#also unknown octopus is in the corner i guess

[distorted-graffiti]

poptropica school au doodles that i talked abt on discord

[jui-imouto-chan]

How does Atsumu and Osamu fit into the story? I love them both especially in a hinaharem, so I'm curious!!

Part 10

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[Image Description: A screenshot of a reply from a user named @mickybloginb379 . The text written is, “Miya Twins as foxes and maybe Fox Kita too? Kita finding Shoyo first and repeatingly visiting which leads to the Twin’s getting curious, and circling around shoyo’s legs at the same time :)” End ID]

•

I got carried away OTL. This may have been influenced by me watching too much NatsuYuu 

•

Hinata was not pleased with this situation.

Pressing his back to a a withering tree, his eyes darted around as a shiver passed through his body. The graveyard was quiet, although the tranquility that some found when cleaning the tombstones was evidently not present within Hinata.

A breeze broke the eerie stillness, sending a few leaves aloft, which then skittered across the ground whence gravity recalled them. Hinata whimpered a bit.

“I just need to clean up the grave and place and offering. Clean and offering. Clean and offering...”

“You can’t clean a grave from behind a tree.”

Hinata screamed, backing further against the tree, the bark digging into and scratching his skin through his shirt. “Wh-Who—Ghost?!”

From the white robes to the silver-and-black hair, the guess wasn’t unfounded.

“Nope.”

Hinata could’ve cried from relief.

“Are you lost?”

“N-no. I think....”

It was clear as day that the other was unamused by his momentary incapability, rolling his eyes and grasping Hinata’s wrist softly to tug him away from the tree. Hinata’s cheeks burned. Despite his mild mortification, he felt a wash of gratitude flood him.

Eventually, Hinata was stood before his father’s grave, and his palm was pressed snugly against the silver-black haired person’s. Their fingers loosened their clasp, but didn’t unwind fully, not until Hinata heard the jingle of bells and a breeze brush his side, his hand suddenly empty.

And then, with another gust and another jingle, the other returned, a broom and dustpan firmly in his grasp. “I’ll bring something to clean the headstone with. Sweep the ground, for now.”

Hinata really shouldn’t have been surprised that this person was supernatural, honestly. His features were far too serene and eyes too present for him have been just a normal person around his age, after all. Not that Hinata knows very many normal people.

The two of them cleaned quite efficiently, and the other, introducing himself as Kita Shinsuke, even brought incense for Hinata to light. Hinata offered him some of the food his mom had made as the offering for his father, but Kita said it wouldn’t be right to eat it if it wasn’t intended for him.

“Then if I make you something, will you eat it? I wanna thank you for your help! You really saved me today!”

“I’d be willing to eat what you make, although I won’t say I like it if it doesn’t taste good.”

Hinata smiled determinedly, “I’ll make the best lunch ever, I promise!”

Kita, despite his strong inclination of doubt, couldn’t help but smile back, albeit nearly unnoticably.

•

Kageyama was thankfully not home for the first five attempts at making Kita a lunch box, although he did bear witness to the latter half of them, which was still unfortunate. Hinata’s mother would have scolded him, but she and Natsu were too busy speculating about why he was making the lunch and occasionally strolling in to assist him.

“It’s done!” Hinata cried after the twelfth try. Kageyama dutifully kept his mouth shut, for once, eyeing Hinata’s hands and steering the redhead to the bathroom to clean up.

•

“Kita-san!!!!” Hinata called out to the cemetery, his bright aura dispelling the eeriness of the location. “Kita-saaaaan!!!”

“You shouldn’t shout in a place like this. It’s rude,” Kita murmured, his hand settling over Hinata’s mouth. “Will you behave?” The redhead nodded, and Kita slowly removed his palm. “So, what’d you need?”

Hinata proferred a box wrapped with a yellow cloth dotted with cats. “I brought you lunch, like I promised!”

Kita looked a little taken aback, and Hinata wondered if he was imagining the way Kita’s hair seemed to twitch. “You remembered?”

“It was only like, two days ago! How could I forget? Especially when Kita-san saved me from ghosts and stuff—”

“—That didn’t happen. There wasn’t a single ghost—”

“—it’d be ungrateful of me if I didn’t make good on my promise!”

Kita’s almost couldn’t handle watching Hinata break out into a grin. His eyes felt strained, like he was staring directly into the sun, and yet he couldn’t bring himself to look away. Softly, he let the corners of his lips push up, and he accepted the box gingerly.

“Let’s eat elsewhere,” he offered, urging Hinata to hold onto him by the shoulder. He jumped, one foot landing before the other onto a hill of long grass overlooking flower fields. A forest stood off to the right, and a single tree sat behind them, providing a bit of shade.

Hinata wasn’t quite prepared for the sudden transport, stumbling to his knees before gazing around in wonder.

Kita helped him up. “It’s pretty, isn’t it?”

“Yeah!”

Eventually the two of them settled to the ground, Hinata watching anxiously as Kita opened the lunchbox.

Kita paused, observing Hinata’s jitters. “It’s not poisoned, is it?”

He shook his head, Kita breathing a chuckle.

“It was a joke. Thank you for the meal.” His hands pressed together in a momentary prayer, and then he lifted a single octopus-hot-dog-weiner to his mouth. Hinata watched him intently, and Kita knew before it hit his tongue that Hinata put in a lot of effort when making the meal. Just that info made it delicious, but once he’d swallowed it, he eagerly sought more, trying some of the riceballs and vegetables on the sides. He saved the fruit for last.

“Is it good? Do you like it?”

Kita nodded serenely, offering an octodog to the redhead. Hinata immediately latched on and slid the octodog out from between the chop sticks. Kita had to avert his eyes, only to spot the bandages wrapping Hinata’s fingers and parts of his palms.

“You’re hurt.”

“Oh, yeah! I accidentally chopped my fingers, and burned them. I stopped hurting myself as much after the fourth try, though!”

“How many tries did you take?”

“Twelve!”

“Sounds like you wasted a lot of food,” Kita commented. At that, Hinata pulled a pouty smile on his face that was a bit too adorable to not gain amusement from, though Kita consoled him with a ruffle of his hair.

They descended into a comfortable quiet.

After ten minutes, which. Kita almost wished could have been eternity, Hinata tugged on his sleeve. “Will you let me make you lunch again?” He mumbled, looking up through his lashes.

•

“I smell food.”

“That’s just because you’re a damn glutton.”

“What was that? You wanna say that again you bastard?”

“If I’m a bastard then so are you!”

Fists flew, the sound of fighting accompanied by shouts and grunts. Kita stepped in just as Osamu bit Atsumu’s calf and Atsumu yanked his hair. 

“Why is it that every time one of you speaks, it comes to this? Do you find amusement in wasting your minimal energy on healing injuries that could have been avoided?”

The twins’ ears flattened against their skulls, their big, dejected eyes ineffective against Kita’s bland disposition. 

“Sorry.”

“Sorry.”

Kita breezed past them, starting up the electric kettle to prepare himself some tea. 

Osamu and Atsumu perked up at once. 

“Your steps are bouncier,” Atsumu piped, at the same time as Osamu commented, “You smell like food.” They then made eye contact with each other and pointed, simultaneously saying, “Oh hey, you’re right!”

The two small fox spirits proceeded to prod at him endlessly regarding his seemingly ‘good mood’, and the tiny smile he had as he batted them away seemed to only fuel their suspicions. 

“Woah... Tsumu, he’s got more energy, too.”

“Yeah, it’s radiating!” 

They likely absorbed some of the stray energy coming off him, growing a little taller. Instead of looking like toddlers, they now were the equivalent size of a six year-old human. It was almost strange to see them this way.

Kita didn’t let his confusion show on his face, though his tail swished slightly, enough to peek out of his robes. His ears also raised off the top of his head, finally, twitching as he considered where the extra energy came from.

Was it the lunch?

“Kita-san, what did you do? Did you eat someone?”

“No, I don’t do things that I don’t let you two do.”

The twins seemed to communicate with just eye-contact, and it was one of those rare occasions where Kita couldn’t quite decipher what they intended to do with the information they had.

•

Hinata always felt antsy during the moments Kita prayed--just between the “Thanks for the meal,” and the first bite he’d take of the food Hinata prepared for him. This time, Kita brought with him a small snack in exchange for Hinata’s. 

“You’ve gotten better,” he commented after a swallow. He always wiped his mouth between bites instead of licking his lips, meticulously keeping the tissue folded in a particular manner. “I think the fried rice could use a bit more salt next time, though.”

“Ah, thank you! I’ll remember that!”

It felt like an escape to spend time with Kita, somewhere far away and unknown. Like a secret retreat, away from all of the other supernatural beings that he contracted, and away from the stress of school and tests and life. Hinata felt like he got more chipper than usual after their picnics. 

Unbeknownst to Hinata, the same could be said about Kita. They’d only meet once or twice per week, and yet the silverette couldn’t always keep his smiles at bay even days after their lunches. Furthermore, the surges of extra energy from the meals helped him keep a better eye on his troublesome junior foxes, even allowing them to ‘age up’ when they’d latch onto him.

Speaking of those troublemakers...

“Did you hear that?” Hinata asked him, peering over at a spot in the long grass. “I think someone’s there.”

Kita sighed, brushing off his pants and preparing to grab his companions and send them home. However, before he could begin to walk over, Hinata was crouched in front of the patch where the twins hid, smiling at them disarmingly. 

“Are you two lost?” 

The silverette joined him with a hand on his shoulder.

“They’re not lost, don’t worry. They’re with me.”

Hinata grinned at them. “You’re Kita-san’s friends? Nice to meet you!” 

Their eyes widened just a bit, tails swishing.

Kita knew it was inevitable that the twins would get interested, but he should’ve known that it was going to happen much sooner than he’d have ever hoped.

•

Days later, Hinata presented two extra boxes, one with a silver-blue wrapping and the other with a sunset-gold. “I’ve brought some for them, too. The little foxes.” 

“Atsumu might not eat it,” Kita warned, “Although if Osamu eats first, then he’ll probably get hungry and give in.”

“Which one’s which?” 

Kita’s eyes gleamed. “I’ll let you figure that out.”

The twins did not come to spy on them this time, but Kita dutifully brought the lunchboxes to their cabin once Hinata left. As expected, Osamu dug right in, and Atsumu held out as long as he could before giving into his competitive nature. The twins choked on the food in their efforts to finish eating before the other (Osamu won), but when they finished, their bodies were at the approximate age of 13. 

Even more impressive than that, though, was that they remained older for a lot longer than they usually do with extra energy, reverting back gradually over the course of a few days rather than the standard overnight regression.

If Hinata’s cooking alone could produce such results, then what would a contract do? ...What would his blood do?

Kita closed his eyes and banished the thoughts before they could fully manifest.

•

• Part 10 of (?) •

• I really liked writing Kita. I feel like he’d actually really like Hinata, since Hinata’s always been really hardworking and puts in all this effort to be better. I think Hinata would really like that Kita’s attentive and a good listener, so he could ramble endlessly if he wanted and Kita would be content to listen. •  

• Also, anybody curious as to why Osamu and Atsumu ‘age up’ and ‘revert’ to a younger state? •

•• Send Asks for more! Feel free to ask about characters and send Headcanons! Or if u wanna just talk Haikyuu/ships, I’m good with that too! :) and for other parts, search the “summoner au” tag on my blog and you’ll find em! ••

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[gladiasama]

idk why I wrote that lol it just passed through my mind so I here I am lol

(i continue to say that English is not my first language so there are going to be grammar mistakes or other things like that lol)

fluffy moments or something like that idk that title is too long: dorm leaders edition!!

•_______________________________________•

riddle rosehearts🌹

he is so shy everytime he is kissing you!!

riddle always has scarlet cheeks but not the same as when he is furious about the 1st year's shenanigans. no it is more like pretty and pink flushed cheeks and oh great seven, he looks so cute.

if you are taller than him, he may try to tiptoed with his high heel shoes and just crossing his arms around your neck or just pulling you by your clothes in order to kiss you.

if you are smaller or about the same height as him, he'll just kissing you slowly and passionately while his hands are holding yours and his thumbs moving on circles against your palms.

but don't forget: only in private. he has a reputation to keep.

he is the cutest little bean you have ever seen if you make out after a long and tiring day, when he had to scream more than 10 times "OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!!" because you know, dorm leader's priorities and jobs. just hug him and kiss his cheeks and forehead, he will be happy :)

he is just so cute dmksjduwi let me kiss him please.

adores all your pastries and food you make for him. his heart will always make a back flip while you tell him that you cook something to eat together.

he is working so hard so give him pastries make of strawberries, they are his favourite.

baby boy is always fond of you, as kalim, he'll try to support you in whatever you do!! do the same for him, because of his past, he didn't have any possibilities to do what he wanted to do... support him, hug him, spoon him (he wants to be the big spoon but in reality, he is the little one because he gets so flustered about your affection)

not too much affection in public, so only in private. expect chenya, cater and ace snicker in his back while he is looking at you with loving eyes. trey is smiling while deuce doesn't really know how to react lol so innocent.

during unbirthday party, he might push slowly the back of your back and putting his hand near your waist while showing you where to sit to eat pastries.

conclusion: a cutie only for you.

leona kingscholar🦁

oooh dude I hope you are ready for this man.

he can be the most passionate kisser or he gives the laziest kisses you will receive in your life.

he'll always have the control of the kiss but try to be reckless!! if you manage to find the best moment to slowly rub his ears while laying in his bed, he'll melt.

his tail is constantly grabbing your wrist or just rolls around your arms, hands, thighs or waist. he has no shame so except some kisses in public but not in front of certain people (*cough*malleus*cough). the same as riddle, he has a reputation to keep.

no difference if you are smaller or taller or the same height as him, just kiss grumpy man.

lazy kiss. lazy kiss. lazy kiiiiiss. after a nap at school or in bed, if your lips brush one one of his ear, it will twitch as many times as you do it. just expect him pulling you down and licking you face, you know lion thing or cat thing idk.

will look at you fondly while you take care of cheka.

but if you point out it to him, he'll look at you with a disgusted expression while cheka has sparkles in his eyes.

unfortunately, cheka tells to his papa that his oji-tan has finally find someone!!so when leona goes during holidays to the afterglow savannah, farena will make a celebration about it and will ask to his little bro to bring you one day!! blabla marriage. blabla party to celebrate it nanana.

leona threatens his family to throw farena from a certain climb lol if he doesn't stop.

if you want to help ruggie, cook for him but no vegetables because he is so picky :/

will say it is a tolerable meal but oh boy he is screaming in his head because you cook for him he is falling for you again and again

the best meal he ever has.

he takes the best nap while laying next to you or even better: his head on your thighs. pet his hair and rub circles around his ears and maybe, I say mayyyybe if he is in a good mood, he would purr. his tail would wag and tap a certain rhythm but don't worry, baby is happy.

but if you and leona manage to hear ruggie's particular 'shishishi', leona would wake up in one second and would run after donut boy in order to end up his life.

poor ruggie.

azul ashengrotto🐙

oooh baby octopus boy.

he has one condition about kisses: not in public. after all, he is one of the seven powerful dorm leaders of Night Raven College!! as riddle and leona and many others, he has a reputation to keep. moreover, he doesn't want to be laughed at by a certain duo of twins eels, who would never miss an opportunity to flustered azul:)

however, in private (in his room or the VIP room idk), praise him like you never praise someone before, pepper his face with little smooches and soft kisses and pat his hair. even if his cheeks are redder than riddle hair and some tiny tears begin to appeared at the corner of his eyes, don't stop. he trusts you so much that he accepts to show you his most fragile sides. ily azul urggg

just, don't make fun of him, he already has jade and floyd to do that lol these rats.

and don't forget to pat azul's head 3 times a day or he will pout lol

don't be afraid to spoon him, taller or smaller, just kiss him if both of you want it (it is important to ask and to be ok with it!!)

tell him he does a good job when he things that he is just useless (no you are not baby). even if he looks confident while doing jobs and contracts in mostro lounge, he panics easily when something he didn't think about appears.

don't judge him when his face is wet by tears and ink when he is in octopus form. expect jade or floyd calling you when azul refuses to leave his pot because of an unknown reason.

just reassure him and show him that he can trust you.

he trusts you so much that he cries harder while hugging you like his life depends on you.

too much affection and love to give for one person lol drown him with your love :D

kalim al asim☀️

my babyyyy sunshiiine :D

you don't ever have the time to propose him to give him a kiss that he is already throwing himself to you.

I hope that you don't hold anything into your arms or hands because now you are holding kalim.

everytime he sees you, expect kisses and cuddle lol

you wake up, kalim is kissing your cheeks. preparing to school or attending to? forehead kisses!! you eat and some food crust is at the corner of your mouth? oh boy smooching time!! goodnight kisses, good marks kisses, pain pain go away kisses when you injure yourself!!

I'm such a simp for him wth.

also expect him to always looking at you in classes or just whenever you are with him.

it is such a problem for jamil because he has to scold kalim and watch him at the same time because he is too occupied to focus on you :)

night adventures on his flying carpet are great!! will always give you his big and fluffy cardigan if you're feeling cold or if you just want him to roll himself in your arms while sitting between your legs.

he is so cute and is your biggest fan of whatever you do.

food date!! kalim takes you to scarabia to eat some good food that jamil makes. no, kalim is forbidden to approach the kitchen because he may destroy the dorm by accident just by trying to cook something for you. poor jamil dear.

will eat everything you cook for him and treats you as the best cook ever. don't tell jamil.

loves studying rendezvous, he helps you understand some lessons and you do the same for him. however it is complicated for the both of you to stay concentrated: kalim bright smile is charming you (there is only one sun in the universe and it is kalim *point a gun to the 'sun'*) and kalim has some difficulties to look at the text you are explaining, his eyes are only looking at you, his darling.

dance with you during his parties and if you are too tired or too shy to dance in front of everyone, go go in the carpet!! dancing in the middle of the night while jamil is screaming after kalim to come back because he can't see him from where he is. poooooor jamil let me kiss you bby-

looking at you with heart eyes is one of his favourite activities.

vil schoenheit💅🏻

good luck if you want a kiss from him. every mornings, he takes a lot of times to do his fabulous make up so he doesn't want you to ruin everything in less than 10 seconds.

or if you manage to kiss him, it is just a light peck on the lips or cheek. nothing too hard only if he wants to leave a lipstick stain on you ;)

as the others (less kalim of course), private moments are the best. here, in in his room after washing his face and after doing his routine, just lay in bed with him and cuddle time!!

loves to do your make up!! he will do your eyeliner while you're laying in his bed lol

difficult to have a full moment of intimacy at pomefiore. I won't give name but a hunter here seems to spy on you, hidden in trees when you forget to close the curtains.

I guess that his walls are now full of pictures of vil and you lol the 2 most beautiful persons for him

you try to convince vil to give more liberties to epel, since the queen has to take care of his precious potato instead of some ugly ones lol

don't pay attention to the potatoes who ask for his autograph or selfies when you walk together. he is super famous after all

but if you are jealous about it or some fans are too much intrusive or too sticky and still following you, just kiss him languidly. he doesn't matter anymore if his make up is on your face, he will leave you breathless while you can hear some 'kyyyya!!' behind you.

might be flustered lol he will blush

eheh you are his only love

sweet and fluffy moments are the best with him, just shopping, scrolling together on magicam, experimenting new make up or hairstyles,... everything is better together!!

make him some food low in calories but still sweet and yummy, he will melt right away:)

vil darling is super cute wtf.

idia shroud💀

imagine that this boy is naturally flustered, shy and attracted by you just by standing or looking at him, then imagine his reaction when you kiss him?

be patient and comprehensive with him. it is not that easy to kiss the one you love even if you believe and put your trust in that person. everyone has to go to their own rhythm so please respect that!!

once, he feels ready to kiss you, cup his cheeks and give him the softest kiss that you can give. his hair will bright a scarlet red while his pale cheeks will take a pretty red colour that he could make riddle faints. poor little bean.

show him that he can trust you and be natural in your company. he'll be so moved of how you treat him so gently.

he is a big sweetheart, please treat him gently or you will die by my hands.

videogames night date!! will invite you to come to his room while ortho is looking for sweets and junk food to eat tonight!! baby is so excited to have a night with his onii-chan and you that his eyes can't stop twinkling and idia even has to calm his down if ortho doesn't want to explode (I hope he won't).

say that you have cooked something for him and his heart will doki doki while he is screaming and stuttering some incomprehensible things. oh no, now the fire alarm is making a high noise but not so high as idia of course.

always thinks about couple date cosplay!! nosebleed if you manage to cosplay in his favourite character. you were his second husbando/waifu but now you officially are the first one!!

he has never be so happy since you are with him so please treat him so well.

(+he even makes a list to azul to explain why you are the best lover ever.)

(++ortho tells their family about you, I swear they cry and scream when they learn that their shy, introverted and otaku son has finally find someone so caring and loving as you.)

malleus draconia🐉

malleus chuckles everytime you try to kiss him. indeed, he is probably one of the tallest student in NRC and looks also very intimidating. however, he is the sweetest dragon fae that you have met in your life.

his kisses are so passionate and sweet at the same time!! his hands are holding yours or he caresses your cheeks.

he always try to flustered and teased you. he can't do anything about that, faes love to make so pranks on people! but considering that you are his lover and he is not like a particular little and old fae, he just keep teased you in order to see this beautiful and blushing face of yours~

likes dancing with you, even some easy dances. as long as he can spend time with you, he is genuinely happy.

absolutely loves to go to night walks with you. he will show you the most beautiful places he noticed before coming with you and honestly, he has good choices. the landscapes in twisted wonderland are so magical and incredibly pretty. but malleus can't stop looking at you, he thinks that you are the prettiest thing living in this world. how cheeky of you. lilia is so proud of him.

lilia, sebek and silver are watching you further, hidden behind some bushes. lilia is chuckling and smirking of how much the two of you are so cute while silver is asleep against a tree. sebek is staring and can't stop muttering about how great his waka sama is and how a simple and little human like you could be with malleus. he secretly ships the two of you because you make malleus happy but whatever.

lilia had to hit him at least 6 times because sebek can't stop shouting when malleus takes your hands in his, tucks hair behind you hair, kisses you or just looks at you lovingly.

he has a stomach makes of iron because of lilia's cooking so he will eat whatever you do to him but please, don't bake a cake. he really dislikes cakes. buuuut, if he learns that you can make ice cream or these sort of cake only make of ice cream (I have no idea of what they are called??), surprised pikachu face. will eat a tons until his guards (mainly sebek) tries to explain to him that eating only sweets are not good for his health and that you must NOT give them to the young lord because you can hurt him yada yada yada. malleus makes you run away to ramshackle dorm in order to have peace.

he is just so happy that he finds someone -as strange as you are- that is not afraid of him because of his name or nature. he will cherish you so cherish him with all your heart and soul lol I'm soft.

~~the end~~

•_______________________________________•

[ducktracy]

113. a cartoonist’s nightmare (1935)

release date: september 14th, 1935

series: looney tunes

director: jack king

starring: billy bletcher (beast, villains, pianist), tommy bond (beans)

so beans doesn’t actually have a voice credit—it seems he’s unknown for this cartoon. to me he sounds like tommy bond (who would provide his voice), but i’m no expert. regardless! beans’ first solo cartoon!

this is an interesting case to note. beans (and of course porky) would be the first star to debut in a merrie melodies cartoon as opposed to a looney tunes cartoon. there was a rule that merrie melodies couldn’t feature reoccurring characters—i hesitate to say that with confidence, since peter rabbit was used in country boy and my green fedora, and a buddy facsimile was used in mr. and mrs. is the name, but generally characters weren’t reused, much less brought over into other divisions (bosko was never in any merrie melodies, buddy wasn’t 100% established to be in a merrie melodies). so, beans is the first to be brought over! tex avery would also break the rule with daffy duck in egghead in 1938, bringing daffy over from looney tunes to merrie melodies and also reusing egghead from egghead rides again.

in terms of synopsis: a cartoonist is dutifully working on a beans cartoon, but falls asleep. the villain in his project comes to life and kidnaps the cartoonist, and it’s up to beans to save the day.

a precursor to termite terrace? animators bustle to and fro in a cartoon studio that looks like it was spawned from a love affair between dr. seuss and tim burton. a highly prestigious studio, as indicated by the sign out front: animated cartoon studio. a rather bored, anthropomorphic whistle (jack king’s disney roots seep into its design, animated by bob mckimson) nonchalantly checks it’s stopwatch and gives a tired bellow to indicate the day’s end.

the distance shot of the studio is impressive as all of the animators leave, lights switching off and even an animator jumping off the roof and traveling via umbrella. various workers bids the elderly groundskeeper goodnight as he locks up for the night.

a lone cartoonist diligently pumps out more work, adding to a towering stack of frames. the groundskeeper pokes his head in, asking “ya gonna work all night, son?” the cartoonist shrugs. “i gotta finish tonight.” with a bid of good luck, the groundskeeper leaves the animator to his work.

we then spot the fruits of his labor as a close up of the animator’s work is shown. he’s working on a beans cartoon, drawing a ferocious monster and painting him in. the monster comes to life and gives a terrorizing grunt, cornering a terrified beans. a fun choice to make the animator analyze his work, chuck jones providing the animation of the animator commentating “well, beans, i guess i’ll have to save ya from the villain again!” he sticks his hand into frame and pulls the monster off of beans. furious, the beast turns his attention to the animator instead. the animator uses this as an opportunity to paint some protective iron bars in front of beans, essentially jailing him. delighted, beans teases the beast by blowing a party streamer in his face.

eventually, the animator tires himself out and falls asleep. time marches on, and his drawings remain sentient. trouble arises as the villain reaches out of the frame and drags the animator inside, jack king providing one of his great perspective shots (above). i’ve come to really appreciate how he plays around with different perspectives and closeups, it brings a lot of liveliness and interest. obviously, the animator is wide awake by now, struggling as the villain takes him away. beans speaks his first lines (that isn’t limited to billy bletcher going NYEEEH in i haven’t got a hat)— “hey! let go of him!”

the beast drags the poor animator through the dungeons of the animated world—not far off from some working conditions at certain studios. as the beast drags his victim down a set of rickety stairs, a loose piece of board flies up and clobbers the villain on the head. the beast, assuming it was the work of the cartoonist, punches the sheepish animator in the face.

past the gag department, story department, and music department they go, each department barred behind an intimidating iron door. there’s some sort of weird lawn mower weapon—like a barbed mower. essentially, a painful prop. the animator accidentally prompts the handle to thwack the beast in the head, who gives him another pounding.

finally, the beast arrives at his destination: the cartoon villains chamber. sound effects are jarring and unfitting (yet almost humorously so) as a laser sound effect accompanies the monster punching the cartoonist, sending him flying. he bumps into a portrait of a kangaroo labeled “battling barney”. barney’s joey leaps out of its pouch and sends the cartoonist hurtling once more towards the main villain.

one by one the animator receives a plethora of beatings, from the beast to the octopus from mr. and mrs. is the name. thus sparks a musical segment from the villains, the villains lamenting about how they’ve been mistreated and now the cartoon will finally get his, the song a parody of “the teddy bear’s picnic”. i find it interesting that jack king included musical numbers in his cartoons. from the beginning, those working on the merrie melodies complained about how a nice story would be rolling along and then an arbitrary song would disrupt momentum. it seems as though king had the opposite gripe—he wanted to insert more music into his cartoons. an interesting choice. the lyrics are amusing and dark, the chorus going “the tables are turned and now you are in our clutches!” bletcher also reprises his role as the mad pianist from buddy the detective.

the villains reveal their motive: they want to force the animator down a bottomless pit, making him draw his demise. the poor cartoonist has no choice but to obey. he hesitantly draws a giant circle on the ground, preparing for his demise.

elsewhere, beans is still behind bars, sulking. someone dressed in a woman’s disguise sneaks beans a loaf of bread (the scene animated by bob clampett), much to beans’ delight as he exclaims “food!” he takes a big bite out of the bread, but recoils. inside the bread is a handsaw, perfect to cut the bars with. beans saws his way through the metal as we cut back to the kidnapped animator, peering into a bottomless pit.

after some stalling, the animator is thrown down the pit. it seems there IS a bottom, inhabited by a hungry alligator. narrowly does the cartoonist escape being eaten, a branch catching him by the pants. regardless, the cartoonist momentarily dives into the alligator’s mouth, the gator’s dentures dangling off his head. paul smith animates a closeup of the toothless and tearful alligator. not to fear—the cartoonist returns the alligator’s dentures, who thanks him with a snap of the jaws.

beans manages to saw his way out and make his escape. he runs ACROSS the stairs, floating on air instead of descending—a cartoon staple. sliding down a giant pole, beans skids along the ground and knocks into a barrel, the metal rings constricting around beans. a crash to the wall sends the rings flying back into their respective place on the barrel.

curious, beans pokes his head in to watch the torture. all of the villains are gathered around the pit, having a hearty laugh. concocting a plan, beans places two boots at the doorway of the chamber. don williams animates the two boots who come to life, matching forward towards the hairy beast and giving him a swift kick in the ass.

undoubtedly, the villain takes notice and spots beans teasing the villains at the door. beans dashes away and a chase breaks out as the villains follow. they all pass by the barrel from before... which is inhabited by a proud beans. the coast clear, beans darts back into the chamber and analyzes the pit, scratching his head as he thinks of a way to help the cartoonist. the cartoonist cries for help, the hungry jaws of the alligator nearing him as he perches on the branch that saved him.

with some quick thinking, beans yells “hey, catch this pencil!”, tossing down the pencil the cartoonist used in his suicide mission. the cartoonist catches it, beaming as he acknowledges his power. he draws an extendable ladder, turning the crank and scaling to safety.

never a peaceful moment in the cartooning business as the main beast pokes his head inside the chamber, growling at beans. they have a mini chase sequence as the animator scales to safety. the beast momentarily loses beans, who notices the animator and shushes him. an abrupt jump cut to beans holding a grease gun, lubricating the floor. he whistles to summon the attention of the villains, and his plan unfolds swimmingly. all of the villains slide straight into the bottomless pit. the cartoonist gives the hairy beast an extra punch for good luck, the beast struggling to stay on the ground. once all of the nuisances are in the pit, the animator enlists in the help of an eraser and erases the pit in the floor. beans and the cartoonist slap and shake hands together, beaming at their teamwork.

bob mckimson animates the scene of the elderly watchman shaking the animator awake as we fade back to the present. the cartoonist ogles at the audience, exclaiming “wotta dream!” a very literal title to the cartoon. he resumes his work, back to where he left off: the beast terrorizing beans, who’s cowering behind bars. in the style of bosko, the talk-ink kid, the cartoonist sucks the beast back into his pen, as well as the iron bars.

but his work isn’t done yet. as a reward, he sketches out a heaping plate of jello that has beans’ name written all over it. he calls “come and get it!” beans doesn’t have to be told twice—he gorges himself gleefully, eventually disregarding the spoon and licking it straight from the source. iris out.

this was a very creative and fun cartoon! a good choice for beans’ first solo act. it felt like a mashup of bosko, the talk-ink kid and duck amuck. i like beans—probably just the relief at the newness of a character and knowing things are starting to gain traction, but he’s cute. not as bland as buddy, but still maybe not as dimensional as bosko. the animation was intriguing and fun in the cartoon, and the underscore of the teddy bear’s picnic was an odd yet amusing choice. i certainly think this is king’s best entry yet. i haven’t seen all of king’s cartoons, but out of the ones i have, this is my favorite. a fun premise and lots of personality. the story doesn’t feel too dragged out or redundant, a nice balance between the cartoonist, the villains, and beans. jack king and tex avery would split the difference making the beans cartoons: jack king 7, tex 2, and friz freleng 2 (i haven’t got a hat and his cameo in country mouse). overall, a fun, high energy cartoon that’s worth a watch. though it doesn’t have many gags, the story and premise are interesting enough, as is the historical significance of it being beans’ first solo debut.

link!

[jackalopegirlteeth]

Let Go Your Earthly Tether

Months later and little had come to her about the revelations of that fateful night, a meeting with something beyond the scope of mortal comprehension. Something that shook the very foundations of her understanding about reality and even her own place among the cosmos. Why had it chosen now of all times to speak to her and Escher. And furthermore, how did she both understand its meaning and be left so hopelessly lost that the world seemed a completely different place. It had long been a fear of her’s, losing grip on reality and slipping into the unknown never to return and now it felt closer than ever before.

Escher of course could sense this internal conflict, it was as much part of her as it was Elana. The connection between the two of them to such a point where oftentimes finding a line to seperate the two was a tall order. New things didn’t come easy to Escher, and this was no exception to that rule, in spite of the eldritch nature of both this revelation and her own being.

Life among other people felt, strange, wrong in a way that was hard to pin down exactly. She felt like something that didn’t truly belong here, a feeling that wasn’t new to her but amplified with what had happened. With headphones in, wandering through the streets of her hometown in her own homeworld, it felt like navigating an alien landscape. Not quite people passing her on either side. There was no destination in mind. Just walking and trying to get things off her mind. Not that it was really working all that well.

The world feels different doesn’t it. Nothing has changed about them, but us…

We haven’t changed either. We just…

Perspective I know. It’s a hell of a thing to realise. I wonder if this is why people used to believe eldritch knowledge drove you insane. Everything is just so small, so fragile. But what can we do about that?

Nothing I guess.

It’s not fair. We have sight to understand but no strength to do anything with it. Caught between two but never quite at home with-

Can you feel that?

What?

It’s familiar, but not. Smaller. Moving. Moving fast.

The headphones are removed as Elana refocuses. The world around her suddenly a very real and immediate thing as her reflective demeanour is suddenly pulled back. Escher was right, something was going on somewhere close and it wasn’t good either. She could hear shouting and a lot of it. The press of people turning from mere foot traffic to what was near a wall as the world around her ground to a halt. All the while at the edge of her senses, something was wrong. Not like before, smaller like Escher had mentioned. But it had stopped. There was no way she’d reach it in this sort of crowd.

“Ladies and gentlefolk, I’d kindly ask to move your asses.” There’s little warning to the tentacles making their appearance. Pouring from the bottom of her shirt and practically throwing Elana above the crowd, it wasn’t subtle but it was going to get her through the press. Those immediately around her scattering at the sudden manifestation of Escher’s physical form. Keeping a low profile was no longer a priority in Elana's world now.

Elana let's be reasonable we really don’t need to-

Weird Void shit is going down Esch, who else could take care of something like this?

The police?

Oh yeah, because they totally have a division dedicated to squiggly Void things.

If Escher had any further complains about the situation she certainly didn’t make them heard in their shared mind. An extended arm sees yet more of their additional eldritch appendages loose into the world. Pulling them onto the side of a nearby building, a vantage point from which she could look out above the sea of people, trying to get a better idea of what was going on.

About a block away, an intersection to be specific. Traffic had stopped and she could see why, it looked like quite a wreck. Smoke rising over the sea of people, obscuring details. From this distance it was hard to tell exactly what had gone down but it was clearly nothing good, and it was this that moved something inside her to act. Coming to the aid of others, showing compassion. Things moments ago that seemed pointless now flared in her mind. Deep ingrained instincts driving her to good that needed doing, and needed doing now. Was it a coincidence then, that falling deep into the Void had resurfaced that memory. Her mind felt a confusing stew of emotions, body on more or less autopilot.

Like some bizarre giant octopus, those tendrils that held the pair of them aloft walked them across the walls of these stores and businesses. Elana could feel the eyes of the crowd on her, but pushed that our of her mind. How bizarre she looked wasn't lost on her, to them she may have well been some knockoff cephalopod based super villain swinging above them. But she couldn’t allow herself to be distracted by things like that. As far as she know time could be of the essence. People could be very seriously injured.

Smoke from the wreckage. It send a chill down her spine now that she was up close. Close enough to catch the smothering acrid scent of it. Memories threatened to flood forth, but they're banished quickly. The present was more important. She could focus on that, there were things she could still control.

Even up closer there wasn’t much she could actually make out. There was a large shape in there somewhere and what could have possibly been two smaller ones too. Being the impulsive one, she’s already made her mind up on what to do within seconds of reaching the corner.

Elana no…

But it was already too late, the verdict had come in and the majority vote had come in. Elana yes. Tentacles coiling and pulling her closer to the wall before launching both her and Escher like a spring into the middle of whatever mess this was. Those black limbs serving only as cushioning as she touches down on the asphalt. Her eyes stinging from the smoke that she had been forced to rocket through in order to get here.

And where was here exactly? Right in the middle of what looked like the biggest of kerfuffles she had personally witnessed to date. Two people were kneeling to her right. A one armed man in his mid to late forties shielding a younger woman from. Well a kind of beast that Elana had never encountered before, and yet instinctively knew what it was.

Void Spawn.

Standing clear head and shoulders above your average man, it was an intimidating sight to behold. It’s frame clearly resembled a werewolf, on the very surface at least. But up close she could see things that were off. Wrong in some way. Limbs that seemed too long, even for a werewolf, it’s torso misshapen. And the way it seemed to flicker hurt the eyes to even look at, as it were straining, barely contained by the reality it had found itself in now.

Eyes like gates into the Void itself, that had once been locked on the cowering man before it now settled on Elana. Its posture hunched, teeth bared. All suggesting violence was all but inevitable, this was a cornered beast and it had few options left but to snarl and bite should it’s warnings be ignored. And yet, had it's demeanour changed since she arrived? It was a subtle change but she could feel the information flowing to her from her eldritch other half.

If was times like these that she wished the world was a simpler place. As if her options would be presented to her, consequences and all, for her to choose from and know what she was getting. Because now, without that, she was left with only her instincts. And those. Well those had a tendency to come packaged with complimentary shenanigans and more of those than anyone realistically could deal with.

While she was considering her options. The Spawn acts. Having lost interest in Elana, she apparently wasn't enough to hold its attention for long. What it had decided was the cowering man was a much more interesting target of its ire. Crouching in preparation. It pounced in what seemed like a heartbeat. Hurtling towards the innocent bystanders like a missile set to deliver an eldritch payload of claws, muscle and fur.

She had mere moments to react, barely enough to form a plan. But tentacles had worked well up until now and she didn't have many more apparent options. Black tendrils billowing forth from her sleeves. Wrapping around the Spawn's limbs and snatching it out of the air but a foot away from its intended target. “Bad dog, stay.” Her voice echoing with eldritch hollowness. Eyes shrinking to become star filled pools of darkness.

With a flick of her arm she dumps the snarling beast well out of range of the pair it had attempted to attack.

It was then that seeming inexplicable happened. Elana was ready to dive out of the way. Anticipating a charge that she knew was coming and yet… she's left waiting. The beast just standing there hunched over after picking itself up again. A low but steady growl being its only indicator of mood. Clearly still angry and a little scared, but also confused. As if it itself didn't know why it was listening to Elana's commands.

What the hell is going on? Is it obeying us? Of all the people it could choose to listen to. Maybe because we're also void creatures?

She didn't answer for she didn't have one. A mad plan already formulating in her mind, one that Escher was sure to be sensing already. The fear of such a creature bringing a natural hesitation to her actions. It seeming like an age before she takes her first step towards the wolf beast.

Elana… Can we be reasonable about this?

It's dangerous you know, it would have killed these two without us.

Think what it could do to us.

Again there's no answer from Elana. Trepidation turning to a shaky confidence in her intentions in walking forth. A hand outstretched but held low, fingers loosely curled inwards. The way one might approach an unfamiliar animal, attempting to appear as non-threatening as possible. Giving it a chance to realise she means it no harm.

Elana…

A pause in her advance is brought upon by a low growl from the wolf. At least until she is fairly confident that it's not a precursor to an attack. In her heart she could feel this being meant her or anyone else no harm, that it was simply frightened and confused. Empathy, it  was so much like her, but robbed of any means to communicate with this strange unfamiliar world.

The anxiety radiating out from Escher wasn't helping, but at least it wasn't hindering either.

A mere handful of feet away from it and she could now make out details a lot clearer than she could from afar. The skin beneath fur was an unnatural pale, not a million miles away from her own otherworldly tones. Coupled with dark fur, the similarities were hard to miss. The fear she felt before, a coldness that held her heart, was now thawing. She could feel the eyes, the cell phones, the cameras upon her. It wasn't just those three immediately nearby but the crowd standing well back.

It was like trying to move through tar. Adrenaline forcing its through her system, time seeming to slow to a crawl as her instincts told her to flee. But there was more than that. She could feel it on a deep level that defied any attempt in explain it in her mind. Space was being twisted here, distances compressed and stretched in ways the average eye could not see but yet tugged at her body and slowed her movements.

Coming face to face with such a creature. Gazing into those strange and eldritch eyes brought forth memories of the Titan. The growling had stopped, she wasn't sure sure when but it had. A tiny sliver of easy in a turmoil stricken sea.

Reaching up, she places a hand upon its muzzle. A tiny elf standing before a crouching giant. There was no doubt her picture would be across local papers, but that was inconsequential. As soon as her hand touched the beast the world seemed to fall away. A single word echoing in her mind.

“Titan.”

Startled her hand is retracted, a few stumbling steps backward are taken as shaken gasp is forced from her. She has no time to take stock of the world around as a harsh sound invades the scene around her. The bass thrum of helicopter blades as dark shadows cast down upon the wreckage from above. Elana's eyes are cast skyward, seeing the black helicopters hovering above, an unfamiliar insignia emblazoned on doors that are now open, from which ladders spill out followed closely by people in tactical gear.

Just as she was beginning to think the situation was under her control again, things seemed to be slipping from her grip once more. Weapons were being raised at her, at the spawn she stood by. There were words being barked at her. But she couldn't hear them. Breathing grew harder as the panic began to settle in. It was as if an icy shard had pierced her heart.

Elana, what's happening?

She couldn't answer. To calm the spawn had required a toe dipped into the dark sea of the Void. But one wrong move and… She was falling. Light, sound, touch, time. All shed as her being descended deep beyond what she could have ever imagined falling. An eye that dominates the skyline opens, beholding the infinitesimally smaller being that now hurtled through its domain.

Focus.

A mere split second had passed for the world around her. Frantic shouting, rising tempers. And yet Elana knew exactly what she should do.

“N̷̛͜o͡!̢͏”

Like a tidal wave, the Void spills forth. A freezing ripple that surges out and touches all within reach. Lights within the affected zone seeming dimmer. The world peaceful for a brief moment, before the panic sets in.

Attempts to move, to flee or advance all end in the same way. As if pushing off, untethering people from the world. Gravity a fleeting memory within this bubble of Elana's making. Shouts and cries muffled by the Void that infused the air and in the centre of all the chaos sat Elana and the wolf spawn.

The power flowing through her veins yearns to be used. Kept locked away since her creation and only now allowed to flow freely. But there is only one thing she wishes to do. Escape.

Seemingly unaffected by the current lack of gravity, she reaches out towards the centre of the intersection. And like the hundreds of times before, calls upon her Void Gate ability. Overcharged with unimaginable energy, the tear is much larger than anticipated. Several of the armed people floating over its edge, no doubt only saved from falling in by their weightlessness.

She doesn't seem to have to indicate to her new friend to jump through it at all. The beast leaping into the Void of its own free will. Shortly followed by herself. Leaving reality to reassert itself in her absence.

Normality achieved, the crowds are beginning to disperse. “Control, we have a situation. Subject has been driven off. Additional subject was spotted but it got away. We're on route with a plus one. We have Dr Richardson in custody.” One of the armed men barks into his radio.

As he's speaking, the one armed man is being loaded into the transport. The helicopter rising into the sky by the time emergency sirens can be heard homing in on the site of the accident. The world steadily ticking on, the significance of today's events lost on those lucky enough to witness it. The first step in a long chain.

________________________________

A silence thick enough to cut. Up close and without the smoke and chaos, Dr Richardson looked to be in his late forties to early fifties. Once blonde hair now sprinkled with grey and kept a little on the longer end of what one might consider formal. His features refined, handsome in a way. Where there had once been an absence of arm, now a series of tentacles had formed into the shape of one. A kind of eldritch prosthetic, not too dissimilar to Escher's attempts at a false limb though somewhat cruder and lacking the same finesse of Escher. Steel grey eyes locked upon the man opposite him.

That man was dressed all business, an expertly tailored suit. His features softer than the man across the table. Hair neatly shaved. He seemed quite the contrast to the man opposite to him, his darker skin a seeming mirror of Dr Richardson's odd paleness. “Malcolm.” His voice calm measured, in control.

A nasty smile soon reveals itself, the kind as if to feign innocence of an act he was caught doing. “Josh my old friend. How long has it been? Sixty, seventy, eighty years now?” A shake of the head and a subtle little laugh follow. “And in all that time, not even a single Christmas card. Im hurt, really.”

His brow furrows. Setting his elbows upon the table between them and steepling his hands. “Malcolm. What were you doing that drew you towards such an unfortunate accident?”

“Well you see I'm just a concerned citizen who saw a terrible tragedy un-”

“Bullshit. That. Is. Bull. Shit.” The interruption sudden but sharp and hard. “We have evidence that you, Malcom, were responsible for both the creation of and the luring of that Void Spawn.” Pointing at the man opposite him. He pulls a folder out from the briefcase by his side. Setting it down. On the table and opening it for all to see. “Now I will ask you again. What were you up to. And who is the girl.” One particular picture is singled out. An image captured by one of the onlookers. A picture of Elana reaching up to comfort the Void Spawn.

A flicker of disgust crosses the other man's face. He scans the the pictures arranged before him, though avoids looking again once he's sure his bluff has been called. “She's a Symwright.”

Cold, the blood in his veins like ice now. He may as well have been punched in the gut right now with how he felt. Part of him would have preferred that. “N-no… that's not possi-”

Snapping back into the back of his chair, Malcolm laughs as if it were all some joke to him. “Joran, your ex-boyfriend. Well he's been a busy bee. Finally did what we couldn't all those years ago. A true, proper child of The Void. And he did it right under our noses too. The sly old fox. Shame what happened to him really. Car accident, hell of a way to go. Leaving behind a widow and kid.” The arm and tentacle prosthetic cross before him, the grin only intensifying.

“There's no way… that could… how… why now?”

“All those years ago, when we ventured out beyond where men were meant to tread. We saw a being of true beauty. And today, I saw a child taking her first beautiful steps. Impossible, I think that's a word we can safely resign to the history books. Because a Titan walks among us, and she has let go her earthly tether.”

[alexiela73]

Caught by Moonlight if I am not too late, please!

Never too late, of course

Also, for those reading this series, I’m trying to figure out how to get the links for the other chapters. Its a work in process. At some point I’ll try to put all the links up at once.

Caught By Moonlight: Chapter 11

Readers POV 

The world was beginning to dim as you struggled to keep your eyes open. Whatever was clutching you in its claws seemed to dive, and a horrible screech filled your ears

You’d lost the will to fight a long time ago. Your arm, leg and side had been in such pain, throbbing from where the creatures claws had dragged you from the den and lifted you in the air. Already weak from lack of nutrition, there had been little fight.

As everything whiled past you so fast, you remember that moment. That moment that you thought Gabriel has died. This man you had known for less then a week, one who had kidnapped you and brought you into danger....the fear that had coursed through you at the thought of his death was astounding, as was the sense of loss.

It wasn’t just loss, but it felt like your heart was being torn apart and ripped from your chest. It hadn’t made sense to you, as you’d cupped his face and begged him to come back to you. To feel so lost without someone you barely knew was surely impossible...

Yet, there had been a moment, hadn’t there? Where you could have sworn you’d heard a wolf in the distance howling.... and for some stupid reason, you thought it had been howling your name...

The claws holding you let go, and you fell heavily to the floor. A pained gasp left you body as you hit what felt like cement, rolling and letting out a moan as you tried to curl in on yourself. But there was no energy. You wondered if you were really doing anything, or you were imagining it.

You could see the monsters, with massive wings and covered in fur. They all watched, long strands of saliva hanging from their jaws. You could just make out the hundreds of tiny teeth that were displayed, and knew these things could rip you apart without a moments hesitation.

I have to stay awake, you thought to yourself vaguely, but you knew that you were dying.

As stupid as it sounded though, having seen Gabriel wake up, knowing he was alive...made you happy. If you died now, at least he lived. Why that was so important to you remained a mystery, but you’d never find out.

There was a loud creak and you noticed a figure moving into the room. But at that moment, your eyes were starting to blur and the world was starting to grow hard to discern. Everything seemed muddled, and with each second it grew more fuzzy.

“I see you’ve brought me a new soul. Splendid,” said a voice in the distance. 

There were noises as the monsters screeched their happiness at the praise they received, before one made a demanding snarl. It sounded hungry, and you almost wanted to laugh. It will be too late to kill me, you thought distantly, because I’ll be dead long before you try to get satisfaction out of torturing me.

You felt something soft touch your face, turning it. At this point, your eyes were falling closed. You couldn’t do it anymore, as your breaths became weaker and weaker, the energy draining from you. There was nothing you could do, you thought.

“We’ll add her to the collection,” the voice said again, but at this point it was too late. You were already beginning to slip away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Slowly you began to sink into darkness, feeling lost and…heavy, like your body was weighed down. It was difficult to make your eyes open, and you felt like the life was just starting to slip from you. The world felt empty and cold, and your couldn’t form a solid thought.

All you remembered was claws tearing at you, pulling you from the only safety you’d had. Being weak from lack of food or water for more then a day, but knowing you couldn’t leave that man behind to die. The feeling of being lifted into the air by something so strong, carried away…

Everything had gone blank from there. At some point during the flight, you’d fallen unconscious, and with the lack of blood and nutrition, you were now dying.

Hold on, y/n, said a voice in your head, I’m coming for you.

Who was that who’d spoke, you vaguely wondered. It was familiar, but you couldn’t bring yourself to form the person that came to mind. Yet someone…was someone there?

The darkness around you was imminent, and you struggled to open your eyes. Or were they open? Slowly you forced yourself to reach out, but and you realized you could see your hand. But there was nothing in front of you to grab, nothing to reach for, and slowly you could feel yourself sinking.

Was this the end, you wondered for a moment. It was the only thought you could really comprehend, and immediately a sense of urgency filled you. It couldn’t be….this couldn’t be death…it…

A noise ahead caught your attention, and you stared into the darkness. And slowly…a light filled the darkness. Ahead…was a big wolf. It was beautiful, a soft white that reminded you of snowflakes, with a long streak of pale gray down its back and its muzzle. 

Bright eyes stared at you, and slowly its tail moved. The creature was huge, but smaller than others you had seen. It tilted its head to the side in an almost playful manner, before letting out a soft bark.

And with it…was a thread. A long, silver thread so thin you thought it might snap. You don’t know where it had come from, and yet when you blinked…it was there, connected to your hand, wrapped around yours fingers.

It was soft, and you slowly looked at where it led off into the darkness past the wolf. The wolf almost seemed…to smile. And then it turned, slowly trotting off with its tail wagging, barking occasionally.

And you followed. You don’t know how, or why. But you did. You followed because it was the only thing that you could do. It was the only thing you thought might save you from dying.

And gradually, the wolf seemed to disappear as eventually a light lit up the path ahead. The string loosened on your fingers, and you tried to shield your eyes from the light as you walked toward it. What…

I will bring you home, my love, said the voice in your ear.

And the you disappeared in the soft light.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You sat up suddenly, choking, struggling to get air into your lungs. Your lips moved, sucking at the air desperately, and you felt like your chest was restricted. The blood pounded in your head, rushing throughout you, and your body ached thoroughly.

“Interesting,” an unknown voice said. “Your soul….had even left your body for a second.“

Holding your throat, the burning slowly started to disappear as you breathed in and out evenly. Everything in you hurt, and yet you knew that right now there were much bigger problems then that right now.

The first images that passed in your mind were those monsters: they’d had massive wings like a bat, yet their forms had been quite humanoid. Covered in fur, they had massive, razor sharp teeth that had been dripping blood. You remembered the blood all over your sides and on your legs, how they’d clawed you out of the hole you and Gabriel had hid in…

Gabriel…

Forcing yourself to sit up, you tried to make the world go clear. Where were you? There were little lights, which you took to be like candles. You could only assume the cold surface you had been laying on must be a table.

Yet the figure in front of you remained blurry, even as he turned away. He was doing something in the corner, though what, didn’t know.

There was a soft sigh of amusement. “You were dead, little one, and yet….you were pulled back. I saw it, for even a second. That thread… I see. People will be coming for you then,” he said, and for a moment you were happy…except…so was the voice.

“W-who are you,“ you managed to get out, rubbing at your eyes. What made this person so gleeful over the idea that others would be coming for you?

Everything had been moving so fast, but slowly gliding around you was a small, soft orb of light. You realized how warm it was, and even you realized that it was helping to heal you. Whatever it was doing, you didn’t feel hungry anymore. The ache in your body was gone, and the wounds on your leg, your side... all of it was gone.

“Who I am is of no concern,” the individual said, sounding amused. As your sight became much more clear, you started to make out a hooded figure...but..

Was he floating? With his legs crossed, the flying being was lighting a candle you guessed. But there was something strange about him, something that didn’t quite make sense from looking at his back.

“What I am though, and what I plan to do,” he said, and slowly turned. You gasped in horror. “Might be of interest to you though.“

There floated a being with short purple tentacles on his face, like that of a octopus, and his fingers pressed together in he lap as the being watched you. There was something cold in the way he looked at you. Not hostile, just...emotionless. Lifeless.

Inhuman.

Pressing backwards, you realized what whatever you had just come back to was likely much worse then dying.

[bites-kms]

Santorini by the Sea

Indulge me for a minute: try to imagine the most succulent Adonis you can think of. Now, play in Spotify the Mamma Mia! playlist, choose your favorite Abba song and imagine yourself wearing Meryl Streep’s dungarees or at least some blue outfit that matches the traditional domes you had in mind. Now, dance and sing your heart out with this Adonis by the Caldera, the major iconic Greek bay landscape. That’s exactly how Santorini was portrayed in my mind, and except for the Adonis, the rest was absolutely on point!

After a ridiculously short flight of less than 40 mins from Athens, I landed in Santorini Airport where the driver was waiting to pick me up and take me to the Airbnb. We decided to stayed in Imieroviglie, the picturesque town in between Oia and Thira/Fira. It was a great location away from the touristic noise yet very secluded, so the best choice we made was renting a car to make our stayed way more enjoyable. This decision didnt come easy, since during our first day, we walked like crazy and dealt with tons of transport issues. Hence, regardless and because of that, we decided to treat ourselves. First, with a great lunch at Aegeon, the only opened place at 11 am in Imieroviglie on our way to Thira/Fira. A delicious salmon, some seafood orzo and fava dip was paired to perfection on this spotless and unique location overlooking the Caldera. It was fantastic and a very much needed delight to continue our walking expedition.

After a quick walk around Thira/Fira, we went back to our Airbnb to get ready for sunset time in Oia, on the opposite side of the island. This place is beautiful, yet it gets super crowded quite easily, specially when the tourist busses arrive at the exact sunset time and people get desperate to find a viewing spot. We used our understated Indiana Jones skills to get a unique spot at the Castle, which is by far the best place to watch the sunset. One great tip is to sit not facing the sun, but actually against it, in order to have the perfect sky colors and clouds show, instead of just watching a blinding-bright circle. Also, this is the part of the world where you want to be staring at Oia instead of the sun, so trust us when trying to get a spot facing the island and not the other way round. The sun’s dimming light towards the white and blue city is a unique spectacle worth the wait, shot and crowd. 

The sky was already changing colors, the typical island foggy weather was blurring the sun, and some of the tourists were getting clingier and clingier, so we called it a day. We wanted to keep the memory intact rather than to spoil it with crazy flashes and overexcited crowds. It was the perfect moment to leave since the town was empty, concentrating everyone within the few blocks around the castle and sunset site, so we had it all for ourselves and took advantage of it to take marvelous and EMPTY pictures! We later found a fantastic spot to have dinner, overseeing the sea and a very last glimpse of sunset light. We entered to Lotza, a family-run taverna, with very tasty and vast food portions ready to satisfy your cravings after our survival sunset adventure. We were craving for dessert, and during the three nights we stayed in Santorini, we crossed the street in front of our Airbnb and asked for dessert: chocolate volcano, and we ate it in bed. It was yummy! The very last day, I wanted to check out what else besides the dessert was available, so I went by myself to White Restaurant and ask for the dish of the day, and it was a very soft and tasty roaster in wine and soup, with tomato sauce with some Greek pasta that was absolutely perfect for the windy evening. 

Although we walked and walked a lot, and once again, we are convinced it’s the best way to explore unknown city parts - and seriously, who doesn’t love a very nice stroll down the hills of Santorini?- , our beautiful Fiat 500 AKA “La Macchina” gave us a lot of freedom to roam around the island, disregarding the bus schedules and the ticketing people’s shouts. I guess since it was the very end of the season, people in Santorini were a little bit ruder than in other parts of Greece, not wanting to work anymore or at least without much patience nor love, since they already did it for 3 months non-stop (not an excuse, but still understandable) and they know people will still be coming. And once again, can’t stress this enough, this rudeness was only found in Santorini, specially in Thira/Fira and Imieroviglie, so the further you went away from the touristic places, the better you were treated, and in the other islands as well as in Athens, the story was completely different, with smiles and gratitude everywhere you went. My ferry got cancelled and I had to deal with the same not-very-friendly disposition of these people downtown Thira/Fira, but everything changed when we found the exception that makes the rule: Artemis, from Sunbird rent a car. This is the lovely owner of the place, which not only works as a car rental, the only one open in the morning and off-season, but also offers a superb service. Their fleet is very good, she recommended us different cars and convinced us with the beautiful, convertible mustard Fiat 500 (drove by two Italians ;)) and she mentioned all the important places we should visit around, with great recommendations that made the whole difference during our stayed. Thank you, Artemis! You changed and shaped our trip! <3 

Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines, coz our zig-zag route across Santorini is about to begin! We went to Akrotiri lighthouse, the southwestern point of Santorini and hence, the one that was further away from us. We decided to go there first and start exploring the rest in our way back. We found an incredible isolated church, which according to Google Maps, should be Agios Eleftherios: it was beautiful and peaceful. We decided to chill for a while before heading to the beaches around the area. Red Beach, Black Beach and White Beach are right next to each other, although the White one can only be accessed by ferry boat -which we decided not to do- these three beaches were created by unique soil shores that form natural bays, resulting in a breathtaking view by the crystal waters of the Aegean sea.

We stoped on some few pitstops to admire the view and also to get some yummy Freddo Capucinnos, the best one being in Akrotiri, the little cafe located on the main corner of the town. Following Artemis recommendations, we headed to Megalochori Village. Megalochori is one of the most picturesque villages on the island. Its existence is recorded back to the 17th century. Home to historical mansions, old traditional houses, pirate hideaways and wine canvas, it has a history of merchants and wealthy land barons exporting Vinsanto wine that the island still produces. We had lunch at Petrino , located on Megalochori central square. Not only was a great location but also our restaurant of choice was the one that became fully packed in comparison to the other two that were next to it. We had some fried calamari and fresh tomato pasta. We left little room for dessert in another beautiful spot near by. 

The other mini town and historical settlement Artemis recommended was Pyrgos, few kilometers away from Megalochori. Damn, those narrow tiny street, what a headache for my out of practice driving skills, and also, I’ve never driven such a small and cute car before, so my space and surrounding awareness was almost inexistent. Thank God for Mau’s road love. According to Greece-is.com “Pyrgos, the largest preserved village on Santorini and the island’s former capital. Strategically built in the heart of the pre-volcanic hinterland and at the foot of Mount Profitis Ilias, Pyrgos affords panoramic views (...) although its charm is different: more subdued, less picture-perfect, little advertised”. We found the best table, of the best restaurant in Pyrgos. It’s call Penelope and it’s also family owned. We had some delicious espresso with the best view, underneath the main bell tower. Divine. Magical. 

We continue to explore the 2 missing beaches we had left, which happened to be the largest ones in Santorini as well. Empty, only few solo travelers were there. Perfect to rest on the now free beach chairs and beds by the sun. They are right next to each other on the southerneast point of the island. Perissa Beach and Perivolos Beach were our last contact with Santorini waters, yet it was too cold to jump in. We decided to go straight to the northern point, passing Oia, to watch the sunset in a more secluded, less touristy environment: Ammoudi Bay.

We wanted to check out Dimitri’s Fish Taverna (you can’t go more Greek than that!) but it was full and did not take reservations. We went to the area regardless, and when trying to have a seat on the first available restaurant, they didn’t want to give us a table by the shore, but instead one by the aisle. We decided to continue, since there were other restaurants with few tables by the shore, and this was the best thing that could happen to us: we found the feast we didnt know we needed at Sunset Ammoudi. Not only they greeted us warmly and gave us the table we asked for - regardless of it being pre-booked by someone who was late - but also the food, was exquisite. 

Never again during my stayed in Greece nor in my life had I tried such a delicious, creamy and perfect shrimp saganaki. With Mau we tend to shared all our dishes so we could try as many things as possible, but man, how I regret sharing this particular meal. It was all so perfect, we should have ordered a double order of everything and avoid the octopus. Although this one was fresh and tasty, it couldn’t compete with the shrimp and with the softly baked and grated feta eggplant. As I’m typing this, all my saliva comes to mouth and I can re-feel its unforgettable taste. These dishes, with the unique sunset, the delicious and fresh white wine and being on the edge of the pier -literally-, was the highlight of Santorini and the perfect way to greet our trip goodbye. Next morning Mau was flying to Napoli and I was taking a ferry to Mykonos. So, au revoir my friend, I’ll see you around sooner that we think! So glad and happy to have shared all this beauty with you!

Ammoudi Bay is indeed a must-go hidden spot. When everyone else is focused on Oia (with true reason, since the view is exactly as you pictured and imagined it) this bay is quiet, has a fresh breeze that messes up with your hair, leaving it a little bit saltier than before and it’s located exactly below and opposite to Oia. It’s hard to reach, since there’s only a secluded route by the shore, or you can also take the famous Greek donkeys down from Oia. Although picturesque, I guess due to EU laws as well as international pro-animals movements, there weren’t as many as I thought they might be, yet you can see - and smell - random donkeys roam freely around the island. 

This sunset, with the evening mist, the sea scent and the feast flavor happening in my mouth, reassured me, one more time, that Greece makes me happy. Mamma mia!, blue clothes, abba sing-a-long happy. You should give it a try. Trust me: you wont regret it. 

[pengychan]

The Mind Cage - Epilogue

Title: The Mind Cage Summary: In another world, Stanford Pines places a metal plate in his skull far too soon. In another world, Bill Cipher is in the wrong place at the wrong time. Characters: Bill Cipher, Ford Pines, Stan Pines, Fiddleford McGucket Rating: T COMPLETE. Click here for the first chapter, warnings and links to all chapters up so far.

A/N:  And here’s the epilogue - if you read the Journal, you’ll definitely know which scenario it’s based on! (If you haven’t: it’s from a parallel reality where Stan left with Jornal 1 when told to, Ford reconnected with McGucket and together they made interdimensional travel possible without allowing Bill access to their world. Happy ending for everyone… except Stan, clearly. So I had to fix that.)

***

The Astonishing Anomalies of Gravity Falls

Fiddleford H. McGucket, PhD Stanford F. Pines, PhD

– To Stanley Pines, without whom none of this would have seen the light of day.

Introduction

Nikola Tesla once said that the history of science shows that theories are perishable; with every new truth that is revealed, we get a better understanding of Nature and our conceptions and views are modified.

Much of what is written in this paper defies what most believe to be real; research on the cause of these phenomena is still ongoing. Only by keeping an open mind on the scientific evidence presented in this work, and abandoning all preconceptions…

***

Stan had seen it coming from a mile away.

The not at all subtle mention of ‘ongoing research’ was a first hint, as was Stanford’s decision to wait for McGucket to come pick his car up before publishing the revised thesis paper. ‘To discuss a few matters’, he had said, but Stan knew it wasn’t the paper he wanted to talk about: for that, a phone call would have sufficed. If Stanford wanted to wait for a face-to-face chat, there had to be a lot more going on.

The third big hint wasn’t so much something his brother did, but what he did not do. He got rid of the rather creepy amount of Bill-related stuff he kept in his basement, including a golden statue Stan would have rather melted to keep the gold; everything in any way connected to Bill Cipher had to go, and go it did. Except for the one thing his brother did not dismantle.

So really, when Stan went in the kitchen one night to find the door to the basement open and his brother downstairs, staring in silence at the deactivated portal with his arms behind his back, he was not surprised in the slightest.

“So, lemme guess. You’re thinking of firing up this baby and see what’s beyond.”

His words caused Stanford to wince and turn. He looked amazingly guilty, like he’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar - something that had never happened when they were kids, really, because that was usually Stan’s role. And he’d never felt guilty when caught, anyway.

“Stanley, I… I hadn’t realized I had woken you up.”

“You didn’t. I woke up on my own,” Stan said with a shrug, and walked up to stand by his twin’s side. “So. Am I right? Is this what you want to discuss with Nerdy?”

“Yes. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but truth be told I haven’t made up my mind yet. It’s… just an idea.”

“An expensive one, huh?” Stan guessed, and grinned, elbowing his brother’s side. “That’s where the money from the paper is gonna go, huh?”

Stanford’s guilty expression melted into a laugh. “Only my part, no worries. And only if Fiddleford believes what I have in mind to be feasible - only if he agrees. If he says no, then that will be it,” he said, then paused for a moment and turned to Stan. “… What do you say?”

Okay then. Stan hadn’t been surprised to find his brother there, but now he sure was. “Whoa there. Are you telling me that if I say ‘nope, don’t do it’, you’ll just scrap this whole thing?”

“I am,” Stanford said, no hint of humor left in his voice, and Stan knew he meant it.

“… Okay. I ain’t saying no just yet. What’s your idea?”

Stanford turned back to the portal. “This is a gateway to other dimensions, and in a way it feels… wrong to keep their existence hidden from mankind. I would never dare activating it with Cipher still around, but now he’s gone.”

“Yeah, but if Nerdy’s rambles are anything to go by, this thing kinda leads into the tenth circle of Hell.”

“It does, as things are. Cipher tricked me into building this portal so that it would lead into his own dimension - the Nightmare realm. However, I think that a dimensional vortex neutralizer might allow us to entirely bypass it, giving whatever dwells in it no opening to come through and leaving other dimensions accessible for us to explore.”

That sorta made sense, in a very sci-fi sort of way. And really, it sounded like an amazing chance: as kids they had wanted to explore the world, but had always been a little put off by the fact explorers had already been pretty much in every corner of Earth, leaving no unknown waters left to map. But what would it be like, to explore dimensions - and be the first ones to ever do it? Also, getting unbelievably rich and famous in the process would be a nice cherry on top of the cake of awesome.

“Oookay. Let’s say I’m intrigued. Can you build a thing like that? A neutralizer-something?”

Stanford shook his head. “No, not me. If anybody can create something like it, that’s Fiddleford.”

“Looks like we’re gonna have to ask Nerdy, then,” Stan said, then shrugged. “Okay. If he says yes, we go through it together. If he says no, we dismantle this whole thing - wouldn’t even be the first of your inventions I break, huh? - and use the money from the paper to buy, like, a research cruise ship or something. You do the research, I enjoy the cruise.”

The idea made Stanford laugh again. “That sounds tempting,” he admitted, then sobered up. “It might just be what we’ll do. Fiddleford almost lost his sanity to whatever he saw on the other side. I can’t say I truly expect him to agree giving the idea a go.”

Stan shrugged. “Hey, you never know. The guy’s got bigger balls than one would think. I mean, figuratively. Didn’t look myself. Did you?”

Stanford raised an eyebrow. “… Really now?”

“Hey, you were college roommates. Never even got a glimpse?”

“Stanley. He is married.”

“Nope. Was married. Might be your chance, Poindexter.”

Another laugh. “I’ll pretend to have never heard any of this,” he said, turning his back to the portal. “As for the project, I’ll ask next week when he comes for his car. He’s likely to bring his son with him, and I’d appreciate it if you didn’t repeat any of this in front of the child. Or at all. Let’s go back to sleep.”

Stan made a dramatic gesture towards the door. “Ladies first,” he said, earning himself light punch on the arm. He rubbed the spot, watching Stanford walk away, and grinned. Not so much because of the joke, but because he had noticed something most wouldn’t have even thought of.

As he left the basement, Stanford didn’t turn to spare another glance at the portal. It was enough for Stan to be certain that yes, if he or McGucket said no, Stanford would just dismantle the portal and never bring it up again. His brother strived to go forward, as he always had, but no longer all on his own.

Never again all on his own.

***

… The inauguration of the International Institute of Oddology in Gravity Falls, Oregon, is undoubtedly the greatest leap ever made in history - not only proving the existence of worlds outside our own, but even allowing mankind to make contact with them.

“The Dimensional Vortex Neutralizer makes the activation of the portal perfectly safe, but for time being only specialized teams of experts can travel through dimensions for limited amounts of time. We do however have high hopes that, in the future, interdimensional travel will be open to all,” said Dr. Stanford Pines, founder and CEO of the Institute, who took the scientific world by storm last year with the publication of his amazing discoveries.

According to Chief Operating Officer Dr. Fiddleford McGucket, the team has successfully made contact with a dimension known to its inhabitants as Dimension 52 during its latest expedition.

“We documented every step, and are looking forward to share all we’ve gathered in a press conference at the end of the month,” he added.

Both declined to comment allegations that one Stanley Pines, whose title and role in the Institute are still unclear, attempted to sell the Brooklyn Bridge to a seven-eyed alien lady in the course of the expedition. They also denied Mr. Pines’ earlier claims a souvenir shop and guided tours of the Institute are in the works, to the disappointment of local children.

On other news…

***

“Guys! GUYS! I found another door and it’s all brand new! He explored another dimension!”

“Cool! Let’s go now! I want to see it!”

“Wait, let me take my notebook…”

“Who’s got a camera?”

“I’ve got seven!”

“Oh! I want one!”

“No. You’d just finish all the film to take pictures of noses.”

“I wouldn’t! Liam, tell him!”

“… He’s right, actually. You do that all the time, Billy.”

“Hey! That’s not true! I also take pictures of ears! And teeth!”

“C’mon, Stanford, don’t be a stick in the mud! Let him keep a camera and let’s go.”

The new door wasn’t a long distance away; Stanley and Stanford ran all the way to it, while Bill and Liam hovered right behind them. Really, why did they even bother walking and running when they could fly so easily in the Mindscape? Stanford had said something about a ‘force of habit’, and it sounded really boring, a bit like staying in one place all the time.

Because sure, the beach was great and a lot of fun, but it was just so much better to go out and explore all of the new memories that kept popping up… especially the ones of different dimensions. So far they had met a bunch of warrior piglets with octopus arms - Stanford had gotten a really cool tattoo there - then they had found a dimension where it was mandatory to gamble. It had been a lot of fun, until they had caught him and Stanley cheating, so they had to leave really quickly. Stanford and Liam had been really annoyed at them, because they’d been only halfway through taking notes and snapping pictures of everything they could see and now they were pretty much banned from going back in that memory.

Then there had been the other one - a world called Exwhylia that had looked a lot like the Second Dimension - but they hadn’t explored that one. When Billy had found it, one look had been enough decide he would never, ever take Liam there. They would hate him there, just like at home. They would call him Irregular. And they would try to kill him, just like at home.

But it wasn’t really home, was it? Because home is supposed to be a place where you feel welcome, and Liam had never been welcome back there, not at all. No one less than Regular had been.

I’m glad it’s gone, Billy had thought when he had slammed the door shut, and right there and then it hadn’t even mattered that it was probably what the other Bill had felt like, what he had thought after destroying it. Because they deserved to be gone.

I’m glad they’re all gone. But I am here, Liam is here, and we’re free.

“Here! This is it!”

The door Stanley had led them to was made of very dark wood, with a brass plaque on it. Most doors seemed to have one: Stanford Pines’ mind was incredibly well-organized.

Dimension 52.

“What do you think is in here?” Liam asked, floating closer. His eye was wide and almost sparkling, a notebook and a pen already in his hands. Billy thought, not for the first time, that their world just hadn’t deserved him. It hadn’t deserved either of them. “Maybe a new color?”

“Hot alien girls! Or… or the Toffee Peanut Dimension!” Stanley immediately piped in.

“Eldritch abominations!” Stanford exclaimed, holding up a camera. Billy, who was kinda hoping to find a dimension of endless candy or something like it but would also settle for abominations, shrugged and hovered to the door, reaching out to grasp the handle.

“Hey, only one way to find out. Kings of New Jersey?”

“Kings of New Jersey!”

Bill pushed down the handle. The door opened, and they stepped into the unknown.

***

June 2012

Ah, summer break. A time for leisure, recreation, and taking it easy… unless you’re me.

My name is Dipper. The girl about to puke is my sister Mabel. You may be wondering what we’re doing in an interdimensional shuttle-cart, fleeing from a creature of unimaginable horror. Rest assured, there’s a perfectly logical explanation. Let’s rewind.

It all began when our parents finally allowed us to spend the summer at our great uncles’ International Institute of Oddology in Gravity Falls, Oregon…

***

(For the record: in the end, Stan totally wins the argument and there IS a gift shop in the Institute. Soos and Wendy will obviously work there. Because I say so.)

***

[Back to Chapter 14]

[Back to the beginning]

[eridianshores-blog]

Imaginext Blind Bag - DC Super Friends - Series 2 (Revealed!)

Several posts back I documented Series 7 of the Imaginext Blind Bags, and about a week or two ago, Series 2 of the DC Super Friends hit shelves. My son and I scooped these up and I'm here to tell you what's in store. If you haven't read my previous post on the subject and/or you don't know how to tell the bags apart from each other, pay special attention to the next paragraph.

Above is what a blind bag from Series 2 of DC Super Friends looks like.  Pretty much all series look the same, except of course for the figures portrayed.  Here’s the trick:  flip the bag over.  Look near the upper right corner of the back.  You should see a long-ish stream of letters and numbers imprinted into the bag.  Notice that they’re imprinted/pressed into the bag, not “written” on it.  Now it’s not this big long string we’re worried about.  Glance over to the left upper corner and you should see a 2-digit number, also imprinted into the package.  Unfortunately the picture below is a bit out of focus, but it should adequately show where the number can be found.

These numbers differentiate between the bags!  By themselves they won’t tell you which character is in which bag, but they can stop you from buying duplicates!  If you want to know how many figures are in a given series you can buy one and look at the checklist inside, or you can just look at the front of the bag and count them.  However many different characters there are corresponds with how many different numbers can be found in the back upper left corner.

For DC Super Friends Series 2, the numbers are 89, 90, 91, 92, 95, and 96.  Notice that these are not consecutive, but they are all different, and as long as you don’t grab any of the same number more than once, you can easily own all of them without encountering duplicates.  I’m gonna do you one better - I’m gonna tell you which ones are which! It's interesting to note that, according to the checklist, these are alternate versions of these characters and most of them are different from previously released characters of the same name.

My son picked up on this before I did, but take a second and pay attention to the characters...Imaginext actually paired up each hero and villain! I thought that was a neat touch, especially since most collections of superheroes (of any toy or collectible) seem to be chosen almost at random, or at the very least with a strong leaning towards the good guys. Anyway, hats off to Imaginext for bringing balance and common sense to the table!

89 - Brainiac - This Brainiac is quite different from the version Imaginext released a year or two back. The older one had a bluish skin tone, an elongated skull, and an accessory with 6 tentacles on the back giving him an appearance similar to Doctor Octopus. As you can see, the new one has green skin, a normal sized head, and a different accessory; this one places the extra arms at he shoulder area instead of the back. I think it's a cool reinterpretation of the character, but I still think I prefer the older version slightly more.

90 - Superman (Kingdom Come) - I guess this iteration of Superman must be taken from some sort of "Kingdom Come" storyline from the comics; I wouldn't know because my specific knowledge of comics is pretty slim. This Superman, I assume, is intended to be older hence the gray hair on the sides. His outfit also sports darker accents, and he comes with translucent green shackles, which I suppose symbolizes that they're made out of kryptonite.

91 - Sinestro - Somewhere out there there's another Sinestro from Imaginext that features his typical Yellow Lantern outfit. We're not quite sure if this is just super hard to find or hasn't seen a wide release or hasn't made it to the US yet or what, but aside from some very $$$ listings on eBay once in a while, we've found no trace. This "new" Sinestro, while not as recognizable as the other version, still features his purple/magenta skin and Yellow Power Ring. For whatever reason, he's got a blue and black outfit. Imaginext is well-known for reusing accessories, but damn, I'd think they'd pick something better here: basically we've got something from a knight/medevial set with what looks like typical knight armor and some sort of pole weapon (a voulge or halberd maybe). Oh well, at least they're clear yellow like an appropriate Power Ring construct!

92 - Green Lantern (John Stewart) - So far this is the third Green Lantern that I know of from Imaginext, except this one has dark skin since's he's John Stewart. (I'm assuming the others are Hal Jordan.) The new suit has a more tactical feel to it, and yet again, he's saddled with recycled weapons. He's got an oriental-inspired straw hat and chest place plus a rake/claw-like polearm. But yet again, they're transparent green in line with a Power Ring construct!

95 - Emperor Aquaman - I don't know where this "emperor" version of Aquaman comes from, but he's really just a palette swap of the original. Instead of orange shirt and green pants, he's got a red top and black pants, giving him a little bit of a sinister edge. He sports his typical trident.

96 - Black Manta (Unmasked) - Is it weird that there's a black guy underneath...? He looks kinda like a tech-ish pirate, complete with some kind of shoulder/chest armor/breathing apparatus accessory and a trident that's approximately 2.2 times more badass than Aquaman's!

What Happened to Series 1?

The astute reader no doubt has asked, "where's Series 1?" by now and believe me, we had the same question. For reasons unknown, it looks like Series 1 never saw a US release. If you scrounge around on eBay you can easily find the Series 1 characters from sellers in the UK, but that's as close as they get. (They do seem to be in the hands of a few US sellers, but quite pricey.) The only "must-have" from the set would be Red Hood, but there are some other cool ones like an unmasked Deathstroke, red-colored Nightwing, and an unmasked Batman / Bruce Wayne. In addition there's a regular Batman, the Joker, Two-Face, and a purple Catwoman. Maybe we'll see this in the US in some way, shape, or form...I have some confidence since the numbering on the bags for Series 2 seems to directly follow the Series 7 numbers - i.e. there's no gap to account for 8 missing figures. I we'll find out sooner or later, though Imaginext is weird with these blind bag releases...way back I think Series 4, 5, and 6 all came out within 6 to 9 months and then a year, possibly a little more, passed until Series 7 was on the shelves. Let me know if you have any solid info!

Did this guide help you out? Who's your favorite? Let me know!