.

Today, Lisa happened to be listening to a popular band on the radio: The Crazy Eights. She was dancing her heart out while wearing round, rose-colored sunglasses. This band happened to be in town, which made Lisa pretty excited. Rumor says that they’re in debt with the local music venue, trapping them in Citrione City. Lisa was hoping to meet them and hear some of her favorite songs from them, such as “Utopian Train”, “Soaring Guy”, or “Makin’ Pals”.

“Tomorrow, after we go to the library,” said Lisa to Peter, “I want to sneak into the local theater and get an autograph.” Lisa had a scheming gleam in her eye, a look that Peter knew well.

“But Lisa,” Peter said, “We’ll get in trouble again! Remember the mailman incident?”

“I had to break into his house!” exclaimed Lisa. “He was too suspicious! I still think he’s an alien.”

Despite Peter’s pleas, Lisa was determined to get an autograph.

By the time the kids got home, the sun was already setting. It had been a long day. Lisa slept over at Peter’s house while everyone else returned to their own houses. Saturday night was the best time to stay up late watching movies or playing video games.

Despite being close friends, the kids’ families were all different in their own way. Maddie and Susan were sisters, and they lived with a mom who owned a church gift shop, a dad who was an English teacher, and their Uncle Samuel, who was a gemcutter. Peter had an older sister and a younger sister, and they both lived with parents who were dealing with financial problems. He also had a loving Border Collie named Biscuit. Lisa was an only child, and she lived with parents who were just as free-spirited as she was. Annie lived with her older brother, who recently graduated college. Her parents lived far away. Chris lived with a younger sister named Ash, who often spent time drawing on her tablet, away from other people. He also lived with a dad who was a scientist, but his mom left when Chris was only two years old. Chris and Ash would often see their mom on the news, living her life as a successful programmer.

Saturday was always a day of fun for the kids. Tomorrow, they would have to get ready for their last week of school.

* * *

The date was Sunday, May 20.

Today was the day that the kids would go to the library and study, even though Maddie and Susan could not go for the first hour because they were with their mom at the church gift shop. The library can be a cool place to explore, especially modern libraries. Many libraries house art galleries and may have bizarre sculptures. Books are also fun to find, because anyone can find a book interesting to them. For the first 30 minutes, the rest of the kids were having fun at the library, hanging out and getting help from Chris. The six coordinated girls who went to their school were there as well, hanging out by a nearby table. However, things quickly got boring without Maddie and Susan. So they decided to go wait for them to get out of church. When Maddie and Susan got out of church, the kids played tag, had donuts, spent time at the gift shop, and played around the fountain and fire pit. The kids’ favorite thing to do there was play with the wind chimes in the gift shop. Afterwards, they returned to the library to study.

After a few hours, Lisa left the library and ran off towards the theater. Of course, her friends immediately noticed and ran after her. Lisa snuck around the back side of the theater. She saw the Crazy Eight’s bus. It was yellow and was painted with colorful swirls and citrus patterns. Lisa pulled out a picture of the band so they would sign it. When she saw Cool, one of the original members of the band, she screamed with joy so loud that his sunglasses fell off his face. She rushed to him, speaking so fast that no one else could understand her. The other kids remained in hiding, watching her talk with Cool. He was weirded out by her sudden arrival, but happily signed her poster, anyway. Some other members came out of the bus, including Retro, who looked like an alien with a hippie outfit and a black shirt with a red ghoul on the front, making Lisa practically faint out of excitement. The other kids watched as they all signed her poster and sent her home.

“Did you see that?” she exclaimed. Lisa was shaking like a chihuahua. The other kids nodded nervously. Then Lisa leaned in and whispered, “You know Retro, right?

I think he’s an alien.”

“Not this again!” Peter exclaimed.

“I’m serious! That definitely does not look like a costume, does it?” said Lisa. “His face moved and everything!”

“I believe you,” said Maddie. “He is definitely an alien.”

“Thank you, Maddie!” said Lisa. “At least someone gets it!”

Chris shot a doubtful look at Retro, then at Lisa.

“Alien or not, that’s not what we need to worry about now,” said Annie. “We need to go home and get a good rest! Our final exams are gonna be hard, but I know we can do it!”

By the time the kids got back home, it was time to get ready for bed. When there is a school day the next day, time at home always seems to fly by, since the kids have to go to bed earlier. Sometimes, kids like Chris would prepare for school too much, leaving them laying awake in bed all night thinking about nothing but what they would do the next morning. By the time they finally fell asleep, their ten alarms would go off, indicating that it was time to get ready for school.

* * *

The date was Monday, May 21.

Mondays is definitely the worst day of the week. The transition from weekend mode to vacation mode always left the kids tired and unwilling to go to school. Luckily, it was the last week of school before summer vacation, so it was slightly more bearable to get up earlier. Some kids, like Chris, were heavy sleepers. Even though they may have set ten alarms, they would always sleep through them, pressing the snooze button five times before actually getting up.

After getting ready and eating a nice breakfast, the kids would walk to school. Their school was only one block away from the kids’ houses. Unlike weekend mornings, when Citrione City was lively and busy, weekday mornings were peaceful and serene. The soft glow of the rising sun coming to wake up the sleepy town was a beautiful sight. It didn’t make up for having to get up early for school, but it helped.

One of the strangest things the kids saw on the way to school was the neighbor’s house. Chris described it as Art Nouveau, which was an art style that focused on natural forms and structures. The house had been around for about seven years, so the kids had gotten used to seeing it all the time.

The nice thing about the last full day of school was that the kids didn’t have to do much work. They had plenty of time to study and enjoy themselves and reminisce on the past year. They remembered field day, when they got to play fun games and get soaking wet. Afterwards, they would eat ice cream and frozen fruit pops. The book fair was one of their favorite events, since there were plenty of cool books and toys to buy. It was all the rage at school. Kids always loved reading the latest book series, whether it was about time traveling tree houses or secret organizations that fought fires. Science fairs were Chris’s favorite. He won first prize for the first time at the most recent science fair. There were so many fun events it would take hours to talk about all of them. Through the fun memories, and even the trials and tribulations, Citrione City was home sweet home.

After school was over, the kids went home to study and relax. The late afternoon was the time of day when the kids just sat around or walked around the house looking for something to do. Some kids just watched TV or played board games. Others rummaged through their toys or bookshelves, leaving a mess that their parents would make them clean up. However, this afternoon wasn’t like other afternoons. It was the beginning of something strange.

Maddie was sitting in her room, which was decorated with many spooky things. She was busy reading a book series on wizards. That was when she saw something move out of the corner of her eye. The wardrobe door was open. Curious, Maddie slowly walked up to it reached for the door. Suddenly, it snapped closed. Then, something unbelievable happened. The wardrobe came to life, jumping towards her. It opened its doors and started sucking everything inside. Terrified, Maddie leaped for the door. She threw whatever she could find at the wardrobe. After struggling to not get eaten, she finally escaped, closing the door inside her. Thankfully, the wardrobe was too big to fit through the doorway. It couldn’t open the door, even if it knew how to.

She ran to Susan’s room and told her everything that happened.

“Really?” Susan asked. “That’s scary. You could sleep in my room if you want.”

“No thank you,” said Maddie. “I would rather sleep on the couch bed.”

Then, Maddie and Susan went to their parents and uncle and told them what was going on. Their parents laughed, but Samuel believed them.

“I’ve seen stranger things than an evil wardrobe,” said Samuel. “Compared to the weird stuff that’s been going on in Spookyville, this is nothing.”

Meanwhile, Peter’s family was freaking out over the vase and boombox that had come alive in the kitchen. Peter was intrigued, but when they started attacking everyone, he bashed them with a baseball bat until they ran away.

Back at the Avarell household, Samuel was wondering what to do. “We can’t make the wardrobe leave,” he said.

“Then what are we going to do?” asked Maddie. “Is it going to live in my room forever?”

“Maybe we can fight it,” said Samuel. “What do you have on you?”

“I just have some old books that I got from the Spookyville library last week,” said Maddie. “I should probably return those soon.” Samuel looked at the books. They were actually spell books that taught simple magic attacks.

“Why does Spookyville have all this weird magic stuff there? I guess that kind of stuff would be normal there, but I’m pretty sure it used to be just a normal town a few years ago.” Susan asked.

However, there was no time for questions.

“Are you ready?” asked Samuel.

“Yes,” said Maddie. She was hesitant, but Samuel could tell that she was shaking not only from fear, but from excitement.

Maddie bravely marched inside her room. She felt the strong winds. While she had read over the spell book many times already, she never tried out the spells. The wardrobe relentlessly tried to suck her in. She stood her ground. If this was real, it would be a dream come true for Maddie.  The winds became stronger. Maddie began to lose her footing. Samuel was right behind her, just in case. Hesitantly, she chanted the spell. A shot of electricity hit the wardrobe. The winds died. She did it. The wardrobe was shaking in fear. It wouldn’t bother her again.

After some celebration and confusion, everyone returned to their rooms and went to bed. Maddie got to sleep in her room that night, but was still apprehensive of the wardrobe that quietly slept next to her bedside. That night, Samuel couldn’t help but worry about why these things were occurring, especially since it’s been only three days since the seventh anniversary of the day he was separated from his fiance.

* * *

The date was Tuesday, May 22.

Today was the first day of final exams. The kids couldn’t afford to worry about the strange occurrences that happened last night. Only Peter, Lisa, Susan, and Maddie knew about the inanimate objects that attacked them that night. None of them had the opportunity to tell Annie or Chris that day.

Anyone who has taken a test can testify to how difficult, tedious, and terrible it is. Hours of complete silence, having to resist the urge to cheat, and not knowing the answers to many of the questions is unbearable. The only strategy is to study and be a good test taker. Thankfully, Chris could help his friends study. But even with the knowledge, tests are still impossibly difficult for bad test takers. Imagine only hearing the sounds of writing, coughing, and the ticking clock, working quickly before time runs out. When the students took their tests, time felt tediously slow yet frighteningly fast. It took forever to get through the test, but there was still not enough time to answer all the questions.

After the long hours of test-taking, it was finally over. However, there was still two days of test-taking left.

The kids left the school worried about their grades but relieved that it was over for the day. Since the school didn’t serve lunch on half-days, the kids went to the pizzeria. There were two pizzeria’s in Reality Valley, the area where both Spookyville and Citrione City were located in. Everyone went to the pizzeria in Citrione City, but no one went to the one in Spookyville. Despite it having a full arcade and an area for kids’ parties, it had a history of ghost sightings, dangerous incidents, and bad service.

Maddie and Susan told the group about what happened to them last night.

“You too?” asked Peter. “Lisa and I were attacked last night.”

“So it wasn’t just us,” said Maddie, with a meditative look on her face. “Were you or Annie attacked last night, as well?”

“No, of course not,” said Chris. “Uh, this has to be a joke right? I mean, that isn’t scientifically possible!”

“Didn’t you see Retro the other day?” asked Lisa.

“But, that must have been a costume,” Chris said, “There are plenty of costumes with moving facial features like that.”

“What about those happenings in Spookyville?” asked Maddie.

“Um, those have to be fake, right?” Chris asked. He was notably more anxious after Maddie started questioning him. “They just, um, faked those home videos to gain publicity. That has to be it.”

“I believe Chris. After all, nobody believes those rumors, so neither should you,” Annie said. “Listen, Chris and I need to get going. We’re volunteering at the food bank today. My brother’s taking us. See you later.”

After Annie dragged Chris out with her, the other four kids were alone.

“We can just show them the wardrobe in my room, right?” said Maddie. “They’ll have to believe us! After all, there’s no way for the wardrobe to leave, right?”

Maddie wouldn’t need to show Chris and Annie the wardrobe. The events that transpired that afternoon would be all they needed to be convinced of the strange happenings in Reality Valley.

The food bank in Citrione City provided many volunteer opportunities. Annie was a regular volunteer there, but her friends also came along with her sometimes. Since she needed an adult with her, her big brother would always go with her. They always volunteered on Tuesdays for a couple of hours. The food bank always needed people to help pack food to send off to people who needed it. Working there was pretty boring. However, it would stop being boring once a good conversation started between volunteers. Then, work went by very quickly. Annie always prided herself in her many volunteer hours. It was one of the few things she felt she was good at. She always felt safe when she volunteered.

However, that would soon come to an end.

Chris, Annie, and her brother were busy packing lunches into small, disposable lunch boxes. The one thing Annie didn’t like about volunteering was how the food she was packing always made her hungry. She often stole  snacks for herself. Her big brother noticed this, but never said anything. He knew how much Annie loved eating food.  Annie even saw kids from her school there, including some of the girls who dressed in coordinated clothes. The afternoon was fun and peaceful.

Suddenly, everyone heard a loud crashing noise from the warehouse. The coordinator in charge asked someone to volunteer to go investigate with him. Annie’s brother volunteered and went with him. After a few minutes, they never returned. However, everyone could still hear noises. The rest of the volunteers cautiously entered the warehouse. There, they saw an unbelievable sight. A bunch of inanimate objects had come to life and made a mess in the warehouse. There were many strange creatures and animals devouring the food scattered by the mess. The volunteer coordinator and Annie’s brother were busy fighting them off. Chris and Annie could only watch in shock and disbelief. The look in their eyes was the look of someone whose life has been turned upside down. It was the look of someone who was facing the shock of having been betrayed by their knowledge of how the world works.

The sight froze Chris in place. What could he do? He was only a kid, and he had to come to terms with the supernatural creatures that stood before him. As a lover of science, Chris couldn’t process how this was happening. Annie was also in shock, but she quickly realized that her brother was in danger. She had to snap out of it, there was no time to waste. While she tried to grab Chris and drag her along with him, he wouldn’t move.

“Stop moping around!” yelled Annie. “There’s no time! We need to help, you can question everything later!”

“O-okay,” said Chris. He slowly started running with Annie to help defeat the enemies. They grabbed whatever they could and threw it at the creatures attacking Annie’s brother and the volunteer coordinator. Having distracted the creatures, everyone had the time to evacuate.

Everyone was standing outside, staring at the food bank. The news had arrived to report on the mysterious incident that occurred. Chris’s family and the other kids quickly arrived to check on him, Annie, and her brother. Everyone was in utter shock and confusion.

“Is everyone all right?” Chris’s dad asked.

“Y-yeah,” said Chris.

“I guess you were right about those weird creatures,” sighed Annie. She had a weak smile on her face.

“How do we stop them?” said Maddie. “It will only get worse.”

“Do you think Uncle Samuel could help?” asked Susan. “It wouldn’t hurt to ask.”

And so, the kids made their way to Maddie and Susan’s house. Uncle Samuel was running out of the house.

“What is going on, Uncle Samuel?” asked Maddie.

“I should be asking you that,” said Samuel. “I saw the news, and I’m afraid of what could be happening.”

“Of what happening?” asked Susan.

“You might find this hard to believe, but there’s another world beyond the mountains behind our house. I used to live there, but an evil queen separated me from the love of my life and banished me.”

“This is ridiculous,” said Annie. “How can we believe you?”

“Look around,” said Samuel. “The unbelievable has occurred before your eyes. I know it may be hard to accept, but it’s true. Remember the meteor from seven years ago? It was on the news.”

“Yeah, I remember!” said Peter. “I was only a kid, but I remember seeing the meteor outside my window. The news the next morning said it was two meteors colliding with each other, but what does that have to do with our current situation?”

“I don’t know,” said Samuel. “But it happened the night I was banished.  I can only imagine how devastating that must have been for the citizens of Sturgia.”

“Sturgia?” asked Lisa. “Is that, like, the name of that place?”

“D-do you really believe we can only believe your word on this?” said Chris.

“Chris!? What are you saying?” said Maddie.

“It’s okay,” said Samuel. “You don’t have to believe just my word. There’s someone else who can testify to what I’m saying. Do you see that strange house there?” He pointed towards the Art Nouveau house that the kids walked by every day. “An old friend lives there. She can tell you everything you need to know.”

“But how come we’ve never met her?” asked Susan.

“You’ll understand when you meet her,” said Samuel. “It’ll be best to get some rest tonight, then we can meet up with her after school tomorrow.”

Everyone said goodnight to each other. Then they went to bed. Most everyone was worried, not only about the supernatural occurrences, but also about the final exams. Only two days left.

* * *

The date was Wednesday, May 23.

Everyone was tired and confused. In two days, the kids’ lives were turned upside-down. They could barely focus on exams. Who was the woman who lived at the strange Art Nouveau house? How was she connected to all of this? Did the meteor have to do with any of this? There were too many unanswered questions.

After school, the six kids met up at the strange house with Samuel. The group slowly approached the house, seeing the strange flowers growing on the vines that crawled up the wall. They also saw a large group of birds playing in an ornate birdhouse. There was also a broomstick against the wall next to the door. As they came up to the door, the kids noticed a strange symbol on the door’s window.

Samuel knocked on the door. After a couple of minutes, someone opened the door. It was a woman with short black hair and glasses. Her eyes were filled with distraught and worry. She wore a long, flowing dress that was swirled with green and white. When she saw Samuel, her expression became gentle.

“It’s been a while, Samuel,” she said. “Come in.”

The inside of the house was cramped, but just as bizarre as the outside of the house. There was a casserole that smelled like it was fresh out of the oven. It didn’t look like the house was connected to any gas or electricity. The house appeared to be completely self-sustaining. There were plants everywhere. Everyone sat around the dining table.

“I see you brought everyone,” the woman said. “It’s nice to meet you all. I’m sorry I couldn’t come and visit you Avarells.”

“By Avarells you mean me and Susan?” asked Maddie.

“Who else?” said the woman. “Anyway, I should introduce myself. My name is Caroline Porter. I should probably explain this situation.” Caroline leaned in closer. “Seven years ago, Samuel was getting married to the love of his life, Gabriella Reyes. But the evil queen, Mareen Tarlington, split them up. She’s been acting strange for so long. The night after the wedding, she hosted a Royal Parade and seriously injured my husband. He’s been in a coma ever since, and I’ve been waiting for him to awake for seven years. Sturgia has become dangerous and desolate. I would help everyone out myself, but I can’t abandon my husband.”

“But what does that have to do with what’s been happening here?” asked Peter.

“That’s the thing,” said Caroline. “May 18 was the seventh anniversary of that fateful day. I suspect that the queen is the one behind it. She’s become too powerful. I can only suspect she’s been influenced by an old enemy.” Caroline stopped and took a breath. “Anyway, the important thing is that I want you six kids to go to Sturgia.”

“What?” said Susan. “Why?”

“Because,” Caroline said, “I want you to talk to someone there. Go see Gabriella Reyes and tell her that there is a plan. Tell her not to lose hope. I also want you to find someone names Liana Culiseta and tell her that the items are ready to be retrieved.”

“Items?” asked Lisa. “Like, what items?”

“Liana will explain when you get there,” said Caroline. “I need you to know this because you will go through the cavern in Eagle Mountain to get there. But there is one more reason you’re going through the cavern.”

“And what is that reason?” asked Maddie.

“I need you to retrieve an item for me,” said Caroline. “It’s a pair of blue diamond slippers. They’re one of the eight items you need to bring to Liana. She’ll tell you everything you need to know.”

“But we have exams,” said Chris. “We’re only kids. What can we do?”

“Tomorrow is the last day of school, right?” asked Caroline. “Tomorrow, you can start your journey. It’s a pretty simple task, but it’s also a crucial one. I believe you’re the only ones who have the attitude and the free time to accomplish this task. Are you in?”

Annie put her arm out. “I’m in. What about everyone else? We can do this!”

Chris reluctantly out his arm out as well. “O-okay, I’m in too. I’m still sort of confused, but I think that we’ll figure it out along the way. We just need to get used to it, right?”

Lisa excitedly put her arm out. “Me three! This sounds like fun!”

Peter put his arm out too. “Me four! I can’t just shy away from my friends!”

Finally, Maddie and Susan decided to put their arms out. “It is a difficult decision,” said Maddie. “But I think it is important for us to do this. This situation is bigger than us now. If we do nothing, we will only be part of the problem.”

“I’m not really as good with words,” said Susan, “but I’m in too!”

“It’s settled then,” said Caroline.

That night, the kids would have to say goodbye to everyone. Maddie and Susan felt that their parents wouldn’t understand. After all, they didn’t even believe the news story. Uncle Samuel promised to tell them after the kids left.

“I’m sorry I can’t come with you,” said Samuel. “If I could go, I would have gone seven years ago.”

Peter’s family held a going away dinner that night. His mom always made the best food in Citrione City. Her food was so good that she wrote her own cookbook. Tonight, they had a fancy steak dinner with meatloaf. It was a family favorite. Their dog Biscuit had plenty of leftovers.

Lisa said goodbye to her parents, who fully embraced her decision. They went to Peter’s house that night to visit and play board games.

Annie said goodbye to her brother, who was pretty cool about the situation.

Chris gave a heartfelt goodbye to his dad and sister, but he was still sad that he could never say goodbye to his mother. They watched her on the TV that night as she announced her latest programs.

Everyone went to bed. It would be the kids’ last night in Citrione City for a long time. They were nervous, but they were sure that things would go well.

* * *

The date was Thursday, May 24.

It was the last day of this wacky week.

It was the last day of school.

It was last day the kids would be in Citrione City for a long time.

The morning was as peaceful as always. The kids got up, knowing that today was the day that their adventure would begin. They silently walked to school, appreciating the last time they would see the sleepy town awake for a long time. People never truly appreciate something until they lose it. School was bustling with the same kids and the same garbled gossip as always. The kids saw the coordinated girls walking down the hallway, the bratty kid who liked pranking everyone, and even Ash, who was drawing on her tablet as always. There was one thing that was different, though. Everyone was excited, talking about plans for summer vacation and signing each other's yearbooks. Now that school was over, it didn’t seem so bad. During final exams, the bratty kid began bothering Peter.

“Hey Parker!” he said.

“It’s Peter,” said Peter.

“I don’t care if your name is Peter or Parker!” said the bratty kid. “What’s up with that weird stuff that’s been going on? All of the students are completely ignoring it!”

“I dunno, Lincoln.” said Peter. “Leave me alone.”

“The name’s Landon, Parker!” said the bratty kid. “Everyone here’s such a weirdo!”

Peter tried to focus on his test while Landon kept throwing stuff at him. Thankfully, he wouldn’t be seeing Landon for a while. Kids like that have always bothered Peter and his friends. One of the best things about summer is not having to see annoying kids in school every day.

The final minutes of the school year are the most exciting. This is when all the students count down to their freedom from school. Once the bell rings, everyone cheers. It’s time for celebration as the students say their goodbyes.

After school, the kids went to buy supplies to take with them on their adventure. It was their last outing. Peter’s mom gave him some cash to use to buy supplies and anything they would need. The kids wandered around the mall, having fun and buying supplies. Malls are the most popular hangout spots. They’re large and have a variety of cool stores. Peter decided to buy some video games to use with his portable game console. Annie bought all the food that would be long lasting, filling, and cheap. She also bought a bunch of the survival tools they would need. Shopping at the mall was almost an adventure in and of itself. By the time their visit to the mall was over, Peter’s bag was stuffed to the point where it couldn’t close. The kids needed to use other bags to hold everything they needed.

After visiting the mall, the kids met Samuel behind the Avarell house. Maddie and Susan said their goodbyes, then all of the kids entered the cave. They hesitated at first. It was dark, and no one knew what lurked inside. However, they needed to face the great unknown in order to proceed. They entered the cavern, bravely facing the future that lay before them.

[macbookpro-hard-drive]

HI HOW DO YOU WRITE CHARACTERS

hewwo! i can answer this! im literally gonna do a quick list of both deh and bmc characters for u under this readmore! :D

im gonna start with deh because smaller cast!

evan: 

isn’t so much stuttery as he tends to repeat things and uh stammer a bit here and there. stutters over his words sometimes but it’s more l-like this and uh, like… like this

evan hansen has anxiety. he is not anxiety. evan hansen fucks up and makes mistakes and probably internalizes a lot of things. very polite when in public but he can be a bit snappy (as seen w evans comment abt how zoe’s parents have never been poor i believe? it was something he said to zoe)

soft spoken, most of the time. probably not the kind of guy to vocally ask for things until he’s at a comfortable enough point that he feels like he’s not bothering you (same buddy)

i see evan as someone who gets frustrated with himself easily. not as a sense of “god i wish i were normal” but more of a “i should be able to do this, why cant i do this, i want to do this but i cant” because sometimes it’s just a matter of i literally cant do this and i dont know why? and god its so frustrating sometimes

jared:

jared kleinman is a fucking asshole and he knows it. very sarcastic and uses it to cover up his own insecurities, probably the kind of dude who laughs in your face when you tell him off when internally he’s just OH FUCK OH SHIT FUCK FUCK FUCK

a lot of ppl write jared as being insecure abt his weight and tbh i don’t see that being a problem for him? i see jared as being insecure abt the fact he comes off very snarky and assholeish but he turns it around and tries to own it even though… that’s not something you want to be proud of? and he knows that

not the kind of dude who stops to assess his feelings. he powers through shit and insists he’s okay until he’s out of steam. i think it was psy who said he’s a “needs therapy boi” and tbh she’s right? 

can be very passive aggressive imo it’s something he really needs to work on.

arrogant, sarcastic, and just a big fucking dick who needs to learn how to watch his mouth.

zoe:

not an pure baby angel, by any means. we’re at a disadvantage because we only see zoe when she’s sort of grieving (because grief can and will come in different ways, and while i see her as not missing connor, i do think that her pushing away her feelings is a form of her grieving imo? it’s a weird thing to explain but there’s a part of zoe that does miss (the old) connor’s presence as w the fake emails evan “gave her her brother back” (albeit a very fake version of connor) and sort of standoffish when it comes to the subject of connor

a bit of an ambivert. extremely outgoing when she’s around her friends or when it comes to music and other things she loves.

very individualistic! her style tends to have doodles on her clothes, she dyes her hair a lot, she probably would be the kind of person to make her own jewelry!

very sweet. the castng call for zoe describes her as being the kind of person who learns the names of the kids who sit alone at lunch and thats she goes out of her way to be nice to people since. connor. yeah.

thats all ive got for zoe but u can always send questions in and i can say yes or no after i ask my pals too

alana:

smart gal! valedictorian! president! i love her! tends to overshare a bit. anxiety + depression gal.

probably into gardening tbh? i can see alana having succulents in her room and maybe a dog that just chills with her.

dont be afraid to make alana mouthy. alana is someone whos extremely headstrong in her actions imo and does what she believes is right, even if others dont believe that. like… think about the fact that she literally published what was believed to be connor’s suicide note because she thought it’d get them the last bit of help they needed for the orchard. it literally fucked the murphys over - but she never considered that?

very much an extrovert. just really wants to belong, man. very optimistic on the surface but i can see her being a little less so underneath. she looks on the bright side because if she doesnt, she doesnt know who will and idk i dont think alana’s the kind of person who just... lets that risk be there.

connor:

we dont kno much abt connor in canon but uhhh…. i can see connor as being a loner, sort of aggressive by accident (tbh this dude’s probably used to people being a dick to him so he’s just sorta standoffish in response) but like… whenever i write connor i usually write him as getting better? he’s gotten the help he needs and he’s doin better 

artsy depressed dude. poetry, painting, ect - whatever u want tbh. i just see connor, with help, finding himself in art or something creative (theatre and music included! u do u!)

very much a reader. this dude both has a lot of books on his bookshelf and a lot more books he hasnt fucking read because hes terrible at reading new books. (i personally hc he loves all of poe’s work)

to sorta sum connor up: bold, but not outgoing. caring, but not obvious with it (once he gets help btw). easily angered but sometimes he just doesn’t fucking know why and that frustrates him further. troubled.

honestly if u want to see one of my fave connors - check out @ask-sincerely-memes​! i rly love how they portray all three of the boys, but connor is by far my favorite! (mod con and/or mod ev if u read this i love u)

OK ONTO THE BMC FUCKERS if you want to kno abt the adults for either show then feel free to ask

jeremy:

anxiety boy, but not evan hansen level of anxiety. more just… self deprecating, not super confident in himself, probably underestimates himself a lot.

jeremys hard to explain sometimes because a lot of his actions and dialogue comes naturally since i can actually relate to jeremy a lot, personality-wise? a really good fact to throw out there is i don’t think jeremy’s the kind of guy who just goes for stuff sometimes. he has to sorta be hyped up by others imo. michael motivated him to sign up for the play, rich and michael both played parts in getting him squipped (michael in the aspect of “lets check this out and see if its legit” bc i doubt jeremy would have genuinely done that on his own).

which really means jeremy isnt the kind of guy to just… confess things, unless it’s built up enough (i.e. jeremys confrontation w reader in unlonely since it was a conversation he’d been thinking about for a bit). in canon, he didnt really… confess to christine without the help of alcohol (at the halloween party) or without other people building him up (voices in my head). 

im literally rereading jeremy fics rn because im trying to come up with a good way of describing him

extremely horny teenage boy. hormones suck. for anyone who writes nsfw: i dont see jeremy being incredibly kinky and sexual and dominant (god forbid) his first fucking time having sex. especially if its both him and the readers first time. sex can be clumsy. you can laugh during sex. but also sex smells. like… once you’ve smelled it, you fucking know it - its just a weird combo of sweat and bodily fluids. 

that last part was just a PSA for ppl.

lightweight boy. a lot bolder when drunk. thank you.

honestly if u have any questions abt jeremy, i can try to answer them more specifically but this is as general as i can get.

michael

not an uwu anxious depressed innocent baby boy uwu. remember that michael literally withheld the mtn dew red from jeremy because he wanted an apology. remember that michael wouldnt have been squipped because michael had been completely comfortable with who he is. michael likes his place. he doesn’t want to be cool and popular - he likes who he is. michael in the bathroom was a peak moment of michael finally letting go of emotions he’d been withholding - jeremy calling him a “loser” was the final straw that broke him. thank u this has been a psa.

a goofy boy. probably snorts when he laughs and im not projecting there what are you talking about-

okay, canonically: likes video games, likes retro shit (probably the kind of nerd who LIVES for arcades and record stores and vintage clothing stores even if he doesnt mix that into his personal style), very into music. there’s a lot you can do with this! 

imo he’s very caring? like. okay, yes he did withhold mtn dew red from jeremy - but michael still went through the trouble of finding and obtaining that in order to deactivate the squip. i think michael’s a fairly understanding dude, even if he has moments of anger.

just a very warm person. probably the kind of person who stops and makes sure people are okay when he notices they’re upset.

sometimes impulsive. sometimes very restless, imo. bouncy boy. 

like w jeremy - you can absolutely send me questions abt michael (or anyone tbh!) and i’ll answer them the best i can! im by no means an expert but ive got pals i can bother in order to help get a solid answer :3

christine

chriiistiiiiiiiiine, the love of my life. a gal w ADD! please don’t forget that! i personally hc that she got into a theatre as a way of like… sort of getting energy out since she’s fairly restless??? track girl christine….. also good

loves herself a lot tbh! like. in the show, its canon that she has stuff to figure out but i personally think christine loves herself and her body and is proud of who she is?

very friendly, very open, very passionate abt theatre! these are basic facts lmao

very sweet! very smart! she’s like... The Girl in all the movies that everyones like “oh no i love her” bc shes just a bubbly gal

writing christine is really hard to describe sometimes. like with all the characters, i write what feels right and sounds right to me and to others.

but like... to be honest, as long as you stay a bit happy and supportive and loving with christine - you’re on the right track.

jake

god - one of my favorite boys to write sometimes because there’s a lot to do with jake’s character

he’s the ultimate cool dude in high school. probably the kind of dude who would join a frat in college. handsome, popular, flirtatious - you fucking name it man.

sorta effortlessly popular and cool. there’s problems underneath - considering his family - but it’s hard to see that he has flaws when everything just comes so easily to him.

a very caring and sweet dude tbh. his friends mean a lot to him and he’s the kind of boy who carries your books and asks where you’re going and how you’re doing

he makes mistakes. he gets aggressive and protective and just angry physically - he did try to attack jeremy, albeit drunk, based purely on the idea that jeremy was having sex w chloe - so like... that’s a good thing to acknowledge

i said hes flirtatious and he is - without realizing it. someone probably has called him out on it and he’s like “sorry what?” bc he was caught up in talking to someone and not realizing that the dillinger charm never went off. because it never goes off. rip.

rich

GOD, my FAVORITE BOY, the LOVE OF MY LIFE, i love him.

squipped: aggressive. a bully. stinky. 0/10.

post-squipcident: getting better. sorta numb at first before happy, outgoing rich resurfaces because He’s Fine! Do Not Worry! but y’know like... he definitely has a lot of problems with what he did and who he was while he had the squip

a bit sensitive imo. easily upset on certain topics, easily angered on others. really misses his mom (i hc she died and his dad took up drinking as a coping mechanism and its mainly rich and his older brother relying on each other but thats just me tbh.)

rich is tricky to write when it comes to his home life. while i see rich’s dad as being a loud drunk, others see him as being physically abusive and so forth and - okay, that’s your decision, but please make sure you’re being respectful and you post trigger warnings because some people are in abusive homes and it’s not a fun thing to read. 

great sense of humor imo. flirtatious but in the more obvious “haha hey lets bone ;)” way. alternatively: flirtatious with squip, floundering a bit without it because all he knows is “haha hey wanna fuck” 

would probably fight a dick for his pals. rly just loves his friends even if he doesn’t show it.

chloe

chloe is a bit hard to write without saying “shes kind of a bitch” but like... she is and she knows it and she fucking owns it.

casting call: “ confident, crass, sexy, manipulative, and downright mean at times”

so like. she’s nowhere near bein a sweet angel baby uwu

has problems. explore them. she literally was down to fuck brooke’s boyfriend since jeremy was dating brooke yknow. part of it could be alcohol but like... dont ignore that fact. like. she probs needs to talk to both brooke and jeremy.

i think of chloe as someone who can see the potential in others tbh. gets slightly annoyed when people arent achieving what they could - but i like to imagine she gets it after a while since some ppl dont have confidence and such. 

yknow the kind of people that take charge when the situation calls for it? that’s chloe. she’s very much a leader. cunning, ambitious - she’s fucking ready.

brooke

more of an angel i guess? sweet, a bit insecure, and a little more caring. not very dominant in situations - tends to be more of a follower (as shown w her and chloe’s friendship)

very caring actually. she literally followed jeremy out and said “uhhh he was kind of a dick to women but i know u like eminem” upon his death in the show??? like??? she literally went to check on this boy.

imo she sorta needs to learn to be bolder. to not take shit. shes probably the kind of person who says yes to a lot of things even if they’re conflicting bc she doesn’t want to like... bother someone and make things worse

emotional, imo. fairly feminine.

its hard to keep describing sdfkjhds sorry

jenna

not popular. remember that she wanted people to be interested in her, which is why she gossips a lot

probably tends to overhear half of the gossip. other than that, i can see her easily finding shit out bc she has eyes Everywhere

bold, fairly extroverted, probably really fucking smart tbh. give her love. she deserves it.

thats both at me and everyone else. jenna rolan ily...

very much a big sister figure, post-squipcident. theres this kdrama i was watching where the main protag lives w a couple other girls and one of the oldest one of the bunch is very much a big sister figure that will call other people out on their bullshit because she knows protag isnt the kind of person to do that? thats jenna. and chloe, but mostly jenna.

probably the kind of person who wants to be helpful imo. she likes feeling useful.

[fancyfishgames]

Aground Developer Interviews Pt. 3 - Sound Bytes (Chase Bethea)

Welcome to part three of the Aground developer interview series!

This week we have Chase Bethea, Aground’s Los Angeles based composer and sound designer.

Chase has been creating mesmerizing soundscapes for games and other media since 2011, and has been an integral part of the Fancy Fish Games team since their first collaboration (I Can’t Escape) in 2013.

What do you do? Give me details on your role and responsibilities, and everything you do to bring Aground to life.

**Chase: **I am the music composer and sound designer for Fancy Fish Games. My responsibilities include making the best ear candy for the game projects.

When I write the music, my first goal is to make sure it fits the game in every aspect. It needs to be subconscious but not invisible, enjoyable and not monotonous.

When I do the sound design, I try to make things unique but still appropriate for the action. I also find implementing and balancing the overall sound and music is quite important. Anything too loud can pull you out of the collaborative artform experience and anything soft can not pull you in enough. This leaves the player disengaged no matter the direction. Implementation is king with audio, as it is the last puzzle piece to ensure it fits with the game mechanics, art, story and tone of the game.

What would you say to someone interested in becoming a composer/sound designer for games?

**Chase: **I have and will always continue to say: play games. Play all types of video games, board games, card games, VR games etc.

Playing the games allows you to get a better sense of the work you are doing. Those play experiences will come in handy when you need to have references or bring a certain sound that is being asked of you to the table. Do not come up with the excuse of not having time to play games. Make the time. It can only help, not hurt.

What are your inspirations for your work on Aground?

**Chase: **Some of my main inspirations are from Crusader of Centy on Sega developed by Atlus. It was supposed to be a rival to The Legend of Zelda on the Super Nintendo.

How do you stay motivated over the course of a longer (1 yr +) project like Aground?

**Chase: **I stay motivated by taking some breaks away from a piece of music or sound design and working on something else.

Breaks allow my ears to rest, and sometimes I objectively look at the bigger picture of what direction of the project is going in and what I believe is missing that will add some interesting elements.

Also, having the community feedback and positive comments about Aground have been keeping me greatly motivated, especially when I receive shout-outs about the music.

Check out Chase’s Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/chase-bethea-1/no-boundaries

What is your workflow like? How do you move from an idea to final in-game form?

**Chase: **Some musical ideas I have had for Aground have come from melodies I have dreamed of.

Some other sound ideas have come from mishearing a cool sound in a retro-game I was playing.

For Aground I have a sound instrument palette I made from the first theme “No Sky Limit” and “No Boundaries.” This is so I have some sound consistency for the soundtrack. Occasionally, I will add some new instruments in to fill out an idea I have (i.e. “Dance with Dragons”).

After the new work session is made in my DAW (Digital Audio Workstation), I try to come up with a name and to do that, I read the game design document and/or play the game. Then, I begin fleshing out the ideas I had by coming up with a drum rhythm or deciding which instrument will carry the melody for the corresponding area for Aground.

If I get stuck writing, I take a break or I play the game for a long time. I do not rush the creativity because if I am not feeling it, then the final result comes out half-done. I jump back and forth from the piano to the DAW to solidify my ideas. A lot of experimentation occurs, such as putting reverbs, delays and distortions on rhythmic patterns or instruments that I have not before. I tend to think of orchestration techniques with synths, so I will try doublings on some basses or stacking textures, entries, and exits with the music; treating it as if it was a conversation but also extending a feeling.

Two years ago, I adopted what I call the Alfred Hitchcock method. In an interview, Alfred was asked about being the master of the unexpected. Part of his response was “They’re saying to me ‘show us’ and ‘I know what’s coming next’… and I say, ‘Do you?’"

Every time I write music, I think about what I (and others) have done before too many times, and I go deliberately in a different direction. Some things do not change for the sake of form and project consistency. However, other things such as modulations, transitions, some chord progressions, melodic contour, orchestration, rests, time signatures and rhythmic patterns I do a little different every single time.

When the composition is done, since I mostly mix while I write, I check the mix in Mono and do a little compression. Then, I monitor (mix check referencing) on other mediums such as headphones, phone speakers and car speakers.

Lastly, I ask David, Natalie, and Aaron for feedback. If it’s all good, I render the track, edit it for loop format and deliver it.

For sound design, the process is a bit different. I play around with a lot of musical intervals, plugin effects and sequences to achieve the sound effects. I think about the phrasing of the sound. I try to make the sound with my mouth and realize it in the DAW. Unless it is straightforward like swords, chainsaws and flesh sounds, then I layer and manipulate recorded sounds I have in a library or that I recorded myself and mix it all together.

What is your favorite thing about working on this project?

**Chase: **Having the community give their feedback so fast to the updates we release is my favorite thing about working on the project. As a team it allows us to see what works and what does not work. In addition, it allows us to grow and make more cool things that we believe the players will enjoy and come back to discover.

Bonus: what’s the most adventurous or bravest thing you’ve ever done?

I went kayaking in the ocean last year with my girlfriend. I had never been in the ocean or kayaking before. I was terrified but after 30 minutes I learned to like it.

Want to play Aground?

You can get the game on Steam here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/876650/Aground/

Or, try the free demo of Aground: https://fancyfishgames.com/Aground/play/

Check out Chase’s website: http://chasebethea.com/

Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/chasebethea

Hey, look! He’s got a YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/cbest08/videos

[mummified-game-review]

Babysitter Bloodbath: A Review

My D&D group said my microphone was super quiet in the last session since I've moved my computer around. Let's see if it affects my recording.

Alright here we go! Back at it again with another video. Sorry about the long vacation but I had some troubles getting the review done on the 22nd and then my motivation to make videos while on the road was lacking. I thought I could play one game on the plane, and write a review for one as well. But there was no way I was going to be able to write as efficiently as I could. For an hour. So I just played a lot of Roller Derby Disco Dodgeball. Then I had a car ride. I could have played another game and written a review while sitting in the passenger seat. But again that didn't happen. And neither did that happen on the way back home as well.

I think It was a good idea to just turn off all of this “work” that I do for the weekend. Being able to focus on having fun and not worry about making videos for a little bit. And I wasn't ready to come back to these videos quite yet so I took the rest of last week off and now I'm back and ready to get right into making these videos again.

Thank you for sticking around.

Anyway, Welcome back to Mummified Games today we are going to be talking about the Homage Horror game Babysitter Bloodbath. By Puppet Combo and Pig Farmer Games

Oh right that's why I wasn't able to get the video out on the 23rd. Cause this game sucks.

Okay let me explain my experience with this game real quick.

So back on the 23rd of July I was going to sit down and play this game and give it a good fair shake at what this game gives.

Okay this is cool retro horor style. I like what the game has going on with the herd camera angles, sort of giving it a classic horror film style mixed with a Resident Evil 1 vibe. Cool cool cool.

I thought it was funny that you can still spin the character in some of the cut scenes. That's silly.

The controls or the way that we navigate through the dialogue is a bit annoying.

So the game can be played almost exclusively with just the WASD keys and Spacebar. Walk Sara forward or backwards with W and S, and then turn her left and right with A and D. Look at things or interact with the Spacebar. All basic things.

Not the best controls, you can't move Sara as easily as compared to modern 3rd person games. But its indi and sometimes less than perfect controls can add to the gameplay and make it a more interesting experience.

The problem comes up whenever you have to make a selection in the game like saying yes and no, or conversation stuff at the start of the game. Then you can only use the mouse to make your decisions.

And the controls are mostly hands off the mouse because it also is used to control her turning and direction. So you don't want your two hands messing up where Sarah is looking or walking.

So most of the game was me playing one handed with my right under my chin sort of holding up my head. But then I would need to select something and I would have to shift my body and refine the mouse and make the selection.

A bit annoying when I could just use W and S to move the choices up and down and space to select what choice I want to make.

I'm not a developer so maybe this is a hard thing to do.

The parents leave you with the kid and they give you a number of where they can be reached. There are numbers you're expected to remember so maybe actually right it down.

The gameplay starts after this and it's fairly linear in its tasks it asks you to do. Turn on the TV, Pick up the phone, Go get a boy's number from your coat, Catch Billy, Call the boy, feed Billy cereal, get the key to the liquor cabinet, grab some boose. It's like making a star pattern all over the house.

If you’re checking everything you might find the radio and turn it on and find a new broadcast talking about how there is an escaped dangerous mental patient.

And eventually surprise surprise there is a weird sound outside and Sarah asks the boy she called over to go check it out for her.

AND THAT'S WHEN MY GAME CRASHED!

What an absolute joke!

And so friends that when my troubles with getting a video out on the 23rd started. It was about 40 minutes into a recording when I would have had to start all over again from the start.

Now this isn't entirely the game's fault. Yes there is a save feature. But it wasn't like i did a lot yet to get to this point there was no danger yet and knowing what i know now about what would come next in the game an event would have triggered that would have caused me to go save right after this.

But that's something I noticed about the game after I came back and tried to play it again after my vacation. There’s a tape that you can pick up and put into the VCR to Save your progress.

BIG COMPLAINT RIGHT HERE!

When you get the VCR you need to have the cassette to save. Well that's nothing. It's just on the desk next to the TV. It’s right there no big deal there are lots of games that need you to go do something before you can “turn on the global data history program”. Some games have silly things like this. But the problem is that once I picked it up and I used it to save the game, If I came back later Like i Did on my second play though it said I needed to get another tape to make another save.

WHAT!!!!! THE AUDACITY To make something like a save feature be a collectible thing its a JOKE! Not to mention that I've scrubbed this house from top to bottom and there are no other cassettes in this house. I have no idea what I need to do to make the game save a second time.

That's absolute bull!

So l eventually the power was cut and I had to make my way outside and see what happened.

A high stress moment happens and now i'm forced to run away and every five steps the camera is changing and it's impossible to navigate. NOT TO MENTION THAT I'M BEING CHASED BY A KILLER WITH A KNIFE!

I'm banging on the door and it's locked.

Nowhere to go trapped on the porch with a killer cause it took me forever to get there. And now I'm dead.

Okay.

Did i mention that this game is incredibly dark and hard to see anything. Most of the recording I had the same brightness settings I've had for all these game reviews but for this to be able to see anything I cracked up the recording brightness.

So its dark can't see I'm dead and now to start over half way thought this stupid babby sitting situation. Great!

Make cereal again, turn on the tv again. EVERYTHING ALL OVER AGAIN! Because I used my one save too early in the game.

Eventually I set the camera from the weird movie mode to the 3rd person camera to make things easier to move around with.

And kept my hand on the mouse just in case.

I went back to the VCR and I couldn't save after the light went out PROVING MY POINT THAT You only get one save!

You can't pick up the axe

Press the action over and over and I'm dead again.

THIS IS BROKEN!

Okay so the clear thing to do is go back in and use the one save I have to save just before I go outside to investigate and see the killer for the first time. Save just before the boss battle right.

I've got everything down on what to do and where to go so this should be real quick just need to start a new game right?

Standard intro that always plays, walk up to the house, ring the doorbell, and

Sarah “Billy, I need you to run and find somewhere to hide. Do it!” and i'm back at the start of the game no milk spilled on the floor. Billy isn't running around the house. I didn't have a conversation with the parents about staying home.

It's like it's a new game and yet Billy is missing yet the father is stuck by the entrance.

Great, the game broke again.

That's it. I've given this game a fair shake. I've played the game for an hour and a half and the game crashed 3 times. Has a bad save feature, slow controls. And since I never played old horror games or Watched old horror movies I have no special feelings about this.

If you already have this from a bundle then give it a shot since you already paid money for it.

If you think you can have a better time and you want to give it a whirl then by all means its your money.

But if this game looks interesting and you were thinking of giving it a shot then maybe don't or go find another game. Maybe one of the other 3 horror games they made is better.

As for those of you who have played it let me know what you thought of it. If you have experience with games like this or if this is a good Homage or not.

If you haven't played the game, I'm almost scared to ask, but what other horror games are out there that you think I should try. Let me know in the comments.

In the meantime. Maybe I’ll just watch someone else play this and see how they played the game. And figure out if they found some sort of trick to playing this game.

You all do the youtube dance, Like, comment Sub, bell and let me know what you thought down below.

And as always Babysitters of the world

Keep digging and we’ll make it out sometime

See you in the next one.