#I. I was very serious when I said I went ham | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

mamirhodessxox · 10 months ago

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Hey There Delilah

Cody Rhodes x Fem OC! Reader

(Delilah Jones)

Storyline: Delilah was born and raised by the beach in L.A and grew up in a home where her parents expected her to go to Harvard & become a well known woman who marry’s a man who is a lawyer after high school. But that’s not what she wanted, She always wanted to own a boutique/flower shop & she did, once her parents discovered she wouldn’t attend college they left her to fend for herself but allowed her little sister Kinsley to visit or sleep over whenever, Her little sister always had an eye for WWE but Delilah never understood why but little did either of them know one of Delilah’s customers would become well acquainted. (Creds to @alyyaanna for helping me w the storyline)

Contents: Toxic parents, Angst, Fluff, Smut in later chapters, Based in May 2023, Alcohol, Violence.

{~I'm very serious with you guys interacting with my writing!!!! it would make me so happy & excited, the more comments & reposts the more inspiration i have to write :) likes and comments are strongly appreciated so please COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT COMMEENNTTT the more comments the more content <3!!!~}

Delilah was a very simple girl, throughout her Highschool years before her parents forced her to leave she saved up enough money to own a boutique & Flower shop right under her little apartment right by the beach, She always loved the ocean & it was a dream come true when she noticed she would see it throughout the shop & apartments windows every day.

Since the day her dream came true her Little Sister Kinsley would ride her bike to the shop everyday after school to either hang out or sleepover, Kinsley was an interesting girl, she was 10 pushing 11 & was into 80’s summer music & most of all WWE. Delilah never understood the hype with WWE since it just seemed like a violent thing to watch but at the same time she would find the trash talking aspect interesting.

Delilah on the other hand was a book worm, no matter what she had a book shoved in her face, she loved sewing & making clothes & even had a green thumb, her parents always think that was dumb but they soon came to realization once she moved out she was still alive & well.

It was around 2:30 PM, Delilah just finished planting a few little flower seeds already excited to see them flourish, She knew Kinsley would be on her way soon so she quickly went upstairs and entered her apartment and made her little sister a sandwich before hustling back down & setting it next to the cash register while scampering towards the boutique side humming & just like that Kinsley walked through the door groaning with exhaustion “Hey ley! I made you a ham sandwich, it’s on the counter, how was school?” She smiled amusingly as her sister shrugged sluggishly and bit into her lunch.

“It was so BORING, the only thing I like about this dumb private school is my friends & that’s IT!” Delilah laughed while sewing up a new top “Nobody said school was gonna be fun, why don’t you sit there work on your homework & by 3:30 i’ll close down the shop & we can walk around the pier sound good?” Her sister held s thumbs up & immediately got to work.

An hour passed by & Kinsley just finished her math homework while Delilah stood outside sweeping and flipping the Open sign to “Closed.” Just as she was about to go back inside she heard someone continuously shout out “WAIT” and soon ran towards the door crouching a hit trying to catch his breath while Delilah seems concerned “Oh my god?! Are you okay should I call 91-“ he shook his head standing up and taking a deep breath “flower, need, Please, Any flower.” She furrowed her brows until he grabbed a random pre wrapped bouquet “Please just left me buy these” he smile nervously.

She smiled back & opened the door letting him in to pay & her little sister snorted water out from her nose before running off upstairs while she started ringing him up, He hated awkward silence “That your daughter?” Delilah snickered shaking her head “God no, That’s my little sister.” He hummed shoving 4 20 dollar bills in her tip jar before she announced the price “5 dollars & 20 cents!” He happily obliged and gave her the amount needed “You grow these yourself?” She smiled proudly while nodding her head “Oh! Yes! I make a lot of my own stuff here! I grow flowers, Succulents, I make cute clothes an- I’m talking to much sorry! I got excited!” She smiled as she took a small gasp as she ran out of breath while he let out a light chuckle, he could tell she wasn’t aware at all of who he was which was very humbling and also relieving, she just seemed like a sweet doll who could talk about her proud little flowers all day.

“Well, thank you for going out of your way to let me buy this really quick, I’lll get out of your hair & let you close down. I’ll be sure to visit more often.” He flashes a smile & soon walks out just as her sister returns “Do you not know who that was??!” Lilah turned around and shook her head “No..? Who was that?” she questioned while grabbing her little tote bag & wallet while her sister started going “That was the nightmare guy from WWE! You should know this!” Lilah laughed and held her little sisters hand before walking out of the store to walk around the pier.

It was super crowded out but that was to be expected. Summer break was a week away from starting, the two shared a bowl of mac and cheese from a food truck sitting somewhere “Do you think mom & dad will ever let you come back?” Kinsley asked while Lilah sighed shrugging “I dunno, our relationship is very complicated ley, I don’t want my experience with mom and dad to personally affect yours but if they’re being out of line I’ll go out of my way to keep you with me. You just need to say the word, kay?” Her little sister smiled and nodded her head.

🌸🌷🌸🌷🌸🌷🌸🌷🌸🌷🌸🌷🌸🌷🌸

The next day Ley was still at school while Delilah sat in the shop with the AC on with her hair up in a bun due to the heat while she read a Book behind the register and heard the door open along with the bell ontop ring. So she put her bookmark in between the pages & set it down while noticing the guy from yesterday made another visit “Oh hi!” She chirped out smiling “Hey, Wanted to stop by and see the shop when it’s actually open.” He chuckled and walked around before pointing at the sweaters and tops “You made these?” She nodded “all sewn by me.” She smiled while he hummed and pointed at one of her dresses hanging “That’s really good, when did you start making clothes?” She shrugged at his question

“I was by myself in Highschool and decided to put that free time to my advantage everyday after school. Saved up for a sewing kit and machine.” She smiled while he looked around and noticed her little sister walked in and noticed her face drop “She okay?” He asked in a concerned tone while Delilah smiled in amusement “Yeah she’s just-“ “Holy shit your Cody Rhodes.” Lilah looked over at her sister “Kinsley! Language.” She furrowed her brows while her little sister apologized when Lilas started talking “She really likes WWE” Cody chuckled shoving his hands in her pockets “Yeah? What about you?” Lilah smiled “I’ve never watched it before, wasn’t my kind of thing y’know?” He hummed in understanding & looked around “I’ve gotta ask, i saw little cross in the corner, are you a church girl?” She laughed while her little sister went into the back to get herself lunch “To a certain degree, I go to church mainly for my little sister but I’m still saving myself.” He nodded “Well that’s good sweetheart, y’know I think I might just visit here everyday, Is it alright if I get your number?” Lilah turned her head as Kinsley screamed from the back before trading numbers with him.

“She’ll be alright.”

🏷️ list: @ginswife @coolpastelartshoe @greatkoalawizard @cokolin044 @kotoriarlert @alicerosejensen @bunnybot55 @agent-dessis-posts @adollonyourshelf @valkyrurr @alyyaanna @niknakbucks92 @mini-rhodes @southerngirl41

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writing-whump · 5 months ago

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Maybe something with Rip and Dylan in their new place in the nearby? With Rip wanting to prove (himself and everybody else) that he is fine and capable of taking care of himself... and failing miserably, because it's still too early. 👀

(I imagine it could be overwhelming/hard for him to be on 'foreign' terrain for so long, pinned to the bed (I remember him enjoying walking on the roofs), with 'so much' other wolfes (even if he tolerates Dylan and is thankfull to the rest of them) - as he is more accustomed to be mostly on his own, only. And now, having some independency...

You know. Small steps. 🐾 )

This is a perfectly fitting prompt for Rip! I love it so much!!

In the absence of fear

"What are you doing?" Seline asked, descending the stairs at the late hour of 11 in the morning, only to find Dylan and Matthew sprawled on the couch in front of the TV.

"Chilling," Dylan said in his best bratty teenage tone.

Seline blinked at him in disbelief. It was the tone she was the most familiar with, but she hadn't heard it in the last three weeks. Not since Rip.

"Did something happen? How is Rip? What are you-"

"Hey, Sis, do something for me? Chill out. Too many questions." Dylan rubbed his eyes, slumping back to occupy most of the couch.

Matthew looked completely unbothered. He had been running and sparring for so much the past week it was a wonder he was even awake. Seline got the gist he was trying to tire himself out from feeling anything that could upset his shadow.

"Is Isaiah awake?"

Dylan threw his hand back towards the kitchen. "Prepared us breakfast. Asked about you and then went to his room to work on some papers or whatever."

Seline bit her lip. Summer break had thrown her weekend routine out the window. Her disciplined schedule of early mornings and socializing had given way to lazy starts. She now woke up at 8, lingering in bed to listen to music and daydream, scribbling poems and story beginnings until hunger finally drove her out.

She was glad Isaiah hadn’t come to get her. Despite their occassional mutual confusions and misunderstandings, he understood when she needed space. Perhaps because he often needed it himself.

Seline went to get the two eggs in glass and the ham and small tomatoes, wondering what emotional mood Dylan was in. Enough to ask about when he was gonna visit mother? Was this a teenage mood of "let me chill and watch TV cause I can't do that at home" or something else?

It was a wonder how much you could lose touch with one another after just a year of living apart.

Seline came back to the living room with a steaming cup of coffee, leaning against the back of the sofa.

"Any plans for today?"

Dylan didn't look up, staring at the screen with intent that the ad for chicken prices couldn't warrant.

"Did something happen?" she tried again.

"Oh nothing," Dylan's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Just that mister Grumpy woke up, bit my fucking head off-"

"Language."

"-for asking him what he wanted to eat. He wants to be alone so much, he can be my fucking guest."

"Aha." Problems in paradise, huh? She was surprised the boys had lasted that long. When it wasn't so serious, they were still just a couple of teenage boys with heightened emotions and cranky shadows.

And Dylan, for all his good qualities, was very easy to offend.

...

It was so quiet.

Rip, feeling the rare sensation of having both strength and space, began to cautiously explore the new place. He could not, by all means, consider it his, but he could also not relax if he didn't inspect every corner on his own.

It had basic furniture. A living room and two small bedrooms and a kitchen. It was the biggest and cleanest place Rip had been in undisturbed for a very long time, if not ever.

Isaiah rented it and his pack and Dylan helped clean it up. The disinfection helped get the foreign scents out so they could get used to it more easily.

It smelled like Dylan. Which wasn't an offensive scent, just a reminder of how incapable Rip currently was of leaving his own trail behind.

He made himself shuffle from one corner to the next. Touch a wall, go to the next one. About time he made himself walk.

His side burned at the movement, but it was just a patch of pain instead of it shooting up his stomach and chest and paralysing him all the way. Progress, no matter how small and frustrating.

He ended up perched at the window still in the living room, opening it ajar so he could breathe the fresh air in eager gulps.

Rip craved the outside.

He wanted to escape the walls of protection, of this locked-up feeling. He wanted the roofs, the heights, the wind in his face. The feeling of his legs when running, to tense his hands when he climbed up a railing, the view from the top of a building, with the world bustling beneath him.

This place was just so quiet, it was deafening.

It was never like this at his place. The familiar sounds of the streets, footsteps, and wolves that could appear at any moment, but followed certain patterns in the early morning, after sundown, and always after midnight… now that he was aware of himself and his surroundings again, it felt wrong not to have them around.

Rip leaned against the wall, legs folded underneath him. He could smell rain in the air. Thunder would be a welcome sound, something to pierce through this neutral, nothing saying grayness.

A growing pressure inside his skull hinted at the approaching storm, making it hard to concentrate. These days, exhaustion overtook him quickly; a few steps left him breathless and his eyes heavy with sleep. He had learned not to fight it, knowing it would only bring more exhaustion.

Rip unglued himself from the window, moving carefully to let his legs down onto the floor. He made the last few meters to the couch and collapsed on it.

Rip struggled to recall why Dylan had left that morning. Did they have a fight? What about? Yes, Rip was getting frustrated and cranky and he wanted Dylan to leave him alone, to let him breathe, just for a second. He didn't mean for the other boy to leave, but now, with the quiet enveloping him, he was sort of glad he did.

There was relief and peace in the silence. To not being watched all the time like some invalid. To not being reminded of everything he could not do, that he had to get help for. At least now he had an illusion of not needing it.

Rip was eternally grateful and obligated to Dylan anyway. Was there a point in pretending he was happy about it? Why could Dylan just not leave him alone, like everyone else did, like he deserved? How long would he have to wait until Dylan got fed up with him—of how much of a burden Rip was?

Rip curled up on the couch, shivering with a sudden coldness. His shirt was itchy against the stitches. It was Dylan's shirt, too. Dylan brought with more clothes from his childhood home, clothes he didn't need than Rip ever owned in his life.

He closed his eyes, pulled into a restless sleep, guilty and undeserving as always.

An axe came down on his head.

Rip woke up with a start, covered in sweat, breath hitching. The room was dark, twilight behind the windows. His heart was beating harshly against his ribs.

He shifted on the couch to move to the bed, when he realized what had woken him. A bone-splitting pain, as if struck by a dream axe, radiated from the left side of his forehead up into his hairline. Rip doubled over under the weight of his own head, fists clenching at his sides.

This was a new pain, one he didn't know. The knife-wound was worse at its time, but this was debilitating in its unexpectedness. What was going on? The dull pressure he felt turned into this while he slept? What did he do?

He slowly dragged himself to his feet and swayed immediately, having to catch himself on the couch. His sense of balance was shot. Thank god the room was so dark, because he couldn't open his eyes more than to slits. The pain pounded through his head in synch with his heartbeat and he was breathing harshly, like he had just stopped running, like he was still capable of running. His stomach leaped and jumped unhappily.

Nope, with the split in his skull and the stitches, all he could do was shuffle forward, one painful step at a time. He managed to get all the way to the kitchen and had to lean with both hands against the table to stay upright. The pain made him dizzy, a heavy piece of iron in his head being slammed in by a hammer.

There was a slimy feeling slithering behind his teeth. As the room span dizzily around him, he realized it was nausea. Jesus Christ, what was this?

Rip took deep breaths through his mouth, waiting till the room settled back to try new steps. He had to calculate his path carefully, cause he didn't think he could walk straight. He dared a couple steps from the table towards the wall. His brain was rattling in his skull and he pressed his forehead against the cool steady surface until the dizziness died down. His teeth tickled, something heavy against his throat.

Halfway through the next impossible step, he realized he better aim for the bathroom instead. His stomach was positively churning and twisting, making his toes curl up.

Half-blind from the pounding thoughts-melting pain and the nauseating dizziness, Rip finally made it to the bathroom, in front of the toilet. That was about all he managed before he was vomiting, head exploding with pain that had him seeing stars.

...

Dylan really didn't need Seline telling him he was acting childish.

So what if he was? If Rip wanted to have a day for himself, because Dylan's fussing was annoying or whatever, then he could have it. Dylan was doing Rip a favor, not himself.

Plus, spending the day on the couch with Matthew, switching between Netflix series, was a welcome break after the admittedly tough three weeks he had just gone through.

At least he was getting to know Seline's pack better after barging in on them with a favor. Favour for stupid Rip. How come that even when he was doing his best not to think about the guy, he still ended up circling back to him?

When Dylan stepped into their shared apartment, he expected it to be quiet. Rip was always quiet, when he wasn't growling at him in frustration to chase him away. Of course Dylan knew that was just another way of Rip doing so. He tried the dying and the "I can't pay you back" crap before, so this was a logical next step.

Should he announce himself or let the injured wolf sleep? Maybe they could end the day not talking and start afresh tomorrow.

There was a faint coughing sound that stopped him in his steps though. Dylan listened, pinpointing the direction. It was coming from the bathroom.

Dylan frowned, but went to investigate. The door was half-way open and he was confused, so he stuck his head in...and opened it all the way immediately, running inside.

The bathroom was a mess. There was vomit everywhere. On the floor, around the toilet, on the seat, under the sink...and Rip was in the middle of it, face pressed against the tiles, both hands wrapped around his head from behind, gasping for breath.

"Holy fucking shit-"

Rip made a noise, somewhere between a sob and a keening wail. Dylan immediately shut his mouth, sliding to his knees beside him. "What happened? What's wrong? Rip?"

Dylan struggled to get a look at Rip's face. His throat was bobbing loudly and he was shaking all over. "Rip? Rip, talk to me!"

Rip shuddered at his voice near his ear, curling into himself. "M-my head..."

"Your head?" Dylan said incredulously. What? That had nothing to do with the stitches. "Did you hit it or something?"

"N-no-..." Rip coughed and swallowed heavily. He was covered in sweat, black curly hair plastered to his neck. "Hurts...like an axe is splitting it open-" he whimpered. Actually whimpered. Dylan hadn't seen him whimper like that since the first day after the injury, when his shadow returned and Rip got his sense of pain back.

"I-I don't understand," Dylan said helplessly, reaching for Rip's shoulder. "I'm gonna- I'm gonna get you up from the floor, okay?"

Rip winced, hands going around his stomach as if to hug himself, but didn't protest.

Dylan took him by the shoulder and gently straightened him up. He wrapped his arm around Rip's back and pulled him to his feet.

The reaction was immediate. Rip shuddered and coughed, his stomach expelling a fresh wave of vomit down his front. Dylan had to hold on to him as the sick wolf's legs buckled underneath him with another wave of watery vomit right onto the floor.

"Okay, not the brightest idea," Dylan said, fighting back a gag of his own at the horrible scene and smell.

"S-sorry, I c-can't-"

"It's alright," Dylan said through gritted teeth, waiting till the waves tampered down. Rip stayed bent in half, dry-heaving for a good half a minute before the fit ended, only to immediately slump back. Dylan barely caught him with a curse.

"Can you move?" Which really meant if he could walk without vomiting again.

Rip just whimpered, hands clutching at the left side on top of his forehead like he had a cut there.

"Christ, when did this start? Did you feel sick to your stomach all of a sudden?" Dylan dragged him away from the messed-up bathroom, realizing that every room they went to was at risk of becoming the same. It worried him out of his mind that he didn't know what this was. Could Rip really get an infection, after all this time? Did he eat something outside the broths and soups Dylan, Sel and Isaiah made for him? They had a supply of them in the fridge, surely Rip wouldn't risk eating something else, so soon after the IV?

Dylan opted to maneuver them to Rip's room, hoping his own space, however new, would bring him some degree of comfort. He helped him up on the bed and onto his back, gently trying to pry Rip's hands out of his face. "Let me see, buddy, come on."

Rip let out a pitiful whine, reluctantly letting go. His hands were curled up into fists again and his face was scrunched up in a pained grimace, shirt all wet up from his chin to his middle.

Dylan inspected the place Rip kept pressing against, careful fingers sliding up and down, but there was nothing—not even a bump, a cut, no bleeding.

When he retracted his hands, Rip immediately went to hold the spot again, curling up on his side with a whimper.

"Wait, man, we should get you out of that shirt..."

Rip keened again, obviously beyond caring about the vomit on his clothes, the pain riding out everything else, whispering desperate little: "Make it stop, please make it stop..."

Dylan crouched down beside him, planting one hand on Rip's shoulder again. He wrinkled his nose at the stench before fishing out his phone. He could not do this alone.

...

Rip was wiggling on the bed in agony. He didn't know he could feel pain comparable to the stab wound, but he was proven wrong.

He never had headaches in his life. It was the most unlikely place to get injured, really, if you weren't falling down or getting it bumped.

The bite marks on his neck and arms, the hot piercing feeling of an enemy shadow sliding through his body, body punches — he was used to that. He could handle it.

This pounding pain in his forehead — why the specific spot anyway ?— was unexpected and foreign, and it scared him all the more because of how unpredictable it was.

Not to mention the accompanying dizziness and nausea and the way it messed with his equilibrium and senses. He couldn't think, he couldn't feel anything else. Vaguely he realized he wasn't alone, that Dylan came, that the cold bathroom tiles weren't digging into his knees anymore, but that was about it. His stomach muscles hurt from heaving, his stitches burned, but it was nothing against the hammer driving spikes into his left temple.

And then suddenly the Executioner was there, kneeling by his bed with a small crease etched between his eyebrows. Rip shivered at the sight, but really, what worse could the Executioner do than put him out of his misery?

"Rip. Rip, I need you to focus on me. Have you ever had headaches or migraines before?"

Rip thrashed, struggling to stay still and meet Isaiah’s gaze. Focusing on one spot intensified the pain, making Isaiah's face a blur and nausea rise in his throat. He fought down a retch. "No."

"Is your shadow hurt?"

Rip's lips quivered, a sob threatening to come out. "No." His shadow tried. It tried running through him, to heal him, to help, but it managed nothing against the pain. Its grief over it echoed in Rip's chest.

He saw more than felt Isaiah reaching over to his side. Ah right, it was the Executioner after all, who 'operated' him. Without flinching, the older wolf lifted the hem of his stained shirt, looking over the stitches, his expression dissatisfied.

"What's wrong with him?" Dylan's voice sounded anxious, somewhere to Rip's left. He didn't like his fear. Dylan was supposed to be optimistic, calming him, reassuring him that everything could be healed. Dylan's worry made Rip's lips tremble, eyes burning with tears.

"Dylan, get me two large towels, one wet and one dry. And a mixing bowl, if you would be so kind. If you could take care of the bathroom, that would be great."

Isaiah sending Dylan away instead of providing a solution felt alarming. Like he was about to do something Dylan wasn't supposed to see. Maybe Rip really was dying this time.

"I'm going to lift you up, okay?" Isaiah said it more like a warning than a question, cause he pulled Rip up by the arms, before Rip could think better of it. It ushered up a new dizzy spell and a gag, Rip slumping in Isaiah's arms like a rag doll. His breathing was erratic, fast and painful to his own ears, though he couldn't feel any pain past his head.

Isaiah peeled the filthy shirt off matter-of-factly, holding Rip up until Dylan came with the towel. The oldest wolf put the dry one under Rip's pillow before letting him lie down, then positioned the wet one over his head.

Rip sighed in appreciation at the cool sensation against the digging, bleeding spike that should have, by all means, dug its way through his brain by now. It brought a smitten of relief, though send shivers down his spine and exposed arms.

Isaiah drew the covers over Rip's trembling chest. He stayed seated on the bed beside Rip's head. "The bowl is right here. If you feel sick, it's okay."

Rip wrapped his hands around his sore stomach. He rolled to his other side so he could press his forehead into the towel easier. "D-do you know w-what's wrong with me?" He hated the stumble in his voice, but he also couldn't care less in the face of the debilitating pain.

Isaiah gave a long sigh, leaning against the headboard. Rip didn't understand the proximity, but at least he didn't have to talk loudly. "I have an idea, yeah."

"Can't you make it stop? If it's t-he injury-"

"It's not. And if your shadow isn't working, I doubt any painkillers will, though we can try it, once you feel less pukey."

Rip unglued his eyes, making himself look up at the Executioner leaning over him with a calm expression. Few more stress tears slid down his cheek from how intensely he had to focus to keep his eyes open.

"It's the stress," Isaiah said after a moment, his gaze fixed on the opposite wall. "Or rather, the lack of it. When you stay in an intense, painful situation for a long time, your body adapts to survive. But once you relax, everything catches up to you."

Rip sniffled, scrunching his nose. That sounded like total bullshit.

"For real, kid. Migraines are just one of the ways your body can react."

"H-how do you know?" Rip couldn't help the growl in his voice. What kind of nonsense was Isaiah spewing? He could not be getting this hurt from relaxing, for Shadow's sake.

Isaiah was quiet for a while, his voice strained and tense as it pierced through Rip's headache. "When I left my pack for the first time, I went through something similar. Knowing I wouldn't have to get hurt anymore, that I was safe — it made me sick for weeks. Hurting in places I never realized, places I'd never been hurt before. It was like the years of pain suddenly crashed over me, demanding their toll all at once."

Rip took a hitching breath. He wasn't sure if this was information someone should know about an Executioner without their life being at risk. His head couldn’t fathom why Isaiah would share something so personal and revealing, or what horrors his pack could have inflicted to compare to Rip's life as a street stray.

Yet, something in Rip's chest unclenched at the words. A mix of relief that there was an explanation, that someone understood, that he wasn't alone in feeling pathetic, weak, and in pain. Isaiah shared the information so easily, admitting something Rip had to be in agony to confess.

The flood of confusing emotions and thoughts had the hammer coming down a bit more forcefully. Rip groaned at the sensation, giving up the fight and squeezing his eyes shut. "F-few w-weeks?"

"No, kid. I'm sure it won't last that long for you." Isaiah's hand twitched towards Rip, but then he let it fall to his side.

Rip wasn't sure if the Executioner was telling the truth or lying to comfort him, but he would take the lie with all he had.

#sickfic #hurt/comfort #vomiting #migraine #stress migraine #emeto #werewolf wip #my writing #Rip #idk why the Rip fics always turn out longer lol

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paginate54 · 1 year ago

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Dave Lewis, LZ chronicler, on Robert's performance of Stairway. From Led Zeppelin Celebration Days FB page:

Some personal thoughts on this performance of Stairway To Heaven...

There was something profoundly moving watching the YouTube footage of Robert Plant performing Stairway To Heaven at the Andy Taylor concert.

This was the first live public airing of the song since the Led Zeppelin 02 Reunion on December 10 2007.

Before I delve in to this subject, Robert’s entire appearance was captivating. Thank you delivered with much emotion, Black Dog hammed up brilliantly and the version of Season of the Witch segueing into a reprise of Black Dog lyrics and Buffalo Springfield’s For What it’s Worth – as in the LA Forum 1970 Blueberry Hill bootleg.

Incidentally, bassist on the night Guy Pratt noted that he has now performed Black Dog with both Robert and Jimmy Page – he was part of the touring band on the Coverdale Page Japan visit in late 1993. The band line up on the night consisted of the aforementioned Guy, former Reef guitarist Kenwyn House (wearing a dragon patterned shirt shades of Jimmy perhaps), Rod Stewart’s drummer David Palmer, Andy Taylor plus Andy Taylor’s son Andy J Taylor on guitar, singer Anne Rani and musician Dino Jelusick on keyboard and backing vocals.

So back to Stairway To Heaven...

We have all had a journey with this song over the years. Mine commenced on April 4 1971 when I heard it on my radio listening to Led Zeppelin’s BBC In Concert performance on Radio One’s John Peel show. I’d heard Jimmy in an interview describing how it had come together in various sections building to a climax. Sure enough this tentative version did just that.

I first saw it performed live on Sunday November 21 1971 at the Empire Pool Wembley – an extraordinary night. It was of course one of the stand out tracks on their just released fourth album.

It went to attain legendary status – the most played record on American radio and from 1975 the rightful finale to every Led Zeppelin live performance.

Like many of their songs the arrangement was often toyed with, not least by the singer who over time added many an ad - lib to the lyrics. As it was performed on every Led Zep show, this enabled the song to retain a freshness.

The first ad-lib I recall was when he inserted the line ''you are the children of the sun'' during the version to be heard on the classic bootleg Going To California from their performance in Berkeley on September 14 1971. From 1973 onwards 'Does anybody remember laughter?‘’ was an expected insert after the line ‘’and the forest will echo with laughter.’’

By 1975, Robert had changed the line ‘’your stairway’’ to ‘’our stairway’’ adding the line ‘’that’s all we got.’’ As I witnessed in awe from the side of the stage during their 1980 Over Europe performances , Robert added ‘’I keep chopin’ and changin'’’ as they led into the climax.

Post Zep, Robert has sang Stairway To Heaven’’ it a mere four times – at Live Aid in 1985, the Atlantic 40th anniversary show in 1988, a sweet truncated version with Jimmy Page in a TV studio in Japan in 1994 and at the Led Zeppelin O2 tribute concert for Ahmet Ertegun where he proclaimed after the song ‘’Ahmet we did it!’’

Well now he has done it again….

The obvious question is why now and why on this occasion?

There’s no doubt it was a special occasion being a concert staged by the ex - Duran Duran guitarist Andy Taylor. Andy has had serious cancer health issues and staged this concert in aid of Cancer Awareness Trust.

As well as performing on the night, Robert donated his personal gold disc of Led Zeppelin IV for the auction –as he put it ''our not so difficult fourth album.'' A part of this was featured on the video stream and it had clocked an initial £50,000 bid.“I love this music and I still love it now very much although I get a bit coy and shy when I have to go near it because it was such a long time ago,” he said.

In an interview with Led Zep News guitarist Kenwyn House revealed that Robert Plant chose to perform Stairway To Heaven after a wealthy donor agreed to donate a six-figure sum to charity if he did so.

So, a special occasion deems a special song for a very worthy cause.

It says everything for Robert’s ease with the Zep legacy, that he could perform this once millstone around his neck with such dignity.

As we know Stairway To Heaven became much maligned and a victim of much parody – and let’s not mention that farcical version by a disgraced not so all round entertainer.

Although he was quick to decry it in the immediate post Zep years, I happen to think Robert is rightly proud of the song, as he is the whole Zep legacy.

Who can forget his tearful reaction to the Wilson sisters and Jason’s performance at the Kennedy Honours in 2012?

So, with none of the pressure of performing it on a big stage and at a pressurised Zep related occasion, he was able to slot it in at this charity event with little fuss.

It worked majestically….

With an ad- hoc line up with few rehearsals, the arrangement was always going to be more loose than tight. That mattered little, as his vocal phrasing was absolutely spot on and what a joy it was to hear him sing this song with a calm control. Some subtle backing vocals aided the tranquil mood.

Here’s the thing – Robert Plant sang it as though he really meant it – confident in his skin at revisiting a major part of his past. Looking good with the mic off held in that familiar pose we know so well.

I wonder what was going through his mind? I know for me it prompted so many precious memories.

There were no ad-libs this time in what was out a fairly straight rendering – the guitar solo was neat and compact and they were back in for the grand finale. Here, Robert slowed things down and the key with it avoiding any strained vocals and he even sang the last section ‘’To be a rock and not to roll’’ for a second time – making it a unique arrangement. He did retain the ''our Stairway'' sentiment.

It was also unique for being the only time he has performed Stairway To Heaven without Jimmy Page...

The final ‘’and she’s buying’’ line was delivered with a delicate finesse – watching it prompted some instant flashbacks.

Momentarily I was back at Earls Court as the mirrorballs spun above them, back in that field just outside Stevenage when they came back to reclaim their crown (''so many people who've helped us over the years - no more people more important than yourselves who who came here on a blind date -this is for you all of yer'') and at home in 1985 watching the TV as the camera panned out to 90,00 watching them re group in Philadelphia for Live Aid.

I also thought about all the much missed friends and Zep comrades who are no longer around to enjoy this special moment...

All that was enough to prompt a huge lump in my throat and a tear in my eye.

Then Robert really sealed it.

Firstly he dedicated the performance to Andy:

“I know that in this contemporary age of digital stuff there’s every likelihood that other people will see that,” he said, facing Taylor. “So if they do, I offer it up to you and your success and to the whole deal that has happened here today and the future of it all.

And also so it’s not just that, I offer it up to Led Zeppelin, wherever they are”

Andy Taylor replied ‘’God bless ‘em there’s a lot of drummers in the sky we love.’’

Let's ponder on that statement...

''I offer this up to Led Zeppelin wherever they are''

It felt like he was giving the song back to his former bandmates and back to his audience – To the privileged few who were lucky enough to witness this special occasion and beyond that to countless fans like me and you.

Deep in the heart of the Cotswold's on an October Saturday evening Robert reclaimed a major part of his history and ours.

It’s likely he may never ever sing Stairway To Heaven this song again and if he doesn’t, it’s had a suitably poignant send off.

There was none of the pressure of the previous post Led Zep performances. It happened for a great cause and for a great fellow Midlands based musician.

I am aiming to be up in the Midlands in a few days’ time for the Saving Grace featuring Suzi Dian gig at the Birmingham Symphony Hall.

I am eagerly looking forward to it, not least after witnessing the YouTube video of this Andy Taylor tribute. For at 75 he is singing so brilliantly and his enjoyment as to where he is at in these advancing years is both inspiring and infectious.

Knowing that Robert Plant is at one with Led Zeppelin’s most famous song makes it all just a little bit more comforting.

As the song states ‘’If you listen very hard the tune will come to you at last’’

I’m still listening to Robert Plant intensely – as are countless others…

Dave Lewis - October 27 2023

youtube

#Stairway to Heaven 2023 #Robert Plant Stairway to Heaven #Led Zeppelin #I've changed my opinion a bit but still seems some personal connection may have ended #Youtube

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ilovewhiteroses · 2 years ago

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He Is Not What He Seems

Pairing: COD Fender Takács X Medic Reader Genre: Fluff Warnings: Mentions of violence, some swearwords Rating: none Notes: - @placeinthemiddleofnowhere got me into playing Call Of Duty and when I learned that Fender is hungarian, it was a nice surprise 💕💕

"Wounded soldier! Wounded soldier! Quick, let's put him on the bed!” a paramedic shouted in desperation. A bullet hit the soldier’s right upper arm and it should have been taken out of there immediately. You and the other medics rushed over and began treating him. Since it was an open wound, you could do nothing but disinfect it and bandage it, while you asked the paramedics to take the unfortunate man to the hospital. The milder injuries were treated in the medical room, the more serious cases had to be taken to the hospital.

You tried to hide who you really were from others, because you didn't want to stand out. Your father is a rich businessman with so much money that even your grandchildren would never have financial problems. You have two half-siblings from his previous marriage, with whom you never really got along, because they couldn't bear the fact that they would have to share the inheritance with you. While they happily spent their father's money, you decided that you really wanted to help, not just at charity events. Thus, unlike your spoiled siblings, you applied for medical school after high school, which your father was very proud of.

You recently started working as one of KorTac's medics and so far you've handled situations well, although there have been quite overwhelming moments as well. Today was relatively calm, you only had to treat a few minor injuries. You got hungry and went to the vending machine to get some food. You looked for a ham and cheese sandwich, but when you were waiting for the machine to dispense it, it suddenly stopped and your sandwich got stuck inside. You hit the glass angrily, because not only was your money lost, but you were also left hungry.

"Can I help you?" asked a confident male voice. You looked up and it was König, the Austrian KorTac operator. It was not difficult to notice him, his huge stature was visible even from several meters away. You haven't talked much so far, even though you've tended his wounds a couple of times.

"Um, yes, please, I'd really appreciate it." you said in confusion. The big man hit the glass of the vending machine with his gloved fist so hard that it was a wonder it didn't break. The machine took the signal and dispensed the sandwich. König took it and handed it to you.

"There you go. Hmm, it looks good, I might buy one for myself, although I prefer heartier meals.” he said politely under his mask. You took it from him and thanked him. You were about to go back when König called after you.

"I know we haven't talked much so far, but I just want to say that you are doing a good job. It can't be easy for you either."

"Of course not, but we are here to help you." you told him with a smile then said goodbye to him, promising to talk to him again.

A few days later, KorTac soldiers went on another mission. There was a lot of upheaval in the medical room, you barely managed to treat the wounded. Among others, they brought in Fender, an operator who suffered a head injury and an injury to his arm, as a bullet grazed him there. You went there to take care of him, you asked him to take off his mask.

"Do I have to?" he reluctantly asked you.

"Yes, since you had a big hit on your head and I need to see if you have a concussion." you replied and carefully removed the mask off him. After you examined him and saw that his injury was not serious, you treated the wound on his arm,

"I see that there is nothing wrong, but I will refer you for a skull CT scan, that's for sure."

"Believe me, this hard head never gets hurt." he said with a slight smile. He's a good looking guy, you thought to yourself, then quickly felt ashamed, because you shouldn't have thought like that in such a situation.

"No no! You go and get a CT scan, I'm not arguing about that!" you told him firmly and Fender saluted.

"Okay, I will do what you ask."

You've been thinking about him quite a bit since you took care of him. There were other guys besides him, but for some reason HE caught your attention the most. You've heard that he is not an easy case - in fact, no one at KorTac was - and he's quite ruthless on the battlefield, but he's loyal and helps his comrades in trouble.

You wanted to know more about him, so you invited König to a pub to talk a little about the soldier of Hungarian origin. At first he wanted to leave the mask on, but you talked him into taking it off instead so as not to scare others. You both drank beer, only König asked for a bigger pint. He took a drink and let out a loud belch.

"This is good beer! I missed it." he said and wiped his mouth then looked at you. "You don't drink?"

"Yeah, but I rarely drink beer. Tell me…what do you know about Fender?” you asked, tapping the side of the glass with your fingers, then you took a drink too.

"Fender? What's up with him? You have a crush on him or what?” he asked, causing you to almost spit out your drink.

"No! I mean… since I don't know everyone yet, I thought you could tell me a little about him." König first raised his eyebrows doubtfully, then grinned like a mischievous child. He wasn't stupid, he knew what was going on.

"Okay, if you say so. To be honest, I don't know much about him, even though we fight together. All I know is that he was master sergeant in the Hungarian army. He's quite a hothead, but otherwise a good guy. Plus, his mask is pretty ridiculous, it looks like two slices of bread covering his face." he laughed at his own joke. It reminded you of when you took care of Fender, and until you took it off of him, he really looked funny in it.

After that, you didn't talk much about the hungarian, instead König told you about their latest mission and his kill count.

A few days later you were writing reports and filing papers when you heard a knock on the door and Fender stepped in. This time he was not in his military uniform, but in a dark t-shirt and jeans, holding a folder.

"Hello! What's up?" you were surprised but tried not to show it.

"I had a CT scan of my skull and brought the diagnosis to show it to you. Fortunately, nothing was found.” he said with a smile, even though he was clearly embarrassed too. He gave you the folder, you looked at the papers.

"Thank God, I'm happy about that." you gave it back to him. You wanted to return to your own things, but Fender was still hanging around.

"Is there something else?" you asked and put your pen down.

“Well, as a matter of fact, yes. Well, er, the thing is, I thought I'd ask…how about you having coffee with me? I want to thank you for what you have done for me.” Fender finally said. Your eyes widened.

"Never mind, that's my job, but… is that allowed? ” you asked.

"We are just going to have coffee, there’s nothing wrong about that." Fender looked at you kindly. Your heart suddenly started beating faster…

"Okay, just wait a bit, I'll finish with these and then we can go." you said. He went out and you tried to focus on the paperwork, although it was pretty difficult.

You went to a recently opened, cozy little cafe. You asked for a latte macchiato because you loved coffee with milk, the operator had cappuccino, and you also chose some cookies to accompany them. Since he invited you, he insisted that he pay, even though you told him to cut it in half. You felt a little guilty for letting him pay in the end, since, if you wanted to, you could buy the entire cafe from your future inheritance. You took the foods with you and looked for empty seats. Both of you were quite embarrassed, because you had never seen each other in civilian clothes before and you didn't know what to do with the situation. To break the ice, you spoke first.

"You chose a nice place, I've never been here before."

"Me neither, I just heard about it and thought I'd try it sometime. I'm glad I came with you. The others, especially König, are more pub-going types, when it comes to coffee, the vending machine one is enough for them." Fender blushed slightly and took a quick bite of his cookie to cover it, hoping you didn't notice. You did, and thought it was cute - an almost two-meter-tall, rigid soldier. When he wasn't looking grumpy, he actually had a kind face. His beautiful, brown eyes and defined cheekbones swept you off your feet... Your mind already started to wander somewhere else when suddenly you heard your name in the distance. When you regained consciousness, it turned out that he was calling you, because you didn't answer his question.

"Oh, I’m so sorry that I didn't pay attention, but I don't even know when was the last time I had a really good sleep." you were ashamed of yourself and held your forehead. You even forgot about your coffee for a moment.

"Don’t be sorry. I haven't even known what sleep is for a while now." he smiled shyly.

You wanted to talk about something else, so you asked about his origin.

"So, you're Hungarian, right?"

"Only half. My mom is Hungarian, my dad, whom I never knew, was American." he said, sipping his coffee. You remembered Erzsike, who taught you some Hungarian words a few years ago.

"I had a Hungarian friend, from whom I know a few Hungarian words, which are actually swear words." as you said, you were embarrassed like a teenager.

"Well, let me hear them!" Fender encouraged you. Although there was little chance that others would understand what you were saying, out of caution you quietly flashed him your minimal knowledge of Hungarian.

"Let's see... Mi a neved? (what's your name?), Hogy vagy? (how are you?), Baszd meg! (fuck you!), Kurva élet! (fucking fuck), Fogd be! (shut up)…what else? Törődj a magad dolgával! (mind your own business!). That’s all.” Fender laughed.

”Haha, these are good. I also taught the others a few words and it's very funny when they try to pronounce them." the cookies and coffee in front of him slowly ran out. "Is there something you would like to know in Hungarian?"

"Hmm, how do you say ’don't worry, everything will be fine?' If I have to tend to your wounds again, that's what I can tell you." you said kindly. Fender smiled at your reasoning.

" Semmi baj, minden rendben lesz!" you repeated, Fender was barely able to hide his laughter.

"Your pronunciation is so cute!" he said and you both had a good laugh.

It was hard for you to imagine that the kind, huge guy with whom you had just had a good coffee, could be a real killing machine in a different situation. You looked deeply into his eyes and saw a kind of sadness. He's obviously been through a lot since he started military life, but he hasn't let it all consume him. Deep down, you were glad that you knew this good-natured self of his, and not the other, wild, ruthless one.

You put your hand on the table and Fender put his on it. You turned your hand so your palms were touching. The small touch made your heart beat faster again. You've only just met him, yet you've started to feel something for him…

#call of duty #fender takacs #cod fender #fanfic #COD Fender Takács X Reader #COD Fender X Reader

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fuglyjeans · 3 months ago

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i feel like i need to write a video essay but my thoughts are still percolating

joker 2 thoughts so far (spoilers in red):

my initial reaction was positive, I was not bored like some are saying they were

the musical bits could have been done differently but for the most part, I enjoyed them. it made sense for this story. some of the best parts of the film were musical numbers

initially i really liked the plot, I thought it was a cool fuck you to everyone who misunderstood the first film. but on thinking a bit more about it, i think it would have been cooler to ignore the haters and focus on making a better movie. the meta-commentary is a zinger but it really sucks after a few seconds because then you remember wait, i was interested in this character and this worldbuilding tho? can we get back to that?

all the characters in both joker movies are incredibly flat, 1d portrayals. like literally everyone is mean or manipulative towards arthur. that worked for the first film since arthur was an unreliable narrator, it was fun to try to understand what was his nihilism and what was his actual lived reality.

i liked that the lines between serious and not serious were totally blurred and it was anyone's guess if something was corny bs, or actually believable. to me that reflects real life. because there genuinely are people who get shit on and kicked at every possible turn in their lives. i've met people like this. some of them seem "crazy" and i still don't know if they are or aren't lying about the things they claim but in the end it doesn't really matter because they need mental healthcare either way. ask me more about the specific stories if you're interested... I just think it's neat how Arthur reminds me of real life people.

however in Joker 2, this kind of doesn't work anymore. because the film is a lot more sympathetic towards arthur, it makes this demarcation between Arthur and Joker that I don't think existed in the first film. the very first scene in Joker 2 is a cartoon depicting Arthur in a literal battle with an evil doppelganger, who gets him into trouble... pronouncing Arthur as "the sane one" means all the reasons Joker went ham before must have been delusions. so, with every character being a complete tool towards Arthur still in this film, it doesn't make sense anymore. it doesn't feel like potentially part of his delusion, it just feels like lazy writing.

(spoiler) while I understand why they played Lee like they did, i think it's a massive missed opportunity to make her just another one of Arthur's abusers.

I have always read Arthur as a queer character. He is a guy who struggles to feel manly enough despite not really seeming all that interested in masculinity deep down. He is a guy who finds strength performance---the Joker persona is very camp, very drag queen to me. I've always seen Arthur as potentially trans, bisexual, and/or gay...

(spoiler)...So when I heard Gaga was going to play Harley I couldn't help but get fucking excited. because Harley is a bisexual character. Gaga is a bisexual woman who has always paid homage to queer culture and drag. Maybe I'm just projecting but I think this could have been SO SO SO more interesting and fun if they'd done a traditional Harley, who genuinely loves Arthur and isn't just using him and lying to him... I think it could have brought out more facets of Arthur's character and taken the story somewhere we haven't been before. idk maybe i'm delulu but that's what I wanted

i keep thinking about Alien: Resurrection, because I loved what that entry in the Alien franchise added. that was a movie that said fuck this tired old Ripley journey, it's over, it's been done, we are going to throw body horror and species mixing and ridiculous action scenes and also Ripley is gonna fuck a queen alien just cause and also she's going to have lesbian subtext with Winona Ryder. because we already made 3 serious Alien movies and there's no point retreading, let's do something new and silly with this material. THAT'S the tone I wanted out of Joker 2. but, most people hate Resurrection, so maybe that's just me and my preference.

(spoiler) overall while I don't think Harley needed more screen time per se,(this is a Joker movie, not a Gaga mv, it's about Arthur first and foremost) I do think she was so flat and boring and needed more of a backstory to her.

(spoiler) the ending made sense to me. it didn't upset me. it was a good anti-franchise bs from Todd Phillips... like he kneecapped the Joker Movie Universe before it could go on for decades like the MCU. good on that. Arthur's death also makes perfect sense for him and his character. it's sad but it's what would realistically happen. bro was never a criminal mastermind

ok bye i have to get ready for work!

#probably i'll add more to this later #joker 2 #joker: folie à deux #joker

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illyamusings · 3 months ago

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ACYG

I think I first shot a gun at the age of three with the help of my father. It is a right of passage in Ukraine.

Since then I have learned to shoot just about anything that can be shot.

I was trained as a marksman, sniper, and assassin among other skills.

I have a very healthy respect for guns and the scars to prove it. So far I have avoided a serious wound. I know it is coming. Whether I die or become crippled from that shot, I will deal with my fate.

I know why these thoughts are spinning in my head.

Napoleon was off doing something for Mr. Waverly when we received a credible threat to the town of Montpieler Vermont.

Young Mr. Sonder had been assigned to me as my second. It was his fifth mission. I read his files and his record. Honorable military career then worked as a police man making it to Homicide department. Recruited after he was offered a pension or to be fired. It was discovered later that he was in the right but by that point he was in survival school.

I called up his last partner for a feel of this fellow.

"Oh he's an agent through and through." said Larry Liber of section three.

"What aren't you telling me," I growled in that voice that Napoleon insisted had made agents release their bladder in terror.

"He's a good getter. Wants to be right in the action."

"Hothead?" I asked.

"Not that but more he is invincible."

"Thanks for the honest information and change your trousers, "I said before hanging up the phone.

There was a knock on the door and a young man stepped into the room in a well fitted very dark blue suit and a black turtle neck.

Guy Sonder expected to be in this room with me. He expected that this will get him back on the right track in the company.

I also noticed that i had a hero worshiper in my midst. Great yet another thing that could bollux the mission. I thought of that old Russian phrase А что я, лысый/рыжий? (And what am I - the bald one/the redheaded one?) or simpler "Why me?"

"Have you read the dossier on our target? Waverly was very specific, we are to bring him in alive for interrogation."

The head nodded so much I thought it would fall off his head.

I grabbed my pistol and placed it in my holster. Grabbing the jacket off the chair, I put it on in one fell swoop.

The stake out was quiet. We watched people wander in and out of what we believed to be a new New York satrap. Discreet photos were obtained for examination later.

Sonder was getting more fidgety as the time went on.

"Why don't you get us som lunch from the hotdog stand. I like mine plain. If they have kielbasa, get me that with kraut"

I handed him the money which he received with a sigh.

He returned as our target, Dr Milton finally left the building.

in my mind I was saying "get into the car. get into the car."

Sonder drop our lunch and went for his gun. Milton was faster and shot Sonder in the shoulder.

I was amazed Sonder was still standing and drew his gun pointing it to Milton's head.

I jumped out of the car and pointed my gun at Milton and growled,"alive not dead. You do not want to fill out the paperwork."

Sonder hesitated and Milton took another shoot at him. The gun exploded in his hand leaving him without a hand.

I came round the car and picked up the hand gripping the gun and hustled him into the back of the car. I grabbed Sonder by the scruff of his neck and tossed him into the back of the car.

The TRUSH agents were boiling out of their offices.

I shot over their head, got into the car, and drove away swiftly.

Sonder picked up what was left of Milton's hand and exhamined the gun.

"Did you ever clean your gun?"

It was not the question Milton was expecting so he answered, "I was suppose to clean it?"

"What ! You should ACYG as a matter of habit. I had that drilled into me when I was at school."

"ACYG?" the injured man groaned.

Sonder and I said at the same time." Always Clean Your Gun."

Milton nodded and passed out.

"I cannot give you points for your ham handed way of alerting your subject, but I will give you a well done for a susesful conclusion of the operation."

"Thank you Sir, he replied then passed out on top of Milton

"Amateurs" I muttered as I drove into the UNCLE garage.

#man from uncle tv #illya kuryakin #new kid #Illya's Blog

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cxhleel108 · 1 year ago

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S7 Thots for this week: YAWN!

(Considered not even doing one cuz this shit was so lame but I know y’all love when I be dragging tf outta this game so I’m doing it for you🫶🏽)

• Let’s start with the fact that they didn’t even try to hide the fact that Ivy and Hamish were the special guests this year…girl.

• I’m so happy for the 0.0001% of people that asked for this.

• Babe it’s not a surprise if I already know what you’re finna do but yay!

• Yeah I’m sad that she’s gone too…sad that she's gone and you aren’t🙁

• No new sleepwear…ok.

• Aka these bitches was too lazy to come up with SOMETHING ELSE for our last night in the villa.

• No new outfits for our last date either…ok!

• Yes bitch stay on his neck for that cuz he know he was wrong!

• Once again Bryson, you’re calling what you’re finna do a surprise when it’s not that.

• Wow! We actually got a choice for what we wanted to end our date with…that’s a first.

• TIP TIP TIP ON HARDWOOD FLOORS, TEN TEN TENS ACROSS THE BOARD, GIVE ME FACE FACE FACE FACE YAH, YA FACE CARD NEVER DECLINES MY GOD! Sorry, when I see Beyoncé lyrics I have to fan out.

• Wait that confirms that Uma’s a Beyoncé fan uggghh that’s why she’s my girl fr.

• These two dresses are the only ones that deserve a mention because the prom outfit options this year…I actually wanna cry.

• Like girl the fucking pink dress- whatever let’s move on.

• Whoever tried to fuck over Bryson by making his blazer look awkward asf just know that you and I got beef now. Don’t play my man!

• Girl…be so for real😭😭😭

• Why are we playing “Who’s Most Likely To” in the middle of the finale???

• Why tf do I have to be the loudest snorer? Oh you bitches got both me and Tanya all the way fucked up!

• You know what Willow…I’ve spent basically the entirety of this season getting on yo ass and while it was very funny and entertaining I’m a nice person and I like to give grace. So, Imma let it slide.

• I was finding it so hard to take Alex’s declaration serious only because I feel like I’m the only one that remembers how he tried to get at us. Oh but now all of sudden Uma’s the love of his life and he wanna go exclusive? Yeah, sure.

• CAAPPPP! FUCKING CAP!

• Sorry, I know I said I’d stop but come on let’s at least be honest.

• Travis not even looking at her and looking at us…yeah they’re done for as soon as we leave.

• Surprised Bonnie didn’t make her love declaration all about us. Period, growth!

• He’s literally finna ask us to be his girlfriend why do we need to do this??? Fusebox, I see the funds really aren’t funding anymore.

• OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOODDDDDDDD

• Well duh! Y'all don't even stick to the idea of you.

• Oh here she go already starting shit💀💀💀

• Chile at this point break up like my god.

• Why Ivy lowkey more bearable here than she ever was last season?

• Bryson saying he would block all them groupie bitches for me omg y’all he really loves me🥹

• This nigga💀

• I will say…Ivy and Ham-hock are definitely perfect for each other.

• Yeahhhh considering how this season went I can guarantee that the drama will in fact not be serious at all.

#let’s hurry up and get this over with bruh #I’ve clocked out atp #litg #love island the game #litg s7 #litg season 7 #litg stick or twist #litg mc #litg bryson #litg willow #litg uma #litg alex #litg bonnie #litg travis #litg vicky #litg daphne

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auranova26 · 1 year ago

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Mei-Ling Design Notes and Inspiration 1/2

Unlike her younger twin, Mei-Ling actually went through a large degree of changes compared to both versions of her design in the main timeline. Honestly, went through a large degree of some research and thought to get to the current design that I now have for Mei-Ling. I hope you find some of these notes interesting and fun to read.

I say two designs, but technically Mei-Ling has like 3 designs: Vampire Hunter, the Darkstalkers OVA, and Vampire Savior. Really sad the only full body look of her VHunter design is literally her sprite. The illustration of her Hunter design from one of the covers of a Street Fighter vs. Darkstalkers comic by Udon is quite the beautiful pin up shot, but makes the mistake of giving her the bracelets she has as part of VSAV design. Oops.

Her design is honestly not that different in the OVA compared to her VHunter design. Only big differences are the color of her clothes under her robes, her pants being a different color, the main color of her robe being a defined orange color, and how her hat is both taller and is both orange and yellow. Actually, sounds like a lot really, but design of the clothes themselves are not that different.

Her VSAV design is a general overhaul of the Hunter design. I can only imagine the reason that was done is because they had to animate her for the 'Detached Souls' Dark Force and it might have been a major pain in the ass to animate her robe and sleeves. It isn't bad, but I hate the hat and prefer her robe being open rather than closed. It is genuinely surprising that despite being a non-playable character, the team gave her a different design. A nice consolation.

OH RIGHT, I need to talk about what my thought process was. Sorry, just needed to note all the interesting design things regarding her different designs. So, I generally have stuck with the design she had in VHunter as I just prefer it more compared to her VSAV design. I might have given a jab to the artist who made that pin up of her for that Udon comic. Let me retract that cause I did basically the same thing when I first started drawing her back in 2020. Tweaked the colors here and there to my liking and made her sleeves not as large, but generally the same idea.

Later on, added a little detail on her clothes that I saw an artist by the name of Murai do with her interpretation. This won't be the last I will bring up this artist, hoo boi.

At one point, I changed the sash around Mei-Ling's waste to be an Obi Sash as to make things easier for me.

Around mid 2021, when I was getting more serious about my Cryas Darkstalkers mythos and even further with my love and obsession with the Shao sisters, I went about the process of giving them a makeover, truly trying to give them distinct enough designs. While Hsien-Ko was not too different as her core design was basically near perfect, there was a lot of room for change for Mei-Ling. I mean hell, she had different official designs anyway, what is stopping me from going ham. I mean hecc, look at this concept sketch when they were considering her design change from VHunter to VSAV. Quite a bit of thought. However, I wanted to go further.

Since I wanted to flesh out the sisters, I went about thinking about their potential heritage, the time period they were alive in during the Qing Dynasty, women's fashion at the time for the potential social status they could have been in at the time, the occupation they were training for, and the fact that…well they are Chinese. Since Mei-Ling gives the vibe of being very into her culture and wanting to maintain it, I wanted her clothing to both show off her heritage and her role as a Xianshushi Mystic. Hsien-Ko is said to be more 'modern' in her mannerisms compared to her older twin, so why not have Mei-Ling be more traditional. The first thing to get us on track is to start at the beginning. Mei-Ling and Hsien-Ko were born in 1730 in China during the Qing Dynasty period. In my research and with corroboration with a friend of mine, I decided that the Shao sisters would be a mix of Han and Manchu, two ethnic groups that were the most prevalent at the time period. Their mother was Manchu while their father was Han. However, since their father was killed before they were born, they were more influenced in the ways of the Manchu people as they grew up. The Shao family in themselves are not among the imperial courts or the elite. However, because they have provided a great service over the centuries, they are given more leniency and not treated like the common folk. Plus, with eventually being trained to become Xiānshù warriors as their mother saw great potential in them, that helped to influence them as well.

To start with, let us begin with the robe. So, to my understanding in the main timeline Mei-Ling was generally based on the idea of Daoist priest attire. Doing some searches, jiangshi films did feature such priest like characters with that general idea, even with the color. However, I wanted to do a bit more looking. In my search, the open robe design that her VHunter and my design go with is something referred to a beizi (褙子).

Some parts of Daoism do have their priest having an open robe design, but also the beizi in general was a form of wear that the Chinese people did wear.

It was around during the time of the Qing Dynasty and according to Wikipedia, it was something that was dominant among the Han women of the time. A nice way to acknowledge her Han roots. Yellow doesn't seem to be really a thing with actual Daoist priests' attire, but it just fits Mei-Ling so well, I stuck with that color. While the beizi is prominent with having long sleeves, I decided to trim it down enough to where it ends past her elbow, kinda like her VSAV robe's sleeve length. Ey, giving some credit to that design. As for the trimming, this card I came across showed it in a neat way where it is actually not just flat but has some dimension to it. I liked that and went with it, along with the idea of the trimming being orange.

The hat is loosely based on a hat known as a guānjīn, shown on the far left of this image.

The main timeline version was certainly not one to one about it. But honestly, I like the stylized, simpler idea, so I used that as a base. I took a lot of observations and notes from the way the OVA hat is drawn. However, I just prefer the hat to be one color, so I stuck with yellow. I liked the yin-yang symbol as well, so kept that too.

Another minor detail about Mei-Ling's beizi are these almost padded looking pieces of cloth that follow her trapezius to around the middle of her shoulder. Honestly, I just made them up. These concept sketches I made show me coming up with the idea as I was thinking of her design. It just looks cool and neat.

On to the garment underneath.

With the Shao sisters also being Manchu, this is where some of the influence kicks in. The Manchu wore a set of clothing known as 旗裝 (qízhuāng). The specific kind that the sisters wear falls under something known as Bianfu (便服). Mei-Ling's bianfu is stylized to be a robe that is the length of a magua.

The sleeves are loose and long enough to reach her wrists. The main part of the robe is rich red color while having trimmings and a collar of a lavender color. Contrasts nicely against her beizi.

You may be curious what is going on with the cloth around her waist. Honestly, it was only put there mostly to help solve an issue I had with Mei-Ling's design: the bagua mirror. So, in this shot from the OVA, it is held up by a set of straps.

Ok, fair enough. But the issue is that nothing from the front suggest that those straps even exist. The mirror may as well just be magnetically attached to her a la video game style. In my concept phase, I was wondering what to do. One thing I did notice that was really cool was from the story 'Monsters and the Secret of Immortality'.

Granted, the design of Mei-Ling in that story is wildly different from any incarnation of Mei-Ling, but it presented a neat idea: her mirror was holstered at her waist. Not only that, but it did also look a lot more like a bagua mirror in its design. The mirror's design in this story set the base for how I design the mirror, though I only have two rows rather than the typical three. However, she is wearing attire that doesn't really fit with either her Han or Manchu roots, so I needed to come up with something more fitting to her culture. In my research, I did stumble on something that fascinated me.

What you see is not the original image that inspired me, but still illustrates the idea. Cloth at the waist held in place by a ribbon. I honestly don't know if that idea of garment has a name, but it struck a chord: Have the mirror hang around her waist.

Unlike any official design of Mei-Ling and to differentiate herself from Hsien-Ko, I decided to switch from the baggy trousers to a more straight cut pair. Looks nice and smooth and still goes along with the kind of trousers they wore in that time era. The color I chose just honestly meshed well with her bianfu, plus is warm compared the cool colors of the trim of her bianfu.

While the wristbands she has for her VSAV design are cool looking, something about them just doesn't mesh well with what Mei-Ling is supposed to be. While yes, she is a weapon master (and likely taught Hsien-Ko all she knew about weapons), she is presented more as the mystic of the duo. They look rough and tough. Honestly, would look better on Hsien-Ko in all honestly since she is in the thick of battle. However, I still wanted her to have something at her wrist. I chose to go with a simple orange jewel bead wristband. Simple and elegant for her.

So, if the mirror was moved to hanging around her waist, is there nothing at her back? For a while, there wasn't anything. But eventually, the idea of putting some kind of design back there did come to mind. Eventually, I landed on this design.

Her ref sheet goes into to detail about it, but to put it simply dragons have a big thing with their family considering their mother upon using the Art of Unusual Transformation turned into one. According to what I found via searching Japanese sources, primarily the Japanese Wikipedia entry for Hsien-Ko, there is mention of their mother transforming into a golden dragon. That is very cool since the OVA and a few anthology stories show this.

Mei-Ling's official hairstyle is best described as a bob cut. I went with the OVA as a general base, but slowly overtime adjusted it.

On both sides of her hair and near her hairline, there are these basically fangs. Despite her being more human in appearance, I thought it was still a nice idea to subtlety add some mildly wild elements to her since she is non-human. A bit crazier are these two pincer locks of hair. Honestly, I just took what was already part of her official design and exaggerated it into something cool. For some asymmetry, one is larger than the other. As for the general shape of her hair, I did fan it out more for volume as to make her hair different from her human form.

Mei-Ling's general body shape. Honestly, besides making her distinct from Hsien-Ko as they are both fraternal twins, I just wanted to really make her unbelievably beautiful. In a way, considering hardly anyone gives her the time of day because she is non playable, I just like the idea that she is actually very voluptuous and gorgeous. So that is why she has the general proportions she has. I wouldn't say she is skinny or the typical anime proportions: She is just fit, well endowed, and curvy. Among the Cryas DS cast, the only character that is around her breast and butt size is Felicia. As for why she also has tone to some parts of her body, the fact is she was conceptualized with that as you can see with this concept sketch of her official design. Mei-Ling has just about everything going for her in terms of looks.

Whenever she has appeared in games or media, Mei-Ling has had a multitude of different eye colors. I personally just stuck with green, like the OVA did. Green just looks nice on her, really makes her face mesmerizing. Specifically, I wanted the shades of her eyes to be more of like jade.

For now, will need to end things here for the first part of this design blog as I have used the permitted 30 images for a blog and the last bits require more images to explain things. So be sure to head to part 2, the final part right here:

#cryas darkstalkers #darkstalkers #auranova26 #mei ling #shao #chinese #jiangshi #mystic #mei-ling #design notes #i love her too much #that is why there is so much info and pictures #beautiful woman

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fangirleaconmigo · 2 years ago

Text

@death-is-always-free

I feel compelled to solve your mystery for you. Unfortunately (or fortunately) I'm a nerd for film lore and this one delights me for some reason. It involves Alan Rickman being Alan Rickman, so that is probably why.

The 'why a spoon' quote is from the 1991 movie Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, which would be an completely forgettable movie were it not for the gatdamned delightful scenery chewing performance of the late great Alan Rickman as the evil Sheriff of Nottingham.

Just previous to the scene he's yelled at Robin hood

"I'm gonna cut out your heart with a spoon!"

Later, his cousin questions his choice of threats.

"Why a spoon, cousin? Why not an axe or something?"

To which he replies:

"Because it's dull, you twit, it'll hurt more!"

Rickman added that line, along with all the other funny ones (That's it then! Cancel the kitchen scraps for lepers and orphans, no more merciful beheadings! and call off Christmas!) for his character, which endeared him to audiences, and enraged Kevin Costner.

So, Kevin Costner was taking this movie deadly seriously. He didn't want to make Robin Hood 'a joke'. He wanted to sound English and do a prestige drama that would win him the approval of the English. They kept trying to get Alan Rickman for Sheriff Nottingham, being a classically trained serious English actor and all. This was Costner's first mistake.

The problem was, Rickman thought the script was garbage so he turned it down twice. But the powers that be really wanted him so they told Rickman he could 'make the character his own'.

Well, Rickman was like…this script is bad. It will fail as prestige. The only way it's going to be enjoyable and good is to embrace the camp.

So, he rewrote his character with two of his friends in the back of a pizza hut and added all of the hilarious iconic lines.

But the director didn't tell Kevin Costner nor anyone else on the set (maybe he was trying to avoid conflict?? He knew good and well Costner wanted a prestige drama??) and Rickman just showed up on set and went HAM with his campy, hilarious dialogue.

Rickman was right. It worked. His character is the only thing people in test audiences loved about the movie. They cut more of Costner and put in more of Rickman and Costner was deeply deeply unhappy, feeling like his prestige movie had been ruined. He tried to push back and demand they cut more of Rickman. They did not.

When it came out, all the reviews basically said, 'this is all very awkward but at least Alan Rickman is a delight.'

AND THEN?? I swear the cherry on the shit sundae for poor Costner was that his film was indeed noticed by the British film establishment but notice who got the awards:

BAFTA - Best supporting actor, Alan Rickman Evening Standard British Film Awards - Best actor, Alan Rickman London Film Critics Circle Award - Best British Actor of the Year, Alan Rickman

They were a bunch of tired, shady bitches on the promotional tour.

Tell me about a joke that you and your family absolutely lose your shit over that other people would not get.

Tell me about the very unique way you pick on each other.

Or tell me about a pop culture reference your family will never let die and you’ve never heard any other family use it.

*chin on hands* I just love hearing these stories. (I’m obsessed with little loser microcultures like families and very niche fandoms) So lay it on me.

#alan rickman #robin hood #i know this is off topic #but it's fun for me #so here we are

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cubedmango · 10 months ago

Note

hi again from kr anon - thank you for the greetings too!! they're very much appreciated 🥺❤️ and thankfully january went well enough for me, but i'm sorry to hear that about you - i hope you've fully recovered by now, but if not, i hope you continue to get better, and wishing you well in general 🫶🏼💕

anyway ever since your most recent reply and your reblogging some of the posts i linked, i became inspired and kinda went ham in looking for more build fanart and memes/shitposts on tumblr (+ twitter now too) that i thought you'd enjoy (ngl they're mostly ryusen-centric, but some involve other characters too, and just like before, they're all either non-spoilery or contain spoilers only up to the parts i know you've seen dw), and bc unfortunately i'm still not yet done formulating my full reply to your message + my overall review of build, i've decided to share these links in a separate batch of asks ahead instead 😅 so feel free to also like/reblog/retweet whichever ones you like best from here, whenever you want 👍🏼 [1/?]

(rest below)

from twitter: twitter . com/cynonic/status/1744439785220096002?t=ml7-RUxO5wG_Hx1RuYoFwA&s=19 & twitter . com/cynonic/status/1741698101516402694?t=jeeB09x5gieRJMByjcCFOA&s=19 & twitter . com/0e0n0_2/status/1752739004284568020?t=FMOmj13lgC-ftHx8tDXeSA&s=19 twitter . com/1010_mumumu/status/1738570763186389299?t=BnZHQEpRfxFdxe_HCXOhdQ&s=19 (this one is part of a series celebrating the 5th anniversary of hei gen forever last year, and so sento and banjou's appearances here are based on how they looked in that movie) & twitter . com/1010_mumumu/status/1741474547860410529?t=cnut6U-N2pa33lNbtvEqCQ&s=19 (tbh this person is a prolific build fanartist in general, like they even made a series of arts for every single episode of the show + extra material like the movies, but bc of that a lot of their work naturally has spoilers, so it's best to wait to look at the rest of their stuff until after you're done watching) twitter . com/spidergenome/status/1749001327215309037?t=RY_X2N2V6xqFJ1fzoqmEPw&s=19 & twitter . com/nicosaibas/status/1752739603126353963?t=Y4KKCAWqjlEMfETk5bCRsw&s=19 & twitter . com/shibaemon56472/status/1726574998129692718?t=_C80GkxKpPHrDPBEKedDKA&s=19 (ngl this last one made me feel like foaming at the mouth when i first saw it... need more serious/angsty build fanart in this vein actually) [2/?]

from tumblr - memes and shitposts edition: tumblr . com/skajador/701833793679605760/have-you-ever-thought-to-yourself-what-if-the & tumblr . com/number-one-toku-robot-lover/707190595602481152/cina-full-moon-xanadium-saikou-woo-hoo & tumblr . com/kabutoraiger/172667788907 tumblr . com/katsuragitakumi/170223739892/i-cant-believe-this-happened (speaking of the gay ass ryusen flashback montage at the end of ep. 20...) & tumblr . com/deathdefied/186877098000 & tumblr . com/rollforhotness/679210085964251136/my-friends-have-subjected-me-to-kamen-rider-build tumblr . com/yourfaveisdumbasfuck/182668957031/ryuga-banjou-from-kamen-rider-build-is-dumb-as & tumblr . com/r4bbitdragon/634111980187336704/cinematic-parasols (more build x cm stuff i guess; also 'parasols' is a reference to hei gen final and how the villain there asked banjou if he'd ever heard of parallel worlds - saying it in english - and banjou said he hadn't and "you can take your parasols and your apparels and get stuffed!") & tumblr . com/greatwhitesharktic/168414603408/this-had-to-be-done-obviously [3/?]

tumblr . com/plushie-sentai/721349706589110272/couldnt-stop-thinking-abt-this-audio-as-i & tumblr . com/star-stream/711827004916465664 & tumblr . com/cephalopistol/738928673836695552/discussion-around-internet-culture-during-the tumblr . com/cerastes/635140235277254656/when-character-customization-shows-in-the & tumblr . com/cephalopistol/709346416767729665/i-forgot-to-post-these-yesterday-noooooooo (this one features a bunch of characters from other kr shows you haven't seen, but i'm sure you'll be happy to see the build version at least) & tumblr . com/hyenatron/715226536814493696/banjou-has-no-idea-what-the-plot-of-build-is tumblr . com/tsunflowers/171525478527 & tumblr . com/tsunflowers/170236361802 & tumblr . com/kabutoraiger/174096709452/sento-sometime-in-the-indeterminable-future-hey & tumblr . com/42wv/172324292120/ryuga-gets-it also this one wasn't specifically about build but tell me this isn't sento and blood stalk's current relationship in a nutshell: tumblr . com/panvani/642659794718769152 [4/?]

and from tumblr - fanart edition: tumblr . com/maepop/174491278047/best-match & tumblr . com/swmtk/185287832414 & tumblr . com/deathdefied/185808953970 tumblr . com/mysillycomics/190673525700/thinks-about-kamen-rider-build-constantly & tumblr . com/procrasticus/737389453694386176/ive-been-watching-kamen-rider-build & tumblr . com/wmolecules/170680711727/build-is-pain-so-here-have-something-soft tumblr . com/vanicchidraws/183367254758/kamen-rider-build-starters-kiryuu-sento-x (i'm not really knowledgeable about pokemon myself but i assume you'll know if the ones here fit the characters) & tumblr . com/examorhca/739758146400157696 & tumblr . com/rrotostap/738441549054148608/starting-off-2024-with-a-lil-doodle-of-these [5/?]

tumblr . com/rubberlemon/736876637027811328/i-wonder-how-it-feels-knowing-maths & tumblr . com/m1ontee/736472097386381312/collective & tumblr . com/large8/738352672306085888/hes-so-cutes tumblr . com/m1ontee/738293208293965824/year-2023-year-2024-happy-new-year & tumblr . com/kirider/726752184437555200/backlog-25082022-be-the-light-be-the-light & tumblr . com/mrdinoart/736200905568976896/hagane-no-moonsault-rabbit-tank-wake-up tumblr . com/animasmith263/739096420409278464/happy-new-year-uh-ooh-its-late-cross-z-for-a & tumblr . com/m1ontee/732728912968351744/recall & tumblr . com/m1ontee/737300816789143552/this-show-makes-me-emotionally-distressed [6/?]

tumblr . com/crayaks/722380597270659072/from-2022 & tumblr . com/m1ontee/739727202127675392 & tumblr . com/toseuteu/705549391206989824/since-its-the-year-of-the-build-i-mean-rabbit tumblr . com/takeru-tenkuuji/636335100789915648/19-the-forbidden-item & tumblr . com/tetra-fang/719874639397044224 & tumblr . com/ichippon/733173230693728256/hi-the-animals-ive-been-obsessed-with-lately tumblr . com/minalyce/709262087442104321/he-wants-to-kiss-him-so-bad-but-the-protein & tumblr . com/yaka06210/706244945107943424 & tumblr . com/mrdinoart/722325994695000064/sento-y-banjou-sentados-en-un-banco-sento-and [7/?]

tumblr . com/tetra-fang/701676552416641024 & tumblr . com/hazardlevei/632820389176819712/cosy-ryusens-thanks-everyone-for-coming-to-the & tumblr . com/katsuragitakumi/629615350530572289 tumblr . com/mok921/628733669100716032/jump & tumblr . com/hazardlevei/618252874309320704/love-you-love-you-love-you-love-you-love-you & tumblr . com/vza-ley/190725492371/it-turns-out-that-love-is-real-after-all tumblr . com/pepegle/627255875002826752 & tumblr . com/pepegle/626622821332893696 & tumblr . com/alienmandyarchive/627113101937000448/best-match tumblr . com/pepegle/626700421893963776 & tumblr . com/keshi-zumi/182400942007/20190126-%E4%BB%A5%E5%89%8D%E6%8F%8F%E3%81%84%E3%81%9F%E8%90%BD%E6%9B%B8%E3%81%8D%E3%81%AB%E8%89%B2%E3%82%92%E5%A1%97%E3%82%8A%E3%81%BE%E3%81%97%E3%81%9F & tumblr . com/t-u-i-t-c/697894945443446785/dapperowl-were-in-this-together tumblr . com/sugarling5/739095128782831616 & tumblr . com/are8exist/706126591221268480/%E4%BB%AE%E9%9D%A2%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%83%80%E3%83%BC%E3%83%93%E3%83%AB%E3%83%89%E3%82%AF%E3%83%AD%E3%83%BC%E3%82%BA & tumblr . com/hykwy4d10/177439938428 [8/?]

tumblr . com/gurayura/667866638050377728/dapperowl-ship-request-23-banjou-ryuga-x-kiryu & tumblr . com/sugarling5/713713361882431488 & tumblr . com/sugarling5/695763665548443648 tumblr . com/sugarling5/695763147565481984 & tumblr . com/sakura-neko6/675544478634934272/best-match & tumblr . com/sugarling5/695763006418780160 tumblr . com/demonrice/707712798078205952/best-match & tumblr . com/chacerider/171282562945/hey-sento-why-is-sawa-like-never-around-anymore & tumblr . com/chacerider/171693183615/banjou-seriously-where-do-you-get-those-shirts also here's some fanart you should check out after at least finishing ep. 21: tumblr . com/takeru-tenkuuji/654993427244695552/forcefed-all-of-build-to-han-in-a-weekend-because & tumblr . com/warpstaffs/734561293033472000/sento-kiryu-being-a-pathetic-wet-rabbit-born-in-a & tumblr . com/curlytsunamiart/175360646354/some-ryusen-doodles and then fanart you should look at after at least finishing ep. 22: tumblr . com/takeru-tenkuuji/636342648384421888/22-victory-of-tears & tumblr . com/sugarling5/702007406407876608 [9/?]

and also an edit to watch after finishing ep. 21: tumblr . com/ampersandra/634012352750206976/fuck-it-i-already-posted-this-to-twt-but-this-is some more official photoshoots and promotional images: tumblr . com/katsuragitakumi/629800422400475136 & tumblr . com/katsuragitakumi/625348446430412800 & tumblr . com/katsuragitakumi/181324726008 (this one is a photoshoot they did for hei gen forever like what i mentioned earlier) tumblr . com/katsuragitakumi/189774335268 & tumblr . com/katsuragitakumi/190142084718 & tumblr . com/katsuragitakumi/190628550003 & tumblr . com/kabutoraiger/178192987118/an-end-to-hero-visions-build-wall-saga-and tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/705756018521571328 & tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/702807993153110016 & tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/703409601880752128 & tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/706343095445405696 tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/703322473764175872 & tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/705481362691538944 & tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/706614483275202560 & tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/706794700001165312 tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/702356656449847296 & tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/704808697243795456 & tumblr . com/writing-in-sin/706252816585474048 [10/?]

more official merch + kr cafe stuff: tumblr . com/kabutoraiger/648150309174198272/wake-up-babes-new-best-match-jewelry-dropped & tumblr . com/himitsusentaiblog/182766108575/kamen-rider-the-diner-in-ikebukuro-is-doing-a plus i think i might have previously mentioned that the show's theme song had an official english version sung by the same singer (beverly), so now here's the full lyric video (no spoilers dw): youtu . be/G87WJDpNC8Y?si=Fha4f1SBqIfGiqDW also since we've talked about the toku to bl pipeline before, especially with both of build's leads infamously being part of it, here's something you might be interested in: tumblr . com/missmako-chan/739247201631469569/is-this-quote-from-a-bl-or-a-tokusatsu (no overt spoilers btw, aside from out-of-context quotes, and iirc there's only one from build used and it's from an episode i know you've already watched, though the translation used here might be somewhat different from the one you saw; also there's like a couple of cm quotes here too) [11/?]

i took that quiz a while back and got around 70%, which isn't too bad considering i'd only watched like the first half of build at that point and haven't seen any other toku even until now, and have also only watched like 3 bl dramas and not all of them were included here, though overall a lot of it was definitely lucky guessing and the others (both for the toku and bl ones) were stuff i became aware of through osmosis. anyway don't feel pressured about getting a high score though, it's all in good fun and i also wanted to let you see for yourself just how homoerotic toku can get to the point of often being indistinguishable from actual bls 😔 and on this note, you also mentioned in your last reply that kazumi/grease's actor (takeda kouhei) seemed familiar to you - the reason for that might be that you recognize him as one of the leads in old fashion cupcake, which was a pretty popular bl too from what i've heard? idk if you've ever watched it though (i haven't seen it myself, but i might in the future), but yeah that makes 3 main male actors in build part of the pipeline so far (insert even more jokes about "you can't spell build without bl" and heated drama between men here lmao) (and tbh i actually still have some additional posts and tweets on hand, but this is already getting very long and i don't want to overwhelm you even more than i probably already have so i'll just reserve them to share with you another time whgjtsfs) [12/?]

anyway, feel free to go ahead and already ramble about whatever new episodes you may have seen by now, even as i haven't finished writing my full response to your last message yet 👍🏼 especially since you last stopped at ep. 20 (whew what an episode to end on), so that means it's time for everyone's favorite build episode next... like i'm not kidding when i say almost everyone leaves ep. 21 with their brain chemistry fundamentally altered bc it's just that powerful 😭 so i'm really looking forward to seeing your reactions to it 😳 and hope you watch ep. 22 asap too bc it's a banger of a follow-up to 21 🫶🏼 (also now you're delving further into the parts showing who exactly the silly rabbit with a death wish is and just why he has one... hehe) djwjdhfs thanks, i'm so honored that you trust me to be your kr senpai 🙏🏼 and yes i'm done, but like i said earlier, i'm still in the process of organizing my thoughts and writing them down into a concrete summary so it might take a bit longer before i can send the next batch of messages to you. and oh i knew about tsukutabe/she loves to cook and she loves to eat and that it aired its first season like 2 years ago and that there was an upcoming second season, but i didn't realize it had started airing already :O i've been interested in it for a while and actually started reading the manga last year and liked it so far (but i wasn't able to continue past the first few chapters yet bc i got distracted by other media, including kr lol), so thanks for the reminder that i should pick the manga up again + start watching the drama at some point soon 👍🏼 and it's okay i understand, especially since both are good stories worth getting into :-) plus again, no pressure and take your time in watching, and hope you enjoy finishing build and the other shows!! 🥰 [13/13]

kr anon hi again!!!! first off thank u SO MUCH for all these links omgg so much fanart to look at i am so grateful.... 😭🙏 sorry in advance to everyone else for the rb/rt spree that is about to happen in like 10 mins tho-- also i took the quiz and got a 47% which. yeah i was Not ready for how gay those toku quotes got what the fuck.???? like i recognized maybe 5 of them from cm/odt/build/heartstopper but the rest girl... i was Struggling......i still have much to learn about the pipeline i see 👁👁 also also yeah i think thats where i recognize kazumis actor from?? i havent watched that show either but i got a rec for it way before so id seen the poster for it and yeah thats the one i rembered....the pipeline goes crazy what the hell

but also its been so hectic i literally havent had time to watch any further from where i left off last time ough ... literally just as i thought id have time after finishing tsukutabe i got pulled into watching another show by a friend so i think im gonna wait to finish that + cm anime first before getting back into build properly bc i rlly wanna Remember whats going on in the show instead of forgoring it all in the haze of the media consumption fdsfjkdsj,, but still if u wanna share anything else in the meanwhile or if u have ur review of the show pls do send them over id love to see/read!!! 👐

#if i can im gonna try watching ep21 and 22 soon at least bc the way u described it makes me So curious.........#but until then i will munch on these posts thank u for the food #my answer

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bruh-anator3000 · 2 years ago

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I wanna get back into writing but its so tedious, how do you do it? How did i do it so often last year? Anyways if enough people like this, maybe I'll finally do something with it

Warning; angsty lmao, viktor x reader, pretty sure its gn!reader so go ham, less than 800 words, get ready to feel the love ya mother never gave you points at mirror bc this bitch cried over this

Have fun :D much love <3

...

"Why did you break up with me?" You felt the words build up in your throat, making it so sore they fell from your lips like a damn bursting. "What did I do wrong?" What we had, I thought was something good.

Viktor stayed silent. His back faced you as his focus never left the mechanics in front of him. On his desk. All his focus and hands on it. His gaze on it. How could something so small keep his attention from something so important.

You scoffed. "Just tell me so I don't make the same mistake in future relationships, okay? Then we can pretend we never happened."

The machine he was working on clattered to his metal desk. It made a loud clunk as it dropped. His hands went into his auburn brown hair. Those dexterous fingers curled around his locks and you got the message.

With a sigh, you let out a soft 'goodnight, Viktor,' and headed for the door.

"You scare me." His accented voice carried through the empty lab. Your hand froze above the doorknob, mere inches away from freedom. Inches away from escaping the crushing weight the man had just dropped on your shoulders.

He shifted in his stool with a huff. "No, no...you terrify me." He let out a dry, emotionally drained laugh. Viktor dragged a hand over his face.

You cast your gaze over your shoulder, your hand dropping. Your heart was being torn up all over again. The same splintering notion as the night he took you out to dinner, stood abruptly as the words he had said and left. You weren't sure how to react. How was someone supposed to react to this? You couldn't yell, that would further prove his point. You couldn't ask him to reiterate, you didn't want to know more. It was you. You were the problem.

You always were, weren't you?

"It's the way you talk." Viktor started again. You shook your head, you didn't want to hear this anymore. Opening your mouth, you felt a choked sorry try to pry it's way out out your lips. But Viktor continued. "Every word, it's like a siren song and I suddenly can't think straight. You speak with such confidence, I fear I get light headed from the sound of your voice. How your tone gets lighter when you're excited. How it darkens when you're serious."

"The way you handle problems, the way your eyes get so intense with focus, the jealousy that overwhelms me wishing it was I who held your attention, wishing I was deserving of that intensity, it frightens me. Knowing I could spend days upon days here in these very labs on a project no one else could figure out but if you- if you asked, I would burn it to the ground in attempts to see you smile. If you wanted - if you simply asked - I would drop to my knees and let you take my very life."

Viktor finally faced you, golden eyes glazing with tears. "I'm scared of how passionately I wish to love you."

You were stuck in place. That was something you didn't know how to react to. Those words... how would anyone react sensibly unless it was scripted. Was this scripted? Some joke?

"Viktor..." You said his name and watched as a tear rolled down his hollowed cheek. His eye bags had gotten worse, his complexion paler than you remember.

He sighed, moving his hand to rest his forehead in the heel of his palm. "I'm sorry, you deserve someone better."

You said his name again, softer as you took a step closer. Again you said that name, that name you wished was connected to yours. Again, you took a step towards him. Another and another until your practically ran to him as he stood up.

He caught you in his arms, shaking with silent tears. You wrapped your arms tight around him, burrying your face in his shoulder, feeling so sad yet so full of love. He held you closer and his hand craddled your head, as if he let even a fraction of space between you, he'd loose you all over again. Apology after apology, in the language you knew well and the other you only heard from him, tumbled out of his lips. You only shook your head against the junction between his neck and chest. Holding him just as tight, fingers digging into his shirt.

"I love you, miláčku." His breath shuddered with tears. "Please forgive me. I never meant to hurt you. I just wanted what was best for you."

"You are what's best for me. I love you, Viktor. I always have."

#viktor #viktor arcane #arcane #viktor x reader #arcane viktor #arcane viktor x reader #viktor headcanons

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laurits-loke-seier · 3 years ago

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Skamløs 🐍 Part 4 / På Seier huset

🐍This is a y/n type of story. The reader is a foreigner; the reader is a female; I will try my very best to keep physical descriptions to a complete minimum.

🐍May contain strong language. No major triggers, but if there are any - worry not, you will be warned in advance! Also, it's my first time writing fanfiction & English is not ma native language, so please be kind 😅

Part 1 / Den nye jenta ~ Part 2 / Som en jeg kjenner ~ Part 3 / Rolig til sinns

Also published on Wattpad

Summary: The part where you and Laurits try to get ready for the party at the Jutul cabin. And you start to see more colours of Laurits.

Laurits and I walked to where I live with Liv, which is apparently not very far from his home. He laughed that it must be destiny that I ended up in ‘this shit neighbourhood’ just like him.

I left him to wait on the steps outside the house, by his request, then quickly changed my outfit into something good enough for the party and a motorcycle ride.

“Hope I didn’t take too long.” I came out and locked the door. Once I turned around, Laurits clearly looked me up and down, and back up again. “What are you doing?”

“Checking you out, clearly.” he huffed with a smirk, evidently not embarrassed at all. I laughed a bit and shook my head at how unbothered this dude is.

“I assume you need to make yourself pretty as well?” I was half joking, but his expression was so genuine, like it’s common sense.

“Of course, what do you think, I’ll miss an opportunity to show off a banger outfit? C’mon, Y/N, honestly.”

Ok, now I really want to see what he has in mind.

I was about to say I’ll wait outside, when he basically dragged me in as soon as I opened my mouth. We stumbled in, both of us giggling like idiots when I tripped over my own feet and nearly fell nose first on the floor.

“Laurits?” I heard a concerned woman’s voice come from inside the house. I stiffened up and got serious in a second. That has to be his mother, and I would hate to make a first bad impression. Childhood trauma, put a pin in it.

He gave a weird look and I just shook my head like ‘not now’. Soon enough we walked closer to the dining/kitchen area and his mother raised her eyebrows upon seeing me.

“Mom, this is Y/N, she’s an exchange student from Y/C. Please don’t be weird while I go change.” he spilled quickly, giving her a pleading look then jogging up the stairs, leaving me with his mother.

With his mother, whom I don’t know how fluent in English she is, and me, not very fluent in Norwegian.

I just smiled shily. Seriously, what should I say besides hi??

“Kaffe eller te? (Coffee or tea?)” she asked finally, smiling warmly.

“Kaffe, takk. (Coffee, thanks.)” Oh thank Gods, something simple.

“Med sukker? (With sugar?)”

“Ja, takk! (Yes, please!)”

I looked around the lilac coloured room. Pretty cosy for such an old house.

“Vær så snill, sitt ned. (Please, sit down.)” She came back with a cup of coffee and put her hand on my back, leading me to the dining table.

I just nodded smiling, took the cup from her hands and sat down.

“Jeg heter Turid. Og du er…? (My name is Turid. And you are…?)” she trailed off. Naturally, she forgot my name after Laurits just blurted all of that out so quickly.

“Y/N. Det er hyggelig å møte dere. (It’s nice to meet You.)” I hoped I was being polite enough how I spoke, feeling my cheeks heating.

“Samme her. (Same here.)” she said, squeezing my hand in an assuring manner. I gave her a more relaxed smile.

“Um, does Laurits usually take a long time getting ready?” I asked, sipping the coffee.

“O, noen ganger. (Oh, sometimes.)” she sighed with a laugh. “Gå, besøk ham. (Go, visit him.)”

I blinked a few times, unsure. Visit him?

She probably saw the confusion in my face and jokingly nudged me to get up and pointed upstairs. I let out an awkward laugh, finished up my coffee and went upstairs.

His room door was quite obvious - some punk rock music playing through the door loud enough. I knocked hard so he really hears me.

The door opened shortly, with Laurits half dressed, hair disheveled. Quite an annoyed look on his face.

“What’s wrong?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Can’t fucking find anything to wear.” he muttered and let me in.

I couldn’t hold in the laughter that bubbled up from my chest. He threw me a dark glare.

“I’m sorry. I am. Just… same problems here.” I defended myself. “Ok, Prince, let’s see what we can do about this horrible horrible situation.”

He smirked and steered me by my shoulders to his small messy wardrobe.

“Dear Gods, Laurits, this looks miserable. Is it always like this?” I motioned to the mess, and gave him a very dramatic-comical look.

“I need your help picking something out, not your commentary on the wardrobe itself.”

“Okej, but my help comes with commentary, so…” I laughed while digging through the clothes. Picked up something that cannot be his - a floral shirt. “Hej, how about this wonderful piece? You’ll be the talk of the night, for sure.”

He just stared at me through his eyebrows, not saying anything. I chuckled, kind of nervously, because it would feel better if he said something! Now it makes me think he’s rather planning something mischievous.

“No? Not fancy enough for you?” I looked at the shirt myself, as if examining it. “I’d say go for it.” I nearly laugh-snorted, imagining him in this.

Only that what escaped my mouth was a blood curdling scream.

Because this bastard buried his thin fingers between my ribs. And seeing how tickling apparently I am, he locked me in his arms, my back to his chest, and kept torturing me.

“Take it back!” he almost growled in my ear.

“Neeeeeiiii! Neverrrr aaahhh-hahaha!” I yelled and erupted in hysterical laughter once he assaulted my sides again. Tears streaming down, my cheeks and stomach aching from laughter.

“I can do this all night.” he grunted with laughter.

“T-that sounds aahahah p-p-perverted!!” I screamed, trying to break free, but he held me quite tightly. “F-f-fuck ooooff!!” I kept laughing hysterically and kicking the air.

The door to Laurits’ room flew open with a crash and we just froze.

Magne is standing widely in the doorway, looking fairly surprised. And wait, is he holding a fucking huge-ass hammer?

“What is going on?” Magne broke the silence and loud rock music background, his cheeks getting a tint of pink when his eyes darted between us two.

This probably looked interesting. Me, screaming bloody murder here, his brother shirtless, with me locked in his arms.

“Please leave. I am busy serving Justice.” Laurits said suddenly in a very calm tone. “And what were you thinking of doing with that thing?” he mocked, motioning to the hammer in Magne’s hand. Which he hid behind him awkwardly.

“N-nothing.” he stammered, then looked at me. “Are you really ok?”

“Yes, Magne. We’re just fighting. I think.” I chuckled and looked over my shoulder at Laurits.

I felt a shiver run down my body, because his gaze was stone cold towards Magne. Like he completely shifted, his hold on me tightening like a python slowly strangling its prey.

I lightly squeezed his hand that was around my waist. Only then did he break eye contact with Magne and turned his attention to me.

“You ok?” I asked quietly. His gaze slowly softened and he nodded. Then wordlessly let go of me and just shut the door in his brother’s face.

#laurits x reader #laurits seier #laurits ragnarok #ragnarok netflix #magne seier #loke #tor #thor #loki #loki x y/n #laurits x y/n #Skamløs #laurits seier x reader

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savoies · 4 years ago

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rating things my boyfriend has said during sex - nolan patrick.

summary: rating things nolan has told you during sex.

word count: 1k.

warnings: borderline smut, mentions of smut, bad words, mentions of alcohol.(remember protection and consent)

a/n: here it is, thank you to everyone who voted! hope you guys like it.

taglist: (click link or send in ask) @nhlpetey @mitch-slap @frostythegoalman @ryanssuzuki @aria253264 @josty @kaitieskidmore1 @kiedhara @laurenairay @teenagekook @alxvlasic @hockeyallthetime @barzy-baby @bowenbyram @mems06 @joshsandersons @connormcdavo @maattamatthews @pierreslucdubois @selenophileangel @boqvistsbabe @ana-maa @stars-canucks @quinnhughxs @sidscrosbyy

tagging some buds: @npatrickz @beauvibaby @heybarzy @tkachuk-yeah @cozycozzy @2manytabsopen

(*credit to gif owner*)

1. That's my girl.

9/10.

Made me feel good.

Lowkey made me feel like a dog for a sec but we overlooked that.

Nolan had just gotten home from a game, a winning game for that matter. One in which he made the overtime goal in. Meaning only one thing. Rewarding him for his goal. It wasn't a written rule you guys had just something that casually reoccurred over time. Just him coming back from a winning high and one thing always led to another.

Your moans filled the small Philadelphia apartment as Nolan thrusted into you. Both of you quickly about to reach your high.

"Nolan im about to..." You said as kept on riding him.

"Let go baby." He said as he looked at you and the current view in front of him.

You finally reaching your orgasm and letting go as the feeling of your high overtook you.

"That's my girl." Nolan said as both of you laid next to each other both slowly drifting off to sleep.

2. Did you put bread on the grocery list?

3/10.

Ruined the mood.

Did remind me about the bread though.

You and Nolan were very handsy all day. Much preferring to stay in then go out but Travis had invited you over for lunch with him and Karly so instead of taking care of how you were feeling you had to result to waiting which you and Nolan did not much prefer.

~~~~

Quickly getting home and kissing once you got into your living room. Dropping articles of clothing as both of you went to the bedroom.

You kissing Nolan and tugging at his hair as grunts and moans filled your bedroom.

You quickly trying to remove his pants.

"Wait." Nolan said through heavy breaths.

"What." You dragged out kind of getting desperate.

"Did you put bread on the grocery list?" He asked as he stopped kissing you.

"Wait, are you serious? You stopped this for that?" You questioned as you got up and put your shirt on.

"Where are you going?" He asked as you stepped out of the room."

"I'm going to add bread to the grocery list."

"Ok good cause i need my ham and cheese sandwiches." He said as you rolled your eyes at his comment.

3. I swear im gonna marry you one day.

10/10

Filled my stomach in butterflies.

If he keeps on saying it i'm gonna give this man anything and everything.

You and Nolan had just gotten back from your friend's wedding. Both having to wear stuffy outfits and quickly trying to get out of them as fast as possible.

"You know i think it'll be more fun if i take off your dress." He said as he stood across the room and looked at you with a smirk.

"Oh really." You said as you walked over to him. Him quickly but softly pushing you against the bed.

Him teasing you as he removed your dress slowly.

"God, I swear I'm gonna marry you one day." He said as he looked at you admiring you.

Placing a condom on his length as he entered you and you buried your face into his neck.

That day the sex was soft and loving, Nolan picturing what it would be like for you to walk down the aisle to him.

4. Only I get to make you feel this way.

100/10

Woowee.

Made me wet

You and Nolan had just gotten back from celebrating a win with the boys. Them deciding that it was a good idea to go to the bar a few minutes away from the wells fargo center.

You sat on one of the bar stools as you talked to Sophie (Phil's girlfriend) and Nolan and the others stood on the far side of the bar.

When some random dude approached you as she left to go to the bathroom.

"What is a pretty lady like you doing at the bar all alone." He asked with a slight slur to his words.

"What thats the best flirting skill you got up your sleeve?" You asked, letting out a small laugh at his attempt to get in your pants.

Nolan quickly watching the situation go down. He wasn't quite happy that there was a guy making you laugh and that he was so close to you. As soon as the guy placed his calloused hand on your thigh Nolan walked over.

"Come on Y/N we're heading home." He said.

"Aww come on dude let her have some fun."

"My girlfriend doesn't want to have fun with you." He said as he sized up to him and you grabbed his hand and walked out. You knew you were in for it when you got home seeing the way his knuckles turned white as he held down on the steering wheel.

Quickly getting home as he walked into your guys room expecting you to follow.

~~~~~

Quickly and roughly removing your clothes.

As he looked at you and said "only i get to make you feel this way." He said as he lined up at your entrance and thrusted into you. You knew you were definitely going to be sore tomorrow morning.

5. boobies *blows raspberries*

7/10

Kinda odd but fun.

Hey if he's a boob guy he's a boob guy.

Nolan and you had just gotten back from a date. Having had a few drinks and being a bit tipsy. Both being quite funny people after two or three drinks.

Walking hand in hand back to your apartment just enjoying each other's presence.

"Babe can we make out?" Nolan asked as he sat on the couch.

"Sure why not." You said loving the feeling of his warm lips on yours.

Both kissing softly as he worked his way down to nip at your neck. He removed your shirt as his cold skin raised goosebumps on yours.

"Boobies." He said as he blew raspberries into your boobs.

You laughed as he then looked up at you and placed one more kiss on your lips.

"You are so weird you know that."

"Yeah but you love it." And honestly yeah you did. You loved Nolan and your events in the bedroom because it was always different, and fun, and exciting.

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oliveroctavius · 3 years ago

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A ramble about how the different internal world logic of different Spider-Man universes affects characterization/how much I enjoy the story (featuring ITSV, Raimi, TASM, and NWH)

superhero vs villain stuff is the most basic morality play. There are Good guys and Bad guys and when the Bad guy hits the Good guy, it's bad; but when the Good guy hits the Bad guy it's good. You just have to assign roles and start a fight, and every story is going to draw that line differently.

this doesn't HAVE to be realistic at all and I'd argue it's most fun when it's not trying to be. You don't have to tackle systemic issues in a story about a guy who can scale buldings unless you're certain you have something to say. They can be figurative challenges, I can understand metaphor.

Spider-Verse understood this SO well it makes it visual. Every character exists inside rules that are very real to them even if they're nonsense to someone else there. The physical rules of Spider-Ham's world are non literal (he can fit a hammer in his pocket) as are the moral rules (he can eat a hotdog as a joke). On the other end of the spectrum, Peter B. has back problems, financial issues, just went through a messy divorce... Real Person Problems. The ads in his dimension are also for real life products, while Miles' are all made up. Miles' Peter was "perfect", so we accept that in his dimension there are archetypical heroes—and archetypical villains. They can have simplistic motivations and speak in clichés; don't worry about it. But Miles' Peter died in a very real tragedy, so we know the world rules still take consequences seriously even if the conflict is stylized. The metaphor is made clear with "anyone can wear the mask": anyone, from any world, can draw inspiration from the archetypical hero.

I always have to put in a disclaimer when I'm rambling so I don't sound insufferable: I do get why people's enjoyment hinges on characters. I don't think caring about World Rules is the only like, moral way to enjoy fiction I'm just weird and love dissecting systems. That said, this perspective really wrecks the TASM movies compared to the Raimi movies for me.

Both these movies are (1) live action and (2) create a superhero into a world that doesn't have that archetype yet. So the world has to explain its reasoning for what makes a hero vs a villain before the punching starts. Not just "a villain is a villain because I caught them doing something bad" but "why did they decide to do something bad to start with?"

I really like the Raimi movies' premise, always drawing parallels between the hero and villain as outcasts who gain a large amount of power over others right after a major personal tragedy. This kinda ruins the "sanctity" of the characters but builds a really strong theme. The difference is: when they get a chance to make a choice, do they listen to the voice that wants to make the selfish one, or do they make the kind one? OBVIOUSLY if this was a literal political stance there's a lot wrong with "criminals are criminals bc they choose to be" but the world rules are very intentionally cheesy. The actual criminal justice system is barely a presence because this is a metaphor for you and your ability to help people despite your worst instincts.

The TASM movies on the other hand seem to want to be more serious in science, effects, personality, and dialogue. But then the through-line separating heroes and villains is bioengineered genetics. Booo. That's already weird, but the more seriously I'm told to take it the more I hate it.

Electro is my favorite TASM villain partially because he has more complex motivations. I love TASM Max Dillon but the world rules don't seem to! Garfield would be the superior Peter Parker in a universe that wasn't so dedicated to proving him wrong. Yes, he mouths off to a police officer in his own home. And then the movie has that officer nobly save his life at the climax. Sure, he's just an average guy doing his best. But then the movie explains that this is literally his genetic heritage. Yeah, he tries to talk Electro down. But when the police ruin the moment, it's like it's only for "realism" rather than commentary, and the tragedy of that failure is immediately forgotten. Max and Harry become villains in large part due to abuse by the powers that be, but Peter stops them once they fight back while Oscorp goes unpunished. Systemic injustice is written in as something that creates villains, but the hero is never allowed to meaningfully challenge that injustice, just deal with the mess it creates.

Plus, because Peter is written to be smart, he has to uncritically agree with the genes nonsense. He's probably right that his Parker blood would kill Harry if it got into his cursed Osborn bloodstream. That's just the way the world rules work, forcing him to play by their moral code and make the cruel choice even as a kind character. Hell world. Hell world.

I don't have much to say about the MCU's world rules; I figure they were built for characters who aren't Peter Parker and it shows. NWH is interesting though to compare to ITSV. ITSV didn't have to make its universes play by different rules, but they did. NWH was actually pulling characters from universes with established rules, but that only really comes up in jokes for Spideybros stuff, really.

All the villains are treated in Exactly the Same Way though which raises some major questions. It doesn't mess up the TASM villains too bad to offer them cures since plenty of their problems were medical or systemic, even if it feels totally evil to leave out Harry when his entire arc was around needing a cure he never got. But since the Raimi villains come from a 'verse where their villainy is tied to their choices they're being cured of... the ability to make a choice. Which feels. How do you say. Wack. I honestly don't understand what the MCU thinks the difference is between its heroes and villains. Brand recognition, maybe.

I think the strongest case for TASM's world rules being cruel is that Electro is finally given more respect as a human being when he's handled with the MCU's world rules, while the Raimi villains are given less. Sure Curt is given less respect but I'm going to be honest: I don't think he deserved the respect the TASM movies gave him. He was a eugenicist before the lizard thing and it's anyone's guess if he ever learned a lesson beyond "don't test lizard serums on yourself". Which isn't a terribly generalizable life lesson outside their universe.

There's no real moral to this one, I just have to talk to myself out loud sometimes to avoid going mad. I think world rules are under-discussed in fandom, maybe because imagining characters into different worlds is an ancient fandom pastime. People will get mad at you for being OOC but not OOU (out of universe). Funny, because I don't think you can really separate those things.

#olivertxt #meta #this one's long but I think universe rules are SO INTERESTING and so ignored

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