#also a fan of soft but feral woo!!

[hwaslayer]

thank you my love!!!! happy you enjoyed 🥰

after hours (jwy) | one shot.

—summary: an invitation to wooyoung’s event leads to the unexpected— a night of revelation that deeply blurs the lines between harmless fun and the thrill of exploring something more.

—pairing: dj!wooyoung x f!reader

—genre: (18+ - minors dni) fwb to lovers | smut, fluff

—word count: 5k

—content/warnings: cussing/mature language, dj wooyo playing his first club event!, songs in wooyoung’s setlist can get pretty explicit so pls proceed with caution, throwing some ass back at the club lol, alcohol consumption and intoxication, hella chemistry between these two, friends with benefits but with lots of feelings lol, oc x woo are in denial tho hehe, lots of teasing and flirting, kisses, making out, praising, marking, pet names (baby, babygirl, love), unprotected sex, oral (f. & m. receiving), hand job, woo gets slightly rough, nipple play, missionary, doggy, sorry if i missed anything!!

—a/n: this piece came super randomly, but i was inspired by needs x tinashe / after hours x kehlani and needed to whip this baby out ASAP. enjoy!!

💿 wooyoung's setlist 💿

“Thank you.” You sweetly smile at the security guard at the door, brushing your way past the hefty line that ran down the block with your bestfriend, Yeosang. The club is already incredibly packed from wall to wall, the music’s vibrations felt at the base of your feet. For a minute, you didn’t actually think you’d make it inside in time. The security guard at the door wasn’t taking your sweet smiles, frowning as you bat your eyelashes in hopes of letting you skip the line simply because you knew the DJ. He definitely didn’t believe you, nor was he trying to give you the time of day. You didn’t let up though, and as if on cue, he received confirmation from the team inside that you and Yeosang were a part of the DJ’s crew.

Thank god.

Because that line was not it.

“It’s so fucking loud in here!” Yeosang yells as he turns back to look at you amidst the crowd chaos.

“We’re almost there!” You squeeze his hand as he platonically holds onto yours, leading you to the front of the crowd and up to the DJ booth.

“Never invite me out again if you just plan on seeing your boyfriend or whatever.” 

“Not my boyfriend.”

“Yeah, whatever. Close enough.” You laugh when you finally approach the steps up to the stage, the security guard letting you slip through with Yeosang right at your hip. Heading up to the stage, you greet your friends Mingi, San and Yunho as they dance around with a few other familiar faces and sip on their drinks. Wooyoung is the main DJ for tonight’s event, and he’s having the time of his life— doing what he loves to do, with the people he loves most around him. The crowd is feeding into his energy as he smoothly transitions into the next song, dancing and singing along before finally breaking contact from his mixer and glancing over at you.

“Woo!”

“Whattup! You made it.” He smiles, bringing you flush against him for a hug and a chaste kiss to the temple. You blush at his attempt to subtly squeeze at your side, biting on his bottom lip before shifting his headphones enough to partially cover his ear. The thing about Wooyoung is that you adore him. You adore him because he’s been one of your good friends for some time now. You adore him because he brings you happiness, because he’s a good time. You adore him because of these unspoken feelings, that unlabeled ‘friends with benefits but everyone knows you two are feeling each other so why hide’ kinda thing. You haven’t done much besides innocently flirt around, make out a few times, dance at events together, engage in a few heated conversations over the phone, full send with the thirst traps. The chemistry is well and alive; you suppose by now you and Wooyoung would’ve figured things out since it was too obvious to your friends already, but the both of you seem to brush it off, still shying away from it— afraid of ruining the dynamic that’s already there with said label. Something that started off so fun, so innocent, ended up digging a little space in your heart, making you feel things you shouldn’t for your ‘lil past-time.

But, Wooyoung would move mountains for you, just so you know. He’s dying to make this different. Different from the others, different from anything he’s ever dealt with. Because you are different, and he’ll show you every chance he gets.

“Aw, look at you supporting Woo at his event.” Yunho pinches your cheek, his own painted with a red tint from the alcohol he’s been downing.

“Of course. He was so excited about it, ever since he started planning it out and everything.”

“You guys make things so complicated for no reason.” Yunho laughs. “Despite the friends with benefits bullshit, you know we can tell you two actually have feelings for each other, right?”

“Wow, I didn’t know I came to the club to be lectured by Jeong Yunho.” You laugh, gently pinching at his arm. “We don’t like each other. That’s all we are.” He rolls his eyes.

“Continue to convince yourself if that’s easiest, Y/N. Just want you two to be happy.” You lick your lips, jolting at the sudden roar that comes from the crowd when Woo transitions into another hype, upbeat song.

“Aye, can we get some shots, please? Gotta take one with Yeo and the pretty ‘lil thing right there.” He signals by making a glass-shape with his hand, tilting it back a few times until the bartender off to the side throws him a thumbs up. He looks at you with a smirk, quickly winking before he’s grabbing the mic and hyping the crowd up some more.

The shots turn into two, three, five maybe, before the world is spinning a little more than usual; off-balance and vision slightly blurry. You’re still coherent, and you’re still able to make sense of your surroundings. But the one thing you do find yourself struggling with is how good Wooyoung looks at the table. You try to brush it off, dancing around with your friends and loudly singing along to the songs that blast through the speakers.

“Having fun?” Wooyoung sets the headphones off to the side and steps back from the table to enjoy some company for a bit.

“Yeah, you’re not so bad after all.” You playfully punch him on the bicep and he laughs.

“You look so good tonight.” He says in your ear, pulling you flush against his body again— hand resting on the small of your back. “Gonna give me a bit of your time?”

“I don’t know, should I?” 

“Tease. All those pictures and you can’t even spare me a minute.” He taps your nose and heads back to the table. It’s a few more minutes of Wooyoung hyping the crowd, San and Mingi both welcoming lapdances from a few cuties they met throughout the night while exploring out on the floor. Before you know it, you’re pulled mid-conversation with Yeo and Yunho— familiar hands resting on your waist. You feel Wooyoung push against you, guiding your hips against him for a dance. You love dancing with Woo because it’s fun, and there’s no pressure or expectation to be a certain way with him.

You live for that shit.

And tonight, you need him a little more than usual. In more ways than usual. Tippy-toeing into dangerous territory that makes you wanna act on your feelings.

You’re having to hold onto the edge of the table as Wooyoung bends you over ever so slightly, letting you work your ass against him to the music. He bites onto his bottom lip as he focuses on you, only you, matching your rhythm to the beat. You change your position, no longer leaning onto the edge of the table; back only inches away from Wooyoung. You lean to the side in order to get a better view of him from over your shoulder as you work your ass in slow, circular motions against him. The both of you let out a few laughs in between, focused on each other as if no one else was around. The grip on your hip tightens when Wooyoung’s free hand glides down your back in an effort to bend you over again. Your hands fall to your knees, picking up your pace to match the new song that comes on. 

Wooyoung matches your energy so well it’s no wonder you never want to dance with anyone else the same way you do with him.

The dancing with Wooyoung continues for a bit more before he’s tapping out, tapping your hips once the song finishes. You stand to put some distance between you two, but he keeps you close; arm wrapped around your waist when you turn to look at him.

“I swear to God, Y/N.” He leans into your ear. “You make everything so difficult for me.”

“Doubt that.” He chuckles.

“Oh, you have no idea.” 

“The DJ is being fake and forgetting his set!” San teases. You blush and push him away, allowing him to get back to his craft in the meantime.

The next two and a half hours go by with a breeze, and you find your energy diminishing as the night continues to go on. You find yourself hugging closer to the wall behind the stage, leaning your head against Yeo’s shoulder— watching as San and Mingi continue to dance around and find a few pretties to get to know. Wooyoung turns over his shoulder a few times, tugging on your hand, flirting with you in a way he knows will get you to fold so quick; buckle at the knees, shyly giggle against him from all the cute ‘lil compliments that slip from his lips.

“Tryna go soon?” Yeosang asks near your ear. “Kinda over it.” He laughs.

“Yeah, I am, too! Let me just say goodbye to everyone.” You head to Yunho first, giving him a bear hug before letting San and Mingi playfully hug you and spin you around. “Hey.” You tug on Wooyoung’s hand, causing him to shift the headphones up so he could hear you.

“You’re leaving?” He frowns a bit.

“Yeah! Time for us to head out.” You smile, but he pouts.

“Where are you going?” He looks down at you, brushing the hair away from your face. “Don’t wanna stick around to grab a bite to eat with everyone after?”

“No, I’m tired. Yeo and I are probably just gonna grab something quick on the road before he drops me off.” He pouts even more.

“Gonna make me miss you.”

“Don’t say stuff like that, Woo.” He continues to pout anyway, hand coming to squeeze your side again in an endearing way.

“Can I text you later, then?”

“If I’m up.”

“I need you to be up. Please?”

“For what, exactly?” You chuckle.

“Your company.” He puckers his lips. “Tryna give me a kiss before you head out?”

“Get out.” You laugh.

“Just fuck and get together already!” Mingi says loudly with a hearty laugh. Woo turns to flip him off before shifting his attention back to you.

“Okay, please?” He repeats. “Promise me you’ll be up?”

“Get back to the crowd. I’ll be up.” You reassure him, gently pushing him towards the table. He nibbles at this bottom lip before heading back to his set. You nod over to Yeosang and start making your way out of the club, holding onto his hand as he leads the way again. Once you get outside, the cold air feels good against your sticky, warm skin. You let out a deep breath, keeping your body close to your bestfriend to keep some kind of warmth. 

“I don’t know why you just don’t tell him.” Yeosang says as he continues to walk alongside you on the way to the car parked on the opposite end of the block.

“I have nothing to tell him.”

“Y/N, please.” Yeosang chuckles. “We know.” You roll your eyes and sigh.

“Why is everyone on my case about him tonight?”

“I don’t know, maybe because you two should just quit the act and get together already?” He snorts. “You should at least try when you guys get some alone time later.”

“Who said we will?”

“I know you, you’ll stay up for him.” Yeosang gives you a look before gently nudging you. “Until then, what do you wanna stop by for?”

“I don’t know, I’m not too hungry. Truthfully, I’d be satisfied with some good ol’ fries and an ice cream cone.” You laugh and Yeo nods while swinging his keys around his finger.

“Got it.” He unlocks the door. “Get in princess, we need to get your fries and ice cream before Woo comes over.” You scold him as you settle into the passenger’s seat, recalling some events from the night as he drives off to the nearest fast food joint for the best fries nearby. 

When Yeosang finally drops you off at home, you’ve completely devoured your fries and ice cream cone, and you find yourself slowly dragging yourself up to your studio. The club had just closed, so you weren’t expecting to hear from Wooyoung for awhile. You let out a satisfied sigh when you slip out of your shoes, kicking them off to the side before tossing your bag and keys onto the table. You make a beeline for the shower, more than ready to wash off the club and get into something comfortable. It’s a quick one, though; a good 10 minutes under the hot water with that coconut body scrub you love so much before stepping out and lathering up with some body cream. You toss on an oversized shirt and crash onto your bed, feeling incredibly happy to be in your own safe space.

You wonder what Wooyoung is doing.

It’s crazy because at this point, it feels like the universe is listening closely to your thoughts— especially when a ding comes through on your phone and puts a big smile on your face.

wooyo: cutiepie

wooyo: are you up 🥺 say yes

you: lol yeah i am.

wooyo: fuck yeah! you kept your promise!

you: excuse, since when did i ever break a promise with you?

wooyo: never, that’s why you’re perfect for me

you: shut up lol

wooyo: lol 😙 can i slide through and hang out for a bit?

you: mhm! what happened to eating out with the boys?

wooyo: bruh san got too fucked up so we all ended up going our separate ways

you: wooooow hahah hope he’s good though?

wooyo: he’ll be fine. did u and yeo actually get some stuff to eat?

you: yeah we did. you should grab something for yourself before heading over

wooyo: nah it’s all good. i don’t care too much for it, just need your company. be there in 15?

you: sounds good! front door’s unlocked

wooyo: hot, she can’t wait either

you: stop while you’re ahead jung wooyoung

wooyo: oop hehe woops 🤭

It wasn’t anything new to have Wooyoung come over, but he usually comes to hang out for an hour or so before he’s leaving to head back to his own place. The good thing about Wooyoung is that even though there’s this deep chemistry, this longing for each other, he never forces anything. Never pressures you.

So, he comes through. He gives you a few kisses and gives you a few laughs from his jokes. He cuddles you for a bit before he’s saying his goodbyes and struggling to get himself out of the door.

It’ll probably be the same tonight, maybe.

It feels different because you loved seeing him in his element, and you loved having fun with him. It also feels different because your friends were all up in your case about him— now, you can’t really get the idea out of your head. That maybe, you do really, really want something with Wooyoung and you’re afraid to admit it. Afraid he might not feel the same even though he’s never done anything to hurt you or show you otherwise.

Maybe, you’ll finally take that leap tonight and just go for it.

Say fuck it.

In the end, at least you could say you tried, right?

Amidst all your overthinking, you surprisingly do fall asleep in those 15-20 minutes. You’re awoken by your front door closing, along with Wooyoung’s loud ass keys dangling from his keychain and hitting his thigh with every step he takes. 

“Did you fall asleep?” He giggles when tosses his belongings onto your desk and plops onto your bed.

“I did fall asleep for a bit.” You yawn and fix your position a bit, Wooyoung laying next to you on his tummy.

“I didn’t even take that long, did I?”

“No, but I can’t be tired?! Damn.” He snorts.

“Sorry, sorry.” He kisses the tip of your nose, his arm draped over you. Hand caressing your side under your shirt. His hand is warm, but it tickles against your skin and raises a few goosebumps at how smooth his touch is. He looks at you for a split second before he leans in to peck you on the lips, smiling into the kiss just as he pulls back. “So, did you have fun?”

“I did. You played a good set tonight, Woo.”

“I did, huh?” You laugh.

“Did you have fun?”

“It was so fucking fun.” He laughs. “I just wished you stayed ‘till the end. Everyone seemed boo’d up and I was just the lonely ass DJ playing for the crowd.”

“Please. I’m sure you still had fun until then.”

“I did, but it wasn’t the same without you.” You give him a tiny, toothless smile, hand brushing through his soft black hair. 

“When’s your next one?”

“Why, huh?” He smirks. “An excuse to dance up on me again?”

“Excuse you, you pulled me for a dance!” You playfully swat him on the shoulder.

“Yeah, and? I’ll do it again at the next one.” He pulls out his phone. “I’m doing something next weekend with a few other DJs. Wanna come?”

“Sure. I don’t think Yeo would go, though. I practically dragged his ass out for this one.”

“Okay.” Wooyoung types something on his phone before tossing it aside, full attention on you again. “Promise me you’ll actually stay until the end. Gimme a chance to show you off, too.”

“Wooyoung.” You giggle. He tickles your sides, causing you to squeal and kick your feet before he lets you breathe. You find Wooyoung staring at you again, and it causes your heart to do major flips.

“You’re so pretty, Y/N. You looked so damn good tonight.”

“You did too, I guess.” You tease and he bites onto his bottom lip, leaning forward for another kiss.

“Tease. Hate it.” He presses his lips against yours, holding it for as long as he can before he pulls back. “Why don’t you wanna kiss me in front of our friends, hm?” He presses another kiss to your lips, edging closer to your body so he could comfortably throw his arm around you.

“Because we aren’t together.” You giggle.

“Shouldn’t we change that?”

“Don’t say shit like that, Wooyoung. I told you.”

“I mean it. Why can’t we be? I don’t necessarily have anything to hide.” Wooyoung kisses at the corner of your lips. “Unless you do?”

“I don’t.”

“So, tell me. Why can’t we be?” He asks again, close to a whisper, lips grazing the surface of yours. You don’t say anything, no. Instead, you feel like your actions could do the talking for tonight. Your actions could tell Wooyoung what you’ve been feeling all this time, your actions could tell Wooyoung how much you’ve been longing for him— longing for something more, longing for something deeper than the surface.

You make the first move and push into his lips, instantly deepening the kiss. Your hands tug at the ends of his hair as the two of you fit in each other’s molds so perfectly; teeth clashing against each other in a fit of desperate need, tongues fighting for dominance. Hoping the answer would be evident in the way you move so well with him.  “Fuck, baby.” Wooyoung breathily responds as you bite onto his bottom lip. He moves down to your neck and licks across the surface, gently nipping and sucking faint marks down the column. You feel Wooyoung’s hand squeeze at your hip before he pauses at the material of your panties, threatening to slip them down and toss them off. Everything suddenly feels so heated, too intense, too quick— you’re afraid there isn’t a way to come back from this anymore. “Y/N, if you tell me to stop right now, I’ll stop.” He feels your hesitancy, almost hears you thinking outloud. “Whatever you wanna do.”

“N-no. Keep going.”

“You sure? Cause if I keep going, I won’t be able to stop, you know that, right?” He gently nips at your chin while teasing the edge of your panties. “Been wanting this for so long, I won’t be able to help myself.”

“I want this too.”

“Yeah?” He smirks while finally pulling your panties down and tossing them onto the floor. “Gonna let me finally take care of you?” He kisses you once more before shifting his position to be in between your thighs, hands gripping at ‘em while he presses light kisses in your inner thighs. He smirks to himself and bites onto his bottom lip when he sees you bare underneath the shirt, causing the heat to rise to your cheeks.

“Woo.” You shyly throw an arm over your face.

“Don’t do that.” He chuckles and gently tugs on your elbow. “You’re so fucking beautiful, shit feels too fucking good to be true right now.” In a blink of an eye, Wooyoung presses a light kiss against your pussy— sending tingles straight down your spine. He indulges in how reactive you are, gently easing himself back down onto your heat to give you what you deserve. You let out a breathy moan when Wooyoung latches back on and continues his work on you; tongue working up and down, licking in between your folds. The pleasure makes your back arch in response, another moan slipping from your lips and sounding like music to Wooyoung’s ears. 

“Oh my god.” You let out with a silent moan. You whimper when Wooyoung slips in two digits, pumping into you at a quick pace while his mouth continues to lap at your clit, sucking in between to taste every single drop of you. When he pulls out, you take the opportunity to grind against his mouth; aching to feel the friction you so desperately need, want, from him. “Oh fuck, Woo.” Your moan is a little louder this time, causing him to groan against you as a way to egg you on towards the finish line. “Just like that, please. I’m gonna—” You whine, repeatedly cursing to yourself until you feel that coil within you suddenly snap and throw you off guard. Your moans bounce off the walls and Wooyoung is sure the couple upstairs can hear it loud and clear.

Oh well.

“Did so well for me, pretty girl.” He kisses your inner thigh, leading a trail up to your knee. He sits back onto his knees and removes his shirt, the tent in his sweats making you drool the more you fixate on it.

“Woo.” You look at him with a tiny pout. “Can I?” You sit up in order to reach him and palm hin gently.

“Mm, baby.” He lets out a small moan. “You don’t have to, I just—”

“Please?” You beg with those eyes and Wooyoung can’t help buckle at the knees. You’re already helping him out his sweats, and he feels the urge, the desire, to find out how your pretty lips feel wrapped around his dick. 

The image alone drives him to insanity, and he can’t wait to see you sucking him off like the good girl you are. 

He swallows the lump in his throat when he watches you pump him slowly, taking your lips to his tip. He hisses when you lick away at the pre-cum pooling at the top of the head before lowering your mouth down his length. 

And, fuck.

Wooyoung feels like he’ll lose himself right at this moment. He tilts his head back in pleasure, letting out a small, guttural moan when you work your mouth [and hands] on him. He gently tugs at your hair, pushing you a little further down his length just to test the waters. But, you take him anyway, and Wooyoung wants to fucking combust. You look so, so pretty with your lips around him, and it doesn’t help his cause when he feels his dick hit the back of your throat; pushing him to the highest of highs, purest ecstasy. 

“Fuck—fuck.” He groans. “Baby, wait. You’ll make me cum.” He lets out a breath, eyes focusing on you. He pulls you back just a bit, caressing your cheek when he sees a faint tear streak coating the surface. “I need to be in you. Now.” You bite onto your bottom lip and settle back onto your back as Wooyoung slots himself back in between your legs. He takes your shirt off at the same time, tongue licking a stripe up your cleavage before leaving wet kisses along the swell of your breasts. He quickly pops a nipple into his mouth, tongue swirling around the puffy bud before repeating the motions with the other. 

“Shit.” You hiss. “Wooyoung, please.”

“Please, what?” He teases. He has that shit-eating smirk on his face as he sits back and watches you squirm, pumping himself slowly while he waits for you to respond. “Hm, sweet girl?”

“Need you.”

“Where? Care to tell me again?”

“I swear to God if you aren’t fucking me in the next 2 minutes—” He laughs as he lowers himself back down, just enough to hover over your body and plant a feathery kiss on your lips.

“Say please.” He smiles. “Besides, do you have a condom? I swear I haven’t been messy or anything, you know this. But I don’t wanna make you uncomfortable.”

“I’m on the pill, so please.”

“You sure?” You nod, hands resting on his shoulders. He does a subtle nod before he lines himself up at your entrance and eases in— the both of you letting out gasps while adjusting to the feeling. It already feels too good with the way he fills you up and makes you feel full. For Wooyoung, it’s the way your walls wrap around him so nicely that makes him truly believe you were made just for him.

Only him.

Once he bottoms out, he sits in the position for a second before he slowly rocks against you. Wooyoung begins to pick up the pace when he feels a little more comfortable, pressing kisses on every inch of your skin that he possibly can while whispering sweet nothings against the surface. He praises you so, so well, it has you whimpering a mess underneath him— only wanting more of Wooyoung, only wanting to feel every bit of his soul intertwined with yours at this very moment.

Only him.

“God, you feel so good Y/N.” He lets out a breathy moan into your mouth. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted you. Everything about you is so perfect.” He moans. “So pretty and so perfect.” He picks up his pace, hips working a little sloppier, a little harder. “Just for me.” He sits back and rests his hand on your hips, pounding into you in such a majestic way, it almost has you seeing stars right then and there. You continue to praise him, letting him know how good he’s making you feel, and how you need him just like this. 

Only him.

“Switch for me.” He removes himself quickly and directs you to your fours. He wastes no time slipping himself back into you, the new position and angle enough to make you two crave more and more of each other. Once he buries himself to the hilt, he keeps a steady pace as his hands explore every curve of your body, pressing kisses against the base of your neck;

Shoulders.

Back.

Tracing your spine.

“Feels too good.” You mewl, Wooyoung’s name slipping from your lips repeatedly like a song, a mantra. He continues to pound into your from behind— ass cheeks sore and red from the impact, from Wooyoung’s hands. 

“Wanna make you mine.” He moans in your ear as he thrusts a ‘lil harder, a ‘lil rougher than the last. “Can I, babygirl?”

“Y-Yes.” Your response is almost broken by a cry that’s released, an immediate reaction to how hard Wooyoung is fucking into you.

“Say it louder. Can’t hear you. Can I make you mine, baby?” He repeats, thrusting even harder than the last. His hand glides down your back as you fall onto your chest with your cheek deep into the pillow; ass up and pressed against him so beautifully every time he fucks into you. 

“Yes, fuck!” You let out, hand coming down to rub at your sensitive nub to push you over the edge one last time for tonight.

“Oh shit, gonna cum—” Woooyoung pants. “Where do you want me?”

“Inside.”

“So fucking hot—” He groans while sloppily working his hips until the very end. You feel him fill you up, coating your walls so deliciously it’s enough to push you to your own high. Wooyoung hisses and grunts a few times when he feels you squeeze him, feeling a bit sensitive from his own release. 

“God.” You try to regulate your breathing when you come back down from cloud nine, body falling limp against the mattress with Wooyoung plopping next to you.

“Come here, pretty.” He chuckles, swooping you onto his chest with his hand coming up to stroke your hair and massage your scalp. “Let’s get cleaned up.”

“Okay. But, first. Can you stay tonight?” You look up at him and he smiles brightly.

“Why would I leave my baby’s side?” He kisses your forehead. “Let’s go. If you’re good, I’ll let you take me in the shower.”

“You’re unbelievable.”

“The real after hours after party.” Wooyoung wiggles his eyebrows as he watches you climb over and start making your way to the bathroom.

“You’re so sick for that.” You laugh, squealing as he smacks your ass and follows you into the bathroom, getting his way with you once more under the steaming hot water.

💿 taglist: @asjkdk @bintificreads @interweab @svintsandghosts

[justpoliteconversations]

The Negotiator [Reader + Mer!Warriors]

This was not in your job description. You don't get paid enough.

The self-indulgent is spewing forth even stronger than usual with this one. This particular topic was supposed to happen differently, but I was seduced by the unceasingly posts of the scarf on my dash. It be that way sometimes.

Masterlist

Part: 1 / 2

TW: Implied things. Not specifying, so be warned.

Disclaimer: Don't own The Legend of Zelda franchise. Linked Universe is the fan creation of jojo56830.

---

You hadn't aimed for the welfare department when you'd signed up for an entry level position at a mer rehabilitation center. In fact, you hadn't expected to be considered at all, nevermind accepting the position even if you did get a call. It had been a fit of fancy sending in that application. A shot in the dark, when honestly you'd already been accepted for another job.

And yet, here you are. Just like you'd taken a chance in sending out that application, you took another one when you turned down the job you'd lined up previously in favor of a pipe dream.

You just hadn't expected that dream to become a nightmare so quickly. You hadn't expected the glamor of media and public perception to be so skewed by romantic bullshit it had become more akin to a lie than an embellished retelling.

In the time you'd been working there, you learned something about Mers that should have been obvious from the beginning (was obvious, you just hadn't wanted to accept it at first). Furthermore, you learned something about humans you'd always known but now had deep, intimate experience with.

And that was that Mers are dangerous, feral creatures. And that humans are damned idiots.

"Wars." You called softly (you knew he'd hear you. he always did), staring down cautiously into the enclosure from the safety of a catwalk far above. The water rippled at the surface, just the slightest of movements giving away the presence of the Mer you currently had the most concerns about.

Wars, for better or worse, was a charmer as far as mers go (honestly, as far as any male species goes). A handsome face, elegant features, charisma for days and a flare for the dramatic. And also, a flirt. An insatiable flirt who knew how to woo a female of any species into giving him a second look.

It was what made him so valuable to the center. So damned profitable. The picture perfect fantasy come to life, all wrapped up in a saucy little wink and a sweet (fake. so fake) gesture of affection for the throngs of desperate humans clambering to meet the real life prince charming. The perfect act. An act made by a predator that thrived on deception.

And those ignorant center visitors were none the wiser. Just throwing their money away to coo and sigh at the smiling face that had learned to keep his fangs securely behind an upturned pair of lips.

It's not hard for a creature as intelligent as mers to lie, after all. Despite what the law may interpret the existence of mers as, when it came down to it they were sentient predators. And humans were just as likely to end up on the menu as anything else.

The water shifted again, and suddenly there he was. Golden spun hair shimmering in the sunlight like gold dust, gorgeous blue eyes half-lidded and a smile (fake. fake. fake.) turned delicately against the plush shine of full lips.

He did a little turn in the water as he looked up at you with a damn good imitation of bedroom eyes, making a soft cooing sound and letting the long, silky sapphire fan of his fins flare out across the water's surface like a great billowing cloak. By the end of the flashy swirl, he's wrapped his glimmering curtain of tail fins around himself, blowing you a kiss in a very humanlike gesture. Of course, throwing in his signature wink at the end, delicate head fins folded back and eyes so liquid they were practically melted.

Ever the performer. And currently the bane of your existence.

"Yes, yes. Beautiful as always, Wars." You drawled, rolling your eyes before continuing. "Now. If you're done trying to kill me for the day-" He made a wounded (fake) sound in the back of his throat. "-I have to talk to you." You leveled his pouting face with a serious stare. "About my co-workers."

It was instant. The way War's melted sugar eyes hardened like cold chips of ice, the pupils within constricting so rapidly you could see it even several meters above the water. His fins pulled close and held perfectly still atop the water's surface, the lithe muscles of his tail working so fluidly in his element he hardly seemed to move at all.

He sank just the slightest bit until it was just his dark, predatory eyes watching you from the eerily still surface. Waiting. Watching. Assessing.

It took everything in you not to take a step back. Away from the catwalk. Away from the predator curled tight in the water below, tense as a coil in a spring-loaded trap (you wondered sometimes if he might not make the leap one day and drag you down to your death. he had the power for it, no matter what your coworkers seemed to think).

You pushed away the unease, instead taking a step forward. Ignored the way his eyes tracked you like pinpoints against the whites of his eyes. "I'm sure you've heard that management are thinking of putting someone in the water with you. For- performance potential." You grimaced at the idea of it.

It would be a blood bath. Warriors was territorial. Far too territorial to allow just any random trainer in the water with him (which shouldn't have ever been a concern at all. because there were restrictions put in place for a reason. and no direct human-mer interactions was at the very top of the list damnit).

Wars was silent, as was to be expected. He hadn't yet learned human speech, and if you had your way he never would. Because he wasn't even supposed to be at the center anymore. He should be back in the wild where he belonged. Seducing fish and seals to their untimely deaths or whatever it was this particular mer did to get by before he arrived at the center.

But he was a money maker (and a damned good one). He was basically the face of the center by this point (featured on so many postures it was nearly sickening). And the big bosses were hard pressed to let such a cash cow go without a fight.

You understood. You really did. Money didn't grow on trees and mers were expensive to upkeep. Not even accounting for the gray-area bullshit that was mer standing in the political sphere. Mers were not an easy subject to acquire funding for, given the hazy line between sentience and non-sentience the world at large couldn't seem to agree on (you knew where you stood on that line).

However, (and as you've said so many times before) forcibly keeping him (or any mer) here with the intent to gain profit went against the very purpose of the center. Which was to rehabilitate mers affected by human-made incidents and to release them back into their natural environments as soon as possible.

Simple. Effective. Routine. And then Wars had showed up with a badly torn (shredded) fin from an illegal nighttime boating incident. He was put into the isolation tank (just like any other new arrival) where he had then proceeded to mimic his handlers' playful (you damned well hoped it had been playful) gestures out of boredom.

He's intelligent. Very, very intelligent. He learned very quickly which gestures got him the most attention. And food. And the rest, as one could say, was history.

Which had snowballed into the issue you were now addressing. That some grade A idiot up top thought it would be a good idea to get someone in the water with a potentially deadly (very much deadly. actively deadly) mer just because he learned how to blow a kiss and smile pretty for treats.

"Wars. I am trying my best to get you back to the ocean where you belong." You saw the way his pinprick eyes dilated and flickered briefly, and you resisted the urge to grit your teeth. "Yes, Wars. The ocean. Where you actually belong. Not here in this tank, lovely as you seem to think it is."

Silence. As was expected. Except for the way Wars had flicked his head fins in slight irritation, upset that you were talking of releasing him again when he had made it abundantly clear that he preferred it here. Where all his wants and needs were provided for and life was just so easy to coast through with a few mimicked expressions.

You leaned against the catwalk, arms crossed and head hanging at the shoulders. Not looking forward to a potential one-sided argument with Wars. Exhausted as you were from a long day of arguing with your superiors and trying your damnedest not to call them all conceded fools and ignorant morons.

You sighed. "But that's not the point right now." You moved away from the topic before it could throw you off track. And thankfully, Wars let you (for now). "I'm doing everything in my power to keep all these overzealous idiots out of your territory." He made a pleased coo at that, but you silenced him with a tired glare. "You aren't making it easy, Wars."

From the water, the blue-finned mer unfurled his elegant tail fins and began waving them gently through the water, chirping and squeaking at you in appreciation. It was so convincing you almost wanted to smile, but you didn't because you weren't an idiot.

"Cute. But no takers, love. Your eyes are still doing that thing they do when you're contemplating ripping someone's throat out." Wars blinked at that, before finally (finally) pulling his lips back until his fangs were on full display. Long and sharp and predatory to the very core of him. "Ah. There he is. Good to know we know where we stand with each other."

And he snickered. Honest to God snickered. Pupils no longer flickering between too large and too narrow, just settled into some state of in-between you've come to learn was his version of relaxed.

It was unnerving. But better than the fake ass smiles and doe eyes he seemed intent on practicing on you. Anything was better than knowing you were being actively hunted (even if just for casual sport. especially because it was just for casual sport).

You picked up the bucket at your side now that you had his actual attention. "Back to business." You grabbed a fish from it, a beautiful female salmon nearly half your size (eggs still intact, just how Wars preferred them). "They're going to evaluate you tomorrow. I need you to be- less pleasant." That was definitely an unimpressed snort, but his attention was still on the fish and therefore you were still negotiating. "And by that I mean hissing, snarling. Hell. Even some tail thrashing wouldn't be amidst."

You held the fish out over the catwalk, and his eyes pinpricked again, tracking it with interest. Now for the hard part. "But no biting." His eyes. Flickered. Contracted. Dilated.

"No biting, Wars. Don't kill them." His eyes were fully blown now. Looking you right in the eye. Quiet. So quiet.

"I'm going to give you this salmon. Okay, Wars?" No response. "And if you don't bite, kill or maim anyone, I'll bring you three more. Just like this one."

That caught his interest, and you pressed your advantage. "You know I'd never break my promise to you. I never have before, right?"

He blinked. And his eyes were neutral again. Tracking the salmon with new appreciation. Something almost like enlightenment entering his eyes.

"Is it a deal?"

You were making a deal with the devil. Because this was an intelligent mer. And when he learned how to get what he wanted he'd grasp it with both of his clawed hands and never let it go.

He nodded. And you knew future you would rue this day for the rest of your life (or just until you got this fucker back to the wild, because you would. for sure).

But still. Tension you hadn't even realized was in your chest loosened. Relief flooded your body, so great you nearly went limp with it.

You didn't want to think about what the alternative would have been. Even if it meant Wars now had a new trick in his arsenal to make your life a misery, it would be worth it (it had to be).

It would have been a bloodbath. You were sure of it. Wars was territorial, after all. Of his space. Of his food. Of his resources.

It was why he didn't want to leave.

"Okay." You said, smiling finally. "Here you go."

And with a toss the deal was struck. And you prayed to whatever deity would listen that Wars kept his end of the deal. Because he was an accomplished liar, and he always had been.

And you knew, beyond logic and beyond evidence, why Wars had been hit that night. Why he'd been so close to that boat when he'd been ensnared in their propeller. Why he'd been right under them, so close he could reach out and touch it. In shallow water. With the lights off and the moon full.

Why he'd had injuries on his hands that weren't from propellor blades. Why his claws had damn near been ripped off.

He was territorial, after all. And a predator. The top of the food chain.

And humans were just another animal.

---

Back to the shadow to rest. It's so late.

[belladonnabear]

Tomura Shigaraki X Reader: Love At First Sight

Scenario: The title speaks for itself. Tomura falls in love with you at first sight and wants you.  Sorry this is pretty OOC but November and December have been pretty rough so I wanted some fluff.

~~

Tomura couldn’t stop staring, his coffee could have spilled all over his lap and he wouldn’t have cared. He was staring at the most beautiful girl he’s ever laid his eyes on. Her soft (h/c) hair that was flowing from the fan, her bright (e/c) eyes that sparkled like a diamond and unlike his own skin, hers looked as soft as freshly clean bed sheets.

    She was in line waiting to order her coffee, a blissful smile was stretched on her face as she looked at the board for specials. Tomura felt his face begin to warm up and he had a slight urge to start scratching at his neck again. She looked like an angel, while he was a ghastly demon from the underworld. He’s never felt this way about any girl before and it was suddenly beginning to irritate him. Why was he feeling this way towards her? He’s never even had a conversation with her before. What was going on with him?

    He suddenly saw her up front and turned to the cashier. With a beaming smile you made your order.

“Can I please have a medium Mocha Coconut?” you asked.

However, the cashier looked down at her head to toe with a very intense gaze. He suddenly had a very cunning smirk on his face. 

“Sure, that’s going to be ¥400 and your phone number.” he winked.

    Tomura was starting to feel his irritation turn to rage at the cashier’s attempt to flirt with you. Why was this NPC trying to get with you? He’s not even in the same league as you. Tomura was starting to see red as you began to look uncomfortable at this man’s sudden request. You held out your card for him to take.

    “Um, no thank you.” you politely declined.

    “C’mon sweetcheeks, there ain’t no harm. Let me take you out sometime.” the man ignored the card and kept on trying to woo you.

    Tomura could feel his bloodlust rising at this prick’s insistence. He wanted to murder this man. No. That would be too kind. He wanted to rip off every limb from his body and leave him disabled for life. This disgusting scumbag didn’t deserve something as merciful as death. 

    “Please don’t call me that sir.” you shake your head.

    “Sir? I like it. You should call me that after I’m done with you.” he chuckled.

    Tomura stood up from his spot with feral eyes and ill-intent for the creepy cashier. He slammed some money on the counter top and looked at the man with a deadly gaze.

    “Give her the drink asshole. She’s not interested in you.” Tomura glared.

    The man looked intimidated by Tomura’s stare and quietly took the money while getting the young woman’s drink. The girl looked over at Tomura with admiration glistening in her eyes. Tomura suddenly felt bashful by her look and tried not to make direct eye contact with her. 

    “Thank you so much. You didn’t have to pay though, I can pay you back for the drink.” you offered.

“Don’t worry about it.” Tomura shrugged.

Internally, Tomura was jubilant about talking to the girl. She was looking at him with a very happy expression on her face. She received her drink from the creepy cashier and she turned to the man.

“If it’s not too much to ask, can I sit with you please?” she wondered.

Tomura felt his head spin from her request. She wanted to sit with him? Did she not notice the scars and dry skin on him? Or did she just not care? A part of him wanted to say no but one look at her hopeful express made him weak for her.

“Sure.” he nodded.

With a grin on her face, she sat herself at his table while Tomura glanced back at the  cashier from before. He looked at Tomura in envy that he was going to be sitting down with the girl he was creeping on earlier. Tomura shot him a wicked smirk which made the man flinch before Tomura sat down to talk to the girl.

“My name is (Y/N) by the way. Sorry I didn’t introduce myself sooner. But thank you for sticking up for me.” she introduced.

Tomura felt her name ring in his head repeatedly. (Y/N) became his new favorite word.

~~

Tomura and (Y/N) exchanged numbers and the two met up often to hang out together. He loved spending time with her. She was very supportive and understanding to him. Giving him advice when he was frustrated or confused. Even though he never mentioned he was part of the League of Villains, she still respected his need for privacy in his life. She never questioned what he did for a living or what he does in his spare time.

The two often went to movies together, arcades and she even bought him some clothes that would fit him better. It didn’t seem to matter what the two were doing, he was having fun and enjoying his time being around her. 

She also used her regeneration quirk on his skin so that the scratched marks on his neck could heal. Tomura found out that day that she was a nurse who wanted to help heal those who needed help. Which ultimately brought up the topic of heroes.

“To be honest...I’m not the biggest fan of heroes....” she admitted.

Tomura’s eyes widened at this declaration. The two were eating ramen together when you brought up the topic. He almost choked on his noodles as he heard her statement. She didn’t like heroes? Most people would never admit to not liking heroes. But you did the opposite of that. He was intrigued.

“What do you mean?” he wondered.

She scratched the back of her head awkwardly. “Most of them are very...cliquey. I went to UA for the Support Course so I could use my healing abilities to help others. But the hero students were always stuck up. They saw me and others as lesser because we weren’t as ‘strong’ as they were. That didn’t change after graduation either. I’ve healed plenty of heroes as a nurse and most of them are brash. They demand you do things a certain way, when in reality, they don’t have a clue about what they’re saying. Lots of them use each other for popularity and money. So they’re not as heroic as the public receives them. Speak out about them and you’re ostracized from society. I wish that could change.”

(Y/N) realized that Tomura was staring at her with a strange gaze and with a flustered face she waved her hands sporadically.

“I-I mean, if y-you l-like heroes that’s fine! I’ll respect your opinion on the matter!” she exclaimed.

Tomura felt his heart beat rapidly as he saw her cute face turn pink from embarrassment. That’s when he realized he wanted to be with her forever. She wasn’t only the perfect girl for him but also, she was his player two. The person who would be by his side forever while he would break society down. She would be his pillar of support and his wonderful girlfriend.

“It’s fine...I actually agree with a lot of what you said.” Tomura softly said.

She looked taken aback. Like she was surprised that he agreed with her. Tomura figured that she’s been harassed because of her opinions on heroes. But he admired her resilience and how she thought for herself. As far as Tomura was concerned, she was amazing.

“R-Really?” she stammered.

“You’re not the only one who hates heroes or how society perceives them. I know change will one day happen. And then, things will be better.” Tomura declared.

(Y/N) saw a fiery passion in Tomura’s eyes that made her blush heavier. She had always liked his determination and passion about the things he wanted. Like when he wanted to beat high score record for the House of the Dead arcade game. And seeing it here only made it more obvious to her that she was falling for him. He wasn’t perfect, but she wouldn’t have had it any other way.

She leaned over to Tomura and kissed his cheek. His eyes widened as he stared at her in amazement. Her soft lips on his face caught his breath as he felt her right next to him. He was blushing red as she pulled away. In a small smile she said. 

“I think I’m falling for you Tomura.”

~~

Tomura and (Y/N) had started dating for about two months now. She was his candle in the dark that kept everything bright for him. Even when he was miserable, she always found a way to make him feel better. He was growing more attached to her everyday. But he was also fearful that she would leave him if he told her the truth. He didn’t want her to think any less of him or even worse, leave him.

Her finding out about his position in the League of Villains was discovered in a way he never wanted it to happen. He left his phone on the counter after texting with (Y/N) a couple of times. Toga and Dabi were curious to know who their boss kept talking to. So Toga quickly snatched the phone and looked at the contact he was texting. When they both saw (Y/N) they were surprised.

“Oh wow! I didn’t know he was dating such a cutie!” Toga squealed.

“Hm, seems to me like she’s unaware that she’s dating a murderer.” Dabi observed as he looked through the messages.

“We could always tell her if Shigaraki’s too shy!” Toga encouraged.

A part of Dabi knew that revealing that Shigaraki was affiliated with the League of Villains might backfire on them. But he also knew the boss wasn’t too stupid to reveal anything too personal if it would effect the league. Plus, he did want to push the bastard’s buttons.

“Hurry! He could come back soon!” Toga reminded.

Dabi shrugged and called the contact known as (Y/N). She picked up pretty quickly and answered.

“Hi there Tomura! Is that one asshole with no manners bothering you again?” you greeted.

Dabi knew she was referring to him. Which made him want to do this even more.

“Hey there, this is the asshole with no manners. Are you aware that you’re dating the leader of the League of Villains?” Dabi wondered.

No sooner had those words came out of his mouth, Tomura slammed the door open. A vicious look was on his face as he looked at the two culprits who were toying around with his phone. Dabi figured he must have just heard what he had said to you. Because Shigaraki looked like he was about ready to kill these two again.

“What the hell do you two think you’re doing?!” Tomura questioned hotly.

Toga pumped her fist in the air. “We just wanted to get to know your girl boss! She looks super cute!”

“He’s what...?” you said in a perplexed tone.

“You heard me.” Dabi merely said.

Silence dreaded the air as they waited for either (Y/N) to say something or Shigaraki to lose his cool in a fit of rage. Meanwhile, Tomura was thinking simultaneously about how to kill these two idiots and how to play it off as a joke when he tries to cover himself. 

“Give the phone to Tomura please.” you requested.

Dabi casually handed the phone over to Shigaraki stating. “She wants to talk to you.”

Hesitantly, he took the phone carefully and answered. “Hello?”

“Tomura, are you really part of the League of Villains?” she wondered.

He could feel his heart beginning to sink. He didn’t want to admit it to you but he also couldn’t find it in himself to lie to you. He loved you too much to do that. You meant so much to him. He doesn’t want to lose you. 

“....I am.” he quietly said.

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner Tomura? You know I care about you! I would have tried to support you! Are you guys doing okay over there?” you began rambling about how he should take care of himself.

Tomura however was stunned into silence. A slow smile began crawling on his face as he let out an elated laugh. She really was his Player Two. A wonderful, beautiful girl who cared and loved him more than anyone else has ever. He had no reason to worry about her finding out after all. She was loyal to him.

“I’m sorry. It wasn’t my intention to deceive you.” he chuckled.

Toga and Dabi were confused by the dastardly smile on his face. Dabi realized she probably was just as insane as him and realized this isn't fun anymore. He walked off shrugging his shoulders. 

“Do you guys have a healer there? I wouldn’t trust underground doctors if I were you!” you pointed out.

Tomura sheepishly smiled at his beloved’s concern. “Now, that you mention it, we really could use a healer.”

~~

It was past midnight as Tomura was in his room playing the Walking Dead when he paused the game to look at you. In his bed, you were sound asleep in your cute pajamas. It has been three months since you found out Tomura was the leader of the League of Villains. Since then, you had moved in with him to help him and his comrades. Today was quite an eventful day for you. Twice had accidentally dislocated his wrist, Toga had twisted her ankle and you helped Dabi with the burns from his quirk. 

Now you were resting after a hard day of work. Tomura could feel himself becoming drowsy from just looking at you. He really wanted to get under the blankets and cuddle you all to himself. So, he did just that. He shut off his game and got into bed and lay in right next to you. Even when you were asleep, you instinctively clutched onto him and nuzzled yourself into his chest. A tiny smile on your face as you slept in content. 

Tomura carefully pulled you closer to him and kept his arms wrapped around you carefully. You were still as beautiful as the day you two met. He placed soft kisses on your head as he too began to drift off. 

He’s loved you since the day you met and he’ll love you for much longer than that.

[certifiedceraunophile]

Hello! I’m your Klaroline Swap gifter👀 I am sorry it's taken me this long to reach out but I've finally gotten to it! I am excited to be writing for you and wanted to ask a few questions about your gift. Wanted to know about your all-time favorite tropes and side pairings? Any Caroline friendships you like? Any tropes or pairings you don't like? Any pet peeves with KC fic? Any smut preferences? Anything you especially want to see or any info you'd like me to know? Hope you have a great day!💖

Heyyy!! Thank you for sending me this ask, and please don't apologize, it’s all good 💖 I hope you're having a great day too! So I’ll just jump in and answer all your questions ✌🏾✨

I am so so sorry it got this long, like so long, I really tried to condense it, but I have no concept of short and concise so now I have to put this below a cut 😭🙃😭

All time favourite tropes:

[see here's the thing I dont exactly *know* what tropes are so I'm just gonna yeet a bunch of HIGHLY specific prompt-thingies that make me tingle at you and you can do w them what you wish- like take out certain parts you want to use, or base other tropes off of them anything you wish really, even if you choose to ignore all of them I won't be holding it against you dw!]

Ok so I love love the "I was just captured by the bad guys and very harshly uh demanded to sell you out, but I didnt, bc even though I might posture like you’re the scourge of the earth and would gladly see you dead, I in fact, do not want you dead and will therefore not be selling you out and will handle mild -emphasis on mild please do not hurt either of my babies too much- torture instead and oops! look at that, you just overheard this exact exchange where I stand my ground and refuse to betray you, and now you’ve gone feral over your loyalty kink and are spouting promises of never letting go of me, which honestly I cannot bring myself to be mad at."

I love love love the forced bedsharing trope which then leads to accidental cuddling, where one party [caroline] is just very very annoyed that their body sought the warmth of a cockroach fucknugget being [klaus] and the fucknugget party is just very very smug about being the other party's personal space heater, and nuzzles them and cuddles tighter and asdfghjkl I'm getting tingly just thinking about it, and like says w a husky sleepy voice “don't move” and cuddles closer. jfc please I’m a basic bitch with very basic wants.

I absolutely LOVE the "we work on opposite enemy sides, but now we have to band together to defeat one common enemy and honestly I am NOT glad that I constantly wanna throw you against a wall, and not all reasons for said wall-throwing are strictly to inflict violence on you."

I also LOVE the "fuck youre bleeding/hurt/injured and fucking hell I dont know why my hands are shaking while I attend to your wounds but god it is, and now I'm not sure exactly how deep you've furrowed into my heart and stuck yourself there like a dickheaded leech."

Now I feel like I have given you many tropes, but I also feel like i didnt in fact help you at all, bc I'm not sure these are uh tropes?? but anyway those are some highly specific...scenes?? I have a very deep bias for

[you obviously dont HAVE to write ANY of them if you dont want to]

And also if I had to give you a clear cut trope to follow, I absolutely LOVE the enemies-to tentative allies-to lovers trope, in which one party is just working really really hard to get to the lovers part, and the other is working really really hard not to get to the lovers part, but caves later on, bc really the fucker grows on you. [Featuring Klaus as the "high key besotted already pursuing Caroline"-person, and Caroline is the "I am very very annoyed w this wooing, but I am more annoyed this wooing is working"-person. And also, I like my Klaus E V I L, But really really really *soft* for Caroline.]

Also if by tropes you meant settings, Like AU's, literally anything works, I have a personal bias for Crime AU's when it comes to enemies to lovers, and Canon is the ultimate enemies to lovers AU, but honestly you can use which ever one you want, I am not entirely sure myself if I have a specific preference here, AH, Fantasy, Supernatural, Scifi, it's all good.

[I however am not extremely fond of Historical Settings]

Again you are not required to follow any of these tropes at all if you don't wish to, I just require you to have a lot of fun writing and love the beauty you write yourself first!

Side pairings:

Ok I LOVE me some Kennett [kol + bonnie] but I also LOVEEE kolenzo [Kol and Enzo], I also am extremely just *heart eyes* at Bonenzo [Bonnie + enzo], but I absolutely DIE for Kennettzo [which is OT3 of Kol Bonnie and Enzo]

Kalijah is also a-ok w me, and I feel like I dont have any other side pairings I'd like die to see I guess. If you choose not to go with these side pairings its perfectly alright.

Caroline Friendships:

Ok this I can answer without rambling like an idiot, I love love love love :

Bonnie + Caroline [like i love this so much it physically hurts me, they both deserve so so so much better]

Kol + Caroline [I will literally touch a frog, and I have a phobia of frogs, to have one full conversation w these two idiots]

Enzo + Caroline [Honestly enzoline brotp makes me wanna sob happy tears bc they are so perfect together]

Katherine + Caroline + Rebekah [bad bitch meets head bitch meets super bitch, what could possibly go wrong]

Tropes and Pairings I dont like:

NOTPS:

Kolvina, stebekah, delena, stelena, datherine, steferine, Haylijah, Marcel+Rebekah, Matt+Rebekah, Bamon, Kai+bonnie, beremy.

And I think that's about it? mostly I just hate elena stefan damon and hayley and I am not fond of them w anyone, I hate all canon Rebekah relationships, and I dont like seeing Bonnie with anyone other than enzo or kol.

Tropes:

I am totally not fond of the Kill Liz for plot reasons trope, like seriously killing Caroline's mom is not ok w me, but I am totes fine if she's like already dead as part of Caroline's backstory, just don't show me Liz dying in the story as a part of the plot.

Any form of sire-bond-y or like sire-bond adjacent or like any form of deal/bargain/agreement that gives Klaus even a tiniest bit of power over Caroline's free will and choices, is just not for me, like at all, no matter how well it's done, I can't stand it.

not fond of any form of prisoner/hostage tropes, like klaus kidnapping caroline or caroline kidnapping klaus and holding each other hostage and stuff like that.

Death as a plot point doesnt work for me? and really I'd prefer if there were no major character deaths at all.

Friends to lovers trope is not for me, childhood friends to lovers trope is definitely not for me.

I don't like any sort of redemption arc really, anything that starts with Klaus as a “bad” dude and ends with him being a relatively “good” dude is not for me.

Any form of infidelity, like ofc especially in between Klaus and Caroline is just [shudder] hard pass, but like I also hate it when Caroline or Klaus cheat on anybody at all.

Also all the tropes and like themes I'm not comfy w that I mentioned in my original Gift Request still stand.

KC Pairing Pet peeves

ok This I can answer easily bc I have like a FEW,

I hate a woobified Klaus so much, like so much, I hate all TO!Klaus characterizations but this one is the worst, absolutely not here for it, I am not here to feel sorry for this mf I want to feel really deliriously GIDDY at how evil he is and how whipped he is for Caroline, but like concentrating on Klaus's manpain is not something I really wanna read.

Caroline excusing Klaus's bullshit, or like being a push over-y “it's ok, I understand why you did it” person is not for me, bc she never was one to begin w, she never did rationalize or justify Klaus's behaviour, she always held him accountable and told him what a difficult son of a bitch he is every chance she got.

I don't like arcs where Caroline is Klaus's redemption? like Caroline bringing Klaus into the "light" or whatever I am not here for it, like at all, I like Klaus staying evil while being endlessly in love with Caroline, and Caroline being able to be w a man she knows is a selfish evil ruthless grade A asshole, but will literally also choke himself to death for Caroline, cuz the man is whipped as fuck.

I also absolutely am not a fan of arcs where like Caroline remains "pure" or whatever, like that's just not for me, I am totally fine, actually MORE than fine for ruthless Caroline who is willing to do deplorable shit to get to her goal and protect her people, like Caroline being extremely almost evilly pragmatic just gives me a boner, and pretty sure gives Klaus one too. Klaus "protecting" Caroline's so called innocence is uh off putting for me personally. And her remaining this pure white light princess of good and Klaus being attracted to the *good* in her is um, nope.

Smutty Preferences

Honestly I’m very easy when it comes to smut [and u totally dont have to write me any if you dont want to]

I do not like:

non con/dub con, anal sex, Strict and/or elaborate Bdsm themes, [light undertones are ok], drunk sex, sex that’s basically infidellity [like caroline/klaus cheating on someone else w each other] , gagging, choking, Extremely rough emotionless sex, sex as a bargain, or as a part of a bargain.

Smut preferences:

I like reading oral sex, especially Klaus going down on Caroline

light bondage like being tied up [either Klaus/Caroline I enjoy both]

Sex toys are really really good, like love reading Klaus using one on Caroline, or Caroline using one on herself and Klaus watching

I do have a special love for praise kink, especially Klaus being really just in awe of Caroline during the do and expressing it uninhibitedly

Dirty Talk is GREAT

I enjoy both Klaus and Caroline in a dominant role, but I usually love it when both of them share the dominance equally, I’m just not into “Yes master” and “Yes mistress” level of dominance. I guess the word I’m looking for is Vanilla dominance lmao.

Bloodplay is also great if they're vampires.

And Klaus and Caroline leaving marks on each other is *swoon*.

I love reading possessive!klaus and possessive!caroline in equal measure so really your choice.

Hot and Dirty sex with a an undercurrent of emotion and devotion, want and need and all that nice stuff is great!

But I do have a list of words I’m not really a big fan of coming across when I’m reading smut:

Any word for vagina that’s not wetness, or folds or lips, is squicky, cunt is not a problem, pussy however is squick.

Clit is clit; little nub, bundle of nerves, all of that makes the med student in me really anxious lmao.

Any word for Cock that’s not cock is squick.

Juices, cream, semen are squicky, I just prefer come or release.

Ok these are seemingly innocent words but moist, engorged, gaping, drooling, sopping are not words I like seeing in context of smut.

So yeah that’s about it, I know hi, it’s been what, eleventy bajillion years since the beginning of this ask, I am so so so sorry for being this difficult, and really, LIKE SERIOUSLY, except for my squicks you are more than welcome to just skip past everything else, since I’m not really that hard to please, as long as the no-no’s are not there in what I read and the dynamic I asked for is even just vaguely followed I will be really really really happy and really I just want you to have fun writing whatever you feel like cooking up, I’m superrrr excited to see your interpretation of my request!!!

[Also Please please send me another ask clarifying you got my answer and also telling me I haven't frightened you with this long ass rambling list of okay’s and no-no’s bc honestly I am just anxiously debating if I should answer this ask like this or yeet half of it and vaguely rewrite the answer.]

Hope you have a great day lovely!! I am once again sorry for being this difficult. ✨💖🤝🏾

[angels-heap]

if ur still doing these: 🔥gordon, 🔥barney, 🔥alyx, 🔥any other character you'd like to talk about? (don't have to do all of em if u dont wanna lol)

Woo! More unpopular opinions:

Gordon: While I totally respect people who enjoy “feral Gordon” headcanons and I am aware that that kind of response is well within the realm of possibility for someone who’s been through that much trauma, I'm personally not a fan of that characterization. Might be because I associate it with the reddit dudebro-type fans who refuse to see any nuance in the HL story or give the characters emotional depth, so perhaps I’ll change my mind over time as more not-awful HL fans embrace feral Gordon, but it hasn’t happened yet.

Barney: Aside from the fact that he’s not a fucking cowboy southern gentleman soft boy (further reading: my various rant posts on the subject), I’m gonna confess that even though he’s arguably my favorite character to explore in fanworks, I can’t really stand him in-game. His voice lines grate on me and his AI is weird. Every time I’m forced to interact with him in canon, I’m just like, “you’re lucky you’re cute, you annoying bastard.”

Alyx: I’m not as offended by her slightly impractical clothing choices as I often feel like I should be. Yes, her shirt’s probably a little too short because Valve had to sneak a teensy bit of gamer bro eye candy in there, but really... it makes sense that casual civilian clothes would be hard to come by, so maybe she didn’t want to part with it, even after it got a little too small. Plus she can be a little sexy, as a treat, because hello bisexual awakening. Also, I think she’s a great character and I don’t feel compelled to kill her off to make room for freehoun. That shouldn’t be an unpopular opinion, but... here we are.

Bonus!

G-man: I don’t think he’s some sort of one-dimensional evil thing with uncomplicated, objectively cruel motives, but you are also never, ever, ever going to convince me that he has any sort of interest in Alyx beyond an employer-employee dynamic. She has a biological dad and like 3 honorary dads already. She doesn’t need any more, and she’s not gonna find one here.

Eli: I like his argyle sweater better. So sue me.

[grimelords]

I have been unbelievably busy for all of 2020 so far. Starting a new job and crunching to finish an old one, it's been very good but it has also meant that I haven't had the downtime I'd have liked in order to write long screeds about when drums sound good in songs so my December and January playlists unfortunately never got finished. They will exist as 'lost' playlists in the grimelords canon where you will simply have to listen to them and have your own thoughts about the songs instead of having your judgement clouded by me saying things like 'this sounds nice' and 'I love when the guitar goes woo-eee'.

You can listen to them here:

December https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4crPEVSPwftPpWl14xUrXF

January https://open.spotify.com/playlist/25MP7onYLCwWRYBIi0u3yc

As far as this, my February playlist goes: It's great! It's two and a half hours. The songs sounds nice and the guitars go woo-eee. I was worried I wouldn't be able to listen to as much music with my new job but it turns out I'm listening to more than ever which is extremely nice. Please enjoy, and if you'd like to subscribe to this playlist please do so here: https://tinyletter.com/grimelords

Listen to this playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZraEZOeS6qvVxfnz3AJS9

Ballad Of The Skeletons - Allen Ginsberg, Paul McCartney, Phillip Glass and Lenny Kaye: I had a dim childhood memory of this 1996 Hottest 100 funny skeleton song that my sister randomly brought up this month and was was shocked to find out that somewhere deep in my brain the part where the electric chair skeleton says “hey what’s cooking???” was still stored. I was also shocked to find out that the funny skeleton song I remembered from when I was a kid was actually a collaboration between Allen Ginsberg, Paul McCartney and Phillip Glass and was an unexpected hit on MTV and Triple J in 1996 for an as yet unknown reason.

I Can Go With You - Sam Burton: This song came up in my Discover Weekly, and I was so excited to listen to more of this 70s singer songwriter I've never heard of before who has no doubt had a long and illustrious career and was shocked to find out that not only is this song from 2020, it is also the first and so far only release by Sam Burton and his debut album is coming out sometime this year. I love how plain it is, and the first time I heard it it made no impression on me until a couple of hours later when I realised I was humming the melody to myself. It has this decepitive simplicity to it, and it sounds like a song you've always known which is really about as good a compliment as you can give a song. I also love this statement from him: “I was writing a song a day for 30 days as a personal challenge to myself. I Can Go With You came near of that practice and I considered it a throwaway at the time. After recording most of the album I still needed a couple more songs and decided to throw it on and we recorded it live followed by two others. When I listened back it ended up being one of the tracks I was happiest with on the record.” I love when artists are asked about songs and they have no divine inspiration to relate, just a process of daily work where they're like "well, I wrote it, like I always do. Did the chords and the words and everthing just like normal. I write hundreds of these things and this one came out pretty good. I don't know what else to tell you."

Wild Dogs - Colter Wall: This is a song by Billy Don Burns who you can probably expect to see on this playlist next month, and who as I understand it is one of these 'real' country guys that have been around for a million years and only ever had success when other people sang their songs. So it's very nice of Colter Wall to continue that tradition for him. I love the way this song takes the metaphor to a place of almost uncomfortable literalism, a tryst metamophising into something private, bloody and feral. The subtle way the lap steel whines slowly along in the background before stepping out and taking centre stage once the song picks up steam near the end is a marvel too.

Tom's Diner - Suzanne Vega: I had a live version of this randomly recommended to me by youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkYPge6ZKSQ and it made me see this song that I'd always been sort of aware of in a new light and really properly appreciate it for the first time. Somehow I'd never noticed the last verse where it moves from literalism to memories, and of course that's sort of the moment that ties the whole song together. What I really appreciate about the acapella arrangement is that it feels like this is a song that's existed a million times before but she's the first person to actually write it down and record it. Everyone's made up a little dishwashing song or a little walking song, reciting some to-do list in your head. It's an entire genre that exists under people's breath for a few minutes and gets immediately forgotten.

If You Don't Know Now, You Never Will - Drugdealer: I could have sworn this was a Tobias Jesso Jr song. I really just assumed it was until I looked at the credits. It's such a nice song though and I'm glad this sort of 70s californian vibe is making a quiet comeback because it is just uniformly pleasant and it's nice to hear these sorts of arrangements, with the accenting violin runs and things like that. All the extra decorations and ornamentations that have sort of disappeared.

Crimson Tide - Destroyer: I absolutely love this new Destroyer album because it just feels like such pure uncut Destroyer. I’ve always thought of him as a sort of 400 year old vampire lounge singer who is just amusing himself at this point and so the cover art has really confirmed my suspicions on that front. The lyrics through this whole album are so good, the sort of stream of consciousness strangeness like ‘when lightning strikes twice the funeral goes completely insane’ that takes a on such gravity because he sings it with complete deadpan seriousness.

Truth (feat Alicia Keys and The Last Artful, Dodger) - Mark Ronson: I didn't really give this album a chance when it came out but ever since I found out Alicia Keys is good now (Time Machine) I've been looking for more good Alica Keys work and found one here. The Last Artful, Dodger is one of the worst artist names I think I've ever heard but she absolutely kills it on the way she says biiiiitch so I'll forgive it.

Surf & Turf - Boldy James + The Alchemist: Alchemist's production on this whole album is so incredible. He really just lets Boldy go and doesn't get in his way like good production should. Especially on the opening verse where Boldy James sticks with that loping flow for so long in 3s over 4 that matches that arpeggios in the beat, it's just a perfect harmony of rapper and producer.

Fat Mac - Duke Deuce: Misogyny in rap is a real issue that nobody seems really allowed to talk about because it's obviously very complicated, and this song some real classic 'stay in the kitchen' type woman hating in it and is basically incredibly callous and cruel throughout. However this beat is hot and there is also a part about a third of the way through where he says "fuck her till that pussy fart" and then makes a big fart noise, so.

Set It Up (feat. Trina) - Kamaiyah: I only found out about Kamaiyah's fantastic 2016 album A Good Night In The Ghetto about two weeks before her new one came out so I've been on a real Kamaiyah hype for a little while now. She's just fantastic. I love this song because I love the part where Trina seemingly out of the blue threatens to piss in my mouth. The first time I heard it I said 'wow!' out loud.

Come As You Are - Greg Phillinganes: There's something going on with the pop math in this song that I just can't put my finger on. It feels for all intents and purposes like this should be a hit. The melody is great. The big synth voice is great, it's got extremely fatty bass. It's great! But something about the structure of it is just off, it's got too many sections or something. Which kind of makes me love it more really.  

Devotion - Pure Bathing Culture: What surprised me the most about this song is the secret shredding happening throughout. It feels like a sort of clean and cool guitar that hasn’t existed in the wild since the Lethal Weapon soundtrack and it adds such an energy to this already completely wonderful song.

Paper Cup - Real Estate + Sylvan Esso: The production on this song is just so beautiful. The violin melody and the pillow soft synths really add such an extra dimension to it. The tone on everything really. The guitar in the solo. Every time I listen to this song I just want to listen to it again because it goes down so smooth.

Mark Zuckerberg - Nap Eyes: I’m a very big fan of the way this song transitions from a sort of TMBG novelty song halfway through into a lonely and beautiful thing instead. It’s like he got distracted and wandered off in the middle of his set but the camera followed him. I also haven’t heard a lyric in a long time that made me bark laugh so instantly as “And what does he do with all that sand? He collects sand right? I think I read that somewhere. Seems innocent enough.”

Viking Hair - Dry Cleaning: I fell in love with this band immediately on hearing this song. The way the spoken lyrics sit in a place of almost coherence, dipping between mysterious phrases and earnest admissions feels like Life Without Buildings for a new generation. I love the feeling of a huge crush at the centre of this song that comes through achingy in every single word, even when she's talking about abandoned refrigerators.

LeBron James - Do Nothing: This is my number one song this month I think. I've listened to it every single day and I cannot wait to see what this band does once they've got more than a couple of songs out. It's my absolute favourite kind of lyrics: the kind that sounds like you just wrote down every one-sided phone conversation you overheard on the bus and then the music is some halfway point between Black Midi and Franz Ferdinand. What else do you need!

Can I Receive The Contact? - The Spirit Of The Beehive: The Spirit Of The Beehive's album is one of the best I heard this month. The way the production incorporates sound collage and samples without diluting the immediacy of the songwriting is really something special that feels hard to pull off in a rock context but sounds effortless through this whole album. The way this shifts at the end into the odd time section is so great and really the way the whole album flows like one long track is just amazing. Please listen, I'm obsessed.

An Air Conditioned Man - Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever: There is so much space in Rolling Blackouts songs. They just go and go, sitting in this great jam space without feeling shaggy. The tempo across the album stays pretty consistently at this breezy, upbeat, driving speed that makes it feel like as soon as one song ends the next one just picks up exactly where it left off. It almost feels like a studio confines them and they'd be better off just recording their album live at a show where every song can go for 8 minutes like it wants to.

Leak -Truth, yesnoyesnoyes- - Boris: I got to see Boris and Merzbow this month, which was a great treat for me but it was also at a seated theatre venue which was a very strange choice. Sitting down and clapping politely as Merzbow pressed the screaming button feels odd, like being at an 1800s World's Fair show about the wonders of electricity or quite literally like being the guy in the chair getting blown away by the speakers in the Maxell ads. I bought earplugs for the show but ended up pulling them out for the last three songs or so to properly experience it, and it was fucking great. Something I was thinking about after the show is that it's interesting how Boris mostly have clean vocals, and really approach metal as an idea from and angle that's more shoegaze than Slayer. Aside from the immense volume, there isn't a lot about their music that I would describe as agressive, even most of what Merzbow added to the set was just extra feedback frequency noise, not atonal agression. I don't mean this in a trve kvlt way, more like it's interesting how they've taken the aesthetics of metal and refined them into pure amplifer worship, in their words, by either playing straight drone, or just playing normal hard rock at inhuman volumes. Boris are very good is what I'm saying, and I can't wait to listen to more of their extremely large discography.

Nameless Streets - Defeater: I've never really listened to much hardcore and I'm not really sure why. I've listened to Defeater's first two albums to death though so maybe it's time to branch out. What I love about this song, and this band in general is the vocal delivery. In a lot of agressive music from metal to screamo, because the agression and emotion is always sitting at a 10 the nuance can get lost and it becomes a sort of white noise, but Defeater have a nice way of backing off musically and vocally here and there to let the hard hits really hit hard. The outro to this song is also some absolutely world class snare work, building a tension bed in the simplest way thats relieved when the rest of the band comes crashing back in.

Boys In Town - Divinyls: I love the true desperation in this song. The trapped in a small town, surrounded by fuckers stress that gives way in the second half to just screaming "get me out of here!!". I am also interested in the evolution of the phrase 'too much, too young' and would like to know whether this song is referencing the song by The Specials, and if the Defeater song on this playlist is referencing this song or The Specials song, or if all three came up with it independently. It's a simply enough phrase, I suppose they could have. Who cares, really.

Body By Crystal - Spike Fuck: Come on a journey with me and imagine a world where Alex Cameron makes good music. That's Spike Fuck! The sort of burned out, past their prime singer desperate for a hit in any sense type of character - except actually put together with some heart and emotion and not an 80s comic book writer's understanding of human lows. I cannot wait to hear more from Spike Fuck.

Rogue Wave - Aesop Rock: It is something of a marvel how consistently high quality Aesop Rock's work is. For all his verbosity and expansive vocabulary he seems to never veer into white guy rap god flexing for the sake of it. Even a song like this that's 3 minutes of dense verses with nothing resembling a hook doesnt feel exhausting, it just feels like a series of extremely pleasing words and images like "take it where the warlocks lock horns, soda pop, popcorn / top notch gore set to Bach over fog horns" that makes my brain go "nice".

Momentary Bliss (feat. Slowthai and Slaves) - Gorillaz: I love the strange rollout Gorillaz are doing for this album, building the tracklist one song at a time. It's a nice way to force close listening, especially in songs with odd structures like this. I love hearing how different prouction changes Slowthai's approach; on this and Deal Wiv It that he did with Mura Masa it feels a lot brighter than anything on Nothing Great About Britain and there's a playfulness in his flow that comes through accordingly. Gorillaz are always moving around musically but I love how much of a live band feel this has compared to the more studioy sound that killed their last album for me.

We Will Always Love You (feat. Blood Orange) - The Avalanches: I am so excited at the possibility of a new Avalanches album already, and this is the perfect song to have as a lead single because it functions more like a teaser. Like 'would you like an hour more of this kind of beautiful, loving dream?'

Tar Sequence - Lalo Schifrin: I found out a little while ago that the local news theme when I was growing up was actually this song from the score to Cool Hand Luke, and according to a bunch of other guys in the youtube comments it was the local news theme for a lot of stations across America as well. The scene is of a prison road gang working under the blazing sun, and I'm sure someone could write a thinkpiece about the soundtrack to the nightly news, and really the platonic ideal of news themes in general stemming from the score to a scene about prison labour. But not me! I'm just going to write this little post and say we all owe Lalo Schifrin our lives for inventing the sonic pallette of kung fu AND the news, which is an incredible achievement whichever way you slice it.

When You - Tha Pope: It's a little bit of a shame that footwork is 'over' now but I suppose that's the way of things. The intro to this song is an absolute all timer for me. The delay soaked tag, the extended organ lick and then a total gear shift into this shrieking vocal sample that sounds like something has gone wrong but is revealed in actuality to be the centre of the whole track. I absolutely love Pope's little adlib at the start, and halfway through when he brings it back - it injects some real humanity into this cacophonous, volatile song and lets you know someone's done this on purpose, they've not just turned every dial to 10 and pressed play.  

Jonny/Jonny (Reprise) - Faye Webster: I am absolutely in love with the tone of Faye Webster's voice and especially the way she slowly slides up to the note at the end of every line in the verse. This is a song that belongs to the great genre of songs that sound like they were entirely written and performed while laying on the floor and staring at the ceiling. The reprise here comes back at the end of the album and I love it so much. It feels like a Sex And The City monologue set to music, an underexplored genre I'd definitely like to hear more of.

Holes - Matt Berninger: Matt Berninger of The National covered Mercury Rev's Holes for a series of charity 7"s that Planned Parenthood are doingand I really love his take on it. It's a difficult song to cover because it is so beloved, and I think he does really well to not smooth out the arrangement into any sort of easy listening version. The rumbling piano and the extra vocals that mirror the original saw sound near the end are just wonderful. The part that always breaks my heart in this song is the "bands" line at the end and he really does it perfectly without being overdramatic.

Ta Aro - Nadia Reid: I love the way this song is just soaked in tension and potential energy. She has a beautiful way of holding a note just past the edge of her breath, like when she sings 'glory hallelujah' or 'I am stronger' and in the wordless refrain that just draws me in. Then the way it all closes in on itself and shadows close in at the end while it swells to this beautiful thunderstorm of sound. Just great.

Purify - Neurosis: Someone had a tweet a while ago that was like 'listen to a new album every day in February and write about it' and I thought 'fuck it why not' and started doing that. I kept a little note in my phone of every album I listened to that I'd never heard before, and I ranked them out of 5 so I could remember which ones I liked. I ended up listening to 49 new albums which surprised me, and it was surprisingly easy to do as well so I've decided to keep doing it in March as well. Highly recommended. A nice side effect of constantly searching for new things to listen to is it's given me a chance to hear bands that I've always heard about and know the name of but never actually listened to for one reason or another, which is how I got to Neurosis. It's nice to hear this kind of industrial 90s metal that I'd only ever previously heard in Tool from another angle, and it is especially nice to hear bagpipes in a drone metal context - a thought I'd had independently about a week before hearing this album and was glad to have willed into existence before me.

Shallow Sun - Real Estate: Time! I love a song about aging that mentions specific years and ages so you can count along on your fingers. '25 in 2010... so he was 24 when they put out in their first album.. 39 in 24.. so he's... 35 now.. and i'm 28... which means I'm... 3 albums behind..'

Quand Vas Tu Retrer - Melody's Echo Chamber: I'll listen to any song in 5/4. It is simply groovy. This song is so beautifully textured it feels like you can just get completely lost in the sound while the groove moves it along.

Living Through Another Cuba - XTC: I think I've posted this song on one of these playlists before but fuck it, the more time passes the more I think this might be one of the best songs ever written and a complete and total encapsulation of the cold war mood. The absolute maniac resigned powerlessnes on full display, screaming and shouting about pullings fins from an atom bomb and the absolute certainty that even if the world isn't destroyed this time it'll all come around again soon enough anyway.

Time - U.S. Girls: I am a huge proponent of the long song at the end of the record as a concept, and really I believe every song should be the long song at the end of the record if at all possible. This amount of colour in this jam is just incedible, it never gets weighed down or waylaid it just keeps moving though an ever shifting kaleidoscope and I absolutely love it. It also reminds me of Los Bitchos who were on one of my secret lost playlists from December so it's nice to have their vibe represented here at least. This song also interestingly ties into a thought I was having this week about the limits of music wherein time is the only immutable constant. In all of life music is an inescapable constant of course, but in music especially compared to visual art or written art, time is an inexorable force. You simply cannot bend time in music, a song or performance will always have a duration that will define it, short or long, which cannot be muted or played with in the same way that rhythm or tonality can. 4'33" is a good example of that, being devoid of everything except time. When there is nothing, there is still time. Canyons of time.

Bad Magic - Weyes Blood: I got to see Weyes Blood a couple of weeks ago and I feel extremely blessed that I did. She's just amazing. She played this song solo as her last encore, and she's in a sort of interesting position of blowing up majorly on her fourth album so people (myself included) weren't overly familiar with her older stuff. So when she said 'this is a song called Bad Magic' everyone clapped politely and one woman right up the back screamed "oh my GOD??" which is the kind of personal, just for her, singular experience I'm always here for. Hearing this song for the first time in that setting has really made me fall in love with it. The thing that's always alienated me a little abot Weyes Blood's earlier work, and the thing she changed so dramatically on Titanic Rising is the structuring of her songs. Titanic Rising embraces pop songwriting so wonderfully where her earlier work was so much shaggier and harder to access as a result - but in this song I love it. This song is meandering and long and wanders around in circles and I'm here for every second of it.

Listen to this playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZraEZOeS6qvVxfnz3AJS9