#also I’m not sure what his and Dark Cacao’s relationship was like

[quibbs126]

So I talked about making a Theobromine Cookie a bit back, and I decided “eh why not” and just drew him out

For those without context, I mentioned him in my “things about Dark Cacao that point to him having weird origins” post, specifically in the tags, saying that I sort of went into a spiral that led me to make that post

So my first gut instinct with making Theobromine, at least after reading a bit about it, was to make him a chill guy who also doesn’t entirely understand what’s going on, or at least he seems that way, but in reality he’s even stronger than Dark Cacao without really trying and is far more competent than he seems. He just doesn’t really care most of the time. Sort of like what I’ve seen of Ao Lie in Monkie Kid (I haven’t watched Season 4 yet, but I have seen clips with him)

Eventually that sort of devolved into making him a more serious character, but I decided to keep part of that, specifically the more idiot part, and change it to him being an amnesiac, meaning that he can be a chill dude, despite the fact that he wasn’t originally and was more of a badass

I realize I haven’t actually explained much about Theobromine, other than original ideas for him. So basically, Theobromine here is actually the father of Dark Cacao, hence Dark Cacao’s shocked reaction to him in one of the pictures. However, due to him having amnesia, Theobromine doesn’t know that, and while Dark Cacao does, he wants to wait a bit before telling him, since telling this guy he’s the father of the current ruler of this kingdom that also looks older than him is gonna be a bit too much for him to handle. He’s planning on waiting until Theobromine has a better grasp on himself and the world around him before telling him of the past.

Also he’s a Super Epic, like I stated in those tags. Just thought I’d put that in now

As for what happened to him and how he’s still alive, so Theobromine isn’t immortal (at least not anymore), thousands of years ago, when Dark Cacao was still young (but only like a little bit before he met the other Ancients), Theobromine was subjected to some curse that caused him to go into a magically induced coma, and/or be sealed in a block of ice? I dunno, I haven’t worked out a lot of the details with him. But anyways, Dark Cacao didn’t know how to reverse it, and thought the curse was unbreakable, so he ended up leaving him to rest, assuming that he’d eventually crumble of old age in his sleep. In current day, someone (I think some Watchers) ended up finding where he was, and due to some mishap, he ended up actually awakening from his slumber, and so they took him back to the Citadel to recover. Dark Cacao is informed and meets the stranger, only to be shocked with who it is, though he’s vague about what their connection is. Eventually Dark Cacao realizes that Theobromine has amnesia and decides it’d be best to just let him try and figure out himself on his own, before overwhelming him with his past, though he is tempted to just tell him

So I’m sure you noticed the white hair one, and probably also the fact I said he isn’t immortal anymore. Well I thought with his name basically meaning “food of the gods” (which made more sense for a cookie the more I thought about it), as well as me pointing out the things about Dark Cacao that are a bit odd, and the fact that I was going to make him a Super Epic, I thought, “hey why not have him be like a supernatural Cookie?” So I’ll be honest, I don’t have all the details down, but basically Theobromine’s where Dark Cacao gets the slit eyes and abnormal strength, because Theobromine used to be a Legendary Cookie, or something equating to that. I haven’t exactly figured out what he was, just that he had immense power and is where Dark Cacao gets his abnormalities. But I know his hair used to be white back then. And it glowed. But eventually, he did something that angered other higher beings (I just refer to them in my head as “the gods” bc of the name, but I’m not sure whether they’re other Legendaries or witches or other humans or something), and as punishment, he was stripped of his power and forced to live as a normal Cookie, with one of the things being his hair turning black. He still retained some of his power, so he didn’t really listen at first, but he eventually went through a character arc that made him recognize his mortality and come to appreciate the mortal life. Which I realized after making that originally is just he plot of the first Thor movie, but whatever. And later on, he eventually had his own mortal child, Dark Cacao, who inherited streaks of his original white hair, as well as some of his abilities

I said he kept some of his abilities, and he learned to tap into some of his original power, with his hair turning white like it used to, but he can only use it for a certain amount of time, as it puts massive strain on his body the longer he uses it. In current times, he isn’t aware he has those powers, though as shown his hair does occasionally flash white when he’s surprised, though nobody really knows why

Okay, if it isn’t clear, I have not fleshed out a lot of the ideas here, they’re just here. I haven’t really had the time to flesh him out, nor am I even sure I’m gonna stick with him

So as for his design, I’m aware it’s pretty basic, but that was how I originally envisioned him, so I just kept it for his amnesiac state. I gave him silver eyes because theobromine is apparently a white powder, so it was to incorporate that. Originally I was also going to make his hair have more white streaks, but then I made it so his hair was originally white to keep with that. Also you may notice in the lower corner another picture of him, that was just me trying to figure out what his past design looked like. I wanted to give him Dark Cacao’s beta shoulder pads as a reference to him, but I’m not sure I like it.

Oh yeah, another thing I forgot to mention, he’s not supposed to be that skinny. In reality he’s like the same size as Dark Cacao, maybe even slightly taller than him. I just don’t think I got that across

So I’m not sure if I’m keeping him, since he kind of directly contradicts Ruby Cacao. Ruby Cacao was made with the basis that Dark Cacao didn’t know the dragons and that he grew up in poverty. Also she was made with the idea that they don’t have parents. Having Theobromine and them living with him contradicts that, and it greatly diminishes her importance in his life, and could even mean that she never died in the first place, since I doubt Theobromine would let that happen to his kid. Plus, I feel like giving Dark Cacao a dad and a sister is overdoing it, one or the other is fine but not both. And I like Ruby Cacao, so I’m just not sure what to do. He was just a “what if” character that now I’ve grown attached to

But yeah, that’s Theobromine. Hope you like him, or what little I have of him

[brittle-doughie]

Hello again! Thank you for responding to my last ask, I honestly thought you wouldn’t and I’m pretty grateful for it! I thought of some more lore ideas for Blue Orchid Cookie and wanted to share what I came up with along with some artworks I drew while lore dumping.

Since I mentioned on the last ask that Blue Orchid cookie was the apprentice of White Lily cookie, I thought of how his relationship is with the other ancients. Blue Orchid has positive opinions about the ancients, especially with White Lily and Pure Vanilla cookie. He likes going on late night walks with Pure Vanilla whenever he visits the the Vanilla kingdom. Blue feels a bit intimated by Hollyberry and Dark Cacao cookie because of their respective personalities by warmed up to them after a few more visits. He finds Golden Cheese to be overwhelming because of her excessive gift giving of precious jewels and clothing whenever he visits her kingdom but finds her to be good company. Some fun facts about Blue Orchid is that he loves rock/metal music to the shock of many cookies. He finds the songs in that genre to be very exciting and stimulating which is perfect for listening to in the background in his free time. He often has trouble saying no to other cookies as he is a people pleaser or cookie pleaser in this case. He either has to get bailed out of the situation by another cookie he knows or the request from the other cookie was so absurd that Blue Orchid had to say no. Blue Orchid often worries about the day he fails to save a cookie in his care which makes him a bit of a perfectionist when preforming healing spells but he means well. He also has a slight crush on a special cookie who does music from the rock genre but I’ve yet to figure out who that is.

Also here’s a little Shadow Milk jump scare because he’s a silly little gremlin. This is what Blue Orchid looks like if he got corrupted by Shadow Milk cookie. Such mischievous fellas, surely wouldn’t cause a certain mentor and her friend to have their hearts crushed no sir. :)

Bruh, Pure Vanilla and White Lily Cookie would be CRYING-

Rock/metal music? Now that would be a definite surprise. Seeing this gentle looking cookie just blare screamer metal in their room is such a whiplash lol.

I’d say that Blue Orchid just try to take the Golden Cheese gift giving to stride, it’s just her way of letting him know that she cares for him a lot.

A crush on a music cookie that does rock? Hmm, doesn’t ring a bell with me…

[fantasiasodapop]

*vibrates in excitement* Okay, this is good. Didn’t know about the ghost hunter! Here we go.

You are totally right! Snake Fruit and the Cookiemals would totally fit as animalistic cookies, even if they aren’t shapeshifters. That’s a good point. So would Pinecone (but he might be closer to a guide, as he talks to trees, but I’d like to hear your ideas on that), and I suppose that technically Tiger Lily and Crunchy Chip would half be in this category, but that depends on whether you consider people raised by animals as fitting here. (And I’m pretty sure Tiger Lily is related to almost certainly Pitaya and MAYBE White Lily but that’s another theory entirely.) Snake Fruit might be considered a cookie with at least a legend about them as they were actually predicted by Millennial Cookie who knew Longan’s plan the entire time (see: Millennial Tree’s Relationship Chart)

Sugarglass is a fantastic example! Oh, and you could add Amber to the animal cookies as well! I would also include Stardust and, surprisingly, Wizard Cookie in this “Wizard’s Victims” category as if you examine his dialogue in the City of Wizards, he knows WAY MORE than he should and the Wizard friend of Moonlight insinuates that he will be back so… I don’t know what to make of the little scarfed cookie. Off the top of my head I think he found a secret passage? I’d have to recheck the story to make sure, but he knows things that no one else does, including defenses, the Wizard creation abilities, etc. His knowledge is spooky, okay?

All right, fair, but we should warn you to keep in mind the factors that amount to their power. We’re looking at experience, age, distance from the source of magic in the bloodline, ambition, drive, and knowledge. Choco is absolutely going to be the strongest as he’s the most experienced, oldest, closest in relation to Cacao, and was essentially forced to develop and train his powers to be a weapon for Dark Enchantress. However, Custard III is nothing to scoff at. Keeping in mind that he is a child and likely Pure Vanilla’s first cousin twice-removed (feel free to ask about that one, we’d love to show you what we’ve found), this kid should not have the magic he does! Arguably the strongest Rare in the game, this man canonically holds back DE for a moment, knocking her back long enough for Vanilla to recover and finish the job. He has the limited experience, sure, but he also has the ambition, drive, and knowledge to become a great healer. And his skill is literally a mini Vanilla. Point is, despite his age, that kid is nothing to scoff at. (If you can’t tell, Custard III is one of our favourite cookies and he would have made such a good protagonist for this game instead of GingerBrave.) Princess, on the other hand, is a teenager who a, doesn’t really seem to know much about the power she may have inherited from her grandmother, and b, would much rather be off adventuring and doesn’t seem to care about said magic anyway. Same problem with her twin Tiger Lily. Why she does have a large gem that could work as a pseudo-soul jam like the others, she has no knowledge that we know of regarding her royalty, and so if she has powers, she stumbled on them by accident and practiced them out of survival.

That’s not a bad idea! The followers of deities are definitely powerful people, though not as powerful as say the Ancient Heroes or the thief Oyster. Though I wonder how Blue Lily or Lilybell would be related to White Lily or even Tiger Lily, as we’ve seem family bonds be based on less. *purses lips*

That totally makes sense too. XD We’ve had half the mind to try and make a family tree of the most important cookies in the game and oh stars the family trees get REAL complicated when you start looking between the lines of how some of these people talk to each other… In this update I am 90% sure that Pitaya said an innuendo aimed at Holly. (Holly didn’t notice or didn’t care, it’s a toss-up because the girl is oblivious, man.)

Oh stars, you have no idea how long we’ve wanted to ramble about theories with more people. Our partner has admitted to mixing up canon with theory because of how much we talk about it. XD

a bunch of people do their takes on the gods of the cookie world, so heres my go of the pantheon. it includes every cookie whos rarity is above epic, which is why clotted and oyster are present!

also i uh. dont know if capsaicin is in the right place? i havent gone through the tri-cone cup story yet ;^^ but he doesnt seem to be exactly mortal.

maybe the spirit section is a hot-take, but when sherbet and stardust came out, it struck me that they looked a lot like wind archer and fire spirit!

(click to read clearer!)

[peachyqueenly]

Literally every ancient has the most out there takes associated with them and it drives me up the wall--

I won’t linger on White Lily (... for once), but the idea that she’s selfish or abusive or whatever is just. No... just. No. She did what she did to help others she explicitly states this I sincerely doubt the authors are on a high enough plane to pull a ‘oh she was lying’. No. She made a mistake.

Dark Cacao as a shit king hits especially weird when a. there are many valid things to criticize him for (him outright admitting he let himself get manipulated by Affogato cause he ‘knew Carraow would help those on the outside’ as if kicking Affogato out sooner wouldn’t have helped, not to mention the stuff with his son. But... no? People focus on him starving his people which uh-- no. He did not (at least on purpose, those outside the citadel were starving because Affogato hid them from Cacao).

The people within the Citadel didn’t starve. They weren’t eating as much or as fancily as Affogato would’ve liked, but also that’s because they’re a society built on scarcity and limits. Because they have to, they live in a harsh land. Resources are not bountiful, unlike the Hollyberry Kingdom. This idea that every culture must allow for over indulgence is just... weird.

Hollyberry is probably the one who gets off the easiest, but I will say I find the prevalence of alcoholic jokes in poor taste. I know some got on her for leaving her family, but... like Lily and (some of) Cacao’s mistakes, the plot addresses this and makes it clear it was a mistake.

Pure Vanilla is so weird. Cause some similar stuff to Lily happens here, but at least not to as annoying of a degree. Like. The thing about him sealing his Kingdom: it was either due that and sacrifice his Kingdom, or risk DE getting out and bringing ruin to all of Earthbread. Rock and a hard place. Sure, he’s a bit of a pushover... but again. That is his flaw!!! Like every character should have. That doesn’t mean he’s in an unhealthy relationship with Lily nor that he’s a centrist (clearly, as he showed in Odyssey he’s willing to be underhanded), but it’s just. An issue of his.

Golden Cheese is also weird but for different reasons. For some reason even the artbook (unlike Lily where it’s made clear something is up with the twist) is super vague with her, but I’ll say this to the whole ‘dictator’ stuff--

No.

While being a flawed leader and a bit vain will almost certainly play into her character, she’s an ancient hero and a bearer of the Soul Jam... for a reason. Something about her is good, sympathetic, and heroic. Like the other four, the idea she’s gonna be this irredeemable asshole is silly. 

Silly enough for devsis not to do it? Eh, but if they do it I’m gonna have some questions on why she is the one ancient who has no sympathetic qualities.

They’re all people with flaws. Not evil, as the story inherently portrays them as the heroes. But like any good functional character in a narrative, they have flaws. Annoying ones? That’s in the eye of the beholder, but I find people who act like them disliking those flaws makes them objectively bad is weird.

[dreaming-of-assclass]

"ive never felt like this about anyone before!" with terasaka and nagisa?? (or just karmagisa if ur uncomfy with that! :>)

Pairing: Nagisa Shiota/Ryoma Terasaka

Genre: Romance, Fluff

Word Count: 1,588

A/N: Aww this is a cute pairing! I decided to go the classic route of confessing with chocolates UwU. Also ft. BFF/wingwoman Kayano!! I really like the honest simplicity of Nagisa and Terasaka’s relationship, and I hope I conveyed that well.

Before joining 3-E, Nagisa never really thought of himself as unpredictable. He’d always been a simple guy, with not many quirks. Maybe a bit of a wallflower, even. He liked observing others and the nuances of human nature. He liked seeing how other people could be surprising. 

But then 3-E happened, and he kept receiving constant praises of his “natural talents.” How stealthy he was, how he took down Takaoka, how he kept on shocking his classmates and teachers with his capriciousness, etc.

Nagisa couldn’t help but enjoy the attention, although he tried his best to hide it. But truth be told, he still saw himself as a simple person. And a part of him preferred it that way, seeking out some normalcy in the midst of his transformed life. 

And now, as he stood in his kitchen, eyes wide at the countertop covered with a dozen different ingredients, he was wishing he’d been more unique after all. 

Chocolates on Valentine’s Day? How unoriginal, he sighed internally. 

Nagisa reached for his plain navy apron and looped it over his head, the fabric tickling his nose. He tied the straps behind him and took a deep breath, eyeing the gourmet bar of 80% cacao he’d purchased.

Before he could linger on his doubts and call off the entire thing, his best friend (and baking partner) returned from the bathroom. Kayano bounded into the kitchen with a grin on her face. “Sorry for making you wait, Nagisa. I just had to take care of a small hair emergency!”

“No, no, it’s fine,” Nagisa quickly reassured her with a smile. He glanced at her dark messy bun, fondly recalling the old quirky jade pigtails he’d grown used to for an entire year. “Thanks again for helping me out, Kayano.”

“Of course!” she replied, skillfully tying on her own butterscotch apron. “What are friends for, if not helping you make chocolates because you’re a hopeless mess in the kitchen?”

Nagisa laughed and stepped back to give her room as she started examining the ingredients. “Yeah, I would’ve destroyed my kitchen. Cooking is one thing, but I’m not good at baking...and I’ve never made chocolates before.”

“That’s fine. They’re pretty easy to make, once you get past the beginning,” Kayano assured him with a smile.

They fell into comfortable conversation as they worked through the recipe. Nagisa’s clumsy hands nearly made a few mistakes, but Kayano was quick to assist him. Eventually, they stood by and waited for the chocolate to melt over the stove, with Nagisa continuously stirring it.

“I really appreciate you helping me. Seriously, that’s so nice of you. Let me know if there’s anything I can help you with.”

He paused then quickly fixed his words, stammering. “I-I mean, you can ask for anything at any time, of course! I just meant to return the favor, you know?”

Kayano laughed. “Relax, Nagisa. This is nothing compared to what an awesome friend you’ve been for me. You don’t owe me anything.”

He frowned slightly. “But…”

She hummed in thought. “I guess I am pretty curious to know who you’re giving them to, though? But only if you’re comfortable sharing!”

There was a brief silence, only the stirring of the liquid chocolate filling the air between them. 

“Nagisa…?”

“Terasaka-kun.”

“Huh?”

He sighed with a smile. “I’m making these for Terasaka-kun.”

“Really?” Her eyes widened. “Aww!”

Nagisa winced at her high-pitched squeal then smiled at her acceptance. “You’re not surprised?”

“Not really,” she admitted. “You guys have always had a very sweet and trusting relationship.” 

Nagisa felt his face heat up. “You think so?” he asked quietly, returning his gaze back to the pot.

“Yes, I do,” she smiled. “They say the best relationships always do come after one of you nearly blows the other up, anyways~”

He groaned as she laughed. 

Another stretch of comfortable silence passed and soon, they were onto decorating the chocolates. Nagisa watched in awe as she delicately laced the top of the rich chocolates with a caramel icing. 

Finally, it was his turn. He carefully made a tiny flower design with the hazelnut icing tube. “You know…” he began.

“I’ve never done anything like this before,” he admitted quietly. “Making chocolates...confessing...I never acted on my feelings or was proactive.” Nagisa’s eyes were trained on what he was doing, but he could feel Kayano’s gaze on him.

“But...the way I feel about Terasaka-kun. With him. Around him…” A small smile etched onto his face. “It’s such an intense, engulfing feeling. But at the same time, it makes me feel lighter than air.”

“I’ve never felt like this about anyone before.”

The next day was Valentine’s Day, and Nagisa swore, he never heard his own heart beat so rapidly before in his whole life. 

He had texted Terasaka that morning to meet up somewhere, under the context of borrowing a book. The five minutes in which he’d awaited a response were the most agonizing he’d ever felt. Was he being too obvious? Terasaka responded positively though, with a short “yeah ofc. see u later.” Nagisa had fallen out of his bed in relief.

Now he was standing outside the local library, clutching onto his schoolbag. He was still in his uniform, and he bet Terasaka would be as well since school hours had just ended. 

Valentine’s Day had been uneventful for the most part. He’d gotten friendship chocolates from most of the girls in his class, a completely platonic gesture. Nagisa made a mental note of who he would give gifts to on White Day, to return such a kind gesture. Outside of that, he’d just watched in amusement at some of the antics going on around him. Chocolates being given by the hundreds to popular boys, confessions going wildly wrong and descending into chaos, fangirls, all the like. 

“Yo!” His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a familiar voice. Nagisa jolted up at the sight of Terasaka making his way towards him. The object of his affection was uniform-clad in a rather neat manner, with his school bag slung over his shoulder, wearing a fond grin once his eyes locked with Nagisa’s.

Nagisa felt his stomach tighten, as if a bunch of knots were tied inside. This is it… “Hey,” he greeted with a smile, waving to the taller boy. “It’s good to see you.”

“You too,” Terasaka replied warmly, slowing to a stop a couple feet in front of him. “How’s this crappy holiday been for ya?”

“Heh, pretty boring,” Nagisa chuckled. “Like always, I just get friendship chocolates from the girls in my class.”

“Really? That’s still cool.” 

Nagisa hummed. “What about you?” He asked, instantly dreading the answer.

Terasaka laughed lightly. “I got some from the squad as a joke, and I’m completely fine with that.”

“Oh, haha.” Nagisa felt a weight lift off his chest at the response, and his grip tightened on his bag.

Terasaka frowned slightly at him. “You okay? You’re acting a little weird.”

Now? Nagisa questioned himself. Now feels right…

Finally making his resolve, Nagisa chose not to answer verbally. Instead, he quickly opened his bag and pulled out the decorated box. He opted to go simple, rather than the ornate boxes he’d seen people give. It was a small square shape in a deep crimson color, topped by a golden bow. 

“Terasaka-kun…” Nagisa let out a sharp breath he was unaware he’d been holding. He lifted his gaze to meet Terasaka’s, and offered him a genuine smile.

“I really like you. And I made you these chocolates.” He extended his hand holding the box. “Will you go out with me?”

A tiny part of Nagisa’s mind, within his conscious, was blown away at his actions. He was seriously confessing to his crush. With homemade chocolates. Is this for real?

But Nagisa was nothing if not honest. And that extended to even himself. 

A second had passed and Terasaka gently took the chocolates from him, a warm look in his eyes that made Nagisa melt just a little. His lips were curved into a rare smile of faded surprise and contentment.

Finally he spoke, his voice like honey, full of affection. “Of course I’ll go out with you, stupid. I like you too.”

Nagisa’s chest swelled with joy. He smiled stronger than he ever had before, a rush of emotion passing through him.

Terasaka’s attention had shifted to the box in his large hands, and he tugged the bow off. “You made these yourself?” He sounded curious.

“Yes...but with a lot of help from Kayano,” Nagisa admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his short hair.

Terasaka laughed as he opened it, picking up the one that Nagisa had decorated with a flower. “They look awesome.” He plucked it into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. His eyes soon lit up. “Woah, they taste great too!”

“Really?!” Nagisa asked excitedly, feeling a bit of pride. 

“For sure.” Terasaka nodded with a grin that soon turned shy. He averted his gaze slightly, his face pink. “Thanks for making these for me…”

“I’m glad you like them,” Nagisa said somewhat absentmindedly, his attention focused on how cute Terasaka’s shy smile was.

His thoughts were interrupted by Terasaka suddenly leaning in closer. “Wait uh…” His crush’s face reddened even more. “...Can I kiss you?”

Nagisa felt his own face flush as he nodded. 

The kiss was simple and sweet, yet filled with strong genuine emotions. It was almost like a representative of their bond. 

And Nagisa wouldn’t have it any other way.

[jimmythejiver]

For the first time in a long time I went to the movies in forever and then to Target. At Target I see some Godiva bars on discount yellow tags and I was ecstatic until I read 70% Cacao, Dark, Salted Caramel and was deflated.

Anyway that's how I felt about seeing The Green Knight. What you thought this was about chocolate?

No see since the pandemic I've been back on my perennial King Arthur kick. I've for a long time since I was a young preteen thought, someday I too will write my own King Arthur epic and it'll be gay, magical, gangster and culty too, but for now I'll make up my own stories for practice and then with every story I got attached too, it got too involved and convoluted to the point that when it came down to actually writing a novel, I threw it all away and made a space opera I only planned in two weeks and wrote in a month. Anyway...so now I've been writing this very gay, magical, gangster and culty take on Final Fantasy XV with my boyfriend and just fell in love with Somnus Lucis Caelum who nobody has any insight about him than to make him the Mordred to Ardyn's Arthur, which is a strange flex, but okay, I thought about what if I wrote a Dark Age prequel about Ardyn and Somnus, but Ardyn becomes king and Somnus his shogun and they play games of seduction and power because I'm twisted like that. Anyway...I was like I'm never going to write this and I have to keep making up characters based on FFXV characters and King Arthur tropes because there's not a lot of stories that take place during the Dark Ages, it's always some Roman Empire story, or High Middle Ages and FFXV gave no room for either society to happen after the fall of Solheim and the rise of King Somnus...so we left with Dark Ages, y'all, the King Arthur comparisons are obvious, but Ardyn is no Arthur and Somnus is no Mordred, Aera is only Guenevere if you make up an affair with Somnus, Gilgamesh is no Bedwyr/Bedivere, but uh...they both amputees and the oldest companions to their respective kings so...I guess. Anyway making an ancestor of Cor Leonis and deciding well he's Owain/Yvain, or am Ignis type as idk Sir Cai/Kay I guess, they both cook, but Cai's more like Seifer Almasy than any FF character... Anyway I'm losing people.

My plan was to just scrap the FFXV prequel, leave my Somnus ideas into Overtime (a gangster and gods story) and just plan an actual King Arthur adaptation. I'd have King Arthur the treasure hunter, leader of a warband turned founder of Camelot who fights giants, giant cats and dogheads, but also fights King Claudas of the Franks and King Aelle of the Saxons and Cerdic a Briton who puts in his lot with the Saxons, etc. It'd been a a glorified turf war, meanwhile Arthur's gotta make alliances with King Pelles, The Fisher King and his strange cult he's founded because, why yes I find the ends justifies the means prophecy of the Holy Grail Quest very culty because Christianity then does not resemble it now. Meanwhile you got the secondary plots of Mordred, Gawain, Lancelot, Percival, Tristam and other's going on because they matter and too many modern King Arthur stories sideline the knights.

So many have always sidelined Mordred as a final boss eldritch abomination in mortal flesh conceived of sin and give him no personality, or complex motives, or even just a relationship with Arthur. I also have noticed the general sidelining of Lancelot, or give him a chad villain upgrade if you must include him at all, and the villainizing of Gawain to the point that you don't even have to have Mordred, or Agravain as a catalyst shit stirrer in court, just slap Gawain's name on Liam Neeson in a top knot and you're good. Mordred can just be a child offscreen until last act...fuck that, while Morgan Le Fay can either be a villainess plotting her cabal through men, or a well-intentioned, ineffectual idiot. Fuck that.

Now Hollywood just be doing King Arthur first acts that suck ass, only for said director to get rewarded failing upwards by giving this same jerk the Aladdin remake. The tonally shitty, crammed in blockbuster mess of a cliche heroe's journey that sucks.

With that background I was excited for The Green Knight. I read an illustrative version as a kid, I read Tolkien's translation as a teenager, I read Simon Armitage's superior, but with liberties taken translation. I was prepped to go knowing that indie, or not they were going to make changes to weave the disjointed poem together. I'm excited that because this movie exists Project Guternberg's finally thrown Jessie Weston's prose rendition up on their website. I'll be reading that at some point when this blows over.

The movie adaptation makes a lot of...choices, many I wouldn't love, but would forgive had their been a payoff. There was none.

The journey was fine, the cinematography was a breath of fresh air after crappy slo mo, glossy action scenes ruined another. Guys, I don't think I want to see a Zack Snyder Excalibur, it'll marginally be better than Guy Ritchie, but that ain't saying anything. Leave Excalibur to the post-Star Wars 80s where it is impeccable for it's time. I liked Green Knight's breathable pacing, it's color palette's in the forests and mountains made up for the muddy grey of every Ridley Scott send up in the castles and villages in every other Dark Ages/Medieval story in the last I don’t know since the shitty 00′s. For all the dark tones when there was blues, greens, yellows or reds, they were vibrant in this movie to contrast the gloom of Britain. The soundtrack was good. This isn't all what makes a movie, but it enhances it so let's get to the story and what I did and didn't like.

Things I Liked: Gawain is still a novice in his career The Costume Dressing Everyone pronounces Gawain's name different. I pronounce it like Gwayne, or Guh Wayne, but here you got Gowen (like Owen), Gowan (like Rowan), or even Garlon who I'm pretty sure is the Fisher King's heir in some versions of that Arthurian story, so uh... The reference to Arthur slaying 960 men with his bare hands (Nennius for the win!) The Waste Land that is implied to be a site of a battle (an important aspect of the Arthurian landscape) The Fox companion No long grisly, drawn out hunting scenes. The Fox lives! No misogynist speeches

Things I'm Mixed: This being a dream, is the magic real? Are the giants? Is the Green Knight a figment of Gawain's imagination from a spell Morgan casted in him to hallucinate? Is Lord and Lady also figments? It's...a way to interpret the poem, but lazy and I don't see why it's got to all fantasy, or all dream...this movie makes it too vague you're stuck picking one camp than to accept it's a fantasy with dream and hallucinatory sequences.

Things I'm Meh: Morgan Le Fay as Gawain's mom. Look I fucking hate Morgause as a character and these two get merged and steal each other's aspects so much at this point the difference is who did they marry, King Urien or King Lot? Both are attributed to being Mordred's mom, Mordred is Gawain's brother...both practice magic depending on certain incarnations, both love and hate Arthur their brother and are in conflict with him. Saint Winifred. I actually liked this sequence, but I don't appreciate her as the tacked on wife in the later dream sequence as like...a contrast between the wife you should marry than the whore next door you don't respect anyway? I don't even know what lesson I'm supposed to get out of the damn dream sequence, or any of it? That Gawain should've married his girlfriend and then he'd be a just ruler? That he shouldn't be king? That he'd never have to make the same heartless, impartial choices? I don't know, he seemed like a king doing king shit because guess what? It never gets easier. Wars will be waged. The world didn't become better because he married the right woman, respected her and lived in obscurity. The world didn't become better because he made her his queen. We certainly don't know the world would be better Gawain had his head chopped off and dead XP They never reveal the Lord and the Green Knight as one and the same because of this shit.

Things I Hated: Arthur withdraws from the challenge because he's old. In poem he takes it on and Gawain takes it so he don't have to and he finds himself more disposable than the king. Gawain only takes the challenge because of arrogance. Arthur and Gawain had no prior personal relationship. I'd not have hated this so much if it wasn't compounded by it cancelling out the first two things. Gawain is portrayed as having no respect for his woman, or any woman, maybe his mother? He has to be pushed by Winifred to regain her head. Gawain is portrayed as arrogant, covetous and ready to pass the buck, or the bare minimum than have any honor or decency. It didn't matter the kid in the wasteland was shithead bandit, the way Gawain acted towards him, when he gets robbed, it almost feels like he deserved it and Gawain doesn't learn a damn lesson. I'll admit him taking the sword to cut his ropes and cutting his hands was a neat sequence, it shows him go from stupid, to almost clever and having will to survive...you know traits he had in the poem, but he stops showing these traits or growing. Basically Gawain has to be dragged kicking and screaming to help people and shows no fortitude when facing temptation, or when showing respect towards others, it's exhausting. You don't make this kind of journey story without character growth. Why are you skipping this? Also is it just me, or is this like when you take Frank Miller Batman and transport him onto a Bill Finger story? This is at best Thomas Malory Gawain (and this is charitable) transported on the earlier Pearl Poet's story. Stop it. It's not tonally correct and goes at odds with the story and the set up characterization you'd need to tell it. Speaking of which, you know how I get through the oof... of Liam Neeson Gawain in Excalibur? By pretending he Agravain instead. Here...I don't even think Gawain could pass as Mordred in spite of his covetous nature, lust and entitlement. Why? because I don't think even Mordred is this dumb to warrant this hubris. Essel being invented as a tacked on love interest just to be shit on utterly and for what? I don't think I have much commentary here as there is no Essel I'm aware of to compare, or stack up. I just notice this trope of like...usually if you include a sex worker in Hollywood she often has a heart of gold, she often has her own sense of values that goes at odds with society, but is more true and less hypocritical than a privileged lady’s. I thought that's what they would've done with the added trope of back at home sweetheart to contrast and pit her against the despicable femme fatale of Lady Bertilak and her adultery and her ladyship...and I'm glad they didn't...but you did nothing with Essel than to shit on her for existing when you made her exist, you know. Lady Bertilak being portrayed as the seductress devil incarnate. Look I know adultery is a touchy taboo, but uh her and Gawain hit it off in the poem, dammit! Her values and his values come to clash, but here it's played off as Gawain is stupid and covetous and Lady Bertilak wants to prove something because...? If my brother's theory that she's a figment of Morgan Le Fay's magic, then I'll take this as a lesson of Gawain is impulsive and covetous and his mom knows it, but he don't want to fuck his mom, but he wants her power, and Morgan wants to teach him a lesson... I guess. Hey we don't have misogynist speeches in this movie, but we'll make sure to have the movie drip with it with no point, or commentary. Pass. Lord guilting, extracting and initiating the same sex kiss and only once. Poem automatically better that Gawain don't have to keep being reminded to keep his part of the bargain and he does it willingly more than once. What he doesn't do is give up his belt...gods how did we get more homophobic as a society that the homoeroticism here is worse? Catholics of the middle ages officially had no issue doing same sex, passionate kissing until it lead to sex. The Ending: The gods damn ending. In the movie as is, Gawain waits to uphold his end of the bargain and get his head chopped off. He imagines, even though we don't get any fuzzy or distortion to indicate this is a dream, but I already knew this was coming, he runs away and comes home, is regarded a hero, he sees his lady, takes her from behind and if you saw Brokeback Mountain (I didn't, but DJ has) you know this is a sign of disrespect to women. He gets her knocked up, pays her off for the kid she wants to keep, he is crowned king, marries the ghostly saint lady he helped retrieve her head earlier from a lake in the movie (this right here is the damn tip off). There's no more dialogue by this point and everything is montaging, so you know by now it's a dream, though nothing is out of focus. He rules as a heartless king, his whore son dies from war he waged, he has a daughter, his wife dies. Gawain then takes off the belt that would've saved his life and his head falls off. This would've been the one good twist, except... In this sequence of events he never had his head cut off so uh... now we back in present day. He decides not to bitch out, Green Knight in a sexy way is like "now off with your head," movie cuts to credits with no resolve...uh what the fuck? What the fuck? This is not good. You wasted the one twist in your dream when idk, you could've...

How I'd fix it: No dream sequence at all. No Incident At Owl Creek twist. Gawain comes home a hero and survivor of this game and ordeal. He wears this belt of shame. He becomes a well-renowned knight, but he bears a shame. One day he goes to take off his belt and his head falls off because he cheated to get this belt and to survive this encounter. There. Done. Improved your high concept movie that couldn't play any of the lessons straight from the damn poem without making everyone an asshole for no reason! Ugh! But nope you had to end it on we don’t know if Gawain lives or dies...because...it's dream magic made from his momma's witchcraft...?

Last Thoughts So then post-credits scene because Marvel because Pirates Of The Caribbean existed. A white girl who looks nothing like Gawain's daughter we see who didn’t pay off, or any child I can remember through this whole movie picks up King Arthur's crown that dream Gawain inherited and puts it on her head. Who is this girl? Are we gonna have an indie equivalent of of the Marvel Movie Universe/Universal Horror Monsters thing with ancient British legends? We gonna get a Life Of Saint Patrick next that crosses over? I don't know. What is this?

[lo-mindpalace]

17 - Autumn Invading

(CASTIEL’S POV)

I love all the seasons. They all have something special. Winter is generally snowy and people are gathering together to celebrate Christmas or New Eve. It’s cold but children are playing in the snow, building snowmen and having snowball fights. It’s the time to stay at home and enjoy a good fire in the fireplace. Spring is like the rebirth of Earth. Like a Phoenix. Flowers are growing in the meadows, bees are pollinating, the weather is gradually better and warmer. It’s also the season of Love. Everything is greener and people are in a good mood. Summer is the great season that smells Holidays. Tourism is at its top, everyone is traveling, the sun is up and very warm. People are enjoying swimming at the beach, drinking lemonade. Music festivals are everywhere. It’s like the season of happiness where everyone seems free. And then, Fall. Autumn. The Indian Summer. When the leaves are becoming yellow, orange or red before they fall on the ground. When it’s time to put a scarf or a coat but it’s not that cold, and not that warm either. It is the transition period between the warm and noisy summer and the cold and quiet winter. I admit Fall and Spring are my favorite seasons because they represent the end and the beginning and it is very meaningful.

This year, I wanted something special. I wanted some time off. Especially for Sam and Dean. They deserved to have some vacation. There was a new generation of hunters and Jody and the girls were still here. So, Jack and I forced the Winchesters to not go on this vampire hunt in Alabama. We called some hunters there and then I asked the brothers to pack some stuff. I didn’t tell them where we were going. I was so excited and I think they haven’t seen me like that for days. 16th of October. It’s been three months and two days since I am in a relationship with Dean. I thought this relationship would be impossible and I admit I tried to make the first step but I was so afraid that he would reject me. I don’t really remember since when I am in love with Dean Winchester. Probably the moment I touched his shoulder and raised him from perdition. But what I was sure of was that I was finally aware of these feelings after we went to Purgatory. I tried to hide or ignore these feelings but… It was in vain. So, from time to time I gave Dean some hints, some words, some facial expressions, and so on. But he never seemed to understand it. That was making me a bit sad but the most important was that we were still friends and that was what mattered at the time. In the beginning of August, we had a little fight and he was a bit drunk and I really didn’t want him to go away so I caught him and… he kissed me. It was a desperate kiss at first but… it became softer. I remember our two faces withdrawing, my confused face and Dean’s red one. And we kissed again, and again, and again. He hid his face in my neck, without saying anything. In fact, we didn’t talk the whole night. I helped him lay down in his bed and he gripped me tight so I wouldn’t leave. We stayed in bed, pretty close to each other. I remember this night very well. It was a bit strange at first but Dean and I are very comfortable in our relationship now. He even said those three words to me on September 18th, the day we met. It took him almost one month to say “I love you” in a sincere and comfortable way, and I’m so happy since this day. I also think Sam and Jack’s support were very helpful. Dean was afraid that his brother wouldn’t accept our relationship. Dean didn’t say it but I’m pretty sure it is because he always had adventures with women and… Now he is with a man, and he discovered he maybe loves both? But Sam was totally okay with this, I even saw a kind of relief in his eyes, as if he was waiting for this moment for years… And Jack is very happy too and he doesn’t hesitate to show his support all the time… I have to say that everyone we know is happy for Dean and I, and that is warming my heart so much that I’m scared it will explode at a given time.

So, for this Fall season, I took Sam, Dean and Jack somewhere to a big cabin in Algonquin Park in Ontario, Canada. It was near the Cache Lake. The cabin was on the top of a hill so we could see Autumn invading the trees. It was a spectacular view. I was outside, on a balcony, a mug with hot chocolate in hand. Jack insisted about this, even if I can’t be thirsty. I drank it from time to time, feeling the cacao molecule and the warmness of the drink in my throat. Even if I don’t feel anything, I am now aware of everything. Especially because I was human for a short time. I’m not cold but I can feel the little freezing wind on my face. I was wearing a Led Zeppelin shirt, Dean’s one to be honest. Sam and Dean forced me to leave my trench coat behind for this vacation so I was wearing casual clothes.

I was so in my thoughts that I didn’t really hear Dean opening the slide door. I felt him covering my body with a fluffy plaid. I looked at him and bent my head. He was wearing a dark gray sweater.

“Enjoying the view?” He said, smiling.

“Yes.” I said while looking at the trees before looking back at Dean. “Why did you put a blanket on me?”

“Maybe because I don’t want to hug a frozen angel, dumbass.” Dean said, rolling his eyes.

“Oh… Sorry.”

Dean frowned a bit and bent he head to look at the shirt I was wearing.

“You freaking thief!” He said, faking a very offensive face. “I was looking for this shirt everywhere!”

I stopped breathing for a second and drank my hot chocolate innocently.

“I… I really love this one… It is a bit too large for me but… It smells like you and I’m… feeling safe and well with it.” I said, blushing hard.

I saw Dean blushing beet-red too, swallowing hard. He sighed loudly and lowered his head, mumbling things.

“I swear, you’re so adorable.” He said.

He raised his head and looked at the view before taking a deep breath. He looked back at me.

“Okay, go back inside with me Cas, it’s a bit too cold for me here.”

I nodded and followed him inside. We sat in front of the fireplace. It was way warmer here. Dean began to snuggle a bit against me so I opened the plaid I still had over my shoulders and wrapped Dean with it. We were surrounded by this warm blanket and I still had my hot chocolate, almost empty. Dean kissed my neck several times, humming while doing so and I couldn’t repress a shiver on my spine. I looked at him, feeling my cheeks burning. He saw my confused face and chuckled.

“Sorry, I know I promised Sam I won’t be too mushy with you in front of everyone. But… Lucky us, we’re alone now. Sam and Jack went hiking somewhere.”

I didn’t know what to say but Dean didn’t wait for an answer anyway. He took my hot chocolate and put it away before kissing me on the lips. I closed my eyes and returned the kiss, adding some softness. Dean withdrew his lips and stayed close to me, our breathing mixing together.

“Thank you for this vacation, Cas… I love you.” He said while blushing.

“I love you too, Dean…” I said before kissing those perfect lips again.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Hope you liked it :) I dedicate this OS to @naitiaclo960writings ♥

[theincompetentgenius]

Chocolate (Hideyoshi x Reader Fic)

 @pusec: Can I get a short scenario of MC accidentally calling Hideyoshi "mom"? (Ikemen sengoku//not sure if this didn't happen In canon already thought)😂

It’s probably happened before. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if she did and we just glazed over it because that’s what we were thinking ourselves. Also, I’m really for the chocolate obsession in this because I’m fasting so I’m REALLY HUNGRY (it makes up almost the entire fic and I realized it was getting out of hand, so I tried to save it at the end. But I doubt that really did anything). Anywho, enjoy this mess and I’m sorry in advance.

Title: Chocolate                                 

Fandom: Ikemen Sengoku

Pairing: Hideyoshi x Reader                   

Word Count: 1857

If there was one thing I could change about the Sengoku Era, it would be the amount of chocolate that I could buy.

I know the history behind the scarcity of chocolate in Japan, but it doesn’t make it any less painful. Whenever my period comes around, I’m craving a good chocolate bar. If it’s more than 50 degrees, my tongue is ready for some creamy chocolate ice cream. My body has been suffering from chocolate withdrawal: my stomach is always growling, my head overrun with fatigue, and my mouth salivating for that sweet, milky taste. I think people have started to notice because Masamune has been making me a lot more sweets while Hideyoshi bought me the finest candies the other day. Nobunaga even offered me his konpeito. The treats were delicious, but I miss my wonderous chocolate. The only chocolate I’ve had was cacao beans shipped from who-knows-where. Those were disgusting.

So you can imagine my excitement when Hideyoshi told us that shipments of chocolate had arrived at the Japanese trading ports. They would be sending the delicacy to different vendors throughout the country in the upcoming weeks. I screamed so loud that Ieyasu’s ears nearly fell off and Masamune rushed to the meeting. Although I got scolded for my excitement, there was nothing that could ruin my joy. I would be reunited with my love and savior: chocolate.

Every week, I would drag a warlord out in the town to search for chocolate. However, most vendors had no idea what I was talking about and didn’t carry anything that looked like chocolate. One vendor sold me a brown, solid bar that looked like the real deal. It was expensive, but I had to get my hands on it. But the moment I bit into the bar, my tongue recoiled from the taste and my lips nearly fell off my mouth. I gagged. The schemer had sold me a bar of tamarind instead.

However, I haven’t given up on my quest to find the chocolate. Although I took a week-long break, I am back and stronger than ever. Nothing can stop m--

“What are you writing?” Hideyoshi points to my notebook.

I quickly shut the pages of my notebook and stuff it in my bag. If he saw my maniacal writing about chocolate, he’d keep me away from it and turn this whole thing into a Nobunaga-konpeito situation. It would ruin all of my plans.

“Just about how I’m excited to have chocolate. I like to write my feelings,” I give him a sheepish grin.

“That’s really cute, but why chocolate?” He laughs.

“What do you mean, ‘why chocolate?’ “ I ramble about my childhood stories and how chocolate has been a vital part of my life. It guided me through my struggles, brighten my dark days, and was present in all my nostalgic memories. Hideyoshi listened quietly, nodding and laughing throughout my stories.

“If it’s such a big part of your life, then why didn’t you tell me about it? I could have requested some from the traders,” He asked.

“I’ve been so caught with this adjusting to the new life that I almost forgot about it.” This was far from the truth, but I didn’t want to come off as a chocolate addict.

As we walk along the street, I notice the different vendors. Each makes profits from vastly different items. Fruits, weapons, rice, ornaments, and other assortments. Each stall is made out of birch wood, but that’s where the similarities end. One has vines coiling around the wooden columns, another one has splotches of dye on the stall, and the most bizarre of them all is the stall in yellow with green stockings hanging from the top. It is the weirdest combination of colors I have ever seen.

Hideyoshi approaches each vendor whether they have the candy or not. I don’t feel comfortable asking them ever since I got scammed with the tamarind bar. It’s probably for the best since they all give him salutes and offer him all their products at discounted prices and I’m sure I wouldn’t be able to haggle for even half those prices.

We come across the odd yellow-and-green stall that I was watching earlier. Hideyoshi asks the vendor the same set of questions and he shakes his head in the same manner as the ones before him. It’s become a routine. Instinctively, I turn around and walk towards the nearest stall when I hear Hideyoshi’s voice call out to me.

“Where are you going? They have the chocolate!��

I turn around and zoom to the front of the stall. It is impossible for me to confine my excitement in my head. Forgetting that I’m in the Sengoku Era, I begin to interrogate him about the different types of chocolates in his possession. Every time the vendor tries to speak, I cut him off and provide him with my preferences. If it was dark chocolate, I didn’t want to be anywhere near it. If it was white chocolate, I wanted a 50% discount because that was fake chocolate. The only bar I would be pleased with was the regular milk chocolate.

In the midst of my babbling, Hideyoshi puts his hand on my shoulder. “I understand you’re excited, but let the man show us what he has.”

The man thanks Hideyoshi and shows him the boxes of chocolate. The vendor doesn’t dare to look at me, worried that I’ll explode with my chocolate facts if I make eye contact with him. Jokes on him because I plan to go home and spend most of my time eating this delicacy.

“Wow, there’s a lot of sugar in these. Almost the same amount as konpeito,” Hideyoshi frowned.

My blood froze. Hideyoshi could not separate me from my beloved soulmate. He’s already a burden on the relationship of Nobunaga and his konpeito, I couldn’t let him do the same thing to me and my chocolate. He’d have to pry it from my cold, dead hands.

“Well I need the sugar in my body to keep me energized and functioning,” I snatch the bar from Hideyoshi and give the vendor a thick wad of money. “Take all of it. I want your entire collection of chocolate in return.” 

The man’s eyes gleam as he counts the amount of money that I handed him. He places the box on the ledge of the stall and shoos us away, probably so we don’t change our minds. 

“You know, this is a lot of sugar. If this becomes like Nobunaga and his konpeito, I might have to confiscate it,” Hideyoshi gives a suspicious glance to the box.

Ignoring him, I unwrap the chocolate bar and chomp off the top corner. The hard texture melts against the wet surface of my tongue with the sweet flavor diffusing across my tastebuds, coating the center of my tongue in milky brown. The chocolate piece has dissolved into a milky coating that travels down my throat, quenching me of my thirst for the delicacy. This is an experience I will never forget. I relish the taste of the heavenly delight as I take a second bite of the candy bar.

“Don’t eat too much of this. You could get a stomachache,” Hideyoshi interrupts my fantasy.

I shoot him a dirty look. “Alright, mother.”

I go back to cherishing my second bite, forgetting about anything that I said earlier. As I take my third bite, Hideyoshi steps closer towards me and leans in my face. “What did you just call me?”

“Uh, I don’t remember.”

“You just called me your mother! I am not your mother. Do I look like your mother to you?” He asks.

I manage to stifle my laughter. Hideyoshi is usually friendly and mature, so seeing him freak out over a small thing was hilarious. However, I couldn’t give him an honest answer because I know I’d burst out laughing, spitting my chocolate all over him. I didn’t want to embarrass the both of us, so I just shook my head. But the grin on my face gives away everything.

“Seriously? What makes me seem anything like a mother?” He puts his hands on his hips.

“For starters, that.” I mock him and put my hands on hips and purse my lips. “Secondly, you’re always watching out for us and cleaning up our messes. You scold the other warlords like they’re your children.”

“That’s because they always wreak havoc in the castle! If I don’t step up and ensure everything runs smoothly, then everything will fall apart.”

I take his hand and squeeze it. “And that’s why you’re so important in the structure of the palace. Don’t hate your motherliness, embrace it.”

Hideyoshi gives me a hard look and I felt laughter bubble in my stomach. It was a lot of fun messing with him. I almost feel bad about it, but I take the last bite of the chocolate to erase my guilty thoughts. However, Hideyoshi doesn’t look away. Instead, he squints his eyes and leans closer. I look up from my chocolate bar and nearly pulled back from the closeness between us. If this was his way of getting back at me for the mom jokes, it was totally working.

He brings his thumb to my lip and slides it down to my chin. The heat rushes to my cheeks and I am sure that my face is red. I pray to every deity in the universe that he can’t feel my heat from my chin, but the raised eyebrow on his face suggests otherwise. I could see the flecks of gold in his honey-colored eyes. The thought of my chocolate disappears as my chest grows tight. Why have chocolate when I could have something sweeter?

The warlord leans in closer, his head tilted down. His eyes are on my lips. My lips almost brush against his. His finger pressed against my chin, pulling my head towards him. His mouth parts slightly with a small curve forming. My entire body is screaming right now. Of all the things that could happen, I did not expect this. 

He removes his finger from my chin and makes soft motions with his finger, tracing the skin around my lips. Then, he steps back and examines his fingers. Melted chocolate stained his fingers. Hideyoshi places the finger in his mouth and looks around, tapping his foot on the ground. Meanwhile, I’m trying to collect my thoughts and calm down, placing my hands on my cheeks. 

Hideyoshi removes his finger from his mouth. “This is sweeter than konpeito. The other warlords are going to finish it in a matter of weeks.”

I would say something in defense of my candy,  but my brain has been reduced to mush. That type of behavior was normal from Masamune or Mitsuhide, but not Hideyoshi. He wasn’t that clueless (that title belonged to Mitsunari).

He turns towards me. “You don’t have anything to say?”

“Uh…………”

“Alright, but one last thing,” Hideyoshi hoists the box of chocolates over his shoulder.

“I can be many things, but your mother isn’t one of them.”

[fangsmyth]

jim carrey in sonic will steal my heart on valentines day || accepting

@enradiant​ sent: M I N E C R A F T was this for john bc--

M   :   MOONLIGHT.   what is your muse’s ideal date? where / who with / etc?

renting out an entire gothic mansion/castle and just going to town for a whole week. it’d probably be interlaced with some soft intimate moments like sharing dinner and literally all the lights would be candles and sharing a bath with rose petals in a clawfoot tub... but yeah mostly just a nice lil bit of indulgence for the aesthetic

would have to be with a vampire though or someone that will at least be willing to pull off that many theatrics for him it’s important it’s part of the bit

I    :   I LOVE YOU.   does your muse find ‘i love you’ easy or hard to say?

disturbingly easy like he is Very close to saying it to the point where it’s relatively meaningless. lanque is extra and likes saying it in hidden and subtle ways rather than the direct statement, because it just seems so... basic but yeah lanque saying things like “you know if you’re not okay with me doing this, you can just say it, right?” or asking questions so he can surprise you with thoughtful gifts later

he’s really loving he’s just mediocre at showing it directly

N   :   NAUGHTY.   what is your muse like in bed?

oh he’s a fucking nightmare. lanque has done so much and just has such high standards for what it takes for him to cum he can get pretty abrasive and rough, but he’s also fairly accommodating. ( ignoring the fact that he will literally fuck you until you pass out ) he’s into pain, but since he’s expecting disappointment anyways his partner comes first. 

sex is important for him. he feels like it’s the only way he can do any form of ‘healing’ without breaking character, and that it’s super freeing? lanque is horny with reason i promise you.

there’s a lot of dirty talking going on the fucker is also super efficient and quick to find exactly which spots get his partner going ummm bitch loves doin Oral....... Obviously..................... i could literally go on for hours but i will cut myself off there

E   :   EMBRACE.   does your muse like hugs? what are their hugs like?

NO he doesn’t like hugs or at least if he’s going to hug it better turn into something else!! which is unfortunate because lanque gives such soft and strong hugs that offer so much safety that flat out doesn’t exist. he’s powerful his skin and nice smells are a secret poison

lanque hates doing aftercare bc it’s too personal did i mention--

( @faithlines​ also sent C ! )  C   :   CHOCOLATE.   does your muse like chocolate? which one is their favourite?

yes, but lanque mainly likes dark chocolate. like SUPER dark chocolate, he’ll indulge in like bon bons with fruit in em or smth but generally speaking he wants that cool 70% cacao he likes bitter shit on occasion

R   :   ROMANCE.   is your muse a romantic or a cynic?

he sells himself as a cynic but he’s a huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuge romantic! lanque loves flowers and poetry, one of his big big secret wishes is just going out on a picnic with someone and them playing the violin for him as he sips white wine and watches birds or some soft shit i’m so tired i crave him to stop feeling fear

A   :   AFFECTION.   how does your muse show affection?

lanque doesn’t say anything, he pulls you into his lap ( or takes a seat in yours if you’re taller than him ) and just sort of... tucks his head in a good spot. he loves to talk, but his means of showing affection are usually super silent? he definitely expresses it more through actions, like lanque will literally never hug anyone that’s endgame that’s new game plus you fucking did it

F   :   FLIRT.   is your muse good at flirting? how do they flirt?

extremely good do not let me fool you he’s a very talented himbo with a silver tongue and a taste for vengeance lanque generally manages to get by through sheer bluntness alone and is honestly just so forward most people would reasonably see it as overwhelming and intimidating?

but at the same time it’s cool, he’s confident, he makes you feel really special if you don’t know him. and tbf he will stop if you tell him to stop, but unfortunately he does get kind of dickish and peer pressure-y more so just to make you feel bad but

......also really explicit and straightforward ask him what he wants to do to you and he’ll give you a super detailed outline in his own words he never saw the point in beating around the bush

T   :   TRUE LOVE.   does your muse believe in true love?

yeeeeeeeeees he Craves it he’s never Experienced it but he’s sure it’s out there

@grimtherapist​ sent: U X J

U   :   UNREQUITED.   has your muse had their heart broken?

oh every other month, honestly if lanque has a relationship that doesn’t end with him breaking his own heart he’ll freak out! he’s used to drama and lives on it, the idea of having a normal, healthy relationship is  𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚏𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐

he probably got his heart snapped too hard by somebody in his youth and just never recovered but you know c’is la vie doesn’t excuse being a fucking monster

X   :   XOXO.   does your muse use / like pet names?

lanque LOVES pet names!!!! he already uses the bad ones for catcalling and all that, but they’re more like placeholders? when the relationship develops, and this is sort of a hidden means of showing it, he’ll come up with specific ones tailored just for you 

it’s to make them feel special but it also makes it easier for him to take advantage of them did i ever mention that lanque is an objectively terrible partner

J   :   JEALOUSY.   does your muse get jealous in a relationship?

all the time!!! lanque drops so many little things to try and distance his partners away from some of their friends or people they’re into, too like pointing out subtle quirks that really should bother people but no one really notices until someone points it out. he’s the guy to point it out. he’s terrible.

[nowhereiswhereibelong]

73 Questions

I mas tagged by: @mrs-machinegun-norris about two centuries ago sorry

On a scale of 1-10, how excited are you about life right now?

• 5

Describe yourself in a hashtag?

• #sadbicht

• Cause I'm a bad bicht you can't kill me, only I do that

If you could do a love scene with anyone, who would it be?

• Aaron Taylor-Johnson

• Colson Backer

If your life was a musical, what would the marquee say?

• The crazy bisexual is on the loose

What’s one thing people don’t know about you?

• That I cant handle silence

What’s your wake up ritual?

• All my cats and family yells at me till I roll of take my meds and stare at the wall till I'm late

What’s your go to bed ritual?

• Make sure I cleaned the litter box and that my cats have food and water then is up to bed and reading anything and everything till I fall a sleep

What’s your favourite time of day?

• Night time (I get the zoomies), or when I'm home alone

Your go to for having a good laugh?

• I really like comedy and some that make me laugh even when I watched 1000 times: John Mulaney, Daniel Sloss, Russel Howard and Sarah Millican

Dream country to visit?

• As many as I can! I have an extensive list

What’s the biggest surprise you’ve had?

• Last semester 3 professors at university were really supportive and understanding and I didnt expect them to be so kind or belive in me that much.

Heels or flats/sneakers?

• Sneakers everywhere all the time for any given reason

Vintage or new?

• Vintage bits and pisses of different eras but late 80s early 90s give me live

• And I'm obsessed with 70s buildings dont know why

Who do you want to write your obituary?

• An creative stranger - go nuts dude freak people out

Style icon?

• dont have one I guess

What are three things you can’t live without?

• My cats

• My phone

• My guitar

What’s one ingredient you put in everything?

• I'm crazy about mustard

• My dad always says anything salivary can be better with cheese and anything sweet be better with chocolate - not that far from the truth

What 3 people living or dead would you like to make dinner for?

• Elvis Presley

• Jane Fonda

• Janis Joplin

What’s your biggest fear in life?

• Failure

• The dark

Window or aisle seat?

• Window: you can look at the view, it's better for sleeping and during the day sunlight for reading

What’s your current TV obsession?

• A have many, it's a problem, but right now mind hunter

Favourite app?

• Instagram and tumblr

Secret talent?

• I like to lie to myself and say acting but maybe just weirdly good at pretending to be good at things (ain't that the joke huh)

Most adventurous thing you’ve done in your life?

• I would say it was dumb, stupid and streamly dangerous but when I was 16 a friend and I went to some guys house in a very weird neighborhood and lied to our parents about it and only 1 other friend new (also our taxi couldn't find the house). We meet those two guys at a friends party and they said that they were throwing one and that we should go, and our dumb selfdestruting alcohol hunting minds though, why not. It was not a party. It was just a hang out with us and one other guy and to this day I dont know how we left at 7am (the only way to get out of there was the first bus because uber wasn't a thing yet and me and my friend were to scared of what kind taxi driver we would find) unharmed and not sexually harassed, given that one of the dudes that our friends new more hated me for a few months for not putting out for him, cause you know, men.

• I'm absolutely sure they wanted a sex party that didnt happen. But I did show my unasked skills of knowing every single black veil brides lyrics.

How would you define yourself in three words?

• Anxious

• Laud

• Loyal

Favourite piece of clothing you own?

• The stolen 80s tshirts from my dad

• High waisted shorts

Must have clothing item everyone should have?

• A comfortable pair of jean shorts that you feel pretty in

Superpower you would want?

• To stop time

• I get to anxious trying to time manage and it just snowballs from there. And sleeping in without being always late.

What’s inspiring you in life right now?

• Machine Gun Kelly (I stared listening to his stuff a few months ago)

• But always and forever is the passion that moves people

Best piece of advice you’ve received?

• Be/do to other people what you wanted to be done for you

Best advice you’d give your teenage self?

• It's not just on your head it's a real thing, you're lot alone, and it ok to need help.

A book that everyone should read?

• Harry Potter: that even thou I have read multiple times it still is amazing and full of symbolism that people brush through some times.

• Women who run with the wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés

• My older sister made me start this book and its absolutely live changing and I belive should be obligatory to all women in this world. This book is a live long work by this psychologist and through miths, legends, folk tales and stories she puts together what she calls the wild women archetype and what is the feminine instinct is and how those tales teach us about it and how to have a healthy relationship with her.

What would you like to be remembered for?

• For being kind

How do you define beauty?

• It's an powerfull force within

What do you ~love most~ only love about your body?

• The shape of my eyes

Best way to take a rest/decompress?

• Listening to music and dancing around

Favourite place to view art?

• I dont understand sorry

If your life were a song, what would the title be?

• Static supernova

If you could master one instrument, what would it be?

• Guitar and piano cant choose only one

If you had a tattoo, where would it be?

• My planned ones:

• Orca

• Felix felicis

• Tree

• Mother earth

• Penicillin allergy (I dont trust nobody)

Dolphins or koalas?

• Dolphins

• Did you y'all know that orcas not only aren't whales but belong on the same family as dolphins?

What’s your spirit animal?

• Orca

Best gift you’ve ever received?

• My cats (even thou there are rescues they're my little special gifts from nature)

Best gift you’ve ever given?

• On my best friend wedding my friend and I gave a performance as siluetes (it was private beach and all the light were off and we had the car headlights behind us) I played the song you are in love by taylor swift while she did an beautiful performance on silks the song represented their relationship and how she shared it if us in a very sacred way and the silks was a representation of her herself and how the 3 of us saw in the last few years her transformation from a very broken person to the women she was born to be.

• Yes we were crying the hole time but was the most genuine and beautiful think I ever done so yeah

What’s your favourite board game?

• Dix it, its awesome go play it pls

What’s your favourite colour?

• Petrol blue

Least favourite colour?

• The color of lentil soup my mom makes it looks like a baby have serious digestive problems

Diamonds or pearls?

• Diamonds of the symbolic value of "the pressure that could've break us made us into diamonds insted"

Drugstore makeup or designer?

• Drugstore makeup, the one I know that are real brands hauahauahs

Blow-dry or air-dry?

• Air-dry

Pilates or yoga?

• Pilates even thou I must prefer sports mostly

Coffee or tea?

• My blood is coffee at this point

What’s the weirdest word in the English language?

• Wolrd, because English is not my first language and specially in an American accent the pronunciation of wolrd if simply the worst and is absolutely obnoxious and unsettling.

Dark chocolate or milk chocolate?

• Dark

• But my absolut favored is a 70% cacao white chocolate. It's incredible but I only got to buy it twice :(

Stairs or elevator?

• Stairs, I also love to sit on them

Summer or winter?

• Winter. I only like heat if I'm inside very cold water

You are stuck on an island, you can pick one food to eat forever without getting tired of it, what would you eat?

• If nutrition value doesn't matter, ice cream

A desert you don’t like?

• Orange cake. Bad memories and I vomit every time I try to eat it.

A skill you’re working on mastering?

• Singing and playing the guitar

Best thing to happen to you today?

• I think I made a online friend :D

Best compliment you’ve ever received?

• That I'm kind

Favourite smell?

• Buttering sugar

Hugs or kisses?

• Hugs i Iike to be permanently attached to some people at times

If you made a documentary, what would it be about?

• Domestic violence

• Parenting

Last piece of content you consumed that made you cry?

• Today I was trying to play this song called Ronan and cryed my eyes out like all the other times I tried before It's a song of child cancer in the mother's perspective

Lipstick or lip gloss?

• Lipstick

• I'm a red matte lip stan

Sweet or savoury?

• Sweet

Girl crush?

• Billie Elish

How you know you’re in love?

• The only time I think I've been in love I only realised it because they left and I didnt understand why i was severely hurt by it and changed the way I created all relationships after that. And then it hit me

• So pain and heartache.... yeah that's depressing as shit

Song you can listen to on repeat?

• When the sun goes down - Arctic Monkeys

If you could switch lives with someone for a day who would it be?

• My own self but not a anxious depressed mess just to feel what it's like

What are you most excited about at this time in your life?

• That I dont need to make decisions

[quibbs126]

Hm, apparently this wasn’t a request. But whatever, I finished them and want to show it off

But yay, I finally got purecacao done!

So first off, I just want to say that these two are post-canon, and Dark Choco’s their older half-brother. I just felt like mentioning that because I made up this whole thing for the purecacao love story

My idea for how Dark Cacao and Pure Vanilla’s relationship went is that at some point, Dark Cacao got feelings for Pure Vanilla, but wasn’t sure how to tell him. But he thought he’d have all the time in the world to say because they were immortal. But then the Dark Flour War happened and Pure Vanilla “died”. When he came back, Dark Cacao realized that he couldn’t just wait anymore, and so sometime during the current story, he confessed his love for him, and after the main story they ended up getting together

Anyways, back to the twins. So Vanilla Bean is a girl, while Cocoa Butter is a boy. Though I’m considering making Cocoa Butter a girl as well. I’m not sure

So Cocoa Butter is a very friendly kid, and very outgoing. He wants to be a warrior like his father (Dark Cacao) and brother, though he prefers the Vanilla Kingdom over the Dark Cacao Kingdom. He also tends to get himself into messy situations, which result in his outfits getting messed up and having to constantly be fixed. In the future, I see him being a Vanillian soldier, if not a commander. Also, despite his want to be like Dark Cacao, his favorite parent is Pure Vanilla since he’s not nearly as serious

Vanilla Bean on the other hand is very shy and quiet. She prefers to read giant tomes and watch from afar. She prefers Dark Cacao since he’s quiet and feels safe with him due to how strong he is. I’m not as certain what she ends up doing, maybe she becomes a healer, but I know she’ll end up living in the Dark Cacao Kingdom

I feel like you can tell which description I did better. I mean, with Cocoa Butter I was haphazardly putting all my thoughts, but by Vanilla Bean I knew how to articulate them better

Despite their differences, they get along very well, and include the other in their games. Also, they both really like their brother Dark Choco. He’s like their main babysitter, and he enjoys their company too

Alright, I think that’s about it for their characters. Now on to designs

So I think I’ve mentioned using the name Cocoa Butter before, but I also decided to use Vanilla Bean a few days ago. My brain thoughts were that cocoa butter is cacao but light colored, while vanilla beans are vanilla but dark colored. It’s contrast (which admittedly I may be doing too much of with these two)

Cocoa butter and vanilla beans:

So one of the first things I wanted to do was give Vanilla Bean those pigtails, with the idea that they’d look like vanilla beans. Admittedly they aren’t actually in the shape of the beans, but whatever

I was struggling with their eye colors, since I wasn’t really sure what to do. I knew I didn’t want to do heterochromia though. Eventually I tried mixing the purple and I think blue to get this bluish grey color, and I decided to give them purple eyes but with one of Pure Vanilla’s eye colors as the highlights. And also I decided to change the purples to fit more with each highlight, Cocoa Butter’s being more warm while Vanilla Bean’s is more cool

Admittedly I was kind of just making stuff up with their outfits, all I could think of was vaguely mixing Vanillian and Dark Cacaoian clothing, which mostly just resulted in purple + yellow. I know I’ve seen someone do it, but I don’t have refs. I think what I came up with was alright though

In addition to their purples and yellows, I experimented with adding an additional green color to Vanilla Bean to spice things up, and I liked it. But I didn’t want to leave Cocoa Butter out, so I gave him the red accents

Their streaks were a very last minute inclusion, and I really only added them because I remembered that Dark Cacao had those. I feel like you can really tell on Cocoa Butter

Overall I think they’re good. Maybe not my best, but they’re still fine. Maybe I can make them some adult designs that look even better

But yeah, I think that’s about it for them. I hope you enjoy them!

[hanamakimakoto]

Never knew how amazing you were (Oikawa Tooru)

(Oikawa Tooru x Reader)

     °•°•°•°•°•°•°•° You really never had cared about Oikawa Tooru. Really never. For you he had been just an annoying and flirty airhead wearing to many masks as you could ever tell apart. You couldn't stand this part of him. You never knew what he truly meant or what he was up to. But although that was a fact you somehow got closer to him through the time. You didn't know any longer how it all started. It might be in your second year at Aoba Jousai when you got in the same class as Oikawa. Somehow you ended up sitting behind him. Somehow. Thinking back you thought it was a good thing that you two ended up like this. Otherwise you might not got so close. Maybe. You didn't know. You also didn't want to think about it too much. It was painful. So damn painful. You inhaled the cold air deeply and looked up to the cloudy sky. Dammit. Here you were again nearly crying. Feeling your heart ache from a pain which was so incredible inhuman. Yes, he annoyed you right from the start. Every break when his fangirls flocked inside the classroom and talked to him with their high-pitched voices. You always put your headphones on and listened to your favorite bands in order to escape these squealing voices. And that had been the reason why Oikawa started to talk to you. Because he wanted to know why you always put your headphones on and never talked to somebody else. You told him quite bluntly that it was his and his fangirls fault. You didn't even feel sorry when he started his "I'm-a-poor-puppy"-show. You just looked at him and asked: "Are you a baby, Oikawa?" From that point on you started to talk more often with each other. You also got to know Iwaizumi, Oikawa's best friend who he knew since his childhood. Iwa-chan was one of the funniest and most honest persons you ever met. He didn't cover up his feelings and was always worrying about his best friend. Though, Iwa-chan could be quite rough when it came to Oikawa's antics. 

A sad smile appeared on your face while you were still looking up to the clouds. Iwa-chan...He wanted to come today and you really hoped he would. You didn't think you could go all by yourself. You needed Iwa-chan for this. You needed him for this visit. By the end of your second year, you already knew that your feelings for Oikawa changed. You felt more than friendship for him although you didn't have the courage to be honest with yourself. You decided to go on as if you wouldn't feel that way. You wanted to laugh with Oikawa, to fight with him over his annoying behavior, to cheer him on in his games and so on. Iwa-chan often told you how stupid you were but he accepted your decision. So you started your third and last year without any changes in your relationship. You were again in the same class like Oikawa and again he sit in front of you. When you asked him why he just gave you a beaming smile and said: "I like it when you watch my back, [Name]-chan!" You were sure that you blushed when he said that. But he had turned around without noticing anything and you were glad about it. Because as you wished everything went on normal. Like it was during your second year. You would come to watch their practice from time to time. You would attend their games. You would joke around with Oikawa. You would tease him together with Iwa-chan and the other guys. You would do everything what you did with a friend. And you would always feel the soft sting in your heart when Oikawa dated a girl. That's why Iwa-chan called you more than hundred times an "idiot just like Kusoikawa." A soft wind rustled through your hair and sent a chill down your spine. It was cold. And you were sure that it was going to rain soon. Hopefully, Iwa-chan is going to make it in time, you thought. You didn't want to go there while it was raining. It was depressing enough without. You hid your face in the dark blue sweater which was far to big for your small frame. After all it was Oikawa's which he once had forgotten at your place when you were studying for your final exams. Not that it would matter anymore. Nothing did. You also covered your hands in the sleeves of the sweater but you still felt incredible cold. "Hey, [Name]." Iwa-chan's voice snapped you out of your drowning thoughts and you turned around to the spikey-haired volleyball player. His green eyes looked darker than usual and also the constant frown on his face was deeper. "Sorry for letting you wait" he said and pulled you in a tight embrace. You smiled weakly shaking your head. "No worries. Nothing did happen." Iwa-chan took a step back and looked at your face. Worries were written all over his face. "Are you sure to do this now?" he asked. You nodded. You wanted to do this. You had to see Oikawa even if it hurt you. Iwaizumi sighed and turned towards the gate. "Then let's go" he said quietly. You followed him silently when he opened the iron gate to the graveyard. Instantly, you felt your heart beating painfully inside your chest and you clenched your fists until your nails dug inside your skin. Iwaizumi slowed down a bit and took your hand squeezing it gently. The way to Oikawa's grave wasn't long but for you it felt like hours until your reached it. When you stood in front of his grave reading his name on the stone, the dates you started trembling. It still felt so unreal. Iwaizumi's grip around your hand got tighter as if he wanted to say "I'm here. I'm holding you. I won't leave." The tears started falling and you weren't able to hold them back. Sobs shook your body and you sank down on your knees not letting go of Iwaizumi's hand. "I'm sorry, Oikawa. Here I am crying like a baby though I promised myself not to do so" you said with a choked voice. "I'm also sorry that I never had the courage to say what I'm going to say now when you were still with us. Iwa-chan always called me an idiot because of that." - You felt how Iwaizumi clenched his hands when you mentioned him. - "You know, Oikawa. I didn't wanted to change something. I thought it would be selfish if I say it. If I say that I like you. That I feel more than friendship for you. Now it's too late. I'm always awfully late." your voice broke because of the sobs and you tried to dry the tears with the sleeve of the sweater. Iwaizumi sat down next to you wrapping his arm around your trembling shoulders. You sniffed trying to get back some of your cool. "You know, Tooru? What I'm regretting most despite the fact that I never told you what I feel?" You looked straight at the stone with his name on and imagined you would see his laughing and happy face with the shiny brown eyes and the cacao colored hair. "I never knew how amazing you were. I always thought I would know but to be honest I never did." Yes, you never knew how amazing Oikawa Tooru was. You really thought you would but when he died and Iwaizumi told you so many stories from their childhood, from his constant work to get better, to achieve more. How he never gave up. When you heard all of this you recognized that you really never knew how amazing Oikawa Tooru was. And you regretted it that you hadn't any further chance to ask him about all these things. The wind got stronger and felt how the first raindrops begun to fall. Iwaizumi looked up to the cloudy and grey sky and then back to you. You were still sobbing trying to suffocating the tears. "[Name]" Iwaizumi softly caressed your shoulder while getting back your attention. "Let's go. It's starting to rain." You nodded unable to say something in your state. Iwaizumi pulled you back on your feet still holding you close to his own body. Again you were trying to dry your tears while Iwaizumi looked back to the grave. "We're coming again. Don't you dare to run away, Kusoikawa" he said but the usual power behind his words was missing.

[diggerhome64-blog]

Beau du Bois Does the Truffle Shuffle at Corner Door

Since its opening on a quiet stretch of Washington Boulevard in June 2012, The Corner Door has become a neighborhood favorite and a destination for cocktail enthusiasts, who make the pilgrimage to Culver City for the inventive, classically driven drinks offered by Beau du Bois. The accolades for du Bois have been a constant from Day One, including being named to the Zagat 30 Under 30 in 2013, and Eater LA’s Bartender of the Year in 2014.

During a lively brunch service at Eveleigh, du Bois talked about his favorite L.A. bartenders, an unforgettable trip to Oaxaca, and his latest Corner Door menu, which was inspired by a beloved 80s summer blockbuster. “Obviously there’s always going to be a need to do seasonal, refreshing menus. From an administrative standpoint, with the popularity of cocktail programs and seasonal menus in Los Angeles, I wanted to make [the current menu] seasonally driven but also kind of put some talking points on it, so I decided to choose something that would really inspire me and also inspire people to be at tables and start chatting about it.”

“The memories of The Goonies – I think 95% of people have some sense of nostalgia towards [it] and it’s a timeless classic,” du Bois continues. “It’s such a beautiful ensemble of cast and characters and events, and it’s a great adventure story – there was plenty to pull from to build a well-balanced, versatile cocktail menu. But also have some spring, seasonal and summer influences as well, so that people can feel a transition from L.A. ‘winter’ to L.A. spring and summer.”

Truffle Shuffle at The Corner Door | Photo courtesy of Beau du Bois

Du Bois is pleasantly surprised that the breakout drink from the Goonies menu is the Truffle Shuffle, made with Nikka Coffey Grain Whisky, house-made hazelnut liqueur and cacao nib bitters, served with house-made trail mix. “What’s really interesting this time around is the standout cocktail is the one ultra-premium cocktail that I put on the menu,” says du Bois. “I knew it was a great cocktail [with a] beautiful presentation, but at $18 I was like, ‘We’ll see how this does,’ you know? I think it’ll sell here and there, but only for groups that are looking to celebrate or really cap out their night together and share it. It’s really encouraging and incredible to see at $18 apiece, nobody’s batting their eye.”

The hazelnut liqueur is made from a Laird’s base with some hazelnuts. “Then I make a hazelnut cordial, a few different spices that elevate the hazelnut flavor. And then I did an infused cacao nib bitters, which is a combination of some aromatic bitters that I let sit with a bunch of cocoa nibs.”

“Just stir that together, so it’s basically a Japanese whisky Old Fashioned. Japanese whisky is so delicate and subtle in itself that it even boils down to how many times the bartender can stir it, which is significantly less than an Old Fashioned.”

The Truffle Shuffle is served with a hedge of house-made trail mix that’s made exclusively for the cocktail. “I bake hazelnuts and pistachios in honey, butter, cinnamon, garlic, brown sugar and salt. It’s served with dark chocolate bits and dried mandarins. Delicious, very smooth, very approachable. The whole presentation comes out very beautiful – you have your drink and your snacks.”

Du Bois adds, “The trail mix is addictive. Oh my God. Right now… it’s only for the cocktail, that’s it. People are like, ‘Let me just buy a plate of it, PLEASE!'”

During a recent trip to Oaxaca, du Bois’ feed started blowing up. “Who is this ‘Jeff Cohen‘? I realized, that’s the actor that played Chunk. He was tweeting about the Truffle Shuffle at Corner Door! That’s all I could hope for. He’s been a very outspoken, big supporter of the fanship around Goonies. He’s a retired actor and is now a lawyer representing child actors, but he always seems like he’s had a warm spot for Goonies and the fanship around it, which is great.”

Mama Fratelli at The Corner Door | Photo courtesy of Beau du Bois

“The other stirred cocktail is a rye-based cocktail called the Mama Fratelli, which I think is one of my favorite cocktails I’ve ever done. It’s Rittenhouse Rye with espresso infused Carpano Antica, a little coconut liqueur, and salt. Not really an archetype there, you can kind of say it’s a Manhattan variation, but there’s so little vermouth in it – and also the coconut liqueur and the salt. It’s very rye driven but I’ve never tasted anything like it, and honestly without the salt it would be half the cocktail it is now.” 

Data Plan at The Corner Door | Photo courtesy of Beau du Bois

Some of the shaken cocktails are doing really well, says du Bois. The Data Plan is made with strawberry infused Altos Tequila, falernum, Miracle Mile Bergamot Bitters, lime juice and Dolin Bianco Vermouth. “Light, bright, lush, jammy, refreshing, beautiful presentation. That’s a big standout for sure as well.”

Astoria Country Club at The Corner Door: green tea-infused Pisco Porton, Chareau, honey, cantaloupe, lime, prosecco | Photo courtesy of Beau du Bois

Rich Stuff at The Corner Door: saffron-infused bourbon, Cynar, Creme de Peche, lemon, egg white, orange bitters | Photo courtesy of Beau du Bois

Du Bois says, “Whenever you can do a seasonal menu like this and put a theme around it, it also demonstrates to your guests: here’s the rest of our cocktail menu, here are some of our house classics – the French 75, the Mezcallin, the Taco Truck – but this little subsection down here, this is really where we cut the cord to the brakes and get nerdy and creative without alienating anybody at the same time.”

Taco Truck at The Corner Door | Photo courtesy of Beau du Bois

Speaking of the Taco Truck, it remains a favorite of imbibers near and far and has continued to win new fans since its debut at Art Beyond the Glass II in 2013. “Such a great story with that cocktail,” says du Bois. “I was told that I was going to be doing a mezcal sponsor, La Niña del Mezcal. I came up with this really, really overly contrived cocktail during the week leading up to Art Beyond the Glass. I was doing all my mise en place, getting my prep together and batching the cocktail. And literally the night before, I’m like, ‘I hate this cocktail.’ I hate this drink, it’s way too heavy on the mixology, it’s way too contrived, and it’s dumb. I’m showing off way too much. So I decided, I’m just going to do a Negroni variation. I’ll infuse the Campari with flavors that complement and elevate mezcal. And that’s it.”

Du Bois continues, “It’s an event that is bartender driven, bartender attended and friends of bartenders. Such a great event. Everybody’s doing X, Y and Z, and I’m just making this Negroni, which was super easy. People were loving it, and regulars at Corner Door were there – ‘You gotta put this on the menu.’ I put it on the menu at Corner Door, took it off the menu, and there were riots in the streets. I put it back on the menu and I’ve never taken it off. gaz regan reached out to me and said it was one of the best cocktails in the world, a few other people [said it was] the best Negroni variation in the U.S., Imbibe has featured it a bunch. It’s just a perfect example of how the simple stuff, the stuff that doesn’t get overthought, sometimes tend to be the best.”

Du Bois is also rolling out the latest iteration of The Other List, his “secret” menu designed especially for regulars and cocktail enthusiasts. “This one is going to be a hyper-focused vermouth edition of The Other List. We’re going to do some vermouth based cocktails – Vermouth Panaché, Fifty-Fifties. I’m really going to try – easier said than done – to make L.A.’s best Manhattan. I want to do a nice, beautiful proprietary vermouth blend, maybe with a few infusions here and there. Have a lovely menu [with a] Fifty-Fifty, Manhattan, Vermouth Panaché and a dry vermouth Daiquiri. Feature some of the house vermouths.”

“If you hang out on the Westside and talk to any bartenders on the Westside, they will always tell you – with a smirk on their face – if I’m walking into your bar, you have to get your dry vermouth out. [laughs] That’s all I drink, is dry vermouth.”

Asked if he’s been to Moruno at The Original Farmer’s Market, du Bois enthusiastically answers, “The second I saw [info] about their vermouth program, I went straight there. Had some breakfast at [The French Crepe Co] – which is always delicious – and I tried their vermouth.”

“I had expectations as an old, bitter, cynical bartender that I was going to taste something that was really good but not great – ‘I see what you’re trying to do and I think that that’s fantastic.’ WOW, I could not have been more wrong. It was amazing. It was seamless and it was beautiful.”

“Putting it on tap is one of the most genius things you could do from an administrative standpoint,” he continues. “And as I’m drinking it, geeking out over this dry vermouth on the rocks, served with a orange wedge and olives, I look around and I’m like, ‘I’m probably the only one drinking this.’ Not the case. Once again, wrong. I look around and everybody is finishing their meals with dry vermouth or sweet vermouth. And I was like, ‘OK, so this is what heaven looks like.’ The balance of the dry vermouth was way beyond what I expected. Amazing. I can’t recommend it enough.”

El Silencio Master Mezcalier, Pedro Hernández and Beau du Bois | Photo courtesy of Beau du Bois

During the second year of The Corner Door, du Bois began a fruitful relationship with Mezcal El Silencio. “Marcos [Tello] and I have known each other for a long time,” says du Bois. “He’s always been such a great resource. We just got to talking. I don’t know how long they had been doing their Espadin. I tasted it, it was a great product for what we were looking for. It just made a lot of sense to fit into a place like Corner Door. I think the Corner Door brand and the Silencio brand just seem to work really well with each other. I’ve always loved the flavor of the mezcal, so the rest is history.”

“They’ve been nothing but great – it’s such a supportive, family driven, bar community based mezcal. They never cease to meet my standards by any means when it comes to my needs for support for events or anything like that.”

Mezcallins and Taco Trucks at the “Get Lost in L.A.” launch | Photo courtesy of Beau du Bois

In March 2016, El Silencio helped sponsor a media event in New York to promote the launch of the “Get Lost in L.A.” campaign for L.A. Tourism. [Full disclosure: I’m the Content Manager for Discover Los Angeles.] The event featured cocktails by du Bois, tacos by Guerrilla Tacos and a live art installation by street artist Colette Miller. “We made the Mezcallin and the Taco Truck and featured El Silencio. I think they had just activated in New York so it was perfect for them as well. The event was such a smash hit. It raised awareness for Corner Door and obviously for Los Angeles, but definitely for Silencio as well.”  

“So [El Silencio] approached me, ‘Hey, we’re taking 80 people to Oaxaca to visit our palenque, see Oaxaca as a city, do a little cocktail competition and all that. We would love to have you.’ It was one of the few times where my schedule opened up and I could actually go on a trip, which was nice.”

Du Bois was talking to Alex Day two days before leaving for the event. “I really thought it was going to be a nice, relaxing trip to Oaxaca – get some sunshine, stay under the radar, sip some mezcal, lay by the pool, have some amazing Oaxacan cuisine. And then I found out Zach Patterson was going.” [laughs]

“Silencio absolutely smashed this trip out of the park,” says du Bois. “There wasn’t a minute of this trip that wasn’t planned, orchestrated and beyond fun, enriching and educational. There was a parade for us in the streets in Oaxaca. Just to go to dinner, there were 80 people in the streets with bottles of Silencio, and floats, dancers and mariachi. We’re walking in the streets and I don’t even know where we’re going. I think I’m eight shots of Silencio in. We go to dinner in this huge what feels like an army bunker of some kind. There’s fire, live music and all this stuff, great food.”

Beau du Bois and Josh Goldman at the El Silencio palenque in San Baltazar Guelavila | Photo courtesy of Mezcal El Silencio

“We painted the town red and the next day we visited the palenque and got to meet the master distiller, Pedro Hernandez, who is a ninth generation mezcal maker. And finally, the owner of Silencio, Fausto Zapata – such a lovely, charming, lively individual that it’s hard not to have a really incredible time anywhere, let alone Oaxaca, if you’re hanging out with Fausto.”

Du Bois continues, “Just getting ready to learn about the brand and the story behind it, seeing the agave fields – very family driven production behind Silencio. I think the best part of my night was after things kind of winded down, getting to meet the rest of Pedro’s family, all his daughters and his sisters. Introducing me to I think his second oldest daughter, ‘This is the next generation of mezcal makers.’ Lovely, very charming young lady who probably at this point in her very young life knows way more about mezcal than maybe all the bartenders in this room combined.”

“Getting to meet her and dance the night away with Fausto and Pedro’s family underneath the tents in the agave fields. There’s a worse way to spend your Saturday night in Mexico!”

The agave fields of Oaxaca are a long way from Ball State in Indiana, where du Bois was finishing his sophomore year in 2004. “My birthday is late in the year – May 2nd – that’s finals week, all that stuff. I was celebrating my 21st birthday that week. The Martini lounge in my college town was the fancy place. So my professors were like, ‘After you’re done with your friends, meet us at Motini’s and you’ll have a proper cocktail with us,’ which ended up being a gin Martini with Boodles. At 21 years old, I can say with great confidence I did not have the palate for it.”

“I overheard the owner talking to one of the professors, ‘If you know of any students staying over, I need bartenders.’ I had no bartending experience, so I’m useless. I’m waiting in line for the bathroom, and there are three beautiful blonde girls waiting in line as well. And I was that right amount of drunk to be that right amount of charming for that five-minute window. Apparently I made a joke that got them all laughing and giggling right as the owner walked by. He thought the girls were with me. Here’s this guy, he’s got three girls with him, we gotta hire him. So he’s like, ‘Are you staying over the summer?’

‘Yeah.’

‘Do you have any bartending experience?’

‘No, not at all.’

‘OK you start tomorrow.’ [laughs]

“Started the next day, learned everything – making Cosmos, gin Martinis, even Colorado Bulldogs if you’re old enough to remember what those were. It’s a White Russian with a splash of Coke on it. Actually, pretty good.”

“Fast forward, consulted on a few bars back in Indiana because I found this rich, American heritage to cocktail making. Just really started to get into it. Was gonna move to Chicago, decided to come to L.A. because the weather is … the weather. The L.A. cocktail scene was just starting to get the engine going. Took the better part of a year to find a job. [I was] the last bartender hired at the Hyatt in West Hollywood, which was the infamous ‘Riot Hyatt,’ just as they were getting ready to be renovated to the Andaz. Just kept studying, working, building my knowledge of classic and modern cocktail making.”

“I was reading a lot of Dale DeGroff, which was a perfect blend of approachable cocktail making, real serious classic standards and presentation focused as well. Try to imagine, nobody teaching you how to flame an orange peel, and trying to figure it out from a book. ‘I’m supposed to snap the orange wedge in half?’ Because he doesn’t look like he’s breaking it in the picture, you know? I was at home burning the shit out of my fingertips.”

Du Bois continues, “Hyatt closed and I used the in-between time – I went to New York for a little bit, and all I was doing was looking at books, memorizing how to make for instance a Vieux Carré, a Manhattan and a Gimlet. And then going and sitting in front of bartenders that I knew were established: Eric Alperin, Marcos Tello, Damian Windsor, Jason Bran. I don’t think they knew it at the time, but I would order a Vieux Carré from Eric and I would just watch him make it. I would study his technique and take notes. I would watch Marcos shake a Gimlet, watch Damian interact with guests and navigate Bartender’s Choices.”

“So there’s a handful of bartenders in this city – I don’t even know if they’re aware of this, but they’ve actually secretly sort of mentored me. I used that to become the head bartender at the Andaz and – aside from Eveleigh – doing one of the first farm-to-table cocktail programs in the city. I was way underqualified and I had to work really hard to make that work.” RH at the Andaz was du Bois’ breakthrough in the L.A. cocktail community and a harbinger of drinks to come.

After RH, du Bois helped David LeFevre open MB Post and consulted on a few other programs behind the scenes in L.A. “Then four years ago, the owners of Corner Door found me. ‘We like what you do, we just want more of it. We want it to be neighborhood driven, we want to have the same caliber of cocktails as some of the best places in the city, but we still want it to be approachable.’ The owners just wanted a place [with a] good burger, good beers and great cocktails. And that’s what we set out to do and it’s definitely been that and then some.”

Du Bois recalls meeting Julian Cox for the first time, which surprisingly didn’t happen until last fall. “Julian is one of the people that – for myself, my situation is a little different than some bartenders, not having had a mentor. And having to study these people, like Eric Alperin, Marcos Tello, Damian Windsor and Julian Cox. Reading about them as they’re building this revolution and cocktail awareness in Los Angeles.”

“One of the most heartbreaking things to me was learning that Julian was leaving the city, and he and I had never really been introduced. I went to one of his opening nights at Fiscal Agent and that was the first time we had ever met, which was incredible. He came around the bar and sat down and talked to me a little bit about his approach. I’m obviously a little buzzed, just spouting sonnets about what he was doing at Fiscal Agent – it felt like a total secret bartender paradise. Just watching somebody like him making the cocktails and explaining his creative process behind it was like fast forwarding four years of educational expertise.”

The L.A. bar community came out in force at a going away party for Cox and Kristina Howald at Petty Cash. “He was so charming at Fiscal Agent, I’m definitely going to [Petty Cash] and at least shake the dude’s hand and say ‘thank you’ for everything you’ve given to this city from a cocktail standpoint. I’ve interviewed countless bartenders who [said] ‘I took Julian Cox’s class.’ I’ve seen the difference in these people versus other candidates. You always see some kind of thematic throughline with each of the bartenders that Julian has trained, and it’s all very positive.”

“So being at Julian’s going away party, I think one of the most humbling moments for me was seeing Julian across a very packed room of some of the greatest bartenders in the city, and bar enthusiasts, writers and cocktail lovers in general. Julian makes a point to cross the room, shake my hand, and the first thing he says, ‘I can’t wait to be in Chicago and read about all the great stuff you’re going to be doing here in L.A.’ It was like a bear hug / punch right in the feels. Gave me a hug, shook my hand, we chatted a little bit. I got to meet his son, talked to Kristina and hear about all the great plans for Chicago, which is formidable. Getting to say goodbye to somebody like that, even though I know it’s not forever obviously, was probably one of my favorite Los Angeles bartending moments of my career.”

Yael Vengroff at The Spare Room | Photo by Eugene Lee, courtesy of Yael Vengroff

On the rare occasion when du Bois has a night off or has some time to go out and have cocktails (“I try to as much as I can”), who are the bartenders that he visits? “I’ve said it a thousand times, but it never loses its potency with me, sitting in front [of] or even just watching Yael Vengroff bartend is one of the most impressive things you can witness from an industry standpoint, or even a consumer standpoint. Yael is the real deal in the sense of where creativity, pedigree, speed and hospitality, all intersect.”

“Now that we’ve glamorized bartending – as it should be – we’re celebritizing the people behind these great programs, as many of those people deserve. It’s also attracted a saturated market of bartenders who are what I like to call ‘skipping steps.’ Racing, racing, racing for that title without paying their dues and learning from people like Yael.”

“Yael is a person that is – if you were to hold her hand out, it wouldn’t be a hammer, a nail, a screwdriver, a knife and a bottle opener. It would just be all knives. If each finger represented all of her skillsets, something she’s dipped her toe in at some point in her career, it’s all there. Witnessing that is obviously impressive, but it’s beyond humbling. Even for someone like myself who’s been bartending for over a decade, I still have so much to learn.”

“Ryan Wainwright is one of the hardest working bartenders in the city,” says du Bois. “He’s constantly posting cocktails from a number of the places that fall under the banner of his beverage director position. He’s just a cool guy, he’s a cocktail lover – which is great – to see somebody who actually enjoys the perspective of the consumer as they’re crafting and designing the architecture of their cocktail recipes, and seeing that is unbelievable. It’s like knowing that, whether I have $20 to spare for a cocktail – I know it’s well spent – or it’s my last one on the planet, I’m gonna have a great cocktail made by somebody who is obsessed with cocktails. And that’s Ryan Wainwright.”

“I’ve always been a fan of Gaby [Gabriella Mlynarczyk], when she was at ink, Cadet and now Birch. She’s unbelievably talented, very straightforward. All of her recipes are very academic and extremely well executed. I think that’s the short list. Obviously if I can sit down in front of Damian Windsor or Eric Alperin and have cocktails, I know that they’re going to be fantastic. But Yael, Ryan and Gaby are incredibly impressive to me.”

The Corner Door 12477 W. Washington Blvd. Culver City, CA 90066 310.313.5810 www.thecornerdoorla.com

Photo of Beau du Bois courtesy of Acuna-Hansen.

Source: http://thirstyinla.com/2016/05/31/beau-du-bois-goonies-cocktail-menu/

[hartsmonster]

PROMISE

(AFTER SEASON 3) Noora is ready to move on. With the help of her friends she tries to forget her first love, William Magnusson. She begins to be fine again, but suddenly everything is shattered when her past follows. How will she survive her senior year with someone constantly showing up? Will old feelings be back or… new ones will grow?

Chapter three → CLICK HERE TO READ ON WATTPAD

At this exact moment even the ceiling seemed more interesting. She was sitting in the classroom not even listening to the teacher babbling. Her mind went somewhere else.

Sometimes she found herself back by the door, where she heard Chris' phone talk with him.

She would think about what else could he have said, how much of their conversation actually had to do with her.

And then on the other hand, she reminded herself that there was a reason why he called his best friend, not her. A reason that to some people could have sounded stupid, but to her was a major deal breaker. A big no no.

Noora couldn't wait for the bell to ring. She wanted to get out, grab some fresh air and ultimately something to eat.

She had problems downing any food for the past few months. She ate as little as possible just to feed her body and not end up as an anorexic, that was the last thing she wanted.

As much as she tried to be healthy, her favorite jeans that always fit her perfectly were loose. She lost probably few kilos. Nothing major.

But she was skinny already, so if it would keep being like this, people would start to notice.

Thankfully, she was getting better. Last night she ate two chocolate pancakes before going to bed, and now that she was ending second period, she was starting to get hungry as she didn't have any breakfast.

The blonde looked around the classroom. Everybody was busy doing some kind of exercise, but she didn't care. She just started at the clock until it finally hit the mark, and the bell rang few seconds after.

Noora got up from her seat gathering all her stuff. She was just about to walk out when her teacher stopped her.

Obviously she got reprimanded for not focusing on her work and basically not doing anything the whole hour. As a punishment she got two pages of paper to translate to English.

At least she had a reason for not going out in the evening.

She was walking down the hall, heading for the canteen, when she bumped into someone, causing her stuff to spill all over the floor. She crouched down to gather it.

"Watch where you're going." She hissed at the obstacle. Noora reached for her pencil case but a hand preceded her. She looked up to meet the same, now familiar blue eyes.

"And you're angry again."

Those words. William used to speak to her like that. She remembered every situation, right before their first kiss, after she humiliated him in front of everybody. That made her even angrier.

"And you're following me. Again." She pulled out her property out of his hand and turned around and left in a hurry.

She couldn't understand why she got so angry in split second. She felt bad for Kaleb. He didn't know, he shouldn't be blamed for the fact that everything reminded her of him.

Noora quickly used the bathroom with the intention of calming down.

When she felt a little bit better she went to the canteen. She pushed the heavy, old door. Walking inside she spotted her friends sitting by the same table they occupied since last grade. She waved at them and smiled, before grabbing a tray for her food.

What did she feel like eating? Truthfully, her hunger disappeared as soon as she stepped inside, so she grabbed an apple juice and chicken sandwich.

After she paid for her food, she turned around to walk up to their table, when she noticed a familiar black fuzz.

He was sitting alone, listening to music whilst savoring a piece of probably cold cheese pizza. She took a deep breath.

The girls were waving at her to come, but she put her stuff down and sat in front of him. She saw them looking at each other questioningly.

Kaleb raised his head and looked at her the same way. She could tell he was surprised to see her. It was probably the last thing he expected after her outburst earlier.

He was watching her in silence for a second. She couldn't tell if he was angry or not, when suddenly he flashed her a smile, like he used to do every time she saw him.

"Well, well, well. Who's following who now, huh?"

He said grinning. Noora chuckled and laughed a little bit, whilst opening her juice.

"I'm sorry. I'm really not angry all the time."

"But most of it?"

She laughed out loud. Probably for the first time in few weeks and it felt really good.

"It's not my fault world keeps getting on my nerves. People are getting on my nerves, and besides, I know I've been really..."

"...Bitchy?"

"Sensitive is the word I was looking for, but fine. Bitchy it is." He was still staring at her with his wicked smile.

"Don't worry, all is forgiven." Kaleb said while he grabbed the juice box that she was fighting with out of her hand. He opened it with one swift move and put it back in front of her, leaning back in his chair. "But it's not for free."

She looked up at him with her eyes wide open.

"Jesus, don't look at me like I'm about to ask you to marry me. I'm really gonna need those notes for Spanish, tho."

Oh, thank god. Noora put her juice down and reached to her bag to pull out a stack of paper, before handing it to him.

He thanked her, and after he put it in his backpack, he kept talking.

"You thought I wanted a date, didn't you?" His smile would reach his ears if it was possible. She suddenly felt embarrassed and flustered.

"No. Why would I think that?"

He watched her as she got up from her chair and started walking away. She didn't even turn around, but she could hear him laughing in a slightly sarcastic manner.

She hurried towards her friends' table.

"Admit it, Noora Sætre. You want a date!"

Kaleb didn't want to let it go and kept talking to her, making sure that half of the canteen heard it. She pivoted to face him.

"No. Never."

Those words only made him laugh even more, if it was possible. There he was again, making her angry. She closed her eyes, and decided not to say anything more. She just kept walking and took her place next to her friends, who were staring at her in half disbelief and half question.

Vilde especially.

Right, she knew the whole truth. Her mind drifted away from Kaleb, who was still watching her carefully, before going back to his lunch. She wondered if her friend told everything the rest of the girls.

Noora kind of expected that. Vilde wasn't the best at keeping secrets, and they still haven't talked since Friday.

Unfortunately for them, she didn't want to answer any questions regarding William nor Kaleb.

She just took a bite out of her sandwich while listening to her friends talking about some freshmen boys.

* * *

It was already dark. Thick clouds were hanging above thousands of buildings before her. She was sitting on a bench, and she could see the whole city.

Oslo was indeed beautiful.

She was there for the second time. On that bench. In the same spot William took her for their first date, where he tried to work his magic on her, but she could see right through him.

It was also the first time she saw a small glimpse of the William she fell in love with, the one that was under a facade of coldness and indifference that usually people saw when they looked at him.

Something changed in her when he brought her here. She kind of was fond of him earlier, but right there? Maybe his magic did work on her after all.

The lights that were shining in front of them creating some sort of illusion that the buildings were alive, the cold puffs of air leaving their mouths as soon as they took a breath, William's famous cacao.

Even if she still was under the impression that she hated him back then, it really was a breaking point in her view of him and in their relationship in general.

It was the first time she held onto him, and she wanted to also make it the last.

This place marked the beginning and the end. A gain, and loss.

Soon it would be half a year since she last saw him. She could still remember his face when she packed her bags and the fact that he didn't even try to stop her.

He just stood there, in the door, sort of like he expected and waited for her to leave.

Her hand squeezed the bench, as if she wanted to break it, but instead it only hurt her hand.

She didn't want to cry, but she couldn't help but feel sad. Her grandma once said that it was okay to cry if you lose something, because it's always a sad thing. She also taught her that it's not a sign of weakness, but strength. Noora was strong enough to say goodbye to a certain chapter of her life.

She cried like there was no tomorrow, finally letting it all out.

Noora sat there for almost an hour, imagining him sitting right beside her. She almost felt his presence, but every time she turned her head around to look at him, he wasn't there.

And that was the reality.

He was living his life somewhere else, and she had to live hers.

After the calmed down, she felt a sense of relief. Some sort of assurance that everything would be okay. She finally felt strong enough to let go.

She got up and started walking away from the familiar place. Noora stopped and looked back for a second, smiling faintly.

She wasn't leaving the place. She was leaving him with it.

[quibbs126]

I’ve made another fankid, this one’s name is Cloudberry Cookie

So I’ve been struggling to come up with designs for my actual requests, which sucks because I want to draw more fankids, so for now I’m just drawing ones that I’ve been wanting to do, but aren’t on my requests, with wildchip being one of them

Anyways, so for the name, I picked cloudberry since cloudberries are berries, so like Wildberry, but they also grow in very cold climates, like where Crunchy Chip lives

Cloudberry I think was originally a contender for a hollycacao fankid, but then I thought it could also work for wildchip, so that’s what I did instead

Also, another contender that I had for this ship was pineberries, since they’re white with red seeds, which reminded me of Crunchy Chip’s hair, but if you replaced the dark brown with Wildberry’s pink. But I liked cloudberries more, so I went with that. But if I make another one, I’ll probably do Pineberry

Cloudberries:

So I’m aware that neither Crunchy Chip nor Wildberry have orange in their hair, but cloudberries are that color, so that’s her hair color. I still worked in Wildberry’s pink though. Not the proudest of how her hair turned out, or at least the top part, like I think it looked different in my head, but I was trying to make it look closer Wildberry and Crunchy Chip

I admit, I probably could have done better with her outfit, I just wasn’t entirely sure what to do with it other than “cold climate”. Maybe I’ll redesign it some time later

I also made a version with markings like Crunchy Chip’s, but I thought maybe they were just tacked on, so I took them out. But I’ll still post that version at the end, to see if that looks better to you guys

Now let’s get on to her character, since I have some stuff for her

So Cloudberry lives in the Dark Cacao Kingdom, as she prefers the cold climate, but she mostly just lives in solitude in the mountains, not really part of the military like her father. She visits her parents from time to time, and she has a good relationship with them both, she just prefers to live by herself. Generally she farms cloudberries, knowing where they grow, and will on occasion sell cloudberry jam to others. But she also works as a hunter and tracker, being open for hiring if you want someone or something tracked down. Also, she uses and trains birds, like the Cacao Hawks (was that what they’re called? I can’t seem to find where they’re mentioned). She likes the Cream Wolves well enough, she just prefers birds. Plus, they can send letters for her

Generally she comes off as a rather serious person, at least to others, as she’s mostly focused on the task at hand, but she’s also very intelligent and witty, and will sass when you least expect it (unfortunately I am not very witty, so I cannot tell you what she says)

As for the sketch with Crunchy Chip, I just imagine he would just be showing her off to anyone with the time of day. Also that her hair used to be more bouncy and berry like in shape

Edit: oh yeah, something else I thought of that I wanted to mention. So cloudberries are supposed to be incredibly rare and hard to find if you don’t know where to look. Assuming Wildberry and Crunchy Chip baked her, I’m just assuming they were trying to figure out what ingredients to use, and Crunchy Chip suggests these berries he’s heard grow in his kingdom but are very rare, and as they aren’t really sold places, they have to make this long trek across the mountains to find cloudberries, which they inevitably do. I don’t know why I added this bit, I just thought it was neat

Also for some reason, in my head I kept calling her “Wendy”. I don’t know why, but she felt like a Wendy. I guess if she ever needs a proper human name, I’m going with Wendy, despite the fact it sounds nothing like her name

But yeah, I think that’s about it for her, hope you enjoy!

Oh right, the alternate one with her markings! Forgot that

[quibbs126]

dark cacao x golden cheese fan kid???

All right, here you are, this is Santafereno Cookie

Edit: his name is now Dark Cheese Cookie. I know this really is the epitome of just mashing names together, but I dunno, I came to a realization that maybe I don’t need to have the names be all completely different. I mean yeah, let’s not have them all be two names combined, especially if it doesn’t make sense. But for some of them, I think I’m fine. Also he’s supposed to be named after this black cheese I found called charcoal cheddar, only I made the name more vague, sort of like how Dark Fondue is supposed to be dark chocolate fondue. I suppose I could name him Charcoal Cheese but then there’s the question of where the charcoal came from. I realize this means he is not longer technically made of chocolate despite the fact that he is, but whatever. I’ll keep the original explanation for posterity

Edit edit: heck it, I’m changing it to Charcoal Cheese, I don’t give a damn about the naming scheme anymore. Also it sounds better. But he’s still chocolate, not charcoal

So my struggle with his name has been documented, but eventually I went with @midi-san ‘s suggestion of Santafereno Cookie, mostly because I liked the way it sounded. Though I’ll be honest, I’m also not sure about that name, since everyone else in the family has names that are relatively simple. GC is simply cheese, Dark Choco is just dark chocolate, and Dark Cacao is cacao beans (and his is probably only more specific because he was made after Dark Choco to be his father/ancestor). Santafereno to me sounds a little too complicated and specific compared to everyone else, plus there’s no adjective in front. But I also realize that maybe I’m complaining for the sake of complaining, because I can’t find that perfect name (maybe I should have just gone with Choco Cheese…). Anyways, santafereño is basically hot chocolate with cheese

Charcoal cheddar:

Anyways so on to his design, so I envisioned him with black as his main color but with gold/cheese accents, and yeah I got that, but when coloring it felt like his colors were a bit too bright. Now though, I think I’m happy with what I got

All right, now onto Charcoal Cheese himself. I have quite a bit on him

So he’s the prince of the Golden Cheese Kingdom, and is its loyal guardian. Granted the problem with him is that we haven’t seen the Golden Cheese Kingdom yet, so I have no idea how it operates or how he’d fit in. But he worked as essentially the Queen’s right hand, and currently (assuming that GC is missing/dead) he guards the kingdom from trespassers. He’s a serious person who treats his job very seriously, and has a deep love for his kingdom, but he can also be a bit of a prideful bastard sometimes, and unlike his father and brother, he can actually clearly show happiness. He’s usually a pretty chill guy outside of work, but in current times since he’s always working and is under a lot of stress, he’s more serious and irritated then he is friendly

He’s also the older half brother of Dark Choco. I say half because they share the same father, but Dark Choco’s only parent is Dark Cacao. I don’t know where he came from, maybe he just spawned in one day. These two have a…complicated relationship. Growing up, Charcoal Cheese didn’t like him much, because he didn’t really want a younger brother. He’d still tolerate his presence and antics, but he’d complain about doing it. In current day they don’t see each other much, with the last time Dark Choco saw him was on his quest for the Strawberry Jam Sword (I don’t know if Charcoal Cheese knows what went down in the Dark Cacao Kingdom, he doesn’t hear from them much anymore), and if they meet, there’s gonna be some tension. Charcoal Cheese might make impersonal remarks or criticize his lifestyle, and while Dark Choco may think Dark Cheese hates him, in truth he doesn’t. And deep down somewhere, Dark Cheese does care about him, he’s just bad at showing it. Charcoal Cheese probably had a bit of resentment growing up that Dark Choco got to live with and spend more time with their father while he didn’t (Charcoal Cheese mostly lived with Golden Cheese and the two had agreed on Dark Cheese being heir to the Golden Cheese Kingdom while their next kid would be for the Dark Cacao Kingdom, which ended up being Dark Choco), as well as probably some resentment that Dark Choco was his half brother and has no real syrup connection to his mother, which considering that’s who he lived with and he was definitely a mama’s boy, meant quite a bit to him (I should probably also note, Golden Cheese doesn’t have a problem with Dark Choco or the fact that they aren’t related. He’s just kid 2 to her). Even now he will make remarks that Dark Choco is his half brother, not full. He’s come around to the fact that none of these things are really Dark Choco’s fault, and even back then he didn’t really hate him, it’s just that all of these factors made him act out as if he didn’t like him. Also maybe I should clarify, in my head they meet in some alternate timeline where the CoD go to the Golden Cheese Kingdom before the Dark Cacao Kingdom, and they basically make Charcoal Cheese their guide, not telling him of their true purpose. I mean things probably wouldn’t be too different if they met now, just that the whole thing would be quicker to deal with since it’s just them and they can just talk

I’ll be honest, I’m not sure of the specifics, I just want them to have an awkward/tense relationship but in truth Charcoal Cheese cares. Dark Choco does as well, he just doesn’t see his brother that much

Now as for Dark Cacao, Charcoal Cheese doesn’t really have strong opinions one way or the other about his father since well, he hasn’t seen him all that much and barely knows him. Yes he did see him when he was younger, but after the Dark Flour War, each of his parents sort of isolated themselves and didn’t talk, leaving him in the Golden Cheese Kingdom and Dark Cacao and Dark Choco in the Dark Cacao Kingdom. If they were to meet, it would be incredibly awkward since well, they’re the parent/child they don’t really know. They could probably come to some understanding, but again they haven’t met in a very long time

Meanwhile Charcoal Cheese has a very close relationship with his mother, and when they’re together he tends to act sort of like a mini Golden Cheese, though occasionally being the voice of reason

I think that’s about it for his relationships. Now on to random stuff, in that scenario where he meets the Cookies of Darkness, I have this idea in my head that Licorice finds him very attractive, particularly because he doesn’t wear a shirt. But it’s nothing more than one sided attraction (Charcoal Cheese has no interest), and Licorice would still betray him in this scenario, he just might lament the loss of the abs. Also that the CoD see him as “Dark Choco but with wings and shirtless”

Also random fact, he can’t stand the cold. Or more accurately, the cold of the Dark Cacao Kingdom. Mostly because he grew up in a desert. If he ever wants to visit, he has to bundle himself up to the point where he’s basically entirely covered

I think that’s about it for him, I hope you like him! Honestly I do, and I definitely want to draw him more