#at the least its pretty funny how like not connected he is to everything

[stuck-in-jelly]

Having lots of thoughts about Corvus and the fact that this is the first time we’ve seen him on a promotional poster AND that he has been regaining lost screen-time from season 4 and 5

Corvus has the least stake in the game as far as interpersonal relationships goes he is pretty separated from most of everyone.

Soren’s dad tortured and imprisoned Rayla’s dad and kidnapped Zym, Rayla’s dad killed Ezran’s and Callum’s dad, Zym’s dad killed Aanya’s, Ezran’s, and Callum’s moms in a 3 for one meal, Callum’s and Ezran’s dad lead the mission where Aanya’s mothers were killed, Ezran’s and Callum’s dad killed Zym’s dad, Callum is dating the daughter of his father’s murderer, and it just keeps getting more complicated from there.

But Corvus?

We dont even really know anything about him. He grew up in the woods on the borderlands, he was in the military at a young age and was even considered a veteran at 20 years old, he’s smart, strong, quick on his feet, he’s a bit awkward socially at times, he’s worked espionage, and he’s a really good baker.

But we know next nothing of his personal life, we dont even know if he has parents or any family to speak of aside from Amaya and Gren who have known him the longest. Its implied he met Soren and Claudia in passing in the past but thats as close as it gets.

Corvus is so widely detached from the chaos of everything going on with all the other characters whose past and connections are all so complicated

And now we get a poster where Corvus is quite literally breaking through the title, his weapon pushes past everything as he stares steadily ahead with a clear mind

Corvus is the key to helping break the cycle

[slowlysoluminary]

Reset AU ... mirror room art piece and a supplemental from ghostloop's pov 🎉

Writing under the cut! (Lots of words... oops!!!!!!!)

(Venturing through the house has been nothing short of a terror.)

(The sadnesses littering the area are NOT helping!)

(Granted, you know how to fight - you have each sadness' type memorized, each name and gimmick on lock - but your craft...)

(You're not sure what Craft type you are. You're corporeal enough for your hits to connect, but not corporeal enough for attacks to land on you. Harder still, considering the craft types are all equally as easy for you to summon.)

(Maybe "easy for you to summon" is poor phrasing. Your attacks feel wrong. Unfamiliar.)

(Your Piercing Craft likes to trail, not unlike the rest of your body. You struggle the least with Scissors-type attacks, but it feels like something fundamental is missing in each of your strikes.)

(Your Creative Craft leaves after-images. You thought you were Paper craft for a good while, but you're clumsy with it - like it wasn't made with your body in mind.)

(Your Protector's Craft sparks like energy through your fist. Something pangs at your chest each time you form the handshape.)

(Your attacks are strange. Craft personalizes itself to its user, but for such attuned craft to be so alien....)

(Thinking about it gives you a weird headache.)

(So you won't!!)

(You watch Siffrin fight. He made you sit out of battle after that time you downed yourself. Impeccable aim, Loop!!)

(... They never win, but you figure you should respect their wishes regardless.)

(You feel Experienced. Like these sadnesses would wither away if you poked them too hard. They probably would, if you could land a hit in the first place!)

(You can't help but compare the way he fights with the way you fight. Or, the way you think you should.)

(Like his name, like the House, like everything else, it's all familiar. You fight the same way as him, but your craft makes it difficult to do so comfortably.)

(You can't help but be envious. Why are you envious?)

(The style isn't even yours! You're pretty sure it's adapted from his, even!!)

(Nothing is your own. Not even your body is safe!!! Your skin prickles when you look down. Stars dance across your form naturally, yet it feels unnatural all the same.)

(Stars, are you going crazy? You think you're going crazy!)

(Siffrin shifts next to you, walking comfortably in your silence. You lead the way to the next door.)

("Why Stardust?" They asked you that, before. At least, you think they did? What did you respond with? Something about what's left...?)

(... You don't know. Just, seeing him, talking to him - he's Stardust! So, you must be Loop.)

(It found you so easily in your sea of muddled memories. It must be what the Universe willed!)

(But you still don't know. But you still can't remember. What's wrong with you?)

"Finally, third floor..."

(Siffrin turns a key. You're climbing the House. Right.)

(You smile. Is it forced? You're not sure. The gesture reminds you of something.)

>"Awh, good job, Stardust! It only took you... ehm...."

>"20 Loops! That's great! A bit worse than me, but who's keeping track, right?"

"'A bit worse than you?' Did you remember something?"

("A bit worse than you?")

>"What? I didn't say anything."

(You didn't. Did you?)

(Siffrin makes a noise. They're looking at you funny.)

"Nevermind."

(O~kay. Weird.)

...

(The King sobs.)

(They talk to you about him. A lot more than you want them to, if you're being honest.)

(Hearing his name, his likeness, to be spoken of so fondly - you feel rage. A deep and primal anger you're sure you've never felt before and will never feel again.)

(So, yes! Hearing the King sob the whole time like he's not actively dooming an entire blinding country has done wonders on your psyche! The reminder of his existence fills you with such joy and whimsy!)

(Your smile is pulled so taut you think it would tear at your skin, if you had any.)

(Siffrin's expression is plagued with sympathy. Something in your core stirs violently at the thought.)

>"Chin up, soldier~! One more floor to climb!"

(The sympathetic look fades, but you don't feel any better. You don't think about the implications.)

"... Right. One more floor."

>"I hope all this effort was worth it!"

"Ditto. Even if I can't snap some sense into him, I just..."

"I want to talk. I've told you about it before, but-"

(stop don't talk about him no no no no)

>"STARdust! Surely there's no need to go over everything again!"

>"You might be forgetful, but helpful Loop here already knows the ins and outs of your fool-proof plan~!!"

>"You've told me about it, you continue to tell me about it, you don't stop telling me about it — I GET IT ALREADY!"

>"Just. We'll. We'll get to it when we get to it, right? Please."

(you're not sure why)

(but the thought of talking to the king fills your entire being with sickness)

(Too bad you can't throw up! Teehee!!)

(Siffrin looks pained.)

"Right, I'll just -- I'm."

"I'm sorry..."

(Oh.)

(His voice is so tender. So quiet.)

(You ruined it.)

(That's fine. You don't -- you don't need the ability anyway. You can make your way through the house on your own. You don't need them to get stronger. It's fine.)

(...)

(What were you thinking about? It doesn't matter.)

>"So~! That out of the way."

(This time you ignore the King wailing above you.)

>"Where do we go?"

(His face is hidden from you, beneath the brim of his hat. You have a fun time thinking about the expression under it!)

(Is it twisted in frustration? Appalled? Mortified? Betrayed?)

(You know those faces like the back of your hand, but the specifics amalgam in your head, a foggy mass of uncertainty.)

(You feel a tingle on your cheek.)

(... Yes, fun! What fun!)

(Siffrin clears their throat.)

"... You've been leading me through most of the House, Loop."

"So I thought you would know where to go?"

(You have?)

>"I have?"

"Yes?????"

(What????)

>"No I haven't."

"Yes? You have??"

(He looks offended???)

"The rock trap? The key I missed in the Head Housemaiden's office?"

>"'Fraid you're not ringing any bells!!"

(Conversations are one of the only things you remember. Everything else blends together.)

(So, you should know this, shouldn't you? They must've brought it up a few times while you were walking. You weren't thinking too hard about where you were going. The paths feel wholly natural to you... But you do remember that the amount of times you had to give Siffrin a Super Sour Tonic was atrocious, really.)

(How does anyone lose to sadnesses THAT often? It's ridiculous! He should just let you fight!!!)

"Loop?"

(Whoops!!! You should pay more attention to your surroundings...)

(...)

(No, okay, wait.)

>"When did we get to the mirror room?"

(The glare Siffrin gives you bears the striking image of absolute incredulocity.)

(That's not a word. Whatever!!! You can make up new words if you so please!!)

"You're kidding."

>"Completely serious question, Stardust!"

"...'Stardust, I am the epitome of good memory...'"

(HE'S MOCKING YOU!!)

>"I am! I swear it on my mother!"

"Stars have mothers?"

(You shrug before remembering to raise a gloved hand to your mouth.)

>"I don't know!"

>"But I'm sure, if I had one, she'd be especially bright."

(An eyeroll.)

(They don't laugh.)

(Why does that bother you?)

(Eh, probably because that one was funny! No fair!)

>"You're no fun, Stardust..."

"Okay."

>"Whatever! I'll find a pun buddy somewhere else!!"

"And where would you go? Vaugarde's frozen in time."

("And you're practically a ghost," is what goes unsaid.)

(...mmm. No, it's fine.)

>"I'll write to them! We'll be pen pals!"

>"Or I guess we'd be pun pals, ehe."

(They snort. Mission success!!!)

"Not funny."

>"Oh, come on! You laughed!! That means I won the bet!"

"The bet was about laughing at your jokes. Puns don't count."

(Bummer! You pout.)

"Real talk. Any particular reason for bringing us here? I trust you, but..."

"... The only thing in here is that mirror."

(They point to the large mirror at the end of the corridor. You nod. There is a mirror, and nothing else.)

>"Indeed so."

"And you called it the mirror room?"

(Did you?)

>"No I didn't."

"I'm not arguing with you again..."

(Aren't they doing that already?)

"Just answer the question."

>"I wasn't aware I was being interrogated! I need a lawyer!!!"

"Loop."

>"Fine! I-... Um."

>"I."

>"I'm not ... quite sure?"

"You're not sure."

>"Nope!"

(They sigh.)

"So you led us here... for no particular reason?"

>"Exactly!"

>"Well. No, I'm sure there's some reason we're here."

>"I feel like there's something else in this room, you know?"

>"But! As far as I'm aware!! There is nothing in here!!! Save for that dazzling old mirror!!!!"

"Right."

(He doesn't believe you.)

"... Let's look around, then?"

>"Sounds good to me."

(You look around.)

(Okay, you don't actually do anything. Siffrin's going at it, though!)

(He checks the pillars. And the corners. And the bricks. And the pillars again.)

(It's... really boring.)

(It's better than the Other Thing you could be doing. The Elephant In The Room. The Big Mirror In The Corridor-Room. That.)

(Hm. Hmmmmmmm.)

(You weigh your options.)

(Boredom. Or headache. Boriiing borreeedooom...... or excruciating headache.)

(Or answers? You don't know the mirror's deal! You could get something meaningful out of this!)

(Or you could get a headache.)

(Or you could lean against a pillar, bored, for the rest of eternity, waiting to be Done and Over With This.)

(...)

(You've been pointedly ignoring the existence of the mirror for quite the while now.)

(Something goads you. A whisper.)

(You follow. Siffrin watches you, curious.)

(You don't... You don't really want to look.)

(Just looking down spikes something uncomfortable under your skin.)

(So you're not sure what to expect, if you were to look in your reflection.)

(Whispers turn to spoken tongue turn to yelling turn to screaming as you approach the glass. Yet, no matter how loud they get, how heartfelt they screech, you can't make out the words.)

(Something in you hurts as you stand in front of the glass.)

(You take a breath)

(in, and out.)

(And you look up.)

(and all at once)

(everything goes quiet)

(...)

(You gaze at your reflection)

(You gaze at a star.)

(is this you?)

(you wave your hand)

(it waves back.)

(You frown. It frowns too.)

(Stars. All up its body.)

(More than you could dream of, could you still dream in the first place.)

(Flame-like spikes flicker freely from its head, immitating hair.)

(Imitating life.)

(You're looking at a ghost.)

(you're a ghost?)

(The screaming returns. You flinch back in surprise. The ghost does not flinch with you.)

(LOOP, it screams. LOOP, LOOP, LOOP, LOOP !!!)

(Its head morphs. It's something spikier, now. It's something right.)

(your head hurts)

(The ghost snickers at you. You look at it.)

(You look at it)

(it's)

(it's)

(loop)

(you look at loop)

(LOOP, the screaming chants, in agreement. LOOP!)

(someone is shaking you?)

(this is loop)

(but you're loop?)

(are you loop?)

(The screaming rises. You didn't think it could get any louder. You cover your ears and cower. It doesn't do anything)

(loop laughs at you.)

(you forgot)

(of course you forgot! you always forget! forgetful little siffrin! sieve brain siffrin)

(you stole their role. in the play)

(you stole them)

(you)

"LOOP!"

(You blink)

(You is in front of you. Your back is leaning against cool glass.)

(if your back is to the mirror)

(how are you looking in your reflection?)

(The you in front of you sighs.)

"You were out cold there... What happened, Loop?"

(you wait for them to respond)

("Nothing, Stardust!! You should go help out your little entourage! Or, you know, you could do something more productive? Like talk to the Head Housemaiden?")

(that's what you think they would say)

(you feel a shiver)

"... I'm not... part of a party...? Oh, no, nevermind. I get it."

(your reflection releases you. you slump to the ground.

(you pull your hands up to your head)

(and stop)

(your arms)

(your arms..)

"Loop."

>"... Loop?"

(Oh!)

>"Yes! I am Loop."

(Siffrin gives you That Look again.)

"What was all that?"

(All that?)

>"I'm not sure what you're talking about!"

"It was like you... um..."

"Forgot your name. Or something."

(Forgot your name? Scandalous!! You'd never forget such a thing!)

>"Nope, all good!"

>"I just... hm. Thought you were talking to someone else there, for a second?"

>"But I'm fine now!"

"If you say so."

(He doesn't take your word for this, either.)

(Oh well!)

(You bend down and flip the switch, extra careful not to look at the mirror. Or the photo that materializes in front of it.)

"How did you-?"

(They try to ask, but you're already moving for the key.)

(Loop.)

(That's you!)

(So why does that name remind you of someone else?)

[6sixx6sexual6]

FLUFF ALPHABET | NIKKI SIXX

UGH NO ONE ASKED FOR THIS BUT I DID HALF OF THIS A LONG TIME AGO AND FOUND IT SO I JUST FINISHED IT. AND THE ABC THING DID REALLY GOOD ON MY OLD ACC SO IM PRAYING THIS WONT FLOP.

word count; 1984

warnings; drugs, sex, alcohol, him getting a little angry, him being bitten by a dog, physical abuse (his step dad), lmk if I missed any (its funny when I see ppl say that knowing damn well yall won't say shit💀)

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

nikkis pretty affectionate, loves PDA and stuff. hes down for anything from just having a hand on your back to fucking you on a car in a parking lot. he doesn't care. he also likes cuddling and just hugging you, not just when he wants something or he's done something.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend?)

most likely fwb if you guys would be best friends. if not then at least have hooked up once or twice. but as a best friend he'd keep you around a lot, let you hang in the studio, get high with you at parties and makes sure you're safe (even though he encourages you to get shitfaced, and challenges you to drink offs)

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

YES he likes cuddles and you can't change my mind. fucked up, sober, upset or not, doesn't matter, he likes cuddling. his favorites could be face to face with your leg over his waist (he likes to sneak some touches sometimes) or his head on your chest or your head on his chest with one arm around you and the other to hold a bottle of liquor, or if he's needy, everything but sober, and upset, he likes wrapping his arms tight around your waist with his head basically between your tits. boobies make pain go away.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down?)

He would want to settle down but at a certain time. He said he's always wanted to be a dad and he would want to get married someday. like, I don't see you and him accidentally getting married in Vegas even in his drunkest state because he doesn't wanna get married now, what would you guys do when you were really ready to settle down and you guys already got married in 1984 or something?

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

if you guys had a real connection then he'd probably be upset about it for a while. he'd probably end it because he had to choose between the band or you or something. he'd probably call you and break it off or meet up with you and break it off. but just because you guys broke up doesn't mean you could get another boyfriend or something while he's still around. he on the other hand would probably hook up with someone in the next 24 hours. 

but if it was just a fling or you guys dated for a week or two hed probably just tell you it wasn't working and leave or he might not say anything at all.

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

he wants to get married but not yet, he didn't know when. hell, he could've proposed with just the question a long time ago, but wouldn't get married until he knew he wouldn't be all fucked up. definitely would not get married around the time he was strung out on heroin 24/7. most likely would get married after the whole 2 minute death and wake up call.

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

He thinks he's more gentle than he actually is. not saying he's throwing you around all the time but hes definitely done some damage, accident or not. more so rough with your emotions and sometimes neither of you know it.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

he likes hugs, he hugs you enough to where it means something each time. he doesn't side hug you, if he's gonna hug you hes gonna make it a hug. hes the type to make sure you hug back and if you don't he'll keep hugging you until you do or until you hug tight enough. sometimes he'll fuck with you and keep telling you to hug him tighter and you end up feeling like you're taking his blood pressure or something. hes a tall guy so assuming you're shorter, when you hug him its normally where he sprays his cologne so you can smell it while you hug. but when he's a 6’4 monster in his platform heels you're to like his stomach or something.

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

either really quick or really late. no inbetween. like the night you met or started dating hed tell you he loves you and acts like you've been dating forever and you're the one, or he waits too long to say it.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

yes. LMAO THATS ALL I GOTTA SAY. I've made posts about his Jealousy, and its not just cannon, its a fact. if we had to say from a scale from 1-10, I'd say his Jealousy is always like a 7.4 and up. dosn't matter who, if he doesn't like them and you guys are talking, he feels more Possessive than insecure.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

everywhere that can be kissed he will kiss. he likes a lot of tongue action in kisses, like his tongue would be all over yours of he'll suck on your tongue. something freaky like that. really, he likes to kiss you on your mouth but when he's fucked up he misses and like makes out with your neck or something. 

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

he loves children. its like a public secret. I have a picture of him when he went to Idaho and there was this little girl and I cant remember if she was opening a present or something, but he was just kinda watching her (i put the picture at the top). if you have younger siblings hed wanna meet them and get to know them, but if they don't like him and wants you to break up with him hed literally give zero shits. if it were like a pre teen hed probably be a little more awkward than with little kids or teenagers. hed probably be like “so, you like rock? you play anything?”

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

uh.. you guys rarely see mornings unless you're just going to bed in the morning. but waking up with him at any time there will be vomit, screaming (telling the other to be quiet while throwing up since the other has a headache), pain killers (maybe one too many) and more jack.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

now were talking. you already know. booze, drugs, sex, music, fights, all that.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

he probably wouldn't bring up his childhood by himself, maybe if you asked, but you gotta be careful. he wouldn't spill it all at once, maybe if he did itd be a drunken rant and you can't understand half the things he's saying besides hearing “whore mother” and “asshole dad”, but he would willingly tell you things like how he has a half sister who lived with his mom, and some things he did when he was young. but maybe after all those little things he says about his childhood and you piece it together you can get an idea of what happened. or maybe if he ever took you down to Idaho to meet his grandparents, his grandmother would show you the few pictures she has of him as a child, and her being the sweet lady she was shed probably just tell you about his mom and stuff.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

not really easily angered but easily annoyed and irritated that can lead to anger. hell get irritated when something doesn't go his way, and if its not fixed in a short amount of time hell get mad. he'll get annoyed at the phone ringing when you guys are having sex, and he'll get irritated if someone keeps calling. its like a loop.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

he'll remember what he can, he'll forget most of what you told him one night but would try and fill in the missing parts. but when you keep reminding him of what you actually said after like 2 more times, it sticks, and his memory gets better the more you guys date. because he knows you'll get tired of repeating and he really does wanna know your moms secret macaroni ingredient or some shit.

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

probably the first time you hooked up. hes probably had his eye on you and you didn't really wanna move that fast in a relationship, but you managed to wait maybe 3-5 days in the relationship before you guys had sex.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts?)

its your birthday? pick what you want and he'll buy it. already picked what you wanted? he got you more shit. anniversary? probably rented out like a whole part of a club that was kinda blocked off so you guys could fuck on the couch with the table almost full of fruity drinks you wanted to try.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

I could go on and on. either read my other posts or you don't know him enough💀

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

God, hell genuinely tweak if his hair isn't a foot tall with hairspray. but when he's having a good makeup day he smiles :] like that :].

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

in a way. if you guys went strong and made it a while, hed probably feel lonely without you, or confused. like when he's just by himself and he's thinking of you and that you're not there, he has the look you make when you enter a room and forgot why you went in there.

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

this isn't cannon but Nikki hates German shepherds because when he was young his step father (the one who beat him for brushing his teeth wrong) had one and the dog would always bite him and the guy didn't do anything about it. and when they were driving to Mexico the dog was in the car and bit him the whole way there

I feel like he makes good smores though LMAOO

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

now.. he said he doesn't like curly hair because he said everyone he's met that had curly hair was cock eyed. but don't let that stop you, it'll grow on him. hell still stand for not liking curly hair but would word it differently when talking about you. “her hair isn't curly its fuzzy. and I like it.”

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habits of theirs?)

hed take up the whole bed. he doesn't move much in his sleep so don't let him lay all stupid on the bed or he won't move. he also probably doesn't like blankets that much, he always kicks them off or gets annoyed at night from being hot and just aggressively but softly throws the rest of the blanket on your sleeping body.

[mysterioushistorian]

here are my redesigns for the hiveswap lowbloods! headcanons are under the cut, last pic shows their actual height differences

edit: Fozzer and Folykl were re-redesigned.

Midbloods

Highbloods

Diemen Xicali

nonbinary (he/they)

is in a matespritship with Mallek. after so long, they finally accepted the blueblood's offer to share an apartment

he still wont share his Special Meal

has pale feelings towards the hotdog juggler troll

has taken a liking to culinary channels on grubtube

quite surprisingly, hes pretty charming. a common trait for hope-bounds

Xefros Tritoh

is no longer in a moirallegiance with Dammek, stating that they needed a break. He plans on coming back to him though

he is still a rebel

has a sibling-like relationship with Chixie. While The Grubbels are "on hiatus", he makes a duet with her and their songs are a mix of pop with rock.

yup, still training to be a butler.

despite being a rage-bound, he rarely gets angry. when he does, however, his telekinesis become much more powerful and out of his control, even

Fozzer Velyes

hes a communist because fuck you scratch

can see and talk to ghosts, but refuses to acknowledge their existence for the sake of his beliefs.

marvus is the only highblood he feels comfortable around.

marsti's best friend since grubhood. she was the first friend he ever had, and for a long while, the only one. they care a lot about each other

has picked up on wood carving, aside from just digging bodies

knows charun and skylla since wrigglerhood, too, they met in grubschool. but foz didn't last long, his lusus eventually decided to just hiveschool him instead

he re encountered with skylla sweeps later and they got to catch up. they remain in close contact until this day

dont worry, Happy Absence Pit Park is rebels friendly

Marsti Houtek

still has those fuckass goggles, though she shows her eyes much more often now (her girlfriend convinced her to do that)

speaking of, Marsti doesnt mind when her matesprit does that, because at least she gets to wear something decent

she was always red-flirting with Folykl, while the other was pitch, but after they started meeting more often and getting to know each other better, even getting each other's sense of humor, Folykl's hate turned into pity. theyre the best matesprits. though they do flip quadrants at times.

when done scrubbing for the day, she either goes to her hive to watch bad lowblood sitcoms or goes to the bookhive and get some medicine books

even if she keeps telling herself that shell never become a doctor, she still likes to study and know more about how to treat diseases, mainly voidrot, which doesnt have much information about in the books she has access to

she has a whole notebook with only information about voidrot. she writes down everything she finds out. Folykl teases her about it

its funny because theyre both void-bound yk

she hides a blade in her scrubpole. she almost never uses it, but keeps it in case she needs to defend herself

self care is being into women

Dammek

still upset with the break up, yet he tries to maintain a serious persona

he's using this "break" to rethink about his actions and improve as a person.

not giving up on that rebellion, even after Trizza gets culled by the Condesce herself

he probably needs another hobby, too

Chixie Roixmr

teeth not so sharp for a bronzeblood, huh

now hides her sign when shes 'the masked singer'

was surprised to see how her pop music went pretty well with Xefros' punk/rock style. they rap sometimes, too

despite hating highbloods, she is actually moirails with famous rapper marvus xoloto. they try their best to hide that connection.

has kicked Zebruh's ass

Vikare Ratite

was initially upset that Marsti had set him up on a blind date, but after finding out his date was a psionic who, well, could FLY, he got pretty excited

likes to watch documentaries

its best if you dont ask how he feels towards the fate of his matesprit as a helmsman

Skylla Koriga

no lusii thief ever leaves her territory alive

the missing piece is no longer missing: the hat

did this cowgirl actually managed to pull up a clown woman? its more likely than you think

she worries about her kismessitude with Konyyl, as the oliveblood tends to flip quadrants with her goldblood boyfriend

country life is tougher than you think

Cirava Hermod

transfem nonbinary (they/them)

theyre still on live, go check their streams

very obviously red-flirting with Charun

do not fuck with them, or else theyre gonna cancel you on chittr

yet its still hard to be a popular lowblood on the web...

still recovering from THE INCIDENT.

wanna get high?

Kuprum Maxlol

was super jealous of Marsti and her matespritship with his moirail, until Folykl got enough and set him on a blind date

he gets annoyed by Vikare's constant rambling about flight (he loves him anyways), but he can't say much since he also has a obsession he won't stop rambling about (meeting Trizza)

though, ever since he became Vikare's matesprit, he stopped talking about the fuchsia a considerate amount, to Folykl's relief.

likes seeing how happy Vikare gets when he uses his psionics to make him fly

if ur a highblood, you better stay careful around him with you eletronics, or else he's going to hack you and anonimously leak all of your information

refuses to admit that he's balding

tfw you have completely pale makeouts with your moirail

Folykl Darane

enjoys stealing her matesprit's things

what? shes clean now?

the first bath went horrendously and all because of her stubborness. but after the first few she actually felt kind of.. better? not that shell ever admit it out loud, of course, but bathing is longer the pain it was initially

you can still catch her stinking sometimes, tho

literally never even touched a toothbrush in her entire life

this society full of normies isn't ready for her yet

what were initially medical check ups with a rustie became dates

secretly, shes glad she got to know Marsti better and that black feelings became red

she lets her girlfriend braid her hair sometimes

found an old apartament and began living there with Kuprum and her lusus. dont worry, no drones scan the area like, ever

Azdaja Knelax

yeah, this guy is def troll Vegeta

myopic

stop using your psionics to make your hair and coat fly even when theres no wind

he likes bad bitches

guarantees Skylla that theres nothing even resambling spades between him and Konyyl. trust him

he never had a fourth horn to begin with

the power level of his psionics... it's. it's over *breaks device*

Zebede Tongva

this guy is a light-bound?

enjoys troll kpop, probably

goldies with no psionic eyes are more common than you think

he should write a book. with his own characters, of course

would you be kind enough to travel so far to meet him?

oh so he can commune with bees. isnt communing a bronze thing?

[crooked-wasteland]

i feel like that clip gets worse the more i think about it. like;

1. why does charlie treat baxter like a replacement for sir pentious? why is she treating one of the only patrons she had a connection to (at least a hell of a lot more of a connection then she has with angel,) as if hes easily replaceable? like, i know its supposed to be funny because they roughly fit the same trope of "wacky evil guy who makes evil stuff", and it IS funny.. when i dont actually think of the implication of how charlie is treating sir pentious in memory through the way she talks about him after he was killed right in front of her. its like they thought about how funny the joke would be before they thought about charlie and sir pentious's relationship in s1, and just went with that so they wouldn't have to write charlie acting any different. which sucks, because charlie legitimately mourning him would be a GREAT conflict for the main character to have in s2. tbh they still might do that so they can have their cake and eat it too, but i dont know if itll feel sincere after that scene with her and baxter.

2. does she know sir pentious is alive in heaven? how could she know? nothing about the way she speaks in the clip makes me think so, but at least if she knew he was actually okay and redeemed, you'd resolve the issue of her trying to replace some guy who died defending HER hotel with his life, and the issue of her having no reason to redeem sinners after learning heaven is corrupt and seemingly wont let in even the sinners in that deserve redemption. because replacing someone in a cast whos technically still living in heaven isnt nearly as bad, and his existence alone would probably be proof enough alone to motivate charlie to keep trying to redeem sinners, which would be especially satisfying after her faith in heaven would understandably be broken after the trial and the extermination coming right to her hotels front door. so knowing that, this is probably whats NOT going to happen

3. why is she specifically even trying to replace sir pentious anyway? is it a coping mechanism after her loss of him? its obviously comedic so we're not supposed to take it seriously, which means the writers probably wanted to make a joke about how obviously baxter is going to be the replacement for sir pentious's role at the hotel, god i wish we had seen them interact together at a voxtech con in a competition like in vivs old post pilot series pitch in 2019 but i'd argue its a joke at the expense of charlies character development. the way she acts in that clip is something i'd expect from s1 charlie, but not s2 after everything that happened to her.

i think s1 had the issue in general of making things funny or fun over making them make sense for the characters in context, so its not surprising to see that issue happen again. it's just slightly more infuriating when you remember hazbin was supposed to be the serious show compared to helluva, but now hazbin has way too many mean spirited or dumb jokes at the expense of its own characters youre supposed to automatically care about, just for comedys sake, and helluva became the soap drama nobody asked for.

Absolutely! I side stepped my own opinions as I genuinely wanted to see what others had to say, and @tommycorriander pretty much hit that nail on the head for my interpretation of the narrative. The biggest issue is how the first season elected to prioritize things happening over their characters and their relationships. We never actually see the cast grow close over the season, we are simply told that's what happened.

But by mixing together Pentious and Baxter, my first inclination was that, yes, outside of superficial characteristics, Charlie cannot connect to sinners. They are all the same to her, and based on her character being so broad and general in her appraisal of Sinners, it definitely feels like she doesn't see them as individuals.

And the travesty is that if the show actually went in that direction, I would eagerly welcome it. I would love to see some self-awareness from the writers and a character with a legitimate flaw of personality; not just "she made a mistake, but her heart is in the right place" contrivances that have riddled all of Medrano's work. I would love to see that story of Charlie being forced to change as a person, and I would probably love Charlie as a character as well if the show went this route. Instead, good characters just do bad things but with good intentions. Instead of good people actually being complicated creatures with some genuine flaws of character that they are always working to mitigate and be better.

Characters who are working to be good people feel like good people. Those that just act good with no effort feel conniving or disconnected and apathetic. They feel fake and vapid. Having it be a genuine effort would do so much in giving Charlie some ounce of depth.

[the-s1lly-corner]

Creepypastas of your choice with a mysterious reader that has been with slender man the longest/was the first creepypasta

eyeless jack, laughing jack, slenderman, and jeff x reader who was the first creepypasta/has been with slenderman the longest!

NOTE that jeffs part is written as platonic since im still not comfortable writing romance for him, but the other two can be seen as either or! eyeless jack was chosen thanks to the admin personally hcing that eyeless jack and slenderman have beef over living in the same woods, laughing jack was picked because haha funny clown who is also old as shit reader is implied to be nonhuman, to explain how theyve been around for so long so! admin headcannons that zalgo was the one who made all the non-human creepypastas and they may or may not come into play here that aside, hope you enjoy!

EYELESS JACK:

now he doesnt want to control who you hang out and who you dont hang out with... however ej isnt all the keen on the fact that you sometimes hang out with the tall lanky forest demon.. but he holds his tongue. their basic beef is that they mostly fight over space; slenderman is possessive over his woods, and ej fled to the woods after he started eating flesh to live as a hermit... is a little suspicious on how you seem to know so much about the curse-thing that turned from from a human to a man eating monster.. though lets up if you open up about things (cough cough zalgos role in everything cough cough) soooo.... as for actual relationship stuff? honestly as long as you dont bring slenderman around you guys have a pretty solid relationship! especially since you know so much of whats going on you kind of fill him in on a bunch of stuff.. like how people fill in the new guy at work about the drama and lore of the workplace, you know? is a relieved that youre not exactly human, so a lot of his worry of accidentally attacking you while in one of his feral blood frenzy things is minimal... sits.. tension in the beginning that melts as time passes and explanations are given, you know?

LAUGHING JACK:

honestly hes just happy to have someone whos not super young compared to him/was there to see what was going on at least a century ago.. or more (fandom wiki says origin story takes place in 1800s, jack is OOOOOOOLLLD) so its nice having someone he can talk to about stuff from the past. and to joke about stuff from the past... and to have someone actually. GET IT. you know? really strengthens your bond, as well as reassures him that youre likely not going to die anytime soon due to your mortality... i always think about that stuff for immortal characters/characters who can technically outlive everyone, especially for jack since i feel he has abandonment issues... shrugs... you guys probably exchange tips and tricks for loads of things. just two old people in love but they both act like reckless young adults (assuming reader matches his energy). has no huge thoughts or opinions on slenderman since i dont think they would interact often :0

SLENDERMAN:

i mean i think it would be a given that you guys, against all odds, have stuck together and grown close. slenderman is reclusive, very much so. i mention that eyeless jack is a hermit, so naturally ej doesnt connect with many people. but slenderman takes that to a whole new level. i mean he barely even interacts with his proxies (still dont know how im going to write toby, masky, and hoodie. esp masky n hoodie since... theres the creepypasta/marble hornets thing.. shrugs... thats a problem for future admin)

so consider this a huge victory that he hasnt gotten rid of you in some way and has instead let you into his.. well i was about to say heart but i dont think zalgo considered giving him one when it was creating him.. though.. it is nice to have someone just as ancient as him, makes it easier to relate to people AND youre also a creature like him, made from zalgo? even more ability to relate to you.. though its a very quiet dynamic, slenderman isnt much of a talker so i hope you dont mind carrying conversations!

JEFF THE KILLER:

pushing once again that this segment is strictly platonic since admin isnt comfy with writing romantic for jeff so they just had an interesting idea for him!

very similar to eyeless jacks bit where you fill him in one a bunch of lore and how things work, as well as filling him in on the teeny tiny detail that demons and monsters exist. jeff is a little different in admins au/hc, since he kind of just. exists rather than being created explicitly to cause issues + hes new to the being a creepypasta thing (if you can call being on the run and being off the grid for the past decade or so new, admin is working on timeline stuff </3) (new in comparison to the other characters hush hush) so a lot of your dynamic is filling him in on things as well as perhaps even offering some sort of guidance in how to actually go about interacting with these creatures that he know.. just has access to.. torn between dad slenderman because hes not TOTALLY evil and cold in admins interpretation, but also that one jeff the killer vs slenderman fall out boy video lives rent free in his head. the beef would be insane, honestly... jeff doesnt have much of a sound idea outside of you being more of a guidance figure for him... person with their nonhuman guide my favorite trope that needs to be in more stuff especially in horror media where the characters are antagonists and shit

[sunderingstars]

simulated universe addendum: ace trash digger

— i can’t believe i came across this occurrence literally the day after i posted my simulated universe analysis (talk about timing), so here’s me yapping about it!

— written during 2.6

— word count: short, list format

not only is this occurrence in every single simulated universe update (wow!) but it seems to be a more belobog-connected piece of potential sampo material!

— “he” pronouns. matches with sampo koski as we know him.

— he’s carrying a trashcan and the name of the occurence is “ace trash digger.” this is a pretty easy link to belobog since that’s the planet that has the most trashcan-related shenanigans. also, since he’s carrying it i can almost see the trashcan as symbolic of belobog itself — i.e. sampo and his little garbage planet he cares about and likes to carry around.

— “treasured trashcan.” once again, i can pretty easily see the trashcan as belobog, so the occurrence might actually be referencing sampo and his “treasured jarilo-vi.”

— he has a collection of “pitiful love poems.” this could connect to sampo’s theme of love, particularly broken hearts, as seen in things like his e4 and heart-bomb burst. these love poems may be written to aha as part of some lingering attachment, or may also be written towards belobog itself since he seems to care about the place so much.

— “put your waste in it, and the items will evolve into an advanced awareness, then come running out energetically on their own!” if the trashcan is symbolic of belobog and the person is supposed to be sampo, i would take a doll theory reading on this. with how much doll theory relies on the “betrayal” of a creator towards its creation, i almost see this as meta commentary on how aha may have betrayed or “discarded” sampo.

— it makes sense, after all, that aha would get bored with their creations quite easily (at least given the whole worm debacle), and what else to do than to discard it? it may be that sampo was not always like this, but evolved to become more “aware” after being abandoned on jarilo-vi, which aha may have seen as just some backwater junkyard snow planet.

— (honestly, the idea of jarilo-vi being seen as a cosmic junkyard is so funny to me. like, aha basically did the equivalent of driving their pickup truck to the scrap heap at the edge of town and tossing everything in. very mundane to them, totally traumatizing to sampo.)

— from there, i would interpret this occurrence as saying sampo slowly rejoined the wider universe — i.e. “running out energetically” on his own. this likely included becoming part of the masked fools or trying to re-contact aha. (alternatively, this could be what is going on currently in canon, with belobog and, by extension, sampo, becoming more present on the galactic stage.) this may have actually surprised the aeon themself (if they even cared anymore), as it would essentially be the equivalent of throwing out a stuffed animal halfway across town, only for it to get up, walk, and find its way back to your house weeks later talking like “why have you forsaken me, father?”. this may even be how sampo became an emanator — aha may have found the whole situation so hilarious they decided to promote sampo on the spot.

— overall, if the trashcan is meant to be belobog and sampo is meant to be the waste (like “hazardous waste” in the friendship is magic event), then this occurrence may be hinting at sampo’s backstory of being discarded by aha on jarilo-vi.

— hunt option (swarm disaster). mean, why are we being so mean?! i would never steal from sampo, i’m simply built different.

— remembrance option (swarm disaster). “you recall the past lives of these discarded objects” implies a sort of sentience and agency. even though the objects may not be at “advanced awareness” yet, they clearly still have past experiences and lives. comparatively, i would say this may mean that sampo, although only recently evolving into a unique kind of sentience, has always been “alive.” for me, i see this as gaining personhood, or perhaps new perspectives on life. he may have started as a toy with no real agency of his own, but he’s been able to find some sort of autonomy for himself on belobog, even being able to reach beyond the love and find the “hate” for a creator who treated him cruelly.

— erudition option (gold and gears). erudition once again! man, erudition and elation love going hand-in-hand. “even trash has its unique ‘value’” seems to send a deeper, general message. not only is it the erudition doing what the erudition tends to do when confronted with something new — find its value, either through experimentation or dismantling — but it communicates the idea that even though something may be seen as worthless or forgotten, it still holds purpose. even though sampo may be seen in the eyes of his creator as a “discarded doll,” he still has value. he’s still a person. he still has his own hopes, thoughts, and dreams. although the erudition likely means this phrase in a more troublesome “let’s take him apart to see what he’s made of” way, a nice message can still be gleaned.

— normal option. as with all other options, there’s a big theme of “transaction,” or exchanging items for more. i don’t have a lot to say about it, other than it fits right in with sampo’s con-man trade and propensity for bargaining.

— i found it a bit surprising at first that there was no elation option, given how that would’ve been a more solid link to sampo, but perhaps there isn’t supposed to be. perhaps, aha stuffed toy having an elation option is meant to be symbolic of a time aha cared enough to turn their gaze of sampo, but here the occurrence is dealing with the period of and after his abandonment. in this case, there may be no elation option because aha quite simply does not care enough for there to be one. he’s all alone. sad :((

overall, i can’t believe this one almost slipped under my nose while doing my simulated universe analysis! the irony is not lost on me that i almost passed over it in a similar way to others in-universe; i guess the “cosmic junkyard” planet really did its job !! i think this has some nice little tidbits for the potential timeline of doll theory, and gives some insight into what sampo’s “betrayal” might have been! (also, of course aha would do something like this. of course lol)

thanks for reading!

© analysis by sunderingstars. do not copy, repost, translate, modify, or claim my work as your own.

[flyingfortress1]

Hello, so first time using tumblr- admittedly the hbo war fandom is the most engaged I've ever been in a fandom, so bear with me here- I'm a sucker for military history and more specifically, the people who fought in it.

Anyway- watched bob for the first time a few months, then pacific, and watched masters of the air as it came out earlier this year. Loved all three, but pretty new to everything- except for masters of the air because I certainly may or may not have hyper researched the crap out of b-17s in high school lol. Currently rewatching bob now, and reading Eugene Sledge's book which is super interesting.

Finished the first episode of band of brothers- this show is definently worth a rewatch because I get into it so much more because now I know who the fuck they all are haha. Also, thanks to the wonderful researching fans here, I know a lot more about the real life people- and boy, it does give some context to scenes in this first episode. So firstly, the Winters-Sobel feud- knowing that Winters was a bit petty, makes me really see the passive-aggressiveness in Damian Lewis's performance now- no, he really didn't have to take the court martial, I really don't think Sobel thought he was going to, but Dick really went, time to stick it to you mf. and the bit where he's riding in the jeep with Buck. Like Dick. Dickie- don't put yourself in a position where you can take from these men- I don't know if that's just a show line or what, but at least in the show, it comes off as a tad dramatic lol. Does he really think the enlisted dudes are going to jump Buck or something??? And Buck accusing Dick of being jealous is honestly pretty funny.

Also, I have learned that Johnny Martin and Bill Guarnere were good pals- which gives so much context now to the scene where Martin gets the letter about Bill's brother's death. And what's funny, if you pause when Bill's reading the letter, you can actually read it- and dunno if it's a replica of a real letter- but honestly, Martin's wife is kinda sweet in it, like getting letters from Martin is the highlight of her day. It really reminds you of how connected we are- can just text someone anytime. Also, this whole bit implies that Martin told her about Guarnere, his bud, and she actually watched the casuality lists for his brother's name, or at least knew to recognize it- and if you read the letter, communicated with Fran??? Kinda wild, but honestly poor Bill.. I heard his brothe'rs death was always hard, and I had a friend who lost her brother recently, so seen that pain a bit firsthand. What an awful time to find that out- and Hughes performance there while they're all watching the movie, is really good. Like, you can feel Bill almost having a panic attack almost, but he can't do anything cause he's in a public place. I found out a (admittedly not too close friend) died while I was in a public place, and while it's probably no where near close to what Bill experienced in that scene, it's interesting being able to relate to that. Like shock/denial at the reality, but having to maintain your emotions.

Last thought- Hoobler reaching for the luger just makes me want to tie this boy up, knowing what's going to happen, sweet jesus, no luger for you, Hoobler. Talk about foreshadowing btw.

Sorry about the long bit- its the combined history/english major in me lol. Also, would totally recommend the band of brother's podcast on spotify- interviews with writers, cast, and Tom Hanks- super interesting.

[taki118]

Yakuza Fiance ep 5 Manga Comparison

After the overstuffed ep 4 ep 5 is a breath of fresh air still some context missed but not as badly, as always the differences are below, and I'm using fantranslations cause I'm lazy.

So thankfully they did keep the conversation I said the dropped last time. Re-ordering things is still dumb to me (I think the Renji talk would have been a better cold open) but at least its here. Though again there are some differences

For one they took out Yoshino noticing all the missed calls/messages from Kirishima which is a funny thing. The anime does make up for by actually having Yoshinos head move around the room as Kirishima points out weak points which is a nice gag that takes advantage of the medium (wish they would continue that)

(Not relevant but I think the box of sauces they show at the end of the scene is reference to an extra the manga had about Tokyo not having a bunch of sauces that Osaka has)

For once the anime adds in a scene that isn't ominous starring, giving us Yoshino looking at test results to flow into her fears about the actual exams, which is nice.

So its not a change here but due to pervious change the dialogue in the anime makes less sense. So as I said in ep 4 when Yoshino is talking to Kirishima about her dad he lets her in on the fact he's looked into her family so when Yoshino asks him here how much he knows about Tsubaki it makes sense. Because the anime dropped this bit the anime view has to assume that like Yoshino assumes he did this.

So here is a bit they dropped during the conversation after meeting Tsubaki that I feel like is a waste

Yoshino more explains what she means when she says Tsuabki is such a Kyoto girl, noting they went all the way to Ise once and just had food from a Kyoto restaurant chain. Its funny and sad to see it go but overall ok to drop.

This isn't like a dialogue change but a shot change kinda I havent mentioned it much but a lot of the shot choices the anime makes are odd but this one is a bit of a loss. When Yoshino looks at the sandals in the anime she just does a height comparision with Kirishima and its cute but

But its not as cute as Yoshino tugging Kirishima by the arm to look with her. Also it cuts that Tsubaki is starring at Kirishima who's obviously enjoying the attention.

The conversation Tsubaki has with Kirishima about his behavior towards Yoshino (which FYI is really important and I could talk more on) is pretty accurate a few reorderings but this was dropped and i just think its a shame

Its good insight, and an added visual to help bring everything across.

Anyway the lead into Tsuabki and Kirishimas "date" is much the same the big drop is this bit with Yoshino

It again shows that she is a lot smarter than she gives herself credit for, knowing what they'll talk about.

So the ferris wheel scene is pretty accurate but they left out a rather important bit where Kirishima is explaining his theory about Yoshino having never lost a kidney.

They don't show HOW Kirishima knew the scar wasn't quite right for kidney removal, in the anime the assumption is that he looked it up in the manga they note that he had a specialist take a look this specialist being one of his friends with benefits. This is important because this lets you in one WHY Kirishima is primarily with these women (and they are all women) all of them have something he needs, connections, information or skills that he does not have access to normally. He's not just sleeping around for the fun of it even Ayano the girl we see in ep 3, she's a model with boyfriend who has connections. This is subtle set up to pay offs down the line as Kirishimas actions are better explained. Its a rather important loss and really eye opening on re reads as things begin to click.

and this leads into another thing where technically its the same but subtleties are missed. The anime just has Tsubaki note this is an odd convo on a ferris wheel and questioning why Kirishima is so fixated on Yoshino, before Kirishima talks about the train ticket.

The manga however first has Kirishima state he wished he could be on the ferris wheel with Yoshino, which adds context to why Tsubaki asks her question. Then Kirishima hesitates, he thinks for a moment before bringing it up because he knows this information will get to Yoshino and he's weighing his options. It adds weight to what he says letting the reader know that this is indeed important. Also it removes a line where Kirishima explains he wasn't given any extra funds so he had to scrape it together another hint for later.

So the rest of the ep is pretty accurate, nothing I can really take too much note of, not as much as other episodes but what was dropped is pretty disappointing in many ways.

[casual-praxis]

"Praxis stop making AU's only to abandon the concept immediately" challenge: Failed.

Here's a wip of something I probably won't actually finish since the concept is so far outside Four Swords it's basically its own thing.

I've been listening to Tales from the Gas Station again and it got me wonderin' how I could throw the Four Swords boys into a similar scenario, and somehow we got this concept from it, despite having no basis in either media.

Vio wouldn't even be the protagonist technically--just a recurring secondary character who turns out to be only slightly better than the actual antagonists.

He also dies at the end of everything, so there's that too.

More rambling below the cut for anyone interested. It turned into a mini-fic on accident, whoops.

From what I managed to cobble together while staring into the oven at work and giving myself an eye-strain headache, the actual "main character" is Blue, and they all work at either a very slow gas station or a very slow food establishment.

There's a weird cornfield right behind the building that's kinda funky if you look at it wrong sometimes, but that's pretty normal for their town. Lotta strange things in that place. Weird happenings all around.

So obviously since business is basically a graveyard all the time, the best way to pass the time would be to dare someone to go into that weird af cornfield, right? Yeah, makes sense. Which is why Blue nominated Red.

Of course, Red doesn't want to go in the weird cornfield--it's almost dark out, and the corn smells strange, and what if he gets lost, and, and, and--Blue doesn't care. Get in the cornfield, Red.

And so Red goes. And he's gone. And he's gone. And, huh, it's been an hour. Did he actually get...oh, nope there he is.

Red returns, but he's acting a little...weird. After being in the weird cornfield. Probably not connected in any way. But just to make sure, Blue asks if Vio's also getting weirded out by weird Red.

"That's not Red," Vio insists, but that's stupid. Vio's being stupid, and Blue tells him as much.

"What were you even expecting?" Something funny, probably. Not...whatever this was. It was like Red had found a twelve-pack of five-hour energy drinks out in the maze and decided to chug the whole dozen.

"So he'd be dead."

He's not dead! He's probably just...spooked stupid, or something. He'll be normal Red again tomorrow. Yeah. Once the nerves wear off, he'll stop being so...hyped about life?

"Huh, funny that. Guess what rhymes with Red."

Shut the fuck up, Vio.

And so, the wait for normal Red's return begins.

A day passes; still being weird. Another day goes by. Not much difference. Soon, a week has passed, and Weird Red seems to be here to stay.

Honestly, Blue is not vibing.

Sure, Normal Red kinda pissed him off, but at least he was genuine! ...probably. He was kind, at least. Not this... saccharine, doe-eyed...thing pretending to be Red. It wasn't even doing a good job at it! Red would never forget to water the fake plant in the window! He loves that stupid piece of plastic like only an overly empathic idiot could.

Vio was right. They had a corn demon among them or some shit. The real Red was probably still wandering in circles out in the cornfield, he had to be. And since it was kinda, sorta...maybe Blue's fault that Red was lost, he should probably be the one to go looking for him.

It was a little strange how the fake Red seemed to disappear after Blue told Vio his plans, but so long as he didn't get ambushed by the thing out in the field, he was golden. Or, well, he was Blue, but you get the point.

With that in mind, he bravely entered the weird cornfield on his lunch break. Because surely, Red was just a little lost and not...

Oh fuck.

"Wonderful." A cold hand grips the side of his face, dragging his reluctant gaze away from the mangled... His vision blurs, barely making out the familiar silhouette of-

"You found the body."

Vio.

Why was-?

"It's so sad," Vio intones, tightening his hold as Blue resists. "The guilt must be eating you alive, huh? This was your idea, you know."

What-

"How sad," he repeats, as if attempting to empathize. "You made a mistake, but it's okay. I've already taken care of the doppelganger."

An unnaturally purple fluid drips from the corner of Vio's mouth as he speaks, nearly iridescent in the evening light. Just the sight of it is enough to activate Blue's fight or flight response, but despite his struggling, Vio's grip doesn't falter.

"I can repair the rest, too, if only you forget this ever happened." Vio smiles, disarming and kind.

It doesn't reach his eyes.

Blue's mind blanks. The bitter taste of...something burns his throat. He tries to remember what it was he last ate, but he can't seem to think straight anymore. What was he doing again? He can't seem to remember, and-

Blue opens his eyes.

Red is staring at him in obvious concern.

Apparently, he'd zoned out in the breakroom again. Weird. He's been doing that a lot lately for some reason. Oh well. He couldn't afford health care, so that issue was just going to have to sort itself out.

He decides to spend the rest of his break trying to get that gross bitter flavor out of his mouth, while Red goes to water that fake plant he still hasn't realized is plastic.

All is as usual in their weird ass town.

Then again, Blue can't really remember a time when it wasn't weird. Like seriously, who planted a cornfield behind their store? It never seemed to die or go out of season...super fuckin' weird.

Maybe he should go poking around in there one day--er, actually, something about that idea just made the bad taste worse. Yuck. Maybe not.

--

This was not supposed to read like a fanfic but that's just how it ended up manifesting, my bad.

Here's some rapid-fire notes to make this a little more coherent:

+ Blue (and Green, though he didn't appear here) both tend to ignore anything supernatural that occurs. Both of them have had their memories altered by Vio on several occasions, but only because they keep winding up in situations that require it due to brushing off the signs.

+ Vio is a spider demon inhabiting this weird little town because of the sheer number of supernatural happenings. The way demons operate here is a little strange, they're constantly seeking out other supernatural beings to kill and consume their souls for power. This town is basically just Vio's territory at this point, enter at your own risk.

No one knows he's a demon, and he's constantly pushing the limits just to see when someone'll notice. Very frequently he'll say something along the lines of, "I'm completely normal" or "I'm human" mostly unprompted.

His saliva contains venom, of which can be used to erase the memories of anyone who gets it in their body somehow. The amount of memory lost depends on the dose, but Vio never ends up needing to erase more than a few days at most. He usually just spits on his fingers and shoves them in someones mouth to administer. (If he tried hard enough, he could neutralize the effects, but he doesn't have a reason to. For now.)

+ Red actually did die here. No amount of memory manipulation was going to undo that. Vio was still able to bring him back, but he's not really human anymore. His soul basically belongs to Vio now, but seeing as Vio wants him around, he allows Red to remain as some kind of will-o'-the-wisp given human form. Red does know Vio is a demon because of this, but he isn't going to say anything.

If Vio were to die and his was consumed by another demon, Red would die as well. So it's a good thing Vio's soul isn't consumed when he dies. :)

+ Shadow shows up in town at some point and starts working at the same store as the others. He's there under the orders of Vaati, but mostly he just wants to fight Vio. They have history, though it differs depending on who you ask.

After befriending everyone, he decides to go against Vaati, who's goal is to take the town as his territory to reap the benefits. This culminates in a massive fight between the minor supernaturals and Vaati's forces, and Shadow and Vio vs Vaati himself.

They manage to defeat him, but in one last bid to take Shadow down with him, Vaati lashes out with the last of his power, hurtling a sharp piece of debris from the battlefield at a weakened Shadow. Vio intercepts it, because of course, and though he's able to stop most of it's momentum, he's still down two of his mechanical spider legs, and it pierces through his weak point (chest gem) despite the other two.

There's a brief moment where they make eye contact, kinda just in disbelief, before Vio's physical form dissolves and all that's left is his purple soul. Shadow has to fight his natural instinct to consume it for power, and instead hold it gently as he returns to the others to let them know Vaati was gone now, his soul shattered and scattered to the wind.

+ I have no idea if any romantic relationships would be present here, but at the very least Blue and Red are soft for each other in some way (post cornfield). Shadow's feelings for Vio definitely aren't straight, though Vio's feelings are a mystery even to him. And Green's around here somewhere. Zelda too.

All of this was thought up in the span of like two hours so it's not very coherent, but it's what I've got so I offer it to y'all in place of actual cohesion.

Oh, also Vio's probably going to get revived. Shadow gets to be the one doing the resurrecting for once. Just gotta find those Vaati soul shards and shove them into Vio's. I'm sure it'll work out fine.

[takenbypeter]

Hiii i love ur writing!!!

I was wondering if you could write a young Kurt Wagner x fem!reader hc or fic about kurt liking the reader who is really cool and funny and he thinks shes way out of his league, it doesnt help that some of the more extroverted students are always flirting, and he doesnt get how it comes so naturally to them. Anyways he's lowkey jealous and insecure (esspecially bc he looks so different compared to her and the other students) and oblivious to the fact that the reader only has eyes for him!! Angst and fluff are my faves ugh

(+bonus if peter tries to give him advice on how to hit on a girl and its a total trainwreck bc kurt is so obviously not acting like himself and shes lowkey freaked out and trying not to laugh in his face💀)

Stick to the Plan

Kurt Wagner x reader

Words: 1486

Authors note: I totally forgot about the jealousy aspect of this whole thing sorry but I hope you still like it and this is like my first Kurt fic so yayyyy!

Kurt was already easily known as the nervous type around people. Didn’t always know what to say, didn’t want to do the wrong thing.

But with you? He was terrified.

Now he knew you weren’t perfect, no one is. But he was pretty sure you were just about close to it.

You were quite beautiful yet weren’t afraid to wear silly expressions. Your laugh was very infectious that even when he wasn’t a part of the conversation, he could feel his cheeks uplifting at just the sound that he recognized from far away.

Kurt didn’t talk to you much but he did always find himself coincidentally in the same area as you. He found it quite admirable how it seemed like you got along with practically everyone and never let anything get you down.

You could say he had a crush.

He wanted to talk to you, to connect about anything, but like mentioned earlier…he was scared. It also didn’t help that he could tell that he wasn’t the only one who had a thing for you. He knew of at least two other guys who were very obvious in their likings of you. But unlike himself, they actually had the guts to talk to you, you’ve laughed with them, shared jokes.

It also didn’t help that Kurt couldn’t help but feel like he looked like a freak most of the time. The tail, the teeth, the blue, sometimes it was hard for him to believe that people could accept him this way—that you could accept him this way.

Despite what he felt, he believed he kept his feelings well hidden, but that wasn’t exactly the case because a certain speedster had caught on quickly.

Kurt had just watched you leave the small group that you had been chatting with, you just about stepped out of the room when a voice suddenly appeared right beside Kurt’s ear. “So when are you planning on puttin’ the moves on?”

Kurt jumped, shocked at the question, “excuse me?”

“Come on, you’ve been pining for weeks, just make your move already.”

Kurt freezes for a moment, but then grabs the man unexpectedly and disappears as a puff of smoke left behind practically dissolves into air. He teleports the two to Kurt’s own room before releasing the speedster.

“You will keep what you know, only between us,” Kurt insisted but Peter was already nodding. “Don’t worry your secret’s safe with me. I actually wanna help you.”

“You want to help me?” Peter nodded again and Kurt couldn’t stop a scoff from escaping past his lips, “because you’re so good at this type of stuff?” Kurt added, tone more sarcastic than positive.

“Hey at least I can talk to ‘em.”

He’s got a point there.

Despite everything in Kurt telling him not to take Peter’s advice he still hung his head in defeat. “Alright, I will accept your help…but what do you get out of this all?”

It was hard for Kurt to believe that Peter was doing this out of the good of his heart, but Peter shrugged. “Bored,” is all he said before clapping his hands together, “okay let’s get started.”

Kurt should’ve known better than to trust Peter. He taught him strange things that he guaranteed would “woo” anybody’s heart and although it all seemed unlikely, Kurt took each and every one of his advice to heart.

The strange way of talking, the attitude that he should carry, all of it he took in until Peter deemed the blue mutant ready.

It wasn’t until the next day while you were seated in a corner of a busy room that the plan went into action.

You were clearly occupied with your head buried in a graphic novel but your attention got deterred when a body sat directly across from you.

Eyes leaving the pages, you were met with a set of bright yellow eyes taking you by surprise, but you quickly collected yourself.

“Oh hey Kurt,” You were trying your best to conceal your surprise at the sight of the man in front of you, especially since typically it seemed like the boy did his best to avoid you, “what’s up?” You asked, setting your book down in your lap but with your thumb holding your place.

Kurt could already feel himself wanting to duck underneath his shoulders and disappear from your view but he fought every urge to do that.

Fighting his instincts he slumped his shoulders down and leaned back trying his best to look what could possibly be perceived as cool. And in that position he let out a line he’d practiced in the mirror the night before, “something must be wrong with my eyes because I can’t take them off of you.”

Your mouth forms a little oh shape as your eyes widen and your eyebrows lift. Kurt obviously can see how shocked you are by his words and he himself could feel his body getting ready to prepare for the cringe he was beginning to feel, but he pushed through and delivered another line, “hey, you’re pretty and I’m cute. Together we’d be pretty cute.”

Oh God, your expression told him all he needed to know about that one. He instantly regretted that one.

Your face contorted from confused to surprised then half amused before you started cracking up.

You were laughing.

You were laughing at him right to his face.

Kurt pushed his teeth together before muttering, “I’m sorry,” he was about to disappear as it seemed that was the only thing he was good at, but you rested a hand on his shoulder stopping him from doing so.

Once you controlled yourself you let out, “I’m sorry, you think I’m pretty?”

His whole demeanor flipped, his shoulders leaned up, his arms suddenly were in his lap as he brought his hands together in the middle.

He knew he said those words but it felt so strange hearing you repeat the line when he technically hadn’t even confessed his feelings yet.

At Kurt’s silence that’s when you spoke up, “I’m sorry I didn’t mean anything by…that,” you said, referencing to your more than little laugh session, “it was all just…unexpected. This,” you waved a hand in the air motioning towards whatever that display was, “just doesn’t seem like you at all, are you okay?”

He felt the air in his throat hitch as he began to panic about what to say next, should he just confess now? Peter didn’t cover this. Should he just relay back to the things Peter had taught him? But with all this thinking he couldn’t come up with something fast enough and instead finally let out a breath.

“It’s not me.”

“Yeah I know,” you chuckled.

He finally seems to relax for the first time since your interaction began and his eyes drift down to your book still in hand.

“What are you reading there?” he asks and your eyes follow where he was looking. “Oh this? It’s just a murder mystery.”

“How is it? Do you like it?”

“Yeah I love murder mysteries, I love when there’s a twist ending but I also love when it ends in a real cliche way. I’ve actually read this one before but the movie for it just came out so I’m rereading it before going to watch it later this week.”

“I’ve actually read that book before too, it’s pretty good.”

“Right?”

“I didn’t know there was a film for it,” Kurt truly meant nothing by that statement, if anything it was more just a way to continue the conversation with you.

“Yeah…did you want to watch it together?”

There was nothing on earth that could’ve predicted this moment for him. He truly had to take a moment, and when he finally came to he just nodded, shock still written on his face. You mirrored his nodding with a smile, “great, it can be a date.”

“A date?”

“Yeah, and you can continue telling me how pretty I am.”

Again he seemed to still be in a daze, “yeah…wait what?”

With that you packed your things and stood up from your spot, “okay I have to head somewhere now but we’ll make plans later, but um, I’ll see you later?”

He blinked a couple times coming out of the trance you seemed to put him under, “yeah.”

“I’ll see you,” you added, taking steps backwards as you exited the room.

“See you.”

“Okay—sorry,” you said to the chair you had accidentally bumped into while you were walking backwards and with that you gave a last wave before finally turning around.

As soon as you left the room in came Peter who surprisingly actually wasn’t listening.

“How’d that go? Did you make your move?”

“…yeah,” Kurt responded eyes stuck to where you last waved to him.

“Did you get a date?”

“Yeah.”

“Is that the only word you know right now?”

“Yeah.”

[lover-of-mine]

Lady Whistledown. I totally understand if you don't post this. Huge no worries because honestly, their fandom is on fire, and it makes me sad the hate they send you. Like it's a damn ship, people. Just stop.

But to get where we are now you sort of have to go back to the beginning of epsiode 4 last season then repeat after every sentence their copium after 24 hours of rage was "well duh the Buddies are crazy so of course ". Oliver only posted he and Eddie for his coming out episode. Oliver never followed or promoted Lou and now they even admit there is bad blood. Oliver never talked to them only Lou took the money. Oliver gave too much attention in the BTS of the medal ceremony to Ryan. Oliver didn't talk about bisexuality in regards to Tommy only to the fact he is. Oliver never promoted interviews. Oliver posted more of Gerrard this season. Oliver flirts too much with Ryan. They didnt get Hen approval scene. No JLH scene after she said they filmed in the same building. They never got the family scenes of Christopher with his 3 dad's. Got more Eddie and Tommy. More Tommy and Eddie. Tommy was supposed to be a main. And as always they would throw Buck off a bridge to get Eddie and Tommy.

So now we lean into Narnia. They had a high after the first episode. OK he's there. But honestly after the initial time. It was a nothing scene. It was about Eddie. It could have been 2 friends teasing each other. Then everything fell apart after that. He wasnt with Athena. He didn't save the day. He didn't have a double date breakfast with Bathena the day after. The worst? They used his truck and he wasn't even there. There is a lot of chatter of the story is narrowing. All they wanted was a 118 family dinner. But he was iced out. Now it's pretty excepted he's not part of the 118. He will be regulated for however long to just Bucks partner. Saw one rage that at least they used Taylor in her job and they couldn't here. We are clearly going into Eddie's isolation arc. They hate his interviews that came out today. He won't be the one to get Christopher back. They basically lost all of their hopes. His story now is how Buck resolves Gerrard issues. Oh and weird fact they seriously thought that when Lou came out of hiding for ABs birthday that it was proof the Athena Tommy connection. She had his back. And well we know how that worked out.

Back on grass. Its been sort of wild to see them keep lowering their bar to make themselves feel better about the story. Well we didn't see Karen sort of thing. Oh but also an annoyance at Josh with Maddie. Apparently in their world there's a limit to queer people and it can only be BT and Henren.

Hello my love 🩷🩷

This made me giggle, ngl. Each episode proving their spec wrong was awesome lol. He was there for 30 seconds and had 2 lines and they were expecting him to be everywhere. It was extra sweet to see a black child do the thing they were convinced he would. He wasn't on the plane. He wasn't on the highway. He wasn't lowered through the hole in the cockpit. He wasn't on top of the truck. Buck didn't even mention a little plane fact he learned from him. He was only in the story when he was on screen and he was barely there. And now the conflict with Gerrard can't be good for the relationship considering his past. Of course they hate Oliver even though Oliver is the main character and he's made it very clear where he stands when it comes to them, but the flirting too much with Ryan made me scream. They are so mad they rpfing. I kinda love that they want more of Tommy and Eddie but even though he was in a scene about Eddie, he did not interact with Eddie, not really. I guess living of "you're a vision in a cone" is not good when there's a plane emergency and he's not there. And yeah, the show did find a way to incorporate the journalist, if they wanted to incorporate the firefighter pilot, they would, too bad they don't. I did not see the bathena breakfast spec, that one is funny as hell. I wanna say I can't believe they actually thought the comment was a message but, I totally can, and that obviously didn't go anywhere. And of course they are turning on Josh, why wouldn't they. I will say their cope has been glorious to read, like my god you guys are so close to the point and missing it. I can't imagine how mad they must be behind closed doors.

[batsplat]

uuuu im obsessed with vale/jorge dynamic recently. Jorge used to obv hate vale during their years together but now its his biggesr fan and vale is very clearly fond of him nowadays (inviting him to la 100km dei campioni etc.)

They went from being each other biggest haters to a kinda friendship? Or at least respect and giggles lol

Also jorge/vale rivalry was one of my fav back then in 2008/9

so this has been one of the numerous jorge/valentino asks sitting unloved in my inbox because I burnt myself out on that rivalry after writing the 2008-10 long post, BUT I realised I had a take on this exact aspect... here goes. jorge in many ways is the valentino rival who has processed the whole experience™ the best. like he made it, he survived and kinda even thrived. and I have some thoughts on this

main take: jorge/vale rivalry at its height was definitely pretty nasty, but when it comes down to it jorge is the guy valentino feuded with who is most likely to fondly reminisce about the whole experience. this is obviously because he's insane and matched valentino's freak in the yamaha garage from day one... it's just pretty funny how intensely up for it he was going into the rivalry and how totally willing he was to move on afterwards. his happy memories of all the times valentino tried to murder him. picture frames for all the assassination attempts. for all the undeniable headloss jorge went through while fighting valentino, he actually emerged from the whole thing with pretty minimal psychological scarring. inspiring

secondary take: jorge and casey both still semi-regularly talk shit about valentino but it's a COMPLETELY different vibe. like jorge's kinda just talking himself up, wanting to make himself look good in that rivalry - BUT he's also going 'yeah we were the best... wish the guys today were still like us'. the most pro-alien alien!! whereas casey brings way more of a 'That Day Taught Me About Man's Capacity For Evil' vibe to the table. and a big reason for this. imo. is how jorge already went into that rivalry with so much psychological baggage BUT his issues are pretty disconnected from valentino for the most part. jorge desperately needed a positive father figure, not a less aggressive rival. so valentino did torment jorge plenty but also it's not actually adding any long-term psychological scars... jorge had to eventually make his peace with the fact that he wasn't going to be the next valentino rossi but he DID and in a way that was a good thing... jorge spent so much time trying to construct this persona for himself that would both be the ideal racer and get everyone to love him, and he needed to let go of that! he grew up a bit and he became his own person and he stopped trying to invent a perfect character for himself and he became somewhat less insecure in the process. and there's way less resentment towards valentino there, because valentino isn't contributing all that much to what remaining angst and even grief jorge is still going through related to the sport. if anything, with the benefit of hindsight, jorge kinda got a lot of the things he wanted out of the valentino rivalry! including, let's face it, the drama of it all... by contrast, valentino's entire deal just happened to map on at about 98% level of accuracy to casey's preexisting psychological baggage, it's actually pretty impressive. basically almost every single thing that caused casey angst throughout his career, including the stuff that goes back to his childhood racing experiences in australia, can somehow be related to the valentino rivalry - and casey is very happy to make those connections himself. so for casey his rivalry with valentino actively made everything so so much worse and is still massively interwoven with ALL of his angst related to the sport. because valentino is basically the most horrible casey foil anyone could possibly have invented. that's his shadow... kinda fucked up how they invented a guy to torture casey specifically

in conclusion: it's very funny how quickly jorge and valentino got over it after both of their yamaha stints, ESPECIALLY the second one. jorge can make motegi 2010 instagram jokes now. "this is only for p3 and we're team mates but fuck it: this is all about honour!" right........ yeah you really were the perfect valentino teammate, truly a match made in hell heaven. came in prepared for drama, got the drama, now fondly remembers the drama. knew what he was getting himself into and lived the feud experience to the max. made it out alive with minimal long-term psychological damage. an icon a hero a role model for us all

[lady-lamb21]

Three Degrees in Monaco (Chapter 1)

word count: 2.7k

When he’d first told me that he wanted to go to Europe and see his family, I was thrilled. Theo doesn’t often allow himself to stray from his day’s monotony. He calls it his “extraordinary work ethic,” but I think if I weren’t in love with him, I’d probably argue that it’s more a gnarly concoction of laziness and fear.

When he’d first told me he made all the right calls, bought the right tickets, and was scheduled to jet off for the summer, that was when something started to bug me. I’d smiled, squeezed his shoulder, and put on the same sing-song voice my mother used to use when I would return from the front yard and give her what I liked to call a “garden gift.” So, this is what it feels like to get a handful of dirty, wriggling worms dumped into your lap.

Except, no. I should have been elated, not in part, not even mostly. Entirely and wholeheartedly excited for my friend. My best friend. Yet the thought of hearing his voice through a poor connection for the next three months was the only thing I could think about. That, sandwiched between my guilt and some other gummed-up feeling I can never quite interpret, was the start of the distancing; the not picking up the phone, the saying no when I could’ve and really should’ve said yes.

“I swear to god, if you tell me you still have a ‘shit-ton of laundry to do,’ I’m gonna lose it.” He’d laughed when he’d said it, but not the kind of laugh that means he’s found anything particularly funny. He never sounds mad even when he’s scolding, but if I could have seen his face, the crease between his brows, there’d be no doubt about it; he’d lost his patience with me.

“If you keep pestering me into taking up more of your time when I know you still have to pack, I’m gonna lose it! How ’bout that, hm?” I’m desperate for the right laugh because the right laugh means he’s not suspicious. It means he’s a clueless boy who’s not going to make me say goodbye. But he isn’t, and of course he will.

“Alright whatever, I need to talk to you and I’ve only got two days before I leave. Are you really gonna tell me you can’t come over for an hour? Just one hour?”

I’m so itchy in my clothes all of a sudden, and I want to tell him to leave me alone, have a good time, and never think about me again. I’m antsy to be an overly dramatic Hollywood starlet and make it all about me. But I don’t. Not out loud, at least.

“Okay, fine. But if I have to go to work on Monday in dirty tights, I’ll kill you.” There’s the laugh.

“I don’t think you’re gonna have to worry about that. Be at my place at six.”

I have to physically resist the urge to remind him that it’s not really his place, and that he has a far more generous sister than he often deserves. I’m sure he’s heard it enough already and the last thing I should be doing now is starting a fight.

When he opens the door, his embrace is familiar yet overwhelming all at once. I don’t listen to his small talk as we make our way through the kitchen, past the dining room, and up the stairs to his bedroom. I do, however, notice that it’s strayed from its typical catch-up questions and taken on an uncharacteristically lecturing tone, likely in response to my recent avoidance of him. I shouldn't be surprised by it. Our friendship dynamic has never been that of a cat and mouse. We talk about everything. Almost everything.

“So,” he starts. I suck in my breath and give a nod. Here we go. “I have some news.” Not what I was expecting, though still not inherently reassuring.

“Yes?”

“You know I’ve been planning my trip. . .”

“Uh huh?”

“It’s a pretty big trip, I mean, my whole family will be there. Well, not my sister but, you know.” Yes, I do.

“Yeah?”

“So, I’ve decided something.” Christ.

“Jesus, yes Theo! What’s your fucking news?”

The laugh returns. “Relax. I want you to come with me. Well, scratch that actually, you are coming with me. That’s all.”

Wait. “What?”

“Called your mom the other day. Said you wouldn’t mind. besides you’re not gonna keep working over the summer anyways, right?”

He’s smug beyond his years.

“So?! Maybe I do mind?! Maybe I mind very much!”

“C’mon! One last go, before school and all that. Plus, you totally don’t mind.”

“Theo!”

The cockiness is something I’m all too familiar with. However, I’m slightly taken aback by the persistence, like he’s desperate for me to go along. Even when he’s telling me what to do, he’s still asking. But he is right. One last go. And I don’t mind at all.

———

I don’t think I’m a very desirable travel companion. I don’t enjoy flying, though my distaste has little to do with any type of irrational fear. It’s something I would’ve liked to have sorted out a bit more before jetting off to college, but here I am the summer before. . .It’s really the entire physical experience. The cramped seating, the toilets, the tiny space shuttle-esque windows, so on and so forth. What’s there to like?

There was the phone call to my boss—the lie about some fictitious family member being struck with an even less legitimate fatal illness. There was the fact that for the entirety of the forty minutes it took for me to leave a part-time job—only five days before I was already planning to—I was thirteen again. I was crouched in the back of his sister’s coat closet with him, making horrendously executed prank calls, gagging at the Newport smoke stitched into her boyfriend’s coat, and clutching my stomach as it burned with our laughter.

There was the sleepover that we’d had the night before in order to be up and headed to the airport on time. There was the inky early morning sky, his bedroom window and his ninth-grade watercolor project that had earned its place on our school’s website that spring. There was his tired smile once he’d joined me upstairs from the living room couch, a jesting “and off we go” accompanying the expression. There was the “Give ’em hell” his sister had given us from the dimly lit kitchen table as we’d stiffly shuffled our suitcases into the hallway, accompanied by an overexaggerated kiss on my cheek, and the realization that I was in on a joke that wasn’t very funny.

There was the carry-on bag he’d yanked from my grasp as we clambered out of the taxi.

There was the mediocre airport breakfast sandwich alongside the somewhat mediocre—albeit endearingly so—conversation.

“My mom is gonna tell me I need a haircut, bet you five bucks,” he’d muttered through a mouthful of turkey bacon. After finally boarding, it wasn’t long before I drifted off. I woke up sometime in the final few hours of the flight, my head tucked in the crook of his neck over Nice and my stomach somewhere in my throat. I suppose there’s a decent amount to like.

———

I like to think I make up for my dormant presence on the plane during the train ride to Monaco. I’m a planner, a fact of which I’m both very proud and incredibly resentful. You don’t get many invites to exciting late-night excursions when you’re a planner, but you’re trusted, which feels like it means more. Sometimes. Whether I like it or not, it’s in my nature to bring apple slices with peanut butter, a booklet of crossword puzzles, and about four different playlists depending on how the scenery shifts throughout the ride. Theo is my favorite crossword partner, but only because he’s way worse at them.

About thirty minutes into our two-hour journey, he’s gone quiet, no longer bobbing along to the Paul Simon phase of our travel soundtrack. He’s terrible at pretending to pay attention to something. He doesn’t realize it but his eyes are his tell. They glaze over and gaze just beyond your face, almost over your shoulder. Self-conscious about the broadness of my own, I don’t entertain his disinterest in me for long.

“Leave the iron on?”

“Hm?” He looks at me as though I’ve just appeared from behind a tree.

“You leave your iron on back home, or something?”

“I don’t have an iron.”

As if you couldn’t tell. The blue, faux-satin button-down his aunt sent him last month for his eighteenth birthday already looks like a drugstore popcorn shirt.

“Where’d you go?” I try again, talking like a person this time.

“Nowhere really, just thinking.”

“About . . ?”

“I just, I don’t want her to ask about Anaïs . . . you know?”

I pause the fast-paced drums filtering through my earbuds as he removes the one I’d given him from his left ear.

“You know they’re probably gonna ask.” I’m trying to be sensitive, but he knows better than to think I’d lie to spare his feelings.

“But she’s not really asking. She’s just, like, waiting for me to say something she doesn’t like so she can explode.”

“I know.”

I do. His mother is painfully obvious when she knows what she wants and even more so when she doesn’t get it. Though I’ve only met her on four separate occasions, this has remained my consistent observation. The first was at kindergarten pickup. She hadn’t been hard to spot in a plum purple maxi skirt, flashy parakeet green earrings, and a bright red lip. Theo had grabbed my arm and all but dragged me to her, proudly introducing me as his new best friend. We’d only met the day before.

Our next two encounters were at funerals. The first was for Theo’s grandfather, a man I’d later come to adore. He’d taken over the kindergarten pickup after Theo’s mother had apparently gotten into a bit of a “tiff,” as he’d called it, with our head teacher. At his service, she had commissioned me—freshly twelve—to deliver the programs and point out his paintings along the back wall of the church to the incoming attendees. I thanked him in my prayer for the bracelet he’d gotten me in Cannes when I was nine. She gripped my hand once at the wake, over Aperol Spritzes.

The second funeral was for Theo’s uncle, who wasn’t really his uncle at all. He was the best friend of Theo’s father’s cousin and I’d only met him once at a dinner. When I first introduced myself, he’d placed his hand just a bit too low on my lower back. At his service, Theo’s mother hadn’t said one word to me, the only acknowledgment of my presence being a terse nod as I walked through the church’s side entrance. I sat in a back pew and skipped the Spritzes.

The last time I had seen her was two years ago, the day his parents decided to move back to Monaco. Apparently they’d been mulling the idea over for a couple of years by that point, but he’d never said a word of it to me. At eighteen now and looking back at our sixteen-year-old selves, I don’t think either of us would have been able to stomach it had it been said out loud. Anaïs’ miscarriage had been the catalyst. I remember that afternoon, when he appeared at my front door in a frantic state, out of breath from his sprint down the block. He choked out a horrifying recount of walking in on his sister in the bathroom—finding her hunched over and feverish on the cold, increasingly red tile—and immediately calling his mother. The three of us waited in silence on their porch for her to return home. As soon as she had, we piled into their 1997 Toyota Previa, with me sitting on the floor, Theo’s mother running reds all the way to the hospital. No one knew that Anaïs had been pregnant. She was nineteen. For the first time, I felt I’d learned something about Theo’s mom that maybe she hadn’t known: even the deepest love, while seemingly everlasting, is conditional.

———

“Hey, marmotte. . .”

“Hm?” I wake up only to find myself tucked back in his neck. How I’ve already managed to completely fatigue myself again, I’m not sure.

“Wake up, this is us.”

The Monaco-Monte-Carlo station is exactly as I’d hoped it would be and more. Sitting just slightly above the surrounding administrative area, it has a perfect, head-on view of the water. The buildings neighboring the coast are a patchwork of neon yellows, greens, and pinks, bounded above and below by a crisp blue sky and a bluer ocean. A rusty cliffside cradles the edge of town on one side, slicing through the harsh, high altitude wind, leaving those down below with nothing but a gentle breeze.

I’m taken out of my trance upon our exit as a vehicle emerges smoothly from behind the cliff. The roofless monorail slithers above the shoreline, between the rooftops, as if heading out to sea.

“I think I remember that?” He says it like a question, and a sad one at that. Theo was only three when his family left Europe for his father to join the American manufacturing boom. I know he loves our city, but I’m also painfully aware of his resentment for it. New York was not where he was meant to stick around, but upon being asked to choose, he’d stayed.

“Is there a bus we’re taking?”

Having interrupted his hazy train of thought, he turns from the coastline back to me wearing a challenging smile. “You can’t tell me you’re still tired, all you did was sleep!”

I grumble my way around a noncommittal answer, but gladly take his outstretched hand anyway. I shouldn’t complain, and I can’t as soon as I see his face taking it all in. It sends a flood of something wonderful through my system watching him ask for directions, speaking in a language he only ever gets to use on the phone. He tugs me behind him, taking long strides as if he were already completely familiar with his surroundings after just one point of an index finger. It’s just under a thirty-minute walk to his parent’s house, but we stop at the nearest ATM for a quick currency exchange about halfway through. I’m suddenly regretting my dedication to German in junior high, but there’s something about the way he’s teasing me today that I don’t mind.

“Are you hungry yet?”

I’m surprised he’s asking only five minutes away from the apartment. Surely his mother will be forcing her cooking on us as soon as we arrive. “You don’t want to wait until we get there?”

“Nope.” He’s not looking at me when he says it. The nerves have set in. Fair enough.

Generous as I am, I allow him to lead me slightly off course in search of somewhere to grab a quick bite. We settle on an espresso bar just slightly southwest of our destination. He’s gone quiet again, barely sipping his coffee in favor of watching the ripples forming in the cup.

“They’re gonna be excited to see you more than anything else.”

“Hm?”

Good grief, Theo.

“I don’t think you have anything to worry about,” I try again, a bit gentler this time. “They’ll just be happy you’re home.”

“Not worried. . .” he tapers off, but gives me an anxious little smile, as if to thank me for spelling it out. He’d foregone holding my hand once we’d become sure of our route. However, he takes it again in the moments leading up to our arrival, gripping my fingers tightly. It’s the only noticeable change from his otherwise calm exterior as he guides us through the congested foot traffic. My stupid mind doesn’t stop drifting between our intertwined hands and what we surely must look like to passers by. Get a grip.

Arriving at the square feels somewhat like entering the eye of a storm. It’s almost silent in comparison to the busy streets bleeding into its center. The complex’s front door is an orange-stained Canarywood with a dainty, metal handle. We walk into the vestibule and up the creaky, winding steps to the second floor. One more to go and we’re presented with a narrow hallway and another series of doors similar in design. Six, eight, and finally apartment ten.

He knocks twice.

Plum purple maxi skirt.

“Ah! Bienven– ah, tu as besoin d'une coupe de cheveux, mon fils!”

———

Hi! This is the first chapter of a short story I wrote back in my sophomore year of college for a fiction workshop class. It touches on themes of love, loss, family, friendship, substance abuse, and coming of age. If you liked it———let me know! I'd love to post the rest in the future if anybody would be interested. If you didn't like it———you and my fiction workshop have that in common... but thank you for reading it nonetheless <3

-I

P.S. One girl in my class was particularly pissed off by her need to Google Translate some bits. Apologies ;)

[outofangband]

Rambling Morwen thoughts, more in my houseless for exiles tag, sorry for aforementioned rambling

“Rashness, lord! If my son works in the woods hungry if he lingers in bonds, if his body lies unburied, then I would be rash. I would lose no hour to go to seek him.”

-Chapter 14, The Journey of Morwen and Niënor

Everything in this exchange is so important to me, but it’s specifically the if his body lies unburied that really gets to me because I think it speaks a lot about  Morwen’s trauma from the Bragollach, and Húrin and Rían’s vanishing

Just have so much of her pride is in twined with her grief so much of her grief is so intertwined with uncertainty, and not knowing.

Her father and uncle, and a lot of her male relatives who died with Barahir, she never got news of their death.  If she did, it would’ve been decades after it happened when she finally came to  Doriath, if Beren’s full history was known there. Her mother may well have died in the Bragollach too*

And then her cousin, the last of her people there also runs off, and she never gets any news of her, and she never learns at least presumably never learns what happened to Rían’s son**

And of course Húrin! Húrin Rides off for war and never returns, and no tidings from any of his people who fought in the battle come back either. She doesn’t know if he’s dead, or captured, or simply prevented from returning as she says herself.

I have a couple posts in my houseless for exiles tag about this but also leaving Hithlum behind, knowing that she would never see it or its people again, and would likely never know of their fate, is yet another grief. She would have left Aerin and anyone else she was close with, knowing the circumstances they would be in and knowing the parting was a permanent one.

Which leads to my main point

Morwen is willing to drown crossing the Sirion (as she tells Mablung) or be murdered by Morgoth’s most dreadful monster (as she nearly is) trying to get news of Túrin, or save him or even just to bury him! She’s willing to risk that just to make sure he gets proper burial and so she knows what has become of him.

I’m sorry to bring this back into my thoughts about those words and traits that  are always associated with Morwen; her pride, her grief (and also her inability to grieve!!,)  and severity and stubbornness and resilience but I think it’s all so fascinatingly connected. She has been denied closure for decades. She’s willing to do pretty much anything to make sure it doesn’t happen again

And that’s part of what makes that last interaction at the grave of her children so heartbreaking

And this should be a post in itself I’ll make later but I also think about how for those who knew Morwen, they suffer this same uncertainty

…but Morwen also was lost. Neither then nor after did any certain news of her fate come to Doriath or to Dor-lómin.

(Also, I love her being able to tell the difference in the members of the party and to be able to tell that there’s one more member that there should be when these thousands of year-old fully trained elven scouts didn’t notice that it’s both awesome and very funny to me! And the part about Morwen refusing to be led back to Doriath by Niënor! It’s the second to last mention of her pride and resolve in the novel and it’s part of the last description of Niënor as Niënor!)

Anyway I love Morwen very much and I will do an entire post on the whence came he! Scene

* Neither the mother of Morwen nor her parents or any other maternal family is mentioned in canon. In The Shaping of Middle Earth, Tolkien originally had the mothers of Morwen and Rían as being of the house of Marach, his original reason for them having survived the Bragollach and ending up in Hithlum. He discarded this however, making Morwen and Rían refugees of the Bragollach but never saying anything more about their mothers.

** kept this part short as I have several post specifically about this aspect of their relationship and their relationship and general, which are very important to me, I’ll link one of the more recent ones just for my own organization here

[sasukesun]

The thing that bothers me the most about Naruto as a whole is that for a manga that goes out of its way to portray oppression and rejection of certain kinds of people as deeply political and systemic, it doesn’t offer any political or systemic solution to solve this problem.

Naruto’s philosophy as a character is that connecting with people, working along side with them, and putting love above hatred is the best way to make sure that the world stays in peace. And the story shows him he’s partly right, since the big countries manage to work together during the war. That’s what’s bugging me… why show problems linked to the way the system is made, and then treat this problem only trough the lenses of moral?

Especially since most of the actual problems brought up by character like Neji or Nagato are never shown to be solved. By the end of the story we’re supposed to assume that they were solved magically by the goodwill of everyone in the village cause they choose to just… be nice? Like I don’t think it works like that. I’m not an expert, but I’m pretty sure that you don’t end slavery simply by saying to slave owners to put themselves into their slaves’ shoes.

Of course empathy and forgiveness are important and allow people to make peace, but in real life they’re either just the first step, or the ultimate goal. The manga make it seem like they are direct solutions to systemic problems, and it doesn’t sit well with me…

inside of me there are two wolves. one that agrees with you and wishes the naruto ending showed at least that those systemic problems were solved, and other wolf that really wonders which and how many big shonens with child soldiers and systemic oppression have ever done that? i do think kishimoto bit more than he could chew sometimes, but i’ve also talked many times about how he also worked for a magazine that didn’t allow him full creative freedom, having admitted that his ideas were unshonen sometimes, that his routine as a mangaka didn’t allow him to put much thought into every single thing in his writing and that he often chose easy plot conclusions over satisfying arcs, that he was worn out after so long and probably lost a lot of the passion he had for his own story, and if we’re being real, no one in the naruto world actually has a good solution to their world problems. kishimoto really wrote a lot of things out of spite, especially because the editors pushed for boruto, so it’s not even like he could write that everything was magically solved, which would be at least more satisfying than the actual ending, that man was bitter.

on a side note, it’s funny how this popped on my dashboard.