#and they've eaten treats together all 3 of them

[cappucosmico]

i love our cats i would kill and die for them

☝🏻 dragon being a baby hater and trying to claw down the door while orb looks at him like he's insane (he is)

[my-name-is-bunnyfoxy]

Gremlins: Actor AU

A quick synopsis: This AU revolves around the actual mogwais and gremlins just being actors and how the gremlins movies and show are literal movies and show.

Random ahh info about it:

The team uses practical effects for various scenes. Gizmo and the gremlins multiplying, Spider gremlin, Stripe's death, they are all practical effects. However though, stuff like Billy's injuries in the 1st movie and the scar on Muray's head were make up.

However though, while most of his injuries were make up, Stripe did actually by accident claw Billy's chest. Luckily the wound wasn't that bad so Billy was okay and able to recover. Stripe ended up apologizing to Billy for the scar.

Gizmo and Stripe are long time friends, both knew each other since college (they went to the same one). They were in a lot of movies together and due to Gizmo always playing the role of a hero and Stripe always being some kind of villain, they have been seen as one of the most iconic hero and villain duo.

Billy and Kate are a couple in real life and have 3 kids together. Ironically, in the 2nd movie, they intentionally wrote that they would be married soon which was actually the case since, just a month after the release of the movie, they got married.

Mohawk is always casted as the villain but in reality is actually very nice and caring and offers the other actors tips on acting.

Mohawk actually hates spider so it freaked him out a little that his character would later turn into a spider.

The mogwai that played Stripe as a mogwai, originally auditioned for Gizmo's role but sadly didn't get it. But the director loved his perfomance so much that he decided that he would be the mogwai form of Stripe that eventually turns into a gremlin.

Gizmo knew of the mogwai that played Mohawk as a mogwai and asked him to come and played the role. After a while of thinking he went to try it out and was able to get the part.

Daffy used to work in an insane asylum and a mental hospital. So he witnessed a lot of crazy and deranged patients and once that were even psychotic. He quitted because it became too stressful. However though, thanks to what he has seen, he was able to incorporate that in his acting when playing his character.

Lenny and George are famously known for playing the brains and brawns duo thru out every movie and or show they have been in. Usually the roles are George is the brain while Lenny is the brawn. They are both twin brothers who since babies had a close bond together.

George actually broke his character a few times while recording. It was kind of hard for him to keep the same face without unintentionally laughing really loud.

Earl was a very busy person. He acted in a lot of movies and shows which sadly led to him sometimes having to quit his roles or leave the studio just to focus on another movie or show. Which is why he explained to the director for why he is quitting. Despite this, his scenes were still in the movie and he was still credited.

Barney was originally going to be killed and eaten by the gremlins, but the director often saw Barney be very clingy to the actors and was always looking for attention and the actors often played with the dog or were friendly with him. So the director decided to cut that scene out because he didn't like the thought of the actors who treat the dog very lovingly to suddenly kill him, even if it was just acting.

Lynn was gonna get her head decapitated, but the actress didn't like it in the slightest and kept asking for it to be changed and it was.

The blender gremlin ended up throwing up in the fake blender because of how fast it was spinning. Yeah some of the green blood was not fake by the way that was his vomit-

The younger actors actually look up to Greta and Brain because they were apart of their childhood, and both were known as one of the TV star legends. So they were excited to be playing with them and they were one of the nicest people they've met. Plus they were willing to give advice to some of the new actors.

Snout Jr is actually Snout's in real life son.

Claw and one of the writers had beef which was the cause of the decision to make Claw's character in love with Gizmo. Both actors ended up being uncomfortable because of the knowledge the characters they were playing were actually related. Reason why they often argued with the writer.

Noggin had a habit of playing both dumb and smart characters. So the writers decided to make his character first dumb and then intelligent.

Most of the actors are married to someone.

Riley's last name was on purpose greene due to the fact he has a habit of voicing various green characters.

Fong Wing's fight against the gremlins was a tribute to Lynn Pelter's actor who passed away and her scene where she fights the gremlins in the kitchen.

Randall is actually a successful inventor and often brought his inventions to show off to the cast.

Bat gremlin loves horror and anything dark, which is why he is often acting in horror movies or anything dark, simply because he loves them.

The gremlins and mogwais are capable of doing their own stunts.

Due to beef with the producer, Vegetable gremlin's scenes were cut out. They can still be found on the DVD version of the movie.

Mrs. Deagle did nearly suffer a severe injury while acting but luckily she was okay and medical assistance was called to check her up and see if she was okay or not.

Kate's backstory with her dad was based on something similar she saw. But instead of her dad dying, he ended up slipping on some ice and nearly breaking his back and twisting his ankle. But he still did everything to make his daughter love his present. Even if he almost suffered an injury-

Elle's actor had mental breakdowns because the scene with her backstory were similar to what she went thru, she was abandoned by her family but eventually take in by a family who cared for her. Sadly her in real life parents were killed. She was allowed to take breaks to calm down.

The gremlins are completely opposite to their movie selves.

That's all for now. Feel free to ask questions if anyone is curious.

[blairwitchh]

Ok this is gonna be a long ass rant and maybe im just a jerk but idk what else to do it feels like I lost my sister and I just hope it won't be like this forever

My older sister (31) just had her first baby with her husband (32). The baby was 4 weeks early so the birth was not easy and I feel horrible that she can't take him home from the NICU yet.

Since the baby was born I feel like she died. Her and her husband are always together. Understandable they just had a whole baby! But its kinda scaring me. They've been home from the hospital for 4 days and all they do is go to the hospital and sleep. They talk about how horrible it was because they were at the hospital all day and hadn't eaten or drank anything in 8 hours because they were just waiting around for the baby to be moved. It's inconceivable for one of them to leave the other to go to the cafeteria or go out and grab food while the other stays there. She was upset because they moved him to a non private room in the NICU cause he was showing so much improvement. They stopped by our thanksgiving get together today for about 5 mins just to grab food, did not give a fuck about saying hi or anything. Which I guess fair like theyre on baby mode. Just kinda sucked. They were complaining that she can't pump or get skin to skin time in the shared room. I asked if that was a rule and she said no, I just don't want to.

The husband has terrible ADHD, often used as an excuse for his lack of planning and competence. How he let his wife who just gave birth go 8 hours without a solid meal or drinking anything is wild. He was looking for his lost vows 15 minutes before thier wedding ceremony if that explains anything.

As she was in labor for 3 days we barely got any updates via text from him because he was just "too busy". I'm talking simple not detailed health updates. This whole process has felt so detached and I've been kept so out of the loop which sucks cause I love and care about my sister and want to know she's ok.

Also my mom went to visit. And our mom can he a bit much and annoying. My sisters feet were so swollen she was trying to grab a pillow to get them above chest level and I guess she grabbed one behind my sister that she was using and my sisters husband got annoyed. Stood up and physically grabbed the pillow from my mom while lowkey treating to kick her out. And my sister did nothing. So I texted her about it and she called and I was really happy I would be able to talk about it. Her husband was also on the phone 🙃.

The baby is healthy and almost out of the NICU. Im so excited my sister has a kid and i hope I can be of help or whatever she needs on her motherhood journey. But it just feels like she couldn't give a fuck unless it's coming from her husband which is understandable ofc but it's just totally not her style and kinda came out of left field.

He has a child from a previous relationship who my sister has known since she was 2 and is her bonus mom. She hasn't stayed at their house in weeks they just let her stay at her mom's who is very chaotic and unpredictable and honestly unsafe as a parent they just had to have exterminators get rid of roaches over there this week. But my sister and her husband really don't care. Even though they're living at home and could have her stay at our mom's when they go visit the baby in the hospital. It just seems like very immature codependent behavior.

Having a baby is a huge visceral and life changing experience. I was always super close with my sister growing up. We were best friends. Ever since she met this guy, dated him, married him, it's felt like she only has capacity for one friend and that's him. And doublely so now that the baby is here. I just love her and wish I could help her with some of this too. But maybe I'm just a sensitive baby myself

[lurkerwithcomputer]

I have in fact come up with more for this AU idea!

During the OG TG timeframe:

The Akira, Amon, Takizawa, Hide crew get Yoriko added to their cases because she's tied to Touka, the White Rabbit, who is allied to Eyepatch and Fueguchi. When the CCG moves to arrest Yoriko, she's rescued by White Rabbit while Eyepatch does his standard delay-then-retreat tactic. A masked figure they think might be Fueguchi is spotted on a rooftop nearby. (The ghouls knew about Yoriko's situation because Hide is their inside man.)

Is Yoriko's involvement going to have ripple effects from forcing Touka and Kaneki to work together again, like those two clearing the air between them after not seeing each other for like a month? Yes.

Meanwhile, on Yoriko's end, we're getting a bit of a clash between different points of view on how to treat Yoriko. Touka tries to shelter her from the parts of the ghoul world that you just can't unsee, unhear, un-know. It's mostly fear of both traumatizing her friend and that Yoriko will reject their friendship once she knows The Horrors of life in the ghoul world. Hinami is perfectly willing to protect Touka's precious friend, physically, and is willing to teach her about surviving, but doesn't shelter Yoriko the same way Touka does, because Hinami is acutely aware of what being sheltered instead of taught has cost her.

Do they struggle to teach Yoriko some of the skills that might be useful as someone running from the CCG? Yeah, because they're all ghouls and have no idea how to teach a human to parkour, scale walls, sneak in/out of buildings, etc. Hide takes his own ghoul-sympathizer journey a little further here by teaching Yoriko stuff that would be hard to learn from a ghoul because of the difference in physical limits.

At some point in this, Yoriko cooks something Touka can actually eat for the first time. Did Yoriko have palpable cold sweat, jittery hands and nausea the whole time? Yes. Did Yoriko have to run to the washroom and throw up after she put the meal in the slow cooker? Yes she did. Which is the situation Touka finds when she returns to wherever they're hiding - Hinami holding Yoriko's hair back and rubbing her back. Hinami's being encouraging, "You did good, pushing through it to to do something you wanted to" meanwhile Touka's kinda mortified that Yoriko put herself through that for Touka.

(If Hinami's approach to Yoriko sounds a bit like a kinder version of Eto's approach to Hinami, why yes, yes it does.)

During the TG RE timeframe:

Someone slaps a cold case file down on Takeomi's desk, going "Weren't you childhood friends with her? Maybe you'll have some sort of fresh insight". And while their childhood friendship doesn't provide any special insight, it does make Takeomi determined. At first, there's nothing, no leads, no idea if she's still alive or they've eaten her or what. Then. Someone reports that someone might be squatting in an abandoned apartment block. Hair from the apartment matches her DNA from an old hairbrush in the evidence storage, although she's clearly dyed her hair.

Later a sighting of her trading something in a brown paper bag for camp stove supplies, while staking out yet more abandoned buildings.

It's definitely going to be a weird experience for him, though, trying to square the Yoriko he knew, or thought he knew, with the picture he's building of her as he tries to chase a 2-3 year old case.

At some point his aim shifts a little - from capturing a fugitive to trying to understand why someone would collaborate with ghouls in the first place. After a certain amount of cat-and-mouse, and encounters that somehow get a little less hostile each time, Takeomi realizes something.

Which is, does he actually want to catch her? He knows what will happen if he does. And maybe he's even started to like this cycle of chasing without following through on what he's "supposed" to do.

(An investigator with an unusual amount of integrity goes from just following orders and wanting to capture the target of his case, to wanting to understand them and questioning himself as an investigator. Yes, it's an Amon parallel, I couldn't not do it once I saw it.)

Yoriko becoming wanted by the CCG as a "ghoul collaborator" during the OG TG timeframe because of her association with Touka. By the TG:RE timeframe, Yoriko is rather weird by human standards because of living with ghouls for 2-3 years.

[mxtcha-tea]

Hyperspecific Headcanons with Kamomedai <3

✎genre; crack, fluff, whatever you want really

✎chef note; thanks to me making too many doodles and incorrect quotes about Bessho and Tokura, I now present you this mess, enjoy.

this is kinda funny, but their coach purposely put the water refills outside on top of a small hill under the big tree (kinda reminds me of the one in the training camp arc)

So, when they need to refill, they have to jog up the hill to get some water and they've complained about it ever since

It's not that high but with them being tired after the practice they did, it sure does felt like an eternity getting up there

Sometimes Hoshiumi and Gao races on who could get there faster while the rest are slumped while walking up

But don't worry, when they finally get there, the wind is enough to cool them back down

And now, it became their resting place after practice (no matter how many times they've complained about going up hill to even rest there)

One time they broke it

They broke the water refill, and had to fix it back up before their coach sees the mess and try to figure an excuse on why there's no water left inside and there's a crack on it

Bessho and Tokura are basically best friends but it's more one sided

Tokura lowkey highkey hates Bessho and no one knows why exactly

Maybe it's their 1st years problem or something but Tokura's just like that with Bessho and Bessho couldn't seem more concerned about the hate he's receiving

He's just fine with it wth (they're one sided frenemies in conclusion)

Kanbayashi's good at cooking and you cannot change my mind

Sometimes he makes some treats for his teammates, going to their classes during lunch hour and giving them each small boxes of the food

He cares about his teammates whether it's on or off court really

Everyone likes Suwa

Hoshiumi doesn't really look like a person who has a schedule but he actually does, but for fridays only

Why you may ask?

Because that's the day where he visits Hirugami and see his dog

Anyway, the schedule is like this;

7am-8am: wake up and do morning preps, 8.30am-3.45pm: school and volley practices

4pm-4.50pm: MEET THE DOG [in full caps and bolded] and lastly, 5pm: go back home and sleep

It's as simple as that for a simple man like him, who likes to pet Hirugami's dog

Tokura is actually smarter than anyone expected (maybe somewhere in class 5 or 6)

and him and Bessho sometimes study together even tho Bessho is kinda smart himself

It's what the team call, 'a bonding moment' between these two

Meanwhile, at the Liam's household, he's practically yelling at Bessho for wanting to eat instant ramen every second (they did eat instant ramen after that)

Suwa gets along well with Kita after their match together and both of the team has to get along with each other when their captains form a friendship

(Much to their dismay, but they'll have to be friendly anyway)

And not suprised coming from Tokura, he likes Riseki more than Bessho and ask if they could trade Riseki with Bessho

Which causes a big fight at the court (Tokura, you can't trade Bessho smh)

Nozawa may seem calm to most people at their school, but he's a bit of a hot headed person himself

Don't worry tho, cause kanbayashi's there to calm him down

If he can restrain him fast enough, because if he didn't, it's either a big ruckus inside the gym, someone ending up with a broken bone or someone straight up dead (pick your choice)

(this is canon) but Bessho and Gao are homies and it shows

Gao too sometimes annoy Tokura because it makes Bessho feel better and he might join the annoying process

(someone please save Tokura)

Speaking of Tokura (what, is Tokura my fav kamomedai character now? Maybe) other than Suwa, he have high respect for Hirugami and view him as a big brother figure

I think Tokura is an only child so that's why he looks up to Hirugami and you know what, Hirugami also see him as a little brother

It's a very comforting scene to see when they're being platonically affectionate with each other

Whether it's about talking about their practice to basic questions like "have you eaten yet?" "I hope you're doing fine" and so on

Hoshiumi, Gao and Bessho have a rock-paper-scissors thing they've been doing for weeks repetitively and it's getting everyone insane

Suwa is favorited by every old ladies on his radar (just like Kita) and he doesn't mind it at all cause he likes spending time or talking to them too

I see you're drinking the respect juice Suwa

Actually, let's be honest here, Suwa's prolly the only person that's on the same level of Kita (I wanna see a competition about this)

Because who wouldn't love him?

We all love a well mannered man that respect others with a personality of a REAL role model with good grades, and also loved by old women and old men

Suwa for president

(I wanna make more hcs but my motivation juice ran out)

In conclusions, Kamomedai is like a family

With the 2nd years as DOGS, the 3rd years as the owners of the dogs

And the 1st years as childs of the owners of the dogs

Y'know like a one big family

I would say seagulls but dogs kinda fit it a lot more, thanks Gao Hakuba and Hoshiumi Korai

[syubub]

YOONGI SOULMATE READING

Disclaimer~tarot is speculative and this is my interpretation of energy. Take it with a grain of salt.

Honey boi time. Strap down because this one is wild. Kinda. And soft. Really really soft. And a little creepy. Buckle in.

So for starters Yoon has a dark, royal blue color energy. It isn't as opaque as Koos was but it was very... thick? Like its not that it wasn't opaque from a lack of energy but rather that kinda had clear energy mixed in too?? It was really pretty and its kinda like the more you look at it the deeper it gets?

It was kinda like this but deeper? And it was almost reflective and "sparkly" idk put it was real pretty.

So first thing to note. Yoon is always easy for me to connect with so he didn't have any barriers put up or whatever so when I was going towards him he was in red flannel pj bottoms and I was like, "am I missing something?" But no. He was just being comfy I guess? Now usually when I connect with energy of a person there's this like eternal tree trunk rope colum thing of energy or something that I kinda follow and then there's little platforms that they're on? I always have my back facing the energy colum thing when I connect.

That was not the case this time. Yoon essentially led me to his side to face the energy trunk? And he was like, "its weird on this side, huh?" ??? Hello, sir. What the fuck. This to me hints that maybe he is also going out and consciously connecting to energies? Idk man. But I was like, "yeah, it is kinda weird" It only gets weirder.

Next I was facing yoon and I was like hey I want to read your soulmate and gave him like a big ole energy marble expecting that to kinda get the connection going but the only thing I heard from his soulmate was "I can't tell you" like shit. And then he dissolved my energy offering? Oki. And I essentially couldn't connect with his soulmate at all. Anyway, I floated off the little platform thing (that was real bizarre) and yoongi connected with me.

His soulmates energy wasn't present at all but I was told to continue any way. Now for in my opinion the creepiest part. So, keep in mind yoons is actively connected to me and I was like, "well, if your soulmate isn't here then please guide me to what deck I should use for their personality signifier and he pointed me to the fountain tarot.

I started shuffling and after I did one bridge shuffle and split it to do another one he was like, "hey, you're gonna get temperance reverse fyi" and I was like hahaha no. And he was like, "no. Listen to me. Bridge twice, hand shuffle twice and split into two. And you'll get temperance rev. Turn it ride side up when it comes out" I was like okay but you crazy. Tarot doesn't work like that

Guess what fucking came up? TEMPERANCE REVERSED when I tell you I freaked out I mean I fuckin freaked. I know it sounds made up or unbelievable and if I didn't see it happen I'd say its fake but FUCK DUDE. So i asked my pendulum if it should be reverse and it was like no, flips that shit. And I swear to God yoongi was laughing at me for being spooked like the smug ass that he is.

Now

First note I wrote was sagittarius energy. This person has sagittarius energy. Yep yep yep. This person balances him out. Temperance is the card of sagittarius. Heavy fire influence in the cart.

Oki now onto personality explained. I got 3 of coins, the heirophant, ace of wands and the magician. This person is very spiritual and has been manifesting him (they’ve manesfesting eachother but I'll get to that later?) This is a person that values knowledge and is very creative and has a lot of quick ideas. This person also really values communication of knowledge. Loves to get it loves to share it. Probably the person that can tell you a stupid fact about almost anything.

We also have networked, storyteller, god and mentor. This is someone who loves to teach people about what they've learned. They like to share the wisdom (with the god card im inclined to say that they share spiritual wisdom but I don't see it as a career?) This person values communication and collecting knowledge.

Now, on to relationship. We have wheel of fortune, justice, ace of wands and the lovers. This relationship has been in the works on a spiritual level for a long time. They’ve been actively manifesting eachother. We know Yoon is at least a little psychic so this makes sense. This relationship is founded in balance. They treat eachother as equals. I also wrote, "certainly something devine". They have a witty rapport and its so so so loving! They have really good communication and respect for eachother! They are also good at keeping eachither accountable.

Now for this person's career. They’ve been going through a change so their career is undecided. There was likely a period of depression that put a pause on their career? But there's also the queen of coins which suggests that they will be making good money. Now, I chose 3 clarity cards on the queen of coins to help me figure out where this money will be coming from and I drew three more coin cards so this means this person is on the cusp of making some good money soon!

Now we have answer the call, awakening and share your voice. They are being called to be together. Again yoon is woke af and apparently so is his soulmate. The picture i get is like when they finally meet they're both a little shy because they've been connecting with eachothers energies and they're like, "whos gonna bring it up?" Like they are finally out of hiding when they meet. Its cute as fuck.

Oki. We have answered prayers, spiritual path and make time for self care. THEY ARE MANIFESTING EACHOTHER. They are a woke pair and the energy is so sturdy and solid. I also get the sense that they engage in self care together? Like they'll make sure to take care of themselves spiritual and physical. I also think that they would be that type of couple to have a mad bath bomb collection.

Side note: while I was doing this I got like a cute little picture in my head of them sitting on the couch in pj's and facemasks with towels on their heads sipping wine and that makes me soft.

Now onto the message from his soulmate cards. So we have release all anger, new idea, be positive, take a shot, Have you eaten? You're acting like a big ass baby and shit is going down with your job. Now. I made a note that this is from Yoon to his soulmate? Um, sir? But oki, yoon makes the rules. What I get from this is that his soulmate is currently going through some job related stuff and he's saying, "hey, its okay to start over. Do that thing you've been wanting to do for a while" he wants his soulmate to stop focusing on what isn't going right and just start fresh. I also lowkey think he's like, you need to just fucking chill. The world isn't imploding just because something isn't working out. Its very reassuring and it feels like he wants to comfort them. Cute

Let's talk about the descriptors now. Yoon was very picky with these? Which confused me. They don't know eachother in person is the vibe im getting and I don't think yoon has ever seen this person either? I think maybe he's had dreams of his soulmate? Idk but the cards are: quality time, fashionable, unique, free spirit, independent, short hair, younger, sweet, charming. I also made a note for brown hair and a masculine chart.

For my little word cards we have, fate, vows, serendipity and loyalty. WE GET IT. YOURE ADORABLE TOGETHER

"All men should learn before they die, what they are running from and to and why" is the little fortune. I think that this is yoon telling his soulmate to do some shadow work? Like find out why you do the things you do, why certain things anger you ect.

Now at this point I was told that I had to use the small deck to get more cards about the relationship. I was like "I already did that but whatever" and I did. I pulled 10 of cups, 2 of cups and the lovers again. WHAT. THE. FUCK. This is the most romantic and soulmatey soulmate reading ever. 10 of cups is emotional fulfillment. This is just everything. Everything! 2 of cups is romance, unified love. Its also about partnership. They work so well together. And the lovers card. Love, relationships and harmony. Oh my god its fucking nuts.

Now onto the final card. Again. Very very very clearly told that this is for his soulmate. We have, the perfection of your life. This card talks about a spiritual storm coming to shake things up in order to put things to put things back in perfect order. A quote I like from the book is, "all is unfolding to a perfect higher order." This to me kinda sums it up well. Shit is about to get crazy for his soulmate and its not a bad thing. Change is need for this person and there is change coming that will stir every thing up and place it back in better places. Ugh. I can't. He wants his soulmate not to fear the storm but rather embrace it and know that positive change will come out of it.

Last part. When the reading is over I always disconnect and essentially put the energy back? This time on yoons little platform (I sound like a lunatic trying to describe some of this shit I swear) I was like, "hey thanks for being cooperative and being so active and involved i appreciate that." And then he gave me an energy marble ball thing too? I was like, "thanks but what the fuck" and then I did what he did when I gave him the marble ball energy thing in the beginning and just... put it in my energy? Like thats what he did? so is that like an energy custom that I don't know about? Wtf. My best guess is that I gave him an offering of energy and he gave me some in return at the end? And then the little shit just dissappears? MIN YOONGI I HAVE QUESTIONS YOU CAN'T JUST DISSAPPEAR??

But he did. And that was the end. It was super fucking bizarre. So for say joo I connected to his soulmate through him. So it was a connection with the soulmate but hosted by joons energy? For Jk his soulmate gave me a direct link which was new and awesome but for Yoongi it was just a very direct connection with him. Just him.

That really tells me that he knows his soulmate well on a soul level and his soulmate literally said, "I can't tell you"

I'm confused but very happy for him!

Yoon is a very soft and sweet man, pass it on

[memesiders]

Ghost AU Part 2 :)

(This was the last part I had saved so figured I'd post it :) Will be working on Part 3 soon!)

Hazel eyes stared back at Mel as she studied herself in the bathroom mirror, setting down the eye liner and studying her work. The dark circles under her eyes refused to go away, no matter how much high coverage concealer she packed on. Her normally rich olive skin was so pale she almost looked like a ghost herself. "You look miserable," she sighed to her reflection, smoothing some highlighter onto her cheekbones and up her temple. She reached into her makeup bag and pulled out a dark wine colored liquid lipstick, carefully running it over her lips. Not sure this helps make me look more alive, but oh well, she thought, looking over herself once she was finished. Another loud sigh left her lips and she pushed away from the counter, bundling her vibrant hair into a messy bun, shorter strands escaping the hair tie and framing her face.

The hairs on the back of her neck immediately stood on end, a primal emotion washing over her that made her heart beat faster.

"Fury," she said softly, eyes darting around the small room. Something pink flashed in her peripheral vision and she spun on her heels, grabbing onto the doorway to steady herself. "I... I'm sorry about last night. You didn't even do anything and I yelled at you. But..." She took a deep breath, her shoulders slumping.

"When you get like that around Lawson, I... You can't be like that around my baby brother." The phantom took form then, standing only a few inches away from the girl. Jaw clenched and arms crossed, the woman studied Mel.

"I know not to harm the brat; you know this by now," she replied, but her words fell on deaf ears. "You've made it more than clear he's completely off limits. Besides, I'd like to stay far away from that creature..." Fury uncrossed her arms, reaching out a tentative hand. Her fingers curled around a few of the bright loose stands, wrapping them around her finger before giving them a quick tug. "You're the worst creature of all." Mel smiled at this action and Fury couldn't help but give a small smirk.

She and the child had almost never gotten along, but the mortal had still managed to wiggle herself into Fury's small, cold heart; not that she'd ever admit it.

"Melinoe," her mother called. "Come eat, your bus is almost here!"

"Coming!" Mel shouted back, flipping the bathroom light off. "Alright, let's behave today, agreed?" Fury scoffed, stepping aside as the girl dashed down the hall.

"I'm always behaved, when it matters."

Mel hurried into the kitchen, throwing herself into the empty seat at the table that waited for her. She quickly tore into her breakfast, shoving a giant forkful of egg, cheese, and tomatoes into her mouth. "Easy, killer," her dad chuckled, looking up from the folder spread open in front of him. "Don't want you to choke."

"It's moms Huevos Rancheros; I literally cannot control myself," she shot back, following it up with another big bite from her breakfast. Her father laughed, reaching over and messing with her bun.

"Well try and show at least a little restraint, alright kiddo?"

"No promises!" They both chuckled and continued on with their morning, nearly oblivious to the beings that entered the room.

"Ooh, Huevos Rancheros," Strife groaned, staring at the dish longingly. "I can see it, I can smell it, but damn do I want to taste it; just once!"

"Maybe if we were corporeal," War grumbled. "I'd love to be able to feel my sword sink into the gnarled body of a demon just once more, feel my blade pierce its putrid heart." Strife looked at his brother, cocking his head slightly.

"Riiiiight... I mean, that sounds fun too." War sighed and reached out, grabbing one of the dining chairs. With a gentle tug the chair was sent flying across the kitchen, crashing into the wall. Mel's mother shrieked in surprise, a hand flying over her chest as she attempted to calm herself down. Mel choked on her food and quickly glanced from the broken chair to her mother and back again.

"It's an accident," she rushed out, her pulse jumping slightly. "It's War; he just doesn't know his own strength! I- I'll work on it with him-"

"You shouldn't have to work on anything!" her mom snapped, quickly clamping her lips together. The woman closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. Mel looked down at her half eaten plate of food, picking at the remaining eggs. "I'm sorry, sweetie." Her mother was calmer now, and had regained some of the color she'd lost. "You should probably get ready to meet the bus." Mel nodded quickly and pushed her plate away taking a last gulp of orange juice before standing.

"It wasn't her fault," War grumbled his hands balling into fists. "Why must they treat her this way?" The air in the room swirled, the kitchen cabinets fluttering open and closed. The adults in the room quickly looked at each other with wide eyes, fear palpable in them.

"War," Mel said, spinning on her heels. "Please, stop." The ghost seemed to ignore her, the rattling only getting worse.

"Brother, stop," Strife ordered, his usual cheerful tone now completely stripped of humor. "This won't help her."

"They've upset her!" War exclaimed, one of the cabinets slamming closed. Everyone jumped and Mel gulped, her heart beating faster.

"War, please, stop! We- We have to get to school!"

"You'll only further upset her if you don't cut it out," Strife warned. "Look at her; does she look okay with this?" War glanced over at his human, studying her. The worry etched on her face, her small frame trembling, the shine in her eyes as tears began to build; and just like that, all was calm in the home. War sagged forward, grimacing.

"Thank you," she breathed, a sense of relief washing over her.

"Go," her mother said suddenly. Mel looked at her mom.

"I'm so-"

"Please, just take your brother and go." Her mom turned away from her then, gripping the counter to keep steady. "Have a good day at school." Mel furiously blinked back tears, grabbing her brothers hand and leading him to the door. The two backpacks next to the door levitated off of the ground and Mel swiped them up quickly, noting the faint smell of gunpowder.

"Thanks, Strife." The siblings stepped out into the crisp autumn air, the cold biting into her nose and cheeks.

"Are you okay, Meli?" Lawson asked, looking up at her curiously. Mel dabbed at her eyes and forced a smile, nodding.

"Yeah, I'm fine! It's just my allergies acting up." She tried to sound as cheerful as possible but the look on her little brothers face told her that she wasn't doing a good job of it.

"Is mommy mad at you?"

"No, she's not. She just doesn't want us to miss the bus." As they reached the end of the gravel driveway, a loud engine roar shattered the silence, a large yellow school bus turning down their street. "See? We would've been late!" Law smiled and wrapped his little arms around her side, squeezing tightly. She smiled and smoothed down his messy hair.

She looked up and spotted a familiar black blob sitting on the power lines across the street. The crow had been around for as long as she could remember, seeming to follow wherever she went. She'd offered the bird a few shiny bits and baubles and though it seemed grateful for the gifts, it would never get to close or allow her to pet it.

Death sighed from beside the two humans, staring longingly at the crow across from them. "Dust, you fool. Why do you continue to stick around? There's nothing left for you here." The animal cawed loudly in reply, attempting to tell him off, and the reaper chuckled. He missed the bird, not that he'd ever admit it; missed stroking his midnight feathers, the feeling of his talons sinking into Death's shoulder when the creature was too tired to carry on flying or felt lazy, missed the occasional peck or two; he missed everything.

"That thing's still around," Fury asked, moving to stand next to him. "How long has it been now?"

"Fourteen years since he tracked us down."

"And he still hasn't left; you two must've been great friends." Death hummed in reply, his gaze torn from the bird as the school bus pulled up. The door hissed and opened, the children quickly climbing on. Fury groaned quietly, following the humans onto the bus. Her lip curled immediately as she studied the scene before her, her hands rising to rest on her hips. The children on the bus were loud, wild, and disgusting, nothing unusual; still, it never ceased to amaze her just how annoying human offspring were.

"Just five minutes with these brats and they'd reconsider raising their voices above a whisper," she grumbled.

"You'd also scar them for the rest of their lives," Strife chuckled, popping into the bus. War followed close behind, barely hopping on before the vehicle pulled forward, leaving the house behind them.

"At least they'd be behaved." One particular child shrieked just then and Fury snarled, grabbing one of the girls pigtails and yanking it hard. The girl nearly flew from her seat. "Shut up!"

"Fury," Death warned. The girl pulled herself back up, her eyes wide with fear. She clutched the pigtail to the side of her head and quickly looked around, searching for the culprit.

"What?"

"Can we not go one day without you harming an unsuspecting child?"

"Can I not go one day without the incessant prattling of prepubescent children?"

"Someone get this girl a Snickers," Strife muttered, jokingly elbowing War's side. Fury cut her gaze to him, reaching for her whip, when she remembered it wasn't there. It was with her body at... She frowned to herself; where was her body? She still couldn't remember. None of them remembered how or where they died. The only thing she could remember was waking up tethered to an infant. Her eyes drifted to the teenager in the back, oblivious to the ghost that was watching her. Sixteen long years with no knowledge of how she and her brothers had perished. It irked her every single day, and she would never be able to get answers; not while she was attached to Melinoe.

"Fury," War said cautiously, careful to not provoke his temperamental sister. Fury hissed softly, turning her attention back to her siblings. Without saying anything, she disappeared from view, leaving only a wisp of pink smoke in her wake. The others exchanged glances but said nothing; their sister would calm down eventually. Hopefully she wouldn't cause any harm before then.

[sohaveyoubeento-blog]

V is for Vietnamese & Vintage

Us three ladies had always played it pretty safe by way of our lunch dates. Not to say the local deli isn't absolutely kick ass - it's very tasty and very enjoyable every time we go, but in much the same way as I struggle to go to the same country more than once on my holidays (excluding India, you can never have enough India) I couldn't help but think that life's a bit too short to sit in the same eatery every time we meet for lunch, given that the whole day is ours, and within reason, travel is no issue.

The three of us decided that we would try different cuisines every week, and with the girls (Laura and Dani) living in the quieter, leafier suburbs of Otley and Burley in Wharfedale, with me (Alex) living in what I frequently describe as the bronx, 5 minutes from central Leeds but gloriously populated by some of the best food joints in the country (confirmed) they usually end up meeting at mine and then we go into town to try somewhere a bit off the beaten track. Invariably, being three mums of young children, we eat at the speed of rabid dogs and end up having a bit of time to go explore some local weird shop or two, never anything mainstream like a department store. Oh no. We like vintage shops. You know the type, they smell like damp and the inside of your nan's wardrobe, and we prance around pretending to overlook the fact that we are just in a well laid out, slightly more selective charity shop without the undertone of giving. Usually there's some blue haired student with a headscarf and a faint stench of Bobby Orange pawing through piles of shirts and jumpers that are deemed as retro, when they've actually some of them originated in C&A - we remember that place the first time round,depressingly. The whole vintage scene is a bit ironic and try hard and a bit sad at times, but the one thing that it does offer is the piece you are often looking at, generally is one of one only in the store. The same goes for charity shops, generally. We like stuff that can't be bought in bulk.

Dani owns Deluxe Blooms, and is a luxury faux florist, and very good at it too. Laura is a nail technician and spray tanning afficionado, and the owner of Maibella Nails and Tanning. I own a salon called Lexa Hair, and the three of us work together frequently. The ridiculous thing is though, that work is going really well for us, and while in the past we may have dug around in charity shops for a bargain simply to be economical, now it has begun more of a habit. And you know what they say, old habits die hard. We don't have to eat streetfood on picnic tables anymore, and we can shop anywhere we want, but at least just for me, I don't like extravagance and I'm not impressed by labels or price tags. I like pieces that are unique,with a story behind them. My two accomplices sort of get dragged in to it I think, but they seem on board with most of it. I hope.

And street food is the best food on earth, everyone knows that.

We kicked things off with a visit to a fairly new (maybe a year old I think) Vietnamese place on North Lane in Headingley named VietBaker. Inside it's very wooden looking, quite industrial and urban, stained wood everywhere and dark red leather chairs. It smells like the rice cooker that's chugging away in the corner, mixed with plenty of garlic and of course, the fresh baguettes that are stacked up in a glass cabinet above the front desk.

We opted for a sharing platter for £9, and from the menu us Yorkshire ruffians requested spring rolls (the deep fried ones, not the fresh, healthy ones obviously), prawn toast, and 'rustic chips'.

This was skin on chips with salt and pepper (well cooked and so tasty) and the prawn toast was understandably made of baguette slices. It made for a much heavier slab of prawn toast and therefore an even more unhealthy treat but man alive, was it good. The spring rolls were pork, prawn and the usual crispy vegetables inside. Not floppy or soggy, totally crispy and served with a really light and watery sweet chilli dip that's more sweet than chilli. It was all very lovely.

I've personally eaten from here a number of times and I think the Vietnamese have got it absolutely nailed when they make sandwich. Or a Ban Mih. Laura and I opted for one each, chicken for her and pork for me. Dani went for something off the new part of the menu, the fusion section, which even featured a take on beef bourgignon, Vietnamese style. She tried the Shanghai pork belly, served with rice. Her whole bowl was piled high, and we're not talking a polite, peanuts size bowl. More like a ‘free ceramic crunchy nut cereal box’ bowl, with the with tokens on the back of the pack, that you’d send off as a kid. It was huge. The second bowl was just plain rice, which worked really well as the pork alone was…. alot. It was sticky and tangy and rich and all those other wanky words that just mean amazing. I'm trying so hard to limit the wankiness. I like writing and eating, combining the two is hard work though. Bear with me. The slow cooked pork made me feel a bit gutted I went for a sandwich until I got stuck in.

Vietnam was a former French colony, and much like their neighbour Cambodia, found their local best offerings being bastardised to accomodate the 'local palate'. The nice version is that the baguette was the French's gift to the Vietnamese, although I imagine it was more a case of 'put your lovely meal in my baguette for me or you're in deep shit.'

I've never been to Vietnam but having visited Cambodge a few summers back, I remember being astounded at the gorgeous, light, dairy free Asian cuisine that had been shoved in a crusty, warm baguette. Whoever's story was true, it's the absolute bollocks.

They cut this freshly baked baguette open and spread it with patè on one side and on the other mayonnaise (already weird but hang in there) - add a ton of crispy green leaves, cucumber, pickles, coriander and fresh chilies, and add some meat into what little room is left. Enough meat to give you meat sweats. It. Is. Superb.

The pork was very finely sliced, dark and sticky again (here she goes) and you can bang on a fried egg, too, if you're an absolute wrong un. No thanks.

Laura had the chicken which was a milder flavour but none the less tasty and flavoursome. I noticed Laura pulling bits off her sandwich and delicately chewing away at them, while I picked it up and ate it like I'd been sleeping in the dark arches for the last month. I even had to be asked to wipe my face. Sorry, not sorry. No messing with a Ban Mih. Especially not this one.

The bill was a very respectable £11 a head, and they threw in a free set of spring rolls for us, which was a nice unexpected surprise. The place had a steady flow of traffic, and although wasn't packed, I've been on an evening and I think it's safe to assume that's the bulk of their trade. It was fantastic food, very reasonable and highly recommended. Great staff and great location. We'll be back!

Afterwards we drove for about 3 days to find a parking spot anywhere near Hyde Park, so we could check out the newly (ish) renovated (OK sign replaced and possibly ownership changed) Vintage something or other in Hyde Park.

I forget the name, and if I'm brutally honest I can see why. It's alright, but it used to be alot better. The last time I went in there was alot of very old apothecary style wooden drawer units, some weird taxidermy, and unusual pictures in frames that would look incredible in the lounge. This time there was quite a bit of formica, and some hideously orange stained TV units that I guess in some context would be deemed as cool again.

The music collection seemed to be where the most effort had been made. The clothing was actually quite 'quirky' in the sense that you wouldn't actually wear alot of it, there was a whole department that seemed to have been handed over by the owner of the late knob head Jimmy Saville, shell suit after shell suit in every colour of the rainbow, in that non breathable fabric you'd get a two man tent in. Hideous. Still, there are some absolute finds in there. I would encourage people to bear in mind that these shops have a high stock turnaround and in their uniqueness, and ability to replace items based on sales, any vintage shop can be a complete bag of shite one week and a total gold mine the next. Its the luck of the drawer, I love that about them. That and the fact that we call them vintage shops. The three of us refer to them as shit shops, but potato patato.

I find it depressing that as I mentioned before, alot of the 'retro' stuff is just normal stuff we, in our 30s, encountered in our youth. There was a 'vintage phone' that was £15 and I'm pretty sure my gran has it now. It's literally a BT £10 phone still in argos, but clearly it had lived with a heavy smoker, adding to the aged facade.

Some of it was very authentic, some of it was broken crap, but the general feel of the place is a good one. There is more 70s stuff than anything else which is quite cool, but like I say, stock changes very frequently. Dani bought an oversized T shirt with a University football team logo emblazoned across it, and to be honest I would have too. There was a vast array of university related large varsity based sweaters, some unnecessarily cut in half width ways (why?!!!! Serves no purpose now, you fools) and that's the kind of thing I would have liked to look at. But as I was in charge of a one year old who was bombing around the floor, doubling as a human sweeping brush and coming back with more dust on him than the inside of the V6 after the attic stairs have been tackled, I gave it up as a bad job and put my bank card back away. No spending for mum today. Gutted.

The shop is pretty fabulous, on the whole. They do know how to charge when it comes to furniture, but the clothing is far more reasonable. It's not all one off pieces, a couple of items make an appearance a few times and that kind of ruins it for me, I start picturing some huge factory in China making hideously outdated clothing and leaving them in a damp garage for a few years, chucking a bit of tea down them and wearing the cuffs and collars down, before exporting the newly knackered pieces to us dumbasses in our 'quirky vintage shops'. Who knows. It's well laid out, and pretty cool, and although not my favourite, I imagine the next time I go it'll be a whole different experience. Swings and roundabouts with these places. It was an interesting look, and if Parker hadn't been doing his best ferret impression I would have definitely bought a jumper. Well worth a look.

Until next week!

Laura, Dani and Alex X

VietBaker, Headingley

https://www.thevietbaker.co.uk

Vintage Boutique, Hyde Park

https://vintageboutique.com

[dogtraino]

Simple Method To Stop Your Dog From Begging For Food

If you really want to stop your dog from begging for food, you're going to need to learn to refrain from giving in to his begging every time there is food around.

It is not a secret as to the reason why a dog begs, well, it is because they would like food as soon as you have food anywhere near you or as soon as you go in the kitchen.

Begging isn't disrespectful or weird to your puppy; it's instinctive, so it takes a great deal of consistency to reverse that behavior if we've been reinforcing it. 

This begging "attitude" began a long time ago with the dog's descendants. With time, this became instinctive to wolves which carried over to dogs through their DNA.

Our dogs are hard-wired to seek opportunities to get food from us and given that they're observant they quickly grasp that begging brings about payoffs when we respond to all these signals that they have gained mastery so well over time.

It is one of the most common complaints of pet owners, however, there is hope. You can keep your pet dog from your food while your dining, you just have to be persistent.

- How Can I Stop My Dog From Begging?

The initial step when teaching your dog not to beg is to make a pledge to yourself which is to stop submitting. Every time you offer your puppy a treat from the table it's teaching them that begging is a winning action. It may perhaps not work all the time, but our dogs have excellent memories; they'll maintain trying if they figured out it did the job anytime before

Dogs beg more when we're looking at them; they know it works. Those big puppy dog eyes and all that whining-- it works really well on all of us.

If you want your dog to stop begging you have to ensure that you're not giving him mixed signals. It is not reasonable to expect good behavior from our puppies if we ourselves don't remain consistent.

Training ourselves as being constant is usually the most challenging part, the rest is relatively simple. Here are 3 methods that will definitely help you stop your dog from begging.

Pay no attention to Your Dog's Begging

Don't look at your puppy while he begs. Just ignore him.

Whenever your dog starts his routine of begging for food you have to totally pay no attention to the disruptive behavior. Should he get a scrap from you one single time he realizes that his time and efforts might just pay off next time.

If you look into those big eyes when he's begging you can feel bad for him and offer him a morsel. Almost any attention you give him when he's begging might make him believe you're close to giving him some food given that it's done the job so well previously.

He will most likely fuss and resist if he's a prolific beggar, nevertheless, you are going to have to learn to pay no attention to it. Your pet dog should eventually figure out that "hey, I think that's not going to do the job anymore."

Don't associate food together with love. Your puppy is certainly not starving. You nourish him very well every morning and evening. Over 50% of American dogs are generally too heavy, your puppy doesn't need to have any extras. If you still feel bad just keep in mind-- he's manipulating you.

Pet dogs have developed to getting those big sad eyes and floppy ears for merely that reason, to maneuver you into caring for them. They've evolved more puppy-like features and tend to share plenty of attributes of wolf puppies rather than adult wolves.

2- Limit Your Dog From the Dinner Table

Among the easiest solutions to stop your from begging is by preventing the behavior early on. You may do this by separating your pet dog from the dinner table.

You can educate your dog to lay down away from where you are eating, or you can make use of a baby gate to retain them in a different area. If your dog is already a beggar keep in mind that his behavior is most likely going to be fairly resistant for a little bit before it improves, but the consistency will ultimately pay off.

Have your dog lay down in his bed or specific space you've picked for him, compliment him as soon as he lays down and give him some treats within this spot. Depending on his stay command you might possibly need to work at this for some time before he's continually remaining in his new spot.

After you've eaten visit him and give him lots of praise, give him treats. Let him know the behavior of sitting steadily while the family members eat is just what's going to generate the most desired compensation.

If you don't believe your puppy is going to be able to stay for any period of time or you don't have a decent stay command mastered you can prefer to separate him with a barricade such as a baby gate, a very common selection.

3- Redirect His Focus While You Eat

Give your pet dog something else to concentrate on while you eat. If you don't wish your dog to stay completely separated from you while you eat you may redirect his focus to some snacks, toys, or treats of his own. Offer him one of his popular bully sticks, or jam some peanut butter inside of a Kong.

Ignore him if he gets up from his treat to beg. He is going to most likely do this for a while if he's used to begging. Just as long as you don't give in and nourish him from the table at all he will eventually understand that his begging abilities aren't going to pay off anymore.

If you're consistent and decide to persevere begging could be considerably quick and easy to deal with. It merely takes determination and consistency. You need all of the household engaged; if any member is not going to play along and gives up you are definitely not going to be successful.

You simply cannot surrender, regardless of how adorable he is actually or what sounds your puppy is producing, it will set you back to square one

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