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areyougonnabe · 4 months ago

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could you explain marie nelson to me... i know that he's tragic and also a misogynist and that's kind of all

well you've got the basics but let's get into the details [cracks knuckles]

edward william nelson was the shore party's biologist, counterpart of lillie who stayed on the ship. like lillie he had been educated at cambridge, however unlike lillie who barely scraped a degree in the end, nelson dropped out lol. he went to work at the plymouth marine biological association, which is where he was when he was hired by wilson (presumably via cambridge connections) for the expedition.

he wasn't as rich as cherry or oates but he came from a landed gentry background, his maternal grandfather was a major landowner in the shetlands in scotland and was, if you believe this random page on the internet, descended directly from King James V of scotland... and his dad was a big deal microscope guy.

anyway by the time nelson was on the expedition his initial nickname was "The Immaculate One" because he was (at first) always wearing a clean collar, and then at some point he became almost universally known as "Marie," short for "Marie Ducas" or "du Car" which nobody ever bothers to explain.

sometimes he was also known as "Antonio" or "Brontë" (that last being a reference to Lord Nelson) and griff often called him "Marie du Car Bronte Antonio Nelson" or another combination of multiple names.

silas wrote in his diary that he "had a taste for gin and bridge" and lots of people remarked on how he wouldn't get out of bed in a timely fashion and was always late to breakfast.

he was kind of seen as dissolute in general or a bit of a slacker. kathleen scott remarked at one point that he "spends all his time on shore being a man about town, which makes him look exceedingly tired" but really i think that was just how his face naturally looked.....

his job at Cape Evans was overseeing his Biological Hole (that's what he's doing in the pic up top) and identifying new antarctic species, taking temperatures, and measuring currents. he had a telephone wire run out to the little igloo he built on the sea ice, and often had company in the form of griff or cherry or whoever wanted to help him keep the ice open and unfrozen at the hole.

he did plenty of science, but that kind of fades into the background in the diaries because most people if they're talking about him at all are mainly giving a running commentary on how much he liked to argue.

his main axe to grind was women's rights... griff seemed to take great joy in calling him a "miserable, cynical reactionary" and goading him into arguments which sometimes descended into pitched physical battle.

from griff's diary, may 30 1911:

Marie Deb & I had a frightful cag in our boudoir about Women’s Suffrage. He is engaged & declares if his wife wanted to exercise her vote (even if she gets one) he will lock her up!

november 3 1911:

We have great cags at meals now. Simpson Deb & I are progressives & Liberals. Nelson is a thorough Reactionary Conservative especially re women & vote & education. However as he said he wished he were a woman (with £500 a year income) we guessed he was abnormal!

nelson probably did the least sledging out of anyone during the first year, not going on a single long-haul trip (even simpson went out on a short spring journey). he mostly just hung out at his igloo i guess? and got really into calculating navigation for fun. also apparently he was the best at chess in the whole hut.

he stayed on for the second year, and did go out sledging on the Search Journey:

there is some great stuff about his midnight poetry and weird moon obsession during the second winter in @worstjourney's very good post here.

i'll also add that it was pretty harsh on everyone else to have Maximum Marie Exposure with no tempering force of griff to allay it.

nelson did contribute heavily to the much-reduced and mildly pathetic Volume IV of the South Polar Times, which featured griff's offcuts from the prior year, deb's illustrations, and poems from nelson including a parody of walt whitman about billiards:

This is the song of billiards:- The tight stretched cloth of green, the serried arches, The cue - faking the cue, the protests from the players, The pyramid, the British Pluck, the Chinese fluke, The click of striking balls, the rattle in the ditch, the grin of joy.

most of the expedition scientists went home on steamers from NZ, but both nelson and lillie stayed on the terra nova as she took the long way round cape horn, in order to do more trawls and marine science.

nelson also took a job as second mate—it was definitely unusual for a scientists with zero navy/sailing experience (except the voyage down) to suddenly become an officer of the watch, but pennell trusted him, and seemingly that trust was not misplaced, as pennell wrote in his diary about how well he took to the job, and to atkinson about how he was by "far & away the most brainy person in the ship."

he got married to the woman he had been engaged to, violet thomas, after returning from the expedition. their only child, a daughter, was born in 1915, but by then he was serving in the royal naval division at gallipoli and then france. his war story is straight up wild and i recommend reading from ice floes to battlefields by anne strathie if you want aaalll the deets. but basically he saw a lot of action, served alongside rupert brooke (among other notables) and came out the other side relatively unharmed... physically.........

after the war he went back to the plymouth marine lab, and was supposed to be working on expedition results, but didn't do much of that.

in 1921 he left his family in plymouth to take a job in scotland working in a lab for the fishing industry, and in 1923 his wife successfully sued for "restitution of conjugal rights" which basically means the court ordered him to return to her....

but that did not end the way she wanted 🙃

shit was sad... he was found with poison injected directly into his leg.

i think there must have been a specific legal reason why the death was declared an accident—maybe something to do with receipt of military pension for the widow? but it obviously was very much on purpose. for whatever reason the thought of having to live with his wife again was so intolerable to him that death was preferable.

so thus ends the Ballad Of Marie Nelson.... here is what deb had to say about him and lillie in 1927, writing to JJ Kinsey:

You heard of Marie Nelson's tragic end no doubt, but I'm inclined to think it was as well. Poor old Lillie is in less happy circumstances, the last I heard of him was that he was never likely to get out of Bedlam, a rather ghastly end up to poor old "Ooze's" brilliant promise.

but much like lillie, nelson's end can't be blamed on his experience in the antarctic as it seems he was relatively content there. occam's razor dictates that A) he clearly had Problems before and B) wartime trauma made those problems worse.

the tragic sequel to this tragic story is the fact that his daughter, barbara, was 93 when she went on a cruise to antarctica to visit Cape Evans and see her father's laboratory... but she died of a fall while on the ship during a storm before they had even gotten there :(

#tw suicide #polar exploration

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just-sp-in-inginthevoid · 1 year ago

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TOKYO REVENGERS SEASON 3 EP 7

/!\ manga spoilers ahead /!\

Kakucho being the youngest by four years (three for Rindo) and being the one done with the others' bullshit

- has only said like 3 lines for the moment

- isn't going to fight at all

- 'background character' (he wants to look like one so treat him as one!!! Dammit !!!)

- gets a presentation frame

(Not my sister saying it was so people will recognize him in bonten when he'll have his pink hair)

They are so dramatic I swear—

No.

My heart can't take this pls don't

Snow angels 🥹

(And the igloo!!)

And so, for the first time of my life I see an eclipse

As my sister said: 'it'd be better if [irl people] began to see Takemichi not as a fighter but as what he truly is: a cheerleader'

Sanzu 'Mikey's not here so I'm not doing shit' Haruchiyo

THE KAKU-CHAN YOU KNEW WAS 8 TAKEMICHI.

AND NOT TRAUMATIZED AS FAR AS WE KNOW OF

Time for Koko's romance arc flashback start ig.. Let's do this

Wondering how the scene in the library is going to be animated

I love the Mizo five so much man

#tokyo revengers #tok rev #tr #tokrev #tokyo revengers season 3 #tokrev season 3 #tr season 3 #they keep showing off their budget with the wind #also kokos injuries disappearing for two seconds made me laugh (ofc i know it wasnt on purpose and all)

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hazelcephalopod · 5 days ago

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Well today feels like as good a day as any for me to mention some real history I learned after I watched The Terror. This has basically nothing to do with the show I’ll tell you rn -I’ll also mention some facts about the Franklins at the end. Let’s talk about Dr. John Rae and one of the first investigations into “Wtf happened to the Franklin expedition.”

Background

John Rae was born on September 30, 1813 in Orkney were he was also raised -The Orkneys are a group of islands off Scotlands northern coast. He became a doctor and then got a job to what is not Ontario with the Hudson Bay Company. During that time he worked with First Nations people of the area and became adept with snowshoes and survival skills.

He was later chosen for an expedition which required further training that he had to travel to receive. He then joined expedition and took advice from Inuit he met along the way. During this period he learned to build igloos which he preferred to tents. While he did not reach his destination he made progress on its goals. He later explored the Arctic coast exploring areas that Franklin had before -or near them.

Journeys to find Franklins Expedition

Dr Rae became the second in command on a expedition to find Franklins taking an overland Arctic route, in 1848. Many other took place Using different routes and at different times, most with limited or no success. One of the rivers they encountered is named after him. Ultimately this expedition failed to find Franklins nor much evidence or information about it. Rae returned to England in 1852, roughly 4 years since it started.

Back in England he was granted an attempt to to return in 1853 and had by March of that year. This attempt would prove far more fruitful.

In 1954, after over a year of travel he met some Inuit who had a gold cap-band. When asked they explained they had found it 10-12 days away at a place where roughly 35 non-Inuit had starved to death. He bought it and offered to buy any similar items.

Several weeks later and only two of his men able to travel he began to turn back, on the way he met several Inuit families who wanted to trade with him. With them they had a small silver platter engraved on the back read “Sir John Franklin, K.C.H.”.

They informed him that 4 winters prior some Inuit met no less than 40 non-Inuit who where dragging a boat south, describing a man who fit the description of Francis Crozier. This party of probably Englishwomen communicated by gestures to the Inuit that their ships had been crushed and they were looking to hunt further south. When the same Inuit returned the next spring they found roughly 30 deceaseds, also found were signs of cannibalism.

Rae found this information sufficient to end his search and return to England and report his findings. Ultimately leaving Repulse Bay several months later in August 1854. His journey he taken a roughly a year and a half. He may have been the first European person to discovery the Northern Passage and was certainly one of the first.

Report and Disgrace

Once returned to Britain Dr. Rae made two reports. The the British Admirality he made a full report including the cannibalism, to the public his report excluded the mention of cannibalism. The Admirality, apparently by mistake, released the full report to the public, causing backlash. Lady Jane Franklin was especially affronted and had Charles Dickens write a tirade against Rae published in a magazine. The tirade ignited racist claims that the Inuit were liars, with some accusing they themselves of the cannibalism, claiming Englishmen would not have stooped to such acts. Additionally implying Dr. Rae the fool for believing the Inuit themselves.

Dr. Rae’s reputation was somewhat tarnished, he received a portion of the prize money for the information gathered, but it likely prevented him from being knighted and receiving further recognition in life and for the century after his death.

Post Expeditions, Death, and Legacy

Despite this he planned a polar expedition, building the “Iceberg”. Before he could take this journey the ship was used as a cargo ship and sadly sunk with its crew of 7. The wreck remains lost. Following this he became a founder of the “Hamilton Scientific Association” which would become the “Hamilton Association for the Advancement Literature Science and Art”. He later worked to establish telegraph lines in America and Canada. He visited Iceland and Greenland. He also married in 1860.

Dr. John Rae died in Kensington, London on July 22, 1893 at the age of 79. He was buried in Kirkwall, Orkney. His death went by mostly unacknowledged due to the backlash at his discovery of the fate of the Franklin Expedition. Later findings would confirm the reports he had been given by Inuit traders and delivered tactfully to Britain. (Author here: Authorities completely bungled his attempts to deliver the news with tact)

He has been noted as perhaps the foremost European Arctic survivalist. Likely in part due to his willingness to learn form local Arctic Peoples and other First Nation Peoples, setting him apart form many of contemporaries.

Since his death his accomplishment have received greater recognition, his former home in Kensington received a Blue Plaque in 2011. On the 200th Anniversary of his birth a statue to him was erected in Stromness, Orkney. Later that year the charity “The John Rae Society” was created to promote his achievements. Additionally, in 2014 at his birthplace of Hall of Celstrain, Orphic, Stromness, Orkney a plaque was placed by Historic Enviroment Scotland.

Also fun facts: His discover of the Northwest Passage is contested with the generally more accepted discovery by the McClure Expedition also created to find Franklins Expedition. McClure’s went significantly worse than Rae’s.

Places named -in English- after Dr. Rae include-

- Rae River

- Rae Strait

- Rae Isthmus

- Mnt. Rae

- Point Rae

- Rae-Edzo was the legal name for several settlements and communities near what is now called Behchokǫ̀, Northwest Territories, Canada.

Well thank you for reading. I really enjoyed writing this. I might do a better researched essay on this in the future. I’m just happy I got to tell you about Dr. John Rae bc tbh his story has become a minor special interest of mine. I just think he was a neat guy.

Now for those who want some absolutely not respectful words about the dead:

Facts about the Franklins (I’d not call them fun)

my opinion based off the following info: fuck’em. They sucked. (Plz ready Sir/Lady with the maximum amount of contempt you can manage)

As shown in the show this was not Sir first expedition. On his first he lost 11 of 20 men over roughly 3 years. Learning from the first the second went much better, they mapped the area and didn’t seem to suffer any major losses -though tbh some of it seems to have been luck.

Lady Jane Franklin -his second wife- while her husband was a Lt. Gov. of Tasmania (1837-1843) took in two aboriginal children one after the other, to “teach them to be civilized”. A young boy named Timemendic who she soon gave to her step-daughter (who was 18) who trained him as a servant, until he was deemed bad at that and they tried to send him to an orphanage and then ultimately to work as a deckhand.

Several years she decided to try again and “adopt” a very young girl called Mary whom she renamed Mathinna, once again she put her step daughter in charge of her. Lady Franklin liked her much more, but ultimately when Lord Franklin was called back to England they abandoned her in an orphanage, the rest of her life was suffice to say filled with abuse and suffering and by 18 she was dead. Her remains were eventually returned to Tasmania.

#long post #essays #history #the terror #the franklin expedition

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tobiasdrake · 5 months ago

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Digimon Adventure 01x07 - Roar! Ikkakumon / Ikkakumon's Harpoon Torpedo

Previously on Digimon Adventure: After vanquishing Sid at the end of Toy Story, Woody went mad with power and created an empire. Also, Mimi learned that there can be too many teddy bear hugs.

Now the kids are back on the road again, exploring the island to find options and answers.

We open with a shot of that great mountain in the center of File Island. The Black Gears seem to be coming from it, flying high over the forest below.

This is a quiet, ominous scene in the original; Devoid of music, with only the sounds of the trees rustling and the gears whirring as they make their way across File Island. Then we open on the kids walking, visibly shivering from the cold. Even the Digimon are suffering, with Patamon and Palmon openly complaining that it's too cold.

Everyone except Gomamon, who's visibly having a great time.

The dub adds some background music and has Gomamon talk over the whole setup.

Gomamon: I know this is no day at the beach, Joe, but that's no reason to be a worrywart about it and make all your friends unhappy! Pardon the pun but chill out; Only you have a problem with the cold, right guys? Everyone, think warm!

Well that's a harsh scolding to walk in on. Joe hasn't even had a chance to say anything yet! This sets up a visual contrast, with the sight of everyone freezing and suffering contrasting against Gomamon's claim that everyone else is fine.

Either way, it hits the main point: Gomamon is completely unbothered by the frigid cold that everyone else is suffering from.

Suddenly, Taichi pipes up, giving the group encouragement in the form of a distraction to keep their spirits up.

Taichi: If we get any snow, we can have a snowball fight! Mimi: Snowball fight! Palmon: What's a snowball fight? Koushiro: A snowball fight, huh? Tentomon: What is that? Is it food? Koushiro: No, a snowball fight is a fun activity where we throw snowballs at each other. Yamato: (to Taichi) We can finally have a match! Taichi: I won't lose! Sora: I'm looking forward to it! Takeru: I wanna make an igloo! Palmon: *to Tentomon* Hey, do you know how to make an igloo? Tentomon: Now that has to be food. Koushiro: Again, it's not.

The dub script for this scene is slightly different but conveys the same ideas pretty much perfectly.

Tai: Yeah, but if it snows, we'll throw some snowballs! Mimi: And make snowmen! Gomamon: Who do you think snowmon is? Gabumon: A Digimon from their planet. Izzy: It's difficult to explain. Tentomon: Well, if it's edible, count me in! Izzy: No, the best thing about snowballs is that you can throw them at each other. It's a fun game that we play in the winter months. Tentomon: You throw food!?!? Matt: We can even build a snow fort! Tai: You'll need one! Sora: I bet I can beat you both blindfolded! T.K.: I wanna build an igloo! Palmon: I'll help! ...if you tell me what it is. Tentomon: An igloo sounds scrumptious to me! Izzy: Too bad they're not edible.

The main difference between the two versions is Mimi's introduction of a snowman into the conversation and Sora joining in on the hypothetical snowball duel between Taichi and Yamato.

The highlight of the two versions is definitely Tentomon's horrified misunderstanding of snowball fights in the dub, though. "You throw food!?!?" That got me. XD Nobody tell him about food fights.

Gabumon's confident explanation of snowmon is also pretty funny. Characters confidently answering questions about information they do not possess is never not funny.

Jou, on the other hand, is not swayed by all this fun snowball fight talk. Sora asks why he looks so on edge, and Jou explains exactly what's making him so anxious about all this snow talk.

Jou: (muttering to himself) You guys are taking it too easy. It would be unbearable if it snowed. Sora: Jou-senpai, why are you standing all alone over here looking so serious? Jou: Of course I'm serious! Think about it! If the temperature drops any further, it will be difficult for us to set up camp. In this cold environment, it'll be hard to find food too. My head hurts from all of this! I'm the one who has to protect everybody! ...because I'm the eldest.

While he's talking, we see Takeru, Koushiro, Yamato, and Taichi chatting happily to underscore the difference between his attitude and theirs. We don't hear what they're saying, but the big smiles on their faces conveys the idea that they're taking things much more lightly than he is.

The dub gives them dialogue and distracts from Joe's speech, which paints him more as a joy-killing worrywart.

Joe: Come on, get serious! It would be horrible if it started snowing right now. Sora: Lighten up a little, Joe; We're just trying to look on the positive side of things. Joe: BLEGH!!! T.K.: Hey, Tai! When's it gonna snow? Tai: Probably any second now. Matt: Right on Joe's head! T.K.: That'd be so funny! Tai: I can't wait to see his face! Joe: You know, if the temperature drops any lower than it is already, we won't be able to camp out anymore. We'll be frozen Digi-Treats! That's right! Go ahead and laugh but when your tootsies freeze, don't come crying to me; I'll just say I told you so! It is always better to be safe than sorry; Think first!

The important context of Jou being the eldest and needing to take responsibility he isn't equipped to handle doesn't make it into the dub. He does get the final word, but half of the scene is spent ridiculing him; Even Sora scolds him for his attitude, where in the original she strikes up conversation out of concern for him.

Also the dub just has Joe suddenly going "BLEGH!!!" which automatically costs it a million Joe Dignity Points.

Either way, as the kids keep going, they come upon exactly what they've been discussing.

A snowfield lies ahead. Mimi and Takeru go run around and play in the snow having fun, but the others hang back with Jou to much more seriously discuss what we should do and where to go from here. All talk of snowball fights and igloos evaporates the instant it's really happening.

Taichi puts two options in front of them: Either they cross the snowfield, or they turn around and climb the mountain behind them. Suddenly, Agumon gets a sniff of something. A strong smell from nearby. The other Digimon and even the kids start sniffing the air, and they can all smell it too.

An onsen/hot spring! You can feel the cultural difference in how the kids react to this revelation.

Yamato: I see. This is-- Jou: AN ONSEN!!! Mimi & Takeru: ONSEN!!!

Jou, Mimi, and Takeru all scream at the top of their lungs when they realize what's in front of them. Meanwhile, in the dub:

Matt: But what's it coming from? Joe: A BIG GEYSER!!! Mimi & Takeru: Wow, a hot spring!

Mimi and Takeru are still excited but a bit more reserved with it rather than the ecstatic shriek of the original. Joe's still stoked, though.

Ecstatic, the kids race across the snowfield with hot springs on their mind to find warmth and relaxation. No, wait, hold up. It says here, uh....

It says "boiling black goop". They find boiling black goop. File Island sucks and I want to go home.

(I am reasonably certain that what they're looking at is a mudpot, a highly acidic and viscous bubbling slurry found in volcanic regions. Technically considered a hot spring but you wouldn't want to soak in that.)

Well, we aren't going to be able to bathe here but at least it's warm. Convection from the mudpots is providing relief from the bitter cold, but Jou quickly calls the group's attention to the problem of food. Fortunately, Takeru spies an answer.

An absurd answer. An incomprehensible answer. An answer that visibly makes Jou want to pull his hair out when he sees it. An answer that staggers all reason and sanity, and yet is not that unexpected anymore on File Island.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Sure, why not. Forget it, Jou; It's File Island. Hopefully this one isn't full of Numemon. Against Jou's protests, the kids race to the fridge. Taichi throws it open to discover eggs for days.

This discovery provokes an interesting conversation on the ethics of food stealing during a survival situation.

Taichi: Guess this means dinner's served! Jou: W-Wait a minute, we don't even know if they're edible! Taichi: (huge grin) Don't worry, I'll test them for poison! Jou: What are you saying!? Even if we could eat them, we'd be common thieves for taking other people's property! Yamato: We don't have a choice. We're hungry. Sora: They'll understand if we explain it to them. Koushiro: At any rate, this is an emergency situation. Tentomon: Let's have dinner!

Honestly, the others have a point. Children stranded in a foreign land and starving rank pretty high on the list of acceptable reasons to violate societal norms. This while File Island excursion is the most emergency that a thing can possibly be.

The dub version of this conversation is pretty much an exact translation, though I really like their version of Tai's "I'll test them for poison" line.

Tai: GRUB ON! These will keep us all fed for a month! Joe: Wait a minute, you shouldn't even touch them! We don't know if they're fit for human consumption! Tai: Then I'll be the guinea pig! If I turn purple, you'll know they're not edible. Joe: There's more to it than that; Even if they were edible, they don't belong to us! That would make us all thieves! You gotta think about stuff like that, Tai! Matt: Unless you're into eating rocks, we don't have too much choice. Sora: I'm sure they'd say yes if they knew we were in trouble. Izzy: Exactly; We'd tell them it's an emergency situation. Tentomon: (sarcastic) Rationalize away.

The biggest difference is that Tentomon oddly seems to be on Joe's side in the dub? But overall it's practically verbatim, just a little wordier. But also, "If I turn people then they're not edible." XD Perfect addition to Tai's line.

Outvoting Jou once again, the kids set to work preparing the eggs. They're getting pretty good at wilderness survival. They make crude bowls, a rudimentary cooking stove to fry eggs on, and nets to boil the eggs in one of the less viscous boiling springs.

(Nobody stops to ask the obvious question of where the eggs came from if there are no chickens in Digimon World. Multiple previous conversations have established that there aren't animals or people here; Only Digimon. But. Y'know. Kids. They probably think eggs come from the supermarket.)

For his part, Jou whittles chopsticks while muttering to himself.

Jou: Everyone's so cheerful. I can't be like that. Because I have responsibility....

Contextually, he means that in the sense that he's responsible for whatever happens to them, not that he has responsibility as like a personal characteristic. It's what he was talking about earlier: Whatever happens to them is on his head because he's the eldest.

The dub makes this another argument between Joe and the others.

Mimi: Hurry! We wanna eat! Joe: (dour) Sorry, this just makes me feel uncomfortable. We'd be in big trouble if someone got sick; No doctors, y'know. Why do I always have to be the one to think about these things?

Ironically, Jou's burden is specifically the answer to Joe's question.

Once everyone's finished, they set out the eggs and dig in. ITADAKIMASU!

Yamato wishes they had some white rice to go with it, while Matt wants ketchup. I feel Matt; I'm a ketchup-on-eggs person too. Dub Sora thinks it's gross though.

(Sora and Matt start dating in a few years. I wonder if there's any fics about the inevitable ketchup-on-eggs bickering? You know that's gotta come up for the dub versions of these characters.)

From there, Jou laments that they wouldn't have to do so much work if they were at home. Joe expresses a similar sentiment, but his lament is that ketchup would be easy to come by at home.

This sets the others on a depression spiral, thinking about how homesick they are. Koushiro gives us a timescale: The kids have been here for four days now. In the dub, Izzy adds that he wonders if anyone's started searching for them yet.

At that point, it's Sora's turn to lift everyone's spirits with a distracting conversation topic.

What kind of topping do you like on your eggs? The kids take turns answering with their preferences.

Jou - Salt and pepper. Taichi - Soy sauce. Yamato - Mayonnaise. Sora - Sauce. Koushiro - Ponzu, a tangy citrus sauce. Mimi - Sugar with natto on top; A fermented soy bean.

The kids agree that Koushiro and Mimi's answers are weird, especially Mimi's. Natto on eggs? What?

(Meanwhile I'm over here recoiling in horror at Yamato's mayo eggs.)

Some of the responses in the dub are a bit different.

Joe - Salt and pepper. Tai - Soy sauce. Matt - Salsa. Sora - Doesn't answer, instead saying Matt needs a reality check. Izzy - Mustard and jelly beans. Mimi - Maple syrup with cherries on top.

The dub kids find Izzy and Mimi's responses weird too, but T.K.'s kinda into it and curious to try.

All this talk of weird egg toppings sends Jou into a complete meltdown.

Jou: You all put that weird stuff on your eggs!? (hangs head in hands) I'm shocked. The Japanese culture is collapsing before my very eyes!!!

Taichi tries to defuse the argument by asserting that everyone's culinary choices are valid except natto, but it's too late. Jou goes off.

Jou: With eggs, all you need is salt and pepper! Not sauce or mayonnaise but salt and pepper!

Gomamon calls Jou stubborn, provoking an argument that quickly devolves to Gomamon asking Jou to Fight Me Bruh.

In the dub, Joe's reaction is honestly tamer than Jou's.

Joe: What!? You're making me completely lose my appetite; I just like plain eggs! (hangs head in hands) I wish we could talk about something other than egg recipes.

Here, Tai's remark isn't so much to defuse the conversation as it is poking fun at the group.

Matt: Come on, join the party! Tai: I think it's really too late for him. I think Joe thinks we've gone a little crazy over these eggs. Joe: Well, really. Jelly beans and cherries on eggs, that's just crazy talk! Salt and pepper's all they need. Keep it simple; That's always been my motto!

He's still grossed out, but he's not calling them the decay of Japanese culture over it.

After Gomamon tries to fight Jou, Yamato steps in to try and de-escalate. Yamato tells Jou that he's acting off today and asks what's up, but Jou screams at the whole group that they're the ones who are off and storms away.

The dub captures the same elements but the delivery of Joe's actor undercooks the emotional tension. Joe sounds mad, telling everyone things like "You're all asking for trouble!" in an angry but still reserved Joe voice; Jou, however, is full-throated screaming at the group, audibly furious beyond any consolation.

Over eggs. Because this isn't really about the eggs. It's about everything that's happened. Jou's crumbling under the pressure of his responsibility.

Finally, Jou storms off to be alone and cool down beside one of the boiling hot springs.

When Jou calms down and returns to the group, he finds Yamato and Taichi at each other's throats. Koushiro explains: They're bickering over whether we should go to that huge mountain we keep seeing in the center of File Island. It's called "Mugen Mountain", mugen being the Japanese word for Infinity. The dub translates Infinity Mountain faithfully.

(Don't know about y'all but I'd be hesitant to start climbing something called Infinity Mountain in a place where physics are playful. The possibility that the name might not be hyperbolic would give me pause.)

While we see the two bickering, Sora summarizes their sides for Jou's benefit.

Sora: Taichi says that if we go there, we can survey our entire surroundings. Jou: That's true. On a mountain that tall, we can see everything. Sora: But Yamato is against it because it's dangerous. Piyomon: There are a lot of ferocious Digimon on that mountain. Jou: I see. That is dangerous.

While in the dub, Tai and Matt themselves yell their opinions at each other mid-argument for Joe to hear and consider.

Tai: It's the perfect spot! We gotta climb up there; It's the best view of the island! Joe: You've gotta admit; He's got a point there. Sora: That's not how Matt sees it. Matt: Nobody would make it up that peak! It's much too big of a gamble! Biyomon: He might be right, Joe; There could be lots of evil Digimon up that peak! Joe: Hmm... That's not good! That wouldn't be worth the risk.

The biggest difference between the two versions is Yamato's side. Piyomon in the original states with certainty that there's ferocious Digimon there, while Biyomon in the dub is only speculating. Given that the Digimon have been Tour Guiding everyone and identifying various important Digimon by name, it makes sense that she'd have a good idea of what's on Infinity Mountain. So that's a point to the original.

However, the way it's phrased makes it sound like Yamato's only worried about fighting Digimon, while Matt sounds more generally concerned with the idea of a bunch of inexperienced children trying to do expert mountain climbing, regardless of what else is up there. So that's a point to the dub.

Taichi calls Yamato out for unproductive cowardice and Yamato calls Taichi out for recklessly endangering the group. Jou tries to convince them to settle down and stop fighting, but they respond by putting him on the spot. Pick a side: Taichi or Yamato? Jou agrees with both of them and demands time to think, and the whole argument turns into a three-way shouting match rather than being settled.

(That's a Nat 1 on Jou's Diplomacy check.)

Eventually Sora is forced to step in and yell at all three of them to cool it. Together with Piyomon, Agumon, and Gabumon, she declares bed time - Leaving Jou with nothing but his abject sense of failure.

While the others sleep, Jou reflects on how badly that went.

Jou: I couldn't do anything. I even got caught up in the fight instead of stopping it. This won't do. I have to stay focused. I have to keep everyone in order! Me!

Jou rises to his feet with determination to take action. He's going to climb Infinity Mountain himself.

He barely makes it out of the cave before Gomamon catches him. Jou protests Gomamon's presence, demanding he stop following him. Gomamon retorts that he has business to take care of up on that mountain so they just happen to be going the same way.

Jou and Gomamon help each other up the mountain, dissolving the tension between them pretty quickly. Gomamon offers Jou a "hand" to help him climb; Jou points out his flippers for a joke, surprising Gomamon with the fact that he even can tell jokes. For his part, Jou physically does help Gomamon up the mountain.

Jou and Gomamon stop to take a break on the mountain, but suddenly a massive earthquake strikes. The partners bear witness to a secret door opening in the mountainside, spilling out more Black Gears and sending them across File Island.

Jou immediately decides to investigate whatever this is.

As they approach the secret door, the sun comes up. However, it's already closed and sealed, and the Black Gears are gone. Jou and Gomamon find nothing waiting for them.

Then they hear a noise. The sound of wings beating in the distance, coming closer.

Unimon, an Adult-stage Vaccine-type Digimon. The narrator explains:

Gomamon: It's Unimon! He's a smart, gentle Digimon. Narrator: A sweet Digimon whose form is a mix of the legendary beasts, the unicorn and Pegasus. His special attack is the fireball Holy Shot.

While in the dub, Joe and Gomamon go over him like this.

Joe: Oh, that's just great; A flying horse wearing a mask! This can't be good. Gomamon: That's not your everyday flying horse, Joe. That's Unimon! He's a wise old Digimon. I never knew he lived in these mountains; He's not much of a talker!

Normally I side with the original over the dub on these character intros, but I like Joe's agitated remark and Gomamon's personalized exposition more than the clinical analysis that the narrator provides this time.

Jou initially insists on hiding. Despite Gomamon's assurance that Unimon's kind and friendly... the kids have heard that a lot on this island.

Fortunately, Unimon's just stopping by for a drink of water. Everything is fine. Gomamon steps out of the cave to go chat up Unimon and--

Red Alert. Everything is no longer fine.

Expectedly, the Black Gear slams into Unimon's back, driving him wild. He turns on Gomamon and Jou, advancing menacingly. In the dub, he says, "Hello, Gomamon; Aren't you happy to see me?" in a hostile voice, but he says nothing in the original.

Back at camp, Sora's the first to wake up. Stepping outside the cave, she finds a message Jou left, informing the other kids that he'll be back in a bit and asking them to wait for him. Immediately realizing what reckless action Jou's taken, Sora wakes everyone up to go after him.

Jou and Gomamon flee for their lives from Unimon, but his flight advantage makes escape impossible. He destroys both sides of the path they're on with his Holy Shots, pinning them down to one area.

Again, the original Unimon only makes horse noises, while dub Unimon speaks English, taunting them with remarks like, "That's a perfectly good route if you're thinking of flying away!" Also, the dub refers to Holy Shot as Aerial Attack.

With Jou and Gomamon pinned down and nowhere left to run, Unimon begins charging up a final Holy Shot to kill them both. Jou hugs Gomamon tightly, closes his eyes, and waits for the end. Then he hears the crash, but nothing hits him. So he opens his eyes and....

Sora and Taichi have arrived as backup!

While they're distracted checking up on Jou, Unimon nails Birdramon with a Holy Shot, sending her tumbling down the cliff. Sora slides down after her to check on her. Meanwhile, Agumon evolves into Greymon to take over fighting Unimon.

It does not go well. Unimon's flight advantage allows him to easily outmaneuver Greymon on this narrow ledge and swing around for a dive bomb.

As Greymon picks himself up and opens fire, Unimon's full three dimensions of maneuverability let him dodge Greymon's Mega Flames, while Greymon has few options to protect himself from Unimon's Holy Shots. Greymon gets pummeled by Unimon's fire while landing no shots of his own.

Birdramon returns to the fight, but Unimon sails straight between the shots of her Meteor Wing to land a body slam, putting her back on the ground.

This fight is ugly, but Jou has a plan. Recognizing that their real enemy here is not Unimon but the Black Gear corrupting him, Jou takes charge and leaps off the fucking cliff to land on Unimon's back when he sails close by below.

Unimon begins bucking and thrashing in the air to stop Jou from pulling out the Black Gear. Gomamon screams at Jou to come down from there, but Jou to stop, but his mind is made up.

Gomamon: JOU, STOP!!! It's impossible! Jou: No! I have to do this! I have to protect everyone! Because... I'm the oldest... I'll PROTECT EVERYONE--

And then Unimon wins, bucking Jou off and sending him tumbling from a lethal height.

It's a strong moment for Jou that doesn't quite hit the same way in the dub.

Gomamon: JOE, STOP!!! Don't try to be a hero! Joe: I know! But I just have to do this one thing... I'm not going to stop until it's done! I have to think positive! I'm responsible! I've gotta do it--

Followed by being bucked off. There's a certain pathetic quality to the dub's Joe that makes this a heartwarming "He tried" moment. While, in the original, this is the culmination of Jou's responsibility and pressure to safeguard the younger kids; the realization of Jou-senpai.

He fails. And he falls. But as he plunges to his doom, this moment is what awakens Gomamon. With a bloodcurdling scream of Jou's name, Gomamon SHINKAAAAAA!!!

Ikkakumon has feelings about what just happened. An Adult-stage Vaccine-type Digimon, Ikkakumon derives the name "ikkaku" from the Japanese word for narwhal. He's Narwhalmon.

(This makes pitting Ikkakumon and Unimon against each other exceedingly funny, as narwhal tusks are believed to have been the source for unicorn myths. They're sometimes called the Unicorn of the Sea. So. Y'know. Get wrecked by a REAL unicorn, Unimon.)

Ikkakumon's signature move, Harpoon Vulcan, fires multiple horns from his head at his target. The dub calls it Harpoon Torpedo.

That Unimon is extremely difficult to hit in the air remains a problem, however. Or rather it would be a problem but, much like Andromon's Gatling Missiles, every shot from Harpoon Vulcan contains a fun toy surprise inside!

Specifically, homing missiles that target Unimon's Black Gear, hitting home and destroying the corrupting influence.

With the Gear destroyed, Unimon promptly flies off. Even the dub version has no parting words despite speaking English.

Once that's settled, Taichi, Sora, and Jou unpack things. Taichi congratules Jou and apologizes for last night. Jou shakes hands with Gomamon and formally thanks him for the rescue, much to Gomamon's embarrassment. The hostilities are all swept aside.

Since they're only a hop, skip, and jump from the peak, the trio finishes the climb together. But the answers they find at the top are incredibly discouraging.

Nothing but ocean surrounds this lonely island for as far as the eye can see. There is nowhere else to go. The episode ends on that suspenseful moment, as the kids stare out at the dismal truth.

Taichi: Th-This is.... Narrator: Taichi and the others became highly discouraged when they discovered that File Island was a solitary island admist the vast sea.

The dub, on the other hand, spins this around to end on a positive note.

Group: Whoa! Tai: Not much out there. Joe (V.O.): So Gomamon and I fought all the way to the top to see what was there and we found... Well, nothing. But I think we discovered quite a bit on the way up!

Yeah, that's a bit of a tone difference. They don't find nothing at the top of Infinity Mountain. They find despair. The revelation that there is no escape in sight, that there is nowhere they can go but File Island. That the island sits alone in a vast ocean with no clear indication of where else they can go, or if there even is anywhere else to go.

But. Y'know. We're lightening the show up for an American audience and hoo boy at that. It's just funny to see the Japanese Narrator deliver this revelation with horror and then American Tai's just like, "Huh. Neat. Anyways...."

Assessment: This is the last of the character intro episodes we'll get for a while, as Patamon's evolution is being withheld for later. This one ends on such a dark note because the plot officially begins next episode.

For Jou, this episode really highlights the crushing pressure he's under. Something it doesn't resolve, but instead simply spotlights. No answer is explicitly given for the stresses that led him to explode at everyone on Egg Night. What answer can be given? The situation is what it is.

Everyone moves on and forgives each other, but Jou remains under the burden of a responsibility he's not equipped to handle. Nonetheless, an answer is implicitly given when he and his team lean on each other against Unimon. Jou takes charge and wins the day, but only because they were there to help him in the first place.

Cooperation and mutual respect is what's going to keep them alive out here, more than anything.

Much like with Sora's episode, the dub misses the mark at several points with regard to Jou's character arc, which is basically erased here. What they replace his emotional turmoil with is more like the journey of a weak boy needing to be brave.

Without the perspective of his senpai responsibility, Joe just comes across cowardly due to his cautious sensibilties. Which, I think, is an uncharitable treatment; The way he leaps from the cliff without hesitation pretty well conveys that Jou isn't afraid of harm to himself; He's cautious because he has an obligation to keep these children safe. He'll jump straight into the fire for them, but he'll do everything in his power to keep them from lighting themselves on fire first.

But as usual, the dub also has some great moments and solid lines going for it as well, with the snowball discussion being its highlight.

#digimon #digimon adventure #revisiting digimon #revisiting digimon adventure

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obscure-uty · 4 months ago

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A large amount of Frostermit's in-battle text is cut off, especially when with Know Cone.

As shown in the video, when using Compliment on Frostermit when it has low HP, you can even see the overflowing text block out part of the background and hear the text sound effect continue after the text disappears.

The code shows the intended dialogue is:

What even is that? I mean- IGLOO ! !

Know Cone wonders if fire would help him.

Know Cone tries hugging the igloo, hoping it will spring to life.

Frostermit is contemplating a return into his fortress.

Frostermit has never been in the situation before.

Know Cone is dancing, hoping to befriend Frostermit.

Frostermit doesn't know what to do.

You don't mean tha- IGLOO IGLOO ! !

#trivia #undertale yellow

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shoku-and-awe · 1 year ago

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Last night, Iggy kept suggesting different things we could play with, but then refusing to play when I picked them up. Often that means I’m supposed to guess the right toy (something that he can’t find or that is deliberately out of his reach) so I decided to mend his crinkly bokchoy, but that wasn’t it!

Then I got his crab, which is still in rotation despite its leg being off, and I sewed the offending leg back on. Throughout the whole sewing process, he sat quietly and watched me like this:

But when I finally finished, he didn’t even want to play with the crab! He just sat and watched me at the table.

I wondered if maybe what he liked was watching me sew. He’s fascinated when I floss or eat pistachios or take pills or do other fussy little things involving hands and mouth (and I’m the type of person who can’t really thread a needle without using teeth). So either it was that or it was one of his unknowable whims or he wanted my husband to finish work and come play and I wouldn’t do, I don’t know.

But then, this afternoon !!!! I caught him napping like this:

Iggy loves his little crab 🥹 Or maybe he was just jazzed about its potential as a pillow. Either way, I think I’m going to eat him. He’s so cute I don’t know what else to do.

#note the toy carnage in the background #this boy is spoiled for choice #i am strategically removing things to keep him interested #and i still have kind gifts from friends and other toys he hasn’t even seen yet!#(he somehow knows they’re there though—he stalks the closet they’re in #oh iggy)#igloo

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bobby-r2d2-floyd · 1 year ago

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behind the glass part one | (tgm x nhl)

note: i've finally sat down long enough to actually write this and im so excited that it's finally here!

warnings: a few swear words, nothing too bad. not a lot of dialogue, mostly background stuff, time jumping, mentions of the covid-19 pandemic

beta'd by the lovely @sarahsmi13s

word count: 4.2k

------------

The first time your parents took you to a hockey game, it was 2008 and you were 13 years old. You remember it was glass seats, home-shoots-twice side right off to the left of the net for the Pittsburgh Penguins in Mellon Arena, affectionately named The Igloo for the white domed top and it being home to the Penguins.

Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, the Penguins Two Headed Monster, had a combined 68 goals and 148 assists that season. They both racked up career 100 goals with Crosby earning his 200th career assist and 300th career point. Malkin earned the Art Ross trophy as well as the Conn Smythe trophy with a nod to the Hart Memorial trophy, whereas Crosby only received a nod for the Mark Messier Leadership Award.

The Penguins had a decent regular season that year as a team. 45 wins to their 37 losses (28 in regulation and 9 in overtime) but they went on to beat the Philadelphia Flyers, then the Washington Capitals, then the Hurricanes over in Raleigh before finally beating the Detroit Red Wings for the Stanley Cup at the Joe Louis Arena.

Your dad used to joke that you didn’t blink the entire time that you were there, not even during the intermissions between periods. From that moment forward, you were hooked. Hockey consumed your life, you begged your parents for the chance to go again, and again, and again. You went to every home game that took place on weekends. The glass seats were a gift as a back to school surprise, but you never minded sitting further back if it meant you had a better view of the ice.

Over the next 12 years you must have attended nearly 500 games (professional and college), and when you weren't at the games, you were watching them on TV. You, with the help of your parents and grandparents, cultivated your childhood around the sport. Games, practices, meet-the-players events… you attended as much as you could; you even played on a rec team for a bit.

In high school you convinced the head of the newspaper to let you write all four years instead of just your junior and senior years. You specialized in sports, aside from hockey, you were well educated with baseball and football. You graduated high school with a full ride to Penn State University where you double majored in digital journalism and telecommunications and received a certificate in sports journalism.

You thanked whatever god there was above that you managed to bag a position with the Penguins as an assistant photographer for the team. You became a permanent fixture on your favorite team during year one of their back-to-back Stanley Cups, one away at San Jose (2016) and the second one at Nashville (2017) and you were just as over the moon as the players were as you watched Sidney lift the cup for the third time in the last decade.

As you made your way onto the ice, you threw some of the Predators players condolences and “good game [insert player here]” as they worked their way off the ice.

You had developed a close bond with the Russian half of the Monster, and with his wife at home with their newborn son, you made sure to facetime her as Geno skated up to you with the cup, cheering to her in their native tongue. You leave him to talk to his wife while you go off and take pictures of the rest of the players and staff that made it out to Nashville while they’re still celebrating on the ice before moving into the locker room.

The summer of 2017 was a whirlwind event.

Between attending cup celebrations for the friends you made on the team and then almost immediately getting right back to it with pre-season at the Penguins practice facility, UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex, in Cranberry.

On a rare day off, you and fellow Penguins photographer Leland Hawkins were at PNC Park watching the Pirates play the Cubs when the news came through.

“Jesus Christ.” you mumble as you look at your phone screen.

“What?” Leland asks, eyes not leaving the field as she shovels popcorn into her mouth.

“San Diego just announced that they were approved for their own NHL team and they broke ground on an arena that’s expected to be complete prior to the start of the 2020-21 season,” you paraphrase aloud as you scan the article. “We just went through a draft with Vegas and now we need to go through it again?”

“You’re joking, right? We just lost Fleury and now we’re about to lose ANOTHER person? Unbelievable…” Lee mutters before taking your phone from you and reading the article for yourself.

You watch as Rizzo hits a line drive to left field to take first base and you smile a bit, he was your favorite player after all, but the Pirates were the home team. Either way you would be happy with the outcome.

Expansion drafts were never fun for anyone. You remember the hot coal feeling in your stomach as you watched Marc-Andre say his goodbyes to Sid, Geno, and Kris. Players he had known for his entire career to go somewhere completely new.

“I hope I never get asked to go somewhere new. I don’t think I could ever leave this view,” you say as you kick your feet up on the seat in front of you, stealing Leland’s popcorn as you look out past the outfield to the Allegheny River and the Pittsburgh Skyline. For it being Father’s Day, the park wasn’t that packed considering the weather was absolutely beautiful.

“Yeah I think I could. Isn’t there a Navy base in San Diego? All the hot seamen.”

“Is there even a market for another team there? There’s already three teams in California, two of them are not even three hours away.” you say before cheering as Rizzo crosses home plate, bringing the score to 3-0, Cubs.

“New York has two basically next door to each other and then there’s the New Jersey team, ALSO right there.” Leland tries to rationalize and you shake your head.

“Madison Square Garden is in Manhattan and the Barclays Center is in Brooklyn, there’s a forty-ish minute difference and the Prudential Center is an hour away from Madison,” you correct her before standing. “Want anything from concession?”

“Get me a beer please? And why do you know all that?”

“I make it my job to know!” you yell back as you walk away from her.

While in line, you scan through the article again. The old Pechanga Arena will be demolished and then rebuilt to become a new top of the line facility, not too much different from the newer Little Ceasar’s Arena in Detroit, and will only be a 15 minute highway drive from Petco Park.

You shake your head and slip your phone back into your pocket before ordering two beers and a couple of pretzels before pressing the thought of another expansion team to the back of your mind.

The rest of the game flies by and the Pirates lost the series 7-1 which you weren’t surprised by. Tthe Cubs are a good team who’re just coming off the tail end of winning the World Series only eight months prior.

The news of another expansion was the talk of the locker room the next time you were at the Sports Complex. You were sitting in the hallway leading up to the locker room taking pictures when a little blond boy came running up to you.

“Lens!” You hear and you have barely enough time to set your camera down before you’re being knocked over by Nikita Malkin.

“Nik! What are you doing here?” you laugh as you wrap your arms around him.

“Gonna skate with daddy,” he says, his English is good but you know that Anna and Geno speak Russian primarily at home.

“That’ll be fun, gonna score some goals on Muzz?” He nods and you smile, “Good, score one for me.” you say before he bounces off and you manage to get a few photos of him and Geno walking down the hallway.

During the first half of the 2017-18 season the Pens were 19-21 and 28-14 in the back half. They managed to take second in the metropolitan division and head into the playoffs, where, unfortunately they had a second round exit after losing to the Capitals in game six.

As sad as you were for the team to go early, you were thankful for the opportunity to take a bit of a break. You and Leland were able to travel around Europe for a few months before reporting back to Pennsylvania before the players were due to return.

You were taking some pictures of new players’ jerseys that were hanging up when you heard the door open. You look over and see the captain standing there and you give him a small smile.

“Hey Sid. Ready to be back?” you ask as you move over to the next stall.

“Oh yeah, hopefully we’ll make it past round two this year,” he says and he takes a seat and starts pulling stuff out of his duffle that he had slung around his shoulder.

“Well, you never know. I’m just glad Ovechkin can finally shut up now about not having a cup,” you say and he laughs. His rivalry with the Russian has always been a big thing on the ice, but off you knew that the two were friends.

“Right, happy for him though,” he says before looking over at you. “What happened to Leland? Doesn’t she usually do this?”

“She actually moved to Denver. So it’s just me now. Well, at least until my assistant gets here.” you say and he laughs.

“A promotion? Good for you. You always deserved it.” He hesitates, “No offense to Lee.”

You smile and nod, “I’m sure she wouldn’t take any offense, Sid. How was your off season?”

“It was good, Nate and I did a lot around Cole Harbour. Spent a lot of time relaxing at home, played a bit with Taylor while she was in town. What about you?”

“Went to a lot of Pirates games, helped Lee move, spent a lot of time outside with my younger siblings, hung out with some of the WAGs that stayed in town..” you say before taking a seat next to him. “Did you read that on top of the San Diego expansion, Seattle is getting a team now too? Making the even 32 teams and odd 33? Wonder who will be next.”

“Yeah I heard… It’s weird though, that Bettman has allowed so many expansions.”

“It’s Bettman, are you surprised? Why does he do half the shit he does?” You roll your eyes, your disdain for the NHL Commissioner very evident on your face.

“Don’t say that too loud, he might hear you,” he bumps your shoulder and you laugh.

“Right, the last thing I need is to be fired, or worse… transferred.”

“Hey, you work for Mario and he loves you. He won’t let you leave.” Sidney tells you and you can tell he’s being honest. Crosby may be many things, but a liar? Never.

You notice the proximity between the two of you and you take a deep breath, his cologne filling your senses before you clear your throat and stand up. “I uh.. I’ll leave you to change. See you on the ice, Cap.”

You shake the thought of being so close to him off, he’s Sidney Crosby and you’re just a photographer for the team.

You wait for Sid to take the ice before moving down to the bench so you can get pictures of him without the glass being in the way.

You remember the day that he got drafted to the Penguins in 2005, you remember all the things that everyone had said about him, “he was going to save the Penguins”. All the injuries he had, all the concussions, the year of missed games… He was one of the best skaters in the game after some of the legends. Watching him skate is the reason that you took up skating yourself, he was your on ice hero but you would never tell him that.

After taking some pictures of him skating, you make your way out from behind the bench so you can head up to your office and get started on picking what pictures to send to the digital media team.

Before you know it, the season is already ending with a first round exit, swept by the Islanders despite winning 44 games in the regular season.

By the time March of 2020 rolled around, the Penguins had 40 wins and 29 losses, a comeback that they needed.

Until everything came to a standstill.

Commissioner Bettman paused the season due to the threat of Covid-19. All non-essential positions were suspended due to the virus.

For the next four months you didn’t leave your home. All groceries were ordered from people who were brave enough to do Shipt, you taught yourself how to actually cook, spent a lot of time talking to your parents over Zoom, you started to write more, making mock articles to get back into the swing of the journalism aspect of your job again.

By the time that July had come around there were two hub cities named for the play-offs, Toronto and Edmonton. You traveled with the Penguins to Toronto for the modified tournament but left after the Canadiens knocked out the Penguins after three games.

September 28, 2020 the Lightning were crowned Stanley Cup Champions, and the 20-21 season began officially on January 13, 2021. Only 56 games would be played before the Cup would be returned to the Lightning again only a few short months later.

The San Diego expansion draft took place just after Stamkos raised the cup for the second time.

You watched as players got drafted to the San Diego Tomcats, shocked as some teams traded away some of their best skaters, knowing that they didn’t go lightly. Just like what happened with Vegas when Fleury left, you felt a sinking feeling in your chest.

You watched as the last six players were drafted: first was Bradley Bradshaw, center from the Capitals; Reuben Fitch, left defense from the Predators; Mickey Garcia, left wing from the Rangers; Jake Seresin, right wing from the Stars [you rolled your eyes at his name, good luck Tomcats]; Javy Machado, right defense from the Bruins; and the fortieth man drafted was Robert Floyd, goalie from the Blues.

Floyd and Bradshaw were the two you recognized the most between the six of them. Both were on cup winning teams in the last five years so you were surprised to see them there, but then again they weren’t the only Cup winners on the team, some guy named Brigham Lennox from the Lightning was also there. He was going to be a cocky asshole.

You were driving into PPG Paints the next morning when you got the phone call, it was a number you didn’t recognize so you were hesitant when you finally did answer.

“Hello?”

“Hello, is this Y/N Champaign?” a deep voice asked from the other side and you sucked in a breath before answering.

“This is.”

“My name is Beau Simpson, I’m calling to inform you that you’re being relocated to San Diego. You’ll need to be here when players report for training.” he says and you pull over to the side of the road.

“Sir I’m employed directly with the Penguins, not the NHL-”

“Oh I know. You’re being sent over by recommendation of Mario Lemieux.”

“Oh.”

“I know you’re comfortable with the Penguins, I know that you’re from Pittsburgh so it’ll be hard leaving home. But I’ve seen your work both on the ice and off, as well as behind the glass. You’re talented and as a new team, we could use some talent everywhere it counts.” he says, and you throw your head back against your seat.

“Of course, sir. I’ll be on a plane before the afternoon.” you tell him and you can hear the relief in his voice.

“Wonderful. Bradley Bradshaw will meet you at the gate, he was the first one here so he can get you to the facility.”

“I’m assuming this is an office phone, so I’ll email you the details of my flight.”

“Don’t worry about it, Mario already has them. I’ll pass your number along to Bradshaw.” he says before the line goes dead and you look at your phone as the line disconnects.

You pull back into the road and continue your drive, the last one to PPG Paints as a home team member.

Mario is in his office when you make your way upstairs. A gentle knock on the glass alerts him to your presence and he gives you a smile, “come in.”

“Beau Simpson called me while I was on my way over.” you tell him as you sit down across from him.

“Yeah, he called me last night. I’m sorry I didn’t-”

You hold your hand up and stop him, “don’t worry about it. It’s… okay. It’ll suck leaving the team and everyone behind but new opportunities, right? Plus it’ll be nice seeing the sun for longer than three out of twelve months.” you joke and he cracks a smile and laughs with you.

“You’ll be missed.”

“I know.”

He passes you an envelope and it has your last check as well as a flight itinerary and contract for the Tomcats for you to read through on the plane. “Well, I’m sure you have some owner stuff to do so I’m gonna go say bye to the team.”

He stands and pulls you in for a hug, you were close with everyone, players and staff, so it wasn’t surprising when he pulled you in gently. “I’m gonna miss you, kid.”

You pull away and give him a gentle squeeze on his arm before walking out of the office and down to the ice, stopping along the way to say goodbye to familiar faces in the hallways.

You take a look out to the ice, you watch as the team laughs and smiles, passing the pucks to each other as they all run their own drills. Coach Sullivan is the first person to notice you, skating over and leaning against the boards.

“No camera today?”

“No.. not today… or tomorrow… or next week.” you say and his smile drops.

“No, where to?”

“San Diego.”

“Well, they just got a great person added to their team, it sucks it comes at our loss.” he says before blowing his whistle, getting the attention of all the players. Sidney is the first to skate over to you, slowing down before hitting the boards.

“What’s going on?”

“I’m being relocated. So I just wanted to come by and say goodbye to the team.” you tell him with a sad smile. He opens the gate for you and you set down your paper work on the bench before taking his hand and stepping onto the ice.

One by one, all players new and old (mostly old) pull you in for a tight hug, ignoring the sting of the hard pads digging into you at odd angles. You laugh as Geno hauls you into the air before setting you back down on the ice, only slipping a little bit but he’s quick to steady you.

After wrapping up your goodbyes, you head back to your apartment and pack up just the necessities before meeting your mom downstairs.

“You ready sweetheart?” she asks, helping you with your camera bags and you sigh.

“As ready as I’ll ever be to move away from the two homes I’ve ever known.” you tell her and she gives you a small smile.

“You’re going to be just fine over there.”

“I know, it's just… this city means so much to me. It’ll suck only being back for a few games a season.”

“And holidays.” she says and you laugh.

“And holidays.” you confirm and she smiles.

The drive to the airport went too quick for your liking and before you knew it, you were in the air above the steel city, watching as the skyline and the yellow bridges fade into the distance.

Six hours later you were landing in Fightertown, USA. Stiff from the flight, you do your best to work out all the kinks and cracks that your body goes through as you walk over to baggage claim. It’s easy to find your gear bags due to the giant Penguins logo on the sides, and the small bright yellow suitcase came shortly after.

You turned your phone back on and the first notification that you get is from an unknown number and a text that reads

Waiting for you at the Starbucks in term. 2. See you soon! -Rooster

“Rooster? Who the fuck is that?” you mumble before making your way to the Starbucks. You do a quick scan of the area, you know what Bradley looks like, so you know that none of the people around you are him.

15 minutes go by when an out of breath, lanky brunette walks up to you.

“I am so sorry I’m late, I was here but then I had to go to the bathroom and then there was some kids that recognized me and-”

“Take a breath, I’m not mad.”

“Okay, give me a minute,” he takes a few deep breaths before holding out his hand, “I’m Bradley Bradshaw, or Rooster, if you want.”

“Rooster?” you ask, his palm large and warm against your own as you introduce yourself as well and you take the moment to take him in, his brown hair is already sun bleached at the front and he dons a pornstache that he somehow manages to pull off.

“Yeah, Ovi started calling me that when I joined the Caps so..”

“Oh trust me, I am well versed with Ovi nicknames. He used to call me chicken because my family had chickens a few years ago.. He’s the one who started calling me Lens, actually.” you say as you stand up and pull the handle up on your suitcase.

Bradley is taking the strap of your gear bag when you grab it from him and he looks at you wide eyed.

“Sorry it's just.. There’s a lot of expensive equipment and-”

“Hey, it’s okay. I get it. Would you rather carry it or…?”

“Yeah, sorry I know it's weird and I know everything is packed really well, but I know it was probably thrown around during loading and unloading.” you say and he gives you a small smile.

“Well, then I’m taking this.” he says as he takes the handle of your suitcase from you. “Welcome to San Diego, Lens.” he says as you make your way to the front where his Bronco is waiting for you.

You two make idle small talk as he makes the short drive from the airport to where the new Pechanga Arena is located.

“It’s going to be weird not seeing you in the Caps uniform anymore.” you say as you climb out of the car and he laughs.

“Yeah, but it’ll be nice to see you everyday now.” he says and you notice the flirty smile on his face and you roll your eyes.

“Just remember to smile for the camera, Bradshaw.” you chirp back to him as he opens the door for you.

Standing in the vestibule of the arena, you take everything in. The Navy timeline that wraps around the wall, the Top Gun memorabilia that's displayed behind glass. Bronze statues of the old San Diego Gulls members standing proudly. Bradley gives you a gentle nudge before looking up and you do the same, a replica F-14 Tomcat is hanging, wings in, right above your head.

“Wow… I’ve been to Little Caesars many times over the years, for various reasons, so I knew a little bit of what to expect but this is… Amazing.”

The two of you wander down into the bowl seating and you watch as the ice gets painted, the steel blue and slate gray of the logo is being carefully brushed onto the stark white ice. You follow him around the rest of the arena, a small tour of the locker room where there’s various players in a state of undress after a voluntary workout before going to the offices.

Your office was a bit bigger than the one at PPG, the only difference was the F-14 that was painted on the wall instead of the Penguin from the 90’s that you loved so much.

“Simpson, Coach Kazansky and the rest of the coaching staff are going to be waiting in the review room whenever you’re ready. It’s down the hall to the left, and then it's the third door on the right.” Bradley says before leaving you to settle in.

You pull out your phone and send a quick text to your mom that you landed just fine and were already settling into your new office before you put your hands on your hips and let out a sigh as you looked around, it’ll be a long road of making your office comfortable like it was back home, but you honestly couldn’t wait to see what this new city would bring you.

------------

taglist: (reminder that you can be added to the taglist here or by dm-ing me!)

@mandylove1000 @genius2050 @olivia21blunt @cottagecori @hisredheadedgoddess @marchingicenotes7 @princessofdorkness @maplesyrup07 @buckysdollforlife

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retrogamechampion · 2 years ago

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A massive update: Club Penguin and Club Penguin Island have been added to the "Abandoned, But Not Forgotten" soundtrack collection!

Club Penguin: 1,021 tracks. 32 hours and 27 minutes. 5.39GB. Club Penguin Island: 335 tracks. 8 hours and 22 minutes. 1.39GB.

After months of work, it's finally here! A gigantic-ass Club Penguin song collection for your feathery earholes.

The Club Penguin soundtrack itself is separated (by file name and cover art) into six distinct collections:

Ambience: Background sound effects and nature stuff

Around Town: Music from various interiors and exteriors

Beginnings: Tracks from the beta and Penguin Chat 2-3

Events: Music from holidays, parties, and special happenings

Igloo Music: Songs you could set to play in your iggy

Minigames: The tracks behind some of your favorite time wasters

The only audio missing is from the two music creator games: DJ3K and SoundStudio, since they were a collection of programmed soundbank files to make music with rather than songs themself. Literally everything else is included!

There is only a little duplicate overlap, and it's intentional - Some events used music from existing events, but for totally different areas or experiences. Other times, different sound effects were added or removed, or had slightly different mixes. In the interest of the listener's nostalgia, I've included all the songs in this sense, even if they're present elsewhere. There are no duplicates within a single event, though.

Also, if there was a song present somewhere within the game, but it was also included in igloo music, I kept it in igloo music as well. This is because the igloo was one of the number one spots to enjoy music away from sound effects and all the bonkers activity of Club Penguin. Also, I found that the igloo music versions of tracks got more quality mixes over time.

Speaking of quality, please don't forget that all of the music included here is ripped directly from the flash files themselves. This means that the bitrate of some songs started off extremely low to begin with. I've done the best I can to clean them up and make everything sound as equal as possible.

Let's not forget about Club Penguin Island, too! While hardly anyone preferred it to the original, it was a refuge a lot of penguins waddled to after their home was destroyed and was the last goodbye place they had before the whole franchise dipped into the ocean.

A bonus here is that some staple Club Penguin songs were given a complete overhaul quality-wise for this game, and the soundtrack overall is a hell of a treat.

I've organized the filenames much like the above, but instead of "Beginnings" or "Ambience" collections (since there are none for this game), I have an "Adventures" collection - The music from quests that the main characters sent you on.

--------------------------

Ready to download and help preserve the songs from these games so they don't disappear to time?

Click here for the "Abandoned, But Not Forgotten" archive I started, which already has 14 other retro or abandoned online game soundtracks available:

#retro game #retro games #club penguin #club penguin island #game soundtrack #video game soundtrack #ost #vgm #video game music #soundtrack #preservation #digital hoarder #mp3 song download #archive.org #archive #lost media #party in my iggy

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deluxewhump · 9 months ago

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The Scry

Prologue

(Originally posted in January 2023. This is a repost to rebuild the master list due to broken links I cannot fix! thanks for understanding.)

Summary: A sales team working for a large B2B insurance company receives a n unexpected Christmas bonus - an individual with powers of precognition, or foresight. They are tasked with making their company's purchase a lucrative one. But what are the precognitives? Is there a human cost?

Precognition: 1.foreknowledge of an event, especially foreknowledge of a paranormal kind.

“A precognitive,” Max Kelly said into his phone. “You’ve seen them in the news. Precogs?”

“Hang on,” Simon muttered. Background noise he’d been yelling over faded until it was a muffled thudding of bass from behind a closed door.

“Did you just tell me you were given a precognitive by work?”

“For work, by work,” Max answered, pacing his snowy back patio. The December cold felt good on his skin. “They’re just going to drop it off in my office tomorrow morning. Like it's a new headset.”

“Here’s a fucking precog,” Simon mocked in his best bureaucrat voice. “NBD. Jesus H., dude. Those things just hit the market. Like, just.”

“I know,” Max sighed. “I hadn't really been following all that, but I just speed-read a few articles.”

“There was that whole thing about them being used for like, gambling and day trading, right?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Max put his friend on speaker and scrolled the article he’d been looking at again on his phone. “Says here that ‘the precognitives, or precogs for short, are an exceedingly rare sample of the population, consisting only of an estimated three hundred and fifty documented cases worldwide. After a 2019 slew of US and Canadian arrests citing unlawful use of precognitive powers, the US government has released up to one hundred fifty precogs for private sale in all fifty states. Among the first to hit the market will be the repossessed precognitives of the former stock and casino fraudsters.”

“And Spartan scooped four of them? A hundred fifty for private sale anywhere, and we’ve got four?”

“That’s what the email said, yeah. ‘You and four colleagues have been selected to be part of an experimental trial’ blah blah blah, each of you will receive a precognitive for personal and professional use. They framed it like our Christmas bonus.”

“I got a fucking watch.”

“The whole email is so nonchalant, like it’s a goddamn software update. I’m supposed to figure out how this thing works and utilize it to make more money, is the idea.”

“Oh, without a doubt. You must’ve made top four performers last year, then.”

“Last quarter notwithstanding, yeah. Could be.”

“What happened last quarter?”

Max rubbed his eyes with his free hand. “Oh, I just… bombed. Lost a few of my accounts, whatever. The email said we can either leave the precogs in this weird little room they made up for them, or take it home with me at night. To my house. What, do they charge? Do I need to hook it up at night like a Tesla?”

Simon was quiet for a moment. “You’d think they would’ve donated these things to medical research, you know? Cancer, Alzheimers. They ban using them on wall street or in casinos and then turn right around and sell them to private corporations- to the highest bidder. They don’t give a shit about anything, man. This is a prime example of why we have failed as a society.”

Max looked out over the bleak outline of winter trees at the edge of the lawn. The light was failing, like turning a dimmer switch so everything turned hushed and blue as the inside of an igloo. “Sure. Regardless. It’s my problem now.”

“Maybe not problem. It might just work. I don’t know how you drive one of those things, but you might be able to make a killing. They can see the fucking future. I don’t even know what they are.”

“Me either.”

“They’re born, right? They can’t make them in a lab or anything like that?”

Max raised his hand and let it drop as if Simon could see it over the phone. “No idea. Email said handling, care, and maintenance is your responsibility but any costs incurred will likely be reimbursed by the company. I just have to fill out a form and send it to HR. There’s nothing online that I can find about how to use one. Or how to keep it.”

“Well it was government only, before. Who knows what they were using them for. Who else got one? Do you know?”

“Elle Davenport. Blake Olson. Uhh, that Alex kid. The blond one?”

“What the fuck,” Simon breathed. “He’s fresh out of school, I thought. South Carolina guy. Clair, is it?"

“Been with us a year,” Max mused. “Must be killing it.”

“Can I come by your office tomorrow? Can I see it?”

“Yeah, yeah. Please do, I’m… I have no idea what to expect. Do me a favor and don’t tell anyone else though. It’ll be a whole thing.”

“No way, I got you. How much did we spend on these things?”

“I don’t even want to know. Listen, I gotta go.”

“Yeah man, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Max hung up. The cold still felt good, but now it was making his fingers stiff and his nose red.

He had no idea what he was walking into in the morning. He went back inside the warmth of the house. Ingrid was on her phone, the tv flickering white and blue across her features.

“Simon,” Max said, nodding to his cellphone.

“I think they’re just… human,” Ingrid murmured, scrolling with her thumb. “It’s all been very weird and hush-hush when they were government projects, probably because they didn’t want anyone interfering.”

“Sounds about right. Pesky little thing called human rights.”

She looked up at him, making a face. “So they’re just gonna give you a person? Are they paying them?”

“You don’t typically buy things to turn around and pay them.”

“Max…”

He huffed, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I get it, babe. I’m… baffled. Let’s just withhold our judgment until I see what they bring into my office tomorrow morning. It’s all I can do.”

“You could refuse it.”

“And then performer of the year number five gets it in my place. It won’t make a bit of difference.”

“Have you talked to your mom about it?”

“She’s a personal injury attorney.”

“Operative word being attorney.”

Max rolled his eyes. That’s all he needed, was to invite his mother to be involved in this. “Let’s hold off on that, too. Tomorrow this time I’ll have a better read on this whole thing.”

Ingrid set her phone on her thigh. “Bring it home. I want to see it.”

Max grinned at her. “You’re curious.”

“Of course I’m curious.”

“Mmmm. You talk a big game, but deep down you’re just nosy.”

She aimed a kick at his leg, missing on purpose. “Shut up.”

#the scry au #reposting for masterlist #whumpee with powers

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knifedancer · 11 months ago

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Let It Snow (1/2)

Felinette story involving snow and kissing inspired by a 'snow' weather prompt. Loosely based on the lyrics for 'Let It Snow'.

Part 2/2 | AO3

~~~~~~

…is so Delightful.

Marinette had always been drawn to the snow. Even as a little kid, seeing the city blanketed in a fluffy blanket of white, she would squeal in delight and rush outside. Perhaps it was the individual patterns of every snowflake or the glittery, glistening effect of the sun upon it that drew her in… There was nothing quite as magical as fresh wintery powder just begging to be danced in. Okay, so there’s miraculous that gave wielders magical powers – sure. But the snowball fights! The snow angels! The dragon’s breath! Snowmen and igloos! The quiet stillness over the rooftops at night! She hadn’t outgrown her love of the snow as she’d gotten older – if anything, it grew stronger. Seeing the first snowfall made her just as giddy as when she was barely big enough to put on her own boots.

That’s why, when the class was on a field trip to a local park to learn about various animal behaviors in winter, she quietly slipped away until the nattering tone of their teacher’s voice was a hum in the background. She wandered into an open area with a fountain, thrilled that it remained untouched by anyone else since last night’s storm rolled through. Her smile widened with excitement, too big to be contained by her scarf as her small boot crunched down on the fresh snow for the first time. No one else was around…

Unable to contain it any longer, she squealed with joy. The young designer eagerly danced into the square and around the fountain. Her arms outstretched and mouth wide to catch the falling flakes, twirling from one foot to the other with grace, as if her body had forgotten how to be clumsy. Marinette hopped up on the edge of the fountain and ran her gloved fingers along the edge of the thin ice that had formed along the middle tier, watching with wonder as drips of water escaped down the still forming icicles below. Then she giggled and kicked her foot along the top of the basin – a spray of snow showering down to the sidewalk below. She continued her dance on her tiptoes, mimicking a ballerina’s pirouette with a spin, before leaping off and landing safely in the grass beneath a lamppost into a penché. Marinette’s heart thumped loudly in her ears from the exertion, mimicking the applause of her invisible audience as she made a bow. Her hand plucked an imaginary rose from her feet – scooping a small amount of the delicate white dust there – before launching it into the air above her head with a swift upward arch.

As the snowflakes rained back down, the pigtailed girl turned her face up to the sky with a dreamy sigh. “Been a long time since I’ve danced like that! I wonder if Nino still remembers the lifts we used to do,” she giggled as she closed her eyes, lost to the memories of childhood dance classes meant to improve her coordination. She let her mind drift to the haunting melodies her madame had played, puckering her lips to whistle along as snowflakes landed on her face.

Oh, the weather outside is Frightful…

Felix always hated the snow. Even as a little kid, he avoided going out in the winter. If he awoke to find frost upon his window, he would scowl and dive back into his blankets. While others ran around outside, dirtying their clothes, he preferred to stay inside where it was warm. He just couldn’t understand the appeal. It was cold and wet! The slush and mush! Icicles dripped down your neck when you least expected it! It clung to your clothes and made every joint in his extremities ache! Not to mention the chance of frostbite! Inevitably his cousin, a bundle of joyous energy, would drag him unwillingly from the house into the yard…where Felix would have to endure his every antic with a concealed grimace. Be it snowball fights, snowmen, or the nondescript lumpy buildings Adrien called a “snow fort.” After enough time had passed to assuage his boisterous cousin, he would retreat back into the warmth of the house and curl up by the fire with a book while Adrien nibbled on popcorn. Sure, he was intrigued by the ice and snow sculptures that people would create but felt no affinity to experience it firsthand!

That’s why, when the class was on a field trip to a local park on this overcast day, he waited on the outskirts until he could silently sneak away to find shelter from the light dusting that was falling from the sky. Only when Felix could no longer hear their teacher’s voice did he breathe a sigh of relief, pulling his scarf and jacket lapels in tighter to his body to keep out the frightful cold. He wandered along a newly trodden path, hoping that the hastily made footprints were a sign that whoever came before him was cutting the quickest path to a nearby café…

Felix rounded a small oak copse and came to a sudden halt at the sound of a girl’s squeal. In the clearing ahead was the class representative, Marinette, frolicking around a fountain, as if dancing to music only she could hear. This was a whole other side to the shy designer that he had never seen before! He was utterly captivated... The way she flitted around like a fairy, the bits of flurry decorating her coat and legs like flounces in a skirt; the crystals sparkling with the diminished sunlight as she moved. The way the newly fallen snowflakes adorned her hair, like a laurel of edelweiss. The graceful movements that seemed so foreign on the girl he knew for tripping on air. Her reverent yet excited touches that led to carefree kicks of snow.

When she leapt from the basin edging, his heart raced as he was sure this would be the moment the girl’s clumsiness would reappear… only for her to land and bow to her imaginary audience. The blood pumping in his ears sounded like the roar of a crowd. Marinette seemed to finally settle; her face upturned towards the cloudy sky. She started to whistle softly, the hauntingly beautiful melody drawing him in. Felix stepped forward as quietly as he could, not wanting to scare or disrupt the song. As Felix closed the distance between them, his breath caught in his throat. Her eyes were closed, he could see the way snowflakes were coating her eyelashes like glitter. Her cheeks were brightened by the exertion of the dance she had just completed but her breathing was even; her obvious concentration on the melody she was creating. She was absolutely enchanting.

He watched with fascination as a snowflake landed and promptly melted against her lips. He wondered if they were as warm and inviting as they looked. Overcome by his curiosity, Felix leaned in and pressed his lips to hers with a feather-light touch…

~~~

But if you really hold me tight, all the way home I’ll be warm…

With the final notes cut off by a warm pair of lips that brought fire to their veins, a silence settled around the two. Marinette’s eyes shot open with a start. In front of her stood Felix Fathom, the snobbish blond from her class. The same Felix that loved to cause chaos and impersonate his cousin. His hazel green eyes met hers, looking just as surprised as she felt. They were so close together that their cloudy breaths mingled between them, their noses just millimeters from touching. Their lips tingling from more than just the cold nipping at their noses.

“Felix…what…,” her voice came out as a confused whisper.

“Your little recital around the fountain was exemplary. It is customary to gift a performer with a token of esteem, is it not?” Felix murmured just as quiet, watching as the knowledge that he had seen her dance caused Marinette to blush a rosy hue.

She scoffed softly and took a step back, still bewildered by his actions, “Isn’t that usually flowers?”

“Was my token too meager an offering to the great Miss Dupain-Cheng?” He asked with a smirk.

Marinette sputtered for a moment and Felix took the opportunity to wrap an arm around her waist, drawing her into his embrace. She squeaked with surprise, staring at her hands as they came to rest on his wool coated chest. He chuckled and murmured into the crown of her hair, “Perhaps I can show you a better way to spend a snow day, my dear?”

Her gaze shifted up to look into his face again, only to be caught by a movement in her periphery. There, unexpectedly hanging from the lamppost, was a sprig of mistletoe tied with a red ribbon. Felix watched as her blue eyes filled with mirth at something over his head before coming back to meet his green stare. One of her hands slid up to the nape of his neck as she leaned in.

“‘Tis the season…”

Their lips met and they quickly found themselves lost in each other, no longer affected by the cold breeze or wayward snowflakes that flurried around them.

Felix never made it to that café but he did discover a new appreciation for the snow.

Let it snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow…

~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR NOTE: I like to imagine a well-intentioned kwami planted that mistletoe there. I’ll let you contemplate which one. 😉 My vote is on Duusu, she seems like she’d get a kick out of it.

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