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anakinisvaderisanakin · 4 years ago

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Mask of Death - Ashes and Embers

I’m reworking and retooling some of the older installments of tMoD with better grammar, and presentation, and this is still one of my favourite chapters of the series I have penned so far. Thus, I’m sharing it with you again, it might even be completely fresh to some of you. Link to full series is in the bottom notes!

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Captain TL-440 - often called Teel for short - had never seen the man quite like this. It was an awe inducing sight, a sobering reminder of the fact that despite his Force powers; Vader was just as mortal as the rest of them.

Some people would believe Vader was nothing but an expertly crafted droid; that he was unbreakable and unstoppable. That he had no heart, no humanity, no soul. Teel knew better. Especially now, as the dust settled on the carnage of the battlefield. The air was polluted by thick black smoke, fire scorching what was left of blown up AT-AT:s, shuttles and speeder bikes. Bodies were everywhere. Some familiar squad members perished in the brutal fight. Some rebels with their uncovered faces locked in perpetual terror.

Teel himself had come out fairly unscathed. He’d been assigned to a defensive position at the back, rather than the usual offensive front. Thinking about it now, he couldn’t see any traces of the commander who had executed the order to advance. Sure, Teel was very aware of the fact somebody had figured it’d be a good idea to stab a vibro-blade into his side. It stung like a bitch, but it wouldn’t kill him.

Unlike several of his fellow troopers, who laid strewn about all around him in bits and pieces, Teel would heal. The gaping holes in his comrades chests were disheartening; their missing limbs impossible to relocate. He could hear someone coughing in the distance; the hacking gulps of dying man suffocating on his own blood.

In the beginning, the aftermath of battle had made Teel sick. Overwhelmed by nausea, cold sweat had wet his forehead. Sometimes he’d found himself throwing up, wondering how he was ever going to get used to the sight of his friends torn to shreds. These days, after all carnage he had witnessed, Teel felt little more than pity for his fallen peers. Pity for the poor bastards who weren’t lucky enough to get a swift shot to the head.

How many survivors were there, even?

Teel had counted ten plus two so far.

Was that it?

They had been a thousand men strong when they left the cruiser for the DX transport shuttle. The officers and admirals paid them little attention at any given time, thinking them to be disposable and easily replaced. Teel despised the stuck up, spoilt Imperial overheads; despised them and how little regard they had for their subordinates. Vader was different. Vader had always been different.

Vader was on their side, Teel had realized early on. Vader fought alongside them, got down in the trenches and trudged without complaint through the warzone. He was often up ahead, leading the troops on by inspiring them. Vader seemed fearless, pressing on and never faltering. Never wavering. It was no secret that Vader shared the same contempt towards the Moffs who preferred to sit in their pampered palaces and beach houses as Teel and his men did. The high society would be sipping wine as their slaves saw to their needs while their troops were mowed down by enemy Rebellion forces. Vader, for all that he was, seemed to accept the soldiers as self serving individuals. Vader seemed to recognize that they were people, and even seemed to respect some of them.

Teel himself had done battle alongside Vader enough times, that he knew that they both appreciated the other’s efforts. That’s what made him dare to approach Vader in this moment. While the rest of the surviving squad members withdrew in retreat, keeping their distance out of fear, Teel persisted. He knew as well as his comrades that in this state, Vader may be lethal even to his own men.

Still, the captain had faith in the only man of the Imperial army who would dare gamble with his own life alongside theirs. The man who was - despite what governor Tarkin and his fellowship might think - second only to the Emperor in power. Highest command; and yet here he was, on the bottom of the ladder fighting beside the ground forces.

Vader’s majestic cape was in tatters. Not much remained of it; gaping still sizzling holes left by blaster shots and vibro-blade slices lining the ruined fabric. Vader's boots were caked with mud and drying blood, shrapnel digging into the shin guards. Wires hung exposed from his chest monitor; electrical bolts sparking on and off in uneven intervals. His hands were curled into tight fists, one of which still clutching the hilt of his crimson light saber - he other exposed for what it was; cybernetics and metallic prosthetics. The man's chest armour was cracked; his robes in ragged shambles.

But there was one thing that Teel noted above all as unusual. Among the embers of charred bodies, and fizzling equipment; he noted the tear in the side of Vader’s bodysuit. But above, he spotted blood. Deep red, humanoid blood soaking through Vader’s clothing; through the left side of his upper torso.

What more, beneath the mass of torn fabric and red smudges there was skin. Deathly pale skin, injured human flesh. Teel didn’t comment on it, but simply watched in amazed silence. He listened to the still rhythmical, still steady breathing mechanism of Vader's. It was a small wonder that that seemed to have taken miniscule damage.

“Are you ready to retreat, Lord Vader?” Teal finally allowed himself to ask.

“In a moment.”

Vader’s booming vocals were as imposing as ever, an undercurrent of suspicion and wariness seeping through the deep bark. Teel relied on his judgment, he knew Vader’s powers as a Force wielder granted him almost superhuman senses and prowess. It had helped save their lives when traditional tactics failed several times in the past.

Still, Teel let his dark eyes hidden behind the visor of his own helmet linger on the oozing, dark blood. Vader was merely a mortal man. Mighty, unstoppable like a hurricane. But then more than ever, the thought that Vader could die crept up on Teel. Vader could be bested and defeated. He didn’t want to dwell on that scenario. Instead, the captain waited patiently beside the dark, towering figure.

Vader appeared focused on something far off in the distance, standing perfectly still as if he hadn’t even noticed he’d been injured. As if he was unaware of the fact that he was bleeding rather heavily. As if he had no clue that he was wounded,and battered, and bruised, and probably needed a pretty good repair job done on both his suit and his body. The deep gashes in his chest piece just above the wound bore telltale scratches created by vibro blades. And direct blaster fire hits. Smudges of ashes, and dust, and mud linger along the indentations. Meanwhile, dark blood lazily making its way down towards the exposed cybernetic arm in a steady stream; the crimson fluid clinging to mechanic silver making for a jarring contrast.

“Whatever survivors there are have departed. They have lost more men than we have,” said Vader finally; tone meticulous.

Now that was a good omen.

Vader never seemed to care for his own safety, always seemed to want to get the job done no matter the cost. Still, Teel figured that even Vader must be feeling the exhaustion, the fatigue, and the pain of his injuries as soon as the adrenaline rush of combat wore off. He didn’t doubt that Vader could have gone on for far longer, had another wave of rebels attacked; but Teel still released a heavy sigh of relief. There was always a possible what if scenario, and he didn’t particularly enjoy the idea of trudging on without Vader at the helm.

Slowly, Vader began to turn his back on the setting sun ahead; as the crackling flames little by little became the only light in the dark of early nightfall. Switching off his light saber to clip it to his belt he stood tall, not as much as a limp to his step. Perhaps Vader's movements somewhat sluggish when compared to his usual gait, but otherwise he came across as resolute as ever.

Teel watched Vader pause and bring his gloved fingers up towards the thoroughly soaked side of what remained of his robes and chest piece. The captain watched him withdraw his hand, the stench tang of iron and scorched flesh thick in the air. Its sickly aroma was coming from everywhere around them; from the tattered and dismembered corpses. Vader’s hand came back drenched in blood as it withdrew; and the man appeared to contemplate something as he studied it.

“It appears you will be sleeping in your own bunk tonight.”

It was then that Vader finally turned to face Teel head on, and the stormtrooper had to fight back a gasp of shock, biting back the startled noise that wanted to slip out.

The entire left side of Vader’s face plate was mangled, misshapen and cracked. What lay beneath was now exposed as the lense of the same side had shattered and fallen out. The deathly pale, twisted and scarred flesh Vader's torso had displayed carried over to his face. The features were grim and distorted, little more than shadows in the dark of night; but the fires all around cast just enough light to reveal an eye.

One single, deep set ember eye.

The eye was bloodshot, its socket hollowed, and dark rimmed, and sunken. Light reflected off of it like a predator stalking its unwitting prey in the early morning hours. Teel almost believed the eye was generating its own light, and glowing all on its own.

“Yes, milord,” he finally managed to choke out, giving a curt nod of acknowledgement and obedience.

The single burning golden eye fixed his gaze, even through the visor Teel felt it bore pry itself deep into his conscious mind. He couldn’t look away even if he wanted to. He was suddenly freezing, despite the heat of the furnace the battle field had turned into, and the many flames in the close proximity. He felt the hairs at the back of his neck stand on end; his fingertips going inexplicably numb. How many men had seen Vader unmasked and lived to tell the tale? Teel feared he may have brought ruin onto himself by simple exposure.

Then, the glowing eye broke the stare and with it, the stalemate. Its attention shifted to cast one final glance behind them.

“How many survivors have you accounted for?”

“Twelve, milord,” Teel responded, mostly on autopilot.

“Very well. Round them up and bring them back to the hangar bay.”

“Yes, Lord Vader.”

For a brief tense moment; their eyes met once more and the piercing golden iris made Teel’s stomach sink with dread seemed to convey an unspoken warning. Feeling a freezing cold chill pass through his very bones, the soldier nodded and complied with its demand. He was never to speak of what he had seen.

"I expect you to handle your promotion better than your predecessor, commander."

Then, Vader simply turned on his heel and began to make his way back towards the landing site. Perhaps, there was a tiny wobble to his steps? Teel squinted but couldn’t say for sure, and it took him longer than it should to realize Vader had just made him the new commander. The responsibility was more than he had grown accustomed to, but he would never refuse or question Vader's decisions.

Perhaps his concern was unfounded, but he deliberately remained a few paces behind Vader as they walked. Just in case.

Then again Teel thought, as he the look in that one exposed eye remained superimposed onto his inner vision; that one eye only added to the mystery of Vader. The sense of dread it had inspired within seconds, that was not human.

Vader may bleed, but he had the eyes of a beast.

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The Mask of Death chapter index:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24049894/navigate

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skylarmoon71 · 4 years ago

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Leonardo x Reader- Oneshot (Fanfiction)

You were the type of person that could jam out to any kind of song, as long as it had a catchy beat. Music was always your number one love, so whenever you had a chance, you would be banging out to whatever genre you felt like. Mikey was somewhat the same. He'd introduced you to so many amazing songs, and you returned the favor. That's why the boys were never surprised when they saw you with a pair of airpods, bobbing your head as you hit the punching bag.

"You're supposed to be focused (Y/N)." you saw his lips moving when he came into view, but you couldn't make out the words. You blushed when you felt Leo's eyes on you. You always tried to avoid singing or dancing around Leo. The rest of his brothers, you didn't mind, but when his sapphire orbs landed on you, your nerves would go crazy. "I-I know Raph I just got bored so I thought why not." you weren't a big fighter, but you did pay attention when they practiced, so you picked up a few things. You honestly thought the lair would be free for the next hour since they were on patrol. Your eyes drifted to the watch and you gasped softly. "Oh crap I didn't realize it was this late. " you grabbed your bag, pulling out your phone to check for notifications. Because you were enjoying your session so much, you completely lost track of time. "I gotta get going, I'll see you later guys." Mikey grinned, waving happily and the rest of them smiled as you paced out of the room.

"Have you guys ever heard her sing?" Leo was curious, because he thought for sure he'd at least hear you once, since you almost always had headphones on.

"Of course dude she's really good!" Mikey replied, dropping on the couch. He kicked his feet up, stretching, and Leo's forehead creased.

"Really?"

Raph shot Leo a look. "With the way you're always staring at her I'm surprised you missed it. "

"I-I don't stare at her!" Leo defended. Donnie cleared his throat, "You uhh, kind of do."

"You look like a puppy chasing a bone. " Mikey interjected.

Leo didn't reply, just headed for his room.

~~~

Baby, Jerry-Jerry, mmm (Ah; hol' up, ah)

El tiempo contigo me pasa corriendo, oh

Hacemos el amor todo el fin de de semana

Y siempre me quedo con gana'

Supongamo' que no hay nadie más que toque tu piel (Uh)

Que no existe él

Leo's eyes opened, distracted by the melody that filtered through the hall. He followed the noise, a little bit confused. No one was ever in the dojo this early, except for maybe him. He was positive his brothers were all asleep. It was seven in the morning.

Imagínate en mi cuarto comiéndote a beso' (Yeah)

Como en los viejo' tiempo', qué rico sería eso (Uh; uh-no)

Imagínate en mi cuarto comiéndote a beso' (Ah; ah)

Como en los viejo' tiempo', qué rico sería eso, baby (Na-na-na), eh

As he got closer, he could make out a female voice, and the song definitely wasn't english. He turned the corner, and the sight of you bent over made his breath catch. He averted his eyes nervously. Not expecting it. You must have dropped something, because when you straightened, you went back to humming, gripping the broom handle and continuing your task. Leo had no idea why, but he was sort of hiding behind the door.

No' peleamo' y arreglamo' (Arreglamo')

En eso siempre estamo' (Estamo')

Desde que no' conocemo' (Uh-uh-uh-uh)

Pero siempre lo hacemo' bueno

Si tú quiere', no' grabamo' (-bamo')

Y despué' lo posteamo' (No, no)

Pa' que todo el mundo vea (Vea)

Lo cabrón que la pasamo'

His eyes widened. He almost couldn't believe it. He heard the man in the background, but the distinct sound of your voice is what grabbed his attention. It was so soothing. And the words were slipping off your tongue easily. He had no idea you could even speak another language. He was in a daze, he moved from his spot unconsciously, watching you guide over the floor in glee, enjoying the lyrics almost as much as he loved hearing them.

-OH CRAP!"

Leo jolted at your yell. You dropped the broom in surprise. That's when he realized his sudden entrance probably startled you. "Sorry, I should have said something. " You looked down at your shoes, embarrassed. "I can't believe he heard me."

"Ugh! I'm sorry Leo, I just wanted to clean the dojo for you guys before you woke up, and I got a little bored so I turned on some music. I must have sounded like a cat getting murdered, I'm really sorry if I disturbed you. " he shook his head frantically, stepping closer to you. "Are you kidding me, your voice is amazing. "

Did he really think so? You nibbled on your lower lip. Leo was a nice guy, of course he would say that.

"You don't have to say that..just to make me feel better." He placed his hand on your shoulders, capturing your full attention.

"I'm not. Honestly (Y/N), you have an incredible voice." The song switched, and when you recognized what was now playing, your eyes looked away nervously.

I don't know, it's just something about ya

Got me feeling like I can't be without ya

Anytime someone mention your name

I be feeling as if I'm around ya

Ain't no words to describe you baby

All I know is that you take me high

Can you tell that you drive me crazy?

'Cause I can't get you out my mind

You forgot that your music was on shuffle. You knew Leo registered the words playing, and for some reason, it conveyed how you felt about him perfectly. His hands were still resting on your shoulders. He looked like he didn't want to move away, and you didn't want him to. Music has always been your way of conveying what you felt. So maybe this time, it was exactly what you needed. When the other verse started, you sang along, not breaking eye contact this time.

Thinkin' of ya when I'm goin' to bed

When I wake up think of ya again

You are my homie, lover and friend

Exactly why

You light me up inside

Like the 4th of July

Whenever your around

I always seem to smile

And people ask me how

Well your the reason why

I'm dancing in the mirror and singing in the shower

Leo could only watch in amazement at your confession. His heart was hammering beneath his plastron. He could barely believe what he was hearing. You were glowing as the words flowed from you effortlessly.

Don't care what others say

If I got you I'm stray

You bring my heart to life yeah

You light me up inside

Like the fourth of July

Whenever your around

I always seem to smile

And people ask me how

Well your the reason why

I'm dancing in the mirror and singing in the shower

You smiled with every punctuated word. Leo was staring at you with so much unfiltered adoration. You were mostly shocked you hadn't gone into cardiac arrest yet. You were constantly careful around Leo, but now it felt like you didn't have to be.

"You got me singing in the shower.." you whispered. Leo smiled, his hand resting gently on your cheek. When he took that last step forward, you melted, folding into his arms when he pulled you forward, kissing you. Goosebumps rose on your skin, and stood unto your toes, desperate to match his height and delve into the heavenly feel of his touch. Leo was slow with his kisses, and gentle. It did wonders to you. Your stomach was in literal knots.

"Leo.."

If you thought this was how he'd react to your singing, you would have done it ages ago. Thank the heavens for your vocals.

When he pulled back, he was smiling like a kid. "So, are you going to tell me what the lyrics mean?" he asked. You blinked, still in a daze from the kiss.

"What?"

He laughed. "The lyrics to the song earlier, you really getting into it. I'm curious." you flushed.

"Oh..." Explaining this was embarrassing since it was pretty sexual.

"I-I uhh, It's..."

Leo titled his head. "It can't be that bad." he encouraged. If only he knew. "I-It's about making love..." it was said so quietly, and when he registered what you said, his eyes grew wide. "O-Oh!" The both of you were still standing pretty close, and you swore your skin heated up. You remembered when the video popped up in your recommendations a few weeks ago. When you watched it, you couldn't help but imagine yourself in that situation with Leo. His hands touching you sensually.

"Have you ever thought of me that way.." He shouldn't have asked, but he couldn't help it. The moment you said it he could see your expression change. Something was definitely there. You clench your fists at the question, taken aback by his bold question. Was it okay to tell him you'd wanted him for longer than he even realized. "I have." you admit. You were really confessing a lot today. "Have you?" it was his turn to confess. His eyes drifted. "N-No, mainly because I never thought there was a chance that you could..that we would be.." he was tripping over his words, but you understood. He might have held feelings for you, but he never crossed the line out of respect. "I guess now it's okay then, if you want to say anything, do anything.." you whisper. Leo got exactly what you were insinuating.

"There's a lot I want to do to you (Y/N)."

"Please do!" your mind responded immediately, you refrained from saying it aloud. You'd just recently figured out your feelings.

"But I think for now it's best we take it slow. We have plenty of time to explore that. " He leaned closer to your ear, pressing a soft kiss just beneath your jaw.

"To explore each other.."

"Bloody hell." How did he expect you to take it slow when he was saying stuff like that.

"O-Okay." Leo grinned, satisfied with your red cheeks. He liked the way you responded to him. It gave him a weird sense of power. He supposed it was the same power you had over him.

"I think I'm in love with you (Y/N)." He had time to tell you that too, there was no rush. When the time was right, he would.

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bananban-feature · 4 years ago

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Seventeen Members Special

Bias: Woozi

I’m really so obsessed with Seventeen recently! I just love everything they do, from performances to chill and crazy moments in Going Seventeen. I love them all dearly, but I will save my appreciation post for other members for next time. Today, I’ll just talk about my top 2!

Woozi

Honestly, I adore all the Seventeen members, but I really can’t deny - Woozi is one of the backbones (if not the ultimate backbone member) of the whole group.

- I definitely think he’s the most overworked member of Seventeen. Arguably one of the most overworked in Kpop?

- Main producer and songwriter. As part of this, he also checks and approves the lyrics made by the rap line.

I am so convinced he is a music genius!

Great vocals! - I was honestly so surprised when I first heard “Home” raw live vocals in a radio show (in YouTube). Him singing “어쩌겠어 난 네가 없으면” in the chorus gave me chills. It was a short line but it was done so perfectly, so cleanly and powerfully, even better than what’s in the recording. I doubted for a second that it was recorded and if it was really him, but it was 100% live Woozi!

Instrument king - Can play piano, guitar, drums, and even clarinet. There could be more, but I’m already so amazed! (Big fan of instruments here, especially those who were classically trained like Woozi, because classical music really isn’t easy!) If I keep talking about this, I will never end this post. He’s amazing!

Composer, songwriter and producer of beautiful songs! - As I mentioned, Seventeen’s songs are really my vibe, from first listen until now, I really love their music. And I just keep enjoying it more the more I listen to it. Knowing that a member wrote, composed, and produced the song really made me a fan girl. Woozi is so talented! I actually just saw a video yesterday where a popular songwriter for kpop chose Woozi as the songwriting idol that is able to write great lyrics. (Update: I’ve now seen so many professional lyricists, producers, and A&Rs randomly praising Woozi’s talent in random interviews that aren’t Seventeen-related.)

I just wanna add that Woozi is still so young (96 line) but he’s sitting at the top of the list of idols with most song credits, along with other idols who are older than him! And to think he actually composes and arranges whole songs too, rather than just writing lyrics like most people do! He’s already got more than 100 credits, considering he only started about 5 years ago. This guy is a machine! He must be so rich even just with loyalties! No wonder he always treats Seventeen members to meals. (Yes, stan this very generous leader too!)

Great dancer - Just being a member of Seventeen already proves you’re a great dancer (no dance hole of any kind at all in Seventeen!). But I even saw a comment from a professional dancer in YouTube once who said that Woozi is one of the best dancers he’s seen in kpop. (I also just learned he actually used to be in the Performance unit as a trainee and was supposed to be SVT main leader but he declined!)

I’ve never heard him rap, but they say he can rap well too? Not surprising, considering he actually checks the lyrics the rap line writes (and makes them re-write it if it doesn’t fit his standards for the song). Lol I stan meticulous Woozi.

Yes, your bias can produce, your bias can compose, your bias can sing and dance, and play instruments. But how many people can do all of those as good as Woozi does?! True genius.

Watching videos of him in the studio, especially when working with the rest of the Seventeen members, will leave you in awe. He is so wise and handles recordings well.

And you know what’s crazy? With his skill level, it looks like he formally studied all this in a focused school before becoming an idol, but no! Woozi learned it after joining the company, about a year before debut, he learned from Bumzu. Considering how hard being a trainee already is and considering how he was still finishing high school back then, he still managed to learn songwriting and music production and actually be excellent at it. My dear. Bumzu himself said Woozi picked things up easily and he really thinks Woozi is a genius. (I actually don’t know if he actually developed his music production skill more in university or not. If he did, that would be even more impressive because Seventeen was already pretty popular after debut, and going to college/finishing the requirements would be extremely hard on top of all his Seventeen work.)

His brain is already too amazing, but his passion is even crazier. He works so hard on music because he really loves it. He still does so much work for Seventeen at the back end despite the whole group already being so busy!

I am fully convinced Woozi was made for the music industry. The amount of talent contained in this one person is too much! I can’t take it anymore!

At this point, I think I’m just gonna seal it in that Woozi is my ult.

Probably except for Hui (Pentagon), I’m not as impressed by any other kpop idol as I am with Woozi. (I’d gladly accept more suggestions of super-talented idols like Woozi if more people like him exists.)

*Technically, Woozi isn’t underrated because Seventeen is popular and isn’t underrated. But for the amount of talent this sole person has, gee, he really has to be recognized by the whole kpop world, even the whole world.

You might not stan Woozi, you might not even stan Seventeen, but you gotta admit, he is one of the most talented people out there!

//update: May 2021. I first wrote this when I didn’t really know much about Woozi’s character apart from his hard work and passion for music. I’ve stanned them longer now, and I’ve definitely learned more about him. And I now I’m head over heels for his generosity, kindness (despite showing a “cold” side sometimes, like a true tsundere), his honesty (in writing, too) and most especially his humility. He’s also so witty, honestly! And I love how he laughs at everything the members do. Overall, he’s just a truly amazing person. 🥲 I wish there were more of him in this world, but no, there is only one Lee Jihoon of Seventeen. //end of update

Anyway, I originally planned for this to be a short appreciation post on Woozi + Hoshi as my two favorites, but Woozi is too much! He needs a lot of space because he’s too amazing! (So Hoshi will probably be in the next post.)

If anyone is still unconvinced, here’s an entire Reddit thread about him. Yes, shocker, there’s more to learn!

#kpop #seventeen #Woozi #lee jihoon #kpop genius #music genius

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psychosistr · 4 years ago

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Snow Day

Summary: After a particularly rough day, Domino isn’t in the best mood. Fortunately, Steelbeak knows just the thing to cheer him up- all he needs is a nice day and some of his partner’s favorite weather.

Notes: This was a holiday gift for @thefriendlyfour and I hope you all enjoy it as well ^.^ As always, Domino (as well as Steelbeak’s outfit design) belongs to the ever amazing @thefriendlyfour / @eleanorose123 (though I think Domino’s winter outfit in this one was originally designed by @akysi ), so make sure you go check out their work as well! =^.^=

There were many things to like about the city of St. Canard: Exciting night life. Great views of the bay. A diverse ecosystem in and around the town. Plenty of places to eat, shop, and steal from. A resident super-hero (though that being likable was subjective). A prison with terrible security for easy escape (again, subjective).

The weather, Dominic thought, was decidedly not one of the things to like about St. Canard.

The loon and his partner, Steelbeak, had just endured an all-day mission for FOWL that involved driving all over the city in temperatures just short of freezing. Normally, the red-eyed bird enjoyed colder weather- winter was his favorite season, after all. Today, however, had been that uncomfortable kind of cold where it seemed fine at first but, over time, made you regret not choosing a warmer coat when you left (they’d both made that mistake, and had relied on his car’s heater to thaw themselves out every time they were done at one location) that only got worse when the clouds decided to precipitate just enough for it to be misty but not enough to snow, resulting in the clammy kind of cold that seeped into their clothes and had them shivering every time they stayed outside just a little too long.

Everything culminated in a showdown with Darkwing Duck at the bay where the two top-ranking agents attempted to use FOWL’s newest device, the “PRESSURIZER”, to drain all of the water and use it as an extremely dangerous high-pressure water canon to extort the town’s residents and government for billions. They had been so close to victory…until that infuriating little red headed girl that always trailed along behind the city’s protector used a hockey stick to launch a wrench that Darkwing’s (admittedly attractive) sidekick had on him in an impressive ricochet shot that perfectly hit the “self-destruct” button (Steelbeak would later swear to pay a visit to the scientist responsible for that little feature) on the console right between the two fowls. Had the resulting blast not sent the pair plummeting into Audubon Bay, Dominic would have been inclined to comment on the child making such an impressive and difficult shot so easily.

As it stood, however, he wasn’t in any hurry to congratulate the one responsible for submerging him and his partner in a bay that was one step above freezing.

Once the deadly duo had dragged themselves up from the ocean’s chilling depths, they made a hasty retreat to Dominic’s car and sped off just in time to avoid the police. While they’d avoided any major injuries (bumps, bruises, scrapes, and singed feathers were par for the course when it came to their line of work), the two agents ended the day feeling exhausted, frustrated, soaked to the bone, shivering like they were trying to avoid hypothermia (which may not have been far from the truth). Oh, and let’s not forget the cherry on top of this wonderful day- Dominic’s car now absolutely reeked of sea water from the two having to sit in it without having time to dry off or change their clothes.

By the time they got home, showered, and changed, it was late and neither man was in a particularly good mood. Both of them just wanted a few days to unwind before having to deal with anymore insanity. That wasn’t too much to ask, was it?

Well, apparently it was.

No sooner had the two gotten settled on opposite ends of Steelbeak’s couch, fully intent on relaxing before dinner, than the large screen across the room flickered to life on its own. Dominic held back a frustrated groan and could hear a barely muffled sound of displeasure from the lighter bird across from him.

The images on the screen came into focus and three familiar silhouetted figures appeared on it, the one seated in the middle doing the talking as per usual. “Chief Officer Steelbeak, agent Domino, we have a new mission for you.”

Dominic ignored the muttered “gimme a break” from his right, though he certainly agreed with the sentiment wholeheartedly. “When do we start?”

Both agents groaned internally at their leader’s rather curt reply. “First thing in the morning at 8:00 sharp.”

He went on to explain the details of their mission, but Dominic was only idly absorbing the information (they’d be given proper instructions in the morning). What the loon got from High Command’s summarized description was that the science department had developed some sort of large egg-shaped sun-blocking device that would create a false eclipse. While the citizens of Calisota were panicking over the false eclipse, FOWL would be taking advantage of the chaos to rob multiple high-value targets at once ranging from museums to laboratories.

Apparently this all had to be done tomorrow, as it was the only day of the coming weeks predicted to have a substantial amount of sunlight for the device’s deployment to make a significant impact.

Although Steelbeak seemed just as thrilled (maybe even less so) than his partner, the lighter FOWL managed a convincingly neutral acceptance of their orders. “Sure thing. We’ll be up an’ waitin’ for the call.”

After receiving a similar acknowledgement from Dominic, the screen went dark once more.

With no more eyes on them (at least, they were fairly certain there were none, it was hard to tell sometimes whether or not with that thing..), the chief officer and his partner finally vocalized their displeasure- Dominic with a frustrated sigh and Steelbeak with an irritated groan.

“No rest for the wicked, it seems.” The loon shook his head, not bothering to hide his scowl anymore. “You’d think we’d get at least ONE day off after what they just put us through…”

Steelbeak rolled his eyes, his scowl matching the darker bird’s. “That’s the problem with those ‘workin’ behind the shadow’ types- they get t’ sit around all day tellin’ everyone else what t’ do an’ forget how exhaustin’ it is bein’ a field agent……like t’ see ‘em try runnin’ ‘round all day an’ deal with stupid heroes shootin’ junk at ‘em…” The last sentence was muttered disdainfully, but was certainly not lost on the other man.

“Now that is something I’d pay to see.” Dominic sighed, leaning back on the couch and closing his eyes. Might as well relax while he could, seeing as he’d have to head straight to bed after dinner to make sure he had enough energy for tomorrow. “That or some bad weather…I’d actually pay for it if it meant having a day off.”

With his own eyes closed, the loon missed the look of realization that appeared in the lighter fowl’s dark eyes….and the devious smirk that soon followed…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A loud, rather irritating ringing woke Dominic up from his slumber. Rolling onto his side with one red eye barely open to peer at his bedside clock and the covered window across the room, he was further irritated by the fact that it was too early for his alarm to go off- it was only half past five and he’d been hoping to rest until at least seven. The ringing, he soon realized, was coming from his phone rather than his alarm clock.

While he was very tempted to simply ignore whoever thought it was okay to call him before the sun was even starting to rise, the half-awake loon recognized the ring tone and, resignedly, answered it.

Just because he deemed the one calling him worthy of being answered, however, didn’t mean he was pleased by the literal wake-up call. “Steelbeak..you have five seconds to convince me not to go next door and smother you to death with one of your tacky pillows..”

That distinctive laugh could be heard through the receiver, sounding far more awake than anyone had any business being at this time of day. “Well, good mornin’ t’ you too, sunshine.” Before Dominic had a chance to protest the mocking nickname or threaten to hang up, the much more awake fowl continued speaking, this time in a slightly more serious tone. “Get up an’ get dressed, we’re leavin’ in fifteen. Don’t worry ‘bout breakfast, I’ve got ya covered.”

Well that certainly helped wake him up. Rubbing his eyes with his free hand, Dominic sat up and stretched his legs to help get his body on the same page as his mind. “What happened? Did High Command call and change the time?”

“Don’t worry ‘bout it, it’s not that big of a deal. Just get dressed an’ meet me in the hall.” Just before he hung up, Steelbeak added one more thing as an afterthought. “Oh, an’ wear somethin’ warm- warmest ya got.”

Looking down at the phone in his hand once the dial tone began to play, Dominic was left with more questions than answers. Had the temperature gone down further since yesterday? Had something come up that changed High Command’s plans? Why was Steelbeak so awake and aware of what was going on?

Despite the many questions floating through his now-awake brain, Dominic did as his partner instructed and got ready for the day. Once his feathers were straightened properly, the loon opened his closet and moved aside his usual outfits for a much warmer one that he typically reserved for the coldest time of the year: A white coat with both light and dark blue accents, a belt-like clasp, a blue and white snowflake emblem on the bottom above the fluffy white trim, and even kept the aesthetic of his usual outfit by placing white buttons in a domino-like pattern over the blue squares of fabric on his torso. The coat had matching white gloves, blue and white boots, a white scarf with a snowflake emblem like the one on the bottom of his coat that was currently tucked into his collar to help him stay warm, and a white pork-pie style hat (he would never understand why people named clothing styles such ridiculous things, but the hat was comfortable) with a light blue hat band and two blue dots to match the coat’s motif.

By the time he left his apartment, Steelbeak was waiting in the hall for him with two thermoses of coffee. The taller man was also dressed in a different outfit than usual, but sharp red eyes could still see the edge of a white sleeve under the hem of the rooster’s long dark red coat that was zipped up all the way to the top, the brown fur-lined hood resting on his shoulders. While his pants were black like usual, they were thicker and reminded the loon of ski pants. The black gloves and dark red sunburst style boots (again, who chooses these names?) lined with fur that matched his hood completed the look.

Holding out one thermos for the darker bird to take, Steelbeak took a sip of coffee from his own and gave his partner a knowing grin. “Took ya long enough. C’mon, we gotta get goin’ ‘fore it gets too late.”

Dominic gladly took the thermos and its energy-granting contents, pleased as always to find it prepared exactly how he liked it- today’s batch even had traces of peppermint, which brought a small smile to the loon’s dark beak before he followed the rooster to the elevator at the end of the hallway. “Too late for what, exactly? The sun shouldn’t be up for another two hours.” He still had plenty of questions that had yet to be answered.

“Exactly.” A black-gloved finger pressed the button for the elevator, its owner smiling over the minor victory of the doors opening immediately rather than having to wait for them. “That’s why we gotta be back before then in case High Command calls.”

“Wait..” Dominic followed the taller man into the elevator, but made his confusion over their early departure transparently clear. “If High Command hasn’t called yet, then why are we leaving?”

The loon’s answer was that same knowing grin from before- the one that both frustrated him for being out of the loop regarding whatever was going on but also intrigued him because Steelbeak didn’t normally keep secrets (at least, not from HIM) for very long and usually shared whatever juicy bit of information or despicable plan was rattling around in his devious brain. “All you need t’ know is that it’s VERY important an’ you’re gonna be glad we left early. Trust me.” Well THAT just left the shorter bird with even MORE questions. Unfortunately, any further inquiries were put on hold once the elevator doors opened again and the duo stepped out into the parking garage. “We’re takin’ my car ‘til yours stops smellin’ like a mermaid’s bedroom.”

Dominic had no problems with that and willingly followed the other fowl to his overly flashy car- he wasn’t really in the mood to drive and probably wouldn’t be until he’d gotten through his first coffee. “Do I even want to ask how you know what that would smell like?”

“I’ve been ‘round the block a few times. Let’s just hope we don’t get any missions in the south pacific anytime soon.” Steelbeak’s chuckle made it hard to tell if he was joking or not, a typical part of his sense of humor that Dominic had gotten used to over the past five months of their relationship. He made a mental note to ask about the alleged mermaid encounter another time while the two of them got settled into their seats. “Put this on.”

Looking up from buckling his seatbelt, red eyes widened in mild disbelief when he saw the fabric being presented to him. “A blindfold?” Thinking he’d perhaps jumped to conclusions too soon, Dominic looked over the long strip of black silk with a gaudy pink heart pattern once again, but, no, it was definitely a blindfold, albeit a rather tacky one that made half of his mind want to ask why the other man had something like that in his possession…and the other half had a feeling it already knew... “Why-”

“I’m aductin’ ya.” The taller fowl jokingly said with that infuriatingly intriguing grin. “But you’re gonna love it, trust me.”

Red eyes rolled in feigned annoyance as Dominic took the blindfold with his free hand, but didn’t make any moves to put it on just yet. “And why, exactly, should I ‘trust you’ and impair my vision after you’ve admitted to abducting me?”

“ ‘cause you’d still kick my butt, even if ya couldn’t see it.” Well, yes, that was definitely true…and this was Steelbeak he was dealing with- the man hadn’t given him any reason not to trust him sine they’d started going out…

……

…………

“….Fine..” Setting his coffee down momentarily, Dominic tied the tacky silk over his eyes and leaned back in the passenger’s seat once he had the thermos back in his hands. “If you try anything, you’re hand is going straight into the bay…without the rest of you going in after it.”

Though he could no longer see it, the loon could easily hear the smirk in the metal-mouthed fowl’s voice as the car rumbled to life around him. “Wouldn’t dream of it, short-fuse.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was hard to tell how long they’d been driving with his vision obstructed, but Dominic had finished his coffee by the time he felt the car shut off. “Can I take this ridiculous thing off yet?”

There was a beat of silence, as if the vehicle’s other occupant was giving the question serious thought. “Hmmm…yeah, I guess so..” Before the white gloved fingers could start on the knot, however, an addendum was added to the previous comment. “But don’t open your eyes.”

Even with his eyes covered, Dominic hoped that the glare he was sending the other bird’s direction would still be noticeable. “I hope you know my patience is wearing thin. You’d better have a good reason for waking me up before dawn, dragging me out of bed, and taking me on a joyride without giving me ANY-”

“I’ve got a good reason. I promise.” Steelbeak’s voice was resolute. His tone betrayed no signs of mischief or ill intent, not that Dominic really expected there to be any, but it was still somewhat reassuring to hear it, anyway... “You’re just..gonna have t’ trust me on this one, Deedee.”

Dominic was prepared to argue the point, or simply take the blindfold off and be done with the whole charade (yesterday’s disasters combined with his unexpected awakening didn’t have him in the best of moods)……but that pause in Steelbeak’s last sentence gave him pause, as well.

The larger man didn’t sound as confident as he had leading up to this point. He sounded almost…hesitant? Uncertain? It was hard to say. Either way, it sounded more like he was asking for Dominic to trust him, rather than demanding it, but it was almost as if he wasn’t sure he’d be given such a thing…

“……” Taking in a very slow, deliberate breath before exhaling it in equal measure, the white gloved fingers finally began their task of untying the blindfold. “Fine.” Once the silk was gone, red eyes remained firmly shut. “But my earlier statement still stands.”

He heard a brief chuckle, but this one sounded relieved rather than amused. “Don’t worry, you’ll like this, I promise.” The car door on his left opened and shut, followed by a minute of silence before his own door opened. He felt a light tug on the blindfold still being clutched in his hand. “This way.”

Dominic followed his partner’s lead out of the vehicle, hearing the door close behind him once he was far enough away. He heard a brief click afterwards, as if something had been opened, but couldn’t tell what it was. As he was lead further away from the car, he noticed an odd sound and sensation below his boots- the ground beneath him was…crunchy? That was the only way he could think to describe it- crunchy in sound and loose in texture. “Where exactly are we?” He thought for a moment they were at the beach, but the sand there wouldn’t make this sort of noise. It…kind of felt like-

There was a creaking sound, like something heavy and metallic being pushed open. “Why don’t ya open up those pretty red eyes of yours an’ see for yourself?”

Taking the other man’s advice and doing so, Dominic’s red eyes finally opened for the first time since he’d gotten into the car with his partner, and what he saw momentarily took his breath away before it was exhaled in a visible puff.

The two fowls were standing just inside the gates of the very same park they went to during their first date. While it was still dark out with only the dim lighting of the street lamps providing any visibility, there was one very noticeable difference this time:

Snow.

Every inch of the park- and the city as a whole, it seemed- was covered in a thick blanket of snow. The park’s grassy fields had been completely buried under the fluffy white precipitation, as had the walking trails and sidewalks in and around the park. The trees and other shrubbery resembled cotton balls with how thoroughly their foliage had been coated, and in the distance Dominic could even see that the lake had frozen over. There were already so many of the beautifully cold flakes scattered about, and even more still falling from the thick, dark clouds above that showed no signs of stopping anytime soon.

Curious as to how he hadn’t felt the falling snow sooner, the loon’s red eyes drifted up and finally took notice of the large black and white striped umbrella above him. Looking back over his shoulder, he saw his partner watching him with an amused yet fond smile while holding the umbrella with his free hand.

The expression brought a slight flush to the darker bird’s cheeks that, even if it were noticeable, he’d blame on the cold if he was ever called out for it. “H-How-” He had even more questions now than before he’d gotten in the car, and, downplaying the slight stutter to his speech by clearing his throat and pretending it was just a dry throat from the cold air, he was intent on finally receiving some answers. “How is this possible? The reports all said it was supposed to be sunny today.”

Steelbeak shrugged one shoulder, the grin on his gleaming beak betraying the words that left it. “Y’know how unpredictable the weather is ‘round here…‘specially with all the supervillains runnin’ ‘round changin’ things just ‘cause they feel like it.” Apparently deciding the umbrella was no longer needed after the big reveal of his surprise, Steelbeak closed it and set it by the park gate. “Or, y’know, if someone offers ‘em a few million big ones t’ start a snowstorm and ‘suggests’ a few choice places t’ hit up an’ keep any annoyin’ superheroes busy.”

Dominic followed the lighter bird as he ventured deeper into the park, giving him a curious look accompanied by a quirked brow. “If you made all of this happen, then why was it so important to get out here this early? We could’ve waited until the sun was up.”

Hands now resting comfortably in the pockets of his coat, Steelbeak gave another calm shrug. “I dunno ‘bout you, but I don’t exactly trust the ‘freaky four’ t’ practice things like restraint.” Dark eyes glanced up at the thick clouds and the still plentiful amount of snow falling down on the city below. “At the rate this stuff’s fallin’, I figure we got about three hours before the snow drifts get taller than you…short fuse.” He side-eyed the loon with a smirk. Red eyes rolled as Dominic shook his head, choosing to ignore the jab at his height compared to his monumentally tall partner. (Honestly, though, who didn’t seem short compared to him?) “And..” The loon’s attention returned to the other fowl when he heard the slightly softer, less sef-assured tone in Steelbeak’s voice. Steelbeak was glancing away now, a bit of red visible beneath his off-white cheek feathers. “I..know ya love this stuff…figured you’d wanna come out an’ have some fun before the whole town gets snowed in…plus there’d be no one out this early, less people around an’ all that…”

It was once again Dominic’s turn to blush. Any irritation he’d felt from his unplanned awakening was forgotten almost instantly. Now that he had a chance to look at- really look at- his partner, he noticed the things he’d missed earlier in the chaotic whirlwind of events leading up to this point: His feathers had clearly not been preened since his shower the previous night. His comb wasn’t standing up quite as straight as it usually did. His eyes were bloodshot, albeit only slightly- he must’ve taken eye drops at some point to hide it. His eyes also had dark circles under them that indicated-

“You didn’t sleep last night.” Although the red-eyed fowl was truly touched by how much thought Steelbeak put into all of this, he still couldn’t help but ask- “Why?” He elaborated further when he was met with a confused look from the taller bird. “Why go to all this trouble?”

The question made a grin appear once more on the metal-mouthed rooster’s beak. “C’mon, stripes, between the two of us, YOU’RE the one that actually WENT t’ school.” He chuckled, the grin on his face practically beaming. “Thought you’d know what a ‘snow day’ was.”

“A..snow day?” Wow, that was a term Dominic hadn’t heard since his school days.

“Ding, ding! Startin’ t’ ring any bells yet, wise guy?” Steelbeak teased as the pair walked over the park’s snowy trail (or at least what one could assume to be since it was slightly lower than the ground around it). Once he’d had his laugh, though, the rooster’s grin softened into something calmer. “High Command needed a sunny day t’ make their plan work- no sun, no stupid eight AM mission, so we get the day off. Plus, even if High Command decides they wanna try somethin’ else, they’re gonna need time t’ come up with a new plan an’ send a helicopter t’ pick us up since the streets’ll be too buried t’ drive by then, so we get plenty of time t’ relax an’ enjoy breakfast when we get back.” One dark gray eye winked down at the loon playfully. “Sounds like a win-win, if ya ask me.”

Darn, that grin was infectious. “A win-win indeed.” Dominic’s own dark beak soon lit up with a smile as he nodded in wholehearted agreement. He had to give credit where it was due- that was a very well thought out and expertly executed plan. “I have to say, I’m impressed you came up with all of this so quickly.”

“Hey, I didn’t get t’ be Chief Officer just ‘cause of my good looks- there’s a pretty big brain behind this gorgeous mug.” Ah, and there was that cocky grin and wink followed by the exaggeratedly “flirtatious” eyebrow wiggle that never failed to make the loon laugh.

“I’ll have to keep that in mind.” Dominic wasn’t sure how, but he managed to get the whole sentence out with only a few quiet, barely restrained chuckles slipping in. If there was one thing that Steelbeak knew how to do, it was make his partner smile and laugh and feel a hundred times lighter than he had before.

After the misery of the previous day, Dominic decided, he’d gladly take this much more pleasant alternative.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The deadly duo spent a while simply walking around and admiring the fresh-fallen, undisturbed beauty of the snow covered park. It felt so much like their first date- the two of them just walking around, conversing freely, enjoying one another’s company without anyone around to bother them; he’d even talked Steelbeak into ice skating with him over the frozen lake and was pleased to see that the rooster’s balance had improved considerably, only needing to be helped up a handful of times.

While it felt similar, though, it also felt like a completely different experience altogether. Back then, they’d still been getting to know each other, getting used to one another. Now, they were still learning things about each other, but there was a greater feeling of familiarity, as well as a sense of comfort that came from that familiarity. There were still boundaries they were discovering and learning how to work around, but it was leaps and bounds from where they were before that night almost half a year ago.

As he passed beneath a tree off of the park trail, Dominic’s musing on his relationship with his partner was stopped by a sudden clump of snow falling onto his hat.

He tipped his head back, looking up at the glistening branches curiously and allowing the frozen flakes still resting on his hat to fall off. Well, the tree WAS heavily coated with snow and ice, a stray breeze could have-

Another clump of snow, this one rounder and more firmly packed, descended at a slight curve- as if it had been thrown from somewhere behind him- towards him and hit the surprised loon in the face before he had time to move away. “!!” Brushing the snow from his eyes, he looked back over his shoulder at the only other person in the park. “I saw that..”

Steelbeak, who’d stopped a few feet away from the tree to kneel down and adjust one of his boots, gave the loon a slightly raised brow and his best attempt at an earnestly confused expression. “Saw what?” His attempt at faking innocence would have been much more effective if it wasn’t clear that he was holding back a smile and that one of his gloves still had snow on it.

Oh, so he wanted to play games, huh? Fine. Dominic could play, too. “Nevermind…must have been my imagination…”

Stepping closer to the tree, one of the loon’s hands was freed from its glove- his back to the rooster as he walked around the base to keep it out of his sight. After slipping the glove into his pocket, his still-gloved fingers trailed along the snow-covered tree. From an outside perspective, it would look like he was idly tracing simple patterns into the powdery snow of the trunk. In reality, however, he was readying his ammunition. By the time there was enough snow accumulated in his covered palm, Dominic had reached the other side of the tree and was able to quickly transfer it into his other hand without being noticed. A quick packing between both hands and the sharpshooter had his weapon locked and loaded.

When he suddenly made a sharp turn and jumped back out the way he came, Dominic was not at all surprised to see Steelbeak waiting with another sizable clump of snow in his hands, clearly prepared to throw it at the other side of the large tree with his hands raised over his head.

Steelbeak, on the other hand, was very surprised to see the loon doubling back and catching him in the act. So surprised, in fact, that he didn’t have time to dodge the snowball that was sent hurtling towards him. “!!!” The snowball found its target’s face, causing said target to let out a startled squawk from literally going snow-blind. The whole ordeal made his hands move just enough to turn his own weapon against him, the clump of snow that was once above him now falling all over his head and torso. “Hey, no fair! Cheap shot!”

Dominic smirked at the prone rooster, quickly forming more ammunition and ducking behind the tree for cover while his “enemy” was busy shaking and wiping snow off of himself. “I was merely returning the favor- now we’re even.”

With his vision restored and most of the snow removed, Steelbeak smirked as well and readied another oversized snowball. “Well, it ain’t gonna stay that way for long.”

And with that, the war had begun. The entire park quickly became a battleground as two expertly trained secret agents crafted and launched their handmade weapons at one another.

Dominic had the clear advantage- snow was his favorite weather and he was truly in his element. The aquatic fowl was able to quickly craft practically perfect spheres from the terrain around him and throw them with pin-point accuracy. The tree he’d stationed himself behind made for good cover between shots, allowing him to safely stockpile ammunition and retreat when he was under heavy fire. From time to time, he’d dart out and weave between the surrounding foliage to fire off multiple shots and even slid across the lake a few times to stay ahead of his adversary.

Steelbeak, on the other hand, was clearly not as used to interacting with the frozen liquids he attempted to wield. The metal mouthed fowl didn’t have the finesse (or apparently the knowledge to take off his gloves and use the heat of his hands to melt the dry flakes) to craft small snowballs, and instead scooped up large quantities of the loose powder and form what could only be described as “snow cannonballs”. These larger projectiles took more time to make and weren’t as precise as his quick-footed and quick-witted rival’s smaller spheres, but they were capable of devastating damage when they managed to hit and knocked the slippery sharpshooter off of his feet more than once.

The battle raged for longer than either combatant cared to keep track of, the once pristine park now full of holes and gashes from their wintery war. The two snow covered fowls laughed and shot comebacks at one another along with their projectiles. It was certainly a sight to behold- a duo of deadly spies who carried out assassinations and mass slaughters of enemies on a regular basis now using their battle skills and instincts to throw balls of snow at each other with the excitement of school children. If anyone from work- be it an eggman, fellow agent, or Darkwing Duck himself- were to see the well-known chief officer of FOWL and his normally stern, red-eyed-glare wielding partner and tell others what they’d witnessed, chances were that no one would ever believe them.

Dominic himself could hardly believe it, but he was having far too much fun to stop. Retreating back to the trunk of his chosen shelter, the loon managed to hit Steelbeak’s large and vibrant tail feathers with his last snowball before working rapidly to replenish his supply.

“Yeow!” Steelbeak yelped from the packed precipitation striking his perfectly plumaged posterior. “Ohh, you’re gonna get it for that one!”

From his hiding spot, Dominic could hear the larger bird making another of his plus-sized snowballs. “We’ll see about that!” He parroted the other man’s earlier words over his shoulder while topping off his ammo cache. Confident he could dodge whatever size the lighter fowl’s newest snow monstrosity happened to be, Dominic left his makeshift fort and prepared to fire off his more manageable artillery.

His confidence was immediately shaken by the small-boulder sized chunk of snow hitting his face with enough force to send him toppling into a deep snow bank.

It took a minute for Dominic’s world to stop spinning, and a few more seconds for his senses to return enough to realize that the hazy white blur he saw was snow piled around his head and (thankfully) not spotty vision caused by a concussion. As he sat up, the loon shook the snow off of himself, needing to retrieve his nearly camouflaged hat from the white mound.

His attention was soon stolen, however, by the menacing shadow that was cast over him. Looking up, red eyes widened at the sight of his opponent holding an absolutely MASSIVE chunk of snow even larger than the last one over his head with a smirk. “Any last words, wise guy?”

Hands planting themselves against the ground behind him in preparation to run or fight back, Dominic’s gaze darted rapidly around his surroundings. There had to be a way out of this!

Then, he found it- his bare hand touching something textured and rough hidden within the snow. Looking back up at the tree above them, a plan at last formed in the clever fowl’s fiendish mind. He’d only have one shot at this…

Gripping the object he’d found, Dominic smirked while making eye contact with the unaware rooster. “Yes…but would it be in bad taste to say ‘freeze’?” Without any further explanation, the loon’s bare hand emerged from its hiding place in the snow to briefly reveal the stick it was clutching before throwing it at a sharp angle that just barely missed the other fowl’s head.

“What the-?!” Steelbeak, at first thinking the projectile was meant for him, instinctively ducked to avoid it, nearly dropping the colossal cold-ball clutched in his hands. Thinking himself safe, he smirked back down at the presumed-defenseless loon beneath him. “Your aim’s slippin’, Deedee- ya missed.”

“Oh, I don’t miss.” The darker bird replied with a wicked smirk before putting his weight back onto his arms and rolling the extra foot he needed to avoid what was about to happen.

Following the other man’s red-eyed gaze up to the tree he was still standing beneath, Steelbeak’s own dark eyes widened at the sight of the stick Dominic had thrown striking the completely-snow-covered top of the tree. By now, there was so much of the frozen precipitation accumulated on its branches that it looked nearly twice its normal size. This made the realization of what was about to happen all the more chilling- in more than just the literal sense.

“Hmph…well played, stripes..” Was all Steelbeak could get out before the domino effect came into play. The disturbed snow on top of the tree fell, falling into and shaking the snow on the next branch. This pattern cascaded down through every level of the tree, resulting in a miniature avalanche that left the large fowl buried under an even larger mound of snow before he had time to run away.

The backdraft of air and snow was strong enough that Dominic had to shield his eyes with his gloved hand, holding onto his hat with the other to keep it from blowing away. Peeking out once the air had settled, a pleased smirk found its way to the loon’s beak as he observed his handiwork: The entire base of the tree and a good portion of the trunk were now buried in snow. Where his opponent once stood was crumpled lump in the mound of white flakes with no sign he was alive other than the single black-gloved hand sticking straight up like a flag- one of surrender, the loon mused jokingly.

Deciding it would be best for everyone if the taller man didn’t catch hypothermia or pneumonia, Dominic figured it would be best to show mercy for once and dig his fallen adversary out of his precipitated prison. Dawning his second glove once again, white-covered hands made short work of shoveling the equally white powder away from the lump beneath the extended black glove. After a minute or two, he found a gleaming metal beak within the snow, and soon the rest of the head attached to it became visible.

Dark grey eyes blinked the world into focus as their owner looked up dramatically. “Wow, think I finally found the light at the end of the tunnel.” The same eyes glanced over at his rescuer, the corner of his mouth lifting into a small smirk. “Gotta say, you’re not quite what I expected an angel t’ look like……but I ain’t complainin’.”

Dominic returned the look in kind and winked down at the still partially buried man beneath him. “Keep it up and I’ll send you to heaven my way.” A quiet laugh shook the smaller bird’s shoulders as he shook his head with an undeniably fond smile. “While I do admire your ability to flirt while half frozen, frostbite isn’t exactly charming- let’s get you out of there, shall we?”

With a quiet chuckle of his own, Steelbeak started sitting up to extricate himself from his icy prison. “Yeah, probably for the best..think I feel my tail feathers freezin’ o-” He froze (not literally for now), eyes blinking in surprise as they looked from the loon’s face down to his own hand that was still sticking out of the snow.

Clasped firmly around the rooster’s large black-gloved hand was a smaller one clad in white.

Dominic knew what the other’s look was about and why the normally talkative man had gone uncharacteristically silent. “It’s fine.” He offered with a small but reassuring smile before digging his heels into the snow and pulling the other man back up onto his feet.

Once he was back to his usual towering six and half foot (seven if his comb was counted) height, Steelbeak looked down at the hand still clasped around his own with an expression somewhere between elated and nervous. “So…am I ‘bout t’ go swimmin’ in the bay after that..?”

Dominic shook his head, giving the larger palm in his own a light squeeze for reassurance. “Not this time. I want to keep it around for now.”

The nervousness left the lighter fowl’s expression, leaving him with a smile that tried its best to look calm but was undermined by the excited gleam in his dark eyes. “Keep it for as long as ya want, red eyes.”

“I think I’ll take you up on that offer.” The loon gave a softer smile, two sets of fingers in contrasting colors lacing and locking together as if it were their natural state.

Steelbeak, as well as many other individuals within FOWL, were well aware of Dominic’s “quirk”, as High Command liked to call it. After witnessing the loon lose it more than once on some poor, unsuspecting fool that made the innocent mistake of putting their hand on the touch-triggered bird the wrong way, the chief officer had made it a mental priority to always be mindful of his partner’s contact-based aggression and avoid touching him without warning, even after they’d started dating. He never made any “moves” on the darker fowl like he would with the girls he’d “dated” in the past- no sneaky arm finding its way around an unaware shoulder or waist, no sudden brush of fingers along the side of a striped neck, or even a suave attempt to steal a kiss. The rooster had a front-row seat to multiple showings of what the shorter man could do when someone didn’t properly respect his personal space, and he was determined to never be anything more than an observer if he could help it. He’d only taken what he was given and never even made a move to hold the aquatic avian’s hand.

While Dominic was definitely grateful for Steelbeak’s cautious-patience and respect for his boundaries, he felt the taller man fretted a bit too much about it from time to time. They’d been together for months now, seen each other through countless moments both life-threateningly dangerous and calmingly domestic. At this point, out of everyone in his life, his partner was the one person he felt the most confident that he wouldn’t hurt with one of his violent outbursts.

The discomfort would always be there in the back of his mind, Dominic knew this from the time he’d spent with his last partner and the others he’d dated before, but it was worth it for the warm feeling that bloomed within him. The contact was diluted by both of their gloves, allowing him to feel and familiarize himself with the sensation of Steelbeak’s palm and fingers against his own without letting the discomfort build up too much. He knew he would want more soon, and he could tell from the longing looks he’d caught when the rooster let his guard down from time to time that Steelbeak wanted it as well, but, right here, right now, it was enough for both of them to stand in the snow together with their fingers entwined.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The pair of snow-covered agents arrived back home just in the nick of time, giving themselves about fifteen minutes to change out of their winter attire, rid themselves of any traces of their pre-dawn excursion, and throw their usual coats on over top of more casual clothes to give off the image of readiness. They staged themselves in Steelbeak’s living room, acting like they were about to leave just in time for the communication screen to turn itself on.

“Chief Officer Steelbeak, Agent Domino.” The usual speaking member of High Command looked less than pleased. “There’s been a change of plans.”

Dominic, doing an excellent job of feigning ignorance, looked at his leader with a confused expression, one brow raised inquisitively. “Why? Did something happen to the device?” From the corner of his eye, he caught Steelbeak trying not to smirk and barely succeeding.

The silhouetted person shook his head with a scowl. “The Fearsome Four decided to bury the entire state in a snow storm. The mission is cancelled for now, but be ready in case the weather changes.”

Receiving a “Yes, sir” from both agents, the screen went dark once more.

Steelbeak gave his partner a knowing smirk. “Somethin’ tells me this storm ain’t stoppin’ for a while. How ‘bout we get nice an’ comfy ‘til then?”

Dominic gave a knowing smirk of his own. “Of course- we’ll need to save our strength for when it clears.”

There was a beat of silence before both of their expressions melted into amused grins and they laughed quietly over their flawless performance. The pair took off their coats and hung them on Steelbeak’s coat rack to enjoy their more comfortable attire- Dominic wearing a soft red turtleneck sweater and Steelbeak sporting a light grey long-sleeved Henley style shirt (again, who gets payed to pick these names?) with dark blue trim and a pair of slightly darker grey sweatpants.

Within half an hour they’d lit a fire in Steelbeak’s fireplace- Dominic withheld his remarks about how unnecessarily extravagant it was to have a fireplace in an apartment complex with fully functioning heat since, begrudgingly, he had to admit it was appropriately cozy on a day like this- and the loon was seated patiently in the same spot as last night while his partner brought him a more substantial breakfast than his earlier coffee.

As he waited, Dominic brought the tall mug in his hands to his lips and took a sip with a pleased hum. While it didn’t have the same kick as his previous drink, he wasn’t about to complain about the creamy hot chocolate Steelbeak had prepared for him- the kind made by pouring hot milk and cream over chocolate until it melted, not “that watered down powdered garbage” as the rooster would put it- especially not when he’d made him a peppermint one with red striped marshmallows. There were even bits of crushed candy cane coating the rim and a pair of full sized candy canes hanging from the edge. Picking one up by its crook, the content loon used the candy to briefly stir his drink and melt into it before popping it into his mouth and happily eating the remains.

Dominic had once mentioned to Steelbeak that candy canes were a preferred treat during winter when they’d been having a conversation about comfort food. The peppermint sticks were a childhood favorite- a preference that was quite fortunate since many places gave the sweet treats out for free once the “holiday spirit” began to spread, making it an easy to obtain a bit of food when his mother was unable to provide more than the bare minimum needed for the two of them to survive. His love for the striped sweets continued into adulthood, giving him a fondness for the simple candy whenever the season came about.

That bit of information had only been shared between the two once, but it was apparently enough for Steelbeak to plan ahead and keep a box of candy canes handy in his large pantry. He’d never admit he went out and purchased them simply because his partner liked them, though, even if he himself wasn’t as big of a fan of peppermint (that little prank on their first date probably didn’t help much).

This, Dominic had realized some time ago, was something Steelbeak did often- holding onto small, seemingly inconsequential bits of information and using them to surprise his partner later. Dominic mentions his favorite color while they’re making fun of a ridiculous fashion model show? He receives a new shirt in that color a few weeks later. Dominic makes a disgusted face and shudders upon seeing a cockroach while they’re in a warehouse? Steelbeak suddenly starts killing or removing any insects he sees when they’re together. Dominic mentions on their first date that he enjoys snow and ice skating? His partner pays supervillains to alter the weather and takes him out early to enjoy it properly.

It may have been an instinct developed after spending nearly two decades as a spy- information had value in their line of work, after all- or it may have simply been a trait unique to Steelbeak himself. Either way, Dominic found it extremely endearing and was grateful for his partner’s memory and small acts of care & consideration.

A plate fresh cinnamon rolls and blueberries being set on the coffee table in front of him brought Dominic’s gaze up to look at the very man who’d been occupying his thoughts.

Steelbeak, balancing a matching plate in one hand and a large mug of hot chocolate in the other, winked down at the loon as he set his own breakfast on the table near his end of the couch. “Told ya I had breakfast taken care of, Dom.”

“A good thing you did, too- I’m famished.” Dominic set his mug on the table and exchanged it for one of the enticingly large rolls on his plate. “I’ll pay you back by taking care of lunch.”

Steelbeak chuckled, knowing he wouldn’t win if he tried to argue. “Fine. But we split the difference at dinner. Deal?”

“Deal.” Dominic agreed with a quiet chuckle of his own before digging into his roll.

The pair sat and ate in comfortable silence for a while, enjoying their sweet treats and warm drinks in front of the crackling fire. Once they were finished, Dominic volunteered to take care of the dishes, despite Steelbeak’s adamant insistence that he didn’t need to- again, though, he knew he wouldn’t win once the other man stated he was going to take care of it.

When Dominic returned to the living room, he was surprised to see Steelbeak had wrapped himself in a large, heavily padded quilt in the time he’d been away. “Still feeling cold?”

“Kinda..” Steelbeak yawned and pulled the blanket tighter around himself, his legs drawn up under it as he sat curled up on the couch. “That an’ my adrenaline an’ coffee finally ran out…” Off-white fingers rubbed at extremely tired dark gray eyes. “Think I’m gonna be outta commission ‘til lunch…won’t hold it against ya if ya head back t’ your place.”

Dominic considered it for a moment, but eventually shook his head and picked up a book he’d left on one of Steelbeak’s end tables during his last visit. “I think I’ll stay.”

Steelbeak shrugged, settling in for a much needed nap. “Suit yourself, stripes..” His eyes were nearly closed when a weight against his side made them flutter open once more. “Hm..?”

Rather than take his usual spot at the opposite end of the couch, Dominic had opted to sit right next to Steelbeak- to the point where he was sitting sideways with his head reclined against the rooster’s blanket-covered shoulder and his legs were spread out over the empty cushions.

“Just getting comfortable.” Was the only explanation he needed to give.

Both men had soft, content smiles on their faces as they settled in for some much needed relaxation. They intended to enjoy their snow day as much as possible by doing as little as possible. After all, with this city’s unpredictable weather, who’s to say when they’ll get another chance?

Then again, Dominic thought as he opened his book to its marked page, perhaps the weather in St Canard wasn’t that bad.

End Notes: Hope you all enjoyed this wintery fun filled fic and have a happy holiday season =^.^=

#darkwing duck #dwd #Steelbeak #Dominic Domino #steeldomino #darkwing duck oc #dwd oc #not my oc #thefriendlyfour

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brinaedwards · 3 years ago

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Honey, I think We F*$#@# Up the Kids

The thing about this class that is really awesome is the fact that I can take a day to myself, watch movies and still call it homework. Euphoria took me a couple days of binge watching but still, it was nice to relax and take in films that I would have never watched on my own. Some I enjoyed like MID90's, some I did not, KIDS. Like I said in my last post, I would not want to watch that film again. I have no real reason as to why not other than the fact I just did not enjoy watching it. Well the scene where Capser sucks kool-aid out of a tampon, yeah that could be a reason why not to watch it again.Everything else was really good though, then again I could watch The Breakfast Club all the time.

As a common theme of these posts I have a list of questions that I am required to answer next to me. After watching these films/tv shows, the character that I identified with most is a combination of characters. Specifically from Euphoria because honesty that show is pretty close to society today. Kat is someone I can easily relate to because when I was in High School, I was very much overweight. I never noticed it because I was surrounded by friends that didn’t make me feel overweight. Like Kat, those friends were really skinny and included me in things like going out and having a good time. I forgot what year but sometime during high school I met a kid who I fell head over heels for, similar to how Jules fell for “Tyler”. However, I wasn’t catfished or anything like that but I was very manipulated by this dude, let's call him “Tyller #2”. . We were never together but I was like his side chick in a way. Similar to Jules, “Tyler #2” convinced me to do things that I would never think of doing but being in a vulnerable state at the time, it was easy for him to take advantage of certain situations. For the first time I was very conscious of my weight, and tried all the dieting techniques out there and none of it worked. I eventually ended up being with someone else who actually made me happy and confident. But “Tyler #2” got under my skin again and I eventually broke up with the dude I was with under the false promise of being with “Tyler #2”. For years I was under this man-child's thumb and like Kat I spiraled, desperate to try and find myself. I would confide in friends and they would tell me to get away from this dude but I never listened. This kept going on for years. I ended up becoming friends with some not so great people because of it. Thankfully I got away before anything super awful happened. But back to “Tyler #2”. It was about a year into college that I got over “Tyler #2”, and that's because I woke up one day. I will never forget this but I remember him saying to me, “Maybe you should lower your standards and then you can get a guy”. I don’t know why that hit me so hard but in that moment I came to this realization that I shouldn't have to lower my standards for anyone, if anything I need to raise them. And that is exactly what I did.I blocked “Tyler #2” from all my social media, and when he called me out on it one day I looked at him and said “you are a disgusting, sad piece of shit”. After that moment I felt free. Like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I ended up losing a lot of weight and gained confidence back in myself. I found someone who exceeded my standards and I've been with him for three years now. I haven't seen or spoken to “Tyler #2” for a long time and I hope to keep it that way. There are things I know he has done to girls he was with, things that should have gotten him charged with assault but, of course nothing could ever be proven. That's why I can identify with Kat, Jules and come to think of it, even Maddy.

I guess that goes into the themes these films/tv shows portray in youth. Abuse, Social Pressure and Sex. When I would watch things like this around my parents or brothers when I was younger, they always gave me a look of shock and disbelief. As if things like that don’t happen in today's world or ever happened. And of course when trying to explain to them that things like that happen, they get defensive or even a bit disappointed that issues were never brought up. I think that’s because things like this aren’t easy to explain, it's more than words can explain. A lot of it has to do with social pressures today, I mean social pressures such as the pressures of getting good grades, meeting parental expectations, peer pressure and massive world pressure that is being forced on us today. Euphoria didn’t go too much into detail of social pressure as much as it did with abuse and sex but The Breakfast Club on the other hand oozed it. For example, characters such as Claire, Andrew and Brian each went through their own pressures. For Brian he is pressured by his mother to get good grades no matter what, eventually the pressure of failing a class was too much for him and he brought a gun into the school. Yes it was a flare gun but the principle is there. In an article from the Pew Research Center, a study showed that “61% of teens today feel pressure to get good grades” That alone can cause anyone to go off the edge not to mention the public expectations put on youth, for example, Andrew having to win and prove to his father that he is cool. And how Claire values what her friends would think if they knew she wanted to be friends with the others. All those things are sometimes built up in one person and it's absolutely terrifying. The Guardian article on how Euphoria captures teen melancholy briefly mentions how we are a generation of school shooter drills. (I don’t know if that is meant as a description of how we are as a generation but that's not the point of trying to make). What I am trying to get across is that social pressure placed on youth today is scary, especially since there was a time where every few weeks there was a school shooting. I don’t want to get into gun laws because that is a long post for another day. I just want to get into the mentality of it all because The Breakfast Club highlights an important issue to mental health and what kids even now go through.

I remember being in highschool and my school had a serious shooter threat. My parents still sent me to school because they felt that nothing would happen. Nothing did but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t absolutely terrified. I did not attend any classes that day, instead I stayed in the band room that day because if anything were to happenI could hide in a cubby or run out the back door. Even more recently a few years back when SUNY Orange got a shooter threat, I didn’t even go and neither did a lot of people.

I am so thrilled that mental health awareness is something that is being recognized and taken seriously. The stigma behind needing therapy and vocalizing feelings needs to end, especially the stigma of gender roles. Abuse is a theme that is presented in all the films/tv shows watched this week. The Breakfast Club shows insight on domestic physical abuse through John, Euphoria gets more into the psychological, emotional, physical and self abuse that teens go through. This theme especially is something that needs to become more recognized and addressed. Abuse is not just physical, it is mental and emotional. Nate abuses both mentally and physically by using Jules as duct tape to make problems go away by black mailing her. With Maddy he uses his control physically, verbally assaulting her about how she dresses, oh the list can go on and on.

Sex is a common theme in all the films/tv shows this week and that is something that every teen goes through. At that age your body goes through changes and it’s only natural that it is explored. In todays world sex is not much of a taboo like it was for our parents. But at the same time I feel that it is. When I was in highschool sex was not talked about. It was mentioned once in health class but that was it. No one went into detail, there was no explanation about stds, how females need to check for things, the list goes on. KIDS was a film that went into sex way more than all the other films/tv shows. It highlighted the horrors of unprotected sex, such as contracting HIV. As much as I disliked this film it is one that needs to be seen. The lectures talk about the “Disneyfication” of things today but it's that way of thinking that is hurting the youth of today. I can understand that parents don’t want their kids going through such trama at a young age, but if they are not being taught properly, not being educated they are going to find out on their own. Any issues kids face today parents right it off as a “part of growing up” but when your kid doesn't know what a condom is, or how to properly use birth control what do you expect is going to happen when the daughter is pregnant or the son has an std? That is not a part of growing up, that is just pure negligence on the parents and teachers. I could really go way into more of a rant but I feel that a topic like this needs its own blog and this one is already long af. Here are links to videos that I watched that go more into detail about education today. I promise they are not that long.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Yt6raj-S1M

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnC6IABJXOI

Long story short, abuse, social pressure and sex are themes that kids face on a daily basis. It’s amazing that there are shows out there like Euphoria or films such as KIDS and The Breakfast Club to make it known that this is real. The world is a scary place, but that does not mean censoring that bad stuff. It means that the youth need to be prepared for a shit world, and if they’re not shown or educated about things before the fact then honey, I think we f*$#@# up the kids.

To make this whole post a little lighter let's just talk about the music, the Euphoria soundtrack was all of today's music, which if you listen to half of them its all about getting laid and doing drugs. Sort of on theme of the show don’t you think?For MID90’s the soundtrack fitted the “skater” “punk” theme. A soundtrack is something that can spark a memory, make it feel relatable. Take you back to a time where you had a similar experience. For example, certain songs I listen to take me back to when I used to be at Billy Joes in Newburgh line dancing, getting wasted and then eating pancakes at the Alexis Diner. It makes me think of what kind of playlist would describe my adolescence. Oof, well isn’t that a trip down memory lane.

I grew up listening to metal, my brothers have their own metal band, so I would be the only toddler sitting on the amps coloring not giving a shit about all the grimey people in the audience haha. It would be only fitting that my playlist would consist of metal & rock. However, as I got older I enjoyed pop songs and a couple edm mixes. My list would probably be:

Fame - David Bowie

ARTPOP - Lady Gaga

Bring Me to Life - Evanescence

Everytime We Touch - Cascada

Evil Angel - Breaking Benjamin

Forest - System of a Down

Hype - NEFFEX

My Curse - Killswitch Engage

Nightmare - Avenged Sevenfold

Shout 2000 - Disturbed

https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/my-adolescents/pl.u-8aAVVgafjg0W9A

These would be songs I would listen to non-stop as teen in middle school/ high school. “Fame” is a song that just makes me dance. I mean who doesn’t love a good David Bowie song right? “ARTPOP” is something that brings me back to when me and my uncle went to NYC to see Lady Gaga at the opening of H&M. “Bring Me to Life” is a song that honestly, all kids that are exploring metal/rock come across, the same is said for “Nightmare” and “My Curse”. “Hype” and “Everytime We Touch” takes me back to when I used to go to parties. I don’t know why but these were songs that would be on, I think because everyone was probably too drunk to care. “Shout 2000” is a song that my brother introduced me to, he would have this specific Distrubed album playing non stop and im sure thats why the CD got all scratched up. Ahh the days of CD’s, I feel that I’m part of the generation that saw the last of those things. “Evil Angel” is a song that I played all the time on my ipod. Breaking Benjamin was the best band I ever heard and when I got the chance to see them live it was amazing! As for “Forest”, well, System of A Down has such a chaotic, emotional style that you can’t just help but to headbang to their songs. This was always one of my favorites. As I got older my music taste has expanded to musicals, classical, pop, jazz, kind of every genre but country haha. Sorry country.

WORK CITED

“The Sadness of Euphoria: How the Show Captures Teen Melancholy.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 25 June 2019, www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/jun/25/the-sadness-of-euphoria-how-the-show-captures-teen-melancholy.

Horowitz, Juliana Menasce, and Nikki Graf. “Most U.S. Teens SEE Anxiety, Depression as Major Problems.” Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends Project, Pew Research Center, 30 May 2020, www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2019/02/20/most-u-s-teens-see-anxiety-and-depression-as-a-major-problem-among-their-peers/.

O'Keeffe, Gwenn Schurgin, et al. “The Impact of Social Media on Children, Adolescents, and Families.” American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Pediatrics, 1 Apr. 2011, pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/127/4/800.

TEDxTalks, director. YouTube, YouTube, 2 May 2014, www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnC6IABJXOI.

TEDxTalks, director. YouTube, YouTube, 6 Feb. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Yt6raj-S1M.

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iamnotawomanimagod · 5 years ago

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Manic Review - From “Least-Best” to Best

Halsey released her third studio album on 1/17/2020, and it is easily her best. I’ve wanted to talk about it, but first, I need to figure out how I feel about each track in relation to the others. So this is mostly for me, but I’d love to hear how other people are feeling too!

I love all of these songs, I feel so blessed with this album, which is why this goes from “least-best” to “best”, not “worst.”

(I know that’s kind of splitting semantic hairs, but I refuse to disrespect this album, lmao.)

So, without further ado, here are my favorite songs on Manic, starting with the one I like the least:

16 - “Alanis’s Interlude”

This is THE bisexual anthem we’ve all been waiting for from Halsey. It’s cool, sexy, and features some stellar vocals from both Alanis and Halsey. It ranks so low for me only because I’m not a huge fan of the chorus, the machine drums, or the melody, despite loving the message. But the verses are fire, and so are the vocals.

15 - “Still Learning”

I think this track will be a slow-grower for me, the way “Devil in Me” was. Maybe it’s just because it comes on the heels of the deeply, deeply impactful “More” - but I found this didn’t strike the chord I thought it would. It’s a beautiful song, though, and very meaningful to Halsey’s personal journey. I think seeing it live might change my mind about it.

14 - “Finally // beautiful stranger”

This might be the sweetest side of Halsey that we’ve ever seen, especially when it comes to romantic love. The fact that it was inspired by Yungblud makes my heart ache a bit. I really love the duality of the different versions of Ashley in the video. That being said, the genre/style of song isn’t my personal favorite. Her vocals are amazing, though, and some of the lyrics are really poetic. I know this will be an especially tender one live, in front of a Halsey crowd. I can just picture everyone swaying and singing along.

13 - “SUGA’s Interlude”

This interlude is such a soft, sad moment on the album, and it fits really well before “More.” SUGA’s Interlude is all about the way fame has changed both artists, and about how they’ll know when it’s time to step away from the spotlight - and how that might change them. SUGA has excellent flow, and Halsey’s delicate, pining vocals on the chorus is a perfect complement to his introspective rapping. It’s a really sweet song, and part of why it works so well on the album is because it creates such a heartfelt prelude to “More”. The song all about leaving fame behind, followed by the song about loving her unborn child, and how she badly wants to be a mother...gives me chills, man, literal chills. I think I’d like it more if I spoke Korean, but honestly, Korean Halsey fans deserve somethin’ special, so I’m okay with it.

12 - “You should be sad”

I still don’t know if I quite “buy” Y’allsey, but I can’t deny that this is a really fun song. Singing along to the lyrics is so satisfying, and the music video provided us with some serious Looks. The guitar riff between the chorus and the verses makes me feel things, and so does the line: “I’m so glad I never ever had a baby with you,” especially after hearing “More”. I like this song a lot, but compared to the rest of the album, it’s not in my top ten. I think it’ll be a really, really fun one live, though.

11 - “Without Me”

This song and I share a birthday! It’s also where Manic really began, although we had no idea that was the case, at the time. This was the first time Halsey wrote from such a specific and personal place, knowing we would all immediately recognize who the song targeted and why. She’s used this song brilliantly since then, coming up with a dozen different interpretations and set pieces, performing it while chained to a post, while revealing the messages of her cheating ex, while dancing with a beautiful girl, and even more. (It helps a lot that she performed this song with Jade Chynoweth, one of my all-time favorite dancers, and responded to the backlash of that performance by doing it again, but even gayer, just a few weeks later.) We owe a lot to this song. And, as it turns out, it really fits in with the story of Manic, and with the tone, from both a sonic and thematic perspective. I’m still a little tired of it, though, which is why it ranks so low. But - credit where it’s due!

10 - “Dominic’s Interlude”

This one surprised me, although I went in with zero expectations, not knowing who Dominic Fike was. I wish Halsey was actually in this song, but other than that, I think it’s a great interlude. Not to mention: “If you’re looking for signs then you should know, there’s power in the words that you’re thinking.” That’s an incredible line, hit me hard.

9 - “Ashley”

I both love and hate what this song means, because it scares the crap out of me. The way she described it as “a cautious goodbye” in an interview... It’s absolutely a letter to her fans, about Halsey, about who Halsey is, and who Ashley is, and how that balancing act both breaks her and makes her thrive. She can’t keep doing this forever. She knows how much she means to us, and this song is all about how heavy and scary that burden is, but that she’s committed to it, for now. Ending with that line from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was perfect. We’re the ones who shouldn’t assign her our peace of mind, y’know? Her vocals are stunning, though, and I think it’s the strongest opener from any of her albums. This song reminds me of a much less depressing version of “Batter Up” by Brand New, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it influenced her a bit.

8 - “Graveyard”

This song really feels like the older sister of “Without Me”. I love the racing speed of the melody and the rhythm, the way everything is layered so manically and frantically over the verses. It’s actually really easy to get lost in the musicality of this one, even though the lyrics are incredible. I think the music video is my all-time favorite of Halsey’s, because I love all the symbolism in it, and it was really trippy to see her without tattoos. I’ll consider this one a bop for a long, long time.

7 - “clementine”

We’ve had this song for a little while, and it’s been one of my favorites. I was pretty sure it was going to stay that way, even after the album came out, but Halsey surprised me. That being said, I still love the way this song manages to be both playful and petulant, spirited and sad. It has some really beautiful images, and the music video is so pretty.

6 - “I HATE EVERYBODY”

We love a song full of contradictions! This song takes the humor/self-deprecation that started in “Clementine” and “Forever... (is a long time)” and turns it anthemic. The transition from “Dominic’s Interlude” to this song is so perfect, it’s hard not to listen to them one after the other. Halsey once again proves her lyrical prowess and ability to write a relatable bop, which is really what we love her for in the end, right? I love the way the song starts out pretty simply, than swells up into something epic.

5 - “3am”

I love this genre, so much, and I think Halsey completely nails it. This song wouldn’t make anyone bat an eye if you played it in 2007. Most other Halsey songs can’t claim that, and since I’m a sucker for the aughties, this one lives high on my list. It reminds me of P!nk, Avril Lavigne, and Paramore. The lyrics are super relatable, and I love the chorus and the bridge. It’s not the best lyrically, but that bridge honestly makes up for what the rest of the song lacks. Can’t wait to scream that one live! I do wish John Mayer wasn’t rambling on the end, but I also love how that leads into “Without Me”.

4 - “929″

This might sound strange, but I love how this song starts with just Ashley talking; she’s speaking through laughter, challenging her friend playfully. This song feels so real. I love the stream-of-consciousness style of lyrics and the way the melody plays into that. Her voice reminds me so much of early, early Halsey - songs like “Tilt You Back” and “For Ruby”. I can relate so much to some of the things she says, and I love the way it ends. It’s such an interesting contrast to the way her previous albums concluded, too - “Young God” and “Hopeless” are both such epic, sweeping tracks. Ending her most personal album yet with such a tender ode to self-acceptance, and self-discovery, is such a beautiful way to show how much she’s grown, as a person, a songwriter, and a singer. This song makes me nostalgic, proud, happy, just a little sad, and feel so at peace.

3 - “More”

I almost don’t really have words for this song. Knowing Halsey’s story, her very honest and public experiences with infertility and endometriosis, made this song hit me a lot harder than I ever expected. I still can’t quite get through it without crying. It’s an incredibly beautiful song. Painfully, painfully honest, about a topic that’s so rarely openly discussed in pop culture. I don’t even want kids, but the yearning she shows, the hope she still has, the way she says that she’s loved her future child more than anything, and has always loved them; the reference to having already bought baby clothes; the sound of the sonogram machine, and the way it sounds like she’s singing to her baby from outside the womb at the end; it guts me. And again, I don’t want kids. I never expected this kind of honesty or tenderness from her. It’s such a special song, truly. (For the record, I listened to it again to write this and am fully weeping once more.)

2 - “Forever... (is a long time)”

What a surprise this song was! I think it perfectly captures a certain kind of self-destructive behavior that so many of us end up falling into when it comes to relationships. The way the song goes from happy and plucky to this burgeoning feeling of dread, of spiraling down into those dark thoughts that trip all of us up from time to time. It goes from a love song to a break-up song in a matter of seconds, and the transition is spine-tinglingly perfect. The storm building in the background, starting with thunder and dissipating into rain. The way her voice comes back in with the same melody, but minor instead of major. The way the song sort of disintegrates into chaos, and into the realization: “talk to your man...tell him he’s got bad news comin’.” (This is definitely about the Yungblud breakup, right? Nevermind, my heart can’t take that. Gonna pretend I didn’t just realize that.)

1 - “killing boys”

Jennifer’s Body is one of my absolute favorite movies, unironically. I love that Halsey loves it too, enough to include lines from it in the most badass boss bitch song she’s written since “Nightmare”. Her vocals are incredible (those high notes!) - the lyrics are the perfect blend of regretful and rageful - the beat, melodies, and overall composition just fills me up with this impossibly strong sense of “fuck yeah, fuck you.” I don’t have the words to describe how this song makes me feel. I had high hopes, based on the title, and it did not disappoint. This song has some of the cleverest lines on the entire record, and it makes me feel a way that no other song does. That’s what seals it at #1, for me (for now.)

Feel free to reply with yours, or tag me in your own review!! I’m really excited to see some of the more detailed opinions people have, now that the initial “IT’S HERE” hype has started to subside.

stream MANIC by HALSEY today

#manic #manic review #manic era #halsey #ashley frangipane #stephspeaks #ok to reblog #changed some formatting

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kachulein · 4 years ago

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It's just Felix's voice is on another lvl and everytime his part comes in a song it's like "I knew it was gonna happen but I still feel attacked thank you" and ya I'd love to get some help in knowing who they are like, I recognize them most of the time but a guide to who's who wouldnt hurt mostly abt their personalities you know?

Oof I feel you so much with this. In the new album 아니 (Any) is my favourite song and I especially like Felix's part. His voice isn't as deep there but god, the tone of his voice is just so pretty?? It had me hooked from the start.🥺

And I'm really sorry for only answering this ask now, granted, I have to admit I felt very grumpy after tumblr deleted the whole guide I was working on but I finally finished the new, and definitely better/more organized one, so I hope this will be of help and that you'll enjoy reading through it~

A Guide to Stray Kids' Personalities

I'll put this under a cut as it got extremely long. :3

Bang Chan:

Chan is literally the biggest sweetheart and I keep referring to him as 'emotional support kpop boy'

he is so kind and caring - I mean he even hosts a weekly vlive broadcast to help stays fall asleep, he really cares about us/our problems and truly wants to help us feel better with his music and his words

truly does not have one bad bone in his body- he's super sweet and caring but when it comes down to business -music- he gets strict, maybe a little cold? but that's just because he wants everyone to do their best

he used to be (too) strict with Felix in the past but that was because he had a special bond with him/he liked him so much, so I assume he's the type of person who wants to see his loved ones succeed and do their best and so he might end up being a little too strict to them since he wants them to improve

he used to get more angry at the members when something didn't work out in the past but nowadays, he rarely loses his temper and he tries to stay away from them when he's really angry - he doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings

he actually really likes acting cute!! he used to be the youngest member at jype and he used to hang out with older peers, so he got a habit of acting cute and giving hugs to others and now he does it to the members, haha so precious

he gets super shy and flustered when he's being complimented - he starts giggling and looking down, it's literally the most precious and he deserves to know how amazing he is because he truly is so humble

his humble self is what makes him a great leader as well since he's never greedy or selfish and always puts the members before himself - the members are his top priority and he definitely sacrifices some things for the team

but he also said he can't talk about himself well or he gets nervous when he's got a schedule by himself (like when he recorded his dance cover of 2pm's my house), so he really seems like someone who gains strength and confidence from having his team around him

he's very selfless and very supportive and encouraging but he can also be very funny and teasing

he's very genuine, sincere and nice and he's got an extremely strong sense of responsibility (vvv good trait for a leader ofc), he may seem a bit scary at first/in the past but the more you learn about him the more amazing you will find him and the more you will fall in love with him tbh

in general he's honestly top notch boyfriend material and also just a very wholesome and high quality human being

he also likes to lead and set the mood, he enjoys entertaining others and making them feel satisfied - he hopes that everyone can be happy, he wants to make people happy and then he will be happy, too

and ofc we can't forget how talented he is, music production/composition, making arrangements, writing lyrics, translating lyrics, speaking multiple languages, beautiful singing voice, amazing dancer (he's actually done ballet in the past), and also a great rapper

like tbh, what can't he do??? but believe me when I say, we're going to be asking ourselves this question quite a few times in this post

Minho:

Minho is the definition of a tsundere personality - even the members said so - at first glance you may notice that he can be quite savage and funny and maybe there's even a chance that he seems cold to some-

however, he's truly a sweet person and has a very warm heart and he selflessly cares about others without trying to make a big deal out of it - like, he'd never boast about helping others or doing someone a favour, he's the type to quietly take care of others

he doesn't like admitting to it but he truly cares a lot despite acting nonchalant most of the time - like one time Changbin asked him to get him something,,, and he shrugged it off as "nah dude, I'm not getting this for you" but he kept searching for it for 30 minutes when he couldn't find it - so that really shows it all (Changbin that dork asked Hyunjin to get it for him and then when Minho finally came back and said he couldn't find it, Changbin was like "oh shit sorry, I already asked Hyunjin to bring it to me." 🤦🏻‍♀️ #justiceforminho)

anyway, I don't want people to view him as just a pretty face who's an amazing dancer and a savage guy because he's soooooo much more than that, like there's a lot more to him below the surface -

DID YOU KNOW HE MAKES THREADED BRACELETS IN HIS FREE TIME??? THAT'S THE ABSOLUTE SOFTEST THING EVER BUT ALSO WHAT CAN'T HE DO??? SO MUCH TALENT IN ONE PERSON- (he wore one in his recent solo live and he said he made 7 in total and gave some to others, I wonder if some of the other members got one since I saw Hyunjin wearing a bracelet like that-)

he's a cat person which I love but he also resembles a cat so much?? a true kitty boy- he's very independent and self-reliant, he used to live by himself (I read that once), so he knows how to get around

he also enjoys things such as the smell of gasoline/gas stations or the smell of new buildings or even the smell of cat paws??? it's really odd but also really funny and his reason for it is that smells leave behind memories and I think that makes so much sense then-

he cares a lot about the wellbeing of animals and people and he even sponsors a child in Africa through UNICEF - my heart melted when I found out about that, he also can be seen wearing safety pins on multiple occasions and that just makes me feel like you'd be very safe with him

he can be a bit of an enigma though, even the members think he's "weird"/hard to understand as even they don't fully get him but I think that's his charm! he's not like everybody and he doesn't shy away from being himself

also, he never makes the younger members do stuff for him, on the dance team(s?) he was on predebut, he always used to be one of the youngest members so he said he never learned how to treat people younger than him (he's also an only child), so he's just comfortable with the younger skz members and I feel like they really appreciate it since it makes them feel as if they're all the same age

he also reads a lot and he's said that he reads many self-help books so that he can gain knowledge and help stays out there/convey the message of these books to them

with Minho it's really about the little things, he doesn't make grand gestures and that's why I think some people may overlook his kind and caring nature but if you really look closely, you can see it and it'll warm your heart

He's also very diligent and hardworking, albeit he seems to be someone who gets bored here and there ("I work out to kill time") he really has his goals and ambitions and he works hard for them.

His dancing is freaking amazing (@ jype pls he is a main dancer why is he rarely in center spot????) and his vocals and rapping have improved tremendously! He's got such a beautiful and angelic falsetto tbh you will fall in love with it-

So all in all, you can totally appreciate him for his wit and his savage comments but honestly, his kind and caring heart is what really made him my bias wrecker. I truly believe that he's a very caring and protective person and I find that so beautiful.

Changbin:

Changbinnie oh god, I have so much love for him and I can relate to him a lot. First of all, he always makes sure to be a good listener, so others tend to go to him with their concerns and he tries to take everything in that they say and then give them comfort

he cares a lot about other people's feelings and he puts a lot of importance on his relationships with other people - he wants others to feel comfortable around him and he is very thankful that the younger members also feel comfortable around him

he's a very honest person and doesn't pretend or fake anything, however, if his truth/his feelings would hurt someone else's feelings, he's not going to be honest. That doesn't mean that he's going to lie but he just cares a lot about not hurting other's feelings.

he said even if someone else's feelings are just a little bit hurt, it drives him crazy and he also said that he might be like that since he's sensitive and gets hurts by others easily (this is all so relatable😭)

anyway, Changbin is known for liking to joke around and also is one of the member who get teased by the others a lot, but fear not, he said that he actually enjoys when others tease him because that means they're comfortable with him and that makes him happy

how precious is that omg-

he makes jokes a lot but he is serious when he needs to be, he tends to be more fun around others/with others but is more serious when he's on his own, that's why he actually prefers to be around friends since it helps him forget about his own concerns

I guess he'd be an overthinker and to stop himself from overthinking he spends time playing around with the other members but in a way, I also feel a bit worried since he doesn't open up a lot and I hope he doesn't bottle up his feelings too much since I know how difficult that can be :c

on another note, Changbin is very focused on his health, he apparently works out every morning even when he's tired, he also cares about healthy nutrition and he takes supplements so that he can be healthier

apart from wanting others to feel comfortable around him, he also wants to be seen as a reliable person and it feels good to him when he can help someone/give them comfort

he's truly such a sweetheart and despite seeming so confident, I always feel like he might harbour a lot of insecurities underneath - but that's just my personal opinion, so take that with a grain of salt

the members also said he's the scariest when he gets mad but the sweet thing is that he always apologises to everyone after getting mad

even if he didn't get mad at everyone, he still apologises to them all, and it just shows what a good heart he's got-

and pls can we also talk about how talented he is as a producer, composer, lyricist, main rapper, and vocalist?? His voice is so beautiful and I hope he gets more confident in it and tbh he's also a really good dancer, so I hope he can get praised for his dancing more often as well (before he became a rapper he actually tried out dancing first)

so in conclusion WHAT CAN'T HE DO AND CHANGBIN BEST BOI GIVE HIM LOTS OF LOVE

Hyunjin:

"sexy boy" Hyunjinnie here is actually so much more than just a pretty face with great body proportions and amazing and sexy dance moves/skills

Hyunjin is the biggest soft boy, he's truly a sentimentalist - he gets hurt easily, Seungmin compared him to a snowflake that breaks when it touches the ground

he first thought of himself as mentally strong since that's what helps him overcome all the difficulties but later on (in that video) he felt like he was more mentally weak

he cares a lot about other people's opinion of him and it's really hard for him to ignore hate comments, he gets really sensitive about those (pls for the love of god, what a**holes are sending this precious angel hate?!?!?!?! I WANNA FITE (ง'̀-'́)ง)

with that being said, he's a very emotional boy, he tries to control his emotions or hold them in but he gets influenced by them quite often

he's also very honest with his feelings, so when he expresses them and when he breaks down, they all just burst out of him and he ends up spilling everything he's held in for a while

he doesn't really express his emotions skillfully (don't @ me, Changbin said that) so that can make you feel a bit sorry for him or it can make you feel like you want to take care of him because he's so innocent, naive and trusts easily

like really, he is, he almost got abducted by a cult once- SOMEONE PROTECT HIM PLS-

he also gets immersed in things very easily and boi do I feel him on this one; especially when he watches dramas, he gets so immersed and feels like he's living through the drama as if it happened to himself, he puts himself in the shoes of the male/female main character and the storyline just affects him so much that he often ends up crying (same same😭)

it also happens when he reads webtoons or so, he's also a huge fan of reading - ever since an acquaintance recommended him some books when he was going through a hard time and those books comforted him in a way that words never could - that was the start of his interest in reading

from the outside, we also know him as a bit of a drama queen which actually makes for so many hilarious moments - this impulsive/emotional side of him is just so authentic and he said that there's no side of him that he hasn't shown to stays

he can also be quite critical tbh and he's got his own standards for his likes and dislikes, so when something doesn't meet his standards he breaks down akdksksoals but when there's something he doesn't want to do or thinks doesn't serve him, he's got no problem cutting it off

despite that, he can actually get swayed by other people quite easily (hence, him being trusting and naive), when others make suggestions, he often agrees to them but that doesn't mean that he doesn't have his own opinions whatsoever, because he does have those as well

it's just easy to sway/persuade him, even when it comes to things like shopping - he rarely goes shopping tbh, despite dressing so well - but when he does, then he'll go get the things he finds pretty but when someone points something out and says "that's pretty" he'll buy it (so in conclusion, I really wanna go shopping with him now)

so yeah, Hyunjin is amazing and he's so compassionate and emotional and empathetic and I love him so much wtf and he's so hardworking and talented and his dancing is so amazing and his rapping has become so damn good, like his voice is loud and stable like good job baby🥺, I'm so proud of you🥺, and his singing voice is so soft and lovely, and he's also great at taking pictures- and aaaah seriously what can't he do??? he is a full package imo and you cannot escape his charms even if you try-

Jisung:

okay so Jisungie is seriously such a precious and shy bean and you don't really see this at first glance because he's so sociable, outgoing and cheerful when he's with the members

but that's the thing: he's close to them and they make him feel comfortable and confident, so he feels at ease and can show a more talkative side of himself - he's even the one who usually leads the conversation

he's extremely funny, has a lot of wit, is great at doing acrostic poems and in general, he's just such a creative person with many amazing ideas - some may call him a genius😌

but coming back to that shy side of his; he's actually a very introverted person; he doesn't like to leave the house and and hates moving in general - Jisung in bed is Jisung in his natural habitat tbh

on days off he prefers to stay indoors, lay in bed, and just watch youtube videos or tv shows or something - he doesn't like to go out or do outdoor activities and his eyes are always glued to the phone (relatable)

even when he's eating with the members he's having his earbuds in and watches something on his phone and then he gets really creative and uses all kinds of things to mount his phone (again, so relatable hhhh)

his routine is something like watching youtube videos/cartoons etc., falling asleep, waking up, spacing out and then repeating the whole process-

he sleeps really well and he can actually fall asleep in the weirdest places, it really shows how he can fall asleep everywhere but maybe he also seeks special hideouts to nap because he doesn't like being woken up and if the members can't see/find him, they also can't wake him... you get it hahaha~

Chan thought that maybe Jisung watches all these things on his phone as a way to escape reality and to relieve stress but Jisung also said that he gets a lot of inspiration from cartoons and videos to write lyrics - due to watching all these videos he actually harbours a lot of random trivia knowledge, which fits the genius description~

however, despite this outgoing side when he's with his close friends, he actually gets scared easily, may it be heights or dark places or meeting new people - protect him omg - especially with strangers he's extremely shy -> the introvert showing

he actually doesn't talk at all when he has to meet new people, he gets very nervous and awkward and scared - when they're at music shows and there's a lot of people around, he gets very nervous - he said he's never been good at making friends and he only keeps a few close friends

when he gets close to people, however, he becomes extremely talkative with no limit, he's also very affectionate and warm-hearted, his sentimental, soft and dreamy side really coming through

so basically, he's very cheerful on the outside but thoughtful on the inside - he's actually very mature despite the goofy and silly/playful side he usually shows us -> Changbin once said that Jisung feels like an older brother to him because of how mature he is, he really is a deep thinker and I guess that's also a reason why he's so amazing at writing songs

Jisung also got something we're all envious of; he can eat lots of unhealthy things without gaining weight - he loves sweet things (but also chips) and he frequently eats late night snacks and luckily for him, his face rarely puffs up despite those late night snacks, there's only been a few occasions during which that happened (and I think I got a picture of one of these instances hahahaha he really looks different with a puffy face, so cute!!!🥺😂)

he's also just such an adorable person and it's so soft and cute and fun to watch him get excited and he absolutely loves to receive praise and he's just such a baby boy tbh :(( jisung protection squad where ya at?? and well, of course, we can't end this without talking about his endless list of talents like WHAT CAN'T THIS MAN DO??? producing songs, composing, writing lyrics, amazing rapping, amazing vocals, amazing dancing, drawing, voice imitations - he's seriously one of the most talented all-rounder out there and god I love him so much and you seriously can't escape his squirrel/quokka charms🥺

Felix:

if you need a definition or a personification of the word pure, it would be Felix, like seriously, this boy is so soft and precious we need to protect him at all costs

he's literally so nice, so sweet, so kind and so creative - he's often referred to as the "romanticist" in stray kids and yeah that really fits because you know what? he once surprised Seungmin for his birthday in the cutest way. He called him on his birthday and asked him for help (as an excuse) and when Seungmin came down, Felix was there with a birthday cake with Seungmin's nickname on it - he basically organized this little surprise and Seungmin tried so hard not to cry🥺🥺🥺

Felix is so considerate and cares a lot about the other members, he's usually more of a quiet person but when he feels comfortable around someone, he can get really talkative

but him not talking doesn't mean there's nothing going on inside of him - he's literally got so many thoughts running around in his mind and he's truly an overthinker - he talks to himself in his mind a lot

he also loves playing games and he can seriously go on playing until 6am, the members said that he is very good at concentrating (for example when he studies Korean) but especially also when he's playing games

Felix said that playing games is something that helps him relieve stress or it's what he does when he's tired - playing games is a distraction for him, so he can avoid thinking of whatever's troubling him

however, recently he wants to focus more on his concerns and worries, he thinks it's not something he should avoid, so now he tries to focus on these worries and talk about them/express them more since he thinks it's important to do so

something that's really cute about him but also worrisome is that he gets sleepy easily, especially after eating, so whenever they got dance practice, he tends not to eat in order to avoid getting sleepy :(

protect him pls and pls lixie don't avoid eating~ especially when having dance practice you need your energy and it's not good to have an empty stomach and fill it with coffee and sweet beverages instead of food :(

anyway, Felix is winsome and cute and an absolute cuddle buddy, he says he doesn't really know what it means to act cute but I suppose he's just naturally cute and adorable- I MEAN C'MON-

whenever Felix talks about serious matters, it's like he needs some sort of comfort afterwards so he requires a lot of cuddles (but the members said that after a while it gets too hot (I guess because of his body heat??) so it can be hard for them to cuddle him for long periods of time :'))

Felix is also known as our sunshine, he always wants to give a positive and happy impression to others/us stays even when he might be dealing with negative thoughts, it's too precious but I hope he also takes care of himself

but trying to be optimistic and think positively instead of letting the negative thoughts consume you is already a good start and I feel like Chan also helped him a lot with this, Chanlix best soulmates ever

Felix has high expectations (it seems) and he always wants to do better and do well, he's working hard on improving himself and it really shows!!

his singing voice improved so much (as well as his rapping!! and I mean H I S V O I C E in general oof😭🥺) and his dancing is freaking amazing!! I hope he can become confident in himself because he deserves to be happy with the person he is since he's such a huge inspiration to so many of us!! SERIOUSLY WHAT CAN'T HE DO?? he shows us that we can achieve anything with practice and hard work and that's so inspiring PLS EVERYONE LOVE OUR FELIX SUNSHINE

Seungmin:

I think the first words that come to mind when thinking of Seungmin is how diligent and clean/organized he is. He was one of the only (if not THE only) trainee who never missed a day of writing his trainee logs

he's not just diligent but extremely hardworking overall and he describes himself as serious and a bit funny - he's got very strong willpower tbh

he may also be known for teasing the members, especially Jeongin, or for nagging when someone (looking at you, Jisung) leaves behind a mess at the dorm but he is truly a sweetheart and he doesn't mean any harm

and in turn, he's also one of the members who gets teased the most- when that happens he becomes upset but he recovers very quickly as he often thinks it's not worth getting mad over

like honestly, he is a puppy, he can't do no harm :< but yeah, Seungmin is actually extremely soft, emotional, empathetic and supportive!! I've been keeping an eye on him recently and whenever something happens to a member (on a variety show - for example when one member shows off something and embarrasses himself or so), he's always there to give them a hug, comforting them

he also always tries to cheer other members up when they feel down, then he may act silly or he does/say something that's supportive because he truly cares about the members and doesn't like seeing them in pain

he's also someone who cries very easily, showing how he's truly an emotional baby but don't be phased, he's actually very emotionally strong and it's something very admirable about him

he has God sent vocals, his dancing is amazing and omg have you heard rapper!Seungmin?? Tbh I dig it!! He strictly takes care of his voice since his vocals and recording songs is very important to him - he dresses warmly when it's cold, always wears a mask and tries not to get sick

he's also very good at taking photos and he always brings his camera to official schedules and takes photos of the members. SEUNGMIN BEST STRAY KIDS FANSITE!!!!!

if you ever hear a weird noise, especially something sounding like "GAAAH" or "DA", it's probably Seungmin. He's truly a puppy, he's so cute and adorable, I feel like he's the type of person you can't get mad at

he also manages himself well, from getting up early, to cooking food for himself if there's none, to taking care of his body and health - it's really admirable and he also practices his singing so diligently and it just s h o w s- he's so good

also, he actually wanted to become a baseball player when he was a kid and we're still waiting for him to show us how he plays-

but also!!! he is a very smart and logical person (he wanted to be a prosecutor if he wasn't in stray kids) so he's got both the logical and also the very loving, empathetic side since he's also very considerate of the members - he seems to be a really good listener to them, this is just a personal observation from watching two kids room episodes- and he's actually the only member who thinks before he speaks- THANK YOU SEUNGMING I LOVE WHEN PEOPLE DON'T JUST BLURT EVERYTHING OUT-

so really ???? WHAT CAN'T HE DO HE IS A FULL PACKAGE- and fun fact, he brushes his teeth around 6 times a day-

but anyway, Seungmin is the type of person who appreciates the small things in life and finds happiness through those. I really like that attitude and he's truly someone worth looking up to. Our multitalented dandy boy- you can only love him~

Jeongin:

Jeongin here may be the youngest - and granted he is absolutely cute and adorable no matter what he does - but he's actually also a very mature person and I feel like that can be overlooked since he's the youngest of the team

while it can be hard for him to share his struggles as there's no one else his age in skz, he's also generally a person who doesn't want to burden others with his hardships so he keeps a lot of stuff to himself (so relatable)

but recently his mom talked to him about him not sharing his feelings and he's trying to open up more and share a bit, when the other members ask him if it's been hard, he often bursts into tears - god, protect him pls

even though he doesn't talk or show that much there's these moments - one time he was eating with Hyunjin and just broke down in tears since it's been hard for him - I suppose he bottles stuff up and then it comes out all of a sudden

however, his mature side is still there and the members, especially Hyunjin or Chan really enjoy sharing their feelings with him

Jeongin is a really great listener, he doesn't try to give solutions, he just listens to the other person and then shares his own experiences - it's what makes him seem mature

though he also has a bit of a mature and even cold look, so usually the first impression he gives off is different from his actual self and he said he enjoys seeing how people get surprised when they get closer to him and learn about his true self

he's also extremely clumsy and causes trouble often - from breaking doors, to accidentally hurting members, to spilling stuff, he's a clumsy boi

and he's also really forgetful, he tends to forget when he orders something online and gets surprised when it suddenly arrives or he forgets where he put his belongings (like his airpods jajdjskdks) and then he just buys new ones and then loses them again after a few months- aish that boi-

but these things are also what makes him even more lovable, like yes, he definitely has a mature side about him but you just want to protect and take care of him when you see him, amiright???

the members also said (or more like Hyunjin said) that he doesn't know anyone who's kinder and nicer than Jeongin

and on top of that, he's also a very hardworking member and his dancing and his vocals have improved soooooo much, and I'm so so so proud of him, like his voice is so beautiful

and he's been getting into working out recently, so now he's also trying to take good care of his body and wow, he's been doing a really good job even the members commented on how his back/shoulders are becoming broader

all in all, Jeongin is the cute and adorable maknae of Stray Kids but he's also so much more than just the youngest member and he's got so many things going for him and he always pushes through even when it's hard and never gives up

it's truly admirable like what can't he do right????? pls show our cute baby lots of love uwu

#the many hours i spent on this i'm so happy i got it done and i hope what i wrote made sense #i know the members ofc but i still did research on everyone first so that nothing i say in this guide is false #i hope you like it🥺#stray kids #ask #jenoscity💕#lovely mooties💖

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capricornus-rex · 5 years ago

Text

A Path I Can’t Follow (8)

Chapter 8: Cal’s Dark Deeds | Cal Kestis x Reader

Summary: It was a matter of life and death—the question is, should it be the life of many or one, the death of many or one? Cal Kestis makes what ought to be the biggest and hardest decision of his life as he is pitted with a question of high stakes and morals. He descends to the Dark Side and becomes an Inquisitor. A choice he openly made for the sake of saving you, even if you didn't know you needed it until it was too late.

TW: Depiction of violence and manslaughter - this is the only chapter that has it.

Tags: Dark Side! Cal Kestis, Inquisitor! Cal Kestis

Also posted in AO3

Chapters: 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 | Previous: Chapter 7 | Next: Chapter 9 | Masterlist

8 of ?

You gravitate to the Holocron resting on its pedestal. The nearer you got, the louder the voices became—overlapping at one another, battling for your attention. Only some of their words were distinct, they were calling for your name followed by another word that you could not yet comprehend.

Your hand slowly reaches for the artifact; the light around it was so blinding that you had to squint your eyes as you try to grab it.

When your fingers have finally closed around the glowing cyan cube, a heavy, warping sensation cloaks you from head to toe—it’s as if you were being sucked into the black vacuum of space—images flashed before your eyes, an indescribable feeling lingered within your very core, and then suddenly, everything from the voices to the cries was reduced to a single, faceless, unseen entity.

[y/n]…

It called to you. The sound of the voice was warm and familiar, you could’ve sworn your heart skipped a beat when you heard it say your name.

You dared to utter a name. A word you haven’t used in a long time.

“Master?”

[y/n], remember your training.

You spun around where you stood, searching the entire chamber for the source of the voice—nothing.

Heed me well: do not let fear and inhibition trample on what you believe in. Trust only in the Force.

“Master, wait!”

Then the chamber was entirely silent. That rhapsody of feelings, sounds, and images have vanished out of existence. The viscous, bioluminescent substance tracing the etches across the walls and floor have lost their bright glow, albeit they remained; even the light of the holocron’s pedestal dimmed out when its precious treasure have been taken out of its place.

You examine the cyan cube framed with gold, amazed that the metal has never tarnished after being sealed away in this tomb.

“Cal…!” you gasped, not realizing how long you’ve been inside this chamber. To you, it felt like only a few moments have passed.

You tucked the holocron in your backpack and hurried out of the chamber. The door rumbled as it opened.

“Cal, I got…!” your smile melted away. “It…?”

Much to your surprise, the foyer was as empty as it was when you entered it. You surveyed the entire foyer, you crossed the gap again until you were on stable ground. You looked at the doorways that lead to the passages, the platforms that he may have climbed up, and even the exit.

No, he couldn’t have left me on purpose!

“Cal?” you called again.

Attempting to radio call him proved to be futile. There was no answer on his end.

“No, it can’t be…” you muttered to yourself, thinking about scouring the first levels and the other passages that he may have gone to—which, not much later, you did but the result remained the same.

In your haste, you climbed the vines that covered the wall at the lobby ruins where Cal and the Fourth Brother battled yesterday. You sprinted back to the foyer, as it childish as you thought it would be, you had hoped that he will reappear in that spot where you left him. Your faith in Cal’s ability to take down that many Stormtrooper was faltering.

He’s strong. He’s not that easily taken down. You thought to yourself as you head for the exit.

The growing paranoia in you had heightened your senses, making you hypervigilant. While being aware of the possible presence of Stormtroopers and Purge Troopers hiding amongst the rocks on the clifftops, you sprinted along the path where the Varans were tethered.

Again, you had hoped that Cal would be there sitting on his own Varan waiting for you. The result was the same as the temple.

He was nowhere to be found.

The pair of Varans were behaving wildly. They were rearing, standing on their hind legs as they loudly croaked and clicked; you tried your best to calm both of them down, holding them by the reins and gently tugging them until their muzzles were close enough for you to pet.

“Where is he?” you say under your breath, you had wish the creatures could speak. “Something doesn’t feel right.”

The creatures chirped in agreement. You connected the reins of the two reptilian steeds before riding your own Varan.

“I hope I’m wrong,” you sighed.

You kicked the side of the creature’s belly with your stirrup and the Varan went darting through the plains on the way back to the village. Your heartbeat pounded loudly, its rhythm almost synchronized with the Varans’ galloping; as you rode, you could not shake the thoughts that were forming in your mind. The only consolation being that they are only imaginings that took form at the expense of your paranoia.

Unfortunately, Cal had already beat you to the village. A cloud of sand signaled the arrival of a convoy consisting of a shuttle and a pair of small transport ships, the village was already on high alert as the triad of black ships landed right outside the town border.

Razh and a company of perhaps all of the men in the town, from the adolescent boys brave enough to come with up to the able-bodied elders who could still swing a staff, were armed to the teeth—possibly ten times more than when you and Cal first arrived—the small army marched to the entrance of their town, ready to greet the intruders. The women, children, and elderly have retreated to their homes—locking their doors, shutting and barring the windows until the background behind this small band of protectors fell silent, and only the wind disturbing the dust spoke.

There was a medley of anxiety and eagerness amongst the men as they anticipate for the ship’s door to open and reveal their unexpected visitors.

“You better be prepared,” the Grand Inquisitor cooed, standing in front of the door with Cal by his side.

“I am.” Cal simply yet firmly replied.

The shuttle’s door hissed as it retracted into its frame. The two stepped out of the ship, the transport ships’ had already dispatched a handful of Stormtroopers each—there are more inside, obediently and patiently waiting for the command.

Cal appeared—alongside the Grand Inquisitor—Razh recognized him immediately when he walked closer. The Grand Inquisitor, imposing as he always is, terrified the men but Razh tried to calm them down, repeating the words “Steady, men” until the vocal shudders were silenced. He could not believe what he’s seeing. This ought to be the heaviest shock of his life so far, and he was already hoping for the worst.

“Cal? What are you doing? Who are these people?!”

“What’s the meaning of this?!” an elderly man who made sure he stood out for his voice to be heard, pushed his way through the crowd.

Cal did not answer the bombardment of questions. The Grand Inquisitor leaned closer to Cal’s ear, his jaw slightly moved as he spoke, inaudible to Razh and the rest of his crew.

“Give the command, Cal,” uttered the Grand Inquisitor.

“What is he saying? Cal, what did he say?”

“I’m sorry, Razh,” Cal raised his arm, visible enough for the Stormtroopers rallied behind him and the Grand Inquisitor. The soldiers that were stiff as a pole at one second, became firm in their aiming stances in the next. “You were a gracious host… but now I will do what I must.”

At the simple flick of his two fingers, all of the Stormtroopers squeezed the triggers of their blasters; Razh and some his men managed to dodge the bullets but a large fraction of them had been gunned down. More of the Stormtroopers spilled out of the transport ships, they sprinted through the skirmish that was happening on the ground, and their targets were the residents shut inside their homes.

Nobody was spared.

A mother had been gunned down for protecting her children, a blast from the barrel of the Stormtrooper’s rifle found its mark on her forehead. The children were slain before her lifeless body could even fall flat on the ground—all it took was one shot for each.

One. Two. Three. Four.

An elderly couple, hiding in their bedroom and coddled up to one another in fear, did not put up much of a fight when a Flametrooper kicked down their door; when the old husband knew that pleading and begging will never save them, he embraced his frail wife closer and tighter until his lips could touch her forehead.

Her trembling sob was the final thing he heard before the trooper pulled the trigger of his flamethrower.

The babies’ chances of survival were the slimmest. Even if they were kept hidden in their houses while their mothers dared to fight back and were slaughtered in the process, a single blast startled them horribly and they began to bawl, their cover ultimately blown and discovered by the raiding Scout Troopers.

While carnage ensued in each and every home, the skirmish continued; the men hindering the Stormtroopers from coming close to their doorstep, desperately attempting to protect their families.

“Why are you doing this?! WHAT HAVE WE EVER DONE TO YOU?! I GAVE YOU SHELTER, I SHARED MY TABLE WITH YOU, MY WIFE NURSED [Y/N] TO HEALTH… AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY US?!?!” Razh roared in rage, stuck in a spiraling confusion where he could not process that this was his reality now.

“You will never understand, Razh. Never.” Cal uttered, devoid of remorse as the cries of death spilled out of every window and door in the town.

“Please, Cal…” Razh’s voice warbled, and he ended up speaking in sobs. “Leave Miera and my son… my sweet Yenzo… leave them out of this!”

Cal’s eyes drooped, giving Razh a false hope of mercy as the pensive expression was painted all over the young Jedi’s face. He smacked his lips to give his verdict.

“I think I can,” Razh’s eyes lit up as soon as he heard Cal’s answer, but the Jedi’s eyes glanced over the leader’s shoulder. He gestured a nod in the direction he was looking at to Razh. “But I don’t think they will.”

Razh quickly turned around to his back, his eyes widens in fear as he finds a trio of Scout Troopers armed with electrostaffs, spearheaded by a commander, barging into his shouts. Miera’s shouts of struggle sent Razh into a panic.

“MIERA!! NO!!”

A Stormtrooper held Miera violently by the hair while she never let go of their son, Yenzo—who was nearly breathless from all his terrified crying.

Now, Razh was at a standstill. Should he attack Cal? Or go to his wife and son?

Razh tightened his grip around his weapon’s hilt, preparing for retaliation. He comes charging towards Cal with his staff held high over his head, Cal had anticipated this. Their weapons collided, his staff pressing against the beam of his lightsaber. The young Jedi’s face was a blank slate, except for the ominous glower in his pale jade eyes; he looks again over Razh’s shoulder and nods again, he looked behind him—and the next moment will truly be the most devastating in all of the town leader’s life.

Without hesitation, the other Stormtroopers jabbed Miera and baby Yenzo with their staffs until the high voltage forcefully sent coursing through their bodies had rendered them lifeless. The light in Miera’s eyes was extinguished as she stared at her husband, until the speck of life that clung finally died with her. The swaddled infant, cold and lifeless like his mother, rolled away from her arms as they fell to the dust.

“NOOOO!!!!” Tears pooled and rolled down Razh’s cheek as he roared, heartbroken and ultimately destroyed upon witnessing the slaughter of his family.

The grip on his weapon was failing, but there was still a fire in him that allowed him to fight with all his might. A typical act of wrath, the Grand Inquisitor thinks. Cal brandished his lightsaber and deflected Razh’s weapon. Cal fought dirty, kicking Razh hard on the shin before being killing him.

Along the way, you suddenly felt a stabbing feeling in your chest. The vein in your neck throbbed as the dust in the wind pricked your cheeks. The negative thoughts came back to you instantaneously, itching to devour your sanity.

You remember the words of your late master that echoed in the chamber. Following her advice, you fought off the thoughts while you tried to keep your grip firm on the reins; constantly hoping that Cal is unharmed, that he will be waiting for you, and that every bad thing in your mind is just a hyperbolic figment of your imagination.

“COME ON!!!” you bellowed at your Varan, wildly snapping at the reins, prompting it to go faster.

When the silhouette of the town was becoming more and more visible, relief grew in your heart, but as you got closer, smoke wafted out of the skyline and the smell had alerted the animals. Your eyes furrowed in curiosity, heeling the Varans to a slower pace but they were jerking their heads from side to side as you approached the town.

After passing through the town’s arch, you were met with what could be the most inhumane scene that you’ve ever laid eyes on. You can feel your stomach sinking to your feet. The burnt awnings and canopies explain the smoke that you saw from a distance. Shards of clay pots and wood scattered across the sand. Bodies were strewn all over the streets.

“Oh… Oh no…” you were at a loss for words that perhaps all you could do was faint.

You dismounted the Varan and untied the connected reins, allowing the animals to investigate the scene with you.

Everywhere you looked, there was the touch of death.

You peered over the doors that had apparently been broken down, only to find the interior in a complete disarray—as if a great windstorm had gotten inside their house. The stench of charred flesh drew you to a house whose door was hanging open.

“Hello? Is… anybody there?” you called as you step into the abode.

You treaded carefully along the common space of the house, the odor got stronger every step—the scent had led you to a room with a door left ajar, you pushed the door open and immediately wished that you never did that, you gasped in horror at the discovery the charred bodies of the elderly couple who fell victim to a Flametrooper.

Your knees were noodles, bringing you down to the floor, your stomach sinking to the bottom of your feet—you couldn’t keep your eyes off the body even if you so desperately wanted to.

Now, you were frantic to find any survivors and the call of the Varans may have helped you with that.

You struggled to regain your bearings and then ran out of the house to find the creatures—they repeated their hollering, waiting for you to come quickly. You find them nuzzling their snouts against a bunch of bodies—one of which still appeared to be half-alive.

“Razh…?” you whispered.

You went closer and confirmed that it was indeed Razh. He ceaselessly wept in a haunting and sorrowful howl while he lies next to the corpses of his wife and child. The trail of blood that led to him implied that he worm-crawled all the way from the spot where he had stood to where Miera and Yenzo lay dead when they were executed.

He viciously shook away your hand from his shoulder. You caught a glimpse of Yenzo’s face; it was pink and soft when you last saw him, now the baby’s skin had purpled, riddled with reddened veins trailing all over his cheeks, stuck in a permanent expression of a wakeless slumber.

Razh refused to be touched by anyone—not even you—but you understood that he was in a state of shock and trauma. You tenderly spoke to him, calming him down.

“Razh, it’s me, I won’t hurt you,” you consoled.

“My love, my baby…!” he bawled, completely incapable to utter other words besides those.

“What happened here?” you said, as you continued to survey the land.

“Cal…” the mention of his name sounded like a warbled grunt.

You leaned closer to hear better.

“I’m sorry… I couldn’t understand that. Who did this?”

“It was Cal!” he shouted, then his voice returned to a whimper, ignoring you and gazing back at his wife while caressing her cold, hard cheek as if still hoping that she would wake along with their baby.

You couldn’t believe what Razh said. You demanded an explanation, but you knew that you wouldn’t get much from a grieving man lying next to his dead family, expecting nothing but for death to come to him as well.

“No… it can’t be… He wouldn’t!” you shuddered in disbelief. You slumped to the ground, sitting close enough to see baby Yenzo. The sight of the dead child brought you to tears and gave in to your grief.

It was the least you could do, you wept with Razh and offered to help him bury Miera and Yenzo, along with the other townsfolk—he politely declined, shaking his head and saying it’s useless for he will die very soon, he is just waiting for it. He requested you to leave him alone to grieve. Out of respect, you obliged.

Having not much to do, you decided to look for clues, your Varan followed you along in the investigation.

Not much later, you heard a familiar beeping amongst the earthenware sitting outside one of the huts. Your head jerked up, frantically searching for the sound—it was perhaps your only hope.

“BD…?” You breathed.

A pair of lens and an antenna peeked out behind the pots. BD-1 showed himself out of his hiding place when he saw you and excitedly scampered towards you.

“BD-1!!!” You exclaimed, beckoning him to your arms which he happily leapt on. “Aw, am I so glad to see you! Where’s Cal?”

BD-1 chirped a series of trills and notes, his panicked tone wasn’t a good sign. He told everything single thing to you—right from the beginning where the Grand Inquisitor arrived at the ambush back in the temple up until this moment in the town.

The little droid finally gave what you were looking for: Cal’s location.

“Cere, are you there?” you call over in your radio.

“I’m here. What’s happened?”

“I’ll explain in the ship,”

You cut off the communication and brought BD-1 to your shoulder for him to perch on, you hastily mounted your Varan and then snapped its reins—sending you out of the town and into the wasteland, back to where the Mantis was waiting for you.

You weren’t sure how you’re going to lay it on the crew. As a matter of fact, you still weren’t sure what had happened.

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nobody-knose--archive · 4 years ago

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so guess who bought complete demos today on a whim

yeah i wasn’t expecting this one to be over as quickly as it was either. have your liveblog

-complete demos. i bought it today & already forgot the tracklist. listening to it on the mp3 player i got for hmcrmshcidshdamsth because why not. makes pausing/typing easier that's why

-who the heck just coughed

-good lord the mixing is. and boy that's steve drumming isn't it. wow

-i mean we've got the stereo panning just like ever but this is incredibly rough. they are true babies aren't they

-oh those flutes are amazing what the hell. can people stop yelling in my individual ears

-and there's the rough megaphone. it's so incredibly clear that these aren't studio recordings but like. still tally hall!

-i think i'm finding many of these a little too funny but gotdam you're pitchbending your own voice do you really expect that to not sound so goofy at such a high pitch

-oh we're not slowing down at all, this is the same tempo as before for sure

-the flipping around audio channels is very not good at all when it comes to disguising the cuts between takes

-a sculptor you say? (is that one in the later versions? i don't remember it at all)

-nothing but rob's voices in the background and maybe 1 or two from red. no ross bits whatsoever. that's wild

-quick move into the greener intro and even quicker movement into greener itself

-well those are extra harmonies. interesting that they removed them for later versions because they're not bad, maybe a little out of place though

-honestly the biggest difference in steve vs ross drumming seems to be more a difference in the quality of the drums themselves. or the recording software but that applies to everything in this album

-it's painfully obvious that everything was recorded in really different circumstances & not mixed professionally and yep. complete demos alright. not inaccurately named in the slightest

-reminds me of the beta versions of g&e songs we heard live before they appeared on the album, makes me wonder if we could've gotten an admittedly complete demos for g&e somehow

-anyway these little different synths-

-hello there rob. alternate bridge. i have remembered this is a thing. something about tissues? a shoulder to cry on? cool

-yeah the little different synths do capture my attention from time to time

-and a basic piano for the outro? huh. sure gives it a different tone alright

-hm? who's that right at the end there- ooh! wtth time! and this still has steve in it doesn't it?

-generally more enthusiasm when it comes to that T, wonder what lost him attention in later years

-boy is that beatboxing weirdly mixed.

-lawn

-well this chorus is actually rather snazzy. the vocals seem better mixed than anything else i've heard in this album

-"who's to blame?" that's like the 4th time now i've heard someone's random voice that i can't recognize. ...it couldn't be steve, could it? i am now aware i have absolutely no clue what his voice sounds like but that seems like it could fit. hm

-zubin sounds really unenthusiastic here. just faintly unenthusiastic all over the place. still sounds more like "badiggle" than anything else

-oh shit they're falling down a well

-red's bit is hella unchanged other than the direct invasion of my individual ears & extra megaphone useage (i really wish the megaphone became more of a tally icon than it did but that's neither here nor there)

-it's rather more barebones though. less andrew keys in general. the calliope-reminiscent synth he uses is different i suppose.

-they did more stuff with funny crowd voices i think i've noticed. playing around with falsetto, as a college band dude might do

-ok yeah steve is a worse drummer. don't ask me what made me change my mind but i did

-wow a crowd that can consistently clap on the 1-2-3-4? how utterly unrealistic

-no wonky wild & weird intro to taken for a ride because i don't think it's on this album. understandable, i can't imagine what sort of wild hell the vocoder would be if it was attempted this early in its lifespan

-1st 2 piano chords of just apathy has me thinking of i know your name (deporitaz ver.) which is certainly as good a start to a song as any

-extended piano intro has me thinking of the ending of mold en mono but nope here's rob's voice to completely knock that impression out of the water

-ohoho? rob cantor swearing momence? i hadn't realized there'd be this many lyric changes

-interestingly enough this track doesn't seem horrendously mixed so far- nevermind that guitar/piano together is way too loud

-the guitar itself does have a pretty cool unique sound. obviously they hadn't had any access to string instruments at this point so given that those're the main thing separating this song from your average sade rock ballad there aren't a whole lot of notable differences here other than said guitar

-very different tone to this lil bridge. faintly reminiscent of weezer but it's not like i know anything about weezer

-sounds like the same synth from wtth being used in the bg there. what, did they have just that limited a selection so as to need repetition that frequently, or did they really like how it sounds? hard to tell with 200 (uhhhh) 4 college band dudes

-and right into two wuv. yes i had heard there's no haiku in this one but i forget what else will be missing. not sure if anything else will other than hidden in the sand. they would have ruler of everything, right? and a track that appears here but not any other albums? something like that i think

-more of that piano in the bg and more of mildly unenthusiastic zubin singing. different melody for said singing but it's not much of a secret that these guys were more untrained vocalists at this time

- .subsides?

-this chorus sounds significantly more laid-back than the later version

-the extra piano part sure moves this piece way further away from "rock love song" & way closer to "andrew horowitz song", especially that lil flourish where a bee buzzing might otherwise be

-ooh! andrew! he speaks! so does zubin! this song's two olsen boys coming in for a weird bridge bit! hell yeah oh this is adorable

-"because there's 2 of them :}"

-hm. are they actually just removing various parts because they don't have the technological capabilities to do a straight fadeout here? got dam

-i suppose letting zubin do a final solo-ish cadence works too

-uh- say it ain't so‽ w. no this is stationary love, the song that appeared here & nowhere else. cool, cool. strange but cool i guess

-i guess that can explain the multitude of weezer comparisons made for these lads. it's certainly there. honestly andrew was the only thing keeping them from being true weezer successors

-pure acoustic guitar thus far. this is my first time hearing this song of course & it seems like a pretty typical rob "homophonic heterophobic" cantor song

-nothing but acoustic guitar. nothing but rob vocals. nothing but alloromanticism. guess what! it's not my cup of tea! however i can't help but think if this song was worked on more, fixed up a la either mmmm release, with some more andrew/red touches, i could enjoy it some more

-not even any drumming. the simplicity could easily explain why it wasn't played live very often at all

-so the next thing i expect is some very funky & very weird spring and a storm which should highlight steve's (worse) drumming more than anything else i'm sure

-nevermind banana man's just getting slapped directly in here out of order compared to the later mmmm releases. this version i have indeed heard before because it's the version used in the music video

-therefore i have very little to say about it i haven't said on any of the other banana men. or other tracks on this album. the intrusions of vocal harmonies seem jarring because they're not mixed professionally, an effect that's only enhanced by the stereo panning & intense reverb

-this song really didn't change all that much over its lifespan, did it? vocal flairs were redone, but relatively few harmonies were added/removed, i don't think things like the bridge(s) were modified severely. not as noticeably as any of the other songs, at the very least

-i'm pretty sure i can hear andrew's voice in there but beyond that this is severely unsettling

-back to the chorus wahoo. relievingly familiar territory

-get out of my left ear hawaiian guitar- wait a minute are my earbuds on wrong

-no i'm good

-oh holy shit i forgot this had to be somewhere didn't it‽ i know it's just the same! ok ok

-i've heard this one but only because i had no idea it was from complete demos, it's like rather polished too so i had never considered it would be on an unpolished album like this. i also had no idea that was goddam steve drumming in there too hot damn

-and this is the only recording of it‽ that's wild i always thought it was redone at some point & just kinda. manifested in one of the vague ways miscellaneous high quality tally hall songs do

-it's another romance one but the guitar arpeggios and extra layers give it a pass in my book. man i should watch the music video for it shouldn't i

-i still think it's utterly wild how tally hall played this at an actual high school's homecoming once. wouldn't that just blow your mind

-there's not a major difference between how it's performed here & what i've heard of it in from the occasional live performance, which is making me realize i should watch more live performances of this song

-angstier prequel to hidden in the sand

-or sidequel maybe. depends really. we can tell whatever stories we like

-did my hidden in the sand sotry come out of the queue yet? i feel like i queued it a while ago but also like y'all would've said something if you'd seen it

-bit slow paced innit. much like everything else in this album, it would have gained much from a professional studio treatment, but its mixing & general quality is still surely the best out of everything i've heard so far

-working your falsetto there aren't you my dude? ooh boy

-ruler of everything.... so no spring & a storm? >{

-yeah. ok. weird glockenspiel. almost sounds like a music box

-no vocoding either! i just realized that's a thing here! curious. and... those are some heavily wonky sfx in the background

-who's singing those aaaaas anyway? it's not a chorus which i thought could surely be handled and there's really minimal reverb too; strange considering not only is reverb a jh trademark but easily doable here

-the piano synth used is mostly identical to the 05 mmmm- oh holy shit there's different lyrics & they're being beamed directly into my skull

-even more nonsensical & it's because you can hear them hella easily too. that backwards segment did not need to go on as long as it did. also

-so no zubin vocals? >{

-slapping 5 billion vocal effects on doesn't make up for a lack of the best singer in this damn band

-especially because he sounds reminiscent of goddam fred. being fred before fred was even a thing. oh how accursed

-quiet down your guitars when you're singing shouting through a megaphone if you please

-and there's the earstrain-ass reverb + vocoding on the flibbity jibber jabber reprise. i feared as much would happen. doesn't sound horrible i just need to turn down the volume on my mp3 player

-honestly thing whole thing isn't bad at all in the sense that it's mostly just strongly different from the later versions & lacks zubin

-lease stop yelling though my dude schwiggling your voice like that isn't always a good thing at high volumes

-is that the end? are we.... at the end? i heard that's the name of some song from like sketches or something

-no. how silly of me to assume as much. anyway my dude needs to fix up his ukulele this one sounds like shit

-no vocal effects makes me realize how few times we got this one live-

-now what would you call a wonky little transition like that? puts a smile on my face, even if it does take me by surprise at the same time

-but at least one of the times this was done live featured casey shea

-now for the love of god i already hate the ending of something glowing (view-monster) for its weird-ass asmr finale don't reverse someone's cough & twiddle your ukulele strings directly into my right ear to end an otherwise really nice version of hidden in the sand if you please. oh mama mia. good night

#tally hall #loolin liveblogs #joe is mentioned sometimes but not by name fyi #tis i #as usual it's recommended that you listen to the album in question as you read to get a better idea of the context #because 9 times out of 10 i won't tell you it #i feel like i come off as slightly negative for much of this. what can i say complete demos is an album of amateur demos #the songs aren't as good as their later counterparts by nature & that's all i ever have to say #to the world and back again

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fuckheadwitha · 4 years ago

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Listening to Rolling Stone's Top 500 Albums of All Time

Rolling Stone released an updated list of their top 500 albums of all time and being trapped in the purgatory of covid quarantine this seems like the perfect moment to tackle what an almost completely irrelevant former counter-culture institution has to say about music (we can’t actually blame Rolling Stone for this list, a huge number of musicians and critics voted to make it). I am going to listen to every single one of these, all the way through, with a level of attention that's not super intense but I'm definitely not having them on in the background as simple aural wallpaper. Two caveats though: I can make an executive decision to skip any album if I feel the experience is sufficiently miserable, and I'm also going to be skipping the compilation albums that I feel aren't really worth slots (best ofs, etc.). In addition, I will be ordering them as I go, creating a top 500 of the top 500 (it will be less than 500 since we've already established I'm skipping some of these).

Here are 500-490:

#500 Arcade Fire - Funeral

I can already tell I'm going to be at odds with this list if one of the most important albums of my high school years is at the bottom. That being said, I haven't actually given this whole thing a listen since probably the early 2010s, before Arcade Fire fatigue set in and the hipsterati appointed band of a generation just kinda seemed to fade from popular consciousness. I actually dreaded re-experiencing it, since the synthesis of anthemic rock and quirky folk instrumentation which Arcade Fire brought mainstream has now become the common shorthand of insufferable spotify friendly folk pop. Blessedly, the first half of the album easily holds up, largely propelled by dirty fast rhythm guitar, orchestration that's tuneful rather than obnoxious, and lyrics which come off as earnest rather than pretentious. The middle gets a little sappy and “Crown of Love”, a song I definitely used to like, really starts the grate. And then we get to “Wake Up”, whose cultural saturation spawned thousands of dorky indie rock outfits that confused layered strings and horns with power and meaning. This song definitely hasn't survived the film trailers and commercials which it so ubiquitously overlayed, but the line about "a million little gods causing rainstorms, turning every good thing to rust" still attacks the part of my brain capable of sincere emotion. This album is probably going to hold the top spot for a while, because although so many elements of Funeral that made it feel so meaningful, that made it stand out so much in 2004, have been seamlessly assimilated into an intellectually and emotionally bankrupt indie pop industrial complex, the album itself still has a genuine vulnerability and bangers that still manage to rip.

#499

Rufus, Chaka Khan - Ask Rufus

Before she became a name in her own right, Chaka Khan was the voice of the band Rufus, and it’s definitely her voice that shines amongst some spritely vibey funk. That’s not to say that these aren’t some jams on their own. “At Midnight” is a banging opener with a sprint to the finish, and although the explicitly named but kinda boring “Slow Screw Against the Wall” feels weak, this wasn’t really supposed to be an album of barn burners. This was something people put on their vinyl record players while they chilled on vinyl furniture after a night of doing cocaine. “Everlasting Love” is a bop with a bassline like a Sega Genesis game, and the twinkling piano on “Hollywood” adds a playful levity to lyrics that are supposed to be both tackily optimistic about making it big out in LA and subtly realistic about the kind of nightmare world showbiz can be. “Better Days” is another track that manages to be a bittersweet jam with a catchy sour saxophone and playful synths under Chaka Khan’s vamping. This album definitely belongs on a ‘chill funk to study and relax to’ playlist.

#498

Suicide - Suicide

We’ve hit the first album that could be rightly called a progenitor for multiple genres that followed it. Someone could say there’s a self-serving element of this being on a Rolling Stone list (the band was one of the first to adopt the label ‘Punk’ after seeing it in a Lester Bangs article) but the album’s legacy is basically indisputable. EBM, industrial, punk, post-punk, new wave, new whatever all have a genealogy that connects to Suicide, and it’s easy to hear the band in everything that followed. But what the band actually is is two guys, one with an electric organ and one with a spooky voice, doing spooky simple riffs and saying spooky simple things. Simplicity is definitely not a dis here. The opener “Ghost Rider” makes a banger out of four notes and one instrument, and the refrain ‘America America is killing its youth’ is really all the lyrical complexity you need to fucking get it. “Cheree” and “Girl” have almost identical lyrics (‘oh baby’ vs ‘oh girl’) but “Cheree” is more like a fairy tale and “Girl” is more like a sonic handjob. “Frankie Teardrop” has the audacity to tell a ten minute story with its lyrics, but of course there is intermittent, actually way too loud screaming breaking up the narrative of a guy who loses everything then kills his family and himself. The song is basically a novelty, and I think you can probably say the whole album is a novelty between its brevity and character. But for a bite sized snack this album casts a huge shadow.

#497

Various Artists - The Indestructible Beat of Soweto

The fact that this particular compilation always ends up in the canon has a lot to do with the cultural context it existed in, being America’s first encounter with South African contemporary music during the decline of apartheid (it wouldn’t end until a decade later in 1994 with the country’s first multi-racial elections). Music journos often bring up the fact Ladysmith Black Mambazo, the all male choir singing on the album ender “Nansi Imali”, sang on Paul Simon’s Graceland like their virtue is they helped Paul Simon get over his depression and not, like, the actual music. But also like, how is the actual music? Jams. Ubiquitous, hooky guitars propel the songs along with bright choruses over low lead vocals, but I didn’t expect the synthesizer on the bop “Qhude Manikiniki”, nor the discordant hoedown violin on “Sobabamba”. “Holotelani” is a groove to walk into the sunset to.

#496

Shakira - Donde Estan los Ladrones

So this is the first head scratcher on the list. It’s not like it sucks. And I think I prefer this 90s guitar pop driven spanish language Shakira to modern superstar Shakira. But I mean, it’s an album of late nineties latin pop minivan music, with a thick syrupy middle that doesn’t do anything for me. The opener and closer stand out though. ‘Ciega, Sordomuda’, one of the biggest pop songs of the 90s (it was #1 on the charts of literally every country in Latin America), has a galloping acoustic guitar and horn hits with Shakira’s vocals at their most percussive.

#495

Boyz II Men - II

So, if you were alive in the 90s you know Boyz II Men were fucking huge, and the worst song on the album is the second track “All Around the World”, basically a love song to their own success, and also the women they’ve banged. You can tell it was written specifically so that the crowd could go fucking wild when they heard their state/city/country mentioned in the song, and I’m not gonna double check but I’m sure they hit all fifty states. Once you’re over that hump though you basically have an hour of songs to fuck to. “U Know” keeps it catchy with propulsive midi guitar and synth horns, “Jezzebel” starts with a skit and ends with a richly layered jazz tune about falling in love on a train, and “On Bended Knee” has a Ragnarok Online type beat. Honestly this album can drag, but you’re not supposed to be listening to it alone in a state of analysis, you’re supposed to have it on during a date that’s going really, really well.

#494

The Ronettes - Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes

A singles compilation of the Ronettes, the only ones I immediately recognized were ‘Be My Baby’ and ‘Going to the Chapel of Love’, the latter of which I didn’t know existed since the version of the song I knew was by the Dixie Cups, which was apparently a source of drama since the Ronettes did it first but producer Phil Spector refused to release it. I feel like as a retro trip to sixties girl groups it’s full of enough songs about breaking up (for example “Breaking Up”) getting back together (for example “Breaking Up”) and wanting to get married but you can’t, because you’re a teenager (“So Young”).

#493

Marvin Gaye - Here, My Dear

This album only exists because Marvin was required by his divorce settlement to make it and provide all of the royalties to his ex-wife and motown executive Anna Gordy Gaye. It’s absolutely bizarre, phoned in mid tempo funk whose lyrics range from the passive aggressive (“This is what you wanted right?”) to the petulant (“Why do I have to pay attorney’s fees?”). There is a seething realness here that crosses well past the border of uncomfortable. I don’t think it’s an amazing album to listen to, but it’s an amazing album to exist: Marvin Gaye is legally obligated to throw his own divorce pity party, and everyone's invited.

#492

Bonnie Raitt - Nick of Time

I have never heard of Bonnie Raitt before but apparently this album won several grammys including album of the year in 1989 and sold 5 million copies, which I guess goes to show that no award provides less long term relevance than the grammys. The story around the album is pretty heartwarming, it was her first massive hit after a career of whiffs, and Bonnie Raitt herself is apparently a social activist and neat human being. I say all this because this sort of 80s country blues rock doesn't really connect with me, but the artist obviously deserves more than that. I unequivocally like the title track though, a hand-clap backed winding electric piano groove about literally finding love before your eggs dry up.

#491

Harry Styles - Fine Line

I do not think I have ever heard a one direction song because I am an adult who only listens to public radio. I’m totally open to pop bands or boy bands or boy band refugee solo artists, but I don’t like anything here. It’s like a mixtape of the worst pop trends of the decade, from glam rock that sounds like it belongs in a car commercial to folky bullshit that sounds like it belongs in a more family focused car commercial. This gets my first DNP (Does Not Place).

#490

Linda Ronstadt - Heart Like a Wheel

Another soft-rock blues and country album which just doesn’t land with me. But the opener “You’re No Good” is like a soul/country hybrid which still goes hard and the title track hits with the lyrics “And it's only love and it's only love / That can wreck a human being and turn him inside out”.

Current Ranking, which is weirdly almost like an inverse of the rolling stones list so far;

#rolling stone #500 greatest albums of all time

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shillanseva · 5 years ago

Note

Mitchsen prompt: Role Reversal. Aubrey takes a liking to Beca from the first moment they met, ambushed her in the shower and then was incredibly flirty with her. Chloe is the Aca-Nazi hell bent of kicking Beca out of the Bellas. Bonus point if their personalities stay the same (Intense Aubrey, bubbly Chloe)

@madammayor28 Alright so I tried to write this prompt like four times before I finally got what I have now. I really liked this prompt so I wanted to do it right. I’m still not completely happy with it but I figured it was better to get it out there rather than drive myself nuts with it. So I hope you like it! Thanks for the prompt.

Aubrey Posen had two problems. The first of which was a tiny alt. girl by the name of Beca Mitchell who was the cutest pain in the ass that Aubrey had ever encountered. The second was her best friend and literal bubble of cheer Chloe Beale.

Now normally, Aubrey wouldn’t classify Chloe as anything other than a godsend. She was the best friend that Aubrey ever could have asked for, an amazing roommate, and just a genuinely good person. That is, until Beca arrived. Then it was like suddenly something snapped in the redhead, and the only thing Aubrey could liken the mood swings to was the possibility that Chloe’s body had been possessed by the spirit of Dolores Umbridge and Beca was a Gryffindor.

Chloe hated Beca. She hated Beca with a vehemence that shocked most anyone who had ever met the redhead. No one ever would have guessed that Chloe even had the ability to hate someone, let alone hate them as strongly as she hated Beca. Her best friend was Aubrey “General” Posen, one of the most easily disliked people on campus, and she still chose to hate Beca Mitchell, resident loner and newest weirdo at the campus radio station.

It was driving Aubrey up the wall. All Aubrey wanted to do was put together a winning acapella team. She wanted them to sing well and dance well, and she didn’t care if they got along outside of rehearsals as long as they kept their shit together during practice.

Beca had been doing her best to field Chloe’s anger. It had started at the activity fair. Beca had meandered by the booth and stopped when Chloe nearly smacked her in the face with a flier. And Chloe had been recognized immediately.

The year before, the Barden Bellas had made it to the ICCA’s after a grueling year under the leadership of Alice the Terror. She was a tyrant in every sense of the word with some added song and dance, and she blamed Chloe for their loss—probably the real start of Chloe’s problem. Chloe accidentally set the stage on fire during their last performance—something involving a broken heel and an unfortunate run in with a stage hand and his spot light. And Beca had seen the video and enjoyed it immensely. Needless to say, their first interaction didn’t go well.

Which sucked. At least as far as Aubrey was concerned, because Beca was cute. And Aubrey may have flirted with her after Chloe stormed off at the activity fair. And Beca had sort of dug it and might have given Aubrey her number—not that Aubrey would ever tell Chloe that. She would probably explode.

Aubrey had a serious toner for Beca though. The night of the activity fair when she had returned to her shared apartment with Chloe, Aubrey tried to convince Chloe that maybe it wouldn’t be so bad having Beca on the team. This had led to a stream of colorfully phrased insults at the brunette’s expense from her “ear monstrosities” and “emo makeup” straight down to her high school scene-kid chucks. Aubrey had liked the edgy look on Beca, but Chloe assumed it meant she should be in prison for arson or something. It was honestly shocking to Aubrey to hear the way Chloe ranted about Beca. She didn’t think Chloe had one judgmental bone in her body, but apparently Beca brought each and every one of them out. Aubrey had decided then to forget about Beca for Chloe’s sake.

And then there’d been that shower.

Aubrey was doing her best to forget about Beca. Her best, meaning she only sort of watched Beca on campus rather than full-fledged stalking her. She would catch glimpses of the freshman around campus usually with headphones in her ears or on her laptop. Sometimes she would be sitting with a guy she recognized as the other radio intern. Aubrey didn’t like when he was around, but knew she couldn’t let it bother her because she and Beca had spoken once, and Chloe’s friendship meant more than whatever fling she and Beca might have had.

She was trying to give up on talking to Beca again. She really was. So it’s not like she tried to end up in Beca’s dorm after her morning workout the week before auditions. She just hated the gym showers and Baker Hall was the closest dorm to Barden’s Wellness Center.

She had just finished rinsing the conditioner from her hair when she heard foot steps enter the locker room. The slap of flipflops against the floor made Aubrey pause and listen. She was technically breaking like ten rules by being there so she didn’t want to get caught by an RA with good timing.

Whoever had entered was humming softly to themselves. Aubrey recognized the song as Titanium, a David Guetta song if she remembered correctly. It had hit the top forty stations not too long ago and Chloe had taken a particular liking to it. Aubrey would often hear it through the walls of Chloe’s room at night when she was doing God only knows what.

The humming passed her and Aubrey returned to her shower. She pulled face wash from her shower caddy and closed her eyes enjoying the feeling of the soap against her skin, but when a voice rang out clear through the bathroom her eyes shot open.

“Shit,” she mumbled to herself as she tried to rinse the soap from her eyes. She shut down the shower and grabbed her towel before wrapping it around herself and shuffling out of the stall.

The voice that distracted her was coming from a few shower stalls over, and she went to stand in front of it. She knew she was being creepy. She knew it, and yet, she was still debating whether or not to talk to the girl behind the curtain.

“Hello?” a familiar voice said. Aubrey’s eyes widened as she realized she’d been caught. And then widened more when she realized who was singing.

“Beca?” Aubrey asked. Her heart stuttered for a second with hope. When Beca’s face appeared around the curtain, Aubrey’s smile beamed at the brunette. “You can sing?!”

The smile on Aubrey’s face was almost painful. Beca’s voice had been amazing. It was low and feminine and sort of gave Aubrey chills. Beca was slightly flushed and she wasn’t sure if it was from the heat of the shower.

“The tone of your voice is beautiful,” Aubrey said trying to back off on the excitement a little. She didn’t want to scare Beca off, especially not now that she knew Beca actually could audition for the Bellas if she could just convince her. “How high does your belt go? You have to audition for the Bellas.”

“Dude,” Beca said, smirking. “You need to breathe.”

Aubrey hadn’t even realized how quickly she was speaking and she snapped her mouth shut. She met Beca’s eyes and felt herself tense when she realized they were both very much naked. And Aubrey was very much naked standing in the middle of a dorm bathroom in a towel, completely out in the open.

Beca seemed to realize the same thing because her eyes dropped and slowly ran up Aubrey’s body and ended finally on the smirk that had settled on Aubrey’s lips.

“Like whatcha see?” Aubrey asked with a wink. Beca nodded dumbly and then shook her head when she realized what she was doing.

“What are you even doing here?” she asked.

“Looking for some action,” Aubrey responded like duh. Beca snorted and shook her head again. “Showering. The gym’s showers are gross.”

The sound of footsteps entering the locker room startled Aubrey into motion. Fearing the arrival of an RA, she pushed Beca back into the shower and ducked behind the curtain with her.

“Dude,” Beca said grabbing for anything and trying to fight the flip in her stomach that resulted from Aubrey incidentally pushing her against a wall. Aubrey set a hand over Beca’s mouth quickly.

“I’m not supposed to be here,” Aubrey clarified. Beca glared at her from behind the hand, and Aubrey glanced down slightly smirking and raising an eyebrow at Beca. Her amusement grew as the slight flush on Beca’s cheeks broadened to her neck and ears.

Aubrey stood there thinking for a second. Beca really did have a lovely voice. She wanted to hear it again. Actually, she was afraid she would never hear it again. “Hey you were singing Titanium right?”

“You know David Guetta?” Beca said, eyes widening.

“What?” Aubrey said and shook her head slightly. “Have I been living under a rock?”

Aubrey watched Beca’s mouth fall a little bit and continued, “Look, I heard you singing. You sounded great. Could you maybe sing it again?”

“We’re naked,” Beca said, voice dropping incredulously. “In the shower. And you want me to sing for you?”

“It’s not like I asked you to sleep with me,” Aubrey breathed, annoyed. Though, judging by Beca’s heated face and sudden desire to look anywhere but at Aubrey, she’d say that maybe Beca wouldn’t have minded that. “Just sing it. I promise I’m not going to do anything crass.”

Beca sighed with a vocal groan, but relented after several seconds of laser-like eye contact with Aubrey. Her rich, earthy voice filled the small shower stall and sent shivers down Aubrey’s spine. She almost forgot to join her because she was so enraptured.

Beca’s eyes met Aubrey’s as the blonde turned the song into a duet. She felt her walls give way under Aubrey’s forest green eyes, and her breath hitched slightly. There eyes held each other for several seconds after they ceased singing.

“Wow,” Aubrey whispered. She hadn’t wanted to ruin the moment, but if she hadn’t spoken, there was no way she would have been able to stop herself from surging forward to kiss Beca—under normal circumstances, maybe not that big of a deal, but they were still naked. In the shower. After Aubrey had just forced herself into the poor freshman’s shower.

She held her breath for a second and looked away from Beca to calm down before meeting Beca’s eyes again. “Saturday. Bella auditions. You should be there.”

She left the shower as quickly as she dared, worried the stray RA might still be around—worried Beca might say no. That night, Aubrey had been happy, but anxious. If Chloe had noticed she didn’t say anything. She knew she was acting weird though, jumpy. She was waiting for Chloe to ask, and Aubrey knew she would never lie to Chloe which meant telling her about her morning with Beca.

The next week passed slow. Aubrey kept a look out for Beca around campus, but it seemed like the freshman was avoiding her. Aubrey didn’t really blame her, but it did leave her disappointed all the same.

When Saturday finally came Aubrey felt so anxious, she was surprised she wasn’t vibrating in place. With each passing audition, she grew more and more tense. Her jaw was sore from how hard she was clenching her teeth. When Justin announced that auditions were over, she could have cried. Chloe opened her mouth to say something to Aubrey, assuming that her friend was upset about their prospects, but when Aubrey’s eyes suddenly lit up, she snapped her mouth shut.

“Wait!” Aubrey yelled. “There’s one more.”

Chloe looked back to the stage, and felt her lip curl as a short brunette stepped out from backstage. She did a double take back to Aubrey who had suddenly relaxed, smiling back against her seat, and Chloe scowled further. Had Aubrey invited her?

“I didn’t know we were supposed to prepare that song,” Beca said with a grimace as she moved cautiously to stand in front of the pair of captains.

“That’s okay,” Aubrey smiled warmly at Beca. “Sing whatever.

“But Aubrey—” Chloe was cut off by a glare from her friend.

Beca stepped forward and then settled down onto the stage, crossing her legs. She pointed to a cup of pens that sat between Chloe and Aubrey, “May I?”

Aubrey nodded her head and Beca grabbed the cup and dumped the pens onto the table making sure that none of them fell onto the floor. When Beca sat back on the stage, she set the cup in front of her upside down and began a quiet percussive beat. Her alto voice joined the beat soon after.

Aubrey felt like she was hearing Beca for the first time all over again. She was mesmerized by the sound. She honestly felt like she could fall in love with Beca just by listening to her sing—a thought that startled her enough to look sideways at Chloe to make sure her friend hadn’t seen her going gooey-eyed.

Chloe was looking at Beca like she’d grown a third head. No way could this walking travesty have a voice like that. She was better than ninety-percent of the other singers they’d heard that day. It wasn’t acceptable. Beca didn’t even like acapella. And she definitely wasn’t Bella material.

When Beca finished her song, Aubrey was all teeth with a smile that stretched across her face. The sound of a throat clearing distracted her from the compliment she was about to bestow upon Beca, and instead she turned to Chloe who was handing a pink audition sheet to the freshman.

“You need a form,” Chloe said not looking up from her stack of papers that she was now slowly shuffling into a neat pile. “You didn’t prepare the audition song, so don’t expect to hear from us.”

Beca’s face fell, and Aubrey looked at Chloe. The red head gave her a look like “well she didn’t.”

They argued that day. Aubrey and Chloe had never fought before, but Aubrey fought for Beca on their team like she was trying to save a puppy from being euthanized—like Beca’s life depended on being in this group. And while maybe it wasn’t Beca’s life on the line, Aubrey didn’t even know how much Beca needed to be a part of the Bellas. Her dad had made her a deal that she needed to join a club or organization, and so far, the Bellas were the only thing she thought she could stomach. She certainly wasn’t going to spend an hour running in a circle with those kids she saw at orientation.

It took three hours before Chloe finally relented and agreed to recruit Beca. Aubrey had a point. They needed extra members in case they lost some along the way. Chloe just hoped Beca would be one of the ones that they lost.

Beca was surprised at how happy she was when Aubrey showed up at her dorm that night—even if she did seem like an axe murderer with that hood. Beca had actually sort of enjoyed being kidnapped by Aubrey, and not even in a kinky way. She liked the closeness of Aubrey’s hand guiding her from her lower back, and how Aubrey had to press close to Beca to pull the hood off later that night.

Aubrey knew exactly what she was doing too. She pressed herself Beca just enough to be misconstrued as innocent, just enough to be seen as Aubrey being a touchy kind of person—which she wasn’t. And Chloe noticed.

She had been watching the way Aubrey interacted with Beca. She had been watching how Aubrey stood just a little closer to Beca than any of the other Bellas when she pulled her hood off, how Aubrey had watched Beca during the anti-Treblemaker part of their oath as if trying to gauge Beca’s reaction, and how Aubrey had winked to Beca when she handed the freshman the goblet of wine when all was said and done. Aubrey had a crush but she wasn’t going to let that ruin her last chance at a national title.

Chloe decided to give her best friend the benefit of the doubt. It was hood night. Aubrey could work off her frustrations, and hopefully forget about Beca. That hope was unfortunately dashed when Chloe caught sight of Beca talking to one of the new Trebles and Aubrey watching from several feet away as she pretended to listen to Amy. She couldn’t tell if Beca was flirting with Jesse or not, but it didn’t seem to matter because his existence was all it took to rub both Chloe and Aubrey the wrong way, though for entirely different reasons.

It took an hour and at least three drinks before Aubrey finally got up the nerve to approach Beca. She did so quietly, coming to stand beside the equally quiet freshman without a word. Beca had spent most of the last hour watching others enjoy themselves from the sideline and a half full red solo cup rested in her hand.

“I’m glad you showed up,” Aubrey said quietly. “I didn’t—I didn’t think you would.”

Beca didn’t respond right away, choosing instead to follow Chloe’s figure across the party as she went to replenish her drink. “I wasn’t going to.”

Aubrey nodded. “But you did.”

Beca smirked at her. “When a hot blonde shows up naked in my shower, begging, I try not to disappoint.”

“Do you often have hot blondes show up in your shower?” Aubrey said stepping closer to Beca. Aubrey knew she was a little drunk, but damn if Beca didn’t make her feel a little light headed anyway. She wanted to be close to the brunette.

“Only ones that force me to sing,” Beca laughed, bumping her hip against Aubrey’s. It was enough to make the blonde feel a little off-balance so she reached out to grab Beca’s arm. Beca smirked at Aubrey. “Had a little to drink, huh?”

“Maybe a little,” Aubrey smiled and straightened herself. She was very close to Beca now. Aubrey’s front was up against Beca’s arm which she hadn’t released. “I’m really glad you came.”

“I’m kind of glad I came too,” Beca said leaning back against one of the concrete seats. She felt awkward saying it. She didn’t do emotions. Even admitting she was happy to be at a party felt too intimate.

“Let’s go dance,” Aubrey said suddenly yanking Beca off her seat by her arm. She yelped as she tried to keep up with Aubrey down the stairs.

“You do realize my legs are only like two feet long right,” Beca yelled after her. “Holy shit, dude. You’re gonna break my legs.”

“You’re fine,” Aubrey said as she reached the bottom of the stairs and caught Beca on the bottom step. “Just means I get to hold onto you,” she finished with a wink. Beca snorted. She wasn’t drunk enough for this yet. She told Aubrey to hold on for a second while she got herself a new drink and downed it almost immediately, then got another.

“I needed to get on your level,” Beca said as she returned to Aubrey. Without an answer, Aubrey pulled her out into the crowd and laid her arms over Beca’s shoulders. After about five songs, both women were seriously feeling the effects of their drinks thanks to Stacie who had been passing around shots to the other Bellas. Aubrey still managed to drink twice as much as Beca though. With each song, Aubrey and Beca only got closer and closer to each other until Aubrey��s back was pressed against Beca’s front and they were rocking slowly against each other to the beat of the song.

Beca was feeling incredibly warm by this point. Aubrey was making her feel things that she knew she was better not feeling about her new captain.

“God you’re sexy,” Beca whispered to herself then quickly glanced to Aubrey’s face to see if the blonde had heard her. Apparently, she had, because Aubrey was smirking at Beca. Here eyes were half-lidded and had darkened considerably since the beginning of the night.

“You know,” Aubrey said as she turned around. She leaned in against Beca and whispered next to her ear. “We could head back to my place.”

Beca shivered at Aubrey’s hot breath against her ear. She wanted nothing more than to say yes. She really did, but Aubrey was drunk. It wouldn’t be right. So no, she couldn’t. But she could at least make sure that Aubrey got home safe, so rather than answer, she grabbed Aubrey’s hand and tugged her out of the crowd. Aubrey took the lead soon after they left the amphitheater and pulled Beca close to her. She wrapped an arm around Beca’s waist and leaned heavily into her.

They reached Aubrey’s apartment after about fifteen minutes of walking. Luckily it was a cool, clear night and there was no rush. Beca quite enjoyed the closeness of the walk, even with Aubrey occasionally stumbling into her. She wasn’t exactly sober herself so she would sometimes stumble right back.

Aubrey fumbled with the keys in her hand until she managed to get them into the lock and push the door open. The apartment was neat and simply decorated. Beca thought it fit Aubrey’s personality.

“You have a roommate?” Beca asked, curious.

“Yeah,” Aubrey said as she collapsed onto the couch and kicked her shoes off into the wall. She let out a soft “oops” in response. “Chloe. She probably won’t be home tonight.”

“You live with Chloe?” Beca asked. Shit. She really shouldn’t be there then. “I should go then.”

“Why?” Aubrey pouted.

“Bree…” Beca said. Aubrey grinned at the nickname. “Chloe hates me. I probably shouldn’t be here when she gets home.”

“She won’t be home tonight,” Aubrey said as she grabbed Beca’s arm and pulled her down onto the couch. “Please stay with me.”

“That damn pout,” Beca said to herself. “Fine. But Aubrey…”

She wasn’t sure how to even say it without it sounding like a rejection. She liked Aubrey. There was no question about that. But she definitely couldn’t do anything with her while she was drunk.

“But Beca…” Aubrey mimicked.

Beca bit her lip, which was probably a mistake because it immediately distracted Aubrey.

“Aubrey,” Beca said pulling back from the blonde to sit on the couch and face her. “I’ll stay tonight. But you know we can’t do anything right?”

“Why?” Aubrey said quietly. She looked sad.

“You’re drunk, Bree,” Beca explained. “It wouldn’t be right. If we sleep together, I want to remember it. I want you to remember it.”

Aubrey contemplated that idea for a second. “You have to go on a date with me then.”

“Oh really?” Beca said smirking. “And what makes you think I want to date you?”

“Oh please,” Aubrey snorted. “You drooled when you saw me in that shower.”

“I liked what I saw,” Beca said. She smiled at Aubrey. A real genuine smile. “I would love to go on a date with you.”

Beca spent the night on Aubrey’s couch after Aubrey decided there was no way the tiny freshman was going to walk alone across campus where all those frat boy predators lurk. Beca thought she was ridiculous, but was also sort of flattered that Aubrey cared about her safety. She woke the next morning to a cup of hot coffee next to her on the coffee table and a note that let her know Aubrey had gone on a run and she was welcome to her fridge.

She had no idea how Aubrey could be out running after the amount of alcohol she’d consumed the night before. Beca herself stayed huddled on the couch with her cup of coffee clutched to her chest. She wasn’t a morning person, and she already sort of loved Aubrey for making her coffee. She figured she should probably leave soon though. The first Bella rehearsal was that afternoon and Beca needed to wash the booze out of her pores.

She left a responding note for Aubrey and then began the trek back across campus. She was ready to go to rehearsal about twenty minutes before she actually had to be there. She had no clue what to expect from an acapella rehearsal, especially if Chloe was in charge.

To her relief, it seemed like Aubrey ran most of the rehearsals for the Bellas. Though what they did that afternoon could barely be considered a rehearsal. It was more like gym class. They ran laps and stairs for almost an hour. Beca felt like she was dying, but was highly amused by Aubrey slapping her ass every time she passed by.

Beca felt Chloe’s eyes on her the whole rehearsal. It was like Chloe was trying to melt her brain. Her hopes for Aubrey directing all of the rehearsal were later dashed when Chloe took over to start teaching them choreography. Chloe was harsh. She made them repeat sequence after sequence until Beca felt like her feet were going to start bleeding. And she knew that Chloe was teaching them the same dance routine that the Bellas had performed the year before. It had her constantly rolling her eyes.

“Roll your eyes any more and they’ll roll out of your head,” Chloe had said reacting to Beca’s disdain.

“You sound like my father,” Beca said as she moved through the next segment of choreography.

“At least I don’t dance like your father,” Chloe responded with a glare.

Beca snorted. Honestly, she kind of liked arguing with Chloe. Pissed off Chloe’s face matched her hair. “Yeah, you’re worse,” Beca said.

“Ladies,” Aubrey warned as she walked over to Beca. She stood behind her and grabbed her arms as she moved through one of the more complicated hand motions and guided her through it. She dropped her mouth close to Beca’s ear and whispered, “We need to decide when I get to take you on our date.”

Beca chuckled and turned her head slightly to look at Aubrey. “You think I’m still gonna go on a date with you after you made me do cardio?”

“Maybe I have another workout in mind,” Aubrey said huskily into Beca’s ear. A shiver dashed down Beca’s spine.

“Tease,” Beca muttered.

“Alright ladies,” Chloe called from behind them. “Let’s call it a day. I expect to see you here tomorrow evening on time and ready to run.”

“Is she always like this,” Beca asked Aubrey.

“No.” Aubrey frowned. “She wasn’t like this until after nationals last year. If anything, I would have been the hardass normally.”

“I bet it’s hot when you boss people around,” Beca smirked.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Aubrey said. Beca just nodded, liking the idea more than she would have thought. Aubrey laughed.

They were interrupted when Chloe cleared her throat behind Aubrey. “We need to plan tomorrow’s rehearsal,” she said noticing how close Beca and Aubrey were standing.

“Right,” Aubrey said. She gave Beca a sad look. “I’ll text you later okay?”

Rehearsals followed that pattern for the next couple weeks as they approached their first performance. Beca would piss Chloe off until inevitably Aubrey would step between them and distract Beca with mild flirting until Chloe moved on. Aubrey and Beca were able to plan a few dates in that time. Nothing fancy as Beca just wasn’t that kind of woman. She preferred laid back where she could get to know Aubrey without the pressure of dressing up or worrying about her image. They still hadn’t said anything to Chloe though. Aubrey couldn’t imagine how her best friend would react. She’d be angry that’s for sure. But Aubrey knew that Chloe wasn’t dumb. She knew that Chloe had noticed something was different. She just wasn’t sure if she’d noticed what.

Their first performance was a disaster that culminated in Chloe revealing that she had vocal nodules, a condition that had made Aubrey gasp in concern. Beca felt bad for the redhead. If they were that bad than it made returning to the ICCA’s that much harder for Chloe. And even though Chloe hated her, Beca kind of understood why she was such a bitch—didn’t mean she was going to lay off on her though. Chloe needed to be willing to work with the rest of the Bellas. They needed to be themselves, not the old Bellas.

By the time regionals came around, Beca and Aubrey were attached at the hip whenever Chloe wasn’t around. Beca tried not to let it bother her, but she knew Chloe was important to Aubrey and she couldn’t help wondering if Aubrey was ashamed of dating Beca. Aubrey had noticed that Beca seemed a little more reserved now whenever Chloe was around. She bickered less with the redhead and made fewer passes at her girlfriend-not-girlfriend.

Regionals seemed to make things worse for Beca. After throwing a punch to protect Jesse, and then tossing a trophy through a window, Beca found herself tossed into a jail cell. And because Aubrey couldn’t let Chloe know that she was basically in love with her rival, there were very few ways that Aubrey could help Beca. Jesse ended up being the one to call Beca’s father and bailed her out.

When Beca got back to her dorm that night and found the Bellas had camped out on her bunk at first she’d been happy, but then she’d fought with Chloe. And this time she wasn’t even trying to fight with Chloe, she was trying to help. They needed a new set list, even Aubrey could agree with that, but Chloe was adamant that they return to nationals the same way that they’d gotten there the first time. Beca’s mixes were personal so the fact that she was willing to share them meant a lot. And then she got completely rejected.

And that just added to the rejection she was already feeling when Aubrey hadn’t been the one to bail her out, but the guy who she was constantly rejecting. Beca could feel herself pulling away from the group—feel herself pulling away from Aubrey. It made everything that happened at semi-finals sort of inevitable.

“I told you she wasn’t a Bella.” The words had echoed through her mind like a gun shot in a canyon.

“Chloe don’t—” Aubrey started.

“It’s okay Aubrey,” Beca said. The hurt was evident in her eyes and she could feel the tears welling. “I mean, it’s not like you ever wanted me here anyway.”

Beca left before she could hear any of the words that followed. She knew it was a bad idea to join the Bellas. She knew it was a bad idea to even become friends with any of them, so why had she even bothered. It was obvious enough by how Aubrey kept her as a dirty little secret that she’d only wanted her there for her voice.

Beca knew she was being a little dramatic, and didn’t completely believe everything she was thinking, but that little voice of self-doubt was yelling at her for being stupid enough to get her into this situation in the first place. Not even Jesse was able to cheer her up any. Normally the overexuberant Treble was just ridiculous enough to crack a smile from Beca, but now Beca had completely blocked herself off from everyone. She ignored every text Aubrey sent her and any text form any of the Bellas. It killed her a little to do it, but she thought it might hurt more to talk to them.

The Bellas didn’t fair much better. Aubrey had shut herself away in her room after losing Beca, and Chloe couldn’t figure out what had happened. It took two days for Aubrey to finally open up to Chloe that she and Beca had been dating since basically hood night and now she’d lost her because she couldn’t bring herself to tell Chloe about them.

While Chloe couldn’t understand the appeal of dating Beca, she felt sort of terrible for the role she’d played in their breakup. Aubrey admitted they never really put a title on their relationship so it wasn’t really a breakup, but none of Aubrey’s breakups had ever hurt as much as Beca and her’s. Chloe loved Aubrey so that Aubrey was so miserable made her feel incredibly guilty.

It surprised the hell out of Beca when Chloe showed up at her dorm several days after semis. There had been a knock at the door, and Beca had gotten up and answered only to be pushed out of the way as Chloe marched into her room.

“Look,” Chloe said. “We don’t have to like each other. We don’t even need to get along, but you can’t block Aubrey out because you hate me.”

Beca blinked. She didn’t think Aubrey would ever tell Chloe about them, but she swallowed down the surprise and processed every thing Chloe had said.

“I don’t hate you?” Beca said and watched the surprise flicker across Chloe’s face. “Not completely anyway.”

“Does it matter?” Chloe asked raising an eyebrow. “Aubrey loves you and she’s locked herself in her bedroom crying because you won’t listen to her apology.”

“Aubrey loves me?” Beca asked, eyes wide.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Chloe responded. Beca shook her head.

“Aubrey wouldn’t even tell her best friend about us,” Beca said, and Chloe nodded.

“Well we didn’t exactly make that easy on her did we?” Chloe laughed.

“I guess not,” Beca said. “Look I’ll talk to her. But I’m going to do it when I’m ready.”

Chloe nodded and turned around to leave the dorm but paused for a second. “Beca?”

“Hmm?”

“I don’t hate you either,” Chloe said then turned and left the room.

Beca still hadn’t talked to Aubrey when she got the text from Chloe that the Bellas were moving on to the finals because another group was disqualified. Beca debated for hours whether she would show up to that rehearsal or not. Chloe’s words still stung as they ricocheted through her mind. Maybe she really wasn’t a Bella. And she wasn’t sure she was ready to see Aubrey.

But she showed up anyway—an hour late. And she arrived to mass chaos. A puddle of vomit sat in the middle of the rehearsal space and she could only guess that Aubrey had gotten too anxious. Chloe and Aubrey were wrestling over the Bella pitch pipe and the remaining girls were watching in shocked awe.

“What the hell is going on in here?” Beca yelled as walked further into the room.

“Beca?” Aubrey reacted immediately. She sat up and released the pitch pipe from her hand which Chloe snatched up.

“Um, hey,” she said quietly.

“What are you doing here?” Aubrey responded.

Beca tapped her foot against the floor and shifted her weight. “Chloe texted me.”

“Chloe?” Aubrey turned shocked to her best friend. As did the rest of the Bellas.

“What?” Chloe said. “We would be a person short with out her… and, while it pains me to say this, she might have some points. We need to change up our style if we’re going to win ICCA’s. And if we’re going to do that, we need Beca.”

Beca nodded once at the redhead understanding that this was Chloe’s olive branch. They might never get along completely, but they could work together for a common goal.

“Alright Beca,” Aubrey said taking a few steps closer to the freshman. “What do we do?”

“Um, maybe not here,” Beca said grimacing as she pointed toward the puddle of vomit that lay on the floor not too far from the group.

They agreed to meet later that evening in the empty pool where they’d had the riff off. It was the first time the group had really listened to each other.

Later, when all the Bellas had arrived, Beca circled them together and made eye contact with them all.

“Alright,” she said. “Aubrey, would you please pick a song?”

“Bruno Mars, Just the Way You Are,” she said. She didn’t even hesitate which surprised Beca some.

“Chloe, mind taking the lead?”

The senior nodded and began the opening lines. Beca joined her several lines later with Just a Dream before passing the solo off to Aubrey. She directed the group through the songs starting different vocal beats and rhythms to fill it out. She knew there was a meaning to the songs she and Aubrey chose, but she wasn’t sure she wanted to think too hard about it. She knew Aubrey was watching her as she sang. And she knew Aubrey wanted her to look at her, but she couldn’t bring herself to meet the blonde’s eyes. Everything still felt too fresh, and she wasn’t sure where she stood with Aubrey. When they finished the song, they agreed to meet in two days after Beca had time to create a set list and they all went their own ways—except Aubrey and Beca.

They stared at each other for several seconds, neither sure which was meant to break the silence. Aubrey was the first to break.

“I’m sorry,” she said and took several steps towards Beca. “I should have told Chloe, and I should have stood up for you.”

“Aubrey,” Beca said softly. “You don’t need to apologize for that. I should have been more understanding—I just got insecure. I didn’t want to be your secret. I wanted to be your girlfriend…”

“You should have been my girlfriend,” Aubrey said. “I would be proud to call you my girlfriend.”

Beca chuckled softly, but tears were pricking at her eyes. “God, I’m so stupid.”

“Hey,” Aubrey said moving over to Beca and pulling her into a hug. “You’re not stupid. We both made mistakes. And we’re both kind of emotionally stunted.”

“Got that right,” Beca mumbled. She pulled away from Aubrey and missed her warmth immediately. “I need to apologize too. This would probably be better directed at Chloe, but I’m sorry for what I did at semis. And I’m sorry I took out my insecurities on you.”

“Becs,” Aubrey said. When Beca looked up at Aubrey, she surged forward and captured Beca’s mouth with her own. Beca’s lips moved against Aubrey’s in a dance she knew better than any other. God, had she missed kissing Aubrey. She knew she missed it, but she didn’t know how much she missed it until Aubrey was kissing her.

Beca threaded her hands into Aubrey’s hair and pulled the blonde closer while Aubrey’s hands landed on Beca’s hips grasping at the material of her shirt. When Aubrey nipped at her bottom lip, Beca gasped and welcomed Aubrey’s tongue eagerly into her mouth. She hadn’t even realized Aubrey had been walking them backward until Beca felt her back hit the far wall of the empty pool and she let out a soft groan. Her stomach was doing back flips over the way Aubrey’s lips moved on hers and the way her body pressed up tightly against her.

Their lips slowed down to lighter kisses and they just enjoyed the feeling of each other. Eventually they needed to break for air as both women were feeling lightheaded. When they pulled back, Aubrey rested her head against Beca’s, neither opened their eyes until Beca whispered something to Aubrey and then Aubrey’s eyes had shot wide open and she squeaked a high pitch “what?”

“I said—” Beca rolled her eyes. “I said I love you.”

Aubrey’s mouth flopped open, but Beca could see the twinkle in her eyes—the happiness in her eyes.

“I don’t need you to say it back,” Beca said quietly. “I just had to get that out of my system. I know you might not feel the s—”

Beca was cut off by lips once again covering hers, but this time softly and chastely. Just a simple touch of lips. It made Beca hum at the sweetness of the gesture.

“Beca,” Aubrey said opening slightly glazed green eyes to meet Beca’s deep navy blues. “I love you too.”

#pitch perfect #mitchsen

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