#almost said ‘the mission’ but that feels more sci-fi than fantasy…

[hanzajesthanza]

@pilwsy literallyyyy .

it would be a joint effort, a prank created under both of their creative directions… angouleme only learns and successfully executes the required patience to pull it off through regis’ mentorship. when she floats the idea, he agrees to go along with it, to pretend like he never told her, but she has to wait it out, she can’t ask the question before he gets the gates to open, etc…

and it says a lot that these two were thinking about formulating pranks instead of strategies for how to attack stygga — both arrogantly thought they would easily come out on top, as both are very self-assured in their own powers. + “i’m too young to die nothing’s going to happen to me” and “i’m too immortal to die nothing’s going to happen to me”

coming to the conclusion that regis and angoulême are like that scene from jurassic park

[jellybeandrawsthings]

☹️hi i dont usually do this thing where i ask for art/thoughts on things but ive had a super bad day and i was just curious as to what your take on your wounded-on-krypton Kara would be doing with Lena if she hadn't of come out as Supergirl but they still met and fell in love- would Kara just be floating around Lena's apartment during quarantine listening to Lena read books and making her gf tea's and flying out to get her her supplies so Lena would stay safe from getting sick? I really love your art.

aww, I'm sorry u had a bad day, I made a little doodle and tried writing a little story for it as well that should answear your queastion about my scarred!Kara and her relationship with Lena if she didn’t became Supergirl (tho I'm not a writer, so its quality might not be the best)  hopefully it will make u feel even just a little bit better

The first time she met Lena, Kara was going to L-Corp to get a prosthetic replacement from their new Cybernetic Futures program since she kind of destroyed her old one.

Okay, she definitely destroyed her old one, but to be fair, who knew kicking a cement boulder with a prosthetic leg made from human metals but with the force of an angry and very frustrated superpowered being would destroy said metal leg. Really, who could've predicted that?

Walking into the building with warm coffee in hand proved to be more difficult than Kara hoped, her busted prosthetic making her wobble every two steps since she didn't have a spare she could wear - this was the spare - and the slippery tiled floor didn't help. Making her way to the elevator she kept glancing down focusing on her steps, this meant she didn't notice when a woman absorbed in her phone walked straight into her path. On instinct, she relaxed her body as to not harm the human she collided with, unfortunately, that meant she lost her barely-there, to begin with, balance and was sent sprawling onto the floor and her coffee splashing straight at the woman's shirt. Perfect. Just what she needed today.

She had an apology already forming on her lips when she looked up and for the first time noticed the woman, no, the goddess she bumped into. Her hair was black, but when it caught the light it shone deep chestnut brown and cascading down her back, her skin was pale and looked so soft Kara found herself wanting to touch it, her fingers twitching at her sides. The woman's eyes were green, though her right eye seemed to be two shades lighter, more gray than green. She wasn't looking at her currently occupied with taking in the state of her clothes. And Rao, her clothes. The outfit was that of a businesswoman, high heels ready to kill, dark burgundy slacks with a matching suit jacket, loose black tie, and a white shirt. A white shirt that was now covered in Kara's coffee. Oh no. She needed to fix this, like, immediately. The best place to start is with an apology, right?

———————

Lena was having a pretty normal day, all things considered. She should have known her days are never normal. She woke up early, ate a small breakfast, and went to work. There she had meetings with investors from 8 to 11, some paperwork to sign, a small meeting with the head of R&D at 12, and now she finally had enough time to take a break and maybe grab some lunch. With a certain sandwich place in mind, she made her way down to the ground floor and, while answering some last-minute e-mail made her way to the exit of the building.

Before she could even make it halfway to the wide double door, she felt something surprisingly solid and at the same time very wobbly bump into her, and then a sudden warmth and wetness on her chest. Looking down at herself confirmed what she already suspected, someone, spilled coffee on her. Thankfully it was only warm and not scalding hot the last thing she needed right now was dealing with coffee-induced burns. Making sure her shirt was the only thing damaged in the incident, Lena paid no mind to the person who bumped into her, that is until a very apologetic voice started talking to her. From the floor. Looking away from her ruined shirt, she took in the person frantically trying to apologize for spilling coffee on her, at least that's what she thinks the woman was trying to do, seeing as at his point she was rambling a mile a minute.

The woman on the floor looked young, probably around the same age as Lena herself, she had blond wavy hair gathered in a messy ponytail and hidden behind cute square-framed glasses, the bluest eyes she has ever seen. There was a burn scar covering most of the left side of her face and neck and more peeking out from under her shirt. Her left leg ended right below the knee, and the prosthetic she was wearing looked like someone put it under an industrial press and then tried to put it back into shape with a hammer. She was wearing blue sneakers, jean shorts, and a yellow tank top with tiny rainbow dinosaurs on it that gave her an unobscured view of the rippling muscles in her arms as she gesticulated wildly still rambling out something resembling an apology.

Taking it all in Lena came to one conclusion. She's cute. And so with warm coffee drying on her chest and a beautiful woman at her feet, really what else was there for Lena to do other than ask the blonde out on a date.

———————

They moved in together after a year of dating. Alex asked if they were sure, but there wasn't a doubt in their minds that this was what they wanted. It felt right. And they were glad for this decision since a few months later, they and most of the world's population were confined to their homes.

Days in quarantine were spent working from home on their laptops with their legs entwined together and sharing a blanket out of the view of the cameras. When they weren't working they were finding new ways to entertain themselves. Slowly making their way through the classics of fantasy and sci-fi literature, with Kara floating them above the couch and Lena laying on top of her chest reading aloud from her Kindle was how they were spending most of the evenings. During the weekends when there was less work, Lena tried to teach Kara how to bake - with mixed results - and Kara made it her mission to recreate as many childhood experiences Lena missed out on living with the Luthors as possible. Her blanket fort wasn't the most structurally sound, but it sure was cozy. Movie nights were a nightly routine, and cooking dinner together became the most sacred daily ritual neither of them dared or wanted to skip. Weekly game nights through zoom were initiated almost immediately after lockdown and to no one's surprise, Lena and Alex's competitiveness did not lessen with the development of not being in the same room. If anything it became worse. Bets about how long will it take for the two of them to start fighting and accusing each other of cheating were as much a tradition as game nights itself. Most days though were spent working and lounging together with Kara occasionally flying out to pick up supplies they needed. And when one day Kara flew through the balcony with two cats and a dog saying there wasn't enough space in shelters, who was Lena to refuse those cute puppy eyes (it didn't hurt that the dog and cats were adorable as well).

[starr-fall-knight-rise]

Humans are Space Orcs, “On a Hill.”

Still working on my ability to write fluff. Hope I am getting better at it :) Hope you all have a great day.

Sunny marched down the hall with great purpose, the words of her brother ringing in her head, “You know Sunny, if you want to do something special for him, why not try doing something human. I mean fighting is all well and good for Drev, but I wonder if he gets tired of getting the crap kicked out of him on a normal basis.”

Her brother was right of course: Adam did sort of have a habit of catering to her needs and wants rather than his own. It did seem more than fair to give him what he wanted for a change.

So, she had done some research, going around the ship and asking the other humans about what they considered to be special. Of course she threw a lot of ideas out on principle because she knew Adam enough to know that he wasn’t going to be interested. It was, surprisingly, Maverick, dateless, lone-wolf Maverick that made the suggestion that caught Sunny’s attention.

“Come on, what better way to a man’s heart than through his stomach. Take him somewhere cool beside that and you’ve got him hook line and sinker.” Of course Sunny didn’t understand the metaphor, but she thought she understood the feeling of it.

So, with her plan all pulled together, she made her way up to the captain’s quarters and knocked lightly on the door.

There was a muffled yip from inside followed by a voice, “Oh Calm down. It’s nobody you don't know. COME IN, DOORS UNLOCKED!”

She pressed the panel to the side of the door, and it hissed open. She walked into the large room leaning down to pet waffles as she ran over tail wagging.

Adam was leaning back on his bed, UNSC issued grey shirt and grey camouflage ACU pants.

In his left hand he was holding a book, turning the pages with his right hand.

Sunny squinted at the cover slowly sounding out the words to the human alphabet.

War of the worlds 

On the opposite wall, the TV was turned low with some sort of vintage zombie movie playing in the background.

“I thought you were a sci fi geek, not a fantasy nerd.” She said walking over to stand over him.” He set down his open book on the side table, “What is more sci-fi than zombies? Some sort of strange disease turns everyone into cannibals. Besides sci fi and fantasy are the same thing, the only difference between them is that sci fi attempts to explain its magic with logic and science, while fantasy creates completely new systems for the way it does things.”

She shrugged, “HAs it ever occurred to you that you are commanding a fleet of spaceships under the command of a galactic council of planets, and you're dating an alien. Does it really get more sci-fi than your life?”

“Leave my nostalgia alone, once upon a time I didn’t think any of that was going to happen…. Especially that last one.” His eyes dropped down from her face focusing in on the object she held in one of her right hands, “That’s a big ass ammo can, what are you doing with it?”

“You’ll see.” She said wryly. Walking over to his closet, pulling out an extra blanket tossing it to him. 

He nearly fumbled it as he stood head tilted to the side with confusion, “What is all this?”

“You’ll see, now come on.”

She led him out of the room and down towards the docking bay where a shuttle had already been prepared for them.

“Do I need weapons?” He wondered nerouvly stepping into the shuttle.

“No weapons needed.”

“That is very unusual coming from you.”

“Just pilot the damn shuttle will you.” She said taking the copilot seat next to him and setting the large ammo canister down on the floor. He did as she ordered, sliding into his seat and pulling on a headset, hands flying through the preflight checklist without so much as a thought.

“So where are we going.”

“Just followed the pre programmed instructions.”

He glanced over at her, his eyebrow raised, “You make me nervous. You know that?”

She frowned and waved a hand, “Oh calm down, I promise it’s nothing big. You’ll like it.”

He shook his head, but finally followed her instructions, lifting the shuttle from the airlock bay and out through the opening airlock doors while lights blinked red over their heads. He followed the instructions to the letter, coming into low orbit with the nearby glowing planet.

They had gone and done a preliminary search of the planet only yesterday determining that it was more than habitable and rather temperate. Plants were already being put together for some kind of scientific colony in it’s northern hemisphere.

“Alright, alien planet is cool.” he said, dropping them into the atmosphere with a sudden rattling, and an eruption of flames out the front window.

That soon dissipated as he slowed the shuttle, and expertly landed them on the pinnacle of a tall spacious hill with a pretty awesome view if she did say so herself.

He shut off the shuttle and stepped outside allowing the warm air to wash over them with a hiss. Adam tilted his head back, nose raised as he took in a deep breath and sigh, “Wow.” he muttered.

Sunny didn’t have as good a sense of smell as Adam did, but even she could detect the clear crisp air and the slight tang of dewdrops on moist soil. The smell made her hungry as they walked a little further onto the top of the hill, where a strange tree waited for them.

The tree itself was not dissimilar to earth trees, maybe twenty feet tall with a narrow black trunk and spongy yellow blobs sticking to it’s branches blocking out a distant glowing sun. Together they turned to look at the view, and Sunny hummed with pleasure as the human stood open mouthed and gawking.

The ground they stood on was a light greyish blue in color with little yellow flowers poking up every now and again. The tree they stood next to was the only lone tree upon the hill which sloped down into a wide- rambling valley. Purple and blue plant matter made up much of the ground while yellow topped trees added a sharp contrast. The sky above them was a deep blue, almost too dark to be a morning sky, though the sun shone bright through its murky blue haze. And then there were the planet's rings appearing as Massive white arches in the sky which plunged down below the horizon. A crystal blue/purple lake glowed at the center of the valley, reflecting a mirror image of the sun and the rings in the sky above.

“Holy, shit, Adam muttered.”

“Nice view, huh.”

Adam rubbed his eyes and shook his head a few times as if he wasn’t believing what he was seeing, “No kidding.”

Leaving him to gawk for a few seconds, she grabbed the blanket from under his arm and then awkwardly worked to spread it out over the grass under the shade of their lone tree.

She was having trouble, but just managed to flatten the blanket out most of the way when Adam turned to look at her. He paused and raised an eyebrow again, smiling a little, “What are you doing?”

She smoothed out one last wrinkle and then took a seat on the blanket legs stretched out in front of her, “What does it look like.”

He walked over as she plopped the ammo can down between them.

He shook his head, “I’m still not entirely sure.”

Sunny reached out and flipped open the latches to the large canister popping open the lid. Adam peered inside and all at once began to laugh. The smile on his face was enough to tell that it wasn’t a mocking laugh or anything. He just seemed genuinely surprised.

He reached inside and pulled out a water bottle still laughing, “An Ammo can?”

She shrugged, “I am told a picnic basket is usually preferable, but we didn’ have one of those on the ship.”

Adam continued to laugh shaking his head in either disbelief delight or both, “What prompted all this.” He asked motion towards the  ammo can, now picnic basket.

She shrugged, “I have been made aware that we do a lot of things that are very Drev, but not a lot of things that are particularly human, so I thought maybe I should do something human for you.”

He still had a smile on his face, but this time he shook his head resting one hand over hers, “Its thoughtful of you, Sunny, but I was ok with what we were doing.”

She shrugged, “I know you are, but you often let me have my way, so I thought it would be a good way to show you that I care, to do something that I have never done before.”

He smiled and lay back against the blanket a soft breeze tugging at his shirt, “Well consider mission accomplished. This was a pretty great idea.” He cracked his one good eye to look at her, “So, who did you ask?”

Sunny shrugged a bit sheepishly, “it was Maverick’s idea, but I DID go looking for her myself.”

“Maverick? That sly dog, I would never have pegged her as the type to come up with something like this.”

“Yeah she is….. Hmmm… how shall I say.”

“She should have been born Drev. I don’t think she has ever dated anyone but I’m pretty sure she would consider kicking the snot out of someone the perfect way to spend an afternoon.”

“She does have the heart of a Drev.” Sunny said nodding, leaning back on the blanket next to him to stare up at the great rings in the sky above.

Adam chuckled again after a few minutes of silence, “Ammo can.”

“Shut up.”

He laughed again and sat up on one elbow digging through the canister until he came up with a sandwich before sitting himself cross legged on the blanket and taking a bite.

Sunny reached in after him and pulled out an apple.

She liked human fruit, though with apples she had to be careful to avoid the seeds. Humans could probably handle them without too much issue, but she had learned from experience that accidentally ingesting an apple seed made her very, very sick.

Adam was about halfway through his sandwich, when a slight movement from the corner of her eye caught Sunny’s attention. She paused eating her apple mid crunch and turned to look towards the movement.

She paused, eyes widening a little.

“Adam…. Don’t look now, but we have company.”

He paused, sandwich halfway to his mouth and turned his head pausing and staring as she had done as a troop of fuzzy foot and a half tall- bird-ish things came waddling up the hill towards them.

Again at about a foot and a half tall, the creatures walked on two legs like a bird. They had very big fluffy bodies and little heads that sat atop their ample fluff. A short thick beak sat at the front of their faces.

“Stay very still.” Sunny muttered from the corner of her mouth as the little troop of about fifteen creatures waddled up the hill.

They didn’t seem scared of the two strange looking aliens as they approached. Adam, despite Sunny’s warning leaned over to get a better look as one of them moved closer, “what are these?”

The creature was now only a foot or so away from him, and as Sunny watched, it’s small head rose up from it’s fluffy body suspended on the end of it’s long furry neck as it extended and nibbled at Adam’s sandwich.

He let off an exclamation of indignation as he pulled his sandwich away, “Ack!”

As soon as the strange noise came out from his mouth a chorus of other voices followed, “ACK.” As the entire troop parreted the sound back at him.

He was surrounded now on all sides, and from his opposite side another fo the creature’s extended his neck in an attempt to take a bit from his sandwich.

“Hey!” he shouted leaning the other way and huddling closer around his sandwich.

Sunny laughed, watching as the strange troop of birds began curiously pecking at him.

Two of them were pecking at his bootlaces, another was tugging at his pant leg. One of them had crawled into his lap in search of the sandwich, while two others were busy plucking at strands of hair atop his head. He had his hand raised high over his head in order to protect his sandwich. 

She continued to laugh as their curiosity led one to stick it’s head down the front of his shirt.

He yelped in surprise.

And the group chorused the sound.

Sunny couldn’t hold back the loud barking laugh that spilled from hier, and just like that the group of them scrambled in fear hiding behind Adam in an unruly mob.

Adam frowned, and turned to look over his shoulder, looking back at Sunny with a frown.

One of the birds poked its head out from behind Adam, and upon seeing her it parroted Adam’s yelp of alarm and hid again, “Why aren’t they all over you?” Adam protested 

Sunny snorted, “They can sense the danger.”

Adam frowned, ‘i’m dangerous.”

That made sunny laugh again, “You! You’re a marshmallow and they can sense it!”

Two more heads poked out from around Adam’s back, and the birds slowly began to wadner forward. One of them crawled back onto his lap, while the others moved to their palace at his bootlaces again.

A couple of them wandered over to sunny where they stood in a semi straight line to just stare at her. She stared back 

Adam huffed in frustration, and Sunny turned to look at him, holding his sandwich above his head again, “I could eat you for lunch if I wanted.” He pointed over at Sunny, “She’s a herbivore.”

They didn’t seem to care, and continued to peck at him.

Eventually he was forced to stand up just to eat his sandwich, while they parroted any noise he made that wasn’t speech.

Sunny stood after he was finished eating, walking a little ways down the hill with him. The troop followed in a line at Adam’s heels, keeping to his left, where Sunny was on his right.

“Leave it to you to immediately make new alien friends.”

He squeezed her hand, “You have to admit, I’m pretty good at it.” He looked up at her out of the corner of his eye, “You being exhibit A.”

“Hmmm, I think you were a bit too good when it comes to me.”

His mouth twitched slightly, “Yeah, I sort of didn’t intend to make you fall head over heels for me.” She smiled openly now, “But who could blame you. I am pretty irresistible.”

Sunny would later insist that she shoved him very lightly, and he was just off balance enough to fall over and go rolling halfway down the hill with a troop of birds squawking after him. She would also deny the fact that she laughed when a few of the birds lost their footing and went rolling down the hill after him.

Of course she could be seen awkwardly running down the hill after to see if he was ok, only to come to a stop laughing again when she found him sprawled on his back with one of the creatures sitting atop his chest and another one pecking at his ears. She carried him back up the hill when he proved unable to walk due to dizziness.

“I thought you were a fighter pilot immune to dizziness.” She said 

He crossed his arms just over the bird who had refused to get off his chest, and was not receiving a ride back up the hill courtesy of Sunny, “I AM but only when given warning. Generally I am not launched into flight without my knowledge.”

She snorted as she turfed him down back on the blanket, The bird squawking indignantly,

He frowned at it, “What is this?”

After a few minutes, the others followed, returning to their curious adventuring in his clothes and hair. One of them stuck it’s head into his sleeve without warning pradding him in the armpit and forcing him to make another yelping noise which they soon parroted back at him.

Sunny sat pointing and laughing at him as he suffered, though it could hardly count as suffering considering he was smiling so much, and seemed to be more than enjoying it. 

Her sides hurt with how much laughing she was doing as his expense and couldn’t help but take a few pictures of his predicament. 

It would have seemed strange to an outsider,, if they had come around a few hours later.

A drev and a human lying atop a blanket. The human using the Drev as a pillow, while both of them were surrounded by strange sleeping birdlike creatures, one resting on top of the human while the others hunkered down around them.

Eyes still closed Sunny asked, “So, despite our…. Uninvited guests. Did I do good.:

Adam didn’t open his eyes either, “This is probably the best time Ive had in the past week ,and that’s saying something.” he paused, “You did good.”

She smiled, “I know, I’m pretty amazing.”

[moonlit-imagines]

Can I have Star Wars ship and mentor? Thanks!

I’m an INFP muggle born slytherin. I’m about 5’1”. I have dark brown (almost black) layered hair with curtain bangs. I have dark brown almond shaped eyes and tan skin. My pronouns are she/them and I’m bi (although I prefer guys). I'm a bit quiet and introverted but once I trust you enough to open up I tend to be sarcastic/witty and tease. I don’t trust easily, but once I do I’m very loyal and care a lot about my friends. I’m also a very passionate person who feels emotions very deeply. I like doing adventurous stuff and exploring and feel especially connected to nature and space. I’m a dreamer with a big imagination who’s always thinking. I LOVE music (anything from rock to classical). I like to read, write, and watch movies (fantasy, action, sci-fi, or mystery). I do martial arts and I ABSOLUTELY LOVE daggers (I also train with nunchucks, staffs, double stick, and butterfly knife, but daggers are my favorite). I’m strong but it’s more of a quiet strength. I’m confident in who I am and what I can do even if it doesn’t fit the way things normally are. I can be very competitive and I’m a perfectionist. I love fashion and my style/aesthetic consists of 70s/90s vintage, dark academia, and indie. I play piano, ukulele, sing, draw, and anything creative.

Thank you :)

s/o: han solo had saved you from the hutt dynasty the first chance that he got. he knew that it was only a matter of time before you were disposed of, replaced or hurt. you’d always admired him, he always flirted with you. he preferred to get on your good side before jabba sent you after him. but still, in the end han showed that he meant the things he said and took you from the life of a bounty hunter, helping you to achieve something greater than yourself.

enemy: jabba the hutt was your boss. well, former boss. working for him was already a hassle because he was so particular and one slight error might get you thrown into the rancor pit. or the sarlacc pit. you didn’t want to stick around to find out which one you’d be getting. you wanted to be the one to end it for jabba, but you were content on the way he went. as long as he never bothered you again.

best friend: luke skywalker was honestly a pleasure to be around. he was trustworthy and bright and one of the best sparring partners ever. you, him, and han often had “family night” together after the fall of the Empire just to feel normal again and you loved every second spent with them.

mentor: boba fett picked you up on some random hit and decided to take you in. he wanted some kind of protege to carry on his father’s legacy and you fit the bill, so you began to train as a bounty hunter, excelling quite fast. he did care for you, but you were more of a personal mission to him than a child or a friend or even a student, making your split much easier for you.

[dulce-pjm]

caffeine crush

word count: 4.3k 

genre: fluff, coffee shop!au

summary: all it took was one trip to the cafe to cement a friendship you never wanted. but it’s high time you fess up and call it all off. 

Yes, you’d picked up the habit last August, you’re certain. 

Classes had yet to start but, growing tired of your overbearing family, you decided to head back to campus a week or two early and get a head start while the university was still mostly empty. 

You didn’t exactly get a ton of work done, but those few weeks were relaxing. Cleansing, even. You spent your mornings wandering around campus and the surrounding area, soaking in the summer sun. Your afternoons were spent curled up in a comfy chair in the corner of the library, nose deep in a romance novel. You found yourself eating better, exploring the city and finding new activities and niche locations. At this point, you thought you would make an excellent tour guide if someone hired you. You knew nearly every corner of the blocks surrounding the university. You’d made it a game to leave no stone unturned, memorizing the storefronts and seeing what hole-in-the-wall restaurants and shops you would find next. 

You were playing just this game when you met Seokjin.

It’s not like you particularly liked coffee. It’s always been much too bitter for your taste. No amount of sugar or cream or pumpkin syrup made the drink worth it to you. 

But you set your personal preferences aside for the mission. How could you give coffee shop recommendations to your imaginary tour group if you’d never tried them out yourself?

And it was with that mentality that you tentatively stepped inside the near-hidden cafe, door chiming as you made your entrance. 

The minute you walked in, you fell in love with the atmosphere. The place was well ventilated and cool, perfect for someone like you who preferred to keep the thermostat at ‘obscenely low temperatures,’ as your sister would say. The walls were coated with muted mints and greens. Draping plants decorated the wooden shelves scattered across the far wall and the soft jazz playing over the speakers made you feel relaxed. A large chalkboard menu hung behind the counter, fresh flowers sat by the cash register. The smell of coffee grounds was undeniably comforting and potent, despite your general dislike for the drink. 

This place was perfect. You could imagine your friends applauding your efforts now, praising you for managing to stumble on such an amazing hideout, tucked away from the chaos of university campus yet still within easy walking distance. 

The cafe was almost completely empty, save for a couple about your age camped out at a corner table. You barely paid them any attention except to be jealous of their closeness as they giggled over something on the girl’s phone. 

You approached the counter, curiously vacant of any employees. You looked left, you looked right. But no one appeared. 

The couple, too absorbed in their own world, did nothing to aid you as you stood helpless in the middle of the abandoned store. You gave it a good ten seconds before you felt much too awkward standing here all alone and gave up, turning to leave. 

And just as you did, you heard a collection of scuffles coming from the back and a door swing open with a creak. 

“Oh, I am so sorry. One of our frothers broke and made a huge mess.” You spun around. And your jaw dropped. 

Before you stood the most godly man you’d ever seen. 

The first thing that caught your eye was tufts of soft lavender hair, shining under the cool vintage lights. His eyes were wide and dark and warm, making you shift on your feet when they focused on you. His shoulders were broad and wrapped in a thin, cream turtleneck despite the warm weather. You practically drooled when you caught sight of his lips, full and soft pink.

He looked just like every male romantic lead you’d read about in your spare time. A purple-haired prince charming. A knight in his shining, corporate-regulated apron. 

“Were you waiting long?” His friendly voice snapped you from your daze before your thoughts could roam further to his muscles and chest and-

“No, not at all.” Could he tell you’d just been ogling? You really hoped not. 

“Good, good.” He shoots you a relieved smile that has your knees shaking. “Well, what can I get for you?” 

Shit, he was pretty. The slope of his nose and jaw and the swell of his cheekbones looked like they’d been crafted by god himself. Not that you were particularly religious, but after this encounter, you mused that maybe one day you could be. 

You were already fantasizing about the future the two of you could forge together. Stolen kisses, cuddles by the tv, a cozy house full of little purple-haired kids. His pillowy soft lips looked awfully inviting. You wondered what it’d be like to lean onto the tips of your toes and press your lips on his, to run your fingers through his hair, to-

“Uh, is there something I can get for you?” 

Shit. You’d been caught red-handed. 

“Oh! Um... uh...” You couldn’t focus. The words on the menu were suddenly too blurry as your tunnel vision zoomed in on him and only him. “A latte! A latte is fine.”

Seokjin smiled sweetly, making your stomach flutter. 

“You got it! Just a sec.” He spun away, running back and forth between the different contraptions that look more like convoluted machines from a sci-fi movie than coffee-related appliances. 

You were still trying to collect yourself when his hand brushed yours as he passed your drink across the counter. A shiver ran unwelcomed down your spine. You barely managed to fork over a few bills when the man shook his head adamantly.

“I made you wait. This one’s on the house.”

God, he was hot and nice? How?

“Oh, thanks...” Your eyes found the small name tag pinned to his blue apron. “Seokjin.” He grinned, his eyes crinkling adorably. 

“Not a problem. See you around.” He said it like the two of you were friends and not strangers. Like he was going to miss you when you walked out the door. 

You felt his gaze on your back as you left the tiny shop, bells chiming as went. 

You knew you’d be coming back. 

And come back you did. 

You’d reasoned that it wasn’t because of Seokjin, no, of course not! You liked the cafe, it was quiet and there was plenty of room to study. 

Oh, who were you kidding? It was totally because of Seokjin. The cafe was nice, you guess, but you don’t even like coffee! Rather, you used your time spent in the shop half actually doing your work and half staring at Seokjin and letting your mind wander. It was a stress reliever, really. A guilty pleasure, to bask in his glory. 

It was a harmless habit. You got your work done and got to stare at an angel sent from heaven, and Seokjin had extra business bolstering his paycheck when you dragged your friends with you to camp out at the cafe. 

It was harmless. 

Until you’d spent the better part of four months somewhat stalking him and now he knew your face. 

So when a certain someone tapped you on the shoulder in January as you settled down for the first day of class, you really should have known this would happen. 

“Hi!” he’d exclaimed, taking the seat next to you before you could protest, not that you wanted to. “I didn’t know you were a student here.” 

It was Seokjin. Hot barista from the coffee shop, Seokjin. In your class. Talking directly to you. Except now, he’d traded his purple locks for warm brunette ones. It didn’t take away from his appeal at all though. It made him seem boyish and younger, suiting him well. 

“Oh, hi...” You were at a loss for words. Never in your life did you think that Seokjin attended your university, let alone would be taking the same classes as you. Wouldn’t you have seen him by now? How did this slip under your radar?

“Y/N, right?” His smile widened when you nodded, confirming his suspicions. 

The professor walked in a moment later, informing you all that the person next to you would be your partner for all projects for the rest of the semester. Your stomach dropped to the floor

And from then on, Seokjin was your friend. 

You’d done your best to fight it, to resist him but you were only pulled deeper and deeper. 

Before then, the line of acquaintanceship was defined, set in stone. You knew his name, sure, but only because of the context of the situation. You had no reason to talk to him, to know him. And he had no reason to remember you. 

But once he confirmed your name, claimed the seat next to you, expressed excitement at being your partner (because he’d seen how studious you were at the shop, he said- and what a lie that was), the line had been crossed and blurred. He made a point to smile at you every time you arrived to class, to ask you how your day was going and if you were planning on stopping by the cafe any time soon.

It didn’t take long, however, for fantasy Seokjin to crumble before your eyes. Your dashing prince charming turned out to actually be a gluttonous man-child. Long gone were the days of your innocent crush on him. No longer could you sit and daydream about his perfect self when you were watching him pig out on take-out dumplings and listening to the most cringe-worthy jokes you’d heard in your life. 

“So I was at this vegetarian restaurant, right?” You nodded, only half paying attention as you made final edits to your presentation on Nordic traditions. “And this girl comes up to me and starts to tell me how I’d done her so wrong and she was finally standing up for herself.” 

At that point you were interested, allowing yourself to watch his dramatics rather than your laptop screen. Was Seokjin secretly an asshole? A heart breaker? God, this couldn’t be farther from how you’d imagined him months ago. 

“But the thing is-” He paused, meeting your eyes to make sure you were fully paying attention, which you were. “I’d never even seen herbivore!”

A fully offended sound left your throat as Seokjin burst into squeaky, boisterous laughter at the disgusted expression on your face. 

You couldn’t even bring yourself to fake laugh. That joke was absolutely dreadful. 

See, this is normally when relationships- dating and friendship alike- started to go downhill for you. You were much too idealistic. You set certain expectations for anyone and everyone before you ever laid eyes on them. And when they didn’t meet those expectations, it was easy for you to lose interest. Once you realized that they weren’t the person you’d hoped they’d be, you realized you’d never really liked them at all. You’d just gotten too caught up in your head, too captivated by your own imagination to recognize that you were walking into something you didn’t want.  

Seokjin, though, was different. He’d been drastically far from your expectations, absolutely. But instead of that eventual feeling of self-directed bitterness and regret for setting yourself up for failure, you felt guilty. Overwhelmed with guilt and shame, actually. Even if he had an awful sense of humor, Seokjin was great. He was kind and charming and teasing and thoughtful and earnest. He was genuine. 

Yes, if there was one word to describe Seokjin, it was genuine. But if you had to add a few more words, they would be ‘too fucking nice.’

When you were about to be keeled over in the school’s bathroom, puking your brains out with the flu, it was Seokjin that had noticed you were feeling off and chased you down after class. He’d been the one to see how sick you were, to hold your hair while you were bent over the toilet, to take you to the doctor and bring you homemade soup for dinner. 

While you panicked about the project due in the next few days, Seokjin adamantly insisted that you rest and promised that he could take care of it for you. He was unwavering in his resolve and despite the guilt brewing in your stomach alongside the nausea, you almost let yourself think he was doing this just because he wanted to, not because it was his personality. 

You didn’t deserve him. Not his friendship, not his love, not his time. He’s out of your league. Hell, he’s playing a different sport entirely. What you were doing wasn’t fair. This friendship didn’t happen because you were genuinely nice like Seokjin. It happened because you were lonely and, frankly, thirsty.

So, while you’re taking your final exam for your class with Jin, you reach the conclusion that it’s time to fess up. To admit who you really are, what your motives were, the reason you kept coming back for coffee you didn’t like. And then you’d cut it off. Not that you think you’d have to. Seokjin would see just how crazy you were and then never speak to you again. Things would be right with the universe and you’d be guilt-free, if a little embarrassed. 

Your pencil hovers over the scantron and you consider that you probably should have spent all this time focusing on the exam and not your friendship’s impending doom. 

But this class had been nothing short of an easy A, so you decide to have a little faith in yourself that even you could choose the correct answers while your mind wandered elsewhere. 

Yes, this was the best option. It’s not like you were in love with Seokjin, missing his presence and smile the minute he walked out the door and admiring the way his laugh lit up a room. Seokjin wasn’t some unreachable fantasy. You wouldn’t be retreating to your room sobbing if he was suddenly gone. He was just a person. He was just Seokjin. You could let him go. He could realize what you really were.

Easy peasy. Right? 

When you shoulder your bag and trudge out of the exam room, Seokjin is waiting for you, despite finishing a few minutes earlier. He was much too nice to other people like that. He hasn’t quite noticed you yet, too absorbed in a conversation with a fellow classmate. You indulge in his objectively perfect features for what will likely be the last time, but you don’t let your imagination wander. You just take the moment to appreciate what is in front of you. 

“Oh, I don’t know, I’m pretty tired...” You note the awkward, apologetic smile on his face and wonder what they’d been talking about. In that moment, his eyes flicker to yours, immediately lighting up. “Oh, Y/N!” He shifts towards you, leaving the poor girl to flounder. While he smiles enthusiastically your way, your expression is almost completely neutral. The abandoned classmate looks back and forth between the two of you, trying to decipher your relationship. You sigh, internally scolding him for wasting his attention on you. 

“Hey, Jin.” You address him by the nickname you’ve heard his friends call him. He’d never explicitly told you to call him that, but when it accidentally slipped out one day, he smiled to himself and you added the name to your vocabulary.

“Well, how do you feel? It’s over!” You shrug, shifting the backpack you always carry to the other shoulder. 

“Not as good as you do, I’m sure.” Seokjin’s brows furrow curiously and cutely, not understanding where you’re going. “You’re graduating? I’m still stuck here another year.”

“Ahh, at least the semester’s over. You are coming to my graduation, right?” You shoot him a look saying something akin to, ‘are you stupid?’

“Of course I am. You’d never let me live it down if I didn’t.” Seokjin laughs but doesn’t argue. You realize the classmate from before is long gone. You’re not sure when she left. Good, now you can tell Seokjin what you’ve been meaning to. “Can I talk to you?”

“Aren’t we talking now?” You sigh, loosely crossing your arms. 

“You know what I mean, Seokjin.” Sensing your serious demeanor, Seokjin immediately drops his teasing smile, switching his expression to one laced with concern. 

“Yes, of course. My shift starts in half an hour, though. Can we talk on the way to the shop?” 

“Sure.” Perfect, actually. Walking side by side, you wouldn’t have to watch that soft smile turn into an expression of disgust when you admitted what you were about to. 

As the two of you walk across campus and into the city, you tell him everything. You tell him how the minute you saw him, you’d thought he was the hottest person you’d ever laid eyes upon. You tell him how you came back almost thrice a week just to stare and think about him. You tell him how you don’t even like coffee, but your frequent visits to the shop have made you dependent on caffeine. You tell him how you’d had a bit of a crush on him, no, on your fantasy version of him for months. You tell him you don’t feel like that now, that you just feel guilty that this friendship existed when it was all born from a lie, from a terrible habit you couldn’t seem to break. You tell him how fake you are.

“And you deserve better than that, than me. I’m sorry I dragged you along for so long. I shouldn’t have.” You haven’t looked at him once this whole time, too ashamed to clue yourself in to what he’s thinking. “I think that’s everything.” Seokjin stays silent for a few agonizing minutes as the scenery morphs from tall, brick lecture buildings and trees into a more urban environment filled with bustling streets and colorful displays in the store windows. 

“Can I ask a question?” You jump at his voice. You’re almost surprised he’s still here. 

“Yeah.” You nervously fidget with your backpack straps, still refusing to even glance his way. 

“When you actually got to know me better, were you disappointed?” If you didn’t know any better, you’d say he sounded nervous. Heat rises to your cheeks. Shit, you’d hurt his feelings, hadn’t you? Why couldn’t he just get mad or storm off to leave you in the dust? Did he think that you hated him? That you were tired of him and that’s why you were doing this? You had to make him understand. You are the problem, not him. God, why was this idiot so nice?

“What? No!” You’re frantic with worry. Maybe you were being too egotistical to think that your confession had hurt his self-image, but you were willing to take the risk. “You’re great, Seokjin. You’re sweet and thoughtful and funny- well, actually your humor could use some work -and perfect. You’re a great friend. It’s me who’s disappointing. You’ve never disappointed me, not once.”

If you could just tear your eyes from the sidewalk, you’d see that Seokjin was grinning from ear to ear, over-the-moon ecstatic your compliments. Neither of you has ever been great with words, so you hope your pep talk was enough and that his silence is a good sign. 

The skies have begun shifting away from bright and sunny to grey and cloudy. The air is thick and heavy, like it’s about to rain. Just your luck. You should have checked the weather channel this morning. 

“We have caffeinated drinks other than coffee on the menu, you know.” 

Really? You’d just confessed your most embarrassing secret and that’s all he had to say? You stumble over your words, not sure whether to be flustered (because you definitely didn’t know that) or frustrated at his unwavering good nature. 

“Oh.” You grow sheepish and pretend to find the dirt under your fingernails interesting. “I guess I had a hard time focusing back then.” Those days had long faded away. You didn’t crumble under his gaze anymore or struggle to form coherent sentences around him. He’d long lost his mystery. 

Then, Seokjin laughs. He laughs and he chuckles and giggles and you cringe. You want to crawl into a hole and never come back out. When other times you could find humor in the rambunctious sounds spilling from his lips, now it only felt jarring, like a smack in the face. He was laughing at you, at how much of a hopeless idiot you are. You suppose that was better than him feeling betrayed and never wanting to see you again. Though he hasn’t exactly ruled out the latter. 

This is what you wanted, this is what you wanted. 

You say nothing, consumed by your own bitterness, as Seokjin calms down. 

“You’re pretty stupid, Y/N.” Your face falls. 

You knew that. He didn’t have to tell you. 

You were stupid to keep showing up at the coffee shop like a lovestruck teenager. You were stupid to believe Seokjin was your friend or that he might have even enjoyed your presence. He was just too goddamn nice and you were too goddamn stupid.

As the two of you get within a few blocks of the cafe, Seokjin’s hand brushes against yours. 

“Oh, sorry.” You’re quick to yank it away, almost burned by his touch, but to your surprise, Seokjin chases after it, fastening his palm against yours and intertwining your fingers. 

What was he doing?

“What are you doing?” For the first time since you started your rambling, you look at Seokjin, gape at him. But the timing is poor and now he’s staring straight ahead, not giving you a passing glance. 

“Do you really think I would have given you free drinks and sat next to you in class and talked to you every day if I didn’t at least like you a little bit?” You’re rendered speechless, eyes bugging out of your head.  

“I- um...”

“For being an accounting major, you really are the densest person I know.” His tone is light despite his blatant insults. “Don’t you realize I had a little crush on you, too? I was so excited when I realized we were going to share a class, but you never gave me the time of day.”

Your mouth opens and closes but no words leave it, not unlike a fish. 

“I've nearly asked you out at least three times now, but I kept chickening out.” 

The entire world feels like it’s flipped upside down. It’s like gravity’s stopped working and your head is spinning and you’re dizzy and your heart as burst and Seokjin’s hand enveloping yours is the only thing keeping you from floating away into the sky. 

The revelation smacks you in the face. 

Seokjin’s a liar. Not as genuine as you’d thought, after all. 

While you spent a semester pretending you liked coffee when really you just thought Seokjin was hot, he’d spent the next pretending he was only interested in your friendship when he’d been harboring a crush on you. 

You struggle to contain the small smile on your face. Seokjin’s hand gently squeezes yours and lightning shoots up your skin and spine. 

Seokjin’s eyes finally meet yours as the two of you stare sheepishly at each other. His gaze flickers to your lips a few times and you openly ogle at his, but he doesn’t lean in. He simply lifts your entwined hands and smiles, a short breath leaving his nostrils in place of a chuckle. It’s content and peaceful. There’s no need for love declarations or romantic kisses. You think you could be happy here forever knowing Seokjin wants you by his side. 

The moment ends when a raindrop hits your nose, startling the hell out of you. 

While you’re disoriented, Seokjin laughs and tugs you into the shop, now only a few steps away. The place is rather busy for it being lunchtime, but Seokjin weaves the two of you through the throng, stopping by the staff door. 

He looks at you with slight mischief. 

“You know, since it’s raining, you should probably just stay in here. Don’t wanna catch a cold.” You want to scoff, tell him that’s ridiculous and that your dorm is only a few minutes away. But you swallow your retort and let him have his moment. 

“Good idea,” you agree solemnly with a nod. 

“Actually, you should probably just stay until I’m off my shift. You never know when the rain might pick up again.” This time, you can’t help but quirk a brow. 

“Because you’re planning to protect me from the rain? You don’t have a jacket either.” Seokjin gives an offended look, like you’d just insulted his pride. 

“No, it’s so we can get sick together. It’d be romantic.” You scrunch your nose. Having fevers and runny noses and gross coughs together? Doesn’t seem like an ideal first date. 

“Sounds romantic.”

“I’m glad you agree.” 

You’re staring at each other again, in your own little bubble, until a customer brushes against your shoulder and you’re reminded that Seokjin is technically on payroll right now. He has a similar realization and reluctantly releases your hand, blowing a kiss over his shoulder as he steps through the staff door. You roll your eyes, feigning embarrassment, but on the inside, you’re melting. 

You plop down in your self-assigned seat in the most well-ventilated part of the cafe that also has a very convenient view of your favorite barista. The semester’s over and you have no work to do, but you don’t mind, content to watch Seokjin work while mindlessly giggling when he shoots you winks in between orders. 

You don’t fantasize or wonder where this might go. You don’t think your imagination could come up with anything better than what’s in front of you. 

You do predict, however, that you’ll be spending many more hours cooped up in this little cafe. 

Old habits die hard, you suppose. 

[prophetparadox]

DMC OC Week Day 4: Likes/Dislikes

(No image because I couldn’t find one that’s relevant sorry)

Midnight again, so here’s another @dmc-oc-week prompt! This one is just a bullet point list since I didn’t have time to make a fic for it. Plus it’s pretty simple. Don’t have much else to say for this one. Enjoy!

Likes:

Since Kay is usually stuck at the Devil May Cry office, she’s had to find ways to kill time. This has led her to binge watch a lot of movies/tv shows since she missed out on them while growing up. Sometimes she just puts things on as background noise while she’s doing something else, but she likes watching things and will proceed to talk about her favorite ones to whoever walks in. Her tastes are eclectic, but she tends to prefer musicals, sci-fi, fantasy, and animation. She loves Tim Burton movies the best though.

She also tends to binge read. She tends to frequent the local library and check out a couple of books at a time depending on what she’s reading. Any books she really likes she proceeds to buy for herself. She tends to check out classics and books she’s heard a lot about, but sometimes she’ll pick something up just because it catches her eye. Usually if she’s not watching movies or something, she’s reading books. She enjoys the works of Stephen King and Edgar Allen Poe the best, though she also enjoys fantasy stories and stuff with vampires and werewolves in it.

Her music tastes are also a bit eclectic, as she enjoys a little bit of almost everything. Whenever Dante’s out, she usually starts playing her favorites on the jukebox. She likes pop, various kinds of rock, and of course musicals. She also has a tendency to sing along to what she’s listening to when she thinks no one’s around to hear her.

A hobby she managed to pick up was baking. She likes to try her hands at making sweets in the hope that she’ll improve with practice. Though she usually has to hide them from Dante so he doesn’t eat them all at once. Her specialty is salted caramel brownies.

Since she can’t go out on demon hunting missions, she tries to get some sparring sessions in with Trish and Lady when they’re around so she doesn’t get rusty. While she wishes she could go out on the field more, she greatly enjoys their sessions.

Nero got her into video games, to the chagrin of Dante’s wallet. She tends to prefer longer games with a lot of content so she can go longer without needing a new one, and tends to gravitate towards RPGs.

Kay loves animals, and will happily pet any dog she comes across while out of the office. She wants a pet herself, but knows she probably can’t have any. So she dreams of the day when she can have one. Once V enters her life, she quickly bonds with Shadow and he ends up being the demon shapeshifting cat she didn’t know she wanted.

Dislikes

Boredom is the bane of her existence. She’s always trying to find something to do, just to stave off the feeling of boredom. She’d rather take unpleasant tasks over nothing at all.

Unfortunately, living with Dante means living with his messes. Which means cleaning up said messes. She hates cleaning, and would rather go on not needing to do it so often.

She hates thunder. Thunder brings her back to unpleasant memories she’d rather never revisit, and the louder the thunder the worse it is for her. She tends to hide herself away during storms, too worried about the potential questions others might ask.

She hates what her “job” amounts to. She’d rather be fighting demons over getting Dante’s pizzas and takeout and coffee. She wants to do more than just intern work.

She is very tired of Dante treating her as his daughter. She appreciates that he cares about her, but she’s not his kid and she doesn’t want to be treated like one. Sure, Dante’s older than her, but she’s an adult now and can handle herself.

Do not try to wake her up early, you will regret it. She enjoys having a full night's sleep and unless there’s a damn good reason to be waking her up early, you shouldn’t. You will incur her wrath and you will be sorry.

[orhelponefaintingrobin]

Fantastical Metaphor in ‘Wandavision’ and ‘Star Trek: Discovery’

BIG spoilers for ‘Wandavision’ and the third season of ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ under the cut.

Now that ‘Wandavision’ is done, I wanted to just talk about a weird parallel I found. Not a deliberate one or anything, just an interesting similarity with something else. Strangely, that thing was ‘Star Trek: Discovery’? Specifically, how both shows’ answers to their season-long mysteries (at least, one of them) ended up coming down not to malice or any real villainous activity, but from their grief.

I like it when stories like this externalise very internal feelings in this way; it’s a strength I think sci-fi/fantasy has, the ability to use fantastical metaphors for very human experiences.

In ‘Wandavision’, we all, from the start, were asking how the sitcom world came to be. All we know, all we’re learning in the first few episodes, is that they’re there, and we’re not sure why. Once we start seeing stuff outside, we’re not given a lot of answers. A few bits trickle in here and there. And then, last week, we see the truth; it was an accident. Wanda, racked with grief and having to see Vision die twice, and finding herself at the plot of land he thought could be their home, loses control of powers she didn’t even know she had, and creates the Hex. She traps not only herself in her grief, but those around her. And, in this finale, she had to realise that her only choice was to walk away, to choose to let go of this life she imagined for herself and Vision, and try and piece herself back together.

At the beginning of the third season of ‘Star Trek: Discovery’, protagonist Michael Burnham, alongside Discovery and its crew, are transported to the 32nd century, almost a thousand years in their future, where they discover that the Federation has all but collapsed, due to ‘The Burn’, a cataclysmic event that destroyed most of society’s supply of Dilithium, as well as any ship with an active warp core. Finding out why is Michael’s mission for the season, and many suggestions are made. In the end, however, the answer is a lot sadder than we ever thought. Su’Kal, a child born to a mother whose ship crashed on a planet made of Dilithium, whose biology adapted to his surroundings to survive (it’s Star Trek, they don’t explain it, just roll with it), caused the Burn when he had to watch his mother die, and his outpouring of emotion resonated with the Dilithium, sending a wave through space, causing the reaction. This child’s grief caused the end of the world.

Even their solutions are similar. Nothing can undo the Burn, but it almost happens again, and the galaxy can’t really be safe, society can’t reach the point where it can rebuild, until Su’Kal chooses to leave the planet, to move on with his life, despite his fears about leaving his life behind. And Wanda, despite knowing she’ll lose the family she’s made, knows she has no choice but to let them go, and move on with her life, because the people of Westview don’t deserve to be hurt any more because of her.

I just think it’s interesting how two shows in the space of a few months made this similar choice; the disaster that you expect to be some nefarious plot, something done deliberately, was in fact done by accident, by someone who didn’t even realise they had the power to do something like that, simply because their grief was too much to handle, and they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. It doesn’t make it up to the people hurt; most of the people who survived the Burn are already dead anyway, but the citizens of Westview certainly aren’t going to feel too sympathetic to Wanda; that, I’d argue, is why she takes herself off on her own at the end, so she can learn to make sure nothing like that happens again. But it’s a very personal, human answer to the question, that I’d never necessarily expect a big franchise like Star Trek or the MCU to choose.

Like I said, I think the ability to do stuff like this, to use fantastical concepts to externalise human experiences in interesting ways, is something that sci-fi/fantasy really has going for it, and I really hope we see other stories carry on doing similar things. I want to see more stories that have these small, personal answers to big questions, that use them to tap into these experiences. It’s cool, and I like it.

[aion-rsa]

15 Best PlayStation One RPGs Ever Made

https://ift.tt/3rHgcZn

In our look at the best Super Nintendo RPGs ever, we mentioned that the SNES is arguably the greatest RPG console in video game history. Well, if there is a console that makes that discussion an argument, it would have to be the PlayStation One. 

With a lot of help from Square, Sony quickly established the PlayStation as not just the home of incredible RPG experiences but as a console that was capable of effectively convincing people who previously had no real interest in RPGs that they absolutely needed to devote 50+ hours of their life to the next gaming epic. That sudden rise in genre popularity inspired some of the industry’s greatest RPG developers to try to outdo each other creatively and commercially. 

The result was a classic collection of role-playing experiences that still rank comfortably among the absolute best ever made. With due respect to the 20+ other games that deserve to be on this list, these are the 15 best PS1 RPGs ever made. 

15. The Legend of Dragoon

The Legend of Dragoon’s legacy has only grown since the game’s late 1999 release, and it’s not hard to see why. While this game was initially criticized for not living up to the standards of some of the other PS1 RPGs we’ll soon be talking about, time has been kind to the various things this game does so very well.

The Legend of Dragoon makes up for its slow story with an incredible combat system that emphasizes an almost QTE-like mechanic that helps ensure you’re rarely simply watching a battle play out. This RPG’s character transformation mechanic is also one of those brilliant gameplay concepts that should have been copied many times since this game’s release. There’s also always been something special about the fact that Legend of Dragoon‘s ambitious CGI cutscenes ensured this epic spanned four PS1 discs. 

14. Wild Arms

Wild Arms is another one of those PS1 RPGs that were initially overshadowed by some of the all-time classic games it had to compete against, but the thing that stood out about this title at the time is the thing that still makes Wild Arms special to this day: its style. 

Wild Arms‘ blend of sci-fi, fantasy, and western design concepts shouldn’t work nearly as well as it does here. Developer Media.Vision deserves a lot of credit for ensuring this game’s ambitious world always felt cohesive and for finding some truly clever ways to subvert genre expectations through this title’s approach to exploration, combat, and puzzles. 

13. Breath of Fire III

The Breath Of Fire III vs. Breath of Fire IV debate will likely not be settled here, but the third entry in this series ultimately gets my nod due to the ways it so clearly raised the bar for this franchise and its genre competition. 

Breath of the Fire III’s 3D visuals and voice acting helped sell this game’s engaging story, while the game’s combat and wonderful cast of characters ensured you were constantly engaged and ready to see where this absolute gem was going to take you next. 

12. Front Mission 3

Front Mission 3 rewards players willing to put the time into its fairly complex mechanics and deep storyline with one of the best tactical RPGs of the era and one of the best mech games ever made. 

This game is rightfully remembered for its customization options and often punishing tactical gameplay but I don’t know if it gets enough love for its faction-driven narrative and the ways its visuals convey epic mech battles without relying on more traditional action gameplay. 

11. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

The only reason this all-time great game isn’t higher on the particular list is that there are just other PS1 RPGs that better represent the genre and the kind of epic experiences we think of when we think of one of the best RPG platforms ever. 

Having said that, the way that Symphony of the Night incorporated RPG elements not only changed the franchise forever but eventually helped inspire developers everywhere to enhance their own action titles by utilizing role-playing mechanics. This is still one of the best blends of role-playing and action/adventure ever made.

10. Valkyrie Profile

Long before God of War took us on a journey through Norse mythology, Valkyrie Profile caught many PS1 gamers by surprise with its unique blend of Japanese design and a Norse narrative that tasks you with assembling the perfect party of heroes to assist you through Ragnarok.

Valkyrie Profile‘s true calling card, though, is its turn-based combat system that essentially assigns a button to each character in your party. Getting the most out of your party of heroes requires you to successfully assign each character the right actions at the right time in order to unleash powerful combo attacks. It’s complex, original, and a whole lot of fun. 

9. Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete 

Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete may have started off as a Sega Saturn title, but it’s hard not to ultimately remember this as a PS1 game due to the many ways that Sony’s first console allowed Lunar’s developers to share their full vision for this classic. 

It’s true that Lunar is an “old-school” JRPG in a lot of ways that might turn some people off, but when level grinding, party management, and methodical turn-based gameplay are done this well, it’s hard not to see this as one of the ultimate genre comfort zones. 

8. Star Ocean: The Second Story

It’s hard to talk about Star Ocean without eventually getting around to the fact that it has almost 90 possible endings, so let’s not bury the lede. What’s even more impressive than the game’s number of possible endings, though, is the fact that many of those endings are clever, logical, and, in their own ways, complete. 

Really, though, this game’s incredible number of possible conclusions just highlights the various ways this sci-fi/fantasy title makes you feel like every action you do truly matters and that anything can happen. I also have to pay respect to this game’s brilliant “private action” system: a unique mechanic that allows your party members to have their own adventures that ultimately contributes to some of the best sidequests in RPG history.

Read more

Games

25 Best RPGs Ever Made

By Matthew Byrd

Games

Was Final Fantasy Really the First JRPG?

By Matthew Byrd

7. Xenogears

Xenogears features a fascinating blend of styles and mechanics that is quite appropriate considering the details of this game’s complicated development history (it started off as a pitch for Final Fantasy VII before briefly being designed as a Chrono Trigger sequel). Admittedly, there are times when you can tell this game is trying to find its creative voice and gameplay footing. 

Yet, all the concepts this RPG touches upon ultimately come together to form something wonderful and memorable. It features one of the best ATB combat systems ever, a complex and creative story, a lot of heart, great visuals, and a truly incredible soundtrack. Sure, the game struggles a bit in the second half, but it’s easy enough to overlook those shortcomings as the byproduct of ambition. 

6. Final Fantasy VII

Final Fantasy VII should be a victim of its own success. After all these years, all the praise, and all of the discussions, you would think we’d be at the point where the dreaded term “overrated” might linger just above this game’s legacy. 

That’s not the case, though. Maybe Final Fantasy VII was eventually surpassed, but it’s truly tragic to imagine what RPG gaming in the ‘90s and early 2000s would have been like if it wasn’t for this game. It alerted millions to the fact they loved video game RPGs, and it did it without sacrificing depth, quality, heart, or ambition. 

5. Final Fantasy Tactics

Considered by many at the time to be the best tactical RPG ever made, it has to be said that the most impressive thing about Final Fantasy Tactics is the fact that it’s still difficult to argue against this game’s claim to that title nearly 24 years after its release.

Final Fantasy Tactics‘ surprisingly accessible (yet still deep and rewarding) gameplay perfectly complements its colorful visuals, engaging character, and surprising story. I don’t know if it’s the best tactical RPG ever made, but it may always be seen as the standard in the eyes of many. 

4. Vagrant Story

It feels like people have been waiting for Vagrant Story to get the love it deserves ever since the game was released in 2000. While Vagrant Story absolutely has a cult following, it seems pretty clear at this point that it’s just never going to reach that level. It’s too difficult, too different, and it will probably never get the remaster it deserves. 

However, those who have played Vagrant Story know it was Square’s most mechanically ambitious and unique PlayStation RPG. From its stunning visuals to its deep combat and mature narrative, Vagrant Story has honestly aged better than all but a few of the games of this era. A game this different and innovative shouldn’t feel as complete and confident as it does. 

3. Chrono Cross

From the moment Chrono Cross was released, it feels like the first line about this game has been that it disappointed those who were expecting a direct follow-up to Chrono Trigger. Even when we learned that the Chrono Cross team never really saw this as a Chrono Trigger sequel, Chrono Cross still lived in the shadow of its all-time great predecessor.

Maybe there are ways that Chrono Cross would have been better off sticking closer to that SNES classic, but even at the time of its somewhat controversial release, many praised Chrono Cross for its innovative combat, weird and wonderful story, large cast of characters, music, visuals, and commitment to defying expectations at every turn. This shouldn’t be your first PS1 RPG, but it might be the one you end up remembering most fondly. 

2. Final Fantasy IX

Final Fantasy IX was essentially Square’s PS1 swan song. While the title’s return to the medieval fantasy style of classic FF games highlights the studio’s jovial mood at the time, the fact is that many people wondered if Square could recover from the controversial Final Fantasy VIII and produce an RPG that effectively ended their unbelievable run of hits in style. 

The fact they managed to do just that is an accomplishment that should never be overlooked. To this day, I struggle to think of even a handful of RPGs that challenge Final Fantasy IX’s charm, humor, and cast of characters while still providing a role-playing adventure that will feel rewarding to veterans and newcomers alike. This is an across-the-board triumph that delights and impresses in equal measure. 

1. Suikoden II

Suikoden II was pretty much “doomed to fail” from the start. It was released in the wake of Final Fantasy VIII’s massive debut, wasn’t widely distributed, and featured “retro” graphics that initially turned quite a few people off at the time of cinematic PS1 visuals. It didn’t help that its predecessor was a very good, but not great, RPG that also failed to find a wide audience. 

Yet, Suikoden II is quite simply one of the best games ever made regardless of genre. I would love to tell you about its nuanced and deep politically-driven narrative, varied combat system, minigames, world-building elements, and score, but how long can you really talk about Suikoden II without getting around to its cast of over 100 recruitable characters and the ways Konami managed to make each and every one of them (as well as their interactions with each other) among the best of their era? 

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

I wouldn’t call this a perfect game, but at the same time, I’m struggling to think of a single thing I’d change about it. 

The post 15 Best PlayStation One RPGs Ever Made appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/39gAS1Z

[not-majestic-bluenicorn]

Crescent || Chapter 13

Fandom(s): ATEEZ

AU: Treasure Hunters

Genre: Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

Relationship: Everyone x Everyone, Established Hongjoong x Yunho

Language: English

Status: Ongoing

Chapter WC: 5,954 words

Warnings: Character Death, Stabbing, Fighting, Blood, Aliens, War, Funerals, Kidnapping, Attempted Kidnapping, Mentions of Child Abuse / Child Work, Explosions, Murder Attempt, Robbery, Homeless/Runaway Character, Torture, Mentions of Slavery more will be added.

Chapter Warnings: Mentions of slavery, Mentions of Child Abuse / Child Work.

Summary:

San didn't want to admit it, but he had not only come to care about Hongjoong, but also about what he represented. He cared about the ship, and the crew, and with each passing day he put more sincerity in his job of deciphering the map.

AO3

<< Previous Chapter | Masterlist | Next Chapter >>

Tagged: @angel0taiyo​

Early the next day, Hongjoong called in the most important members of the crew for a meeting. They needed to discuss how they would proceed after the deviation they had taken to save Seonghwa and the rest from the slave traders. Everyone met with him in his quarters, where Yeosang and San were working on the map while they had the meeting.

At first it had been difficult for them to work together, because they had completely different methods. However, once they had learned to work around their differences, they had actually sped up the work and were becoming more and more successful at deciphering the codes ingrained in the map. They had become such a good team that they basically didn't need Hongjoong, but he was still there to offer his help.

"Our expenses are getting a bit out of hand," said Siyeon once the meeting had started and the formalities had been left aside. "It's taking too long to find this treasure."

"I know, personally I also believe it's taken more than I would like it to," Hongjoong sighed. He turned to look at San and Yeosang, and caught them just as they turned back to their work. "Yeosang and San are working very hard in deciphering the map though, and we've made an amazing progress compared to when we first started out."

"I think we'll be better off once we drop everyone off so they can go to their home planets," Yunho intervened, also looking at Yeosang and San. "Naturally it costs a lot to maintain a crew that has doubled in size, but I believe that once we go back to normal, we'll be okay."

"That is a good point," Siyeon accepted. "I'm worried about the fuel though, we consumed a lot of it during the rescue."

"True, while the warp speed helped with the surprise attack and with our escape, it consumes a lot of fuel," Hwanwoong agreed.

"I have word from one of our crew members that we should be able to get more fuel at a better price, I'll talk to them." Hongjoong grinned, already thinking of the first mission he would give to Seonghwa.

As the leaders discussed how they would manage the situation they were in, Yeosang and San worked on the map. Yeosang kind of liked San. He was serious and hard working, and he made Yeosang feel important when they worked together because he was a good listener. But for all he had tried for them to become friends, he wasn't so sure San liked him back. San was quiet and serious, and according to everyone he was always working on the map with Hongjoong, so they rarely ever saw him.

Despite the fact that they were working, Yeosang found it hard to concentrate. He kept listening in to the meeting and looking over at Hongjoong, almost like he was in a trance. Yeosang was kind of Hongjoong's fan. He admired him for his fighting and leadership skills, and also for his kind heart that was always ready for rescuing others. He respected Hongjoong for having saved him and given him a second chance. Yeosang just couldn't stop looking at him.

San noticed this, not only because he was observant, but because he too had caught himself looking at Hongjoong more than once. It was annoying, the way he felt like he was losing control of himself and he couldn't quite understand why. So he forced himself to look at Yeosang instead, which turned out to not be difficult at all. Yeosang was quiet, the bottom of his pen pressed to his lips as his eyes were fixed on Hongjoong.

There were all sorts of things in his eyes, San knew them all too well, since he had used those feelings to his advantage in previous missions. There was admiration and respect in his eyes, but there was also something far more profound. San decided it was yearning. Yeosang yearned for Hongjoong in such an obvious way that it was almost painful to watch. And nonetheless San understood, and wondered if he looked at Hongjoong in a similar way. He hoped not.

He looked back at the discussion group, and his eyes met with Yunho. The First Mate was looking at him with such intensity that, for the first time in his life, San felt vulnerable. He immediately looked away, hoping that Yunho hadn't noticed his reaction. San wondered if Yunho had noticed the way Yeosang looked at Hongjoong. He probably had, because Yunho was observant and protective about Hongjoong, but he wondered if he cared.

San didn't want to admit it, but he had not only come to care about Hongjoong, but also about what he represented. He cared about the ship, and the crew, and with each passing day he put more sincerity in his job of deciphering the map. He worried about conflict arising between Yunho and Yeosang if the first one got jealous over Hongjoong. It was so stupid how his worries had become almost petty when compared to the fact that he had joined the crew to kill the Captain.

Sighing, he went back to his work, there was nothing else to do. He felt Yeosang turn to look at him, felt the worry oozing from him as he wondered if he should ask San about what was on his mind. San hoped he didn't ask, because he would want to tell him. He would want to get all the confusion out of his chest, to just scream it out. And that wasn't what he had been taught to do. Emotions and feelings were a stone that dragged you down until you drowned.

"Do you want to take a break?" Yeosang asked instead. San raised his head to look at him and then looked at the meeting going on. He nodded, and both of them left the main quarters.

--

Once the meeting was over, Hongjoong and Yunho were left alone in the main quarters. Hongjoong busied himself ordering some of the materials San and Yeosang had left behind, to make sure nothing would be lost in the mess of their provisional meeting room. Yunho stood still in his place, arms crossed over his chest and observing Hongjoong critically.

"You know, San and Yeosang wouldn't stop looking at you," Yunho commented. "Especially Yeosang, I think he has something going on for you."

Hongjoong stopped in his tracks and just stared at the table where Yeosang and San had been working. He sighed and turned around. Yunho had been very insistent about this matter for a while now, and it was starting to mess with Hongjoong's head. There was nothing going on between Hongjoong and anyone in the crew, and Yunho knew it.

"Why do you insist so much with that topic?" Hongjoong muttered.

"Because I think you might have a thing for some of them too," Yunho pointed out calmly.

"I don't." Hongjoong said, marking each word.

"Why do you deny it so much?" Yunho put his arms down. "You know I don't mind, why won't you let yourself explore your feelings?"

"Because, Yunho," Hongjoong took a deep breath, "the Hongjoong they know isn't real. We're lying to them, remember? They don't know who I truly am.They can't like someone they don't know."

"Your title doesn't define everything you are Hongjoong," Yunho insisted. "You're more than that, despite what your father has made you think. You've shown them your authentic self, your last name means nothing."

"I'm here to find a treasure and get revenge on my brother's death," Hongjoong was quick to say, his tone was final, "not to collect boyfriends."

"Then make it less obvious, don't give them so much attention," Yunho muttered.

"Who even is 'them'?" Hongjoong asked, a little exasperated.

"San, Yeosang, Mingi, Jongho," Yunho listed, lifting his fingers one by one. "They are the only crew members you spend time with aside from me, Hwanwoong and Siyeon."

"That is-" He wanted to say it wasn't true, but thinking back to it, it kind of was. "Look, let's stop talking about this, okay? It really doesn't matter because at the end of the day we're going back to the castle and back to the war."

"Okay, fine," Yunho gave in, sighing. "Just don't be too hard on yourself, okay?"

"Sure," Hongjoong nodded, glad that the talk was over. "Now I need to go find Yeosang and San so we can get back to work, we're so close to finding the treasure."

"I'll go with you."

-- 

San and Yeosang were just taking a breath of fresh air in silence when Mingi made his way to them. He looked a little wary of San, who did his best to not look intimidating, but only managed to make Yeosang laugh at his awkwardness. Mingi, still a little afraid, looking at both of them in confusion.

"He's not scary Mingi, I promise, he's actually very nice." Yeosang said with a smile, passing an arm around San's shoulders. "He's just really bad at being a normal human being."

"Are you trying to help me or to insult me?" San muttered, glaring at Yeosang. 

"Hmm, whatever makes you feel better." Yeosang smiled. "Did you need something Mingi?"

"Well, actually..." Mingi began, but he couldn't get the words out of his mouth. He was nervous. His heart was making a mess of his pulse and his cheeks were suddenly turning very much red. He tried to speak but stuttered, and Yeosang smiled at him, endeared.

"You can tell me another time, if you want?" Yeosang kind of knew what Mingi wanted to say, because he was very transparent, but he didn’t want to force it out of him.

"No! I-" Mingi tries again, but the fact that San and Yeosang's eyes are focused on him doesn't help.

"Is something wrong?" A familiar voice asked from behind him and made Mingi yelp, surprised by Jongho's sudden appearance. "You seem to be on edge Mingi, is everything alright?"

Mingi liked that Jongho was worried about him. What he did not like though, was how his presence actually made him feel even more nervous and out of control. If Jongho's intention was to help him, he was doing the complete opposite. Mingi was trying so hard to calm down, but now there were three sets of eyes fixed on him, two of them belonging to people he liked. He was not having a good time.

"Oh, Seonghwa!" Jongho exclaimed suddenly, as he spotted someone walking at the other side of the deck. "Come here!" Jongho called over. Seonghwa looked a little wary at first before he recognized Jongho, and gladly walked up to them.

"Wait, Seonghwa?" Mingi's eyes widened, and he immediately took a step forward and grabbed Seonghwa by the arm. "You're Seonghwa?"

Seonghwa looked at him with wide eyes, confused and a little taken aback. Mingi didn't see the way Yeosang tensed up behind him, or how San looked at Yeosang in mild understanding, or how Jongho looked a little disappointed. All he could see was Seonghwa, the person that had worried Wooyoung so much. One of the eight, along with Hongjoong and possibly Yeosang.

"I- Yes, that would be me?" Seonghwa asked, looking towards Jongho for a little help.

"I'm so glad you're okay!" He leaned in closer to whisper to him so the others couldn't hear. "Wooyoung was asking for you last night."

Seonghwa stepped back and looked at him in surprise. He looked at Jongho as well, who could almost guess what Mingi had told him, and Jongho nodded at him. Seonghwa smiled brightly at Mingi, but before he could do anything like ask him his name, Yeosang stepped right in the middle, staring Seonghwa down.

"Uh, excuse me?" Seonghwa asked, a little confused.

"I should be asking that," Yeosang muttered. He didn't know why, but he immediately didn't like this Seonghwa guy. "Who are you? Why are you so close to my friend?"

"I'm your new crew member," Seonghwa raised an eyebrow. "I was not expecting this welcome, with how polite the Captain is. I guess he can't represent all of you, huh?"

"Uhm, guys..." Mingi muttered softly. He didn't understand what was going on, but he didn't like it. Jongho looked just as confused.

"Well, he certainly doesn't represent your kind either," Yeosang bit back, "our Captain is way more humble."

"Look, you little-" Seonghwa began, but he was interrupted by Hongjoong, who was walking towards them while calling their names.

"Glad to see you're all together and getting along!" Hongjoong said, smiling widely, ignorant to the fact that they had been seconds away from jumping at each other’s throats. "Yeosang, San, we need to get back to work."

"Yes sir," they said in unison. Yeosang glared at Seonghwa once before San pulled him away towards the main quarters. 

"Seonghwa, I would like to talk to you later today, put your skills to use," Hongjoong commented before patting the man on the back. "See me later in my quarters, please."

"Of course, Captain," Seonghwa nodded. Hongjoong marched away with Yeosang and San, and Seonghwa sighed. "I better go back to my exercises, the nurse said they would help me recover faster. If you'll excuse me." He gave a slight bow to both Jongho and Yunho, and then left.

"I better go see if someone needs help with their tasks, since I already finished with the ship maintenance," Jongho was quick to excuse himself, but he didn't get to leave before Yunho stopped him.

"Jongho, wait," Yunho said. "Can we talk for a minute?" Jongho looked at him, a bit confused, but nodded nonetheless.

Yunho took him to the forecastle deck, which was currently empty. They leaned against the rail, silent for a moment while Yunho tried to put together what he wanted to say. It wasn't easy talking about his past, but he could still remember what Hongjoong had told him about Jongho, and he wanted to offer his help, his support. He finally sighed and looked at Jongho, giving him a smile.

"Hongjoong told me a little bit about your past," Yunho said, trying to hold Jongho's gaze, but the other looked away instead.

"How much did he tell you?" Jongho asked, feeling a little uncomfortable about Yunho knowing about it.

"Not much, I promise," Yunho sighed. "He just mentioned that you had negative memories related to child work... And I just wanted to say that if you ever need someone to lean on, I'm here for you."

"I appreciate that," Jongho muttered, "but why? We haven't really talked much before?"

"Well, I went through a similar situation when I was a kid," Yunho looked down at his hands, feeling Jongho's eyes turn to him. "I was captured by slave traders and forced to work on the ship as a Powder Monkey; I thought I wouldn't last much if I'm honest."

"Then how are you...?" Jongho didn't want to finish the question. He realized it just was too rude, too inappropriate.

"Alive? Here?" Yunho completed it for him, and then smiled. "Don't be afraid of being crude with me, I can handle it."

Jongho nodded, but didn't really say anything. He couldn't help but feel curious, and wanted to know more about Yunho's story, but he didn't want to rush him or pressure him into telling him more. Yunho seemed like he wanted to speak about it, but he was having a hard time forming the words.

"Well, I've only made it this far thanks to Hongjoong, to be honest," Yunho shrugged, trying to look unaffected.

"You two are dating, right?" Jongho asked. He hadn't wanted to intrude before, but Hongjoong and Yunho had always seemed particularly close, and he couldn't help but feel curious.

"Yeah, pretty much," Yunho nodded. "We've been dating for quite a few years now."

"And how did he help you, back then?" Jongho decided to ask finally, trying to help Yunho get the words out.

"Well, I told you I was forced to work as a powder monkey right?" Yunho confirmed, and Jongho nodded. "There were a few other kids with me, and we were treated really poorly. The royal guard of the Kim Empire detained the ship and rescued us, Hongjoong's family was one of the families that were offering their homes for the kidnapped kids."

"Oh," Jongho's mouth opened in surprise, he hadn't expected that. "They took you in?"

"Yes, I was ten back then and he was already eleven," Yunho smiled. "We clicked instantly, actually, he was the one to 'choose me', when they were finding us a home."

"That's kinda cute," Jongho chuckled. "I can't really picture it, but it sounds nice."

"We became best friends and later on we began dating, and now we're here," Yunho shrugged. "His support has helped me overcome everything that happened when I was on the ship. It's not perfect, but it's better." Yunho looked at Jongho again. Jongho was looking at him, smiling, looking more comfortable and relaxed. "So I want to be there for you, as well."

"Thank you Yunho," Jongho smiled.

"No need to thank me," Yunho smiled. "We're part of Hongjoong's crew, we're basically family now."

--

The day passed and everyone was relieved of their duties as it was time to head to sleep. Yeosang dragged San with him so he would join him at the dinner table with Jongho and Mingi. He had really taken a liking to San, who had become more relaxed around him and talked more than he did before; and now that he knew he wasn't actually scary, he wanted the others to notice too.

San didn't think the same way as Yeosang. Naturally, Yeosang probably didn't have any ulterior motives, so he didn't have to worry about making friends with people that would potentially become his enemies. He wasn't planning on killing Hongjoong anymore, he had come to accept he couldn't do it, but that didn't mean the others wouldn't try to kill him the moment they knew who he was.

Mingi and Jongho were just a little uncomfortable, still unsure about San's presence. Yeosang just smiled at them and San bowed his head slightly as a way of greeting. All of them felt awkward except Yeosang, but he pretended like it was all fine and guided the conversation, trying to make them feel a little more comfortable. And little by little, it worked.

"We haven't really talked about it, how did your side of the rescue go?" Jongho asked, looking at Yeosang and Mingi first, and then at San.

"It went great, Mingi was so cool!" Yeosang exclaimed, a big smile plastered on his face. "He was a bit nervous at first, but you should've seen him installing the bomb." Yeosang smiled suggestively towards Mingi, who turned beet red and just stared at his food in silence.

"I bet he looked really cool," Jongho chuckled. "I had to beat up a dude to save Seonghwa, but other than that I'd say it went pretty well."

Yeosang's expression immediately turned sour when Jongho mentioned Seonghwa, and all of them noticed. San looked at Mingi and Jongho first, who were sitting opposite to him, and then at Yeosang, who was sitting by his side. They had all noticed the tension that had flourished between the two men before, but they had no clue as to why it was there in the first place. San decided it would be best to just change topics.

"I was in the front line, along with Captain Hongjoong and Yunho," San commented, deviating the attention to him.

"No surprise there!" Yeosang commented, glad that the topic had changed. "You're an amazing fighter, I noticed it when you first captured me." San looked sheepish for a moment. He hadn't liked Yeosang much at first, but he was the only one other than Hongjoong and Yunho who treated him normally, so he had come to like him even if just a little bit.

"Sorry about that..." San muttered. "But yes, my father worked in the military and he trained me for a long time before I became a researcher." Those were all lies, but only he knew that.

"What did it feel like to fight alongside Captain Hongjoong and Yunho?" Mingi asked, finally recovering from his previous embarrassment. "I glanced at them when we were going in, and it looked really cool."

"Honestly they're a scary pair, I wouldn't like to go against them," San replied honestly. 

He had observed them fight during the rescue and they were unstoppable when together. They had very different styles though. Hongjoong was like an unpredictable storm, striking anywhere he saw fit and almost impossible to stop. Yunho was more calm and calculating, always knowing where to hit his enemy, which made him an elegant fighter. But the most impressive part was how aware they were of their surroundings. 

They always knew where the other was and were ready to jump in front of a blade for the other, but they also paid attention to the rest of their crew and came to their aid if it was necessary. Just like how Hongjoong had saved him. San found himself telling them as much, unable to hide a certain spark of excitement as he retold what had happened during the battle. He of course left behind the part where he had had a revelation about his feelings.

"That is amazing..." Mingi breathed out, food forgotten on his plate. Jongho and Yeosang nodded next to him.

"I'm so glad Captain Hongjoong decided to take pity on me..." Yeosang muttered. "Yunho was scary when he was interrogating me back when I tried to steal from this ship."

"Hope you've learned your lesson," San said with a slightly mocking grin, and Yeosang punched his shoulder slightly, making him laugh. Mingi and Jongho both stared at him in disbelief, and when San noticed, he looked at them with confusion. "What?"

"You laughed," Mingi gasped. 

"I'm human, of course I laughed!" San exclaimed, in disbelief. "I know I'm terrible at socializing but that's a bit too much." He complained.

"Sorry, sorry," Mingi smiled apologetically. "I'm honestly glad you're talking to us now, you're pretty nice."

"I agree, I feel a bit sorry for misjudging you before," Jongho nodded. "Not that you really knew about it, but still."

"Thanks, I guess?" San was a bit confused about their reactions, and also a bit conflicted. He didn't want them to like him, but he was also starting to wish he could belong in this ship like the others did.

"This is not related to what we were talking just now but..." Mingi began, thinking his words carefully, "when I went to tell Hongjoong about the slave ship, he and Yunho..." He ended up trailing off, not able to continue talking, as he remembered how Yunho had been sleeping shirtless next to the Captain.

"They're dating," Jongho and San confirmed in unison, looking at each other in surprise.

"They are?!" Mingi and Yeosang both exclaimed at the same time, equally shocked by the news.

"You hadn't noticed?" Jongho asked them, raising an eyebrow. It was disgustingly obvious that the two were an item.

"Well, I was suspicious but I didn't really want to assume..." Yeosang muttered, and Mingi nodded in agreement.

"You should have known better when we saw them sleeping on the same bed, with Yunho half naked," Jongho shook his head at Mingi, truly not believing that his friend hadn't thought of it.

"You what?!" Yeosang yelled again, and San was quick to shush him so he would stop screaming and making everyone around them uncomfortable. "Sorry..."

"That's what I was trying to say earlier, but it's embarrassing..." Mingi muttered.

"You get embarrassed too easily," Jongho chuckled.

"Sorry..." Mingi apologized, looking at his food instead.

"No, it's cute, don't worry about it," Jongho looked at Mingi and Mingi looked back.

San and Yeosang looked at them before looking at each other, clearly noticing that something was going on between the two of them. San then looked at Yeosang, because if his suspicion was right, Yeosang liked Mingi, which was why he had acted like that in front of Seonghwa. However, Yeosang was smiling this time, and didn't look even remotely as jealous as he had with Seonghwa. Maybe San was wrong about his theory.

"How did you know about the slave trading ship, by the way?" San decided to ask to change the topic.

"Uhm..." Mingi hesitated, looking at Jongho for help. "I dreamed about it?" 

"That's... interesting," San nodded, but decided not to question Mingi more about it, as it seemed to be making him nervous.

San instantly remembered Wooyoung's visit to his dreams. Of course, that was the only explanation. He had said he was visiting Mingi, Hongjoong and Yeosang as well, and had mentioned Yunho and Jongho as well. He had said that they were supposed to fall in love. San dropped his fork and motioned to stand up. He could feel his own face turning red with embarrassment as he remembered Wooyoung's words and the realization he had felt with Hongjoong. It wasn't right.

"San?" Yeosang asked, looking at him with worry, but San refused to meet eyes with him.

"Sorry, I don't feel too well, I think I'm gonna retire for the night." He explained quickly, picking up his plate and putting it away before leaving the dining hall.

The three of them stared at San as he left. Yeosang made a movement to follow him, but Jongho stopped him right on his tracks and shook his head. Yeosang looked once more to where San had disappeared and sighed, knowing Jongho was right. If San needed time alone then it was best if they gave it to him.

Shortly after they were done with dinner, they went to the deck to walk a little. Eventually, Mingi became too tired and decided to turn in for the night, wishing Yeosang and Jongho a good night and leaving them by themselves. Both of them continued to lap around the deck until they eventually stopped and just leaned next to the border, admiring the emptiness of the space surrounding them.

"Can I ask you something and you try to not get too angry?" Jongho asked. His tone was playful as he was half-joking, but he still hoped Yeosang wouldn't be mad at his question.

"What is it?" Yeosang turned to him, raising an eyebrow.

"Why did you get so angry at Seonghwa before? When I called him over to ask how he was," Jongho looked back at him in time to see Yeosang frown before he turned away.

"I just don't like him very much," Yeosang muttered. "He seems to think very high of himself, or something, and I don't like people like that," he exclaimed.

"I see," Jongho hummed, thinking his answer over, "he does seem to move differently to us."

"Probably not a good enough reason to dislike him, I guess, but I'm a bit impulsive," Yeosang shrugged.

They stayed in silence for another while, both of them just looking out into space. Jongho had worked with ships all of his life, but he had never really been out of orbit for such a long time. It was different to being locked in a workshop, working without rest. That experience had been scary, and he had thought it would never end; but the vastness of the galaxy was a different sort of scary, almost like it was trying to drown him out.

Yeosang on the other hand, had spent a lot of time in traveling ships, accompanying his father at his job when he was a child. He was used to this vastness, to not seeing anything for miles at a time. He was used to not knowing what time it was. To him it had been more scary to think he would never be able to leave his planet again, that he would be trapped inside its limited frame.

Jongho and Yeosang were widely different, and yet something had put them inside that ship. And Jongho was certain they had something in common that neither had expected. He sighed, because he was tired of beating around the bush. The only way to clear his doubts was to ask him about it.

"Are you sure you don't hate Seonghwa because of how he approached Mingi?" Jongho asked again. He put his hands together and did everything to avoid looking at Yeosang, who he could feel staring.

"You're probably right," Yeosang said after a moment of considering his answer.

"So... do you like Mingi too?" Jongho asked, a bit hesitant, not wanting to overstep some sort of invisible boundary. Yeosang let out a deep breath.

"Yeah, a little..." He admitted, feeling himself blush as he looked away.

"Right," Jongho nodded. However, Yeosang's answer only filled him with more questions. "Then... Do you hate me too?"

"What?" Yeosang turned to look at him abruptly. "No! Why would I?"

"Because I like Mingi too," Jongho muttered, blushing as well, but he was still looking at Yeosang.

"I know that, but why would that make me hate you?" Yeosang asked, genuinely confused.

"That is such a double standard..." Jongho muttered, chuckling slightly because of Yeosang's expression. "You don't like Seonghwa who got close to Mingi once but you don't mind me when I just told you I like Mingi?"

"Would you prefer I don't like you?" Yeosang raised an eyebrow, but somehow his expression only made Jongho laugh more. "Besides, you were here before me... I actually thought you and Mingi were dating from how close you were. If anything, you should be mad at me."

Jongho stopped laughing and looking at Yeosang with a smile. He didn't know why he found it so funny, but he did. He wasn't even a bit mad about Yeosang liking Mingi, it was not like he owned Mingi (or like he could own him to begin with). He was also not in charge of Yeosang's feelings, so why would he be mad for someone else liking Mingi when, in reality, it was quite understandable.

"We're not dating, and if you couldn't tell, I'm not mad at you," Jongho shrugged. "That's not how feelings work, I can't control who you like, why should I be angry?"

"I don't know, because I'm your rival?" Yeosang said, but he didn't look convinced at all.

"I'm gonna have to stop you there," Jongho shook his head. "Mingi's feelings are not a competition, and we're not rivals. We're friends Yeosang, and we're just gonna let him figure things out by himself." 

"Okay, yeah..." Yeosang nodded. "That makes sense, thanks..."

"But seriously, don't give Seonghwa such a hard time just because you're jealous," Jongho chuckled, enjoying the way Yeosang's ears turned red.

"He still antagonized me back there so we'll see how I go about that," Yeosang grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Okay then," Jongho raised his hands in defeat. They didn't say anything else, and just continued admiring the vastness of space.

--

Wooyoung felt urgency as he looked for Hongjoong's dreams. He didn't know why the Universe hadn't sent the vision earlier, but they were in danger and he needed to at least warn them so they could be ready. He had been nervous ever since they had saved Seonghwa, because he had a bad feeling about the results they had obtained, like everything had gone too well. And now he had confirmation that he had been right about being worried.

He quickly navigated the spider web of dreams in front of him until he got to Hongjoong's. The prince was once again dreaming of the life he had left behind, but this time he was in the palace, doing sword training. Wooyoung didn't have time to wake him gently, and instead just barged into the dream causing everything to become black. Hongjoong turned to him with sword in hand, but stopped his attempted attack as soon as he distinguished it was Wooyoung.

"You're finally here!" Hongjoong exclaimed, and Wooyoung could tell by his tone that he wasn't too happy about Wooyoung being radio silent for so long. "It certainly took you awhile, huh? Are you finally here to tell me what the heck is going on?"

"I promise I will but right now it's not the time!" Wooyoung exclaimed, walking closer to Hongjoong.

"Oh, come on, are you going to ask me to save someone else?" Hongjoong sighed. "Mingi said you told him we were supposed to be eight in total, it would only make sense if you need me to find more people." Wooyoung shook his head.

"None of that, everyone is in your ship now, except for me," Wooyoung breathed in deeply. "But that doesn't matter right now! Listen to me!"

"Okay, okay, what is it?" Hongjoong nodded, deciding to leave the questions for later.

"Your ship is going to be raided at any second now, you need to make sure all of your crew stay together, especially Seonghwa, don't let them take him away with the rest of the rescues," Wooyoung explained quickly, breathing harshly like he had been running a race. 

"What do you me-" Hongjoong began to ask, a bit confused, but he couldn't finish as he was abruptly pulled out of his dreams.

He woke up to an urgent Yunho quickly getting dressed while he yelled at him to wake up. Hongjoong felt lost and disoriented as he looked around and tried to understand. Yunho explained everything to him in short and quick sentences and he finally shot up as he understood what Wooyoung had been trying to say. He dressed up quickly just like Yunho and exited the quarters to find two bigger ships stationed next to them. 

They had immobilized The Crescent and it was clear this was very much an arrest. Soldiers were going around arresting his crew members and the people they had rescued without stopping to distinguish who was who. He spotted Yeosang and Jongho handcuffed next to each at the forecastle deck, but he was stopped by an official when he tried to make his way to them.

"Are you the Captain of this ship?" The official asked.

"Yes, that would be me," Hongjoong nodded, immediately standing straight.These were soldiers of his empire, he was above them, but at that moment, he was nothing more than a treasure hunter.

"You're under arrest for attacking and damaging another ship, The Sailfish, and we would appreciate your cooperation," the official explained. Hongjoong knew that acting up would only bring more trouble to them, but he at least had to try to protect his crew.

"I understand, and we'll cooperate," Hongjoong nodded, "but first I would like to make you aware that what we did was rescue some people from a slave ship. Nothing more and nothing less."

"I'm certain that's true, but it was still damaging of a private property and physical assault, so we have to take care of things properly," the official smiled, but they certainly weren't in the mood to negotiate for things. They quickly pulled out a pair of handcuffs and handcuffed both Hongjoong and Yunho, who didn't resist. "Now, I would appreciate it if you could help me identify the members of your crew, since you say you're carrying extra people right now."

"Of course," Hongjoong accepted. He did his best to appear calm, but he was very nervous inside. How would they get out of this situation without his secret being brought to light? He only hoped he could protect all of his crew without leaving anyone behind.

[aussie-tea]

so im just kinda reading through a lot of fandom wank and idk if I'm just in a specific corner of the fandom or if it's a general consensus but do some of those who dislike sylve really believe sylvie is 'abusive and toxic' to loki? I can understand being upset at loki having to "share" the lead in his own show or just not liking the way the writers wrote/developed her and/or loki's characters or just plain not liking the character. I personally cant see the abuse in their relationship and I feel like if I said that I would be ripped a new asshole by some of these people rather than them give me convincing and concise examples. (I've seen arguments both for/against mobius' "abuse and/or toxicity" to Loki and have seen both sides make sound points.) I mean not to say she and loki are somehow saints. they are both tremendously flawed (& while loki has suffered emotionally/physically, people forget he has also caused suffering) neither of them are perfect by any means & I'm happy to see loki trying to evolve and grow, especially for those he cares about (thor and now mobius & sylvie) but I had no idea some took the sarcasm and sass and having confidence in herself/her own ideas & giving loki attitude over it (his idea to kill allioth, him not having anything to say if kicking down the door was a bad idea, or even calling his idea of a blanket a 'tablecloth') and equated it to abuse in their minds (& imo they were only TRULY antagonistic BEFORE they got to know each other. even their fight/argument in the finale was more like them being dismayed/disappointed in each other's words and actions but simultaneously caring greatly about each other by loki trying to convince her to do what he thinks is right and sylvie sending him through a portal so she doesn't have to hurt him in order to fulfill her take-down-the-tva!revenge mission) tusure I can possibly see how some could call that being abuse in a relationship in which conversations are NOTHING BUT antagonistic, but they've also been supportive/awkward/candid/doubtful/disappointed/sad

Thank you!

A lot of the people in the comments of that post are saying that “Sylvie is abusive” “Sylvie treats Loki terribly” “Sylvie invalidates Loki’s trauma”, and like… where.

I seriously can’t find a single part where any of that has any grounds. Sylvie is mean to Loki sometimes. I’ll admit that. That doesn’t count as abusive.

Unless people are referring to the part where they were trying to KILL each other. Which, a) means that almost every single fantasy/sci-fi couple are abusive, and b) is kinda unfair to come for Sylvie like that cause Loki was legit hunting her for the TVA.

But Sylvie’s never unnecessarily mean to Loki. She yelled at him and called him an idiot… AFTER HE LEGIT PUT THEM ON PLANET ABOUT TO EXPLODE WITH NO WAY OFF, DOOMING THEM BOTH TO DEATH. It doesn’t matter that he didn’t fully understand what he was doing. If someone did that to me they’d be lucky just to be called an idiot.

The only other time I can think of is when they were talking about how to take down Alioth. Sylvie thought her way was best. But this wasn’t unfounded arrogance and an inflated sense of her abilities. She had slightly enchanted Alioth whilst running from it so she had a good idea that she was able to do it.

Loki’s idea was to just try and kill it. They didn’t know how or even if it could be killed. Naturally, Sylvie’s idea was best.

None of her actions are abusive. It’s just another desperate attempt for people to shit on the show because they’re the type of people who can never be pleased.

[bexterbex]

A Soul to Mend His Own | Ch. 77

Warning, PLEASE CHECK TAGS IF YOU SEE SOMETHING YOU DON’T WANT TO READ THEN DON’T READ. | Tag lists are closed | INBOX OPEN

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Will tag as I go along, Will update tags, Slow Burn, Influenced by Star Trek and other Sci-Fi themes, References to We Happy Few, Tons of References and quotes to George Orwells 1984 see if you can find them all, The First Order is the new Big Brother,  but who is really surprised, Blatant Nazi Symbolism, Interrogation Themes, Eventual Smut, Eventual Romance, Really just drawn out Slow Burn, Don’t repost without permission, Torture themes, Suggestive Themes, Execution themes, Disturbing Themes, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Verbal Abuse, Controlling Kylo Ren, Physical Abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Kylo Ren is Not Nice, Kylo Ren Has Issues, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, Possessive Kylo Ren, A character shamelessly based on Zelda

A Kylo Ren x Modern! Reader in a soulmate au with canon divergence. —————————————SLOWBURN————————————–

He is already the Supreme leader, searching the universe to find you, his Empress. Your name on his wrist has been the only constant in his life, while you have doubts about his existence and his acceptance of you. He isn’t in the database and why did the name Kylo Ren cover Ben Solo?

MASTERLIST

Chapter 77: Attack Dog

Kylo eventually brought you both back to the bed, your evening of lovemaking taking a toll on your energy. You were laying on his chest once more, a much more intimate sleeping position than you were used to, but seeing as many things had changed in the last 24 hours it was nothing new. “So, now that I am officially Empress, I feel different.”

Kylo glanced down at you, hand rubbing your bare back. “You are a different person now, the same in many ways, but different. So far I’ve seen you more sure of yourself if our lovemaking had anything to say. I would also say you take less shit, in general. You are now an Empress, and not so much my little Kitten anymore.”

You considered his words and his observation carefully, “Mmm yes, I guess I am more of a lioness now, but you can still call me Kitten when we are alone, especially when the beast is to come out.” You saw his pupils dilate with arousal at the mention of the beast, something he so desperately wanted to become again.

You shook your head knowing the question he wanted to ask., “No not tonight, I still need to be able to function tomorrow. When you return from your first mission, you can let the beast out but only when I tell you to. Do you understand?” You knew you would have to send him out into the universe away from you but you knew he would return to you.

He nodded, you could tell that he was still thinking about it as he licked and chewed on his bottom lip. The beast lingering below the surface.

“Tomorrow I will need my guard dog on his best behavior, we will be meeting with the Final Order High Command along with the First Order High Command. Seeing what our objectives are when it comes to defeating the Resistance.” You felt him shift underneath you. In his eyes, you could tell that it was his desire to please you, please his Empress by doing a good job. He was a guard dog ready for the order to attack. “Let us try to relax, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow, and we have already exerted ourselves.”

He seemed to hum in agreement. You could feel the energy of the Force wrap around you, this time with a caress instead of a threat. It felt comforting knowing that all of him wanted you there with him at that moment. It didn’t take long for both of you to drift off into sleep while still entangled in each other, as one whole soul.

Your dream was different tonight, much different from when you first met your protective match. You were now with him, happily, near your throne. You were wearing a beautiful gown, and he was in his armor, but he didn’t seem scary. You were walking hand in hand as you walked away from your throne, a lazy sort of walk that meant you had nowhere to be. You were taking the lead as you two walked, but his body seemed relaxed in your presence as you came to a beautiful garden. That was alive, and full of greenery and running water. A little bit of paradise, you two seemed to not be bothered by any of the staff or guards that seemed to be present, along the edges of the dream world. It was like you two were left alone to your own little happy bubble. A place where you two could be one, without the interference of others.

As you came upon a large beautiful fountain in the middle of the garden space you and he sat along its edge. He removed his helmet without word or command. Losing his important piece of armor to look at you, his Empress. In the dream, you held hands and kissed sweetly, until you felt that familiar pressure behind your ear.

You woke up to being attacked with feather-light kisses, “I thought Kylo Ren wasn’t sweet.”

The kisses continued as he responded. “He isn’t but he does know how to worship his Empress. A loyal guard dog is loyal to his master.” His voice was laced with hunger, but you didn’t have time for that.

You took his head in your hands bringing his face to yours, “Now, now there will be playtime later, but now you and I must get ready for battle.” This caused a different type of spark to appear in his eyes, one that thirsted for violence.  One that would allow him to be not only your guard dog but your attack dog. A weapon of destruction that only obeyed you.

You got up from the bed and headed into your dressing room, where you called upon your ladies-in-waiting. You looked at your reflection in the mirror, the woman before you was much like Kylo said, more sure of herself and taking no shit. Confident, powerful, and badass were how you felt. Unfortunately, it took Kylo breaking your mind for you to fully see and accept the positive sides of yourself. You were an Empress, soon to be an Empress of the entire galaxy if Kylo had any say. You were about to rule over the greatest dominion that anyone has ever seen and you were living for it.

Adlez and Olivia-Rose entered and took an immediate evaluation of you. They weren’t allowed to take care of you when you got back, and that always seemed to worry them. They saw you several times a day, checked in on you personally, making sure you were still in one piece, and if not it was their job to put you back together.

Adlez eyed you with suspicion, “Something seems different.” It was more of an observation than a question. She took hold of your hair.

You lifted your chin to her, a signal of authority,  “It is, we now have an army to defeat the Resistance and the New Republic once and for all. We will bring order to the galaxy, and today I want my looks to reflect that.” You meant business today, whether she liked it or not.

Olivia-Rose seemed intimidated by this new declaration. Both of you had never been in any sort of galactic war before, your planet Earth being kept out of it for millennia.

“I am an Empress and I would like to look like one from here on out, nothing less, is that understood?” You were now taking command, usually, you let Adlez engage in the decision making, following her lead, but now you were going to be making all the choices, going with your gut feelings.

They got you ready in record time, both of them stayed rather silent throughout the rest of the morning, Adlez giving you looks here and there. Breakfast was a quick affair once you sent off your staff to do various projects, only Mitaka was to be with you for the rest of the day.

Kylo returned to your chambers only to escort you to your meeting, where you would be making final battle plans with your new combined High Command. You hadn’t decided on whether or not to keep the name First Order or to change it to the Final Order, both had their strengths and weaknesses in the name alone.  

You entered the room, all eyes on you faces you recognize and those you did not. You were in full command of an army, almost the entire galaxy, and the large room reflected it. The table felt as if you were in some sort of fantasy movie with its size, but that didn’t matter, what mattered was that you were now about to send out a full-fledged assault against the enemy. But you watched as the officials in the Final Order seemed to want to disregard your position as their eyes followed Kylo as he stalked around the room. A guard dog at the ready, one who refused to sit.

“Do we have a problem ladies and gentlemen? I know I am not the person you wished to become Emperor, rather Empress of the Final Order, of the Sith Eternal, but I am.” You spoke to those on your left, on your right was your trusty First Order High Command, along with Phasma and Pyre.

An older gentleman spoke up, “No, we will follow you, Empress. We just have the belief that the Sith should carry on.” His eyes and emotions seemed guarded. But his eyes flickered back to the large black creature you called your husband.

“Ah, I see. He was supposed to finish the ritual and become a Sith Lord was he not?” You glanced at your husband briefly, his body ready for a fight, before you turned back to the older general.

A female general spoke up this time, “He was. Now we have no Sith leader.” This was something that seemed to affect all the Final Order High Command.

You regarded this statement, “He could still turn into a Sith if he so chooses.” You wanted it to be his choice though, you knew very little about the ways of the Force and how it works and what the Jedi and Sith meant. You trusted that Kylo would make the right decision for himself.

Before your lovely guard dog could respond, Pryde spoke up, “Or you could have a child that would be.” His words made your blood boil and caused ice to shoot up your veins. Now was your chance.

“Ah, now Pryde? What was the rule that was made about that particular thing, Hmm? Not to comment on mine and Ren’s love life? I think you have violated that, wouldn’t you agree, Lord Ren?” You called him Lord Ren as he was technically no longer the Supreme Leader of the First Order, you were the one in command, you were the Empress.

Kylo’s lightsaber ignited in its glorious red fury, cackling and hissing at the opportunity that awaited it like it was a living being. Kylo drew close to the general whose eyes were wide with fear. Pryde wasn’t looking at you, where he should be, no, his eyes were focused on the deadly weapon in front of him. But Kylo looked to you, and you responded with a small, barely noticeable nod. And in an instant, Pryde was no longer a problem for you.

You could see Kylo shaking with excitement. This was the first time you had commanded him to use his weapon for you, for him to be your proper attack guard dog. You could feel the waves of pleasure through the static of the Force that he seemed to be generating around you, encapsulating you in a protective bubble. No longer were there dangerous mindless tendrils, now it was his pure energy and emotion as it surrounded you, making you aware of how he was feeling. You could feel a mix of pride, arousal, and hunger for power in his Force energy.

“Now that the trash is taken out shall we move on to our next tactic? I would like to capture as much of the Resistance as possible.” You felt smug, and you could see that this pleased the Sith Eternal, to watch your attack dog slay someone so easily. It seemed like a treat for them. One of the Final Order generals asked, “May I ask why Empress?” You knew among the most dedicated in most military regimes that being captured was the worst position someone could be in. There was honor in dying for your cause, but living and giving secrets made you the worst enemy possible.

You stared down your nose at him. Your body glowed with confidence. “I have my reasoning. I would like to see many of their leaders face to face before they end up meeting my husband’s blade. Is that too difficult general?”

You could see the nervousness in his face, he did not want to meet the fiery blade himself. “No, Empress it is not. We shall capture the leaders of the Resistance and kill the rest?”

You were pleased with his weakness of will against you, his desire to please.“Yes, that should be all. The new Chancellor Armitage Hux will go over the final battle plans with you all. I must prepare my best weapon.”

Hux regarded your statement with some minor glee on his face, you could tell he was holding it in. You just gave him a huge promotion. Something that after you conquer the galaxy, you could properly celebrate. But for now, you were off to war.

Kylo followed you out into the empty side hallway. No one wanted to stick around for very long while he wore his helmet and was now representing his title of Jedi Killer.

You ordered, “Helmet off.” He obliged, and it fell carelessly to the floor, making a loud thud sound that both of you ignored. You just gazed into his dark eyes that were hungry and waiting for you to give your orders.

“I will have two of the knights with me, unfortunately, Phasma and Pyre will be sent out along with the rest of the forces, but I will remain on this side of the galaxy safe, and out of harm's way.” Your hand stroked down the front of his chest, you could feel the tension that was building within him, he wanted to fight, but he also wanted to stay behind and protect. “You will do well, I will be safe. I need you to fight for me, I need my big scary attack dog on the front lines, slicing through our enemies. Do you think you can do that? Because when you return if you are successful I will have a treat for you.”

His breathing was deep and quick, holding back his lust for you at that moment, knowing that you needed him to be an attack dog in this moment, not your lover. All he could do was nod again, words lost to the mind of the beast. But he couldn’t help himself from placing a hand on your hip and kissing you quickly, holding back all of his need for you, for just one kiss.

You understood that you needed him to move quickly, “Go now, prepare to leave with the others. I want you personally to bring me the leaders of the Resistance. I want them to know fear, I want them to believe that I will show them mercy. I want them to have hope in that I will release them, let them go, but you and I both know that won’t happen. I want to crush all hopes of future rebellion from this galaxy.”

Kylo nodded quickly and swooped down to grab his helmet, but before he placed it back on his head he kissed you, “I will not fail you.” And just like that, he was down the hall with his black cape swooshing around him, like some sort of demon hell-bent on bringing destruction to the galaxy. Which wasn’t far off of what he would be doing. This was the official start and end of the war.

A/N: Insert “Dig Dong the Witch is Dead” song from the Wizard of Oz here. Pryde finally be dead y’all. And now to star/finish a war. 

[readersguidetotheuniverse]

What’s coming out this month – October 2020

Bright and Dangerous Objects by Anneliese Mackintosh

Release date: October 6th

Ariadna: As you may have realised by now, I’m a sucker for sci-fi and fantasy, so this book had to be here. The main character of B&DO has been shortlisted for a pioneering mission to Mars... Which implies she has to leave behind all her life on Earth, forever. She then starts to assess and confront the possibilities of any of the two lives that open ahead of her. It sounds superinteresing and not that futuristically non-plausible as many of sci-fi books seem to be. It takes decades to travel to Mars, so it is something the first Martians will have to consider (as it has been portrayed before in other similarly-set novels/movies/tv series). My only concern is that the novel ends up being just an introspective, psychological novel and the sci-fi component is just the frame for it and has no real value on the plot. I hope I’m wrong!

Humans by Brandon Stanton

Release date: October 6th 

Alicia: I very VERY rarely read non-fiction. It's just not for me. However, there is something so genuine, pure and authentic about Humans that is so captivating to me. In case you haven't heard about this before, it started as Humans of New York. A social media profile that shared photos and stories of (mostly) ordinary people around the city. It became a huge hit. I read the first Humans of New York book and found it incredibly interesting and inspiring. And I am beyond excited about this one because the stories are now told by people from all over the world. Truly one of a kind.

In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren

Release date: October 6th

Marina: Christina Lauren are one (or two?) of my favorite romance writers. Their books always make me feel so much. I enjoy their take on well-known tropes (The Unhoneymooners is THE best enemies-to-lovers, change my mind) and how they put their own spin on it. Also, it’s awesome that they are friends and decided to write a book together and it worked. It worked so well they are still doing it! Anyways, I’m looking forward to this holiday-themed read, bring on the warm fuzzies!

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab

Release date: October 6th

Marina: Who hasn’t thought about becoming invisible? Being able to slip into any plalce you want, doing whatever you like without feeling dumb? Or living forever? I for once have and the story of Addie LaRue fascinated me from the moment I read the short blurb for it. What happens when you are granted immortality but have to give up your “visibility”? I cannot wait to read more about her life!

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

Release date: October 13th

Ari: I discovered Rebecca Roanhorse in Trail of Lightning and it fascinated me. I mean, it is not a masterpiece, but I liked how she incorporated native american mithos in a dystopian slash urban-fantasy novel. Her writing is light and easy to read (not simple, don’t get me wrong), and I devoured in less than a week. I really want to see how she has introduced that native american folklore in this new series.

Alicia: This book is tagged as fantasy, queer, adult, magic, science fiction... it does tick most of my boxes. That’s the way to go with me. And I am always up for some fantasy, there's something kind of unpredictable about it, since everyone can mold it to their own interests. I don't know what to expect about this one specifically, I haven’t read anything from this author either, but it does look good. Literally, the cover is stunning!

Marina: Look, I said I wanted to read more Fantasy books and this one is right up my alley. According to Goodreads, this is “the first book in the Between Earth and Sky trilogy, inspired by the civilizations of the Pre-Columbian Americas and woven into a tale of celestial prophecies, political intrigue, and forbidden magic”. I think it’s really great that more (ancient) civilisations are being brought to modern literature because they haven’t been represented enough. I look forward to learning more about them from a person that actually knows the culture instead of some white scholar who thinks they know best.

The Silence by Don DeLillo

Release date: October 20th

Ariadna: Some years ago, I watched a Netflix movie in which the main characters met at a house to celebrate whatever, and things started going south to end up in a gore mess. In the last scene, the surviving characters run to the garden only to find out all the neighborhood was in the dark, and more than half of the houses had red lanterns lighted in front (meaning there had been a similar gore experience in all of them). Ok, this argument may have almost nothing to do with the book here, but the feeling of helplessness that blackout instilled on those characters and on the viewer made me rethink the value of digital connection, how much we rely on it and, in a way, keeps us safe and connected, while distancing and putting us in danger at the same time. Reading the argument for The Silence has made me relive that moment, those thoughts, and I have a sort of itch to find out what is discussed in it.

Together Apart by Erin A. Craig et al.

Release date: October 20th 

Alicia: I have never been a big fan of anthologies, but I am more and more interested in them as time goes by. I always thought I wouldn't be into them cause the stories were too short but sometimes a short story is all you need. This one couldn't be more appropriate for the situation we're living. Cause lockdown may be over but I will never be over it. And I need cute stories at this point of my life so this may be just perfect for me right now. I have read books by some of the authors in this anthology, can't wait to see what they came up with.

[kinghoranshit]

Tell Me a Lie (NH) Ch 2

Word Count: 1,615

Warnings: swearing?

“Do you have any questions about anything we went over?” I asked as I closed the binder with a marker where we’d decided to stop for this session. After this I’d have to send an email to my manager with updated notes about our meeting. I was hoping it wouldn’t take too long since I needed to read the contract Niall sent me about the PR. 

Maya had a perky smile on her face. “I do not. Thank you so much, Lauren!”

“No problem, I’m happy to be working on this journey with you. I will see you soon to discuss more notes.”

“Talk soon, love.” She waved with the smile still present on her face before I hit on the call. 

We definitely went over the allotted time and I’d have to push back my other client’s appointment to tomorrow. It happened a lot more than I would like, but it was okay. Everything worked out. 

I finished my update email as thoroughly and fast as I could; it included the typed up version of my notes. Once I hit send, my eyes trailed to the email that Niall’s management sent me. I barely tapped the mousepad to open it, or breathed air as I skimmed the first initial part. Though, that wasn’t what I should’ve been anxious for; they were welcoming me to the team. I had to admit, it was bizarre I was considered a team member if I was his PR girlfriend. That didn’t settle right with me, but I knew I’d have to get over it to help my best friend out. 

Finally, I had the contract open in a different tab and actually thoroughly read these paragraphs. A lot of it was the regular legal statements and their management mission statement. What I would be getting in return and what I’d have to do were scripted at the end of it, which were the last two pages out of twenty.

I was required to be seen publicly with Niall a minimum of once a month, be present at all red carpet events during the time of this PR contract, attend a concert in every leg of his upcoming tour, promote all of his singles/albums on Instagram, and be open on social media without exposing any secrets. I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone in my life that the relationship was fake, aside from any business partners. I couldn’t shit talk Modest!, Niall, or any of his ex bandmates. I was not allowed to date anyone while under this year long contract, which wasn’t much of a problem for me at the moment.

Their payment was all my debts would be paid in full and marketing support for all my self-published works during the duration of our PR. That included whatever Niall would want to post on social media about them. 

It seemed all pretty self-explanatory to me, and with my current job the travel part shouldn’t be an issue. I would have to confirm with my main editorial manager that it was going to work though. Of course, I would have to finesse the truth a bit with them; they weren’t exactly business partners. 

As I sat back against my wooden chair, Skype began ringing me for a call. It was Niall. That wasn’t at all shocking. 

“What up, nerd?” I answered. 

He busted out a laugh. “Just wanted to call and see how you were doin. Get your thoughts on everything.” 

“I actually just finished reading the PR agreement and contract.”

“And?” He raised his eyebrows as he licked his lips in nerves. 

I smirked lightly. “I’ll do it. What they’re asking doesn’t seem overkill, and it’s a year. We can do that.” 

I noticed him sit down on his couch in his dim living room, which looked to only be lit by the TV; it was probably golf. “Yeah?” 

“Yes.”

He yelled something at the TV before he brought his attention back to our conversation. “You’re sure, Kelly?” 

“I’m positive, Nialler.” I laughed. He was adorable when he got distracted by sports or writing. It was one of the many things I loved about Niall; it never annoyed me. Well, okay, maybe sometimes. But there was nothing I could do about it, and I knew I wasn’t any better at times when I had a show on or suddenly got an idea for a piece. 

“You are seriously a lifesaver. This was the first time they let me find the girl. I promise to make it fun.” 

I cheesed. “With you, it’s already going to be fun. I wouldn’t have considered it otherwise. So I will get these papers digitally signed and sent. Then we can consider the first meet up place?”

“Yeah, yeah. Modest is thinking LA already. They called this morning.” 

“Sounds good.” I nodded. 

Niall looked at me curiously now. “Are you at all nervous? You know how the fandom is.” 

“You mean how every fandom is.” I smirked. “There’s always going to be the toxic side. If you’re looking for it, you’ll find it, but I’m not… I know there’s other things such as safety involved, but under this contract Modest is obligated to give me my own security. I will own them up to that end if I need to.” 

“I hope you won’t when you’re alone.” His eyes were so soft, almost like I could reach out and touch powdered snow. It would be the perfect snow too. It wouldn’t melt, turning into water… It would stay fluffy and sparkly. 

I couldn’t hold back the same feeling he had. I didn’t want safety to become such a concern that I'd need security 24/7. There was no sense in worrying about it. I was someone to just take the hits when they came and get back up afterwards. Which had both it’s good and bad aspects.

I shook my head. “I’m reassuring you now that everything will be okay. I better get the agreement and contract back to Modest.”

He only nodded, blinking his eyes a couple times. “Talk soon, Kelly.” 

“You too, Horan.” 

I knew that this was a tricky road we were about to drive, but we were armed with better defenses. We were adults and could make our own decisions. I knew that this would be more beneficial than harmful. 

***

I waited somewhat patiently for Charlotte to answer the Skype call. I decided I would tell Charlotte about what was going on since she was the co-author of the trilogy Niall would be promoting. It was only fair she knew that the relationship wasn’t real. As for the rest of my friends and family, they wouldn’t know. Niall and I have been friends for years, it would seem pretty believable that we naturally had feelings grow for each other.  

Finally, she answered and her freckled face popped up. “What is it you need to tell me, Laur?”

Seeing her eager face made me actually nervous to lay it all out on her. But I took a deep breath and did it. It needed to be done. There was no beating around the bush. 

“Niall asked me to be his PR girlfriend and I’m gonna do it. I know the risks of this, but he needs my help. They’re going to benefit us by promoting the Stone Cold trilogy. You’re the only person who knows that the relationship is fake, no one else will know that. They can’t.”

Her eyes went wide and she gasped. “Are you serious?”

I nodded. “Completely.”

“Wow, that is crazy… Awesome! You’re about to live the dream.”

I snorted. “Oh for sure. But this means we should get the final version of Stone Cold done as soon as possible.”

“Yeah, of course! This is so exciting!” she gushed, smooshing her cheeks together. 

“It is. It really is.” I laughed, the sound radiating through her side, which caused her husband to peek his head into the camera lens. 

“Hey, Lauren!” He waved with a closed smile. 

I smirked and waved back. “Hey, Jeremy. How goes it?” 

He moved himself beside Charlotte, squeezing in close to her. “It goes well. How about you? How are your projects going?” 

He happened to be a head chief editor at a publishing firm in Chicago. He and I did the same work, but his load was definitely more than mine. He also had the task of looking over the other editors in his division to make sure their work was being done. I was glad to not have that sort of responsibility; even if the pay was more. 

I shrugged. “They’re going well. I’ve only got two at the moment, but once I finish with this one fantasy novel, they’re going to be giving me a memoir.” 

“Memoirs are all I have right now. Not the most exciting if I’m being honest, but it’s alright.” 

I chuckled under my breath. “I can get behind that. I’m definitely enjoying the fantasy and sci-fi right now. Oh, uhm, there is something else I wanted to tell you, J. I’m dating Niall, it’s been a secret for about a year now, but he’s finally ready to go public with it.” 

Jeremy’s smile made my heart tug at the lie. “That’s wonderful!” He lightly whacked Char’s shoulder. “I told you there was something going on. I’m good at reading that sort of thing.” 

“That you are,” I confirmed. That only stirred another weird sensation in me because he truly never was wrong about romantic feelings between two people. He called all of our friends' relationships, regardless if they worked out or not. I wasn't sure what that said about Niall and I then. 

Next: Ch 3

[Masterlist]

[britesparc]

Weekend Top Ten #432

Top Ten Games to Remaster

As we continue June’s videogame-themed series of Tops Ten – during what would normally have been E3, but is still something of a prolonged Videogame Announcement Season – I turn my attention once again to great games past. This has been exacerbated by the release of Command & Conquer Remastered Collection, a hi-def spit-and-polish re-do of two of the greatest PC games of the nineties. I have very fond teenage memories of both C&C and its pseudo-sequel, but Red Alert in particular strikes an important chord as one of “the” games that deepened and broadened by love of gaming as an art form. In the way that really only happens when you’re a kid, I absorbed Red Alert, not just completing the campaign and playing hours and hours of skirmish, but also talking about it extensively with friends, designing my own levels, and even going so far as to modify the source files to create my own super-units (nuclear tanks ahoy!). As such, it utterly delights me to declare that C&C Remastered is a phenomenal undertaking, the graphics painstakingly remade to fit modern displays, the interface masterfully tweaked to appease modern sensibilities. But at the same time it offers so many pleasing, knowing, considerate hat-tips to fans, such as a re-imagining of the classic DOS installation prompts. All in all, it’s a must-buy, bringing a 25-year-old series of games more-or-less bang up to date and preserving their legacy for a new generation.

Anyway, all this got me thinking of other classic games, and how it’s so difficult to play them nowadays. Maybe they’re mired in rights issues. Maybe it’s a technological minefield to get them to run on modern systems. Maybe elements of modern gaming – be it graphics or design – have simply passed them by, making them a far more difficult and frustrating experience than they would have seemed Back in the Day. Whatever the reason, these are games that – like classic films from the 40s and 50s – should be celebrated and enjoyed by the young’uns, not left to gather digital dust on forgotten floppies the world over.

So, with no further ado, here are ten games that I would love to see given a bit of digital TLC, renewed and revigorated for the ultra-wide monitors and liquid-cooled systems of tomorrow. In most cases these are just one game that I’d like to see spruced up and re-released, but there are a few “collections” here too, whether it’s a C&C-style pairing of a great double act, or a  celebration of a series, a la Halo: The Master Chief Collection.

Oh, and I’m on about remasters here: not a full-on remake or reboot. Stuff like Perfect Dark on the Xbox 360, not Doom 2016. Old games made good on modern hardware, not a reimagining of the property.

Regardless: have at it, games industry.

Lemmings (1991) and Lemmings 2: The Tribes (1993): I definitely think they should be a double-pack, because whilst the first is a well-regarded classic, the second refines the formula, makes it more user-friendly, offers skirmish-style training modes, and amps up the comedy. But they’re both ancient by now, and despite mobile do-overs in recent years, the originals are very difficult to play. Upping the resolution whilst still keeping the character of the scantily-pixelated sprites would be difficult, but it’d be worth it to once again sample one of the gods of gaming.

Sam & Max Hit the Road (1993): other LucasArts classic adventures have had a spruce – most notably the first two seminal Monkey Island games – but it’d be good to see this cult comedy classic come back to life. I don’t know if the backgrounds ever existed in higher resolution, but I’d love to see the sprites re-drawn to more closely resemble a cartoon version of Steve Purcell’s artwork.

The Jedi Knight Series (1995-2003): I’m bundling all four Jedi Knight games in together – that’s the original Dark Forces, plus Jedi Knight, Jedi Outcast, and Jedi Academy – but let’s be honest, it’s the first two we’re really after. DF gave us a compelling mission-based “Doom Clone” (back when Doom was a genre), and one which would be amazing to see tarted up to 4K with texture filtering a-go-go; but it was its 1997 sequel, Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II, that struck serious beskar. Huge, expansive levels, in “true 3D” (as we used to call it), full-motion video cutscenes, finally getting a lightsaber and Force powers, but most of all the Light/Dark Side dynamic offering (very basic) morality and a branching storyline. Again, giving it a glossy hi-def sheen would do wonders to preserve the legacy of one of the greatest Star Wars games of all time.

The Quake Collection (1996-2005): really it should be called The Quake Qollection, no? Encompassing all four mainline Quakes. Although, again, let’s be honest: there’s something deeply iconic about the first three, so no one would complain if we just forgot about part 4, yeah? Anyway: Quake was a stunner, a gorgeous 3D technical juggernaut, offering sumptuous lighting effects and gorgeous architecture. Part II came a year later and offered us coloured lighting and a coherent sci-fi story, whereas Quake III Arena in 1999 gave us a sublimely crafted multiplayer shooter and a character that was an eyeball doing a handstand. Despite being graphical powerhouses in their day, getting them to run can be a drag, so it’d be lovely to see them dragged into the 21st Century, especially if they could offer us ray-tracing on next-gen consoles, a la Quake II RTX.

Tomb Raider (1996): we’ve seen the series rebooted in (generally) excellent fashion, but at the same time it feels it lost a little of the majesty, mythos, and merriment of OG Lara. One of the first truly successful 3D games, it was like nothing before it. A subtle update to increase its resolution, filter the rough edges, maybe offer the option to move beyond the rigid grid-based movement structure, and possibly up the poly count so blocky Lara more closely resembles her rendered box-art cousin, would be terrific. Imagine the dinosaur in 4K…!

Descent (1994): one of those games that’s slipped from public consciousness, this was a full-3D shooter a couple of years before Quake shambled onto our screens. Piloting a craft in zero gravity, it offered full freedom of movement as well as a tense shooter dynamic coupled with some mild, X-Wing-style space sim elements. It was funky, fast, gorgeous, and messed with your head. I’d love a remake that kept the levels as-is, simplified the often-complex controls for modern sensibilities, and just in general made it look prettier. I worry that a contemporary “re-imagining” might lose too many of its crazy rough edges, though.

Syndicate (1993): there have been a number of efforts to re-do Syndicate over the years, but apart from its excellent sequel Syndicate Wars in 1996, none have matched the dark joys of the original. rather than try to go all modern and 3D, I’d rather see the artwork redone, redrawn at a higher resolution, perhaps offering subtle 3D touches such as dynamic light, shadow, and ray-tracing. The fiddlier aspects (getting into cars?!) could be tidied up, but the look and feel should remain the same. I honestly think this could be a big deal.

Total Annihilation (1997): if C&C can get remastered, why not the game that was arguably the first real challenger to its sci-fi RTS dominance? TA had 3D graphics, a new and refined model of base construction, and tactical touches such as line-of-sight and elevated terrain. But the comparatively low resolution of late-nineties machines meant that the robotic units could often appear slightly indistinct, turning into a grey melange; boosting the res and the poly count would do wonders, but – like C&C – the gameplay itself should be kept as authentic as possible.

Warcraft I & II (1994-95): I know, I know; they just did a remaster of Warcraft III that wasn’t well received and got everybody’s backs up. But I barely played Warcraft III (I barely played Warcraft I for that matter). Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness was the fantasy yin to C&C’s sci-fi yang, and it was great; clear, bright, fast, fun. The cartoony graphics were gorgeous and the units had bags of character (reinforced by the humorous soundbites when you kept clicking on them). I’d want to see the sprites re-drawn in hi-res, with the units given some gorgeous new animations to match their character. Other than that? Keep it broadly the same. It worked 25 years ago, it’ll work now.

Fantasy World Dizzy (1989): I nearly didn’t have a game this old on the list. For one thing, I thought pre-16-bit games would require far more retooling for modern audiences, becoming essentially the sort of reboot I said I wanted to avoid; I can’t imagine a new Skool Daze being too similar to its original. Also which Dizzy do you choose? The one I played the most was probably Spellbound (1991). But I think Fantasy World may be the most iconic. Its Amiga port was almost a remaster anyway, giving it gorgeous colour graphics. A modern version would up the resolution with all-new art assets, obviously, and perhaps could offer a more user-friendly jumping dynamic (and maybe – maybe – I’ll allow scrolling). This could be a lovely way to re-introduce audiences to the character of Dizzy, who should really be held up more as a British gaming mascot, without having to go all-in on a brand new title. Egg-cellent (sorry).

So there we are. There are a couple missing here, obviously; Simon the Sorcerer was nearly there until I realised they did do a gentle remaster in 2018. The Settlers would have made the list, except they are remaking that, although in my opinion it looks like a full-on reboot rather than the upgraded version of the original that I crave. Fade to Black just dropped off the bottom on the grounds that I barely played it in its original form, but a third-person 3D Flashback is still on my Most Wanted list (Flashback itself, sadly, has already had a disappointing remake). And the best Star Wars game of all time, Knights of the Old Republic, I decided not to include as – again – I think we’re going to see that reimagined and folded into the new official Disney canon in some form. Maybe that should preclude me imagining the original game in 4K with updated character models, dynamic shadows, and ray-tracing, but – hey – that’s just me. At least that is one game that I’ll still be able to play fairly easily on an Xbox Series X, even without whistles and bells. Here’s to dead old games!

[artificialqueens]

To New Hytes (Group-fic) 6/? - Mac

AN: Meggie is once again, the light of my life. Thank you so much, my love, for dealing with me and having as much fun with the story as I am.

Also, this chapter opens with smut! You have been warned!

Summary: Things heat up between Brooke and Vanessa, Nina and Monet finally talk, and Trixie feels like she is in a movie (weird action sci-fi thriller) when she’s with Katya.

This was a bad idea.

Brooke knew this was a bad idea. And yet here she was.

In an office in some random city in the U.S. with her newest star dancer looking at her like she was going to eat her.

“C’mon, mamí. I know you want me.”

“Mateo, I don’t have time for this-”

Vanessa dropped her jacket, leaving her standing in her thigh-high boots, black lace stockings, the tightest leather skirt Brooke had ever seen, and a crimson red bra.

Brooke absolutely had time for that.

For all of that.

Fuck.

Brooke stood up from the desk to walk forward slowly. Predatorily. She looked into Vanessa’s eyes for confirmation before running her hands slowly up and down Vanessa’s exposed arms.

This was a bad idea.

The way Vanessa nearly shuddered at the contact was further proof of this.

Brooke tried to hold back a comment, bit her tongue at the words threatening to escape.

Vanessa took this as a challenge because of course, she did.

“If I’d have known it was this easy to get your hands on me, I woulda worn this a lot sooner.”

Brooke rolled her eyes, throwing her impassiveness out the window. “Shut up, Mateo.”

Vanessa wrapped her arms around Brooke’s neck, bringing the two even closer. “Make me, mamí,” she whispered almost against Brooke’s lips.

Brooke stepped back, drawing out the tension that much more. It was almost addicting, this thing between them, this dancing around each other. Brooke almost hated to see it go. “You don’t know what you’re asking for.”

“Then show me,” Vanessa said walking closer.

Brooke smirked.

She sat down at the desk and beckoned Vanessa closer with a curled finger. Before the younger girl could blink, she was being pulled by a firm hand forward. She gave a small squeak and landed gracelessly in Brooke’s lap.

Brooke chuckled darkly at Vanessa’s sharp inhale as she pressed the palm of her hand firmly against Vanessa pussy through her underwear.

“So responsive, baby girl. I’m gonna have so much fun playing with you.”

Vanessa whimpered at the words and she tried to grind down on Brooke’s hand.

Brooke took her hand away and tsked. “No, none of that now. Use your words, Mateo.”

“Vanessa.”

“What?” Brooke grabbed the younger girl’s hips to pull her closer, causing Vanessa to grind down on Brooke’s leg.

“Call me Vanessa,” the younger girl gasped out. “Please,” she added breathlessly.

Brooke smirked again. “You think we’re playing by your rules?”

Vanessa shook her head quickly at Brooke’s tone, it left no room for debate of who was in charge.

Brooke trailed her fingers back down between Vanessa’s legs to move aside her soaked underwear. “My rules,” she said lowly.

“Your rules, your rules, please touch me, mamí.”

Brooke took her time for a little bit longer, trailing her finger up and down Vanessa’s slit, gathering the pooling wetness with the tip of her finger.

When Vanessa was practically vibrating with need, rocking her hips back and forth on the air and whispering little pleas, Brooke slid one finger inside her.

“More, more, please, mamí,” Vanessa whined immediately.

Brooke smirked and added another finger. “So polite now. If I’d have known all it took was my fingers inside you to make you polite, I would have done this a long time ago.”

Vanessa’s face and chest were flushed as red as her bra, but she was still trying to keep up her bratty nature. “Shut up and fuck me.”

Brooke’s smile faded and she removed her fingers and proceeded to place them in Vanessa’s already open mouth.

“Watch your mouth, baby. Wouldn’t want you gettin’ the wrong idea of who’s in charge here,” Brooke said dangerously.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry, please.” Vanessa’s words were muffled with Brooke’s fingers still in her mouth.

“I don’t know, you don’t seem very sorry.”

With no further prompting, Vanessa got off Brooke’s lap and fell to her knees, pulling down Brooke’s pants and underwear like a woman on a mission.

And Brooke would be lying if she said she hadn’t imagined this exact scenario several times over the past few months.

“Let me make it up to you, mamí,” Vanessa said, making direct eye contact with Brooke as she licked a stripe up her cunt.

God, reality was so much better than any fantasy.

“Make it good, and then we’ll see if I feel like letting you come tonight.”

Vanessa did make it good. She licked and sucked and ate Brooke out better than anybody else ever had.

Brooke came with Vanessa’s name - her real name - on her lips.

“Fuck, Vanessa.”

After Brooke’s body stopped shaking from the aftershocks, Vanessa came up for a kiss, their first real one. Her mouth was covered with Brooke and she was panting and her hair was a mess.

Brooke wouldn’t have it any other way.

Brooke pulled the younger girl back into her lap. She didn’t tease this time, she slipped three fingers into Vanessa with no preamble and started fucking in and out of her rapidly, using her thumb to stimulate her clit in time with her fingers.

Vanessa was gasping and moaning and generally being her loud self, but Brooke didn’t mind. She relished in her power over the younger woman. Vanessa, the big bad untouchable force of nature, was putty in Brooke’s hands. Gasping and moaning and so fucking sensitive.

Brooke was in heaven.

“You gonna come for me, baby girl?”

“Mhmm.”

“Words, Nessa.” ‘ “Mamí, I’m gonna come, please don’t stop, please.”

“Such a good girl.”

Vanessa came with a silent scream.

Brooke pumped her fingers in and out slowly until Vanessa winced from the sensitivity.

Vanessa finally had enough feeling in her legs to stand up, and when she looked back down at Brooke, her eyes spoke a thousand words.

This was a very bad idea.

…

Monet was fuming.

She and Nina were sharing a room again.

Monet hadn’t thought to look before now, too busy gossiping with Violet and a silent Blair to check the room assignments.

But now she had, and she was pissed.

She got the key from the front desk at the hotel, attempting to avoid having to speak or ask Nina for anything.

She opened the door to the room and groaned out loud at the sight before her.

There was only one bed. One, giant, king-sized bed that looked so damn comfy Monet’s muscles nearly relaxed at how good it looked.

Nearly.

Nearly because Nina was sitting upright in the middle of it, looking at her with eyes that begged her to stay.

“So, I guess I’ll go sleep in Kam’s room then” Monet mumbled, heading right back out the door she had just come through.

“No, wait, ‘Net.”

For whatever reason, Monet stopped. Maybe it was the desperation in Nina’s voice. Maybe it was how comfy the bed looked. Maybe it was because she loved Nina.

“Talk to me, please.”

Monet sighed. “What do you want me to say? ‘Hey, it’s totally fine that you used my feelings to make a fool out of me in front of our friends?’ No fuckin’ way. I didn’t RSVP to your fuckin’ pity party.”

Nina’s face suddenly lit up with understanding. “Wait, wait, wait. You think I don’t love you back?”

Monet looked at her hard, heart pounding out of her chest. Head spinning around and around. She knew Nina loved her. Brooke had said as much. But Monet had been truthful in that conversation too, none of this was as simple as it should be.

“Honey, come here.” When Monet didn’t move, Nina spoke again, firmer this time. “Just fucking do it.”

Monet relented and sat on the bed, putting as much space between them as possible.

Nina wasn’t having any of that though and moved so she was sitting cross-legged right next to Monet. She grabbed Monet’s hands and made the younger girl look at her.

“I wear my emotions on my sleeve. I don’t always feel the need to verbalize them ‘cause I think everyone knows by looking at me.” Nina smiled. “I thought I made it clear that I loved you. I see now that I didn’t.” Nina looked down at her hands, searching for the right words. “I’m sorry for everything the other night. That was wrong of me.” Nina finally looked up, locking their eyes for the first time in weeks. “I’m so so so sorry, ‘Net.”

Monet smiled softly. She knew Nina loved her, but it was different hearing it from the woman herself. Monet looked down at their hands and let her other hand come to trace the spaces where their fingers interlocked. “I love you, Neens. I have since freshman year. But you were always…”

“Chasing after Brooke?”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.” Nina echoed joylessly. “You should’ve told me though.”

“I loved you so much- I still love you so much,” Monet corrected. “But I thought you were always gonna belong to someone else. So I didn’t push it.”

“And I shouldn’t have pushed you to push it.”

“No, you shouldn’t have.”

Nina sighed. “I love you, ‘Net. I have for a lot longer than I think I even realized. I didn’t mean to hurt you, and I understand if you still want to lea-”

Monet shut her up with a kiss.

It was wet and messy and not like anything either of them had imagined. It was awkward and weird… but then it wasn’t.

Then it was soft and sweet and kind. Their teeth still clacked together and their mouths were out of synch at first, but they figured it out.

It was… perfectly imperfect.

Much like them.

When they finally pulled away, Monet narrowed her eyes, “Don’t ever pull that shit again, you hear me? I will throw down with anyone who comes near my woman.”

Nina laughed, then gave a huge goofy smile.

“What?”

“Your woman. I’m your woman.”

“You bet your gorgeous ass you are. And I ain’t never letting you go.”

“I’ll hold you to that.

…

Trixie and her fellow dancers bowed to the cheering crowd.

The applause was electrifying. And their audience was growing every day. People were coming from all over to see them, to see them dance. It was still crazy that people even knew her name let alone were fans of her.

Trixie couldn’t fight the glowing smile as she made her way off the stage, hand in hand with Violet.

The young arial artist had taken a liking to Trixie sometime last year. The two had barely ever talked before that fateful night - well, Violet had never talked to Trixie before. They had been drunk off their asses and this was back in the days where they weren’t so well received by audiences, and Brooke and Nina were still racking up debt to keep the place open.

Trixie and Violet had drunkenly stumbled back to the studio on Violet’s insistence that Trixie plays her a song on that guitar she always had with her.

Trixie, in her drunkenness, had agreed that breaking into the abandoned studio at 4 a.m. with a hairpin and a piece of gum was a great idea.

They had tried for all of about twenty minutes until they realized that the lock wasn’t coming off.

They sat on the street corner and Violet complained about anything her eyes touched. The ground was too cold, the air was too hot, there was dirt on her shoes.

Trixie placated her by saying - slurring - that she could sing without the guitar.

Violet had perked up at this.

Trixie didn’t sing for many people. It was… very personal for her. It was something that was a sign of trust. She had explained this to Violet who waved her hand and told her to shut up and just sing already.

Trixie did.

Nobody tells you

How you should feel

When dreams have been given

And nothing feels real

The chance is too daunting

The path isn’t clear

But somehow I love you

My beautiful fear

It was a song she wrote in between rehearsals at the studio they were currently leaning against. It was about… a lot of things. Mostly about her own journey with dance and how even though she had only been there a month, she knew that To New Hytes Dance Company was the beginning of something great.

She explained this all to Violet who hadn’t spoken in a while - which was unusual.

Violet looked at her a long moment afterward, something strangely human passed over the usual stone-cold bitch’s face. She had looked, moved? Touched? Those words were too strong. She seemed… smaller.

Somehow.

From that day on, Violet had seemed to be more open with Trixie, more… small.

They walked hand in hand now to the dressing room.

Upon turning the handle, Trixie was immediately met with a chorus of screams of her name.

She glanced around the room to figure out what the actual fuck was going on when her eyes fell upon the elephant in the room.

Piled up on Trixie’s makeup station, nearly as high as the ceiling, was every type of flower Trixie had ever seen, as well as a few she hadn’t seen. It was the biggest bouquet of flowers she had ever seen in her life. She didn’t even know people could sell that many at one time.

“T, what the fuck is all this?”

“Trixie’s got an admirer,” A’keria called from over the mountain of flowers.

Trixie dropped Violet’s hand and rushed over to the flower mountain, trying to keep from messing any of them up, while looking for a card.

She found it placed atop the roses.

A beautiful thing like you deserves beautiful things.

You are an amazing dancer.

P.S. Meet me in the side alley of the theatre as soon as you can.

P.P.S I wanna show you something.

P.P.P.S. That sounded sexual and that’s not what I meant.

P.P.P.P.S. unless….

Trixie giggled to herself at Katya’s message. Her hyperactive lover didn’t even sign her name, but Trixie knew it was her.

“Who is it, Trix?” Dela called.

“No one, don’t worry about it.”

“No, c’mon you gotta tell us!” A’keria prompted.

“Back off hoes, she’s clearly sensitive about it,” Vanjie cut in. “Besides, it’s that Russian chick from the bar a few weeks back.” She said knowingly with a salacious wink at Trixie.

A chorus of yelling erupted again, and Vanjie just threw her head back with a laugh. Trixie flipped her the middle finger and wasted no time changing into her normal clothes.

She was out of the side door of the theatre before she could think too hard about Violet’s face as she left.

Katya was leaning against the wall smoking a cigarette. She was dressed in her usual style of “old-lady went to a thrift store and fell on a rack but make it sexy.”

Katya smiled with her teeth when Trixie came sumbling out. She suddenly felt a bit underdressed with just her yoga pants and a baggy sweatshirt.

Katya didn’t seem to mind as she traipsed slowly up to Trixie, planting a kiss to her full lips without so much as a warning. “You were wonderful tonight. Really amazing. Velikolepnyy. ”

“Uh, thanks. Not that I’m not happy to see you, but what on earth are you doing here?”

“Honestly I didn’t even realize you guys were here. I was just coming out here to the middle of bumfuck nowhere to see the sights. You know, the corn and the grass,” Katya deadpanned. “I came to see you, myshka. ”

“Oh, well, here I am.” Trixie stumbled over her words a bit, blushing at how nervous she sounded.

“Here you are,” Katya echoed.

Katya looked at her for a moment, the longer she stared the more exposed Trixie felt. Although she always felt exposed talking to Katya. The older woman was so… worldly, so… strange. Strange in a way that was compelling and scary.

Suddenly, Katya broke the silence with a clap of her hands, jolting Trixie. “We should hurry, we might miss it!”

“Miss what?”

Katya turned to Trixie with a mischievous glint in her eye. “How do you feel about going on an adventure?”

“It’s nearly one in the morning, what adventure could we possibly be going on?”

“Well if I told you, it wouldn’t be an adventure now would it?” Before Trixie could speak, Katya answered her own question. “No! Now let’s go!”

Katya motioned for Trixie to follow her down the alley and out to a shiny red sports car. It was one of the ones Trixie couldn’t name off the top of her head, but it was one of the nice ones. Like a hundred thousand dollar nice.

Trixie’s door opened for her and a neat little package with a bow greeted her. “What-”

“Trust me, myshka. You are going to want to change.”

Trixie sat down and unwrapped the loose bow revealing a very gorgeous, very expensive, very revealing, very red dress.

She looked over at Katya who shot her a wink before flooring the gas.

Katya drove like she did everything else, with style and no regard to social customs.

She ran at least seven red lights in only three blocks, which Trixie was still trying to figure out how that was even possible when they came to a sudden stop.

“You can change in the bathroom here; I’ll get us some food.”

Trixie did as she was bid and only got a glance of the ‘fresh cookies’ sign before she was being ushered inside. She changed quickly in the small bathroom that she was becoming more and more sure was only for employees. She took a moment to look at herself in the mirror.

She looked good.

Like really good.

Katya had somehow managed to get a dress that fit her rather large chest and hips while also caressing her torso and legs. It was almost like it was custom made.

Trixie ran her fingers through her hair to try and get out some of the knots, but it was pointless.

She exited the bathroom to see Katya completely changed into a form-fitting long black dress and a giant box of cookies in her arms. Trixie opened her mouth to ask ‘how’ or ‘why’ or ‘what the actual fuck’ but Katya cut her off again, saying that they had to get going.

Trixie followed her back into the car, and they sped off again onto the city streets. Katya downed three cookies in the span of the five minutes it took to get to their second destination.

They came to a stop outside a dark and old looking building. Katya got out of the car and held her arm out for Trixie to grab onto.

They walked up to the side of the abandoned building and Katya wrapped on the metal door.

A moment later the door was opened ever so slightly, and a harsh male voice spoke in some language Trixie couldn’t make out.

“Chto heta?”

“Yekaterina Petrovna Zamolodchikova. Upuscim.”

“Nas?”

“U mianie josć hosć.”

The door shut and opened a second later. Katya flashed a nervous-looking Trixie a wink.

They entered and Trixie was suddenly overwhelmed with the sights and sounds that accosted her senses.

It was a jazz club.

Plain and simple. An underground jazz club in the middle of nowhere U.S.A. There were men onstage wailing away on saxophones and people milling about in their best evening wear. Some were dancing, some were chatting (in more languages that Trixie had never heard), some were drinking at the bar.

The walls were covered in gorgeous artwork that must have cost thousands of dollars each. There were chandeliers throughout the club, adding even more elegance to the already opulent space.

Katya let her take it in for a moment before she pulled Trixie with a gentle hand toward the dance floor.

Trixie had no time to protest as she was suddenly being swayed and pulled this way and that in time with the music. Katya was laughing like a maniac, filling the otherwise peaceful atmosphere with her high-pitched shrieking. Trixie laughed at her. Laughed at the situation. Laughed because she didn’t know what else to do.

She was dancing in an underground jazz club in the middle of nowhere with a Russian girl she met at a bar who she was beginning to think was some sort of mafioso and laughing like a maniac.

The situation was not anything like she had expected and also exactly what she needed.

“What did that guy ask you? And what language was that?”

“He just asked for my name in Belarusian.”

Trixie laughed; that would be her answer. “Say it for me again. Your name.”

Katya gave her a strange look but repeated herself. “Yekaterina Petrovna Zamolodchikova.”

“Yekaterina, I like that.”

Katya laughed.

“What?”

“Your pronunciation, myshka. It is so bad.”

“Well forgive me for not growing up speaking every random language under the sun!”

“Hey, don’t blame me! My mother put me in classes when I was three. I had no choice!”

“Your mother put you in language classes at three?”

“Parenting… it is different over there.” Katya’s accent was back, and she wasn’t looking into Trixie’s eyes anymore.

“Well, it sounds really interesting. I’d love to visit someday.”

“Mozhet byt’, odnazhdy ya voz'mu tebya.”

“What?”

“Nevermind.”

Trixie let it go for now and let herself relax. The space was beautiful. The music was beautiful. Katya was beautiful.

Everything was perfect.

Katya dropped Trixie off several hours later with the whole load of cookies and a promise to see her soon.

Trixie practically floated to her room.

She fell asleep with jazz music ringing in her ears.

…

“Vanessa, I swear to god if you don’t turn the right way this time I will personally- What?”

Vanessa had a shit-eating grin on her face.

You could hear a pin drop the theatre was so quiet. The rest of the dancers were looking at Brooke with a mixture of shock, and Nina, with a smirk.

Shit.

“Take five.”

Brooke couldn’t get off the stage fast enough. She avoided Alyssa’s questioning look and wandered around the unfamiliar backstage of the theatre until she found herself thoroughly lost in the costumes - not theirs - and old stage equipment.

She lets herself take a deep breath in and out.

“There you are, Brooke.”

Great, just fucking great. It was Vanessa. It was Vanessa peering up at her with a smirk and shorts that were way too tight and her hair in an intricate braid with a few curls falling in her face.

Brooke swore she’d never seen anyone more beautiful.

But she couldn’t think about that right now. Couldn’t think about how just last night she had this gorgeous, amazing girl in her arms. Couldn’t think about how she let Vanessa crash in her hotel room and how she ducked out - of her own room - at an ungodly hour of the morning to go “rehearse.”

She couldn’t think about that now.

She had to be the boss. Had to be the stone-cold ballerina she had been brought up to be. Focused on the company. Focused on perfection. Focused on her future.

She couldn’t let Vanessa be anything more than a mistake.

“You can’t call me that. I’m your boss.”

Perhaps Brooke should have used a more professional tone because Vanessa’s next words were said in a decidedly unprofessional one.

Vanessa smirked. “Yeah, you are.”

“No, Vanessa, I’m not playing.” Brooke breathed in and out. “What happened-”

Vanessa cut her off. “Was the best sex of your life I know. I’ve heard it before.”

“No!” Brooke nearly shouted. “You don’t get it, do you? I can’t do this. I don’t do this. This isn’t right-”

“It felt pretty right.”

“Stop fucking talking.” Brooke snapped. They were inches apart.

“Make. Me.” Vanessa said stepping closer, challenging Brooke yet again.

“Fucking hell.”

Before she could think about it too much, Brooke pressed Vanessa against the nearest flat surface and kissed her senseless.

When they got back to the stage, none of the dancers mentioned that Vanessa’s unkempt hair was suddenly down around her face or the red mark in the shape of a heart on Brooke’s neck.

[anhed-nia]

BLOGTOBER 10/15/2019: THE TALL MAN (2012)

If you do not personally crave movies that undermine both your intelligence and your suspension of disbelief with their totally bizarre bullshit, then please allow me to spoil all of Pascal Laugier’s THE TALL MAN for you. Laugier is responsible for 2008′s infamously hard to swallow MARTYRS, so if you’re acquainted with that, then you may have a general idea of what you’re in for. I had actually seen THE TALL MAN before, and all I could remember about it was my own vague sense of bafflement and annoyance. I’m so glad I chose to revisit it this blogtober, because it is really satisfyingly idiotic!

This incomprehensible rural thriller stars the perennially exhausted Jessica Biel as a widowed country nurse in a decaying northwestern mining town that is suffering from a seemingly endless string of child disappearances. The crimes have given rise to an urban legend about a Tall Man who spirits little kids away to do all sorts of awful things to them. Jessica Biel is too busy to worry about that, being the town’s last human being with a caring heart, until it happens to her--one night, her home is violated, and the intruder absconds with her little boy. She chases the Tall Man into the night, ultimately losing him after being dragged behind his JEEPERS CREEPERS van and having a surprisingly long, action-packed misadventure in the woods. When she is recovered by the FBI (dreamy Stephen McHattie) and dropped off at the local diner, she seems to uncover traces of a conspiracy among the locals, who may all be jointly behind the Tall Man kidnappings. This sends her off on the second leg of her chase, deeper into the gothic industrial recesses of their depressed burg...whereupon, after almost exactly one hour of this sappy but intriguing narrative, Jessica Biel confronts the Tall Man, who is ACTUALLY the mother (Colleen Wheeler) of one of the latest disappeared children (backed by the shifty locals), because Jessica Biel is ACTUALLY the Tall Man! Or at least, Biel delivers a borderline spiritual confession about how she has been delivering all of the town’s children to the Tall Man in order to rescue them from...well, mainly from being raised by poor people. Now that she is jailed for life as a presumed child murderer, in spite of the lack of a single corpse in the labyrinthine caverns beneath her house, the narrative shifts to one of the town’s other denizens, selectively mute teenager Jodelle Ferland (better known to me as Sharon/Alessa from SILENT HILL!) who has been yearning for the Tall Man to take her away from her crappy family. Having expressed her desires to his Jessica Biel, she is warned tantalizingly that if she causes problems, then the Tall Man will “do things to her that (she) can’t even imagine!” (This won’t make any sense later) But now that Biel is behind bars, an actual Tall Man--Jessica Biel’s enigmatic and apparently alive HUSBAND--comes, scoops the girl up like a football, and runs her out to an underground adoption agency whose mission is specifically to kidnap kids out of poor, neglectful families, and farm them out to childless rich people who will give them the perfect childhood. At the very end of the movie, now cultured and fashionable but lonely for her old life, Jodelle gazes DIRECTLY INTO THE CAMERA, allowing tears to fall from her troubled eyes, and asks OUT LOUD if she made the right decision. The end....?!?!?!

I hope that by now, you understand why I feel compelled to lay out every single beat of this ridiculous story. The experience of watching this complete nonsense unfurl is fascinating; The movie is richly atmospheric, and Jessica Biel’s evocation of physical and moral weariness is strangely effective. But then it has to be about...what’s it about exactly? Jessica Biel and her spouse, who has vanished himself in order to perpetrate this elaborate crime, claim to rescue children from dire circumstances, but it isn’t really explicit what the kids are going through, other than the town-wide economic depression. OK, so Jodelle Ferland’s home life kind of sucks, but the idea of a teenager on the verge of adulthood deliberately submitting herself to a human trafficking ring so she can get adopted by rich people is so inherently comedic to me that I just can’t take it seriously. Also, as Colleen Wheeler explains to Jessica Biel in jail, just being poor and imperfect shouldn’t make you a candidate for being deprived of your family. As the film’s latter revelations unfold, we see several photos of Jessica Biel and her husband serving in Save the Children-type organizations around the world, including a picture of them surrounded by smiling black faces. I don’t know if the implication is that Mr. and Mrs. Tall Man went to places like Haiti and the Congo in order to snatch children out of their poor mothers’ arms--it’s hard to imagine that the rich and childless of Seattle would be as interested in them as they are in a little white cherub like Jodelle--but it’s an icky thing to add to the mix. And about Jodelle, who has infiltrated the Tall Man scheme in order to get herself some less drunk and pugnacious parents: Her closing V/O monologue is mortifying in its pseudo-poetic prose, but more than that, what am I supposed to think about her epiphany that getting illegally adopted might have been a pretty mean thing to do to her birth mom? The movie is gravely serious at all times, but I’m not sure what about. It feels a little like writer-director Laugier explained his latest movie idea to somebody, and that person said, “Wait, are we supposed to admire Jessica Biel? This seems like kind of a bad, judgmental thing to do,” and then he just wrote in all this hemming and hawing about what the meaning of all this is supposed to be.

So not only do I feel confused about how I’m meant to feel toward the characters in THE TALL MAN, but I feel confused about what it’s about metaphorically. There are lots of genre movies about childhood and parenting, understandably, since it is such a potent subject. There are evil little kid stories, about the reasonable suspicion that your precious offspring is actually a separate and independent person from you. There are stories about bullied little kids who turn out to have an epic destiny, that help us combat our feelings of ordinariness and anonymity. Adjacently, stories about evil parental figures who must be vanquished stem from a similar desire for self-validation. There are also stories which sort of mix these two ideas, about children getting to go on a magical adventure that is ultimately NOT preferable to the comforts of home--iterations range from THE WIZARD OF OZ to any number of Slenderman narratives (of which this almost is one). Then there are stories, usually distopian sci-fi or fantasy products, about adults who have to fight for their right to breed against a fascist government that aims to prevent undesirable children from being born--which in turn are adjacent to stories about parents who try to artificially produce the perfect child, and who inevitably pay for this transgression against god and nature. It’s easy to see what real feelings and experiences inspire each of these stories, but I have no idea what THE TALL MAN is about. I would think that there isn’t a big and reliable enough audience of, say, people who think you should need a license to have a kid, for somebody to make an entire movie about what if you could remove children from parents who are unstable, oh but like also what if you can’t really tell WHO is or is not a fit parent, but then like what if you were a kid and could pick your own parents, would you be sad later if you tried it??? ...I just mean to say that I don’t know what THE TALL MAN is an allegory for, or even just what it wants me to think or feel. And for some equally idiotic reason, I seem to enjoy the only emotion I am left with, which is confusion.

PS With this viewing, I managed to watch two movies in a row that end with spooked out kids speaking directly to the camera, and that just makes me feel totally and completely cursed.