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blackberry-gingham · 4 years ago

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okay so this is probably an extremely weird idea... but high school ah, right? readers a hockey player, paul's a figure skater- i'm a big fan of the beatles and hockey and thought of this so 😅 anyways, love your writings ❤️

SKSKSKALSL LMAOOO this is not a weird ask!! I'm a hockey fan too actually 😂✌🏻 In fact, this use to be a hockey/art blog before I it converted lol. And also, Paul would totally be a figure skater like... I can just see it so clearly lmao.

Oh but before I begin, ik you didn't specify reader's gender here and you guys know I do gender neutral reader when I can, but I feel like smashing some hockey related gender norms, so I hope it's cool with you all if I do a badass, hockey playing, female reader for this one 😌

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With a heave, you push open the big, double door to your school's practice ice, and a blast of crisp, winter scented air rushes over you. You are the only girl on your school's hockey team, and it feels like the odds are against you.

You're tough, a good shot, and fast, but you still feel like you have a lot to prove. The accuracy of that sentiment is highly debatable, but nonetheless, extra practice never hurts.

Today you've just brought your skates, stick, and a weighted vest for speed drills. It's long after school hours by now, but as a member of the team, you can swipe into the rink anytime you want. That being said, the last thing you were expecting was to find the ice occupied...

The sound of shredding ice snaps your attention to the rink, and there you see a lone boy on skates, tearing it up.

He looks about your age, and if he's in here then he must go to your school... So why don't you recognize him?

You set down your equipment and lace up your skates, pretending to be occupied while you stare.

His strides are long and measured, with a grace you haven't quite seen before. He's wearing a leotard in your school's colors, and the spandex only accents his long, delicate legs as he goes around and around, somewhere between gliding and flying as he goes through a routine of tricks and moves.

He jumps once through the air with impressive form and lands squarely in the center of the ice. You're already feeling quite impressed by the show he's given so far, and you rise to give some polite applause at this last move. But then, you're cut off as he draws up to his full height and launches himself into a spin, perfectly contained to one spot.

As his arms draw in, he goes faster and faster until he's nothing more then a rotating column. Slowly, he drops down to a one legged crouch, his lifted skate held out in front of him with both hands as he arches forward to reach. By now, you feel dizzy just looking at him, but when he springs up over a foot in the air, completing two more aerial spins before landing perfectly on a single skate...

Well, you’re blown away.

To celebrate, you congratulate him like any true hockey fan would. You pound on the glass as hard and as loud as you can, being sure to accompany it with whoops and cheers of admiration. However, the sound of all your ruckus must’ve taken him by surprise, as the figure skater whips around all too fast and slips into a nasty looking fall.

“Shit”, you mutter. Without a moment to lose, you rush down the ramp and onto the ice with your skates thankfully all ready to go. Showing your best hustle, you skate over just as the young man begins to stir. You come to a full stop, trying not to spray him in ice, and drop down to see if he’s alright.

He groans, and sits up slowly, rubbing at his hip, “I’m fine, thanks...”

The British accent takes you by surprise, but you put it aside for now, “Here, let me help you to the bench”. Without giving him much of a wait, you lift him up to his feet easily with fairly impressive strength and help him off the ice while he tires to hide a blush.

Once you’re both settled down, Paul finally takes a moment to get a good look at you. The first thing he notices is your skates. “So... You’re on the, uh hockey team?”

A jolt of excitement goes through you as you assume he is knowledgeable on the topic. Finally, a guy who gets you. You launch into a hyper jabber, telling him all sorts of secular, hockey related things like your name, your jersey number, your position, and the drills you’re here to practice.

Paul has no idea what you’re talking about. In fact, he hardly knows the name of the sport to be quite honest, considering it’s not at all popular back in England... But, you seem so excited, what with your sweet smile and the gleam in your eyes, he can’t bring himself to interrupt you.

“Anyway, sorry, I’m talking too much”, you laugh.

“No no, it’s alright! It’s nice to meet such a passionate person”, he smiles. “Oh, um I’m Paul by the way! I uh, just moved here with my family a few weeks ago”

Well you figured as much, but you’re excited to get to know him more. After all, he seems quite nice, and you admit, you are rather curious about him...

Paul tells you a bit about his background in Liverpool to start off, but he quickly cuts to his passion for figure skating and how he got started in that. He tells you all about the his competitions and medals and how he’s hoping to take his dreams to the pros here in the States.

You listen intently, clinging to every word. Of course you were curious at first, but who would’ve thought he’d be so amazing to boot? You had no idea you were practically talking to a superstar.

Paul humbly denies the title, but he can’t help but feel quite proud of himself under all your attention. To be honest, he was rather worried he’d have a hard time finding his place in an American school, making friends and all that... But imagine his surprise to be here, not even one week into his school career, being fawned over by the prettiest girl he’s ever seen.

When the conversation hits a bit of a slump, Paul starts up a new topic, “So, what kind of moves have you got out there? I’d imagine there’s quite a bit of fancy footwork that goes into your game... Maybe you could teach me a few things, eh?”, he smiles encouragingly and give a little chuckle as he bumps your shoulder.

You laugh nervously, “I think it’d be quite the opposite if anything... I’m pretty fast, but that’s about all I have going for me in terms of skating”, you look away and kick as a small pile of snow in front of you.

“Aw, well that’s an easy fix! Tell you what, how about I’ll show you some moves, and you can show me a bit about hockey afterwards!”, his hazel eyes beam at you, and you must admit, that would be a rather sweet deal...

You agree, and next thing you know, you’re both off onto the rink. Paul teaches you a little bit about spins, just some basic moves for maneuvering around others, and as well as helping you fine tune your backwards skating.

“Here, like this...”, he lets go of your hands and instead tries to approach this by holding you from behind. Paul takes a firm grip on your waist, his fingers long and delicate as they curl around you, “Now, just move your feet like I do...”

The rest of his instructions are drowned out by the pounding in your ears and you hope against hope that you can pass off the redness in your cheeks as the touch of the cold. But, without even realizing, Paul is leading you through a smooth back skate... And just as you do realize, he lets you go and the surprise throws you off balance.

You tread some ice and slip backwards. Paul catches you, but it doesn’t do much good as he ends up going down as well. You land right on top of him, the two of you left with the wind knocked out of you. Thankfully you come to your senses in a jiffy and you roll over to check on Paul, to find yourself mere inches away from his pretty face.

He blinks a few times and shakes his head out a little before focusing on you with a little pout, “Now that’s the second time you’ve knocked me off my feet today”. You’re about to apologize, when his sad little face cracks into a sly smirk, “I hope this doesn’t come to be a pattern...”, he winks at you.

You gasp and bat at his chest as you push yourself up, a severe blush and an incredulous laugh escaping you. Paul shoots up to sit, “Where are you going!”, he laughs.

“I think we’ve had enough practice for one day”, you turn around, trying but failing to suppress your laughter.

“Well hold on, how about some ice cream or something at least!”

Paul chases after you like a lost puppy, begging you for a little more time together today. You shake your head, but make some plans with him anyway. After all, who knows? You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take...

#the beatles #paul mccartney x reader #hockey!reader #the beatles x reader #beatles fic #highschool au

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exiled-hacker · 4 years ago

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A Purely Brutal Halloween

I know it’s not Halloween, but I found this in my WIP stuff, and I decided to share. If anything, I recall Joseph belonging to Bleachedpages and I don’t recall their other blog. They are Birdy on Discord, though! If anyone knows them and wants to show them!

I think this was one of the ones I was proud of but also nervous of. SO! Here goes. c:

Halloween was on its way, which meant the crisp fall colors, teeth-rotting candy, and the ever present pumpkin smashing that would ensue. For the BIO team, it meant heading home to loved ones, perhaps even taking any children trick-or-treating... if they had any, that is. For Artemis, it meant going home to feed his cats and pets, followed by visiting Joseph. Perhaps he'd bring him out pumpkin shopping... Maybe. Artemis stepped out of the base, feeling the cool morning air hit his face. The forest around them was full of bright leaves, all within the beautiful fire colors of fall. The crisp scent caused him to sigh in delight, deeming to pick up some apple cider for the Pure Spy. His boots moved toward his car, which he entered and drove into town. His eyes gazed upon the multitude of costumes, and he wondered just how much he could pursuade Joseph into wearing one. The man was so.. different from the Brutal, however. Yet, he wondered if Joseph would have some fun when he got there. His eyes planted on a store, well.. mega-mall. Deciding that was the best place to find some candy and costumes, he wandered inside. It'd been a while since he'd been here and sought out the bookstore first. There was plenty of new books, which he felt he had to add to his growing library. This was followed by hitting the arts store for book making materials, something he did in his spare time. But the biggest place he hit was a halloween store, seeking out something for both himself and Joseph. Something he felt both the spy would like and he would feel comfortable in. Eyeing the costumes, he came across several angel based ones; finally setting his eyes upon the mechanical wings, which spread at the push of a button. This would be perfect for the Pure spy! He pondered about for a moment, seeking out anything he'd enjoy. Seeing nothing, he decided that perhaps it'd be better if he hand made both costumes.

With the idea of the wings in mind, he hit up the craft store again and bought some real feathers. Next was the stop to the supermarket, which he bought his favorite chocolate, chose out steaks and potatoes for he and Joseph, followed by candles that changed colors as they melted. Blacks and oranges for Halloween! The candles would be the center piece in each window, castng the eerie glow upon the rooms. This was followed by a few more decorations and some cider for the two. Who needed wine when warm apple cider was to be had? Artemis then began his way home, seeking out a simple way to get there and arrive on time to surprise Joseph. He trusted the man now to give him a key to his home and have him feed his pets when on the job, yet Artemis felt he owed it to Joseph to atleast get him something! The home was empty, something the man was used to. He headed to his library, placed the books on the shelf, then moved outside to a barn along the pathway into the woods. It was there he set to work on the wings. He molded metal, fused wires, and added the feathers; studying his white raven's wings in order to gain some form of understanding on how to place each individual feather. The outside he painted gold, which the inside was given a varinish to shine in the sunlight, followed by a white glow for the night hours. Testing the wings, he felt satisfied with his work and glanced at the clock. It was near three A.M. And Artemis realized he'd forgotten about dinner and Joseph! Hurrying with the wings back to his home, he made his way inside. There, he was greeted by Joseph, who took in the grime coated man and the wings which he struggled to hide behind his back. “Hey, Joseph..” Artemis spoke with a shakey breath, “I.. er.. sorry, I was working a tad... too late.” “I see,” Joseph spoke calmly, “May I ask what the wings are for?” “Er..” He paused, “Oh! Just a project I'm working on! Don't worry about it. Just something silly..” It was partially a lie. It was indeed a project, but not silly. It was important to Artemis. Very important. Joseph's grey eyes settled upon the man. He knew he was lying, and watched as Artemis squirmed under the piercing gaze. Quickly, Artemis removed his black jacket and placed it over the wings as he finally revealed several scars upon his arms and neck. Many that looked like battle wounds. Recent and red as they healed. “Artemis..” Joseph spoke, his tone a bit stricter than Artemis was accustomed to. “Alright, Alright,” Artemis raised his hands and pulled the jacket off of the wings; hanging it by a peg in the doorway, “They're for.. a friend. Someone special in my life. I want to repay them.. and well..” He glanced at the finished project, “Truth be told, Joseph.. they're for you. For Halloween..” “Artemis..” Joseph was going to scold him when he heard the second part, “You... you really didn't have to..” He moved over to inspect the wings. It had such intricute detail when it came to the feathers, each placed in their proper place so that they looked like real wings. He even jumped back when they spread, the varnish doing it's job as it shined within the light. “I don't.. really celebrate Halloween,” Joseph spoke, voice soft, “But thank you.. Perhaps I will this year.” “I know people always have their kids dressed up as monsters and demons.. but.. I thought.. maybe you'd enjoy being something that.. well suited you.” “I am but a humble servent of the Almighty,” Joseph responded, “You know this, Artemis.” “I know, but.. I thought.. maybe.. I dunno.” He gave a small smile, “As I tell you when you say that.. 'Even servents have their rewards.'”

This was somehing that seemed to happen whenever they spoke with gifts. Joseph had gotten something for the Brutal as well. Holding out the package, he gave a small smile, “I thought you'd appreciate this.” The Brutal gingerly opened the paper, fearful he'd tear the beauty of such a simple brown paper. He then looked at the book in awe, fingers tracing over the cover. “I've wanted this since I was a boy..” He spoke softly, “T.S. Elliot... I could never find any of his works in the store.. never. I..” He gave a small smile, fingers running over the pristine edges as if they'd be destroyed within an instant. “Thanks, Mate,” He spoke, then moved to grab the candles. “Artemis,” Joseph began, “Are you going to court me again?” “Nah,” Artemis responded, “These are for the windows. For Halloween and all.” He then moved to make the very late dinner, handing a small bag of chocolate to Joseph. The chocolate was not the ones he had prior. In fact, they were shaped like bunnies, seashells, and other animals. Joseph eyed them, then took a bite. Such delicious belgian chocolate seeped through his tastebuds and he gave a small murmur of how good it was. Artemis chuckled, noting that the spy made dinner already. Eyebrow raised, he glanced at Joseph. He supposed he should thank him again, but instead gave a yawn. He didn't realize how tired he was. Any thoughts about decorating the house would have to wait. He needed to eat and sleep, so, with that thought in mind; he began to eat the prepared meal. Eventually, however, his eyes drooped and his head dropped into the mashed potatoes, coating them in their fluffy whiteness. Joseph watched for a moment, then gave a small chuckle. Quickly, he scolded himself and picked the man up. Far heavier and bigger than he, Joseph made it to Artemis' bedroom. He'd never seen the interior, but now he had.. Pictures of birds, people, and family covered the man's desk. On the walls hung his team, people he knew, and his boyhood. Joseph glanced at them, then decided to ask later. Grabbing a wet cloth, he cleaned Artemis' face and shook his head. Gingerly, he felt the gloved hand wrap around his suit, grey eyes filled with surprise as Artemis pulled him into bed, the sniper still snoring away as he did so. The Brutal pushed his face into Joseph and gave a small happy snort. “Brother,” He spoke in his sleep, “I love ya.. P-Papa..yer warm..” Joseph sighed, then pulled a blanket onto the sniper, followed by one around himself, letting his head hit the pillow. Friends often slept in the same bed, so Joseph felt there was no harm. And somewhere in him, he knew the Almighty had no problems with this sleep over at all. Slowly, the grey eyes shut and Joseph fell asleep; drifting off into the pleasant world of dreamland.

#My Writing #Artemis #Joseph #Bleachedpages #((Someone please tell me their new username. I don't think I have it!))

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homunculusrune · 4 years ago

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◆ / ☛ / ❥

◆ what is one secret your muse has?

Not so much a ‘secret’ kept in the conventional sense but definitely something he is loath to discuss even with his newfound ability to discuss with anyone- Prisoner is really not handling a lot about his situation as well as he pretends to be with his cheerfully flippant way of acting about things. This is someone who’s been consigned to the existence of a rat in a maze, the vast majority of people around him died horribly or are in a state of tortured undeath, he himself has died horribly about every way under the sun, and, as he’ll point out himself on some lore events, he doesn’t know what he is and none of the possible answers he’s given are good. He’s more or less an ongoing existential and practical crisis that has managed to roughly duct tape himself into a horribly functional machine that keeps rolling somehow.

Earnestly looking forwards to the point he has some kind of major breakdown in Spirale or otherwise gets his arm twisted into pursuing therapy. Because at this point Prisoner’s in such a state of not managing his own shit he doesn’t even realize the extent of shit he’s carrying.

☛ what is your muse’s biggest regret?

answered here!

❥ is your muse cool?

This is kind of a fun subject for debate, and my headcanonery will yield briefly to the nature of the playable experience of the game:

Dead Cells is basically a game where you are either an unstoppable god among men, or being curtailed brutally and unceremoniously (and often hilariously) for your hubris, with absolutely no middle ground. It is a very fast-paced game, a very rewarding game, and also a very punishing game; it balances you a lot on high risk, high reward.

So how this reflects on Prisoner’s personality as both the game and trailers drive it home, is that Prisoner tends to be highly competent- and this is simply a game that firmly believes that nobody is immune to indignity. There’s an achievement for beefing a downward smash attack straight into a spike pit; there’s an achievement for getting hit by an elevator, which is pretty hard to accidentally kill yourself with but not so hard the game devs decided to throw in elevator safety.

So Prisoner tends to either pull things off VERY well, in a way that is in fact cool and makes him look like a total badass, see: beating down a giant tentacled monster with a frying pan- or he gets distracted looking at a cave wall and beefs it down a ledge. He’s either really cool, or utterly uncool, and being cool is built usually off a figurative mountain of his own corpses. My blog title is actually the tagline of the game: “Kill, die, learn, repeat”- basically, proceed / succeed / forge triumphantly forwards until you’re humbled with no saving grace, learn what you did wrong, and come back for seconds.

While this definitely affords him no shortage of undignified moments, I will say that I think that the tenacity, willpower, and thoughtfulness this showcases is pretty cool.

He also has a goofy little dance:

#➳ Homunculus Lore | headcanons #headcanon freeforall meme #nurotoxin #death mention #gif

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ckret2 · 6 years ago

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Toxic Genes

SPOILERS for Detective Pikachu below!! Even the summary has spoilers, avert thine eyes.

Fandom: Pokémon, Detective Pikachu movie Characters: Harry Goodman, Mewtwo, and Detective Pikachu Words: 5000 Summary: Three weeks after regaining his body, Harry and Pikachu come home to find Mewtwo crouched under a furniture fort in a way that reminds Harry far too much of how Tim used to hide when he was a scared child. Harry crawls in to see what’s wrong. They talk about nature and nurture, about murder, about friendship, about guilt, about hugs—and make the first steps toward processing the nightmare they went through. Notes: Vaguely a sequel to “Medical Research”, which is available on my ao3 linked in my description or on my blog in the #my writing tag, and I’d link it here except if I included a link then tumblr would hide this post from search results. If you don’t want to read "Medical Research”, all you need to know is that pre-movie Harry asked Mewtwo to voluntarily come to PCL, because he’d been told that PCL was doing totally harmless medical research.

"What the...?"

Harry's gaze was first caught by the streetlight coming through his inexplicably broken window blinds; then by the shattered glass beneath the window; and then, as his gaze moved across the floor, by upturned books and papers, smashed mugs, a broken TV, and half his furniture—desk, upturned couch, coffee table, and a bookcase from his bedroom—piled haphazardly in one corner.

"Oh, god." Who? He'd investigated a couple of criminal organizations over the last few years, he'd helped a thug with a Geodude get arrested only a couple of days before he'd been Pikafied— "Tim? Tim!" Pikachu jumped off his shoulder and darted for the pile of furniture while Harry rushed to the door to Tim's room. The bed frame was overturned and dragged halfway to the door, the mattress was missing—

"He is not home."

Mewtwo's appearance always came with what felt like an atmospheric change inside Harry's head, like a low pressure front heralding a coming storm. Its voice was a rumble of thunder: booming, inescapable, everywhere. Harry could clearly feel Mewtwo's pressure on his mind now; had he been too distracted when he came in to notice it sooner? "Mewtwo? Where are..."

Pikachu squeaked to get Harry's attention. He turned back to the living room just in time to see Pikachu's crooked tail disappear under the furniture pile.

"You've gotta be kidding me," he muttered.

Harry knelt in front of his desk. (Hoo boy, his old knee injury did not like that; maybe Mewtwo really did change atmospheric pressure wherever it went.) He bent down, peering under the desk, deeper into the furniture pile—

And there, in the dark, was Mewtwo. Sheltered beneath a fort made of upturned furniture, the couch and bookcase propped precariously over its head, sitting in a nest made with Tim's mattress and the couch cushions, huddled with arms and legs crossed in a way disturbingly reminiscent of how Harry had seen it curled up while in containment at PCL.

"Uhh... hi?"

"Hello."

Harry tried to shuffle on all four under the desk. "What's—ow." His back had banged into the bottom of the desk. He dropped down to army crawl in instead. "What's up?" He stopped when his forearms bumped into Tim's mattress and looked up at Mewtwo.

Mewtwo looked down on Harry like an alien surveying an Earthling for the first time, with vast violet eyes that seemingly held all the vast space and potential of a distant star-birthing nebula. It was humbling and terrifying, the profoundly powerful mind that could be glimpsed through those eyes.

And with that unearthly mind shining through its massive eyes, Mewtwo gazed down upon Harry—and with a voice like the thunderous warning of an inexorably advancing storm, it spoke—

"I wanted company," it mumbled.

"Oh," Harry said. "Under—under my furniture?"

Mewtwo adverted its gaze, like any embarrassed human would. "I—wanted a cave," it said. "But not to be alone in one."

"Oh," Harry said again. "Got it."

Pikachu had already climbed into Mewtwo's lap and settled there, nuzzling its crossed arms.

"I apologize for the mess," Mewtwo said. "I did not intend..." It started to trailed off, leaving the thought unfinished; but before it could truly leave the thought behind, it finished, "... to turn your home upside-down." It hadn't needed to finish the thought. Maybe, Harry speculated, a telepathically-transmitted thought came all in a package, and you couldn't just... stop one in the middle? That made sense to Harry, at least.

"Ahhh, this place has looked worse," Harry said, although it wasn't really true. He'd had a hell of a time getting his files reorganized after he got his memories—and his body—back; but he hadn't needed to worry about straightening out pieces of furniture that were precariously propping each other upright. But he'd worry about that later. He wasn't about to scold the most powerful Pokémon on the planet for making a mess.

Especially since, Harry figured, right now, Mewtwo probably needed its "cave" more than Harry needed a neat apartment. Harry wasn't as good at reading Mewtwo's body language as Pokémon he was more familiar with, like Pikachu or Ludicolo. But from what little Mewtwo had said so far, and from what Harry could see in the dark of its eyes, curled shoulders, and drooping tail, Harry got the impression that it was tired. Tired, and more than a little shellshocked.

When Tim had been four or five, he'd gotten a cheap blue toy tent, kept up with plastic white rods, with a big swirly Polywag face on the side. They'd set it up in a corner of the dining room for him. He'd loved to play in the tent. But when he'd started school, or when a babysitter was coming over, the tent gained a new purpose: it was a hiding place, where more mornings than not he'd run to hide when his parents looked for him to get dressed for school, or when the doorbell rang indicating the babysitter's arrival.

The phase hadn't lasted long. He soon got to know the kids and had fun at school. He always remained suspicious and distrustful of his babysitters, but when his grandma had retired and taken over babysitting duties he'd happily latched on to her. He outgrew the tent.

But Harry still remembered when his little boy had used it—how he'd curled up under the tent, crying tears of anger and fear, terrified to be taken to a strange place or left with a strange person.

Mewtwo was calm, quiet, subdued—almost abashed at its own behavior—but Harry was reminded so much of Tim in his Poliwag tent.

So he said what he'd always said when he found Tim hiding: "Do you wanna hang out?"

Mewtwo hesitated. "Yes."

Climbing into Tim's child-sized tent had been hard enough, and that had been when Harry was fifteen years younger. The furniture cave was a little roomier, but the underside of his tilted bookcase was a lot less forgiving than a vinyl tent when he bonked his head on it. Mewtwo hovered a few inches to the side to give him more space, tilting its head under the slope of the upturned couch, and Harry eventually managed to squeeze into the space beside it, turn around, and sit. At this close range, he was uncomfortably aware of Mewtwo's scent, which was something between "urban alley overrun with wild Meowth" and "Machoke that missed a shower after a good work out." He tried to breathe shallow breaths and told himself he would get used to it. He'd gotten used to a Pikachu in the apartment. Granted, Pikachu wasn't nearly seven feet tall and taking up half the space in a poorly-ventilated furniture fort.

Now that he was properly situated, he moved on to the second question he'd asked whenever he'd been permitted to enter Tim's tent: "You wanna talk?"

Tim had usually shaken his head and hid his tearful face in his crossed arms. So he wasn't surprised when Mewtwo replied, "I do not know that there is anything for us to discuss."

It was wrong, of course.

They could talk about Howard Clifford's pending trial, and whether or not Mewtwo was willing to appear as a witness. It was rare for Pokémon to provide testimony in trials, but it did happen, more frequently when the Pokémon was a telepath that could directly speak for itself, or when the Pokémon didn't have a trainer or partner who was involved in the trial and so couldn't be suspected of having been coached in its answers by a human—both of which circumstances applied to Mewtwo. But Mewtwo might not want to go to the trial, where it would be the center of astronomical attention and possibly a target. Having suddenly burst out of the tabloid pages into the streets of Ryme City, already tourists, scientists, and collectors were flocking to the city with hopes of catching a glimpse—or more—of the hitherto-unproven Manmade Miracle, The World's Only Clone Of The Mythical Mew, The Most Powerful Pokémon In The World.

Or they could talk about where Mewtwo was going to go now. Did it want to go back to Kanto, where Harry had found it and persuaded it to come to PCL? If so, did it want to fly all the way back itself, or would it be willing to ride? Harry would be happy to pay for whatever means of transportation Mewtwo was happiest taking—hell, Harry would buy a used car and drive it all the way back to Kanto himself, it sounded like a great road trip anyway—if Mewtwo even suggested that it was nervous about traveling, visible and exposed, all by itself, all the way home. It would be a valid fear, now that it had made international news. Or did it not want to go to Kanto? Did it plan to hang around a while longer? Or maybe go traveling, see some other regions, perhaps find somewhere new to live?

Or they could talk about the phantom pains Harry still had. They'd improved steadily during his first few days back in his own body, but the recovery had hit a plateau, and he felt like he'd been basically the same for the past couple of weeks. Even though Mewtwo had restored his body in perfect health—even reducing a few (but not all) old aches and pains he'd picked up in the course of his detective work—at times he still faintly felt the burns, the injuries, the broken bones, that he'd had when he'd dissolved into Pikachu. Like a second body, ghostly, superimposed over his own, still carrying his fatal wounds. Would these psychic hurts fade over time? Or otherwise heal? Was there something Mewtwo could do about them? Not that Harry wasn't grateful beyond words for everything Mewtwo had already done to save him; but it was exhausting to keep waking up feeling fire on his back and broken glass under his cheek and hands, to realize that the fire was his comforter and the glass was his mattress.

Or they could talk about what plans Mewtwo had now to protect itself. Early on, after Mewtwo had come to PCL but before they scientists had discovered the treasures hiding in its genes and demoted it from "volunteer research participant/consulting geneticist" to "harvestable cache of R," it had mentioned—and downplayed—its concerns about the organized crime syndicate that had pursued it before discovering its new location. Surely that fear had been multiplied tenfold, now that every eye in the world was peeled for a sign of Mewtwo. Anybody who spotted it would know what it was; any information about its location would spread much faster and farther without being dismissed as a hoax or urban legend. Was it going to withdraw from civilization completely again, find another cave or a deep jungle to hide in? Harry had been approached by an agent of the International Police a few days after the whole incident, interviewed, given a card in case he thought of or found any information to share with her, and told he might be contacted again later for more details. He could pass on Anabel's contact info to Mewtwo. She'd said she had experience with incredibly powerful and nearly unknown Pokémon, and that where Mewtwo was concerned, her top priority, above all else, was to ensure that it was safe and not about to end up in another lab. Harry felt like they could trust her; and if Mewtwo really did fear some crime syndicate coming after it, it could find few better allies and defenders than the International Police.

Or they could talk about whatever internal turmoil had driven Mewtwo to break into Harry's apartment, to trash the place in its frantic efforts to make a safe "cave," and to huddle there all alone for however long it took Harry and Pikachu to get home.

But Mewtwo said there was nothing to discuss.

So Harry said, "Okay. We can just sit for a while. How's that?"

"Very well."

And so they sat. Harry doubted the silence would last long. It rarely had with Tim.

Pikachu had been looking back and forth between them as they spoke, but now that things were settled, he returned to nuzzling. In the dark under the furniture, Harry could see tiny sparks where he rubbed his cheeks against Mewtwo's arm; and then faint spectral psychic light rippling through Pikachu's fur. Was Mewtwo petting Pikachu telekinetically? Pikachu started making that faint, high pitched, whispery "piiiii~" he always made when Harry found just the right spot to scratch under his chin, so apparently so. Wow. That was a new one.

Mewtwo held out longer than five-year-old Tim ever had. But eventually, it said, as quietly as a fleeting reminder of a subconscious memory, "My genes are toxic."

It was so quiet that it took Harry a moment to recognize the absurd statement as a rumble of thunder rather than some strange flicker of his own brain. "What?"

"The R," Mewtwo said. "It was derived from one of my own genes. Did the doctor tell you what she named the gene?"

"The doctor" always meant "Dr. Ann Laurent." Harry found that Mewtwo had difficulty telepathically conveying human names if they weren't also words with definitions. It had called him "Hairy"—which sounded the same as "Harry," but he could feel the difference in the way Mewtwo thought the word—until he'd persuaded it to stick to "Good Man" or "detective" instead. "Ann" or "Laurent" were far beyond its communicative capabilities.

"No, she didn't say."

"The Berserk Gene," Mewtwo said morosely. "It makes Pokémon vastly more powerful, but—confuses them. It makes them lose their minds with fury."

Harry nodded. He knew all that, of course—far too well. He and Pikachu had seen R at work in the streets, and they'd tracked it back to the source. His stomach had filled with lead every time they'd uncovered another clue suggesting the drug came from PCL, where he'd thought he'd left Mewtwo to safely work on developing medicine. But if Mewtwo felt the need to re-explain all that, even though it knew Harry knew—

"And this gene is inside me. This gene, that makes Pokémon powerful, but dangerous. And I, the carrier of the gene, the most powerful Pokémon..." Mewtwo could have trailed off there; but it again went on anyway, shame and regret tinging its thoughts: "I have been very dangerous." During the car wreck, Harry's nose had been clogged and singed by hot ashes, and he'd felt them coat the back of his tongue; carried on Mewtwo's thoughts, he tasted ashes now, but he didn't think Mewtwo was remembering the wreck. "After everything—is that, then, my nature? Is that what is foundational to me? To what I am? Danger, and an inborn incapacity to control my own anger?"

"No!" Harry said immediately. "No, no, that can't be— Look, you saved my life, didn't you? And the whole city. All while not destroying PCL in a fit of fury, or—or snapping Howard's neck." Harry had called him "Howard" the whole time he'd been working for him, back when Howard had been claiming that his work at PCL with Mewtwo would be used to create medicine for Pokémon and humans based on Mew's genes; now, after everything, the name felt wrong coming out of Harry's mouth. It sounded too familiar.

Even now, Harry still wondered if Howard Clifford had been lying, if he'd always planned to use Mewtwo to forcibly fuse people and Pokémon together; or if at one point he really had been planning to make medicine, and only zealously seized upon his new plan when the lab accidentally stumbled upon R and started working out what it and Mewtwo's powers were capable of.

"There's a whole lot of people you have some really good reasons to be furious at—even me, I'm the one who got you into this mess—but you never lashed out. You didn't punish—you saved. That's your nature."

"No, that's my nurture," Mewtwo said. "My nature is—destruction. My first conscious act was a massacre." It flinched, tail twisting and thumping against the wall, and it jerked its head to look away from Harry again, as though it hadn't meant to spill that revelation out. Pikachu hopped back at the suddenness of Mewtwo's motion, landing on the mattress in front of its crossed ankles.

And Harry was suddenly aware, once again, of Mewtwo's scent, of the weight of a thunderstorm pressing down on his mind, of the way the tilting furniture seemed to trap them together, of how thickly Mewtwo's presence filled the air surrounding Harry.

Mewtwo had killed people.

Harry swallowed hard; and asked, with a twitchy crooked smile, like he was trying to make it a joke: "Well—well, did—they deserve it?"

Mewtwo still didn't look at him. That was answer enough. But still Mewtwo replied: "No."

Harry tried to process this. He tried to lean back a little, to get some space to think; his head thunked against the bookcase again. "Ow."

Mewtwo flinched again, then shifted, and the furniture shifted with it. "I shouldn't have intruded."

And once again Mewtwo wasn't a killer but a self-conscious child. "No, no wait, hold on—" Harry automatically reached out and grabbed its arm. Mewtwo went still, and so did the furniture. "Hey, you came here because you needed company, right? What kind of friend would I be if I turned you out just like that?" ... Were they friends?

"Are we friends?" Somehow, when Mewtwo asked the question, it came across like a Pokémon one fifth its height.

Which sealed the deal for Harry. "If we weren't, we are now. How's that sound?"

"Even though I've killed humans?"

"What's a couple of murders between friends?" Harry asked, unconvincingly. "Hey. I'm a detective. I've worked with the police more times than I can count. You're far from the first murderer I've met."

Although it was the most terrifying murderer he'd met. And honestly, he wasn't sure how he was going to get over that knowledge.

Mewtwo didn't leave, but it did shrink back from Harry's touch, pulling its arms and legs in closer to its body. Pikachu scooched closer to it, but didn't try to get on its lap again. Harry wondered if Mewtwo could feel his doubts.

"Okay—it's scary," he admitted. "You said you killed a bunch of people who didn't deserve it, that's scary. But you know what's scarier? The killers who say their victims did deserve it. That's—I don't know if it's possible for people or Pokémon to be 'dangerous' in their very nature. I honestly feel like it isn't possible, personally—no matter what genes you happen to have. But, if it is possible to have a dangerous nature—I think the only people with that nature are the ones who'd kill someone else, and then, looking back on it years later, say that they were asking for it. And that's not you. Right?"

Mewtwo lowered its gaze, thinking that over. Pikachu tentatively climbed back into its lap.

"Perhaps," it said grudgingly. Then straightened its back and snarled silently. "This is foolish. I decided years ago that I was not going to let who I was be dictated by how I was created—or what I was created to be. That what I am is determined by what I choose to do, and nothing else."

"Yeah!" Harry nodded encouragingly. "Exactly! That's the exact right attitude."

"But I had hoped that, for once, I could—find something in my nature to be proud of," Mewtwo said. There was an edge of desperation, of grief in its voice. "I wanted to—be something inherently good. The source of medicine. Not merely something inherently bad endlessly striving to try to become good. I thought I could be different. Even after they found the Berserk Gene, I thought—if I stayed long enough, if they kept looking, and found something else... they might find... it."

Mewtwo sounded unsure what "it" was supposed to be. Like it had no idea what, exactly, it had been hoping for.

"I don't know," it said. "I don't know. I wanted something good to come from me. Instead—I—permitted atrocities. Who knows how much R is still out there? Everything that has happened to Rhyme City is my fault."

Harry sat up straighter. (And, for the third time, bumped the sore spot on his head against the bookcase. Ow.) He'd had no idea Mewtwo blamed itself. He'd thought, if anything, Mewtwo would blame him.

(Harry elected not to explain that "Ryme City" didn't have an H, he knew it didn't make a difference to Mewtwo.)

"Hey," he said softly. "You didn't know. How could you have? You were trapped in there, remember? If you'd been able to get out of that tank, you would have."

"But I wasn't contained at the start," it said. "I had a choice. I could have chosen to leave at any time after they discovered what the Berserk Gene did. But I stayed, even while they were experimenting with what would become R, and I saw them losing interest in other avenues of research—because I thought I could make up for it. Until they sealed me up for good." Its tiny nostrils flared. (Harry found itself wondering whether Mewtwo could adequately breathe, seven-ish feet tall with those little holes. Was it getting enough oxygen?) "I'm not naïve around humans. I should have known better. I allowed myself to be deluded by hope." In Mewtwo's venomous mental voice, "hope" came out like a dirty four-letter word.

Harry didn't know what to say to that. It felt cruel to try to tell Mewtwo it shouldn't have worried so much about proving its DNA was "good" when its actions were what mattered, when Mewtwo itself had clearly already learned that lesson and was disgusted with itself for forgetting it; it felt disingenuous to try to reassure Mewtwo that it was indeed a good person regardless of what weird side effects one or two of its genes held when, suddenly, Harry himself wasn't entirely confident he thought Mewtwo was good after learning just a little bit more about its past; and so he said the only other thing left he could think of to say, the only thing that made sense and that he felt was true.

"I'm sorry," he said. "Everything they did to you, everything they made you feel about yourself—it's my fault. You never would have gone to PCL if I hadn't tracked you down and talked up all the great research they were doing. Whatever you blame yourself for—I don't blame you. I've never blamed you. The experiments they did on you, the R, the—the weird Poké-fusions—all of it, every bit, was my fault."

He paused.

"Okay, that's—that's not true, it's Howard Clifford's fault, and I can't wait to see his trial, but—that's not the point! I was the middle-man! I let you fool yourself into thinking that PCL was gonna do great things by playing around with your genetics, because—because I thought they were, too. I fooled myself. I—I really, really wanted to be doing something good."

He'd wanted, so much, to think he was doing something right with his life. He hadn't been able to somehow miraculously save his wife from a slow, declining death. He hadn't been there for his son when he'd needed a dad—not when he was grieving, not when he was struggling through puberty, not when he was trying to figure out how to be an adult. Even as a detective, he felt like half of his jobs were jealous spouses asking him to follow around their partners and see what secrets they were keeping—that wasn't fighting crime or helping people, it was just paid stalking.

And then Howard Clifford had asked him if he wanted to do something revolutionary for both human- and Pokémon-kind.

And Harry had gone and proudly asked Mewtwo the same question.

"You know—murdering aside," Harry said, "from what I've seen, I think, overall, you've been a much better person than me."

Mewtwo tilted its head, considering that.

"If you consider yourself responsible for everything I did because you brought me to PCL," it said, "then you must also consider yourself responsible for everything I did because you rescued me. I could not have saved myself, much less Rhyme City, if not for you."

"Well," he said grudgingly. "When you put it that way." Now he was the one avoiding eye contact. He could feel Mewtwo's gaze on the side of his head.

"You find that difficult to accept."

"Well, I mean—I guess."

"Feeling guilt is easier than feeling anything else. If multiple emotions are in competition, guilt wins." Mewtwo spoke with the authority of someone who had decades of experience and careful study to draw upon. "Is that true for humans, too?"

A lump formed in Harry's throat.

Howard Clifford had said Mewtwo had been made about twenty years ago—it might be younger than Tim, even if only by a few months.

Harry thought again to Tim crying in a tent by himself because he was scared to go to school, and tried to imagine someone younger than that being a murderer.

Surely, Mewtwo hadn't been responsible. How could it have been? It might have been its fault, but that didn't mean it was responsible.

Harry said, "Do you do hugs?"

"What?"

"Is that—is that a thing that Mewtwo do? Or that Mew do? I don't know where that behavioral instinct would come from. You, do you do hugs?"

"I—don't know," Mewtwo said. "Nobody has ever tried to hug me before."

"Oh, that's heartbreaking."

"I have been cuddled," Mewtwo offered. And dropped its gaze demonstratively to Pikachu, who was still snuggled up in its lap.

"Yeah? Cuddles are good, then?"

"I suppose."

"Great, then we're trying out hugs. C'mere. If anyone needs a hug, you do." He scooted over, looked Mewtwo up and down, tried to figure out the least awkward way to manage this—after a pause, Mewtwo helpfully leaned a few inches away from the couch—and at last, he slid one arm around Mewtwo's upper back, and another just below its crossed arms, so he wouldn't pin its arms in place. He'd pet a hairless Delcatty once. The texture wasn't quite the same, but it was close. "There. Good?"

For a moment, Mewtwo tensed; and then after another moment, it started to relax. It didn't uncross its arms, but Harry did feel a very light telepathic pressure around his torso, which he figured was probably about the same as getting hugged back. It was honestly a little disconcerting, but not bad for a first effort. "Thank you."

"Listen," Harry said. "You've had an incredibly rough time lately. And—throughout life in general, from what little I know about your whole mysterious history, but—especially lately. And I get that you're an independent Pokémon, you don't wanna be tied down by a trainer, that's fine, but—just because you're a loner doesn't mean you have to be alone, you know? You've got friends here—me, and Pikachu—"

"Piiika!"

"—and Tim too, I know he's grateful for all you've done to help us. If you ever need something—company, a safe haven, anything—you're always welcome to do just what you did tonight, and come right back here. I'll leave a window unlatched for you, okay?"

"You would let me take refuge here?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?"

Mewtwo looked at Harry, then at Pikachu, then at Harry again; then finally looked away, and repeated, "Thank you." The words hung heavy with a multitude of conflicted emotions. Harry hazarded a guess that this was what Mewtwo being choked up sounded like.

"Any time."

After a moment, Mewtwo said, "I should tell you—because of the Berserk Gene, I am literally toxic."

"Yeah. That's the first thing you mentioned. It's all right. It doesn't define you. And hey, maybe it isn't even active in you? I mean, I've got the genes for my dad's blue eyes, but they don't show up in—"

"No. I mean I am toxic. At the lab they found a pheromone in my perspiration caused by the Berserk Gene. I sweat diluted R."

Harry jerked his arms off Mewtwo. After a moment, he scooped up Pikachu too. Pikachu squealed in surprise. "Thanks for the head's up."

"I should have mentioned it sooner."

"We'll do hugs with blankets next time, okay?" He wagged a finger at Pikachu. "And you're getting a bath." Pikachu whined.

He could see Mewtwo curling in on itself again. "Hey, c'mon. Don't be like that." He figured if he was mildly infected, it wasn't going to get any worse if he put a reassuring hand on Mewtwo's shoulder. "Vaguely poisonous sweat isn't a death sentence. It's—sure, it's a challenge, but—" Everything about Mewtwo's life seemed like a challenge. Who did it torque off in a past life to end up with such a bad hand in this one? "But now you know about it, and you can adjust. Right? And you've still got friends here."

Mewtwo didn't reply, apparently sunken into its own thoughts again. It was a melancholy thing, wasn't it?

Well. It had a lot to process. Harry didn't blame it if it had to spend a lot of time just trying to think things through.

They all had a lot to process. Mewtwo, Harry, Tim, Pikachu—the whole city... They'd hardly even started.

Harry was exhausted.

Mewtwo looked exhausted.

"Stay the night," he said. "You can sleep in here. And you should have something to eat. I have poffins, got any flavor preferences?"

"Grepa and occa berries make me sick."

"I'll check the ingredients." He set Pikachu down to let him exit first, and then awkwardly crawled out after him.

As he walked to the kitchen, he pulled out his phone to text Tim a warning about the state of the apartment. Tim could sleep on Harry's bed. Harry was used to roughing it.

He wondered if there was a place nearby where he could buy a small tent to set up indoors.

Comments/reblogs are welcome! If you want to leave a tip or like the fic on AO3, the links are in my description!

#detective pikachu #mewtwo #harry goodman #pikachu #pokemon #fanfic #my writing #spoilers

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razieltwelve · 5 years ago

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Petty (Final Rose)

The problem with arguing with someone who could control ice and make physics go cry in a corner was dealing with how amazingly petty they could be.

“What is this?” Averia growled. “It’s bad enough that you want me to sleep on the couch, but how am I supposed to sleep on it if you turned into an ice cube?”

Elsa huffed. “That is not my problem.” She smirked. “Oh, and here’s your pillow.”

Averia ducked as her frozen pillow sailed through the air. “Now, that’s just petty.”

“You want to see petty?” Elsa snarled. “I’ll show you petty.”

Averia’s frozen blanket spun through the air like a giant discus before smashing to pieces against the far wall.

“That’s petty.”

In Averia’s head, Saviour decided to make its presence known.

[You just got back from a month-long mission, and you decided to spend your first evening back doing paperwork. She greeted you in something that was basically designed to be ripped off. And you’re surprised she’s mad? Idiot.]

Averia fought the urge to strangle her Semblance. Not only was it physically impossible but Saviour was also right. In her defence, Averia had been dreading the massive backlog of paperwork. Her plan had been to quickly finish it off, so she could spend the next few days focusing on Elsa. However, her attempts to explain that had gone less than well. Apparently saying something along the lines of, “Not now, I’ve got paperwork” was an awful idea. Who could have known?

[Changing designation from SelfAveria to SelfIdiot.]

“Oh, shut up,” Averia muttered to her Semblance.

“What was that?” Elsa hissed. “Did you just tell me to shut up?”

Averia’s eyes widened. “No. That’s not what I said. I mean… it wasn’t aimed at you.”

“Then who was it aimed at?” Elsa’s eyes narrowed. “Are you talking to your Semblance? Are you asking Saviour for a way out of this?” She stomped forward, eyes blazing, and the temperature dropping with each step she took. “You are not getting out of this, Averia!” She stopped right in front of the other woman and glared. “Well, what’s Saviour saying now, Averia? Hmm? Not going to say anything? Of course not because there is no way you’re getting out of this.”

[Solution identified! Commence operation SexUpTheQueen!]

X X X

Later, much later, Elsa sat up and tried her best to glare.

“You know,” Elsa said. “You won’t always be able to kiss your way back into my good books.”

“I did a lot more than kiss you,” Averia pointed out.

Elsa responded by trying to hit her with the frozen pillow.

“Really? You’re going to try to bash my head in with a block of ice after what just happened?” Averia raised one eyebrow. “Really?”

“Oh, as if a block of ice that little would even do anything,” Elsa retorted. “And I knew you’d dodge.”

“That’s not the point. I’m beginning to worry you’ve got violent tendencies.”

“It’s too late to back out now. You’re stuck with me.”

“I guess I am.” Averia sighed. “But you do realise that someone has to do that paperwork. It’s either going to be you or me…” She paused. “Anna is technically your representative when you’re on holiday, right?”

Elsa nodded. “Yes, Eira is the crown princess, but she’s only seven years old. As the only other member of the royal family who is an adult, Anna is in charge of the kingdom whenever I’m on holiday.”

“Then make her do it,” Averia said.

“Are you suggesting that I make my beloved younger sister do mountains of paperwork, so I can spend the next few days alone with my wife?”

Averia nodded. “Yep.”

X X X

“We should overthrow my sister,” Anna growled. “She’s clearly become a tyrant.”

Claire laughed. “Is that because she dumped all of Averia’s paperwork on you, so the two of them could take a weekend off?”

“Yes.” Anna glared viciously at the aforementioned paperwork. “She’s gone mad with power, Claire. She has to be stopped. Maybe you could explode her.”

Claire put one arm around Anna. “Anna, are you forgetting the time Elsa did all of your paperwork, so we could get a few days off after I was gone on a long mission? You’re just repaying the favour.”

“If only Eira were older…” Anna rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Do you think we could teach her how to do paperwork?”

“Anna, she’s seven years old.”

“It’s never too early to start learning.”

“No. We are not dragging our seven-year-old niece into doing paperwork. She’ll have enough of it do deal with when she gets older.”

“What about our kids then?” Anna made a face. “They’ve been complaining about their vegetables. We can make it a punishment - eat vegetables or do paperwork.”

“I’m pretty sure they’ll just choose the vegetables, which won’t solve your problem at all.”

“Then why don’t you help me?” Anna cried.

“Alas,” Claire said with a dramatic sigh. “I am not qualified. Apart from members of the royal family only the queen’s consort is qualified. I am but a humble commoner.”

“Humble commoner? You’re basically huntress royalty, and you're married to a princess.”

“That still doesn’t mean I can do the paperwork for you.” Claire chuckled. “But I suppose I could help you, out of the goodness of my heart, although you’d still have to be the one to sign off on the formal parts.”

“Well, your help would be greatly appreciated, and I assure you it will be properly rewarded.”

“Oh?”

“For assisting me in this most onerous endeavour, I will bestow upon you a royal snogging.”

“…” Claire burst out laughing. “A royal snogging? You really need to phrase that better.”

Anna gave Claire her best bedroom eyes. “What about a royal ravishing?”

“Just stop.” Claire grinned. “I’ll help you, just as long as you stop.”

“A royal romp? A noble bonking?”

“If you don’t stop I won’t help.”

X X X

Author’s Notes

Ah, nothing like some good, old relationship dynamics. Funnily enough, it’s Elsa who has the shortest temper despite controlling ice. Averia has had to deal with Diana all her life, so she doesn’t lose her cool very often. Claire, of course, is very laid-back, and Anna is pretty easy going too.

You can find my fanfiction on fanfiction.net, AO3, and my original fiction on Amazon. You can also find my thoughts on writing, education, and other subjects at my blog.

#final rose #fanfiction #averia yun-farron #elsa #pink ice #anna #claire villiers #royal archer

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sharky857 · 6 years ago

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Is it possible to feel emotional over one's own post?

I'm referring to this post here: http://sharky857.tumblr.com/post/180595431362

Or better, to how many notes it gained in the span of a few hours.

As I'm typing this, it has a staggering count of 1.144 notes: 489 like and 653 reblogs (plus a few replies here and there)

And I do mean staggering. I've always been running a messy and overall trash blog solely to post and reblog about whatever stuff I may like, with the occasional signal boost concerning what I consider as the most important topics (while always being also careful not to be like some kind of spammer, although some hyperfixation moments can cause me to reblog several posts in a row about any new interest *cough* see "League of Legends KDA *cough*).

As owner of this "messy & trash blog", I never expect to see any of my own posts taking off THAT much. Most of the times I have 0 to 4-5 notes, 99% of them as simple "likes", sometimes notes might grew close to 10-20, and in the rarest occurrences they shoot past 1k.

So far, the latter situation happened only once, as far as I remember, and even so it still took some days/weeks to get there. It wasn't a signal boost post, just some gifset from a quite old anime I put up together in the spur of the moment.

Last night, I saw some posts about Article 13 popping up a lot on my dashboard.

I've always been seeing those posts in the past days/weeks, and I even left my humble contribution in form of "signal boost" reblogs.

It was during one of those reblogs that I remembered that, when the first plenary vote happened, the site "saveyourinternet.eu" also had three different options for EU citizens to contact the MEPs of one's own native Country.

Tweets and emails were basically as simple as "click here and here, add this and that small info and then click send", while the 3rd option (the most dreaded, for some as socially anxious as yours truly) was about phoning those same MEPs.

But then, during the time of the 2nd vote, those options were gone from that site.

Now Article 13 (and 11 too) is entering what's supposed to be the 3rd and final vote, and that same site still displays no sign of "contact your MEPs" option anywhere, which kiiiinda ticks me off, to be fairly honest. I know there are petitions on “charge.org” (I even linked them in the post mentioned at the beginning), but poking the MEPs with concerned messages sounds like a more direct way to get their attention and (possibly) reconsider their vote.

So I started to search for alternative sites that could offer a similar option, and one of them was what my friendo @d-structive also linked in one of the reblogs.

Alas, that site turned out to be only for UK citizens to contact their UK-only MEPs, while my Google search for another alternative led to basically nowhere. Then @d-structive dropped by my Tumblr chat and left THE LINK.

Being a curious Sharky, I clicked THAT LINK.

After a very short browsing, I saw THE OPTION and I thought: "Ok. This... This is big."

I rushed back to Tumblr and started to make my own signal boost post. While I was at it, something hit me: while choosing my Country from the drop-down menu, I saw too many listed to be only EU zone ones.

So I went back to that site and tried to enter "united". I originally intended to fully type "united states", but I had only the time to write "unit-" before that site showed me "united states" and "united arab emirates".

That had been when I thought back at what I mused only a few minutes earlier. That finding wasn't a big deal. That finding was a FREAKIN' HUGE DEAL!

So I went back to Tumblr and fixed the still in-progress post, while sharing this “discovery” also with my friend.

By the time she replied and said “maybe we should tell the others too”, I had already double and triple checked my own draft for typos and smashed “post".

As I said at the beginning, my blog is a messy trash that barely gets any attention, except for the same, few followers and friends liking & reblogging.

But I miscalculated the power of a single reblog from @d-structive.

That adorable "stinky fish" is within the "JSE fandom" and, according to what she told me, this fandom is made of really nice artists and fans, who've been all worrying A LOT about this whole "Article 13" ordeal.

The moment they spotted a way for non-EU folks to finally send a message to our MEPs, they didn't hesitate and immediately slammed both "like & reblog", because "HOLY SH*T GUYS LOOK!" reasons.

Amongst that flood of notes, I also saw some of my own followers and friends reblogging that same post, for the records.

And to be honest, seeing how this post is still spreading throughout Tumblr like the wildest of fires as I'm writing this, has been warming my cold, cynical heart.

#sharky's random thought #Tumblr may be a hellsite but I'm SO SO SO glad that there are amazing human beings <3

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emmaruthrundlesh · 6 years ago

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Emma Ruth Rundle Interview // Rock’n’Roll Journalist

(via Rock’n’Roll Journalist) “Dark” singer-songwriter is a term which deserves an official registration based on the modern wave of talented female artists. Next to Chelsea Wolfe, there is also Emma Ruth Rundle rapidly building her space on the market. Her captivating voice and an amazing taste for cold melodies are more than addictive. If you look at her list of favorite albums, the magic of her sound suddenly makes more sense. In addition we also spoke about her gear, challenges on a tour and beauties of Prague, which is also on her current European tour schedule on 18th of October.

Would like to give some introduction to your list?

This is not so much a list of my favorite albums of all time. Much of these are rather pieces I return to over and over as they are especially significant for me.

40 Watt Sun – The Inside Room (2011)

One of my all time favorite albums, English 3 piece, 40 Watt Sun, combine a slower, heavy guitar driven washes over which Patrick Walker literally pours his heart out. HIs lyrics and voice are incredibly eloquent and beautiful. The songs are, at times, in the 8 plus minute category so there is plenty of time to be reeled into their world and taken through Walker’s emotional landscapes. One of my biggest influences in the last few years.

Kate Bush – The Sensual World (1989)

A longstanding favorite and go to listen for me. Kate Bush has a few phases and different sounding albums but there is always her at the core. I think The Sensual World has become the diamond album in her discography, for me, because of the song Love and the Anger. It’s one of the catchiest and uplifting songs I’ve ever heard. Just watch the video and see Kate dancing at the end…How can you not fall in love? Also some really tasteful world influence and killer guitar by David Gilmour on Rocket’s Tale. Love it all the way through.

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Smashing Pumpkins – Siamese Dream (1993)

It’s very frustrating to wake up and look at the internet these days only to be greeted by any number of people and music blogs STILL making fun of Billy Corgan – not going to lie, it bums me out and makes me feel sad for a world of critics who can’t take it the simple fact that Billy has recorded THE BEST guitar tone of all time and he did so on Siamese Dream. The songwriting is brilliant and this is really an album that takes you to a place, especially by the time you reach Silverfuck. Sure, I jump over the hits – I don’t need to hear Today every time I want to enjoy this masterpiece but if you’re somehow not familiar take the whole trip and revel in what I think is some of the most important guitar playing of the 90’s.

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James Blake – Self Titled (2011)

A groundbreaking beauty of an album. James Blake managed to write and produce this minimal pop R and B (with strong classical influences) that won him the Mercury Prize. There is nothing but pure perfection and genius on this record. Even the cover art is elegant and humble in a way. I guess there is some sense of humility in Blake’s writing that takes me in even further and I become invested in all his repetitive and disintegrated lines, waiting for them to break or modulate in any number of ways as they do on this album.

Cloakroom – Time Well (2018)

I came to know Cloakroom just by association. They had done a lot of touring with label mates Russian Circles as well as some other folks I know. I sort of disregarded this band for a time – not sure why – but when Time Well came out on Relapse earlier this year, I was completely head over heals in love with these Midwestern boys. The guitar playing and textures as well as the cleverly timed riffs (for lack of a better word, this band isn’t metal at all but heavy in a deferent way) and the bonus of Doyle’s of introspective vocal has won them a very special place in my heart and headphones.

Brian Eno – Thursday Afternoon (1985)

In his 11th studio album, Eno has fully mastered the very new world he himself pioneered and invented: Ambient music. Thursday Afternoon is just one long daydream of a song with nothing but the babbling of the synthesized (or whatever he’s employed on this) brook. Nothing “happens” on this album. There is no break or moment of great change or rhythm even… it’s just the most relaxing music on Earth which is why I find my way back to it so often. Pure peace streamed right from the source of new sound.

I’m not an ethnomusicologist

Tori Amos – Boys for Pele (1996)

Tori Amos peaked, for me, on this 18 track album. It was her first time self producing as well and there is something so fierce and desperate in her lyrics and voice. While generally regarded as a singer songwriter, which I think conjures up a picture of a subdued character sitting in a coffee shop somewhere, Tori is really more of a badass and this album rocks it ways though piano and harpsichord driven tunes. I love everything about how the record was recorded and sounds as well. Even the music videos that came from this album are great. If you don’t know, you should.

Earth – Hex; Or Printing the Infernal Method (2005)

I am not sure when I first became aware of the legendary instrumental band Earth but I am sure it was later on in life than for some other more tuned in people. Hex is an album that I listened to a lot while on tour and desperately in need of refuge from the chaos of being trapped with so many other people traveling across the globe. Hex is like a soundtrack and works incredibly well for someone who’s trapped staring out a window, avoiding conversations for most of the day. If there was ever a time to describe something as dusty sounding, this is it. Having really loved the Neil Young soundtrack to Dead Man – Hex felt like a sister album to me or in that world. It has a special ability to take you into a barren landscape and push out all your youngness which is so needed!

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The Body – No One Deserves Happiness (2016)

This record came into my life at a time of physiologically shattering life change and a very hot summer in LA. Most would describe The Body and an “experimental” or harsh noise (at times) project. No One Deserves Happiness introduces female forward singing over the backdrop of the bands soul reaping sounds. Chip’s hollow screams have manifested a truly horrific creature in my mind. There is a blend of classical reverence and choral singing within The Body’s noise land and it turns on a part of my brain while listening. I feel comforted by this album somehow.

Stars Of The Lid – And Their Refinement Of The Decline (2007)

Another instrumental masterpiece – SOTL also have classical inclinations or leanings or is this contemporary classical music? I’m not an ethnomusicologist. Washes of treated instruments grip your xanaxed out sandbag body and drag you slowly and mournfully in waves under a pink ocean of wonder and obliteration of the self. I have fallen asleep in my most anxiety ridden times to this album as it swallows you like no other can.

In the heart of Europe

In late October you will be coming to Prague to very intimate club called 007. Did you ever have a chance to properly walk around Prague?

I never played a solo show in Prague, but I performed here with my previous bands already. Every time I made sure, me and my band mates have enough time to check the city. It was amazing every time and I just can’t wait to come again. I visited Prague the last time in 2010 and our tour manager was Tomáš Zakopal, who was local, so he prepared a beautiful commented tour for us.

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Could you please present to us your collection of guitars? From the most recent live footages I see you are a big fan of Fender guitars and especially a model called Coronado II.

This piece actually belongs to Evan Patterson, who plays guitar in my band as well in my support band Jaye Jayle. Guitar #1 in my collection is a classic mahogany piece from Cordoba. There is also one from Chinese brand Blueridge, inspired by OM model OM from Martin…(I’m sorry, I am little bit sick)… Within electric guitars my most favorite is standard Gibson SG. It was quite cheap second hand acquisition in one music store. Another piece is Fender Baritone Jaguar special HH. Then there is Fender Stratocaster. I can’t remember the exact model, but it’s quite unique as it has two humbuckers. Next to that I also have one white model from Guild. Longer I play I realize it is very important for me to have two humbuckers within electric guitars. And finally there is one really crappy SG, which I would really like to get rid of, as it is badly made. (Laugh)

Some preferences within microphones?

I use BLUE enCORE 200 the most. Probably as it was a gift. I like its sound, as it can work very well with mids and highs. Another reason is very practical. I realized I get sick more often if I use in-house microphones. If I use my own microphone, I have bigger chances to stay well.

Life on a tour

I am sorry, you don’t feel well. Do you think it’s also because of air conditioners during this years’ crazy summer season?

Not sure to be honest. I was just getting back from a European tour and I must have caught something on a plain.

Longer I play I realize it is very important for me to have two humbuckers within electric guitars

How are you trying to stay in a good shape on a tour? There is a European tour coming up during fall and that’s quite challenging season for immunity.

One can just do maximum and hope. If I can, I try to stay warm and eat plenty of hot meals. I try to rest, as much as I can and get plenty of sleep. But it’s not always that easy, where there is so much drinking and everything else which belongs to a tour life. It is practically a miracle if you survive a tour without any harm.

Is there some European location, which you really look forward to visit during upcoming European tour? It doesn’t necessarily have to be Prague…

It’s funny, as everybody in the team looks forward for the Prague the most. Evan is practically obsessed with Prague and I just can’t wait to meet friends, which I haven’t seen for years. I am also looking forward to see Porto, Lisbon and also Madrid, as I’ve never been to Spain. In general I love to visit well known places as well as completely new locations.

#Emma Ruth Rundle

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fake-guns-blazing · 5 months ago

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what i watch instead of doing something productive or sleeping when it’s bedtime

#sebastian bach #rachel bolan #skid row #a smash hit on my humble blog

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curledlife · 7 years ago

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bigger kpop tag!

I was tagged by the amazing @sunshine-myg for this kpop tag!! Thank you so much and sorry it’s so damn late hha

1.) 5 favorite groups?

bts, ikon, winner, idle, vixx

2.) Top 5 on your bias list?

taehyung, junhoe/jinhwan, mino, yuqi, and hongbin <3 (we count junhoe and jinhwan into one k)

3.) Ult Bias group and why you love them?

I don’t really have one tbh...plus I don’t know what ult bias group means..forgive me ;-;

4.) Ult Bias and why you love them?

...AS WE ALL KNOW, IT’S KIM TAEHYUNG AKA GUCCI KING. The first time I really saw him shine was on the Not Today live stage and I was attracted by his gaze and his charisma. He really has this era around him that is silly and yet serious at the same time. I love how cutely he stumbles over his words sometimes and that he puts so much effort into learning something new whether it be a new language or a new hobby. He’s such a family man that it enlarges my heart 10 fold. He was my first bias and became my ult bias for many reasons. His boxy smile could recharge my day as well as his encouraging words to ARMY. His voice when he sings, it's more like chocolate intertwined with honey. He can hit such low notes but he can also hit high asf notes..listen to stigma. I love someone who is very versatile with their settings and how his eyes shine just by talking about art, music, or anything that sparks his interest. I love the silly side of him because that’s the side that will cheer you up no matter what. Thank you taehyung for being you <3 (I have to stop cause if I don’t..this will be an essay)

5.) Favorite Kpop Meme

MY TWO FOREVER MOODS LMAO

6.) Favorite pic of your ult? (I dare you to only pick one)

7.) 5 Favorite Kpop MVs

Spring Day (BTS), Voodoo Doll (VIXX), Fool (Winner), Love Scenario (iKON), The Real (N.Flying)

8.) 10 Favorite Kpop songs?

Hold Me Tight (BTS), Don’t (Loco & Hwasa), Just Do It (Gray Ft. Loco), Lady (EXID), Fake Love (BTS), Fool (Winner), Wings (KREAM), Golden (Hoody), Bittersweet (Crush), All Day (DinDin)

9.) Favorite Kpop crack video?

I don’t watch many crack videos anymore but here is a video I watched a lot when I was obsessed with BTS ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aFe5y_OXgo )

10.) Favorite content creator within the fandom?

i get blogs mixed up all the time so I’m not too sure

11.) What fandoms would you say you’re an active member of?

Army (that is really about to change...army is wildin this year and not in a good way), ikonic, inner circle

12.) Take your top 3 biases- fmk

F - Mino

Marry - Taehyung

Kill with kindness - Junhoe...he’s like an older brother to me xD

13.) If you could be best friends with any idol, who would you choose?

Taeyong, Mark, Lisa, Woozi

14.) If you could date any idol, who?

Top 3 biases up there ^^

15.) What’s one Kpop album you think everyone should have listened to?

Dark & Wild (BTS)

HER (DPR LIVE) cause you always gotta have some rap

16.) Are you a soft or a hard stan?

fucking both (it’s a huge nut when I see some thighs..sue me)

17.) An idol that makes you go into soft mode?

J HOPE FUCKING YES, HE’S ALWAYS SMILING UGH <3

18.) An idol that makes you want to smash the empire state building with one single punch?

Everyone in my top 5 groups.

19.) Favorite vocalist?

Taehyung, Chen, Ailee, Wheein, Hwasa, Hoody, and more

20.) Favorite Rapper?

Yoongi, DPR Live, Loco, Mino, Hanbin, Yongguk and more

21.) Favorite dancer?

bts dance line, seungri, hakyeon, jongup, donghyuk etc.

22.) Things you have in common with your ult?

we have common interests and we are ambiverts.

23.) The most beautiful trait any idol can have?

genuine, humble and respectful, the confidence to act themselves

24.) Songs that will always make you jam along?

Gold (offonoff ft. dean), I am him (Winner), All I Wanna Do (Jay Park), Am I Wrong (BTS), Baby Don’t Like It (NCT), Base Line ( J hope), Bboom Bboom (momoland), and etc

25.) Your worst wrecker?

PARK FUCKING JIMIN and KIM HANBIN, k..imma go now.

26.) Any kpop concerts you’ve been to?

I’ve been to the Astro fanmeeting! THEY ARE SUCH HUMBLE BOYS UGH

27.) Favorite choreo?

Spring Day (BTS), Shangri La (VIXX), Hate (4Minute), Fake Love (BTS), Beautiful (Monsta X), Love Scenrio (iKON), Fool (Winner..as you can tell, i love this fucking song), Black Suit (Super Junior)

28.) Favorite live performance?

Fantasy (VIXX) or Shangri La ...I think it was a remix? I don’t remember

29.) Favorite debut mv?

My Type (iKON)

30.) Recommend a rookie group!

Idle!!! They are very precious girls who are getting a lot comfortable in front of the camera!

31.) A kpop song you could listen to every day for the rest of your life?

Singularity (Taehyung)

32.) Tag some cute mutuals you’d like to get to know better (and to do this challenge)!

@x-i-l-verify @pyosunshine @lovepaintt @sunmoon-star @honeyboyhao @stan14u @kflowergirl @imgoodimdonek @royal-kard @cybercnu @monbebana (you don’t have to do it!)

#thank you for the tag! it was very interesting #curledtag

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confetti-cake-key · 7 years ago

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Kpop Bigger Tag!

Tagged by the lovely @monbebana 💕 thank you dear!!

1.) 5 favorite groups?

SHINee, CNBLUE, B.A.P, B1A4 and BOYFRIEND

2.) Top 5 on your bias list?

Key (SHINee), Kyuhyun (Super Junior), Daehyun (B.A.P), Sandeul(B1A4) and JR (NU'EST) [I did one member per group, or else they would all be SHINee]

3.) Ult Bias group and why you love them?

SHINee!! These boys have always brought me so much happiness through their music and by just being themselves. They were the first group that I really explored deeper discography-wise, and I fell in love with all of their music, they have never disappointed me. I love how they are not afraid to explore different music genres and yet still have that SHINee quality to them. Each album offers something new and exciting, and yet their older music stands up against time. Like I will honestly never get tired of listening to replay or love like oxygen. These boys work hard just like any other group, however I can really feel the heart they put into their work a bit more than others. And the fact that SHINee is a family devoted to each other, and that they are open and honest to shawols made me feel like SHINee world was a comforting and accepting place to be a part of. They have some of the nicest fans, and the boys themselves are some of the sweetest people I’ve ever seen. I love them so much and I cannot thank them enough for all the positivity they have given me.

4.) Ult Bias and why you love them?

Key!! One of my SHINee boys <3. When I first learned the members of SHINee, I had the hardest time with choosing a bias let me tell you. Ultimately, Key stole my heart. He has such a unique sense of humor that I really appreciate, that is straight forward and honest. Not only that, but he is not afraid to express himself whether it be through his extra-ness or even his fashion. He really puts himself out there with a confidence I wish I had. Key also has a kind heart and is not afraid to express his emotions as well, he looks out for his members and he cares about others. Not to mention that he donates money to provide art supplies to school children every year so that they can have an outlet in which to express themselves creatively. His voice is also very unique and the fact that he can rap and also sing is amazing to me (I would love to hear a solo song by him). Lastly, his smile always warms my heart and I love seeing him be happy as well as the other members.

5.) Favorite Kpop Meme

This is so hard! There are so many good kpop memes!! These are ones I use often in my friend group chat:

6.) Favorite pic of your ult? (I dare you to only pick one)

How dare you make me pick only one! I have so many faves! Therefore I will cheat the system!

This is Key we're talking about here, so don't torture me with this 'pick only one' dare. He is very handsome and I'm gonna show it goddamn it!

7.) 5 Favorite Kpop MVs

Sherlock (SHINee), Rain (KNK), Fantasy (VIXX), Bounce (Boyfriend) and It’s Raining (Snuper). Bonus: Lilliliabbay (Seventeen Performance Unit).

8.) 10 Favorite Kpop songs?

[Not in any order + I’m limiting myself to one song per group]=> Rain (KNK), Fermate (B.A.P), Symptoms (SHINee), Witch (Boyfriend), Platonic Love (Snuper), Error (VIXX), Pray/I’ll be your man (BTOB), Crazy in Love (Seventeen), Only Learned Bad Things (B1A4) and Hello (NU'EST).

9.) Favorite Kpop crack video?

My best friend makes amazing Snuper videos, including snuper crack vids, check it out at @snupersstar for some quality content!

Also, the Gucci slippers SHINee crack video and the one for Jonghyun's solo debut part are also prime. The one that has voiceover and is basically just a lip-reading but the humor is so dry it's hilarious.

10.) Favorite content creator within the fandom?

I'm not really sure who all are content creators, but shoutout to all you content creators blogs! Thank you for keeping us updated! Honestly Tumblr is my main way to check in on my kpop groups, that's how I found out SHINee was coming to America for SWV and I was able to go see them live since I found out ahead of time, thank you!!

11.) What fandoms would you say you’re an active member of?

Shawols/SHINee world (SHINee), Baby (B.A.P), Swing (Snuper), Bana (B1A4), Monbebe (Monsta X), Tinkerbell (KNK) and Carat (Seventeen).

[I’m basing this on how up to date I am on each group, although I love a lot of groups]

12.) Take your top 3 biases- fmk

F - Daehyun

Marry - Key

Kill with kindness - I’d kill Kyuhyun with a bear hug but please don’t actually kill him

13.) If you could be best friends with any idol, who would you choose?

Minho (SHINee), Sandeul, Minhyuk (Monsta X), DK/Vernon/Seungkwan (Seventeen bros), Sangho/Sebin/Woosung (Snuper). I find this question hilarious since me and my best friend talk about this a lot hahaha.

14.) If you could date any idol, who?

Um, obviously I'd date all Six of my boyfriends!

Hahaha, just kidding although I do love Boyfriend. I'd probs say Jihun from KNK so that he doesn't have to go to restaurants alone, because it was his one fear that they made him face on a TV show and let's be honest no one likes to be alone. Plus when it comes to Jihun, I would do anything for that boy. (I'm super Jihun bias that it's not even funny)

15.) What’s one Kpop album you think everyone should have listened to?

Sherlock/Everybody (SHINee), Noir/Carnival (B.A.P), Blueming (CNBLUE), Gravity Completed (KNK), A1 sauce (Seventeen), Meteor/Rain of mind (SNUPER), Janus/Witch (Boyfriend) and Rebirth (NU'EST).

16.) Are you a soft or a hard stan?

Both, though more-so soft stan because I like to live thanks. (Although a sharply dressed person in a nice suit or even leather jackets are my weakness)

17.) An idol that makes you go into soft mode?

Sangho (my ultimate son), I honestly love soft Sangho 10/10 would recommend. Honorable mention: Minhyuk from (Monsta x).

18.) An idol that makes you want to smash the empire state building with one single punch?

Anyone who is in violation with the CAA cops, being rude, lookin at you Wonho (monsta x) and even you Ooon (halo)!! 👀👀

19.) Favorite vocalist?

Kyuhyun, Sandeul, Jonghyun (SHINee), Taemin, Daehyun, Suhyun, Sunmi and Ailee.

20.) Favorite Rapper?

Key, Minho, Ravi, Yongguk, Zelo, Baro, Taewoong+Sebin, Peniel+Minhyuk, Jooheon+I.M, Hyuna and Amber (my queen).

21.) Favorite dancer?

Taemin, Jihun, Sangho, Zelo+Jongup, Hoshi+Dino, N, Hyungwon and Sunmi.

22.) Things you have in common with your ult?

love for shoes/clothes, loves dogs, afraid of heights and loves ketchup/food in general.

23.) The most beautiful trait any idol can have?

Humble & Respectful. <= Agreed (but also I have found a trend within my bias list, most of my biases are loud children of their respective group or they are the leader of their respective group.)

24.) Songs that will always make you jam along?

Baby Good Night, Baby I’m Sorry, Solo Day (B1A4) Platonic Love, Back Hug, It’s raining, Shall We Dance (Snuper), Stuck, Jealousy, Hero, Dramarama (Monsta X), BANG BANG BANG (BIGBANG), Hello, Hello (B.I.G), Lucifer, Ring Ding Dong, Sherlock, Everybody, Like a fire, Perfect 10, Stranger (SHINee), U, Knock (KNK), Plz don’t be sad, Could be better (Hig5lig5t), Runaway, Gorilla, Shine (Pentagon), Crazy, Hate (4MINUTE), Gashini (Sunmi), Something (Girl's day), Electric Shock (f(x)). Clap, Trauma, Change up, Lilliabbay, Don't wanna cry, Crazy in love (Seventeen). Honestly I could keep going!

25.) Your worst wrecker?

Jonghyun will always be my ult. bias wrecker. However, Mr.Sadman (Hyungwon) will also forever be a bias wrecker. Donghyun from Boyfriend also completely biased wrecked me into becoming my second bias in Boyfriend.

26.) Any kpop concerts you’ve been to?

B1A4 four nights (NYC 2017), B.A.P Party Baby (NYC 2017), SHINee World V (Dallas 2017) and KCON (Newark 2017).

This year I have tickets to go to KCON (Newark) and Monsta x: The Connect (Newark)!!

27.) Favorite choreo?

Definitely It's Raining by Snuper has to be up there, due to the footwork alone. Also U by KNK because it kills me everytime (Jihun is in his element and out to kill). And pretty much all of SHINee's choreography (though Lucifer and everybody choreo is legendary). Also I love the collab song between NU'EST W and Seventeen, Heaven, it's choreography is ridiculous and amazing. Also, Lilliabbay by Seventeen's performance unit is a work of art. Plus Pentagon's funny choreography for Shine gives me life.

28.) Favorite live performance?

SHINee: Almost any Tokyo dome performance, Odd eye live (the one with key's eye patch), Symptoms live, Selene 6.23 live and honestly tell me what to do live with all the members wearing chokers. Also taemin's sayonara hitori hit the stage with koharu.

KNK: Angel heart live, Rain (the live perf. with the cool laser lights as the rain)

SNUPER: Platonic love in the 80s outfits live, You=Heaven perf. with the sailor uniforms (Sangho is so soft), Almost every it's raining performance, every Tulips live too

B.A.P: That single One Shot performance where Daehyun goes insane during his high notes

VIXX: Havana performance, nuff said.

NU'EST W+Seventeen: Heaven (their dance practice is really good too), also I'm a sucker for crazy in love performances.

29.) Favorite debut mv?

SHINee (Replay), B.A.P (Warrior), NU’EST (Face), EXO (Mama), Knock (KNK) and Snuper (Shall we Dance).

30.) Recommend a rookie group!

ROOKIE TRINITY! KNK, SNUPER and ASTRO!!

31.) A kpop song you could listen to every day for the rest of your life?

💕 KNK: Sun, Moon, Star 💕

32.) Tag some cute mutuals you’d like to get to know better (and to do this challenge)!

@snupersstar , @wishfulunicorns , @1991shinwoo and anyone else who wants to do this!! I'm sorry for writing an essay ;_;

#kpop #i was tagged #tagged #about me

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jongdaekink · 7 years ago

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Kpop Tag 💕

5 favorite groups

1. Exo

2.Suju

3.Shinee

4.SNSD

5.B1A4

Those are the ones i love a lot for a long time now, but I also super love RelVelvet since their debut(like i don’t miss one, I’m always there waiting for their new songs) and lately nct hit me hard with bbs and yestoday but they are like a hit or miss with the songs for me.

Top 5 on your bias list

Well well well, my only bias is Jongdae and the rest idk what jajaja

1.Jongdae

2.Jung joon young(he ins’t in kpop but idc jajaja)

3.Suho

4.Minho

5.Taeyong

Ult bias group and why you like them

EXOoooooooo of course, I have a friggin blog here, so is obvious jajajaja

First of all, I love the music, you can listen Exo all day, with different moods, in different states of life. They have a song for every occation. I luuuuv all the albums. 2: their voices, what can i say is Jongdae there jajaja, but all sing so good, the vocal line doesn’t have match. And of course, they are friggin funny and cute, and hot, and each one shines brighter every day. 💘💘💘💘💘💘

Favorite kpop meme

But i have so many, this one is just a classic 🤣

Favorite picture of your ult?

I love a lot of Jongdae’s photos but I love more the ones of him being himself, and not looking like a idol.

5 Favorite Kpop Music Videos

1.Exo: Call me Baby(but i like all the Exo vids xd)

2.SNSD: I got a Boy (but all night, dancing queen, lion heart)

3.CBX: The One

4.All the versions of Taemin MOVE(but Shinee...Shinee doesn’t have a bad video, i like all too)

5.I need to add BigBang: Bae bae because I reallylove the vid, and is probably my fav song of them.

10 Favorite Kpop Songs

This is imposible jajajaja I need to add all the Exo songs here. I need a separate list for them. I also said a couple with the vids jeje.

But well, this is what i can think rn, atm favs and ones that i listen always:

Exo- transformer

Exo-Touch it

Taemin-Move

Suju-Scene Stealer

Suju-Shirt

Nct-Yestoday

Exo-Universe

Exo-Fall/lights out

CBX-Thursday

CBX-Playdate

Favorite Kpop Crack Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwyY-PwNzCs&t=4s

All the exo on crack real vids.

Favorite Content Creators in the Fandom?

eeehhhh ohhhhhh i don’t know, any crack post, memes, quotes jeje

What Fandoms would you say you’re active part of?

Only exo.

Take your top 3 biases -fmk

omg

Marry of course my lovely Chenchen

can i throw a coin with the rest??? jajaja

But atm fuck suho and kill joon young, but i don’t want to kill him 😝😝😝

If you could be best friends with any idol who would it be?

Can i be friend with benefits with chenchen? jajajaja

What’s one kpop album you think everyone should listen to?

This is so difficult, but if you're looking for variety in a album go for xoxo, if you have something with more power go for The war, and if you like ballads you NEED Universe. If you want some hot shit go for exact. I can belive i didn't say exodus ㅠ.ㅠ

Are you a soft or hard stan?

Hard af

An idol that makes you go into soft mode?

Jongdae, only Jongdae, he is the one. I'm hard af, but he is just a ball of fluffiness sometimes

An idol that makes you to smash the Empire State Building with one single punch?

JD :P

Favorite vocalist?

ehhh Jongdae jajajaja

Favorite Rapper?

sorry chanyeol and sehun but i need to go with Taeyong now, i really really like his deep deep voice.

Favorite Dancer

Another difficul question, my heart say Lay, but then I think in Taemin, and Kai of course. So yep, those 3.

Things you have in common with your ult

Loud, with a lot of energy maybe 💃

I also complaing a lot

The most beautiful trait any idol can have?

To be humble <3

Songs that always make you jam along?

There are many, but srsly, lately I dance all day with playdate 🤣

Your worst wrecker?

...sU...h0...maybe, I’m not saying it, the people say it.

Any kpop concerts you been to?

One, i went to see Suju wuuuuuu best thing ever.

Favorite Choero?

Exo-Transformer(idk if it’s my fav but i piss myself everytime i watch it)

If we are talking out of Exo, the kings of choreos are shinee and everybody is a 💎

Favorite Live Performance?

Exo- El dorado omg that is magical. One another lvl of perfection 👐🏻 I see the gates of heaven with this one.

Favorite Debut MV?

CARELESS CARELESS SHOOT ANONYMOUS ANONYMOUS

Recommend Rookie Group?

I’m too old now for rookies jajaja, but i liked momoland boom boom a looooooot

super funny and catchy, and jooe is friggin hilarious👌🏻

A Kpop song you could listen to everyday for the rest of your life?

is this some kind of torture? I can’t, leave me alone.

I tag @sasshunontheloose @msnanawritesfanfics @kai-tastarophic @dragonkick @im-creepin-in-your-heart-babe

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recentanimenews · 4 years ago

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FEATURE: Creature Comforts! Exploring Demon Slayer's Surprising Menagerie

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba has come a long way since its early days in Shonen Jump. It is currently the 11th best-selling manga of all time, its anime adaptation a smash hit, and its follow-up film Mugen Train one of the biggest blockbusters in the history of Japanese cinema. How did this happen? Some might point to the lovable character of Tanjirou and his loyal friends. Others might gesture at ufotable’s polished adaptation, with its careful line art and well-animated fight scenes. There is some truth to both of these things. But here, in the pages of Crunchyroll News, I will make a different argument: you cannot understand Demon Slayer without talking about its cute animals.

Chachamaru, the Cat

I can sense your attention drifting, reader. “Cute animals?” you say. “What about how by hearing out the personal struggles of each demon, Tanjirou demonstrates that empathy is the most powerful weapon of all?” I hear you and understand. But did you see this invisible cat? What a surprise!

Chachamaru is a cat, the personal helper of the vampiric medical doctor Tamayo. Chachamaru’s distinguishing ability is a charm it wears that allows it to appear and disappear. At the end of the knock-down fight with Kyogai, the battle in which for me Demon Slayer truly finds its feet, Chachamaru appears out of nowhere to collect a sample of blood. Having received this sample, it uses its charm to once more disappear to safety.

What is notable about Chachamaru? First of all, it is very cute. Being able to become invisible arguably makes it even cuter. The only thing more charming (and dangerous) than a house cat is a house cat that can appear and disappear at will. Imagine being Tanjirou, risking your life against a dangerous demon. Being Tanjirou, you cannot merely slay the demon and be done with it. Instead, you must understand them, and perhaps help them find some peace at the end of their days. Even a good-natured boy like Tanjirou might find themselves challenged by this situation. But then, just when he might be tired, a small tabby cat appears out of nowhere to collect the blood. How unexpected! Tanjirou suddenly feels refreshed, and just like that we feel refreshed too.

I should mention that Chachamaru is one way in which the manga, to me, exceeds the anime. The anime’s rendition of Chachamaru is perfectly cute, but nobody draws weird, blobby-but-expressive cat heads like manga artist Koyoharu Goutoge.

Ukogi, the Sparrow

A defining trait of the Demon Slayer Corps are their crows, which carry messages back and forth and sometimes spout exposition about the setting. Tanjirou’s crow is about what you’d expect from a crow, a haughty bird that pecks him on the head during next episode previews. Tanjirou’s ally Zenitsu, however, does not have a crow. Zenitsu has a sparrow.

Compared to a crow, Zenitsu’s sparrow, Ukogi, is comparatively useless. For one thing, it cannot speak. For another, it is very small. But don’t count your chickens before they hatch. Ukogi may be small and mute, but by virtue of being a sparrow, it is still much cooler and smarter than Zenitsu. It is also an efficient visual gag, a signifier of what separates pathetic dropouts like Zenitsu from the cooler, stronger demon slayers.

Yet even a tiny sparrow like Ukogi is able to bring joy into people’s hearts. Early in the Tsuzumi Mansion arc, Tanjirou and Zenitsu meet two children who are overcome with fear. It is only by making Ukogi appear from his hands like magic that Tanjirou is able to calm the kids so they will point him in the direction of the demon that threatens their family. Ukogi may be nothing but a simple sparrow, but just like a cat, a sparrow is able to surprise. Tanjirou is one of the most beloved heroes in modern manga because he never assumes the worst of someone because they are small, stupid, or weak. It is for this reason that while his teammates and allies may be weirder or dorkier than their compatriots from other, flashier Shonen Jump stories, they would all die for him and his sister Nezuko.

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Ninju, the Mice

The arc that directly follows Mugen Train is very good, one I’d love to see animated. But if I’m being honest, I am hoping for more Demon Slayer anime for one reason only, and that is the Muscle Mice.

What are the Muscle Mice? Once I was as naive as you. My friend who brought me kicking and screaming into the world of Demon Slayer once showed me a picture of the Muscle Mice as an example of what the manga, at its very best, can achieve. The Muscle Mice are, just like you’d think, mice with huge muscles. They do the bidding of a character who has yet to be introduced in the anime and are memorable every time they appear. They might be flexing their muscles. They might be carrying a character’s swords. How is it that through careful training, their master was able to produce two muscular mice? Your guess is as good as mine.

The Muscle Mice reveal another facet of Demon Slayer's appeal: it is just a little gross. Of course, Tanjirou is very nice. Of course, the characters will perform feats of superhuman skill to protect the innocent. But the series is always a little off-kilter. The arch-villain dresses like Michael Jackson and vaporizes his own troops when they fail to please him. The hero’s allies include an angry and very flexible man wearing a pig mask, and Zenitsu. The manga is packed with funny reaction faces that look more like potatoes with googly eyes attached than traditional anime-style superdeformed chibis. You might think that by calling the faces in the Demon Slayer “potatoes with googly eyes,” I am insulting them. Reader, I adore them. The anime works to capture some of this appeal, but it can’t help but streamline Goutoge’s art in the process of polishing Demon Slayer's rough diamond. The grottiness of the manga’s relatively unpolished designs is where the magic happens, and where the Muscle Mice dwell.

Perhaps it’s jealousy. Years ago, I rooted for Demon Slayer's underdog success. Now I can’t help but feel, with the massive popularity of the anime, that the invisible cat is out of the box. That what was once a closely kept secret doesn’t just belong to my friend and I anymore. But I know what Tanjirou would do: he would share. So here’s my gift to you, as a fan of Kimetsu no Yaiba to a fan of Demon Slayer. Demon Slayer is not just the astounding pyrotechnics of Episode 19. It is not just LiSA’s banging opening theme. It is a humble sparrow. It is a disappearing cat. Demon Slayer is a surprise.

A postscript. In June 2020, famed manga artist Daisuke Igarashi published an illustration honoring his love of Demon Slayer in the magazine Brutus. Featured prominently were my beloved boar fighter Inosuke, a crow and a sparrow, a fluffy cat, and two shockingly muscular mice. If you looked very closely in the lower-left corner, as well, you could, unfortunately, see Zenitsu.

What do you think about Demon Slayer? Do you wish that Chachamaru the cat had more screen time? Who could win in a fight, Zenitsu’s sparrow or Zenitsu? Let us know in the comments!

Adam W is a Features Writer at Crunchyroll. When he is not extolling the greatness of Inosuke, he sporadically contributes with a loose coalition of friends to a blog called Isn’t it Electrifying? You can find him on Twitter yelling about Wonder Egg Priority at: @wendeego

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By: Adam Wescott

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