#I’M NO LONGER IN MY CAt/DOG BOY ERA

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

i’m going through it rn

WHAT THE FUCKJ

HAD LIEK THREE SEpARATW fRIENDS MESSAGE ME ASKING IF I SIMP FOR THE NmnEW FOX BOY 😭

WHAT IS IT ABOUT ME THAT WOULD IMPLY THAT?????????? ?????? ??, ,??? ? 🤡 IS iT BECAuSRe HR’S A SwINDLER WiTH A fAkE SmILE, IS THAT WhY????????

[sarah-dipitous]

Hellsite Nostalgia Tour 2023 Day 212

Soul Survivor/Deep Breath

“Soul Survivor”

Plot Description: facing mounting problems in hell, Crowley seeks out an unlikely ally in Castiel, while Sam’s determined efforts to cure Dean hit a snag

Would I Survive the First Five Minutes??: No one died

Oooo, can you not cure Dean the same way you did Crowley??

Ok but what DO you care, Sam?? I’ll never (til Dean’s no longer a demon) stop ranting about how much you ran your mouth about how little you cared about him, how you would have let him die if he had been doing the Trials…it’s no wonder he’s like this now

I hope Hannah’s not falling in love with Castiel. And not in an “only destiel is correct” or hating on ships that would pass as heterosexual way. He just…he needs a friend. He needs someone he can lean on right now instead of being the one others lean on

Jensen directed this one??

Why’s this guy look like the dude Dean killed last episode?? Omg is he??

OH MY GOD. SAM PUSHED THAT GUY TO MAKE THE DEAL FOR HIS SOUL?? DUDE.

Jensen is mesmerizing in his taunting and anger

Omgggggg Crowley. You MISS HIM. YOU MISS DEAN. This is the funniest show in the world, but they want me to believe they’re serious

RIP to the demon who wanted to be Crowley’s rebound

Oh thank god Sam called at that moment. It LOOKED like Hannah might have wanted to kiss Cas…

Sam, bestie, you had me til you said “we don’t get to quit in this family.” Remember that time you hit a dog and went on a romantic side plot instead of looking for Dean AT ALL?

I’m in so much pain right now. This conversation is SO TODOBROS “your very existence sucked the life out of my life”?! “This isn’t my brother talking” “you never had a brother. Just an excuse for not manning up”?! “This family is all we’ve ever had” “well then we’ve got nothin”?! “You’d say that to dad?” “Dad?! Oh there’s a prize. The man who brainwashed us into fighting his losing battle”?! “Is this you manning up?” “This is me yanking your lame ass out of the fire”?!?!?! I am SCREAMING!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Crowley’s hell problems don’t seem so bad compared to literally everyone else’s

That is quite possibly the kindest way he could turn her down, but I don’t like seeing Hannah hurt

Nooooo not the angel who got away from them last time

(There are possibly too many plot lines going on in each of these episodes)

Nooooo not the picture of Mary and baby Dean, of the boys and Bobby, of just the boys together 😭

Uhhhhh, where did Dean go???

Huh…why…is Crowley stealing grace (likely for Castiel but WHY FOR CASTIEL?! Not ungrateful, just confused)??

Wtf Dean? The meat cleaver wasn’t enough? You wanted to go with the blunt object of a hammer??

Why DOES Crowley want Cas’s help?? Ok but aside from that ONE GUY Dean killed and ONE demon burning himself to not live in your hell anymore, what problems do you ACTUALLY have?? Or is this a nip it in the bud situation? Which would be smart

(Ok but like…Jensen’s a good director. This is an absolutely gorgeous episode. And obviously the credit doesn’t go solely to the director but SOME of it does)

No but like this cat and mouse game in the bunker is SO GOOD

I don’t trust that he’s fully cured. I want it to be true but it can’t be that easy. Especially since he still has the Mark of Cain…

It makes me so sad that Cas has had his problem VERY TEMPORARILY fixed but…is still focusing on Dean’s problems.

Not Dean looking a the same pictures Sam wassssss

This is too nice of a moment between them to not be ruined in the last like twenty seconds…ok turns out it WAS just a nice moment of peace between Cas and Dean

Ohhhhhhh our first glimpse of Rowena!!! Crowley’s mother has entered the chat!!

“Deep Breath”

Plot Description: The Doctor and Clara arrive in Victorian London and find a dinosaur rampant in the Thames

This trex would have looked so much worse i the RTD era a and I think I would have liked it more. But Vastra and Jenny fighting over the dino’s gender is kind of funny considering Vastra was THERE

Ohhhhhh Twelve is still cooking a bit. Yeah…we needed to let him cook a bit more before he got chased and swallowed by a dinosaur.

Oh…they redecorated the opening credits. I don’t like it

Omg…I love this part. He’s so mad at the concept of a bedroom. I think about that at least twice a year despite not seeing this in almost a decade. “You’ve got a whole room just for not being awake in?! What’s the point? You’re just missing the room!”

(I’m a little mad I’m not going to finish this before midnight. But I didn’t know this episode was more than an hour long)

Oh…some cyborg guy is…doin some shit

This is a weird conversation…and I don’t know that I agree with how Clara’s being treated. Not all companions go through the Doctor regenerating. It’s a WEIRD EXPERIENCE TO GO THROUGH.

Sir if you don’t get off that roof—why is the dinosaur ON FIRE???

Strax has a hard time letting go of his Sontaran customs…we do not melt people in acid

“Lots of young men doing sport. Is that sport? Could be sport” this is what is allegedly in Clara’s subconscious: yaoi

The way Clara AND the Doctor are both concerned with his new face. I know it’ll be significant but I wanna know why NOW

“These are attack eyebrows!” Omg his rant about his eyebrows and then having a Scottish accent 🥰

This poor man the Doctor just happened to run into…he’s so scared

Ruh roh…who brought them together for lunch??

I’ve missed a contentious doctor-companion relationship. Though the closest we truly got was Donna and Ten, but THIS. They both think the other is an egomaniac. They’re so mean and snarky to each other

Why are these people just like mechanical dolls?? No wonder the Doctor called them all pudding brained at the beginning of the episode

(OH MY GOD. I FUCKED UP. I WAS SUPPOSED TO WATCH SHERLOCK THREE DAYS AGO.)

It’s not that I don’t like Capaldi as the Doctor but this episode is…it’s not it. It didn’t have to be over an hour long…

TO WHAT END?! To get home?? Why is the captain android of this ship trying to turn itself into a real boy?!

Wtf?! You don’t just LEAVE YOUR COMPANION LIKE THAT!!!

Ah, so that’s why it’s called Deep Breath? Because Clara has to hold her breath to pretend to be a robot for an unconscionably long time?

Omg omg omg THEN WHO SET THEM UP FOR LUNCH IF NOT THESE ANDROID PEOPLE?! Was it Vastra?? Seems like it

I like Twelve. I don’t like this episode. The “Doctor comes in contact with an ancient being comparable to themself shortly after regenerating” was so much better with Eleven (if Ten had one, i can’t recall it)

Why does Twelve keep leaving Clara?! It’s so rude

I like this TARDIS redecoration better than the last one, but Ten’s and Eleven’s with the Ponds were both better. I like the warm lighting and this does have a little of that, but it’s also…weirdly dark

He’s over 2000 years old now?!

Wait…could it be Missy?? Who gave Clara the Doctor’s number back when and who set them up for lunch?

I wish she didn’t need Eleven’s support to stay by Twelve’s side to help him.

I know this garden. YEAH!! Missy!!

[danny-chase]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Batman (Comics), Batgirl (Comics) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Cassandra Cain & Stephanie Brown Characters: Cassandra Cain, Stephanie Brown, Dick Grayson (mentioned), Tim Drake (mentioned), Damian Wayne (Mentioned), Alfred Pennyworth (mentioned) - Character Additional Tags: Cassandra Cain is Black Bat, 2009 Batfam vibes, Stephanie Brown is Batgirl, talks about the batgirl mantle, Cass comes home to Gotham, technically she's Cassandra Wayne in this, but idk if people use that tag, Girl Talks, possibly romantic, no beta we die like Cass, POV Cassandra Cain, Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown centric, mentions Gates of Gotham, you don't need to read it though, Cass comes home from Hong Kong, sorry Bruce is dead folks, takes place in Dick!Bats era, sliding around in socks, a wee bit of fluff, Cassandra Cain gets a hug, Stephanie Brown Gets a Hug, because i think they should hug, romance or not, late night conversation between besties Summary:

Cass has a surprise visitor after returning home from Hong Kong. She hasn't been in Gotham long, a lot's changed, but there are still people here she's happy to see.

Cass glided through the halls of the penthouse; the floors were perfect for sliding around in her socks. Though, ‘halls’ was being generous, she supposed. It was large, the rooms were spacious, but there were only two hallways. So much smaller than the manor. Less rooms, though more people, and plenty of space to fit them all.

 She could hear the chatter from the kitchen. The boys had decided to play a board game before she’d gotten back for the night. Dick wanted her to join in for the next round, but she found those games a little boring, and she wouldn’t fall for Tim’s puppy dog eyes tonight. But… she was tempted. It was a collaborative game, they’d explained. You don’t fight each other, you work together. That part, she liked.

She brushed past Tim’s guest room, which was slowly becoming more permanent. The door was cracked open, and she peeked inside. Neat and tidy, with trinkets lining his desk and shelves. Tim had changed a lot; his room was never this clean before. On a hunch she poked her head around the door. Behind it sat a mound of dirty clothes, just next to the bathroom door. Smiling to herself, she noted the mess of products on the sink. He’d changed, but not all the way.

 Damian’s door, she found closed all the way. Tim said he liked privacy, so she moved on. Dick’s door was wide open. The room was empty, aside from a messy bed. Hers was the same.

 At least she thought her room was empty.

 As she approached, she heard something moving inside, or someone. Whoever it was, was light on their feet, not very large, in the range of 120-150 pounds, and a bit anxious. The door was closed. She thought for a moment, and swiftly threw the door open, without making a sound.

 A blond girl in jeans and a green sweater stared out the window at the night sky.

 “Stephanie?” She recognized. The girl jumped and swiveled around.

 “Cass?” A joyous grin broke out across her face, though her shoulders stayed tense and anxious. They quickly strode toward each other and met in the middle of the room. Steph’s hands twitched, reaching up, as if asking for-

 Cass buried Steph in a hug at the realization. Steph laughed, giggling at her enthusiasm, and squeezed her back tightly. “I missed you.” They said at the same time. Steph laughed again in delight.

 They parted, and Steph sat on the edge of the bed, Cass following suit. She still looked a bit nervous but radiated happiness as well. They sat there, staring at each other for a moment. Cass smiled, also a bit anxiously, but eagerly, she hadn’t seen her oldest friend in forever.

 “Are you back for good?” Steph broke the silence. Cass nodded, she’d decided, after the gates of Gotham case, to stay. The family had fallen apart after Bruce had died, but she was ready to give it another shot, and so far, things were going well. Board games, movie nights. ‘Team bonding’, Dick called it. It had only been a week, but she’d gotten a turn to pick already. Rooftop tag. It was fun.

 “Things are good.” She replied. Damian was starting to trust her, and Dick and Tim were happy. And well, she was happy too. She loved having her own city, but it’d been lonely. Spending time with people was exhausting, but her family made it easier somehow.

 “That’s good.” Steph replied. Not a lie, but she still looked anxious. A thought flashed through her mind.

 “You’re not happy I’m home?” She asked quickly, her heart sinking at the notion. Steph’s eyes widened in surprise.  

 “What? No! Cass, I’m so happy you came back.” Not a lie. Cass sighed in relief, she didn’t want anyone to be upset she was back.

 “Then why are you nervous?” Steph’s hands were fidgeting slightly, hadn’t stopped since they’d met.

 “Huh, I’m not- Okay never mind.” Her shoulders dropped sheepishly. “I can’t lie to you, can I?”

 “Nope.” Cass popped the p, just like Steph used to whenever they talked before. No one could lie to her. Well. Almost no one.

 “Okay but… promise you won’t be mad.” She looked serious. Cass nodded slowly, watching as Steph pulled a box off the corner of the bed and carefully opened the lid. Her old Batgirl costume was inside.

 “Why would I get mad over that?” She gave the suit to Steph after all, she had her Black Bat suit now.

 “You let me borrow it and I ruined it!” Steph’s voice was guilty. Cass looked at the costume again. Bullet holes and tears marked it.

 “Are you okay?” Cass asked, those were a lot of holes.

 “Ugh, none of us deserve you.” Grateful. For what? Cass tilted her head to show the confusion. “I thought you would be mad because you can’t use it anymore. I thought you would want it back.” Cass shrugged.

 “I have a new suit now.” She assessed. She didn’t really care what she wore. Besides, if she wanted another Batgirl costume, Alfred could make one.

 “Don’t you… want to be Batgirl again?” Steph sounded concerned, but Cass wasn’t sure why.

 “I’m always Batgirl.” Cass stated. She thought for a moment. “Like Tim is still Robin.” It didn’t matter what they called each other; they were still them. “And you’re always a Spoil-sport.” She grinned smugly at the pun. Steph rolled her eyes, but she was amused.

 “Well, you can be Batgirl if you want. I kind of miss eggplant.” Her eyes twinkled mischievously, and the corners of her lips twitched up into a smile.

 “It’s a good color on you.” Cass agreed.

 “How about, we both be Batgirl, and we can switch costumes, and no one will know who’s coming.” Stephanie grinned in excitement. Cass grinned too. It sounded fun.

 “Deal.” She flopped back on her bed. Steph followed suit. “How was Gotham?”

 “It’s been wild. It’s different, you know.” Cass hummed in agreement. “I’m in college now, that’s going well. My mom’s working as a nurse. I mean, you’re right, things are good. It’s just… different.”

 “Batman and Robin.” Cass noted. Steph sighed.

 “Yeah, I mean it sucks Bruce died, but Dick’s doing great. And Damian’s coming around.” Steph shifted, turning to face her. “I’m sorry he died, I know he just adopted you, that must suck.” Cass took a deep breath, watching sympathy pour out of Steph’s baby blue eyes. It did suck. Her chest panged in regret, wishing they’d had more time together. But she didn’t want to focus on the past.

 “Yes.” She thought for a moment. “I still don’t understand.” She confessed. Butterflies swirled in her stomach, she didn’t want to make Steph upset, but she needed to know. “Why did you leave?” It had hurt, felt like her world was ending. It had hurt Tim too, and Bruce. Steph grimaced, she was clearly uncomfortable, rolling back, she faced the ceiling once more.

 “I was mad at first. I didn’t really choose to go.” She admitted. Cass understood, she’d been made to do things she hadn’t wanted to do before. It sucked. “But it was good too. It took time to heal.” She pointed at her head. “Up here too.”

 “You hit your head?” Cass had been shot in the head once. Wasn’t fun.

 “No like. I needed to think things out. Get in the right headspace.” She shook her head, not really understanding.

 “Why’d you go to Hong Kong?” Steph asked. She thought for a moment.

 “It hurt. To be around people.” She wasn’t sure how to describe it. She couldn’t stay in the manor. It was painful to be in the Cave. She never bled, but her chest had always ached, and something felt stuck in her throat. So, she left. And being alone hurt too, but in a different way. Steph looked at her sympathetically.

 “That’s why I stayed, thinking about coming back hurt. I was scared, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I just… didn’t know what to do.” Groaning, she rolled over again. “It’s a mess.” Regretful. But a little hopeful. “Can we… still be friends?” The hope made her heart flutter.

 “Yep.” She agreed. Steph smiled, warmly, like the sun.

 “Thanks Cassie.” She didn’t really understand what she was being thanked for, but as the nickname rolled off Stephanie’s tongue, she felt more at home than she had in years. They lay still, enjoying each other’s company for a while longer.

 Eventually, Steph sat up, hopping off the bed. “Alright, let’s go do something fun kay? How bout we go kick the guys’ asses at Just Dance.”

 “Wait.” Cass walked over to her suitcase. “I got you something.” She pulled out a box. She’d collected things, from everywhere she visited. Picked up things that reminded her of family. She hadn’t really planned on giving them away, but now she had the real people, she didn’t need them anymore. She pulled out a purple ‘Lucky Cat’.

 “Oh my gosh! I love it!” Steph cradled it carefully in her hands. “Cass this is so sweet, I love it.” Cass beamed; she liked it too. And she made Steph happy with it, maybe it really was lucky. Steph smiled wider, clasping her hand and dragging her out through the hall, running so she could slide behind her on the perfectly slippery floors.

 And so, with whatever luck the cat could grant them, they were on their way to kicking butt at Just Dance. As the night wore on, laughs grew louder, and Cass was reminded again, how things had changed, but how change wasn’t always bad. The penthouse wasn’t as big as the Manor, and Gotham wasn’t as big as Hong Kong, but with her family, somehow her life seemed larger, and fuller again.

 Things could have turned out better, but they could have been worse too. And they would get better. Much better, as long as they all stuck together. There would be more difficult conversations to be had, but it was reassuring, knowing that after all they’d been through, she still had her best friend by her side.

[gabrielitas]

phew it's good to know i'm boy the only one super behind lmao

alright answering questions and asking some more because i have a funny little group of questions that mean nothing but i like to ask

alright so i do bias soonyoung 🙄🙄 didn't think you'd guess so early. i also like seokmin and minghao 🥴🤤 aLSO, WHY HAS SEUNGCHEOL BEEN LOOKING SO CUTE RECENTLY I CANT HANDLE 😩😩

outside of kpop i may or may not have had an emo phase (read: fall out boy, panic!at the disco, my chemical romance). i may or may not still listen emo music. i also LOVE CONAN GRAYYY. idk if he's still indie but i love indie too! probably one of my favorite genres though is classical (instrumental if you wanna get technical 🙄 been yelled at bc cLaSsiCaL iS a TiMe PeRiOd)

the best of us had emo phases ☝️ mine is a little longer lasting three years in middle school. due to this, fall out boy is one of my favorite artists! i’m also a big tchaikovsky fan, and i like doja cat a lot too!

in response to your question about 1518 strasbourg, this is when and where the dancing plague of 1518 happened dnsbsbshja. it's where the phrase "dance till you die" originated lmao. i think it'd be funny to witness this/take part in it. aside from that, id probably fuck with california in 1849 because the gold rush🧎‍♀️, france in the 1880s, or america in the 1980/1990s! i’m a history nerd courtesy of my father, so i choose all my time periods based off some of my favorite historical events! 1880s for architecture mostly, gold rush because lawlessness and the "wild west", and the 80s for the cold war :)

the night is beautiful if you take the time to live it. for me, my favorite time across the board is lunch time-12:00 ish to 3:00 just because the sun is highest and i feel happiest! i like the night when i go out on bike rides because i feel alive/ like i’m not wasting my teen years

GIRL IM NORTHEAST US TOO DJNSBSBSVABWB #goals lmao

i have 1 sister and she's super annoying🙄 i also have 2 cats and a dog (i consider them my siblings)

the most recent show i binged and finished was criminal minds, and i tried supernatural but it's just so bad i cant get past season 11. i’m working on hannibal right now!

the last book i really enjoyed was the summer i turned pretty! i’m a sucker for romance books 😩

questions i've got:

- do you have any siblings or pets?

- do you play any instruments?

- what's your favorite font?

- how many pillows and stuffed animals do you sleep with? (i have too many to count)

- would you rather live in an urban, suburban, or rural setting?

I FRIKIN KNEW U BIASED SOONYOUNG UR VIBES R SO HORANGHE I COULD JUST TELL and i gotta say ur the second person who’s had both minghao and soonyoung on ur bias list and i just find that so funny cuz they’re polar opposites to me (also u have impeccable taste with minghao that boy is my ult and has my whole heart) AND OMG RIGHT??? seungcheol needs to *CHILL*😤

omg yes conan gray😫 this is gonna sound whiny but heather was one of my favorite songs of his before it became a tiktok trend💅

and yes the best of us *did* have emo phases, mine lasted from late 8th grade into the first half of freshman year, so it was kinda short lived but it still happened lol

also, seeing tchaikovsky and doja cat next to each other in a sentence is so funny (but in a weird way i get it lol) i’m not the *biggest* classical/instrumental fan, but i have def used it as study music when songs with lyrics r just too distracting. back to doja tho!! have u listened to her new album?? do u have a fav song off of it? (i haven’t listened to all of it but i do have a couple that i rlly like)

omg how did i not recognize that u were talking abt the dancing plague!!!!!🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️ idk if u watch buzzfeed unsolved or watcher but they have a series called puppet history and the episode on the dancing plague is one of my favorites! also omg yes another history nerd who knows abt history b/c of her dad!!!! i’m prob most knowledgeable abt wwii, the civil rights movement in the us, and the spanish civil war cuz those r my dads main interests and i was sat down in front of documentaries abt those topics at the age of like, 3 lol. and wanting to experience the wild west is such a perfect and iconic era to want to live in, and wanting to experience the cold war is so funny (b/c i’m sure the ppl who were living it without knowing the ending like us felt the exact opposite lol)

and yes the night is so beautiful when u just give it ur attention. like, on my birthday it was raining and i didn’t have school the next day (and my birthdays i’m may so it was pretty warm) so i just went outside at like, midnight ish and listened to the rain and crocheted and it was truly so nice 😫 also omg last year when covid had us all at home i went for a bike ride almost every day after school to just get out of my room and it was so nice!! it was my bike from when i was like, 12 but i’m 4’11 so i was still able to ride it without a problem lsnsksns

and yes pets r absolutely siblings, my cat prob acts more like s typical sibling than my two younger siblings do lsnsksns (srsly tho my cat is an asshole she fucked up my leg the other day cuz i gave her food late smh)

omg hun season 11?? how many seasons of that goddamn show r there??? i couldn’t get past episode 1😭 (i rlly only started watching it b/c of dean from gilmore girls sksnksns) the show i’m currently bingeing rn tho is downton abbey, as i’m sure u can tell from how much downton shit u had to scroll past to find my answer to ur last ask alskkskjsjs (i’m so so sorry 😭)

ooo that sounds like a rlly good book title, what was it abt? i just finished a secret history (which FUCKED ME UP MY GOD THERES A LOT OF MURDER) and i’m currently working on the sequel to my name is asher lev by chaim potok (who is one of my fav jewish/classic literature authors and also just a rlly good author in general)

for ur questions:

-yes i do have siblings! two younger (one four and a half years younger and one a little over nine years younger than me so i’m the oldest by quite a bit lol) and i do have a pet! my cat sweetie who is an asshole who i love very much

-i took piano for like a year in second grade but then third grade happened and i was rlly bad at math so my parents switched from paying for piano lessons to paying for math tutoring lessons and i now remember literally nothing from piano lessons sksnksns

-i,,, dont think i have a favorite font? i do like to write in cursive and have a collection of calligraphy pens that i bust out on special occasions so there’s that i guess lol

-ok i have two normal pillows, one chair/armrest/pillow thing (idk if that makes sense but that’s the only way i know how to describe it sksnksns), a body pillow, and a single stuffed bear that live on my bed

-ooo so this is difficult for me cuz i technically live in a suburb but we’re *right next* to a major city in my state (like i’m a 20ish min car ride from my states baseball stadium and a 20 min walk to the college of the major city) so this has kinda made me rlly like both? like, i like the quiet of the suburbs but i cant handle not being able to walk to the closest boba shop or movie theatre or bookshop but i also don’t rlly love the noise and lights that there are in the city at night. so idk sksnksns

what do u like more tho? the city or the suburbs? also since u asked the question i’m assuming u have a fav form and i’m now rlly interested in finding out what it is lol

goodnight!❤️ (or good morning if ur seeing this in the morning since i’m answering this at midnight lol)

[holified]

TEN LAYERS OF CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT

>>>  COPY N PASTE TO REPOST,  DO NOT REBLOG MINE, with the information of your muse,  including headcanons.

LAYER ONE : THE OUTSIDE

Name: Kikyo

Eye Color: Brown/hazel/blue — kind of depends on my mood or the verse tbh (if Takahashi-sensei can change her eye color every once in a while, then so can I!)

Hair Style/Color: Very long, thick, perfectly straight black hair. It reaches well below her waist and is usually tied at the nape of her neck in the tradicional shrine maiden style.

Height: 5′2

Clothing Style: Traditional miko garments.

Best  Physical Feature: Kikyo was always considered a true beauty, not only for her gracious features, but also for her elegant and regal manners. However, I believe her luscious hair always caught the eye of those around her.

LAYER TWO: THE INSIDE

Your Fears: “Failure. I cannot bear the thought of failing in my mission, in not being able to save those around me.”

Your  Guilty Pleasures: “It is rather difficult to indulge in any activity that is not related to my duty as a shrine maiden. And in that case, anything that takes me away from these aforementioned duties makes me feel guilty.”

Your  Biggest Pet Peeve(s): “To be underestimated, no matter if it is in regards to my power or intelligence.”

Your Ambition for the Future: “To finally find peace.”

LAYER THREE: THOUGHTS

Your First Thoughts Waking Up: “I think about what I have to accomplish in that day.

What You Think About the Most: My duties, to be quite honest.”

What You Think About Before Bed: “I usually try to empty my mind of thoughts and focus solely on my breathing, that usually helps me sleep better.”

You Think Your Best Quality Is: “Empathy.”

LAYER FOUR: WHAT’S BETTER?

Single or Group Dates: “Single.”

To be Loved or Respected: “Both, there is no love without respect.”

Beauty or Brains: “Brains.”

Dogs or Cats: “Both are great animals.”

LAYER FIVE: DO YOU?

Lie: “I only lie if it is extremely necessary, otherwise I always say the truth.”

Believe in Yourself: “I must, otherwise I could not survive.”

Believe in Love: “Yes, even if I do not believe I was meant to find it.”

Want Someone: “I did... but unfortunately, he was not meant to be mine.”

LAYER SIX: EVER?

Been on Stage: “No... I believe not.”

Done Drugs: “No.”

Changed Who You Were to Fit In: “No, that was never necessary.”

LAYER SEVEN: FAVORITES

Favorite Color: “All colors have their beauty, and each one has a different meaning. But should I be forced to choose, I suppose I would choose the soothing blue of the sky.”

Favorite Animal: “I cannot say. All of them are an important part of our world and all of them carry the kami within them.”

Favorite Movie: “I have no idea what that means.

Favorite Game: “As a child I liked to play hide and seek.”

LAYER EIGHT: AGE

Day Your Next Birthday Will Be: “My mother used to say I was born during the spring.” — I did a small research and they didn’t use the same calendar as we do, they counted their time in eras, and I’m not sure if they had months as we do. But in any case, she was born in a small poor village, and I doubt they’d have a calendar hanging around, not to mention most people were illiterate, which means they wouldn’t know how to read the calendar.

How Old Will You Be: “I am no longer bound to time.”

Age You Lost Your Virginity: “I have not.”

Does Age Matter: “No, I do not think so.”

LAYER NINE: IN A BOY OR GIRL

Best Personality: “Someone who is caring and understanding, reliable and trustworthy.”

Best Eye Color: “It does not matter.”

Best Hair Color: “Once again, it does not matter.”

Best thing to do With a Partner: “When you are with the one you love, even doing nothing becomes the best thing in the world.”

LAYER TEN: FINISH THE SENTENCE [IC]

I love: “Kaede, Inuyasha, the world.”

I feel: “Tired, so tired of fighting, of trying.”

I hide: “My emotions, my feelings.”

I miss: “Having hope.”

I wish: “I had been able to enjoy my life a little longer, to spend more time with my little sister, to watch her grow. I wish I had kissed Inuyasha while I was alive, I wish we had a chance.”

tagged by: @ka-go-me​ — thank you so much!! ♥

tagging: @archeracrosstime, @mcuntainbcrn @phoenixspirited @shugcxrcuei-jin @senpujin @azureacrosstime & anyone who sees this!

[icanbehardcore]

Top 10 WORST Powerpuff Girls Episodes

For a long time, I have been wanting to make a project resembling a countdown list, being inspired by the likes of @umbramagna777​, @phantomstrider​ and even the Nostalgia Critic. After some considerate years, I have finally decided to make a list based on my all time favorite show The Powerpuff Girls.

Cartoon Network's breakaway hit of the late 90s and early to mid 00s starring three adorable, precocious little kindergartners with superpowers was a cultural phenomenon. Spawning hundreds and thousands of merchandise, a theatrical film, several TV specials, an anime and a reboot, it's unbelievable that a cartoon with an all female lead would become an icon in the cartoon industry.

Created by Craig McCracken fresh off two pilots in the "What A Cartoon" shorts and evolving from the earliest incarnation "Whoopass Stew", The Powerpuff Girls became the highest rated cartoon debut at the time. Critics praised this show for being so unique, entertaining, epic, action packed and nothing like anything else at the time, but most of all, this show was very, very funny.

But that doesn't mean this show gets all the glory and praise 100% per episode, like every television show, there will always be flaws and bad episodes and, the Powerpuff Girls is no exception when it comes to rotten entries in the line-up.

Whether you like these episodes or not, remember to respect each other's opinions, including mine. If you like these episodes, that's great, you're more than welcome to have your say, but be nice.

I am only counting down episodes from the ORIGINAL series, this won't include the movie, the anime, the Dance Pansted special, The tenth anniversary special, the christmas special or especially the reboot.

Mixing either of these up would be one big mess and would derail my points of view. With that being said, let's begin.

NOTE: Spoiler alert ahead.

 10. Keen on Keane   This episode was a new era for the original show, it had a new art style which was first introduced in the movie. So if you hadn't seen it, you would have had to get use to this new art style before getting puzzled or confused.

Unfortunately, these episodes were somewhat mediocre and after 2002, show creator Craig McCracken left the show to Chris Savino, so he could work on Foster's Home for Imaginery Friends. Usually when this happens, that's a sign of a show losing it's...err...Mojo. No pun intended. For a first of this newly animated version of the show, this episode is just ...well...sappy.  

So what's the story: It's Valentines Day...oh boy, what a way to start the new era of an already great show. I am NOT a fan of this holiday whether I'm taken or not. I prefer to keep romance and affection personal.

While receiving various little Valentines from her beloved students, Ms. Keane gets the one simple innocent question asked by the girls: "Where are you going out tonight?" and "Who's your sweetheart?" (don't you just love precocious little questions coming from kindergartners). Ms. Keane explains to the girls that she doesn't have time for going out on dates and is too busy for that sort of thing, this leaves the girls slightly worried, knowing she may be lonely and in need of a significant other half.

Later that evening, the girls are all at dinner with the Professor whose attention prompts the innocent, curious little question from an inquisitive Blossom "Why aren't you going out, tonight?".

Personally, if he WAS going out, he may need to hire a babysitter for the girls and knowing the Professor, he may end up calling someone but being delayed or on hold due to everybody with their arms round each other, making googoo eyes and lip wrestling all evening as they bask into their romance.

Anyway, the Professor tells the girls that HE doesn't have time for dates or going out, nor does he have a sweetheart...(hope he hasn't forgotten the events a long time ago when meeting Ima Goodlady who turned out to be using him and was revealed to be Sedusa).

On hearing this, the girls trade rather sly and calculating looks to each other, a plan has hit them. If their father isn't going out and doesn't have a sweetheart and Ms Keane doesn't have a sweetheart, why not get them together for date?

At Ms. Keane's place, she is busy grading homework. On hearing the doorbell ring, she goes to answer the door only to recieve a love letter from a secret admirer and a rose. Oh bittersweet cliches...

Round the same time, the Professor too recieves an identical love letter from a secret admirer (by the way, I do love how he recieves a red rose and Ms Keane recieves a pink rose).  The two admirers meet at "Petes-A Pizza", an obvious parody to Chuck E Cheese, you can just feel how out of place these two are.

Not to hurt each others feelings, the two adults try to strike a conversation, but seem to show no interest in each other, all they can do is slap on a plastic smile each.

As they try to communicate and interact more and order, Ms. Keane suddenly forces a hearty little smile, stunning and questioning the Professor. As she tells him to look behind him, he sees that his own daughters are hiding in the large ball tank, this catches on as both Ms Keane and Professor Utonium have realized that they had been set up.

Unfortunately, the evening was unsuccessful and the Professor offers his date a ride home with three dejected little girls in the back. Their high hopes sunk to the bottom, gone down like a ship, but the Professor tells them if they did end up going out, then he wouldn't have enough time to spend with his own daughters. As he walks her to her door, Ms. Keane trips on a crack, the Professor immediately dashes forward to catch her. After bewilderment and indecision on what to do next, Ms Keane and the Professor's hearts become intertwine. As they stand up straight, they both share a nervous laugh while blushing (by the way, I find this scene amazingly cute, I mean...the Professor here is just...OMG, how can you not just want to reach out and dive into his arms...ahem...).  Finally,  they hold hands and are somehow...in love. Also note this is the only time in the episode where they see each other  face to face. Feeling accomplished, the girls smile knowing that their mission is complete . The following morning, the girls notice that not everything is all hunky-dory! Now having a significant other half, the Professor neglects his family duties and lab work and Ms Keane neglecting her school duties and even forgetting to feed her cat. Why? Because the two most important role models in the girls' lives are now sickeningly sweethearts talking to each other endlessly on the phone together, complete with EVERY single sentence ending with a mushy pet name. And you know what? It's really degrading! Also that phonebill must be really expensive by now,

Because of the neglection, the girls don't know what crimes are being caused....seriously, not even watching the news? Also, doesn't Ms Bellum have a light for a signal? Why couldn't she  just set that up in the sky for them?

But no! Instead, Sara Bellum gets kidnapped while the conversation continues until the Mayor sneezes, causing the couple to realize that they were holding up phoneline and neglecting their duties, including feeding the cat. This upsets the Professor and complains about the past event where a cat made him jump off a building which somehow, Ms Keane doesn't believe and causes them both to suddenly break up. Hmm...like every other couple today right? Okay that was bad.

Overall, this was a weak episode with no crime fighting at all and for a new start of upgraded animation, this was pretty bad. Especially being a Valentines themed episode.

9. City of Clipsville  I ought to let you know that seasons five and six sucked. Big time and this episode is no exception. I am not much of a fan of clip shows and this one was really weak, lame and the repetitive dialogue is as entertaining as a stale book made for toddlers. "Remember when Mojo Jojo turned us into dogs?"...umm...yeah? There's like two episodes with pretty much the same chunks of animation of it and it doesn't help that they referenced BOTH episodes! Also, did we really want to be reminded of some of the more mediocre episodes?

Mind you, most of these little trips down memory lane never happened. These include The Professor marrying Ms Bellum...for some reason, the girls losing their superpowers without realizing until they fall off a building...the Professor turning the girls AND all of Townsville's citizens into helpless infants...(no, seriously...make way for cliche'd moments whenever a baby is in a cartoon, which I'll get to later), complete with Blossom spitting up over the Professor's shoulder.

BUT the most most shameful fan-service cringe-worthy moment would have to be a quote on quote flashback of when the girls sped up time and became teenagers. Oh my god! Just...yeah. Complete with their midriff showing, slender figures, skinny jeans and stereotypical valley girl accents and mannerisms such as blowing bubble gum talking on their cellphones and ...discovering boys, teenage boys...in this case, the Rowdyruff Boys.

Yeah...remember when I said that the whole counterpart thing is a drag, well they do it here too. But this time, they are somewhat getting along, yet the girls are ditzier. I do love some of the hidden innuendos snuck in this scene visually and audibly.

Besides this episode being a weak one, I do admit that I like how the girls looked as teenagers, a bit two fan-service material-esque but still cute. I love how Bubbles still kept her pigtails in, but are a little longer, Blossom's red hair still makes me jealous *seriously...) and Buttercup growing out that little bob, it suits her.

Of course, I can't mention this scene without the fact that it was a reference to Craig McCracken's fan mail he was  receiving from fans about what would happen if the girls and boys were couples. He hated the idea so he decided to poke fun at this little trope.

Interestingly, there was going to be a scene that never made it, but there were storyboards lying around of the teenage girls becoming popstars...obviously a reference to the likes of Mandy Moore, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera and other teen idols, maybe even the lesser known band that have since broke up, No Secrets.

The episode gets more stupid as everyone somehow ends up in the house until the episode ends which turns out to be filmed in front of a "live audience". Yeah, just...weak.

If you do like this episode, that's great, it does have a few funny moments but I still feel like it's just another cheap bland clip show.  

8. Neighbor Hood Good god was this episode lame? The moral was a good one I will admit, but first, the story...Bubbles rushes home from school in time to watch her favorite show: The Wondrous World of Whimsical Willy. Mr. Willy being the host of the show (and an obvious parody of Mr, Rogers) greets his audience warmly, at first, he seems like the typical friendly, harmless, yet unsettling kind of person on a kid's show. He never snaps, he's calm and mellow. But when Daydream Lane loses all of the happiness and joy, Mr Willy asks his audience to hand over all of their cash to him so they don't lose hope.

Being naive and simple, not wanting the show to fall flat with misery, Bubbles somehow breaks into the town hall and takes off with the money in the Mayor's vault and hands it over to Mr Willy and the rest of the crew on set. By the way, the Mayor also donated...yeah, he's a man child. lol

Meanwhile, back at home, after getting a phone call from the Mayor, Buttercup and Blossom notice their sister live on TV with a huge bag of money, thanking Bubbles, Mr Willy and his gang celebrate until Bubbles' sisters barge in telling Mr Willy to literally drop his act.

Sweaty and nervous, Mr Willy finally snaps and reveals his true plan to steal all of the money of Townsville, showing his true colors at last. Bubbles demands an explanation and tells her sisters that Mr. Willy isn't a crook, he just needed the money to help save Daydream Lane. Blossom isn't buying it and tells Bubbles that none of this is real and that the whole set is just canvas painted with scenery and backgrounds and the crew are all crooks in costume.

Now shocked and realizing she had been conned along with the rest of the those who donated, Bubbles loses faith in Mr Willy and the show and even refuses to save his fall. In case you might guess, Mr Willy is arrested and thrown in prison and Bubbles apologizes for her foolish act and also that she shouldn't believe on what she sees on television. In a way, this is a great moral for kids, especially when the main cast are kindergartners, but come on, the girls are more precocious than this, they are better than this. This is basically a weaker version of Film Flam.

This episode is really unsettling for many reasons.  Mr Willy asking for donations from little kids, isn't that a little creepy and somewhat makes him a pedophile? But to go as far as flying all the way to the set on your own and revealing the stolen cash is even more risky and dangerous.

I have read something interesting here from the PPG wikia, this episode was based real-life events in a 1965 New Year incident where Soupy Sales, miffed at having to work on the holiday, ended his live broadcast by encouraging his young viewers to tiptoe into their still-sleeping parents' bedrooms and remove those "funny green pieces of paper with pictures of U.S. Presidents" from their pants and pocketbooks. "Put them in an envelope and mail them to me," Soupy instructed the children. "And I'll send you a postcard from Puerto Rico!" He was then hit with a pie. He later admitted that he was joking and that the money would be donated to a charity, but Sales was negatively affected by the incident.

Also I learned that this episode was actually written back in 1999 as a season 2 episode, but was scrapped since the staff feared a lawsuit from PBS, so instead the story was given to DC Comics named Remote Controlled. The story was much better and less mediocre compared to this one. It's such a downfall when a great cartoon runs it's course and episodes that were originally written for the comics suddenly have elements thrown onto the screen and never live up to how they could have been.

There's something else I would like to point out here. I saw this comment on the PPG wikia by a user named Crossoverfan4ever and he pointed out that Bubbles commited a crime and got away with it, and did she get punished? Of course not, because she's, cute, innocent adorable, precious, sweet little Bubbles who can probably get away with murder if she tried.

So...in A Very Special Blossom, Blossom steals a rather valuable set of golf clubs and gets punished for it with 200 hours of community service, yet the Professor asks the cops to go easy on her and she's also sorry (seriously, you can feel her sorrow in her voice and that face just says it all).

In the fan-loathing controversial episode Moral Decay, Buttercup commits a crime by breaking into the local villains homes and steals their teeth for money from the "tooth fairy" after already beating up crooks for committing crimes. Her punishment: Ambushed by her worst enemies as her sisters sadistically watch her get beat up (note that Buttercup is a little girl, so can you imagine the pain inflicted on her?). Going back to Neighbor Hood, yeah, it's bad. One of season five's worst.

7. Crazy Mixed-Up Puffs

Season six was definitely the weakest link in the original show's run, so in a way, it's a breath of fresh air when McCracken and Savino declined a season seven from Cartoon Network (much to the disappointment to the fans).

CMUP just made way for some really weak points in writing and character development and derailment. Whichever one, even my feelings for this are mixed up...or mesed up. Whatever!  

In this episode, Mojo Jojo is watching old clips of the past fights and battles he has had with the girls and soon stops for an ice cream break. Unforunately, a little girl is in front of him and he deters her. As Mojo orders his three scoops (which happen to resemble the signature colors of the Powerpuff Girls), the little girl throws her ball at him, causing him to drop the ice cream onto the floor. As it does, Mojo gets an idea.

Mojo then goes home to his lair and creates a dummy of a girl calling for help, attracting attention from the Powerpuff Girls, they fly over to save her and are immediately caught in his trap.

The machine swirls the girls together, fusing them all into one and because of this, the girls find it hard to fly, spin and even keep their own balance, not to mention worsening their arguments every single time. It's really unpleasant to watch.

From here, the girls  now have to rely on each other with trust and work as a team to stop Mojo. After finally making their way to Mojo, they defeat him, destroying the fuse machine with a huge blast, but are still stuck together as one.

As they make their way back to the Mayor's office, they get Professor Utonium to try and seperate them. Feeling hopeless, the Professor breaks down into tears knowing that his daughters will never be the same, but they tell him that they don't mind being this close and reassure him that everything is going to be okay. The Mayor finds a thread from their fused dresses and pulls it which somehow...separates the girls restoring them to their glory. I do love when the Professor tells the girls that he loves them all, it's moments like this that always make the show great, it's too bad this episode suffered from mediocicy, unpleasant arguments and...this (Really? After all you've been through, you decide to add this in here?) NOTE: Never let Paul Stec or someone else write a Powerpuff Girls episode storyline which may result into tasteless immature fart jokes...speaking of which...

6. Reeking Havoc Season six...why? Why did you have to go with this crap? An entire episode about flatulence? Really? Okay, well silently but still visually. I for one don't care for this kind of humor, it's immature, lame, not funny, pointless and...just go watch South Park if you're into that stuff (by the way, I'm a huge fan of South Park, freakin' ironic I know! lol).

The Girls have just returned home from enjoying a beautiful sunny day in spring, admiring the fresh air until their noses are suddenly inflicted with the smell of something ...not so fresh, in this case, chili. Yep! Because how else are the writers going to come up with an episode which is ten minutes of fart jokes. Real mature. Not.

It turns out that the girls father Professor Utonium is cooking this...chili for the "2nd Annual Chili Cook-Off" in Townsville. The girls reluctantly try a sample, as expected by them and those watching, it doesn't go down well (we even see a shot of Buttercup losing it in the waste-bin). Worried that he may lose again, Blossom decides that they should tell the Professor, but her sisters object due to the year before, in which the Professor lost and broke down.

Later that night, the Professor still thinks his chili needs something extra...or should that be "x-tra"...with that, he adds a drop of Chemical X into the concoction. Sure, because somehow that works right? Also, maybe adding COFFEE into the chili is the reason it doesn't taste so good. Later on that night, the girls (one by one) also happen to put a drop of Chemical X in the chili.

The following morning during the annual chili contest, the judges (which happen to be Ms Keane, the Mayor and Sara Bellum) are trying out all the dishes that have been made for the event when soon, they try the Professor's chilli causing reactions that they never experienced before. With that, the Professor is declared the winner of the contest and is awarded the trophy and with that, the Mayor hands out free samples of the prize winning chilli.

What then follows is nothing but flatulent puns, visual and audible, one after the other while everyone's guts start growling and all that gas happens to escape and creates...a giant methane monster. No, seriously! A giant cloud made out of everyone's gas! What were the writers thinking, seriously? It's like they have watched Ren and Stimpy and got some ideas off there, no? 

The following day, the methane monster soon causes chaos all over Townsville and his stench is so unbearable that it causes everyone to feel nauseous and complain. This then causes the Mayor to call the girls and...*sighs*...watching them trying to fight off a huge flatulent monster is just...well...yeah. Lame.  

As if stinking up the city has already been done in season 2's Down and Dirty, but that as caused by Buttercup refusing to bathe, but nope, we get a full on episode with gastronomical proportions and bad jokes!

From here, we get some rather ridiculously stomach churning moments including the girls actually trying to suck the monster up...err...gross? So...after the mention of a "match", Blossom gets an idea and takes off and returns again in seconds with...a giant match...no seriously AND to make this episode even more cringy, she mentions that she got it from the same place where she got the giant jar in "episode two season one". Was that really necessary?

I don't wanna go on since its pretty cliche'd with the fact that entering a chili cook-off with an ingredient that happens to be linked to chaos, it's obvious what that equals.

This was a bad episode and I mean really really bad. GOLDEN RULE: Keep fart jokes off this show! Oh wait...the reboot pushed that further! *sighs*

5. Gettin' Twiggy With It Consider this the Pet Sitter Pat episode of The Powerpuff Girls. Nearly every character in this show is likable, funny, great, relatable and somehwhat a decent role model. All but one...that being a less major character: the girls class mate Mitch Mitchellson. A sadistic, nasty, evil, selfish, greedy, manipulative  child who takes pleasure in bullying his fellow...ahem...classmates. Think of him as the Nelson Muntz of Townsville. Think of him as Ren Hoek off Ren Seeks Help in Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon, or maybe even Stewie Griffin. In this episode, it's Friday and that means one of the kids has the responsibility of taking the class hamster Twiggy home. The girls volunteer, but somehow Ms. Keane chooses Mitch to look after her.

This episode is legimately painful to watch in my opinion. As an animal lover (especially hamsters) who hates animal cruelty to a degree couldn't even watch this. It isn't funny, isn't a pleasure to watch, it's just sick, twisted and evil, I'm glad though that the episode itslef wasn't treated as comedic, that would make me up this episode straight to number one in my opinion. Mitch apparently says he never owned a pet before, yet you can clearly see that he has a snake in the background, what the hell?

I like how when Twiggy becomes a vicious monster, the girls do their part to save him, but still teach him a lesson in harming little Twiggy. It's rare for an episode to be played out seriously for the most part, yet this is just so difficult to watch. Especially all the ways Mitch tortures the hamster.

Gettin' Twiggy With It is just nasty and an unwatchable episode. It's unpleasant, demented and just uncomfortable to watch. For a better review on this episode, I suggest reading this: https://www.deviantart.com/regulas314/art/1001-Animations-Gettin-Twiggy-With-It-517452789. He does great reviews and provides decent detail.

Overall, Mitch Mitchellson is hands down my most despised character in The Powerpuff Girls, maybe even worse than Princess Morbucks. And that's saying a lot. 

4. Girls Gone Mild I don't think there's one countdown of top ten worst PPG without this episode at least appearing on there. It's bad, the story, the premise, the fact that this episode was inspired by letters Craig McCracken received from parents thinking the violence was appropriate as a defence, pretty much the Three Girls and A Monster of the Chris Savino era. This episode is basically like a reminder that parents and legal guardians are the ones who should ultimately take responsibility for their children's actions instead of just blaming other people for it. But for what it is, it's not funny or entertaining and definitely one worth skipping. Need I point out that the two people of "P.A.P.P" (People Against Powerpuff Girls) were played by the same people behind the voices of Cosmo and Wanda from The Fairly Odd Parents?

But seriously, where do these two come from? Clearly not from Townsville otherwise they'd be more than happy to ask for the girls help, but no, instead they eat everything up with complaints and threaten to sue the Professor if the girls start using their superpowers again. I hate tropes like this, especially when we all know in the end, they go back to normal and do what they do best. Now if only they were kicking Stanley and Sandra Practice's butts instead.

3. Moral Decay *sighs* some of you have definitely seen this one coming but you can see why. It's one of the most unpleasant, mean spirited and degrading episodes of the Craig McCracken era. What were the writers actually thinking?

Buttercup's nothing but a straight up sadist in this episode, the moment those mouth muscles form a malicious slasher smirk, she has straight up changed in personality throughout the episode. After accidentally knocking one of Bubbles' teeth out, she learns of the "tooth fairy" bringing money in exchange for teeth under kid's pillows and what does she do? She constantly abuses Bubbles just to try and knock out her teeth.

First off, Buttercup may be tough, but she loves her sisters dearly and wouldn't think of abusing her own sisters for kicks. Sure she gets into scrapes now and then, argues and teases them, but she would never want to hurt them to this extent!

UmbraMagna's stated this before on YouTube but have they go something against Buttercup, did they hate her character? Why did she always get the rough stuff in punishment and treatment? Think about it? In Down and Dirty, she refuses to bathe and even gets kicked out the house until she gives in and is forcefully given a full scrub by her own sisters. In Cover Up, a whole opportunity is wasted  on a story that could have had a heartwarming peptalk scene between Buttercup and the Professor, there, Buttercup feels vulnerable without her security blanket. You gotta remember that she is a little girl, it's normal for someone her age to have a baby blanket.

Going back to Moral Decay, it's a terrible episode that's just painful to watch and do NOT get me started on the ending. The Professor at his most non-caring right here, not to mention that close out ending scene. As punishment, the Professor pays covers Buttercup's dental bills with the money she "saved". By the way, I suggest you check out @UmbraMagna's extended review on this episode. Since mostly I'd be shadowing and echoing what she has said, along with A Very Special Blossom in her top 10 worst PPG eps countdown.

2. Sun Scream/The City Of Frownsville I put these two together because...well, they both aired together, simple as, bit cheap and not so well explained or thought but what else. These two episodes are just torture! Despite being on different topics. 

First off, Sun Scream. This episode is just a chore to get though. The girls all catch the sun after refusing to put sunscreen lotion on while trying to stop a solar flare from plummeting to the earth. What do their fans and the rest of the citizens do? They laugh at them, instead of showing concern for three kids who have badly been sunburned. Just...what has happened to Townsville?

The rest of the episode is nothing but the girls struggling to get up out of bed and trying to answer the hotline, getting dressed to even struggling to attack some con artists. I won't spoil this episode but if you have made it through till the end then good luck, this one's just painful to watch.

Then we have The City of Frownsville. Although being dedicated to those who lost their lives during 9-11 (with all my respect, I pray now even). Despite this, this episode is nothing but everyone sobbing their eyes out for ten minutes. If you can't stand nails scratching on a chalkboard, then you will definitely not be able to make it through this episode.

All of Townsville's put under a spell by "Lou Gubrious" and his machine that causes everyone to cry uncontrollably, this then reverses his mood giving him the new name "Hal Larious" (please, seriously?), the rest...ugh.

Skip this one while you can guys.

Before I get to number one, I'd like to give out a few dishonorable mentions.

Cover Up - For shaming Buttercup being a softy. Also her sisters cruelly laughing at her. Twisted Sister - First off, I don't hate this episode as a whole, I don't like what they did with the new sister Bunny. She's unstable, but her slurred speech and lack of English, as well as dying in so called comedic fashion's a bit too much. Fallen Arches - Blossom's unbearable in this episode. Sure, we should respect the elderly but refusing to fight these crooks and throw'em in jail. Just...no. Sweet and Sour - Ugh, cutesey animals getting away with crime and the citizens are just as clueless because they are "TOO CUTE!". Come on! Pee Pee Gs - Unsettling and nothing but pee jokes. Umm...no, unfunny and a cringefest. Prime Mates - Mopey Popo's constant complaining and rambling in his Droopy-esque voice and the girls not having enough screen time make this a true downer. A Very Special Blossom - Ugh, one of the first of episodes where one of the girls does wrong and gets punished for it. In this case, Blossom's dark side shows when she steals a valuable set of golf clubs just to please the Professor for Father's Day. That's Not My Baby - Ah the baby cliche! Whether it's abandoned or just being looked after the whole package is there. The baby never stops crying, and when it eats, it's diaper needs to be changed yada yada yada, I'm sick of this cliche and this episode's no better. HOW did they not even notify the Professor even? I left it out of here because the ending was actually clever. Cop Out - Forgettable, bland and yeah. Unfunny, also that cop. Ugh. Custody Battle - Just doesn't feel like a PPG episode, but a Rowdyruff Boys spinoff. Also the whole two daddies thing...nah. Divide and Conquer - I know education and learning's important but an entire maths episode...nope. Save Mojo - I'm a bit of an animal activist, no lies but...a cartoon chimpanzee with constant diabolical plans to destroy the Powerpuff Girls and take over the world, that's different (plus a cartoon), and...yeah. Basically Girls Gone Mild with animal activists and protesters. Say Uncle - Absolutely forgettable and lame. Mizzen In Action - I love the Crack McCraigen pun name but over all, this swash buckling episode's one of the show's most forgettable episodes. Seed No Evil - Bland and boring and...seriously, what's this all about seeds in olden times? The City of Nutsville - Bubbles gets stung in the throat by a bee/wasp and her sisters actually laugh at her...messed up. Also, squirrel apocalypse. Insane. West in Pieces - Ugh...ancestors of the Powerpuff Girls? really? As if Seed No Evil was no better.

And the number one worst Powerpuff Girls episode is...

1. Toast Of The Town I HATE this episode! Talk about character derailment, especially when you're in the middle of season five. If you can get through this episode listening to the Mayor speak in the third person, good for you, because there's a lot of it and it's enough to make your eardrums split.

The Mayor has a huge craving for toast (say, at least SOMEONE now has a toaster unlike everybody in Too Pooped To Puff few seasons back) but his toaster is out of range, so he goes to the Professor to have it fixed. And with that, we get some of the most cringe inducing audio, lack lustered story writing and some of the most ANNOYING dialogue in any episode! The Mayor is basically nothing but...a child in a man's body here. The Professor won't fix his toaster because he's busy, but after more complaining from the Mayor, he gets on with the job and the Mayor is so impatient he asks in seconds if it's done yet...really? The Mayor is an idiot, that's for sure, but at least he means well and loves his city and job and looks out for the girls. BUT his stupidity here is both questionable, childish and dumbed down to a tee!

The Professor makes the Mayor wait somewhere in the lab which he does despite still dejected and impatient. What follows is...the Mayor curiously pressing buttons like a child and setting off an alarm and causing a huge explosion in the lab...err...is this Dexter's Lab or The Powerpuff Girls? Some weird pattern here! Anyway, the Professor then proceeds to let the Mayor stay put by putting him in a high chair...for...some reason...

Later on, the Mayor discovers a can of Chemical X and rubs some of it on his head thinking it's hair growth formula and...his entire body is now the size of King Kong, complete with a shameless parody to boot. I don't need to explain anymore of this.

Seriously? The Mayor's third person speech and childish behaviour here is some of the worst character derailment I've ever seen. As I said with Gettin' Twiggy With It, there's a more detailed review here by Regulas314: https://www.deviantart.com/regulas314/art/Animated-Atrocities-Toast-of-the-Town-475588395

There's no other way I can mention this episode without any...ahem spoilers, but I suggest avoiding it while you can. SERIOUSLY! This episode's unbearable!

Compare the Mayor in episodes like Uh Oh Dynamo, where he was against the girls having the city destroyed (even though it was the Professor making the girls use the Dynamo). Then compare him here...it's just painful. And with that, let me know what you think which episodes do you think are th eabsolute worst? 

[upsidedowninmyworld]

All of them? :$

I can’t sleep. Why not

1: How tall or short do you wish you were? The height I am now

2: What’s your dream pet? (Real or not) Hmm...Gizmo

3: Do you have a favorite clothing style? Anything comfortable really

4: What was your favorite video game growing up? Sonic

5: What three things/people do you think of most each day: My partner, my future, and what it all holds

6: If you had a warning label, what would yours say? Very quiet, slow to anger but proceed with caution

7: What is your opinion on [insert person/thing here]? 🤷🏻‍♀️

8: What is your Greek personality type? [Sanguine, Phlegmatic, Choleric, or Melancholic] uhh when I took this test in high school, I was melancholic

9: Are you ticklish? Yes

10: Are you allergic to anything? Loads

11: What’s your sexuality? Bisexual

12: Do you prefer tea, coffee, or cocoa? Cocoa

13: Are you a cat or dog person? Cat

14: Would you rather be a vampire, elf, or merperson? Hmm vampire

15: Do you have a favorite Youtuber? I did

16: How tall are you? 5’2”

17: If you had to change your name, what would you change it to? I like mine

18: How much do you weigh? [Only ask this if you know the user doesn’t mind!] too much for me to be comfortable

19: Do you believe in ghosts/spirits? Yes

20: Do you like space or the ocean more? Uhh I like both equally

21: Are you religious? Kind of

22: Pet peeves? When people touch my stuff without asking. Bad breath

23: Would you rather be nocturnal or diurnal [opposite of nocturnal]? Nocturnal

24: Favorite constellation? Not sure

25: Favorite star? Not sure

26: Do you like ball-jointed dolls? No?

27: Any phobias or fears? Not saying

28: Do you think global warming is real? Yes

29: Do you believe in reincarnation? Not really

30: Favorite movie? Forrest Gump

31: Do you get scared easily? No lol

32: How many pets have you own in your lifetime? 5?

33: Blog rate? [You’ll rate the blog of the one who’s asking.] what?

34: What is a color that calms you? Blue

35: Where would you like to travel and/or live? Australia, London

36: Where were you born? LA

37: What is your eye color? Brown

38: Introvert or extrovert? Intro

39: Do you believe in horoscopes and zodiacs? No lol

40: Hugs or kisses? Kisses

41: Who is someone you would like to see/visit right now? Cody

42: Who is someone you love deeply? Cody

43: Any piercings you want? Second ear piercings

44: Do you like tattoos and piercings? Yes

45: Do you smoke or have you eiver done so? Before

46: Talk about your crush, if you have one! He’s pretty great. Been with them for almost 4 years :)

47: What is a sound you really hate? A certain person’s voice

48: A sound you really love? The ocean

49: Can you do a backflip? Not anymore

50: Can you do the splits? If I stretch, yes

51: Favorite actor and/or actress? Natalie Dorner and Ed skrein atm

52: Favorite movie? I already answers this

53: How are you feeling right now? Tired

54: What color would you like your hair to be right now? Half white half Black

55: When did you feel happiest? I think it’s been a while

56: Something that calms you down? Writing or drawing

57: Have any mental disorders? [Only ask this if you know the user doesn’t mind!] nothing diagnosed

58: What does your URL mean? My world is odd

59: What three words describe you the most? Quiet, contemplative weird

60: Do you believe in evolution? Yes

61: What makes you unfollow a blog? Posting things I don’t like

62: What makes you follow a blog? Posting things I like

63: Favorite kind of person: a genuinely nice person that is honest

64: Favorite animal(s): pandas, otters

65: Name three of your favorite blogs. 🤷🏻‍♀️

66: Favorite emoticon: 😻

67: Favorite meme: I have too many

68: What is your MBTI personality type? I can’t remember

69: What is your star sign? Uhhh Pisces...?

70: Can your dog roll over on command, if you have a dog? Yes

71: What outfit out of all your clothes do you like to wear the most? A black shirt and jeans with converse

72: Post a selfie or two? No thank you

73: Do you have platform shoes? I do!

74: What is one random but interesting fact about yourself? I can bend my thumb all the way to my arm

75: Can you do a front flip? Not anymore

76: Do you like birds? Sure

77: Do you like to swim? Love it

78: Is swimming or ice skating more fun to you? Swimming for sure

79: Something you wish didn’t exist: not saying

80: Some thing you wish did exist: someone that is no longer here

81: Piercings you have? Just my ears for now

82: Something you really enjoy doing: reading

83: Favorite person to talk to: Cody

84: What was your first impression of Tumblr? I like this site

85: How many followers do you have? Uhh I haven’t looked in a while

86: Can you run a mile within ten minutes? I use. To lol

87: Do your socks always match? Yes

88: Can you touch your toes and keep your legs straight completely? Yes

89: What are your birthstones? Aquamarine

90: If you were an animal, which one would you be? Panda or a cat

91: If a flower could aesthetically represent you, what kind would it be? A rose

92: A store you hate? Hmmm not sure

93: How many cups of coffee can you drink in one day? I don’t

94: Would you rather be able to fly or read minds? Read minds

95: Do you like to wear camo? On occasion

96: Winter or summer? Winter

97: How long can you hold your breath for? About 30-45 seconds

98: Least favorite person? HAHA

99: Someone you look up to: my dad

100: A store you love? Any bookstore lol

101: Favorite type of shoes. Converse

102: Where do you live? In LA

103: Are you a vegetarian or vegan? If so, why? Nope

104: What is your favorite mineral or gem? I don’t have one?

105: Do you drink milk? Yes

106: Do you like bugs? No

107: Do you like spiders? Yes

108: Something you get paranoid about? The future

109: Can you draw: kind of

110: Nosiest question you have ever been asked? How sex was with a person I slept with or how I could stand sleeping next to ex because he snores really loudly. Like freight train loud

111: A question you hate being asked? Who’s the smarter or prettier twin. I usually get that I’m smarter

112: Ever been bitten by a spider? Yes

113: Do you like the sound of waves at the beach? I do

114: Do you prefer cloudy or sunny days? Cloudy

115: Someone you’d like to kiss or cuddle right now: codes

116: Favorite cloud type: what

117: What color do you wish the sky was? Purple

118: Do you have freckles? No

119: Favorite thing about a person: clean hands

120: Fruits or vegetables? Fruits

121: Something you want to do right now: see someone

122: Is the ocean or sky prettier? Ocean

123: Sweet or sour foods? Sour

124: Bright or dim lights? Bright

125: Do you believe in a certain magical creature? Sure

126: Something you hate about Tumblr: 🤷🏻‍♀️

127: Something you love about Tumblr: 🤷🏻‍♀️

128: What do you think about the least? Work

129: What would you want written on your tombstone? 🤷🏻‍♀️

130: Who would you like to punch in the face right now? HA

131: What is something you love but also hate about yourself? My mind

132: Do you smile with your teeth showing for pictures? Yes

133: Computer or TV? Computer

134: Do you like roller coasters? Yes

135: Do you get motion sickness or seasickness? It depends

136: Are your ears lobed or attached? Attached

137: Do you believe in karma? Sure

138: On a scale of 1-10, how attractive would you say you are? Like an 8 on a good day

139: What nicknames do you have/have had? Quite a few

140: Did you have any pretend or imaginary friends? Yes

141: Have you ever seen a therapist/shrink? Yes

142: Would you say you are a good or bad influence to others? Good

143: Do you prefer giving or receiving gifts/help? Both

144: What makes you angry. A lot

145: How many languages do you speak fluently? One

146: Do you prefer boys, girls, and/or non-binaries? I’m bi soooo

147: Are you androgynous? No

148: Favorite physical thing about yourself: my butt lol

149: Favorite thing about your personality: my ability to see the good in everyone even when they’re shitty. Also my least favorite thing about myself

150: Name three people you would like to talk to right now in person. Well my dad, Cody, my grandma

151: If you could go back into time and live in one era, which would you choose? The one rn because I am a minority

152: Do you like BuzzFeed? Sure

153: How did you meet your spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend/partner? [If you have one.] uhh dating app. Technically a football game.

154: Do you like to kiss others’ foreheads or hands for platonic reasons? No

155: Do you like to play with others’ hair? Just codys

156: What embarrasses you? Not a lot

157: Something that makes you nervous/anxious: the future because I can’t really talk about it with anyone without stressing people out. But it helps me feel less anxious so I’m kind of stuck

158: Biggest lie you have ever told: oof

159: How many people are you following? 🤷🏻‍♀️

160: How many posts do you have on your blog(s)? 🤷🏻‍♀️

161: How many drafts do you have on your blog(s)?🤷🏻‍♀️

162: How many likes do you have on your blog(s)?🤷🏻‍♀️

163: Last time you cried and why: ooh like a few days ago

164: Do you have long or short hair? Short

165: Longest your hair has ever been: to my butt

166: Why do you like, dislike, or have neutral feelings about religon? I don’t want to answer this

167: Do you really care how the universe and world was created? Yes

168: Do you like to wear makeup? Yes

169: Can you stand on your hands or head for more than thirty seconds? No

170: Did you answer the questions you were asked truthfully? Yes

[definitelynottony]

Grease is the Word [Ch.1 Summer Lovin’]

[Ao3] [part 2] [Song recommendations: Grease OST, 50′s era songs] [Also definitely recommend looking up a 50′s slang dictionary!]

It started out with just a visit, a holiday to see his family over in the states. Spend his summer break hangin’ out with his aunt,uncle and cousin; he only gets to see them every couple of years. The last time he saw them was for his mother’s funeral. They’re good people though, he should see them more often. Get a break away from his screwed up life back in Australia, with his sorry excuse of a father. He missed the golden coast but it was a change of pace, two months living in Hawkins Indiana would do Billy Hargrove some real good. 

And it did. It was such a simple life. Not havin’ to make sure his deadbeat dad was in bed every night; cause the only thing he was good for after his mom died was drinkin’ and givin’ Billy a real good shiner. Not havin’ to go to school and work every day just to buy his own cigs. Havin’ people that actually cared if you came home at night was pretty good too, not that the greaser would admit it. But yeah, he’s probably been smiling since he walked into the Mayfield house. 

Aunt Susan was just like havin’ his mom back, they even have the same hair color. And Max, she got even bigger since the last time Billy saw her. She was still a little shitbird though. His step uncle wasn’t too bad of a guy either, let him drive his blue ‘58 Bel Air ‘round. Was definitely a helluva a lot better than his old man, that’s fer damn sure. And yeah, Billy’s summer went by in a blink. He followed Max and some of her friends around, learnin’ where all the good spots where. It was a small town, not too hard; the diner, arcade, drive ins, and Hawkins’ Lovers Lake. 

On one hot, real hot Indiana summer day, Billy decided to take the Bel Air for a spin; he ended up at the lake. That’s when he saw him; like a fuckin’ angel. 

He had soft brown hair all shaped perfectly into a quiff. Unlike Billy’s blonde curls, if he could get his hair into a pomp it was a good day, most the time it was somewhere between the flop and a loose teddy boy. Not that it really mattered, everyone knew what he was as soon as they saw him with his leather on, a smoke in his mouth. Poor by birth, Greaser by choice. 

But this cat, this pretty boy with the brown hair, well he looked like he belonged on the telly. Billy didn’t even notice the other’s with him. Some girl, plain jane prep, definitely no Monroe; she wasn’t even in a bathing suit, wet blanket. Some hipster slick was with her reading a book, but Billy’s eyes stayed with the brunette with an angel face and Babmi eyes. The two were sittin’ over on the dock, that angel face was putterin’ in the water. Billy knew they could see him pullin’ up. Sauntering down to the lake edge. Good, Billy loved a dramatic entrance. 

As he showed up, splashin’ around in the shallows of the shoreline, he got that pretty boy’s attention. Well, couldn’t blame him; not many could pull off red trunks as short as Billy’s were. God bless the 50’s. If the brunette didn’t close his mouth pretty soon Billy was sure he’d have to save his life ‘cause he’s gonna drown like that. 

“Steve, do you know him?” the girl hushed down to the brunette--- 

“No, I don’t think so. He kinda chills ‘ya though doesn't he?”

“Not me Stevie, he’s just staring at us. Go say something!” 

“Like what?” 

“Tell’um to take a picture, it’ll last longer.” 

“Not helpful Jonathan, come on Nance why don’t you go talk ta him?” 

“Cause he looks like a bird dog.” 

“Looks like a dreamboat to me.”

“STEVE!” The girl squealed. “Go!”

“Shh! Nance, okay-oaky.”

The greaser watched with anticipation as that earth angel adorably, clumsily strolled up to him, green high ride swims on, he was a prep; Billy could deal with that---

“Hey there daddy-o what’s shakin’?”

God, even his voice was angelic. 

“You know baby, just rockin’ an rollin’.”

“Heh, you ain’t from around here huh? Names Steve.”

“Accent give it’ away?” 

“Yeah. I like it though, it’s bitchin’.” 

“Names Billy” 

“Billy? Hey, you’re Max’s cousin right?” 

“Yeah, you know the ankle biter?”

“She runs with some kids I know.”

“Small world” the blonde charmed.

“Small town” Steve laughed, and it was everything; that laugh “so you wanna come hang?”

“Thought you’d never ask cherry.”

“That mouth you got sure is drippin’ apple butter.”

“Just fer cherry’s like you doll face.”

Steve gave this smirk before turning back to his friends; a smirk that really made Billy wish the cat would drown just so he could give him mouth to mouth. He’d know what to do', Billy was a lifeguard back in 'Straya. 

“Guys, this is Billy. He’s Maxie’s cousin. Billy, this is Nancy and that’s Jonathan.” Steve introduced, Billy just nodded with a smirk. He really wasn’t that interested in a couple drips.

“It’s a pleasure, Billy, are you from around here? Just visiting? Staying long?” Nancy had that look in her eyes Steve knew all too well, and normally he hated when she did this but he wanted to know too.

“You writin’ a book sweetheart?”

“Maybe. Just curious what side of the track you’re from.”

Billy rolled his eyes “I see someone’s got her glasses on, I'm from Australia, just visiting. Leavin’ in the fall.” Yeah, she was definitely a drag, bringing the whole mood down. 

“I knew you were from Australia, that’s choice! What’s it like there?”

“Tell ‘ya all about it over a malt pretty boy.”

“...Guess he’s not a bird dog.” 

Jonathan piped up from his book. Nancy nudged his shoulder holding back a laugh or a sequel, who knows. Billy and Steve sure didn’t cause Steve was too busy dodging Billy’s splashes. They went on for a few hours like that, enjoying the summer heat, the cool water. Some point Steve got Nancy and Jonathan to play chicken with them. Billy dropped Steve on purpose, the brunette was pretty sure he tried to drown him. 

And it was weeks of days like that. Bowlin’ in the arcade, drinkin lemonade, spent hours makin’ out under the dock at lover’s lake. Stayin’ out past 10, nights at the drivin’s. Billy had a car after all and Stevie was real inta back seat bingo. And they held hands when they were alone, and their first time was cause Steve got real friendly down in the sand. God he was good, if you know what I mean. And yeah, Billy felt like it was love at first sight, but he knew it was just a summer fling, didn’t mean a thing. At least it wasn’t supposed to. 

“Goddamn pretty boy, You’re bonafide. I’m so sweet fer ya.”

“Billy, I never met someone like you before.This feels like the real deal.”

“That’s cause it is baby. It is.”

And long fingers tangled in golden curls. Sun kissed flesh wrapped around soft freckled porcelain. Lips to skin, ocean blues drowning in honey browns, teeth biting down like they’re making home there. It was the closest thing to heaven on earth. The closest the greaser was going to get, with this angel looking up at him panting his name. With his fingers wrapped up in his hair and his momma’s necklace. Rolling into him like the Pacific ocean, kissing away tears from that pretty freckled face. Stevie’s legs holding tight around him, his way of sayin’ more, harder, because that cherry mouth of his is just too good ta say it out loud. Like Billy would ever say no, Stevie didn’t know it but Billy’s been wrapped ‘round his gentle finger since he saw that smirk of his two months ago.

“Never gonna forget this Stevie, yur the best fuckin’ thing these hands have ever held.” 

It was summer lovin’ at it’s finest, and they were havin’ a blast. Until they weren’t, until there were tears, tears of pain and not the sweet tears Billy was kissing away last night on cool sand made hot from their bodies. And there were fists, but they weren't the calloused ones made gentle that caressed tony hair. Cause now they were holding porcelain ones aimed to make Billy hurt as much as they did. As much as Steve did. And Billy let him, let him pound those fist into his chest as he held the brunette close. Let him cry and curse him for ever coming to Hawkins, for ever meeting him. Only calming when Billy finally spoke---

“You, Steve Harrington, have made my life worth livin’.”

And those big doe eyes filled with diamonds were going to be permanently branded into the blonde's mind forever.

“I’ve just had the best summer of my life, and now I have ta leave, and it isn’t fuckin’ fair-”

“Billy”

“-It’s not fair.” The greaser pressed in close, so close, to memorize how it felt; how it felt to hold an angel in his hell bound arms. 

“Billy, is this the end? The end of us?”

“No, no ‘course not” Billy fainted a smile “it’s only the beginning Stevie.”

[forlorn-flowers]

Layers upon Layers

LAYER ONE: THE OUTSIDE

Name: “Tyler”

Eye Color: “Gold, or, yellow I guess?”

Hair Style/Color: “Blue, and I like wearing it in a ponytail.”

Height: “Uhh... shorter than everyone else.”

Clothing Style: “Um.. I think Mahlu called this grunge? Shorts and cardigans that are way longer than the shorts.”

Best Physical Feature: Tyler fidgets. She doesn’t know.

LAYER TWO: THE INSIDE

Your Fears: “... Being alone. The dark.”

Your Guilty Pleasure: Tyler taps her chin with her finger; “Why do I have to be guilty while doing it?”

Your Biggest Pet Peeve: “Nails on a chalkboard.”

Your Ambition for the Future: “To be as cool as the rest of The Feast, duh.”

LAYER THREE: THOUGHTS

Your First Thoughts Waking Up: “Gotta get up so that I can wrestle with Graves today.”

What You Think About the Most: “Your mom,” She snickers.

What You Think About Before Bed: “Maybe I’m safe enough to go put that knife back in the kitchen.”

You Think Your Best Quality Is: “I’m sneaky.”

LAYER FOUR: WHAT’S BETTER?

Single or Group Dates: “Uh-- single? I’ve never been on a date.”

To be Loved or Respected: “Loved.”

Beauty or Brains: “Uh...” She honestly doesn’t think she can decide.

Dogs or Cats: Tyler holds up Stubb; “Cats!”

LAYER FIVE: DO YOU?

Lie: She shrugs; “Don’t you?”

Believe in Yourself: “Most of the time.”

Believe in Love: “If I didn’t, what else would I have?” 

Want Someone: “...” 

LAYER SIX: EVER?

Been on Stage: “Never, but sometimes I think it might be cool. When I fantasize about it.”

Done Drugs: “Nope.”

Changed Who You Were to Fit In: “I’m pretty sure everyone does that.”

LAYER SEVEN: FAVORITES

Favorite Color: “Blue.”

Favorite Animal: Once more, she holds up Stubb; “Cats!”

Favorite Food: “Pancakes. Especially when you make them veeeeeerrryy small.”

Favorite Game: “Mancala!”

LAYER EIGHT: AGE

Day Your Next Birthday Will Be: “Day as in day of the week or day of the month? I was born on the Fifth of the Third Umbral Moon.”

How Old Will You Be: “Like, twenty five?”

Age You Lost Your Virginity: She looks down awkwardly; “I’m a virgin.”

Does Age Matter: She shrugs.

LAYER NINE: IN A BOY OR GIRL

Best Personality: “Compassionate, kind. A super sweet kind of person-- but someone who can get into just as much trouble with me as I can on my own, you know?”

Best Eye Color: “Any, I guess.”

Best Hair Color: Tyler shrugs; “Uh- I’m not really sure?”

Best thing to do with a Partner: “Gods. Anything, really.”

LAYER TEN: FINISH THE SENTENCE

I love: “My friends!”

I feel: “Happy?”

I hide: She says nothing, just smiles and shakes her head.

I miss: “My brother.”

I wish: “If I tell you it won’t come true!”

Tagged by: @ffxiv-sunderedsouls​​ and @bygone-eras​ <3

Tagging: I’m lazy.

[artofabeginner]

The Totally Not Normal Train Station

There is something to be said about the aura in a train station. People bustling to and from different places, unaware of how time stands still as they wait. There is something to be said about the people that use the train station located on E. Federal Dr. They are the type of people who care little for the rules of the universe or the rules of time.

For example, see that man with the extremely tall top hat? The one who looks like he came out of the 1850′s? His name is Michael Kain, he is not in fact from the 1850′s. He is from the 2080′s. Shocker right. Don’t worry, top hats don’t come back into fashion. He’s on his way to a convention. 

Don't look shocked, here. Look at that woman in the sun dress, now I know what you are thinking, “Why is she wearing a sundress on this cold and chilly winter day.” It's because it’s not. In fact, she is currently living in last summer. I think she's on her way to meet her date.  How do I know? Look at the date on her ticket and the flowers in her other hand. Spooky right? Not really, I know her. She likes  to relive this one, not entirely sure why.

  Look at that child over there. The boy with the blonde hair and the blue eyes, who is currently wearing a red striped shirt and jeans. You didn’t notice him before? No shocker there, that's the point. His job is to look as generic as possible. Why? I just told you, it's his job. 

  Now look at that dog over there, isn’t it cute? No nothing is wrong with the dog, it's just a dog I wanted to point out, sheesh. Now that alley cat over there, that ain’t no cat. Look at it closely, look at its fur, how it flickers in and out of sight? How it glides through the shadows, how no one notices it as it curls through their legs. It's familiar of course. And if there is a familiar there's a witch! 

Look at that man over there, he is the only one who acknowledges it. What do you mean how do I know! Look at him, he keeps peering towards it as he reads that newspaper upside down, he is clearly the witch. Look at his bag, can you see the herbs poking out? Don’t worry, it's basil. Stop freaking out, Basil is used for protection, which he so clearly needs.

Ugh, look behind him, that man in the shadows, it’s a federal agent. Oh, come now, did you really think the feds wouldn’t be looking for him? What for? For magic use obviously! Of course, it's a bit too late for a protective spell, can’t do much against the law I suppose. 

Now that woman over there is interesting, I’m not 100% sure what she is. I mean there are so many different races it's hard to keep track! No, stupid. I’m not talking about human races; I’m talking about aliens. She could be a martin, but they don’t usually appear as a woman. Although, that would be the greatest disguise. 

Now, now. Ignore her, she isn’t looking for trouble, that person in the corner, by those trash cans, now they're looking for some trouble. In fact, from the looks of it, they're about to start a fight with the woman standing next to them. Of course, that won’t do anything, seeing as she's a ghost and last I checked you can't punch a ghost. Believe me.

Oh, here comes the train. No, don’t get on. It’s not ours, it's theirs. You clearly haven’t been here before. There are multiple trains that go through this station some are for us, and some are for the others. This one in particular houses the circus. No not a circus, THE circus. That woman in the corner is going to get on, so is that man near the stairs. It’s funny though, seeing as they are on opposing sides, of course THE train is the only place they will get any privacy! Star crossed lovers obviously. It's like you've never been in love with the killer clown of the opposite circus, whose leader is a master sorcerer who is threatening to kill your mother. 

Oh, Look at that woman who's just come down the stairs. Her name is Emily Van Weber. She runs this train station. She is very powerful, so I wouldn’t talk to her. Of course, she is powerful, her last name is Weber? As in of the Weber family? As in the world best time weavers? Wanna know something funny? She was supposed to take over the family business, but then she took a trip to Venus and fell in love with this alien who I believes’ human name is Ken, so she ditched everything and made a bunch of  underground, illegal train stations, like this one, who defy the laws of time and space. She is technically wanted by the entire galaxy. She also runs an underground bunny smuggling operation. Yeah yeah, keep laughing, but there are times and places that don’t have bunnies and will pay a lot for some.

Now that man next to her is definitely not Ken. I think he’s Alexander Murdoch. The future president. Don’t worry, you won’t live to see him rule. He's super corrupt, but like he’s chill with the place existing, so long as we hook him up with 1920’s dishwashers. Hey! It's actually the most smuggled item in his time, you can make a load of money, and it's super illegal. Like “punished by death” illegal. Eh, I'm not sure why, I don't take trips to his time often, it's quite boring really, and by this time the protests have quieted and the people are complacent, which is clearly no fun.

Don’t look down trodden. Here, look at this badge. Yes, I know it looks worthless, but it's from a rebel group a couple of years after his “death”, don't question the quotation marks, and I am a part of it. They totally tear down the government and like it's pretty dope. Why wouldn’t I be? It's a rebellion!  

Alright, quiet down, I want to hear their conversation. Well I want to know what type of dishwasher he’s looking for, so I can get it first. I'm going to sell it to him obviously. Ugh, okay so here's how the deal between them works, she doesn't need to get it for him, but as long as someone who works or uses the trains sells it to him then it's fine. Don't be like that, I am a part of the rebellion, I am also making money on the side. Yeah, it's a bit manipulative, but it's not like the rebels know about this place, besides we’ve tried to start a rebellion sooner, but there is only so much one can change.

Is that... Oh crap, Stand in front of me. No not like that, like this. Now don’t look at me, it'll blow my cover.  That woman over there, the one who just showed up, the one in the wedding dress. We aren't on great terms, in fact most of the people here aren't on good terms with her. She is probably going to her wedding, or well one of them at least. She is literally married to someone in each era. It keeps her cover up. She is looking for a way to bring her true love back. Doesn't seem hard I know, considering time means nothing in these parts. But here's the thing, her love doesn’t exist. Okay, okay, wait till she leaves and I’ll explain.

Did she get on the train? Good. That means she's headed for the 80’s, interesting.  Anyway, like her love used to exist, but then she was caught committing this suuuper bad crime, so they uncreated her? I can't tell you what she did, just that I helped catch her. Which, in hindsight I feel bad for, considering I kind of agree with her. But that's not important anymore, she can't be brought back because she no longer exists. Don't look so scared, you wouldn't even be able to commit the kinda crime that would get you uncreated, your body literally would not survive it.

On another note, have you seen that man that was standing at the stairwell, when she came in? He entered the train? Great, just great. Well I was supposed to meet him a couple years ago, thought I would explain myself to him, but seeing as he's already popped into the 80’s and I really don't like the 80’s, I’ll see him some other time. No, the 1980′s are fine, in talking about the 3080′s. It's kind of a mess. Don’t worry about it, just some mega virus turning people into mindless pigs. Eh, they figure it out, but y'know, a lot of people get sick, and I really can't deal with it. 

Welp. Guess that's that. Where am I going? Nowhere, you’re leaving. Well, your train is here, and you have to go. Tell you what, if you find this place again, I’ll be waiting. I’ll tell you more next time. But for now, you have to go. Or else, you'll be here for another couple hours, and you don't have that kind of time. Heh, time.  Hurry the trains going to leave!

Goodbye! See you in a couple of years! Stay away from milk, trust me! Also stay away from your parrot. Oh, did I say that out loud?  Don’t worry about it! Bye!

As I said before, there something about the train station on E. Federal Dr. Just like there is something about the train Station on SW. Kentucky RD. Or on NE. Venusian St. It’s not the fact that technically these streets don't exist or that the train station cannot be found by those who don't deserve to find it. But rather. it's about those who are considered worthy of it that really make the place what it is. I mean, who decides that a smuggler, a ghost, a killer clown, a spy, an alien, and you are all worthy? The aura of this place, an aura filled with the weirdest of things, time and space and hope and power and love and hate. This aura that shouldn't exist, but does. It is the aura of the worthy, and only those who understand that enter.

[pessimisticlatte]

Glass Roses - Chapter 3

Miraculous Ladybug Fanfic part 3! ~ MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

~Marichat ~ Adrienette ~ Lukagami ~ Marigami (platonic/one-sided crush) ~ Alynino/DJWifi

-Eventual Reveal-

~~~~~~~~~~

Marinette and Adrien walked side by side into the foyer of the cinema. Mari’s cheeks were still flushed with red, making the pale smattering of freckles across her cheeks and the bridge of her nose glow like constellations in twilight. Adrien kept sneaking looks at her as they walked, she was so animated as she spoke to Alya, her hands fluttering as she explained something Adrien had long since forgotten about. Her hair was pulled back into her signature pigtails, the midnight strands had grown considerably longer since he’d last seen her in the daylight. Even haloed by the moon, Adrien hadn’t been able to see all the changes both subtle and not that had become so evident in Marinette. He’d scarcely been able to talk to her before; her shyness and the never ending hive of people buzzing around him meant that she became overwhelmed quickly and fled. But she was so much more confident than she used to be, her smile was so much brighter and more open, making her look so much more angelic than she already was.

“What do you think, Adrien?” Mari’s voice cut through this musings. Shaking his head slightly, he met her beautiful blue eyes with an air of confusion. Her smile faltered slightly, the corners of her lips unable to decide if they wanted to keep her face positive or slide into a negative mask. 

“He wasn’t listening, Mari, don’t take it to heart,” Nino laughed, coming around Adrien’s side and placing his hand on his best friend’s shoulder. “How about you girls go pick a movie and we’ll hang here and wait for you?”

“I thought you guys had already chosen a movie?” Marinette’s forehead wrinkled beneath her wispy fringe and the corners of her moth dimpled with confusion.

“We hadn’t, it was just an excuse not to check online for what was showing,” Alya rubbed the back of her neck with an uncomfortable chuckle before grabbing Mari’s arm and dragging her toward the ticket counter.

Nino rounded on Adrien, checking that the girls were out of earshot swiftly before continuing. “You got distracted by her, didn’t you?” Nino’s voice took on a sing-song tone as he teased Adrien. Adrien felt a blush rising in his own cheeks, rolling up his neck in strange waves, making the hair at the base of his neck tingle.

“Uh...is it that obvious?” Adrien hung his head and looked at his feet.

“Well, to me, your bestest bud in the whole world, it’s so obvious, man. You’re like a preschooler with a crush,” Adrien raised his head and held in a laugh at the look on Nino’s face. The other boy had pushed his bottom lip out to an extreme level and was making an expression with his eyes that Adrien could only describe as ‘gooey puppy dog eyes’. “But she definitely didn’t notice, man, so I think that you’re all good in keeping this lil’ crush a secret.”

“You don’t think she noticed?” Looking over at the girls at the ticket counter, Adrien’s heart skipped a beat. The fluorescent lights of the foyer were catching the dark highlights of Mari’s hair as she tipped her head back to look at the digital screen showing all the movies on offer today, he could almost hear her voice as she turned to Alya and suggested something. The redhaired girl bumped Mari with her shoulder and whispered something to her, sending her into a fit of giggles.

“Marinette exists in her own world, man, sometimes she...misses things, but if you keep up making lovey eyes at her, she might catch on before you have a chance to tell her,” Nino was looking at Alya as he shrugged toward Adrien. Alya had wrapped her arm around Marinette’s shoulders and was pointing to something on the screen, both appeared to finally agree on something as they walked up to the clerk. “Mari didn’t realise that Alya and I were dating until Al and I had been together for six months, man. She’s a smart girl, a wonderful girl, but perceptive she tends not to be.”

Adrien nodded his agreement and hoped that she wouldn’t decide that today was the day to be more perceptive. The girls began walking back over to them, tickets held in one of Marinette’s hands as the other one swung, clutching Alya’s, between her and the other girl. 

“Did ya pick a good movie? No chick flicks, I hope,” Nino put his arm out and Alya walked into it, letting him wrap her into a one armed hug as she slipped her arm around his waist. 

“You love chick flicks, Nino, don’t lie,” Alya bumped her shoulder up into Nino’s armpit as he let out a loud laugh. “You made me watch the notebook! You turned off Doctor Strange because it was ‘too scary’ and put the notebook on!”

“Alright, alright, I’m not gonna lie to ya, Al,” Alya smiled like a cat who had just gotten the cream it had been begging for and began to lead the group toward the cinema. Walking side by side, Mari and Adrien followed them, both of them felt a heat rising in their necks as they avoided eye contact with each other and anyone else. Their hands were so close to each other that Adrien had to stop himself from grabbing her hand and holding it. His pinky finger rubbed hers for a split second and sent a jolt up his arm. Unaware, Marinette felt the same jolt and immediately crossed her arms across her stomach; she was still unsure if Adrien knew of her crush on him so she chocked the small touch up to coincidence. 

“So...how have your holidays been, Mari?” Adrien slid his hands into his pockets, he kept the disappointment from his voice about Mari crossing her arms as he spoke.

“Um...they were good…,” She shot him a small, slightly embarrassed smile. “I hung out with Alya and Nino a lot...how was New York. I mean, I know how New York was, we spoke about it a lot, but...was it good spending time with your dad?”

“It was great spending time with him. Since Maman died he hasn’t been the same and had really thrown himself into his work. I know it wasn’t my fault but Nathalie told me about grief and how different people cope with it so I guessed that Dad has just been healing differently. Everyone has always said that I look a lot like Maman, so I can understand why he would have had trouble spending a lot of time with me,” Marinette didn’t exactly understand. She hadn’t lost anyone like Adrien had lost his mother and she’d always been lucky to have parents who would drop everything to spend time with her; she tried to empathise as she heard the slight quaver in his voice. The thought of grief and healing brought her back to the thoughts she’d had the other night about Hawkmoth. 

Adrien couldn’t possibly be Hawkmoth but it made Marinette wonder if the supervillain could possibly be someone like Adrien who had lost one parent after losing another and just wanted that time back. The way Adrien spoke about grief and how his father dealt with it didn’t seem like something a power-hungry villain would do, even in their civilian form. 

“Y’know, I’ve missed spending time with him and I’m thankful for the time I’ve gotten but I wish we hadn’t lost her,” Even as Adrien whispered those solemn words, Marinette knew, deep in her heart, that the neglected boy walking beside her wouldn’t have it in him to tear the rest of the world apart for a parent he barely knew. “He’s my dad and I’ll always love him, when he’s reached the end of his grieving process I just know that he’ll make up for the lost time.”

“I’m sure he will, Adrien, even if he doesn’t show it often I know that he loves you, and that he loves you enough for both himself and your mother,” Mari placed a gentle hand on Adrien’s bicep with a sincere smile. “And, even if she isn’t your mother, Nathalie loves you too. She’d be so proud of you, Adrien, just like your dad and Nathalie already are.

Adrien and Marinette walked down the aisle into their seats behind Nino and Alya. Nino was on Alya’s right and Marinette was on Alya’s left, leaving Adrien to sit on Marinette’s left. Nino opened up his backpack and pulled out a couple of packets of lollies and chocolate as well as some cups and a bottle of iced tea.

“Why iced tea, Nino? You’ve been drinking soft drink religiously for the last few weeks,” Marinette accepted the cup Nino had poured and handed to her before she carefully passed it onto Adrien, accepting the next cup passed by Alya. 

“I told him that he could die of a heart attack if he kept drinking so much so I’ve put him on to tea and this is one of the few iced tea brands he doesn’t argue with me about drinking,” Nino took a sip of the iced tea with a grin as Alya rolled her eyes with a silly smile. 

“I’ve been telling him to cut down on his caffeine intake for months and he only listens when you say it?” Adrien feigned a look of betrayal, his hand pressed over his heart with his mouth dramatically agape. Marinette let a laugh out through her nose, trying not to send the iced tea she’d just taken a sip of spurting out her nostrils. Alya patted Mari gently on the back as the dark haired girl began to choke slightly.

“You know I love you, boo,” Nino reached his hand out toward Adrien behind the two girls backs, Adrien took the other boy’s hand, mimicking the face of a newly engaged woman from a Victorian era movie. “But you’re not a gorgeous redhead with a rockin’ bod and my balls in a nutcracker.”

Alya’s laugh echoed through the slowly filling cinema as Mari began to choke, yet again. A couple of the new people walking into the cinema shot them some very strange looks; a hysterically laughing girl, a choking girl, and two boys holding hands over said girls didn’t look like something they’d expect to see in the audience of a movie. The movie itself was a different story.

Adrien let go of Nino’s hand and patted Mari on the back as the lights in the cinema began to dim and the curtains framing the screen slid away to reveal a larger screen than they had entered to. Once all the lights were off, Mari’s coughing subdued and her breathing returned to normal, the film began to roll on the projector screen before them as classical music filtered through the speakers surrounding them. Marinette had placed her arm on the armrest between her and Adrien, her long fingers tapped along to the melody of the music and her head swayed slightly from side to side with the harmony. He was so distracted by seeing her careful fingers matching the piano chords that the rest of the world slipped away and the room was reduced to him, Marinette and her delicate fingers flowing like water between them.

She’d sat at his piano with him once and listened to him play. It had felt so different then. Adrien hadn’t been aware of the feelings he had for her and having Marinette beside him as he poured the music from his wounded heart into the piano hadn’t felt so intimate. She had been his best friend, a calming and steady presence in his life, and nothing more. But here, in this cinema, surrounded by people, they could have been in the middle of a stampede and it would have felt achingly intimate. Adrien wanted to take her hand and teach her the chords of his favourite song on the piano, he wanted to listen to the music they could make together and know that it wasn’t coming from a wounded heart anymore but a steadily healing one, a heart finally ready to look beyond Ladybug and her dismissal of him as well as the parental influence he’d lacked for so long from his only living biological parent. 

Adrien’s eyes flicked upward and caught the profile of Mari’s face. The screen was illuminated in her eyes, Adrien could almost see the cogs turning in her mind as she processed the story and began to tell one of her own in the beautiful tapestry she called her head. Absentmindedly, Marinette reached up to a loose lock of her hair and tucked it gently behind her ear, the dark strands seemed to absorb the flickering from the screen. For the first time in his life, Adrien found himself inspecting her earrings. They looked strangely familiar but Adrien couldn’t put his finger on why; if his mind hadn’t been so full of thoughts surrounding the slight wave of her hair, the soft plumpness of her lips, the thick curls of her lashes, then maybe he would have been able to dredge up the memory of where he’d seen them before.

~~~~~~~

Mari felt his eyes on the side of her face before he turned away and focused on the movie playing above them. She felt so much more comfortable beside him now than she had before summer had come; she couldn’t place why or what had changed but she was grateful not to be a dorky, blubbering mess in front of him anymore. In the back of her mind, Marinette tucked away the memory of this moment; how it felt to sit beside him in almost complete silence and just exist in his presence. She hoped that she could relive this moment with him again one day, just the two of them though, maybe with their hands clutched together on the armrest between them.

She held in a secret, joyful smile but knew that the slight movements in her lips meant that she hadn’t done as good a job as she thought.

~~~~~~~

After the movie, the friends went and got ice cream together and walked down the Champs-Elysees until they reached a nice, sunny spot and sat on a bench looking out over the park and the Fontaine de la Grille du Coq. The days were long but the time they’d spent together felt short, Adrien had his chauffeur drop Marinette home first, then Alya, leaving Adrien and Nino in the back seat of the limousine together.

“So, did ya have fun?” Nino elbowed Adrien in the ribs.

“Yeah, I missed you guys while I was away,” Adrien pressed a button that closed the partition between the back seat and the driver in the front.

“Missed Mari, you mean?” Adrien glared at the smirk on Nino’s face in the shiny, black partition now close before them.

“Shut up,”

“You know it’s true!” The car started to pull to a stop and the boys heard the driver’s door open, then close. “Well, looks like that’s my cue. Adios, amigo.”

“Adios,” Adrien and Nino bumped fists as the door on Nino’s side opened and the Gorilla waited patiently for him to get out. Nino slid along the seat and climbed out of the car, saluting Adrien a joking goodbye, the Gorilla closed the door and left Adrien, all alone, in the back of the car. Resting his head on the back of the seat as the car slowly began to roll back into motion and race toward the Agreste mansion.

The design of Marinette’s earrings was still puzzling him, out of the three piercings she had in her ear, the one furthest down on her lobe had caught his eye. The tiny ladybug shaped stud in the upper cartilage of her ear and the small golden hoop next to the studs that had confused him were new and foreign. He hadn’t paid attention much to the piercings punched through her ear but he had paid enough to know that she only had one in each ear when he’d seen her last. He hadn’t noticed them when he’d visited her as Chat either, but her hair had been out then. 

Picturing the earrings in his mind’s eye, Adrien didn’t gloss over a single detail as he assessed what he remembered. They seemed so unassuming, a glinting black-brown with tiny, single coloured, matte circles on them, almost like the little black dots on the body of the ladybug stud in her cartilage. Adrien was still exhausted from the trip home from New York but he tucked the analysis he’d gone through into a pocket of his mind to come back to later.

~~~~~~~~

Mari was leaning on the railing of her balcony, her hair loose around her shoulders again. The long, midnight strands tickled her bare shoulders with feathery softness; she’d let it grow longer than she wanted to over the holidays, she’d been meaning to cut it for days now but just hadn’t gotten around to it. She’d swapped her pyjama shirt from last night out for a loose, spaghetti strap singlet, Alya had bought them both a matching set of pyjamas years ago and while Ayla had outgrown them in height and breadth, Marinette had not and she still loved the pyjama set as much as the day Alya had presented them to her. The breeze caused the legs of her three-quarter length pants to rub against her legs and send goosebumps prickling across her skin. Her feet were bare on the concrete of the balcony, but she wasn’t cold. Spending time with Adrien and Alya and Nino today had left her heart warmer than black plastic in the height of summer, the heat of the day that was still branded into the floor helped keep her warm too.

Footsteps thudded behind her but she didn’t turn to see who had joined her on the balcony. Her mother or father would’ve announced their presence as they came through the trapdoor up to her room and she knew that their footfalls wouldn’t have been as heavy as those of the visitor she was expecting tonight.

“You are just as beautiful as the sun setting before you, purr-incess,” Chat Noir leaned beside Marinette on the railing, the wind ruffled his golden hair and separated the delicately curling strands as they blew across his forehead. Mari rolled her eyes.

“It’s good to see you too, Kitty cat,” Mari nudged his elbow with hers, though she held both her elbows in her hands. Almost effectively crossing them but not as severe as fully crossing them might have been taken. “Did you have a good day, Chaton?”

The way Marinette said ‘Chaton’ suddenly sent a deep shock of deja vu thundering through Adrien’s body. The lilt of her voice and the playfulness in her tone was so...so...Ladybug. When Ladybug had first called him Chaton she’d sounded just how Mari did now; so joyful and sweet and carefree, different to the Ladybug he’d patrolled with before he’d gone away. Ladybug had been stressed and overwhelmed, that much had shown in the brittleness of her demeanor when they’d last spoken.

“Chaton?” Marinette’s beautiful, big blue eyes met Adrien’s with concern. “Is something wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong, princesa, I was merely lost in a thought for a moment,” Adrien gave Mari an assuring smile that had her pressing her lips together in mild concern before returning to their full cupid’s bow shape. “I had a wonderful day but I’m not sure if Mi’lady would be overly happy with me spilling the beans and juicy details.”

He wanted to drop hints now. His gut told him that, if what Nino had said to him earlier today about Marinette’s perceptiveness (or lack thereof) was true, she might give away how she knew Ladybug without saying it outright. The amount of time Adrien had spent alone meant that he had become something of an expert in wheedling information out of people without them needing to be blunt, when it came to emotions though he’d never been good at deciphering those.

“Why would Ladybug be unhappy if you told me about your day?” The wind blew Mari’s fringe over her face and obscured her vision, with careful fingers, Chat swept the strands back behind her ear. The hard plastic claws on the tips of his fingers grazed the soft skin of her cheek with gentle precision, he didn’t want to hurt her or mark her, he just wanted to touch her but he knew that he wouldn’t be able to place his uncovered palm on her cheek. Not now anyway.

“Well, she’s your friend, and I know that Mi’lady cares very deeply for her friends, so much so that she and I don’t know who each other outside our masks so we don’t accidentally put our families and friends at risk. If I give away too much, you could be put at risk,” Mari’s head cocked to the side slightly at his words.

“I understand her worry about me, if I was a superhero like her, I’d want to keep my loved ones as safe as I possibly could,” She turned her face away from him and looked back out over the city. His eyes snagged on the round stud in the lobe of her ear again, the light allowed him to inspect them better. The shiny surface of the stud between the matte black dots had an almost red sheen to them. That red sheen looked like it could be so much more vibrant if the earrings were given some attention with some jewellery cleaner.

“Then you’ll have to take my word on how good my day was,” Adrien let some classic Chat Noir mirth seep into his voice as he nudged Mari back.

“I have to admit that I’m curious as to who you are behind that pretty black mask and interesting green contact lenses,” Adrien let out a rich laugh. That was his Marinette, curious but careful. She had more curiosity in her pinky fingernail than Adrien had in his entire body but she was more careful about it than he was, if she wanted to poke around in things she tended not to get herself into deep trouble.

“Of course you are, princesa, I wouldn’t expect anything less from the best friend of Alya Cesaire,”

“How do you know Alya?” Marinette faced him fully again, taking her arms off the railing and leaning against it with her hip.

“Does anyone not know the world’s first and best Ladyblogger?”

“Of course, you’d know about her from the Ladyblog,” A soft laugh escaped Marinette’s lips, almost sending Chat’s heart beating out of his chest. “I didn’t expect that you’d follow a blog about you and Ladybug.”

“Well, I can’t possibly follow a blog about you, can I, princess?” The smile on Mari’s face as Chat said those words was brighter than anything he’d ever seen in his life. To say that the sun dimmed when her smile appeared was far too much of an understatement; the sun wouldn’t need to shine ever again if Marinette never stopped smiling. “Or is there one that I’m not aware of?”

“You flatter me, Kitty, but I’m not that interesting, I wouldn’t have anything to post on a blog solely dedicated to me,”

“I beg to differ! You could tell the world about our chats and they’d still be the least interesting part of your life,”

“I wonder what you actually think I do in my daily life, Chaton,” Mari stuck her tongue out at Chat and giggled. “I think you are making me sound like I do so much more than I actually do.”

“An amazing aspiring fashion designer with designs to rival Gabriel Agreste himself,” Marinette blushed and ducked her head. “A sweet, kind and wonderful friend with boundless love and advice to give. I couldn’t imagine someone I’d want to stalk online more.”

“Oi!’ Mari whacked him in the ribs with her elbow at that comment. “Creepy Chaton.”

“Aww, you love my company, princess, don’t deny it! And I’m sure that you’re very flattered that I, the great Chat Noir, would go out of my way to stalk you online,”

“Think whatever you want, Kitty Cat, I’ll neither confirm nor deny your suggestion,”

“By neither confirming nor denying my suggestion, you’ve inadvertently confirmed it,” Marinette shook her head with a laugh and pulled Chat to sit beside her on the large, round daybed she’d been lounging in last time he visited her.

Chat crossed his legs beneath him on the daybed and fiddled with the end of his tail, curling and uncurling it around his baton as he and Mari sat in comfortable silence.

“I did miss you, you know,” Chat stopped playing with his tail and baton, meeting Mari’s eyes in the now completely dimmed light of day.

“Miss me when? When I was gone today?” 

“No! Not today, Chat! When you went wherever it was you went, I missed you a lot and Ti-,” Mari stopped herself. “Timena, a friend I made online who lives in New Zealand, said that I should tell you.”

Adrien had caught Marinette’s pause before she said ‘Timena’. He’d met the Ladybug Kawmi when he and Ladybug had fought Reflekta. Plagg hadn’t been unable to find him and Tikki hadn’t been able to find Ladybug so they’d swapped Kwami’s for the battle and discreetly swapped back, without seeing each other, after it was over. The pause after she said the first syllable added yet another layer of suspicion to the growing in his mind.

“Timena sounds like a smart guy,” Chat shot Mari a dimpled smirk.

“Timena is a girl, or she was last time I asked her, so I’ll trust her preferred pronouns over your assumed ones,” The sarcasm in Marinette’s voice was thicker than a concrete slab.

“You wound me, princesa,” Chat placed a hand over his heart and pouted at Mari, the pupils of his jade green eyes expanding in an almost comical way as they reflected the twinkling pinpricks in the sky behind her.

“Oh, your poor pride,” Chat ran his hand through his hair, brushing against the cat ears perched on his head as Mari teased him.

“I accept your apology,” Marinette stuck her tongue out at him. They sat in silence again for a little while, the sounds of Paris at night were so melodic to their ears. Snuggling down into the pillows, Mari asked Chat to tell her a story. It didn’t have to be about his life outside the mask, it didn’t even have to be true, but she wanted to listen to his voice. Hearing her ask him to speak to her, just speak and not talk, filled his stomach with butterflies. She liked listening to his voice, she enjoyed hearing him ramble; Adrien didn’t think he’d had a better compliment given to him in his entire life. As Chat spoke, telling a second hand story one of his friends from New York had shared with him, Marinette started to drift off to sleep, she moved around on the daybed and rested her head in Chat’s lap. 

She wasn’t sure why she’d so brazenly put her head in Chat’s lap but it felt right. He kept talking as she gazed up at the sky, her eyes blinking sleepily, reflecting the stars. Chat began to gently massage her scalp with his claws as he spoke, she let out a small groan, almost like a purr, that rattled around in his chest. He felt her breathing slow as she finally, fully drifted into a deep sleep, she looked so beautiful. He didn’t want to wake her up but he also didn’t want to move her off his lap, he was in heaven.

Continuing his story, Chat carefully moved Marinette so he could lift her up and carry her into her room. Holding her like a porcelain doll in his arms, he whispered the story to her as her head rested on his shoulder.

“Plagg, claws in,” Adrien whispered, the Cat Kwami came rocketing out of his ring. Plagg let out a loud yawn which caused Marinette to stir slightly in Adrien’s arms, he wasn’t scared of her waking up though. If she saw him holding her, she may think it only a dream but if she found it as real as it actually was when she woke, he didn’t care that she’d discover who he really was. He trusted Mari with his life, even if she didn’t know it. Ladybug might think her too fragile to know that Adrien Agreste was Chat Noir but something in him told him that Marinette knew who was behind Ladybug’s mask; this quietly strong girl wouldn’t go down without a fight if Hawkmoth came for her and tried to pry his identity from her. Mari hadn’t been akumatized yet and if she was strong enough to resist an Akuma, even with the crappy way Chloe treated her, Hawkmoth would have another thing coming.

Seeing the sleeping girl in Adrien’s arms, Plagg immediately shut his mouth and decided to keep his complaining for camembert until they got back to the Agreste Mansion. A small, red and black plush looking toy was curled on Marinette’s pillow as Adrien got closer to the bed. The small plush suddenly rolled over and blinked as Plagg floated over to Marinette’s desk and accidentally knocked an empty drink bottle off the side of it in his usual, disrespectful manner. Tikki’s huge eyes widened as she saw Adrien holding Marinette in front of her and Plagg, facedown, on Mari’s desk, snoring like the hum of a chainsaw. 

“A-adrien?” Tikki sleepily floated over to Adrien and floated in front of his face. “W-why’re you here?”

“I came to visit Mari...I didn’t expect you to be here,” The sight of Tikki had his heart thundering, his mind refused to accept what he’d been mulling over for a lot longer than the past few days. Marinette was Ladybug, Ladybug was Marinette. The girl that he’d loved for so long, that he’d worked beside and patrolled beside, was the same girl who brought him croissants at school in the morning because she knew he’d skipped breakfast, who had sat beside him in the movie today and who had assured him that his father loved him, was proud of him. Somehow, the thought of Mari keeping her identity as Ladybug a secret from him didn’t make him angry. He thought of how many times she’d told him that they couldn’t reveal who they were for the sake of their loved ones, and it only made the love he had for her grow stronger. Her parents, her grandparents, Alya, Alya’s family, Nino, Mylene, Ivan, Juleka, Luka, Rose, Alix, Max, Kim, they were all so important to her as Marinette, that of course she’d want to keep them safe from Hawkmoth as Ladybug. 

“You can’t tell her you know, Adrien,” Tikki warned, her tiny voice was shaking . “Since Master Fu gave up guardianship, she’s known that she has to reveal herself eventually but you have to give her time. Please let her tell you when she’s ready, Marinette has never wanted to keep this from you but she thought of the people she loved and how devastated she’d be if something happened to them and she didn’t want that to happen to you.”

“I won’t, Tikki,” Adrien balanced Marinette against himself as he pulled the covers of her bed back. “I understand that she needs time and I’ll give it to her, as both Adrien and Chat. She’s done so much for me, the least I can do is do this for her.”

“You love her, don’t you, Adrien?” Adrien gently laid Marinette down on her bed, Tikki floating worriedly beside him.

“I love her as Ladybug and I was developing feelings for her as Marinette, but now that I know that Marinette is Ladybug, I love both sides of her, she’s a very special person,” Marinette stirred slightly as Adrien carefully moved her pillow beneath her head and pulled her sheets up over her. “I couldn’t ask for a better Ladybug, Tikki, or a better Marinette.”

“Give her time,” Adrien pulled back from Mari and watched her roll slightly in her bed, pulling her sheets up around her chin with a soft sigh. “She…..she feels the same way about you, Adrien. But Marinette doesn’t know that it’s you behind Chat Noir’s mask so she’s conflicted; she knows how she feels about you but she doesn’t understand how she feels about Chat. Please, Adrien.”

“I promise you, Tikki, that I won’t tell her who I am until she’s ready. I would want her to do the same for me, if our roles were reversed,” Adrien tucked her hair back behind her ear and pressed a feather light-kiss to her temple. Marinette liked him too, but she’d only accepted him as Adrien. He knew that she’d accept him as Chat too, why wouldn’t she? “Sleep tight, Mari.”

“You should go, Adrien, before Plagg wakes up and starts pointing at his mouth,” With a smile on his lips and a lightness in his heart, Adrien nodded and called his Kwami back into the ring. Slipping out through the open doors to Marinette’s balcony, Adrien glanced at her sleeping form one more time and disappeared out into the night.

~~~~~~~~~TAGLINE~~~~~~

@lady-charinette

@katieykat513

DM me to be added to the tag line to get updates for when I post :P - I currently don’t have any plans to upload this to AO3 or Fanfic.net just yet but I might in the future so keep your eyes peeled!

I hope you enjoyed this! Feel free to leave me some comments on if you liked it and what you liked about it, I’m more than happy to hear what you think I can do better! If you’d like me to write a one-shot or story for you, DM me too because I love writing things for others and I can’t imagine anything better than helping put your headcanons into text (if you like how I write, of course). I won’t be actively trying to fill fan-service with this story so that’s why I’m offering to do one-shots for anyone with different ships (not just for miraculous fans, but DM me to see if I’m a part of the fandom first and if I’m not I will go out of my way to watch/read it.)

Lots of love, Rosie (@/miidgiemoo)

[svtskneecaps]

@transparentnctseventeenperson YOU WANTED GUIDES HERE U GO I THREW MYSELF OUT OF MY BED IN EXCITEMENT SEEING THAT I STG

(people who know better pls check my work am baby)

THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT: TRCNG is a ten membered boy group under ts entertainment that debuted in October 2017 with Spectrum and deserves the absolute world thank u. Fandom name is Champions, we waited for y e a r s and we finally have it

(unfortunately i don’t speak korean and can’t force myself to watch through videos i don’t understand longer than like ten seconds, and with a lack of subbed video content there’s only so much i know about personalities so i’ll have to mostly stay away from there,,,,, i’m sorry)

Music Videos Yeehaw:

Missing

Wolf Baby

Spectrum

Utopia (it’s a dance practice technically but i fuckin love that song)

Game Changer has an mv i think but it’s blocked in my country (and no, i don’t have a VPN :( i don’t trust myself to download things anymore))

Blogs on Tumblr:

@hohyeon-anti (translations and other things, they’re gr8)

@bapwoo (gifs and other things, they’re also gr8 and helped me out when i went full stan)

(i can’t give u pointers on any other platform i don’t use twitter sorry; hopefully those guys can fill in my blanks tho)

discord (i snagged the one from bapwoo bc that’s the one i joined?? idk if it’s the same as the one hohyeon-anti runs and honestly i’m too afraid to check yeehaw edit: have recieved confirmation, they’re the same)

Translation Accs on Youtube (that I know of)

Rising Subs (inactive; last upload was 1 year ago)

TRCNG Subs (inactive; last upload was 1 year ago)

(just as a side note there’s this great channel that does crack for them it’s adoringguk check them out too it’s not optional they’re funny)

Other better guides:

An Actual Helpful Guide to TRCNG (it’s like 40 minutes tho, the price we pay for helpful rip)

An unhelpful guide to TRCNG (shorter and from November 2017, a month after debut, but still a goody it’ll hand u the basics)

An introduction they did on Arirang/Pops in Seoul (i don’t know how to introduce this one rip)

Members (i’m using their kprofiles page to make sure i’m not spreading inaccurate facts):

again, i can’t speak for personalities beyond intuition so unfortunately most of these are gonna be p short i’m sorry take it with a grain of salt (most of my knowledge comes from the 20 or so odd subtitled vids on the channels i linked + whoever posts on instagram, but there’s only so much i can glean from short captions, and some people post there like once in a blue moon so,,, sorry)

(if people have anything to add go for it i’ll credit)

Yang Taeseon

September 2000

leader

lead vocalist

a whole beanstalk (5′ 11″ / 182 cm) {most of them are beanstalks honestly what are they feeding them}

why are most of the clips i see of him screeching from somewhere offscreen i adore him

Kim Jihun

January 2000

oldest

lead vocalist

he played the violin (so as a viola i am duty bound to duel him)

had an acting career

gets overexcited and is probably going to hurt himself (fell off his chair once rip love him)

Choi Hayoung

August 22 2000 (s o o n)

main vocalist

speaks english (he lived in LA at one point wow fancy)

s i r e n n o i s e (it’s almost as bad as the one by my house damn dude what are your lungs)

knows / is friends w nct haechan (we stan intergroup friendships) (thx bapwoo)

Lee Hakmin

September 2000

kprofile has him listed as ‘vocalist, dancer’ and i don’t know enough about roles to disagree

he’s left handed nerd

jongup fanboy no 1 (thx bapwoo)

Jo Wooyeop

September 2000

vocalist, dancer

likes coffee; nickname ‘sweet caffeine’ bc he’s sweet & likes coffee

can do a minion impression (honey i love u but you’re on THIN FUCKIN ICE)

reportedly has two dogs, the intellectual (thx bapwoo)

Kim Jisung whaaaat another kpop jisung whatever will we do

December 2000

high rapper

child actor (i’m pretty sure he met / did a show with nct’s jisung but don’t quote me on that; there’s so many jisungs it could have been any of them) (bapwoo says it’s cursed and we do not speak but idk car wash balloon jisung is still p cute)

(i had to add the pic jisung honey i’m sorry)

had braces pre-debut

a little bit camera shy in some of those old videos (dunno if it still stands)

HIS MIND WTF SOME OF THE THINGS HE’S WRITTEN (here’s an example, another example)

Kim Hyunwoo

January 2001

low rapper, dancer

him n jisung trained the longest

he’s got this lil peace sign like thing i keep seeing him doing n it’s cute

voice so deep it’s illegal excuse u

has a cat (thx bapwoo) (ARE THERE PICS OF THE BAB IDK I LOVE CATS dogs are great but they scare me rip)

Yoo Siwoo

May 2001

low rapper

SPEAKS RUSSIAN HOW COOL IS THAT

lived in Kyrgyzstan for awhile, kprofiles says 7 years but i cannot confirm (thx bapwoo)

breaking: siwoo’s hair in missing era kills hundreds, more at ten

Lee Hohyeon

October 2001 (he’s younger than me and yet oodles more talented how is this possible)

main rapper

writes lyrics for their albums w jisung (w ow)

reportedly hosted The Show w Youngjae (i’m assuming a bap member but i didn’t stan rip) (thx bapwoo)

Kim Kangmin

November 2001

main vocalist, maknae

also wore braces pre-debut

damn good at bboying (second video on this insta post he’s like a helicopter wtf where did physics go)

does short covers of various songs (his bad guy cover killed me; i can’t listen to the original anymore like i’m sorry i just can’t)\

i’d look up more shit but i already spent like 2 hours on this rip and i think that’s p good for the basics; again for older stans pls correct me or add to this if you need/want

THANK U FOR LOOKING THESE BOYS DESERVE THE WORLD

[dndgamergirl]

Dungeon Master Xmas Rant

Just when I thought the holidays could not get any worse they did today. as many of you guys know I run a Dungeons & Dragons Discord with my friends. We've rarely take new people into the group because of the fact that we would like to get to know the person before we allow them to play a game. We also have what we call the trial period.  This is when a player who is new and it's not certain they want to join our group comes in and sits in on game for a couple of weeks. This allows the player to do a lot of things that most would never think to give a player who is new to D&D a chance to do. One of the things that we use it is to be able to allow a player who is new to our group an insight into the world they get to learn the characters and the world itself as well as the rules that the world abides by. Being the fact of most of my worlds are Homebrew this means that the players also get the idea of which rules from the books we use as well as some of the house rules. Now this is to say that we do have some major standards this means that a lot of our games that are adult oriented do have an age limit. At which you are allowed to participate in. This means that some games are strictly for those who are 21 years of age and up or even to the point of, ‘all right will allow the eight-year-old to come in and play but after this point know that the next game they might not be able to because that's when we have to go to the section that is way above their age level.’ So why am I telling you this? I'm telling you guys this because we just had another issue with a player. On second thought no we didn't have a issue we had a lot of issues. For me as a dungeon master I have to control the world that the players are running around in. This means I have to go over everyone's character sheet and background I also have to go over there backstory. When a player is having trouble with their back story I usually go ahead and help him figure out exactly where they need to fill in the places. I also help them figure out what they don't need their back story because it could cause trouble with the world schematics or even break the campaign because you're basically making a character that is too overpowered. Example of this can be found in a different rant that may or may not have already been published already. But on to the issues that we had with this player. Issue number one was the fact that whenever we got into the game the player was always very standoffish with their character. As a dungeon master I enjoy a little bit of angst and it's always fun to see kind of the bad boy character or the Emo character but then there's a point of taking it to the degree of your really just making it hard for anyone to interact with your character and move the story along. An example of this can be found in one game that a lot of my players are having a lot of fun with. The world that I have them running in is a mix of Supernatural meets American Pie meets Animal House mixed in with a little bit of Scooby-Doo. It's all based in the 1970s world that is just coming off of the hippie era and slowly going into the disco scene. The players all play college kids that are in a fraternity and are basically trying to stop one of the greatest on speakable evils known to mankind. They do have a little bit of leeway with the fact of the person who is basically the head guy to talk to you with campus security is their sponsor for their frat house and at the same time they also have the added advantage of certain characters are still running around that can help them. One of which is an NPC that I placed in that is kind of the Minotaur version of Tommy Chong from Cheech and Chong. And at the same time just for the heck of it I threw in a version of Jay and Silent Bob where Jay is a satyr Warlock and Silent Bob is a dwarf Paladin. I usually try to put in a lot of Pop Culture references and it makes everybody laugh a lot. Well this player decided that they wanted to go ahead and mess things up. And when I mean mess things up I mean unfortunately this player did some very ridiculous things. He wanted to be a werecat but they also wanted to be a Druid now whenever were talking about certain things I usually go ahead and I'm pretty lenient with my players. I gave them the ability to understandably turn into a half-and-half form of an animal as well as the ability to turn into the Natural Animal itself but they would not be able to talk much like wild shape for a druid. Only it would work longer and it would only work on the type of where creature they were. Being a generous DM I gave them this thinking that they wouldn't abused it as much as they did. And when I mean abused I mean they abused it. The character was constantly in the form of a cat not even a big cat a house cat. It got very annoying and unfortunately it got to the point where the player itself didn't want to go ahead and interact with anybody other than the fact of well this conversation.

Dm: “Okay wait they were here?”

Player:  “Yeah you didn't notice.”

Dm: “No you didnt say you followed.”

Player: “Um yeah i did i was there the whole time.”

Dm: “Where then where in the room?”

They made it to where I unfortunately as a dungeon master I could never tell when the cat was in the room and it started to get very annoying to where I told them they had to make it known that they were there. At the same time they were also not happy unless all the spotlight was on them for certain s***. Whenever characters started to do any form of romance with a different character a NPC or even another player character they would kind of get uppity and  try to get the attention all on them again. This was getting annoying and unfortunately I was unable to have a lot of contact with them because they were constantly working. The last game we had was the day before Christmas Eve and I asked him if they were coming to game and they said no I'm not feeling well. Being the kind of person that I am I left it at that and I decided that I would be talking to them about the issues that we were having another day. Not just for my end but from the players and as well because the players were getting upset that the character did not really try to help the group whenever things would happen. The character was always centered on themselves they didn't do anything to help any of the other players whenever a battle came they only protected who themselves. And in this game unfortunately the one that I'm running you have to protect not only yourself but you also have to watch out for your friend who's standing right next to you a lot more than yourself. Because once that line is broken that's it game over the party will be at a major risk of a total party kill. So what do I do Christmas Eve was the next day and I decided that I would go ahead and wait until Friday. Since Christmas this year falls on Wednesday, I figured that it would be all right to go ahead and give him 3 days before I called them since I would be working with my service dog on Thursday. On Friday I had planned to call them and  that was that or so I thought. Christmas comes and I go to my family's house I'm normally not one to deal with one side of my family and they usually make me pretty uncomfortable. So I was already in a kind of mood and all I was thinking was present time is almost here and after we have presents we pick up the food and then we all go home. This means I only have 1 hour and 45 minutes left of Christmas. That is when I get a contact on my Discord server. Only it's not the main server its individual message. I had time so I decided to go ahead and take a look I figured it was one of my friends on Discord sending me a Merry Christmas card or picture. However it wasn't it was the problem player who told me that they were going to leave the game. They told me that the reason they were going to be leaving the game was because they weren't having as much fun as they had in the beginning. A lot of my games do have a good bit of combat but I also balance at all with a good bit of dialogue and at the same time I also tried to balance it off with a bit of puzzle work that the players have to do. This player was more of a combat player and at the same time was also the kind of person that if there wasn't any combat going on every 10 seconds they would basically get bored. For a D&D game to work you have to have a complete balanced and at the same time you have to rotate the importance of each player in an entire rotation. One session segment might be about one player and then the next one another player so you have to take it all in turn it's a complete Carousel Ride. As soon as one player has had the spotlight on them for long enough you then have to move to the other players in the queue. The bad part is that this hit at a point where I was not in a good mood and at the same time it only made it worse. For me Christmas has always been a time where I have really bad seasonal depression and at the same time where I don't feel like I belong. So upon me getting this notification and i was at christmas you know i wa not happy. And the bad part is that broke the goliths back. For the week before this i found out the player had also during the week expressed his issues to the players stating that he didn't want to talk to me about it because he felt like I wouldn't listen to him. When all the players know that I do listen to them and that I encouraged them constantly to come to me if they ever have any questions or any concerns. So I did the only thing I could which was go ahead and allow him to know that okay fine you can leave thanks for letting me know. But also a tip for other Gamers out there as well as this one if you're going to go ahead and say you're leaving a game or leaving a table. Maybe you shouldn't do that on a holiday because you don't know what that person is going through Master might have a bad connection with a certain holiday not just Christmas but possibly Easter or some other holiday. Maybe it holds bad memories for them and they're trying to not have bad memories happen on that day. Today I was trying to make a few good memories with my family but unfortunately this message made it to where I couldn't have that it completely ruined my day. And unfortunately I had a really bad time a Christmas this year. When I expected to get a merry Christmas I got a sorry but your game is too boring and I'm going to disrupt what little bit of happiness you're trying to have just to make you feel like dirt. As such the gamer has now been removed from our server and now we're looking for somebody to replace him. It's also gotten me to the point where I'm now debating going ahead and making an entire panel for an up-and-coming convention that I'm going to about dungeon master rants things that make the dungeon master story keeper and Storyteller angry. Maybe this will be a good platform for other dungeon Master's to come forward about their own issues that they've had with their groups or players and possibly allow other dungeon Master's to give them an idea as to how to handle this. Problem players are always an issue and unfortunately it can be even more of an issue when they decide to go ahead and ruin your holidays.

[titanicprophecy]

Resurrect the WWE Tag Team Division

WWE Tag Team Division Sucks. Ok bye.

OK I guess I should maybe explain.

WWE has some of,if not, the majority of the most talented, phenomenal wrestlers on the face of the earth. It's very hard to argue that. Unfortunately, only 30-40% are actually used on TV. You see, I see it, My neighbors blind dog sees it. It's been like this for the last few years. The company had created a Divas Revolution, literally jammed it down our throats because we asked for it, and so far has pushed it to the forefront. They resurrected the women's division, now maybe we should try something harder:  Resurrect the Tag Team Division. 

WWE Tag Division across all 3 brands (yes NXT is a brand now) is virtually dead and decimated. In total there are 5 tag teams on Raw, 8 on Smackdown and 10 in NXT and NXT UK COMBINED. Sounds like a lot right well let's break it all down: 

On Raw we have the Viking Raiders ruling the brand at Champs, with the OC, Street Profits and the AOP there as well. Considering the AOP are currently bodyguards for Seth Rollins and the 5th team being Hawkins and Ryder (who are glorified jobbers) they're only 3 Active Teams actually competing for the titles, and I know you seen Raw recently. Seeing these three teams are fine but they are getting rather tiresome very quickly. We need new blood in the tag division. They have a lot of stars just sitting on payroll and they havent been used at all recently or are just now jobbers due to not having any personality, but we can change that easily by just giving them personality via a team. Currently Rey Mysterio is in a feud with both Andrade and in a smaller way Seth Rollins. Seeing that he may shift into a feud with Seth Rollins, I say let's not do that. Once Humberto comes back from his kayfabe injury and after puts over Andrade (Seriously, don't give Humberto the title, it’ll kill the championship) you can put Humberto in a team With Rey. Kinda like a Master and Student of luchadors and have them chase the titles. Give Rey something to do for the rest of his contract in turn, makes Humberto a true student, have him team with his idol and make him like the next coming of Mexican wrestlers and when Rey is ready to leave again, you can make a new star out of Humberto due to the mentor ship or turn him heel on Rey and have him break out as another Heel latino star. In the same vain, maybe bring up Angel Garza, Humberto cousin and have them be a cocky duo that can outclass anyone. Make the cruiser weights into a tag team. The same can be said with Cedric Alexander and Akira Tozawa. Two 205 castaways that want to prove that they can survive in the land of the giants. Make them true underdogs and have them show more heart and resilience, like Paul London and Brian Kendrick back in the mid 2000s. You can boost the teams to 5 right off the bat and maybe make Hawkins and Ryder that typical loveable team that entertaining and that can be viable threats, not just jobbers.  Raw can easily boost the tag team division to 6 teams. Although it’s not a lot, it can start something that can snowball into something bigger.

Smackdown on the other hand, they have a tag division. They really do have one. As of writing, they have a total of 7 teams, 8 since Miz and Morrison are set to be a reuniting team. It would be 9 but rumor has it that the Revival are on hiatus and may be out the door soon so let's go with 6. Smackdown has the New Day ruling their land, while feuding with the aforementioned reunion of Miz and Morrison. We have Heavy Machinery doing things that isnt team stuff right now, The Usos who just returned, Ziggler and Roode, who just came back from his suspension, and three teams who are currently on milk cartons as missing children in the B-team, Lucha house Party and the Colons. 5 teams that are actually on T.V. and 3 that are not even relevant so Smackdown has a very straightforward solution. Use them. Just use them. Miz and Morrison, Ziggler and Roode, Colons and the B-team are Heels. New Day, Usos, Heavy Machinery and LHP are faces. You have a perfectly balanced crop of teams for a proper tag division to develop. You can definitely use them and Resurrect the division. Give LHP some upset wins over Roode and Ziggler, have one of the B-team members upset the Usos with cheating ways. Build them up a bit and you can have quite possibly the most underrated tag division since the mid 2000’s. 

NXT, well this is kinda an issue. Their tag teams all graduated. They’re on the main roster. Currently The Undisputed era have a Horseman like choke hold on the Tag division. Mainly because they don't even have a tag division. It's like being the goodest boy in a contest against cats. Your the bestest because well, your the only one. As of today we have a total of 3 teams on regular NXT, The U.E., the Forgotten sons (who are forgotten unless they have a good team to bounce off) and Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. This is about to change due to the debut of Alex Shelly and the reunion of the Timesplitters but I don't know if Shelly is gonna stay on for longer. Breezango keeps starting and stopping to injury so they're basically done for. In total, only 4 teams in NXT and they aren't even fighting for the titles. The U.E have literally a deathgrip on the Tag division which is good in a sense where whatever team that beats them gets an instant boost to their stock, but terrible because there are no believable teams that can beat them currently. Im calling it now, They need a superteam of two huge stars to team up to take the title off them. Either a #DIY reunion, and Dijakovic and Lee combination again or maybe Riddle and Dunne can take them out if the team sticks(which it shouldn't). NXT are gonna have to create teams just like Raw has to and they can do it but they will be sacrificing a lot of single star potential to do so. Cameron Grimes, Bronson Reed, even Matt Riddle and Pete Dunn are Single Superstars. They are meant to be single stars. Putting them in a team can work but it will be wasting their potential. NXT UK has 4 teams  in Gallus, Imperium, Grizzled Young Veterans and Flash Morgan Webster and Mark Andrews. These 4 teams are all they have and they are on the verge of getting tiresome as well. I don't know much about NXT UK and the roster so I’m not gonna talk about them so much but in NXT US, they have too many single stars. They may just have to sacrifice some of the single stars to create tag teams but I doubt Triple H would do that so unfortunately NXT may have to just suffer for now until we get some new debuts to the Black and Yellow. 

Raw and Smackdown can resurrect the Tag Team Division. NXT may have to some sacrificing to rebuild theirs but Raw and Smackdown, especially Smackdown, can fix theirs. Whether its pairing two underutilized stars into a team or just using the teams you have. It’s time to address the issue. Either consolidate the belts and have them float (Which has shown to be a great idea right 24/7 title that’s mainly on Raw, right Women’s tag team titles that's only on Raw) or get off your asses and start getting the teams together. Dash and Wilder may have brought a revival to the tag team wrestling but the entire division, on all three brands, need a resurrection. 

[leonajasmin-writeblr]

20 Questions

@gremla-hemlock and @westywrites have both tagged me back in the 10 Questions game, so I’ve decided to put them into one post and then add 10 new questions back at the end. I’ll tag you both back as well as @ruledbyserenity, @theflowofink and @bookbrd! Ignore this if you don’t want to take part :) 

@gremla-hemlock‘s questions:

How many chapters do you expect to have? Are they short chapters that only last a couple pages or large chapters spanning 20+ pages?

In the first draft of Parts 1 - 3 of my series, there are 130 chapters. That’d average each chapter as 2415 words. Some of my chapters are as short as a sentence whereas others are 6/7K words based on whether it’s a backstory or amidst the action.

What is/would be your main character’s favorite type of vehicle to drive? (Go as crazy as you want – tank, helicopter, drone, robot armor)

There aren’t many vehicles in my series! But given the choice (I’m not that crazy haha):

Alex: Train. His family have worked in producing train tracks in the past, so he’d like to test out what they made. 

Miriam: Miriam would be all or nothing. She’d either walk or have some crazy over the top tank.

Sebastian: Skateboard. Motorised if he needs to be anywhere soon.

Aiden: Why drive when you're capable of flying?

Noah: Train. Something simple in concept but complex to drive.

Roman: Roman’s late grandfather was a famous airship driver. He’ll be nervous about it, but he’ll try flying it himself later in the series and love it!  

Cyrus: He makes his own motorbikes canonically, so I think he’d stick to those.

Which true crime story is your plot most like, even if it’s a stretch?

I have no idea, to be honest! True crime isn’t really my thing haha

Who would be the first in your main characters to punch a Nazi?

Probably Sebastian

If your book were to become a smash hit with a fandom, what word or phrase could you say that would make the masses break into mass hysteria?

Rather than a word or phrase, it would be a name: ROMAN

In cleaning a house or apartment as a punishment, which room would your character(s) least likely want to clean and why? No doubling up rooms.

Alex: Kitchen. He and kitchens aren’t compatible whatever the scenario.

Miriam: The library because she knows she’ll just get distracted.

Sebastian: Hallways. Hallways are just boring, he can’t snoop much there (that’s a lie though, he snoops in a hallway in Book 3).

Aiden: Aiden actually likes cleaning (weirdo). But if he’d have to pick one, it’d be the attic/basement. No particular reason. 

Noah: Bathroom. Ew body hair.

Roman: Any bedroom that isn’t his. He never goes into other bedrooms so it’d make him uncomfortable.

Cyrus: Any hobby rooms (shed, study, art room etc.). He’s usually clean but hates having to tidy up his hobby stuff each time he has to take a break. 

On a scale of 1-10 how are evil are you to your characters and writing your books?

Alex: He starts pretty low then it shoots up as of Book 3. Like a 3 to an 8/9.

Miriam: 8. One bad thing is sorted out and then another one happens.

Sebastian: 4. Mostly he just sulks because nobody has considered him in issues, although there are only really three major things that affect him. It’d be higher if it wasn’t in comparison to the others.

Aiden: 1. Aiden is put on a pedestal so he gets a good life.

Noah: 4. Aiden is put on a pedestal so he gets a not so good life.

Roman: 8. The same reason as Miriam.

Cyrus: 7. His is mostly emotional, he doesn’t get into so many physical problems unlike Alex, Miriam and Roman, hence the slightly lower score.

Writing: 11 ofc.

In the world of Avatar, which element would your characters be?

Air: Aiden

Water: Roman, Cyrus,

Fire: Miriam, Alex

Earth: Noah, Sebastian

If you have a villain, could the plot progress without them? What would that look like?

A lot of people are ambiguous anti-heroes/anti-villains, but I do have a few villains! Namely Dr A, Luka and the Highest Empress.

In the beginning, it is namely Miriam vs. Alex even though neither of them are really villains. It couldn’t progress without either of them. But I think it could go on without the Highest Empress. She just adds another scale to the guy's villainy and was a late addition anyway.

What would your sequel be about? If you don’t intend to have a sequel but were forced to write one, what would the plot be?

I’m working on a series right now and I’m three parts in. Part 4 involves Miriam going on a tour of the nine Empire’s to establish her political connections between the Grand Master’s since it seems likely that Grand Master Ivanov may not be in his role for much longer.

Alex is on the tour and is dealing with a lot of issues from a revelation made in Book 3. 

@westywrites‘ questions:

Do your mcs like cats or dogs more?

Cats: Cyrus (he got attacked by a dog when he was a little boy so it’s he doesn’t like dogs rather than he’s a cat fan), Noah

Dogs: MIRIAM AND ROMAN, Aiden (is a doggo in human form), Sebastian, Alex

Do they prefer to be hot or cold?

Hot: Aiden, Alex, Sebastian, Cyrus

Cold: Miriam (she rules the Empire of Ice), Roman, Noah

Do they prefer action movies or rom-coms?

Action: Sebastian, Alex, Miriam

Rom-com: Aiden, Cyrus, Noah (don’t tell Aiden pls), Roman

Choose one character and tell me what flavour of ice cream they’d be. Why?

There is a running gag between Aiden and Miriam about salted caramel ice cream. In Aid’s first appearance, he literally bans her from eating it because she’s salty enough as it is.

What was the plot of the best short story you’ve ever read? 

I’m personally not a huge fan of short stories! I love series so much that I tend to wait until they’re finished (if they’re near the end) so I can binge in one go rather than wait. 

If you write short stories, what’s the plot of your favourite one you’ve ever written?

Despite what I just said, I actually came in the top 5% for a national short story writing competition once (the only one I’ve entered). It’s prompt was an era in historical fiction that isn’t as well known about. The interwar period qualified, so my work was about Kristallnacht. I originally wrote it for my GCSE English Literature course. The prompt was ‘use a theme presented in Shakespeare’ (so almost write whatever you want to be honest, it was both a great and cruddy prompt), so I used the theme of conflict.

What is the meanest thing you’ve ever done to a character?

A character in my side project goes through Chinese Water Torture.

What was the kindest thing you’ve ever done to a character?

Two characters who are desperate for a child have a surrogate offer to carry a child for them :)

Was writing something you always wanted to do or something you stumbled into?

I started when I was six so I don’t remember not writing to be honest! When I was little, I won just enough writing awards to keep my flitty self motivated to stick at it. When I was in Junior school (7-10), a few school projects that I got praised for were:

-  An adventure story. All I remember is the villain was named Candy and that we got to sit outside to write them. 

- Webcomic promoting saving water: Wacky Wayne the water drop.

- A rendition of Little Red Riding Hood where Red Riding Hood (Bossy Blue Stomping Hoodie or something like that) was rude af and the grandma injured herself in an international gymnastics tournament. 

Do you have any quotes from your own writing that mean a lot to you?

“Tears do not mean fear, they mean you hold your true self dear.” - Noah and Aiden’s mother.

She taught it to them to let them know that boys allowed to cry rather and shouldn’t feel fearful of judgement, but that applies to everyone!

DON’T BOTTLE UP YOUR EMOTIONS!

My questions:

Do you have birthdays assigned for your characters? What zodiac signs do they fall under? (If not, then which zodiac stereotype are they most like?)

What are your MC’s thoughts on hugs?

Are any of your characters abnormally tall or short?

Did your MC’s have any other names before you settled on their current ones?

If you had to compare your MC(s) to an animal, which would you pick?

Do any characters have unique physical features (from birth or acquired)?

How do/would your MC’s take their coffee/tea?

If your MC’s were in this universe, which country do you think they’d like to visit?

How many children does your MC have? Or how many do you think they’ll have/would like to have?

Which of your MC’s would be the best in a physical fight?

[dietaku]

Amazing Quest 2: Chapter 1

The sequel to Amazing Quest. Honestly, I think this one is better.

-Controls-

Have you played an SNES-era JRPG before? Then you already know this.

-Cast-

Dood Z. Ma--

Wait, you haven't played an SNES-era JRPG before? Sigh. Okay then.

-Controls-

Control Pad – Move your characters or your cursor around, select things, etc.

A Button – Check/Speak/Confirm. You'll be using this a lot for obvious reasons.

B Button – Cancel. In battle, you can set this as a shortcut for Defend.

X Button – Open/Close Menu. In battle, you can use this to shortcut to your items menu. In the strategy guide, it lists this being used to launch things called the Push-of-War and the Dynamite Trigger. This is clearly not true, and has since become memetic in the fandom, where newcomers with questions that should be obvious are met with jeering posts of “Use the Dynamite Trigger!”

Y – Hold to dash on the overworld. In battle, this shortcuts to the Skill/Spell menu.

L/R – Rotates party members in order either back or forth.

Start – Pause the game. Also, in certain circumstances, unpauses it too.

Select – Opens the world map. Runs a 1/8126 chance of showing a pixelated green and black scene of Dood talking to some old man with a beret, who tells you to “SEEK DA TROOF”.

-Cast-

Dood Z. Male

Element: Light

Class: Pudding Warrior

Weapon: Swords. Four to be exact.

Special: Pudding Morph

Dood, as later side materials would go on to reveal, is the descendant of Hiro from AQ1, though with Pudding powers not dependent on the presence of others. Guess eugenics lost the bet on that one. Dood, like all AQ protags, can transform into the powerful Pudding Forms, but his have three-turn limiters where his MP is rapidly consumed away, however, this can be prolonged by feeding him MP restoration items. His stats are bolstered very, very high during this period, and can thus be a very potent character if built right.

Deliost Nu Toruble Element: N/A (Fire after her mid-game Time Wasp shenanigans) Class: Magic Student Weapon Type: Spoons Special Technique: Magical Assault

The quiet, reflective princess of Toruble, who is kept locked away from public viewing, due to her ever-growing chimeran traits (manifesting as kawaii cat eats and tail). She is a powerful offensive magic user, who only grows more potent as time goes on. However, she personifies the phrase “glass cannon” and has very low LP and Con scores for the duration. Also of note is her impressive figure, which I'm sure is an ancillary detail (You perverts.)

Kylie

Element: Earth (Default Form); Changes with Form

Class: Womanticore

Weapons: Variable Tail (Equippable Genes)

Special: Multi-Form

Kylie the womanticore was the result of a “DiY Womanticore Kit” project launched by the recurring miniboss fight, Balzac, who ended up escaping her captivity and mastering a life in the forest. Kylie is a “build your own” character, where she can equip up to three genes at a time, one in the “Head” slot, one in the “Body” slot, and one in the “Leg” slot. Her default form has middling stats and only a few skills it can learn on its own, but once she learns a skill from a particular gene, she will retain it forever, even if the gene is unequipped later on. Fans really like her, for... multiple reasons. Don't look! She's only 2 years old!

Genki Sake

Element: Wind

Class: Cat Thief

Weapons: Hair Clip

Special: Steal

Genki is of the kunoichi tribe (presumably of some relation to Kimyawa of AQ1, but that's just fan speculation), and strives to be the greatest cat thief of all time. In a very literal sense even, as her suit includes cat ears and a cleavage window you could lose mid-sized dogs in. Her weapons are hidden in plain sight, as she uses his hair clips as both weapons and tools of her trade to unlock doors and chests. When she's on point, she'll even automatically disable traps and she'll stop before running over trap floors. She has high attack and speed stats, but somewhat lacking in defense. And, to put the obnoxious fandom argument to rest, Sake is her family name and Genki is her given name. Now, stop fighting about it!

Chester D. Beaver

Element: Water, yup

Class: Beaver, yup

Weapons: Fish Guns, yup

Special: Spray, yup

Chester is quite an odd bucket of fish – literally and metaphorically. Being of the beaver tribe, he has a rather distinct means of punctuating most of his sentences, and as a mob boss over the beaver crime syndicates (which exist, apparently) he commands respect in such social circles. His spray attack allows him to make his normal attack target all enemies, which calculates damage akin to how all-hitting magic spell variants are done, and his bizarre fish gun series of weapons is always a joy to see in motion. He has high, all around stats, but very few skills to his name until almost at the endgame.

Deima the Immortal Element: N/A Class: Furry (Just Kidding) Weapon Type: Staves Special Technique: Magical Genocide

The eccentric and powerful chimera sorceress and eternal Pudding ally, Deima appears once more as a secret recruit you can find at around the midgame. She learns spells much faster and much earlier in the game than anyone else and has, bar none, the highest magical potency of the game and the biggest MP pools of any of the party, in particular her Hissatsu Zeikei Suki attack. Her field ability will also turn any animals you can hunt into burnt meat automatically, so, try not to use it!

Jaydea Varas Schoen Element: Dark Class: Pudding Noble Weapon Type: “Heaven's Blades” Guitars Special Technique: Regal Pudding Form

The Penultimate boss of AQ1 returns thanks to her gift of eternal life bestowed on her by the Goddess of Destruction. She retains her insane Pudding form, the Figgy Pudding Queen, and her love of Rock n' Roll. If you go out of your way near the tail end of the game and get her her fez and a Black Cow, you can have her join you, doubling your effective Pudding-related firepower. She has a stat build not unlike Dood's, but a heavier emphasis on defense, presumably reflective of her immortality. She does not want for offensive options, though, and will hold her own quite handily.

-Chapter 1: I'm Born! ~ Lone Idiot & Cub-

The game starts with a narrator speaking over a black screen.

Narrator: Nearly a century has passed since the legendary Hero-King of the Puddings sealed away the wicked goddess, Hulst.

JeffCom's translation team was not on point here. She was called Halst in the first game, Hulst in the second, and it wasn't until AQ3 where they finally got her actual name, Holstein, in the game correctly.

Narrator: When the red star appeared in the night sky, people called it the “Eye of Calamity” and said it was an omen of dark things yet to come. The people were without the heroes of legend and uncertainty took deep root in the tumultuous times. As a result, the Church of Sethan became home to many, seeking peace of mind and a road to hope, but not all was as it appeared to be.

Then, the image of a deformed skull appears on screen, in the center of what should be the forehead is a large, pulsating eye.

???: ****! Be careful!

Skull: I shall bring forth my revenge. Your efforts to stop me are in vain!

???: Oh yeah?! EAT THIS!

The Skull gets a large slash across its face. Uh, skull. Whatever.

Skull: Insolent Puddings! This is the will of the very stars themselves!

???: This is too dangerous! It's destabilizing!

???: But we're so close, ******! We can stop it now! ???: There's no time. Go on without me!

Skull: Trying to escape?! I won't let--

???: NOT WITHOUT A FALL GUY, BITCH! GLADIATOR!!! Skull OH SHIIIIIIIIII--!!!

The screen whites out then comes back in, late in the evening as some young boy in ragged clothes, with four sheaths around his belt stumbles into view.

Boy: … Huh? Wait... where...? Oh, I don't feel so good...

The boy shakily takes a few paces before falling flat.

Boy: Ungh! My face is in the dirt, isn't it?

The boy lies there for a moment as a well-to-do girl walks on screen, clad in a yellow ribbon and matching dress.

Girl: ! What?!

She hurries over to him and, for a moment, looks like she's going to help him up. Instead, she whips out a stick and begins poking him in the head.

Girl: Hey, are you dead?

Boy: …

After a moment of this, an elderly man in a suit, identified only as Butler, walks over.

Butler: I see. M'lady, allow me, if you would.

The butler, quite violently, kicks the boy.

Butler: WAKE UP, TWERP! THE LADY HAS DEMANDED YOU ACKNOWLEDGE HER!

Boy: OH GOD, THAT WAS MOST CERTAINLY ONCE SOMETHING VITAL!!!

The boy leaps awake and steps away from the two.

Boy: What was that all about?!

Butler: It's rude not to reply to a lady's inquiry! You vagabond!

Boy: Your... mom... is a bag of bonds...

Girl: What's your name?

Boy: I'm Dood.

Girl: I'm Deliost. Want to be friends? Dood: Sure, why not?

Deliost: Fantastic! Daddy always said I need to make some friends! And the last time I tried to make some, it didn't pan out so well.

Dood: Why not? Differences in hobbies?

Deliost: No, I tried to literally make them. Like build them. Out of straw and rocks. My therapist says I'm making great strides, though!

Dood: Great...

Deliost: I don't really get to go out and do much. Even when I do I have to stay close to the castle.

Dood: There's a castle? Deliost: Indeed. I am the princess of the kingdom of Toruble.

Dood: … What's a Toruble?

Butler: Shall I teach the boy a lesson, m'lady? Deliost: Please, do.

The Butler socks Dood in the face, knocking him out cold.

Deliost: BUTLER?! Butler: There. Lesson learned.

Deliost: I meant open a history book and tell him about the Toruble Kingdom! Butler: Oh. … Bully. Now I just feel silly.

The scene fades out, then returns with Dood laying in a bed.

Dood: Boy, I sure hope I get to maintain consciousness for longer than 10 minute intervals today. That'd be swell.

Deliost walks in.

Deliost: Dood, are you okay? Dood: I'm fine. I think.

Deliost: That's a relief!

A tall man in regal splendor walks in.

King: And this...? Deliost: This is Dood. You said I could keep him!

The King goes to Dood and eyes him.

King: You'd better take good care of my little girl, you got that? One step out of line and--

Dood: Sir. I'm pretty sure I'm like 10 years old. Probably. 10-ish.

Suddenly, some guards rush in.

Knight: Y-your highness! Monster attack! King: What you say?!

The scene cuts outside, as we see a knight get knocked down by some munchkins.

Knight: No!! Knight 2! He was the finest mind of his generation!!

Dood suddenly rushes outside.

Deliost: Dood, what are you--?!

Dood: It's fightin' time!!

Dood leaps into battle with the munchkins. This works as your tutorial, with the game briefly explaining Attack, Defend, Skill, Item, and Flee options that any RPG veteran should be very familiar with. If you try to flee from this battle, the munchkins hold up a pistol to a teddy bear's head and Dood insists it would be unjust to leave it as-is. But as Munchkins die to one attack each from Dood and his high offense build, it'll only take a moment. If you ignore the tutorials for Defend, Skill, and Item, and keep attacking, the game will let you do so, but scold you for not paying attention.

Dood: Hyaaa!!

Munchkins: Run away! Run away!!!

Deliost: Whoa, Dood... that was so brave! How did you do that?! Dood: Oh, it's easy.

Dood takes out one of his swords and points.

Dood: The pointy end is the business end.

Deliost: That's... not what I... okay. Sure. Alright.

Knight: That was incredible swordsmanship! Who taught you? Dood: … Um...?

Knight: You... do have a teacher, right?

You then get a prompt...

My parents!

My Master!

The Sun!

What's a teacher?

If you select My parents!

Dood: My parents!

Knight: Who are you parents? Dood: …

Tears well up in Dood's eyes.

Dood: Uwaaaaaaaah! I'm an orphan?!

Deliost: You didn't know that until just now?!

If you select My master!

Dood: My master! Knight: Who was your master?

Dood: … My Master. Obvs.

Knight: Yes, but what was his name? Dood: Mr. Ster.

Knight: You don't remember his name, do you? Dood: No.

If you select the sun!

Dood: THE SUN!!!

Deliost: What?

Dood: I stare into the sun and it fills me with power! Deliost: Dood, you really shouldn't do that...

If you select What’s a teacher?

Dood: … What's a teacher?

Deliost: Something you appear to be in dire need of...

Knight: … Well, your skills are undeniable! Maybe you should take up some work at the guild!

Dood: Work sounds good. Then I could buy MORE SWORDS!

Deliost: Um! Um! Yes, Dood, let us go and do good by the people!

Deliost grabs Dood's hand and pulls him off-screen as the knights idle. The camera soon catches up to them on a small dirt road.

Dood: Where are we going so fast?

Deliost: Anywhere! Now's our chance to get out and get away from the castle for a bit! C'mon!

Dood: Um. Okay!

You're then whisked away to FirstTown, where you're free to go around and talk to NPCs at your leisure. Here we can find a basic item and weapon shop, alongside a place with a sword and shield icon, wherein lies the guild and the plot. Inside is a lady in a dirndl is stationed at the counter.

Woman: Welcome, I am the guild stewardess. I'll post side miss-- I mean-- important jobs that you can accept here at the counter. In fact, there's a guild location in every city of the world, and due to our lightning-quick messaging services, we can relay information and jobs from all over the world to any location in a very convenient fashion!

Deliost: Ooo. What kind of work can we do here?

Dood: I wanna kill a dragon.

Deliost: Dood... do you know what a dragon... is? Dood: No, but I know I wanna fight one! Stewardess: No dragon slaying today, but I do have this. This might be a good test of your abilities.

Dood receives quest: find lost dog.

Dood: A lost dog?! That's... the saddest thing... I ever h-heeeeeeeeard!!!

Dood bawls.

Deliost: I had no idea you were so in-tune with your emotions, Dood! You're kind of like a puppy yourself...

Dood: I am? Deliost: Yeah. Like one of those small ones that never really gets terribly smart, and sometimes pees the floor out of excitement, but they mean well.

Dood: Aww, that's nice of you to say!

Now we can access the nearby inn, or leave town and see the world map. We're sort of stuck on a linear path for the time being, but we ultimately need to head to the north, near the mountains, but I wouldn't recommend going there until you're level 3 or 4, just to be safe.

Dood: I think it went this way!

Deliost: You can determine where the dog went... how?

Dood: Well, it's easy. To find a dog, you gotta think like a dog.

Deliost: You can do that? Dood: Watch me.

Dood gets down on all fours.

Dood: Woof! Woof! Barf, barf, barf!

Deliost: …

Deliost puts a hand to her mouth, trying not to laugh. You're then free to explore the mountain road. As you do, you'll see a deer munching grass.

Deliost: Dood, wait a sec.

Dood: What?

Deliost: Look there.

Dood: … Is that a dragon? Deliost: … Huh? No! Dood, it's a deer.

Dood: I'm-a kill it anyway.

Deliost: What?!

You then gain control of Dood and you're prompted to tap “Y” when near the deer, which you can sneak up on if you time it right. Dood will slash with his sword, turning the deer into large, cartoon meat on a bone. Deliost does her best impression of The Scream as Dood picks up and presents the meat.

Dood: I killed a dragon! Deliost: Uuuugh... I suppose hunting is a way to get supplies when our coffers are low... but... oh, Dood...

Now, when a random encounter concludes, there's a chance, depending on what map you're on, that a hunting event can occur, where you can kill some wildlife to get items. Dood hits with his sword, and will usually yield a meat, an item that restores health usually, and Deliost throws a small spark of electricity which is good for taking down small birds which Dood can't hit. As you go through the cave here, there's a healing spring.

Deliost: This is... it is. If we drink this water, it'll refresh us, body and mind. It's just like a good night's rest, Dood. … Dood?

Deliost looks over. Dood is shirtless.

Dood: So, we bathe in it, right? Deliost: KYAAAAAA!!! PERVERT!!!

Deliost gets a violent nosebleed, then smacks Dood in the face with her spoon. This sends Dood careening back into the wall.

Dood: BARF!

Dood and Deliost learn their first dual skill: Dood Toss, where Deliost swats Dood in the back, hurling him into the enemy for large damage. From here, you should grind at least a little, then proceed to the end of the cave. As you exit the cave, be sure you save, as not far from the entrance is the boss. Dood and Deliost walk a bit before the creature crosses their path. It's a duck with horns and large, pronounced feet.

Dood: Is that...?

Deliost: It is! It's a--

Dood: DRAGON!

Deliost: Dood! No! It's a Jackoduck!!

-Boss Fight!-

Jackoduck

LP: 500

MP: 100

The Jackoduck is strong, only because it's HP is very high compared to what you're likely used to at this point. However, it doesn't have many abilities of note, mostly involving its Duckaphony attack, which will hit you both for small damage. If you heal as needed, there shouldn't be any issue here, especially as at level 6 Deliost gets the first lightning spell, which deals good damage against it.

-Boss Fight!-

Dood: Whew. That wasn't so ba--

The Jackoduck gets up and bites Dood's arm

Dood: Oooooh nooooo! Deliost! Shoot it! Shoot it!!! Deliost: But it's still connected to you! Electricity will--

Dood: I don't care! Just shoot it! Deliost: Well, okay.

Deliost raises her hand as a massive storm of lightning drops down on Dood and the Jackoduck.

Dood: BARF!!!

The Jackoduck explodes and Dood drops.

Dood: I killed a dragon.

Deliost: Sigh...

You're then free to leave the mountain and you'll exit on the other side, whereupon you'll find... a frog.

Frog: Ribbit.

Dood: Is it--

Deliost: It's not a dragon, Dood!!!

Dood: No, obviously, it isn't.

Deliost: Oh, thank goodness...

Dood: It's the dog we've been looking for! Deliost: Say WHAT?!

Dood got... dog? Now we can head back to FirstTown. Once there, go to the guild.

Dood: We saved the dog! See? Frog: Ribbit.

Deliost: I'm sorry, he's slow on the uptake.

Stewardess: Ehn. Seems legit. Here's 500 currencies.

Dood: Yay!

Deliost's jaw falls and hangs open.

Dood: What next? Stewardess: Nothing right now, I'm afraid. But if you're curious, there's a new monster battle ring in the west where they've got a really neat lineup for the Monster Girl Festa.

Deliost: The... what?

Dood: Sounds kosher. Let's go!

You then can travel westward and enter into Corset, the mini-town that surrounds the coliseum area. Inside, you can't actually access the coliseum, due to a huge herd of people clamoring to battle with the monster girl champ, Balzac. Everyone in this town will tell you that to be anybody in this town, you have to win big at the coliseum, and that if you don't have one, a few stray monster girls run wild in the forest. You can tell this was a 90's RPG, as this, alongside a noteworthy minigame in AQ1 was wildly lambasted by Amelia Sardinian as the reasons why JeffCom+DTK and all its affiliates should, and I quote, “die horribly”. Anyway, we can go out into the forest and enter a little maze area where the enemies just love to spam poison as an ailment. The Mushroom Men, Dire Sparrows, and Vorpal Earthworms are indeed annoying, but if you brought lots of antidotes with you, it shouldn't be awful. At the end of it, you'll reach a clearing, where something considerably larger than you is leaping around the canopy, circling you.

Deliost: I don't think we're alone, Dood...

Dood: How can we be alone when there's two of us?

Deliost: I mean there's someone else here with us, Dood!

Dood: I didn't see anything.

The shadow blazes overhead again.

Deliost: There! Didn't you see that? Dood: Sorry, I can't see anything. I'm busy checking my eyelids for cracks.

Deliost grabs Dood's head and yanks it so he's looking up, just in time for the shadow to ninja past them again.

Dood: Whoa! There's someone here! Deliost: No, really?!

The shadow leaps down before them, revealing a curvaceous monster girl with large claws, long hair, and a long, scorpion-like tail.

Dood: It's...! It's...!

Deliost: Dood! Do not say “Dragon”!

Dood: … I'm still gonna think it.

The woman roars.

-Boss Fight!-

Womanticore

LP: 800

MP: 300

This is your wake-up boss fight. She follows up almost all her attacks with “Waffle Iron”, where she strikes with her claws after her normal attack, or she'll use “Mode Change” where she'll change color and use an elemental strike. She also has a huge pool of HP by comparison to anything we'd encountered. When her health dips below 25%, she'll give up using Waffle Iron, and grab one of your two characters with her tail, immobilizing them until the other hits her a few times, forcing her to drop them. This can be super frustrating, so heal early, heal often.

-Boss Fight!-

Monster Woman: Graaaaa--!!!

She falls.

Dood: I KILLED A D-- I mean... nothing.

Deliost rolls her eyes. The Monster Woman suddenly begins flailing, pounding her fists, feet, and tail up and down on the ground.

Monster Woman: Nooooo! It's not faaaair! I'm so hungry! All I want is a candy bar! But all there are to eat out here are bunnies and squirrels and they're TOO CUTE TO EAT! And the berries, good lord, the berries empty me out!!! A-bloo-bloo-blooooo!!!

She begins crying, with exaggerated anime water fountain tears and everything.

Dood: I can safely say I was not expecting that.

Deliost: Oh dear... maybe we should apologize to her?

Approach and speak to her, but all she does is continue her tantrum, reiterating how much she wants a  candy bar. For now, we have to leave and return to FirstTown's item shop, which just got a fresh batch of Candy Bar items in, which we can buy on the cheap. For zenny vs. healing, candy bars are actually more economical than mundane potions, amusingly enough! Anyways, take at least one and go back to the Womanticore.

Monster Woman: W-w-what do you want? Sniffle. Hic.

Dood: Here!

Dood gave her the candy bar!

Monster Woman: … Ah! A candy bar?!

She hurriedly unwraps it, break it in half, and feeds half to her tail and eats half with her mouth.

Dood: … Pssst! Deliost! She just ate that with her butt! … Does she poop out her mouth?!

Deliost: You're not whispering, you know. She can hear you just fine.

Monster Woman: I'm Kylie. Who are you? And why are two little kids wandering around the forest?

Dood: Oh, this is Del-- Deliost: I'M ENKI AND THIS IS DOO... uhh... DUDU!

Dood: … Huh?

Deliost: (Dood! I'm a runaway princess! We can't just go around telling everyone who we are! They'll take us back to the castle if we do that!) Dood: (Yeah, but, why do I have to be Dudu?) Deliost: (You started talking about pooping out your mouth, so it just popped into my head!)

Until it says otherwise, Dood is listed as Dudu and Deliost is listed as Enki, even on the menu screen.

Kylie: How... old are you two? Dudu: I'm... 10-ish? Yeah, let's go with that.

Enki: I'm 11.

Kylie: Hm. Well, I clearly have to be the adult here, seeing as I'm 2!

Dudu: That makes sense! Enki: It... doesn't really. But we can just tell people she's 20 and they'd believe it...

Kylie: I'll go with you! That way we'll be safe!

Kylie joins! She is a customizable character, who starts with three copies of the “Womanticore” gene. As you get more, you can customize her, which changes her Head (her hair and horns), her Body (mostly her arms and color palette), and her Legs (which alters her legs and tail). This has made her very popular, as some late game combinations can be game-breaking, due to any gene being able to slot into any of the three options. Her starting skill is Roar, which ups one character's offense for a few turns. At this point, we can return to Corset and the crowd huddled around the door to the coliseum has dispersed. Inside, we can now register for the battle!

Receptionist: I see. Entering the Monster Girl battle with this Womanticore, eh? Well, if you want to do so, you'll need to pass our preliminary match against our director of monster resources!

Dudu: Kay.

Kylie: Me?! But aren't there younger, prettier monster girls you'd want to enter?!

Enki: Actually, I'd be legitimately surprised if there were any monsters here younger than you...

Now we can head over to a small dungeon-like room, to find a horrifyingly muscular man, whose head appears to be too small for his frame.

Dir. Of MR: OH YEEEEEEEEEEAH! Dudu: … I think I peed myself a little in reflective terror.

Enki: Me too.

-Boss Fight!-

Director of Monster Resources

LP: 500

MP: 0

This guy is a joke boss, if his LP didn't tip you off. He just shouts “AGE?! SEX?! LOCATION?!” at you and punches, which barely does any damage. There's literally no reason you should lose here if you're trying.

-Boss Fight!-

Dir. Of MR: OH YEEEEEEEEEEAH!!!

Dudu: I guess we passed?

Kylie: Yay!

At this point, you're invited to speak to the manager, July.

July: Ah, the new rising stars here to challenge Balzac, I presume? Dudu: I don't know why but the answer is “Yes”!

July: Lucky you, your opponent is a girl, so it'll be easy! Kylie: But... I'm a girl too... what's that have to do with anything?

July: Well, the truth is... the outcome is already set.

Enki: What? The fight is a farce?!

Dudu: And it's fake too?!

July: The cruel up-n-comer, who wants to win at any cost... slowly tortures her enemy... and kills her for the sick entertainment of this crowd! … I expect very high ratings.

Kylie's face goes pale, as her tail turns downward and actually vomits.

July: There is no way you will lose, Dudu. During the battle's climax, we will fire poisoned darts at the enemy monster. She will die and you will win. The ratings will explode through the roof as the old champ is unseated, and we will become very, very rich...

Dudu: We... uh... need to... go... place... now.

July: Be sure to get your advanced payment from your locker room!

Go there, and you'll get 1000 zenny. Immediately head out and deposit it in the bank, then return and try to go into Balzac's prep room.

Dudu: Balzac! Balzac!!

Enki: Dudu, what are you doing? Dudu: We have to warn him! We have to protect his monster girl!

Balzac: I can't sign autographs right now! I'm, uh, preparing my girl for battle! Y-yeah, that's the ticket.

Kylie: It's no good. We'll have to do something else.

Kylie paces back and forth as her tail scratches her head.

Kylie: Ah! I got it!

Kylie's tail snaps like fingers as a light bulb lights up over her head.

Kylie: Dudu, let me borrow your coin purse!

Dudu: It's a coin pouch.

Kylie: Now's not the time to argue over your fragile masculinity. Hand it over!

Dudu gave Kylie all his money.

Kylie: I'm gonna get two antidotes. When I fight his monster, we'll both take one and then we'll be safe! Dudu: Great idea!

Enki: Be honest. You're taking all his money so you can stock up on candy bars, aren't you?

Kylie's tail nods.

Kylie: No! … Yes.

She hurriedly walks off screen.

Enki: Aren't you upset?! Dudu: Not if she gives me one!

Enki: Ugh...

You then take over as Kylie solo. At this point, you now have two antidotes in your key items, so you can get your money back and do any prep you need to before the fight. When you're ready, go inside and go to to the arena floor. There, a huge crowd excitedly cheers. Opposite you is a strange, cyclopean cat girl creature.

Kylie: Hi! I'm Kylie!

Monster Girl: Hmph! You're goin' down!

Balzac: Yeah! What she said!

-Boss Fight!-

Cat-oblepas

LP: 600

MP: 800

While Cat-oblepas (ugh, the puns) lacks the raw hitting power of Kylie, she has the ability to turn her to stone for one round with her “Cat's Eye” technique. In itself, this does no damage, but it gives her an opening to hit you before you can act again. If you leveled her a bit, Kylie should have the “Lick Wounds” skill which restores HP to one target, and is generally more efficient than the healing items you'll have access to at this point. This is a war of attrition and you'll be going back and forth and sometimes the random off-chance that is Critical Hitting or Counter Attacking can shift the tide, resulting in some infuriating lucksacking scenarios. Just be patient and you'll win!

-Boss Fight!-

Dudu: Kylie! Knock her out! Quickly! Enki: What he means is SHOVE HER OUT OF HARM'S WAY! The way he's saying makes it sound useless and vague, as she's already unconscious!

At this point, you have a few moments to act and push the KO'd Cat-oblepas out of harm's way. If you do, Kylie immediately chugs an antidote (one for her tail, one for her face) and presents a hearty thumbs-up to the player. If you don't, she force-feeds an antidote to Cat-oblepas and drinks one, but faints and you'll have to take on the next boss without her. Either way, this event gives Kylie her first customizable gene – Poison! The next scene is just the party walking to July's office.

July: What's the matter? You didn't like my script, Dudu? Dudu: MY NAME IS NOT DUDU. I AM DOOD.

Enki: Because that's so much different...

July: Come at me, bro, I'm fekken ripped!!

July bursts into smoke as the boss fight cues. An amusing point, Dood's name in Japanese is read as “Doo-dii”, so what he's actually screaming is “I AM NOT DOO-DOO, I'M DOO-DII,” because apparently JeffCom has 13 year olds as writers.

-Boss Fight!-

July

LP: 1200

MP: 500

If there was really a battle that you run the risk of losing in chapter 1, it's this one. He hits like a truck, can use Waffle Iron, can hit the entire party with ice damage, and also, you can accidentally end up fighting him and be a party member-down! So definitely come here with Kylie. Deliost should also have her fire spells at this point, which you'll want to use liberally here, as they'll do maximum damage against this guy. Dood should stick to attacking, and have Kylie use whatever buffs she has at the ready when you arrive. If she's a sufficiently high level, she should have “Proud Cry” which ups defense, which Deliost should definitely have cast on her. This guy doesn't have any weird tricks or gimmicks. It's just a heavy clash of titans here. Do your best.

-Boss Fight!-

July: N-no way! My script... run through the shredder?! Impossible...! B-but don't think for a second that just knocking me down will stop our God's wrath!

Kylie: You try to murder and deceive, yet speak of God?! What deity does one as sick as you worship?!

July: BARF!

July explodes.

Kylie: … I wasn't expecting that.

Dood: Wow. July was a real monster over his profits! Deliost: That joke sucked!!

And you then leave, concluding Chapter 1!