#and suddenly your bff is a test subject

[sea-and-storm]

Mistakes Were Made

Whatever lingering fatigue Ghoa might have felt from that thrice-damned tea was all but a thing of the past now as she sat in her room at the Nylor manse, head in her hands and heart pounding in her chest.

Of course she and Nabi had known going into this that walking into the lion's den was a great risk, but they had decided that the cons were far outweighed by what they stood to gain. They were going to be cautious. They had plans, contingencies for when things inevitably went awry.. and not a single one of them had mattered. Ghoa had clearly underestimated the doctor, that he would play his hand immediately upon their arrival.

She supposed there was a small chance still that things were not as dire as she worried, and perhaps that had been another reason why she had backed down. If paranoia truly was getting the best of her and naught was amiss, she didn't want to blow the chance that they had worked so hard to obtain. Again. The sting of her first failure was yet fresh on her mind. 

But that possibility seemed increasingly unlikely as she reflected on all that had happened in such a short amount of time. That they were immediately drugged rung far more sinister in her mind than simply the eccentricity of an odd pair of nobles. Their separation from one another. That Ghoa had been forbidden from leaving her room, unless she chose to leave the manse entirely. That even Estrid had been barred from Nabi's presence.. And worst of all, the Lady's recollection of her nightmare -- of a mysterious her being tied down, pleading and fearful -- heaped on top of all the other signs of trouble twisted her stomach into a hundred knots just to contemplate its meaning.

But even if Nabi was under duress, what could she do? At present, the Mankhad hadn't a clue of where she was being held. She had no idea of what sort of state she was in. Even if she chose to raise hells, given how vastly she was outnumbered by the guards roaming the manse, it was unlikely she would be able to find her by simply guessing and hoping before she was subdued and removed from the premises - or worse. And she could not - would not - leave Nabi here alone.

So she would have to play her cards carefully here.. Far more carefully than she had ever had to play them before. A situation such as this made the memory of her days spent making moves under the watchful eyes of Elam Graves' lackies seem like child's play in comparison.

Her hand shook as she held the quill to the paper, equally as unsure of what to write as to what she should do to aid her dear friend. She could only assume that whatever note she wrote would almost certainly be read by other prying eyes before reaching Nabi's own. So, she would have to be careful. Subtle. She began to scratch out the beginning of the note in flowing Hingan script before stopping short. No, no.. Such an overt attempt at secrecy by using language itself would be plain as day. Not to mention that there was no guarantee that Nylor himself nor anyone at his beck and call would be capable of reading Hingan. 

And so she would have to go even more subtle than that. A message that was plain to all upon its surface, but would speak to her friend upon a deeper level. 

'Think.. Think…" Ghoa's mind hissed as she abruptly stood up from the desk and marched across the room to the window. The silence of her room was broken only by the sound of muffled wind chimes alighting on the wind just outside as the breeze gently coursed through the flowers. A peaceful song of nature so at odds of the dire events unfolding but ilms away upon the other side of the glass. 

But.. that was it, wasn't it? At least, it was perhaps her best chance.

Her brow furrowed as she hurried back to the desk, and the quill began to scratch against the parchment with a renewed ferocity. 

-----

Nabi,

The dear Lady Estrid has had a most fitful night. I worry for her wellbeing, how she suffers so, and want naught more than to give her what aid I can. Another performance would perhaps do much to lift her spirits. I have great hopes that your song can reach her through the darkness and guide her to the light so that my dance can whisk her away to the safety and mirth of faraway shores once more. 

Do tell the good Doctor that his lady sister is awaiting us. Perhaps he might take a brief break in his testing to allow us to tend to Estrid's nerves? Regardless, I'll be awaiting your return in the room so graciously provided to me. The flowers just outside the window here are most beautiful and they whisper inspiration to me. 

-----

As she finished the note, Ghoa held it up and read over it carefully once more. It was as subtle as she dare make it, hoping that Nabi would pick up on the implied message while hopefully also slipping past others undetected. 

Folding the note in her hand, the Xaela moved back to the window. Carefully she made to unlatch and open it, breathing deep of the morning air and setting her eyes upon the flowerbeds outside that she had mentioned.

"I can't claim to know how Nabi's magicks work exactly. And I don't know if this would even work.. but I know the earth speaks to her as the storm does to me," she found herself whispering softly to those flowers. And truthfully, feeling more than a little ridiculous for it. She couldn't say that she had ever beseeched any sort of foliage for help before. But desperate times called for desperate measures. "I'm not certain that you can even hear me.. But if Nabi should read my note and call out for me as I hope, I pray you will send along her message." Her brow furrowed. "Somehow. Upon the breeze, mayhaps..?" She groaned, feeling even more ridiculous. "Seven bleeding hells, I don't know. But we could just really use your help right now."

[cherienymphe]

all of my writing explores dark themes such as non-consent, dubious-consent, and a/b/o subjects. if any of this offends you, this has been your warning!

➯ dividers by @firefly-graphics​ | @straywords​​

➯ banner by me

Traitor

Your friendship is tested when JJ discovers that you’ve been sneaking around with Rafe motherfucking Cameron.

The Less I Know The Better

When you start dating Rafe Cameron, no one is more surprised than you when your best friend JJ takes it really well. However, no one is more surprised than JJ when he’s forced to see his once frumpy BFF in an entirely new light, suddenly terrified of losing what he never knew he had to the person he hates most.

Borderline

The three times you had sex with your best friend…and the one time you didn’t.

Sweater Weather 

Your brother’s best friend takes it upon himself to butt into your life when he catches you the last place you’re supposed to be.

Teenage Dirtbag

You’re charmingly spoiled. You’re too kind for your own good. You’re the princess of Figure 8 …and you’re way out of JJ Maybank’s league, but when he realizes that Rafe Cameron’s pride and joy is actually a bruised and battered damsel, he’s determined to save you.

Your rescue just comes with a price.

You Get Me So High

To everyone else, JJ is just being an overprotective brother. To you, he’s being a possessive asshole.

➥ As a boyfriend

➥ Dark!JJ

[enchantedflameandflower]

Glimmer 14/? Billy Butcher fic!

NOTES! - It's time. SMUT! ✨

This chapter was written before Season 3.

The boys and Kimiko were waiting for Billy and Addison when they got to the apartment in Brooklyn.

"You okay?" MM asked as he opened the door to the basement walk-out, glancing up the stairway to the street.

"Oh, peachy," Butcher answered, ushering Addison in first. "Just another night featuring cunts shootin' at us."

"Not talkin' to you, Butcher," MM said.

"I'm fine," Addison chimed in. "Billy got him. And no one followed us here, I was careful to listen." Addison crossed the room and sat at the table, the others following her.

"Who was it?" MM asked, crossing his arms.

"We couldn't get anything out of him before we lost him," Addison said.

"But he were after Addison," Billy added. "Just don't know why."

"Because she's a supe?" Frenchie asked, sitting at the table next to her.

"Who even knows I'm a supe? It doesn't make sense. I mean, at least I know it wasn't Billy since he was standing next to me," she teased.

"Not my style, love," he teased right back. "So it's gotta be the job."

"Hello? It's exactly your style," Hughie spoke up. "That's exactly what you did to Annie."

"Butcher!" Addison turned to him, her eyes widening and accusing at the same time.

"It were just a test," he said as if he had done a good deed for everyone. "And our little Annie passed with flying colors."

Addison lifted her eyebrow at Billy, but he shrugged and smiled, showing his dimple. "She were arresting Hughie. As his BFF, I couldn't just sit back and let that happen."

"If you think —"

"So it was Vought?" Frenchie interrupted Hughie, changing the subject before an argument could develop between the two men now glaring at each other.

Addi sighed and sat for a moment thinking, then shook her head. "I don't think so, it's not their style either. It's something else. There's gotta be a leak on the inside."

MM nodded his head in agreement. "I'll call Mallory. Lock everything down. We can't talk about this with anyone. Not with a single other person."

Billy rubbed at his jaw, then turned to Hughie, his eyes flashing. "That goes for you too, Hughie, you hear me? I don't trust those cunts you work with. No one."

"Yes," he put his hands up. "Of course."

"So now we have some kind of teen supe gang forming in Queens and someone hunting me down in New Jersey." Addison looked around the sparse apartment, sighing. "Well I guess I can't go home until we know for sure."

"You can stay here anytime, chèrie." Frenchie said.

Addison glanced at the kitchen. "Do you have any whiskey?"

"Non...but-"

"You can come home with me," Billy interrupted. Addison looked up at him; everyone turned to him. "I'm not a supe or part of the team. It's safest."

***

"Want somethin' to drink?" Billy asked, his voice low, as they came into his apartment and he closed and locked the door behind them.

It was dark but the city lights shone through the windows. He flicked on a dim lamp by the couch that brought a faint glow to the room.

Addison turned to look at him and nod but when she did, it suddenly struck her how absolutely alone they were now, no one to interrupt and nothing else to do. Safe. Somehow being in his apartment made it feel even more intimate. Like he was letting her into some secret place of his. They had spent so much time as friends in her loft, it didn't feel the same.

She was staring at him, she knew she was, and she could feel the fire in his eyes. Fire and chaos. But the chaos made sense to her now and the fire lit up her soul.

"What do ya want?" he asked.

She knew exactly what but she couldn't quite bring herself to say it out loud. She shrugged, her mouth quirking and turned to the kitchen but realized she literally had no idea where anything was. "I can't decide if I want coffee or whiskey or..." she laughed softly, turning back around to face him.

Suddenly he was right there, right in front of her. Fire and heat and chaos and promise. "Or…?"

She tried to whisper his name, but her voice was catching. Fuck... The way he was looking at her, stepping closer, waiting — waiting for her to say it...

"I want you," she breathed.

He cupped her head in his large hand, sliding his fingers into her hair and studied her eyes. She could barely breathe and still his heart beat just as fucking steady as always.

"What are you thinking..." she asked him, desperate to know what was in his head.

"I'm thinking..." his voice was so so low, gruff and laced with spice, "how good it would feel...to be the one person in this world to make you feel somethin' nice for a change."

"Billy..."

He traced his thumb over her cheekbone, his gaze dropping to her mouth and then back to her eyes. "Really nice..."

She shook her head but couldn't stop her fingers from reaching up to trace the line of his brow, the crinkles around his eyes that she loved. "I'm still a supe," she said even quieter.

"Yeah...well you ain't great at it," he husked, and she couldn't stop herself from smiling back at him.

"You're everything they ain't. You're a top person, sunshine." He was tracing his calloused fingertips over her cheek, her jaw. "And I want you too."

Addison could hardly breathe anymore, her heart was racing and she felt shaky and small next to him. His arm slid tighter around her waist as if he somehow knew, holding her up against his body and that ended any hesitancy they still had left between them. She slid her hand into his hair and finally his mouth was fully on hers, fierce and passionate.

Addison moaned, she couldn't help herself; he was warm and hard and gentle and firm and everything all at once. He coaxed her lips apart, sliding his tongue in to swirl around hers and she felt her knees go weak.

Billy pressed her even closer and she clung to him, whimpering as his tongue played against hers and his strong hands explored the expanse of her back.

He pulled away to let her breathe and she gasped a little, looking up at him. The desire and the question in his eyes was wonderfully clear and she nodded her head.

"Bed or tabletop?" he grinned, his eyes dancing with mischief.

"Oh...bed...yes. Bed this time..." she answered, breathless from his kiss.

He hummed huskily, and kissed her again, pulling her against his body. He slowly began to maneuver them toward his bedroom but didn't seem to want to stop kissing her. She tripped over a chair but he simply pulled her tighter against him. When they ran into the door jamb, he finally lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around his hips, bringing her mouth to his again. He made his way effortlessly the final steps to the bed, and somehow even with the way he made her feel, Addison had managed to get half of his shirt unbuttoned in that time. She couldn't finish though, she couldn't wait another second to touch him. She slid her hand over his chest and whimpered again, his skin was so hot, smooth, firm. Bliss.

When they reached his bed, he laid her down, coming over her and pausing to look into her eyes. They stayed that way for several long moments. She thought she could get lost there forever, but the feeling of his body over hers spurred her on.

"Are you sure?" she murmured, reaching up to trace her fingertips over his face, along the edges of his beard, and his lips.

"Ain't I supposed to be the one asking that?"

She shook her head.

Again, he knew what she needed more than she did herself. He didn't answer with words but leaned down to kiss her again. He finished unbuttoning his own shirt with one hand and shrugged out of it without breaking their connection.

Her breath caught at the feeling of all that bare skin and Addison wasted no time in reaching out for what was being offered to her. She ran her hands over his chest, the crisp, sparse dark hair there tickling her palm, then up and over his muscled shoulders and behind his neck.

"Billy..." Her voice was breathy and maybe a little desperate and she blushed at the sound of it.

"Fuckin’ beautiful..." he answered back, his accent deepening. He slipped his hand beneath her t-shirt and her body arched into his touch. She scrambled to pull it off and the bra beneath it and he helped, his dimple showing and making her melt all over again.

What would it feel like to have him hot and hard and filling her, nothing between them, his? She wanted it so so much.

He paused, running his fingers over the spot where the bullet had lodged in her side and examined it. "Well look at that," he murmured. "You were right. Perfect."

She smiled and reached for his belt, fumbling hastily with the buckle and he shifted so she could finish her mission. "In a rush, sunshine? I promise I ain't goin' nowhere." His voice was low and a gruff but gentle. Still she blushed again.

"I -" she started, but then his fingers were sliding around the curve of her breast, brushing over her peaking nipple and she lost her thought and all her breath with a jolt of electricity. She blinked and met his gaze, clearly pleased with her response and he did it again. "Oh..." she bit her lip. Fuck...

They fumbled out of the rest of their clothes together between desperate kisses and touches. She moaned when he finally pressed his body to hers, skin to skin, and he answered with a growl of satisfaction and want.

Already she felt like she was clinging to the edge. He nuzzled at her throat as his calloused hand slid over her body, cupping her breast fully then sliding over her stomach, and her hip, her thigh.

But even through the haze of heated pleasure, she couldn't help a sudden rush of apprehension. She wanted him...but it would mean baring her soul, because he was already there, in her soul and her heart and her mind and everywhere. There was no way she could pretend it was less than it was.

"Billy..." she murmured his name and he paused, meeting her gaze in the dim light. "Slow..." she said quietly. He looked at her with fire and desire and everything she'd never had, but understanding too. "It's been the longest time..." she whispered, running her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck.

His eyes were so dark and full of emotion... it was intoxicating to see him like this.

He kissed her again, slowly, playing his tongue over hers, tasting and exploring and possessing, then he dipped his head, his mouth trailing over the top of her breast and she closed her eyes, tipping her head back to just focus on the sensation of Billy Butcher on top of her.

He made his way down over the swell of her breast and his lips tugged on her nipple. Addison cried out as white-hot sensation rushed through her body. "So soft," he husked. Then he did it again, eagerly. His fingers slipped to the apex of her thighs, brushing against her and she felt her entire body tremble in need.

"Oh...fuck, Billy," she gasped. The sensation was so much and it was so good.

She didn't know she could ever want anything as much as she wanted him. She didn't know she could feel desire like this and she felt like she would burst if he didn't continue. "Need you..." she urged him, her fingernails biting into his muscled back.

He paused in his explorations, his mouth curving into a mischievous smirk as he looked up at her. "Ya just said ya wanted it slow, sweetheart..."

"Mmmmm. Mmmhmmm," she hummed. "Yes. Slow. But slow while you're inside me..."

He gave a low chuckle and the sound sent another zing of pleasure through her body but he shifted, coming over her. For a moment he locked his gaze with hers. The room was dark but his hazel eyes glimmered with desire. They both knew this wasn't going to go slow.

He kissed her again and then again, the full length of his body pressing against hers, until she finally whispered a plea for more.

Together they moved, she raised her knees up against his waist and he guided himself into position, touching her first and moaning gruffly at the slickness he found. He pressed in, and she stretched around him as he filled her perfectly. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, clinging desperately.

"Addi," he groaned her name. He moved carefully at first, slow, deep thrusts, but she adjusted quickly to him. As her whimpers grew, he began to thrust at a steady pace and she knew she wouldn't last. She slid her hands over his back and tilted her hips to take him deeper. Nothing had ever felt like him. He groaned again as she did and buried his face against her neck, his beard tickling her over-sensitive skin.

She gasped as her entire body lit up. He thrust just a little harder, and faster then he shifted to curl his big hand around her breast at the same time. When he plucked at her nipple, she cried out, and he did it again. The combination of sensations was more than enough to make the entire world come crashing down around her.

She lost sense of everything except for the fiery pleasure that was exploding within her. Addison cried out as her climax surged through her, her body clenching and trembling. And then he took her even higher as she felt his hips buck one last time and he came with a husky groan of satisfaction, pulsing deep inside of her.

"Fuck..." she gasped, curling her arms around his broad shoulders and pulling him to her. His hips still bucked lightly with the last of his pleasure and his body was heavy on top of her but she didn't want to let go. She was falling apart and floating at the same time, overcome with bliss and sated contentment.

"Oh..." she whimpered, still shaking.

He rumbled in response, slowly moving his weight from off of her. He shifted to her side but then pulled her in close to his chest. He thread his fingers in her hair, slowly and carefully combing through the tousled waves, stroking the soft strands, over and over, as their pleasure slowly receded. "I've wanted to do this for a very long time," he finally said, his voice low and rough as he continued brushing his hand over her hair.

"Play with my hair or play with me?"

He gave a quiet chuckle and she savored the feeling. Addison curled up against his side, wrapping her arm around him and holding on as tight as she could, still trying to catch her breath. Somewhere she found the courage to tilt her head up and meet his eyes.

He didn't have to say anything else. His expression said everything. He kissed her forehead then pulled her as close as he could. Addison slid her leg over his, pressing close, hardly able to believe it was real, but it felt so good she fell asleep within minutes, secure in his arms.

***

If you can reblog or comment it would mean the world to me!

Chapter 15

[eats-the-stars]

ok so i’m probably not going to word this the best, but I think I’ve finally convinced my bro-in-law-to-be (white, straight) that he can’t keep making homophobic/racist jokes around the house or out in public. and for context, he’s actually not a very racist/homophobic dude, but when he hangs out with his dude friends (a group that includes one gay dude, a bi guy, and a black guy) they all tend to throw around those kind of jokes in good humor. which is fine if they’re out laughing it up or whatever. but...not around the house, when none of those people are present to reciprocate.

and the bro-in-law-to-be has explained over and over that “my gay/black friend was the one who said this joke so it’s cool for me to tell it” but...his gay friend is not here to laugh at the joke. his black friend is not here to laugh at his joke. The only people in this house are me (white nonbinary ace or lesbian i’m still figuring it out, also autistic), my sister (white, bi), and our straight white dad who is very racist/homophobic but usually keeps it on the down low since he knows that we do not share his views and WILL debate him if he makes a nasty comment.

So our dad is usually quiet about his messed up thoughts...UNLESS someone says something to indicate “Hey, I’m racist/homophobic, just like you!” and makes it a safe space to suddenly start talking about “the Chinese virus” or “businesses should be allowed to refuse service to gays” and all this other horrible stuff, which then means that my sister and I have to go through another grueling debate with our dad about how “eugenics is bad” and “refusing to bake a cake leads to refusing to lease an apartment and it’s a slippery slope” and EVERY TIME the bro-in-law-to-be has been like “wow i didn’t know your dad thought those things” while my sister and I are like “AND WE WOULDN’T HAVE TO HAVE THIS ARGUMENT AGAIN IF YOU STOPPED TELLING THESE JOKES AND ENCOURAGING HIM TO BE OPENLY RACIST/HOMOPHOBIC.”

I can’t believe we had to explain to my bro-in-law-to-be that ppl who are racist/homophobic keep an ear out for these kind of jokes in order to recognize each other. A joke is the safest way for them to test the waters. If it’s poorly received, they can just brush it off and go “oh it was just a joke, guys, it wasn’t serious, I don’t really think those things, haha.” BUT it also provides the option for ppl to laugh and go “oh yes, that’s a good joke, i’ll tell you an equally horrible joke to prove that i share your beliefs.” and BAM, they’ve identified a fellow racist/homophobe/etc. and now know that they can talk openly in front of this person, or look to them for support if an argument breaks out. And then suddenly the space you’re in has the potential to become very ugly very fast if the majority of people signal that they’re comfortable with this, and then, if you’re a person who doesn’t agree, you have to either step up and try to shut that shit down and potentially put yourself at risk (which can range from actual physical risk to the emotional/mental damage that comes with listening to someone say terrible things about a group you belong to).

And my bro-in-law-to-be has the luxury of not belonging to any of these groups. Which means that if he makes a stupid joke at the wrong time that lights the racist/homophobic/ableist fire in the room, he’s not at risk of getting burnt. At most he’s going to be uncomfortable or feel like “wow that’s horrible” but he won’t actually be at RISK in the same way my sister and I will be. The way anyone else in that room who’s black or gay or autistic will be once he starts that ball rolling.

And right now we’re trying to focus on him not starting those fires inside our house, around our dad. Because my sister and I have tried very hard over the years to try to talk our dad out of a lot of his shitty mindsets and it’s slow progress, but we’ve managed to convince him of small things over time. he’s a lot less ableist and sexist, for example. Those were easier to work on because he has three daughters (us) and we milked that angle hard, and because I’m autistic, which we also milked hard since i was able to convince him to look at me as having expertise about disabilities that made him value my opinion. We’ve also made strides on the homophobia front, too. If I ever figure out that i like girls (still working on that) and actually date a girl, I think he would be uncomfortable at first, but he wouldn’t reject me as his daughter or anything. likewise, if my sister (bi) broke up w/her boyfriend and started dating a girl, he would probably accept that. We know this mostly because our dad apparently thought that our youngest sis (the irony is she’s the only straight one) was dating her bff in high school and was cool with it. Might have a harder time if, like, his grandson turned out to be gay (he’s more accepting of lesbians/wlw??), but we’re working on it, and we got him to accept using our trans friend’s chosen name and pronouns instead of his deadname, which took time (i’m still not out to him as nonbinary, tho. my sister and online peeps are the only ppl who know right now). So we’ve made progress!

But THEN my bro-in-law has to throw dad a bone with these lame jokes that are uncomfortable to hear coming out of his mouth in the first place (why is it always a cis straight white guy who thinks he can tell any kind of joke as long as he “doesn’t mean it”?) and so this has brought back a lot of those old beliefs in our dad that we’ve been trying to smother. These last few years under Trump have already set him back, ngl, but bro-in-law-to-be was not helping.

it’s also so hard to try fighting racism in our dad, partly because our area is so white and most of our POC friends don’t live here anymore (so far our best success is directly exposing him to a person belonging to the group he hates, and slowly letting him see that they’re human. he’s so non-confrontational that he’s not going to say anything in front of the person, either, and we supervise the whole time, and inform our friend beforehand–our trans friend volunteered to help us previously). and you can’t just say “black lives matter because they’re human beings with intrinsic value equal to a white life” because...he’s racist. he’ll debate you all day or say “ok ok” and let the subject drop w/out changing his mind. you literally have to force him to regularly have positive reactions w/a real life person to change him. god...it’s like training a dog or exposure therapy or something but it’s the best we’ve got. it’s not like there’s a school where u can send ur racist parents to learn human decency.

and it’s hard because he’s our dad and we love him and it’s hard to look at someone you love and know that he believes that straight white abled lives have more intrinsic value than anyone else...just because. i hate that we live in a society where so many ppl hate each other for these things. and it’s just...up to everyone else in their lives to decide to do anything about it. and even then, it’s so hard. and our dad is just one person, and we’ve had years and the benefit of him loving us enough to listen. i can’t imagine trying to reform a stranger, or tons of ppl all at once...

[odanurr87]

My thoughts on... Life is Strange

For someone who writes reviews on every book I read, game I played, or movie I watched (sometimes to the point of ludicrousness), it is rather ironical I have yet to write anything about a game that has, perhaps inexplicably, somehow found its way to my heart. People often say it’s easier to write about what you didn’t like than about what you did, and I suppose there’s some truth to that statement. Sometimes, it has to do with writing a piece that will do the subject justice, which is why I haven’t yet written anything on Legend of the Galactic Heroes, probably the best space-opera of all time and, without a doubt, my favourite anime bar none. This is not to say Life is Strange is a perfect game, a masterpiece of the videogame industry that will be heralded for decades to come. It’s not. Indeed, there are plenty of games out there that are better than Life is Strange in many respects: NieR:Automata has a better overall soundtrack; Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey has a more beautiful world; Yakuza 0 has more believable and gripping conversations; Detroit: Become Human pushes the choice-consequence system a lot further; etc. Yet, somehow, Life is Strange combines all these elements to deliver a unique gameplay experience that resonates with players in a way most games can only dream of, regardless of whether they’re a teenage girl interested in photography or not. Let’s explore this, shall we?

When I first watched the trailer for Life is Strange, I was cautiously optimistic, but regretted that DONTNOD wouldn’t follow up on their previous game, Remember Me, which, despite its flaws, I liked quite a bit. With LiS, DONTNOD seemed to be trying their hand at replicating the success of Telltale’s formula, a rather bold move at the time. I wasn’t sure how this story of a teenage girl able to time travel would fare, but I was curious to give it a try. There was something in the first teaser trailer that spoke to me, and I wanted to find out what it was. After playing the first episode, I knew: nostalgia. Life is Strange is a game that, despite its sometimes unusual dialogue choices, or perhaps because of it, manages to tap into our memories of those “better” times when we were kids or teenagers at school, spending time with our best friend, or simply dealing with the usual stuff one had to deal with in college. A key player in making this happen is the soundtrack, an ample selection of songs expertly chosen by the developers to amplify this feeling (so when I say NieR:Automata has a better soundtrack, that doesn’t mean this one’s bad ‘cause it’s pretty amazing). 

Of course, I realize if you were a teen when you played this game, more than nostalgia, this might have actually represented what you were going through at the time, and that’s a powerful connection in its own right. The game doesn’t shy away from dealing with real-world issues such as bullying, suicide, rape, or outright murder, what was surprising to find in a Western game (Japanese games deal with these on a daily basis), though its degree of success when tackling these issues is debatable. Having said that, you cannot imagine my relief when I managed to save Kate (on my own!) when my time-traveling powers failed me in Episode 2. I might’ve slightly panicked at the thought that the game had decided to strip me of my powers at such a crucial moment, but this choice made saving her life all the more important, as it put to the test how much I cared for this character. Did you take the time to explore Kate’s room and find out how much her family loves her? Did you risk angering Chloe to answer Kate’s phone call and reassure her? This was the first time in a long while of playing choice-consequence games where I was happy that my choices had had an actual, important, tangible, consequence, that allowed me to help someone I cared for.

One of the best moments of the series... if you save Kate, that is. Otherwise, it’s a punch in the gut.

However, Life is Strange would probably not have had the impact it had were it not for its main characters: Max Caulfield and Chloe Price, excellently voiced by Hannah Telle and Ashly Burch respectively, and their yin-yang relationship. Give it a try, take one of these out of the equation and you’ll see how much the game is lessened by it. Hannah Telle’s shy and introspective Max Caulfield would make for a poorer gameplay experience, if she did not have her brash and reckless counterpart in the form of Ashly Burch’s Chloe Price, and viceversa (though we saw a different pairing in Life is Strange: Before the Storm with Chloe and Rachel, but I’d argue it’s not as strong as Max and Chloe, perhaps because the former’s personalities are more alike than the latter’s). I must admit I didn’t very much like Chloe at first. She was overly aggressive and confrontative, at times taking her anger out on Max, who’s always a little unsure about herself but tries to help others when she can. Naturally, I felt very protective of Max, and yet this did not stop me from taking the heat for Chloe’s joint, or from performing more questionable deeds later in the game that certainly pushed Max out of her comfort zone. That is the essence of Chloe’s character, as her best-friend relationship with Max (and perhaps something more?) makes her uniquely suited to push our heroine to take risks she wouldn’t otherwise even consider. But there’s another element that helps out Max in this respect that I have yet to mention, and that’s the time-rewind mechanic.

With great power...

At the beginning of the game, Max witnesses Nathan (the school bully) shoot a girl in the girl’s bathroom and, reacting out of desperation, suddenly discovers she has the ability to rewind time a few minutes. This single event opens up a world of narrative possibilities for the game, at the same time distancing itself from Telltale’s formula of picking a dialogue option without having time to think it through: in Life is Strange, you have all the time in the world to choose a dialogue option. In fact, you can even rewind to see what the immediate outcome of the other choice would’ve been! In a way, Max now has the ability to say “damn the consequences,” if within a limited time frame. Like Chloe tells Max at one point, in her usual, brutally-direct, manner, “You can bang anyone with no strings attached, rewind time and boom, it’s like it never happened!” In fact, Max (and the player) can make use of this newfound power to unlock new dialogue options that allow her to forge stronger relationships with the people at Blackwell Academy and Arcadia Bay. Of course, you can also use it to screw over some of the people who make your life difficult, but that’s not Max Caulfield for me (and I’d argue it’s not even for Chloe, despite her insistence for Max to take risks and assert herself more).

With this final ingredient in place, Max is now ready to take chances, to be more self-assured, and to assist her BFF Chloe Price in solving the mystery of the disappearance of another Blackwell student (and possible rival for Chloe’s affection), Rachel Amber. Although, to be fair, the bulk of this investigation doesn’t take place until Episode 4, as the first episode introduces us to the world and characters, with the second and third episodes focusing on reconnecting and strengthening our bond with Chloe (moreso the third episode than the second one). After all, you did kind of leave her just as her father had died and had little to no contact with her afterwards (very odd of Max imho), so it’s understandable Chloe is hurt and mad at you, but also overjoyed at your return, and perhaps just as unsure as to how to deal with their relationship, but better at not letting it show. This bond is also fundamental to explain some of the choices Max makes throughout the game that are beyond your control. Indeed, Chloe’s experiences with death don’t end with Episode 1, they only begin there, and slowly start to spiral out of control, demanding increasingly tougher decisions from Max as the series progresses; a Max who wants to do right by her best friend and gradually becomes more adamant about not letting her go, no matter the cost. And thus we arrive at the conclusion.

Time to face the music.

The threat of a tornado that would destroy Arcadia Bay had been a looming presence throughout the series, but it’s in Episode 5 that this harsh reality is brought to bear on Max. As the effects of the approaching phenomenom start to show in town, Max has the chance to help a few people here and there thanks to her ability to rewind time, but a lingering question finally rears its ugly head: what if all this destruction is a direct result of Max playing with time? Furthermore, what if it’s tied to Max’s stubborness to refuse to let events run its course and let Chloe die? At first glance, these questions might seem similar but, in fact, they lead in completely opposite directions, resulting in the two endings the developers offered the players, perhaps unbeknownst to them. There is a video essay that perfectly describes this duality in the narrative, which you can find here, but I’m going to elaborate anyways.

As I said, it’s possible the developers didn’t do this strictly on purpose given how much longer and more elaborate one of the endings is as opposed to the other. Furthermore, Max’s final and most important choice is framed in terms of sacrificing A or B when, instead, I believe should’ve been phrased otherwise: after all you’ve been through, all you’ve seen, all you’ve done, and all you know, which is the question that rings truer to you, the first one or the second one? Is the tornado a direct result of you messing with time or is it a direct result of you messing with time to save Chloe? There is ample evidence to support both assertions (even if the game leans more heavily towards the second question), and it could be argued there’s even contradictory evidence in both, but I’ll let that slide. Do you choose to let go of your friend and love, time-travelling one last time to “set things right,” or do you choose to live with the consequences of your actions? The game chooses to frame your decision otherwise, in terms of sacrificing one life for the good of the many, letting Chloe die in order to save Arcadia Bay. Personally, I feel this is a less interesting question to ponder and one more than a little cliché at that, though I am reminded of this great exchange between Data and Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation:

DATA: “Would you choose one life over one thousand, sir?”

PICARD: “I refuse to let arithmetic decide questions like that.”

Still, sacrificing one life for the good of the many is really the obvious choice here, right?

I was in the 47% actually.

Or maybe not. The aptly-named final episode of Life is Strange proves the strength of Max and Chloe’s relationship, thanks in no small part to the writers, yes, but I’d argue the larger debt is owed to their voice actors, Hannah and Ashly, who were able to breathe life into these characters and make them their own, to the extent of making the player come to love them. This practically-even split was rather surprising at first, but less so when one considers that, whatever your choice, a huge portion of your playthrough will be invalidated. If you choose to “save Chloe,” then Arcadia Bay is probably done for, and all those people whose lives you just saved will likely end up dead anyway. On the other hand, if you choose to “save Arcadia Bay,” then your actions throughout the series will be erased in the blink of an eye, including any and all relationships you may have forged in the process. Worse, Chloe will have died alone, thinking her best friend had forgotten all about her. Thus, however you choose to frame this decision, it’s not a particularly easy one to make. Things have progressively gotten worse for Max and Arcadia Bay the more she time travels, but maybe one last jump will make everything right? Maybe she can repair the timeline, same as Barry Allen tried to do in the CW’s episode of Flashpoint. However, in that episode, Barry receives a stern talk-to from fellow speedster Jay Garrick, who advises him against trying to “fix” the timeline. As Jay says, “We’re not gods, we’re men. (...) The question you need to ask yourself is, what kind of hero you’re gonna be? Are you just gonna take a do-over every time you make a mistake, or will you live with them and move forward?” I’ll leave the clip for you to watch ‘cause it’s a good question to ponder, regardless of your choice.

Sadly, Life is Strange’s longer ending makes it abundantly clear that, as opposed to Barry, Max can fix the timeline if she time travels one last time. Letting Chloe die, letting her go, is the “right” decision, as the tornado is gone in that scenario and the town is saved. It’s a shame the writers didn’t at least craft an ending open to interpretation like in the Director’s Cut of 2012′s Total Recall. In Total Recall, starring Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, and Jessica Biel, among others, the director plays with the idea that the events that transpire are all taking place inside Farrell’s mind. At one point, the movie seems to negate this... only to bring it back to the fore at the very end, leaving it up to the viewer and Farrell to interpret as they see fit. What if something similar had been done with Life is Strange’s "right” ending, playing out exactly as it does, but suggesting that perhaps some strange meteorological phenomenon is still headed your way, in spite of your actions, and leaving it up to the player to interpret the signs as they see fit. This would be more in line with the two questions I brought up earlier: was saving Chloe time and again what caused this, or was it your constant meddling with time? Is the answer here to let go or to live with your mistakes?

Whatever the case, it is undeniable these two have caused quite an impact, so much so that a bonus farewell episode was included in the prequel game, Life is Strange: Before the Storm, developed by Deck Nine, and a comic series is being written by Emma Vieceli (and illustrated by Claudia Leonardi) to expand on the lesser-developed ending. Even an in-universe Blackwell guide (that I may or may not own) has been released, annotated by our favourite pirates. Thus, while a game like Before the Storm was still able to find success, despite featuring only one-half of this lovable duo (but including the farewell episode), I’d question whether or not this franchise can be successful beyond these two characters, an answer that Life is Strange 2 is, at the moment, trying to provide. However, regardless of the sequel’s success or failure, Life is Strange will remain, at least for my part, one of my absolute favourite games of all time, and Max and Chloe have earned a special place in my heart. Sure, your heart will be broken and put together more times than Jay Garrick’s cup by the game’s end, and you will find yourself trying to stop the tears more often than not, but Life is Strange will also make you smile, reminisce, and maybe even fall in love with its characters. 

Such is life...

... and it can be a little strange. ;-)

[lonelypond]

Casual Lunacy, Ch. 44

Love Live, NicoMaki, 2.1K, 44/?

Summary: How is our favorite werewolf/redhead coping with a night at the theatre?

Tuesday’s Gray, Part 3

Intermission. A break. Outside. Away from Nozomi. Away from so many misleading sensations. Smells not matching voices, actions not matching emotions. All a muddle, and Nico at the heart of it, Nico and Kashima, magic and musk strengthening with every gasp or confident stride. Nozomi alert to Maki’s every twitch. Sensation overflow. Barely a moon buried under banks of clouds, barely a thrum, low levels of late evening noise. Weather was going to get bad, Maki could smell the wet, waiting snow. But she could breathe here, for a few minutes before she had to go back inside, to finish the full Fangs experience. Maki wanted this to be over, so over, so she could just go back to Nico’s place and…

Maki howled, softly, suddenly lonely and longing for a caress and Nico to lean into. But no, back inside, to watch Nico on stage, ruby eyed dynamite unleashing all that vitality, creating moments, catching the interest of anyone watching, like she did at the party, heartbeats raised, heads tilted, everyone’s eyes following Nico. Nico thrived on the attention, her delight coming through every sense. And Maki was happy for Nico, really she was, although suddenly waking from a new lovers haze to find herself so connected to someone so connected to so many others’ reactions was a shock. Then, as Maki was processing this new Nico, who wasn’t really a new Nico, just a Nico who had kept all her focus on Maki for too brief a while and was now renewing her contacts with the world, there was old Nico suddenly surging on the Lakefill, surprising Maki, leading Maki into that tiny control room and stripping away all the emotions, leaving them both breathless with the physicality, the fierceness of the bond between them. That had been…unsettling. And sexy, sensual, provocative, risky, raw. But Maki kept returning to how off balance she had felt as Nico bounced out of the room, blowing a kiss, heading to conquer the stage as confidently as she had just conquered Maki. And once again, Maki had found herself sliding, unsteady on breaking, drifting ice over emotional depths she was afraid to be tossed into.

Sister One, also known as Deidre, and Sister Two, Amira, were sitting in the green room, gossiping together, a few feet away from where Eli had settled at the mirror.. Eli had a decent working relationship with them, but they were senior theatre majors and Eli’s junior status and minor in dance meant they hadn’t interacted much before this show. Deidre and Amira knew everyone in the theatre department and had long been Kashima confidants.

“Can you believe Nico skipped the CosPlay party at Chapin last week?” Amira complained as she searched for her mascara.

“I know. She hasn’t had time for anything this quarter. First, it was this part, then work, then that redhead.” Deidre checked her hair in the mirror, redoing the tie holding it up and back.

“She’s in the audience tonight. I hear she’s a freshman. And loaded.”

Diedre sniggered, “Oh, is that why Nico is keeping her to herself.”

Amira quickly applied her mascara, “You know I’m really not going to mind if Nico gets mad at us and Kashima for this. She barely talks to me anymore anyway.”

“Kashima’s doing Nico a favor.” Deidre took a lipstick out of Amira’s bag.

“Exactly.”  Eli found herself scooting her chair down as she brushed her hair, but when Amira caught her paying attention, the brunette nudged her companion, “Hey, Eli, what do you think about Nico? She’s BFF with your girlfriend.”

Eli was a bad liar but…Eli shrugged, “She could be nicer to Nozomi.”

“I know. Nico always wants it like “Nico Ni”” Deidre mocked Nico’s pose, “thinks it should be. Getting a part this big just made her ego even more inflated. She’s been nagging Kashima about her singing when what Kashima really needs support. Which is why Kashima comes to us.”

Amira nodded. “And we give her love.”

Eli watched her two fellow vamps smile mysteriously and wondered if just asking what was up would get her anywhere. Should Eli even care? Kashima wasn’t the problem. Surely Nico was up to handling intracast spats. She seemed to have Kashima pretty well heeled.

Eli decided to continue being a friendly vibration. “I’m just glad we don’t have solos. Kashima looks so pale before she sings.”

“She claims it’s on purpose, to add to the ‘King of the Un-dead’ effect,” Deidre sniggered, “But I know she’s just trying not to throw up.”

Someone’s phone pinged. There was a groan as a voice announced to the dressing rooms, “Bad snowstorm tonight. Hope we get out of here before it starts.”

“Yeah. Maybe we could get started soon….” another grumble, “I have a test tomorrow.”

Eli stood, “I’m going to find a stage manager and see what’s up.”

It was just so cute. But Nozomi had to not giggle because the first couple times she almost, Maki shot her glare full of neon threat. But there was Nico’s Big Bad Girlfriend, curled up in her seat, holding her backpack like a teddy bear, huge eyes watching the stage as Nico lived Mina’s fight against Dracula, whimpers and low growls escaping the tensed redhead. Nozomi swore she saw Maki bite into her bag when Mina was under hypnosis, describing what she saw through her bond with Dracula.

Fortunately, Maki knew when Nico set foot in the audience part of the theatre, otherwise she  might have jumped when she felt the arms slide over her shoulders. But she did stiffen. Maki could tell Nico was surprised by that reaction, but Maki was about ready to run howling laps around the Lakefill to get the moody darkness of Fangs out of her head. She now knew what Nico meant when Nico complained about how screechy the music got, and how hard it was to keep that out of her nightmares...add musical cues to Kashima bending threateningly over a swooning, vulnerable Nico and Maki knew she would be the one having nightmares tonight.

“Hey, pretty girl, wasn’t Nico brilliant?” Nico kissed Maki’s cheek, throwing Maki right back to the chair, before the show, heart racing, suddenly as empty as the room...Maki shivered. “Whoa, are you cold, Maki?”

Before Nico could continue, Nozomi let out all the amusement she’d been keeping in for the past hour, with a booming laugh, “She’s TERRIFIED, Nico-chi. Almost bit her bag in half, didn’t ya, Maki?”

Nico glared at Nozomi, while Maki shoved her backpack a little away from her. Maki was at the end of the row of seats so Nico slid into her lap, fingers tangling in red silk before pulling her girlfriend in for an embrace as she whispered, “It’s no good if Nico’s not convincing on stage. But Kashima doesn’t even nip me, I swear.”

Nozomi continued to giggle, Maki was too embarrassed to look up and let her head drop to Nico’s shoulder, inhaling confident Nico masked in the fakery of makeup and the Kashima overlay. Olfactory thrall. No clear scent, no clear head…

Maki sat up, eyes catching Nico’s. “I’ll walk you home.”

“Isn’t it the other way around?” Nozomi leaned over to poke Nico.

Nico swatted at her and stood up, “Shut up, Nozomi. Come backstage with me, Maki, I have to change and grab my bag.”

Maki was restless. Nico wondered if it was having to sit still for two and a half hours while so much “happened” on stage. Or the aftermath of what happened before rehearsal. As sexy as it was to have Maki so frantic for Nico’s touch, there had been an odd mood, an unfamiliar expression on her lover’s face, one that Nico didn’t have a name for.

Nico slid her arm through Maki’s. The snow had started and the sky was layers of gray clouds, shedding wet, heavy flakes.

“So are you ready for opening night now?” Nico opted for a less pressing question, one that might encourage Maki to share any thoughts looping in her mind.

Maki shrugged, stopping to stare up at the sky and let a few snowflakes hit her in the face, “I suppose.” She grinned, “I won’t bite Kashima now that I know how it ends.”

Nico leaned in, “She’s really improved, thanks to you. You saved Nico.”

Another shrug, “You would have done fine. People know you’re…” Maki considered, translating wolf through partly human senses into human language was puzzling sometimes, but then she remembered one of Nico’s favorite claims, “a star.”

“So they respect Nico.” Nico bounced at the confirmation.

“Or fear you. Machiavelli got that right.”

“Who?” Nico asked.

“Dead Italian guy. Wrote books.”

“Another poet?”

Maki snorted, “Playwright. Actually philosopher. It was the Renaissance, people were a lot of things.”

“Triple threats. Like Nico.”

Italian philosophy seemed heavier than snow so Maki changed the subject to one sure to distract her lover, “But not as cute.”

“Aw, Maki loves Nico.” Nico nuzzled.

Maki’s noise of agreement was subdued enough that Nico suspected their pre show encounter was at the base of Maki’s odd mood.

“Did Nico leave Maki too…” Nico let the question trail off, not sure how to read the redhead’s mood.

Maki picked up her pace. Nico pulled her back, “Maki.”

Maki hung her head, expression shadowed by her hood, “We should get you home.”

“Us home.” Nico corrected. No response. “Maki, what’s going on?”

Maki collapsed into a crouch, and Nico reached out to touch her shoulder as the redhead muttered, “Don’t know.”

Nico crouched as well, “Tell me what you're thinking. Maybe I can help.”

Maki picked up some snow and started to form it into a ball, “Acting is weird.” She stood and threw the snowball at a streetlight.

“Is Nico weird?”

“No.” Maki shook her head as she shoved her now red hands in the kangaroo pocket of her hoodie, “You were actually pretty amazing. I was so worried for you even when I knew you were fine.”

“So why don’t you want to come home with me?” Nico stood, pulling Maki’s hood back far enough that she could see her eyes, which were full of swirling green and shadows. Nico knew there was something big that Maki wasn’t articulating, but Nico was almost certain that pushing the skittish redhead on the subject of their sex life’s debut performance in a semi public location would just lead to a howl and run. Careful phrasing. “We missed the cuddle part.”

Maki’s eyes glinted amethyst ice, “You didn’t miss it. You were on full thrill.”

“Did you?” Nico’s question was soft as they stood in a pool of light, disconnected and awkward.

“I don’t know. Maybe…” Maki turned, arms out, “I’ve just...it’s been…” Maki took a deep breath, “I’ve felt so many things, so many people, closing in all evening...that and the...I want… I need...to play...to hear...something that makes sense.”

Nico didn’t have a piano. Maki had had barely a moment to breathe since Nico took her hand and dragged her into the Wirtz Center. There hadn’t been any calms, just increasing tension,  rising restlessness, the knowledge that something was going to break through, to rip out from under Maki’s skin, a howl or leap or a...storm. Maki swept a hand through some falling snow, wondering what this mood might manifest...she could hear the screechiness of the Fangs orchestra merge with the softer fall of a cello in snow and the quick hammering of her heart as Nico...Maki felt her fingers twitch, wanting to search out the notes that would transform this whole evening into meaning.

Nico watched Maki for a moment, as Maki stared off into the distance, unaware of anything other than whatever was going on in her head. She’d have to get used to that, Nico realized, but thoughtful Maki, thoughtful Maki was Depth and Beauty carved against the snow. Nico could certainly hold that image in her heart until playful, flirty Maki returned.

“Maki?” Nico’s touch on her arm was firm but when Maki looked down, Nico’s smile was warm, “You can head home. Nico can manage from here. It’s only a block.” Maki sniffed, uncertain. Nico was concerned, but calm, loving, detached.  Some of the pressure lifted and Maki grabbed Nico, spinning the smaller woman off the ground, hugging her. Releasing Nico, with a howl, Maki sprinted off. Bemused, Nico shook her head, counting snowflakes for awhile as she watched Maki disappear into the gray. She was positive an affectionate Maki would remember to call or text at some point, but right now, Nico respected this mood she was on the outside of. Besides, she could use a good night’s sleep. It was already a hectic week.

A/N: Tuesday extended itself for more chapters than I expected, but Maki had some things to process before we could progress.Merry Wives is hectic as we approach going off book.Take care of yourself. And do something you love.

[dangkinronpa]

★ : advice/ positivity for Touko who is having trouble dealing with school. Your positivity will be under the readmore! - mod Mocha ☆

I’m sorry to hear that you have trouble with school, Touko-chan. No matter in what grade (or which year in college) you’re in, school can be absolutely stressful & depriving from doing things that make you happy. Whatever it’s from a social or academic point, as you didn’t mention which it was, I’m going to give you some advice to how to succeed (or at least survive) another year of school:

Get some study buddies! No, I’m not telling you to suddenly go up to someone & ask them to be your BFF, but rather find someone you’re rather fond of who you can meet up from time to time, say on weekends, to study together the materials. Most people realize their own mistakes in problem solving when they talk about them. Bonus points if you’re each strong at the other’s weak subject! But I know that finding people in real life to study with can be a tad hard, which brings me to my next point.

Studyblr/ studygram! There are communities online that are filled with people who are passionate about studying, many of which you can find on tumblr & instagram. I find it very encouraging to see someone work hard, personally, so I do recommend finding a few accounts that you enjoy seeing how their organised their notes & journals. Sometimes they do very interesting challenges (like the famous ‘100 days of productivity’ challenge) to see how far you can get. & here is the part you come in - you can make your own account about studying too! You don’t need to have a perfect handwriting & amazing camera to do so (even though that is what the most popular accounts make us believe), just a sense of ‘hey I wanna survive this year so imma do that shit!’ in spirit. Also, in many countries what you learn in your school, someone of the same year on the other side of it might be learning by the same program, so you might meet up people online that study the same material as you, & you can exchange notes together.

Be organised! I don’t know how people who don’t take notes nor do any work & get good grades, but those of us who bust our ass over grades - most of us try to be as organised as possible. I know it sounds like a lot of work to have a planner & write everything inside, but it does help a lot. You need to write everything you got assigned with/ upcoming test & events that were announced in the end of each class, & open it up when you sit down to do homework. So, if you have a paper due in five days & its word minimum word count should be 1k words, you break it down so each day you will write 200 words. Even if you miss a day, it’ll be easier to catch up with 400 words than doing a whooping 1000 words in one night. Also, things come up all of the time so leave spaces in your schedule for breathers! Plan social events (even if it’s just watching a movie with someone over rabb.it)! 

Watch your physical & mental health! Ho boi, during the school year, it’s sometimes easy to forget your health entirely. But it is important to take care of yourself - if you don’t take care of the smaller problems, it will evolve into life threatening situations (yes, even things life fainting could be very dangerous). I recommend watching your health, visit a doctor once a month or two to discuss health habits & changes in diets (I know not everyone are comfortable with going to a dietitian, but even a normal family doctor can tell if you’re under-eating or lacking a certain vitamin) & if you’re forgetful or really need to, you can write down which habits you want to improve & write your progress (you can write it in your journal - hence being organised comes into view again). 

Remember it’s okay to fail! A lot of people stress over grades because it feels like it will determine your future - but it’s not true. Well, better grades are an easier way to a diploma/ smooth graduation, but it’s okay to fail sometimes. Some teachers & professors will even let you redo tests or do assignments to upgrade your grade - you just to actually talk to them to find out. Some will even understand if there were special circumstances that may have ruined your grade. It’s not the end of the world if you fail one grade out of twelve, in most academical facilities they might even turn a blind eye to it. 

So there we go - I hope this could help somehow, I just listed some of the things that really do help me! If you want advice on more specific ideas or problems, don’t hesitate to ask.

[tumblunni]

Gremp Review: Dr Herregods

Okay, today’s new grandpa that I adore!

I’ve been playing the remake of Sonny lately and TOTALLY having a nostalgia explosion! Its like a reboot of an old classic Flash game series I used to play a lot as a kid. The art, music, and everything has had a HUGE update, and they even added some new characters! Its a shame, however, that we lost the animated sprites and ability to see visual changes as you equip stuff. I’m guessing they just didnt have the budget to make it happen with the high res graphic update. Also some of the story changes are a bit weird, but an equally large amount of them are super good, so it all balances out. I just wish all the new characters didnt REPLACE the old characters, yknow?

At least Veraduz stuck around, and now he’s got a cool expanded backstory and reasons for joining your party. Its not just ‘we’re both zombies, lets stick together, i found a robot suit and somehow instantly knew how to use it’. Nah, instead now he’s a regular human who actually OWNS that robot suit, he starts off on the other side and joins you after seeing you’re sentient and deserve to live. Also he’s a disabled veteran whose robot suit is basically a mobility device to replace his lost legs. That’s instantly incredibly sympathetic and interesting! And still he’s our cool sassy giant buff healer dude and major BROTP with the protagonist. Woo~! ANYWAY, less rambling about loving that character, and more rambling about loving the new ones!

One of the best new changes to the plot was the addition of Dr Herregods, aka SUPER SCIENCE GRANDPA!

Further review below:

He’s actually the only new character who technically did exist in the original flash game, he used to be a tough bonus boss battle and got promoted to playable here. Obviously he took a huge power cut, but he’s actually still pretty damn strong! He starts off fragile but he gets A LOT of really good attacks. He can set up barriers and regen on his allies and DEAAAAR GOD am I happy that the ally AI is great in the remake, he’s saved me so many times! And his actual damage output isnt very good even if you buff him up, but he has Acid Element which bypasses defense buffs. Usually you have mr fragile grandpa dealing half as much as everyone else, and then when you face some overblown buffed up thing he’s suddenly the sole savior of the world! AND he can deal useful attack debuffs, so he frees up a move slot on your protagonist if you dont need to worry about those. Here I’ve got him very stacked up with defensive items at the expense of everything else, cos even if he’s buffed its not like he’s ever gonna be super fast or strong. Its best to just cover his fragility! Currently he’s actually one of the best defenders, I went with fragile speedster build for my other two party members Sonny and Kara. (Incidentally I love Kara! I wish Felicity didnt have to be replaced by her tho, is it some sort of rule that these games must only have one playable lady?) Tho the fragile build is fun to play in its own right! It just feels super in-character that he’d be like an overpowered useful buffer mage dude that you have to protect. The enemy still seems to try and take him out more often than not, even when he has enough extra defense to withstand it. LEAV GRANDPA ALON

Anyway, the Sonny games have never been super dialogue heavy or well written, tho the remake adds a lot of extra scene which has been nice. Its still kind of a crazy cliche storm, but its a sassy one with high production values and a SUPER well developed high difficulty battle system. The ways they make buffs and statuses and passives interact.. god, its beautiful! And in the remake you have a choice of way more elemental paths to customize, and can even ‘evolve’ moves mid battle. its like a limit break but you choose to turn one of your regular moves into a limit break and it stays that way for the rest of the battle! So you get advantages the longer the fight goes on, and the more damage you can take without dying. However the limit breaks are subject to the RNG so sometimes you get a bunch of buffs that arent actually useful for your selected move, and you basically waste your whole bar. Alas! ANYWAY LESS RAMBLING ABOUT HOW FUN THE GAME IS, YO

So yeah, nobody has a super developed personality or many scenes to show it off in. But still I LOVE NEW GRANDPA! He’s my favourite sort of thing: an evil grandpa that isnt evil. He’s your own personal mini evil! He’s got all the character traits of an evil scientist, apart from the bit where he’s on your side. And he gets to act as the comedic guy with all the vices, but still he remains loyal to you guys, and his whole moveset is supporting his friends, and i just LOVE HIM!!! *hug* I am a bit sad tho that he’s another different medic character, so you kinda have to choose between him and Veraduz. At least everyone still gets to appear in story scenes regardless of who’s in the party, so it doesnt really matter. Veraduz is still your super bff who gets the most screentime of everyone! OH, but actually ALSO a reason I love new grandpa!!! He becomes the guy who gets the second most scenes after Veraduz, and he’s like THE MOST IMPORTANT to the story! His introduction works REALLY well to make the early stages work a bit better. Before you were just journeying wildly with no real motive except ‘people are trying to kill me, keep running until this problem ceases to continue’. Now you meet a rogue scientist early on and he gives you a general goal and motive, you’re trying to find out what’s actually going on and he’s analyzing the different zombies you find along the way, showing you directions to find his laboratory eventually. He falls out of focus after he gives us this motive in the intro, but he still remains pretty useful in tutorialing how to use your new mutation specializations. And its justified that you get them cos he stuck a syringe of his latest crazy experiment into your neck. He’s helping!! In his own special way!! Seriously this is just WHY I LOVE HIM! He’s such a nice good hero man who 100% thinks like a sci fi villain, and the contrast makes for a lot of funny scenes. I legit thought he was gonna just be a temporary party member who backstabs you at the end of the chapter, i was SO GLAD that I was wrong! Ominous ambiguously evil man who never becomes evil ever is such a better trope! “Hey look that latest terrifying enemy is really damn cool, I’d love to cut it open. And genetically engineer a new and better zombie virus. And test it on you, specifically.” *does so* *and nothing but good things happen* *thanks grandpa*

FINAL GREMP RATING!

Personality - How much of a unique self this grandpa has, and how interesting. Stereotypical grandpa archetypes are still loveable, but it doesn’t exactly stand out above the rest!

Dr Herregods has the same sort of appeal as other fave characters of mine, like Charon. Except with even more appeal cos he actually does join the hero team! He’s a big eccentric that you wouldn’t usually expect for this kind of medic class gramps role! ‘Evil science man’ is kind of an archetype that’s often given to grandpas, but I mean you can’t say it lacks personality! I’m just... predictable!! I really love when the ‘mad scientist’ gets to turn good! ITS SUCH A GOOD PERSONALITY, DON’T LIMIT IT TO VILLAINS However Dr Herregods isn’t grumpy or sassy, he’s just more of a cheerful dude who really loves his job of making super zombies and is comedically oblivious to everyone else thinking its an evil hobby. That’s endearing in its own way! Nobody really gets a huge amount of dialogue or development in this game though, so take his rating with that in mind.

6/10

Design - How appealing does this grandpa look as a character? How endearing, how distinctive, how much does it suit him?

His design isn’t particularly new or interesting, he honestly just looks like the third stage of bugcatchers in pokemon.

However it’s still nice that he became a grandpa at all in this remake, when his original design was just this generic npc model.

3/10

Prominance - How big of a role this grandpa plays in the actual plot or gameplay.

This is actually where he excels! its so rare to find a good playable grandpa that isn’t like a super tiny plot role, or vice versa. And most of my faves are usually neither, and mad science grandpas especially tend to get the short end of the stick! I love him just cos he’s like if someone like Charon or Hojo got to be the hero of the story! Also he is REALLY USEFUL in a fight! Also DID I MENTION I LOVE THIS CHARACTER??

9/10

G R A N D P A -  Bunni’s very personal concept of what makes me want to adopt this grandpa. How well does he fill the void in the life of someone who had a shitty family devoid of loving guardian figures and projects way too much onto fictional characters?

OH MAN, I think if he was my actual grandpa we would have all sorts of crazy adventures together! And we totally have the same opinion on how monsters are HELLA AWESOME and it would be epic to gain super undead powers! Yo grandpa give me the super juice, I wanna shoot lightning from my zombie eyes!!! Also he’s just... like... GENUINELY GOOD! For once he’s not my guilty pleasure redemption fanfic dude who would never actually join the hero team in canon. This grandpa would legitimately be a caring friend! Even if he’s also a bit of an irresponsible space case. But seriously, DUDE, SAME! We’d be so bad if we became friends, nobody could stop us from making terrible life decisions to go poke giant monsters with sticks and chug mutagenic liquids

8/10  G R A N D P A

Literally the only reason he won’t get a 10 is the same as I mentioned above, nobody gets very much dialogue in this game so he’s just like a lil slice of perfection covered in a pile o headcanons.

Final Score: 26/40

[sobdasha]

I WISH YOU WOULD WRITE A FIC WHERE LINK TEACHES OLD HYLIAN AT EAST CASTLETON PREP WHERE HYLIAN MILITARY HISTORY TEACHER ZELDA HARKINIAN ALSO WORKS

((the problem with answering these asks is that I have to save them in drafts so I can edit the formatting before posting, but reblogs in my drafts are sorted by the time I sent them to drafts and asks in my drafts are sorted by “this was originally sent to you 3 years ago, so we’ll file it 3 years back instead of making it the most recent thing you sent to drafts” ffffffff guys))

***

When Shad gets afancy letter that says he’s being awarded that grant he’s beenapplying for for years, they all pitch in for a little party in thefaculty lounge. Link kind of wishes they were sending Shad offproperly, at a bar, but he does the best he can by pitching in somepunch that is made of pumpkins.

Well, mostlypumpkins, And it’s mostly not Ordona cider (which isdefinitely mostly pumpkins), and it’s after classes anyway, so it’sfine.

They are celebratingthat Shad, lucky bastard that he is, will be spending the fall termon a mostly-funded vacation right adjacent to the famous DeathMountain Goron Hot Springs, while the rest of them, like Link and hiswatered-down cider, will still be here.

Ilia said that Linkought to get out of rural Ordon and see some other bit of the world.Ilia, who went off to become a doctor but remembers to write her dadand visit regularly and how come Rusl and Uli say they haven’t seenyou in months hmm?, said that Link had better go and makesomething of himself.

So he went and gothis teaching certificate and has made himself a lot poorer, mostly.He misses Ordon, where he could find free food lying on the ground,or swimming in the streams. Here in Castleton you have to pay for itif you pick it up, or risk causing an inter-kingdom fishing rightsdispute with the Zora if you drop a line in the river. So instead ofturning up at Rusl and Uli’s house for dinner, these days he orderstakeout and listens to the delivery persons say “Oh goddessesI’m sorry!” when he absently signs thanks while collecting hisfood.

Fado, who stayed inOrdon not making anything of himself and instead making cheese, isapparently putting away heaps of money.

So Link, who needsmoney and hates enjoying sleep times, finishes his punch so his handsare free to tell Shad that he’ll take over his Old Hylian class whileShad is on sabbatical.

***

Link doesn’tactually know any Old Hylian. But, he reasons after the fact, howhard can it be? After all, Link already teaches HSL, so that meanshe’s a linguist like Shad, right? He’s practically an expert already.

Plus, Link is goingto have the exact same textbook to learn from as his new students,except he’s going to have a head-start and he has theeven-bigger answer key. He literally can’t go wrong.

Besides, Old Hylianis a dead language (which has been reincarnates into Modern Hylian)so it won’t hurt it too much when a bunch of teens brutally murderit. They’re already doing quite a good job on Modern Hylian and it’sstill limping along just fine.

And it’s not likeanyone speaks it anyway, aside from nerdy archaeologists andhistorians (note to self: ask Sarge about it?). So all Link reallyhas to worry about is the writing aspect.

Yeah. It’ll be easymoney.

***

Somehow the rumorgets around before Link gets his ass in front of the school board.Reportedly, so many students have been asking Guidance Councilor GorCoron about the Old Hylian class that they might have to divide itinto two sections.

The school boardapproves Link to take over on the spot.

***

Link has just enoughtime for a proper power nap at his desk between his first Old Hylianclass and his Hylian Sign Language class. But Sarge has a break atthe same time which she usually takes in the faculty lounge, to takeadvantage of the tea kettle while she grades or lesson-plans or readsbooks that have nothing to do with historical military campaigns.

The thing about“Sergeant Snowpeak” Zelda Harkinian, with her no-nonsensedress suits, and her stern librarian bun, and her sensible militaryboots, and her severe black-rimmed (actually fake, she admitted toLink, the lenses are plastic but, well, the frames looked the partand she’s always admired the image of a woman in uniform) spectacles,and her baton that’s ideal for pointing to the blackboard or rappingon a desk, and her old-fashioned bathroom and hall passes…the thingis, she’s quick to make a joke. She has a very small laugh, so youhave to watch for it. She’s thoughtful, she thinks about thingsbehind that serious face, and she’ll come up to you with a deadpanand witty response to a joke you made a week ago.

Zelda takes off herboots sometimes in the faculty lounge; there was a big run in thefoot of her nylons once, and she laughed about her toe poking out.She washes the dishes left in the faculty sink, but she hums whileshe does it because she likes things tidy. She walks just a littleheavier than she needs to, so her boots will ring out in EastCastleton Prep’s halls.

(She has it on goodauthority that the sound of her boot heels approaching can send moresensitive students into tizzies of anxiety. So her first term, on theday of final exams, Miss Harkinian thoughtfully removed her bootsbefore striding to the classroom. The sight of her suddenlymaterializing in the doorway, test papers in hand, somehow didnothing to calm her students’ nerves.)

She can hold herliquor, but she can’t carry a tune. She never learned to cook forone, because that would be a waste of good leftovers. She thinks thatHylian Military History is a crucial subject that teaches teenagersabout strategy and critical reasoning and logical thought, aboutpracticality and consequences, about wilderness survival skills, andwill help them become somewhat-sensible young adults.

Sarge worked withathletics teacher Ashei one year to host an archery tournament forthe Feast of Din, and she shot an apple off Link’s head withouttelling him first that this was why she’d ushered him up to thepodium.

The thing is, inshort, Link has a huge crush on Zelda Harkinian. He likes her.He is, in fact, completely smitten, although he hasn’t realized he’squite so far gone despite the fact that he regularly tells the catsat Impaz’ shelter What Sarge Did Today complete with little sighs.

So it’s a bit of ashame she doesn’t feel quite the same way.

Link did ask Zeldaonce if she’d like to “embrace diversity,” but she didn’tseem interested.

***

Zelda quite likesShad, don’t get her wrong. But, she admits to Telma, if only he’dgotten a grant that let him spend the whole year onsabbatical…

This is surely ablessing from the goddesses. Not that Zelda would wish undue stresson Link but, for all his enthusiasm about taking on Shad’s OldHylian, he seems to be finding the subject very hard going. And ofcourse Zelda has a bit of expertise to share–after all, the seminaltext in her field, Sword in Hand, is originally in OldHylian–so he can come to her with any small questions…

…And he does.

Almost every dayLink catches her in the faculty lounge for a few minutes ofconjugation here, or pops into her empty classroom for a bit ofdeclension there, or accompanies her on her walk home for adiscussion of the merits of this translation over that.

It’s not as thoughshe needs an excuse to get to know Link better. She already knows himquite well. But a little bit of extra time is…nice, since they’realready good enough friends that Zelda knows he’s in a committedrelationship with Old Cat Lady Lifestyle.

The cats, thedrinking, the napping all the time, the surprisingly full socialcalendar that Zelda can’t quite squeeze into…in other words, allthe hallmarks of spinster-dom.

It’s just a bit of ashame, seeing as he’s the only slightly-rumpled and generally-mussything she actually doesn’t mind looking at.

In any case, she’stried gauging his interest, and it’s just not there. Anytime shetries to feel him out with a pick-up line, he deflects with acorrection on her grammar or a compliment about how her signing iscoming along. Clearly, Link’s completely satisfied with theirrelationship exactly as it is.

So Zelda will be,too.

***

This is the one,Midna had said, grinning wickedly. This is absolutely stupid enoughto work on that dumbass, Midna had said, with evil glee.

All sorts ofoptimistic hope flowered in Zelda’s chest at the sight of thatparticular expression on her ex-girlfriendcurrent-long-distance-BFF’s face. This had to be good.

So Zelda caught Linkin between classes and asked him, “Am I so beautiful you’respeechless?”

Link repeated itback to her, tweaking the body language a bit to make beautifula little sassier, waited for her to sign it again, and then gave hera thumb’s up and walked off.

***

(Link wished hewere the one she was saying that to, but oh well. He supports herhappiness! Zelda’s his friend, after all.)

***

One of the girlsstays after class, all the way from Hylian Sign Language nearly up toOld Hylian round 2, getting Mr. Link to teach her, painstakingly overand over, how to ask the girl she likes if she’ll go to the Nayru’sDay Dance with her. It’s going to take 5 minutes at the start ofclass tomorrow, she informs Mr. Link, and also a lot of glitter.

In Link’s day–ohgoddesses, he’s old now–they just slipped notes or asked withoutthe performance art. Actually, Ilia usually just informed Link thatthey would be going together to share on the ticket cost. But kidsthese days seem to believe a gift is customary.

Link is old, though,so he just slips Zelda a note.

“I can’t readyour handwriting,” she tells him. “Oh! By the way, I signedup to run the concessions stand at the dance. Perhaps you’d like tojoin me?”

***

Heads bent overcandies and little bags of popcorn and assortments of soda, with thecash box between them, Link asks Zelda to help him brainstorm somereally evil ideas for his Old Hylian final exam. Link isn’t much intodifficult tests, as a rule, because they involve more work to grade.But he doesn’t want Shad to think he’s been slacking.

Link asks Zelda ifshe’d come over to his place for dinner one evening, you know, tokeep working on the exam. Since he needs so much help with it. And tothank her. For helping.

***

She says yes.

[lovethefinalseason-blog]

PLL 7B, Ep 5: In the Eyes Abides the Heart

Welcome back! It’s been 2 weeks since the last new episode so let me remind you where we last left the liars.  Hanna found out that Pastor Ted, her mom’s ex-fiance, was the father of CeCe aka Charlotte aka Charles.  Pastor Ted also innocently let her know that Charlotte had a childhood friend by the name of Lucas, the genius gaming millionaire and former high school classmate letting Hanna stay in his apartment for free.  Spencer finds out from her dad that Mary Drake killed her twin sister, Ali’s mom Jessica, and tried to frame him for murder by burying the body in the Hastings backyard.  Aria finds out that Sydney is indeed working with AD and is given a choice - play the game and be tortured by AD or join AD and watch her friends be tortured but be safe herself. Hmm...tough choice, I don’t know let me see what would I do...I think I would get a good lawyer and GO TO THE FUCKING POLICE.  What else, what else...oh right..ALI IS PREGNANT WITH EMILY’S BABY.  

Tonight’s episode, we are reminded every commercial break, was directed by Spencer herself, Troian Bellisario - fitting because after this episode I am officially convinced that the “Spencer has an identical twin” theory is real.  This theory goes two ways - either there are two Spencers running around (the more likely theory) OR Spencer really did die of her gun shot wound to the heart and fake Spencer took her place (my preferred ending for how ridiculous it would be).  

At the start of the episode Emily and Ali are wondering what they should do about the baby.  Emily feels angry and violated, the most real feelings I’ve ever heard from any of the liars. 

Aria is hiding out behind a dumpster outside a restaurant holding her phone. When her facetime rings, a creepy face comes up that seriously looks like a Paige and Aria faceswap (from now on known as Paria).  Aria tells Paria that she won’t hurt her friends, and Paria laughs and says she will because Ezra is one document away from going to prison (I still don’t fully understand this, did I miss something here? Is it a document that says he hooked up with Aria in high school because ...we all know.  Or did he plagiarize something at some point? I think we aren’t supposed to know what’s in that, but sorry if I’m wrong about that and leading you astray.)

At the brew, Emily/Ali tell the others that they went to the clinic to get blood tests - It should be noticed here that a simple blood test won’t determine the paternity or maternity of your child, they probably had to do an amniocentesis and Ali should probably be resting now.   They talk about Lucas - Hanna doesnt believe he knows anything.  Emily suggests going through Lucas’ things (something I would’ve done the moment Lucas let me stay in his apartment, even before I found out he was connected to Charlotte).  They assume the loft is full of bugs, but they want to search discretely anyway.   They all leave Aria, who misses a facetime from AD.  

Spencer brings cupcakes to Marco and asks Marco about Archer Dunhill’s finger.  She’s wondering what happened (even though she knows).  He thinks Mary Drake is a possible suspect in Rollins’ death. He asks Spencer if she knew Mary was involved with Archer and she immediately said no.  She reminds him she didn’t know Archer was dead when she asked him to look for Mary.

Aria comes back to the loft to find Ezra is on the phone with Nicole’s dad.  Nicole’s parents want Ezra to go back to NY.  Ezra leaves to go run errands and Aria’s facetime rings again.  Creepy Paria is mad that Aria sent her to voicemail again.  Paria sounds just like really corny. I’m not even sure how Aria talks to her without laughing.  It seriously looks like Paige in a fun house mirror.   Aria asks what AD is getting out of this and she looks at Aria and says:

Literally, exactly like that.   Aria tells AD that Hanna and Spencer went looking for Mary Drake and found the place she hid for a few days as well as Charlotte’s father.  AD hangs up.  

Back at Rosewood High, Paige and Emily are talking about Ali’s baby. Paige doesn’t know it’s really Emily’s, she still thinks its Archer, a fact Emily doesn’t correct.  Ali calls and lets Emily know the clinic called - it’s definitely Emily’s baby but it’s not Archer’s sperm.  They don’t know who the father is....yet.  I do have a theory on this, but I’ll save it for later. 

When Spencer gets back to her place, she sees a pillow out of place and an empty wine glass.  At the door sits a wine bottle with a note inside.  It says “Need to talk please, Mary.”

Hanna and Emily are not so subtlely searching through Lucas’ apartment. Hanna asks her what she’s going to do about the baby.   Emily says whatever Ali wants to do, and then changes the subject to the boxes under Lucas’ desk.  It’s a box of comic books.  Hanna muses about how cute her and Caleb’s babies would be (they definitely would be) while they go through the box.  At the back they find a manila envelope and inside is a comic called “Arcturus” by Lucas and Charles.  Hanna and Emily later show Aria the comic.  It’s a comic about a kid geting bullied and his friend turns into a super hero to torture the friends who picked him - it includes a lot of psychological torture.  Aria suggests maybe Lucas is the father of Ali’s baby and Emily says no and takes the comic away.   I’d like to point out here that the one liar missing from this scene is Spencer who’s busy leaving a note in a wine bottle at her door for Mary Drake.  

In their next facetime call, Aria tells Paria about the weird comic book.  She asks if facetime is Lucas, and AD laughs and says would I tell you if I was?  Then says “you’re a good spy Aria, now lets see what kind of thief you are.”  Curious that Paria wants Aria to steal a comic book and the only liar not in the room when the comic book was shown was Spencer..hmmm???

Let’s return to the show - Emily is drunk at Spencer’s house (you can always count on Spencer to have plenty of wine).  Emily says she keeps thinking about the letter Mary wrote Spencer with all the pain and regret of giving up her child.  Emily doesn’t want to write a letter like that.  Spencer stares at the wine bottle with the note in it as she talks.  

A possibly drunk Emily goes to Ali’s house and tells her that she wants her to have the baby.  She wants a chance to raise the child. Ali, looking concerned and confused, says we don’t even know who the father is.  Emily says we know who the father isnt (but it could still be a psychopath though....)  Emily says she doesnt want AD to win, and Ali is like what? And Emily is like that’s not my only reason and she understands if Ali can’t but she wants her to promise to at least think about it.  Ali says she promises. 

Hanna comes back home and goes to get the comic but realizes it’s missing. She calls Spencer (odd choice) who thinks Lucas is watching them.  As she’s on the phone she notices a new note in the wine bottle.  In it is a key...now the real mystery begins.... How the hell did the key not drop to the bottom of that wine bottle???

At the brew,  Mona shows Hanna that their factory space is on a real estate site and Lucas must’ve put it there.  Hanna stares at it for a few minutes then suddenly remembering that Mona is a genius, she tells Mona that she has to show her something. 

It’s now night time and a sketchy Aria is walking through the halls of Rosewood High with a flashlight , stopping in front of locker 214.  She opens it (it’s empty) then places the envelope with the comic inside.  As she’s leaving she hears a noise in the school and runs back to the locker. When she opens it a black hoodie is now inside.  

Emily gets drinks with Paige at the Radley, and finally tells her what is going on with her and Ali's baby  Just like all of us watching, Paige can’t get over the fact that Alison is having Emily’s baby.  Paige thinks she should leave town because she doesnt know who she’ll be to Emily if she stays.  Emily tries to beg her to stay and Paige looks at her saying “this is the third time i’ve said goodbye to you, i’m never going to say it again.” They share a last kiss and Paige leaves. 

Hanna brings Mona to Ali’s and shows her Liar’s Lament.  Mona basically makes love to the game.  She says it runs on battery and when she tries to touch the game a knife comes out and she laughs.  She wishes she could’ve built something like this because it’s brilliant and beautiful.  She then takes a lot of pictures of it on her phone.  Something tells me AD won’t like this..but then again AD is too busy facetiming her new bff Aria. 

Spencer uses the key to go to a house I assume is Mary’s? There’s mail all over the floor when she walks in.  She uses her flashlight to scan instead of turning on any lights, as you do in Rosewood. 

When Aria gets back she sees a bag packed by the door and Ezra sitting on the couch.  Ezra tells her that everything is ok but he has to go talk to Nicole’s doctor….in NY becuase her parents asked him to come.  Aria is like..do you think her parents really don’t know how to talk to a doctor?  What happens when we are married? He says he’ll be back in two days and she says i don’t want you to come back, I want you to stay - you dont know what I’ve done for us.  Ezra says what Nicole went through was the worst thing in the world and when she came back everything was different and it’s not fair.  Kind of like that time that Aria was kidnapped and tortured in a dollhouse?  Then she got back and Ezra and her decided to break up. She asks him to stay again but he leaves anyway. 

Ali is sleeping on her couch when a figure hovers over her.  When she opens her eyes Paige is standing there saying “wake up the door was open you should watch that.”

Spencer sits alone on the couch in the creepy house when she hears a noise at the door.  A flashlight shines in her face and it’s Marco.  He followed her there.  Marco is on to them and says that Spencer seems like she’s the most guilty because she’s so connected to Mary Drake.  He asks her if Spencer knew that Archer was at the bar the same night that they were (last season when they made out at the Radley after Spencer broke up with Caleb) or at least his credit card was - flashback to that time Spencer accidentally pulled out Archer’s credit card to pay for their drinks and signed it with her own name.  Also when he asked that night what she was doing earlier she “jokingly” said “burying a body.” Oops. 

Don’t worry, Paige was not there to murder Ali. She is just there to say goodbye because she is leaving Rosewood. She tells Ali she doesnt want to make it any tougher but she wants to know if Ali loves Emily.  Ali says shes the last person she should ask about love.  Paige says you know Emily loves you but Ali shrugs it off saying she was a terrible person and sometimes she still is.  She doesnt want to tell the truth and Paige tells her to try.  Ali says “ i know how i feel when she looks at me, I’ve never felt that with anyone before. It’s like she sees who you really are. Maybe that’s the scariest part. You look at her, her eyes, and you want to be worth the effort. You want to be the person she sees.”  Paige is smiling bc she knows that Ali loves her. Then she gets up to leave, before she goes she says “Ali, you’re going to have a beautiful baby.”

In her ridiculous over the top Mona way, Mona has mapped out a blue print of the game, showing how it all works.  Mona says whoever made it can’t stop it now - when the game ends, the game dies. Hanna asks if Mona thinks Lucas is involved.  Mona says its not computers, it was “lovingly handmade”.  Hanna asks Mona to help her play the game and win because she’s the only person who isnt afraid of it. Mona says shes not afraid of it because she doesn’t have a game piece on it.   Mona says that someone who plays with people’s lives like this is an addict - something she knows because she once was one.  Hanna looks at her and says, yes but now you can finally beat them.

Ezra is waiting for his flight to NY at the airport.  Now I was just joking when I said the PLL team always takes the express jet to NY but I guess it’s true.  As he’s listening to the flight delay announcements, he turns and sees Spencer talking to someone in the airport.  She notices Ezra and says hello, calling him over. The guy she is with turns around and it’s WREN - with a shaved head!  She cheerily introduces Ezra to Wren as the guy who was “almost her brother in law a few times” and asks Ezra to join them for a drink, he declines and begins to walk away.  She runs to catch him and tells Ezra that Wren used to work at Radley when Charlotte was there so she’s trying to get information.  She asks Ezra if he would mind keeping it a secret that he saw her there.  Hmm...Spencer was just caught by Marco in Mary Drake’s house and now she’s cheerily at the airport with Wren?  Also she wants Ezra to not tell anyone he saw her?  Could this be.....the identical twin???

Emily finds Ali crying in the bathroom looking distraught. I really thought Ali was about to tell Emily she had a miscarriage but instead she tells her she’s going to keep the baby because she thought about “what it means and what it could mean.” They are going to do it...together. #emison

Ezra returns home from the airport to Aria.  It’s awkward but Aria apologizes for what she said earlier. There’s really no need to apologize here because Ezra is a pedophile and kind of an asshole but whatever Aria is working for AD now so.. Ezra says his flight wasn’t cancelled, he just didn’t get on it.  In her bag Aria’s phone is buzzing but she doesn’t asnwer.  

As real Spencer comes out of the shower she knocks over the wine bottle with a new note in it saying “you brought the police. I understand. Goodbye.”

In the last scene, AD is sitting at an Inspector Gadget style computer editing the facetime photo of Paria.  The voice says over and over again “I warned you, I warned you, I warned you.”  The image then holds up a file with Aria’s name on it and she laughs in such a ridiculous way I can’t help but laugh with at her. 

Overall, I’d say this episode was a little boring. No big reveals, no shocking conclusions - even revealing Wren in the airport was not that dramatic.  I do really believe that identical twin Spencer is A.  AD is still someone’s initials after all....Amelia Drake anyone?  And what about Wren? It would be really easy to switch hospital records and steal someone’s eggs if you had a doctor on your side.  So maybe Wren really did lust after Spencer all these years, then found the next best thing - her identical twin.  Is Wren the father of Emison’s baby?  And where does Melissa fall into all of this? Is she just going to disappear like Judy Winslow?   So many questions, but to be honest I’m not sure I trust I. Marlene King to give us all the answers. 

[bladinstimes]

How To Be Hermione Granger

The point of this article is to share some tips and tricks that I, an old Bladins student and current Lund University student, have picked up throughout the years regarding my study technique.

Much like probably most Bladins students, I have always been very ambitious and over-achieving, and thus, I have always obsessed over my revision and grades to the point of mental breakdowns. Every deadline and exam used to bring me massive amounts of anxiety and terror. Unfortunately this is very common today, students work themselves to their breaking points - over and over and over again.

Today I feel more confident that as long as I pay attention during lectures, do my reading and note-taking and give myself more than the night before to study, it should go well - and if not, there’s often a re-exam option. (PS. There’s no shame in having to take a re-exam. It saved my ass once or twice this semester.) However this is not, as the article could indicate, an article on how to actually be Hermione. This is a guide with some sound advice on how to study like her. Or something like that. I mean, what do I know? The books and movies don’t really tell us much about her actual study technique, just that whatever she does works (of course, she does have a time-turner to her advantage, which most of us don’t, which means we actually have to manage our time to get the best out of or study sessions).

I personally strongly identify as a Ravenclaw and even though Miss Granger isn’t in my house, she is portrayed as the brainiac in the HP trio. In a maybe nerdy way, she is an inspiration and role model to me when it comes to school-work. I mean, if Hermione can get good grades AND fight against You-Know-Who with her two BFFs whilst also having to save their asses, because Harry and Ron definitely don’t use as much brain power as she does, then I think I can get my assignment done on time… right?

1. Pay attention in class & take notes

I know, I know, it’s so tempting to look out the window or be on FaceBook or Tumblr whilst the teacher is going on and on about something boring you don’t understand. You may think why you would even need to know. Unfortunately for you, if you want to get a good grade, you do need to know that stuff. Thus taking notes is a very easy way to make sure you don’t drift away in daydreams. it will not only give you a great tool when revising for the test or writing the final assignment, it will force you to stay awake and listen to your teacher.

2. Make a study plan

Write down what you need to get done, when it needs to be done and prioritize it accordingly. Not only does this make you organized and it will be easier to know where to start (which is often the hardest part), it will also make it easier to check it off once you’re done and thus keep track of your revision (and trust me, it is so rewarding and almost exciting to get to check that box or cross it off the list). It will also show what you have left to do if you were to get side-tracked or if something pops up.

3. Make studying fun and cozy

I personally like to make it cozy by having coffee or tea from my favorite mug (a Ravenclaw one, of course, gotta rep my house) and maybe a fruit or something like that. I also like to make my notes look neat, use different colors when I can be bothered and have access to multi-colored pens, give myself little breaks and rewards and play instrumental music that help me focus. By making how you study fun and cozy, you’ll be more inclined to actually do it - because you’ll want to.

4. Get up and move

Studying is a sedentary activity - you need to get up and wake your body up every now and again. Walk to the kitchen and get some water, go to the bathroom, do ten jumping jacks, five push ups or something else. Another suggestion would be to do some stretches, especially focused on neck, shoulders and back because these muscles especially tend to get stiff due to forgetting to keep good posture whilst being focused on something else.

5. Try to use as many senses as possible

Reading the material is good - your sight is involved. Taking notes whilst reading is better - your sight and touch are involved. Taking notes whilst reading something you then read aloud is even better - your sight, touch and hearing are involved. I’m not sure it’s possible to include smell and taste, but if you always spray a certain perfume and eat a certain snack when studying the same subject, perhaps it would help you out if you then use that perfume and eat that snack before whatever you need the information for. But I haven’t tried that one myself.

6. Turn your technology off and away if possible, but if not, use the ”do not disturb” function

Sometimes you do need i.e your phone, perhaps you use it as a calculator for maths or you need it for your favorite study playlist etc. Turning it off would make it hard to use them in that case, but putting it on ”do not disturb” will prevent all those notifications and fun stuff from popping up, and thus, the thing will not steal your attention.

7. Make a general to-do list the day before

Is it just me or do you suddenly get really productive regarding general chores when you sit down to study? Your mom asked you to do the dishes, you have to clean your room, you need to meet up with your friend in town at 4PM, etc. Make a to-do list with everything you need and want to do that day apart from studying. This can then be done during your study breaks or when you’re done.

4 tips if anxiety steals your brain

1. Drink tea, preferably chamomile: tea in general is relaxing, but chamomile has been proven to have a calming effect, can ease tension-headaches etc

2. Listen to calming music: example of Spotify playlists I love are ”Wake up and Smell The Coffee”, ”chill.out.brain”, ”Pluggfokus” or any yoga/meditation-type music.

3. vent. Write everything to a friend or in a document to yourself. If you decide to write to a friend, finish it off by saying ”okay gonna go back and try to study now so if you write something I won’t see it nor reply until later but thanks for being here for me” or something to show them you appreciate them.

4. If all else fails and you’ve tried everything you can think of: allow yourself to not study. I don’t mean after trying for half an hour and then giving up to watch Friends or play WoW, I mean if the mere thought of opening a book or writing one more word is making you feel bad in any way, allow yourself to take the day/night off. Do something that makes you happy, something you enjoy for a while instead. That will give you better conditions for trying again later. Often we don’t do this because it is so hard to allow ourselves to have fun when we know we have an important deadline coming up, and if we keep on trying whilst the anxiety is building up, we will only stress ourselves even more and that time is wasted. I would say time you spend doing something that brings you joy is not wasted time, even if you have something important to do. Doing that activity will brighten your mood and make you feel better, and thus, you’ll be able to concentrate and focus more when you get back to it because you won’t be as anxious or stressed.

And I mean... if all else fails...