#Yugo Tour | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

jokeroutsubs · 3 months ago

Text

[ENG SUB/translation] Joker Out on Radio Maribor (22.10.2024)

Bojan, Jan, Kris and Nace were on Radio Maribor to talk about the new single 'Bluza', the new album, and the tour. You can listen to it here on RTV's Radio Maribor site.

Transcript and subtitles by members of JokerOutSubs, translation by @chaosofsmarty, drumbeat, and a member of JokerOutSubs, review by @kurooscoffee, IG anja_10, and a member of JokerOutSubs, native proofreading by IG gboleyn123.

The recording is audio only. You can find it with subtitles on our Youtube channel here:

youtube

You can also read the whole conversation in transcript form under the cut:

Host: Dear listeners, it's to my great honour and joy that we're hosting probably the most popular band in Slovenia at the moment, the moment lasting quite a while, but that's enough talking. Joker Out here in Radio Maribor's studio, hello.

Joker Out: Yeah, hello. Hi. Hello.

Host: Four out of five have crammed themselves in here, into our studio, and we'll start at the end, so with the latest single 'Bluza'. What can we say about 'Bluza'?

Bojan: 'Bluza' is the fourth single from our third studio album, which will be called 'Souvenir Pop'.

Host: Okay.

Bojan: It comes out on the 15th of November. The album doesn't really have a common theme audio-wise, just as souvenirs from longer travels usually don't have one. We see a lot of different places, different people, different cuisines and smells. And that's how this album will be too, which kind of works like all the memories we've acquired in a year and a half, let's say, since starting our Eurovision journey. And 'Bluza' is, let's say, this... ballad that includes synthesised sounds a bit more than usual. There's also quite a lot of back vocals, so we really played with synthesising a fair bit, and with vocal layering. But it ends in a sort of more classically rock style then.

Host: And if maybe bands, in Slovenia, too, like to make sure that an album has some kind of common theme, you went in a completely different direction.

Bojan: Yeah, we always go in another direction, usually, and... But I wouldn't say we do it intentionally, but let's say that with this album, it actually is conceptually planned that way, yeah.

Host: So all of the songs will be a bit different, right? There won't be a common theme.

Bojan: No.

Host: But it'll still be the recognisable Joker Out sound or style.

Bojan: Yeah, generally, if it comes from us, we think it's our style. Now... We've already had, let's say, a few moments of deviation from the so called classically recognisable style and that's how it'll be on this album, too.

Host: The next thing I'm curious about is your previous single, titled 'Šta bih ja'. What can you say about this one? We haven't hosted you yet with that single.

Bojan: Tell us, Kris.

Kris: 'Šta bih ja' is really the first song created during our two month stay in London. It's actually sort of... music, audio and message wise, the song that sort of represents our inner thoughts, I mean, our feelings, in London, where we realised... Where we first realised what it's like to be a foreigner in a country, what it's like to navigate a huge, endless city. And actually from that, then out poured a sort of totally Yugo, Yugo rock nostalgic song, that's actually really, really fun to play live.

Host: And if we're on the topic again, that some bands can do it by going to London to record for maybe a week and then they come back. No, you really moved to London, lived there, breathed in the air, and that's where the new album was created.

Bojan: That's where the inspiration for this album actually began. Really, the plan for London was to step away a bit from an environment that's familiar and comfortable to us. That we go there together, of course, to, for the first time, move into a space and to combine all the energy which accumulated over the years of our cooperation into two months of coexistence. And it's interesting to follow how the dynamics actually change, once you move in together with your partners, which we practically are, well, it’s like this sort of camaraderie. So yeah, we went to live in London for two months and it was very fun. Like Kris said, we were foreigners for the first time, we went to work, but at the same time we were sort of on holiday in our minds, because we didn't have any written schedules, we were our own bosses. So, an interesting experience.

Host: Is it important to you, to go out of your, like how the English say, "comfort zone"? That you get into a foreign environment, where everything is a bit new.

Nace: I mean, it definitely awakens some new, some new inspiration, something new, to... that is also, I think, evident in the music and our mutual relationship.

Jan: We had to move abroad so that we're even more rooted in our own familiar sound.

Bojan: That's it.

Host: But it's interesting that you didn't get that much of an English influence out of it, at least in terms of music, but you returned to your origins – maybe in quotation marks for some – so, the Balkans.

Bojan: Yes, Žarko Pak, our producer, came to London after us with a month and a half delay. And when we showed him what we've made, including 'Šta bih ja', he was smoking a cigarette and said: "Eh, is this what I sent you to London for, to do this, or what? What would happen if you were sent to Mostar to a studio, you'd go full on Beatles."

Host: So you surprised Žarko Pak, too...

Bojan: Absolutely.

Host: ... who's probably seen and heard many things.

Bojan: He has, yeah.

Host: So from this London experience comes a Balkan album, there's a Balkan tour coming, which we'll talk about a bit more later. Now we're listening to the first single 'Bluza', which you performed live at Radio Si a few minutes ago, and now on Radio Maribor, too.

[Acoustic performance of ‘Bluza’.]

Host: Joker Out are still with us, we're listening to their music, and moving onto Eurovision for a bit. So, a question that probably isn't left out at any interview, or rarely. I have to, I'm curious myself. I was super proud of you, because it was the first time that a Slovenian band had such a perfect performance, so perfectly planned, you prepared so perfectly, you were everywhere. Usually Slovenian bands that represent us at the Eurovision Song Contest win at EMA, then there's a bit of calm, then there's the music video, maybe they show up in a show or two on foreign televisions, and that's it. But you really... Hats off to you.

Kris: Thank you.

Bojan: Thank you very much. It's very nice to hear that, and actually we also, during Eurovision, felt the support from home, very very nicely. And even when we returned from Liverpool, despite not getting the best result, we felt and also got back feedback that this event was followed with so much enthusiasm, love, support. And that really pleased us and I think that was also one of the main factors for why we did this the way we did, because it’s definitely important to have the wind in your sails, with these things.

Host: And it definitely also opened the door to Europe to you, which is now paying off with big tours, festival performances and so on.

Bojan: Absolutely.

Host: 'Carpe Diem' was the one that was at Eurovision, and for 'Carpe Diem' you went to Hamburg. That's where you recorded this song, so London, Hamburg, you're basically all over Europe.

Bojan: Yeah, the Beatles went from London to Hamburg, we went from Hamburg to... no, sorry, from Liverpool to Hamburg. And we went from Hamburg to Liverpool.

Kris: And then back to Hamburg.

Bojan: But look, we went back to Hamburg. Can someone take over?

Kris: Yeah, I mean, you know what, we recorded 'Carpe Diem' in a very, very good atmosphere in Hamburg, in that studio, called Clouds Hill. We then decided that... that we'd definitely return there for the rest of the album. And then we came back for one full month. I think now, we're fed up with it for quite some time, but another album was made there.

Host: In terms of going abroad, you also collaborated, one almost can't believe it, with Elvis Costello. How did that happen?

Bojan: Yeah, we also can't believe it. Anyway... Long story short. We happened to get, through a gentleman we know, who lives in Liverpool, the information that he actually knows Elvis and that the two are friends. Stephen, this man from Liverpool, is our big fan and supporter and he showed Elvis our music, and while listening to the second album, 'Novi val' kind of stuck in his ear. And got enough of his attention that Elvis offered to write an English version of the lyrics and a very short while later called us, too, saying he'd be interested in a duet, which we, of course, immediately accepted, with the utmost delight, because we were fans of Elvis's music before, too. And yeah, that's how it all then happened very quickly, and that actually came during Eurovision time, we released 'New Wave' before Eurovision. So that was a very energy-filled time for us.

Host: You didn't record with him, but the song was created...

Bojan: Exactly. He recorded the vocals in New York, where he lives, and we really didn't have any concrete plan that we'd meet in real life, too, because we always met only through video calls. And then it coincidentally happened on tour, on our Nordic tour, we found out at the first concert in Oslo that Elvis had a concert in the Oslo opera a day before us. And we wrote to him that it'd be great to see him, that we're coming to the concert and he said, "boys, you're going to come play 'Novi val', or 'New Wave', with me." So we suddenly found ourselves in the Oslo opera, and we played 'New Wave' with Elvis Costello and Steve Nieve. Which was truly, when you look at it, quite crazy.

Host: I'll keep digging within that same family, is there any interest in a collab with Diana Krall? Although maybe that's not exactly your cup of tea, like you'd say.

Jan: Diana, if you're listening, we're available.

Bojan: We're available.

Kris: Yeah, they say she's even harder to reach than Elvis, so.

Host: Maybe he'll give her a hint. A performance and a song, we now move over a bit to Gušti's concert, which took place a few days or a few weeks ago in Ljubljana. You performed there as well, of course. Not only as a family, but also in other ways. And with Gušti, you wrote and performed a song titled 'Tudi jaz'.

Bojan: It was written by Gušti.

Host: Yes.

Bojan: We performed it.

Kris: And played it.

Bojan: Yes. So, we sang and played it. It was the song 'Tudi jaz', which was created for a TV show which was supposed to happen, but in the end it didn't. The TV show was about children with special needs, and Gušti kind of felt that it would be nice for young people to contribute a musical piece, an opening theme, and through a strange set of circumstances, he asked his son's band. And then, of course, we recorded it. The song was never officially released, right, because the show never happened either. Until now, when Gušti included it in his album, and we are, of course, honoured by that. It's interesting to see something resurface after a long time, and take shape.

Host: Was this one of your first serious projects in a studio space?

Kris: It was...

Host: Or maybe even the very first?

Kris: It wasn’t the first; the first one was 'Kot srce, ki kri poganja', but this one came right after. And maybe it wasn’t a completely serious studio, because we recorded it in a rehearsal space.

Bojan: Oh, come on, you can't diss that studio, it was a great studio.

Kris: I mean, look, it was a decent studio, but it was a bit homemade, you know.

Bojan: Yeah, well, that's true...

Kris: But in any case, yeah, it was... I remember Jan and I recorded together for the first time back then. Do you remember? We recorded that solo together. And I think maybe...

Jan: When we alternated.

Kris: Yes, yes, yes. That felt like... I was really proud of that at the time, that we recorded a solo together.

Jan: Yes, yes. Harmony.

Kris: Harmony, yes.

Host: But the disappointment wasn't too big, considering that the song was never officially released until now?

Kris: Not really, why?

Jan: It wasn't released, but we actually played it a lot in concerts, even at Cvetličarna.

Bojan: We played it for the first presentation of the first album.

Kris: Three years ago.

Bojan: Yes. We preferred playing original songs over covers.

Host: Okay.

Bojan: So we took every possible opportunity for the original songs, whichever way possible, to be included in our concert setlists, and as you said, 'Tudi jaz' stayed on the setlist for quite a while.

Host: You also performed quite a bit at festivals this year, some of which were the biggest festivals in the world. You were at Sziget, you were at Exit again. Are there any other festivals that you performed at that left a powerful impression on you?

Bojan: Absolutely. Ruisrock in Finland.

Kris: Summer Well in Bucharest, Romania.

Bojan: Fantastic festival.

Kris: An excellent festival, yes.

Jan: Those were probably the top four.

Bojan: Those were the top four, I'd say. Exit, Sziget...

Jan: Summer Well.

Bojan: ...Ruisrock and Summer Well were real highlights.

Host: And during these festivals, did any of the performers really stick in your memory?

Bojan: I’d say that in Romania, I... we all stayed to listen to Two Door Cinema Club and Keane, and Keane completely blew us away. I’ve never heard a better male vocalist live, honestly...

Host: Than Tom Chaplin.

Bojan: At least in the mainstream scene. It was truly amazing, everything, in terms of the sound, the production, the concert. That probably stuck with me the most this year.

Nace: I also remember that we were... Jan and I went to see Prodigy in Germany after our performance. That was a very... visually engaging concert.

Host: Before we wrap up this segment, I’m curious, let’s stay on this topic. Is there anyone else you'd like to see perform live?

Bojan: In general?

Host: Anything goes.

Kris: To share the stage with them, or...

Host: Both, maybe, either to share the stage, collaborate, or just watch them and think, "Ah, that’s it."

Bojan: I’d love to see Bruno Mars.

Host: Okay. Good one.

Kris: I agree, I agree.

Jan: Maybe in the Silk Sonic setup as well.

Bojan: Uh, yes. That would also be great.

Jan: It would be fantastic.

Bojan: I’d love to see Parcels live.

Host: Okay.

Jan: You haven't seen L'Impératrice yet?

Bojan: I haven’t seen L'Impératrice, but I’d also...

Jan: Did they...

Nace: Now you won't.

Kris: I’d love to share the stage with Arctic Monkeys, for sure.

Host: Okay.

Kris: That would be...

Host: Though their last album is really different from all the others they've released.

Kris: It’s different, but I think it’s great that they’re different. Honestly, I also think that our new album was influenced by some of Arctic Monkeys's more recent albums.

Bojan: Like 'Everybody’s Waiting,' for example.

Kris: Some of the slower songs. So that's something near and dear to us as well.

Host: Joker Out, live on Radio Maribor.

[song break]

Host: Joker Out are still here with me. We’re talking about everything. And now the third album titled 'Souvenir Pop' is coming up. You announced the title on Friday. Why 'Souvenir Pop'? Does the title hold a special meaning? You’ve already mentioned that the album is a mix of different songs.

Bojan: Yes, as I mentioned earlier, for the first time in our lives, we were influenced by a long period of travelling. We were literally living out of a suitcase. I think we all had at least two or three suitcases packed with clothes, which we then swapped among ourselves, throwing the dirty ones into the laundry. Our lives, for the past year and a half, felt like we were collecting souvenirs. We practically woke up every morning in a different city, in a different country, often in cities or countries we’d never been before. And all these memories and events are kind of our souvenirs. And it's captivating, Kris said it beautifully yesterday, that he can very clearly visualise, with almost every song, a place, a smell, a colour, a taste, something that reminds him of a specific event, and I agree with him. And because of that, we feel like this journey, this pop moment, blends beautifully with souvenirs, and 'Souvenir Pop' brings it all together nicely.

Host: How would you say this album is different from the previous two?

Bojan: I’d say it’s a much more mature album in terms of exploring different arrangements, in terms of the preparing the arrangements. Also, lyrically, I hope it’s apparent, or at least from what we have released, I received feedback that they are a step up. I also feel like it's a part of a completely different phase of life, and that shows. There was a lot of instrumental exploration. I think Jan made the biggest leap on this album.

Jan: Yes, I added a few more instruments besides guitar. Mostly synthesizer, actually. With 'Everybody’s Waiting', when we went to the studio in Kočevje, we were kind of stuck, we didn’t know exactly where to go with the arrangement. And then we... I’m not sure who came up with that drum transition, but it kind of set the right mood. Then we saw a Rhodes piano in the control room, so I plugged that Rhodes into an amp. I had never really played the piano before that, I have a pianino at home, so I had just enough knowledge to make that song. And then I kind of got into it. I’m very interested in synthesizers as well, and... That’s also reflected in the... In the music of the upcoming album, yes, lots of synthesizers, electric pianos, and stuff like that.

Host: And you’re going to present everything with a big Balkan tour, starting on November 22nd with a sold-out concert at Cvetličarna. Does that mean fans will be able to hear 'Souvenir Pop' in full?

Kris: Yes.

Bojan: Exactly, that’s what it means. On this tour, we will play the entire 'Souvenir Pop' album, but I should emphasise, that doesn’t mean we won’t play songs from the first two albums, because many people send messages asking, "Does this mean you’ll only play the new music and nothing old?" No, absolutely not, you’ll be attending a very classic concert, which will include all 10 songs from the new album. Tickets are still available for the second concert at Cvetličarna, which takes place the next day, on Saturday. There aren’t many left, but there are some, so anyone who wants to come to Ljubljana is welcome. On December 6th, we’ll be at Štuk in Maribor, so you are more than welcome to come to this concert as well.

Kris: I would just add that I think this will be one of the few opportunities to hear the entire new album live, because later on, or in the new year, we’ll have to adapt our programs for festivals, where you have an hour to... You can't fit all the new material into one hour, so.

Host: Will this tour end in Vienna on December 9th, or will it continue?

Bojan: No, this tour will wrap up in Vienna. In the upcoming year, for the first two months, we'll finally have some time off, meaning we won’t have any obligations tying us down, where in our free time we won't have to answer phones or deal with logistical issues, or work on, I don’t know, preparing songs, making final touches, editing, and so on. So, we plan to have two months off to return fresh, let’s say, in early spring, and start with concerts. We will also perform in Slovenia more next year than in this year.

Host: Is that a promise?

Bojan: That’s a promise we plan to keep.

Host: Okay. You've sold out Stožice Arena, you've had concerts at Tabor Hall in Maribor before. Why have you now decided to perform at Štuk on the 6th of December?

Bojan: For the soul.

Host: Okay.

Bojan: This entire tour that we're doing at the end of the year is basically for the soul. It will take place at home, that is to say, near home, which is all, let's say, home for us, and it will take place in clubs. We've been visiting clubs in Europe for a year and a half now and we realised that it suits us best by far, because we can be close enough to the audience to feel one another, and it's just big enough to not be totally private. And it's where we can let go and relax the most, and I think that the audience also enjoys those concerts the most, so we said, "Let's do this tour in places that we love," and Štuk is definitely one of those places. We've already had three or four concerts at Štuk, maybe. I think it was 3 concerts in Štuk, which were all wonderful and all unique, so yes, we're really looking forward to it.

Host: To keep digging, what are fans from Štajerska like?

Bojan: Top notch.

Kris: Fans from Štajerska have actually very much been there for us since the beginning. We were, I was just talking to someone from Radio Si earlier, about how we were in Maribor five times in 2022.

Bojan: Yes.

Kris: Which is a bizarrely large number, especially looking back on it now, because abroad, you visit maybe one city per year, so to have shown up in Maribor five times, twice at Štuk, at Lampiončki, at Lent, all that... Štajerska has always been quite... It always welcomed us with open arms, so we're also always happy to return.

Bojan: And I'd like to add just one more thing, the first album, 'Umazane misli', was partially made in this house as well, because we recorded the drums and some of the guitars in your studio.

Host: In Studio 22.

Bojan: In Studio 22, exactly. So there you go, there is actually a lot tying us to this city.

Host: I'd like to know something else before we move on, Chrissie Hynde, the singer of The Pretenders, wrote on her social media a few days ago that she has a bit of an issue with the same fans constantly being in the front row at concerts. Is that a problem that perhaps arises for you too, namely, that it's always the same people, we call them "superfans", following you from concert to concert. And that you always see the same ones in... well, more at the front.

Bojan: We absolutely see the same people in the front rows at many, many concerts. I just don't really know where the problematic part is.

Host: Me neither, but I'm curious.

Bojan: Yes, me too.

Kris: Yeah, my mum actually sent me that, on Instagram, like, look what she said. And I was like, yeah, okay, interesting, but you have to be in a pretty weird position to complain about that. I mean, I'm happy to see all those familiar faces there. And anyway, for our concerts, it's usually so that those who want to can buy a ticket for early entry into the venue, so I think it's not an issue that other people wouldn't be able to get what they want. At the same time, we always like to see those that are always there.

Host: December 6th in Štuk, in Maribor, the band Joker Out.

[song break]

Host: Joker Out are still with me, so let's... I'm curious about something. You've focused quite a lot on the Balkan market, and there are more and more songs in, let's say, a non-Slovene language. And while quite a few Slovenian bands decided to sing in English, because they thought it would help them break through internationally, you've chosen the language of our former homeland. Why? I know it's closer to you (Bojan) and so on, but what was the main reason?

Bojan: Well, the main reason was actually that I started to enjoy writing in non-Slovene more and more, and I don't mean that in a derogatory way for Slovene, but it's just that we were away from home so much, we had so much contact with people who spoke this or that language, that I often caught myself thinking in those languages. And ideas actually started cropping up in them and it was clearly just an era of life in which... I created in those languages, right. I'm not a fan of changing the lyrics that are developed as an already very solid story in a specific language, into another language, just for the sake of changing the language. So on this album... that's also what sets it apart, like we said at the beginning. For the first time, we have three languages on the album, Slovene, Serbian, Serbo-Croatian, whatever, and English. So it's already a very colourful album in that regard, but that was never, I'd say, a way to gain an audience abroad or a massive attempt to have a breakthrough abroad, it's truly just a way of thinking, and I think that's a lot more honest than translating everything back into Slovene.

Host: Slightly older Slovenian bands, I'm thinking of Lačni Franz, maybe Pankrti, perhaps Vlado Kreslin, still to this day have cult status in Yugoslavia, in the area of former Yugoslavia.

Bojan: And Buldožerji.

Host: Absolutely, Buldožerji as well, and there's more. But is it time now for Joker Out to break new ground?

Bojan: Absolutely.

Kris: We're already breaking it.

Bojan: We’re breaking it. With shovels for now, but...

Host: Is this success, especially as far as Serbia goes, perhaps also the result of the number of times you performed at Exit?

Bojan: The first time we performed at Exit festival, it was on one of the side stages, and there really wasn't a big, big audience, and even the ones who were there mostly came from Slovenia. But it's very nice, because this year we performed on the main stage, and basically at the prime time, at 15 past 11, if I'm not mistaken, just before Black Eyed Peas, and we had, I don't know, 15 or 20,000 people, who sang our lyrics very smoothly. That was, I would say, a pretty crazy leap.

Host: How do social media posts influence what you do? Perhaps you let certain comments get under your skin a bit, or do you wave them away like, "So what?"

Jan: Well, I think we've kind of stopped reading the comments. I think we've also pretty much all deleted Twitter, because it was starting to slightly negatively affect certain aspects of our psyche. But we still like to post, because it's good, especially now, when we're promoting and making new music, that people know what's coming up and know that there are concerts where they can see us. So it remains a very important part of our everyday life. But sometimes it's better not to read what people think.

Bojan: Yeah, the problem is that it's very much a double-edged sword, because it's really nice to be in touch with fans, right, because above all, they fill you with energy to work, and... We absolutely also often give them, I don't know, a reason for a better day, a reason to smile, and so on. But on the other hand, just like Jan said, it's very hard to filter out those moments when you unintentionally come across something that can very quickly hurt you. And to then find a healthy boundary, that can be kind of complicated sometimes.

Host: And now, the most important question of the day. Just kidding. What does the radio mean to you nowadays? Does it even still mean anything?

Bojan: That's a good question.

Kris: What would I do in this black night without you, radio?

Bojan: Yeah, the radio, I would say... For example, Jure, who's not here, I know he listens to the radio the most by far. The radio means... The thing is, in various aspects, I really stand behind the idea that until you're present in classic media, that is, on the radio, on TV, in the newspapers, you cannot enter the world of... let's say entertainment, successfully. So I don't understand it when someone says, for example: "Who cares if your song isn't on the radio, it doesn't matter, blah blah blah." Social media is absolutely more and more important, but being relevant through the radio, I still consider that to be very serious and very important. But it saddens me that there's less and less radio work on the radios, that is, there's less and less music curation, less and less quality musical journalism, I really miss that, right. We're really lacking music reviews and so on in Slovenia. Like, okay, with you, thankfully, radio editorial work is still alive, but we know that at commercial radios, more and more work is done by artificial intelligence, right, and robots. And that kind of undermines the whole point of the radio for me.

Host: Where will you perform, or will you perform at all, for New Year's and Christmas this year? Or will you enjoy the time after the tour by...

Bojan: That's a good question, perhaps someone knows how to answer it?

Jan: If nothing else, we might play guitar to each other under our Christmas trees.

Kris: Yeah, I think we'll play some more, but I don't know if we can announce anything yet.

Host: I completely understand. And finally, I'd like to know, you've already spoken a bit about the plans for next year, that is, a month or two of complete rest. À propos, what does complete rest mean for a band like you, who are used to being in the studio, working, promoting, how do you...

Bojan: Take all that out of the equation and you get complete rest.

Host: So two months of rest, and then what?

Bojan: Well, then it's on the road again. (singing) Just can't wait to get back on the road again.

Host: So, boys, we will see you and hear you again, as is only right. I'm very happy that you were in the studio with me today, so, Joker Out, on the 6th of December, we're revisiting Štuk hall in Maribor, and before that Cvetličarna, and many other places. And next year, as you've already promised, other places in Slovenia as well.

Bojan: Absolutely.

Host: Boys, thank you very much for this and all the best with the continuation of your musical journey

Bojan: Thank you very much, back at you.

#joker out #bojan cvjetićanin #bojan cvjeticanin #jan peteh #nace jordan #kris guštin #kris gustin #Youtube #year: 2024 #source: radio maribor #jo: bojan&jan&kris&nace #type: video #type: transcript #og language: slovenian #translated language: serbian

26 notes · View notes

triskhellion · 1 year ago

Text

Awoo for You

@flashfictionfridayofficial

Rated T | ~1k | Teen Wolf | Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski | Eurodance

@hargrove-taylorsversion and @dear-massacre are to blame for this. Inspired by this post and various groups from the 90s and early aughts.

Derek was walking down Galvanic Ave when an all too familiar beat tugged at the edge of his awareness. His fingers tapped against the side of his thigh before he realized what he was doing, the sound of synthesizers growing steadily louder. Clearer.

Wait, is that...?

A white car turned the corner several blocks away and was now coming towards him. He groaned.

Derek tried to tune it out, but the closer it got the more impossible it became to ignore his cousin’s voice coming out of its crackling speakers.

My heart is rabbit for your fang My feelings sparkle boomerang I chase you in my head at night Your voice a music dynamite

He cringed waiting for what came next, his own gravely voice snarling through the open windows.

Boom! Want run with me? Woods! So wild and free

Howl! I jump for you Awoo! Big fool at zoo

Kiss! No need to flee Gingivitis? Not with me!

Growl! Free me my dove Cuz grr Ulv equals luv!

Luv luv luv luv Dance dance dance dance Run run run run RAAAWWRRR!

Ten years later and that damn song still followed him everywhere. Online. In stores. His teasing packmates. It haunted his very dreams. Nowhere was safe it seemed.

The chorus trailed after the ancient Yugo as it finally passed by, Malia’s howling interspersed with more of what was once described as his “horny wolf pseudo-rapping.”

Awoooo! I do for you Awoooo! Special and true

Awoooo! Want to make sex? Awoooo! I bite you next

(Necks necks necks necks) Everybody full shift!

———

It was 1997 and the Hales were in Burgdorf, Idaho for that year’s gathering of the packs west of the Rocky Mountains. While the adults were hammering out alliances, mediating conflicts, and commenting on the weather or swapping venison recipes or whatever, he and half a dozen other teen wolves (and one 10 year old little sister) were goofing around with some audio equipment they found in one of the unoccupied cabins.

First came make-shift karaoke and then they started coming up with their own songs. Derek had beta-shifted and was growling nonsense into the microphone over some instrumental Eurodance single out of a huge cd case. Cora was literally rolling on the floor and laughing so hard that tears streamed down her face as the rest of the group busted exaggerated dance moves. Then all of a sudden the others grew quiet and stilled, standing up straight.

When he looked behind him his uncle Peter was leaning in the doorway with a calculating expression on his face.

A few months later Derek’s hair was styled into thick blue spikes and he had a Danish persona: Anders GRR. Malia, or Meta Clawz, had the misfortune of being able to sing and got roped into it too, sporting natural brown pigtails in back, but bright red and platinum blonde bangs in front. Together they were Beast of Beats.

They never actually toured and only released the one self-titled album with 9 tracks — Best Beta, Another Moon, Blue Eyed Joe, Be My Mate, ‘Mega Girl, Better Off a Lone, Super-Louper-Man, Rhythm Is an Alpha, and the inescapable Awoo for You — but the music video of the latter was a hit on MTV. Then came the flash animation that some fan made a few years after, which became one of the first viral clips. There were T-shirts and covers by award-winning musicians. Memes and references in popular tv shows over the years and…It. Just. Never. Went. Away.

Thankfully, both he and Malia had their faces obscured by masks, swirls of paint, or “special effects” in the video so they weren’t recognizable by the general public. There was that much at least.

———

Derek trudged into the apartment and grabbed some water from the fridge, snorting at a note asking him to circle which movie he wanted to see that weekend: Hot Rod, Sunshine or The Bourne Ultimatum. He circled #2, but had a feeling he’d end up watching number #1 anyway.

He sank down onto the ugly orange couch with a sigh. Footsteps soon approached from the bedroom.

“Hey babe, how was—hey, what’s wrong?”

Derek shook his head, not sure how to start or if he even wanted to. He'd never mentioned the whole Beast of Beats thing to his boyfriend and as much as he wanted to vent he also liked having one person in his life that didn’t know, for however long that could last. It was only a matter of time before Stiles was fully introduced to his pack and then someone would let it slip.

The human walked over and flopped down sideways beside him, stretching his legs over Derek’s thighs and taking his right hand, caressing the back with his thumb. Warm, dark caramel eyes watched him closely.

“Hmm…you’re wearing your grumpy Anders face.”

Derek froze and then turned slowly to stare at him.

“You know?”

Stiles raised an eyebrow and smirked.

“Dude, I’d recognize that growl anywhere.”

He blushed and looked away, mortified.

“Derek, it’s okay. You know how much I like it. I like the song too, but I noticed that it bothered you about the same time I figured out who you were so I left it alone. I want you to be able to talk to me about stuff, though.”

He smiled at and squeezed Stiles’ hand. “Thanks.”

“But now that the wolf’s out of the bag…”

Derek narrowed his eyes as the grinning young man leaned forward to whisper in his ear.

“Want to make sex?”

He groaned and knocked his head against the back of the couch. Kisses peppered his face between peals of laughter.

“Sorry, I'm sorry babe. I’ve been holding that in for so long, you have no idea.”

Shaking his head, he pulled Stiles into his lap and kissed him back, nipping at his bottom lip. Grasping under a thigh and putting an arm around his back he then stood up, the human flailing briefly before wrapping legs around his waist and holding onto his shoulders.

Nuzzling into that lovely dotted throat, Derek inhaled the increasing earthy-sweetness of arousal.

“I bite you next,” he muttered against soft, flushed skin.

“Necks necks necks necks!” chanted Stiles.

“Everybody full shift!” he growled, setting his beautiful, happy and amused boyfriend down on the bed and climbing on top of him.

Well, maybe the song wasn’t completely terrible after all.

#flash fiction friday #sterek #sterek fanfic #crack fic #fff213

34 notes · View notes

oobbbear · 1 year ago

Note

What if Callisto ( i think that's how you spell it ) got kidnapped instead of Hester? ( kinda like a swap role thingy thing )

Hum i guess Hester’s taking Yugo on a world tour, she’s gonna bust open every door and look under every rock to find her girl

Hester knows a lot of people all around the world she got more ressources and more eyes to look for a missing person (Callisto is more of a loner, she had a lot of trouble while she’s trying find Hester)

Hester is also more hot headed who act before she can think, while Callisto waited for years to go on her adventure because she has things and people here she can’t leave behind, If Hester think of something she’s immediately going to do it not even going to think twice (she hurt a lotta people over the years because this tho)

I think she’s going to have a larger chance of finding Callisto if she ever goes missing

#ask #witch au #Hester is a vary flawed person actually #the more you know her the more you’re not gonna like her that much #but that makes her more real

35 notes · View notes

team-frightfur · 2 years ago

Text

Day 26: Action Magic - Crossover

@arcvmonth

Genshin Au. Was planning on doing Serena too but I need money lmao.

Name: Yuya Sakaki.

Vision: Inazuman pyro.

Weapon: Catalyst (His projectiles are shaped like performapals and bounce like Klees.)

Boss Drop: Pyro Hypostasis.

Talents: La Signora.

Ascension Stat: atk%

Affiliation: Sakaki Travelling Theatre Troupe.

Constellation: Alis Scintillantes (sparkling wings)

Model: Short male

Personality

Unlike Arc V Yuya, Genshin Yuya actually had a pretty good life. His dad never disappeared, he was never bullied, his craft is respected, and he has a large circle of friends and family. As a result, while he does suffer from stage fright, self-doubt, and occasional panic, its not, like, debilitating like it is for canon Yuya.

Backstory - The Good Times

Yuya is the heir to the Sakaki Travelling Theatre Troupe. The troupe is based in Inazuma (Narukami Island) and is run jointly by Yusho, Yoko, and Shuzo. Troupe policy is that every 5 years, they'll depart on a giant, lengthy swing across the entirety of Teyvat and perform in every major city.

Uniquely, these performances are all collaborations with local theatre companies. Specifically, they're envisioned as cultural fusions that combine Inazuman and local cultures.

During their stay, the theatre troupe will research and incorporate every foreign technique they can. As a result, their performances are always evolving. Once their tour has concluded, the Sakaki Travelling Theatre Troupe will spend 5 years in Inazuma, demonstrating everything they've learned to an enamoured audience.

Unfortunately, during one of their Fontaine performances, a rather disastrous technical issue caused an electrical fire. While casualties were few, two sets of half-identical quadruplets were orphaned. Furthermore, they were separated in the chaos and scattered across Teyvat.

Yuya and Yuzu are two of those quadruplets, saved and adopted by the heads of Sakaki Travelling Theatre Troupe. They are the only two quadruplets aware they have siblings, and dedicate much energy to finding their siblings.

Fortunately, the Sakaki Travelling Theatre's tours + the quadruplet's resemblance make reuniting easy. Often, the first thing someone will say to Yuya upon reaching Watasumi or Mondstadt will be "Are you Yuto/Yugo?"

They've never gotten close to Yuri or Serena. Those two were picked up by Arleccino. Lmao.

Yugo, Rin, Yuto and Ruri all have established lives, so they couldn't uproot to live with Yuya and Yuzu. Still, the siblings keep in touch and are close friends.

Yuya has a habit of collecting souvenirs. The blue sash and scaled belt is from Mondstadt (specifically Yugo) the jade rings are from Liyue, the leaf clasps holding his vision are from Sumeru, the goggles are from Fontaine, the claw bracelet is from Natlan, and the fur-lined glove is from Snezhnaya. The purple knot in his hair is from Yuto.

Yuya is also the self-proclaimed head of the Inazuman Youth GITCG Association. Locals refer to it as the Card Game Cult.

Backstory - The Bad Times

Unfortunately, the Sakaki Travelling Theatre Troupe ended up trapped in Inazuma during the Sakoku Decree. To make matters worse, they're, like, a high-profile acting troupe whose explicit mission statement is provoking change, evolution and improvement in Inazuman culture. Needless to say, once the VHD decree passed, they were among the first to be visited by the Shogunate.

Introducing Noboru Gongenzaka, a geo claymore user from a clan of Kujou-affiliated Samurai and Yuya's best friend. Although the Gongenzaka clan's position ensured Noboru's vision would not be taken, he nonetheless betrayed both nation and clan to smuggle Yuya and Yuzu to Watatsumi.

Sadly, while he made it in time to save Yuzu, he was too late to save Yuya, whose Pyro vision was embedded near the top of the Statue of the Omniscient god.

Here's the thing, Yuya's had his vision for 9 years, that's over half his life. It's connected to his fondest and most terrible memories, his passion for entertainment, his bond with his family, his pride in his skills, and his enthusiasm for accolades. Losing all that basically turned Yuya into a depressed, empty shell.

Infuriated, Yuzu, Gongenzaka, Ruri and Shun all joined the Resistance. Yuto, however, lacked a vision, so he was told to take care of Yuya instead. Witnessing the state of his friend and brother has not been kind to him.

This is a Yuya post though.

Relationships

Yusho and Yoko- Adopted parents, though the love between them is real. One of Yuya's greatest dreams in life is to deliver a performance so powerful his parents cry with joy. Also, he takes his father's advice, both in art and in life, deadly seriously. By the way, both that dream and his father's life advice are stuck inside his vision.

Yuzu: Fellow heir to the Troupe and Yuya's childhood friend. He's totally got a crush on her, but he hasn't confessed yet. Supposedly, once he receives a five-star review and a standing ovation, he'll confess to her as a reward. Guess what's in his vision!

Gongenzaka: Childhood best friends. Yuya watches every martial arts tournament Gongenzaka participates in, cheering him on, while Gongenzaka does the same at all of Yuya's performances. It's a pity he hasn't performed this year.

Yuto: the first sibling Yuya found and, due to their close proximity, the one Yuya meets up with the most. They drive Kirara quietly insane with all the letters, baubles, booster packs, rare cards, and presents they send between islands. Once Yuya figured out Yuto liked Ruri, he insisted on performing showy romances in front of them "to set the mood". It did not work, but Yuto considers it a symbol of Yuya's faith, prayers and support, so he treasures it greatly. Once, during one of his better days, Yuya coldly said he wished he'd never done it. "It was so stupid."

Yugo: the second sibling Yuya found. Since they're so far away, they can't keep in contact as much, but Yuya makes sure to meet Yugo at least once a year -even if it means missing some performances. At such times, Yugo will take Yuya on ill-fated (literally, since Yugo always lets Bennett join in "because he seems lonely.") adventures into unexplored domains. While they're always dangerous, the precious memories of their time together are worth it -and also the only treasure they ever find.

Yoimiya: Yuya is her biggest customer and they often geek out over pyrotechnics and fireworks. If Yuzu isn't careful, the Sakaki Theatre may burn down again sooner rather than later.

Itto: The only person who loves GITCG as much as Yuya. Yuya considers Itto's part in Heizou's scam play a comedic masterpiece. Not a week goes by without Yuya trying to recuit Itto for a play and getting shot down by Yuzu.

Serena: We'll get there eventually.

Kit

Elemental Skill: Setting the Stage!

Creates an Area of effect named the "EEZ". The EEZ has a 10-meter radius and is centred on Yuya's position. The borders of the EEZ are decorated with fireworks, sparkles, stars and smiles.

Within the EEZ, all party members are affected by pyro every 1s (cleanse), regain health based on Yuya's max atk, and receive base attack and EM buffs. Basically, he combines Bennett and Sucrose's buffs, but only to around 60% of Bennett and Sucrose's effectiveness.

The EEZ stands for Entertainment Evolution Zone but Yuzu called it cringe.

Elemental Burst: All Eyes On Me!

For 10 seconds, all Yuya's projectiles will explode on contact with enemies (Explosive Prologue). Afterwards, a second wave of projectiles will scatter from the enemy's location, which will explode in the same way (Second Act). Second Act can release as many waves as there are enemies, but each enemy can only release a wave once every 1.5 seconds. Switching out will not cancel All Eyes On Me!

Use Venti.

Passive Talent: Mr Worldwide Exploration Aficionado!

When dispatched on expeditions (anywhere in Teyvat) time spent is reduced by 15%.

#yuya sakaki #ygo arc v #arcvmonth2023 #im not tagging the other fandom its irrelevant #my art

42 notes · View notes

healeroflightanddark · 1 year ago

Text

Dancing With the Dragons, Chapter 1: Run, Yuya, Run!

A boy with hair like a tomato gasped for breath as he ran down the sidewalk, trying to outrun the mob behind him. Why, oh why, did he leave the hotel without a bodyguard or one of his brothers? He should have listened to them when they said that it wasn’t safe for him to wander around this city alone! He just wanted to check out the sights! Maybe grab a bite to eat or something too. But now he was running for his life, trying to find his way back to the hotel.

“Not like this, not like this, not like this, not like this, not like this!” the boy whimpered as he ran. He could hear the screaming mob getting closer. Even though he was very athletic, he still didn’t seem to be able to outrun them.

Suddenly, as he was approaching an intersection, a limo pulled up in front of him. The door swung open as the car screeched to a halt, and the boy wasted no time diving headfirst through the opening into the vehicle. He landed on the laps of three boys with the same face as him. As soon as he was inside the limo, the boy closest to the door slammed it shut, and the limo peeled off.

“Go go go!” the boys yelled to the driver, as if the limo wasn’t driving already. They looked out the back window, watching the mob get smaller and smaller, before the car turned a corner. As soon as the mob was out of sight, they all let out a collective sigh of relief.

“That was TOO CLOSE!” said the boy with eggplant-purple and black hair. “Did you see how close they were to catching him?!”

“Girls can be scary…” shuddered the boy with bluenana hair.

The purple-cabbage-haired boy helped the tomato-haired boy sit up, and buckled his seatbelt for him. “Ok, so what did we learn, Yuya?”

Yuya, the tomato-haired boy, thought for a bit as he caught his breath. “Fangirls… are… crazy?”

“What else?” the cabbage-haired boy asked.

Yuya thought some more. “I’m getting better at jumping into limos from a distance?”

“No!” the cabbage-haired boy said. He started tickling Yuya, who squealed and squirmed away, batting at the cabbage-haired boy’s hands. “No, that’s not what we learned!”

“We LEARNED that you should LISTEN to us when we say it’s too dangerous for you to go off on your own!” said the man with green and silver hair, who was sitting across from them.

Yuya groaned as the cabbage-haired boy stopped tickling him. “But Zaaaaarc!”

“No buts!” Zarc, the silver-haired man, said. “What do you think would have happened if Yuri hadn’t installed that tracker on your phone, huh?”

Yuri, the cabbage-haired boy, sat smugly next to Yuya. “Those fangirls would have eaten you alive!”

Yuya looked away, pouting. “They would not…”

The eggplant-haired boy, Yuto, sighed. “Did they talk to you before chasing you this time, or did they just recognize you and go after you?”

“They talked to me,” Yuya said. “They wanted autographs, and photos, and then one of them wanted me to kiss her, and I said I had to go, and that’s when they started chasing me.”

“Yep, girls can be scary,” the blunana, Yugo, said.

Zarc sighed. “At least we found you before they could catch you.”

Yuya’s stomach suddenly growled loudly, and he blushed. “Can we stop to eat somewhere, please?”

“Ok, but we’re getting something other than popcorn or cotton candy,” Zarc said. “You need more than that to keep your energy levels up after being chased by a mob of crazy fangirls. So, where do you guys want to go?”

“Oh! Oh! Let’s grab some hot dogs from that street vendor near the hotel!” Yugo said excitedly.

Zarc checked his phone. “No, the reviews online say the vendor’s cart is filthy. We’re not risking any of you getting sick from food poisoning. Especially not while we’re on tour.”

Yugo pouted a little. “Well, what about a taco truck then?”

“I’m not in the mood for tacos,” Yuri said. “How about we go to The Spice Is Right?”

Yuto made a face. “You know I don’t like spicy food! What about Umi Sushi?”

“Oh come on!” Yuri said. “We had sushi for dinner last night! I want something spicy!”

“I want a taco!” Yugo complained. “Or a hot dog!”

Yuto, Yuri, and Yugo started arguing. Yuya was looking out the window, pouting a little from being denied popcorn and cotton candy. Then he saw something. “Oh, hey! There’s a buffet right there! Why don’t we go there? Buffets have something for everyone!”

His brothers stopped arguing for a moment, crowding up against him to look out the window. Yuto thought for a moment, then said, “Eh, sure, why not?”

“Yeah, I’m cool with a buffet!” Yugo said.

Yuri crossed his arms and pouted. “I don’t wanna go to a buffet!”

“Ok, a vote then,” Zarc said. “All in favor of going to a buffet?”

Yuto, Yugo, and Yuya raised their hands. Yuri’s pouting intensified. “Do you even know how many people breathe over the food in buffets?!”

“Pleeeeeaaaase, Yuri?” Yuya pleaded, giving Yuri puppy eyes. His stomach growled again. Yuri tried not to look at Yuya’s adorable puppy face, but eventually caved in. “Oh, alright… But we better find the best buffet in town then! I don’t wanna eat at a one star buffet!”

Zarc began searching on his phone. “There’s a five star buffet about twenty miles from here. You four good waiting until we get there?”

“Yeah!” the four said.

“Alright, I’ll call the bodyguards and have them meet us there,” Zarc said. He began making the calls on his phone as the limo set off on its new course.

Yuya wiggled happily as he watched the sights pass by through the window. Once or twice he saw some billboards advertising the Yu-Boys tour, and he smiled. Being in a boy band was a lot of fun, even if he did have to run from his fangirls every now and then.

The Yu-Boys were the No. 1 musical group in the entire country, having been an overnight sensation four years ago, and pumping out hit song after hit song ever since. It probably didn’t hurt that both of their parents were famous as well, with their father Yusho being a famous magician and their mother Yoko being a celebrity chef. Fourteen-year-old quadruplets Yuto, Yuri, Yugo, and Yuya had been performing onstage ever since they were ten.

Yuya could still remember the exhilaration he felt when he and his brothers had performed their first song live for the first time. It was so exciting, and he had always looked forward to their live performances ever since. Sure, he felt nervous before each show, but as soon as the show started, his nerves disappeared. He lived to perform!

Even Zarc had been a performer for a while. Unfortunately six years ago, when he was eighteen, a crazy fan jumped on him. Zarc’s leg had broken, and he was unable to continue performing. Now he was the quadruplets’ manager. He made sure his younger brothers were safe from crazy fans, even if Yuya’s sneaking off made that difficult at times.

“Hey, Yuya, are you listening?” Yuri’s voice broke Yuya out of his thoughts. The youngest quadruplet looked up to see his older brothers looking at him.

“Uh… sorry, what?” Yuya asked, blushing a little. His brothers chuckled.

“I said we’re going to be performing our newest song tomorrow night,” Yuto said. “The one you wrote.”

“Oh, yeah!” Yuya said happily. In addition to being their manager, Zarc also wrote most of the Yu-Boys’ songs, but there were a fair amount that the quadruplets had written themselves. “I can’t wait! I’m so excited!”

“Yeah, it’s gonna be great!” Yugo said. “Nobody’s heard it yet but us! And Mom and Dad too!”

Yuya wiggled in excitement. Oh, how he loved performing! Entertaining the masses was his greatest joy in life!

“Hey, look! There’s the stadium we’ll be at tomorrow!” Yugo suddenly said, pointing through the window. “Cool!”

The stadium had a massive billboard with the Yu-Boys’ faces plastered on it, and the words The Yu-Boys Dragon Tour Live! It made a shiver of anticipation go down Yuya’s spine. The tomato-haired boy smiled and lay his head on Yuri’s shoulder, snuggling into him with a content smile.

The moment Yuya snuggled into Yuri, their brothers reacted. Yugo crossed his arms and began pouting, Yuto glared at Yuri, and Zarc tried not to show his annoyance on his face. Yuya gave the best, most highly coveted cuddles in the family, and whenever he was cuddling someone, the others got jealous.

Yuri smirked and wrapped his arm around Yuya, enjoying the brotherly affection. He was quite pleased with this turn of events, but he knew that he would have to make sure he sat next to Yuya on the way back to the hotel, or one of the others would get to cuddle the youngest Sakaki brother. And that simply would not do!

Yuya’s eyes were closed and he had an adorable smile on his face as he snuggled into Yuri. Zarc couldn’t help snapping a photo of the youngest Sakaki brother. Moments later, the quadruplets’ phones all went off, alerting them to something being sent to their group chat. They all checked their phones (Yuya and Yuri a bit reluctantly), and saw that Zarc had sent the adorable photo of Yuya.

Yuya blushed a little. It was a bit embarrassing how his brothers were always trying to take cute photos of him to share with each other, but it did make him feel appreciated. That did not mean that he was actively trying to be cute, it just came naturally. Yuri always called himself the handsome one, but Yuto, Yugo, and Zarc insisted that Yuya was the cute one. (Yuri didn’t disagree, he just made sure it was known that he was the handsome one.)

“Why are you guys always taking photos of me…?” Yuya pouted. “I’m not that cute!”

“Tell that to your fangirls,” Zarc said with a smirk, which caused the youngest Sakaki boy to squeak in embarrassment and hide his face in Yuri’s chest. Which of course meant that Zarc immediately snapped another photo of him and sent it into the group chat.

“Zaaaaaarc! Stoooooop!” Yuya whined.

“Alright, fine,” Zarc relented. “But only because we’ve arrived at the buffet.”

“I still think we should have gone to The Spice Is Right,” Yuri muttered.

“Well, too bad, you were outvoted!” Yugo said. Yuri shoved him into Yuto’s lap, but without any real aggression.

“Come on, let’s go eat!” Yuya said, unbuckling his seatbelt. He started to reach for the limo door handle, but Zarc stopped him.

“Wait,” Zarc said. “We’re not getting out until the bodyguards arrive.”

“But I’m hungry now!” Yuya whined.

“I know, but I’m not about to risk some crazy fan attacking you, or trying to kidnap you again,” Zarc said calmly.

Yuya pouted, but sat still as he remembered how he had almost been kidnapped two months ago by a fan. He had been walking home after his gymnastics class back in the Maiami City Athletics Center, when a fan that had been following him for two blocks tried to kidnap him. Luckily a police car had been nearby and put a stop to that, but Yuya’s family had been so shaken by the incident that they insisted on him never being in public without a few bodyguards to protect him. Even his brothers had bodyguards now, just to be on the safe side.

“That was really scary,” Yugo said, shaking his head. “I don’t even want to know what that fan was planning to do with you…”

“Yeah, neither do I,” Yuto agreed.

“Well, the good thing is that she won’t be able to try again now that she’s in jail,” Zarc said. “Ah, there’s our bodyguards’ car now.”

The bodyguards pulled up next to the limo and got out, ready to do their job and protect the boys. The chauffeur opened the limo door, and the boys got out, ready to have some lunch. They walked into the buffet, and were greeted by a bored hostess.

“Hi, welcome to the Sakura Buffet, how many—Oh my gosh! You’re the Yu-Boys!” The hostess’s whole demeanor changed as soon as she recognized the boys. “Welcome! Welcome!”

“Hi!” Yuya said cheerfully. “Table for five?”

“Oh! Oh, yes of course!” the hostess said. “Right this way!”

She led the way through the restaurant to a table big enough to fit all of the boys. As they followed her, the dining area suddenly became full of whispers and wide-eyed stares. It wasn’t often that celebrities dined at this particular buffet.

“Can I get you boys anything to drink?” the hostess asked as the five brothers reached their table.

“I’ll have an iced tea,” Zarc said.

“I’ll take sweet tea,” Yuri said.

“I’d like a raspberry lemonade,” said Yugo.

“Lemon-lime Ramune for me,” said Yuto.

“And can I get a strawberry lemonade, please?” Yuya asked.

“Of course!” the hostess said. She rushed off to get them their drinks.

“Alright, let’s eat!” Yuya said happily. He and his brothers hurried off to the serving stations and began grabbing some food. Yuya was very hungry after his escape from his crazy fangirls, so he grabbed multiple plates piled with as much food as he could carry, before sitting at the table to eat.

“Wow, you must have grabbed everything this buffet has to offer!” Yuto said as Yuya happily took a big bite out of a hamburger. Yuya smiled as he chewed, lost in the flavor.

Click!

The sound of a photo being taken brought Yuya back to earth, and he looked up to see Yuri tapping something out on his phone. Then the brothers’ group chat dinged, and they all began checking what Yuri said. Well, all of them except for Yuya, who was too hungry to check his phone at first. Then, a series of dings came from his phone, and he got curious. He checked the group chat, and blushed at what was sent.

Yuri: Are you religious?

Yuri: I’d like to introduce you to my religion.

Yugo: What’s your religion?

Yuri:

Yuto: I’m interested.

Yuya: Guyyyyyyys! Why do you keep doing this?!

Zarc: Because you’re the adorable one.

Yuya: Honestly, you guys can be almost as bad as the paparazzi, you know that right?

Yugo: Not our fault you’re adorable…

Yuya pouted and put his phone away, determined to enjoy his meal without his brothers’ photo shenanigans interfering. His brothers chuckled and put their own phones away to eat. And as they ate, Yuya smiled. He loved his brothers, even if they did embarrass him with all the photos. He wouldn’t trade them for the world.

#yugioh arc v #yuya sakaki #yuto #yuri #yugo #zarc #Boy Band AU #cross posted on ao3 #cross posted on quotev #cross posted on wattpad #quadruplets

6 notes · View notes

th3lost4uthor · 2 years ago

Text

Les nouvelles expériences d’une vie sans fin (7/15)

Vous avez menti à Yugo…

Sur Zeden.

De toutes les nuits écoulées depuis leur retour, il fallait que ce soit sur celle-ci que cette péronnelle décide de lui prendre la tête avec ses histoires sans queue ni tête ! Elle se tenait là, les bras croisés dans une posture défiante et ses yeux d’archère aguerrie transperçant son dos de soupçons. Il connaissait ce sentiment, ces aiguilles harassant votre nuque, l’animosité que l’on pouvait vous porter : il avait vécu ses derniers siècles auprès de cours royales après tout.

« Il ne me semble pas avoir déclaré apprécier boire le thé avec Phaéris» Ricana-t-il, jetant un regard où rivalisaient sarcasme et agacement derrière son épaule. « Et si vous craignez que j’aie pu tenter de vous berner en vous envoyant sur le Zinit, soyez rassurée – enfin, autant que le peuvent les paroles d’un « traître », héhé… Ce n’était pas le cas. »

Le scientifique s’approcha alors d’un plateau chargé d’une large bouilloire de terre cuite, accompagnée de tasses où baignait encore un fond de thé froid. Il s’en débarrassa de manière désinvolte dans une corbeille, promptement absorbée par des brouillons et essais raturés, avant de les disposer sur une table basse pourtant déjà encombrée de multiples et diverses notes.

« Mais je vous en prie : prenez donc place et expliquez-moi quel énième mensonge le pauvre fou que je suis a osé proférer malgré l’immense honneur qui lui a été accordé ! » Son sourire était une toile de complaisance. « Je vous en prie : égaillez ma soirée…

C’est ça, parle !

Parle aussi longtemps que tu le souhaites,

ce n’est pas comme si j’en garderai quoi que ce soit !

Juste assez pour que ces incapables

finissent leur ronde et reviennent te jeter dehors !

« Ils ne viendront pas. »

Que- ?

« Les gardes… Je n’ai fait que vous alerter tout à l’heure pour voir votre réaction. » La dénommée Évangéline fit lentement le tour de la salle, l’œil traînant sur ses moindres détails. « Je me doute que vous espérez vous débarrasser de moi en jouant contre la montre, mais c’est inutile. »

Elle finit par s’asseoir en face de lui. Dans son fauteuil de cuir élimé, il était à peine capable de trouver une position convenable, pourtant elle, le buste droit et les jambes croisées, semblait royale sur un vulgaire tabouret de bois noir.

« Je vois, alors tout ceci n’est qu’un autre de vos tests je présume ? » Décidément, il aimait de moins en moins comment se profilait cette rencontre.

« Vous êtes un scientifique, non ? J’ai pensé que cela pourrait vous faire plaisir. » Mais c’est qu’elle osait plaisanter en plus ! « Mais non. Je pense avoir toutes les conclusions dont j’ai besoin pour le moment… Tout ce que je veux savoir, c’est pourquoi. »

Il devait l’avouer, la gamine avait du répondant. S’il devait l’apprécier ou s’en soucier, en revanche, il se gardait bien de décider. Reprise de match.

« N’allez pas si vite en besogne, très chère… Si vous, comme affirmé plus tôt, souhaitez jouer aux chercheurs, vous devriez savoir qu’un véritable homme de sciences ne base jamais ses travaux sur des paroles, mais des faits… » Il ne lâcherait pas. « Alors ne commencez pas avec des accusations sans fondements je vous prie.

- Est-ce une coutume éliatrope d’accueillir vos invités avec si peu de respect… » Elle non plus. « … ou simplement votre mauvais caractère ?

- Je ne sais pas : est-ce une tradition douzienne que de violer l’intimité des autres sans remords ou simplement votre impertinence ?! » Ses dents avaient claqué chacun de ses derniers mots. Il en avait assez.

Autrefois, il aurait eu la patience de faire durer l’échange sur plusieurs heures, si ce n’est jours, parfois juste pour le plaisir de la joute verbale, mais il n’était pas face à l’un de ses frères ou sœurs, il n’était plus un éminent conseiller qui pouvait se permettre un ou deux petits scandales… Il était un prisonnier. À qui l’on avait tout pris. Et, apparemment, que l’on venait maintenant railler et ennuyer au gré des envies. Cependant, de l’autre côté…

La Crâ soupira profondément, s’autorisant même la vulnérabilité de clore ses paupières quelques instants. Une main agitée vint replacer une mèche folle derrière ses longues oreilles et elle perdit de sa défensive. Quand elle les rouvrit, l’Éliatrope fut étonné d’y découvrir une lueur sincère. Une demande de paix.

« Sans être un orateur, je vois que vous n’avez pas volé votre réputation d’amateur en la matière… Mais je vois également que j’avais raison. » Elle l’arrêta dans sa réplique d’un signe, rappelant la trêve. « Passons cette entrée en matière… un peu agressive. Vraiment. Toutefois, je pense que vous comprendrez aisément cette attitude après les, hum, « différents » nous ayant opposés il y a moins d’un an. »

Évidemment qu’il pouvait comprendre la peur et le dégoût qu’il pouvait encore inspirer à ces gens. Ils avaient remplacé son oxygène depuis des siècles.

« Un sentiment des plus logiques. » Froid. Pragmatique. « Cela ne m’indique toujours pas pourquoi vous avez tenu à cette entrevue, qui plus est, en dehors des regards de tous… Si vous me redoutez tant, pourquoi ne pas avoir attendu d’être entourée de vos précieux compagnons ?

- Car ils ne peuvent pas entendre ce que je veux savoir. »

Le vert sylvestre plongea alors dans l’ambre dorée. Les sourcils du savant signifièrent son incompréhension, quand il détourna finalement son attention pour s’intéresser de nouveau aux mains de la jeune femme.

Oh… Ça.

« C’est vrai… C’est vrai que je- ? » Sa voix avait presque tremblé sur les derniers mots.

Des bras forgés par le combat vinrent s’enrouler fébrilement autours de sa taille svelte, comme effrayés de pouvoir la briser. Le thorax soulevé par une respiration désormais perturbée, l’abdomen ciselé par les années d’entraînement, et pourtant… Invisible aux yeux du peuple, évidence pour lui…

« Vous êtes enceinte. »

Autrefois, un « félicitations » ou « tous mes vœux de bonheur » aurait accompagné cette annonce qu’il avait délivrée presque autant de fois que les condoléances qui s’ensuivaient inévitablement quelques siècles plus tard. Mais il ne s’agissait pas de cela aujourd’hui.

La Crâ avait frémi à son entente, mais les larmes qu’elle retenait si bien n’étaient pas de joie ni d’excitation. Ce n’était pas non plus de la peur. Non, c’était bien plus dangereux que cela… De la colère.

« Comment avez-vous pu… ? » Les dents étaient serrées, le visage crispé.

« J’ai assisté à plus de grossesses qu’il m’est possible de compter, très chère. Vous montrez les signes de-…

- Cessez de mentir ! L’Éniripsa royale n’a absolument rien décelé lors de son examen, et elle est tout aussi compétente que vous en la matière ! Elle n’a absolument rien senti ! Rien deviné ! Mais vous… et même Phaéris, vous…» Son attention se posa alors sur son cou, ou plutôt… « Vous l’avez vu…

- Je ne-

- Vos yeux… Ils se sont éclairés. Comme ceux de Phaéris, mais bien moins longtemps... Presque assez pour que j’en doute, mais j’en suis certaine à présent…» Inspiration. Elle se redressa, balayant la crainte de ses traits pour n’y laisser que la détermination. « Vous avez vu ce que personne d’autre n’a été capable de relever. Et maintenant, vous savez. »

Le ton ne se voulait pas accusateur : la jeune femme ne faisait qu’énoncer des faits. Pourtant, dans les tréfonds de sa bibliothèque, entre deux rayonnages lourdement chargés, l’écho lointain d’une autre voix contre les parois d’une flasque en cristal…

« Alors tu sais, hein frangin ?

Évidemment que tu as compris.

Tu as toujours été trop intelligent pour ton propre bien.

Pour notre b-… »

Il ne contrôlait plus rien. Dans sa tête, les souvenirs de la journée se mélangeaient encore trop facilement avec ceux d’anciens recueils : il devait donner de l’ordre à ses pensées. Il ne pouvait pas réfléchir correctement. Et si elle suspectait son travail avec Ayssla ?! Pensait-elle qu’il était à nouveau une menace ?

Et s’ils décidaient de…

Non !

Il se défendit, comme un réflexe :

« Le collier fonctionne. Je ne peux pas utiliser mes pouvoirs. » Le front de l’archère se plissa légèrement. « Je suis simplement plus adepte à sentir les flux de Wakfu. » Panique grossièrement dissimulée. « Je vous assure qu’il s’agit de la stricte vérité. Vous pouvez demander à Yugo ou Phaéris pour confirma-… !

« Qilby ? » Son nom, deux syllabes écorchées par le temps. La pièce retrouva sa netteté. « Nous allons passer un marché.

- Que-… Pardon ? »

Elle se leva, contournant la table pour s’assoir sur son rebord. À quelques centimètres de lui.

« Puisqu’il semble que nous ne parvenons pas à communiquer autrement, je vais être claire et je vous demande de faire de même. »

S’il avait encore sa longue barbe, nul doute qu’elle l’aurait agrippée pour forcer le contact visuel. Elle se contenta d’être égale à elle-même dans ce genre de situation : calme, directe, voire perçante, tenace, en un mot… Terrifiante.

« Je suis… enceinte. » Elle ne semblait pas encore le réaliser. « Personne n’est au courant, mise à part vous et Phaéris. Pas Amalia. Pas Yugo ou Ruel. Pas même Tristepin. Je souhaite que cela reste ainsi. Pourquoi ? Je n’en sais rien, j’ai juste besoin… d’un peu de temps, c’est tout. » Elle ravala sa salive, en profitant pour faire une pause. « J’ai échangé avec Phaéris en sortant de l’infirmerie : comme je le pressentais, rien ne pourrait moins l’importer de divulguer ou non ce qu’il a pu voir. Il était simplement satisfait de constater ma remise en forme. Il ne parlera pas.

- Il a bien trop d’honneur pour ça, en effet. » Maugréa l’autre à voix basse. « Mais si c’est vraiment cela qui vous inquiète, alors non, je ne dir-…

- Ça je ne peux pas en être sure. » Et nous revoilà. Toujours le même refrain. « Je peux avoir confiance en Phaéris, mais vous… ?

- Et quel intérêt aurai-je à utiliser cette information ? » Il était fatigué. « Il ne s’agit pas d’un secret d’état à ce que je sache ! Et d’ici quelque mois, si ce n’est semaines, tous pourront constater…

- Vous savez autant que moi que c’est bien plus de temps qu’il vous faut pour trouver un moyen détourné de semer la discorde. »

Elle, se penchant légèrement en avant, Qilby fut bien agacé de constater qu’il perdait encore du terrain, se renfonçant presque instinctivement dans l’inconfortable armature de bois et de cuir. Soudain, juste sous son nez, se matérialisa une main ouverte. Une trêve. Un échange. Un piège ?

« J’ai besoin de votre parole, mais je ne peux vous faire confiance… Alors, comme de grandes personnes civilisées, nous allons passer un marché : vous ne révélerez à personne ce que vous savez de ma condition et je ferai de même de mon côté… » Elle appuya son bras tendu d’un regard féroce. « Il s’agit de la meilleure solution pour nous d-….

-PwaaHahHaaahaha ! Haha-ha ! »

Il n’avait pas tenu. Devant cette naïve péronnelle, venue négocier son silence comme elle traiterait avec un enfant le droit ou l’interdiction d’une sucrerie, il avait fini par céder. Elle avait failli l’avoir ! Comprenez le bien, il avait sincèrement été effrayé, si ce n’est terrifié, lorsque l’archère avait proclamé détenir un tel pouvoir, ce fameux « mensonge » - non, bien entendu qu’elle n’avait pas pu comprendre cela, même cette partie-là avait dû être inventée par son esprit pétri d’angoisses que le sien ne soit mis à jour ! Et il riait à présent, s’esclaffait à pleins poumons. Il avait eu si peur que- ! Mais non, tout allait bien ! Tout irait bien, car…

« Hé, héhé… ! Hi hi ~ha… Veuillez me pardonner, Mademoiselle. « Il essuya une larme nerveuse du coin de sa manche. « Je crois en effet que nous nous sommes mal compris ! Hé, hé… » Sans avertissement, ses yeux prirent une teinte glaciale, ses traits une farouche amertume. « Mais n’essayez-vous pas là d’inverser les rôles… ? » Il se redressa, se délectant presque du recul produit chez son interlocutrice. « Vous voulez passer un marché avec moi, l’ennemi numéro un de votre monde, et se faisant le mettant potentiellement en péril, ce uniquement afin de garder secrète une grossesse, qui, ultimement, finira par être découverte ? Pour accepter de payer un tel prix pour un bénéfice aussi ridicule, vous devez posséder une contrepartie de choix, hum… ? Voyons voir, parmi tous les secrets que le pauvre fou que je suis possède, lequel serait à la hauteur de la sécurité de votre monde ? Bien peu. Et plus encore…Parmi ces derniers, lequel vous, petite créature mortelle, pourriez-vous être en capacité de déterrer ? Laissez-moi donc réfléchir… Ah ! J’ai trouvé !...» Rictus. « Aucun. »

Il n’avait pas quitté un instant le visage de la jeune femme tout au long de sa répartie. Celui-ci avait exprimé trois émotions : premièrement la surprise, puis la perplexité… et enfin la résignation. Ses longues oreilles s’étaient affaissées, et son regard avait quitté le sien pour fixer ses poings qu’elle tenait serrés jusqu’à la crampe.

« Vous voulez que je vous dise ce que vous avez tenté de faire ? » Sa voix était plus calme. Son corps avait repris l’attitude du professeur qu’il eut été. « Vous avez tenté de me manipuler en inventant ce « mensonge » et en usant de ce prétexte « d’échange équitable » pour pouvoir me soutirer des informations… Me forcer à vous révéler une vérité, qu’importe laquelle - celle qui vous aurait plu - en me faisant croire qu’il s’agissait d’un faux pas de ma part. Information que vous aurez pu utiliser pour couvrir votre propre secret, oui… Ou tout simplement comme bon vous semble pour d’autres fins… » Soupir agacé. « Dommage pour vous : je ne suis pas né de la dernière comète. Si cela ne vous dérange pas, je vais à présent vous demandez de sortir…»

Il commença alors à se lever, souhaitant faire dégager cette silhouette avachie de son champ de vision pour les huit ou dix prochaines heures, quand il le commit… le faux pas.

« Enfin, je dois bien vous féliciter. Je savais que vous m’aviez à l’œil lors de notre expédition à bord du Zinit, mais je ne pensais pas que vous iriez chercher aussi loin afin de formuler votre plan…

- Pourtant vous ne lui avait pas dit la vérité. » Sa tête était toujours baissée. « Devant la porte de votre laboratoire… Vous n’avez pas dit la vérité à Yugo : pourquoi ?

- Tsk ! Arrêtez de divaguer. Je vous l’ai déjà dit, non ? Votre petit jeu ne marche pas avec m- !

- Mais vous l’avez fait. » Son cœur s’arrêta presque devant l’intensité du vert qui le fixait. Le submergeait. « Devant la porte vous avez dit…

« Je suis Qilby…

Le Traître…

J’ai tué Yugo. »

Mille et une voix se superposèrent. Répétant encore et encore les mêmes mots. Le Conseil, ses frères, ses sœurs… Phaéris, Mina, Grougaloragran, Glip, Balthazar, Adamaï… Yugo.

« Et donc ?! » Il n’avait pas craché ces mots. « Qilby est bien mon nom… » Sa mâchoire se crispa. « Et votre groupe a beau être composé d’optimistes ou d’imbéciles heureux, je suis désolé de vous apprendre que c’est bien moi qui ai tu- !

- Très certainement. » La simplicité de sa parole le fit taire. « Je n’en doute pas. Dans une autre vie, un autre temps, et vu votre passif familial, je ne vois pas pourquoi cette dernière partie ne serait pas plausible. Mais nous savons tous les deux que ce n’est pas celle-ci qui vous chagrine, car sinon vous l’auriez déjà abordée… » Elle continuait de le fixer, sans un battement de paupières pour lui offrir l’espace de respirer. « Qilby… »

Deuxième fois, et pourtant son esprit n’avait pas pu saisir la légère douceur avec laquelle son nom était prononcé. Il était suspendu aux prochains mots, à ceux qu’il croyait pouvoir lire sur ces lèvres, deviner dans ces yeux… Ceux qu’il avait tant rêvé d’entendre… Ne serait-ce qu’une fois. Lui, aîné de tous les Éliatropes ; lui, gardien de la mémoire de son peuple ; lui, le savant solitaire, délaissé, mais toujours sollicité… Lui, Qilby….

« Vous n’êtes pas un traître... n’est-ce pas ? »

Et alors qu’il pensait maîtriser la conversation de bout en bout, qu’il avait su renverser la situation à son avantage au moment opportun, qu’il avait toujours une répartie en réserve… Alors que, depuis ce matin, il pensait enfin pouvoir reprendre son souffle… Celui-ci lui manqua.

C’était pour eux que je l’ai fait.

Tu me comprends, hein… ?

C’est vous qui m’avez trahi et non l’inverse !

Comment as-tu pu… ?

Phaéris se souvient de toi !

Non… Non, non, non ! Pas déjà !

Tu as bien conscience de ce que cela impliquerait.

Si nous partons, alors tu risques d’être vu comme…

Tout ce que j’ai fait, je l’ai fait pour vous.

Je ne peux plus supporter tes... mensonges...

Tu n’es pas mon grand frère !!

Désole -Mon Cœur- Être

Car -Seul- Désormais -Toi Rester-

Alors dis-moi… Que veux-tu que je sois… ?

Tu es Qilby,

Qilby le Traître.

« Là-bas, sur le Zinit… Vous avez été contraint d’utiliser ce… « titre». Et si vous avez l’habitude de vous en donner d’autres, comme « fou » ou encore « criminel », c’est bien le seul que vous semblez tourner en dérision. » Elle gardait un ton calme, détaché, mais un début de sourire laissait transparaître une bienveillance naturelle. « D’ailleurs, pas plus tard que ce soir, vous l’avez jeté dans la conversation pour mieux le moquer. Chaque fois que l’on vous nomme ainsi, vous en prenez ombrage, alors que vous acceptez pleinement les autres…

- Je – j’ai forcé l’exil de mon peuple ! » Commença-t-il alors à rétorquer. « J’ai d-déclenché une guerre sans précédents, p-précipité la mort de ma… de ma sœur dragonne ! J’ai exploité l’Éliacube à mes fins, j’ai… ! » Sa respiration devenait laborieuse. « J’ai détruit ma planète, n-notre monde… Et si j’y étais parvenu, le vôtre également !

- Il s’agit de faits. D’une histoire… Mais cela ne dit en rien votre rôle, n’est-ce pas ?

- Que… ?!

- Vous avez peut-être, voire même très certainement, fait toutes ces choses. » Inspiration. « Cela signifie-t-il que vous avez t-… ?

- JE NE LES AI PAS TRAHIS !! »

En un instant, fauteuil et tasse avaient été repoussés. Sa gorge brulait de la hargne avec laquelle il avait hurlé au visage de la Douzienne, qui, si elle avait reculé le temps d’un réflexe, avait déjà repris sa pose sérieuse. Lui, tremblait encore. Il aurait aimé croire que son imposante taille doublée des ombres projetées par la lampe à huile le rendaient menaçant. Ses halètements rauques et son expression figée ne lui donnaient qu’une apparence dévastée. Il ne souligna même pas l’absence de deux gardes, qui auraient pourtant dû faire irruption dans sa cellule avec autant de vacarme en son sein. Finalement, il s’affala contre l’horrible dossier, voilant ses yeux d’une main. Même closes, ses paupières ne semblaient plus en mesure de supporter la lumière jaunâtre de la pièce exiguë, où l’air paraissait également vicié par ses souvenirs.

Comme si elle lisait dans ses pensées, l’archère se leva discrètement pour ouvrir l’unique et ridicule lucarne. Le frais parfum des bois endormis enveloppa les lieux.

« Vous admettez toutes ces horreurs… Mais vous êtes convaincu de ne pas avoir trahi les vôtres. » Elle retrouva sa place, toute trace de conflit disparue de son attitude. « Pourquoi ?

- Et vous… ? » Sa bouche avait le goût de cendres. « Pourquoi souhaitez-vous tant savoir les états d’âmes de celui qui a bien failli causer votre perte ? » Il ricana, mais son cœur n’était pas à la plaisanterie. « Pourquoi… Toute cette mise en scène ?

- Pour ça. »

Elle désigna alors quelque chose par-dessus son épaule, et en tournant son regard fatigué dans sa direction, il tomba sur la serre argentée offerte par la princesse Amalia il y a quelques jours de cela. Un présent, selon les termes du message qui l’accompagnait, afin de « compenser » la perte que pouvait représenter Zeden. Les minuscules plantes grasses qui y résidaient avaient commencé à se développer, derrière des parois de verre presque aussi étincelantes que le métal les sertissant.

« Je ne…

- Elle est intacte. Plus encore, vous l’avez entretenue. » Le constat était simple et pourtant son message était puissant. « Quelqu’un cherchant à fuir cet endroit à tout prix n’aurait pas perdu autant de temps dans une tâche aussi futile et l’aurait délaissé. Quelqu’un avec de la rancœur ou du mépris envers ceux lui ayant offerte s’en serait débarrassé.

- J-je pourrai très bien m’en occuper dans l’unique but d’avoir de nouveaux échantillons ! » Tenta-t-il. « Une nouvelle base pour recommencer mon travail ! Juste avant de… de partir !

- Et quelqu’un d’aussi déterminé se contenterait-il vraiment de trois misérables plantes en pot ? » Sourire amusé, bien vite remplacé par un front sérieux. « Vous ne voulez pas partir, Qilby. Ou tout du moins, vous hésitez. Quelque chose s’est passé, là-bas, sur le Zinit, et depuis lors, vous faîtes profil bas, vous cherchez à gagner du temps, à vous rapprocher de Yugo…

- Héhé… N’a-t-on même plus le droit de croire en la rédemption ?

- Si tel est le cas, alors pourquoi lui mentir ?

- Je ne m- !

- Dissimuler la vérité alors ? »

Il mordit sa dernière réplique, manquant de peu sa langue. Il leva les yeux vers la très sobre horloge murale : la nuit était déjà bien avancée. Pour la première fois depuis des siècles, il ne désirait rien de plus que de trouver refuge dans le sommeil. Que des années de terreurs et de cauchemars l’avaient pourtant poussé à fuir…

« Yugo est mon ami, j’irai même à dire que… je le considère comme un frère. » Il se retourna brusquement vers elle. « Vous comprendrez donc que je ne peux pas vous laisser agir à votre guise. Pas comme ça en tous cas.

- Vous… » Soupir. « Vous ne partirez pas… hum ?

- Pas tant que je n’aurai pas eu les réponses à mes questions. »

Il contempla la jeune femme un instant. L’image de la pauvre âme éperdue et désespérée avait disparue, changée en celle d’une guerrière, loyale et sans peur.

Et si…

rien que pour cette fois ?

E-

Et si…

« Et si mes réponses ne vous plaisent pas ?

- Tant qu’il s’agit de la vérité, mes sentiments personnels n’ont pas à y être mêlés. » Elle pencha légèrement la tête, comme pour mieux le dévisager. « Et vous savez désormais que je possède un certain talent pour détecter les mensonges.

- Mais vous... ? » Tension. « Pouvez-vous m’assurez… me promettre que… ?

- Je ne dirai rien. Vous possédez également un secret sur moi, hum ? » Elle baissa les yeux sur son abdomen. « Vous ne saviez pas comment utiliser cette information, la voici : si vous veniez à soupçonner quoi que ce soit, vous pourriez l’employer contre moi et me forcer au silence. »

Ha… !

Elle avait tout prévu. Tout cela,

toute cette entrée en matière,

ce n’était pas pour se protéger elle…

Mais pour moi.

Pour cette discussion.

…

Et alors…

rien que pour cette fois ?

Il se leva alors, prenant garde à ne pas irriter son dos déjà bien mal en point. Perplexe, la Crâ l’observa prendre une nouvelle rasade d’eau à bouillir, avant de se servir généreusement dans les sachets d’herbes parfumés. Un moment, uniquement occupé par le doux sifflement de la vapeur, et il retrouvait sa place. D’une main habile, il remplit leurs deux tasses, l’archère acceptant la sienne avec un respect qu’il avait presque oublié.

« L’histoire que je m’ap-… » Il s’arrêta, refoula un frémissement. Déjà-vu. Non, pas comme ça. « Hum, je… » Elle le regardait. Sans impatience. Sans jugement. « Le… Lorsque j’ai posé les yeux pour la première fois sur l’un de mes frères et sœurs, je… Il doit s’agir de l’un de mes plus précieux souvenirs – et ils ne sont pas si nombreux. C’est juste que… À cet instant précis, j’ai… » Ses yeux perdirent de leur éclat. Il se perdait à nouveau dans les rayons de sa mémoire. « Je me suis juré de les protéger… Peu importe ce qu’il pouvait m’en coûter. »

Il se lança alors dans un récit dont les innombrables pages n’avaient plus vu la lumière depuis des millénaires.

« Et c’est ainsi que… Je me suis retrouvé dans cet enfer. Encore…» Les feuilles aux parfums exotiques tournoyaient lentement dans le peu de breuvage restant. « Pour ce qui est de la suite… Je crains que vous ne la connaissiez mieux que moi… »

Il avala la dernière gorgée d’un coup sec, comme si sa tisane s’était miraculeusement changée en un alcool qui lui aurait donné la force de poursuivre. Ne serait-ce que celle d’affronter les commentaires de son interlocutrice.

Elle était demeurée de marbre durant tout son récit, son attention uniquement indiquée par de brefs hochements de tête ci et là, appuyant les moments clefs ou encourageant sa reprise après des évènements difficiles. Ses lèvres n’avaient laissé échapper aucun son, préférant laisser la voix grave du scientifique emplir la pièce de dragons intrépides, de portails azurés, de cités inconnues et de planètes lointaines. Cependant, lui, plus d’une heure après le début de sa narration, ne semblait plus en mesure de s’entendre relater guerres, jalousies, morts et adieux… En rouvrant les yeux, il était revenu dans le présent, mais son corps avait visiblement payé le tribut d’une aussi longue, et surtout douloureuse, descente aux entrailles mémorielles.

« Je vois. » Se contenta-t-elle de répondre.

« Tsk ! Éloquent de votre part. »

En effet, après tout ce qu’il venait de lui livrer… Était-ce vraiment tout ce qu’elle pouvait offrir comme réaction ? Il s’était imaginé le rejet, le déni, les accusations… La calme acceptation ne faisait pas partie de sa longue liste.

« Non, vraiment… » Elle se leva, toujours aussi gracieuse, avant d’épousseter sa tenue. « Je suis contente d’avoir eu cette discussion : je vous remercie pour votre honnêteté. »

Qu- ?

« Quoi ?! » Voilà qu’il la suivait maintenant, incapable de mettre une pensée devant l’autre. « C’est tout ?! Vous – enfin, je - ? »

Elle se tenait à présent devant la porte de la chambre, la main déjà sur la poignée. Allait-elle vraiment s’en aller sans un mot de plus ? Comme si tous ces… Tout ça n’était qu’une formalité ? Par la Déesse, il ne s’agissait pas d’une quelconque histoire de vacances inter-krozmiques, ni même de banales et innocentes anecdotes sur l’enfance de Yugo et des autres !

« Je vous assure. » Elle… lui avait pris la main. « Je comprends. Mieux en tous cas… »

L’archère désigna alors les incessantes aiguilles au mur : l’aurore n’était plus qu’à deux ou trois battements de la plus petite.

« Mais nous n’avons plus le temps de poursuivre cette entrevue : Amalia a déjà dû avoir bien du mal à occuper les gardes aussi longtemps. Ne vous inquiétez pas, elle ne connaîtra pas la réelle raison de ma venue et… de toutes manières, elle ne semble pas vous haïr autant que son frère.

- Je suppose que je lui dois des remerciements pour cela. » Il ne comptait pas lui offrir de sitôt. Pas en public tout du moins.

« J’aurai encore plusieurs questions à vous poser. » La franchise avait remplacé les vaines chamailleries dans leur discours. « Je suppose que vous êtes régulièrement disponible ? »

Merde… Ayssla.

Je ne peux pas indéfiniment repousser

l’avancement de…

Mais en même temps…

« Malgré le plaisir de votre présence… » Franchise n’empêchait pas sarcasme. « … je ne peux pas me permettre de délayer davantage mes travaux sur l’antidote. »

Je ne peux pas l’écarter non plus.

Elle se douterait de quelque chose…

Et puis…

« Mais peut-être seriez-vous intéressée pour partager une autre tasse de thé, disons… Après-demain, vers 15 heures ? Il s’agit généralement du moment où l’on me l’apporte. Je suis certain que les servantes seront plus que soulagées de vous laisser à cette tâche ingrate…» Il s’autorisa un rictus. « Et je suppose également que les gardes ne s’interrogeront pas sur la présence d’un membre de la célèbre Confrérie du Tofu en ces murs pour des raisons évidentes de… surveillance. Ou quoi que vous puissiez trouver comme excuse.

- Vous ne semblez plus me considérer comme une « petite créature mortelle » à ce que je vois. » Elle lui renvoya. « Serai-je parvenue à vous intimider ?

- Je suis terrorisé. En êtes-vous satisfaite ?

- Très. »

Ils s’observèrent un instant, davantage par appréciation que pour se jauger. Intéressant comme la dynamique entre deux êtres pouvait évoluer en l’espace de quelques mots. D’un paria et d’une insolite, ils s’étaient trouvés comme partenaires d’un crime commun ; les confidents de secrets inavouables, des esprits trop curieux, trop fous, pour ceux qui les entouraient.

Efrim l’aurait beaucoup aimé.

Inconsciemment, il se prit à sourire à l’image de son frère dragon, jumeau de Nora, lancé dans une discussion endiablée dont lui seul avait le secret avec la jeune Douzienne. Très certainement un débat sur la nécessité de rajouter ou non du sel dans la confection de pâtisseries (« Mais elles sont sucrées ! Cela n’a pas de sens ! »), ou sur l’incontestable suprématie des Sallabys sur l’échelle de la mignonnerie (« As-tu seulement vu leurs oreilles ?! »).

« Je vais vous laissez vous reposer, et vais très certainement aller faire de même. » Elle supprima un bâillement. « Bonne nuit.

- Je-oui, bonne nuit à vous aussi. »

Il n’avait plus l’habitude des sorties cordiales, plus habitué qu’il était aux claquements de portes, aux cris et aux talons martelés contre le sol. Encore sous le choc de cette soirée et des vérités qui s’y étaient dévoilées, c’est machinalement qu’il ouvrit la porte pour permettre à l’archère de sortir. Le couloir était désert, mais l’on distinguait encore de la vie à tous les étages sous la forme de murmures se répercutant contre l’épaisse écorce. Même sans gardes, il ne doutait pas qu’une sortie en force ne le mènerait pas très loin : nul doute que les autres issues avaient été renforcées. Et la Crâ, bien qu’amicale, n’était pas imprudente ou suicidaire pour autant.

« Ah, et… Qilby ?

- Hum ? »

Elle se tenait là, droite comme une flèche. Dans son allure comme dans sa voix, nul doute.

« Il semblerait bien que j’avais raison.

- Tss, oui… » Il leva brièvement les yeux au ciel. « J’ai bien m-, enfin, je n’ai pas dit toute la vérité à Yugo… » Soupir. « Mais vous avez compris que je ne peux pas me permettre… Pas après que…

- Oui, je sais, mais je ne parlais pas de ça. » Doucement, elle lui ôta la poignée de la main, décidément nullement effrayée par le geste. « Vous avez commis de nombreuses erreurs par le passé, et certaines vont très certainement vous suivre jusqu’à la fin de votre existence – si jamais celle-ci peut en trouver une… Mais après ce que vous venez de me raconter et tout ce que j’ai pu observer jusqu’ici, je pense pouvoir l’affirmer... Qilby, vous-. »

La porte se referma. Il était seul à nouveau. Dans cette pièce. Minuscule, et pourtant trop grande. Trop vide.

Lorsqu’il tenterait de se souvenir à nouveau de cette nuit-là, il ne saura vous dire avec précision ce qu’il a bien pu se passer entre cette porte et le moment où il s’était affalé contre son matelas de fortune. Il avait bien dû se changer, mais n’avait très certainement pas eu la force de se laver – il rattraperait sa douche le lendemain matin. Il avait peut-être agrippé quelques noix et raisins secs, qu’il avait avalés sans plaisir, juste pour subsister et contrebalancer les litres de thé dont il ne semblait pouvoir se passer ces derniers jours. Il avait clos ses paupières une dernière fois avant l’aube, entraîné dans un sommeil sans songes.

Mais dans son esprit, précieusement consignée, une phrase.

« Qilby,

vous n’êtes pas un traître. »

Et, hop ! Un nouveau larbin embo- !

Comment ?!

Un allié ?

Tss…

Si tu veux, pauvre fou.

Après tout, qui suis-je pour

t’empêcher de croire ?

~ Fin du Chapitre 7

#Qilby #Ankama #fiction #fanfiction #french #french fanfiction #wakfu #wakfu qilby #wakfu fanfiction

8 notes · View notes

uh-mozzaza · 1 year ago

Text

God I see what you've done for other people (iParty rave with nickelodeon songs and special guests, as reported by Quinton Reviews), I just wish you would do the same for me too (Yugo Kanno techno rave with JJBA soundtracks world tour)

#hands down. still some of my favorite compositions ever #the fusion! the range!

3 notes · View notes

sofya-fanfics · 2 years ago

Text

Toi aussi tu es importante

Fandom : Ao Ashi

Relationship : Ashito x Hana

Voici ma participation pour le Year of the OTP 2023 pour le prompt : sick fic.

J’espère que ça vous plaira.

Résumé : Ashito était assis sur une chaise à côté du lit d’Hana, qui dormait profondément. Il posa sa main sur celle d’Hana et la serra. Lorsqu’il l’avait vu inconsciente, il n’avait jamais eu aussi peur. Pour la première fois de sa vie, le football n’était plus important. Tout ce qui comptait, c’était qu’Hana aille bien.

Disclaimer : Ao Ashi appartient à Yugo Kobayashi.

@yearoftheotpevent

AO3

Ashito passa le ballon à Otomo, qui lui renvoya. Le club Esperion recevait un autre club, c’était un match décisif qui allait décider lequel des deux clubs participerait au championnat régional. Le match allait commencer dans quelques minutes et Ashito était impatient de jouer. Il avait l’impression de ne plus tenir en place. Otomo, par contre, était stressé comme avant chaque match. Mais il savait que lorsque le coup de sifflet retentirait, le comportement d’Otomo changera et il profitera de chaque minute du match.

Pour lui changer les idées, Ashito lui avait proposé de se faire des passes. Cela avait l’air de marcher et Otomo semblait moins stressé. Ce dernier stoppa le ballon et regarda au loin. Il pointa du doigt les gradins et dit à Ashito de regarder. Un immense sourire illumina son visage. Hana était là. Jusqu’à présent, elle n’avait jamais loupé un de ses matchs. Elle avait toujours cru en lui. Et après s’être déclarée sa fan numéro un, il se sentait plus fort et avait l’impression de mieux jouer quand elle était là. Il lui fit un signe de la main et elle lui répondit.

« Je reviens, dit-il à Otomo.

-Tu as de la chance d’avoir ta petite amie qui vient te voir à chaque match, soupira son ami. J’aimerais être à ta place. »

Ashito rougit.

« Ce n’est pas ma petite amie. »

Otomo ne put s’empêcher d’éclater de rire.

« Si tu le dis. »

Ashito rougit un peu plus, mais ne répondit rien. Il courut vers Hana, mais fronça les sourcils en la voyant de près. Elle avait l’air fatiguée et ses yeux et son nez étaient rouges. Il l’entendit tousser légèrement.

« Est-ce que tout va bien ? Lui demanda-t-il. »

Hana acquiesça et sourit. Ashito vit tout de suite que c’était un sourire forcé.

« Je suis juste un peu enrhumée. Mais ce n’est rien de grave.

-Si tu te sentais mal, tu n’aurais pas dû venir. »

Elle secoua négativement la tête.

« C’est un match important pour votre qualification. Je voulais vous encourager. »

Elle détourna le regard et ses joues rougirent un peu plus.

« Je voulais t’encourager. »

Le rouge monta aux joues d’Ashito. Comme à chaque qu’Hana lui disait ce genre de chose, il ressentait une douce chaleur. Il était heureux. Mais ce n’était pas le moment de penser à ça. Il devait se concentrer sur le match. Il la regarda sérieusement. Même si elle disait qu’elle allait bien, il s’inquiétait pour elle.

« Si jamais tu te sens mal, tu rentres te reposer. »

Hana soupira et leva les yeux au ciel.

« Hana.

-D’accord. Maintenant retourne sur le terrain, la match va bientôt commencer. »

Ashito lui lança un dernier regard avant de courir vers les joueurs de son équipe qui s’étaient réunis autour de leur entraîneur. Il sourit lorsqu’il entendit ses encouragements. Après les dernières recommandations de Fukuda, les joueurs se placèrent sur le terrain et l’arbitre siffla le début du match.

Au bout de la dix-huitième minute, l’équipe d’Esperion marqua un but. S’ils continuaient comme ça, pensa Ashito, ils seraient qualifiés. Il entendit un brouhaha venir des gradins. Il comprit que cela n’avait rien à voir avec des encouragements. Il regarda rapidement, par curiosité. Son sang ne fit qu’un tour lorsqu’il vit Anri agenouillée et Hana allongée par terre. Sans réfléchir à ce qu’il faisait, il se précipita vers les gradins.

« Hana ! Cria-t-il. »

Il se moquait d’être en plein milieu d’un match, tout ce qui comptait à cet instant précis, c’était Hana. Il s’agenouilla à côté d’elle.

« Elle… Elle s’est évanouie tout à coup, dit Anri. »

Ashito tourna la tête vers elle et vit l’inquiétude dans son regard. Il toucha le front d’Hana. Il était brûlant. Pourquoi est-ce qu’elle ne l’avait pas écouté ? Pourquoi est-ce qu’elle avait insisté au point de s’évanouir ? Il se leva et la prit dans ses bras.

« Je l’emmène à l’infirmerie, informa-t-il Anri. »

Celle-ci acquiesça et Ashito se précipita vers l’infirmerie.

******

Ashito était assis sur une chaise à côté du lit d’Hana, qui dormait profondément. Elle avait repris un peu de couleurs. L’infirmière lui avait donné un médicament pour faire tomber la fièvre et avait inform�� Ashito qu’elle irait bientôt mieux. Il était rassuré. Il posa sa main sur celle d’Hana et la serra. Lorsqu’il l’avait vu inconsciente, il n’avait jamais eu aussi peur. Pour la première fois de sa vie, le football n’était plus important. Tout ce qui comptait, c’était qu’Hana aille bien.

Il regarda vers la fenêtre et se dit que le match devait être terminé. Quelqu’un frappa à la porte et l’ouvrit. Ashito lâcha rapidement la main d’Hana lorsqu’il vit Fukuda entrer.

« Comment va-t-elle ? Demanda-t-il en s’approchant du lit.

-L’infirmière lui a donné un médicament, elle devrait aller mieux. »

Fukuda caressa affectueusement les cheveux de sa sœur

« Tu nous as fait une belle frayeur. »

Il regarda en direction d’Ashito.

« L’équipe est qualifiée. On a gagner 3 à 1. »

Ashito sourit. Au moins son absence n’avait pas pénalisé l’équipe. Fukuda se dirigea vers la porte et posa sa main sur la poignée.

« Vous partez ? Demanda Ashito. »

Fukuda acquiesça et lui sourit.

« Je sais que je laisse Hana entre de bonnes mains. »

Il quitta l’infirmerie. Ashito rougit. Ce n’était pas son entraîneur qui venait de lui parler, mais le grand frère d’Hana. Il la vit bouger. Il porta son attention sur elle et la vit ouvrir les yeux.

« Ashito. Qu’est-ce qu’il s’est passé ?

-Tu t’es évanouie, tu es à l’infirmerie.

-Je suis désolée de t’avoir inquiété. Et le match ? »

Ashito sourit légèrement. Il n’avait pas besoin de lui dire qu’il n’y avait pas assisté pour rester auprès d’elle. Il ne voulait pas qu’elle se sente coupable.

« On a gagné. »

Hana sourit, rassurée.

« Tant mieux. Je suis contente pour toi. »

Elle ferma doucement les yeux et s’endormit. Il lui prit à nouveau la main et lui caressa le dos avec son pouce. Il allait rester encore un peu avec elle pour être sûr qu’elle aille bien.

******

Quatre jours étaient passés. Hana se sentait beaucoup mieux et avait repris les cours. Étrangement, Ashito ne voulait pas parler du match de qualification avec elle et lorsqu’elle en parlait avec d’autres membres de l’équipe, ils détournaient la conversation. À part son malaise, est-ce qu’il s’était passé quelque chose pendant le match ?

Hana était adossée contre le mur du couloir du lycée, attendant qu’Anri sorte de son cours. Elle l’appela lorsqu’elle la vit sortir de sa salle de classe et s’approcha d’elle.

« Qu’est-ce qu’il s’est passé pendant le match ? Demanda Hana. »

Anri écarquilla les yeux.

« Tu n’es pas au courant ?

-Ashito refuse de me le dire et quand je demande aux autres, ils changent de sujet. »

Anri baissa le yeux.

« Si Ashito ne veux pas t’en parler, ce n’est pas à moi de te le dire.

-S’il te plaît. Je sais que toi, tu ne me mentiras pas. »

Anri se mordit la lèvre inférieure et leva la tête vers Hana. Elle ne savait pas ce qu’elle devait faire. Mais elle savait que la jeune fille devant elle n’abandonnerait pas et qu’elle ferait tout pour découvrir ce qu’il s’est passé.

« Ashito a quitté le match pour rester avec toi. L’équipe a gagné, mais sans lui. Peut-être qu’il ne t’en a pas parlé pour ne pas que tu te sentes coupable. »

Hana eut l’impression d’avoir le souffle coupé. Il avait abandonné le match à cause d’elle. Pourquoi ? Pourquoi avait-il fait cela alors que le football était toute sa vie ? Il fallait qu’elle lui parle. Elle partit en courant et n’entendit pas Anri l’appeler. Tout ce à quoi elle pensait, c’était de le retrouver. C’était la pause déjeuner et elle savait qu’il aimait déjeuner sur le toit. Elle monta les escaliers et se dit qu’elle n’avait jamais couru aussi vite. Elle était essoufflée, mais elle s’en moquait.

Elle ouvrit la porte qui menait au toit et le vit entrain de déjeuner avec Tachibana, Togashi et Otomo. Plus elle s’approchait de lui, plus elle sentait la colère l’envahir. Il lui avait caché qu’il n’avait pas participé au match. Elle n’avait pas besoin qu’il la protège. Le football était important. Il avait fait des sacrifices pour venir à Tokyo et pour pouvoir devenir professionnel. Il devait se concentrer sur cet objectif.

Elle se plaça derrière Ashito, qui était assis par terre avec ses amis. Elle mit ses poings sur ses hanches et lui lança un regard rempli de colère. Ashito frissonna, comme s’il avait sentit son regard et se tourna lentement vers elle.

« On va vous laisser, dit Togashi. »

Lui et Tachibana se levèrent rapidement. Il attrapa Otomo par le col de sa veste pour le forcer à se lever et ils partirent. Ashito les regardait, les suppliant de ne pas le laisser seul avec Hana qui était en colère contre lui.

« Pourquoi tu as fait ça ? »

Il sursauta en entendant le ton de sa voix. Il se leva et se tourna vers elle.

« Tu es au courant pour le match.

-Tu n’aurais pas dû rester avec moi. C’était un match important.

-Toi aussi tu es importante. »

Hana écarquilla les yeux. Il lui avait dit cela calmement, comme si c’était la chose la plus évidente.

« Je n’aurais pas pu jouer en sachant que tu n’allais pas bien. C’était plus fort que moi. Je devais être près de toi. C’est vrai que le football est important, mais toi aussi tu l’es. Alors je ne regrette pas d’avoir loupé le match. »

Ashito rougit tout à coup, se rendant compte de ce qu’il venait de dire. Hana posa sa main sur sa poitrine. Son cœur battait tellement fort qu’elle crut qu’il allait exploser. Elle s’approcha de lui et posa délicatement ses lèvres sur les siennes. Ce n’était qu’un baiser qui avait duré à peine une seconde, pourtant Ashito sentit tout son corps trembler. Même jouer au football ne lui avait jamais fait ressentir cela. Hana s’écarta de lui. Ses joues étaient toutes aussi rouges que les siennes et elle lui souriait timidement.

« Gagne le prochain match. »

Elle s’en alla en courant avant qu’Ashito n’ait eu le temps de réagir. Pourquoi est-ce qu’il fallait toujours qu’elle s’enfuit à un moment pareil. Mais il ne put s’empêcher de sourire. C’était différent de la dernière fois où elle l’avait embrassé sur le front. Il se promit de gagner le prochain match pour elle.

Fin

#YEAR OF THE OTP #Year of the OTP 2023 #ao ashi #aoi x hana #aoi ashito #hana ichijou #fanfiction #My writing

6 notes · View notes

leopardom · 2 years ago

Note

Why aren't they announcing new tour dates, i'm desperate 😭😭 p.s. i'm talking about joker out lol

since i’ve seen comments like this many times i wanna break this down a bit. and just to clarify, my intention is not to criticise anyone or something, for better or worse i know a couple of things about the music industry and that info is always on my mind even when i see things from the fan perspective 😅

as far as i know joker out is not signed on a label or something so they pretty much rely on their own devices when it comes to releasing music, touring etc (i might be wrong about it or course so if anyone knows more about that please do correct me). this makes things more complicated especially for touring because they have to fund a majority of stuff by themselves

that being said it may be kinda easy to book venues/festivals in Slovenia since they’re a big name over there. however the same doesn’t apply for other countries, maybe even for their neighbouring ones. also having gigs in idk Germany for example is definitely not the same as having gigs in Croatia which is literally sharing a border with Slovenia

booking venues is already a pain in the ass most times and it depends a lot on the economic factor let’s be real. it also takes time to make a deal so if they manage to make a deal for a gig for example again in Germany/Spain/Italy/whatever country right now, the gig will probably be set around the end of the year/next year

now another thing is that they’re still building their fanbase outside of Slovenia. even if many people found out about them through eurovision, it doesn’t mean that all those people searched for their discography or are still listening to them at all. the streams on spotify are one thing but they still need to check the reactions they get on other social media from their international fans and a way to do that is currently by touring in Slovenia/ex-Yugo countries during the summer. the demand for gigs in other countries is still in progress and even if many fans from x country are gathered on y platform it doesn’t instantly mean that jo will give a show there

and let’s not forget that they’re still in the eurovision high, it has been like 2 months since their biggest breakthrough which is not that long. it’s very fascinating how they managed to book gigs in the UK, Finland, Scandinavia, Poland and Czechia already, but there’s still more to come! i understand being impatient, goddamn if i didn’t. i’m from Greece and bands visit my country once every 6 years only if we’re lucky 💀 but yeah there sure is more to come, they’re currently testing the waters further than their neighbouring countries

anyway i talked to much so in conclusion: considering all of the above i think we can all understand why the international tour dates are limited for now. if you ask them i bet you my arm and my leg that they’ll tell you they want to tour everywhere possible, but that’s definitely easier said than done. so yeah, patience is the only key here 🥲

#ask #anon

3 notes · View notes

extended-google-reviews · 3 months ago

Text

Yugo University Club Review

Yugo College Park University Club · 4800 Berwyn House Rd, College Park, MD 20740

Google Review

Lease: 1 year, Studio Apartment ($1400) with parking ($100)

TLDR; If you can afford elsewhere I would highly recommend that. I lived in a studio for a year, it was what I paid for cheap rent in the area ($1500). Constant pest issues despite maintaining a clean apartment, and AC/HVAC system so old that there were periods of too much heat or too cold in the apartment. Front desk people seemed pretty nice overall. Living here is doable but you must be prepared.

Advice for future tenants

If you have to live here, here are some notes that helped me:

taking pictures/videos and documenting all damages upon move in, and state in damage inspection move-in form

keeping a super clean apartment

apply pest traps/spray/diatomaceous earth around apartment

ensure parking pass displayed in car (towing costs $175 minimum)

studio kitchens are really small, no counter space, and no ventilation

laundry is not free

submit maintenance tickets ASAP

bring a fan and warm blanket for periods of uncomfortable temperature

do not lose your key fob, and where key fobs hang from keys is weak and will break (replacement is $100)

have visitors park at the Seneca Building for free 4PM-7AM weekdays and free all weekend

visitor parking at the apartment is $10, whether overnight or not

bring earplugs/eyemask if sensitive to loud noises at night

Before Move In

I was not allowed to tour or inspect any other rooms than the model room. Even after signing the lease and knowing there were no residents in the room. They miscalculated many of my initial charges, and I would recommend double checking them yourself before paying anything.

Move In

Apartment was not cleaned well beforehand, recommend cleaning everything yourself first. Flies were everywhere. Weird marks, damages and other defects found everywhere in apartment. I documented them all and took video/photo evidence. They eventually did repair some of them, such as a broken door.

During

Constantly was finding flies, small roaches, and crickets in the beginning. I kept my apartment clean (washing dishes after every meal, not leaving food out, vacuuming twice a week) and the roaches and crickets slowly went away. Smaller flies seemed to always come out when cooking or eating. I also plugged sinks in kitchen and bathroom when I was not using them.

Bathtub and kitchen sink faucets were leaky or hard to stop water. Put a ticket in for it but the new faucets were only a little better. I was always wary of water leaking from these two sources.

Gas stove but no ventilation. If cooking meat you will set the fire alarm off if you do not open windows. No counter space, ended up using another table for cooking. Put in maintenance tickets about my dishwasher never being hooked up to the water line and plugged in, but was never fixed. Very small kitchen in studio apartment.

Thermostat seemed to do nothing. Two vents in my room had knobs that actually influenced temperature with off, low, medium, high fan settings. The off setting still has air coming out of vent. This is what causes periods of uncomfortable temperature. The building is old so the HVAC system can only be set to heat or AC, never both. Thus when it was warmer in the fall and the heat mode was on, the apartment was around 80+ degrees Fahrenheit despite both thermostat and vents being off.

Wifi speed was good, but weird that it was an open network. For security reasons, I used a VPN when possible.

Parking is $100/month, and parking pass must be shown in car windshield. Towing only checks is parking pass is present, nothing else. Got my car towed for putting parking pas away after auto maintenance and forgetting to put back on (despite having registered my vehicle for my parking space). ASAP picking up from towing company was $175.

Visitor parking was $10 per day, and didn't matter if visitor was staying overnight or not. I asked the front officed multiple times for confirmation. Free parking at the Seneca building or lot 11b on weekdays 4PM - 7AM and weekends all day.

Key fob was cheap and flimsy, and attachment to my keys broke within a few days. Recommend placing key fob in another container or holder. Replacement was $100.

Area was loud at times with unruly people at night. Sometimes residents are loud in the hallways as well. Not controllable by anyone by just a heads up. Bring earplugs and eye mask if it bothers you.

Laundry is not included in rent, and was roughly $3 for both wash and dry. Additionally, for many months the washer and dryer were broken.

Trash facilities are not great, and probably what is causing all the pest issues. I always took my trash to outside dumpster.

will update for Move Out, and anything else

0 notes

jokeroutsubs · 2 months ago

Text

[📝ENG Translation] Joker Out: The audience in Skopje is incredible, we feel at home here

Original article written by Antonija Janevska for Meta.mk, published on 29.11.2024. English translation by IG marijakonte and IG a.mitrulova, proofread by @flowerlotus8

Full article below the cut!

A couple of days before the concert in Skopje, we spoke with Bojan and Kris about Souvenir Pop, the eventful year of touring and much more.Bojan and Kris from the popular Slovenian band Joker Out, in the interview for Meta.mk before the concert in Skopje this weekend say that whenever they go to a Balkan country, they feel a bit different, special, "like home, but warmer".

With over 26 million streams on the third album called Souvenir Pop, the band continues to grow on the Balkan music scene. They started this year with a European tour, festivals, and on Sunday, December 1st, with the one off-programe of "Taksirat" they have a concert in Skopje as part of their balkan tour dedicated to the new album.

The five members of the band are Bojan (lead vocal), Kris (guitar), Nace (bass guitar), Jure (drums) and Jan (guitar). Ahead of the exciting concert in Skopje, we spoke witlh Bojan and Kris about Souvenir Pop, the eventful year on tour and much more.

You started this year with a European tour, spent the summer playing festivals, released your third album, and you're now on a Balkan tour. What was the process like recording your album amidst all of that?

Bojan: It was a hard, but fulfilled year. I guess that Eurovision started it all, but in retrospect we didn't know that it would start a so-called "era" of an album for us. The real start was at the beginning of January, we spent 2 months in London and started the preparations for the album. We started writing most of the songs there, shaping them, and some of them were played on the tour before we finished them.

Kris: Some songs were made there, but a lot of them were finished later in a studio in Hamburg.

Bojan: For example, 'Lips', 'Mesto duhov' and 'Stephanie' got the finishing touches in Ljubljana.

Last year you mentioned that London inspires you which is why you chose to start making the album there. What was the experience like and how did it influence Souvenir Pop?

Kris: That was before we moved to London, in retrospect i can say that it wasn't what I expected, we went for a more nostalgic "Yugo era" atmosphere with our music than we expected to in London. I can't explain why it happened, maybe we were nostalgic for home. London was very inspiring because we met a lot of other amazing artists that inspired us.

Did the team that worked on this album change?

Bojan: We work with the same "sixth member" regarding to our music, and that is our producer Žare. Of course he worked on the album, he was in London and during the whole process with us. The main team stays the same.

Considering the different genres throughout the album, how did you ensure that all songs would fit into the concept of the album?

Bojan: Now that we can listen to it without working on it, I can understand that it sounds coherent and put-together, but while we were making it, it sounded like it was very all over the place, and when you look at the genres, that's true. But, now I can see that it has a coherent and structured sound, you can tell that the same people made it, going through the same things. Even though the stories are completely different and the sound of the songs are different, I feel that it's a piece that comes from a very stable core.

The song 'Šta bih ja' was announced as a single, but it's interesting that the fans were singing it before it was even published. Why do you think this became such a phenomenon among the fans?

Kris: I'm surprised from the postive reaction it got befre even coming out, of course we thought it was a good song, i'm still surprised. The March tour was exciting because we played new songs, and one of them was 'Šta bih ja' which is the most energetic song of the new ones, so I guess somehow it became the centre of attention. The audience connected with the song. Even now it's still one of the most exciting songs on the concerts. In the Ljubljana shows, both nights it was my favourite song to play, so we're definitely excited to play it in Skopje.

Bojan: When we played it for the first time in Helsinki, people couldn't sing it, but the audience just exploded. They had no idea what the lyrics meant, but as they say, it's just "cool".

Which of the new songs are your favourites for performing live?

Kris: For me, they would be 'Šta bih ja' or 'Мesto duhov', and 'Вluza'. 'Вluza' is also adored by the fans.

Bojan: For me, they are 'Ako toga više neće biti', 'Šta bih ja' and 'Еverybody’s Waiting'.

Which song took you the most time to work on?

Bojan: 'Šta bih ja', because we went in the studio after we already had performed it a couple of times live during the tour. It was like when you start off something with very high expectations and have a very clear picture for what you want to achieve. But, it is almost impossible to achieve those expectations.

Kris: That was the first song that we started working on in Hamburg and the last song that we finished.

Although 'Lips' was not released as a single, it became one of the more popular songs from Souvenir Pop, and at the same time it's the most different one compared to your previous songs. What was the creative process behind the creation of that song?

Bojan: It started off as a regular rock'n'roll song which should have been in English and French, but that didn't work out, so we abandoned the idea. After that, we came back to Ljubljana, Žare was playing rhythm, so I came up with one part of the lyrics and we kind of started to build up on that, I had to do the melody and lyrics. Nace was the essential missing piece of the puzzle, he took the ideas for the rhythm and vocals and he structured it all together. He organised the others to record the guitars and the synthesiser, but it included a lot of effort from everyone.

Bojan, considering the fact that you're the one writing the songs, how was the experience of working on songs in three different languages for this album?

Bojan: It's very different, but we're experienced with being away from home and with people who don't speak Slovene, so I spent a lot of time not only communicating, but also processing thoughts in English, Serbian and Slovene. It was quite interesting how many different thoughts and stories naturally came out of me in different languages, now I believe that I can be honest with myself in different ways and languages, which is quite cool because I have found a tool to even be more open with myself in music. I cannot wait to continue writing.

After Eurovision, you succeeded to maintain and even increase the number of listeners, which is not the case for many musicians who participate in the competition. Why do you think that you succeeded to keep the public interested?

Kris: None of us would be able to completely answer this question because even we are still surprised, but I think it was important that we productively seized the opportunities after Eurovision, our first concerts after Slovenia were in Dublin, which maybe wasn't even a few weeks after Eurovision. A lot of other artists need a break after that. which is understandable. The same summer we immediately went to Dublin and the United Kingdom, and then in September in the Scandinavian countries and the same process continues to this day. I think that played a big part of it, we didn't let anyone to forget about us, or at least anyone that was interested in our music. We also did something that perhaps is not very reccomended, but every week when we had free time, we were going in the studio and we were working on new music because we knew that at some point we would have to justify the success with new music, to keep the people interested. In my opinion, hard work is what led us to here.

Bojan: I think that it is very important that we had music even before we went on Eurovision, so we were not something that only existed in competitions, but we have fans at home, which is really important. Another thing is that, we are a band and people want to listen to bands live. As a band, we can perform anywhere regardless if it's a bar or a festival.

When did you determine that the album is finished and ready to be released?

Bojan: When it was released, that is literally when I stopped questioning myself whether it's done and ready.

Kris: It's a big help to have a deadline, otherwise you go in a stupid loophole of doubt. After that, all the changes you think should be made don't matter anymore and you won't even remember what you wanted to change. We are very pleased with the reactions, I think that people understand in which direction we were headed with Souvenir Pop.

Because you recently started the Balkan tour, do you recognise any difference in the enthusiasm of the audience here in comparison with the rest of Europe?

Bojan: The feeling is different whenever we arrive in some Balkan country, we always feel at home, but even warmer. We are always warmly welcomed either from the people who work for the organisers of the concerts or from the fans. The people here are really hospitable. We feel at home, and of course the food is always incredible.

Kris: That's why I'm excited for the concert in Skopje, from what we had seen last time it's a wonderful city, so that's the reason I want to go back. The audience was fantastic. There were big technical difficulties, but the audience was so fantastic, that we forgot about those technical problems

Tickets for tomorrow's gig are still available here.

#joker out #jokeroutsubs #bojan cvjetićanin #bojan cvjeticanin #jan peteh #nace jordan #kris guštin #kris gustin #jure macek #jure maček #source: meta.mk #year: 2024 #og language: macedonian #jo: all members #type: article

21 notes · View notes

furugiyakikkakeyaniku · 4 months ago

Text

昨日の〝漂プリ〟＆ハーフジップスウェットなど追加

漂プリ by Ａさん（画像左、カーハートロンＴにプリミタンクトップ重ね着）

漂プリ by Ｔ兄さん（画像右、高知より遥々、自転車で？）

漂プリ by Ｋ粒ちゃん（画像下、画像プリミＴご購入ありがとうございます）

なんだかんだと昨日も楽しませて頂きました♪♪

ご来場頂いた皆様ありがとうございました^ ^

本日は昼過ぎくらいに漂着DECOトムトムが在廊予定

漂着仮面の製作話や哲学や人生観など諸々気軽にお尋ね下さい

10月08日（火）〜13日（日）11時半〜22時　pepps on the table にて

「漂着仮面とプリミＴ展」

最終日はクロージングパーティーを予定しております

明日か当日かタイムテーブルもお知らせします

漂プリでレッツダンス☆

肉店舗もしっかり営業します❗️

ご来店お買い物ありがとうございます

本日も13時〜20時までの営業

体調が優れない方はご来店をお控えください

本日はハーフジップスウェットなど

追加しておりますので、ご紹介☆

PARIS SPORT

国内モノ

目をひく水色ボディに左胸ワンポイントロゴ刺繍＆ボーダー柄がナイスなハーフジップスウェット

ワイドめのカーゴパンツなど合わせても良いです

Ｌ表記、メンズＭ〜サイズくらい

是非♪♪

Hush Puppies

国内モノ

少し柔らかなオレンジカラーに白黒のボーダー柄が感じの良い犬ロゴワンポイントのハーフジップスウェット

やはりアメカジボトムに合わせて間違いないかと

メンズLLサイズ

是非♪♪

本日❗️

10月11日（金）21時オープン　音溶にて

「JODY BIGFOOT JAPAN TOUR 2024」

UKよりJODY BIGFOOT来松

同じくUKよりJODYのパートナーでDJのLIIL BITS＆ドイツからYUGO TAGUCHIのLIVE

脇を固めるローカルDJはDOC.KOYAMANTADOにNUPESI

マリオネットのOTOGIRAPPA

ドレッドエクステは赫緑屋と盛り沢山

ベースミュージック好きも楽しめると思います

お時間ご都合の合う方、是非♪♪

それでは本日も元気に営業致します

よろにくです^ ^

0 notes

melancholic-academia · 6 months ago

Text

yugo ki yatra

(Era's tour)

1 note · View note

underlying-purpose · 2 years ago

Text

So, AI Dungeon seems to have a lot of fun making Top 10 lists

So I decided to give it just "Top 10" as a prompt and let it run wild. This is what I got.

Top 10 Worst Cars Ever!

If there is one thing that we are going to do today it's to find out the worst cars ever made!

10. The Yugo If you have never heard of the Yugo, you're not alone. This car was made for the sole purpose of losing money for the Soviet Union. It was made to be sold for a few dollars to desperate people. The Yugo was not a great car. In fact, it was pretty bad. It had no air conditioning, no power windows, and it only had two seats. But it was built like a tank. It could take a lot of punishment. Still, the Yugo was a financial disaster. Only a little over 200,000 were made, and almost all of them were sold to desperately poor people. Today the Yugo is worth about $1,000. That means that each one costs a million dollars. To drive one now, you'd have to spend an awful lot of money to make it go away.

9. The AMC Hornet The AMC Hornet was made between 1966 and 1970. It was based on a car that already existed called the Plymouth Barracuda. The only real difference between the two cars was the Hornet had a V8 engine instead of a Barracuda's V4. The Hornet was not a good car. It had a horrible reputation for problems. It was known for being difficult and expensive to repair. It was also known for not starting in extremely cold weather. And it was not a popular car. It was made for the teenage market, but it was too expensive for most teenagers. It was only sold in North America. Today the Hornet is a rare car. A good one can go for about $50,000. That means you could buy a house with the money you spend on just one.

8. The Ford Pinto The Ford Pinto was one of the most popular cars of the 1970s. It was introduced in 1974, and by 1977 over 2.7 million had been sold. The Pinto was designed to be a fuel-efficient, stripped-down commuter car. It weighed about 3,000 pounds and got an incredible 33 mpg. It was also affordable, starting at $4,000. But the Pinto was not without its flaws. It was a bit small for its intended market, which included both men and women. And it had a reputation for being ill-handling and unreliable. The Pinto also featured a design flaw known as "knock-knocking." When the car was hit from the rear, it would knock the driver's door open, which could lead to serious injury. Today the Pinto is worth about $1,000. That means you could spend $2,000 to make it disappear.

7. The Yugo ZIS If you thought the Yugo was bad, the Yugo ZIS is 10 times worse. It was the last model of the Yugo before the company went bankrupt. The ZIS was introduced in 1989 and featured a Soviet-style aerodynamic look. It weighed about 4,000 pounds and got an unbelievable 0.29 mpg. It was also known for its poor build quality. The ZIS was not a popular car. Only about 10,000 were made before the company went under. Today the ZIS is worth about $1,500. You could spend $10,000 to make it go away.

6. The Yugo TR The TR stands for "Touring Range," which was the name of the company's small SUV at the time. The TR was the most popular Yugo variant. The TR was introduced in 1985 and sold only in North America. It featured a Soviet-style aerodynamic look. It was the most popular car in North America in the mid-1980s. In 1986, the TR became the best-selling car in North America. The Yugo TR was not a great car. It featured a poor powertrain, and it had a reputation for being loud and uncomfortable. Today the TR is worth about $2,000. You could spend $10,000 to make it disappear.

5. The Austin Maestro If you think the Yugo is bad, the Austin Maestro is 10 times worse. It's from the late 1970s, and it was made in Britain. The Maestro was designed to be a "sophisticated" European-style hatchback. The only problem is that it ended up looking more like a bloated Smart Car. The Maestro was also problematic. It featured a notoriously squeaky suspension. The Maestro was also produced in other countries besides Britain. It was sold in Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. Today the Maestro is worth about $1,000. You could spend $5,000 to make it go away.

4. The Opel Kadett The Opel Kadett was one of the first German cars to be sold in the United States. It was also one of the worst cars ever made. The Kadett was based on the Ford Consul, an American car. The Opel version was bigger and heavier than the Ford version, and it was also much less aerodynamic. The Kadett was also very expensive. It was only available in small numbers, and it was not sold in the United States. It was only sold in Germany and Austria. Today the Kadett is worth about $1,500. You could spend $7,000 to make it go away.

3. The Volkswagen Beetle The Volkswagen Beetle has been around since the 1930s. It has also been one of the most popular cars of all time. There have been eight distinct generations of the Beetle, and they have all featured the same basic design: a box-shaped car with a rounded roof. The original Volkswagen Beetle was made from 1931 to 1939. It featured an air-cooled engine, a four-stroke engine. In 1936, the Volkswagen Beetle became the first car to cross the Atlantic Ocean. The Beetle was not a great car. It suffered from having a small interior, a reputation for rust, and a lack of power. But it was the first car many people bought. Today the Beetle is worth about $1,500. You could spend $6,000 to make it go away.

2. The De Tomaso X2 The De Tomaso X2 is a car from the 1980s. It was made in Italy. The X2 was designed to be a sleek, European-style automobile. The problem was that it ended up looking more like a spaceship than a car. It featured a bubble-shaped windshield, which some people thought made the car look like it was floating above the road. The rear end also looked like it was inspired by the movie "Alien." The De Tomaso X2 also featured a problematic drivetrain. Despite these issues, the X2 did have a few fans. The car was sleek, and it featured a powerful engine. Today the X2 is worth about $2,000. You could spend $9,000 to make it go away.

1. The Toyota Sprinter The Toyota Sprinter is a van that is very popular in Europe. It is also one of the worst vans ever made. The Sprinter was first sold in 1981. It was sold in Europe, but not in the United States. It was never sold in Australia, either. The Sprinter was a boxy van with an awkward design. It featured a problematic drivetrain. It was also one of the most uncomfortable cars ever made. The Sprinter was also known for its poor build quality. It suffered from a high rate of accidents and a lack of power. The Sprinter was also known for its reputation for polluting. The van had a reputation for spewing a dark green, smog-causing substance out of its tailpipe. Today the Sprinter is worth about $4,000. You could spend $15,000 to make it go away.

You've made your choice.

You spend a lot of time and money making the Yugo disappear. The next morning, you find that the Yugo is gone.

#ai dungeon #top 10 #unreality #top 10 worst cars #“you can spend $(money) to make it go away” was my absolute favorite part of this.#it feels like such a tumblr saying “I hate this [media] ”you can spend $15000 to make it go away“

0 notes