#This one went so far into left field tbh

[underforeversgrace]

green in the air

DannyMay2023 Day 22: Cryptid AU

title: green in the air

words: 2042

Summary: Ectoplasm is invasive and all consuming, and it shows in Amity Park's residents. (OC outsider POV)

Warnings: None!

Beta by: @probably-dead

~~~~~~

Ectoplasm is invasive. Once it’s in the air, in the water, on the ground, it is there to stay. Most places have such minor hauntings that it is inconsequential an amount, a ghost or two at most struggling to maintain its form and unable to spare any.

Amity Park isn’t most places. Unknowingly, Jack and Maddie Fenton had released more ectoplasm onto the human plane in the past year than in all of history - recorded and not - up until that point.

And, despite science’s belief otherwise, ectoplasm can absolutely be absorbed into the human body, live alongside living tissue, it just had never been present in this large an amount before, unable to be studied. It snuck into the humans in so many ways. In the air, merely being breathed in, growing and multiplying within the humans’ lungs. In the water for hydration, coating the pipes inside and seeping into the liquid. On the ground, sticking to clothes, sticking to the skin of children too young to walk, who’s hands always end up in their mouths.

Invisible, untraceable, even as it changed the humans, changed the definition of normal for all within Amity Park and Elmerton. Only a year since the portal had been opened by a teen’s half-death and already, outsiders could see the change.

Could see everyone here was just a little wrong.

~~~~~~

Joanne hefted the box out of the moving van, carefully avoiding her pet cats running around her feet as she moved up the stairs, depositing the box in her new bedroom. She wiped sweat from her brow, eyeing the mattress lying on the ground and debated collapsing onto it, making the bed frame be damned.

She sighed and instead moved to the window, looking at their new home.

Jo’s mom had been transferred to the Amity Park branch of the company she worked for and was expected to be here at least the next two years, updating software and training employees, unable to leave until corporate felt these employees knew the subject matter as well as the other locations did. Her mom had complained about it, worried about how poor the internet connection for the whole city must be, as this branch consistently had internet issues, thus the need for them to move on site.

At least Amity Park was pretty, she determined as she saw suburbia around her, trees and leaves dotting the area around them. It was still warm, the middle of July, and she had two weeks before she began her life as a sophomore at the high school. Jo wasn’t thrilled by this, though it wasn’t the first time her mom’s job had moved them. But two years here? That would have her moving again right before her senior year of high school, and who wants to be a new kid for their senior year of high school?

Maybe Amity would end up being nice and she could finish out her schooling here, convince her mom to stay an extra year.

She pulled herself from her thoughts, deciding her break was over and it was time to get more boxes from the van. Had she always owned so much stuff?

~~~~~~

The first two other students she met were a few days later, when she had ventured out to the mall by herself, with her mother’s blessing and her cell phone in hand.

The mall was… not what she’d expected. Something in her just said something was wrong, though it didn’t pinpoint what it was. It was like the beginning of a small muscle cramp, almost entirely ignored except for the nag in the back of her head. As she settled in line at one of the fast food stores, she realized what was wrong.

It was too quiet here. People were everywhere she looked, in crowds, in all ages, walking and chattering excitedly, yet their footsteps were too soft, like walking across carpet. Their voices didn’t echo like they should in a room like this.

An uncomfortable tingling in her fingertips that she shook away. It was just nerves, she was just somewhere new.

“Oh, I don’t think we’ve met before.” Someone said behind her and Jo nearly jumped clear through her skin. She whirled around, willing her heart to calm down. Two girls stood there - a pretty Latina girl and a blonde who was almost as pretty beside her, both with friendly smiles on their faces.

“Oh, uh, hi? I just moved here a few days ago.” Jo said, offering out her hand, which the darker skinned girl shook. A chill sent shivers down her back. Man, was this girl anemic? Her hand was so cold.

“I’m Paulina.” She said in greeting.

“I’m Star!” The blonde added, waving.

“I’m Joanne. Uh, Jo. I prefer Jo, though.”

Paulina tilted her head to the side curiously. It was a move she’d seen for years and it had never unnerved her but Paulina’s head went a little too far, her eyes taking too long between blinks. “It’s nice to meet you, Jo. Will you be attending Casper?”

“Yeah, tenth grade in a few weeks.”

“Oh! You’re in our grade, then!” Star said, grinning. Were human teeth normally that sharp? “Maybe you’ll be a part of the A-List.”

“A-List?”

“The best, prettiest, and most popular of Casper High.” Paulina explained, straightening her head back up. Jo had to resist the urge to swallow nervously. Why were these girls setting her so on edge? They were being perfectly friendly.

Whatever, they had just moved into territory Jo knew how to navigate. Popularity had always been a given for her and she knew how to say the right things. She shrugged, running her fingers boredly through her hair. “Hm, maybe. I just moved into Highland Park, do either of you know the area?”

Paulina smiled, no teeth, but the corners of her mouth went just a little too far up. “Oh, that’s where I’m from! You must have moved into the old Edgewood property.”

“Good guess.” Jo said, smiling back. The three had finished assessing each other and Jo slid in easily - rich and pretty was all it required.

“Oh, no, that’s just the only vacancy in Highland. There’s actually not a lot of available housing in Amity. People don’t leave here.”

That’s definitely a normal thing to say. “Ah, really?”

“Surprising, I know. But… we’re safe here. Protected.” Paulina said, Star nodding sagely beside her.

“Okay then…” Jo said, suddenly at a loss.

“Oh, you haven’t seen our biggest attractions, have you?” Paulina asked, understanding lighting up her eyes.

“What’s the biggest attraction?”

Paulina and Star glanced at each other and giggled. “You’ll know it when you see it. Trust me.”

“Uh. Okay?”

The two girls laughed again. “Here,” Paulina said, pulling a piece of crumpled paper and a pen from her purse, scribbling on it. “My number. Message me and I’ll introduce you to the rest of our group before school starts.”

Joanne took the paper, glancing at Paulina’s neat handwriting and nodding. “Sure, sounds good!”

“See you later, Jo!” Star said, and both girls waved at her. The waves were perfectly synced, each moving in tandem with the other. Again, discomfort in the back of her head. It just seemed… unnatural. But she said nothing of it, waving goodbye to the two.

If that was the popular crowd, she was almost afraid to see weird kids.

~~~~~~

When school started ten days later, Jo had successfully integrated with the A-List, becoming easy friends with the popular kids. They’d hung out several times and - while they still sometimes made the hair on Jo’s arms stand up - she had gotten used to the weird vibe they gave off. Joanne had lived in a lot of places, but the people here continued to give her a sense of wrongness.

“Oh, you never told us about your first encounter with our big attraction.” Paulina said as the group lounged around outside the school before class started.

“What is this attraction? I haven’t really seen anything memorable.” Jo said with a shrug.

“Wow, you’ve been here two weeks and not seen them yet?” Dash said, wonder in his eyes.

“Seen who?”

Dash opened his mouth to answer but Paulina slapped a perfectly manicured hand across his mouth. “You’ll see. They’re seen at school pretty often.”

Jo just rolled her eyes, convinced at this point she was being pranked. What attraction sometimes popped up at a school?

The warning bell rang and they gathered their things, standing up and chatting about nothing again.

A bump against her shoulder sent her books tumbling to the ground.

“Sorry!” A boy said and the feeling of wrongness she’d had since arriving here spiked again, worse than ever before, a knife to the base of her spine. She spun around, suddenly feeling like she shouldn’t have her back to whatever this kid was.

She was surprised to see what looked like a normal teenager, black hair and blue eyes on a tired face. Still, as normal as he looked, something was wrong with him. His eyes were too bright to be real, his hair didn’t seem to be moving the way it should with the wind. He smiled apologetically and too large teeth filled her vision. She jerked back, suddenly convinced he was about to strike like a snake. A hurt look passed across his face, apparently surprised by her intense need to get away.

“Are you okay?” He asked and his voice reminded her of an avalanche, of a boat slamming against an iceberg, each killing anyone who dared be too close.

“Fine.” She squeaked. He eyed her and then bent down, picking up the books she’d dropped as she continued to not move.

“I’m Danny,” he introduced, holding her books out to her. Her instincts snaked into her stomach, her throat, her mind, to not touch him, but she didn’t want to be rude so she grabbed at the stack. Her hand just barely brushed his and fear flooded her every sense, terrified tears coming to her eyes.

Whatever this boy was, it was not human. It was death and decay, it was destruction and damnation.

This time he jerked away from her, worry etched onto his features. 

Predator. Her mind whispered to her as her heart beat so fast in terror it caused her pain.

“I’m gonna go now…” Danny said, turning and walking away.

Joanne did not stop staring at him as he left, frequently turning and glancing at her in confusion.

That was when she noticed the fact his chest was still. She did not see the rise and fall of breath, of life.

What was he?

~~~~~~

The answer would come in second period, when a metal man crashed through the wall, locked in tense combat with a white haired boy.

When the chill she’d felt earlier returned, when the feeling of imminent death struck her like a hammer and she screamed.

When ghosts were explained to her.

When she realized Danny Fenton was a dead teenager and the others around her… they had to be toeing the line between life and death, with their too sharp teeth and too wide smiles, with their soft footsteps and the way their voices refused to echo.

Was anyone in this city fully alive anymore?

~~~~~~

Joanne had no way of knowing that, no, they weren’t, death had touched all of Amity Park, the entire city too close to the veil but still far enough away.

Had no way of knowing the second she’d stepped out of that moving van, that death was infecting her too, that she’d never be able to leave without growing ill without the ectoplasm sustaining her living death, if she could even bring herself to try to leave, the air addictive.

No one in the city was fully alive, not anymore, not since the Fentons had punched a hole in reality. And she had lost her own claim to that idea - of being fully alive - the second the ectoplasm entered her lungs.

This was Amity Park’s normal.

This was her new normal.

Even if anyone from the outside could now tell she was a little bit wrong, too. A little too predatory, a little too quiet.

A little too dead.

[butt-puncher]

I wish that I was more

[bomber-grl]

Nico Di Angelo x Child of Hypnos ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁

Pairing(s): Nico Di Angelo x gn!Reader (male intended)

The two of you getting together isn’t a surprise whatsoever but more so because of nicos closed nature

The two of you most likely met because, again, Nico needed to use one of your guys powers for whatever it was

Aaaand you were the only was who was awake and reading some book

So he went up to you and asked if he could use your power and you ultimately ended up agreeing just because why not?

Tbh you didn’t really listen to what he said but just nodded, so imagine your surprise when he gets to you again and asks why you didn’t do what you promised

You’re honestly mad he’s interrupting your sleep so u just ignore him and turn over

Ofc he still tries asking you but only because anyone else was too sleepy to even be bothered

Eventually you decide to go to the bonfire at camp and while sitting there you see an abnormal shadow in the far distance

You decide to get up and walk towards it, noticing how it kinda moves as if shocked

You ultimately just stand there and ask whoever is there to come out and low and behold-

It’s Nico Di Angelo, son of hades

You walk up and ask if he’d wanna hang out, which he immediately turns down

But once you mention his insomnia he gets defensive

Then leaves

Ofc it’s only when the next time you meet and he’s more aware that he decides to give you a shot

He’s mostly shocked about how similar you are and especially by your stupid ass jokes you make while half asleep

He gradually finds himself thinking positively of you

Maybe even endearing

Especially since you’re really open minded and much of an introvert just like himself

He feels like he can actually consider you a friend

But then those feelings turn sour and unsure when he starts feeling nervous and feels butterflies in his stomach near you

It’s almost enough to make you want to reach into his dreams, especially when you feel his hesitance when you thought you already passed that stage.

Well one day when the camp is having a bonfire you two decide to go for a walk and when you grab his hand to stop him from walking he’s more than confused

That’s when you decide to confess your feelings for him, you knew you’d have to or else he never would

He was more than shocked and left once he said he’d have to think about it

Eventually he goes to your cabin when your sleeping and lays down with you

When you wake up he instantly opens up and tells you how sorry he is for his reaction, he was just scared

And eventually agrees to become your boyfriend if you’d like that

Anyways,

The first thing you do is the obvious accidental sleep over

It’s at his cabin since he doesn’t have any other sibling of his (Hazel) staying there

The two of you nap and talk about serious topics, it’s overall pretty intimate and eventually you decide to bring up a topic you’ve been wanting to

It’s about his insomnia and lack of serious sleep

He gets pretty defensive especially since he’d be vulnerable when you use your power on him but he ultimately agrees and falls asleep next to you

Once you two wake up you’re both cuddling and he instantly clams up, one thing you take note of is his coldness and you choose to hug him tighter

Eventually this becomes a normal occurrence and you’d chill in his dorm alone together while doing different tasks in silence

Plus you’d always be there to make him sleep when he doesn’t listen to anyone else

The two of you become more open with your relationship eventually and everyone is supportive

But keep their distance cuz of how mysterious you both seem 😭

Ps if you use your induced sleep on someone during battle then he’s just shocked

He didn’t know you could use it that way and it’s honestly easier to knock out a whole field of opponents then have to fight them

Honestly match made in heaven

[iguessweallcrazyithinktho]

𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 • 𝐣𝐮𝐝𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐚𝐦

Summary: Can we got some enemies to lovers with Jude maybe him and the reader “hate” each other but are in the same friend group and one day reader gets hurt and he rushes to come and help her 😩😩 anything will don’t tbh

Genre: fluff, kinda angst

Warning: just some mutual hate, a guy harassing

Pairing: Jude Bellingham x f reader

Author note: found a little creative strike. I didn't proofread

Word count: 1k

Jude Bellingham Masterlist

Enjoy

Jude Bellingham. You hated that 6ft footballer with a passion.

Ever since high school you hated him and he has hated you right back. You weren’t sure how it all started, but quit frankly you don’t care. You couldn’t stand each other.

Even though you both would do anything to stay away from each other you unfortunately had the same friend group which meant you saw each other often when he was in England.

Today was one of those days.

Your friends had invited you to a club. Although you really didn’t want to go you sucked it up. You needed some time out of the house. You got yourself all dolled up. Putting on some pretty makeup, putting on a short silk black dress that showed your cleavage and some pumps. You totally weren’t dressed this was because you knew jude was going to be there.

After a short ride with your friends you arrived at the club. It was full of sweaty bodies colliding with each other. You kinda regret coming due to that site alone.

You followed your girlfriends to the table where everyone else was at. From a mile away you spotted him. Jude was sitting there, white button up on although a few buttons were undone at the top.

His eyes met yours and you quickly looked away.

“We’ve arrived.” Your friend announced as she sat on her boyfriend’s lap. You took a seat beside her far away from Jude.

The night continued and you didn’t do much but stare at the people. You took a few shots with everyone but you weren’t interested in being drunk so that was it.

You weren’t exactly sure what Jude was doing… I mean not that you cared. Last time you checked he was at the bar probably talking to any woman that wanted to get in his pants.

You shook the thought out of your head and got up. You decided that going to the bathroom for a few minutes was the best idea. As you went to find the bathroom you didn’t notice Jude was watching. Actually he watching you all night to make sure you were ok. He was ignoring the fuck out these girls talking to him. His only focus was you.

He watched as you walked down the hall to the bathroom. He was about to turn away until he saw a guy follow you. He didn’t want to take any chances so excused himself from the girls and followed.

You had just reached the bathroom when you spotted the man. You thought he would walk passed to the bathroom but he didn’t . Instead he stopped and stared at you.

You frowned. “Can I help you?”

The guy smirked and shook his head. “I just want to see if I can get your number?”

You smiled. “No, I’m sorry. I have a boyfriend.” You lied.

The guy rolled his eyes. “Your boyfriend doesn’t have to know.” He took a step towards you and you backed up until you met the wall. He towered over you making you look up at him.

“She said she has a boyfriend.” You looked over to your left to see Jude. Relief flooded through your body when you seen him.

“Back away from her.” Jude said, his face more pissed than what you seen of him on the field.

The guy did as Jude said. “Lemme guess, you’re the boyfriend.”

You walked over to Jude and spoke. “Yes he is.” You put your arms around Jude waist. “So I don’t want your number.”

The guy looked between the two of you before scoffing and walked away. Back into the party.

You exhaled. “I need to get out of here.” You walked past Jude but he stopped you by take a hold of your arm.

You turned, looking at him. “You alright?”

You nodded. “Yeah I just um… I wanna go home. Can you tell them that for me?” you felt helpless right now in front of Jude. He never saw this side of you ever. It was kinda embarrassing.

You pulled your arm away from Jude as he nodded. You wasted no more time and walked outside. You took a seat on the curve, far away from the entrance  and pulled your phone out to call an Uber.

A few minutes passed as you waited.

“Hey.” You looked up from your spot to see Jude standing there with your jacket in his hand. “you forgot your jacket.”

You took it from him, mumbling a thank you. You were expecting him to leave but he didn’t . Instead he took a seat down beside you on the curve.

You said nothing to each other, but you could tell Jude did want to say something.

“Spit it out Bellingham.” You said turning to him.

“why do we hate each other?”

You were stunned by the question. You aren’t sure why he asked but you answered truthfully.

“I don’t know. I wish I did but I don’t.”

Jude nodded. “Yeah me either.” He paused for a brief second before continuing. “I don’t hate you y/n. Even though it seems like I do I don’t.”

You looked at Jude. “well I don’t hate you either.” You sighed bringing your knees to your chest and hugging them.

“Thank you for saving me earlier. I wasn’t sure what he was going to do.”

Jude hummed. “Yeah I’m happy to help. If you need me to be your fake boyfriend more just let me know.” Jude smirked at you. Your stomach did a flip at the simple action. You didn’t know what was coming over you but you didn’t hate I you were starting to like being around him. Crazy how a little bit of time with Jude changed how you feel about him.

“we should hangout sometime.” Jude as taking you by surprise.

“Really?”

Jude nods yes. “Lets start off fresh. Let’s not hate each other anymore. What do you say?”

You smiled at him. “I like the sound of that.”

Jude gave you a smile that filled your stomach with butterflies. You were fucked.

--

Do you like this style of writing?

[staretes]

finally, before you

synopsis: he's been dreaming about this moment for centuries, but what will happen when he's finally reunited with you? w/c: 0.8k tags: blade x reader, angst, reader was blade's lover when he was yingxing (a bit ooc for blade? idk please tell me if it is) a/n: i posted this by accident twice while it was still cooking in the oven argh. i mostly typed this in school while my teachers were teaching hehe but tbh i think my writing style got alot more loose here which idk if i like... i also dont know how i feel about the flow of this but ack enjoy

blade awakes, face gently cradled by blades of grass. when he looks up, the countless stars glittering in the midnight sky greeted him, just like how they greeted him on those nights when he went to watch the vast starry sky with you. "he didn't come to the luofu to find friends, much less love" he had firmly told himself, but the thought quickly lost itself in you, the stars, and the nights you spent with him. he’d thought he had lost those nights forever.

could it finally be? his heart quickens as he hurried to stand up. the boundless expanse of grasslands that could be found at the edges of the luofu stretched as far as he could see. blade’s scarlet eyes dart frantically across the field, before they landed, with a triumph, on a figure gazing at the stars. you.  blade’s heart leaps at the sight and he hastens to reach you. he could wait no longer, he thinks, for every moment for the last seven hundred years, his heart burned in your absence. he had longed to see the sweet smile on your lips and feel your soft skin on his again. “(name),” he called softly, hoping to finally let his gaze rest upon your bright eyes under the stars once again. startled, you whip around to face him. you stand up, and your eyes search him, and he feels your gaze pierce throughout his body, looking him up and down. “yingxing…” you mumble , not sparing his eyes a single glance. blade opens his arms hesitantly, desperate to feel your embrace again. you jolt back, and your trailing gaze lands on his hands.  his hands. his hands have slain too many, dripping with the blood of so many innocent lives. he whose hands are burdened with the weight of death and violence, how could he even think of touching you, tainting you with his sin? you turn on your heel and run, farther and farther away from him, and he's left standing alone in an empty sea of grass, watching your body disappearing in the distance, with only the stars twinkling at him mockingly.

blade awakes, drenched in cold sweat, chest heaving, gasping for air. it was just a another dream, he reassures himself amongst shallow breaths. just like the dream from the night before, and the night before that, and the many, many nights before. you’ll love him, forever, no matter what, he tells himself, and it’s this faith that relights the small fire in his heart to reunite with you on that fated day in that promised land.

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

the moment had finally arrived.

the chains of life that burdened blade for so long snapped, and his body arched gracefully as his body fell to the ground with a soft thud. the raging fire of mara was put out as he fell deeper into the sweet embrace of death. the peaceful silence enveloped him as he seemed to float, float away, higher and higher, transcending towards the paradise that he had longed for for centuries.

… 

blade awakes, face gently cradled by blades of grass. he looks up, and the countless stars greet him once more. on the xianzhou, where death is a distant concept, rumours swirl of the soft melodies heard when one finally finds peace in heaven. blade is sure that it's this tune that serenades him as he stands up slowly, looking around.

he doesn't have to look for long before your figure, sitting on the blanket you once shared with him, watching the stars twinkle before you. you're humming a tune, and he realises that this is the melody that's he's been hearing since he awoke. slowly, he walks towards you. 

before he can call out your name, you turn around and meet his gaze. your eyes light up and a radiant smile forms on your lips. mara-ridden centuries of separation have warped and faded blade's memories, but he's still taken aback at how your beauty far exceeds the many versions of you in his dreams. his heart rate quickens as his parched eyes drink the sight before him. "yingxing!" you beam as you stand up. your voice was still as melodious as ever. the sound of his name forming from your lips was the most heavenly song blade has heard in a long time. it seems, you have been eagerly waiting for him too. you open your arms, awaiting his embrace. this is the moment he’s been dreaming of.

his dreams.

blade tries to move, but he finds that the many seeds of doubt planted in his stomach have emerged. imaginary vines shackles his limbs and he finds himself unable to move. he tries to talk, but the thorny weeds have suffocated his throat, leaving no voice to even whisper your name. 

after everything he's done, he doesn't deserve to even face you. 

so this time, he's the one that turns and flees, further and further away from you. 

[flippinpancakes64]

Jasper with a Cervitaur Mate

A Cervitaur is a deer Centaur, something like:

(this is also my art, feel free to use it)

Jasper with a Cervitaur! Reader

Tbh going into this I had no clue what a cervitaur even was. I feel like the premise is self-explanatory though so I'm rolling with it

Also I am making another attempt at a narrative story so hopefully this is good. I just figured that headcanons wouldn't be able to do this topic justice

And yes as always I got carried away sue me

Thank you for requesting and I hope you enjoy!

"I bet that I'll get a bigger catch than you today," Emmett said as he leapt over a rock.

"You're on," Jasper replied smugly, running through the trees.

Emmett and Jasper were currently running far away from the Cullen house, deep into the woods. It was nice to be in a new place far away from the wolves. They didn't have to watch where they went anymore.

It was currently the middle of the day, the sunlight beaming through the breaks in the leaves above, catching on their skin as they drifted through.

"What are you thinking today? A bear, a jaguar, a mountain lion, a hyena" Emmett asked.

"... I'm not sure... maybe a deer," Jasper answered, coming to a halt as the pair reached the edge of a cliff.

"A deer? Those things are so weak though!" Emmett replied incredulously.

"But they taste good," Jasper deadpanned. "Those bears that you insist on catching all of the time are way too gamey."

"Whatever. You just don't have good taste."

Jasper rolled his eyes and darted off to the left, intending on finding himself a nice, big deer for dinner. In the distance he heard Emmett veer off to the right, heading towards one of the mountains. Presumably looking for a cave that a bear might be hiding in.

As he ran, he came across a wide, open field filled with flowers. He could hear birds chirping in the trees above, the wind whistling through the blades of grass. In the center of the field laid a deer, its hind legs folded underneath it as it lazed in the field.

He could hear its strong heart beating in its chest, its blood pumping through its veins, its lungs expanding as it breathed deep, even breaths.

He licked his lips, his pitch black eyes widening and then narrowing as he readied to pounce.

But then the deer moved.

Where its head was supposed to be sat a very human torso, large antlers protruded from the creature's head, catching in the sunlight of the field. Jasper stood there stunned, his mouth slightly agape as he took in the mythical being, something that he had never seen before.

"Where's your puny little deer at, bro?" a deep voice boomed from somewhere behind him, he didn't even need to look to know that it was Emmett. And judging from the faint scent of blood running through his veins, he already found his bear.

The deer creature in the field whipped its head around, their human face etched with shock and fear. They quickly raised onto their hooves and began running away as fast as they could.

"Wait!" Jasper called out, already beginning to run after it.

He knew this was a bad idea. He had no reason to be chasing the poor thing anyway. But he just felt so drawn, so enamored. He NEEDED to know what this beautiful creature was.

You were fast, that much was obvious. But no thing with a beating heart and pumping veins would ever be faster than a vampire.

He descended upon you, your galloping hooves beating into the dirt with the fervor of a thousand men in your attempt to escape your pursuer. But it was for nothing. He caught up to you and sprang into the path in front of you, cutting off your exit.

"Don't hurt me, please!" You cried, your breaths heavy and your eyes frantic as they looked into the beautiful, undead face of the man in front of you.

"What are you?" he asked, voice level and calm. He pushed his ability forward, doing his best to wrap you with a blanket of calm and comfort. Trust.

"I... what? You chased me just for that? Aren't you supposed to kill me and then suck all of my blood out?" You asked incredulously.

"How did you know I was a vampire?"

"Well are you a human?"

"...no..."

"Then you're a vampire. If someone looks human but can outrun me then they're a vampire." You explain, weirdly calm now despite being terrified moments ago. Whether that was due to his ability actually working or your nerves having calmed down due to seeing he wasn't going to outright kill you is up for debate.

"Okay, well, still you didn't answer my question, what are you?"

You just look at him strangely for a second.

"You're not gonna hurt me?"

"No, I won't. I promise," he says. You can see the sincerity in his eyes.

"And what about the big guy you left behind?"

"Emmett. I'll make sure he doesn't hurt you either." From far away Jasper can faintly hear Emmett hum in agreement. He guesses the two of you are close enough for him to hear.

"Alright. Sit back and relax while I blow your mind," you say, beginning to tell your story.

And he does. He stands there listening intently.

[eoieopda]

hello, jade! 👋 congratulations on 2k followers 👏 👏 you deserve it sm!!! I'm so proud of you! 🫶 if it's okay, I would like to request something for your 2k drabblepalooza event, please. it would be a JungKook x reader e2l drabble with the trope "cuddling for warmth", please. :) (it's been hard for me to find some great fluffy fics with jk and I love everything you write, so I know it'll be good if you decide to write it ♡) thank you in advance, take care! 💕

tysm, sweet bean! as i am wont to do, i went a bit left field. hope that’s okay 😵‍💫 tbh, this one was actually really difficult for me to attempt in drabble format because those things feel so opposite to me and would normally justify a lot more backstory, i think?? but i loved the challenge!! i went more with a “life decided we are enemies” kind of thing.

pairing: jeon jungkook x gn!reader type: drabble | wc: 811 | 18+ genre: hurt/comfort, angst au: enemies to lovers(ish), organized crime summary: you didn’t plan this far ahead. you should have. cw: implied gunshot wound & blood (after the fact, not described in detail) / implied criminal enterprise / reference to threats (a hit) / a plot twist? in this economy? / ambiguous ending

Jungkook hisses as he tightens the belt around his bicep. Not far below it, invisible with the deep black of his jacket, is proof that he isn’t invincible after all. In fact, he bleeds much more freely than anyone else you’d ever met — or, more specifically, anyone else you’d ever shot.

Clipped, rather. The bullet barely grazed him.

He sits two meters away, half-slumped and wholly displeased. Between you, there’s a spent shell casing — your last — that had previously been sitting pretty in a magazine, itself nestled in a pistol once strapped snugly against your right thigh. The gun was confiscated and that thigh strap is useless now, just like the black denim underneath it; the turtleneck sweater above it; and the radiator behind you that likely hasn’t worked at any point in your lifetime.

Cold concrete nips at your ass despite your jeans and you shiver. As it saps what’s left of your body heat, makes the back of your thighs tingle until they’re numb, you do your best to squeeze yourself tighter. You can’t reduce your surface area to zero, but if you shrink as much as is physically possible, you can try your best to keep warm.

For the same reason, you can’t lean your exhausted body against the stone wall behind you, but you can crumple forward and rest against the bent knees you clutch to your chest. You can’t stop glancing at him out of the corner of your eye, either, but you can use the fallout from your ponytail as cover and pretend that you aren’t.

Suffice to say, this was not how your night was supposed to go.

“Worst fucking shot I’ve ever seen in my life,” Jungkook mutters through gritted teeth for what you imagine to be the hundredth time. His scoff is visible when it hits the air; his rage doesn’t dissipate the way his breath does. “Kim was right there and you hit me instead? Unbelievable.”

You don’t respond.

If you unclench your jaw to do so, the chattering of your teeth might reduce them to dust in your mouth.

Without your cell phone, you can’t tell how much time passes while you sit in silence. You can’t confirm your suspicion that the temperature outside has, in fact, dipped far below zero. Similarly, you can’t tell if anyone stuck around after locking you in this basement to see how long it would take for the cold to take you out — or to finish the job themselves if you beat the odds.

Jungkook huffs as he shifts in place. Now, with his back resting uncomfortably against the wall, he glares headlong at you. Unfortunately for him, looks can’t kill.

If they could, you wouldn’t be in this mess.

Against your better judgment — again — you give in to the primal part of your brain that begs for self-preservation. Your muscles are stiff after so much time spent in knots, and they ache as you push yourself off the ground. Your joints protest too, clicking uncomfortably as they resettle. Wordlessly, you ignore the confusion knitting Jungkook’s brows together and cross over to him.

When you reach him, you drop into the space at his side — his good side — and lean against the arm that isn’t trying hard to clot. He doesn’t flinch or attempt to move away, either because he doesn’t have the energy or because he wants to live, too. So, you rest your head against his shoulder and your eyes drift shut as your combined warmth starts to soothe. Eventually, his cheek claims the top of your head. You have to glance up at him to confirm that this is a choice and not a sign.

Still breathing.

For now.

“Boss know how bad your aim is?”

He doesn’t because it isn’t.

You’re an expert marksman — the best of the best — and you don’t miss. Because he knows that, he now knows that your failure to take down the target wasn’t an accident; it was an illusion. Worse, it was a blatant refusal to carry out a direct order. One he gave to you because he’d wholeheartedly believed that you, more than anyone else, could be trusted.

Not like Jungkook, who isn’t the surreptitious infiltrator he thinks he is; and who still doesn’t grasp the rules or the stakes of the game he’s playing.

Who doesn’t know that the purpose of this errand wasn’t to kill a member of the Kim family; or that he was never meant to leave this warehouse with you.

Who will likely die regardless of your subtle attempt to dodge that outcome; and who — like you — didn’t plan more than two steps ahead.

Whose hatred for you and all you stood for was predetermined by circumstance; and who doesn’t know that you know.

It’s not a question when you reply.

“Boss knows you’re a badge, agent.”

[youcantdateosmosisjones]

logan and the hobw genuinely have such a funny relationship to me

I 100% believe that logan is in his like mid-30s, and he's been putting up with his dumbass little sibling ON TOP of running a whole kingdom in the face of an eminent threat

If my 19/20-something year old younger sibling (who's been living in my house, completely free of all responsibilities) barged into my office one day and got sassy with me, I'd probably try to kill their annoying bf/gf too. I mean it's not the most orthodox way to try and teach responsibility, but this guy dgaf abt their feelings.

Dude's got an economic crisis, eminent doom, political unrest, and an entire nation to worry about. He dont got time to worry about where tf they went. Not entirely convenient for him, but he got bigger issues

-Well, up until it turns out they were staging a coup this entire time. Ion think he believed they had it in them tbh, but he respected it considering they won. Most unrealistic part of fable 3 was that he was pretty ok with admitting defeat to his younger sibling. but then again, meant he wouldn't be stuck with all the shit on his plate. Shiii, id step away too. Let them handle it, since they managed to get this far

And them he just leaves. Like "yeah nah sorry, i know i fucked up. you got it tho. im gone. dont burn the house down -✌️" "ight bye"

and i just know the hobw dgaf bout him neither. he wasn't a parental figure (that went to walter and jasper, once the hobl died- but i personally think they were too young to really even remember them). he was king above all else, really. Authority figure, yeah, but not someone they looked to for guidance and shi. So logan was just kinda... there. I mean he owned the house and signed their field trip permission slips, ig 😭. I think they looked up to him when they were younger (before realizing what an asshole he is), and loved him as the only family they got left. But yeah nah they were never super close, due to just being at different places and having different lives.

When he moves out it's just like "...you still gonna come around for the holidays?" "sure ig"

They should've had more interactions. I love these two sassy, stubborn mfs

[kimberlyannharts]

I liked the ending for what it was, I guess. It was alright but too many loose ends.

Rita's closure (she freaking went through a transformation in that canister!), the zombified Skull and Zack, (fuck them, I guess?) etc. Coinless Trini vanishes... with Kyia who I wasn't invested in (no shade)....

And obviously I'm a Jason Scott fan (character not actor) so I hoped that his Coinless version had more, at least a smidge (I know he's not your fave, no worries lol. I work with people suffering from PTSD so maybe that's why I have a soft spot for him). He kept his prison armor and they made a point to show it. I hoped he'd get some start to healing. Nothing story stealing mind you, no swooping in to take over, but goddammit throw him something...

And i will probably get some shit for this... I sort of hoped Drakkon would somehow resurrect and get a happier ending (what can i say... I've got a soft spot for the asshole). And happy, if weird, endings. I'm a softie...

But like with Coinless Jason (before his 'resurrection'), I know the impact is greater if he's actually dead...

I don't like or dislike the Solar Rangers or Hyperforce Rangers. I just wasn't as invested in them I guess. Too many Rangers on the field that left other characters out to dry that I was was more connected with....And wanted to know their fate...

However at the end Billy DID look badass in my opinion

Honestly while I would have liked if there was some indication Drakkon survived or could come back I'm not bothered by how there wasn't. Him and Ranger Slayer are by far the most iconic and popular creations from this run, so I'm sure we'll see them again one day. (Like they can do some bullshit "oh he died in the Grid so his spirit still lives on in there" or whatever - or even just ignore any explanation whatsoever depending on how we're doing canon/continuity stuff). My annoyance over Coinless Jason coming back didn't really have to do with the emotional impact of his death (there was none) it was more to do with the plot holes it opened up. I still say it would have been good to even get just a panel of the state of the Coinless World after everything was fixed, but frankly, with all the other nonsense I had to endure here, I'm glad they didn't go with my fear that he would get Drakkon's powers.

as for Future Billy, tbh he looked way too generic (and too much like Rogue Red Jason) for me to think he looked cool lol like i know some people clowned on Rogue Red Jason having bandages over his gloves - Billy having COMBAT BOOTS over his ranger boots is that times 100

[starheirxero]

The last laes episode was fucking wild-

I feel so bad for Lunar. I do definitely think, that Gemini's points were valid, but I do think they went a little too far with it?

Trauma is a lot more complicated than they think, and cannot simply be overcome, though they are very much in the right for calling him about his lack of process, considering his avoidence of dealing with his own problems!

The one thing that rubbed me wrong, is the way they call out his feelings towards Eclipse. Because yes, they contradict themselves, but that's not unusual for abuse victims. Eclipse is, in a way, still their brother, and a deep part still loves him, while another fears him. Yet another part just wants vengeance, because of how angry it all makes them.

There's also the whole "refusing to grow up" thing, which I feel is a lot more complicated!

-Stardust

YES!!! YES EXACTLY YOU GET ME ENTIRELY!!!

Like Gemini absolutely had valid points and a lot of those things were definitely what Lunar needed to hear (probably especially from Gemini since other character's delivery may have been too soft or too vague or maybe even too harsh).

But exactly what u said, there was like. some shade thrown towards them about their messy feelings towards Eclipse and I was just like hey man!! whadda hell!!

1) Like u said, that's not totally out of left field for abuse victims, and 2) tbh, if u ask me, having trauma with immediate family members is just kind of Like That?? Bc it's like yea they're family and you love them, but also damn they fucked you up bad, but also you want nothing more than to sink into their arms, but also you'd rather die than talk to them, but— etc etc in a sort of infinite loop. yk?

AND THE CHILDISHNESS THING YEAH. That's something I could make a whole post about, it works me soooo much but basically yea that is way more complicated than just "if ur not a kid then don't act like one and don't get mad if people treat you like a kid for acting like one" 😭😭😭

[turojo]

Thinking about the underground and what he knows regarding that 🤔 in his timeline and time away from Paldea he has fallen into teams and organizations as a contractor, by work, or as a intern. He has no regard to morals, only that they have very sophisticated workspaces and there’s work that keeps him engaged (and most villain spaces have the high tech juiced up labs don’t they LMAO)

I’ll write a more in-depth and better looking timeline but it follows like:

Early 18-20s: Intern at Dr. Fuji’s company on genetics and engineering. He worked on Mewtwo’s armor and knows/has contact with Giovanni at one point professionally. Mildly understands Rocket as a syndicate but he only focuses on the work really.

If any of the admins were old enough at the time or around Mewtwo’s lab at New Island to accompany Giovanni or check in his stead with progress they might’ve crossed paths with a young Turo at some point.

He was off the week the lab was kinda uh…blown up and massacred cause he had finals. Close call—

Post Paldea: In his field and w/ Sada probably as either newly weds or deep in their relationship, he has collabed with Aether Labs because of how close their study fall into each other. Wormholes, the astrophysics and theoretical physics play into potential time travel scenarios and an infinite energy source to create these scenarios because of dark matter and science science science.

He knows Lusamine and Mohn on a personal and professional level. Probably mildly keep in touch between projects, was sympathetic to when Mohn was lost in a wormhole incident and tries to get back in touch just to say “hey I’m not dead” when he comes out of his ten years of hiding.

Post Alola plot if an Aether or a sumo muse is in that: he knows only that there was some conflict and wormholes tears were in the atmosphere (probably readings from his own technology, he keeps track). Doesn’t know intimate details and tbh…he wouldn’t bat an eye? More like: huh. …but the device and work behind it was a success..! And cryostasis as well? That’s quite an achievement-

Post Area Zero Accident: Left the labs, Sada and Paldea before the incident that kills her and sets up the events. Works covert for ten years with a very low profile.

- Worked with NEO Plasma on the ray gun technology. Knows of Ghetsis, maybe even crossed paths or spoken from a professional distance but primarily worked with Colress since he was far more prominent as the “leader”. Left post when his work was done and contract stipulated. Wasn’t there for the end of the BW2 plot.

- Fell into Flare to work on their own technology and understanding the ancient technology of the flower death ray thing. Near the end of the ten year period and he was really in the personal wringer. Like I’m talking rock bottom, doesn’t care about himself or what his work was being used for. Worked directly with Lysandre and Xerosic most likely. Probably has met some of the admins.

Either found a way out of his contract or escaped when he realizes he wants to go back home and fix the life he left behind. This was probably just before the day the weapon was going to go off and slipped away during the chaos.

- and currently in Paldea dealing with the consequences of his actions :’)

Again can work or omit certain details for muses. Just plot w/ me 👍 One thing muses outside the nuclear cast will know was that the second regional professor has come back after being gone for so long or even considered dead to take over Sada’s duties who passed in some accident. The details aren’t too clear how and why.

Closer colleagues will know about his theoretical physics, mechanical engineering and teracrystal studies and Area Zero Labs in Paldea. The Time Machine nor are the paradox Pokémon are really known. Maybe some rumors of strange happenings.

They know there was a falling out between him and Sada and they separated work wise as well, that the program went defunct after an incident, she passed and he came back to fall back into where things were left off.

[3gremlins]

Elden Ring Tarot: Death (Ranni) ⬆️transformation, change, endings, transition ⬇️stagnation, decay

I felt the character of Ranni worked well for the death card which doesn't represent death PER SE, but rather the concept of change (sometimes drastic). In the game, her entire goal is to break the current cycle and break free from destiny (going so far as to not only orchestrate the murder of another being, but also to sacrifice her own body).

Tbh, there are several characters who are also trying to bring down the golden order (the current ruling faction/world order) but Ranni's the one trying to break free entirely from the cycle (a lot of the other characters want to replace it with their own version for the most part, or just kill the current ruling pantheon).  please do not repost | if you like my work and want to see more, consider becoming a patron! This piece is currently available as a coloring page to all patrons | prints will be available in my shop other cards: The Magician | Three of Swords

----Elden Ring Spoilers---

If you follow her questline and get her ending, you enter the Age of Stars (she's also heavily associated with the moon) so ofc I could not resist a moon/starscape! 

She's sitting atop the corrupted skull of godwyn the golden (who is transformed from "beautiful god" to a creepy monster who brings a death blight- corruption- to the lands between) with her feet resting on his original body's corpse. 

You can also see her original form (which you can find in game). They both have a rune of death inscribed into them- this was originally a fully round rune- so they each have one half essentially. The predominant lore theory is that Ranni inscribed her half of the rune into her own body, while the black knife assassins (whom she  hired) put the other half into godwyn.  The idea is that by doing so, she killed his soul but her flesh (if the rune was whole, it would entirely kill one person) in order to break the golden order and escape her own fate as an emperyean (a chosen potential successor to the golden order).  (if you're interested in more lore on this, i super rec smoughtown's videos)

I figured this all works for the death card, since death is usually depicted either walking or riding across a field of dead nobility (to show that no one escapes death/change) and often also has skulls/death imagery around it (despite the card not actually being that scary). In the game, godwyn's essence? what's left of him after having his soul killed anyway, manifests in melty/corrupted versions of his face/skull in the actual environment (on the backs of crabs, in the ground, etc) and also in the death blight/root. 

So I included those as framing elements (i went with the thorny vines instead of the death root itself mostly b/c that's the fx used when you get it in game and it reads better visually)

[vera-keller]

a conversation just now with @mrsgeorgeluz has reminded me to share with you these treats obtained from a two-day trip to aldbourne up in marlborough, wiltshire with @liebgottsjumpwings that we went on in march this year, so without further ado, here's our 2023 band of brothers aldbourne excursion report!

we started by taking a train up to oxford from london, drove further out to marlborough from park end station and followed this aerial photograph:

and this illustrated map, courtesy of the royal army service corps (as found from the aldbourne heritage center) and which, if our sources are correct, may have been drawn by pat christenson:

to the site where easy company set up their barracks back in 1943. our navigational abilities have, to our surprise, proven reliable. aldbourne is a very small village so the site wasn't far from the square, but it was a mildly frustrating walk interspersed with rain and beset by slippery gravel slopes BUT hi-ho silver bitches 😌

this is where the enlisted men and ncos lived in huts made of wood and brick and cinder blocks, constructed as part of a temporary encampment. these were described as "wood and quonset-type buildings with a potbelly stove in each and toilets outside" by don malarkey and tbh nobody loved them because the outdoor toilets apparently made everything smell like shit. the site was difficult to find at first and we used the shape of nearby roads and other infrastructure to roughly estimate its position but we found it and discovered that it is presently a football field.

unfortunately the rain picked up almost immediately when we got there and we did not bring adequate footwear, so we could not actually go onto the field and manually identify where each individual hut and building used to stand, as we originally planned to do. so we walked around the perimeter. only a handful of buildings from the encampment remain as most of them were removed by the village council after the war. one of the remaining buildings is the cookhouse. the other is a red cross hut, nicknamed the "nissen hut" by archaeologists and historians, which looked like this:

and which we did not have access to. at any rate i'm pretty sure it has been repurposed as a workshop.

we had lunch at the aldbourne post office and café,

aka downstairs from the room where dick winters and harry welsh were billeted!

here's dick's upstairs window overlooking part of the village square.

all of this is also on private property and the owners, who are also the proprietors of the café. according to the owners, various members of the band of brothers cast often make trips up here and i believe we missed peter youngblood hills (shifty powers) and nicholas aaron (popeye wynn) by a month or two.

then we decided that it was time for a pint. our first stop was the crown where unfortunately we did not take any photos, but it was the go-to pub for enlisted men. a short walk away is the blue boar aka the officers' club.

our last stop before we left had us going up to st. michael's church at the other end of the village green to pay our respects to the veterans buried there. we sat at the bench at the hilltop overlooking the village from across the cemetery. apparently this was dick winters's favourite spot to visit if he wanted some peace and quiet, and he wrote about it in his memoirs:

we were also invited to participate in the annual aldbourne excavation project by breaking ground heritage where archaeologists come by the former barracks site (aforementioned present-day football field) and dig for material culture. as the excavation took place in may and clashed with jules's thesis and my final exams, we were sadly unable to attend, but we did leave our contact details for next year's dig.

the aldbourne scenes in the hbo miniseries, by the way, weren't actually filmed in aldbourne. they were filmed in hambleden, buckinghamshire, which we might visit next year on our way back to london.

unlike the easy men, unfortunately we did not go on to invade fortress europa after leaving wiltshire. here we are:

:)

if you're thinking of making a trip to aldbourne yourself and want to know 1.) how to go about it without joining a tour group, 2.) what's the best way to get there or 3.) how to participate in the 2024 archaeological excavation project (where you'll definitely be seeing me), do not hesitate to get in touch with us. we may be a couple of silly geese but we're excited to share anything we know with you.

[londonspirit]

London, Take 1

Very first London trip in 2024 - one of at least four planned ones (maybe five depending on WHEN they re-home Macbeth.)

And boy, was it a great one. 

Friday noon was leaving time - and I can only recommend that time of day: airports are basically empty, flights are on time and people are less stressed. 

All very uneventful, meeting up C in London and off to the YHA Thameside - pretty far out but was the cheapest so… it’s a good place to stay (whether you still wanna do dorms which im too old now, or a private room; always worth checking if you’re on a budget!) 

Got caught in the rain for a bit but once we’ve dried off, we were off towards Battersea power station for the light installations. 

The weather Gods were merciful, no more rain for the rest of the trip so we could have a nice wander around, having dinner and learning that a fire alarm doesn’t really faze people that much at all - we were finished so we left but there were many that just stayed put O_O (was a FALSE alarm but still...O_O)

Since it got late that was about it for the Friday. 

Saturday morning we had a NT backstage tour planned. GUh, I love them sooo much. I’ve done so many by now and I still love to go behind the scenes of that huge place, and have people tell me all about it. This time we had Chelsea who did an incredible job - and they were so many people that asked just smart questions that we went a bit overtime. 

And we weren’t allowed into the Olivier because the NYE cast was in there, rehearsing!!! 

So we were in the same building as Michael freaking Sheen!!! (We didn’t manage to get tickets for that weekend beforehand - it was sold out as it was very first preview! But we already had planned to do stage door in the evening, just in case!) 

Anyhow, after the tour we were off to Richmond! Finally! I have been trying to get there for a while now. 

Gosh, it’s gorgeous there! And yes, of course my Ted Lasso loving heart was in Heaven to see it all: the pub, the park, the bench (which was sadly occupied), the street!!! *sighs happily* I love to be in places where beloved shows got filmed. 

And the riverside is soo pretty even though it was rather crowded. But then again, the weather was nice enough, even sunny at points. 

After a while we sat down near a muddy field, considering when to go to the theatre. Being the needing to plan woman I am, I checked the site to see how long the play goes. 

And there they were, two beautifully perfect seats next to each other in the middle of the circle. 

I stared at them, stared at my friend and started laughing. 

“Do you wanna go to the theatre tonight?” I asked once I could breathe again. 

“Huh?” she said. 

I showed her the site and she stared at it for like 30 seconds. 

“Can we make it back in time?” she asked wide-eyed. 

“Yes we can. And if we leave now, we even can have dinner before the show.” 

Now SHE started laughing and nodding wildly. 

So I took out my credit card and booked us tickets for NYE’s very first preview in the middle of a muddy field.

We then made our way back to London, had dinner and soon we sat down to watch Michael Sheen being amazing on stage!!! 

There were no obvious issues, the staging was pretty cool and Michael was BRILLIANT despite him being in his pj’s  and barefoot all play long! 

It was a bit weird that the curtain call was soo quick - i'm used to longer ones but with it being 1st preview it’s probably normal. They still got standing ovations so there’s that. 

Stage door was very calm; not too many people (less than I expected tbh), and all very collected. 

What was funny, that there was a person looking at me as if they know me. After a few moments of staring back and forth and them waving at me, I walked over. 

“What name do I call you?” I asked as I had absolutely no clue who they were (IM SORRY IM OLD!) 

“D. From the Rhys gig last year!” 

Only in London!!! *giggles* That was soo very nice to run into them again, we had such a blast at the Rhys gig, but sadly they’d left before I could get their socials! 

We chatted for a moment and then Michael came out! 

*sighs* He’s sooo lovely!!! And so kind. He was rather tired which didn’t stop him from taking pics, writing autographs and chatting with everyone. (He had indeed cold feet, literally; I asked him *hehe*) 

We told him how amazing he was, got our pics and autos, stuck around for a bit (I might have told Anna who waited for him how lovely she looked at the Baftas!) and then he was done, wished us a good night and lead Anna back inside for the party, I guess *lol* 

We were very happy when we made our way back to the hostel (even though the stupid bus didn’t come the 2nd day in a row!) 

For Sunday we only had the Jason and Paul gig in the evening… and a Tower visit I surprised my friend with! She’s never been, but I knew how badly she wanted to see the Crown Jewels so I got tickets for us, got her there under the pretense of meeting a friend and then just walked inside!! HER FACE was fucking priceless!!! 

And DAMN, it’s really worth the price!!! At least for us. Never been INSIDE before, but if you like history and beheadings, this is for you!!! I LOVED the tour, the kids that were in it were amazed and a constant source of amusement to our guide! 

I LOVED the Ravens! Getting this close to them without them being fazed at all, was cool! We spent about 3 hours in there before it was time for food and then heading toward the gig! 

God, I missed live shows!!! Especially Jason and Paul’s - they’re always so much fun!!! 

Still not over the fact that my last one was FIVE years ago; also in London and also around that time of year! 

I had bought VIP tickets just BECAUSE and it was worth the insanity that are these two on a stage just dorking around. 

They played a few songs and then started one somebody had requested during the tour. 

I sat there, confused because I knew it somehow… but it wasn’t one of theirs. 

And then it hit!!! It was a FLIGHT OF THE CONCORDS song!!! One I had just seen/heard a few days ago on my OFMD twitter!!!! 

I couldn’t get it together; my friend thought I’d’ve lost the last bit of my sanity, and I couldn't stop cackling!!! 

It was soo hilarious!!! I mean, Jemaine and Bret did that for a living but Jason and Paul’s faces while trying to get through ‘Business Time’ was sooo worth the money!!!! 

Still not over that!!! 

The general gig was as awesome as always!!! It’s funny tho how the love has shifted: used to be Jason who pulled the fans, nowadays it’s Paul!!! My boy’s come a long way! 

We stuck around after, mainly because I wanted to say HI to Paul. But he’s in HIGH demand. 

Still… when I walked past him and he saw me, his whole face lit up! It’s always nice to be recognized by your ‘stars’. Plus, we ‘know’ each other for more than a decade now so yeah. 

I finally got my hug (and MAN, his hugs are the greatest, especially since there’s so much more shoulders there now *giggles*). 

We chatted a bit, then he left for a bit, came back, I introduced my friend to him, we got our pics and more hugs and another brief chat (which is harder these days, too many people want a piece of him *hehe*) before we said good night and headed back ‘home’! 

Always soo good to see them boys! 

Monday was leaving day for my friend; we had a wander around before it was time for her to leave for the airport, and for me to head towards the Old Vic to catch up with an old friend! It was brief as she’s busy as hell these days, but it was soo good to see her and here’s hope the next meet-up will be a bit longer!  

After that, I was off to see my beloved Victoria Palace Theatre again!!! I’ve sat in basically all seats by now, boxes, royal and grand circle, slip seats but NEVER in the stalls. 

So yeah, 2nd row, smack in the middle!!! ARGH!!! SOO GOOD!!! I love that stage sooo freaking much and seeing it this close was AMAZING!!! Totally new cast but two! I squeed and scared people when I read the cast list in the foyer: Dom was still there: his Washington is sooo good and I was soo happy to see him again!!! 

What made this evening even more wonderful was the adorably excited French man next to me. His very first time and he was sooo hyped! Once it started he had a REALLY hard time to control himself - his joy made my night!!! 

After I sent him around to stage door and after picking up my things joined him; sadly Dom had already left but I played photographer for the french so he got his pics with some of the cast before we said good night - he called meeting me ‘very delightful’ which was 👀!!! Never been called that before!!! 

One last sleep, and I was off home again. Thankfully I’ll be back very soon so saying goodbye wasn’t too hard. 

As always London proved that it’s the most incredibly city in the world - I can’t wait to come back in June!!! 

And this concludes my rather long winded tale of my first London trip in 2024!!!

[mistahgrundy]

IRL - went outta town

ok so I was just up in Denton for a wedding. Very nice wedding, I wore a blazer, which was so nice to do. I hardly ever have a reason to dress up. Lots of fun. there's probably a photo of my husband pretending to hit me with a chair in the reception hall lol, I hope I get to see that eventually. We couldn't hear shit in there so we resorted to mime humor. violent mime.

I had hella travel anxiety because I uhhhh I don't like to travel!! I mean I have health problems and a cat I miss when I leave and it's tornado season and uh yeah. it's 90% illogical with some little for reals things thrown in.

So I didn't sleep at all the night before we left.

Then on the way up we had to drive past a tornado warned storm. TO BE CLEAR, we were in no danger. Absolutely none. We were on i35 and the storm was out kinda northwest of Killeen. Up by Gatesville. And if you're familiar with central Texas that should give you some idea of how far away it was. The red warning box wasn't yet touching where we were. But still I tried to see it from the highway to no avail. it's been a very long time since I've actually SEEN a tornado, and that last time was in Ohio when I was a little child.

It was fun to joke about flooring it when we got to Jarrell. Sorry Jarrell. You are central Texas's Moore. That's some person who watches a lot of weather related videos gallows-humor for you!

anyway it was a pretty uneventful drive tbh. It didn't even rain until we got up to Fort Worth basically, somehow. So I didn't get to roll down the windows on the south side to smell all the bread and beer factories.

Sidenote: when I was a little kid one of our field trips at school was to the Mrs. Bairds bread factory. I barely remember it.

Our hotel room in Denton was one of those weird ones that people can live in, so it had a little kitchen and a couch. Extended stay I guess. Those are nice but they are FULL of divorced dudes. Divorced men in Punisher themed trucks as far as the eye can see. When we pulled up Punisher truck guy was BBQing in his truck bed!! And later on when I was setting up the Roku we saw a wifi signal named Punisher. His very existence has owned us.

I did not sleep. Bed make back hurt. Weird room weird bed weird sounds.

At the wedding I had one job and it was to be the first to stand up when the bride entered so everyone else would see me stand and also stand and no one stood up!!! it took like... an agonizing amount of time for people to realize oh right standing. damn it guys. Oh well. Also around that time I realized I forgot to put on deodorant that morning. x_x I checked later though and it was fine, no smell.

A whole day running on two days of no sleep and barely eating I thought for sure the last night I will get some sleep. Surely! But no. I just laid there again for 8 hours like. ah. ok. cool. my brain is broken.

3 days of no sleep.

I bought a little metal sculpture for my yard in West at Slovacek's. It looks like a little piranha plant from mario 3. The little ones that would hop around. kinda.

So here I am woken up from a little 3 hour nap at home. Still exhausted.

Seth was telling me about Frenchy's when we were in Denton. I didn't grow up there so I don't know about this denton institution! There's all these little parked food lookin trucks around town that sport american flags and are all painted different. I passed a smiley face one and a remember our vets one and one about volunteering. It's just some cleaning company or something like that. Frenchy's! Some old Italian guy runs it named Frenchy. Then on the way out of town there was a billboard from Frenchy reminding us to get vaccinated. Done and Done, Frenchy.

Not Frenchy, just some ultra Texas looking old couple I snapped a secret photo of on the way out of Denton. His hands weren't grey, my phone's camera was just having a bit of a time.

Dude's rockin' a kerchief to the applebee's

[phantomoftheorpheum]

I thought it was so weird how simon said that someone must've died down there since they can talk to each other, when they know that maddie died there??? like what?

I think that Simon was referring to that specific room (if I understood the basement layout correctly, they went through a door from the room/area where Maddie died into some kind of nuclear fallout shelter in the school). Since Simon couldn't see Maddie just from stepping out of Ms. Fields' room and into the hall, I think he meant that someone else (besides Maddie) must have died in the room next to the one she died in because he could still see her. The thing that initially made me suspicious of Simon (and hasn't entirely left) is how he seems to have a lot of unrequited feelings for Maddie, and he's shown irritation/suspicion of others who get close to her (like, maybe I read it wrong, but it was odd to me that he seemed initially more upset that Maddie didn't call him when she had her accident, than a real fear the Mr. Anderson's behavior was predatory in some way, which seemed like a weird detail to focus on), and his initial grief in the first episode read like potential guilt to me, but that being said, there's a lot of stuff he's done while following Maddie's instructions that would make him look potentially more guilty for her murder, so if he is trying to cover things up, I don't understand why he would do any of that. I don't think it's impossible for him to be the murderer (I actually think it could be a really interesting twist, depending on how it's executed), but I would definitely need a solid explanation for some of his behavior to make sense.

All that being said, I do think the show has been pretty unclear on the boundaries of death and how it interacts with the spaces where Maddie is visible. We know Simon can see her in Mr. Anderson's classroom and Ms. Fields' classroom because those were once the guidance counselor's offices (where Rhonda died). He can see her at the football stadium (tbh I was a little unclear on how much of the stadium that encompassed) because of Wally's death. He can see her in the cafeteria because of Charley. Presumably he can see her in the theater (though I'm not sure we've had a scene with them together in the theater?) because of the girl who died from the falling light. I'm not totally sure about the bus stop? Is that because of the band kids? We also know that he can see her in that shop room where the car is, and I don't think we've gotten an explanation of who died there (unless they're counting the rat, but like... if we're counting animals, you'd think that would cover a lot of ground, so I assume we're not counting the rat)? They also talked in that outdoor/concrete area (covered outdoor basketball court, maybe?) with the picnic tables in episode 2- no clue who died there. And, unless I missed it, we don't know where on campus Mr. Martin, Dawn, or the other two kids who are always around, but never say anything, died yet. You'd think that might be something Maddie would have asked people, because she knows those are the only places she can talk to Simon. It would be nice to understand the rules of the boundaries caused by the deaths. Rhonda died in a room that was divided into two rooms, but both of those rooms still allow Simon to see Maddie, but the moment he steps into the hall, he can't. But then Wally died on the actual football field, but Simon I think could still see Maddie in the stands? I would love some clarification on how that all works.

Anyway, sorry for this incredibly long response- I just really enjoy thinking through the logic/rules of a world, and that one is an interesting one. I am currently on team "Simon is not my #1 suspect, but he is definitely not off the board entirely" atm, because even though I do actually like him, just liking a character is far from enough to clear them.

EDIT: Also, if Simon had killed Maddie, that would be a bit of an explanation as to why he can see her, when no one else seems to have been able to make contact on either side. So far, the only thing they've come up with is like how strong his connection is to her? But why did Mr. Figueroa never see Charley? Why did Wally's mom never see him? We don't know a ton about those relationships (and arguably Wally's mom had a poor connection to him), but it would be an explanation as to why Simon and Maddie are different from those other relationships where the those characters were on school grounds repeatedly and didn't see a lost loved one. But 🤷‍♀️ I could probably talk myself into being suspicious of almost anyone.