#Michaela Stream

[otakunoculture]

Paint Me Up! Owen Wilson and The Art of....

Although Brit Mcadams didn’t get to make the movie he hoped for, what he crafted in Paint still amusing. #comedy #romance #moviereviews #streaming

Available on Amazon Prime Home Video Release: July 25, 2023 The gentle country melodies of John Denver highlights Paint more than Owen Wilson playing Carl Nargle, a character which looks like Bob Ross, behaves like Bob Ross, but isn’t Bob Ross. That’s because writer/director Brit McAdams probably didn’t get the okay from his estate to make a telling biography. The real Ross found his passion for…

[sevenines]

we got:

november 15, 12:00 PM CDT (youtube), group panel -rebecca sugar (series creator)

-susan egan (rose quartz)

-estelle (garnet)

-tom scharpling (greg)

-michaela dietz (amethyst)

-charlene yi (ruby)

november 15, 1:30 PM CDT (instagram), individual signing

-deedee magno hall (pearl)

november 18, 12:00PM CDT (youtube), group panel

-jennifer paz (lapis lazuli)

-shelby rabara (peridot)

rest are listed as 1:00PM CDT instead, could be separate or an error

-rebecca sugar (series creator)

-sarah stiles (spinel)

-grace rolek (connie)

-larissa gallagher (bluebird azurite)

-erica luttrell (sapphire)

-aj michalka (stevonnie)

-kimberly brooks (jasper)

november 18, 2:30PM CDT (instagram), individual signing -susan egan (rose quartz)

november 22, 3:00PM CDT (instagram), individual signing

-shelby rabara (peridot)

november 23, 2:00PM CDT (instagram), individual signing

-jennifer paz (lapis lazuli)

(source)

So are we going to talk about how there is a Steven Universe panel coming on November 18th or

[amirasainz]

Hi! I love your blog!! Can I request a female driver x f1 grid, where she gets her first win and all the drivers are so happy for her as she’s the paddock princess, maybe when she’s doing her interviews many drivers come over to her and congratulate her and they talk highly of her in their interviews too? Thank u, keep up the amazing work!!💗

Ohh, that is such a sweet idea. This one made my heart melt.🫠❤️

Enjoy reading and send some requests!!!

-xoxo

The first victory

The sun hung low over the track, painting the sky in hues of gold and orange as the final lap of the race came to a thrilling conclusion. The Aston Martin car, gleaming in its iconic green, roared down the straightaway with unmatched speed. All eyes were on Y/N, the team's rising star and the paddock's beloved princess. As she crossed the finish line, the world erupted with cheers.

"Y/N wins her first race!" the commentator's voice boomed over the loudspeakers. "What a sensational performance! Y/N takes her maiden victory, and it's Aston Martin on top!"

Inside her cockpit, Y/N could hardly believe it. She was overwhelmed with a rush of adrenaline, relief, and sheer joy. Her radio buzzed with the jubilant voice of her race engineer, Michaela.

"Y/N, you did it! You won! That was incredible! You are a race winner!"

Y/N couldn't contain her emotions. "Oh my god, we did it! We actually did it! Thank you so much, team! The car was perfect today. I can't believe this!" Her voice broke with happy tears as she crossed the finish line.

As she pulled into parc fermé, she could already see the sea of green uniforms waiting for her. The Aston Martin crew, usually composed and professional, was now a mass of cheering, fist-pumping celebration. She parked her car and clambered out, pulling off her helmet to reveal her beaming face. The noise was deafening; her team surrounded her, lifting her onto their shoulders as if she were royalty.

"Y/N! Y/N!" they chanted, their pride and admiration radiating.

Michaela, her race engineer, hugged her tightly. "You were flawless out there. Absolutely flawless."

Y/N, still catching her breath, grinned. "I couldn’t have done it without you guys. This one is for all of us!"

Before she could process what was happening, the other drivers began streaming in, each wanting to congratulate her on this monumental achievement. Lewis was the first to arrive, jogging over and giving her a massive hug.

"Well done, princess!" Lewis grinned, using the nickname the entire paddock had affectionately given her. "That was some of the best driving I’ve ever seen. You deserved this more than anyone."

Y/N laughed, playfully punching him on the shoulder. "Thank you, Lewis. That means a lot coming from you."

Max, who finished in third, made his way over next, pulling Y/N into a hug. "That was incredible, kid! I was pushing so hard to catch you, but you were just too fast. That last stint? Perfect."

Y/N’s smile widened. "Max, you kept me on my toes the whole race. I kept looking in my mirrors and thinking, ‘Please, not today!’" They both laughed, a shared camaraderie between rivals.

Charles joined the growing circle, clapping his hands before enveloping Y/N in a warm embrace. "You did it! You showed everyone today what you’re made of. I’m so proud of you, chéri."

Pierre Gasly chimed in, giving her a quick side hug. "You’re amazing, Y/N. It’s been a long time coming, and today was your day. You’re unstoppable."

Y/N was overwhelmed by the affection and admiration pouring in from all sides. Every driver in the paddock had a soft spot for her, and today, they all showed it without reservation.

Her interviews began shortly after, and as she spoke, drivers kept wandering over, interrupting to offer their congratulations. Daniel, always the joker, nudged her as he walked by, wearing a wide grin. "You know, if you keep driving like that, I’m going to have to start calling you Queen Y/N."

Y/N laughed, shaking her head. "Oh, stop it, Danny. But thank you. That means a lot."

As she continued with her media duties, the praise didn’t stop. George in his own interview, couldn't help but beam when asked about her performance. "Y/N is not just a phenomenal driver; she’s an incredible person. She works so hard, and seeing her finally get that win... I think we’re all just so happy for her. She’s truly the paddock princess."

Checo added in his segment, "She’s shown time and time again that she’s got what it takes. To see her standing on the top step today, it’s special. She’s the pride of the paddock."

Especially Fernando, one of the most experienced drivers on the grid, was full of admiration. "She’s a star. I’ve said it from the beginning. She’s got the talent, the dedication, and today, she put it all together perfectly. This is just the start for her."

When it was finally Y/N’s turn to address the cameras, she tried to keep her composure, but the emotions were too overwhelming. "I just want to thank my team, my family, and every single person who’s supported me. It’s been a tough journey, but today… today made it all worth it."

As she spoke, Carlos and Lando popped into her interview, both grinning ear to ear.

Lando, ever the playful one, said, "Y/N, you’ve got to teach us how to drive like that. Seriously, we’re all just trying to catch up to you now."

Carlos nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we’re going to need some lessons. You’re the real deal, hermosa."

She laughed, shaking her head. "Stop it, you guys! But honestly, thank you. You all mean the world to me."

The drivers couldn’t hide their affection. They each gave her one last hug, congratulating her again before letting her continue. Even in their own interviews, her name was on everyone’s lips.

Lewis, when asked about Y/N’s victory, said, "She’s a trailblazer. There’s no other way to put it. The way she carries herself, her determination—she’s an inspiration, not just to women in motorsport but to all of us. She’s the paddock princess, and today, she proved why."

Max added, "She’s one of the most dedicated drivers out here. We all see how hard she works, and to see her win... it just feels right. We’re all proud of her."

The day was a celebration, not just for Aston Martin, but for the entire paddock. Y/N had earned every bit of praise, every hug, and every kind word. As the cameras clicked and the champagne flowed, she stood on the podium, looking out at the cheering crowd, her fellow drivers waving at her from below.

For once, the paddock princess had her crown. And everyone—drivers, teams, and fans alike—couldn't have been happier for her.

[sugarcubetikki]

Okay. I am annoyed by the everything so I’m gonna go ahead and debunk all the arguments against the Francesca X Michaela storyline.

In case you weren’t aware of all the complaints going around, here they are:

they’ve completely changed the storyline from the books! francesca’s infertility storyline was sooo important and now it won’t happen!

eloise would’ve made more sense as the queer bridgerton, her and cressida or some other female character would’ve been great over francesca.

by immediately making francesca attracted to michaela they downplayed john and her’s relationship that was built up this season, they cheapened the book storyline into a cliche love triangle!

michael was the best book hero ever! I can’t believe they’ve changed him to michaela.

I am taking all these criticisms/complaints at face value and ignoring any lesbophobia undertones (for now) just to prove how flawed they still are on their own.

Firstly, saying that Francesca’s infertility storyline has been ruined is far from the truth. Instead it can be done in a different way. Think about Francesca in a queer relationship and wanting kids in the kind of society she lives in. It basically mirrors the infertility storyline from the books except her struggles would become representative of the struggles that queer people who want kids face. If they went for this storyline in her season, I think it would be really really nice, we’ve seen a straight infertility storyline play out so many times, this would be great.

Secondly, I am so tired of hearing that it should’ve been Eloise over Francesca. I don’t think Eloise would’ve made more or less sense as a queer women. I think any and every character has the potential to be written as queer or straight. Being an outspoken women with little interest on marriage shouldn’t make Eloise more queer. I also really liked the idea of a potential Eloise X Cressida romance but that does not mean Francesca cannot be queer. In fact, I’m excited to see this introverted autistic queer girl rep! Francesca, go prove we exist.

Thirdly, Francesca’s season hasn’t even happened yet! Getting mad over one scene of Michaela, saying that John and Francesca’s relationship has been downplayed and that we’re in for a cheapened love triangle story is so unreasonable. It was a single scene and people are choosing to get mad over something that hasn’t even happened yet? Besides, if this storyline plays out, it wouldn’t mean that Francesca shouldn’t have been made queer but simply that the writers didn’t write the storyline to your liking. The fact that there’s this much outrage over this is so ridiculous to me. Wait till her season. We have no idea how they’re going to play out the storyline just yet so stop hating already (there may be some lesbophobia implications to this claim which I have spoken about below).

Fourthly, I know it’s not a nice feeling to not get the chance to see a beloved book character onscreen due to this gender swap. It may feel unfair but I mean but…give Michaela a chance? We haven’t seen her personality yet and we don’t know how Masali will bring her character to life. If your qualms are that the love interest is no longer a guy you can fetishise and fawn over, then well…log out of the internet, rant to a friend and stick to the books. Let the sapphics have their wlw romance that we rarely get these days because we keep getting cancelled since streaming services hate gay women. And no that is not an exaggeration but our plain reality. So let us have this.

Finally, to end things off, let us address the lesbophobia aspect to this separately because it is 100% worth mentioning.

The treatment towards queer women onscreen is hardly the same as the hype around queer men.

We can see it in the way streaming services and the internet hype up gay romances whilst sapphic romances are largely ignored and cast to the side (just to make it clear I have nothing against people enjoying mlm romance I enjoy mlm romance all I’m saying that it’s a real shame that wlw romance doesn’t get the same amount of appreciation).

The response to Francesca X Michaela has been largely negative and it’s frustrating. Outside of the cosy gay rabbit hole that tumblr is, there’s just outrage over this storyline/pairing for a number of different reasons that well…all feel ridiculous.

Bridgerton has gone off the books many times yet there’s more outrage than before when it comes to Francesca X Michaela?

Fans are getting a lot more defensive of John and Francesca’s relationship despite knowing he was never going to be endgame all because of Michaela? I’m sorry but I’m sure that if Michaela was Michael and we got the exact same scene with Francesca, do you think there would be as much outrage over John and Francesca’s relationship being downplayed? No. Let’s be honest. People wouldn’t be as mad because there’d be an attractive man involved.

I think the sapphics deserve so much more and better treatment from fellow non-sapphics. Instead of a show of appreciation, we keep getting unreasonable amounts of fire onto this storyline that hasn’t even happened.

What’s worse is that I know that Francesca X Michaela’s romance could follow the story beats of previous seasons that were eaten up by fans and still be bad to people because sapphic romances are just judged more harshly as straight audiences refuse to connect with them. If their romance isn’t phenomenal and just good, then it won’t be enough which is just frustrating.

So yeah, the hate towards Francesca and Michaela is unwarranted and unjust. People need to calm down and realise that their claims are contributing to lesbophobia whether they realise it or not.

[sliding-graphite]

Stupid question: are you guys also Asian?

(Legit question: how is everyone? Healing? Coping? All the best, no matter your circumstances or the memories that are etched onto you.)

Here is another post inspired by @new-tella-us

They made a post about each of the incubois + Mika's toxic traits, so I decided to make a post about Arons. She has 2 major ones, but I'll focus on one for now.

Unwarrented defensiveness

At times, she is so defensive and can even come across as hostile at anything that she mistakes as an accusation or unneeded criticism.

On top of immediately getting tense, she may start overexplaining herself.

Especially when it's about her health. If she interperates a comment as someone implying she's faking or is using her health issues for attention, she will make sure to shoot that down.

This is a trait she gained from being in constant survival mode. She spent years as a child having to advocate for her own health, fighting to be believed, and fighting to be understood. So now, a sign that she isn't being believed or understood puts her into flight or fight mode. Especially when it's from someone whose opinion she cares about.

After she feels guilty, realizing that it wasn't the other persons intentions, but in the moment, she feels like a teenager again who's fighting to be loved and understood by her family.

[sweetbuckybarnes]

“Do You Remember Now, Wife?”

Pairings: Colin + Penelope Bridgerton

Summary: After the Butterfly Ball, the Bridgerton's wave goodbye to Eloise, Francesca, her new husband and his cousin.

Main Masterlist | Polin Masterlist

For: @my-middle-name-is-awkward ❤️

Like every morning since she got married, Penelope woke up with the sun streaming in her face (which resulted in her grumbling to herself and pushing her head underneath her pillow).

However, this morning was different.

There was a body lying next to her.

"Will you please stop rolling around, Pen?" Came the rumbling voice from her husband.

Penelope's head came out from underneath her pillow and looked at the person beside her. "Colin? What are you doing in here?"

He slowly opened one eye and looked at her with a crinkled eyebrow. "Sleeping next to my wife, what else would I be doing at this time in the morning?"

This time it was Penelope's eyebrows that crinkled. "What happened to you sleeping on the settee?"

Colin opened his other eye and pushed himself up onto his elbow, resulting in the sheet which had been covering him slipping down his chest, revealing the curly hair Penelope had not expected to be so soft and fluffy the first time they were intimate on the lounger which sat at the end of the bed. "Pen, what do you remember of last night?"

Colin watched as Penelope rolled onto her back and her eyes danced between two spots on the ceiling. Her face scrunched up, making her look so adorable to Colin as he rolled to lay on his side and watch her remember what had happened at the Dankworth-Finch Ball (where her secret identity of Lady Whistledown was revealed, and the Queen had somewhat allowed her to continue writing the gossip sheet). She now remembers their conversation before he took her to the floor for the first time in the night.

He watches a pink flush rise up her neck and to the apples of her cheeks. It was at that moment she remembered their unsurprising ride home (reminiscent of the night they got engaged). He then watched as the pink tinge turned red as she remembered the times they joined last night, as well as the early hours of this morning...

"Do you remember now, wife?"

Penelope shuffled herself down the bed, so she was hiding underneath the sheet.

"And where do you think you are going?" He asks, taking the edge of the sheet and started pulling it away from her face. That's when Colin remembered, that Penelope could be surprisingly strong when she needed to be (considering she was half-raised with Eloise, who was always dragging her places, sometimes Penelope would stick her heels in the ground, it always made Colin laugh when he saw the pair fighting to go outside).

Somehow, Penelope managed to shove her part of the sheet underneath her pillows. Thinking she had bested him, she giggled like the little girl she once was.

Colin stopped tugging for a second, wondering why he was trying to pull the sheet over Penelope's head when he could simply lift his side and join her underneath the sheet.

Which is exactly what he did. "Do you believe you can hide from me, wife?" Before practically pouncing on his, as a shriek left Penelope.

Colin knew they would be summoned to Bridgerton House at some point in the day, as Francesca would leaving with her new husband, John for Scotland with his cousin, Michaela and Eloise.

He did not expect it to be so soon. Colin and Penelope were sat in their blue drawing room, Penelope reading a book Eloise had gotten her for her birthday when they weren't speaking (Eloise was determined not to get her anything, but Colin had all but demanded she get Pen something for her birthday, they had been friends for years). A maid arrived from Bridgerton House with a missive from his mother.

Colin, who had been editing his travel journal, had taken the note from the maid. He gave it a cautionary glance and then looked at his wife, whose feet were currently resting in his lap. "Eloise and Fran are leaving in ten minutes, my love, we should head over to say goodbye."

Penelope looked up as she was halfway through her chapter. She was halfway through a sentence when Colin spoke. She thought to herself for a moment and flicked back to the beginning of the chapter, set her bookmark in place and put her book down.

"Indeed we shall," she replies, taking her feet off Colin's lap and putting them back into her slippers.

Colin got up from the settee first, holding his hand out to his wife, so he could assist her and then pulled her very close to his side and peppered multiple kisses to her face.

The remaining Bridgerton family watched as the carriage disappeared around the corner, which out of the eight siblings, spouses and matriarch. Violet, Benedict, Colin, Hyacinth, Gregory and Colin's wife Penelope were left.

Which left Violet Bridgerton feeling very emotional. Her babies were leaving the nest whether she liked it or not. She had all the other fussing mamas jealous of her this year, she had somehow managed to marry off one of her sons and one of her daughters.

"Mama, are you alright?" Hyacinth asked, from the other side of Violet. This caught the attention of the rest of the remaining Bridgerton's, as a single lone tear rolled down her cheek. She sniffled slightly and wiped away the rolling droplet.

"Of course, I am, my dear. It is just a little bit hard when your children leave home," Violet tells her. She heard Colin mutter to his wife how she wasn't upset when he left home. "Well, Colin. That is because you live just ten minutes away by carriage. Francesca will be living in the Highlands of Scotland, which is a fortnight's carriage ride away."

Penelope let go of her husband to comfort her mother-in-law. "At least she will be very well looked after by the Earl."

Violet wrapped her arms around Penelope. "Where I may have lost Francesca, I have gained in a new daughter," she felt Penelope nuzzle her face into her shoulder and let out a little sigh. She knew from Colin that the Featherington's were trying to be a better family, she knew Portia could sometimes be on the... colder side.

She looked over at her third son, who was so much like his father, as he smiled at his mother and wife embracing.

[apollos-boyfriend]

mcc 33 nerfs

snifferish is streaming from a laptop

pink parrots (jack manifold, tommyinnit, tubbo, and bekyamon) are all drinking

michela is in a cactus costume that restricts her movement to the point she has to hold her head in a specific position to keep her headphones on

michaela's space key broke during ace race

[yelena-bellova]

I actually think it's quite clear why they're having Francesca fall in love with Michaela right away and also why her story was the one they chose. At first, I didn't understand it that much as, from my understanding, the book centered on the themes of guilt and grief. But after reading some interviews from the show-runners, it's clear they feel the primary focus of the novel was on Francesca feeling "different" - which in retrospect is highly emphasized in the show, and is how we get to her being a lesbian (they're not going to make her bisexual, I'lll get to that). It's not how I view the story, but I'm not going to criticize someone for experiencing media differently than me.

Anyways, why does she fall in love right away? One, I'm going to be frank, main stream audiences cannot handle a truly bisexual lead. Parts of the internet would lose their shit if a woman who ends up with a woman had actual genuine feelings for a man while the other part of the internet would lose their shit that a woman who loved a man fell in love with a woman. Both sides would, ironically, agree she was just a lesbian all along so there's no point in trying to make her not one.

Secondly, I think romance in general - and particularly Bridgerton - doesn't usually focus on the idea of multiple loves that are of equal value. The genre is geared towards finding your one great love (and that's great! I love it! It's romantic and sweet, and I don't need my bodice-ripper novels to try to tackle real life romance). This is also emphasized in the show, where Violet was clearly feeling like Francesca was settling, hinting that her real love won't be with John. And in TV and film, this is 100% exasperated by shipping - audiences become extremely attached to a main couple, so killing them off will cause chaos. It just makes sense within this context to remove any romantic love from John as, from the perspective of the genre, that devalues the love between Francesca and Micheal/Michaela.

And what is the easiest way to remove romantic love between John and Francesca while keeping John a sympathetic and loving character?

All this to say, Francesca will NEVER love John, not romantically. And that makes her set up perfect for her to be a lesbian. If she never loved John, then his death can be sad, but ultimately not cause any actual conflict for the neat and tidy 8 episode arc of her season. It gives the audience the chance to say "wow, so sad she lost her husband, who she was clearly friends with, but also it's not that sad because now she'll ACTUALLY fall in love for real this time."

From a plot perspective, without any novel attachment, it's actually pretty solid and hits the tropes I would expect a queer romance to hit if it needed to exist within the Bridgerton verse. Dare I say, it's frankly even rather cliché?

So again, I disagree with a lot of this but I’m still going to share it because whoever this is didn’t come from a place of hate.

1: I’ve read the interviews with Jess Brownell about deciding to change Francesca’s story because she herself identified with the “different” aspect being a queer woman. Setting aside all sexual/gender politics, that’s a key mistake a lot of writers make. When writing for a show like this it’s good to make it personal, but not self-service. To morph an entire storyline to fit what you took from the book, even if few others did, is a bad writing choice.

2: I do agree that the world has no idea what to with bisexuality. I see more hate for bisexuals than nearly any other subsection of the LGBTQ community. I do think, however, that the Bridgerton fanbase is a bit more accepting. I’ve seen a lot of issue be taken with Benedict’s storyline this season but not because he’s bi/pan, but because of the shoddy editing and writing for his scenes.

3: “Bodice ripping novels” gave me a good laugh 😂😂

4: The change of Francesca’s potential lack of romantic feelings for John is probably my biggest issue with the whole situation. It truly feels like an unnecessary change. Even in going forward with setting up Francesca and Michaela for happily ever after, they could have saved Francesca developing feelings until after John had passed. Enough book readers would have been talking online about who Michaela was and who she becomes to Francesca that people would have known. In my eyes, there truly was no reason to eliminate that part of the story.

[herembers]

My random thoughts on Bridgerton part 2 as someone who watched it after a very long day of work on very little sleep with my friends and a puppy that kept trying to distract me:

-The Polin sex scene is very cute. Everything I wanted for them.

-Colin telling off Portia is great. Pen gets validation, Colin gets to be a hero. Win win.

-The reconciliation between Portia and Pen is also something I was pleased to see. Real recognizes real.

- They should have had my Bi king Benedict agree to the threesome much sooner so that we could stop getting random montages of them and focus on other parts of the story that desperately needed tightening up.

-I like the angst and don’t mind that Colin is slow to warm to the idea of Pen being Whistledown. He is a pampered rich boy! Of course he’s going to pout! Of course he does not immediately get it! I do wish they focused on him more. I could have used more domestic Polin.

-Bridgerton is not renowned for letting a moment sit and breathe. The last two episodes make it clear that they feel the desperate need to cram as much into the storyline as possible, worried that viewers won’t return: BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE!

^^^this is just an unfortunate side effect of streaming services having such a heavy hand in ruining storytelling in general. Too much set up, not enough pay off. These seasons need to be longer. They just do.

-the mention of the masquerade ball made me go: 🥰♥️!!!

-I was so thrilled to see Michaela 🥹♥️ Francesca’s story is going to wreck me. I love them all so much already I will be suffering when their time comes. I will say: I’m preemptively blocking out the homophobic discourse. I’m already tired I won’t be dealing with that bs

-Overall, I wanted more, but I’m pleased with the season. The changes from the book gave me a lot of relief. It’s my favorite one so far. I love Colin and Pen so much and I’m so happy to see my little wallflower have her cake and eat it too 🥰 Bridgerton is like candy to me: just fluffy romantic fun. I enjoy low stakes and historically inaccurate clothing here and there hehe. Most of my complaints this season stem from needing more time with each storyline.

[jeewrites]

What are your top five television shows of all time?

Thanks for the tag @burntheedges @katareyoudrilling !

Ooof, this is was surprisingly hard! There was a chunk of my life where I didn’t own a tv (before streaming services!) so I heard I missed out on some good shows.

Bones - pretty sure I had a crush on Michaela Conlin and Tamara Taylor. Also Sweets.

Castle - somehow this is a comfort show I’ve rewatched 3 times??

Abbott Elementary - I was a science teacher for several years in a school like this and every episode just has me lolsobbing.

The Brothers Sun - i had to pause multiple times during each episode to scream about it, it makes me feel so seen.

My Hero Academia - the wholesomest

No pressure tagging: @rebel-held @pedrit0-pascalit0 @papipascaaaal @survivingandenduring @christinamadsen @ladamedusoif @yourcoolauntie @perennialdoll247

[floef-likes-everything]

Nightingale Adventure

(Based on Apo's lore stream of 28-8)

They hadn’t been sailing for more than an hour when the weather had turned sour. Apo didn’t understand how, because when they left the port there was not a cloud in sight. He liked to think he could predict the weather quite accurately now, but today had proven him wrong. The worst part was that he had decided to board Acho’s ship instead of going on his own, which meant he was just a passenger. Acho knew how to sail and with a good crew of Nightingales there really was nothing to worry about. Still, when the first lightning bolt struck the sea Apo couldn’t help but flinch.

“Lightning scared ya, Apo?” Michaela noticed, a smirk on her face as together they undid the ropes that held the small sail down. With winds like this, they really didn’t need all sails up to keep them going. Will and Graecie were up in the mast, hoisting the sail upwards and fastening it.

“Caught me off guard,” Apo deflected. A little storm didn’t faze him, he’d sailed in too many storms to get scared this easily. “I just hadn’t expected a storm to roll in this suddenly.”

“I agree with that,” she said, trying to wipe the thick hair out of her face as she looked up into the mast, where the other two were working hard to tie the sail down. Acho, from behind the wheel, was shouting out orders to the rest of the crew but Apo couldn’t hear him over the sound of the waves. “I’m happy we went with Acho, their ship is by far one of the best from our fleet. No offence.”

“None taken,” Apo muttered, though he would’ve loved it if they had decided to take his ship and let him be the captain. “Do you really think we are going to run into Aimsey on that island?”

“I hope we do,” Michaela’s expression hardened. From what Apo managed to piece together, Michaela knew Aimsey pretty well. She had told him a little about how their families were very good friends and that that was the reason Michaela had come to the Faction Isles in the first place. She was supposed to stay with them for a while, but due to bad weather she arrived later than expected and at that point disaster had already struck. She was told only snippets for what supposedly happened to Aimsey and today the Nightingales hoped to uncover more of what happened that mysterious night. Apo sometimes still had nightmares about the storm and those nasty, purple tentacles.

“Land ho!” Ros yelled from high up in the crows nest. She was brave staying there with this wind, though Apo assumed she was too scared to climb down at all. She was lovely, truly lovely and a true Nightingale at heart but she wasn’t the best pirate. She had however been determined to go along on this venture. She had been so adamant about it that nobody had dared to tell her no.

Acho gestured for Apo to join them, so he swiftly made his way over to them across the slippery deck. He almost stumbled on the stairs, but managed to keep himself upright to present himself to his friend. Acho had been so stoic this journey, as if they had something to prove. Despite them being new to the faction, they were amongst family. They didn’t have to prove their worth to this crew.

“With the weather like this, I can’t dock safely,” they explained to Apo. “I’ll get as close to the shore as I possibly can, but we’ll have to take the sloop to the docks.”

“But we docked safely in that first storm,” Apo argued. “With an entire fleet, even. Sure, the weather is a bit worse than that night but – “

“I won’t put my ship in jeopardy,” Acho interrupted him, set on their own plan. “We had some very good sailors leading the way, that night. We can’t afford losing this ship, we’ll be marooned.”

“Then why did you ask?” Apo said, confused by what Acho wanted from him.

“To inform you to prepare the sloop,” Acho recovered with just a slight hesitation in their voice. “We’ll drop the anchor here. I’ll gather Ros, Will, Graecie and Michaela. The rest of the crew will stay here.”

Apo opted to not go against his friend again and just do as he was told. Acho was on edge, for good reason in all honesty. They were still a bit weary of Willow, the Nightingale that had just come back from a rather large and long journey. He’d been with the Faction for years already, so he knew how things were run amongst their family. Apo somehow assumed Acho felt threatened by that. They must come from a very demanding environment, but Apo didn’t want to get into business he wasn’t supposed to. If Acho want to tell him about their past, they would.  

So, as Acho gathered the Nightingales that would go to shore, Apo prepared the sloop. It wasn’t much and it would be a hell of a job to get this thing to the island that was just about visible through the rain. It wasn’t particularly far and the waves weren’t nearly as bad as on the open seas, but they would have to work hard to row against the tide. Nightingales were though, however, especially when they said their mind to something. With some struggle and good directional ques from Ros, the six of them managed to get the sloop to the deserted docks. When everybody had set foot on solid land and the wood creaked under their feet, they took a look at the island before them.

Apo could feel his mouth drop. It didn’t look anything like the last time he had been here. The goop was gone, the purple tentacles that had engulfed the small seaside down where either gone or had turned to solid stone. It was deserted, as it had been before and cold wind and rain swept against his face. If only he could be back in their tavern with a keg of ale in his hand near the warm fire. But no, they had to set sail to this wretched place they already knew. They weren’t Herons, who looked to discovery every mystery of the world. They weren’t Kestrels, looking for treasure even in places like this. They certainly weren’t Kite, despite them looking for one now.

“This is not what I remember from being here last time,” Graecie was the first one to break the silence. “Where… why has everything turned to stone?”

“I’ve been here once after Aimsey disappeared,” Acho said, which was yet another piece of information Apo wasn’t aware of. “It was a couple of weeks ago, I think, and by that point the stone was already – wait, did you see that?”

Acho pointed towards the sky and Apo had to pull out his spyglass to even see they were pointing to the top of a mountain. He saw nothing but rain and rocks, so he turned to his friend with slight concern.

“I see nothing,” he stated, though Acho looked as if they’d seen a ghost. “It must’ve been the lightning.”

“No, I swear to the Sun God,” Acho argued. Their white hair was plastered to their face and they squinted to look into the distance, the spyglass on their hip entirely forgotten. “There it is again, take a look!”

They pointed, sprinting forward a few steps until Graecie caught them by the collar. Apo followed the gesture with his eyes, but he still had no idea what Acho was talking about.

“What is it, Acho?” Ros asked, her soft voice barely carrying over the sounds of the storm.

“The purple particles!” Acho argued as they turned around, brushing Gracie off. “I – I’m not crazy!”

“We don’t say you are,” Ros assured them with a weak smile. “But let’s not go running off on our own. We already lost a friend here, we wouldn’t want to lose another.”

Ros was the kindest soul Apo had ever met, and he knew quite some people. Yet, on the entire Faction Isles there wasn’t a person as compassionate as Ros. If Apo had to describe what it was to be a Nightingale, he would pick Ros as an example. She would do anything for her faction, even if that particular thing wasn’t in her skill set. If you asked Ros for help, she would drop everything to come to your aid. She cared for her crew.

“I see it too!” Michaela then yelled, pointing to a wildly different spot Acho had earlier. All six of them turned their heads and now, Apo couldn’t deny it. There was something purple far up the mountain, something small and moving. For a moment he thought of cruppy, that weird little creature Olive had encountered on this very island. It had somehow followed them all the way back to the Faction Isles and it seemed to like it there. Yet, this was different as purple particles seemed to flow in the air, clearly visible despite the darkness and the rain. Mere seconds before it blinked out of existence, Apo swore he saw a pair of eyes.

“Where did it go?” Acho questioned and from that point onward, nobody seemed to keep Ros’ warning in mind. Acho was the first to run away, making their way further into the town looking for a way up into the mountains. Michaela followed in their footsteps with her sword in hand. With two already gone, the four remaining Nightingales had little choice but to follow the crew. Apo fell behind as he tried to pinpoint the location of the strange visage again.

There! He spotted it, near where the rest of the crew had gone of to. Through is spyglass he could take a closer look. He had been right, it was more than just particles! There was a figure amongst the strange magic, a face lined in dark hair and shrouded in purple.

“Aimsey…?” Apo muttered aloud, his voice lost to the rain. The appearance looked like them, but he didn’t remember Aimsey being purple. Had they been here the entire time? Why hadn’t they returned to the Faction Isles?

“Aimsey… were are you going?” Apo yelled it into the wind, but the question didn’t seem to land. As his crew scrambled their way up the mountain, the visage had already moved. Apo got into motion, making his way over the slippery rocks and through the mud, battling to keep his balance. They might not be Herons, but this was a discovery worth chasing after. They had come here so Will and Michaela could witness this island for themselves, but none of them had anticipated a chase like this. Had Apo hoped to find Aimsey here? Sure, but he wanted the Aimsey he knew. They had been very welcoming when he arrived at the Faction Isles despite the reputation of the Kites.

“We should take different routes to this mountain!” at some point, Acho was close enough for Apo to hear them. “Take the left, Apo. We think it’s Aimsey!”

It was good to know Apo wasn’t the only one that thought so. He followed Acho’s instructions without giving it much thought, keeping his eye on what they thought to be Aimsey through his spyglass. It moved fast, way to fast for a regular human. Once he had reached the place it had been earlier, it had moved far away. Air started to burn in his lungs and he didn’t know how much time had passed when he found himself on a muddy shore, all alone and in the dark.

“This isn’t going to work,” he muttered to himself, turning around slowly in hopes to spot his crew. He didn’t, however, so he opted to return to the dock where they had set foot earlier. When he finally arrived, soaked to the bone as he had to wade through waist deep water to get back, he found that others had made the same decision. Acho was waiting alongside Will and Graecie. They, much like Apo, had their hair and clothes stuck to their skin because of the weather.

“Apo!” Will sounded delighted to see Apo. “Have you caught them? Have you caught Aimsey?”

“No,” Apo said, still catching his breath. “Did they look weird to you as well? They looked… purple, despite those weird particles.”

“Something is off about this place,” Graecie confirmed. “We… we didn’t get close enough to them to ask them anything. What concerns me more, where are Ros and Michaela?”

Acho snapped to attention as if he hadn’t noticed they were missing two of their crew members before that. The two must still be on their way to the docks, Apo told himself. Sure, this island hadn’t taken another soul. He wouldn’t believe that.

“I – Let me go look for them,” Acho decided all on their own and before the others could go against it, they had already disappeared into the town. Apo opted to go after them for a moment, but that meant he had to leave Will and Graecie behind on the docks. Acho could fend for himself, Apo considered them to be one of the Nightingales best swordspeople.

“When you told me you’d show me a special place, this wasn’t exactly what I had in mind,” Will said as the rain started to die down. Apo had no idea how long they had been running around the island, chasing Aimsey, but he swore he could see the beginnings of daylight at the horizon.

“Well, we weren’t exactly expecting to run into an adventure quite like this,” Graecie admitted. She pulled her hair together to wring the water out of it, shifting her eyepatch in the process. She quickly put it back into position. “Do you guys think we should tell anybody at the Faction Isles?”

Apo hadn’t even thought about that yet. Was a wild goose chase on this mystic figure really something they wanted? Sure, Apo wanted to know what was happening here but not at the cost of any more lives. Some mysteries where better left uncovered.

“The Herons might be helpful in this endeavor,” Will opted. “They love their mysteries, if I remember correctly. If anybody knows something about this, it must be them.”

He was right, the Herons might just know a thing or two. Maybe the Herons that roamed the Factions Isles right now had never encountered anything like this, but those of old might just have. Apo knew of their vast library with maps and documents. He was happy he didn’t have to add anything to it.

“Michaela, they are here!” Ros turned a corner and suddenly, she and Michaela had made it to the dock. Their sudden appearance startled Apo, though he hoped he had concealed that first reaction good enough. Michaela still had her sword out, gripped tightly at the hilt. There had been a point at which Apo had questioned if she hadn’t been more on her place with the Kites, but she never meant any real harm with her threats. The Kites did, Apo had had enough running ins with them.

“I touched the cloud,” Michaela stuttered and Ros instantly wrapped an arm around her to console her. “I… they were there. They were friendly. The cloud didn’t hurt me.”

Apo couldn’t really string together what she meant by that, but he didn’t dare to ask. She seemed shaken by whatever had happened to her. All that mattered was that both of them had gotten back safely.

“Great, and now Acho is running around looking for the two of you,” Graecie sighed. “He’ll be smart enough to return swiftly, right? – Oh, speak of the devil.”

Acho reappeared on the other side of the dock, but clocked the group quickly enough. They came running towards them, boots splashing on the waterlogged planks and their coat swirling around their legs.

“Is everybody alright?” they asked and Apo couldn’t help but notice he didn’t sound particularly out of breath. That was impressive, in all fairness. “Have you caught the… whatever that was?”

“It’s Aimsey,” Michaela said with confidence. “Or… it looks like them. Something is off with this island, with them, I don’t know! We should do something.”

Apo had never struck Michaela as someone desperate, but she sure sounded like it. Of course she was, she just wanted to safe her friend.

“We should ask the Herons for advice,” Graecie said, repeating her earlier thought. “If anybody has the information, they do.”

“No Herons!” Acho almost yelled, which wasn’t necessary anymore as the storm had settle down just as suddenly as is had appeared. “It – this doesn’t concern them at all. If anything, we should inform the Kites. Aimsey is one of them, after all.”

“I’d rather not talk to the Kites,” Michaela said and a frown appeared on her face. “One of them keeps threatening me he’ll murder me once I set foot off the Isles. Some of them are… a bit wicked. Aimsey was the most reasonable of them. I like the idea of going to the Herons.”

“What about the Kestrels?” Acho continued, clearly not happy with the idea of going to the Herons. “Wasn’t Aimsey quite close with one of them?”

“With Guqqi, you mean?” Apo had to dig deep in his memory to come up with that name. “The one person who also went missing on the same night?”

“We don’t know if she’s missing,” Acho said, though Apo doubted anybody had heard from her since she had taken off with those cloaked fellas. Apo didn’t talk to the Kestrels that much, there was only Martyn he could sometimes have a normal conversation with but the others were just to stuck up with themselves. Apo didn’t think he could ever be that selfish.

“How about we discuss this back at the Faction Isles?” Ros proposed as more light started to spill over the now calmed down ocean. “We should all get a chance of dry clothes, we’ll get sick like this.”

There was a grumbling agreement and in a somewhat awkward silence, the crew returned to the sloop. Apo couldn’t help but wonder why Acho seemed to have such an aversion to talking to the Herons. He thought the Herons to be quite pleasant to be around as long as you didn’t start about their achievements. Once they started their tales, they wouldn’t stop talking no matter what you tried.

As they rowed back to the ship, Apo threw one last glance back at the island. Now, with the light of day creeping in long shadows were cast over the stony structures looking very much like tentacles. All of the stone had been purple once, whatever had happened to it for it to look like this? Apo was afraid they might never know, which in turn would mean there was little chance they would get Aimsey back. Whatever had happened to them, Apo could only pray the thing that did it stayed on that island.   

-------

This was my first time tuning into an Apo lore stream and I might just tune into a bunch more, as I had a blast! Also, I'll protect Ros with my life she is so very dear to me.

(also please to scream at me if I got any pronouns wrong by mistake)

[miksweety]

New music is coming my pretties, straight from the dark velvet heart of this hardworking gal.

DARK NATURE drops 31.10.23 🎃

Photo: Ben Wulf Photography

Hair: Anne Veck

Styling: Chloe Haywood London

[grantmentis]

Women's Worlds 2023 Primer

The PHF season may be over, but many of the players we love will be playing in women's worlds this upcoming week alongside their peers from the PWHPA, SDHL, Naisten Liiga, NCAA, Usports, EWHL, and countless other fantatic women's hockey leagues or organizations from around the world!

When: April 5th - April 16th

Click here for full schedule

Where: Brampton, Ontario at CAA Center. Games will be in Eastern time

Click here for tickets

What Teams are playing:

Group A: Canada, USA, Switzerland, Czechia, Japan

Group B: Germany, Hungary, France, Finland, Sweden

How to Watch:

Canada: TSN will be broadcasting all games in the tournament for Canadians

USA: NHL Network will be broadcasting all of Team USA's and Team Canada's games, but not the rest of the tournament

Finland: Broadcast scheduling here

Germany: German games should be available at MagentaSport (and apparently free!)

France: Sport En France should have at least the French teams games

Sweden: SVT should carry Sweden's games

Switzerland: available to stream at srf.ch

Unfortunately I could not find broadcast information for Czechia, Hungary, or Japan, but that may be a language barrier issue on my end. If this is something you are familiar with please let me know!

Lastly, if you want to watch a game that's not available to you, feel free to message and I can see what I can do to help

Tournament format:

All of Group A makes it to the quarterfinals, so the preliminary games are just seeding for them. The top three seeds in Group B will move on as well. Then, the knock out stage looks like this:

Below the cut is rosters, notable storylines, and expectations for each team. These are in alphabetical order.

Canada

Roster

Notable changes: Natalie Spooner comes back after missing time with pregnancy. Danielle Serdachny makes her international senior team debut after having 71 points in 40 games as Colgates captain this year. Claire Thompson returns to the world stage after missing last world championships, comes off a spectacular olympic showing. Potomak is out, despite strong performance last world championship.

Player to watch/other fun things; Sarah Fillier. She has been one of the world's best goal scorers for over two year and, at only 22, will likely only get better

Goals: Win gold again! They've been dominate on the world stage again since the break from the pandemic, working extremely well with their new coach. They are the team to beat with a mix of vets and newcomers

Czechia

Roster

Notable changes: Klara Peslarova, star goalie for Czechia, is not here due to season ending knee injury. Michaela Hesova (who is only 17 years old!) makes her senior team debut in her place and Kateřina Zechovská comes back to the mix. Tereza Radová is out, Sára Čajanová returns. Klára Jandušíková makes her senior national team debut, one of the few ncaa dIII players to do so!

Players to watch: Tereza Vanišová is coming off a PHF championship where she scored the cup winning goal, and has been one of the Czech republics more creative offensive players that plays with an edge. Natálie Mlýnková just had a breakout year for University of Vermont that saw her have 42 points in 36 games.

Goals: Get a medal. Czechia has risen FAST on the national stage, going from not qualifying to medaling in their first wwc in just a few years. Thanks to a mix of a good core who's been playing together a long time like like Mills/Mrázová/Križová and talented youth like Čajanová, they have cemented themselves at one of the worlds threats.

Finland

Roster; http://leijonat.fi/index.php/maajoukkueet/naisleijonat/2022-23/mm2023/item/45144-naisleijonien-mm-joukkue-julkistettiin-taessae-kokoonpano ( no graphic :-( )

Notable changes: Elisa Holopainen will not play for Finland after a great showing last worlds due to injury. Susanna Tapani, who had five points in 6 worlds games last year, is also not on this roster. Sanni Ahola will make her senior national team debut as a goaltender for Finland. She had a .920 as the starter in St. Cloud state this year and could be interesting as they try to find their next starter. Emilia Kyrkkö is another new goalie, who played in Finland this year but will play at St. Cloud next year. I’d expect Ahola to get more time though. Michelle Karvinen not on roster. Lots of roster shakeup overall.

Players to watch: Noora Tulus has been a national team mainstay for some time, but the last two years she has found another gear. Coming off a club season in Sweden with 56 points in 32 games. Sini Karjalainen had a breakout season in Vermont, will be interested to see if she can translate in the world stage.

Goals:After a rough few tournaments and roster turmoil, and some coaching questions, Finland is trying to get back in Group A and compete for a medal. Competition will be fiercer than ever but they look to prove why they dominated so long.

France

Roster:

Notable changes: Marion Allemoz, who was the team captain, has retired. Morgane Rihet, who was also an assistant captain and mainstay, is not on the roster. Margot Desvignes makes her senior team debut after some strong showings in Sweden.

Players to watch: Chloe Aurard is /the/ player for this team, being a star over at Northeastern the past few years. Justine Crousy Theode, who plays in the mens division in France, will be interesting to see if she gets any starts. With no clear starting goaltender, the 22 is making her senior team debut after strong performances at the u18 level

Goals: Get their first top division win. After being promoted to Division IA in 2013, they've slowly risen to finally qualify for the primary WWC tournament for the first time since 2019! Despite tournament cancellations from the pandemic, they've kept their momentum as they look to establish themselves as a mainstay in the top division. In 2019, they did not get a win, so they hope to do so this time.

Germany

Roster: https://www.deb-online.de/2023/03/24/frauen-nationalmannschaft-finaler-kader-fuer-weltmeisterschaft-in-brampton-kanada-nominiert/ ( once again no graphic :( )

Notable changes: Going even younger in goal, swapping out lilly Uhrmann for Chiara Schultes, no Tanja Eisenschmid though her sister Nicola is there. We do have university of Maine twins Lilli and Louisa Welke still though!

Player to watch: Nina Jobst-Smith (listed as Katerina) had a breakout year in university of minnesota duluth, with 25 points in 39 games. Sandra Abstreiter is a goaltender who has proven she can steal a game.

Expectations: Similar to hungary below, finish top three in their division, hopefully with two decisive victories, to move on to the semifinals.

Hungary

Roster: https://www.jegkorongszovetseg.hu/noi-valogatott-megvan-a-vb-re-utazo-25-fos-keret

Notable Changes: Very much a run it back roster with little changes. Like its basically identical to their one from last year

Players to watch: Mira Seregély was already a steady contributor for Hungary, but after a breakout year in University of Maine, we may see her take another step. Same with Taylor Baker, a shutdown defender who had a solid season in montreal this year.

Goals: Finishing top three in Divison B to clinch a semifinal berth. They've done so their past two outings, but last time was on a tiebreaker. The past two tournaments they've only had one win in each preliminary round, so trying to secure two would be big. Keeping the group together to try t build on exisiting chemistry will be key.

Japan:

Roster: https://www.jihf.or.jp/common/img/info/info_20230324_153025.pdf

Notable changes: Similar to Hungary, they are running it back. Most of their changes come from adding some younger players to their forward group, including twin sisters Rio and Riri Noro making their national team debut after strong performances at the u18 level

players to watch: Haruka Toko is forever my answer here as I think she's one of my favorite players to watch in terms of her speed and shot, and she's coming off a season that saw her return to the SDHL and have 27 points in 29 games. Ayaka Hitosato also is coming off a successful first season in the SDHL, and it will be interesting to see how that affects her game.

Goals: make the semifinals! last year was a heartbreaking 2-1 shootout lost in the finals they hope to avenge, and have proven they are capable of it

Sweden:

Notable changes: Most notably, long time captain Michelle Löwenhielm is not on the roster. Sara Grahn returns after missing some time on the national team, will be interesting to see how they divide time between her and Söderberg. Ebba Berglund, Jessica Adolfsson, and several other no longer on the teams defense after being in the last few tournaments, so going for a new look there.

Player to watch: Maja Nylén Persson has become the #1 defender for the national team at 22 years old and is coming off a stellar SDHL season. Sara Hjalmarsson was over a point per game at providence college this year.

Goals: Win division B and try to make it to the semifinals. After a few rough years due to labor rights issues, the national team is trying to find some stability again and figure out their identity as they develop a young core.

Switzerland

Roster:

Notable changes: Not many, mostly concentrated in the forward group. Evelina Raselli has retired since last wwc, which is the big one.Sarah Forster makes her return after a strong season in the PHF.

Players to watch: For years, it has been the Lara Stalder and Alina Müller show, rightfully so as they are two of the best hockey players in the world and it is a gift to watch them together. We have also seen young defender Lara Christen have strong defensive performances in the past few tournaments, getting it done on both ends

Goals: Medal for Bronze again, hopefully by improved depth scoring and defense. In the past it has been their top line and Brändli who has carried them, so they hope to supplement their high end talent with a good supporting cast.

USA

Notable changes: A lot of babies! Players having babies, including Alex Cavallini and Kendall Coyne Schoffield. Then a lot of players who are very young, with 6 players being under 20, including new faces Abbey Levy, Gabbie Hughes, and Tessa Janecke to name a few. Brianna Decker has retired. No Hannah Brandt, grace zumwinkle, jincy dunne, maddie Rooney, or Jesse compher. HUGE shakeups here.

player to watch: Taylor Heise won player of the tournament last year, and has continued to dominate at the NCAA level, she may only be just beginning. Gabbie Hughes makes her senior team debut after several great years at Minnesota Duluth, and will be interesting to see how she fits into the roster.

Goals: Win gold again, especially with a new look with John Wroblewski at coach. He was the coach last tournament, but only had a few months to work with there. They looked improved under him already, so we will see how they look with a full cycle

[louisupdates]

THE INTERNET IS IN ITS LOUIS TOMLINSON ERA AND IT’S ABOUT TIME

By MICHAELA GALLIGAN | 13.9.2023

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at FSU chapter.

In January 2016, One Direction, one of the biggest bands on the planet at the time, went on an 18-month hiatus. But in 2023, that “break” sounds more like a “breakup.” Since then, the five members of the band have gone on to pursue solo careers in music, and very successful ones at that.

Zayn Malik and Niall Horan have both released three very popular albums, Liam Payne had one of the most popular pop songs of 2019, and Harry Styles has won multiple Grammy Awards and is one of the most famous artists in the world today. However, the band’s eldest member, Louis Tomlinson, didn’t jump on the solo train immediately like the others, making his rise to solo popularity a little slower. But he is finally getting his flowers and fans couldn’t be happier.

Louis Tomlinson was born in Doncaster, England on Dec. 24, 1991. He, Horan, Malik, Payne, and Styles all auditioned for the singing competition series The X Factor (U.K.) in 2010 as solo artists but were later grouped into a band that they named One Direction. The band did extremely well on the show, and even though they did not win the competition, they won the hearts of millions of fans across the world and became overnight sensations. They went on to release five albums and went on multiple world tours. Zayn Malik left the band in March 2015 for personal reasons and to start his solo career, and the rest of the band split in 2016 to do the same.

Tomlinson took a different approach to solo music than the rest of the boys, choosing to release several singles not associated with albums or EPs. These songs, including “Just Hold On” and “Back to You,” were very successful and took a large amount of inspiration from the British pop genre.

Tomlinson continued his release strategy until October 2019, when he announced his first album Walls. The album was released in January 2020 and featured 12 songs by the artist, carrying a heavy pop-rock influence. Tomlinson’s first world tour was postponed due to the pandemic, but he was able to perform the album at several festivals and venues. Today, the album has sold over 1.2 million copies worldwide.

Tomlinson announced his second album, Faith in the Future, in August 2022 and released it in November that same year. This album is mainly comprised of the British indie rock genre and has 18 tracks. It has been extremely successful, hitting No. 1 in the U.K. upon its release. Tomlinson is currently touring the album in Europe.

Tomlinson is finally getting the praise he deserves, but it was a difficult journey to get there. In his recent documentary, All of Those Voices, he discussed how he was often overlooked in One Direction, being given smaller vocal parts due to his voice being unique for the pop genre. In their first two albums, Tomlinson has very few solos and features, which has always upset his die-hard fans, myself included. Despite this, he may have contributed the most to the band in the form of songwriting.

On One Direction’s eighth anniversary in 2018, Tomlinson tweeted, “And remember if it’s by One Direction and it’s a banger I probably wrote on it”, really emphasizing his crucial role in the song creation aspect of the band’s music in his infamous snarky way. He has also grown into his voice much more since 2010, now singing confidently at his concerts and festivals.

Right now, Tomlinson is all over the internet due to press from his current Faith in the Future world tour. He is one of the most viewed music artists on TikTok and his albums are getting loads of streams every day. Buzz is still going around from his documentary release in March. Everyone loves seeing the behind-the-scenes content of touring and his relationships with his family and friends, especially the adorable one he has with his son Freddie. As someone who has been waiting for everyone to go into their Louis craze for a decade now, I love to see it.

I highly encourage you to go and listen to Tomlinson’s music, not only because I am a huge fan and love him, but also because his songs are extremely fun and have very positive, uplifting messages. He is very reflective about his time in One Direction and thankful for the opportunities he has been given in his music career. If you’re ever thinking about buying a ticket for his concert, do it! I recently saw him live for the first time this July in Tampa and it was such an amazing show, where he played almost every song from his most recent album, two One Direction songs, and an Arctic Monkeys song. He and his team are amazing when it comes to making tickets affordable for fans. He even has a music festival, The Away from Home Festival, that changes locations every year and is completely free to fans. So here’s to hoping it will be in North America next year!

Louis Tomlinson is notoriously very kind to fans and appreciates all the support he is given. So if you ever need a serotonin boost, just look up a video of him interacting with fans. He is just amazing. Go support him and all that he does. Listen to Walls and Faith in the Future, and buy that concert ticket! He deserves all the love. I’m already ready for a third album!

[brokehorrorfan]

The Block Island Sound will be released on 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray on December 10 via Synapse Films. The 4K edition comes with a limited edition slipcover featuring new art by Joel Robinson.

Streaming on Netflix, the 2020 independent sci-fi horror film is written and directed by brothers Kevin & Matthew McManus (Funeral Kings). Chris Sheffield and Michaela McManus star.

The Block Island Sound is presented in 4K With HDR10 and 5.1 surround sound. Special features are listed below.

Special features:

Audio commentary by writers-directors Kevin & Matthew McManus

A Practical Apocalypse

Finding the Cast

Filming on the Water

Special Effects on a Shoestring

Los Angeles Behind-the-Scenes (Super 8mm)

McManus Family Home Movies

Trailer

Something terrifying is happening off the coast of Block Island. A strange force is thriving, influencing residents and wildlife alike. Birds are dropping out of the sky and fish are mysteriously washing up on shore. As some residents are suffering from inexplicable emotional collapse, Harry Lynch (Chris Sheffield) watches with dread as his father grows increasingly forgetful, confused and angry. Very, very angry! His sister Audry (Michaela McManus), whose work in marine biology will soon prove invaluable, returns to town with her daughter and leads them all towards chilling revelations that will affect her family in unimaginable ways.

Pre-order The Block Island Sound.

[strawberryshortcake1495]

Aftermath of Wiegenlied of Green 🌱

Rin and Clarith were kneeling together at the Millennium Tree, praying. Clarith had tried to kill Rin the night before, but had only cut her hair. Once they were done praying (and crying), they just sat there and took a moment to relax and think. “Hey, Clarith?” Rin asked. “Yes, Rin?” said Clarith. “What were you planning to do after you were…gonna kill me?” The girl asked, her voice hushed to a whisper. The netsuma was quiet. “I don’t know.” She said. “What do you mean you don’t know? Like, weren’t you gonna bury my body or something? Cremate me somewhere where no one would know?” Rin asked. “Now that you mention it, that does kinda inhumane…” Clarith mused. “I’m sure if you were planning to sneak up from behind and stab me in the back when I’m not looking, then surely you must’ve had a solid plan on what to do once I’m dead.” Rin said. “Well…okay, you’re right.” Clarith confessed. “I did want to do something after I’d kill you…but you will be the only I’ll tell this too, you mustn’t tell a single soul about what I’m about to say.” She said. “My lips are sealed.” said Rin.

Clarith took a deep breath in and out. “Once I had killed you…I had planned to take my own life as well.” She explained. “Oh…b-but why, Clarith?” Rin asked. “I’m not sure. I wasn’t thinking properly in the moment, believe me. Besides, I wasn’t sure if I could live with the guilt of having taken a human life…whether you were evil or not.” Clarith explained. Rin’s shoulders visibly tensed. “Just…knowing that there was an easy way out if things got too messy…it made me feel slightly more confident in my plan…until it actually happened.” Clarith said. “I’m sorry.” Rin said, her voice cracking. “I know you are.” The Netsuma said softly, gently embracing the smaller girl. “You had every right to kill me. I’ve ruined so many lives…I…deserved to be killed during the revelation…” Rin weeped. “Rin…the fact that you’re aware of this and truly regret it means you’re more than capable of redeeming yourself. Sure, you may have killed many innocent Elphes…including Michaela…but you’re still a child, and you have lots of room to grow and mature. If you died during the revelation, you wouldn’t have gotten the chance to learn and grow and be happy. I’m proud of myself for not deciding to kill you, to be the bigger person. And you shouldn’t…kill…” She paused. “…yourself too. Both figuratively and…literally.” Clarith said.

Rin smiled, tears streaming down her face. “Y-You shouldn’t kill yourself too, Clarith. You’re my only friend here. If you didn’t find me, I’d be dead…you’re the only person here I like.” She said. Clarith smiled back. “Thank you, Rin.” She said. “I…like you a lot. Really like you. I would…dare to even go a little further, perhaps. I care a lot about you. A LOT a lot. Maybe even…deeper than that. I…I…I wuv you.” Rin muttered, saying that last part as if she were 6 years old again. “A-and not in like a romantic way, but like…I love you as one loves another person who one simply cannot do without.” She quickly added. Clarith’s heart melted. “I love you too, Rin.” She said. “You give my life purpose…and maybe…maybe that’s enough. Because…that’s just about the greatest gift one friend could give another.” Rin said warmly.

“Thanks for listening to me.” Clarith said. “Hey, you promised me you were gonna help me make brioche, right?” Rin asked. “I did. Dinner will start in 20 minutes, so starting now would be the perfect time.” Clarith said, but Rin was already off her feet and making her way to the kitchen. Clarith smiled sweetly and followed after her.