#and yet I've not met many people who grew up like this... despite being involved with Ghost

[papasbaseball]

There's no one I can sympathize with about listening to church hymns despite not being religious but because they remind me of childhood (because I was forced to go to church every Sunday). They're comforting, not in a religious way, but in a "I know all the words and maybe if I close my eyes I can be 7 years old in an uncomfortable dress in a sanctuary again, nothing expected of me, no life problems."

[curse-of-the-phoenix]

Dimitri couldn't find his words for a moment. He didn't deserve help, one part of him said, while another reminded him of how little such a thing was offered to him aside from his classmates. People were often too nervous to approach him, just as they were with Claude and Edelgard, despite comradery being part of the reason this school had come to be. They wouldn't come to him, so he would go to them, and with time, people like the merchants grew comfortable enough to ask for his assistance on a regular basis and hardly do any of the work themselves.

"I...feel it best to carry out tasks as laborous as this with as few hands as possible. There is little need to burden my classmates when it is not expressly nessecary, despite being offered." He seemed to realize something after a short, nervous laugh, the prince's eyes growing wide as he looked to Sothis in panic. "Not that I do not appreciate your assistance! I do not mean to imply it is unwanted, it is just...you are the first I have met possessing a strength to match my own." A chuckle, Dimitri eyes flickng off to the side with a nervous shuffle of boots. Who was he to compare himself to a Goddess?

"Be that as it may, I have very little doubt you could put even my abilities to shame with but a flick of the wrist." Said with a smile, it was oddly comforting that despite it all, he wasn't the strongest. Didn't have to be the strongest.

"The cart is just outside the main gates." He explained while falling into step beside Sothis. "As for my duties for the day, this is all I am slated to do, at least for the time being." He was silent for a moment or two while they walked- or well, while he walked and Sothis floated alongside him, and then for a moment more at first the bafflment that such damage could be repaired, and then at the question of what he liked to read. It was a simple question, and yet he wasn't sure he had an answer.

"If that is the case, I suppose I won't have to worry about damaging another's property as much." A chuckle as he held open the doors leading into the entrance hall. Sothis had no idea how relieving such a statement was to him. "I can't say I've read anything interesting as of late, mostly recountings of battles long since fought, and old excerpts from the people who were involved themselves, no matter who they fought for. I feel if perhaps I knew why those wars came to be from all sides, I might be able to prevent such unrest once I take the throne." Something he felt silly for saying, but not so much as what he would continue to say without input from brain to mouth, the memory leaving him trying to cover up his reddening face with a gloved hand.

"When I was young, I rather enjoyed those books detailing grande adventures; of princes and knight befalling a grand enemy and bringing peace to the land. It...sounds so very silly now, I know." And then, all at once, his flush disappeared and a solemn shoud took its place. "My stepmother used to chastise me whenever I requested she read me such tales before bed. 'Nothing in those books will ever come true for you', she would say. That I had better let go of such fantasies and accept how unkind the world really was..."

And then, just like with the blush, he'd shaken the frown off near as quickly as it had come, the prince now turning to Sothis with a practiced smile as they neared the market. "Do you have any works you enjoy? I can imagine in terms of what I often find myself reading, there are many far too factually inaccurate to gain anything but frustration from them." Every kingdom had its history, and almost none of it was ever accurate in any book written about it.

@mudskip-muses

While some might say Dimitri gets used like a pack mule because of his strength, he's never once seen it as someone taking advantage of him. He was strong, unnaturally so, so it made sense that anyone who needed some heavy lifting done would come to him for help. Merchants loading and unloading their goods, the cooks who needed to put out large pots of stew for the dining hall, even the stablemaster sought out Dimitri's help every now and then when a foal needed transporting so it could be looked over without fear of angering the mother.

He's lifted rocks for farming plots, fallen trees in roadways, hefted entire carts to and from town in place of a lost wheel, all without hardly breaking a sweat. Many no doubt felt he was simply showing off, another noble with a crest flaunting what the lower classes could never have, but nothing could be farther from the truth. He just wanted to help, and the abilities his crest gave him allowed him to do just that.

Given such a desire to be useful, to make up for the things he's done, it was no shock that even Byleth would ask him for help now and then. Granted, they hardly ever asked him for such favors no matter how many times he's offered them, but lugging in a new delivery of books was one of the exceptions. It had taken three men to unload the large boxes from the cart down at the market stalls, and yet Dima had hefted the largest one onto his shoulder, and the two smaller ones under his arm like the boxes were empty. On top of that, he carried them all the way from the market to the Blue Lions classrooms, not one sign of fatigue plaguing him as he stepped past the threshold.

He only stopped when he spotted Sothis, and that was just to give a polite bow in greeting, though he only managed a single step forewards before his face scrunched in confusion.

"Ah, pardon my interruption, but do you know where the professor was seeking to put these?" Once he set them down, it may be difficult for them to move them. Or perhaps not, what with how powerful his teacher was in their own right, but he wanted to save them the inconvenience if at all possible.

The young princes nature certainly spread throughout the monastery, and of course came to Sothis. Which she’s known about early on as Byleth has taken the Blue Lions on as their professor so Sothis has seen plenty of the blond.

Dimitri was quite a fascinating human, one she’s kept her eyes on more than the other students. He was pretty, his voice was deep and alluring and his strength proved plenty useful in both battle and off. He was so… kind, helpful, something that drew her to him. Prince or not he had plenty of manners. A good kid.

“Hm?” The goddess was drawn from her thoughts to notice Dimitri. A smile spread across Ruby lips. Byleth had mentioned a shipments of books were coming in that day, and here they were! Brought on by the prince no less!

“Mm, o believe behind the desk. That way By can move them to wherever they need to go, easily.” A nod. That sounded right. If not, she can move them just as easily Dimitri can.

“D’you need any assistance? I know you’re more than capable,” Sothis offered then hesitated before she wandered into the blue themed classroom and stood near the desk, where there was plenty of room for the boxes. “Ah, I should tell By the books are here! Oh, Dimi, is this all there was? Just three boxes?” So inquired as an afterthought. Yes that’s a lot of books but she didn’t know just how many were purchased.

[sons-of-the-morning-star]

DISCLAIMER FOR ANY SENSITIVE READERS: This series is going to deal with heavy topics like abandonment, death, guilt, grief, and a lot of other stuff; this first chapter in particular is probably going to be pretty heavy for the same reason.

I will be writing this is present tense and will be constantly be saying, "if this was a show, this would happen or this is what we see," both because I originally thought of it as a show and because this is a screenplay, but more narratively cohesive.

Got that? GREAT!!!

Let's dive in!!!!!!!!!

Chapter/Episode 1: Union- Part 1

We start off in darkness with the sound of crackling fire in the background. One by one, a red light shines and silhouettes five figures, all standing in a circle as they face each other. If this was a show, the camera would be behind one of these figures as he and the other figures eye each other.

He starts a fire in his hand and two figures bristle while the other two back away-

An alarm clock blares out and we cut to a dark bedroom in a hotel suite, like the sound of the alarm woke US up, along with the character sleeping, who groans as his alarm keeps blaring.

After MAYBE the fifth chime, he sighs and slaps the alarm clock off, his arm slipping down his nightstand and droppong to the side of his bed.

His hand curls into a fist as the door is knocked on.

"Mr. Wagner? Are you awake yet?"

Yes! We start with our boy Lucius Wagner!

Lucius loudly humms, "Mm-hm" and sits up.

"You have an interview at nine', a meeting at a quarter to noon, and a conference at five'. Looks like another busy day."

He hears the person- man, woman, it doesn't matter- walk away and stands up from his bed to pull the curtain to his room back only to wince when the light hits his face.

It's too early for the sun to be so bright.

Despite being tired and not wanting to write to people because he can't talk, Lucius gets ready for his day.

Back to what we'd see if this was a show: the camera would be on Lucius as he stares out at the city before he takes a deep breath and turns away. Jump cut to the camera behind and away from Lucius as he turns and walks to the bathroom, turning on the TV before he starts getting ready, more specifically the news.

The camera stays on the TV as we learn Lucius, despite his young age of 22, is running for senator just like his human father did, but he is more successful because not only has crime rate already decreased, but any political opponents he goes against stepped down within minutes of the debate or conference he's in. With no evidence of bribery or any other scandal involved, as criminals are being found dead, one being brought up in todays broadcadt, Lucius is on his way to becoming Sentator of not only Massachusetts, but of the United States as a whole.

We do a transition from Lucius's room to the scene where the camera zooms in on the TV screen as it shows a body under a blanket and we hear the click of a camera and the lens shutters close and open.

On the streets, we now follow Damien Thorn as he gets as close as he can to the scene and the body. He has been investigating these 'accidents' since the arrival of everyone's favorite new politician, who has never spoken a word on camera, never said anything to or against his opponents, and never spoke during interviews. And somehow he's running for senator. Since it seems fishy to him, and because he keeps getting a sick feeling in his stomach when he sees Lucius on the news, he decided to start digging by tracing the criminals who have died and anyone who stepped down from conferences.

The body he is investigating today is a fisher from the town Lucius grew up in, who was charged for numerous cases of assault and fraud.

He is stopped by a police officer when he tries to cross the police tape.

"Sorry, that's close enough."

"It's for the paper. People want to know what's going on."

"They don't need to see this."

Damien scowls as his eyes go black, uttering a "sorry" as he stares the officer down.

The officer's face goes expressionless and just as he lifts the tape, the announcer gets a breaking report.

"This just in! An earthquake near the United Kingdoms has caused the south western quarter of England and Wales to be flooded and taken out to sea!"

Cut back to Lucius in his room as he chokes and gags on his toothbrush; if you've ever hit the back of your tongue while brushing your teeth, you'll get why he gags. He walks out, mouth kind of full of toothpaste and his toothbrush in his teeth, and sees an over head view of the map, showing just how much of England has been wiped out.

For context, here is what was taken out, circled in red⬇️⬇️

Lucius's eyes widen as he takes out his toothbrush.

I'm not good with fractions, but a third or fifth of England is now gone. And-

"While it is right now unknown how many are injured or missing, authorities have reported countless victims were lost in the catastrophe."

Lucius turns off the TV and finishes getting ready, a time jump/transition of Lucius going to the bathroom to spit out the toothpaste and then transitioning to him looking up from washing his face, like he leans down to spit out the toothpaste wearing no shirt and with some shower head, but when he leans back up, he's in a black dress shirt, about to tie his tie, his hair is tidy, and he is rubbing his face dry with a towel.

Part of England gone. Just like that.

It's a pretty shocking thing to imagine, with possibly hundreds or thousands of people being wiped out in the blink of an eye and the cause somehow being an earthquake.

Seems sort of fishy, if you ask me.

Lucius tries shrugging it off as he leaves his room, dressed to impress, and heads out for breakfast and his interview.

Cut to a pair of men walking on the sidewalk, the white-blonde haired one panicked and finicky while his red haired partner is swaggering beside him with a briefcase. The more brightly dressed man keeps "oh"-ing and whimpering , which is driving his more darkly attired kind of insane.

An angel and a demon.

If you've seen Good Omens, you KNOW who there two are

"Angel, stop muttering. You sound like you're summoning Satan himself."

"What if we can't find him? And what if he says 'no?'"

"We'll make him say 'yes.'"

Aziraphale looks down at the briefcase and then nods.

"And just how are we going to find him?"

"We found the antichrist once. We can find him again."

Aziraphale stops and gives him a withering look.

"Another one. We can find another one."

SPEAKING OF THE DEVIL'S SON!!!

Just as the two continue, they bump into a certain photographer that makes Aziraphale shudder like he's just gotten into an ice bath and Crowley smell either blood or smoke.

This wasn't what Crowley had in mind, but it's a start.

"Oi! 'Scuse me!"

Damien turns as he keeps walking. "Sorry, I have to hurry to..."

Aziraphale now starts trembling and Damien gets a sick feeling in his stomach, not like with seeing Lucius, like he has an air bubble in his stomach or really bad period cramps.

Crowley narrows his eyes behind his sunglasses and steps closer.

"Where you off to so quickly?"

Damien fights a gag as he continues to back away. "I-Interview. Wagner's see-seeing someone. Im-Important for the news."

Crowley steps closer and pulls Damien close by his color, making Damien pale and fall to his knees.

"Lucius Wagner?"

Damien nods.

Aziraphale and Crowley exchange glances before looking back at Damien, Aziraphale taking the briefcase away so Damien can recompose himself.

Cut to Lucius in the middle of his interview, which is being recorded on the news. So far he has been asked the basic political questions and he gave the correct answers to get people to love him. Then comes in ANOTHER breaking news report.

Part of California, Arizona, and New Mexico has also been flooded, but there aren't as many people missing as England.

"Mr. Wagner? How do you see yourself helping the families that are now broken by this tragedy?"

Before Lucius can answer, two people catch his eye.

Like when Damien saw him, Lucius gets a sick feeling in his stomach until he sees two young men, one scowling with wavy blond hair and the other with brown hair and the giddiest smile on a boy.

Suddenly, a member of the crowd pulls a gun out and shoots at Lucius, who throws himself and the woman he's interviewing with to the ground.

The blond smirks and the brunette grows angry.

The shooter gets a look of pure despair on his face as he drops to his knees letting the police drag him away.

Lucius is escorted away instead gets a call.

His schedule has changed completely. He must now go a military base, where a private jet is waiting for him to take him home; his address is classified to the public, so no one knows where he lives.

Cut to Lucius walking through a crowd as he tries to get to his jet, trying his best to wave at the paparazzi and camera people.

"Mr. Wagner, if you'll let me ask you-"

The man who asked grabs Lucius's arm and the two meet eyes. You know that part of the forst Lucius game where time freezes and you see your target with the screen tinted red? Lucius and Damien met eyes and time freezes entirely as they stare at each other and feel the growing urge to kill each other.

They don't hear anyone or anything. They only see each other.

Both are wide eyed as they realize who or what the other is and glare at each other.

Luckily, a body guard punches Damien away and helps Lucius to the jet, where he takes his seat and lets out a breath as he loosens his tie and tips his head back.

"So sorry for all that, Mr. Wagner, sir."

Lucius looks over to see someone like an air flight attendant and writes them a message.

'Don't worry about it. I've had worse happen.'

"Well, at least you're headong home, after all this."

Lucius nods and leans back once more, getting comfortable for his flight to home sweet home.

It's a relatively short flight, mostly because we'd see a timelapse of the sky and Lucius napping in his seat before we cut to him in his house.

Being a senator in the running, Lucius is on a very nice house, one he keeps clean and well furnished. Think Lucifer's penthouse in the shiw Licifer, but it's an actual house and doesn't have a wall of alcohol, just a small cabinet in his parlor and shelf in his fridge.

He turns on a light and nearly jumps out of his skin when he sees Crowley sitting in his living room.

"Hello, Me. Wagner. Nice flight?"

Lucius recomposes himself and raises an eyebrow as he holds a hand out. 'How did you get in here?'

"Just a bit of miracle work from a demon. Takes one to know one, right?"

Lucius takes a seat as he writes a message, showing it to Crowley with narrow eyes.

'I don't exactly know who you are, but you don't have the right to make an accusation like that.'

"You're one of the sons of Satan, I'm pretty sure I do."

'My father was Charles Wagner.'

"Ah, yes, the loon that killed your mother and his own staff while you were sent to the nut house."

'He tried to kill me.'

"Eye for an eye, you prat."

Lucius's eye twitches as he snaps his pen in half, eyes going red.

Crowley only smirks and removes his sunglasses, revealing his snake eyes, befire putting them back on; the lights Lucius has are bright.

Lucius settles and grabs another pen from the coffee table and writes a new message.

'Antony J. Crowley? It's about time London's famed has paid the US a visit.'

"You would think." Crowley leans forward until his elbiws are on his knees. "Look, you're not going to like this, but there's something we need your help with."

Lucius gets up and shakes his head before leaving a messge on the table, and to go the the kitchen to get a drink; like hell he's dealing with CROWLEY sober.

'I don't know if you've noticed, but I have a country I'll be running soon. I don't exactly have time to help you or your pet angel.'

Crowley snarls and follows Lucius to see the young man about to take a sip of a drink.

"Don't you think it's weird that parts of England and America are just gone? That the ocean just took them away and an earthquake was the cause?"

Lucius pauses and lowers his drink slightly, eyes on Crowley as he nods and gestures for the snake eyed demon to continue.

'I'm listening.'

And that will be it for part 1 of Chapter/Episode 1!!!! Man, was this fun to write!!!! Like I said, this is just part 1 and I will be continuing with Chapter/Episode 1 Part 2, I promise!

Sorry for all the yelling, I'm really excited!!

Thank you all so much for reading this and I hope you all have a happy and safe holiday season!!!

[utaprinews]

Gekidan Shining from Utano☆Prince-sama♪ Presents Polaris Interview! "I've broadened my horizons," says Ryunosuke Matsumura (EnterStage)

(Originally posted August 9th, 2018)

"Gekidan Shining" is a stage performance project for the otome series "Utano☆Prince-sama♪" (more commonly known as Uta☆Pri) developed in order to delve into the theater scene. June of last year saw the debut of its first show "Tenka Muteki no Shinobi-do", followed by "Masquerade Mirage" in September and "JOKER TRAP" earlier this year. A revue performance, "SHINING REVUE", featuring all three productions was held due to astonishing fan feedback. This fall, the "Gekidan Shining" project will tackle the "Theater Shining" series, focusing on the theme of "movies".

The first installment in this series and the fourth major performance for the company will be "Polaris", a science fiction tale of a distant future where three young men must work together to protect the Earth from impending crisis while each exploring their own humanity along the way. Expectations are high for how this grand of a story will be portrayed on the stage. We talked to Ryunosuke Matsumura, the role of Tokiya Ichinose, about the shift from the "JOKER TRAP" performance and his own thoughts on "Polaris".

--To start with, can you tell us about your impressions from working on "Gekidan Shining from Utano☆Prince-sama♪ Presents JOKER TRAP"? It was only a few months ago, but it already feels like its been years since it happened. (laughs) Since there was so much that happened during that short period of time, I was actually a little sad once it had run its course... I needed some time before I could really tell myself "alright, this is really over".

--Were you particularly invested in "JOKER TRAP"? It was a truly fulfilling experience from the first day of practice all the way to the last day of performances. I was able to work with a wonderful group of people - Takamoto-kun in the role of REN, Kohatsu Allen-kun in the role of RAN, and Kikuchi Shuji-kun as CAMUS - that I would love to have the chance to perform alongside again in the future. It was a project I won't forget for the rest of my life.

--Did you have to change much about yourself to get into the role of TOKI during "JOKER TRAP"? To get into the role of TOKI I had to first learn how to act as Ichinose Tokiya and it's a pretty conscious shift I go through. Ever since I decided to turn acting into a career, I knew I had to be strict with myself. Ichinose Tokiya is also very strict with himself, the kind of person who strives to do everything perfectly. It was inspiring and sort of felt like I was getting a look at myself from a different perspective. As a result, I became more in tune with what I'm currently capable of and what I still need to improve on. The whole experience gave me a chance to grow as a person as well as an actor.

--I saw your performance and thought you were an amazing TOKI. I wouldn't necessarily say amazing, but thank you nonetheless. I think the quality of my acting will differ among viewers, but so long as I was able to grow from the performance I'll be pleased with myself. I can't extend my thanks enough to all the fans who cheered us on and gave me strength. As the audience's excitement grew we found ourselves thinking "I want them to have even more fun! I want them to feel even more fulfilled!" and that really drove us from one performance to the next. I'm proud to say that I was part of a performance that brought the audience together as a whole.

--After the "JOKER TRAP" performances were over, you were also involved in a revue show showcasing songs from "Gekidan Shining from Utano☆Prince-sama♪ Presents Tenka Muteki no Shinobi-michi, Masquerade Mirage, and JOKER TRAP" under the name "SHINING REVUE". Every single performance we did was really fun! All of my co-stars had the same mentality of not wanting to lose and to keep raising the bar for themselves. It was definitely refreshing to collaborate with the actors from separate shows during the variety corner.

--That was also where you first met Shojiro Yokoi, your co-star in "Polaris". That's right. Yokkoi-san (Yokoi's nickname) and I have even started hanging out in our free time. Once "JOKER TRAP" was over, it was nice to have someone who could put up with me. We don't have a senpai/kouhai relationship either which is a plus. (laughs) We haven't known each other for long but I already feel like he's been my best friend for years.

--You've previously said that you're rather shy when it comes to meeting new people. Does this mean you're starting to overcome your shyness? I think Yokkoi-san is a special case. Yokkoi-san seems to be pretty shy himself and that was just sort of an immediate connection between us. (laughs) The more I get to know his bright personality, his smile, and his friendly nature, the more I find myself liking him.

--What's your impression of your other co-star who plays the role of Natsuki Shinomiya, Soichiro Yamakawa? If I had to describe Yamakawa-san in a nutshell, I'd say that he's the definition of "good youth". He was very friendly when we met despite that he's a good few years older than I am and I'm honestly excited to mess around with him backstage as we become better friends. (laughs) It's not stressful being around him so practice is something I look forward to.

--Gekidan Shining from Utano☆Prince-sama♪ Presents Polaris is the first of four in the "Theater Shining" series to make it to the stage. Expectations are high but what sort of work do you think this will be? We don't even have that much information yet on how the science fiction genre will be portrayed on stage but as an "Utano☆Prince-sama♪" fan myself, I'm looking forward to finding out even though I'm a part of it. I trust our director, Hosakayou, to handle the screenplay and production side of things well. I can't wait to jump into the world of "Polaris" once practice starts so that we can truly create something that will satisfy everyone!

--During the visual shoot, you had photographs taken of many different unique costumes. The pilot suit is my favorite! I've always loved space and robots so I'm excited just to be able to wear it.

--While on the topic, what are some of your favorite science fiction movies and anime? For movies, definitely Star Wars. As for anime, I'm fond of the Mobile Suit Gundam series, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and Super Dimension Fortress Macross. Basically I like anything where the characters get to control the robots from inside them.

--Do you have anything you'd like to say to everyone who's looking forward to the performance? I'll do my best to give you a satisfying performance that exceeds your expectations! My goal is to have people correlate Ryunosuke Matsumura with Tokiya Ichinose... The least I can do for everyone who's a fan of the original work is fully engulf myself in the world of "Polaris" this time as well.

--The original "Polaris" from Theater Shining had the catchphrase "What is true strength?" What do you think "true strength" is? I know it's cliche but I'd say the answer is love. I think a truly strong person is someone who would sacrifice themselves for someones else. It's not something as simple as "the strength to get back up again no matter how many times you fall" or "the desire to repay someone" or even "the passion to become something greater than you already are". For instance, even if my acting career starts to overwhelm me in the future, I wouldn't be discouraged because I love what I do and cherish where I am already. Although things may get tough, as long as you can love something for what it is then I think that is enough to qualify as growth. I think that's what "true strength" is.

◆Performance Info Gekidan Shining from Utano☆Prince-sama♪ Presents Polaris [Tokyo Performance] Thursday, September 13th - Sunday, September 23rd, 2018     AiiA 2.5 Theater Tokyo [Osaka Performance] Friday, October 5th - Monday, October 8th, 2018     Umeda Arts Theater / Theater Drama City

[Original] Utano☆Prince-sama♪ Theater Shining - Polaris [Screenplay/Directing] Hosakayou (Daydream Suite) [Music] Elements Garden

[Cast] Tokiya Ichinose: Ryunosuke Matsumura Natsuki Shinomiya: Soichiro Yamakawa Cecil Aijima: Shojiro Yokoi

Mashu Ishiwatari, Shuhei Izumi, Yusuke Kashiwagi, Yuya Asato, and others

◆Secondary Pre-order Sales (Lottery) [Handling] e+ [Application Period] 18:00 Friday, August 10th ~ 18:00 Sunday, August 19th [Result Announcement] 13:00 Friday, August 24th ※All seats are specified. Up to 4 people per application.

◆General Release [Handling] e+ [Sales Start] 10:00~ Saturday, August 25th ※All seats are specified. Up to 4 people per application.

[Official HP] http://gs-polaris.com/

(C) Gekidan Shining

(Interviewed by Akiko Kondo)