#SI Market Opportunity

[factrakmarketresearch]

System Integrators: Powering the Future of Business

The System Integrator market is experiencing significant growth, driven by the increasing demand for seamless integration of complex IT systems across various industries. System integrators play a crucial role in combining diverse subsystems into a cohesive and efficient whole, enabling businesses to enhance operational efficiency and adapt to technological advancements.

Expanding Applications: Beyond Traditional Integration

System integrators have evolved beyond traditional IT services, finding new roles in various sectors:

Industrial Automation: Implementing advanced control systems to streamline manufacturing processes and improve productivity.

Smart Cities: Integrating IoT devices and data analytics to enhance urban infrastructure and services.

Healthcare: Combining electronic health records, telemedicine, and other digital tools to improve patient care and operational efficiency.

Learn more about the Report

Market Drivers: What’s Fueling the Growth?

Digital Transformation Initiatives: Organizations are increasingly adopting digital solutions to stay competitive, driving the need for system integration services.

Advancements in Cloud Computing: The shift towards cloud-based solutions requires integration expertise to ensure seamless operation across platforms.

Proliferation of IoT Devices: The growing number of connected devices necessitates effective integration to manage and utilize data efficiently.

Key Market Segments

By Type:

Consulting: Providing expert advice on integration strategies and implementation.

Infrastructure Integration: Combining hardware and networking components to create a unified system.

Software Integration: Ensuring various software applications work together seamlessly.

By Application:

Oil & Gas: Enhancing operational efficiency through integrated control systems.

Automotive: Implementing integrated manufacturing systems for improved productivity.

Healthcare: Combining various digital tools to improve patient care.

Regional Insights

North America: Leads the market with substantial investments in technology and automation.

Asia-Pacific: Fastest-growing region, driven by rapid industrialization and adoption of advanced technologies.

Europe: Steady growth due to increasing focus on digital transformation across industries.

Challenges Facing the System Integrator Market

Complexity of Integration: Combining diverse systems and technologies can be challenging and resource-intensive.

Regulatory Compliance: Ensuring adherence to various industry standards and regulations adds complexity to integration projects.

Future Trends in the System Integrator Market

Emphasis on Cybersecurity: Integrating robust security measures within systems to protect against increasing cyber threats.

Adoption of AI and Machine Learning: Leveraging advanced technologies to enhance integration processes and outcomes.

Focus on Sustainable Solutions: Implementing eco-friendly practices and technologies in integration projects.

Conclusion

The System Integrator market is poised for substantial growth, driven by the increasing complexity of IT environments and the need for seamless integration across various industries. The rise of AI-driven system integrators offers transformative potential, enhancing process automation and optimizing integration strategies. With ongoing technological advancements and a focus on digital transformation, system integrators are set to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of business operations.

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Bicycle Market Future Scope

Post-Production Market Size and Share

[kittykattropicanna]

imagine mechanic!simon fixin’ your car with parts that worth thousands but he doesn’t want your money, he wants something else HEHEHEHEHEHE

HEHEHEHHEHEHEHEHEHEHHEHE right??????? Genius honestly. 

mechanic!Simon would do anything for you :( but only when you obey him, be an obedient and listen..... he was doing you a favour by fucking you on top of your broken down shit box while the lads were on their lunch break, he saw how worked up and stressed you were, and you had the audacity to disobey him??? You want to get your car fixed free of charge? well, now you get nothing and he gets to take you however he wants, your job is to stand there and shut up like the good girl his training you to be ;)

TW: low-key public sex, thigh-fucking, orgasms denial, Si degrades you for being a needy, disobedient girl :( kinda humiliation, mean!Simon, age gap insinuated, Si shoves a dirty rage covered in grease in your mouth bc you won't stfu :(

Mechanic!Simon masterlist

Regular masterlist

You really aren’t well off, the savings you did have are definitely not accessible at the moment. 

Your shitty ex had logged into your bank account the second he threw you out :( making sure you had nothing

He would always make you transfer him money for his crypto trading, he did it behind your back regularly meaning he new all of your information including your security passwords >:(

He had drained everything except £2.50 because “that’s all your worth” :(((((((( 

he was such a dick AHURGG >:(

Like Si promised, he checked out your car the next morning, taking you into the shop even though it was his day off. 

Of course Johnny jumped at the opportunity to introduce himself, taking your hand and kissing it softly, wicked smile flashing across his face when he didn’t see a boyfriend accompanying you to the shop. :((( 

An easy target in his eyes, you being with Si didn’t even cross his mind, a pretty, delicate thing like you wouldn’t be running around with a beast like Simon….it just didn’t make sense :( 

Si stepping in almost immediately when he saw the way Gaz winked at you and licked his teeth, eyeing you up and down like a piece of meat :(

You were HIS….HE found you, nobody else, and that’s how its gonna stay >:(

Maybe a bit of insecurity flared up as well….they were younger then him, more your age….

Johnny was a ball of energy, looked like he could be plastered on the front of some health and fitness magazine and Gaz had a certain charm to him, the type that could make even the most independent women fall to their knees. 

They couldn’t be more different to Si’s rough and grumpy demeanour :((((

But the second you clung to his side, quickly turning your face away from them, flushed red and overwhelmed, it all went away :3

His, he didn’t even have to tell you, you clung to him instinctively, ran to him for protection, looked for him when you needed safety ;)))  

He wanted nothing more then to take you right there, show them both how he could make you cum in ways they couldn’t, even if they had the best vibrater in the world on their side, they couldn’t give you the satisfaction he could :3

Watch the jealousy and envy in their faces as he praised you for being such a good girl, his good girl :)))

He didn’t have to look at your car to know that it was absolutely rooted, a first week apprentice could see that it would cost thousands of pounds to fix, even then, you wouldn’t be getting the best parts on the market meaning it was only a matter of time before it broke down again and became undriveable :(

Quickly slamming the hood he turns to you with a sympathetic look :(

“Listen lovie, its gonna be at least £2000, and that’s jus’ for ya’ engine alone, I don’ even wanna get inta the rest of it cuz fixin’ it is gonna cost more then the car itself”

With teary eyes you tell him you can’t afford to fix it, let alone buy a new car, its the only real possession you have to your name other then your phone and clothes :((((

You needed a car, you needed a way to get to work and its not like you can afford to take the bus!!!

But don’t worry sweet girl, Si’s gonna make it all better :((

Slowly he lifts you onto the hood and slides his hands up your thighs with a rough groan, that tiny little skirt that he picked out for you this morning was a really good idea ;)

Moving your panties to the side, he drags his thick finger through your folds, a low chuckle leaving his lips as he collects your juices :3

Your cheeks go red at how wet you are :((((( you’re so easy to get going, such a dirty, dirty girl >:(

“Don’ play dumb sweethear’, saw ya’ watchin’ me like a piece of meat, rubbin’ those thighs together like a whore, I know when ma’ girl needs some lovin’” 

Pushing his thick fingers into your heat, a small whimper leaving your mouth from the stretch :( 

“Quite love, don’t want em’ to hear us do ya’?” A chuckle falling from his lips as he opens you up more, spreading you open and preparing you for another one of his big rough fingers :(((((

Pumping in and out of your wet cunt at an agonisingly slow pace, holding your hips down so you can’t buck or move closer to him :(( try to take more then what his giving you :(

His the one in control, so don’t even THINK about it >:(

You let out a loud squeak when he forcefully pushes a second finger into your tight pussy :((( wet squelching sounds fill the room :(((

The same men staring at you like a piece of meat only moments ago, eating their lunch in the break room at the other end of the shop, completely unaware that Si was having his way with you :(((

Stimulating your clit with his left hand, he looks up at you with a wicked smile 

“Don’t ya’ make a noise love, old Johnny boy won’t have a problem watchin’ and im sure ya’ don’t want tha’” >:(

His such a tease :(((((

Begging him for his dick, moans and whimpers getting louder as you squirm with teary eyes :(((

But that’s your biggest mistake…..

You went against his orders, he told you not to make any noises, to keep it down, but because you’re a little brat, disrespectful after all his given you, food, a roof over your head, a warm bed, a man to protect you….you’re getting nothing >:(

“My cock Darlin’? Oh no, no, no, no. Ya’ see lovie, good girls get what they want, obedient girls get treated right, not selfish little sluts that can't do what they’re fuckin’ told”

Removing his fingers from you, he undoes his belt and takes out his stiff cock :(((((

Its so leaky, pre cum dripping down his shaft, Si pumps himself a couple times, a low groan falling from his lips as he forcefully turns you around slamming your body against the car 

“Imma tell ya’ what ya’ gettin, I’m gonna fuck your thighs for my pleasure, not yours, and ya’ gonna shut up and take it, no squirmin’ or moanin’, ya’ just gonna stand here and take it”

Taking a dirty rag out of his back pocket that he uses to wipe his greasy hands, he slaps your cheek signalling to open your mouth, shoving the dirty fabric inbetween your lips with a sadistic chuckle 

“There ya’ go petal, much better isn’t it? Finally listenin’”

His thrust between your thighs, the feeling of pre cum coating your pussy is satisfying, but it didn’t scratch the itch of what being filled by his girthy cock did :((((

Your moans fall silent against the dirty rag he shoved in your mouth, the only sound filling the shop being his low grunts and skin slapping against skin :((

His hard cock rubbing against your clit giving you little satisfaction, Si was so mean sometimes, but he was right, his always right :((((

He did so much for you and the very least you could do was follow his orders, you got to comfortable :((( trying to take charge and disobey him when he knows best, he always knows best >:(

You can tell his getting closer, his thrusts get sloppier and his quite grunts tern more strained :3

After a few more deep thrust between your wet and sloppy thighs the feeling of his hot ropes cover your pussy and drip down your inner thighs :(((

He didn’t even try and make you cum :( greedy girls don’t get pleasure, they’re used as fuck toys, walking fleashlights that don’t deserve orgasms :((

And you know his just doing what’s best for you, teaching you the hard way, the only way you would properly learn :((

He makes you walk past the break room and out of the shop with his sperm running down your legs, wet thighs sticking together making you uncomfortable as you take each step, hot, flushed and unsatisfied :(

Once you get back into his car he makes a call to a friend that owns a car dealership. Si has done so much for his mate, the least he can do is hand over a car, and that’s exactly what he does :3

Whatever his angel wants, his angel gets, unless she misbehaves :((((

Your orgasm is just going to have to wait till another time…..and don’t you even think about touching yourself……remember, obedient girls get to cum, not dirty, dirty sluts that don’t follow the rules <3

The thing about mechanic!Simon is that his not taking your shit, he has no time for your attitude and will put you in your place immediately :( his training you to be his pretty little house wife after all :3

Request are open for Mechanic!Simon, I would love to hear your thoughts so feel free send them through and add to the AU.

!Disclaimer! - Above is NSFW content - MDNI - If you follow my blog without your age in your bio, you will be blocked - If you are under the age of 18, you are not welcome here, otherwise, enjoy :)

Cat divider sourced by @positively-mine from Pinterest - Pink line divider by @eloquentreverie - MDNI divider by @cafekitsune

Basic blog housekeeping -  fic requests guidelines, boundaries and my rules for minors

[creatives-argentines]

New August Masterpost

If you are unaware of the situation in our country, the argentinean government is fucking up the economy with their "chainsaw" plan, and getting rid of human rights in the process, among other things. The prices are up, including public transport, and the salaries aren't rising with them.

This masterpost was made in order give our artists the opportunity to enter the international market since our currency is plummeting, so if you like what you see please consider commissioning us. If you aren't able to, reblog this post please, WE NEED THE VISIBILITY. Alt texts are in English and Spanish. ____________________________ Si no conocés la situación en nuestro país, el gobierno argentino esta haciendo mierda la economía con su plan "motosierra", y deshaciéndose de derechos humanos en el proceso, entre otras cosas. Los precios suben, incluído el transporte público, y los salarios no suben con ellos. Este masterpost se hizo para darles a nuestres artistas la oportunidad de entrar en el mercado internacional ya que nuestra divisa va cayendo en picada, así que si te gusta lo que ves considera comisionarnos. Si no podés, rebloguea el post por favor, NECESITAMOS VISIBILIDAD. Textos alternativos (alt text) están en inglés y español.

@lucianinsanity (he/they - él)

An is an artist that works primarily on character design, including small sprites in pixel art. They can also paint backgrounds or landscapes and scenes. They work with watercolors, acrylics, pencils and digitally. ________________________________ An es un artista que se dedica principalmente al diseño de personajes, incluidos pequeños sprites en pixel art. También puede pintar fondos o paisajes y escenas. Trabaja con acuarelas, acrílicos, lápices y en digital. Contacts/Links: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lucianinsanity/ Tumblr: https://lucianinsanity-only-art.tumblr.com/ https://lucianinsanity.tumblr.com/ Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/lucianinsanity YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lucianinsanity

@aifastic (they/she/he - ella/él)

Aifas is an artist whose work revolves primarily around characters, backgrounds and animals (generally pets). They like making goofy art, cartoons, animations and pictures where colors pop! They have worked on several fanzines, including the TF2 Sona Zine and Rocket Science! A TF2 Helmet Party Zine as an artist, and Wanted - An A Way Out Zine as both an artist and graphic designer. ________________________________ Aifas es una artista cuyo trabajo se concentra principalmente en personajes, escenarios y animales (generalmente mascotas). Le gusta hacer arte gracioso, caricaturas, animaciones y piezas en los que los colores saltan a la vista. Trabajó en numerosas fanzines, incluyendo TF2 Sona Zine y Rocket Science! A TF2 Helmet Party Zine como artista, y Wanted - An A Way Out Zine como artista y diseñadora gráfica. Contacts/Links: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aifastic/ Tumblr: https://aifastic.tumblr.com/ Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/aifastic E-mail: aifasticpatreon@gmail.com

@denwenai (they/them - elle)

Denwenai’s areas of expertise are multimedia design, photography and art; therefore, their pieces are a living example of the convergence of these disciplines. They work on both digital and physical media, and although their pieces are often inspired by film, literature & popular culture, many are a product of their restless imagination. Among the services they provide are illustration, vectoring, editorial layout, branding video & photo editing and motion graphics. ________________________________ Denwenai se dedica al diseño multimedia, la fotografía y el arte; por lo que sus piezas son ejemplo de la convergencia de estas disciplinas. Trabaja sobre soportes tanto físicos como digitales, y sus piezas a menudo encuentran inspiración en el cine, la literatura y la cultura popular, aunque muchas son producto de su inquieta imaginación. Entre los servicios que puede brindar se incluyen: ilustración, vectorizado, maquetado editorial, branding, edición de foto/video y motion graphics. Contacts/Links: Linktree: https://linktr.ee/denwenai

@tomicaleto (she/her - ella)

On the internet, I go by the pseud Tomicaleto and I'm mostly called Tomi. I'm currently studying Philosophy and Visual arts in university. On my Tumblr I share mostly fanarts from different fandoms and my digital artwork. I've participated in fanzines along with other artists and on weekly and monthly events as well (such as the bingo format events, for example). I've also begun to sell my drawings as stickers, illustrations and t-shirts, participating in local events when possible (Currently only in Argentina). ________________________________ En internet me muevo bajo el pseudónimo Tomicaleto y muchas veces me dicen Tomi. Estoy estudiando Filosofía y Artes Visuales en la universidad. En mi Tumblr comparto mayormente fanarts de diferentes fandoms y mi trabajo digital. Participé en fanzines junto con otros artistas y también en eventos semanales y mensuales (el formato bingo, por ejemplo). También comencé a vender mis dibujos como stickers, ilustraciones y remeras, participando en eventos locales cuando es posible (Solo en Argentina por el momento). Contacts/Links: Tumblr: https://tomicaleto.tumblr.com/ ->Art tag: Tomi's art

@palluniskillas (she/he, ella/él.)

Pallu is an artist that focuses on the creation of illustrations and portraits, as well as character creation. She mostly Works digitally. Her primary pallete is made up of warm colors and tones. ________________________________ Pallu es un artista que se enfoca en la creación de ilustraciones y retratos, como también la creación de personajes. Mayormente ella trabaja digitalmente. Su paleta principal está compuesta de colores y tonos cálidos. Contacts/Links: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pallunis_killas/ Tumblr: https://palluniskillas.tumblr.com/

If you want to support the admin, go to @artzover

[queenuchiha89]

*** NSFW ***

*** 18+ MINORS DO NOT INTERACT! ***

*** TW. DARK CONTENT ***

A.N: This little piece of fanfiction is lovingly dedicated to my Sister. My first ever Kakashi piece. ❤️

WARNING: This Imagine contains stalking/yandere themes, incest, and other topics that may not be suitable for all audiences. Viewer discretion advised.

🌟Imagine🌟

☣️Toxic kakashi☣️ stalking his little sister everywhere she goes, just to make sure no one "claim jumps" him on taking her virginity. Nothing is going to stop him from claiming her, even if that means forcing it. Watching her as she makes her way back home from the local market, his cock is already rock hard in anticipation of what he's going to do to her once he's got it all planned out perfectly. Of course he'll act like nothing is different as they go about their day as usual, And "sure little sis, I can help you with your laundry". Gives him the perfect opportunity to steal a pair of her used panties, and make good use of them after she goes to bed.

Kakashi will grip those panties around his cock, dreaming of the day he can pop his little sister's cherry and finally make her his. As he imagines breeding her tight little pussy, he cums inside the red silky fabric of the stolen panties, shaking from pleasure, and out of breath. "soon little sister, you'll be all mine..."

A.N: it was my first time, be gentle! 😂 I promise to start working more kakashi inside my blog for y'all! Just send me some requests and let me know what you want and I'll do my best to accommodate! 🥰❤️

[aectpen]

3 of Us - poly!haobin x reader

m.list

pairing: haobin x reader

genre: angst with happy ending

synopsis: hanbin and hao have a fight that leaves you in the middle

words: .9k

You stared up at the ceiling. Sandwiched between Hanbin and Hao, unable to toss and turn, you found yourself incapable of even catching a wink of rest. Their backs were turned away, oblivious to your restless night.

Earlier that evening, Hanbin and Hao engaged in a heated argument sparked by Hao's perceived "flirting" with an old friend at the market. Hanbin's reaction stemmed from his deep affection for you; he became upset with Hao for appearing excessively friendly towards the girl in your presence. It's true that you experienced a twinge of jealousy, with a tightness in your chest as you observed the way Hao tilted his head and smiled at her—the same way he usually did with you.

Despite all of that, you hesitated to bring it up. After all, he isn’t in contact with her, so why harbor any resentment? However, even though you mentally decided to let it go, your feelings manifested in your expressions and actions. Throughout the rest of the day, a subtle pout lingered on your face, and when Hao inquired about something, your responses were brief. Hanbin took note of all of this, but didn’t want to make a scene.

The moment the three of you reached home, Hanbin immediately pounced on the opportunity to call him out.

“So you’re just gonna act oblivious?” Hanbin raised his voice. Hao only laughed, thinking Hanbin was joking. “That girl. You were so obvious!”

You stayed silent, not wanting to start a fight, nor participate in one.

“She was just a friend that I hadn’t seen in a while.” Hao explained, raising his hands.

“The way you were acting. It was just disrespectful. Do you not notice when y/n is upset about stuff like this?” Tears welled in your eyes. You dreaded sparking a conflict between them, silently praying that Hanbin wouldn't address the underlying reason for your uncharacteristic behavior, devoid of your usual affectionate demeanor.

“Why do you always have to speak for her? Do you enjoy causing problems?” That's when it escalated beyond its initial scope. When you resort to a personal jab, you lose sight of the main issue and attempt to deliver an even more hurtful blow.

The remark ignited a shouting match between the two, spiraling into a confrontation where the original cause of their disagreement became unclear. Anger clouded their judgment, rendering the argument directionless. Despite your plea for them to stop, they remained deaf to reason. Their conflicts were infrequent, only arising from trivial matters.

You just wanted it to end. Even if Hao’s actions hurt your feelings, you knew he didn’t have malicious intent. He was just a friendly person. You also know Hanbin only came at him because of his love for you.  He couldn’t stand to see you upset without an apology.

The remainder of the night unfolded in silence. Not a word was spoken. Tension hung thick in the air, palpable enough to be sliced with a knife. The anger was so intense that neither of them could bring themselves to talk to you. Each person carried out their nightly routine in solitude.

None of you were angry enough to sleep separately. You thought about it, but neither of them raised the idea. Hanbin went to sleep first, followed by you, then Hao. They slept on their sides, both facing away from you.

Sleep eluded you as you dwelled on the unfolding events. You beat yourself up for allowing them to sleep harboring anger. You played out alternate scenarios in your mind, envisioning a timeline where you intervened promptly, and everyone went to sleep in a comforting embrace. Yet, even in that hypothetical situation, you couldn't escape the possibility of making Hanbin feel guilty for defending you.

You tuned into the gentle rhythm of their breathing, observing the subtle rise and fall of their shoulders. Thoughts of the morning ahead invaded your mind, anticipating the impending silence. The last thing you wished for was them waking up with furrowed brows and lingering pouts.

The echo of their hurtful words played on a loop in your mind. You couldn't shake off the realization that your own jealousy had fueled the current situation. A quiet sniffle escaped you as tears traced a path down the side of your face, dampening your pillow. 

The supposedly hushed sniffles didn't escape Hanbin's notice. He shifted to face you. "Trouble sleeping?"

Turning toward him, he glimpsed your slightly puffy eyes and pursed lips, prompting him to tenderly touch your cheek. "Is this about us? God, I'm so sorry, y/n."

"No need to apologize. It's my fault it happened in the first place," you self-criticized.

"It's not," he insisted, shaking his head vigorously. "Things got out of hand. At this point, it's nobody's fault."

“I just want it to be over. I don’t want anyone to be mad.” You held on to his hand.

Both of you directed your attention to Hao, who was now propped up on both elbows.

“I’m sorry. I was being dismissive and mean.” He leaned towards you.

“I’m sorry for not listening to you and being mean too.” Hanbin returned the apology.

“Now kith,” you said, earning a laugh from the both of them.

Hanbin positioned himself between the two of you, encircling his arms around you both, drawing you closer. You and Hao intertwine your hands over Hao’s chest, blowing air kisses at each other. The three of you drifted off to sleep, accompanied by a harmonious chorus of soft snores, just as it was meant to be.

[mareestoermers]

https://youtu.be/M3xcF_CqxgA?si=11wohqHm-o98lNR5

first off wow anon thank you so much for sharing this with me 💖 i spent my morning drinking my coffee and listening to this, and i feel like tumblr really needs to, too.

not only does she come to defense of my girl tashi, she talks about race and black women in tennis and how the drive for tashi’s success is the only drive in the film that isn’t muddled in ego, pride, or privilege. one of the major points that hit me so hard is that initial conversation with the boys is when tashi mentions she doesn’t have the money, nor would her parents want her to come of age in a wealthy private school environment. it’s also worth it to mention how patrick sort of downplays her attending stanford, as if it is just some kind of marketing ploy towards her tennis career and not an actual desire to educate herself or have the opportunity to have a failsafe, despite being the most talented tennis player of her generation.

i think she’s a little harsh on my boy art lol but everything she says is so true. there’s also sooo many references to historical black women in tennis and i feel like justin and luca really wove those stories into tashi in multiple ways, but primarily within her tenacity to achieve greatness — not only for herself, but for her family and women like her. (tid bits like calling out her initial opponent for being racist, the boys thinking it’s a joke and tashi so straight faced about it. the private school, the money, her desire for college, etc etc, as well as her annoyance with patrick and art for squandering their opportunities or having no drive for them because they’re privileged little white boys).

also YES to them marketing tashi as the villain. i would’ve been fine with that story, but that wasn’t the story justin wrote. every trailer had some kind of target about her “man-eating” or about it being “her game”, and most of the time it is her pulling the strings — but let’s not forget that art and patrick are equally pulling their own strings, too.

if you have some time today, give it a listen!

[elderflowergin]

blood free v secret forest, a quick and dirty comparison:-

As someone who fell for Kdrama through Stranger, i loved it because it appeared seamless, grounded and weaved several systems and levels of privilege very elegantly. Most of all it seemed morally urgent, even if it was at its core a detective mystery. (Which, to be fair, Blood Free is as well.)

Secret Forest’s first success was that it held nuance for everyone in the middle of the road; LSY afforded so much thoughtful shading to those men. I often think they will never look as beautiful as they do on SF, and that’s only partly because of whoever did the lighting etc, but they’re not Kdrama glossy perfect; they’re real people trying to reckon with themselves and the moral calculus they have agreed to, and their dignity comes from the reckoning. Lee Chang-joon, Kang Won-chul, Lee Yeon-jae, even Seo Dong-jae for that matter, all have that advantage. LSY managed this for Jung Sung-il in the scant few minutes of screen time he had.

The second success was Cho Seung-woo and Bae Doona. If Secret Forest was a universe they were its gravitational field; it was their fierce sense of honour and morality that drives both seasons. And their moral decency is hard-won; it is tested constantly, and it’s burnished at each opportunity, which is why they are respected. It is a dream that people like that can influence or impact those around them, but you don’t question that they do, by the end of each season, and that’s the victory of writing, casting and the charisma of both leads.

That’s why that funeral scene in season 1 is so important (to me); it shows the gravity shifting. The prosecutors rely on their forest of secrets to keep the centre together, but Hwang Si-mok demonstrates how untenable this has become, how the roots must be pulled out so the weeds die; so new healthy things can grow. The chaebols are at the periphery, and they continue to be there because, most audaciously of all, they don’t matter if enough people shift their moral calculus. I think this gravitational pull happens to Lee Chang-joon in season 1 thanks to Hwang Si-mok and it happens to Choi Bit in season 2 thanks to Han Yeo-jin. They are easily some of the most powerful parts of the show.

On the other hand, we have Blood Free. I’m not sure who the moral gravitational field of this show is meant to be. Maybe it’s Yun Ja-yu and/or Woo Chae-woon. Maybe it’s Lee Mu-saeng. Maybe it’s about the ethical dilemma of experimentation and whether that’s a worthwhile price to pay for the scientific advancements in cultured meat and seafood. Perhaps we need more time to really see the middle of the road characters, but four episodes in there’s not much to go on: there’s Lee Mu-saeng, there’s Queen Dowager as a VP, here’s Jeon Seok-ho. There are three chaebols, all of whom seem like one-note characters to me. (Why ask a talented sketch artist to produce cartoons like these? Unless they’re not, but nothing seems to suggest otherwise.)

The most interesting insight from episode 4 was about Yun Jayu - when offered 72 trillion won for her company, she actually considers it because it means she doesn’t have to face investors and can focus on research. She has influence and money but these are means to an end, for her. I wish we could see more of that, and not necessarily through exposition alone.

When she gives deft, cool answers to reporters, did that come naturally to her or did she work at it? Is she the face of the company because she hated it a little less than Lee Mu-saeng did? If so, why? What comparative advantage did they determine she had? When she wears Chanel tweed skirts and smiles her way through presentations, is that a natural extension of her work or is that a mask she wears? Give me process, guys! Give us the backstory, the way the markets work, the environment for cutting-edge bio research in Korea, the reaction of Big Meat, the interplay of new rich and old rich, some indication of her actual influence (which must be considerably more than what we see on the show, although what little we see, while uncomfortable, is frankly not that inconceivable in a world where you’re constantly connected.) I am so interested in her, and yet I feel I am made to watch the story of her reacting to chaebols and to the mystery of corporate sabotage rather than her being the fulcrum of her own universe. And at no point does the mystery seem morally urgent to me, and it’s because 1) why does it matter if all this is is a giant M&A negotiation 2) why should we care if it doesn’t feel real to us? So what if there’s sabotage? Why on earth isn’t this company guarded like fucking Fort Knox? Why is this company ostensibly so influential, so powerful and yet capable of unusually amateurish errors that are the centre of the show so far and not on the periphery of it? Where is the moral quandary that is meant to grab us by the throat?

Is it a question of the writing? Have her interests shifted and did she want to do a show without having to do too much character work? If anyone has earned a vibes-only moment it’s Lee Soo-yeon, and I respect that for her. I hope the direction isn’t stifling the writing, because that means there is an arresting, politically trenchant drama underneath this dry procedural, and that’s upsetting to consider. We still have a ways to go and I think there is potential, but I have to remind myself not to expect something like SF, that maybe you can’t bottle that formula. That it’s the gold standard for a reason. But honestly, Disney, in the words of TikTok star imo_unusual, you’ve made this show like God was dozing off when the angels were working, now RELEASE US (and LSY writernim)

[cubicpeebles]

????.??? - PUBLIC

Big Sis Moon, Five Pebbles, Seven Red Suns, No Significant Harassment

SRS: Five Pebbles?

FP: Yes?

SRS: What is the reasoning for No Significant Harassment's insistence on referring to you as "Pebbsi"?

FP: Ah. That.

FP: When they inhabited the city atop my can, my creators decided to use me for various marketing opportunities, including, much to my disdain, a carbonated beverage which they referred to as Pebbsi.

SRS: A beverage?

FP: Among other things. It was one of many products they created. Unfortunately, No Significant Harassment has picked that one in particular to torment me with.

SRS: I am sorry to hear that. If you would like, I could talk to them about referring to you with your proper name.

NSH: Nah. I like calling him Pebbsi.

FP: <Disconnected from group>

[thdorkmagnet]

To Market, To Market (Turtle Tots: Before the Rise)

@flufftober 2024 Day 4- Market Day

Chapter Summary: April takes Mikey and his brothers to a farmer's market. 

Duo: April and Mikey

A/N: Finally, April makes her first appearance! I couldn't keep her away for too long being the boys big sis and all, hehe. I also wanted to take Flufftober as an opportunity to show off her relationship to each of the brothers and I had to start with Mikey. Oldest and youngest interactions let's gooooo!

There also seems to be no duo name for April and any of her siblings save for Donnie! Or at least I'm not aware of any. And if that is the case then the fandom really needs to get on that smh. I would offer my own ideas but it's late and I'm very tired so um, let me know if one DOES exist or if you have any ideas for a duo name! I want April and Mikey duo to have a proper name!!

Disclaimer: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles belongs to Andy Suriano, Ant Ward, and Nickelodeon. All rights belong to them.

Having April as a best friend was the coolest thing that had ever happened to Mikey. Not just because hanging out with his new, super cool best friend was the most fun he'd ever had, ever! But also because it meant he and his brothers got to do all these new, super cool things with her and up on the surface of all places! Growing up in the sewers Mikey had always been curious what living on the surface was like and whenever he hung out with April, he actually got to experience that firsthand!

Visiting April was like stepping into a whole different world, one that was bright and colorful and full of actual, real humans and not just Mikey, his brothers, and his dad. And she made sure they got as many fun experiences as she could. She showed them lots of cool places they could never go to alone and was always really careful about not letting other humans get too close so even Raph didn’t have to worry as much. One time she took them to a pool late at night and they spent the whole night doing cannonballs and splashing each other. Another time she took them to a giant store filled to the brim with more plushies than Mikey could ever want or imagine, some you could even make yourself. The teddy bear section alone had Raph almost hyperventilating with joy. 

Hanging out with April was an experience none of them wanted to miss out on, so it really no surprise when she showed up at the lair that day and asked if any of them wanted to join her at the farmer’s market, they all said yes immediately. Mikey agreeing before he even knew what a farmer’s market was. 

Turns out it was a bunch of stands selling fruits and vegetables. More fruits and vegetables than Mikey had ever seen in his life! They sold other things too, but mostly it was just the fruits and veggies from what he could tell. April said all of it was supposed to be homegrown so it was fresh and tasted better than food from the supermarket. Mikey just nodded along, trusting that to be right. 

He was really glad he came. The stands were bright and colorful like the food and the people there were all smiles and polite words. The atmosphere was so nice Mikey almost forgot he was supposed to hide the fact he wasn’t human like everyone else. Luckily April had him covered, keeping him away from large crowds and making sure his hoodie was pulled up over his head at all times. 

The twins and Raph also seemed to be enjoying themselves, Donnie carefully scanning each stand with that scrutinizing gaze of his, Leo racing from stand to stand and shouting out any cool thing he saw, and Raph eagerly munching on any free samples people were kind enough to offer him.

Mikey followed along behind April everywhere she went, acting as her little shadow, bouncing on his toes as she herded him and his brothers around the large lot. He was curious about everything and had a mountain of questions to ask which April seemed eager to answer because she was cool that way. She was always so wise when it came to human stuff and Mikey loved learning new things from her. 

“Wanna know how to check if a watermelon is ripe or not?” April asked and Mikey nodded eagerly.

She waved him closer, picking up a melon from its pile. “You gotta listen for what sound it makes when you tap it.” April turned her ear towards the fruit, Mikey parroting the movement. 

She rapped her knuckles against it and Mikey heard a hollow thunk. 

“Hear that?” April asked and he nodded, wide-eyed. “That means it's ripe.” 

“Wooooow,” Mikey whispered in awe, feeling like he’d just learned some great secret. “How did you know that?” 

April shrugged modestly, pulling a few dollars from her pocket and handing it to the vendor, who was busy chatting with another customer. 

Mikey helped her slip the watermelon into the oversized bag April was carrying and apparently it was heavier than anticipated because she let out an oof when it hit the bottom. April quickly repositioned so she could hold it better, glancing over her shoulder. “Hey Raph, could you-” 

But there was no one behind her, the others seemingly vanishing into thin air. Mikey spotted them over at another booth, Donnie holding something tight to his chest, eyes narrowed, as Raph was trying to coax him into giving it back. Leo was egging his twin on, even as Raph shot him warning looks and frowns. April chuckled, rolling her eyes at the sight. “Figures,” she muttered, voice more fond than annoyed. “Looks like it's just the two of us for a while.” 

“I can carry it!” Mikey offered, reaching up for the bundle, excited to help. 

But for some reason April didn't hand it over, instead she moved it away from his grip, giving him a patient smile and pat on the head. “Nah, that's okay bud. I got it.” 

Mikey pouted, fiddling with the drawstrings of his hoodie. He didn't know why April wouldn't just let him hold the bag, too. He could do it. He was strong like Raphie. “But I wanna help,” Mikey whined, giving April the sad eyes that always got his way. 

But apparently April was immune because all she said was, “Then how bout you carry this for me instead?” She offered him the much lighter bag slung over her shoulder, carrying only a few carrots and a small jar of honey. 

Mikey frowned but accepted the offered bag, still eager to be useful even if it wasn't in the way he wanted to be useful. 

But then April thanked him for being “a big help” and he glowed with pride, his usual energy returning as they headed for the next booth. He was practically skipping beside her when he asked, “Hey April, why does your mom buy food here instead of the store?”

April sighed dramatically, throwing her whole head back and staring up at the cloudless sky. “Mikey, I've asked myself that same question a hundred times.” 

“Is it ‘cause it's dangerous?” Mikey asked with a curious tilt of his head. That was the reason he and his brothers never went in the store during the day. Their dad said there were too many humans and being around humans was dangerous. But April's mom was human so it should be safe for her. 

“Nah, nothing like that,” April said with a casual wave of her hand. “Mom just likes having fresh ingredients instead of store bought stuff. Says it's ‘tastier when it comes straight from the source.’” It was clear from the way April's voice got deeper and her chest puffed out, she was trying to mimic her mom. But since Mikey had never heard her mom's voice he had no idea if it was a good imitation or not. 

“Is she right?” Mikey asked, curious if this was advice he could use to make his own cooking better. 

April shrugged. “Dunno, it kinda tastes the same to me.”

Mikey was more than a little disappointed in that answer. But then he realized he could just test it himself. Yeah! That way he'd know for sure. He could even ask Donnie to help. Donnie loved making things into proper experiments. 

As Mikey daydreamed, April pulled out the list from her pocket, reading it out loud. “Okay, what else we got? Stuff to make dough, tomato sauce, mozzarella… sounds like pizza again.”

That snapped Mikey back to reality. “Pizza?!” he exclaimed, leaning over with sudden interest, eyes scanning over the list fervently. 

April obliged his enthusiasm and pointed the listed items out for Mikey. “Yeah see, these are all ingredients to make pizza.” 

“You can make pizza?!” Mikey yelled at the top of his lungs, completely floored by this revelation.

“Uhhh yeah,” April said, eyebrows slowly raising.

Mikey couldn’t believe it! All this time he’d thought pizza just came from pizzerias. Or people on motorcycles. But according to Donnie those people worked at the pizzerias and were paid to deliver the pizzas. So beyond that, Mikey had never even considered that a person outside a pizza place could make their own! This was huge!

Instantly Mikey was hopping up and down, latched onto April with a death grip. “I wanna make one! I wanna make my own pizza! Can I?! Pretty please! Please, please, pleaaaassseee” He batted his eyes cutely, hoping this one was more effective than the sad eyes from earlier. 

Mikey saw a small hint of a smile at the corner of her mouth but it was gone a second later as she thoughtfully tapped her chin. “Hmmmm, well mom did give me a little extra cash in case I wanted to get something for myself.” 

Mikey squealed, hopping even faster. “Can we use it to buy stuff to make pizza! Please, please, please, please, please-”

“Okay, okay,” April interrupted the stream of begging, laughing as she tried to shrug Mikey off her arm. “We can get you stuff to make pizza!” 

“Yay!” Mikey exclaimed, releasing April’s arm so he could hug her tight around the middle. “You're the bestest, most coolest friend ever!” 

April giggled, giving his back a little pat. “And don’t you forget it,” she said, light and teasing. 

Mikey, too excited to stay still a moment longer, grabbed April’s hand and started dragging her deeper into the market. “Okay, let’s hurry and find everything so I can start making pizza!” 

April didn’t fight his hold like he’d expected, instead running to try and keep pace with him, her contagious laughter still loud and strong. 

They quickly passed by Mikey’s brothers who all turned to watch them go, eyes wide and confused. “Hey, where you two off to in such a hurry?” Raph asked. 

Mikey shot his big brother a smile over his shoulder. “To find ingredients so I can make pizza!” he explained quickly. 

“You can do that!” Leo, Raph and even Donnie exclaimed in absolute disbelief, making April laugh impossibly harder than before. 

[skulduggery-pleasant-bp9]

Playing with a Coroner and a Detective is not wise - Skulduggery x Male!Reader Universe

WARNING!: Mention of corpses, cursing, mention of murder, insulting AND MORE ! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED !!!

Part 4 – China Sorrows

“Samples ?”, Stephanie asked as they followed Skulduggery to his car.

M/n looked at her and sighed.

“Well, please don’t tell Mom...”, M/n begged.

“Don’t tell her what ?”, she asked suspiciously.

“Sis...I am not working as a Marketer. I am a Coroner. I work with corpses.”, M/n admitted.

She stared at him in shock.

“And Mom doesn’t know ?!”, she yelled.

“No, only Uncle G knew, because he paid the schooling for me.”

She had a wide open mouth at that, gaping at her Brother in utter shock. All this time, her Brother worked on corpses and murder cases !

“That’s so cool ! I will not say anything. But expect blackmail.”, she said then.

“Of course you would use it as blackmail...”, M/n sighed with a grin.

Then they arrived at the Detective’s car and M/n gasped, already starting to gush about the model he saw in front of him.

“No way is that a 1954s Bentley R-Type Continental !”, he yelled in excitement.

“It is.”, Skulduggery said with a smile in his voice.

“What is so special about it ?”, Stephanie asked.

M/n turned to her with big eyes of excitement.

“This model was only made to the number of 208 examples ! It has a six cylinder with a 4,5 liter engine too !”, M/n gushed.

“I let a few things be added into it too. I added a Central locking system, air conditioning, navigation system and other modern amenities.”, Skulduggery told M/n.

He was bouncing on his feet, in excitement.

“I will never understand your craze for cars...”, Stephanie muttered.

“Sissy ! I only am crazy for OLD cars ! I LOVE them ! They look cool and not as stupid as the cars nowadays !”, M/n whined at her.

“What is wrong with the cars nowadays ?”

“Everything ! Even the smallest issue, you can’t fix yourself anymore, you need a garage for that and pay a huge amount of cash, for a small thing ! They all look the fucking same and they all don’t have sharp edges anymore ! All the corners of the cars, nowadays, look like someone licked on them until they were round ! Eww !”, M/n complained.

Then he pointed at the Bentley.

“This car was rare and hard to get, thanks to the limited amount of its kind ! And, to make it even better, it was one of the very FEW cars that looked good with round edges ! Also, the engines had more space in old cars. They had longer snouts not as small as nowadays and nothing was all somehow forced inside there. Everything had space.”, M/n added.

(For people who want to know what that car type looked like...)

“Is that why you begged to have that Firebird ?”, she asked.

M/n looked at her offended.

“ ‘That Firebird’ ?”, he scoffed as he repeated her.

“Firebird ?”, Skulduggery asked interested as he unlocked the car.

“I call dips !”, Stephanie yelled and took the passenger seat.

M/n took the back and Skulduggery got inside in the driver’s seat. M/n buckled up and then pouted.

“What Firebird ?”, Skulduggery asked.

“She meant my 1977 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Y82. MY car, that is currently unavailable.”, M/n answered.

“I haven’t seen one in a long while. I might want to see it one day.”

“Sure. I will probably work with you a few times, for information exchange, so you have a high chance to see it one day.”

Then Skulduggery started the engine and they drove off. It didn’t take long and they were on a road, which M/n and Stephanie didn’t know existed. So M/n asked him how he knew.

“I visited Gordon often, so I drove around here a lot and I know every corner here.”, he answered.

“Huh. That explains it...”, M/n said in thought.

As they drove past a sign that told them the direction to Haggard, Stephanie considered to just ask him to get her home, but she refused and shook the thought away quickly. That would mean that she can forget all of this. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity !

“Where are we going ?”, she asked.

“The City. I have a meeting there with an old friend. Maybe she can shed some light on the recent events.”

“Why were you here ?”, she asked.

“Pardon ?”

“Tonight. Not that we aren’t grateful that you were, but why were you near us ?”, she asked.

“Ah, that question had to come.”

“And will you answer it ? I don’t think you just came for M/n’s reports, for whatever reason you had to get these.”

Now that M/n thought about it, he sounded ready to come over anyways. Stephanie was right, there was more to this...

“I rather not answer that.”, Skulduggery said.

“And why ?”, she pressed.

He turned his head slightly into her direction. It looked like he had them both in his sight, with the street included.

“The less you two know about all of this, the better. You two are very normal children and tomorrow you go back to your very normal lives. It wouldn’t be good, if you two get even deeper involved with this.”

“But we already are deeply involved.”, Stephanie argued back.

“But we can limit the involvement.”, Skulduggery countered.

“But I don’t want to.”, she said.

M/n just watched, amused.

“But it is the best for you and your Brother.”

“But I don’t want that !”

“But it could-“

“No more sentences with ‘buts’ !”

“Okay, I’m sorry.”

M/n laughed at that.

“You two argue like long best friends. It is really funny.”, he chuckled out.

“Hah. Hah.”, she replied in sarcasm.

Then she turned back to Skulduggery.

“You can’t seriously expect us, that we forget all of this, just like that. We saw how magic was used, we saw the fire and YOU ! And we have heard about the war, from which no one taught us in school. We saw a world, from which we didn’t even know, existed.”

“Don’t you want to go back to your normal life ? It is less dangerous.”

M/n scoffed.

“Says who, Pleasant ?”, he asked the Skeleton.

“I don’t belong there.”, Stephanie stated.

“Nor do I. I feel so out of place in my ‘normal’ life. I am just very smart and no one else is. I feel like I never even dug deep enough to discover what else I can learn, that interests me. Magic does. It did since I was a small bean with the age of 6 years. Now I know it is out there, so why not LEARN about it ?”, M/n added.

Skulduggery turned his head completely to her and crooked his head to his side.

“Curious. Your Uncle said the exact same thing as I met him the very first time. Even more curious is that Gordon did tell me, that you, M/n, will want to join the world of mages as soon as you know it exists.”

Then Stephanie asked him if the things, Gordon wrote about, were true about the world of mages, at which M/n only laughed.

“I don’t think he did ! A lot of mages would have came after him, if that were the case. No, no, no. But he told me a few things about the world of mages, I think. I was never allowed to talk to anyone about it and I had to make a pinky promise. Never talked about it.”, M/n said proudly.

“You are probably right...”, she muttered.

“He got inspired by them, but he changed everything so much, so he didn’t embarrass anyone and he didn’t get hunted down or even killed for it. Your Uncle was a very great man, really. We solved many cases together.”, Skulduggery said.

“Really ?”, M/n and Stephanie asked.

M/n was in awe and excitement.

“Oh yes, you can be proud, to have had an Uncle as him. Of course I was involved in many fights, because he dragged me somewhere and just wouldn’t stop to get on other people’s nerves, but...we had fun. A lot of fun.”

M/n smiled saddened at that. He wished he knew.

The drive was very quiet after that, until the lights of the City appeared in front of them. The City was quiet and the streets almost empty. They drove onto a small parking lot, Skulduggery turned off his engine and looked at Stephanie and M/n.

“You two stay here.”, he instructed.

“Okay.”, the two replied.

Skulduggery got out of the car and not even two seconds later did the siblings also get out of the car. They didn’t tag along just to stay in the car. They wanted to see what else the world had to offer for surprises.

“Stephanie, M/n, I’m having doubts, that you respect my authority.”, the Detective said.

“Well, we don’t.”, Stephanie answered.

“You have to earn my respect, like anyone else. And that takes a while.”, M/n replied.

“Oh...well then.”

He put his hat back on and wrapped his scarf around his chin, the wig and sunglasses, he left out though. He pressed on the remote on his keychain, it beeped and the car doors locked themselves.

“That’s all ?”, she asked.

“Steph, not everything can be magical. That would be obvious.”, M/n said softly.

“What your Brother just said.”, Skulduggery agreed and then started to walk away.

They hurried to keep up with him.

“But you do magic from time to time, right ?”, she asked.

“Sometimes. Although, I am trying recently, not to depend on Magic all that much, I’m trying to deal with most of the issues, with what is in there.”, he answered and tapped his skull.

“There is empty space.”

M/n started to laugh at that.

“Yes, but you know what I mean.”, he replied a bit agitated.

“What else can you do ?”, she asked.

“Pardon ?”, the Detective replied.

M/n calmed down with his laughter and looked at them. He liked to be in the background. That way he was rarely noticed and he liked it that way. After all...he had bad memories of the few times he was in the spot light...

Mostly he got bullied, for being smarter, than anyone else in his school and for finishing his scholar ship and for starting work so early and all that. Whenever he was in the spot light, he was mocked, insulted, pushed around and bullied. He liked staying in the back and not draw too much attention to himself.

“Something, that has to do with Magic. Show me something.”, Stephanie said interested.

“What – a living Skeleton isn’t enough for you ? You want more ?”, he asked.

If Skulduggery would have had eyebrows, M/n bet, he would have raised them.

“Yes. Teach me something.”

He shrugged with his shoulders and looked at M/n.

“You too, M/n ?”

The boy was surprised that he was asked and involved too. He wasn’t used to people paying much attention to him. He nodded with a gleam of excitement in his eyes.

“Alright then...I don’t mind. I think it won’t hurt to do that. Two different kinds of Magic exist. The Alchemists do sorcery in one way, the Elemental mages do it differently. The Alchemists are more aggressive, their techniques show faster effects. The Elemental mages in comparison, I am one of them, chose the less spectacular way and make an effort, to control the Elements better.”

“To rule over the Elements ?”, Stephanie asked.

“That is a little bit exaggerated. We don’t rule over them, we manipulate them. We influence them.”

“You mean Earth, Wind-“

“Water and Fire. Exactly.”

“Show me, how.”

Skulduggery crooked his head a bit to his right side and the siblings could hear, that he had fun with this, as he “Fine then” said and he held his open hand out, towards her. She frowned, wondered, why she suddenly was freezing, and only then realized, that a drop of water ran over her face.

She looked to M/n and he was just as much, having small drops of water on himself, but he didn’t seem to freeze.

In the next second were, both of their hair, completely soaking wet, as if they just came out of the water with their head after a dive in it.

“How did you do that ?”, she asked as she shook her head and water drops flew in all directions.

“Hey !”, M/n protested loudly as he got most of them in his face.

He glared at his Sister.

“Biatch, I am standing right BEHIND you ! Stop spraying me even more wet than I already am ! I don’t want water from your greasy hair in my face !”, he yelled childishly.

“To your info, I showered yesterday ! When did you shower, huh ?!”

“Yesterday ! A whole damn stinky, rotting corpse fell on top of me, so I HAD to shower quickly ! It REEKED and had MAGGOTS, YUCK !”

At that Stephanie felt sick and gagged.

“Ewww !”

“Thank you ! Your sympathy is greatly appreciated !”, M/n said with a grin, knowing she didn’t feel bad for him.

Skulduggery chuckled at their playful banters.

“Anyways...I’m gonna guess how he did it. He manipulated the humidity. Which means he did Water.”, M/n said with a smart, know it all, grin.

He looked at M/n.

“Very good. That is correct.”, he praised, impressed.

“The first Element was water. We can’t split the Red Sea or something like that, but we have a little bit of influence about it.”

“Show me that with the fire again.”, Stephanie said.

“I am wet...Couldn’t have anyone told me that I am getting a shower for free ? I would have brought soap, towels and new clothes for that.”, M/n whined playfully.

Skulduggery chuckled. He snapped his gloved hands and sparks flew, he formed a fist and the sparks became a flame and he held the fireball in his hand, while they continued to walk.

The fire burned brighter and she felt, how her hair slowly dried.

“M/n, come over here, I’m drying you off.”, Skulduggery said.

M/n went next to his Sister and sighed as he started to feel himself getting dry.

“Wow.”, Stephanie said.

“Exactly. Wow.”, Skulduggery replied.

“Awesome. Thank you.”, M/n said, relieved.

“Were you cold ?”, she asked.

“Steph...I am a fucking AC no matter the temperature. I don’t sweat in summer and I don’t warm up in the winter, yet barely feel the cold. I wasn’t cold, I was just uncomfortable with my hair sticking to my head, face and neck. It is a disgusting feeling.”

“Ah- I forgot...”, she muttered.

“No shit, Sherlock...”

Skulduggery shook his head in amusement. They like to talk to each other in sarcasm and to roast each other. Gordon really knew them very well.

He threw the fireball into the air, with one quick hand movement and the siblings watched as it started to burn out in the night, until there was nothing to see anymore.

“Nice firework. The boom was missing though.”, M/n said jokingly.

Skulduggery laughed.

“Why thank you, but unfortunately I don’t want to draw attention to us.”, he replied to M/n.

“I had a feeling that was it.”

“What about earth ?”, Stephanie asked.

Skulduggery shook his head.

“You don’t want to see that and hopefully you never will have to see that. The earth power is a pure defensive story and is only allowed to be used at extreme emergencies.”

M/n was confused and concerned at that statement. Was it that big of a deal ?

“So...no stomping with your foot and making an earth quake, to destabilize your enemy ? That doesn’t exist in earth magic ?”, M/n asked.

“No it doesn’t.”, Skulduggery answered.

“Oh man... Earth is supposed to be cool and then you hear that it is the most useless power...”, M/n said saddened.

“It’s not useless-“

“You are not allowed to use it, besides it is an emergency case. Of course it is the most useless then.”, M/n interrupted the Detective with a pout.

Skulduggery was silent at that. He had to agree with M/n at that one. It DID sound the most useless ability. You have it at your disposal, but because of what it can only do, it is forbidden to be used.

“What is the strongest Element ? The fire ?”, Stephanie asked after a while.

“That is the most noticeable, that gets all the ‘Wows’, but you would be surprised what a bit of air can do, if you displace it correctly. Displaced air doesn’t easily disappear, there must be a place, where you can push it to.”

“Can we see it, once ?”

They reached the end of the parking lot and walked past a low wall, which surrounded it. Skulduggery pressed his fingertips on the ball of his hand, spread then his fingers and did a fast movement from his wrist in the wall’s direction. The air shook and the bricks flew onto the sidewalk. Stephanie and M/n stared at the brand new hole in the wall.

“I knew it ! Air is the best Element you can have !”, M/n cheered.

“Man, is that cool.”, Stephanie said in amazement.

As they continued to walk, she turned back around a few times to look at the wall again.

“What about the Alchemists ? What can they do ? Are these those people you watch in Ninjago ? One can do shape shifting, the other copy magical abilities and the other can use nature to his own needs ?”, M/n asked in excitement.

Skulduggery looked at M/n as he asked that.

“Ninjago ?”

“Lego Ninjago is still my favorite Series. I watched all seasons and they also have Magic, but they call it Elemental Powers. And they are all called there Elemental Masters.”, M/n shortly explained.

“Huh. Never heard of it before.”

“It is a great Series. Steph watched it with me a lot too. I guess I am a person that will never grow too old for children series and Movies. I hate news and other stuff. All I like is Comedy, children stuff and some murder series, like Navy CIS, Bones, Castle and Death in Paradise. News are boring and my Mom keeps me updated anyways. The reporters just babble too much in my opinion.”

“That is a lot.”

“Meh, Uncle said it was way too little stuff that I liked. Now, are Alchemists like that ?”, M/n asked.

“Kind of. I met a shape shifter and someone who could read your mind.”

“So cool ! I have decided, I wanna stay here ! This is EXACTLY my world ! I always wanted to be around Magic and work with it !”

‘Oh dear, what have I done ? Gordon you would kill me...’, Skulduggery thought.

Stephanie looked at her Brother and then had a grin on her face.

“Which one is more powerful ? An Alchemist or an Elemental mage ?”, she asked Skulduggery.

M/n scoffed.

“I bet it is Elemental. I mean come on ! They have FOUR different Elements they can use, while Alchemists just have ONE, as it sounds.”

“Actually, it depends on the mage all alone. An Alchemist can have so many tricks up his sleeve, so many different abilities, that he can be stronger in the end than the strongest Elemental mage. That has been proven.”

M/n stared at Skulduggery with a wide open mouth.

“B-but, Elementals have FOUR Elements to control ! FOUR ! How is an Alchemist with just ONE power, better than YOU ?!”

“They concentrate more on their one power and are more aggressive with it than Elementals are. It gives them a slight advantage.”

“Was the sorcerer Mevolent ? The strong Alchemist ?”

“No, Mevolent was an Elemental. It is rather rare, that an Elemental is choosing such deviations, but it happens.”

“How do you know, if you can do sorcery ? Can anyone learn it ?”, Stephanie asked.

M/n knew that she wanted to know it badly, but played it off as if that thought just crossed her mind.

“Not anyone. In fact just very few can learn sorcery.”, Skulduggery answered.

“They usually then gather at one location, so that there are, over the whole world, little groups, of sorcerers. In England and Ireland, as example, exist eighteen districts, in which only sorcerers live.”

“Can you also be a sorcerer, without knowing it ?”

M/n was concerned at that question. Skulduggery told them that it is most definitely possible. And Stephanie was saying it was sad, while he found it amusing. M/n scoffed.

“Sure it is very funny, to know that there are more mages out there, most possibly, and they never knew that they could have helped two worlds, mostly when it is people that just KNOW that they don’t belong and most likely decide to do suicide because of it, because they FEEL that something is missing, but never could find out WHAT was missing. Very funny. To die for.”, he told Skulduggery with a slightly agitated tone.

“Alright, when you put it THAT way, it isn’t that funny anymore.”, Skulduggery said softly.

“Because it isn’t ! Parents lose their own children out there and who knows why ! Many do it because they KNOW something is missing in their life ! What if it was a mage, that never knew, because no one could help them ?! Not every child that killed themselves did it from depression ! Seriously, and mages find it FUNNY ?!”, M/n raged.

“Brother, calm down.”, Stephanie said calmly.

M/n took deep, calming breaths.

“I am calm. But it is WRONG to find it funny, that people take their lives and die, never knowing that they could have changed the world. That they were maybe missing the world of mages. Who knows ? Maybe mages, that don’t know that they are mages, feel a certain emptiness and that means that their world is calling for them. They just can’t pick up on it.”

“I never thought about it in that way.”, Skulduggery admitted.

“Hah. Maybe you should.”

Soon enough they entered a story building and climbed stairs up. They followed Skulduggery until they stopped at a door that read ‘Library’. He knocked on that door and then waited.

“By the way: Even if you want to do it badly, don’t tell her, under any circumstances, your names.”, Skulduggery warned.

They nodded in understanding and then the door opened. They were let in by a man that seemed to be a bodyguard. They went inside and followed behind Skulduggery, who followed the man, for a while, until they spotted a female. The woman had raven black hair and water blue eyes. Then the woman smiled and Stephanie started to feel warm and welcomed, while M/n looked very uncomfortable.

Stephanie wanted nothing more but to be next to this woman, while M/n wanted to be as far away from her as possible.

“Leave it be.”, Skulduggery warned.

The woman looked at him and her smile became mocking. Stephanie stared at her delighted.

“Leave it be.”, Skulduggery repeated, firmer this time.

The woman laughed and shrugged her shoulders, but before she could say anything M/n smacked the back of his little Sister’s head, which she hissed softly at.

“First off: Hell no, little Sis. Second off: She is way too old for you. Third off: You are too young for a relationship. And fourth off: I don’t like her.”, he whispered to her.

“You didn’t fall for it ?”, Skulduggery asked M/n in surprise.

“No. Whatever it was, I didn’t get influenced. And thank fuck for that. She made me VERY uncomfortable though. I do NOT like her. Whatever she tried on me and succeeded to do to my Sister, she better shoves it up her ass for the next time, otherwise I will do something drastic about it.”, M/n said and growled at the woman.

The woman stared at him in shock. M/n put a protective arm around his little Sister, death glaring the woman.

“I’m sorry. I tend to forget, what influence, I have on humans. The first glimpse and all...”, the woman said with a slight bow.

“It seems to me, that you forget that every time, when you meet someone knew.”, Skulduggery accused.

“What can I say ? I am muddle – headed.”

Skulduggery turned to Stephanie.

“Don’t be embarrassed. Everyone, that meets China for the first time, fall for her. But believe me, the effect will wear off, the more you get to know her.”

“It will get weaker, but never fully stop. Right, Skulduggery ?”, the woman, China, asked.

M/n didn’t like what this China was referring to. He didn’t even like her, this close, to them. The Detective took off his hat, but didn’t answer her question.

“If you tell me, that you fucked this woman at some point, I will gag and vomit into your Bentley, Skulduggery. She ain’t even that pretty. She is more creepy than anything.”, M/n whispered to him, so the woman doesn’t hear him.

Skulduggery looked at him. M/n wasn’t sure, but he guessed that he was surprised.

China smiled at Stephanie, which M/n already hated, and she gave her an eggshell colored business card, on which stood a telephone number in elegant handwriting.

“Call me, if you stumble over any books or something, from which you believe, could interest me. In the past Skulduggery did that too. Nowadays not anymore. I fear, too much water has flown down, the proverbial creek. But where are my manners ? I’m China Sorrows, my Dears. Just call me China. And you two are ?”

Before Stephanie could answer, M/n stepped in.

“Her name is ‘non of ya business’, Toots. My name is ‘Joe Mama’. Now step away from me and my Sister. Ever heard about personal space and the five foot distance rule, Miss manners ?”, M/n growled out protectively.

China looked at M/n in shock and then stepped away from them. Five feet, while Skulduggery chuckled at M/n’s attitude. He really hated China.

“He is very overprotective. I rather not provoke him, China.”, Skulduggery said amused.

“I have realized.”, she muttered.

“You look almost, like that one Bitch that tried to sexually assault me, three times, in school. Be glad I just want you five feet away and not in the trash can.”, M/n growled out darkly.

“You were almost assaulted, three times ?”, Skulduggery asked.

“The whore wanted badly into my pants. She even wanted to force my family, to make me marry her, with 10 years of age. I was almost out of school too. Uncle said he took care of her. No idea what happened to her, but she just disappeared after that, luckily. That hoe was at least 7 years older than me too.”

Stephanie looked at her Brother in horror.

“Why didn’t you tell me that ?!”, she yelled.

“Because you were too young to understand. You were only six years old, Sis. You didn’t have to know.”

“What a bad woman...”, China scoffed.

M/n glared at her.

“You were no different near my Sister right now. Just keep your distance.”

Skulduggery sighed and then snapped China’s attention back on him.

“They are witnesses of how someone broke into Gordon Edgley’s estate. The intruder searched for something. What could Gordon have had, that someone wanted badly ?”

“You don’t know who it was ?”, China asked the Skeleton.

“Who the man was, is not important to me. I’m only interested to find out, who his Master is.”

“And who, do you think it is ?”

The Skeleton was silent and China laughed.

“Again Serpine ? Darling, to you, Serpine is practically responsible for every Crime.”

“Because it is exactly that.”

“Then why are you coming to me ?”

“You hear a lot.”

“Really ?”

Skulduggery asked her if China heard anything at all, and she replied that it wouldn’t be anything helpful, just some Bullshit she heard. After he pressed at that matter, she told him that she heard that Serpine was doing research about some Sceptre of the Ancients and that he was actively looking for it, apparently. He said it was just a fairytale, which already made M/n think that he might be wrong.

Then they were talking about what Gordon could have had, that someone wanted to steal. China said that, that is probably not the right question, he should find an answer to and he seemed to understand exactly what she meant. In M/n’s head it clicked, meanwhile Stephanie asked what that meant, on which Skulduggery just said that it isn’t important what they wanted to steal, but what they wanted to have, that Gordon had to die for it first.

China explained then, that there are objects, which, can only be used and taken away from the previous owner, when they are dead.

“So like in Harry Potter and the deathly hallows ? Where Voldemort had a wand that he thought belonged to him only, but that wasn’t the case, the previous owner still was alive and with that its loyalty didn’t belong to him. There was the big rumor that the previous owner had to die for the wand to switch owners, but that was wrong, they just had to deweaponized them, which Voldemort didn’t know, and then he killed the person, he thought killed the previous owner. But it wasn’t Snape who owned the wand’s loyalty, it was Draco Malfoy and after he was deweaponized by Harry Potter, it belonged to Harry. Snape killed Dumbledore, who had the wand first, but Malfoy deweaponized Dumbledore, so he was the next owner. Does this make sense ? In order to get some objects, you have to either kill someone, wait for them to die or even deweaponize them, before you can own it and the loyalty of the said object ?”, M/n asked.

All three of them stared at him.

“What ?”, M/n asked.

“You understood all of this, just from a Movie ?”, China asked.

“Yeah ? I am smart, after all. I was a Potter Fan for a while, until it died out. Can’t stand the Movies anymore.”

“Impressive. But yes, that is how this works.”, Skulduggery said.

“Well, fuck me then. This doesn’t sound like it’s gonna be an easy case.”, M/n said and slumped his shoulders.

Skulduggery turned back to China and asked her to inform him if she knows anything or heard anything that might help. In which she asked what she’d get in return.

“If this all involves my Uncle, and you decide to not say anything, and I will find out about it, I might beat your sorry ass, woman. I might look like a weakling, but I can whoop ass. I will NOT hesitate. I beat a mage tonight already, I am not afraid to do it again. You get in return, a free evening and no ass whooping, how about that ?”, M/n snarled.

She looked at M/n and then at Skulduggery.

“He did that ?”

“Yeah, he was ready to kill.”

“He woke up and chose violence today.”, Stephanie replied.

They all looked at her and M/n scoffed then mumbled stuff under his breath.

After that they left, Stephanie switched and this time she sat in the back and he in the passenger seat, M/n looked at his watch, then choked on his breath.

“SHIT !”, he yelled.

“What is it ?!”, Stephanie yelled in the car, while Skulduggery stayed calm.

“I have to get my car soon ! I can’t come home too ! I will miss the agreed upon timing to get my car and pay for the repairs ! They are always so busy and full ! It will take me hours to get my car, if I come later !”, M/n complained, stressed.

“I can just drive you there.”, Skulduggery offered.

“You’d do that ?”

“Of course.”

“Great ! Thank you !”

“No problem.”

M/n told Skulduggery the address and he drove them there. As they drove, Stephanie asked more questions about Serpine and other things, M/n only listened partly to the conversation. He had a bad feeling.

“Guys ?”, he said softly.

They went silent.

“Yes, M/n ?”, Skulduggery asked.

“I have a VERY bad gut feeling.”

“Why ?”, Stephanie asked.

M/n looked around in the car and waited for something to appear. Then it happened.

“WATCH OUT !”, M/n screamed as he saw the car, without headlights, driving straight at them.

He took the wheel from Skulduggery and forced himself on top of the Skeleton and hit the gas, quickly shifting gears, to avoid getting hit. The headlights were turned on, suddenly, but M/n couldn’t care less if he was blinded, it was a straight road and the fucker came from Skulduggery’s side.

He was quickly in the fourth gear and was out of the way as the car drove down the road and into the mud. M/n’s adrenaline was way too high for him to register, that they weren’t chased anymore. So he continued to drive fast for a while, until he was calm enough to look into the mirrors and see no one following. He halted the car and then carefully went back into his own seat.

He was still pale, but he was calming down. Then he felt sick and slammed open the door of the Bentley, ran a bit away and started to vomit. Skulduggery and Stephanie got out as well. She was worried for her Brother, while Skulduggery was impressed with his reflexes.

“M/n, are you alright ?”, she asked her older Brother.

“Never been-“, he vomited again, “...better....”, he finished bemused.

“Who was that Freak ?”, she asked.

“The same guy, that intruded our house.”, M/n answered softly as he wiped his mouth clean with a tissue.

He looked at his Sister and then he froze.

“This isn’t over yet...”, he muttered in panic.

“What do you mean ? Your gut ?”, Stephanie asked worried.

M/n nodded.

“I feel watched too...”

Then there was a yell and it was the man again, with a few scars. M/n dodged him and punched him in the jaw.

“CAR ! NOW, SIS !”, M/n yelled.

She refused to do so. She tried to find out what she could do to help. Then she looked at Skulduggery.

“He seems to be immune to fire, could that mean he is specifically trained on that element alone ?”

“Yes, why ?”

“Water puts out fire. What if...”

“Water hurts him ?”, Skulduggery asked.

She nodded.

“Worth a try.”, Skulduggery said, shrugging his shoulders.

M/n landed a mean kick against the man’s shin, who screamed in pain at that.

“Just leave us the fuck alone you fucking creep ! Go back to your Master and live out your Master/Slave kink there, won’t you ?! Fucking curl up in a corner and die already !”, M/n screamed in frustration.

“Your Brother has a mouth...”

“No one ever could make him stop from cursing when he was pissed off or protective.”, she replied to Skulduggery.

Skulduggery then manipulated the humidity and water rained onto the attacker and M/n. The man started to scream in pain and, as the water became more and more, the man started to fall into pieces, right in front of M/n. He jumped back and just watched as he died, just like that.

After he was dead and only remains were left, M/n puked again.

“M/n ?!”

“Anxiety kicked in ! I’m fine !”, he replied to his Sister.

Skulduggery turned to Stephanie.

“Good thinking there.”, he praised her.

“Yeah, great thinking, Sis...”

After that, they got back into the car and Skulduggery arrived at the car dealer, whose garage was working on M/n’s car. He got out and said his bye to Skulduggery and Stephanie.

“I will visit a friend later, if you want, you and your sister can tag along.”, Skulduggery offered.

“Are you sure ? As we drove, you were very hell bent, to leave it at a onetime only thing.”, M/n asked.

“I have a feeling you two have a very good feeling, in this kind of work.”, Skulduggery answered.

“Well then, sure !”, M/n replied.

“I will join too !”, Stephanie replied as she took back the passenger seat.

“Alright then. Until later, M/n.”

“Until later, Skulduggery, Steph.”

Then they drove off and M/n waited for the garage and car dealer to open up, which was any minute now.

‘Just pay for the car, take it and drive home, then work on stuff until Skulduggery comes and picks you up.’

Masterlist HERE !

[emotionallychargedtowel]

sécrétions pas si magnifique

Once @wen-kexing-apologist brought the existence of the perfume Sécrétions Magnifiques by Etat Libre d’Orange to my attention, I felt like I had to at least smell it once. It has a unique marketing angle--it's supposed to smell like sex, to put it briefly--and reviews for it are highly polarized and fascinatingly vivid, particularly the negative ones. And yeah, the name means Magnificent Secretions. Naturally, I wanted to investigate.

A friend of mine got me some perfume samples as a belated Christmas gift and I asked her to include a sample of Sécrétions in the order. It took me a while to try it because I wanted to do so on a day when I was at home on my own and could put it on early in the day to give it a chance to fizzle out before my family got back. After all, some reviewers had said it was absolutely rank. A little while back, the right opportunity arose and I gave it a go.

My notes on the opening (the initial, soon-after-application scent):

Definitely aquatic, sweeter than expected (almost fruity), with a slight powdery quality. A really sharp metallic note (according to my info, this metallic note is via an aldehyde so it’s no surprise that it hits hard in the opening). Any muskiness seems to have been mostly swallowed up by the sweet gourmand note. The milky coconut notes are mostly just reading as sweet at this point. The whole thing is a really weird mixture. It’s not a complete juxtaposition, so I guess some skillful blending is happening here since the notes are so disparate. But it’s still a decidedly odd combination of elements.

And the drydown (the part after it has, you know, dried down):

It comes across as much more blended at this point. Aquatic and metallic notes that seemed volatile, like they wouldn’t last past the opening, stick around longer than expected. The gourmand notes get more distinctly lactonic and the salty aspect of the aquatic notes is a bit more noticeable. So at this point, it smells more like what I expected from its description—salty, metallic milk. The musk note is also in evidence but I really had to look for it, and it gets lost in the composition quickly.

(Segueing out of writing up my notes and into the general discussion...)

The sex smell concept makes a bit more sense at the drydown stage, but it’s still not a comparison I ever would have made unprompted. When you’re looking for it, though, it’s at least somewhat possible to read it that way. It’s not much like any sex smell I’ve ever come in contact with, but you could imagine it being one under certain circumstances (particularly since these sorts of smells vary so much between individuals). But even if I give it the benefit of the doubt in this way, it's still skewed in a direction that isn't entirely up my alley.

Basically, there are a number of secretions the name of this fragrance could theoretically refer to, and a good sex smell fragrance would, I think, smell at least a bit like all of them. The main ones would be sweat, semen, and vaginal fluid. And of the two I can sort of make out in this fragrance if I squint hard enough, the most prominent by far is what I can only call a semen accord.

Which may have something to do with why even when I could kind of see a way in which they accomplished what they were going for, this didn't appeal to me that much. A perfume that's supposed to smell like sex that is this bereft of pussy is, well, a choice. I dunno, maybe I’m just too bisexual for this stuff.

All of this might seem less glaring if it weren’t for the fact that the musk component wasn’t very noticeable either in the opening or the drydown. After all, sweat is pretty much the one universal sex smell. But I kept losing track of the musk entirely. It’s striking that seemingly volatile notes like the aldehydes in this stuck around for a surprisingly long time but the musk, which was never prominent, faded quickly. (I haven’t tried a lot of musk-heavy perfumes but my understanding was that musk notes usually stick around for longer than this.)

The saltiness combined with the metallic aldehydes caused this fragrance to give me a very distinct feeling in my nose. The combination of the smell and the nose feeling reminded me of the weird feeling/smell you get when you do a somersault in a chlorinated pool, something I haven't experienced in at least thirty years. That was a weird association to have side-by-side with the sex smell association. I found myself trying to imagine what sort of highly specific sex situation would result in this combination of elements. Things involving chlorine? Being upside down?

I guess there is one other thing I could liken that nasal sensation to: the feeling you get when, uh, ingesting certain substances through the nose. Not something I have a lot of familiarity with and what little I do have is decades old, but there was a similarity there. Once again, these associations evoke some pretty specific scenarios. Together, the chlorine/cocaine sensation and the predominance of the semen accord over any other "secretion" notes suggest some pretty specific scenarios rather than more general, highly relatable sexual situations. I couldn't help wondering what it might say about this perfumer that this is what he comes up with when commissioned to create a sex smell fragrance.

To sum up, this perfume sent me down a weird aesthetic rabbit-hole with some surprising associations. It was at least interesting to try. I think the perfumer would have liked it if this had caused some kind of bonkers erotic version of Proust's madeleine effect in me, but instead of bringing back memories it just made me feel compelled to somehow reconcile its weirdness with its marketing claims in a way that led to some truly random trains of thought. I didn't find this stuff repellent, like a lot of people do. I didn't find it sexy at all, like at least some others seem to. It was rather middling in terms of quality for me. There's something impressive about the fact that the perfumer was able to make something relatively cohesive out of such disparate notes, but just because it's not a total cacophony of unrelated smells doesn't mean it actually smells good. I guess if I had to say what the worst thing about it was, it's that it was, no pun intended, rather masturbatory. Because it turned out to be a pretty gratuitous exercise and it has the air of something that its creator/s thought was a hell of a lot cleverer than it actually was.

[rubywolf0201]

S Rank Agents that are drip marketed for 1.2

Caesar King

She looks pretty cool and I like how she is going to be our very first S Rank Defense unit. Can’t wait to see how she plays in the long run.

Also…

It seems like Billy knows her given that he called her Big Sis. Makes me wonder if 1.2 will focus on Billy’s past and how did he come to know the Sons of Calydon.

Burnice White

Ok this girl is super cute. Really love the energy she’s displaying in her splash art (even tho it’s just half of it). I’m not to sure if she’s going to be A Rank or S Rank but I’m tempted to pull for her as my first (assuming) S Rank Anomoly unit (tho I do wish I have Grace since she is also kind of cool).

I’m not to sure if there’s going to be another S Rank or A Rank Agent drip marketed but there doesn’t seem to have one but I have a feeling that maybe it’s because of Lucy and Piper being around so there’s going to be a 50/50 chance that these two would appear in the respective banner. (I’m predicting that Piper would be featured in Caesar’s and Lucy in Burnice’s or it could be the other way around due to Piper and Burnice being Anomoly units)

Overall Thoughts

I think the two Agents that were drip marketed for 1.2 seems pretty neat and it looks like we’re going to have massive focus on the Sons of Calydon since despite being available on launch, none of them had focus so 1.2 is shaping up to have a good opportunity to introduce them which is pretty neat since it would give the game writers lots of time on their hands on how the Sons of Calydon would play out in the long run and how their interaction with the Proxy siblings would play out.

[keldjinfae]

I was tagged by my musical doppleganger @oldefashioned to list my top ten recent(ish) movies, but my memory is absolute shit and what feels like was "just last year" was probably back in 2017. I also can't remember if I've already responded to this one. Thankfully it's not a coffee pot or the house'd probably have burned down by now.

Edit: Thanks to an artwork reblog, I remembered that 1) my sister and I also saw Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, and 2) it was released in 2019. We enjoyed the hell out of it, and it's a shame that there likely won't be a sequel.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - I went to see this one with my sister right before the pandemic shut-ins, and we loved the hell out of it. We expected to because it was a Tarantino movie, but both DiCaprio and Pitt were brilliant in it, and were each given the opportunity to stretch their comedic muscles in a way that the '90s and early '00s didn't really allow for because they had to be Hollywood's ideal of "leading men." They're both just dudes in this movie--totally relatable dudes.

Bullet Train - I actually went to see this with my sister right after the pandemic shut-ins, and we thought it was poetic to be bookending the experience with Brad Pitt in another oft-times comical role. The whole thing is a very black comedy, but it's so damn good. The timing is perfect, the acting from everyone is spot-on, and Pitt is only arguably the main character in a brilliant ensemble cast, because he often just sits back and lets everyone else steal the show. Also, there's something about Michael Shannon that draws me into every single thing he's ever been in, so...

John Wick Chapter 4 - also went to see it with my sister, but this was the one that we finally managed to get my brother-in-law to go see as well and thereby pulled him into the John Wick 'verse. Sis and I also flailed around like idiots over the reference to The Warriors, and I'm never going to dismiss a chance to see something with any of the Skarsgards.

Love and Monsters - I put off watching this one for a while because of the marketing for it, actually. I thought it was going to be another movie about a protagonist who was the butt of everyone's joke, and I eventually "went in" prepared to cringe hard and take frequent pause breaks... only to be very pleasantly surprised when this wasn't the case at all.

Red, White, and Royal Blue - again, one that I put off for a bit partly because of aversion to secondhand embarrassment, but also because I'd been in the middle of writing a Sterek fic with an approaching deadline. Still, I was also once again pleasantly surprised.

Joker - yet another one I went to see with my sister. Appropriately twisted, had Joaquin Phoenix, and we both walked away wanting to get our hands on the soundtrack.

Bohemian Rhapsody - I know this one was pre-pandemic, but 2020 was also the year that my back gave out and I've more or less been struggling just to get by ever since, so "recent" is going to have a somewhat warped definition. It wasn't "the perfect biopic," but it was still enjoyable, and my sister and I went to see it with our mom and her best friend, who've both been die-hard Queen fans since they were twelve. We couldn't afford to take Mom to see Queen in-concert, so we took her to see their movie instead.

Deadpool 2 - loved it just as much as the first Deadpool, though I do wish that the movies would just let Vanessa be Copycat already instead of making her a damsel in distress/killing her off every time.

Infinity War - I honestly preferred Civil War and Guardians of the Galaxy, vol. 2, but there were plenty of moments in this movie that either hit hard or hit right.

End Game - I saw it, though I don't remember a lot of it. Not because it was a terrible movie or anything, it just came out less than two weeks after my father passed away, so my sister and I basically went to see it because he didn't get to see the last two movies of the series. Well, before they went ahead with Phase Four, that is. Dad, Sis, and I were all die-hard Captain America: Winter Soldier fans and we'd loved the hell out of Civil War, too, so Dad would've wanted to see how everything resolved. More no pressure whatsoever tags for people who have hopefully been able/willing to see more movies than me in the past few years: @vmures @nerdherderette @ice-mage @dear-massacre @renmackree

[growninhaiti]

🌞🇭🇹 Today, I had a meaningful experience at the local farmers market with my neighbor Ana, who sells her signature ‘fritay’! 🍴💚 As I wandered around the market, I snacked on Ana's delicious creations, explored the freshest produce, and engaged in entertaining conversations with vendors. 😋🍅🥕 The sense of community and the importance of supporting local food and culture truly resonates with me. 🌽🥑 My time spent at the market was a beautiful blend of learning, connecting, and appreciating the simple joys in life. 😊 If you find yourself in the area, don't miss the opportunity to visit and indulge in Ana's delightful fried snacks! 🌟 . . 🌞🇭🇹 Jodi a, mwen te fè yon bèl eksperyans nan mache lokal la ak Ana vwazen mwen an, ki vann yon Bon fritay! 🍴💚 Pandan m t ap pwonmennen nan mache a, m te goute kreyasyon Ana yo, m te eksplore pwodui ki pi fre yo epi m te angaje m nan konvèsasyon amizan ak machann yo. 😋🍅🥕 Sans kominote a ak enpòtans pou sipòte manje ak kilti lokal yo vrèman rezone avè m. 🌽🥑 Tan mwen te pase nan mache a se te yon melanj nan konesans, koneksyon, ak apresyasyon bagay ki senp nan lavi a. 😊 Si w twouve w nan zòn nan, pa rate opòtinite pou w vizite epi pran plezi nan fritay Ana a! 🌟 . . #GrownInHaiti #HaitianMarketConnections #AnaSnackExperience #LocalFoodLove #FarmersMarketEngagement #HaitiVibes #ManjeLokal #SipòteKiltiNou #AyitiCheri https://www.instagram.com/p/CqOOsVpO7kY/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[driverpicksthepodcast]

First up, some camouflaged praise: I feel so spoiled this week from all the bonus episodes you have released. It was a LOT of fun!

I am listening to the Destiel edition episode now, and I just got to the point where you mentioned the Then and now podcast. I am listening to it. I started because I was curious and I stayed for the humour. Also Rob is the cutest middle-aged man I know of, haha.

They haven't brought up Destiel specifically, and the way they cover the actual story in the episodes is far from as detailed as you and the other Pod Squad people's method. So if they mention lines it is because it caught their attention. They also personally know the main cast, so I assume that they will see an actor/friend acting instead of being immersed in the story. After all it is a job for them -- though they claim to be on their way to become fans.

While they haven't explicitly discussed Destiel, sometimes they make some mistakes which are very interesting to me (who has a moderate to severe case of spn/destiel brainrot). Rob did refer to Castiel as Castiel Winchester at one point, for example. It was during their usual credits listing at the end of the episode (they included the blooper at the end of the episode).

There are probably other stuff they talk about which is interesting in terms of how much the fandom has influenced their perspectives. But the "Castiel Winchester" one is something I will not forget about. I'll follow up with an episode link (spotify) and a timestamp if I find the will and time to listen through the tail ends of the 11 possible episodes...

cont.

I found the episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6kXmoqgZstbCdQyDrQBySq?si=de6b8989c40b438a

The credits listing is at 52:31 and you can hear that they cut right after Rob says "Castiel". In the blooper starting at 53:53 he reminds himself that "It's just Castiel. He doesn't have the last name Winchester. Castiel Johnson." I remembered wrong though: Rob doesn't actually say Castiel Winchester, but Rich does (after the static thing which separates bloopers)

*********

Ok so first up, hello! thank you SO much for your message! super glad to know you enjoyed the bonus content, we've been beyond excited to release it :)

Good to know the Then & Now pod is a fun time! I was going to say I was surprised that they don't go into as much depth as the fan run casts but honestly I think that makes a lot of sense when you think about it, at the end of the day we're out to create a different product than they are (I assume their focus probably falls more in the camp of behind the scenes and production discussion rather than more of an analysis on the characters, themes, and plots?). Plus, I think you make a great point about them seeing their friends and co-workers rather than characters, they have an entirely different perspective on the entire process than we do (which is the appeal of getting their thoughts on things like podcasts and panels I guess haha).

When it comes to Destiel, I suppose it's really a waiting game to see if / how they'll address it, lucky we've got plenty of fic & fan run casts to get us through regardless! Tbh I always thought the CW missed out on some really obvious marketing opportunities by not cashing in on Castiel Winchester (CW) being a thing haha

Thank you for taking the time to go back through and find the right episodes and time stamps! you've really put in the hard yards on that one! <3

[si-cucumber]

tagged by @bratprivilege

Last song: Theme of the Niccori Survey Team by WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY.

Favorite color: Green

Last movie/show: I've been rewatching Hotel Hell. It's great background noise while I knit

Sweet/spicy/savory: A nice balance of all three. But mostly savory

Relationship status: I am aromantic lmao

Last thing I googled: The mechanics of seeing your breath in the cold. I was writing a fic set in the snow and I was trying to figure out how to describe Si's breath

Current obsession: Any and everything the Tamiflu Market Research Team writes/draws. I guess my own OCs? Yevgeny really stole the show this year. I am also back on my Vocaloid/Vsynth bullshit, so that too

No pressure tags: Whoever wants to!