#WINGS short film 1

[irishhorse-blog]

BTS(방탄소년단) WINGS Short Film #1 BEGIN

Ah, HYYH. I just can’t quit you.

[aricastmblr]

7 años de Jungkook - Begin

BTS (방탄소년단) WINGS Short Film #1 BEGIN

https://youtu.be/yR73I0z5ms0

Jungkook - Begin

BTS (방탄소년단) WINGS Short Film #1 BEGIN

https://youtu.be/yR73I0z5ms0

[devildomwriter]

Raphael Birthday Special 100 Fun Facts

1. Raphael enjoys coming-of-age sports dramas

2. Raphael wishes the war were forgiven rather than it never happening, as evidenced in his ideal hallucinations in season 4

3. Raphael was so close to Lucifer and his brothers that everyone assumed he would join Lucifer’s side in the celestial war

4. Raphael, when having to deal with Michael, sometimes wishes he’d just followed Lucifer

5. Raphael was the youngest angel ever to be promoted to Seraph

6. Simeon claims that Raphael is scarier than any demon when he has a spear in his hand

7. Out of all the brothers, Taphael seems to have a soft spot for Belphegor

8. Raphael chased Asmodeus with his spear after learning Asmo had snuck off to the human world to party

9. The brothers would often rip and tear their clothes while running from Raphael so Raphael learned to patch and repair clothes eventually making it a hobby

10. Not knowing that Luke was compared to a Chihuahua, Raphael sewed a Chihuahua patch onto one of Luke’s belonging

11. Raphael is unable to read the room and caused Satan to flip out after comparing him to Lucifer

12. Raphael never let Mammon in his room in the Celestial Realm as he was worried about germs and other things

13. Raphael has a very unrefined palette

14. Raphael loves Solomon’s cooking

15. Not knowing how others feel about Solomon’s cooking, Raphael made Luke eat Solomon’s food so he’d grow big and strong

16. Raphael did not notice when his hand caught fire during an obstacle course climb

17. Raphael is an amazing singer

18. Raphael was often asked by the brothers to sing to them as they enjoyed it so much

19. When Belphegor got lost in a tree in the Celestial Realm it was Raphael who found and rescued him

20. Luke claims Raphael scolds the brothers so much because he genuinely cares about them

21. As a prank the brothers once replaced the sugar with salt in a cookie recipe but Raphael enjoyed it so much he asked them to make more

22. Mammon once hid a frog in a book to prank Michael but it was Raphael who stumbled into the prank and he demands no one bring it up

23. When Simeon became human it was Raphael who continued to check on him in the human world to make sure he was okay

24. Raphael is described as being meticulous, methodical, and extremely strict

25. Raphael is the one stuck looking after Michael and his ridiculous demands

26. Raphael’s official birthday is September 29th, making him a Libra

27. Raphael is one of the strongest fighters in the Celestial Realm

28. Raphael’s official job is a Hit-Man for the Celestial Realm

29. Raphael does have wings in his angelic form, as Mammon once tried to sell bird feathers to the lesser angels, claiming they were Raphael’s

30. Raphael is the angel that Michael trusts the most

31. Raphael is one of the most respected angels in the Celestial Realm

32. Raphael is worried that Michael may want to attend RAD

33. When Michale snuck off to the Devildom disguised as Raphael, Raphael took over all of his duties

34. Raphael knows Solomon as the man who fought the Devildom all on his own

35. Raphael was the first of the new characters to make a move on MC

36. Raphael starred in a short film Satan made

37. Raphael asked Solomon to create a camera that would always take pictures from the best angle

38. Raphael accidentally saved everyone from certain death when he ate all of the food Solomon had made as a surprise

39. Raphael believe everyone is very kind and generous when they offer him their portions of Solomon’s cooking

40. Raphael mastered Kung-fu just by watching movies

41. The only thing Raphael said in his introduction to RAD as a new exchange Student was “Hello.”

42. Raphael used to drink heavy with Lucifer and Michael

43. Raphael doesn’t care how food tastes as long as it looks appetizing

44. Raphael keeps all his important keys on a Zombie Iguana keychain Luke gave him

45. Raphael has the power to call forth a rain of spears from the heavens

46. Raphael would usually punish the brothers by calling down his spears upon them

47. Whenever Raphael would chase around one of the brothers with a spear, the other brothers would gang together to go fight him

48. Raphael nearly smited a demon with his spears when he thought he was being ignored

49. Raphael believes Luke is a shining example of what an angel ought to be

50. Raphael enjoys watching true-crime

51. Raphael worked with Satan and Barbatos to surround a sleeping Belphegor with spears and crime tape to recreate a scene from their favorite show

52. Raphael worked together with Mephistopheles to throw a Christmas party

53. Raphael believes a few spears is an acceptable replacement for a Christmas tree

54. Raphael dropped his Student handbook while chasing Mammon for pulling a ridiculous prank on him. When MC gave it back he was so grateful he offered to help them with anything they needed

55. When the laundry machine overflowed with suds, Raphael didn’t know what to do so he called down his spears upon it

56. Raphael believes Simeon is a handful

57. Raphael’s immediate answer to stopping a problem is to call down his spears

58. Raphael has to retold the laundry after Solomon does it so it will look better and seems distressed when he is called away and Solomon is left on his own.

59. Raphael praised Mephistopheles when he saved Luke, likely the first time he’d complimented a demon

60. Raphael’s excuse for always calling down spears on the brothers is they were “simply too unruly”

61. Raphael once went sightseeing in the Celestial Realm with Lucifer but they recall the most memorable part being Michael’s face when they forgot to buy souvenirs

62. Raphael believes most Devildom products look dodgy and is concerned by the amount of skulls

63. Raphael enjoys demonus

64. Raphael prefers quiet places and if you cannot find him he is somewhere quiet

65. When Belphegor was attempting to make Raphael smile he didn’t until Belphegor gave up and feel asleep as it reminded him of the old days

66. It’s hard to decipher what Raphael is thinking since he doesn’t talk much

67. Raphael often helps Luke study

68. Raphael is offended if MC accidentally mistakes him for Michael as he believes Michael is a socially inept weirdo

69. When a chimera attacked Simeon, Raphael was so enraged he immediately sought vengeance

70. It is said Raphael rarely smiles

71. Michael and Lucifer are the only people Raphael is said to respect

72. The room in Purgatory Hall Raphael stays in used to be used as a storage room by Leviathan

73. When Raphael is in a dream world where the brothers are back in the celestial realm he refused to wake up until Lucifer was summoned to bring him back

74. Whenever the brothers would ask Raphael to play with them he would deny them by telling them if they had time to play they had time to pray

75. Raphael is said to have a snarky attitude to the point Lucifer used to find him unpleasant to be around

76. No one is safe from Raphael’s harsh remarks as he even insults Michale who, he deeply respects

77. Raphael used to scold Beelzebub for his lack of control of his powers

78. When asked about his level of cooking, Simeon tells MC it’s better not to know

79. When Raphael attempts complicated recipes he causes chaos in the kitchen to the point Luke started screaming in fear

80. Raphael is a sleepy drunk and if he has too much he can fall asleep mid-sentence

81. Raphael has an eye for detail

82. Raphael sometimes does not notice anything in his surrounding, once not even realizing Belphegor was speaking with him

83. Raphael ignores non-verbal cues

84. Raphael believes Satan is so similar to Lucifer is uncanny

85. Raphael quickly noticed torn clothes or loose threads as he immediately noticed when MC’s shirt had frayed and fixed it with great skill

86. When they went to a concert together Raphael learned all the lines beforehand and everyone enjoyed hearing him sing while he enjoyed singing with MC

87. Raphael owns the Peeking-Out-From-Behind-a-Pole Diavolo Cup-cutie

88. When they swapped rooms Raphael seemed confused that Simeon spent the entire night trying to clean up his room

89. Raphael takes meticulous notes in his Student handbook, highlighting pages, leaving sticky notes and more to help him study

90. When solomon got an extremely comfortable sofa, Raphael warned against it as anyone without extreme self control may laze about in it the entire day, but it quickly called out by Simeon for having fallen victim to it

91. Raphael requests dishes from Solomon

92. Raphael enjoys Moe Moe Animal cake, Stewed Orthrus, Death’s Door hot sauce, and food with flavors too strong for most people to handle

93. Raphael made outfits for his cursed doll after seeing Leviathan do so. Everyone says the outfits he made were very cute.

94. Michael asked Raphael for so many souvenirs when he went on vacation that Simeon and MC had to help him get them all as he barely made a dent in the list even with his arms full

95. Raphael prefers getting souvenirs with Logos, that way everyone knows where you’ve been

96. When Solomon accidentally froze Raphael’s demonus, Raphael seemed so sad that Solomon immediately poured him another glass

97. When assigned to make thank you cards for his friends, Raphael made everyone the exact same card and was forced to redo them

98. When Raphael is really enjoying himself he will start humming

99. Raphael says he could spend days in the the most expensive Devildom boutique due to his enjoyment inspecting all the high quality material used

100. Raphael is not good at doing his own makeup, it was described as a mess on his face

[xiao-hudie]

a non extensive list of gjm's cinematic universe (tm) references (excluding recurring actors bc that would actually take all day)

starring: wuliang (2020), yin yang master: dream of eternity (2020), my journey to you (2023), fangs of fortune (2024)

in my journey to you (2023), the concept of the wuliang heat is something that was mentioned in his 2020 short film wuliang albeit in a different form (无量流火 vs 无量心经). even the sword wielder body tattoo is similar to the one we see in wuliang.

in fangs of fortune (2024) in ep 1 we get a callback to gong shangjue and shangguan qian's epic romance in a scene that very closely mimics one of the scenes in mjty. we hear the gsj x sgq theme music in the background and they even mention the bay flower (another name for laurel) in the fof scene.

(on rewatch, i literally gasped when i realised the dude e shou was seducing was the piece of shit that started the riot against zhuo yichen in tianxiang pavilion in ep 25)

as many people have pointed out, zhuo yichen's wings in fof are very reminiscent of boya's wings in yin yang master: dream of eternity (2020). it's even got a similar(ish) context; one of the Boyfriends temporarily obtains wings to fight against the Big Bad. (even the wing designs are pretty similar)

this One Specific line both zhuo yichen and po xiao (wuliang) say after their boyfriends die (or supposedly die):

and

while what they say isn't completely the same, the sentiment and the way both of them say ‘但你没有’ is pretty dang similar and as soon as i heard zhuo yichen say the line i was instantly brought back to po xiao.

the doomed lovers in mjty (ai mi and zuo ye)!! oh how they make my heart hurt. in mjty, yun que tells yue-gongzi that when people die, they turn into insects or animals and go visit their loved ones. after this flashback, a little bird flutters down and lands next to yue-gongzi, the implication being that it's yun que.

and then in fof, ai mi's character is a bird 妖 (yao - demon/monster). how the turn tables.

and thus concludes my epic list of surface level observations lmao

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Barbara Stanwyck (Ball of Fire, The Lady Eve, Double Indemnity)—I hope someone else has submitted better propaganda than I because I don't want my girl's prospects to rest on me just yelling PLEASE VOTE FOR MY TERRIBLE HOT GIRLFRIEND. She is a delight in everything! She is often a sexy jerk! (It's most of the plot of Baby Face!) Even when she plays a "good girl" (as an example, Christmas in Connecticut, which more people should see) she's still kind of a jerk and I love her for it! She won't take men's shit and she sure wouldn't take mine!

Mae Clarke (The Public Enemy, Frankenstein)—she was in frankenstein. which i think is neat

This is round 1 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Mae Clarke propaganda:

Barbara Stanwyck propaganda:

"THE queen of screwball comedies. I adore her, I'd kill for her, I will cry if she's not gonna win this poll."

"listen ok she had awful politics she was a mccarthyist right wing wacko BUT she's so incredibly hot that i've deluded myself into believing i could fix her. if you see her onscreen she carries herself in a way that's just so effortlessly sexy AND she has just a stunning face. imo she was at her hottest in the 1940s but even as early as the late 1920s she had a rly captivating screen presence and just a beautiful face, and then post-1950 she was just irresistibly milfy so really she was just always incredibly hot. she was also an incredibly talented actress who was equally stellar in melodrama, film noir, and unhinged screwball comedy. the blonde wig they made her wear in double indemnity is notoriously silly looking but she still looks sexy in it so that's gotta count for something. i've watched so many terrible movies just for a chance at seeing her that i think her estate should be paying me damages."

"Not often thought of for her sultriness, Barbara Stanwyck was incredible in that she could actually choose to be hot if the role called for it, and then have a glow-down to look ordinary for another role. She wasn't the most beautiful or effervescent, but damn did she have rizz. Watch her with Gary Cooper in Ball of Fire teaching him about "yum-yum" or with Henry Fonda in The Lady Eve whispering huskily into his ear."

"THE leading lady of the golden age of hollywood. One of the only actresses to work independent of a studio, making short-term contracts that enabled her to make movies wherever she wanted. She had so much range, and could act in basically any genre. She's been rumored to be a lesbian literally since she was active in Hollywood; most notable is the rumor that she had a long time on-and-off relationship with famously bi Joan Crawford, her "best friend" for decades (They lived right next door to one another). She also lived with Helen Ferguson, her "live-in publicist" for many years. She was the quintessential femme fatale in Double Indemnity, and really pushed sexual boundaries in her pre-code films like Baby Face, and the famous screwball The Lady Eve, where she plays basically a downlow domme. Allegedly, when a journalist asked her if she was a lesbian, she straight up threw him out of her house. She even played a lesbian in Walk on the Wild Side"

"She is always the smartest woman in the room. Watching her play Henry Fonda like a befuddled fiddle in The Lady Eve was a highlight of my life. Femme fatale in Double Indemnity, comedy queen in Ball of Fire. She can do anything."

"She was part of my gay awakening"

"SHE'S A PRE-CODE QUEEN. She did everything, drama, comedy. The most beautiful woman in the world to watch weep. Beg for to step on you with those legs. Fun Babs story: Ginger Rogers was offered the role in Ball of Fire but said, “Oh, I would never play that part, she’s too common.” So they called Barbara Stanwyck and they said “We offered this to Ginger Rogers but she’s turned it down, would you be interested?” And she read the script and she said; “You bet! I LOVE playing common broads.” (Source: https://misstanwyck.tumblr.com/post/72996544180/barbara-stanwyck-photographed-for-ball-of-fire)"

[nortsauce]

I’m gonna ask a bunch of narumistu shippers this but how do you think Iris would react seeing that happen? Also how would your dream Narumitsu wedding play out, and would pearl be invited? I just have so many questions! I also love your art!❤️❤️❤️

HELLO!!! First of all THANK YOU FOR THE COMPLIMENT you make me blush 💝

Now onto the questions. Y’all know i love to talk and answer these types of questions.

1) Iris.

I love iris and I believe that she truly wants to see Phoenix happy, and Phoenix views her as someone important to his life.

Phoenix was willing to swallow glass for her (and dahlia) and it’s hard to find someone that devoted to you. But i think they both realized that their time has passed.

Iris still holds her late sister in high regards despite everything she’s done, and Phoenix has grown up since college and become a more honest person. They both know that it wouldn’t work. Their directions in life have changed and Iris needs to do whats good for her and take some time to heal, and Phoenix needs to do what’s best for him and distance himself from the necklace incident as much as possible. But you know that will be harder to do and they still visit eachother as friends. Perhaps locked in a “in another life, perhaps”

I think Iris would be happy for Phoenix, and possibly even find a friend in Miles considering they have similar feelings of guilt. Maybe they accidentally run into eachother at group therapy and share stories!!!

NOW. ONTO THE WEDDING.

I truly and deeply believe in my heart that their wedding goes TERRIBLY.

First off, the proposal happens and Phoenix wants to propose but he keeps losing the ring due to hijinx and murder. He fears that miles is gonna get to it first, or possibly not even want to marry in the first place, but what he DOESN’T KNOW is that Miles has been TRYING to propose for SO LONG but hijinx keep interrupting him and he loses his nerve.

When they finally propose, it goes as swimmingly as you expect. Literally. They propose at the same time just exasperatedly finally and they drop their rings into a lake, only for our national hero LARRY BUTZ to jump out of the bushes where he was filming and grab both of the rings in mid air as he falls into the lake splashing them all with water.

Onto the wedding. Maya, Pearls, Franziska and Trucy create the worst team of wedding planners known to man. They all have different things set in mind. Where Maya wants to wing it, Franziska plans to perfection. Where Trucy wants to put a gag, Pearl insists on pure romance. Things get heated and it falls apart when they all separate to plan different parts of the wedding and it looks AWFUL. It ends with the venue being set on fire. The dream team then panic and have a breakdown, only for them to say “We’ve been doing this wrong. What would they want?”

They set up a beautiful venue outside, big enough to fit all of their found family. Its either near the courthouse or the gate-water hotel something sentimental and it’s almost perfect 💝

Now the ceremony goes, oh you guessed it: TERRIBLY.

Miles has worked himself into a state of pure anxiety and Phoenix has disassociated. They both can’t believe that this is actually happening. Larry is Phoenix’s best man and Gumshoe is Miles’s.

oh yeah and Kay is was Mile’s bridesmaid and Maya was Phoenix’s because they had both a best man and a bridesmaid.

I’d imagine Larry and Gumshoe go through the same exact thing that Max and Pascal went through from that one Tangled short where Eugene and Rapunzel are getting married but i can’t describe that here without just explaining the whole short so just go watch it here and imagine Gumshoe and Larry.

Anyways, the reception goes on even after “the ring fiasco 2, electric boogaloo” and then the power goes out before the ceremony completes. Screams are heard and the lights come on, and the Vicar is lying dead on the ground.

IT’S TIME FOR AN INVESTIGATION where EVERYTHING GOES AWRY. But luckily they got the best Legal and Detective minds this side of Japanifornia! So Apollo Trucy and Athena immediately hop into action. Miles and Phoenix are discussing what they saw in handcuffs, Maya and Pearl are attempting to channel anyone they can but nothing is working(?) Franziska is attempting to keep everyone in order so she can investigate and question, Gumshoe has the police force looking into it, Klavier and Blackquill are taking statements in a church confessional, Ema is taking samples, and all around it is a DISASTER: BUT

They realize after this fact that they have NEVER solved a case this fast ever.

(Turns out the Vicar had mafia connections and ex members of the clergy were planning to turn the church into a gang front but the priest wouldn't let them but took them in as his children regardless and a rival gang was involved it was a whole thing thats a story for another ask though.)

Anyways the whole thing had them thinking about all working together more often than not, and not only was a marriage planned, but more unions were planned and they had gathered new recruits to help change the law system of their country.

and then Phoenix and Miles kissed and they lived happily ever after.

All in all a disaster but it wouldn’t have gone any other way (:

[avoicebehindthestars]

On Rob's Good Omens sweaters...

Bluesky has some photos of Rob Wilkins wearing these two holiday sweaters:

At the first glance you go "awww, how perfect, I need those sweaters!" but then you're like "hold on a second!"

For the sake of this meta, I'm going to assume the designs are deliberate, and not just idk cheap fakes ordered from temu lol.

Let's start with stating the obvious. The red sweater has the characters' roles reversed - Crawly is sheltering Aziraphale. It's not a "book thing" either - there, Aziraphale held his own wings above himself. This is a minor detail, but Crawly's stance is also different than in the show - his legs are apart, in a position indicating strength, confidence, and protection. Meanwhile, the blue sweater has what looks like angel!Crowley sheltering a black-haired fallen angel. My first thought was that is could be Satan and this might be a hint that we're going to see Crowley's fall after all. But now I think different.

Regarding the red sweater in particular, my thoughts immediately wandered towards the multiple Edens theory and the two Crowleys theory. Just to quickly recap: discrepancies in the details on the walls of Eden have been spotted, and at one point someone from the crew mentioned that there were "many Edens" in existence (possibly testing grounds before the real one? Or several different enclosures for the first breeding pairs? We never found out). As for Crowley - many people have noticed differences in his looks throughout season 2. Most notably, his sideburns have differing length and it shifts within the same scene, e.g. the sideburns are long in the pub, but short when he leaves the pub; they are short during the "exactlys" argument, but long when Crowley snatches his sunglasses while storming out of the bookshop. Bildad the Shuhite also has two different hairstyle (one is shorter, more evenly cut and carefully combed, whereas the other is longer and a bit more "windswept"). There's also the matter of different camera filters, which is a commonly used technique to show different worlds (think Supernatural, and I think also some MCU films?), and the disappearing props.

So, taking the sweaters into consideration, could the world of Good Omens be comprised of multiple realities? The novel is one. Season 1 is another. Season 2 shows TWO (!), which are almost identical. Who knows, perhaps the Crowley with the short sideburns managed to sway Aziraphale in the Final Fifteen, or even changed his mind and hopped on the lift at the last moment? What if, presented on the sweaters are two more? On, in which it was Crawly offering shelfter to Aziraphale, and another one in which it was Aziraphale who fell (and his hair blackened in the process). Perhaps there are versions of this (sorry, couldn't resist!) in which they both fell, neither did, or they were an established couple by season 1?

It this were to prove true in the movie, it will have some pros, of course. Firstly, it would legitimise virtually all headcanons you might have (I was a little upset when s2 finale made it clear they weren't secretly a couple before). It would also boost creativity for all the reverse!Omens fic writers. And, of course, it would explain many things fans have noticed, especially about s2.

However, other than that, I don't think I like it that much. Above all, I simply dislike multiverse - I find them often too convenient narratively, while also needlessly convoluted. But aside from that, I wouldn't be happy to see that particular take in the movie. If we were getting out 6 episodes, it would be fun to watch particular scenes and increasingly go "huh?" as we spot consecutive discrepancies and minor details that don't work. And by the time it was revealed it would feel really rewarding that you have spotted the details, even if you failed to work it all out. Within mere 90 minutes… it just doesn't feel like enough time to drop enough hints, or, alternatively, the movie would be oversaturated with them. Finally, it would mean less screentime for the mercilessly truncated Aziracrow reconcilliation arc (which I am still grieving over), as instead we would receive glimpses of different universes, while still navigating the complex Second Coming plotline. Also, what would be the endgame? All the Aziraphales and Crowleys combining their forces to beat heaven and hell/the new christ/god herself? That's a bit too Marvel if you ask me, and with all my reservations about the movie, I rather trust Narrativia to offer us something much more original.

[kraken17]

List of dimensional variants/counterparts of Enid and Wednesday introduced in my fanfiction Kooky Spooky in order of appearance.

This means that other characters that are counterparts such as Taylor Galpin, the Yoko and Weems from Agent A's dimension and the rest of the Adamos (High Fantasy Addams Family) are not on this list. Only Enids and Weds.

(Artwork from Kris6758 on Twitter)

First, those with some weight in the plot:

Eamon Sinclair (Chapter 1): Initially named in Chapter 1, with no formal appearance until Chapter 43. Eamon is a male counterpart of Enid and husband of Friday (the Wednesday from the 1973 cartoon). Basically, he is "our" Enid if she had been born male. Standard lycanthrope, though exceptionally strong.

Thursday (Chapter 9): Wednesday Thursday Addams. As Eamon, a male counterpart to Wednesday and Friday's cell neighbor. He looks identical to a teenage Gomez but with no mustache and with Fester's pallor.

Enid Saint-Clair (Chapter 19): The Enid of Woe's dimension (the Wednesday of the '90s movies). Brunette, of Greek descent and werecat rather than werewolf. Affable and nice, though with psychopathic tendencies and a love for exacerbated violence. Loves to fight people who can keep up with her. To call her "kitten" is to invite death. Better just call her “Nid”.

Agent A (Chapter 22): Wednesday Tuesday Addams. The Wednesday from a dimension gone to hell (literally). She's a grown woman in her forties, dresses like she's a MIB and is a practitioner of magic. She's also one of the few Wednesdays who doesn't make use of her pigtails or pull her hair back in any way, leaving her hair loose. If you want to put a face on her, I imagine her as Hailee Steinfeld about 16 years from now.

Wodnesdæg (Chapter 35): Lord Wodnesdæg of the House of Adamo, Prince of the Kingdom of Nova Gersia. Wod to his closest family and friends. Trans male version of Wednesday. He collects his hair in two short but thick pigtails. Likes to wear black armor that makes him look like the stereotypical Dark Lord from a fantasy novel, but first impressions aside his personality is closer to that of a Gomez Addams.

Eneit Synklar (Chapter 35): Enid's variant from Wodnesdæg's dimension and his betrothed. A barbarian and werewolf princess Enid, extremely tall and muscular, usually dressed in furs or light leather armor. Very outgoing, affable and friendly, though she lacks a bit of tact and has no qualms about breaking in half anyone who messes with her loved ones.

[UPDATE] The Bright One: SPOILERS! Read the fic 😁

Now, the ones that are more cameos:

Chapter 43:

A golden tyrannosaurus Enid and her ape-like sidekick Wednesday, inspired by the original comic book versions of Devil Dinosaur and Moon Boy.

A middle-aged futuristic soldier Enid.

A Wednesday who looks like a living marble statue with golden cracks adorning her skin and luminous white hair.

A Wednesday and Enid who look like stereotypical pirates.

Gargoyle Enid. A purple-skinned Enid with horns, tail and wings, inspired by the characters from the Disney series Gargoyles.

Chapter 45:

Cyborg-lycanthrope Enid.

Vampire Wednesday, armed with a spear.

Reverse Enid and Wednesday: A violent lycanthropic but black-furred Enid accompanied by a disturbingly extroverted blonde Wednesday.

The younglings: A group of five or six young Wednesdays, the oldest no older than seven.

Saiyan Enid: A brunette-haired martial artist Enid with ki abilities, orange robes, staff and monkey tail. Inspired by Dragon Ball, although it can be interpreted as a reference to Journey to the West as well.

Gunslinger Enid and Wednesday, as if out of a classic Hollywood Western.

Sasquatch Enid.

The witches: Two Enids, one of them in school uniform and wand-wielding, clearly inspired by the Potterverse novels/films or other similar works. The second Enid, with green skin and black clothes, pointy hat and broom is more inspired by The Wizard of Oz and Wicked.

Punk-looking Enid with cybernetic implants like blades in her arms. Inspired by Cyberpunk 2077.

Angelic Enid, alternates between a humanoid form with wings and a fire-wheel form with multiple eyes.

Hellboy Wednesday (Hellgirl?).

[UPDATE] Chapter 50:

A witch-like Enid with a talking cat familiar.

[wlwanakin]

do you think that in a modern and current parameter anakin would support right-wing politicians? or famous politicians like trump and others?

this is such an interesting question!! and my short answer is probably not, or at least that i don’t go that route when i’m writing modern aus. i think that in general trying to paint anakin as right-wing in any deep-seated way isn’t accurate because as a character he isn’t any sort of ideologue.

anakin in the films is not someone with strong or coherent politics and also not someone who is motivated by politics. he’s witnessed injustice, he’s lived it, he’s seen firsthand that the systems in place don’t work, but he doesn’t have much of a stance beyond that being bad. people love citing the picnic scene in aotc as him spouting fascism, but on top of him not being that serious in that scene he’s also just bringing to light his own political ignorance. “the senate isn’t effective so they should be forced to agree on the best solution” is not a coherent enough position to belong anywhere on the political spectrum, and really it’s outright childish. it’s an absolute nothing stance from someone who has faced the direct consequences of the system’s shortcomings but isn’t politically literate. he dislikes politicians in general, and the only politicians he trusts are the ones he loves personally who he believes to be good people because he trusts them as people, regardless of their actual policy. this is one of the biggest things palpatine took advantage of when grooming him into darth vader. and that’s another thing to keep in mind about anakin’s politics: the closest thing to a right-wing politician he holds in high regard is the man who has been actively grooming him since the age of ten. anakin as vader becomes a face of the empire not because he politically believes in it but because he’s been effectively isolated and has essentially given up on doing anything else, and that position is one he only wound up in because it was initially presented as an opportunity to save padmé’s life.

so that’s what you’d be trying to translate into a modern context when asking this question, and none of it really equates to any sort of admiration of right-wing figures. i don’t think it’s implausible that it’d be easy to get him on board with some right-wing stances, but i don’t see any version of anakin being an outright ideologue, much less one who likes any politician enough to really rally behind them. he certainly wouldn’t be a trumpie because nothing about him really indicates that anything about trump’s platform or persona would be appealing. the most likely situations where he’d strongly support a politician would be ones adjacent to canon: through forming interpersonal relationships with politicians.

the route that feels most in-character to me and therefore the one i write when i’m doing modern aus is making him nihilistic about the system to the point of being apolitical. “both sides are bad” isn’t an inherently incoherent/centrist/unprincipled position (obviously) but it is kind of nothing if you have no actual principles going along with that stance and choose to just tune out of politics entirely, and that’s what i imagine anakin does for the most part. just like in canon i see him being generally concerned with injustice with no real idea on how to solve anything and that turning into unproductive and poorly-aimed anger at the vague idea of The System, because it doesn’t care about him so why should he care about it. and this would definitely make him easy to sway into some pretty bad opinions but there’s a big difference between that and being fully coherently right-wing. i just don’t see that happening unless you find a way to 1:1 recreate the context of the films in a modern american landscape, which you can’t! because if you were to do that he’d be less of a conservative and more of a personal samurai hitman for george w. bush which is not a real thing that a person can be.

[laxmiree]

[CN] MLQC’s Lucien Sharing Date English Translation

⚠️ SPOILER ALERT!! ⚠️

This post contains a detailed spoiler for a date that has not been released in EN yet! Feel free to notify me if there are any mistakes in the translation~

Perhaps it's an illusion, but after he removes his glasses, those eyes that have always been looking at me seem even deeper.

With my soft exclamation, the already close distance becomes even more intimate, not leaving any gap.

His lowered lashes tremble lightly, brushing against my cheeks like butterfly wings.

His hot breath lingers on the corner of my lips for a while before finally enveloping it eagerly.

special thanks to ivi (@ivioivioivi on twitter) for helping me with translating some abstract things here 🫶

✂———————–

—[Part 1]—

The lecture hall is almost full, filled with students from the Film and Television Department of Loveland University.

Due to my previous programs consistently ranking first in viewership, universities' Film and Television Department often use them as case studies.

However, it's the first time today that both the production team and I have been invited to campus to give a sharing session.

Even though I've attended many events and ceremonies, as a behind-the-scenes person, I still feel a bit nervous under so many attentive gazes.

MC: Hello students, I'm MC.

Noticing a subtle unease in my tone, I can't help but recall the solemn vow that I made last night.

—[Flashback Start]—

MC: As long as I step onto the same podium where Professor Lucien once stood, I'll surely have the same demeanor as you!

Seeing me confidently waving the speech notes, Lucien couldn't help but chuckle.

Lucien: I'm curious, in your eyes, what kind of demeanor do I have?

MC: Of course you're someone who is both patient and effortlessly competent, and able to make complex concepts lively and engaging. In short, you're simply the best teacher in the world!

He gently gazed at me for a moment and then pulled me into his arms.

Lucien: [chuckles] If this biased classmate really were my student, my evaluations would probably become the highest in the whole school.

MC: What! The original highest score wasn't yours?

My exaggerated tone amused him, and Lucien rubbed my hair.

Lucien: If the Great Producer keeps showering me with praise like this, I might not be able to resist feeling proud.

Lucien: After the poster for the sharing session was put up, many colleagues came to greet me because of this outstanding family member*.

(T/N: his colleagues refer to MC as XM/Lucien's family🥺)

MC: So it seems that the reason I agreed at that time was very correct~

Facing his curious gaze, I winked at him.

MC: Because that was the invitation sent by your school.

—[Flashback Ends]—

Looking down at the audience below once more, I steady my mind.

Just as I'm about to speak, I hear a familiar voice.

??: Sorry, teacher, I'm late. Can I still come in and listen now?

MC: Of course—

Unwittingly, I glance towards the classroom door, my eyes widen in surprise when I see Lucien.

The classroom buzzes with murmurs, as the students have also recognized him.

Lucien: Thank you, teacher. Sorry to interrupt everyone.

I stare dumbfoundedly as he approaches and calmly places a piece of paper on the podium.

Lucien: My late slip.

MC: Ah, okay…

Not until he steps down to find an empty seat do I notice that the completely blank late slip is covered with a sticky note-

-filled with a drawing of a little rabbit on the lectern talking eloquently, and in the audience seat, a little fox applauds with a smile on his eyes.

I can't help but look up at him, seeing that he has already found a seat and is quietly gazing at me.

The distance between us isn't close, but his gaze has already dispelled most of my unease.

So I collected myself and took out my speech notes.

MC: I originally wanted to chat with everyone, but our department head wouldn't allow it, so I had to prepare a speech.

A wave of friendly laughter ripples through the audience, completely easing my nerves.

Very soon, I smoothly finished speaking according to the notes.

MC: ...Actually, the birth of every successful case is influenced by many uncontrollable variables.

MC: Even if we as creators replicate the so-called “speak from experience”, it may not necessarily generate new successful cases.

MC: In the end, I think sharing some practical insights is better.

MC: I often feel that filming is similar to life, it's a process of establishing a stable relationship with the world.

MC: And some specific yet small orders will bring us a sense of certainty about life and becoming an important part of life.

MC: If you don't know what to shoot, you can look within your own world.

MC: Taking myself as an example, like... the flower shop that opens at 8 a.m. near my home. And also...

As I speak, I look at the audience, meeting head-on the gaze that has never shifted.

There is an itch in my heart, always wanting to express something. Before I know it, I've already put down the speech notes--

MC: [smiling softly] The light from my neighbor's house next door often stays on until 4 a.m.

✂———————–

—[Part 2]—

Amidst the continuous applause, Lucien beamingly applauds, bearing a striking resemblance to the little fox on the sticky note.

At this moment, the dean beside me suddenly leans in, lowering their voice as they speak.

Dean: MC, you delivered your speech too smoothly. Here's the bad news: there are still 20 minutes left before class ends.

MC: [sweating nervously] Ah? What should I do? Do you have anything else you want to say?

Seeing him shake his head, my brain starts to work at lightning speed, and suddenly, I think of something.

MC: Since we're out of things to say, we'll just have to let the students speak.

The next moment, a student stood up bewildered as we called their name.

Dean: Everyone, feel free to express your thoughts. Share your feelings after attending the sharing session.

Student A: Oh! I found Teacher MC's talk very interesting. I've also been pondering about some small "orders" just now.

Student A: Like the video call my mom makes every night and the taro ice cream that the school convenience store restocks every Thursday afternoon at three.

Laughter instantly fills the room, as if this were a well-known understanding among everyone.

Immediately, several students also raise their hands, eager to join the conversation.

Student B: When spring arrives, the peach blossoms on the campus will bloom the earliest.

Student C: There's an old librarian who likes to blow his beard, it turns out he's stuck on sudoku.

This time, everyone fell silent for a moment, emitting small gasps of surprise.

Student C: Because of the old man's habit of blowing his beard, I made a documentary about him... but the film lacked soul.

Student C: So I want to ask, how do you find something worth expressing?

I think for a moment before speaking earnestly.

MC: The best way I can think of is to ask yourself what you most want to express from your heart.

MC: Once you have the answer, you will discover that it may have just been sustaining the order you rely on the most to survive right now.*

MC: It's also the closest connection between you and this world—

MC: At that moment, many natural words or images will appear before you effortlessly.

(T/N: tbh it's really abstract even in CN LOL, but I take from it that perhaps what you want to express is already on the orders in your life all along? Keep this in mind until the last part)

I instinctively glance at Lucien and notice the corners of his eyes slowly curving.

Student C: Can you give an example?

MC: Um?

Perhaps the answer was too clear before my eyes, and in that moment, I hesitated instead.

As I realize, I've already missed the opportune moment for the best response, and I can't help but feel a bit embarrassed.

And the person in my line of sight seems to have chuckled, raising his hand.

Lucien: I'd like to share something too.

As soon as these words were spoken, students turned their curious gazes towards him, and I also waited nervously for his speech.

Lucien: I feel that, often, before finding the expression, perhaps it's the order itself that takes precedence in life.

Lucien: After you become aware of it, it has already brought about natural habits and rules.

Lucien: Therefore, for me, perhaps the modification and alteration of the order itself appear to be more special. The things born from it make people want to dig and explore deeper.

Lucien: For example, the hot milk that always appears when I write a paper, or the scolding I received for not sleeping, which seems to have started at some unknown point…

Even as I try to control my expression, I still feel my cheeks getting a little warm.

The instigator, however, seemed oblivious to my shyness, unabashedly casting an eager gaze my way.

Lucien: Teacher MC, if all the orders of life point to one person at the same time, then wouldn't her existence—

Lucien: Be tantamount to the closest connection between me and this world?

✂———————–

—[Part 3]—

The meeting ends, and after saying goodbye to my colleagues, I decide to take a walk around campus with Lucien.

I'm still immersed in the confession that only we knew a moment ago. Even my steps feel a bit light.

Lucien: You seem to have more talent for being a teacher than I imagined.

Lucien: If I had a teacher like you when I was studying, I would definitely sit in the front row every class.

Lucien: Would this teacher choose me as the class representative?

As he speaks seriously, I pretend to consider.

MC: Hmm... I'll think about it.

He nods thoughtfully, but a smile slowly appears in his eyes.

Lucien: So, to become the class representative, it seems I need to pay more attention to the teacher.

Lucien: [teasingly] Your face seems to have been flushed since I raised my hand to answer the question. Are you feeling uncomfortable?

Colliding with his narrowed smiling eyes, I blush and playfully poke his arm.

MC: Lucien!

Lucien: [chuckles] It seems that the teacher has already remembered my name.

Seeing his pretending-to-be-serious expression, I can't help but laugh.

Lucien: Moreover, it seems you set an example for me first.

I raise my puzzled gaze, then collide with his slightly teasing smiling eyes.

Lucien: After all, it was teacher MC who mentioned me first.

Lucien: It appears that I didn't realize I had become part of your order so long ago.

MC: ….!

I belatedly react, embarrassedly wanting to reach out and cover his mouth.

He chuckles softly and catches my hand, squeezing it into his palm.

Hand in hand, we walk through the campus, bathed in the gentle light filtering through the trees, softly resting upon us.

Occasionally, students pass by us, heading in the same direction.

The moment I curiously glance in that direction, he already grasps my hand, leading me towards it knowingly.

Ten minutes later, standing at the entrance of the convenience store, we look at the taro ice cream in each other's hands and laugh together.

Despite the slight chill in the air, I eagerly take a big bite, instantly filled with the soft, sweet flavor of taro.

MC: No wonder it can become an unspoken understanding among everyone, it's just too delicious!

Lucien also takes a bite of the ice cream, his eyes widening slightly.

Lucien: [gasps in a pleasant surprise] It's a bit cold... but indeed the taste exceeds imagination.

MC: But it seems quite popular on campus. You've never tried it before?

He shakes his head, then as if something catches his eye, he lifts his hand and gently rests it on the top of my head.

Lucien: Although there are indeed many beauties in this world that I have yet to discover…

Lucien: They always seem to be miraculously brought to me by you.

He opens his palm towards me, revealing a pale pink petal lying inside, probably the one he just picked from the top of my head.

I raise my head, and several peach blossoms hanging from the branches come into view.

Realizing that the scenes shared by the students seem to be coincidentally unfolding before us, I look at Lucien with some excitement.

MC: How about we go to the library again and see that old man who loves to do Sudoku?

Unfortunately, the one sitting at the librarian's desk in the reading room is a young girl.

MC: Looks like the old man isn't on duty today…

Sensing my gaze, the girl looks back at me with a puzzled expression.

I instinctively turn to the side, then immediately hear a muffled chuckle from above.

Lucien: [chuckles] Are you forgetting that you* have always had the right to come and go here?

MC: Right…

[T/N: Actually, Lucien teasingly refers to MC as 教师家属 (teacher’s family member) in that sentence. Anyway since he’s a teacher here, and she’s his ‘family member’ she has the right to just come to the library at any time. They can find him at another time together^^]

The familiar reading room, the season of peach blossoms blooming, and the person beside me with a smile, everything seems to be no different from two years ago.

[Reference to Impression Date!]

But unlike back then, the once quiet and empty reading room is now filled with students quietly reading. I can't help but lower my voice.

MC: I don't think I asked you last time, where do you like to sit when you read?

His indifferent gaze falls lightly on the sun-drenched tables and chairs without much emotion.

Lucien: I prefer to borrow books from the third-floor lending room and read them at home rather than here.

MC: Oh? I always thought you wouldn't be picky about reading environments.

Lucien: For me, the environment indeed has little impact on the reading experience.

Lucien: However, at home, there's always a little lady who will snuggle up next to me and read together.

He pauses for a moment, looking at me earnestly.

Lucien: It's hard not to develop a sense of dependence on the comforting environment you create.

✂———————–

—[Part 4]—

MC: Wow, it's "Essays in Love"!

Just as I stepped into the lending room, I paused in front of a somewhat familiar novel.

Lucien: Mm, compared to the story in the book, I'm more impressed by MC's "kidnapping”*.

[T/N: reference to Devotion Date where MC 'kidnaps' Lucien]

He holds my hand and leads me with a smile, I haven't even taken a few steps yet when another book catches my eye.

MC: "YOUR ATOMIC SELF"? You just read it recently during the check-in event!

Lucien: Yes, I returned it after finishing. If you want to read it, there's a new copy in the study that I just bought.

We walk hand in hand through the empty shelves, and every few steps, we come across familiar traces.

MC: Hehe, this book is one we read together.

Lucien: However, after flipping through a few pages, it seems like a girl fell asleep in my arms.

MC: [sweating] Haha, it's the kind of thing you can forget about.

Lucien: [teasingly] Oh? Looks like MC isn't too curious about what happens after she falls asleep.

His lips curled a bit, as if recalling something amusing.

MC: What is it?

Lucien: Actually... [chuckles] about half an hour after you fell asleep, I fell asleep too.

MC: Pfft! If even you fell asleep, then it must be the fault of the book.

Lucien: Though it's a bit impolite to say, the author's writing does lack logical coherence.

Seeing his slightly furrowed brow and troubled expression, I suddenly felt the urge to tease him, so I struggled to suppress a smile.

MC: But I think it's impressive in its own way.

Lucien: Hm?

MC: It can be used for hypnosis~ Next time if I find you refusing to sleep, I'll just read it aloud beside you, and you'll drift off in no time.

Seemingly taking it seriously, he even pondered for a moment before speaking.

Lucien: [chuckles] But the feasibility of this method is not very high.

MC: Why?

Lucien: After all, it seems like you'd get sleepy before managing to lull me to sleep.

Seeing him speak earnestly, but his eyes already betraying laughter, I can't help but laugh along with him.

The clock hanging on the wall quietly completes a full circle as we step into the innermost section of the document area.

Scholarly journals written in various languages are neatly arranged on the bookshelves, bringing together a vast ocean of wisdom.

Suddenly, I remembered something and looked at him with a hint of anticipation.

MC: I remember you recently published a paper in a core journal. Can we find it here too?

Lucien: Nowadays, many publications are distributed in electronic formats. I'm not sure if the library would have hard copies.

His gaze wanders through the dizzying array of titles for a long time, seemingly without finding anything.

So he walks over to the search computer, typing the journal's name on the keyboard, and after hitting the enter key, he squints a little at the screen.

Lucien: [chuckles] Found it.

MC: Huh? They have even the newest ones. Can I find the article you published earlier too?

Five minutes later, I find myself dazedly staring at the thick journals in my arms.

MC: Even though I know about every paper you've published, seeing them all together still makes me want to marvel at your brain…

MC: Can I absorb some of your wisdom by reading these articles?

Lucien: I don't think so.

With a lingering inflection, he leans down slightly and pecks my lips.

Lucien: [chuckles, then whispers] But maybe this way you can.

His earnest demeanor makes it impossible for me to suppress a smile.

MC: Hehe, with Professor Lucien sharing his wisdom with me, I'll definitely be able to read research papers with ease in the future!

As I speak, I flip through the pages and quickly find Lucien's article among them.

Unfamiliar foreign languages and complex technical terms occasionally trip me up as I read, but it doesn't stop me from carefully perusing the text bit by bit.

In his concise and clear theories, it feels like I can see every dull piece of data he recorded and every sleepless night he endured.

And there's also that curiosity that never extinguished, even after countless failed attempts.

Merely watching him moving forward fills me with immense pride.

Unconsciously, I reach the end of the paper, and suddenly, I feel as though I see my name flash before my eyes.

I calm myself and carefully read through the last section once again.

The next moment, as my gaze flicks over the acknowledgments section, I feel my heart skip a beat.

There, my own name actually appears-

And finally, I would like to thank my dear (y/n)-

--whose love and support has always been the driving force pushing me forward.

I stare at him in disbelief, but he just looks at me and smiles.

Having a faint idea of what's going on, I proceed to flip through several other journals.

Without exception, there's a line of acknowledgment dedicated to me after each of his articles.

An indescribable surge of emotions overwhelms me, leaving me momentarily speechless, but he instantly pulls me into his arms with a chuckle.

Lucien: [chuckles, then whispers] What to do.

Lucien: Seeing my little lady so surprised, it seems I can't easily showcase my research results in the future.

His pretended distress amuses me, and I lightly pat him on the shoulder.

MC: You know very well that I'm very happy.

He pulls me into his hug, his chin rubbing against the top of my head.

Lucien: [whispers softly] Um, of course I do.

Lucien: [x2] It's just that seeing you happy because of me, I can't help but feel happy too.

MC: You never mentioned it before.

He looks into my eyes as if trying to see into my heart.

Lucien: [x3] Just like eating and sleeping every day, I don't seem to feel that this is something necessary to mention specifically.

Lucien: [x4] Just as you appear in every corner of my life…

Lucien: [x5] I naturally think of you in the moment of completing an article, and naturally want to express thank you to you.

Lucien: [x6] This natural feeling…

Lucien: [x7]...is like when spring arrives, flowers will naturally bloom.

My heart feels like it's being gently tickled by his whispers, making me unable to resist any longer, so I stand on tiptoe and kiss him.

The next moment, he gently lifts me up, quietly closing the distance between us.

The gauze curtains sway, casting a touch of charm onto the light and shadow falling upon us.

Perhaps it's an illusion, but after he removes his glasses, those eyes that have always been looking at me seem even deeper.

I stare at his handsome features in a trance, unaware of the sudden strength supporting my lower back.

With my soft exclamation, the already close distance becomes even more intimate, not leaving any gap.

His lowered lashes tremble lightly, brushing against my cheeks like butterfly wings.

I have to close my eyes so that my heart doesn't beat too chaotically.

His hot breath lingers on the corner of my lips for a while before finally enveloping it eagerly.

The pleasant breath gradually penetrates my lips and mouth, and then spreads all over my body, making me completely surrender myself to him.

In my hazy consciousness, I faintly hear the sound of flowers blooming.

My next spring with him- really seems to have arrived.

[wlwcatalogue]

A few sapphic film recs!

Just a few recommendations for sapphic films under 2 hours which may or may not have flown under the radar:

Moonlit Winter / 윤희에게 (1hr 45m, 2019, dir. Lim Dae-hyung)

Professor Marston and the Wonder Women (1hr 48m, 2017, dir. Angela Robinson)

Who's the Woman, Who's the Man / 金枝玉葉 2 (1hr 50m, 1996, dir. Peter Ho-Sun Chan)

Sisterhood / 骨妹 (1hr 37m, 2016, dir. Tracy Choi)

DEBS (1hr 31m, 2004, dir. Angela Robinson)

Farewell, My Queen / Les adieux à la reine (1hr 40m, 2012, dir. Benoît Jacquot)

Bonus - short film: Love Does Human / 사람 하는 사랑 (24 mins, 2019, dir. Oh Seon-ju)

Commentary under the cut!

1. Moonlit Winter / 윤희에게 (1hr 45m, 2019, dir. Lim Dae-hyung) - IMDB | MyDramaList

This movie is about a daughter (Kim So-hye) who finds out about her divorced mother’s (Kim Hee-ae) past with another woman (Katase Jun), and how in encouraging her mother to reconnect, the two finally open up to each other as well. Dry stuff on paper, but there’s more to it: the mother and her former lover didn’t just break up, they were split apart by their families as teenagers and the mother was forced to marry a man against her will. In short, it deals with the aftermath of the typical “bad ending” of older stories featuring WLW characters, wherein schoolgirls in love would be separated and married off to preserve the heteronormative status quo.

Although the queer relationship does not get much screentime at all – the two characters share a single scene, there are no flashbacks, and there’s not even a hug – queerness remains at the heart of the movie. It’s a rare depiction of how the repression of queerness leaves scars on people which affect how they engage with the world, but which also shows that as long as they are alive, there is still hope that those scars can be healed. Also, despite the heavy-sounding subject matter, it’s a very gentle experience: there are no direct depictions of homophobia and no sensationalism, just a little story of human connection unfolding in a snow-cloaked Hokkaido.

2. Professor Marston and the Wonder Women (1hr 48m, 2017, dir. Angela Robinson) - IMDB

The blurb on IMDB says that this movie is about “psychologist William Moulton Marston (Luke Evans), and his polyamorous relationship with his wife [Elizabeth] (Rebecca Hall) and their mistress [Olive] (Bella Heathcote) who would inspire his creation of the superheroine, Wonder Woman”. As someone who is not particularly drawn to biopics, male protagonists, polyamory, BDSM, or Wonder Woman, I assumed that this movie wouldn’t be my jam and so didn’t watch it until quite a while later – which is when I discovered just how wrong I was.

First, the two women take up just as much of the movie’s focus as Marston. Elizabeth, Marston’s wife and fellow psychologist, is highly intelligent but equally highly-strung; she does not know how to deal with her husband’s attraction to new research assistant Olive, nor Olive’s attraction to both her husband and Elizabeth herself, and this internal conflict (even after the three enter into a polyamorous relationship) features heavily in the story. Second, although it declares itself to be “based on a true story”, the movie is not especially interested in recreating or representing the past. Rather, the historical elements are used as a framework to explore certain ideas: Diana’s Lasso of Truth symbolises how progress and healing must be first founded upon honesty, for example. The polyamory and BDSM is also not at all sordid or sensationalised, but rather presented in a nuanced (though still sexy!) manner. More than anything, this is a movie with a big heart and big ideas, and should be judged on its own merits.

3. Who's the Woman, Who's the Man / 金枝玉葉 2 (1hr 50m, 1996, dir. Peter Ho-Sun Chan) - IMDB | MyDramaList

All you need to know going into this sequel of 1994 movie He's a Woman, She's a Man (金枝玉葉) is that main character Wing (Anita Yuen) is a woman who has found both fame and (heterosexual) love while disguising herself as a male idol, and that her relationship with record producer Sam (Leslie Cheung) is known to the general public— although it is perceived as being homosexual in nature due to her persona. At this point, you might be wondering why an M/F romantic comedy is on this list, but this movie is a bit odd in that instead of focusing only on problems such Sam’s internalised homophobia and misogyny (both of which are addressed in the story), one of the new obstacles facing the couple is the female lead meeting female pop star Fong Yim Mui (Anita Mui)… and both starting to fall for each other.

I was surprised at how sensitively Wing and Fong Yim Mui’s respective arcs are handled, especially for a mainstream movie from the 90’s starring two of Hong Kong’s most popular performers at the time. Instead of giving the two women a meet-cute and leaving it at that, a lot of care is put into showing them processing and coming to terms with their feelings in their own time. Romantic and sexual attraction is also highlighted separately, which is refreshing given how they are usually depicted as inextricably linked even now… Obviously Wing and Fong Yim Mui don’t end up together, but their feelings aren’t dismissed and – relative to the narrative constraints – the ending is a warm, optimistic one. Also, Anita Mui gives an absolutely award-worthy performance in one of the scenes with her character and Wing, so fans of her should definitely give this movie a try.

Important note: Although there’s much that’s good about it, Who's the Woman, Who's the Man is far from perfect. Early on, there’s a masquerade party where two of the characters are wearing masks which look like racist caricatures, and the masks are crop up in multiple scenes in the film. More serious is the subplot about a male character who keeps trying to win over a lesbian, culminating in her agreeing to sleep with him once while he’s dressed as a woman (CW: transphobia, homophobia) – though this storyline ends with the man accepting that she really is gay and parting on friendly terms. That said, these problems are already mild compared to the actively hateful transphobic and homophobic jokes present in so many of its contemporaries, so if you’ve watched a 90’s Hong Kong comedy before, chances are that your tolerance level is more than high enough.

4. Sisterhood / 骨妹 (1hr 37m, 2016, dir. Tracy Choi) IMDB | MyDramaList

Sisterhood opens with tragedy. Originally from Macau, main character Sei (Gigi Leung) is living quietly in Taiwan with her husband after the 1999 Handover when her life is overturned by a newspaper personal ad informing her that her long-estranged friend and colleague Ling has passed away. The movie is shot through with flashbacks to earlier times, tracking a young Sei (Fish Liew) as she starts doing sex work and is taken under the wing of the more experienced Ling (Jennifer Yu) and her friends. Memories of togetherness and community are juxtaposed against sequences of present-day Sei struggling to navigate her grief, the tensions of the now-fractured friend group, and a Macau that has changed just as much as she has. The acting and script can be clunky in places but the sentiment shines through, especially after the first third, at which point the movie starts honing in on Sei and Ling’s relationship. It’s not a happy story, but nor is it defined by sadness; instead, it posits that the past is not merely to be mourned, that it is instead something that can shape and provide a foundation for the future. I won't talk too much about how queerness figures into this story, due to spoilers, but rest assured that it is present and important!

5. D.E.B.S. (1hr 31m, 2004, dir. Angela Robinson) - IMDB

Okay, you've probably heard of this one before if not watched it already, but anyway! This was the first WLW movie I watched, and for a long time, the only one which I actually enjoyed. It’s about an elite spy (well, more like an honours student at spy school) (Sara Foster) and a criminal mastermind (Jordana Brewster) falling for each other, a premise which is just as fun and over-the-top as it sounds. The movie does a great job of mixing action, humor, and romance, and it doesn’t overstay its welcome – it’s got a nice compact runtime and a cracking pace. There’s still nothing quite like it in my opinion, though I’m very welcome to any recommendations in this line (my askbox is open if you have any!).

6. Farewell, My Queen / Les adieux à la reine (1hr 40m, 2012, dir. Benoît Jacquot) - IMDB

Loosely based on Chantal Thomas’ novel of the same name, Farewell, My Queen is a portrait of French nobility in decline, following maidservant Sidonie Labarde (Léa Seydoux) who is in the service of Marie Antoinette (Diane Kruger). It's a beautiful, lavish production which effectively conveys the perspective of a servant locked in the gilded cage that is Versailles during the French Revolution, and is a rare case of a historical figure as famous as Antoinette being presented as queer in a serious historical drama.

That being said, the queerness is mostly background, coming mainly in the form of Antoinette’s crush on? relationship with? duchess Gabrielle de Polignac (Virginie Ledoyen)— though a case can be made for Sidonie, whose outward opacity belies an unwavering, almost unsettling, devotion to her queen. Also, be warned that the movie has many a dodgy shot of cleavage, and two instances of unnecessary and voyeuristic nudity... but other than that, it really does have gorgeous cinematography.

Fun fact: there really were rumours about Antoinette having a scandalous relationship with the duchess, although these have nearly always been written off as baseless reputation-smearing.

Bonus - short film: Love Does Human / 사람 하는 사랑 (24 mins, 2019, dir. Oh Seon-ju) - MyDramaList

Some say that the best science fiction puts a spotlight on some part of the human condition, and this short film does just that. Main character Tae Eun's (Kim Min-ju) girlfriend Joo An (Jang Sam-yi) no longer has a human body: after carrying out a medical operation which transferred her consciousness to a computer system, she now has a web-camera for her eyes, a speaker for her mouth, and control over their home's devices for her hands. And although the change was by Joo An's choice and Tae Eun was supportive, the pair struggle to adjust to this new reality, and are confronted with the need to communicate and to consider each other's perspectives. Love Does Human has a bit of a slow start, and there were points where I didn't understand why the characters were reacting in a certain way, but it all comes together beautifully in the end. Through its sci-fi premise, viewers are encouraged to think about real-life problems using a different angle, and the movie never gets too heavy. Also, shoutout to some excellent voice work from the two actors - Joo An is performed nearly entirely through voice but she feels deeply human and present, and Tae Eun's actor also has a standout scene featuring some great voice acting. All in all, it's a short film that's well worth checking out (especially since the director has made it available for free, with English subtitles, on Youtube - embedded above)!

[theconstantsidekick]

no because, supernatural is absolutely a train wreck. it's a colossal accident that is happening in front of you that you can't look away from. it is homophobic and non-sensical and downright laughable at times but you know what? I love it. I absolute love it.

season 1 was absolutely beautiful. you don't understand, really, you don't. they had a piss poor budget, you can see that in every frame. but does that stop it from being fucking beautiful? no. it is stylised and ambitious and a fucking visual treat.

and this is like the first fucking episode. the shots have so much character! and that's nothing to say of the characters themselves. from the first fucking scene you can clearly distinguish sam and dean's character clear as day. their motivations, their dreams, their hopes, all of it. it's established so well. their dynamic is unmatched. does it also have a lot of garbage? yes for sure. because what in the name of hell was that episode with bugs? what glue were they sniffing when they green lit that one? no seriously... I wanna try some.

but then they recovered, cause they did faith. my god, what an episode. WHAT AN EPISODE. that motherfucking reaper haunts my every waking hour

like yeah, I love me some baby dean and baby sam going on their small scale ghost hunts while learning deep lessons about who they are as people and what they want from life.

also that 'laugh I nearly died' needle drop? where sam sees jess? god tier editing, GOD TIER.

then they came back with season 2. and here is my most controversial opinion that should not be controversial at all, season 2 is the best season of supernatural to ever supernatural.

what is and what should never be, hollywood babylon, heart, nightshifter, and the whole fucking season actually. not a single miss in my humble opinion. and that finale? THAT FINALE. beautiful, magnificent. ground breaking character writing, everything comes full circle while simultaneously opening up new plot lines to explore.

and my god, yellow eyes is an epic villain. he is a very viciously written villain like, he's... my god. it ain't a walk in the park writing villains, believe you me patient readers, villains are harder to write than the protagonists, always. well, at least the compelling ones are.

now season 3 suffered because of the writer's strike, but didn't miss much either. like yeah some of the hits don't hit as hard as the season 2, but hey, mystery spot, time is on my side, ghostfacers, bedtime stories are nothing to laugh about. those episodes are fucking solid, like most of the season. and there is so much raw emotion is sam's need to save dean, it just makes my weak winchester brothers loving heart throb a little too hard. also...

need I say more?

does the show did look little more washed out and boring? yes. but it's cool, cause we're moving on to season 4.

listen, I kinda just wanna leave all my season's critique at this. i mean, yeah this. this is it. this is the long and short of it; castiel. i don't think i need to get anymore into it

so season 5 is just—

i'm kidding. obviously i'm gonna talk about season 4, at length.

listen, being able to introduce angels this late in the game and then have them be a such perfectly hidden players is a masterstroke of genius. it just is. i am a writer guys... apart from the relentless fanfic as well lol. and when i tell you, introducing a new big player which is also (not so) secretly the next big bad and playing it off as smoothly as they did in season 4, is beyond hard. but the biggest home run these fuckers hit is castiel and the best part is they weren't aiming for a one lol. and oh oh, the way they use their very VERY limited budget to show wings with just flashing the fucking light? CINEMA! that's fucking cinema right there man. i work on film sets, i am telling you, this is the smartest filmmaking choice they make on the entire show. it adds so much visual intrigue while being so awfully easy to execute. BRILLIANt.

now i cannot talk about supernatural without talking about the deancas romance of it all, which i understand not everyone can see or wants to, which is fine. to each their own. you consume art the way you want to, i don't care much as long as you can acknowledge that castiel and dean's friendship was just some of the best written television that mankind has ever seen. is that too grand a statement? yes. does that make it any less true? no.

they even brought back the moody lighting.

and then there's the episodes this season, most of which are home runs in their own regard. just like beautiful writing, the character development for cas, for dean, for sam, even the late john winchester is wild. anna is a wonderful addition, so is uriel, and alastair? they don't make villains like him anymore, they just fucking don't. AND THAT GODDAMN PLOT TWIST AT THE END? man! the finale was just... too good. Chuck's introduction is absolutely wonderful, even if they ruin him by the end but that happens a decade later so wtv, who cares? But,,,, Jimmy. Fucking. Novak. That's all. that's the tweet. yeah. i'm gonna end the season 4 fan fair with jimmy.

moving to season 5.

subjectively speaking, this is my fucking favorite. this season is a writer's dream while also being their goddamn nightmare. so many WONDERFUL characters to play with and such a grand plot but you get to see it all on a very small, consumable scale which is just... it's too smart for me to not mention. i won't start naming the plot points and neither will i name my favourite episodes because what even is the point? all of it was fucking perfect. you don't understand how hard it is to develop characters to such an extent that they become so familiar to the audience that they know their next move before you even put it on the screen. and supernatural had that. they tied everything together with so much care and consideration, just... AAAH so good.

a special shoutout goes to endverse!cas, crowley and death this season. you all know it in your bones that those three were just the absolute scene stealers. especially death's introduction... immaculate.

they did lose a few points for not being as aesthetically pleasing as the past few seasons but hey, gabriel was enough to make a smooth recovery.

but this... this is the end of the road for me people. season 5 is where it should have ended. in no way shape or form am i saying that there aren't a few good episodes here and there after this, because there are. i think season 5 was so fucking solid, tied up so many goddamn lose ends and then just put a cute little hell shaped bow on top and i just... yeah. this was and should have been the end of the road. do not get me wrong, i love me some jack kline, charlie bradbury, kevin tran, rowena macleod and eileen lahey but were they worth the bullshit ending i had to sit through? not really.

i absolutely think if there weren't more episodes of supernatural I would never have become a destiel fan, because i started shipping them when dean made cas a mixtape in season TWELVE! but my god, the good times were so scattered amongst the horseshit that even when i found those hidden gems, they were so fucking drenched in the stink that they lost their value.

the worst of it all is that, i cannot explain to you what supernatural means to me in a million words, because it is a part of me, heart and soul. i fucking AM castiel. i am a gay little angel you hear me? i love this show. i do. i'm glad it went on for however long it did but i feel like once in a while i need to write shit like this or read shit like this to remind myself of the show that it used to be. of it's beautiful cinematography, of it's clever little storytelling techniques. of it's wonderful cast. of how epic their song choices used to be.

FUcking RENEGADE? iconic. wanted, dead or alive? cannot hear the song without hearing sam's off tune goat bleating that he called singing along.

i need to remind myself of how afraid i used to be of lucifer. of how much i cried while watching dark side of the moon; when dean and sam burst the crackers, and how i learnt the lyrics to knocking on heaven's door just because of that scene.

sometimes i just have to walk through memory lane and look back at gabriel's death, the good one, the only one. it was so fucking meaningful. i have to think of "we are making it up as we go" to be able to breathe properly because those moments were so fucking beautiful.

fuck the big ones, i even remind myself of the small ones, of dean's handwriting being in all caps, just like him. of sam's fucking huge laptop with that weird blue black sticker in the middle. of castiel's tie, that just was the right shade of blue, and hung all wrong but just naturally enough to add so much more to his character than any fucking dialogue could. every small little detail of supernatural that made it so damn supernatural. i miss it all.

idk. i'm rambling. whatever.

[thesinglesock]

okay actually. about the possibility of the new Ninjago movie being live action. you guys know I'm ride or die for animation, but considering it's for Universal, I'm okay with it being live action. they have a couple of banger animation studios under their wing (namely Laika and Dreamworks), but they also have Illumination.

If they were to make an animated Ninjago movie (which can't be a LEGO-movie because the rights to make LEGO movies goes back to Warner Bros in 2025), having it animated by Laika is a hard no, Dreamworks is unlikely (but not unthinkable, especially considering how the Hageman brothers have worked for Dreamworks before), but we'd most likely either get a Ninjago movie animated by illumination OR they could do what they did with their last animated film and just have it be a collaboration between some smaller production companies that hire some animators for just this one project (which is a gamble.)

I just. Unless they get Dreamworks to animate it, I'd prefer live action. I don't want to see Illumination Ninjago.

Besides, the Hageman brothers have been treating Ninjago like live action since day 1. They were originally just tasked with creating a handful of short films to go with LEGO's new fantasy concept. The team was told to just come up with something that looked cool, and to create a few tracks for a sound library they could mix and match to the visuals. Absolutely no one involved followed those instructions. Instead they wrote a motion picture (neatly divided into acts that could be cut into shorts), with a solid plot, worldbuilding, character arcs, and scored the whole thing scene by scene like you would a traditional movie. (not even Avatar the Last Airbender had that. they used a sound library for the majority of their episodes.) The animation, however, was nothing special. They couldn't do what other animated series could, with funky angles and fluid motions, so instead they had to rely on the writing to keep viewers engaged. Because of this, the visuals of early seasons Ninjago feel more live action than cartoony (or anime-esque, which is how I'd describe the more recent seasons).

So really, I won't mind a live action Ninjago movie. I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with :D

[chiriwritesstuff]

The Impossible Man ✨ 1. The Deathwatch Beetle ✨

Modern Day Detective! Din Djarin x Witch! Reader (Soulmates AU)

Series Masterlist

Summary: For someone being born into a magical family, a curse placed on the women of your bloodline means you have mostly avoided witchcraft and its calling for the majority of your life. After a life-altering tragedy, you turn your back on your family and your gift and seek out a more normal, boring existence, devoid of magic, and mostly, of love. What happens when the ghosts of your past threaten your peaceful existence and you are forced to reconcile all that you have lost? Will you let the people you have abandoned in your past life back into your heart? Will the appearance of an impossible man you have unknowingly cursed yourself break the chains of love? Will you let him?

Chapter Rating: M? (for now)

Chapter Warnings: Magical realism, implied mention of suicide, reader and her family are cursed, implied (minor) character death, (some) men are the worst, mentions of violence

A/N: Oh, Hello there.

For Halloween this year, I decided that I wanted to write a little 3-part story featuring my favorite Pedro boy, ✨Din Djarin✨. Inspired by my favorite Halloween-ish movie, Practical Magic, the story follows a Modern Day Detective Din, and our (reluctant) Witchy Reader. This story is not a complete retelling of PM, but a mishmash of other films that I love and cherish. If you're able to spot some of these films, I'll gift you a virtual Halloween candy treat! Happy Halloween, everyone!

Peep the (main canon storyline) Star Wars cameo!

Banner by @chiriwritesstuff ✨ Dividers by @saradika

Word Count: 3.2K

The first time you heard of the deathwatch beetle, you were eight years old.

The Victorian-style house that sat along the edge of Puget Sound was a whimsical sort, with its white picket fence adorned with creeping ivy, its single turret, a spire with the shape of a star on top of it, like a star on a Christmas tree. It had belonged to your family for decades - and was always kept in the same manner as when it was built. It was the home that your mother was raised in, and her mother before her, the house being passed down through each generation. You remember the summers you spent with your Aunt Fennic and Omera, taking the ferry from the port at Capitol Hill to Bainbridge Island, your sister Violet - Vi, for short - with her hands intertwined with yours. Three hundred and sixty-seven days younger than you, and every bit your opposite - if you were the match, then she was the flame; she was light, embodied to your infinite darkness. You would wear braids in your hair and fairy wings as you ran down the corridors of the house, playing hide-and-seek and hoping that you wouldn't get lost in the vastness of it. It was your beacon of light and solace, always welcoming. Now, as you hold your sister's hand while walking up to the porch, dressed in black, eyes still puffy and swollen and lined with tears, your aunts standing side by side, already expecting you both - it had finally become home.

"In this house," your aunt Fennic starts, grabbing the suitcase out of your hands as your aunt Omera bends to pick up Vi, "We will eat chocolate cake for breakfast and not worry about silly little things like bedtimes and brushing our teeth." You chuckle as she winks and leads the two of you inside.

Later that night, as Omera tucked you into bed, Vi having fallen asleep only moments before, she smiled as she kissed your forehead. "We're so happy you're with us, Starshine."

You silently nod, your fingers fidgeting nervously as you try to hide the discomfort of being in a new place, despite having been here so many times before. You look down at your hands, blinking away the tears that were begging to come out. "Aunt Omera, did Daddy die because of the curse?"

She gives you a sad smile. "Yes, Baby, he did." She strokes your cheek with her thumb, wiping away your tears.

"Your mother knew the moment she heard the click, click, click of the deathwatch beetle beckoning for your father's life... she knew that day that he was doomed to die. Every person who falls in love with any of the women of our bloodline is resigned to the same fate."

"Is that why Mommy died? Because of a broken heart?"

Omera's face softens as she brushes your hair away from your eyes. "Yes, my darling girl, she did. She couldn't imagine life without your father..." She pulls the covers over you. "…but that's how you came to live with us, and we will raise you the best way we know how."

You smile sadly, settling yourself deeper into the covers. "Why is our family cursed, Auntie?"

"It was because of your ancestor, Maria."

"Was she a witch?"

"Yes, the first in our family. And you are the most recent in a long and distinguished line."

"What happened to her?"

"Well, my Starshine, she fell in love. She fell in love with a man, her soulmate... but not everyone was happy about it. There was another man, an evil man, who had loved Maria from afar. He demanded that she be with him, and when she refused, he killed her lover in cold blood."

You bite your lip, nodding to yourself as you try to understand. "… but how does that make us cursed?"

"Well," Omera says, "Maria didn't take her lover's death kindly. With her powers, she managed to encase the evil man in a tomb full of beetles, eating him alive. However, before he died, he cursed the entirety of our female bloodline. This curse dooms any being who dares to love us, but it also ensures that we will always find our soulmate. Throughout the years, the appearance of the deathwatch beetle - the same one that consumed the man - is seen as a warning bell. The moment you hear the click, click, click of the beetle, there is nothing you can do to stop the curse. We have carried the weight of this burden for hundreds of years."

"I wish that I never find my soulmate," you whisper, determination etched on your 8-year-old face. "I don't want anyone to die because of me, and I don't want to die of a broken heart!"

Omera looks at you sadly as she kisses your forehead. "Oh, my sweet Starshine." She reaches over to turn off your bedside lamp, then kisses Vi before walking to your door, locking eyes with you, nodding as she turns away, leaving you in complete darkness.

"You will."

“He will hear my call a mile away. He will whistle my favorite song. He can ride a horse backwards.”  You gather the petals of the flower and place it in the bowl, reading the words you have written in your diary aloud, your fingers grazing the page.

“What are you doing, Starshine?” Vi asks from behind you, walking into the greenhouse as she pets Boba the house cat.

“I’m summoning a true love spell. Amas Veritas. Also known as a Soulmates calling.” You pull a rose petal, inspecting it as you turn to your sister. “He can flip pancakes in the air. He will be marvelously kind… and his favorite shape will be a star… and he’ll have a birthmark on him, the shape of a… bullseye.”

“… I thought you didn’t want to find your soulmate? I heard you, last night. When you were talking to Aunt Omera.” She picks up your diary and flips through the pages, her hip resting on the table as you finish gathering the rest of the ingredients, stirring it gently with your hands.

“That’s the point, Vi. The guy I dreamed of? My soulmate? He doesn’t exist… and if he doesn’t exist, I won’t die of a broken heart.”

You walk out and your sister follows, making your way to the balcony as you hold the bowl out into the night sky. Vi gasps as the petals start to float out of the bowl, flowing out like a waft of smoke, fluttering in the air, flying out into the distance, a small smile forming as you look out into the sky.

"Goodnight, Impossible Man." 

The first time you heard the ominous click, click, click of the deathwatch beetle, you were 28 years old.

It was in the dead of night, the clicking noise faint and almost unnoticeable, its distinctive chirps being drowned out by the idle sounds of the crickets and the gently blowing wind.

Click, click, click.

Your eyes open at that, suddenly alert. You shoot up from where you lay, Ben's still form beside you still in deep sleep. You breathe deeply, pushing your hair out of your face as you scan the room, looking for the source of the subtle clicking sound that roused you from your sleep. "Baby," Ben murmurs into his pillow, his eyes half open. "What are you doing up? It's late. Go back to sleep." He whispers, his arm pulling yours gently as you ease yourself back onto his chest, the deep thump, thump, thump of his heartbeat reverberating throughout your body, a reminder that he’s still very much alive. You sigh, pressing a chase kiss on his sternum. "I thought I heard something," you reply, his body shifting as he cages you in, his chin resting on the top of your head. "It's just the wind, Starshine. Go back to sleep," he continues, his fingers gently drawing small circles on your back. "I love you," he finally whispers before his breathing evens, his soft snores lulling you back to sleep.

A few hours later, you’re roused from your sleep once more as Ben's phone starts to chime. You feel his arm reaching out blindly for his phone on the nightstand, a slight groan rumbling from his chest as he squints at the screen.

"Good Morning, baby," Ben whispers in your ear, his voice heavy with sleep. "I have to get up, but you go back to sleep." You feel his breath on your cheeks as he presses a kiss to them, a faint smile forming as he embraces you, the feeling of his body stretching against yours as he wakes. He kisses your sleepy head as he rises out of bed, sitting on the edge of it as he caresses your half-sleeping form. He cracks his neck and silently pads himself into the bathroom, the sound of the shower starting as you burrow yourself deeper into the covers, your body slowly shifting to where his body was only a moment ago, relishing in the residual warmth of your lover it still contains. You wedge your nose into the indent of his pillow, smiling as you inhale his scent. You lay there until you hear the tell-tale sound of the shower shutting off. Your eyes adjust to the warm orange light of the bathroom as he walks out, a towel half slung onto his form as he walks into the closet, pulling on his suit as he dresses for the day, his faint silhouette shuffling in the light of early dawn.

"Ben," you say softly as he’s beginning to pull on his socks. "It’s early. Come back to bed." You plead with him, your arms outstretched, making grabby hands, beckoning out for him.

"Djarin messaged me saying he has a lead. I’m heading over to meet with him now," He walks over to you, sitting on the edge of the bed as he puts his wingtip loafers on. "We’ve been at a stalemate for months now, baby. I’ll make it up to you, maybe we could go back to Montauk after I close this case. Gideon is so close, I’m finally closing in on him, I can feel it."

You nod as you reach out to rub his back. "Okay. You owe me, though."

He chuckles at that, the corners of his cheeks lifting as he gives you a rare smile. "No, Djarin owes me because I must be insane to leave my beautiful wife all alone. It’s criminal." He smirks as he bends over to kiss you, his lips tracing the side of your jaw.

"I have to go," he whispers into your ear as he kisses your head. "I’ll see you after work, ok? Might be a late night, this case has been killing me," he continues, grabbing his briefcase perched against his nightstand. He hovers by the doorframe, smiling as he turns to leave.

"I love you, Starshine."

He’s gone by the time you whisper those three little words back out into the ether.

Click, click, click. Click, click, CLICK.

Your eyes shoot open once again, the room now bathed in the mid-morning light. You scramble out of bed.

No, you think. No, no, no, NO.

You pace around your room nervously, the clicking sound from the night echoing into the recesses of your brain. You scan the room for the source of your dread, your body shivering in fear. You run to the opposite side of the room, scanning every nook and cranny, every crevice and surface. "Where are you, fucker?" you think to yourself.

Click, click, click.

You realize the sound is coming from beneath you, your eyes quickly shifting to where your feet are planted on the old floorboards of your shared apartment. It’s an old apartment in the heart of Queen Anne, one of those charming wartime-era duplexes painted in pink with its charming crown molding and black and white checkered tiles in the kitchen. Your dream home, you once thought to yourself, Vi’s unit on the other side, her bedroom wall sharing your own - an inheritance you both shared after your mother died all those years ago.

Your mother.

Your heart shudders at her memory, the tears forming as you take another deep breath. You forcibly repress and push those memories aside, centering yourself as you remind yourself of the current problem on your hands. You look below you once again, the gaps of the aged wood showing the earth below. You focus on the gaps, your eyes scanning frantically until you see it - the silhouette of the deathwatch beetle, its obsidian shiny armor scampering away from you, as if it finally acknowledges your presence. You dive onto the floor in its direction, your eyes inspecting the gaps of the floorboards, your line of sight aligning with the death beetle once more.

You scamper back onto your feet hurriedly, running out of your bedroom into the hallway, your feet pounding heavily on the floor as you make your way to the hallway closet, wrenching the door open with hurried force as you scan for the ancient toolbox on the shelf. You yank the rusted toolbox out, spilling its contents onto the floor, not caring one bit about the mess that you’re making. Grabbing a flathead screwdriver, you hurry back into the bedroom, following the now-insistent clicking of the beetle. It managed to make its way above ground, scampering away as you furiously head towards it. It hurriedly makes its way across the way of the floorboards, you diving once again towards it, your hand stretched out as you try to slam onto it. The beetle is quicker and more agile than you, shimmying away from your hand as it falls through the crack of the floorboard. You lay your cheek on the cold floor as you pound on it furiously, willing the beetle to click as you listen intently for it. "This can’t be!" You whisper to yourself, your breath choking out in a panic.

"FUCK!" You scream in agony, grabbing the screwdriver that lay beside you. You wedge it against the edge of the floorboards, prying it open as you scan for the beetle. You start to pry off the boards around you until you make a sizeable gap for you to jump into, throwing the screwdriver aside and forcibly pry more floorboards until they lay haphazardly amongst each other in piles, completely surrounding you as you breathe heavily, the tears flowing freely on your face.

"Don’t do this to me!" You cry out, gasping for air as you crawl into the earth below, your nightgown now soiled as you frantically search around you. The clicking sound is becoming more frequent and louder, its eerie cadence becoming the only thing you can hear in your mind. "Come on!" You scream. "Please, don’t do this to me, not now, not him…. PLEASE! Haven’t you taken enough from me?! Haven’t we shed enough blood? Oh god…" You plead, your voice croaking out in desperation. You suddenly sit in a daze, your hair disheveled, the tears refusing to cease as your heart feels like it’s about to explode in your chest from pure exhaustion, from sheer adrenaline. It's then you realize that you’re suddenly surrounded by silence. You blink, scanning the room once more, the clicks having stopped and the deathwatch beetle nowhere to be found. You breathe a sigh of relief until suddenly the clicks ring out fast and furiously, a crescendo of fear and pain building within you until it ceases once more. You suddenly shudder, your body jolting violently, a single tear falling down the slopes of your face.

You’re still sitting there hours later, as the day has turned into night when your phone suddenly rings in the distance. You slowly climb out of the floor as you make your way to your dresser, silently picking up the phone and answering it, not bothering to check who it is, your hands trembling in fear.

"Ben?" You whisper shakily.

"Hey Starshine, it’s me, Din. Din Djarin?" You hear a deep sigh on the line. "...Are you there?"

"Listen. I’m going to need you to come down to the station… I’m sorry… it’s… it’s Ben." You hear him take a harsh breath as he speaks again. "I’m so sorry, Starshine…." His voice fades as your phone slips out of your grasp, the Seattle Police contact illuminating the screen as it hits the ground, his voice cutting through the silence as the sob you’ve been holding in erupts deep within your chest, you begin to wail and scream, falling to your knees.

"It was the curse, wasn’t it?" You scream as you storm into your aunt's house later that night, pacing frantically in the kitchen. “Because I loved him so much!”

Your aunts slowly walk into the room hesitantly, looking at your shaking frame nervously.

It’s your aunt Fennic who speaks first.

“We had no idea… when we cast that spell…”

“What spell?” You ask as your eyes shift between your two aunts, Omera’s eyes downcast in shame. “What are you talking about?!" She finally looks at you, her eyes filled with tears as she glances at her sister.

“Oh…” you shudder. “You didn’t. Please tell me you didn’t… my own flesh and blood...”

“You were so lonely, Starshine… we just… wanted to give you a little push… we didn’t expect you to fall in love.”

“WELL, I DID!” You gasp, grasping your chest as you walk out, grabbing the spell book from the other room, slamming it onto the kitchen counter as you frantically flip through the pages. “And I want him back!”

“You brought him into my life, and I want you to bring him back!” You say as you continue to flip through the pages. “I’ve never asked you for anything, I’ve never asked you for spells but do this! I know you can, I know you can bring him back!”

“We won’t do this” Omera speaks up as she approaches you. “We can’t do this” Fennic adds, crossing her arms.

“I know you can! I remember I found it here…” your fingers reading through the spell “I found the spell when… when mommy and daddy died.”

“Even if we did bring him back” Fennic starts, looking at Omera “… it wouldn’t be Ben.”

“… it would be something else, something dark and unnatural” Omera adds, reaching out to you.

“I DONT CARE WHAT HE COMES BACK AS, AS LONG AS HE COMES BACK… as long as he comes back” your voice breaks as you suddenly start to sob. “Please! Please do this for me!” You sob as you collapse onto the spell book, looking at your aunts pleadingly. “Please? PLEASE?!” You cover your mouth as you fall to your knees, Omera catching you as you cry onto her chest.

“I’m so sorry, Starshine.” She whispers as she strokes your back, looking at her sister as she turns to walk away.

The first time you hear the ominous click, click, click of the deathwatch beetle is the day you swear to yourself that you will never, ever fall in love again.

Authors Bits:

If you guessed that Ben was Ben Solo, you were right. I admit that I was once a Reylo - not so much now, but back in the day, so including him in this story was a treat... also, because Adam Driver <3.

Speaking about Ben, it's safe to say he's alluded to his death several times to Starshine, and there's several hints that I try to convey throughout. I'll miss our Benji, but we all know what we want, and he's definitely coming...

Taglist: @strawberri-blonde

[spooky-things-au]

Chapter 4 and I just got to my child! (Skid!) And his asshole of a father... but I've got to my child! :D

(Chapter is undercut)

Spooky Things

Season 1. Beginning

Episode 1. The vanishing of Ross Lynn

Chapter 4. Eleven

The doors to mansion opened, making the chatter inside quiet down as everyone turned to the front door.

"Father." Somebody in crowd said.

A tall black-haired man looked between the hooded people, walking inside the building. He stopped by a man in cloak, who nodded to him.

"What's the damage?" It was the man's only question.

"This way, Father." Cloaked figure replied, showing the man towards the door.

The two started to decent into the basement, the black-haired man taking out the key to open the door.

"The entire east wing of basement will be evacuated within the hour. We've sealed off this area following quarantine agreements."

The man smiled, nodding to the cloaked, before he opened the door, that now had plastic wrap on the other side. The both men stepped through the zipper in middle, seeing the other side.

It was covered in some kind of light cyan mist, the basement looked even darker than usual... as the Father walked inside, placing his hand on the wall, he came across few dark bumps were scattered on them. Upon touching... they felt slightly slimy, similar to skin of amphibian or deep-sea creature.

He frowned once more, walking further through the halls into the basement... until they finally reached a huge room, that was filled with that cyan mist... but here, it seemed to be even more concentrated, making it hard to see too far head of oneself...

And yet, something was still clear.

A huge opening in the wall, glowing that same cyan. The glow just as well seemed to be pulsing... low growling was ringing throughout the room... and more, way bigger bumps were coming out the opening... from some angle, they also looked like tentacles.

"This is where it came from?" Father asked, examining the room.

"Yes."

He stepped closer towards the opening, trying to see what was on the inside... but he was met with same glow, that seemed to linger for what seemed to be... miles on the other side. And... if anyone would ask, he could swear he saw something moving on the other side. After a minute of examining it, Father stood up. He still continued to look at the opening.

Whatever that thing was... it was not continuation of his basement.

"And the boy? Were you able to locate him yet?" He asked, looking at his hand, just now noticing some of same slime as from bumps in corridor.

"We're doing what we can, Father. Give us time." A man spoke behind him.

"He couldn't have gotten too far. I mean... he's only eight."

'You better believe he hasn't gotten away...' Father thought to himself, frowning. 'This is big. And you made it happen...'

A smirk grew on Father's face as he thought of what happened. Or rather... who made it happen.

'Eleven...'

'Run.' It was the only thought running through his brain for what felt like hours. 'Run, run, run!!'

A small figure hid behind the tree, breathing deeply, finally able to watch a break.

A small child, seemed not even to be 10 at the moment, was running for his life in chilly November day in nothing, but what seemed to be a hospital gown.

'Run! They're coming! Bad! Evil!'

But, of course, human body could only take so much running, before it gets tired and runs out of fuel. And it was the same way for the little one. He heard his stomach rumble... he hasn't had anything in his stomach since yesterday.

He grasped onto himself, before looking around... when he smelled something not far away.

He then came to a small building. Way smaller than the house, he ran from... there were few machines next to it (cars, he remembered the names from books)... there must be people inside. Which was a bad sign, he couldn't be seen... not if he wanted to get away from-.

He then heard whistling, as a man came from back door with bag in hand. It gave him idea...

The boy followed on some distance after the man, sneaking inside, carefully watching not to get caught... as he thought, next room had even more people... despite there being food, he couldn't go there.

He walked to another room, this one was way smaller, with many weird things. Some sharp, some not... a lot of silver and weird smells. Nothing back The House ever smelt like this... the boy looked around once more, before his eyes spotted something...

A small bag, seemingly out of paper... and there was something in it... small pieces of yellow something. They smelt... good. His stomach growled once more.

The child cautiously walked over it, looking taking one piece in his hand, bringing it to his nose to get better smell of it... and then took a bite.

His eyes widened lightly. It was... potatoes? It was kind of similar to potatoes, he would eat back at The House... but he never tried them like this. Not mushed or in these small pieces.

He thought he liked it.

Looking around for one last time, the boy leaned over the bag, starting to devour the potato pieces few at a time. He felt bad about it, as he was taught stealing was bad... but he didn't feel like he cared at the moment. He was starving! He hadn't had anything since lunch yesterday! He was running the whole night!

Shoving 'be good' mentality back for a minute, he just carried on with eating, until...

"HEY!"

He was caught...

The day was quiet at Boys n' Grills. That was fortunate, given the owner was away for some "family matter". That left few employees to run the place, but that was enough. Despite it being Monday, the day promised to be slow.

Vivana was was walking between tables, taking and handing orders to people. Yep, it was definitely being a-

Then she turned around to face the window into kitchen to see somebody inside... and it was DEFINITELY not one of her coworkers.

"HEY!" She shouted, before running towards the kitchen.

It made the boy duck, grabbing the bag in his hands, starting to run.

A bit upset the food gathering was so little, but if he didn't want to go back in The House... he needed to get out right now. As small of snack as it was... he just needed something to sustain himself... the bag was small either way. He didn't think anyone would miss it!

Hand grasped into his shoulder, before turning him around to face the person.

"You think you can steal from us, kid!?" Vivana said into the kid's face. "You think you can-?!"

Then she took time to look over the child...

The dirty child. On look, he was only 7 or 8, if even it was that... definitely underweight too. Buzz cut hair, dirty blue hospital gown with little pink flowers... barefoot too... and he was going to run out there in November. Like this. And now, he was looking down, scared and ashamed... it was surprise he didn't cry. Well... correction. He was close to cry, judging by the tears, gathering up in his eyes.

"What the fuck..?"

Robert came out of school, breathing in cold fall air into his lungs. He had no doubt his friends already left. They didn't share many classes together, and even then, they tried to avoid one another. Or, at least, Roy tried to avoid them. Or else it would be too high of possibility of Ivan and Zack telling his mother he was "hanging" with "lowlife" as she liked to call them all.

She didn't like when they talked outside of their weekends at Miss. Lila's place. Robert always wondered, why she even got in contact with Miss. Lila to watch him in first place all those years ago, if she didn't like people, she found lower than herself in status.

Robert then was pulled out of his thoughts by the sound of police cars and sirens passing by. Huh... weird. It was quite awhile since this happened in their town. Or, at least, he was witness to it.

Through he payed no mind, walking down the school yard. Kevin long since picked most of kids up, so he would have to go on foot. He didn't mind. Completely other way around, he liked that.

Anything not to see that poor excuse, his brother called hi-

Then, something caught his eye. The bike stop by the front. Ross' bike wasn't there. He then remembered Robin getting a call from Ross' dad this morning... he didn't know, what they were talking about, but something felt unsettling to him.

Then he realized Ross wasn't on the bus either. Nor in class or Mr. Collins' club, they all went to. And his bike wasn't there when they got to school either.

Feeling something in his gut, Robert pulled out his phone, checking out his and Ross' chat.

No... last message there was from Robert himself yesterday, when he replied that he could lend Ross his comic... and even that, Ross didn't see it. Not even leaving him on read.

This was nothing like Ross...

Robert frowned, before going to their group chat. Last message there was from Roy, complaining about their lunch, and Susie laughing at him. And still, Ross hadn't replied in there, even through he LOVED this type of drama.

This seemed to be last straw for Robert, as he started typing

👽 Hey, guys...

👽 Has anyone seen Ross today?

Some part of Robert expected Ross to suddenly pop out of silence, tell them it was a mean prank... but something in his brain said it would be it...

And sure enough, first to reply would be not Ross... but Roy.

💥 What?

👽 Has anyone seen Ross?

Susie's icon then lit up, and she started typing too.

💗 Now that you mention it... I haven't seen him since yesterday

💥 I mean... me neither, but he might just be sick today

Well... it could explain it... also would explain, why Ross' dad would call Robin... but why couldn't they know? Why didn't she tell him? It couldn't be just that, Robert was sure of it.

And while the blonde boy was thinking over the situation, his phone buzzed. And then again... and again. Three new messages. All from Susie and still none from Ross, that would clear up their situation.

💗 I'm just from Miss. Lila, she's not home

💗 I have a feeling something's off

💗 Let's to to Ross' house to ask him

Susie was already waiting them by Ross' house when Robert and Roy arrived. And, easy to guess, Will was with her. Well... it was expected, given she couldn't leave a small child in front yard of Miss. Lila's house or at their own home without supervision.

But what they didn't expect would be a police car, stopped right infront of their house.

"Police? Why?" Roy asked, looking over the car in confusion.

"Maybe it's my uncle?" Robert wondered quietly, walking to the door. "I mean... he is friends with Miss. Jaune and Susie's dad."

"Let's just talk with Ross' parents..." Susie said for all of them, pulling Will from the car.

Robert knocked on the door and they were let inside.

"Miss. Jaune?" Susie called out. "It's us! Susie and Will! And also Robert with Roy."

"Susie?" Jaune's unusually worried voice called out from different room. "In the kitchen, kids, but I'm a bit busy right now!"

"We're not for long, ma'am!" Robert said. "We just came to ask about Ross. He wasn't at school today..."

"He's just sick, right?" Roy joined in. "Tell them they're overreacting!" He then turned towards where their friend's room was. "Ross! Just answer this! You're freaking Susie and Robsrt out!"

But nothing followed. Not even a slightest groan. Instead, it was a worried looking policeman. Robert gasped lightly.

"Officer Jack!" He said, getting a light smile from the man, but then his face turned back to worry again.

"Kids, we're talking about something really serious here, you should head home..." Jack explained, constantly looking around.

"What do you mean?" Susie asked, still trying to find her friend.

"It doesn't involve you." Jack still tried to reason with kids, but then Jaune and John came by too.

"How am I supposed to know every scratch in this house, John!?" Jaune was frowning, worrying obvious in her voice. "You know I'm not the most careful person around and I also live with two guys!"

"Hi, miss Jaune!" Will said as he saw the woman.

"Oh!" She looked down, surprised, before smiling. "Hey, Will..." She then reached down to pet the kid's hair.

"Uncle John!" Robert ran towards his relative, looking at him for any information. "What's going on?"

John looked over at Jack, who looked at him with 'How do I tell them?' expression. Jack pinched his nose breathing out. He then showed him to way to basement, where Connor and Sophie currently were. John was going to take this over.

"Kids..." John looked down at the kids. "You four go home. I hate to be the one to tell it to you, but..." He sighed out. "I'm afraid your friends has gone missing."

Dead silence.

"Oh... you're taking it way better than-"

"WHAT!?"

"Spoke too soon..."

For next minute, there were bunch of questions from kids. "What do you mean 'has gone missing!?", "Where did you look for him yet!?", "You're joking!", "This isn't a funny joke!" and many other.

"One at a time!" The man raised his hands. "You." He showed at Susie.

"How that happened!?" She started. "Our town is so small, he couldn't have gone far! And why would he!? He lives 20 minutes away from Miss. Lila! It-!"

"We're trying to figure out, how that happened..." John said slowly, trying to calm the girl down. "We don't know much yet, but we found his bag, emptied on the side on a road. Our best guess, it could be kidnapping."

"Kidnapping!?" The kids asked again.

"Not final conclusion, but just a guess. He could just be hiding somewhere." John explained. "We're currently gathering a search party to look for him."

"Can we join!?" Susie instantly jumped to him.

"What!?" John's eyes widened.

"Yeah!" Roy joined as well. "We can help look!"

"We know places, Ross likes to visit! He can be there!" Robert added. "Please! Uncle John!"

"No!" John shook his head. "No, children. But this is a case for adults. You should all be heading home right now."

"But-!" Susie tried to interfere, but John cut her off too.

"No buts, young lady." He said sternly. "Last thing, we need right now, is four more missing kids. As soon as this conversation finishes, all four of you are to head home. It means no biking." He looked at Robert. "No investigating." He turned to Roy. "No nonsense." He turned to Susie. "Did I making myself clear?"

Silence.

"Did I make myself... clear?"

"Yes./Absolutely, sir/Crystal clear." Three voices said.

The kids sighed, before Susie looked back for her brother. "Come on, Will..."

And then, the kids left. John sighed out. Jaune was back on the phone, trying to reach her father.

"Finally, somebody..." She breathed out. "Hello? Is Oscar there?"

"No, it's Elizabeth, his girlfriend." A tired and high female voice said on other side. "Who is that?"

"Elizabeth? Elizabeth..." The blonde woman nodded. "I don't think we met, but this is Jaune."

"...Who?" Jaune rolled her eyes. Of course her father hasn't said a thing about her.

"Jaune. I'm Oscar's daughter. Is he there?"

"No. Will let him know, you called..."

"Wait! Don't hang up! I need to speak with him! Can you, at least-!?"

And she hang up.

"Bitch..." Jaune bared her teeth at this, before starting to try get ahold on her father again.

John sighed out, before deciding to check on the rest of the crew in the basement.

"Managed to make the kids leave. Anything here?" John asked Jack, who looked at him and shrugged.

"Connor found a kid sized beanie down here, so we were thinking to bring it up to Jaune. But not much else..." The younger man explained, lifting up a gray beanie in his hand. "How's she?"

"Holding up, but barely..." John sighed out. "It's hard losing a kid and not knowing if they're safe or not."

He then looked over the room, before noticing something.

"Sophie!" He yelled out, as the woman gasped, looking back. "What are you looking at?"

"I..." The woman stuttered, looking between the man and the wall, but couldn't say anything. "Nothing... I guess I just imagined it..."

But I thought I saw something glow...

John sighed out once more.

Upstairs, Jaune was still ranting into the phone, at this point pleading for her father to tell if he knew where her child was... he felt his heart hurt at the sight. Oh, how he could understand her pain so badly...

"Alrighy, guys, let's get out." He said to his coworkers. "And somebody, call Patty to ask about the search party. And tell her to tell them to grab flashlights..."

This was going to be a long night...

@crossover-enthusiast @catsockpuppet @spookuzm @ferfbish @sunny6677 @momentokori @nottapossum @nostalgic-soda

[justabigoldnerd]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers! Spread the self-love 💞

AHHH I LOVE THIS

Okay so favorite five fics I've written are (in chronological order, not most to least):

1. "The End Is All I Can See (And It Scares The Hell Out Of Me)"

Napollya || Temporary MCD || A timeloop fic that delves heavily into the stages of grief, based on a grief loop I was experiencing at the time of writing.

2. "One Deep Breath Out From The Sky"

Pre-relationship || Missing Scene || I was really proud of quite a few things in this one!

3. "Quietly, It Slips Through Your Fingers, Love (Falling From You Drop By Drop)"

Napollya || Canon Divergence || I'm really proud of my imagery and prose here!!

4. "You Take Me In Your Arms When Walls Are Closing In"

Illya × Napoleon × Gaby || Body Horror || This has some of my favorite imagery I have EVER written 💕

Oh shit number five snuck up on me uhhhhhhh I think it's a three way tie between AUs lmao SO tied for number 5 are:

"You Had To Be A Big Shot, Didn't You (You Had To Open Up Your Mouth)"

Pre-U.N.C.L.E. || Winged Spies || This is a backstory for Solo in my Winged Spies AU that was meant to be a one shot but quickly grew into a multichapter lmaoooo I loved developing Solo's character in this one

"To Find Someone To Talk To, Who Likes The Way I Am"

Napollya || Modern/College AU || If I remember correctly, this is my longest fic to date!! There is so much metaphor and thought and imagery I am SO proud of in this one. There are a couple of things I would go back and change, but I feel like this is one of my strongest works!!

"For Death Is Not The Worst Of Evils"

Napollya || MCD || This is, as the summary reads, the climactic scene from the short film "2081", but if it were Illya and Solo. The film this is based on rocked me and this fic feels a little surreal, which I think fits the setting well. [This fic also has a PHENOMENONAL podfic performance by @pippinoftheshire , go give it SO MUCH LOVE I listen to it near daily "For Death Is Not The Worst of Evils [podfic]" ]

Thank you so much for this ask!!! 💕💕💕 Because I had a three way tie for number five I'll send three extra people this ask 💕