#and then i was looking something up and his name pops up in the wikipedia article

[legoflowers]

why is this guy literally inescapable its actually so annoying

[rcmclachlan]

RC, PLEASE share more BuckTommy headcanons with us, everything you’ve said about them so far has been glorious.

Headcanon 1:

After Buck calls Tommy about touring Harbor and they agree on a date and time, he starts researching. Every free second he has between calls is spent watching videos that walk through what all the switches and gauges on a helicopter control panel do. On his days off, he reads pages and pages of posts on r/flying. There are no less than eight biographies about pilots on his kitchen counter dressed in the colorful fringe of all his page markers at any given moment. He devours Chickenhawk in one evening, then falls down a Wikipedia rabbit hole that starts with the article on the Bell UH-1 Iroquois and spits him out when he finishes reading about a municipality in Baku, Azerbaijan called Bibiheybət just as the sun starts peeking through the windows.

The night before he's supposed to meet Tommy, he takes a practice PPL exam for shits and giggles. He doesn't pass, of course, but he scores better than he expected to, and he can't wait to tell Tommy. He can't wait to wow him with everything he's learned.

Of course, it's all for nothing, because Eddie swoops in and steals Tommy right out from under him before Buck can even ask Tommy about his thoughts on the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024.

Once they make their relationship official, Tommy does make good on his promise to take Buck up, and it's so fun to watch Tommy navigate the skies like the helicopter is an extension of his body, like he's barely wowed anymore by the fact he can fly, and he even lets Buck handle the cyclic for a couple of minutes.

They're hovering almost 6,000 feet above city limits, watching the sun set in a sweet comfortable silence, when Buck's almost had his fill of looking at the clean lines of Tommy's profile, he says, "Someday, when I get certified, I'm going to do a Screwdriver Down in a MD-500."

Once Tommy has wrestled the bird out of its sudden 400-foot free fall and back into an even hover, he grips the cyclic until his knuckles bleed white and says, teeth clenched, "Evan, unless you want tomorrow's top headline to be 'Two LAFD Firefighters Die In Massive West Hollywood Helicopter Crash,' I'm begging you to keep the dirty talk to yourself until we're back on the ground."

Headcanon 2:

Tommy has seen a UFO. He's actually seen, like, four. The third time, he'd been flying over the San Gabriel Mountains when something popped up on his radar out of literally nowhere and clipped his tail rotor, sending both him and the craft crashing into the woods. 

He doesn't remember anything that happened after that. He woke up in a windowless hospital room where someone in full military dress blues shook his hand and congratulated him on becoming the first ambassador to outer space. Then he made Tommy sign approximately eight million SF-312s and consent to be called upon "if the time should ever come." 

This is why he can't watch sci-fi movies with a straight face.

Headcanon 3:

Back in 1996, Tommy's buddies Jamal Kluger and Mitch Henney finally convinced him to go to one of the weekly school dances, mostly because Jamal was determined to slow dance with Amanda O'Shaughnessy and he needed moral support. Tommy didn't hate dances per se. Were there a hundred other things he'd rather be doing? Yes. He had a backlog of Car and Driver that really needed seeing to, but Jamal was practically his brother and Tommy would do a lot worse than dispassionately swaying with a few of his classmates to Mariah Carey in the name of best-friendship.

He'd been in the middle of trying to get Jamal's attention—not that he was ever going to notice, because he was finally dancing with Amanda and everyone else in the gym had probably ceased to exist—with his hands hovering a respectful quarter inch off Laura Lee Moore's hips, who said she'd specifically requested Dreaming of You, when the slow turning they'd been doing put him at the perfect vantage point to see Brett Bennett, pitcher for the East Woodbridge Falcons, dancing with Vanessa Wilson.

Brett was wearing a really nice button-up shirt and Tommy's gaze kept snagging on the way his arms filled out the sleeves, and he couldn't help but wonder if Vanessa could feel the calluses on Brett's hands through her miniskirt. They were probably rough and kept snagging the fabric. Vanessa could probably feel the pull of them, like velcro trying to pry apart. He watched Brett lean down to say something to her and couldn't help but think Brett wouldn't have to strain his neck so much to talk if he were dancing with Tommy. They were almost of a height; Tommy would barely have to tilt his head down. Selena crooned I just want to hold you close, but so far, all I have are dreams of you, and Tommy's heart pounded so loud he was almost certain Laura Lee could hear it over the music. When the song ended, he awkwardly backed away from her and thanked her for the dance, his gaze on Brett and Vanessa, who were still pressed close even though the Quad City DJs were enthusiastically telling people to ride a train. According to his cousin Denise, who was a grade below him and also in attendance that night, Laura Lee spent the rest of the night crying in the bathroom because Tommy couldn't take his eyes off Vanessa.

Almost thirty years later, he and Evan are hanging on the couch, half-watching an episode of Taskmaster and reminiscing about their first crushes—"Really, Evan, your teacher?"—and when Tommy tells him about wishing he'd danced to Dreaming of You with Brett Bennett, Buck presses a sweet kiss to Tommy's arm and says, "Stop making me want to time travel so I can fight an eleven-year old."

Tommy laughs and says, "It was more wanting to slow dance with a cute boy in front of everyone than Brett himself. You have nothing to be jealous about. When we were in the eighth grade, he crushed up a bunch of Altoids and snorted them through a hollowed-out pen during social studies. I've never heard anyone scream like that in my entire life. They had an ambulance come for him and he never came back to school after that."

"Sounds like a real winner," Evan teases, tongue between his teeth. "You really know how to pick 'em."

"Yeah, it's a gift," Tommy deadpans, and then wrestles Evan, who's cackling like a hyena, into the couch cushions. 

Months later, Howie and Maddie throw a big party—which Howie's been calling Reception Redux in the OG 118 group chat—in Tommy's backyard, and he's in the middle of an unspoken chicken wing eating contest with Eddie—who's winning, and Tommy has no idea how he's putting them away so fast—when the music changes from some pop song he doesn't know to a familiar tinkle of piano chords. Howie strong-arms the mic away from the DJ and announces with a big grin that the song was requested by someone who wanted to "quote-unquote: dance with a cute boy in front of everyone."

Tommy almost chokes on the wing in his mouth, and he barely wipes the barbeque sauce off his fingers in time before Evan comes over, takes his hand, and pulls him onto the little dance floor they'd put down that morning in the flattest part of the yard. 

His heart pounds as Evan drapes his arms over Tommy's shoulders like it's the easiest thing in the world, pressing close until it feels like their bodies are merging everywhere they touch, and then starts to sway. Tommy slowly lets his hands settle on Evan's hips, firm and sure. He doesn't even consider doing the hover thing. 

As Selena sings about wishing on stars, Tommy closes his eyes and tucks his temple against Evan's, and for a moment they're in the East Westbridge Junior High School gym, which smells like sweat and cherry Lip Smackers and body odor, and across the room Jamal and Mitch both give him an enthusiastic thumbs up—and Mitch then does something obscene with his hands that has Jamal smacking him upside the head—because Tommy's dancing with the boy of his dreams in front of everyone while his stack of Car and Driver magazines sit unread and curling from the humidity. 

"If Brett Whatshisname shows up, I won't be responsible for my actions," Evan says warmly, voice soft against the curve of his ear. "Literally. I already cleared it with Athena."

I'll be dreaming with you tonight endlessly, the song promises, and Tommy opens his eyes in the present. He takes a deep breath, borrows the energy of Selena's vow, and pulls back just far enough to whisper against the corner of Evan's mouth, "Marry me."

[silverskyeline]

'number one fan'

series (part 1) - rockstar logan meets popstar wade backstage. what could go wrong? (1.1k words) pairing - logan howlett x wade wilson tags - first meeting, rockstar!logan x popstar!wade, enemies to lovers, swearing, logan feels drawn to wade, alcohol mention, kind of cute, wade is his number one fan, band au, wade still wears his deadpool mask, wade uses the name 'deadpool' as a stage name.

.・。.・゜✭・. .・。.・゜✭・. .・。.・゜✭・.

logan had never heard of their support act, but by the name alone he wasn't particularly interested. what kind of a name is 'deadpool' anyway? they probably play some regurgitated heavily sampled pop trash, the same sort of crap they loop on the radio that makes his ears bleed. or maybe metal, but not the good kind.

'deadpool'. . . what a load of shit.

.・。.・゜✭・. .・。.・゜✭・. .・。.・゜✭・.

it's not until logan finds himself backstage that he lands eyes on him, the front runner.

well, it's less that it was a casual encounter, more that wade makes his presence known in the only way he knows how.

"OH. MY. GOD." he squeals, balling his fists and shaking them as he squirms in front of the taller man, "it's you." he's adorned in merch, a shirt with logans face on it, badges on that same shirt, plus some stickers that were very obviously homemade. logan winces at the sight, but his eyes are more preoccupied with that mask he's wearing. red and black. what was he supposed to be, was this a sex thing?

there's silence, but only for a few moments, wade quickly fills it.

"can you sign my boobs?" he tilts his head, trying to meet logans gaze, pointing to his flat chest, "pretty please? i swear i won't sell it on ebay - or, well, i mean i guess there's probably people on ebay looking to buy human skin but-"

"don't do autographs," logan grumbles, thinning his eyes as he shakes his head. he pushes roughly past him, eyes glancing around for the rest of the band. why'd he always get dumped with the crazy fans?

"riiiight, gotta keep the fans at a distance, huh? smart, smaaart. . . i promise i'm not the kind of fangirl to hide in your basement. if i was i wouldn't have just told you that," he rambles on, following closely behind logan like a lost puppy, "the attic though? now that's-"

logan stops, wade walks directly into his toned back, stumbling backwards like a connecting bumper car.

taking a nice, deep, calming breath that does nothing to soothe the storm brewing within him, logan turns to face him once more.

"you know, you're taller than your wiki says. you should really do something about that," wade sighs, hands on his hips "unless you're the one that edited it. anyone can edit it, by the way - wikipedia, total garbage fire. i once had a back-and-forth fight with a mod while i tried to change the 50 states of america to just say: 'canada'. rest assured! i am banned for life."

a beat, and logans eye twitches. "do you ever shut the fuck up?" he asks with a look of sheer confusion on his face, he's not even sure what half of those words that spill from his mask-covered mouth even mean. and though he can't see through the material, he can tell the dumbass in front of him is smiling.

"no, not really," he shrugs nonchalantly, "it's one of my charms, that's what my wiki says. totally truthful. 100% accurate. 101% filled with grammatical errors."

logan groans and shakes his head in disbelief, he mutters something along the lines of 'this fuckin' guy' as he walks towards his dressing room. he had to be a joke, right? there's no way this guy was a serious musician, he could hardly hold a conversation never mind an instrument. who the fuck booked him?

"w-wait, where ya' goin?" wade calls out meekly, waving dramatically like a wife who's waving off her husband at war, "am i seriously not gonna get an autograph?"

slamming the door to his dressing room, logan disappears inside leaving wade to shrink in disappointment.

". . .aw man, wait 'till the mutuals find out i met the logan," he smirks, causing his mask to wrinkle as he searches desperately for his phone in one of his many pockets.

-

logan pays no attention throughout the support act, in fact, he remains holed up in his dressing room nursing a bottle of whisky. it was a pre-show ritual of his, and he wasn't going to give it up now. not even when his mind lingered to the little masked creature who annoyed the fuck out of him despite only being in his presence for a few minutes.

what? why the fuck was he even thinkin' about him?

whatever, logan thought, couldn't let people like that get inside your head. you give them too much room and they take root there like a bad smell, and logan had enough anger issues as is. he did not need this guy to make it worse.

so when he takes to the stage, his mind is firmly clear. well, as clear as it can be. logan often finds his mind to be slightly murky, waves never calm or gentle, a storm he couldn't quite tame. but music alleviated the heaviness of his thoughts, grounded him, finding peace in the melody, in the rough texture of the strings, the harsh beat of the bass that hits you in the chest like a bullet.

his eyes open, settling upon the audience.

until one audience member lets out a particularly loud shriek.

one that sounds all too familiar.

logans eyes immeditely hone in on the same guy from earlier. he's cheering in the front row, louder than everyone else. his body is pressed against the barrier as he waves a crudely written cardboard sign in crayon that says 'marry me logie' with a large red heart at the side.

maybe it's something in his pure enthusiasm, or the balls he must have to not feel an ounce of embarrassment, or maybe the fact that he's almost sort of endearing in a pathetic kind of way. but logan finds himself. . . smiling? no, it's not a full smile. that's rare, reserved for real special occasions. but it's close.

he's always found himself drawn to strays, because they often remind him of himself - lost, looking for a home, looking for somewhere to belong. and in that moment, logan could see something reflected in that stupid fucking weird mask of his - a craving for connection.

fuck.

in that moment, logan knew that this idiot had already taken root in his mind and was trying to make a home there. he couldn't let this happen, he wouldn't let this happen. he was a stranger, a deranged one at that.

no, this was not happening.

logan steals a glance in his direction once more.

except it was.

[blubberquark]

Why Not Write Cryptography

I learned Python in high school in 2003. This was unusual at the time. We were part of a pilot project, testing new teaching materials. The official syllabus still expected us to use PASCAL. In order to satisfy the requirements, we had to learn PASCAL too, after Python. I don't know if PASCAL is still standard.

Some of the early Python programming lessons focused on cryptography. We didn't really learn anything about cryptography itself then, it was all just toy problems to demonstrate basic programming concepts like loops and recursion. Beginners can easily implement some old, outdated ciphers like Caesar, Vigenère, arbitrary 26-letter substitutions, transpositions, and so on.

The Vigenère cipher will be important. It goes like this: First, in order to work with letters, we assign numbers from 0 to 25 to the 26 letters of the alphabet, so A is 0, B is 1, C is 2 and so on. In the programs we wrote, we had to strip out all punctuation and spaces, write everything in uppercase and use the standard transliteration rules for Ä, Ö, Ü, and ß. That's just the encoding part. Now comes the encryption part. For every letter in the plain text, we add the next letter from the key, modulo 26, round robin style. The key is repeated after we get tot he end. Encrypting "HELLOWORLD" with the key "ABC" yields ["H"+"A", "E"+"B", "L"+"C", "L"+"A", "O"+"B", "W"+"C", "O"+"A", "R"+"B", "L"+"C", "D"+"A"], or "HFNLPYOLND". If this short example didn't click for you, you can look it up on Wikipedia and blame me for explaining it badly.

Then our teacher left in the middle of the school year, and a different one took over. He was unfamiliar with encryption algorithms. He took us through some of the exercises about breaking the Caesar cipher with statistics. Then he proclaimed, based on some back-of-the-envelope calculations, that a Vigenère cipher with a long enough key, with the length unknown to the attacker, is "basically uncrackable". You can't brute-force a 20-letter key, and there are no significant statistical patterns.

I told him this wasn't true. If you re-use a Vigenère key, it's like re-using a one time pad key. At the time I just had read the first chapters of Bruce Schneier's "Applied Cryptography", and some pop history books about cold war spy stuff. I knew about the problem with re-using a one-time pad. A one time pad is the same as if your Vigenère key is as long as the message, so there is no way to make any inferences from one letter of the encrypted message to another letter of the plain text. This is mathematically proven to be completely uncrackable, as long as you use the key only one time, hence the name. Re-use of one-time pads actually happened during the cold war. Spy agencies communicated through number stations and one-time pads, but at some point, the Soviets either killed some of their cryptographers in a purge, or they messed up their book-keeping, and they re-used some of their keys. The Americans could decrypt the messages.

Here is how: If you have message $A$ and message $B$, and you re-use the key $K$, then an attacker can take the encrypted messages $A+K$ and $B+K$, and subtract them. That creates $(A+K) - (B+K) = A - B + K - K = A - B$. If you re-use a one-time pad, the attacker can just filter the key out and calculate the difference between two plaintexts.

My teacher didn't know that. He had done a quick back-of-the-envelope calculation about the time it would take to brute-force a 20 letter key, and the likelihood of accidentally arriving at something that would resemble the distribution of letters in the German language. In his mind, a 20 letter key or longer was impossible to crack. At the time, I wouldn't have known how to calculate that probability.

When I challenged his assertion that it would be "uncrackable", he created two messages that were written in German, and pasted them into the program we had been using in class, with a randomly generated key of undisclosed length. He gave me the encrypted output.

Instead of brute-forcing keys, I decided to apply what I knew about re-using one time pads. I wrote a program that takes some of the most common German words, and added them to sections of $(A-B)$. If a word was equal to a section of $B$, then this would generate a section of $A$. Then I used a large spellchecking dictionary to see if the section of $A$ generated by guessing a section of $B$ contained any valid German words. If yes, it would print the guessed word in $B$, the section of $A$, and the corresponding section of the key. There was only a little bit of key material that was common to multiple results, but that was enough to establish how long they key was. From there, I modified my program so that I could interactively try to guess words and it would decrypt the rest of the text based on my guess. The messages were two articles from the local newspaper.

When I showed the decrypted messages to my teacher the next week, got annoyed, and accused me of cheating. Had I installed a keylogger on his machine? Had I rigged his encryption program to leak key material? Had I exploited the old Python random number generator that isn't really random enough for cryptography (but good enough for games and simulations)?

Then I explained my approach. My teacher insisted that this solution didn't count, because it relied on guessing words. It would never have worked on random numeric data. I was just lucky that the messages were written in a language I speak. I could have cheated by using a search engine to find the newspaper articles on the web.

Now the lesson you should take away from this is not that I am smart and teachers are sore losers.

Lesson one: Everybody can build an encryption scheme or security system that he himself can't defeat. That doesn't mean others can't defeat it. You can also create an secret alphabet to protect your teenage diary from your kid sister. It's not practical to use that as an encryption scheme for banking. Something that works for your diary will in all likelihood be inappropriate for online banking, never mind state secrets. You never know if a teenage diary won't be stolen by a determined thief who thinks it holds the secret to a Bitcoin wallet passphrase, or if someone is re-using his banking password in your online game.

Lesson two: When you build a security system, you often accidentally design around an "intended attack". If you build a lock to be especially pick-proof, a burglar can still kick in the door, or break a window. Or maybe a new variation of the old "slide a piece of paper under the door and push the key through" trick works. Non-security experts are especially susceptible to this. Experts in one domain are often blind to attacks/exploits that make use of a different domain. It's like the physicist who saw a magic show and thought it must be powerful magnets at work, when it was actually invisible ropes.

Lesson three: Sometimes a real world problem is a great toy problem, but the easy and didactic toy solution is a really bad real world solution. Encryption was a fun way to teach programming, not a good way to teach encryption. There are many problems like that, like 3D rendering, Chess AI, and neural networks, where the real-world solution is not just more sophisticated than the toy solution, but a completely different architecture with completely different data structures. My own interactive codebreaking program did not work like modern approaches works either.

Lesson four: Don't roll your own cryptography. Don't even implement a known encryption algorithm. Use a cryptography library. Chances are you are not Bruce Schneier or Dan J Bernstein. It's harder than you thought. Unless you are doing a toy programming project to teach programming, it's not a good idea. If you don't take this advice to heart, a teenager with something to prove, somebody much less knowledgeable but with more time on his hands, might cause you trouble.

[rorywritesjunk]

You can't carry it with you if you want to survive

Somehow Buggy ended up with three cabin kids when he never expected to have any and now they're invading his bed.

Rating: PG

Warning: Mentions of child abuse. Kids got some trauma. Sunny is in this fic because tbh Cupcake isn't suited to for that motherly stuff. Yet. Also Buggy has knives. Kids have night terrors. Buggy calls the kids brats but it's affectionately in his own way.

A/N: A request from a lovely Anon who wanted Buggy with three cabin kids like the triplets from The Aristocats. It's been a bit since I saw that movie, did what I could from a wikipedia article on the movie and characters, and went from there. The kids names are ones I've always liked, there's no real significance to them, just had fun with them. To be honest, Sunny probably renamed the kiddos with the names they have now. It's a Sunny thing to do.

Title comes from "Dog Days Are Over" by Florence and the Machine.

“C-Captain?” 

Buggy pulled the blankets from over his head, glaring sleepily at the teary seven year old. Cedar, one of the cabin kids, stood beside the bed, hands behind his back, no doubt hiding the plush seagull Sunny purchased for him when they rescued him months ago. Poor kid looked ready to cry.

“What?” Buggy hissed. “Why aren't you in your bed, kid?”

Cedar looked towards the door and to the darkened hallway, a menacing passage he just came from, bravely making his way through and dodging scary creatures that may pop out of the shadows and snatch him away. He woke up to a scary sound, likely the ship moaning and creaking in the water, but he wasn't sure. Cabaji told the kids a bedtime story about sea beasts knocking into ships to eat the crew, and while they hadn’t seen any sea beasts yet, how could be sure there wasn’t one trying to eat them now?

“T-There was a noise…” Cedar mumbled, looking back at the captain. “A-And I got scared.”

Buggy sighed heavily and sat up in bed; Sunny stirred beside him, still asleep. Why was the kid waking Buggy up and not his wife? She handled this sort of thing, not him.

“Yea, well, pirates don’t get scared, kid.” Buggy grumbled. “What do you want me to do about the noise?” 

“I-I don’t-”

“What’s going on?” Sunny mumbled from her side of the bed as she sat up. “Who are you talking to, honey?”

“One of the brats woke up ‘cause of a noise.” Buggy told her. “That’s your thing, isn’t it?”

She shot him a sleepy glare before crawling over him to see who was awake. When she saw Cedar, looking close to tears, she ‘accidentally’ elbowed her husband in the ribs as she climbed over him to pull the kid in her arms. 

“Cabin kid or not, he’s still a kid.” She hissed at her husband before walking over to her side of the bed. Buggy’s jaw dropped, she was letting him sleep in their bed? Why? He had his own room, own blankets, own bed, why sleep in here? 

Sometimes his wife treated the cabin kids more like her own kids than crewmembers. That was not something Buggy was ever going to get used to. Sure, he was a cabin boy, he turned out fine even if he recognized the favoritism towards the other boy he grew up with, that Buggy would always be second best to Shanks if anything, but he was never coddled in the way his wife coddled the kids.

“If he sleeps in here one night, he’ll expect it every time!” Buggy told her. “He can sleep in his room!”

“You can sleep in his room if you're against this, honey.” Sunny shot back as she got Cedar comfortable in the middle of the bed, making sure he was tucked in with his plush seagull. Buggy sighed heavily and rubbed his face before shaking his head. “It’s just for the night, Buggy.”

“Fine, one night.” He muttered. The same thing he said a week ago when Cedar woke them both up because he had a nightmare, hearing noises on the ship again, sounds like heavy footsteps. He said his father had loud footsteps, which got louder when he was angry and looking for Cedar. He told Sunny in between sobs that he thought they were going to let him be taken away by his father to be hurt again. Buggy surprised Sunny the next day by showing Cedar that no bad guys could just walk onto the ship when they were in the middle of the sea, and that the crew would definitely stop any intruders before they could even reach the kids’ room. 

Cedar was the newest cabin kid, having been rescued by Buggy while Sunny was shopping for supplies. The pirate captain witnessed a man beating the boy in the street, something about not being able to do his chores right, and when Sunny stepped out of a shop, bags ladened with supplies and gifts for two of their current kids, she saw Buggy holding the boy up by the back of the shirt. She walked right back into the shop to get things for Cedar.

Buggy looked over at the two. Cedar was clinging to Sunny, already dozing off while his wife made herself comfortable. He sighed and settled himself back down, hoping to get to sleep soon.

Except that didn’t happen, because no sooner did he close his eyes he heard a scream from the kids’ room. He was up first, a hand grabbing his knives from on top of a shelf kept out of the reach of kids as he darted out of the room. It sounded like Rowan screaming, which meant Oak was likely awake too since the kids all shared a room. He ran down the hall, skidded to a stop in front of their room and threw the door open, knives ready to attack the intruder.

There was no intruder. Rowan was in her bed, sobbing loudly while Oak was trying to comfort her. Buggy looked around, making sure there was no one hiding in the shadows before his hand took the knives back to the room and he approached the kids.

“What the hell is going on?!” He demanded as Oak hugged the little girl, trying to comfort her. “You kids trying to keep me awake all night?!”

“I-I had a bad dream!” Rowan wailed. “I want M-Miss Sunny!”

Buggy rubbed his face. First Cedar, now Rowan. He looked at Oak.

“Are you fine to sleep in here on your own or do you need to sleep in our bed as well?” He asked, not bothering to hide the frustration in his voice. Oak shook his head as he let go of Rowan and went back to his own bed.

“I won’t have nightmares. I can sleep in here all by myself.” He told Buggy proudly as he crawled under his blankets, holding his own plush penguin to his chest. “Finally some peace and quiet!”

Buggy rolled his eyes and held his arms open for Rowan. She didn’t hesitate in jumping out of her bed and into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck while one hand clutched her plush duck. She wasn’t as sensitive of a kid as Cedar, but she also was a bit more affectionate, having no issues hugging Sunny or Buggy, wanting to be cuddled after a bad dream or if she didn’t feel well. She bonded with Sunny immediately when they rescued her from an abusive shop keeper, welts on her little arms, hands covered in burn marks, and her fingers all wrapped in bandages had Sunny taking the girl back to the ship while Buggy caused a distraction by stealing goods from the shop. Sunny introduced her to Oak who was relieved to have another kid on board, even if it was a girl (who promptly put him in a headlock and knocked him to the ground).

He took her back to the bedroom, grumbling about nightmares and how he didn’t sign up for this nonsense with these kids. Sunny was awake, talking to Cedar who had woken up from the scream. Buggy dropped Rowan onto the bed, the little girl giggling as the mattress bounced underneath her. Sunny pulled the blankets back and Rowan crawled underneath them next to Cedar, her small scarred hand reaching for Sunny’s. Buggy watched his wife take her hand, squeezing it gently as Cedar settled back down between them. 

“Everyone good now?” He asked grumpily as he got onto his side of the bed. “I really really want to get back to sleep.”

“Good night, Captain!” The kids said in unison. His hands went over to them, ruffling their hair before one stroked Sunny’s cheek lovingly. She grabbed his hand, kissing the back of it before letting it return to him.

“Good night, honey.” She chuckled softly as he looked over his shoulder to grin at her. He wasn’t a fan of not being able to cuddle his wife, but if having the brats sleep in his bed allowed him to get back to sleep, then fine, he could go a night without being in her arms.

The other three settled down, as did Buggy, but his eyes were only closed for ten minutes when he heard a noise at the doorway. He sat up, ready to grab his knives again, when he saw Oak standing there. Buggy rubbed his face. He didn’t have the energy or patience for this.

“What?!” He demanded, trying to keep his voice low to not disturb the others. “I thought you wanted the room to yourself!”

“I… just want to make sure everyone’s okay.” He whispered back, holding his stuffed penguin in his hands. Buggy stared at him for a moment, contemplating sending the boy back to his room, but he heard the other two let out happy little sighs, the rustling of blankets as they got comfortable, and Buggy climbed out of bed, pointing to the spot beside Rowan. 

“Get in.” Buggy sighed heavily, glad they only had three little headaches to deal with and no more. Oak didn’t waste any time crawling into bed and settling himself in. Sunny reached over the other two, stroking Oak’s hair as he looked over at her with a big smile. “Are we all done? Do we need anything, water, stories, a song? No? Good, because it’s way past your bedtime and I want to sleep.” He crawled back into bed and pointed to all three of them. “I am officially off duty as soon as I put my head down. Sunny is the one to wake up if you need anything, got it? Don’t bug me, you brats. I need to sleep.”

“Good night, Captain Buggy!” The three chirped in unison while Sunny chuckled. Buggy glared at his wife before turning himself over, his back to everyone as he laid his head back onto his pillow. He felt Oak pat him on the shoulder and Buggy sighed, turning his head around to look at him. The boy just patted him on the cheek before settling down for the night. Buggy managed not to roll his eyes before settling back down.

Oak was the first cabin kid, taken in by Sunny when she caught him trying to pickpocket her while she was out on another supply run. She was used to Buggy’s hands on her body that for a moment she thought that’s what was sliding into her pocket for her wallet, but when she grabbed Oak’s wrist and turned around, coming face-to-face with a scared six year old with a bruised and bloodied face, she decided right then that Buggy needed a cabin boy, no arguments to be had. And Buggy hadn’t been completely on board with the idea, but when the street gang leader who ‘employed’ Oak came to the ship looking for him, Buggy had no problem getting the crew to chase the guy off. 

Sure, the three were absolute headaches for Buggy even if they did their chores he assigned them with little fuss, and he would only admit to Sunny when he was drunk how much he adored the little brats, because he caught them a few weeks ago with his greasepaint , trying their best to mimic his look to show Buggy that they were very serious about being pirates on his crew. He… didn’t get mad, instead taking the time to help them with perfecting it. Sure, they made a mess of everything and Sunny had a heck of a time washing the greasepaint out of their clothes, but it was one of the few moments Buggy was proud to have the best cabin kids.  

Sunny made him swear to never have favorites with the kids, she wanted him to remember how he felt growing up with Shanks on the Oro Jackson, how he often felt left in the shadows of his friend, and why would he want any of their kids to feel that way? And Buggy tried not to, he gave them the same workload, fed them the same meals, and treated them all the same. He praised them when they did something great but also scolded them when they messed up. He was their Captain, not their father, even if he overheard the little headaches over breakfast one morning while he was helping Sunny plate everything that if they could choose a new dad it would definitely be Buggy cuz he was so nice to them and he was a nice captain too. 

He pretended to sneeze to cover up the sniffles he had when he heard that. Sunny just patted him on the arm and said nothing. 

[82mitsu]

{18Trip} The 18 Questions Corner - Kaguya Muneuji

This is a translation for the 18 questions interview uploaded on the official Youtube channel. I suggest to read this translation alongside it!

Note: P stands for "Player", this series has a voiced male & female character for the player. The interviews are conducted by the male player in this case.

TL note:

As Wikipedia defines: Anthroposophy is a spiritual new religious movement founded by esotericist Rudel Steiner. Spiritual science, in other words. 

Wikipedia once again: Shingen refers to Takeda Shingen, a daimyo of the Kai Province during the Sengoku period of Japan. He has gone by several names in his life: during his childhood he was Tarou or Katsuchiyo. After his coming of age ceremony, he became Harunobu. Later on in life he received a dharma name by his Buddhist master, Shingen. This can be read as Nobuharu, the reverse of Harunobu. 

Muneuji's helmet refers to his astronaut helmet.

P: 18 questions for the Tourism Ward Mayors! We look forward to your cooperation!

Muneuji: Yes, I’ll be counting on you.

What’s your name?

Kaguya Muneuji. 

How old are you?

I’m turning 16.

Tell us about your occupation!

A 2nd year at Asu High, I function as the vice president of the student council in addition to being the chief of the Anthroposophy Astronomy Club.

What’s the first thing you do when waking up in the morning?

Waking up U-chan, I believe.

Anything you’re particular about with lunch?

I must make certain I sit while eating. 

What pops up in your mind when it comes to “evening”?

The student council room… Many times I find myself there just as the sunset shines in through.  

What’s your routine before bed?

Doing maintenance on my helmet. 

Where do you start with washing your body?

My legs.

What’s essential when leaving for a trip?

My helmet. It serves as part of my training, and neither do I get catcalled over my face. 

What do you check before traveling somewhere?

Castles. I harbor great admiration for the warlords of the Warring States. 

What’s your favorite method of transportation for traveling? 

Bicycles are my pick. It builds up stamina too.

What’s one item you’d bring to a deserted island?

Chocolate that U-chan made. 

Please give us some fanservice! 

✧・ﾟ: *It is an honor to have your company, revel in all HAMA has to offer to your heart's content. Do as you think best.*:・ﾟ✧ …I tried to recall Shingen from his time as Harunobu. 

Who’s someone you’d lean on for support? 

My childhood friend U-chan.

Who would you swap bodies with for a day?

Morning Squad’s Lu-senpai.

What would you want to do as them?

Senpai is known to have been a legendary student council president. I yearn to have a glimpse of such heights even if for a moment. 

Pass on a message to your roommates!

U-chan, indulging in reading those thinnish books of yours is fine, but it would be best for you to head to bed earlier at night. 

Tell us from the heart, what’s a “journey” to you? 

A time to reflect on one’s everyday life… something along the lines of that.

P: Thank you, those were all 18 questions!

Muneuji: Indeed, it was quite fruitful. 

Muneuji: Kaguya Muneuji, HAMA’s 8th Ward Mayor. I am training each day for the purpose of becoming an astronaut. If I happen to be lacking anywhere, do tell me without any restraint. 

[queer-ragnelle]

Hello, I was wondering if you could please clear up some confusion I had about Hector's love life? Both Nightbringer and Wikipedia claim his first love was Perse of the Narrow March and then he loved the niece of the dwarf Groadain and eventually went back to Perse. But Vulgate Lancelot has the niece be his love before he's at Narrow March and also he never seems to even be in love with Perse when he meets her? I'm so confused, are these sites wrong or am I missing something?

Hi anon!

I’m gonna be honest with you, I don’t know much about Hector’s love life off the top of my head lol but as a general rule, while wikis can be a useful starting point, they should never be taken as a source or authority on anything. Better to read the Vulgate itself and draw conclusions from there. Medieval literature can be confusing enough on its own without a game of telephone mucking it up even more. A secondary option can be finding the information in guidebooks, as those will source their claims, and are therefore more trustworthy than an online wiki which anyone can edit. But all secondary sources are secondary. They will never be as good as locating the information from the text itself, as you'll see.

I'll walk you through the process to corroborate information so you can research these things yourself next time! All the books I reference are available as PDFs on my blog and I’ll link them right here for you.

First thing I did was open The Arthurian Name Dictionary by Christopher W. Bruce and key-word search for "Perse". She first pops up in relation to [H]Ector, where she's listed as his amie, the French word for ladylove or sweetheart.

She also has her very own listing in the dictionary! At the end of each character in the dictionary, the information is sourced to the text it originates from. [VulgLanc] refers to the Vulgate, specifically the Lancelot books. So we’ll look for her there next.

Groadain's niece is first mentioned Lancelot Part II, Chapter 56. The Story of Hector; Segurade and the Lady of Roestoc. This can be verified with a word search, like so.

Now the tricky thing here is, Maiden Narrow March is unnamed in the Vulgate. I don't see where the name "Perse" comes from, nor her intended's name "Zelotes". Neither are listed in the final book of the Vulgate which tracks that information. Neither pop up anywhere in the Vulgate, I checked. But Maiden Narrow March can be found by searching "Narrow March" and is first mentioned in chapter 61. Hector's Adventures During His Quest for Gawain. Oddly enough, this chapter opens with Hector distracted in thought by "the one he loves most in the world," which I take to mean Groadain's niece. Anyway, here Lord Narrow March explains the customs of Castle Narrow March and mentions his unwed daughter. Hector has to help liberate the lord and castle from a custom imposed on him by an enemy lord. So Hector fights the seneschal to King of a Hundred Knights, named Marganor, and defeats him. That done, all the prisoners are freed, the lord is happy blah blah, and the lord's daughter, Maiden Narrow March, kisses Hector.

After this Hector refuses her marriage proposal lol but he does ultimately promise he won't marry anyone else and accepts a ring from her.

Now here's the thing. I just reread this section. I don't see where Maiden Narrow March was ever betrothed to anyone else. Her father makes a point of saying she could have had three children by her age had she married sooner, but he was waiting for the best knight. Before Hector met the people at Narrow March, he had a few other adventures rescuing women, namely one lady whom needed to be avenged on Guinas of Blakestan. Then he went to Narrow March and was afterwards imprisoned elsewhere.

Some chapters focused on other characters happen, then in 65. Hector Rescues Elaine the Peerless From Her Imprisonment, Hector is still imprisoned by the Lord of the Fens, and things get confusing.

Maiden Narrow March learns of his imprisonment and implores her father send men to rescue him, which is done, but likewise the lady whom Hector avenged on Guinas of Blakestan is the daughter of the Lord of the Fens. AND THEN they introduce another maiden who is the niece of the Lord of the Fens. This maiden, apparently, has a crush on Hector and asks for "custody" of him from her uncle (her words, not mine), which is granted.

The chapter continues on as Maiden Fens talks about her sister, Elaine the Peerless, who was forced into a marriage she didn't want, and imprisoned for speaking against her husband (footnotes draw a direct comparison to Erec/Enid), and then Hector goes on to rescue Elaine, as the chapter title indicates.

Hector does say to Maiden Fens, unnamed sister of Elaine the Peerless, that he loves Maiden Narrow March, so as to that part of your ask, we do have confirmation there that Hector views her romantically!

In conclusion, the text specifies "maiden" when the woman is unwed and "lady" when she is married, but other than that, it's so confusing to separate them based on male relation that I can't really give you a complete answer. Nightbringer claims that Perse is given to a knight she didn't want while her father was on his deathbed and that's the point at which Hector liberates her. But "Narrow March" is never mentioned again in the entirety of the Vulgate after Hector sends that last greeting. Nor does a search of "amie" refer to any woman attached to Hector. The footnotes talk about other character's ladyloves, even Agravaine's amie, the Maiden of the Chair, but not Hector's Maiden Narrow March.

I even looked through the summaries of Vulgate chapters (located in the last book of the Vulgate along with the lists of names) and don't see where Hector rescues Maiden Narrow March. Nightbringer claims Vulgate, as does the Name Dictionary, but then on Nightbringer when you go to the page for "Narrow Borderland," it lists a bunch of other sources. I checked as well in Le Morte d'Arthur [Part I] and [Part II], there's a Duke of South Marches that Marhaus fights, and a Pedivere of Straight Marches that Bors defeats, but no clarification on Perse Narrow Marches or Hector's involvement there that I could find.

I'm sorry I couldn't give you a complete answer! It's possible I overlooked something, but this at least illustrates the importance of primary sources. Even The Name Dictionary seems to have its "facts" wrong! Then again, I could be missing an obvious answer here. Happy to be corrected if anyone knows more about Miss Perse.

Anyway, have a good day, anon. :^)

[lonelyroommp3]

☕️ Musical from the last 5 years (lol) that i should listen to

my god *i* don't even really listen to many musicals from the last five years because i sort of stopped paying attention after like 2019 when the MT fandom on here died down considerably. yes i work in musical theatre. don't look at me

okay here are some of my suggestions in no particular order based on shows i've actually managed to listen to and enjoy

sing street - one of the great theatrical casualties of covid - the cast literally moved into the theatre on the day the broadway shutdown started and the subsequently postponed bway transfer has just never materialised. they did have an out of town production in 2022 though :)) anyway, love this album, one of the few MT cast recordings that makes it onto my general listening playlists because several of the songs also work really well as standalone pop tunes

& juliet - if you just want to have a silly fun time listening to a jukebox musical this is thee one. bonkers little plot but it's packed with bangers throughout and repurposes its pop soundtrack into a musical theatre context in ways that range from unexpectedly genius (turning britney's "i'm not a girl, not yet a woman" into a nonbinary anthem) to really stupid in the funniest way possible (an entire character is named just to set up a *NSYNC joke)

kimberley akimbo - 2023 best musical winner, a solid example of the typical contemporary musical theatre sound which handily fulfills both the niche of "i enjoy shows like dear evan hansen and want another emotional teen story" and "i want more good meaty lead roles for older actresses"

a strange loop - 2022 best musical winner, a meta show about a fat black queer man who works as a theatre usher and is writing a musical about a fat black queer man writing a musical. filled with commentary about race and sexuality, definitely one for if you want your musicals to be thought & discussion provoking

shows i've not personally listened to for whatever reason but i've heard good things

operation mincemeat - i've heard nothing but hype about this show to the point where it's actually put me off seeing it. so of course i am perpetuating the cycle by recommending it to you without ever having listened to it

standing at the sky's edge - another west end show that i have heard so many good things about and not got around to seeing. so here you go. blind rec. fuck it

octet - i kind of went off dave malloy entirely around 2018 through zero fault of his own, god bless him, just because many of his fans were still being so annoying about the 2017 tonys. but i've heard good things about this show and maybe i need to actually get over myself and give it a listen

message for the masses if i didn't include your fave show or included something i hate it's because it's 10pm and i wanted to answer this quickly so i just skimmed wikipedia for musicals from 2019-2024 and thought oh yeah i know enough about that one to talk about it. i will have forgotten things. don't @ me please i beg you

[beardedmrbean]

Sorry, for these constant ranting about African and black American culture

It just sucks look at history as a black American at times. There no ancient kingdom or empire, like Han, Gupta, and Roman to call back to. No Mythos with great epics like Hellenism or Hinduism where I can see myself in.

No great warriors that might have shared your face and people use as inspiration in media. No great battle like the battle of Thermopylae for people recreate again and again

No great leaders like Alexander the Great, Ashoka the Great, Julius and Augustus Caesar that change the course of history

As soon as January and February ends, seemly everyone forgot your people history.

Will we be remember when mankind enter interstellar?

Sorry maybe my borderline suicidal depression kicking in. Despite all the diversity push, has black Americans done anything beyond fighting slavery and racism? So we still have to hijack other people history and pop culture? Are any of our stories worth being told by media?

Or are we nothing but a sad pitiful group? Ugh sorry for making you my therapist

It just sucks look at history as a black American at times. There no ancient kingdom or empire, like Han, Gupta, and Roman to call back to. No Mythos with great epics like Hellenism or Hinduism where I can see myself in.

Check the Nubians and southern kingdom of Egypt there were black Pharaohs and dynasties those are recorded and attested by non Egyptian sources.

As for the Mythos Rome took a bunch of them from conquered lands, much like Greece did, like Babylon and Assyria did, Egypt too, oh and Hindus did the same thing. Easier to keep a population happy if you point out how our gods and your gods are the same guys just with different names.

No great leaders like Alexander the Great, Ashoka the Great, Julius and Augustus Caesar that change the course of history.

They existed, we just don't have any records of who they were, nothing concrete at least, gotta decide for yourself how faithful the oral tradition is.

Or you can treat it like folklore, doesn't mean there's not some truth to it, exaggerated is all.

As soon as January and February ends, seemly everyone forgot your people history. Will we be remember when mankind enter interstellar?

No need to keep them separate, just because a skin colour isn't the focus doesn't mean people forget, stuff like the 'black national anthem' is divisive, it's bringing back segregation saying we have a different national anthem than you. No if you're Americans you've got the one, go start your own country if you want a different one.

Haiti looks like it's about to reset try there.

If you want some heroes that look like you, meet the Harlem Hellfighters

To our eternal shame the US wasn't in the business of giving medals to black soldiers in WW1 not so much in 2 either, France however was.

Sergent Johnson here managed a Coup De Gras for valor in the battle that got him named "The Black Death" it's always the black something isn't it, we back home finally rectified the travesty that had him overlooked for the Medal of Honor in 2015, he more than earned it, wish he could know how many people look up to him now.

I do hope he saw this after he got home at least, I'd have that on my wall lmao.

Legacy section of his Wikipedia page has lots of things on it, but this I think would be the thing I would be proudest of,

In 1919, co-founder of the American Legion Theodore Roosevelt Jr., son of former United States President Theodore Roosevelt, referred to Johnson as one of the "five bravest Americans" to have served in World War I.

One of the good Roosevelt's, and I'm gonna guess this got to him too, since he was still around.

You need a warrior here's one, he led and sacrificed, he's a good one to look up to, refused to let his buddy be taken captive at great personal risk after they'd fought of 12 Germans.

Need another group of warriors, we've got the Tuskegee Airmen.

Made a lot of white (fighter) pilots mad because they were that good at their job, white bomber crews loved them they saw the red taifin on the P-51 their hope for surviving the mission went way up, because they were that good at their job.

Look them up too if you haven't before, check out the movie "Red Tails" Black writers adapted a story by one of them about a damn fine group of pilots, I enjoyed the movie watched it a bunch of time when I was living in Florida because it was on one of the movie channels the hotel I was living in carried.

You've got warriors who fought great battles that you can look up to though, even more so because they knew what life was like back home and how they were treated and would be on their return, and they fought anyhow.

Admirable men worthy of being looked up to by anyone really. At least for this service which is what counts for me right now.

Will we be remember when mankind enter interstellar?

How could humanity forget these men, and so many other incredible human beings that worked for the betterment of humankind in their own ways? __________

As a aside, Max Brooks got together with a artist named Caanan White who I don't know anything about but they did a fictional graphic novel about the Harlem Hellfighters and it looks pretty dang cool, so you may want to look into that at some point too.

[patchdotexe]

doip. / 8.16.24: See You Next Time

we're back! after a break of "everyone has various life stuff going on", the Skeleton Crew has reunited to tackle the next stage in the adventure: Storm Lord's Wrath!

(...kinda. this was more of a brief intermediate session as we got used to things again and wrapped something up.)

we join our heroes: Alidaar, the dragonborn runic knight fighter, played by Leo patchdotexe! Dauble, the halfling… something? druid-cleric? played by Nyx v4shthestampede! Kepesk, the lizardfolk storm barbarian, played by Green bahamutgreen! Arepo, the human bard, played by Jason astral-abstract! and our Dungeon Master, Jorb jorbs-palace!

-- oh. jason has ordered a baja blast and obtained a mysterious yellow liquid. LET'S BEGIN

LAST TIME, ON DRAGON OF ICESPIRE PEAK! we finally took down the white dragon, Cryovain, that had taken over Icespire Hold! with the threat slain, we were welcomed to Neverwinter and gifted a claim to Axeholm. we were also told to head south to Leilon to aid with rebuilding there. i think i forgot to write that part down.

what building are we in? yes. it's fine, we can philosophically debate our location

oh, sick, all our friends are here! and also my mortal enemy. or, well, my mortal enemy WAS here. he appears to no longer be here. that's fiiiiiine

[pops all my bones as an intimidation tactic] oh god we're all so, so unprepared. it's been nine months. Arepo Is Feeling It Kepesk has reunited with the Wilders! this is very cute. OH SHIT TOBLIN I MEAN TARGOR IS HERE TOO. I FORGOT HE'S A WILDER NOW. WE GASLIT HIM TO THE VERY END we've got a sexy rabbit lady named Vova! who might be a wizard. with a sword? also Carroway the fairy. OH FUCK CARROWAY HAS A FLUTE LET'S GO. ALIDAAR HAS A FLUTE. DUET alidaar has fucked up the duet so, so bad. vova has decided alidaar doesnt get to play the flute anymore

Targor is officially part of the Wilders! Kepesk: wow, you're so poggers. Nyx: (you're so epic win.) Targor: oh, i didn't know you knew how to speak Halfling. Leo: (AAAAAAAAAAAA) Jason: (I know how to speak it, but I don't understand it.)

Sildar is also here! hi buddy. his griffin is outside grazing with Zodiark meanwhile, Arepo is writing the Wikipedia article on the Wilders. "Often steals food? Question mark?" Sildar wants to run for mayor! who was the mayor. did he die. no wait he was a coward and sucks shit

Sildar: …but don't tell him I said that. Kepesk: Your secret is safe with us! Alidaar: I'm gonna immediately forget this conversation. Dauble: It's fine, I'll go back to dissociating for the next 8 years. Arepo: [writing a footnote on the mayor] Carroway: GOD, SAME.

Skeleton Crew is gonna be out and about for a few months probably. Vova is bummed about it, and… so is Kepesk! honestly, Kepesk is having second thoughts about staying with the Crew. he misses the Wilders!

Kepesk: It's not you guys-- Alidaar: It's the hot rabbit woman. Jorb: (…did you say that out loud in front of Vova?) Leo: (Yes.)

Kepesk has given Alidaar the Axeholm signet ring! it's named Jeffrey. we don't remember why it's named Jeffrey. we have decided that the dwarven writing on it kinda looks like JEFRY if you squint.

Dauble walked off soon as Kepesk mentioned the idea of leaving, but they know Sending! so we can text him at 3 am if we want.

Nyx: So… what you wearing? Jorb: DAUBLE, NO! Green: I showed you my barrel crab, respond.

oh hey, Kepesk was part of the Skeleton Crew when Axeholm was handed over. if he's with the Wilders, can they live in Axeholm too? Alidaar says yes.

Alidaar: Friend of a friend can live in my house, I don't give a shit. Kepesk: Oh hell yeah! Arepo: I get the feeling we've just become accessory to a number of crimes.

lmao Vova and Kepesk have maybe-a-thing. Kepesk isn't sure and Carroway has no idea what is happening. shenanigans ensue.

Kepesk: You'll understand when you're older. Carroway: I'm older than YOU!

Carroway knows what the birds and the bees are. he just wasn't there when Vova kissed Kepesk, lmao.

Jorb: I don't have Carroway's stat sheet, sorrgy. […] I rolled a d20 and got a natural 8. Leo: Is that good? Jorb: No.

GREEN HAS WON D&D! Green: I beat the DM! Jorb: Okay, the ceiling collapses and lands on Kepesk, roll 1d100 bludgeon damage.

Dauble is sulking :( LMAO . THEY'RE OUTSIDE BEING SAD AND KEPESK WALKS OUT WITH THE WILDERS HAVING A GRAND OL TIME. RIP Alidaar is not used to actually parting on good terms with somebody! yknow seeing as Tobias was turning into a rat and left dramatically. DAUBLE IS SO FUCKING DEPRESSED Green: I'm sorry, there's a baddie in the room.

Kepesk has noticed Dauble! and has given them a healing potion. Dauble is thankful for the gift, wildshapes into binturong, and skitters away Kepesk: You were the binturong the whole time?! I thought they were two different people!

Kepesk and Vova walk off holding hands! awh.

Nyx: (Gay.) Jorb: (Literally straight.)

WAIT LMAO THIS ENTIRE TIME THE DUST OF DISAPPEARANCE WE GOT FROM THE CHANGELING MERCHANT HAS BEEN DUST OF SNEEZING AND CHOKING. AND KEPESK JUST WALKED OFF WITH IT. next time we go to Axeholm we're all gonna fucking die.

awh, Dauble has entered Scarf Mode. dauble <3 Jorb: Congrats on your new familiar. Leo: New?

Jorb: Is it safe to say Vova and Kepesk are gonna start dating? Green: I'd say so! Jason: [joke about using the Dust of Disappearance in the bedroom that i immediately forgot the wording of bc i started crying] Leo: [sobbing into pillow] I CAST SPELL OF DISAPPEAR MY DICK! Nyx: MY DICK FELL OFF

ohp, Nyx has a headache. time for this mini-session to come to a close. time to head out! farewell Kepesk and Wilders, farewell Neverwinter o7

OH SHIT DAUBLE'S GOT A SENDING MESSAGE Tobias: Final check-in. I understand now what I'm meant to be. I'm going to claim my destiny. Maybe we'll meet again someday. Goodbye, Little Buddy. DAUBLE DIDN'T EVEN GET A CHANCE TO RESPOND. AUGH. TOBIAS YOU MOTHERFUCKER

Jorb: Congratulations Dauble on losing two people in one day! Leo: NOOOOOOOOOOOOO Nyx: AAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH Nyx: I'm at rock bottom, but I've got a shovel. Leo: NOOOO I NEED TO GET MY FAMILIAR THERAPY

next time: Leilon, maybe!

[nitrateglow]

The world's first feature length film?

Okay, I know Wikipedia is more useful as a starting point for further research than an end in and of itself, but lately, the errors I've been catching on it in regards to film stuff are... annoying.

First, when I was doing research for my No Bail for the Judge post, scholar Frederick Gustafsson pointed out that Wikipedia doesn't even have Sean Hepburn Ferrer's correct birthday.

Then, when I was looking up some info on the 1931 Norma Shearer film Strangers May Kiss last night, the Wikipedia page on the movie claims the director George Fitzmaurice was uncredited.... even though the opening title card calls the film "A George Fitzmaurice Production."

And now we have its list of animated feature films made before 1940. Now, I've been on this page a few times, mainly when looking up pre-Snow White titles. However, I noticed something different recently, something I don't recall being there:

For a long time, I've read El Apostol from 1917 was the first animated feature film. Though lost, we do have accounts of its production, some images of character designs, ads from its release, and reviews. However, now we have it being supplanted by a 1916 film called Creation. And directed by Pinto Colvig, no less! (For those unaware of who he is, he's best remembered as the original voice of Goofy and the voice of Grumpy in Snow White.)

So I'm intrigued, as in all my years of reading about animation, I have never heard of this film. I go on the Internet Archive to look up any mentions of this film from movie magazines and publications of the time.

Nothing pops up.

There's no mention of it on the Silent Era website database.

There's no mention of it in the AFI Catalog.

It has an IMDB page, but the information on there is basically nil beyond a few surviving frames and a document by Colvig himself from the mid-60s claiming the film was the first animated feature and naming the three animators who worked on it, including Colvig. But that's all it is-- a claim. See below:

So where is this thing mentioned? The Southern Oregon Historical Society mentions it in their article on Colvig. It says the film is "claimed to be the world's first feature-length cartoon."

Okay... but they never say who claims this. Colvig? His animators? Trade publications of the period? Historians? Who?

They never mention how many reels this thing ran for, which would give credence to the claims of its feature status.

Five frames still exist and are apparently housed at the archives of the Southern Oregon Historical Society. So there was indeed an animated film called Creation-- perhaps a work in progress that was never finished? However, I see no evidence that this work was a feature length movie or that it was ever released to the public in any capacity.

[imsorryimlate]

back when we were doing dracula daily, someone posted something about how van helsing was both a lawyer and a doctor, and i was like “?? but jack is also both?”, but when i tried to find support for this idea of mine, i couldn’t find it. eventually i resigned myself to it being something i had dreamt.

but then!! i was again rereading the october 1st passage, where renfield says:

[…] I am as sane as at least the majority of men who are in full possession of their liberties. And I am sure that you, Dr. Seward, humanitarian and medico-jurist as well as scientist, will deem it a moral duty to deal with me as one to be considered as under exceptional circumstances.

and this is where i had gotten the idea, i think. but a medico-jurist is not a lawyer, which i had assumed because of the word jurist. no, a medico-jurist is, as the name implies, someone who’s involved in medical jurisprudence.

from wikipedia (awkwardly abridged for convenience):

Medical jurisprudence or legal medicine is the branch of science and medicine involving the study and application of scientific and medical knowledge to legal problems, such as inquests, and in the field of law. […] medicolegal cases involving death, rape, paternity, etc. require a medical practitioner to produce evidence and appear as an expert witness, […] Medical jurisprudence includes […] questions of competence or sanity in civil or criminal proceedings.

(emphasis mine)

so… our boy jack is out here giving expert witness testimonies in court?

now, i will admit to being someone who’s interested in true crime, and historical cases are always of interest because of the continuous evolution of forensic science and the shifting ideas around diminished responsibility. looking at the late 18th century and the 19th century, there are two points of interest regarding cases in the uk where defendants were found not guilty by reason of insanity:

1. a lot of them where kept at bethlam or broadmoor, famous mental hospitals

2. a lot of the expert witnesses were doctors and superintendents at bethlam or broadmoor, or at times at private asylums

some names that pop up a lot are:

william orange (superintendent at broadmoor)

sir william charles wood (superintendent at colney hatch, with its own connection to seward, later at bethlem)

edward monro (doctor at bethlem, appeared as an expert witness up to around 400 times!)

sir alexander morison (doctor at bethlem)

forbes winslow (owner of his own private asylums, also funniest middle name ever: benignus)

i’m not gonna ascribe nefarious motives to these doctors (especially dr. winslow because he seems to have been a pretty good guy who was “cutting-edge” by treating his patients humanely uhhh) but i still think there was a lot of potential for a conflict of interest, which is why i pointed out their professional positions.

but there is one doctor i will ascribe possible nefarious motives to: our dear doctor jack seward.

i know i’m not the only one who thinks that he was “saved” by the narrative in that in gave him a purpose and a stronger anchoring to his friends (both old and new). considering his opening entry, where he’s like “of course i wouldn’t experiment on renfield, that would be unethical and send me to hell…. but what if?? 👀” like, this guy… this guy!! i say this with love, but he’s primed for becoming an evil scientist.

i don’t think he would have done it when we meet him in the novel, or afterwards when he’s been through the whole adventure/mission – but if the events of dracula hadn’t happened, i could definitely see him descending deeper into self-justified malpractice, by which i mean he’d testify that accused criminals are insane just to get his hands on them, to be able to study them.

but aside from my speculation about that^ i also wonder if perhaps he’s well on his way to becoming an eminent expert witness when we meet him in the book. by renfield’s words, it would seem that he has been involved in an inquest or legal case at least once (but probably more if he’s going to claim the title medico-jurist). we all wonder sometimes how a 29 year old doctor came to have an immense lunatic asylum under his care, but honestly, some of these trials were huge, and expert witnesses could rise to some prominence and gain benefactors that way (just like they do today).

and who knows, maybe jack got his foot in the courtroom door via his lordling friend arthur, which would allow him to establish himself as a medical expert despite being young and (presumably) recently graduated.

[izzyspussy]

In regards to the modern rock band au, I was gonna keep these in the tags but then I decided no, I need to scream about it

I was totally thinking they would be technically "open" about being in a relationship but like in that way where straighties can be delusional about it. Which like lbr is not really saying fuck all or anything about exactly how open or not EdIzzy is because. straighties simply do not care for reality. But anyway, yeah, they're like "out" but they're not like a Power Couple or whatever, and Izzy is really overshadowed and not very popular so like. There are like tiers of fans.

There are casuals who are straight. Bottom tier. And they're just like haha cool I love big tough guys who are so cool and straight and badass. Like Fight Club and [insert band name here]/Rob Halford! Anyway, who's Izzy? (And who's Fang and Ivan too probably.)

Then there are casuals who are not straight. And they're like haha cool I love big tough guys and leather daddies who scream!! Who's Izzy?

Then there are Real Fans who are also kind of shitty who are aware that Ed and Izzy are gayass queer faggos and also that they are Together, but a lot of them are like Why Is The King Consorting With That Loser the way ppl get kind of mad when like, say, Pete Davidson dates a Kardashian or whatever and it's just 'cause they think he's unattractive and it's not fair that he gets to fuck 10s (in their opinion) or whatever. But like no real vitriol.

Then there are Real Fans who are like weirdos, who are aware that they're gayass queer faggos and that they're together, but in this case they're like Why Is The King Consorting With That Lowly Worm and they hate Izzy's guts for the crime of they don't know any better because they don't know how the music is made and they can't recognize the fact that stage personas are not how people live their real lives 24/7.

Then there are Real Fans who are specifically Izzy fans, who are aware etc etc, and who instantly cum in their pants any time they see Izzy play an instrument with his BARE HANDS or when he and Ed do some mildly homoerotic shit on stage.

But yeah, sort of like how idr who said it but how he said pirates fuck whatever who cares so when Izzy thought they were just fucking whatever, but when he realized they were In Love he started losing it because that's not allowed, this would be somewhat like that with a healthy dosage of Izzy's just not fucking built for the modern day limelight. So they're semi-comfortable showing like Implications and being Erotic with each other on stage, but as far as showing like actual genuine PDA and that kind of thing not so much. And it's a combo of Izzy just being a... not exactly a private person, but like, he's a bit standoffish about true Intimacy and he wants Ed for himself and such like that + a little bit of closetedness in that like with piracy sex is okay in show biz but (specifically homo) romance is more shameful.

BUT. When they first came on the scene I'm sure there was a lot of like are they/aren't they, and they never exactly Came Out came out, but it just became more and more open of an open secret. So like yeah they never exactly talked about their relationship in interviews and shit, they never showed any like ~undeniable~ romantic PDA when they went on dates out, etc, but for anyone who cares about that type of thing it's not like you can't find confirmation that they're Together if you look for it. It is, indeed, on the wikipedia page. They have their individual pages where they're listed as "partners" and the band's page that probably says something or other about Ed starting the band "with his partner" Izzy (and then eventually there's the page for their divorce court case, where it is more directly and undeniably mentioned that they were a couple for like 20 years and that Ed cheated on him with Stede, because that gets mentioned on the record).

And then from there, there's like fandom sleuths popping up who try to match songs with events in their relationship, and both the Anti-Izzy fans and the Pro-Izzy fans get in on this and basically make up a lot of weirdly specific conjecture and get a little nuts with it, and Ed and Izzy never confirm or deny any of it, except sometimes when Ed falls off the wagon and sees something that really pisses him off because it goes just a little Too Far and he goes on a social media diatribe about how stupid it is and how whoever wrote it is the literal scum of the earth and doesn't deserve to lick the bottom of Izzy's boots or whatever, and when that happens people are like ???? aren't they broken up. Wasn't it the literal Opposite of amicable. what is this. and people are always waiting for Stede to weigh in and be mad about Ed defending Izzy or whatever, but Stede only ever gets upset with Ed when Ed confesses to something that isn't anybody's fucking business and he keeps that to their private life anyway, and there's people saying shit like "once a cheater always a cheater" and shit, you know how people are.

But anyway. Yeah, Jim and Izzy fuck nasty. In one of those tiny graffiti-covered metal bar bathrooms. Izzy bitches about being to old to do that on the way in and on the way out, but has absolutely no complaints during the fact. And not JUST because Jim keeps his mouth otherwise occupied.

[nordleuchten]

How and when (i mean places or events eg. in high school, not really 'bout how old you were at that moment) you began to getting interested in Lafayette? In advance, thank you for answering my question. Honestly i'm not fascinated about him and know only basic information when it comes to that figure of history but I've seen your reblog of post about writing and while do it asking everything that comes to yours minds so there I am :⁠-⁠) I hope It's not too late to ask.

Yes, dear Anon, here you are and it is lovely to have you – especially since La Fayette does not interest you all that much! And do not mind, it is never too late to send me an ask, I just sometimes take my sweet time to reply. :-)

La Fayette is not discussed in school (or anywhere else for that matter) where I live, and I stumbled about him purely by accident. Me becoming interested in his life was probably one of the greatest Wikipedia-rabbit holes I ever went down. I was looking something up one beautiful day some fife-ish years ago, saw his name pop up in an article and clicked on it – and that was that, as uneventful as it is. I think in the end it was his youth that fascinated me so much.

I hope you have/had a wonderful day!

[myaaist]

So about Terence and Dion

tldr; these two are really, really similar to Patroclus and Achilles

So a couple weeks after the game was released I tweeted this.

Of course two months later while doing some research for a WIP teredio fic I develop a brainrot so strong about this very comparison

disclaimer: this is all purely speculation made out of 7 hours of brainrot. I am not in any way an expert in greek mythology and i cannot even afford a PS5. This is purely a fun write-up I made in hopes of my hyperfixation reaching other people who also adore this pairing. This is also VERY long and windy.

Right, firstly, I don't think it is a reach to make this comparison at all; if anything, I am more surprised by how few people have actually posted anything in the interwebs about this (I found like, one other tumblr post, but I am also not a part of the ship Discord server for this pairing so I might just be late to the party 🤷‍♀️).

FF16 is FULL of references to greek mythology and culture. Cid's last name Telamon is the name of one of the Argonauts, Charon is the name of the ferryman to the underworld who requires payment for passage to the underworld, Ambrosia is the food of the gods, and those are just the simple ones that I think most people can tell from modern pop culture references. Comparing Terence and Dion to Patroclus and Achilles, one of the most famous greek relationships between two adult men, is really not that far of a reach.

Actually, the thing that got me to tweet that teredio reminds me of patrochilles is the whole hero-and-squire relationship they got going on since the very beginning. Terence is technically Dion's second-in-command, but with that opening scene of Terence holding onto Dion's spear and then followed by the cutscene of him tending to Dion's arm in the camp which is also followed by thee kiss scene? Doesn't take a meta analysis to draw the line from one ship to another

(Also the hero with blonde hair and his lover with dark brown hair 👀 but this is more of a common trope rather than something specific to patrochilles)

And that is where I left my teredio-is-like-patrochilles thoughts for a good while. I spent the next two months RTing all the gorgeous teredio fanarts on twitter, read a few teredio fanfics, then onto other FF16 ships like a normal person.

(my personal favourite for the longest time is Cid x Clive; the longfics for this pairing are insanely good..)

Then I decided to write a oneshot for teredio about their servant-and-master relationship (at least, that's how they worded it in the game).

I wanted to find a better way to describe their relationship in my fic; still sticking to the term master and servant as it is canon in the english script, but not neccessarily implying an irreconcilable difference in social standing or power imbalance. My searches somehow led me to biblical fanfiction, in which I find some very interesting takes on David and Jonathan, which then leads me to a wikipedia page about David and Jonathan --

and then back to where I began, Patroclus and Achilles.

except when I first made that comparison, it was just a tweet off the top of my head. I read Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller in 2016, and I do not remember everything that happens in that book. All I remember is roughly the overall feel of the relationship and that these two greek characters died tragically and that their ashes are buried together.

So imagine my surprise when I see this image on the wikipedia page for Patroclus and Achilles.

The caption says: Achilles bandaging the arm of Patroclus.

I do not have 4k screencaps the exact scene so have this image i copied off GamesRadar off a lousy google search

Great, so they both share an arm-bandaging scene. Doesn't make them any more similar, you'd say. Also, didn't I just draw similarities from Achilles to Dion and Patroclus to Terence in the beginning? This one is completely swapped!

Well give me a moment to recover from the shock of seeing what looks very similar to a ship i like on a real-life greek pottery painting, and let's get to actually comparing details.

Quick note, I will be using in-game canon, the information from the newly released FF16 ultimania, descriptions from homeric traditions, and also the book Song of Achilles (SoA). You can argue that using Song of Achilles as a reference is a stretch because it is a romance book that treats patrochilles as a canon homosexual relationship, but honestly Madeline Miller took 10 years to write that book and I don't think I can compete with her amount of research in 7 hours.

What's similar:

Terence is the son of a minor noble family in Sanbreque (from the Ultimania), and Patroclus is the son of Menoetius, one of the Argonauts. They are both from 'lesser' lineages in comparison to their partners, but is still technically born into nobility.

Terence and Dion grew up together after meeting each other in school at age 7 (from the Ultimania), and Patroclus and Achilles grew up together in Phthia after Patroclus was exiled. Both are childhood friends who grew into adulthood together.

Terence is instated as Dion's squire at age 12 (from the Ultimania), and Patroclus is given to Achilles by Achilles' father Peleus as his henchman (from the Illiad, though translations differ) or his trusted brother-in-arms (from SoA). Both are bound by duty to their partners from a young age.

Terence is Dion's second-in-command during the events of the game, and Patroclus is Achilles' right-hand-man during the events of the Trojan War (from the Illiad and SoA). Both are confidants to their partners during war times.

Dion is the dominant of Bahamut and the prince of Sanbreque, Achilles is the son of the Nereid Thetis and a mortal king Peleus. Both are born into nobility and are famous for their inhuman battle prowess.

Dion's main weapon of choice is a lance, and Achilles was given the legendary Pelian Spear by Chiron the Centaur before he participated in the Trojan War (from the Illiad). Both notably use spears/lances/pokey sticks.

I think those are the main similarities that I can in good faith say are pretty obvious. Next are the things that I personally think might be slightly delusional depending on the angle you approach the premise from.

What can be a bit of a reach:

The arm bandaging scenes. Assuming it is to relief the pain from the Crystal's Curse, Dion is not the only dominant to start petrifying from his arm. Cid also has similar marks on his arms and Clive's hand eventually petrifies. However, it is also the first scene where we explicitly see the extent of Dion and Terence's relationship.

There is no mention about Terence's relationship with his family, while Patroclus is notably exiled from his father's lands -- that's how he gets to Phthia and meets Achilles. Instead, we know that Dion's family did not love him (from the Ultimania)

Dion is the son born of a courtesan, and his father had her killed after buying him from her (from the Ultimania). Achilles is born of Peleus basically binding and coercing Thetis after she is gifted to Peleus by Zeus and Poseidon. Both tales frame the image of both men's fathers being not exactly good people, and their marriages and the births of their sons would be important to mark the start of upcoming events (the Judgement of Paris took place at the wedding of Thetis and Peleus, Dion's birth and awakening backs Sylvestre's claim to the throne). I call this sort of a reach because this doesn't exactly play into the relationships' dynamics per se, just a reminder that their fathers are horrible people 🤷‍♀️

There is an element of fate in Achilles' death, where the god Apollo is said to have guided the arrow Paris shot to Achilles' heel. The dominants in the game have on multiple occasions been mentioned to be slaves to their own fates, and the main theme of the game has much to do with defying fate decided by gods, even if it means die trying. Dion 'dies' defying the fate Ultima has decided for humanity, so I guess there is a similarity?

This is the biggest reach of all lol. So remember that I mentioned Telamon, Cid's last name, is also the name of one of the Argonauts? Telamon is also the older brother of Peleus, Achilles' father. Now, I do not think that this is the only explanation as to why the writers chose the name Telamon out of all the other greek names. The writers managed to shove in 3 different thunder gods into Cid's character, and I refuse to believe that they chose the name just because Telamon is somewhat related to Achilles. Telamon is also the father to Ajax the Great who is a notable hero, but Ajax is like, second to Achilles in fame and I don't really see a FF16 character that can be somewhat related to Ajax..

Okay, so what does this all mean?

Honestly I don't know lol

Terence x Dion, unlike many other ships I've liked, is an actually canon ship at some point in the game's story. Even without the comparison, the ship still stands as confirmed to be canon. Drawing lines from two greek mythology characters to them does not make the ship any more canon than it already is.

But the game's story also doesn't shed much light on the ship itself, not in the base game at least. Fair enough, it is Clive's story and not Dion's story, so Terence, who doesn't play a part in Clive's story, doesn't get to be in the spotlight for long. Dion's conflict with his own father is also given more weight to Dion's character development. We're given so little information about Terence that when the Ultimania came out I was just happy I get more crumbs of lore to work with.

I don't think the devs took direct inspiration from the tale of Achilles and Patroclus either. We've learned that FF16 is just a melting pot of all the storytelling and worldbuilding elements we loved from FFXIV, FF12, GoT, greek mythology, classic FF and media tropes, and so much more. The most I can think of is that the writers wanted to write a canon gay love story that people will love, and in doing so they picked out the romance tropes and stories that have been widely accepted and loved for a long time. Childhood friends to lovers, unrequited first loves that eventually became mutual in the threat of separation, the second-in-command who is loyal in both duty and matters of the heart.

If the tale of Achilles and Patroclus happens to fall under that category, needless to say I am very happy with the writers' decision. If not, well consider this just a very very long headcanon post

If you've never read anything related to patrochilles and is interested, I highly recommend reading the Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller! Prepare about half the amount of tissue you've used for FF16 and you're all set for a heartbreaking love story 🥰

Also I hope these two don't die as tragically as Achilles and Patroclus.

[couchie]

hi again :] Here to expand on the colour thing!

So we have synesthesia, this means our senses are a bit fucked and things are Weird [sound has colour. Taste has colour. Colour has feeling. Words have colours. Sooooo many colours dhdjsjsjfjfs]. It's actually kinda common and a fun rabbit hole to fall down if you ever want something to look up on Wikipedia lmao but anyways!

We usually go with vibes when it comes to colour associations but we also don't Choose what associations we get for what colour if that makes sense. I thiiink our reasons for associating y'all with DARK blue specifically is because your blog theme is mainly black, but your url is a lighter blue! The purple comes from, well. For us blue and purple are heavily associated with each other [for no reason really fjdjsjskdkd they're like brothers to us. But Heart and I forming here and being associated with blue and purple respectively just made that association stronger LMAO] so it's like a "you can't separate them" thing.

we also have word => taste synesthesia btw. Your url tastes like bubblegum and cotton candy to us! [if you're ever curious about specific names or something btw feel free to ask, talking about synesthesia is a special interest of ours!]

-Mind

OGH 👀👀👀👀 THATS AWESOME I DIDNT KNOW YOU HAD SYNTHESIA !!!!! or maybe (probably) i forgot. but thats semantics.

OK THIS IS SO COOL TY FOR EXPLAINING !!!!!!!! <333 also the blue and purple being asslciated thing is SO REAL we dont have synesthesia (at least i dont think so) (ALSO WHY IS UT SO AHRD TO SPELL) but for some reason we associate those two too!!!! and also YEAH DJEBRJEHR u & heart definitely add to it /positive

BUBBLEGUM AND COTTON CANDY..... THAT IS AWESOME AND ALSO THE KIND OF TASTE I WOULD LOVE OUR BLOG TO GIVE. well that or maybe this one chocolate with bits of i dont remember what inside it.... but that might be a me thing

IS IT OK IF I LIKE POP OVER TO UR ASKBOX WITH A LIST OF HEADMATES WHOSE NAMES I FIND COOL FJEVFHRBFHEH %100 OK IF NOT I GET IF U MIGHT B AWKWARD ABT THAT OR WEIRDED OUT OR SMTH

-💕