#V: If We Were Normal

[stbot]

undefined

Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies ↳Cynthia & Lydia

[sage-nebula]

I loved the new IDW Sonic issue! Too bad I know without looking that people are going to be stupid and awful about Lanolin 🫠

[hella1975]

we may have lost another one to the bisexual hotgirl and straight loserboy agenda but trust i am fighting it comrades 🫡

[tallymali]

i constantly think about how at my besties wedding, her little brother said he was gonna bring some girl as his plus one because he was “working on stealing her from her current boyfriend” but that obviously didnt work out so he ended up bringing some random 60 year old man as his plus one instead? and neither of them spoke to anyone for the whole day??

[akuma-tenshi]

HEAR ME OUT.

[imminent-danger-came]

4x02 Fallen Stars

Hmmmmmmmm.

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

killed it at nerf wars tonight. I have prescription plastic lenses, impeccable aim, and no fear. I may get hit in the process but I'm taking more down with me when I go

[talentforlying]

☎️ 👀

day 2.

' ey, luv. just wanted to 'ear your voice. '

low, raspy, tired. just the sort of thing you'd expect from a late-night caller, spouting cheap lines from soppy B-movies with titles along the lines of no place like home for the holidays. a little more easy-breezy casual than you'd expect from someone cuddled up to an ansaphone.

' best be keepin' safe, an' all. tell me not t'cause trouble, you're the bleedin' poster child for it. how m'i supposed to keep from gettin' bored without you around, eh? '

the rustle of sheets as he stretches, sighs. brief, content silence, like an audible glow at the end of the line.

' don't make fun of me f'i say i miss you already. i do. i 'ope whatever it is you're doin' works and it en't hard, an' you end up back 'ere before i open my eyes in the morning. f'not, you just drop us a line, yeah, an' i'll come by to 'elp. wherever it is you are. i'll find a way. '

it's quiet again, but not silent. the creak of a mattress, the pad of bare feet on wood, the pouring of a drink. humming, soft and absent-minded. a sip, and a sigh. a smack of lips. sharing a late night with her, even when she's not around to hear.

' right. i'll let you go, then. you be good, now. '

day 12.

' oi, i know a couple days is relative to you n'i, but at least drop a line at the end of week one, yeah? so i know you're still breathin'? '

light and humorous, syllables tripping in the dizzy spirals of sleeplessness. there's crashing in the background, like someone's going to town on a hunk of metal with a wrench. it fades slightly with a shuffle of shoes in dirt, as though he's belatedly realized the potential for eardrum damage and stepped away.

' been workin' me tail off over 'ere, chasin' ghost stories. been some weird shite with the veil between worlds recently, gettin' thinner in places. nothin' cataclysmic, mind, easy fixes all. but i wouldn't mind havin' my best girl at me side, one'o these times. smooths things over when there's a less breakable pretty face around. '

the banging in the background stops, followed by a vague holler. a laugh barks into the receiver, half-mischief, half-mocking.

' chas sends 'is love. as best he can do, anyways, you know chas. try t'dig the one stick out of his arse, all you'll wind up with is two — geroff! '

the scuffled sounds of wrestling take up the line, phone speaker knocking between fingers and furniture as scouse and london overlap incoherently in a battle for dominion of speech. it's almost a full minute before a hasty ' alright, alright, fuck! ' that signals surrender ( point to chas ) and the clatter subsides, voice returning to the speaker with a scornful huff.

' big pillock. anyway, you 'eard him, love and all that. be well, yeah? chuck us a good word when you've got the chance, you know it'd give me peace'o mind an' all. see you soon, i hope. '

day 52.

' c'mon, answer. ' curt, stressed, stern. teetering on a cliff-edge between detached and despairing. ' fucking answer, lilly. whatever you've gotten yerself into, whatever's happened, i need to 'ear you say you're fine. or you're not fine, or you're bloody well awful, or you 'ate my guts and have fucked off to switzerland to become a nun. something. give me something. '

a sharp, shuddering breath in. the thud of a fist against a solid surface from close-range: table, maybe, from the accompanying rattle and the slither of paper to the floor. pacing steps chase more haphazard sounds across wood, like rolling bottles and the skitter of scattered pencils.

' just give me one word. ' there's no hard edge to that one, no stoic pretense; he sounds lonely. he sounds like he's grieving. ' please. just . . . pick up the bloody phone. give me one word, an' i won't call again. '

long, long silence. the sharp snikt of a lighter flicking open and on, and the accompanying sizzle of paper catching a little too close to the speaker. a deep breath in, a harsh one out.

then a frustrated growl, and the crunch of glass.

day 120.

' "gone for a few days". ' it's acid, chemical backwash from a long night and a few bevs and four months of radio silence. he sounds bitter, sounds scraped-thin — sounds a few bottles off from making friends with the toilet seat. ' cosmic bleedin' check-up. i found yer fucking note, y'know. doesn't make it any better. you should've told me to my bloody face, 'cos this? this is . . . this is. '

clink and clatter of glass rolling, a wordless snarl with no bite. long, steady silence, with the soft rustle of hands in hair.

' haven't stopped looking, but i can't find you. you know i can't find you, don'tje? did you plan it like that? to just up n'leave and i'll never see you again? that's fucked, lilly. you know that's fucked. '

a low, aching laugh, angry and desperate and beyond anything else, exhausted, and the clumsy thud of fingers seeking out the end button that almost drowns out the rest:

' do you care? '

day 164.

nothing spoken; just the soft sounds of movement. quiet breaths, shaky at the ends, unsteady. too loud to be self-soothing, too quiet to be shameless.

there's a few hitching starts, like he's going to speak. a swallow here, a half-formed consonant there. it comes to nothing.

the call comes to nothing.

day 260.

' i'm done. '

this voice is flat. hollowed out of anything and everything he might have wanted to give her. something's been lost between this call and the last, something irreplaceable, something ripped and carved and flayed out of him. even the shiver of loss that threatens to trip his tongue is muted, like it's coming from thousands of fathoms below the sea, where mortal things either evolve under pressure or crush like aluminium cans.

he didn't evolve.

' this is maudlin. it's not doing any good. you're just as dead as my s — ' a muted sound, choking on something unvoiced. a swallow so loud it pops in the speaker. he returns compacted, composed, syllables strung so crisp and tight there's no way for emotion to creep between the lines. ' . . . and if you're not, you made your decisions. i'm not in 'em. so let's pack it in and quit while we're ahead, yeah? before you ruin me pretty speech and pick up the phone. '

this silence builds on itself like static: longer than all the rest, and heavier. weighing down, and down, and down.

finally, after a breadth of time so long it goes immeasurable, an empty little chuckle.

' yeah. s'what i thought you'd say. '

day 300.

340. 350. 360.

day 364.

a drink and a note slide along the bar top. he looks up.

he won't look anywhere else for hours.

@asteritm / MIDNIGHT CALLS

[wonder-worker]

It is difficult to argue that [Edward IV] was wrong in what he did. His advancement of [Richard of Gloucester] can be criticized only by those who believe that the only good nobleman is an impotent nobleman. Medieval kings did not think in these terms. Gloucester’s power was valuable because it ensured royal control of a significant and troublesome part of the country. Nor can Edward be blamed for not foreseeing the ends to which Gloucester might put his power. The duke had been a loyal upholder of the house of York, a central figure in Edward’s polity*; there was no obvious reason why he should not occupy the same role under Edward V. In this respect, precedent was on Edward’s side. Previous minorities had seen squabbles over the distribution of power, but no young king had ever been deposed. Even royal uncles traditionally drew a line at that, something which explains why Gloucester’s actions seemed so shocking to contemporaries and, perhaps, the reason why he got away with it so easily in the short term.

In the immediate sense, Gloucester must take final responsibility for what happened in 1483. However one explains the motives behind his actions, things happened because he chose that they should: there is nothing in the previous reign which compelled him to act as he did.

-Rosemary Horrox, "Richard III: A Study of Service"

*Richard was also, yk, Edward's own brother who had been entirely loyal to him during his life. The problem wasn’t that Edward trusted Richard (why wouldn't he?), the problem is that Richard broke that trust in a horrible and unprecedented way to usurp a 12-year-old. Please understand the difference.

[lesbiansanemi]

God nothing hits like early bleach, the substitute shinigami arc and rukia’s execution arc are just. Ugh. Something about the crunchy-ass early 2000s-ness of it that the rest of the series lost (not just animation wise but aesthetic wise), when there was still hope that all the potential would be capitalized on, idk, it was just fun and getting to fall in love with all the characters because pretty much every single one introduced was great and engaging. I just really really wish the series had kept that early vibe that it started losing once the visoreds were introduced, they got the last little tail end of it. As soon as we got to the heuco mundo arc this all vanished and it’s so upsetting, the series just lost a lot of its personality, if that makes sense, I wish it had kept it so badly

[newervegas]

okok sleep deprived BUUT i think i have the j//jk verse figured out so far!!!!!!

three clowns atm!! shiori (g*ojo), minako (t*oji + ch*oso) and kanna (n*anami) !!!!!!! 🌸💕

minako is g/ojos older sister (by a few years she graduated college and was in her first year as a teacher in ye olde flashback era of when g*ojo and besties were in school) she was married and thus and still into today she uses her late spouses surname mizuhara.

shiori is either n//aoyas twin but they weren’t really close as kids and aren’t close now so there isn’t much to that?? (or maybe they were but now its strained due to yk succession who gets to be heir i am not quite sure about that yet!! oo it would give s//uccesiion but make it j//jk OO!!!!!) ORR she’s the older sib of m*ai and m*aki?? and still candidate of heir (?) in that as well?)

BUT ANYWAY..!!!! she was an old classmate of g/ojo and the besties (was maybe in either his year or n/anami and kannas year?) AND BESTEST BUDS. its giving childhood sweethearts to lovers yk? CUUTE.

fast forward t*oji passes….ish. right she and him after they grad they raise her nephew together (he even has a room at her apartment they’ve been SUUPER married but never got together what gives yk?? ILL EXPLAIN 💀) so her career skyrocketed (as an actress?? model? both????) and so things got busy BUUT like they’ve baaasically been living together and raising two youngins (minako and t*oji have a daughter aya <3) they hang out like ALL THE TIME……. and yet not married 💀

(but i mean thats not to say they’ll never yk *giggles* shes taking a year off of to help out and support m*egumi at his first year with goj 🥀🤧 SUPER MARRIED PARENTS!!) theyve alsoo been very invested the last decade or so with getting two of their besties together ever since n*anami said he was interested in her since like forever and never told them about it but swore to never tell her about it so theyve been trying to subtly *wheeze* set them up 🥀🤡

WHICH LEADS ME TO KANNAAA so she’s the granddaughter to the principal of the k*yoto campus and she transferred to tokyo so not to have the rep as “principals kid” (she still did alas 💀✨🤧) and possibly get special treatment bc shes related to one of the administrators. her curse technique she uses (its like c*assia in r*ogue trader-ish seeing emotions, curses and resonances as colors and swipes of paint and swipes of a paintbrush !!) and its helpful as she is a psychotherapist these days for sorcerers !!!!!!! 🌸 very much on the outside cool and collected “has her stuff together.” meanwhile that mask hides behind a hot mess teehee <3 also parties a lot chronic partner drags shiori to all of her after parties and galas and suggests kanna “tags along” so she can party 🥀😌 the girls are thriving!!!!!!!!

she didn’t think anything of nan and in fact likely didn’t even know he existed let alone has had a childhood harbored crush on her 🥀💀 ……. and then they reunite when they’re set up together in ep9 TEEHEE (everyone (g*ojo and shiori) cheers they’re brains for suggesting she aid them HUUUGE) she had planned only to be there for the exchange event and then go back to things buuuut teehee n*anami like kanna fell HARD (everyone’s thrilled especially g*ojo and shiori ndjxxh) and thus decided to take a transfer to be in t*okyo HEHE.

SO GOLDFISH BRAIN their curses!! minako (dream walking/weaving), shiori (pied piper if i make her an actress she doesn’t do musicals or play instruments UNLESS there’s curses in her midst bc she can control them and people in the vicinity with her ability (like meat puppets 🥀🤧 BUUT if i made her a model people already would expect her not to sing so i mean it would be convenient??) and kanna was listed earlier!!

(also when g*ojo and shiori finally DO get together everyone was like ????? we thought you both already were?? and they were like 🥀🧍‍♀️🧍👁️✨😶🫨)

BONUS TRACK VERSION: so nan and kan begin as more of a fwb but it doesn’t last im thinking bc teehee <3 BUUT not before shiori stopped by kans place for something and noticed…… something of nanamis there 🥀💀 (like a tie or jacket of his or something yk?) BUT THE WAY SHIO BOLTSSSS TO DELIVER THE NEWS very had to be ✨ so normal ✨ around them lest ye aforementioned parties are made aware that they know 🌸💕🫨🥴

[cthulhu-with-a-fez]

yoooo I remember reading varjak paw as a kid. I honestly don't remember much about it other than his like spinning(?) cat fighting technique (???)

HE SUPER DID HAVE THAT, god, slow time moving circles shadow walking has been stuck in my head literally since elementary school, the VIBES of that whole book were absolutely impeccable

i remember being scared shitless by the Gentleman's pair of black not!cats and just absolutely hit by a truck about the

"I Am Very Well Thank You Please"

'stuffed toys' reveal, the ILLUSTRATIONS just. WHOO. OKAY. i feel absolutely zero compunctions putting this one up there on the "short stories you read that alter your brain chemistry" shelf tbqh

apparently there was a second one, which i didn't know about until i tripped over it at a library book sale and you bet your ass it came home with me, i still haven't read it yet but like. [long string of eyes emojis]

[hella1975]

me and my dad just sat in the car talking animatedly about the dangers of censorship and biological essentialism respectively all while listening to radiohead

[b0nelessdoodles]

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

Ain't got anything that festive but I do have Shadow Thrall Wilfree! :D This was the final fate of my dnd character and it was an absolute blast to play monster stat-block for a change~ o7 to my guy he ain't recovering from this one

[kresnikcest]

*holds head in hands* victor saying that his world is lara and elle. julius saying that his world is ludger and rollo. ludger and elle who are the deciding factors in whether victor or julius get to see those worlds become reality 😭

[palms-upturned]

.