#btw i still don’t know what happens on 2/2 bc i��m assuming that’s the bad ending so no spoilers in my inbox or the comments pls

[trensu]

Episode 46: The One with All the Yunmeng Bros Angst

gross, ouyang and yao are talking. let’s ignore them!

blah blah plot plot blah

ooh thank god, wwx is now the one talking

being all detective-y and asking relevant questions

I LOVE MY SUNSHINE BOY WHEN HE'S BEING CLEVER

wwx makes some Plot Relevant Point and yao is like I DISAGREE bc ofc he fucking does

LOL WWX'S FACE WHEN YAO INTERRUPTS LIKE THAT

IT'S LIKE HE'S BITING DOWN ON HIS TONGUE TO NOT SNAP SOMETHING BACK

kudos to him on his self-control tbh but it's wasted on yao. 

wwx is all asking things like why are you ladies fessing up now, oh and btw that's a real neat bracelet you got there...

and then nhs is like, gee i wonder what kind of person would've sent these ladies here today

LOLOLOL NHS IS SUCH A TROLL OMG

and yao is like DETAILS DON'T MATTER, WHAT IS CRITICAL THINKING ANYWAY LET'S GO MURDER FOR JUSTICE AGAIN

and everyone else is like, HEY, THIS LOUD GUY HAS A POINT LET'S GO MURDER

okay, they don't actually say anything about murder but they're harping about "justice" 

The last time they did that, it resulted in murder so i'm gonna go ahead and assume this time isn't any different

lwj: many skeptical points remain

THANK YOU, LWJ, FOR BEING SENSIBLE

oh, and i would like to point out that the crowd had been getting rowdy 

but the minute lwj interjected there they all fell silent

My guy didn't even raise his voice and was able to shut up a whole room full of people.

I LOVE YOU HANGUANG JUN

lqr: what are they?

wwx: SO MANY. 

wwx makes some Points and is like so we got some witnesses now but where's the HARD EVIDENCE GUYS??

and yao is like, whatever, we'll find it sooner or later now that we know THE TRUTH

and wwx's reaction lolol

it's like oh my god how stupid is this guy, that's not how it works, that's not how ANY of this works

I FEEL YOUR PAIN, WWX, I FEEL IT IN MY SOUL

ppl are blabbering Plot Stuff

i'm just gonna enjoy the occasional shots of wwx and lwj's beautiful faces

blah blah blah plot plot plot blah

gosh, my boys are so pretty

LOOK AT THEM BEING PRETTY, I LOVE THEM

(i say as the crowd devolves into vicious mob mentality)

wwx's had enough of this and turns to leave bc angry mobs are old news at this point

And we all know how he ended up last time there was an angry mob

but yao and some rando interrupt his exit as if they have ANY RIGHT to speak to my sunshine boy at all

Eventually we DO escape sword hall and the mob of stupid people and our boys are alone together wandering lotus pier!!!

they're reviewing Plot Info and bouncing ideas off each other and IT'S BEAUTIFUL, THEY'RE SO SMART AND IN LOVE

They determine that they don't have enough clues to say who the mysterious 3rd party is

but they def have enough evidence showing jgy murdered nmj and is generally an evil conniving bastard.

lwj mentions that he's going to send word to his brother to be careful since jgy is EVIL FOR SURE NOW.

oooh, our boys just came upon the jiang clan's ancestral shrine

wwx freezes, eyes red-rimmed and shiny, MY POOR SUNSHINE BOY

lwj: what's wrong?

ALL OF HIS ATTENTION IS GLUED TO WWX'S EVERY MOVE ALL THE TIME, ISN'T IT??

SEE HOW INTENTLY HE LOOKS AT WWX??

me too, lan zhan, me too

wwx: nothing. it's the ancestral hall of the jiang clan

he says this softly, like it hurts to acknowledge it or smth

lwj: do you want to enter?

wwx: no

WHICH IS A BLATANT LIE

EVERYTHING ABOUT HIM IS SCREAMING HOW MUCH HE WANTS TO GO IN THERE

they make to turn away and pause for a moment, during which wwx looks back at the shrine longingly

cut to the next scene where we see wwx burning some incense sticks in the shrine

AND OUR BOYS BOW TOGETHER  3x TO M-YU, JFM, AND JYL

wwx greets his deceased loved ones solemnly

wwx: it's me. i'm here to disturb you again.

idk about m-yu and jfm, BUT JYL WOULD NEVER THINK WWX'S PRESENCE WAS A DISTURBANCE

now wwx is telling lwj about how he used to spend a ton of time in that shrine bc m-yu would punish him by sending him there to, idk, reflect on his sins before the ancestors or smth

and lwj is like, yeah, i heard about that

then wwx comments on how he's never met a woman as irritable as m-yu, and how she punished him for trifles all the time

then he laughs bashfully and says "my fault, my fault" and bows another 3x bc omg wwx you can't speak ill of the dead, especially not at their shrine

this is a nice moment between them so far, actually. 

it's nice to hear wwx reminisce in a way that's not 100% painful

and the fact that he's sharing these little bits of inconsequential info with lwj, his soulmate, is just very sweet to me

lwj: won't you tell jc?

wwx: idk. at least not yet

lwj: after all, you two are sworn brothers

it's nice of lwj to acknowledge that, without any sort of rancor in his tone, considering how much he does not care for jc (to put it mildly)

wwx: since the misunderstanding between us is so deep, it's not that easy to solve

HE SOUNDS SO RESIGNED, AND THE LITTLE SMILE THAT FLASHED BRIEFLY THERE WAS JUST SO SAD

and then he's like, besides, I created Plot Device 2, regardless of whether or not jgy ended up using it to make Plot Device 3

UH OH, HERE COMES JC

jc: wei wuxian

OH GOD, CAN HE PACK ANY MORE BITTERNESS AND VENOM INTO THAT NAME??

wwx stands immediately when he hears jc call, he doesn't look at him tho

lwj stands a beat after as jc enters the shrine

jc: you still take yourself as one of the jiang clan? come and go at any time you like, then bring people here when you wish. Do you remember whose house this is? who's the owner?

YIKES

THAT ONE HURT.

and wwx just takes it

wwx: i didnt take hanguang jun to any confidential places in Lotus Pier. i just brought him here to offer some incense to clan leader jiang and madam yu.

he's so submissive here and not even in a fun way

it’s in his posture and tone of voice, even in how he still doesn't look directly at jc...it makes me sad

wwx: we're leaving

He tries to retreat bc he def doesn't want this this confrontation to happen 

jc: you really should kneel down to them, for coming to their presence to destroy the view and ruin their quiet.

DOUBLE YIKES. 

that one hurt EVEN MORE

and lwj, who had been following wwx's lead and staying quiet, intervenes

lwj: clan leader jiang, pay attention to your words

oh boy if looks could kill, jc would be dead as a doornail

he's like HURT MY SOULMATE AGAIN, I DARE YOU. JUST GIVE ME A REASON AND I WILL STRIKE YOU DOWN

which is pretty gutsy since jc is higher ranked than him, technically, as clan leader. 

AND they're both in jc's domain rn!

jc: what did you say? i think someone else needs to watch his behavior

he's glaring at wwx's back and he's got a mean twist to his mouth that would be a smile if it weren't so cruel

jc: you have already been kicked out of our family. how dare you enter and face my parents and my sister?

STOP HURTING MY SUNSHINE BOY

wwx is just accepting this. he's just accepting all these cruel things with his eyes downcast and submissive

BC IT HURTS AND HE BELIEVES HE DESERVES IT

lwj: jiang wanyin

HOLY SHIT

lwj fucking HISSED that name

and he took a VERY MENACING step towards jc

MY GUY

MY GUY, YOU CAN'T ATTACK A CLAN LEADER

ESPECIALLY NOT IN HIS OWN HOME

LIKE, I TOTALLY GET WHY YOU'D WANT TO RN, AND, Y'KNOW, I'M NOT THE MOST POLITICALLY SAVVY PERSON AROUND

BUT THIS JUST SEEMS LIKE A BAD IDEA ALL AROUND

thank god wwx is there

wwx stops him, pressing the palm of his hand into lwj's torso (!!!!!)

wwx: lan zhan. lan zhan, let's go

he practically whispers this, head bent down, AGAIN SUPER SUBSERVIENT

but jc is looking for a fight and he's not letting go until he gets one, apparently

jc: go as far as you can. i don't want to see you AWFUL PEOPLE again before my dead family

wwx just halts in his steps.

he had been all prepared to go after taking that tongue lashing that he thinks he's earned, but at that he takes a deep, fortifying breath bc jc crossed a line

he purses his lips a moment before turning to finally face jc head on

wwx: jc, scold me as you like but not the others (aka LWJ)

oooh, but that was the wrong thing to say to jc right now bc jc goes off on a VERY PAINFUL rant

he's like, oh, i should be nice to lwj? don't you remember that MY PARENTS WERE KILLED AND LOTUS PIER FELL bc you just HAD to play hero and save lwj?? and it wasn't enough! you HAD to play hero and SAVE THE WENS too, which killed my sister!!

oh he's getting really mean here

he's like, how generous you are wwx! letting wn wander the entrance of lotus pier and letting lwj offer incense!!

the minute jc started his rant, wwx cast his eyes to the side, again just enduring everything jc is throwing at him

oh but now jc starts in on lwj again

he's like, lwj, the great second jade, ignoring his reputation to side with wwx, your brother and uncle must be so proud

wwx: JIANG WANYIN!

wwx shouts at him

he's shaky and almost panting here.

wwx: apologize this instant.

jc: apologize? why should i? bc i insulted your great friendship?

THIS WHOLE ENCOUNTER IS A SHIT SHOW AND IT HURTS.

wwx just loses it here and grabs jc by the collar of his robes and gives him a shake

wwx: ARE YOU DONE?

and jc is still the little brother, you know, so obvs he does not back down here, he's not intimidated at all

jc: LET'S FIGHT THEN. should i be afraid of you two?

wwx's breath is all shaky and he's trembling and he would've given into jc's demands for a fight anyway but then he sees jyl's nameplate

and he must remember how upset jyl would get every time they fought

ME TOO, JYL, ME TOO. I HATE THIS, I HATE THIS, MAKE IT STOP

so he lets go of jc and stumbles back. he's looking very weak right now AND I’M VERY CONCERNED

lwj, obvs, catches him by the arm when he stumbles

lwj: wei ying

wwx: lan zhan, let's go

lwj agrees and the two of them turn and leave the shrine, lwj still gripping wwx's arm and providing support bc wwx is NOT looking good what’s happening to my sunshine boy, somebody fix this RIGHT NOW

BUT JC IS LIKE A DOG WITH A BONE BC HE JUST STORMS AFTER THEM, HE WANTS HIS FIGHT

he freaking leaps across the little lotus pond and lands before them, blocking off their exit

he starts antagonizing wwx, and he grabs wwx by the collar now, and again, wwx just takes it BUT LWJ DOESN'T

lwj slams his hand around jc's wrist (the one that's grabbing wwx), WRAPPING HIS FINGERS AROUND JC'S ZIDIAN, EVEN

lwj: let him go

holy crap. Stone Cold. LWJ'S STARE IS STONE COLD, AND HE TIGHTENS HIS GRIP ON JC'S WRIST

god damn, if lwj ever looked at me like that, i'd drop to the ground and beg for forgiveness. i'd be scared witless

when jc makes no move to let go of wwx, lwj releases his wrist and hooks his arm under jc's forearm and shoves upward to FINALLY break jc's hold on wwx

wwx stumbles at the force of it and his nose starts to bleed

MY POOR PRECIOUS SUNSHINE BOY LOOKS SO WEAK AND OUT OF IT!!

lwj looks at him, eyes wide with worry

lwj: wei ying!

even jc looks concerned (i would even say scared, tbh)

wwx reaches up and wipes his nose; he's not steady on his feet AT ALL

wwx: lan zhan, let's go.

lwj: okay

and he immediately starts to leave, practically dragging wwx with him bc wwx is barely able to stand at this point

lol, lwj shoulder checks jc as they walk past him

but jc is a stubborn bastard and brings out zidian and whips at their retreating backs

brief moment here to admire how FREAKING COOL THE ZIDIAN IS OMG,  

*GRABBY HANDS* I WANT ONE OF MY OWN SO SO BAD. 

IT'S A SNAKE BRACELET!! 

THAT TURNS INTO A WHIP!! 

A PURPLE WHIP!!! OF LIGHTNING!!!!!! 

LITERALLY NO ASPECT OF THIS WEAPON IS UN-BADASS

so jc whips purple lightning at them but the hit never lands bc lwj swings his still-sheathed bichen and bats that attack away like nothing

but as he does that, wwx starts to fall

lwj spins around and AUDIBLY GASPS, eyes wide with worry again, as he watches wwx lose consciousness. 

he dives forward and catches his soulmate in his arms and cradles him gently

jc doesn't see this happen and swings right back with another lash but wn swoops in out of nowhere to take the hit instead. 

AND HERE WE'RE GONNA GET THE BIG REVEAL OH GOD I'M NOT READY

jc is all who let you in, how dare you?? and whips wn again

BUT WN WILL NOT STAY DOWN, NO SIR

HE'S GOT STUFF TO SAY AND BY GOD, HE'S GONNA SAY IT

he offers up suibian to jc but jc whips him and sends him flying again

Wn gets right back up goes back to offering the sword to jc, DEMANDING HE UNSHEATHE IT

AND IN A FIT OF FURY JC PULLS AT THE HANDLE AND SUIBIAN COMES FREE

SHOCK, UTTER SHOCK ON HIS AND LWJ'S FACES

(also YIKES jc nearly sliced out wn's eyes with the force of his unsheathing of siubian. he obvs didn't expect anything to come of him pulling at the handle)

GOLDEN CORE TRANSFER REVEAL!!

FLASHBACK to wn's part of the story

we see wn holding an unconscious jc and wq is telling wwx to come out from where he was hiding behind a convenient boulder

and we see wwx give the go ahead to start the golden core transfer

back to the present, jc looks like his whole world is a lie 

bc it kinda is

I'm still kinda mad that wwx never told him anything.

like, i get why he didn't and i sympathize but informed consent in medicine and surgery is kind of a big deal!

and then omg, we got a close up shot of lwj's face

his eyes are wide and shiny and his jaw is dropped open just a bit. HE IS SHAKEN TO THE CORE 

HAHAHA GET IT? THAT THING WWX DOESN’T HAVE ANYMORE?? Oh god i’m sorry that was AWFUL

he turns his gaze back to wwx, who is still resting gently in crook of his arm

i love the camera angle here btw

the scene is at a slant, with the white of bichen's handle, and the white of the flowering tree behind them filling all of the right side of the screen

it makes the dark bundle of wwx and the dark flow of lwj's hair more stark

the slant of it really emphasizes how the whole of lwj's attention is on the man in his arms

And how his whole world is off its axis at this revelation

god lwj is really just letting his whole heart pour out of his eyes as he watches wwx

jc and wn are arguing loudly in the background but lwj makes NO INDICATION of hearing ANY of it

now we get to watch the emotional confrontation between jc and wn

lwj finally looks back at them when wn starts reciting details that no one outside of jc would have known unless they were there themselves

another flashback as wn describes everything in excruciating detail

oh this line gets me every time

wn: the reason you thought it was repaired was because of my sister, the best doctor in the wen clan of qishan, Wen Qing

WN LOVES HIS SISTER SO MUCH. HE WAS SO PROUD OF HER 

AND HE LOST HER. HE DOESN'T HAVE HER ANYMORE

GOD DAMN IT, SHOW, LET THESE BOYS KEEP THEIR SISTERS

and now we go back to lwj, gazing soulfully at wwx and a single tear rolls down his cheek as it really hits him what exactly wwx did, what wwx gave up

wn is going off on jc, like, didn't he ever wonder why wwx never picked up the sword again?

wn looks hardcore here tbh. 

we cut back to lwj, who is now holding bichen tightly, and boy, he's got his jaw clenched so hard.

at least until he looks back down at wwx, and his mouth softens as more tears drip down his face

flashback to when jc first found wwx after the burial mounds, and a series of flashbacks of every time jc brought up wwx's lack of suibian and wwx brushing off his questions

THEY SHOULD'VE JUST TALKED IT OUT, MY GOD, THEY COULD’VE SPARED ME ALL THIS PAIN IF THEY JUST TALKED 

another flashback to that time that jc pushed wwx and wwx fell hard to the ground and jc thought he was just drunk

I AM DONE WITH THESE FLASHBACKS, THX. CAN WE NOT, ANYMORE? IT'S HURTING TOO MUCH

and we also keep getting shots of lwj's face, STREAKED WITH TEARS

HE'S GOT A TEARDROP ON THE TIP OF HIS NOSE

ALL OF THIS IS PAINFUL

PLEASE STOP

oooh, lwj's mouth twists into a firm scowl and he slams bichen on the ground with a loud CLANG

this is too much for him too! he's furious, he's had enough of hearing how wwx suffered for jc

so he scoops up wwx, carrying almost all of his weight, as he walks the both of them outta there

wn leaves suibian with jc and tells him to have anyone else try to unsheathe it if he doesn't believe him

jc doesn't want it. he doesn't want it at all.

he desperately wants it to be untrue

AND I CRY A RIVER FOR MY YUNMENG BROS

WE'RE ON A BOAT NOW

UNCONSCIOUS WWX SPREAD BACK, HELD LOVINGLY IN LWJ'S ARMS

Now we get some lwj & wn bonding time where they discuss a-yuan! (after lwj promises not to tattle on wn to wwx)

AHHHHHHHHHHHH!! WE'RE GETTING A FLASHBACK FROM LWJ

LWJ IS ENTERING WWX'S LAB CAVE THING, ALONE, FRANTICALLY SEARCHING FOR WWX

lwj: on that day, when the wen clan were captured and killed, i went to the burial mounds to seek wei ying but discovered a-yuan instead

we see him find a-yuan, who is unconscious and clammy. 

lwj immediately drops to his knees beside him and checks his wrist, then presses the back of his hand to a-yuan's forehead

oh, lwj's hand is all roughened with dirt. That’s very striking, for some reason.

he purses his lips making a split-second decision, and scoops a-yuan up 

lwj: he was hiding there for so long that he had a fever and was severely ill

wn figures out that the fever is probs why lsz doesn't remember anything, and hasn’t mentioned wn at all. lwj looks surprised

lwj: didn't you tell him?

wn: about his birth origin? he's happy now. knowing too much about the past and remembering something heavy, would make him less happy than now

HE'S SUCH A GOOD PERSON

WHY DO THE BEST OF THEM HAVE TO SUFFER SO?

lwj: sooner or later, he will know

and wn doesn't deny it. he's like, yeah, sooner or later. just like master wei and jc with the golden core transfer.

at this lwj looks back down at wwx

lwj: is it painful?

the way lwj's throat bobs before he asks tho.

like he's forcing himself to ask, bc he needs to know even if he already suspects the answer. 

He needs to know even tho knowing will hurt. he's steeling himself against the pain already.

wn: what?

lwj: taking out the core, is it painful?

wn: you won't believe me if i say it's not, right?

lwj: i thought wq might have some method

he sounds desperate, hoping against all odds that it didn't hurt wwx as much as he suspects it did

and here wn explains that wq wanted to ease the process, make it less painful, but due to the nature of the procedure, she couldn't use any anesthetics

wn: the one who donates the core has to be awake the whole time

THE WHOLE DAMN TIME

HE HAS TO BE CONSCIOUS TO WATCH IT GET CUT OUT OF HIM AND EXPERIENCE THAT CONNECTION SLOWLY BE SEVERED OTHERWISE IT DOESN'T WORK

HOW MESSED UP IS THAT OMG, HOW MUCH TRAUMA MUST THEY PUT MY POOR SUNSHINE BOY THROUGH

lwj: awake?

HE SOUNDS HOARSE AS HE SAYS THAT

wn: two nights and one day. he has to be awake

MY SUNSHINE BOY, MY BEAUTIFUL SUNSHINE BOY SUFFERED SO MUCH

lwj's lips purse briefly. he's staring at his wei ying

lwj: at the time, what were the chances

wn: fifty percent

lwj looks at wn here with horrified disbelief

lwj: fifty percent?

wn proceeds to explain how wq didn't want to do it but wwx kept insisting that the odds were worth 

AND OH MY GOD LWJ FLASHES BACK TO THEIR FIRST CONFRONTATION AFTER THE BURIAL MOUNDS, WHEN THEY FINALLY FOUND WWX AFTER 3 MONTHS OF SEARCHING

IT HURTS JUST AS MUCH AS THE FIRST TIME AROUND

Wwx must have some sort of sixth sense for knowing when Emotional Discussions are Done, bc he regains consciousness only AFTER wn & lwj finish bonding lol

he sits up, head aching, and pulls himself from lwj's embrace

I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY, BC LWJ OBVS DIDN'T MIND HAVING HIM THAT CLOSE

IN FACT even as he helps wwx sit up, you can see his hand trail up wwx's arm, grip loosening and tightening sporadically

He's def trying to prolong contact here, very reluctant to let go of his wei ying

wwx: lan zhan, how did we get out?

lwj: we had a fight

AND ~THEIR SONG~ STARTS PLAYING

wwx: i knew that jiang cheng wouldn't let me go that easily. so unreasonable.

and then he looks at lwj and hurries to assure him that jc didn't mean all those cutting remarks. that that's just how he gets when he's upset.

lwj looks off to the side, pressing his lips closed bc he couldn't care less about jc or jc's words. THEY MEAN NOTHING TO HIM

wwx covers lwj's hand with his own and very earnestly says: so don't take it seriously

BC HE HASN'T YET REALIZED THAT LWJ DOESN'T ACTUALLY GIVE A DAMN ABOUT JC'S ENTIRE EXISTENCE

lwj doesn't look him in the eye as he's told this, and his lips are still pressed together in a firm line. 

he probably doesn't actually want wwx to realize just how little jc means to him.

wwx notices they're on a boat on a lake now lol

wwx: i often played here with jyl when we were children

AND HERE HE HALLUCINATES HIS PRECIOUS BEAUTIFUL KIND AMAZING SISTER JYL

Jyl: a-xian come have some lotus seeds

WWX'S EYES REDDEN WITH TEARS AND HE CALLS OUT FOR HIS SISTER

AND I'M FIGHTING BACK SOBS

WHILE JYL'S SWEET GENTLE MUSIC PLAYS AND JYL SMILES WARMLY AT HER LITTLE BROTHER

wn snaps wwx out of it

ONLY FOR WWX TO FLASHBACK TO JYL CRYING AND SAYING THAT THEY'RE THE CLOSEST THREE IN THE WORLD

WWX LEANS HIS HEAD ON HER KNEE AND SULKS ADORABLY ABOUT HOW HE'S HUNGRY 

AND I WANNA DIE FROM ALL THE FEELINGS I'M HAVING

back on the boat, wwx eyes are still filled with tears and it's awful

wn is all, wwx what's wrong? and wwx shakes it off and just says he's hungry

so he yanks out some lotus pods from the lake and gives one to lwj and one to wn and one for himself

HE'S SMILING NOW, THANK GOD

wwx: it's perfect timing to be here now!

and he's happily tearing into the pod

I LOVE SEEING HIM HAPPY AND SMILING

SUCH LITTLE JOYS AND HE REVELS IN IT

I LOVE HIM SO MUCH

HE SHOULD ALWAYS BE HAPPY AND SMILING. 

NOTHING SHOULD EVER BE ALLOWED TO MAKE HIM SAD. NOTHING

lwj: wei ying

wwx: what

lwj: does this lake belong to someone?

LOL, HE GAVE THE POD A SUSPICIOUS LOOK BEFORE ASKING THAT AND HAS NOT TRIED GETTING ANY SEEDS OUT YET

wwx: of course not

HE SAYS IN A COMPLETELY NOT BELIEVABLE WAY

YOU CAN TELL BY HOW HE DOESN'T LOOK LWJ IN THE EYE AS HE RESPONDED AND KEEPS MUNCHING AWAY ON THE SEEDS AS A DISTRACTION

Lwj is watching like, yeah, i’m not buying it.

lwj: i heard that lakes here all have owners.

lolol wwx pauses in his chewing for a second and looks around guiltily for a bit before letting out a nervous laugh

wwx: hanguang jun, you really hear much, don't you? i didn't even know that.

he's looking at him all innocently and LWJ LOOKS BACK STILL NOT BUYING IT LOLOLOL

wwx looks away and then looks back, relenting

wwx: fine. 

HE'S ALL POUTY, IT'S ADORABLE, I LOVE HIM

he sulkily tells wn to get them moving

and sulkily tosses his lotus pod at the bottom of the boat

HE'S JUST HAVING A SULK-FEST RN AND IT'S SUPER CUTE, I'M ENJOYING IT A LOT

wn starts to get the paddles to get the boat going, when lwj suddenly leans over the side of the boat and snaps up a lotus pod

he very seriously offers it to his wei ying, who is watching him wide-eyed and surprised

lwj: only for today  

bc i just found out about your traumatic golden core transfer for your awful ungrateful little brother and i feel horrible that you suffered alone, he doesn’t say

bc i wish i could have done something to help but i couldn't so now i'm gonna steal you a lotus pod bc that's literally all i can do right now, he also doesn’t say

LOL

THE WAY THE CAMERA CUTS TO WN HERE CRACKS ME UP

WN IS JUST PASSIVELY MUNCHING ON A SEED AND WATCHING THAT EXCHANGE HAPPEN WITH HIS BIG BROWN EYES TAKING IT IN, WITH A VAGUE, "HUH, THAT'S INTERESTING" MANNER

wwx looks at the pod and then back at lwj before taking the pod with a nervous laugh

I am convinced that he had WAR-FLASHBACKS to that time drunk!lwj gave him roosters

He’s probably frantically trying to remember if lwj drank ANY alcohol earlier

TRYING TO CALCULATE THE CHANCES OF SOMEONE SLIPPING SOME ALCOHOL TO LWJ BETWEEN THEIR FIGHT WITH JC TO THIS BOAT ESCAPE LOLOLOLOL

he clutches that pod with both hands and gives lwj a pained smile 

The exact pained smile he had when he accepted the roosters that time

LMAO WWX TURNS TO LOOK AT WN, HIS BROWS ALL FURROWED IN CONFUSION LIKE, WN WHAT THE HECK IS HAPPENING, EXPLAIN WHAT'S HAPPENING RIGHT NOW

but wn just smiles cheerfully at him

cut to the next moment where we see the boat's floor is now littered with a bunch of lotus pods and wwx is happily munching on seeds, all smiley

BUT OF COURSE I'M NOT ALLOWED TO ENJOY HAPPY PEACEFUL MOMENTS EVER

SO A GLOWY GLITTERY MESSENGER BUTTERFLY APPEARS AND LANDS ON LWJ'S OUTSTRETCHED PALM

I mean, wwx giggled happily there for a moment there!!!!! WHY CAN'T THEY LET ME BASK IN THAT FOR ONE MINUTE, GOD.

anyway, the butterfly

wwx: the paper butterfly messenger from the jin clan?

(side note to say that the butterfly messenger is actually very pretty. i like it a lot)

wwx pats lwj on the knee after the butterfly flies away

wwx: what happened? what did it say?

Lwj’s like, jgy is in yunmeng now and my brother hasn’t responded to my message...

wwx: you worry jgy would harm him when desperate?

bc wwx can tell right away when lwj is worried. BC THEY'RE SOULMATES AND THEY KNOW EACH OTHER SO WELL

And then bc my sunshine boy is a GENIUS, he remembers the deed jgy had hidden away in the secret chamber, for Yunping City in Yunmeng

he excitedly tells lwj that this is where jgy will be

lol he was so excited he tipped himself over a bit and jostled the boat so lwj had to reach out to steady him

we cut to the next scene we see people dying fabrics and our boys wander through 

Wwx confirms with some random worker lady that they’re in the right place and tells lwj they should explore the city as a date for Plot Investigation Reasons

lwj nods in agreement and then wwx turns back to look at the lady and gives her THE SWEETEST SMILE, THE ONE THAT SQUINCHES HIS EYES CLOSED AND MAKES ME SWOON

BUT LOL LWJ SEES HIM SMILE AT THE LADY LIKE THAT AND IT NOT AMUSED BY IT AT ALL

oh god, just the way his eyes flick from wwx to the lady and how his lips firm up before he stalks off in a snit cracks me up

GREEN IS NOT YOUR COLOR, LAN ZHAN, I'M JUST SAYING

LET THE GUY SMILE AT ME, I MEAN AT PEOPLE. IT'S NOT A CRIME

wwx is confused by the reaction but hurries off after him

oh wwx, you dense idiot. you're lucky i love you so

now we see come random guys bully wn for no reason 😞

wwx tells them to back off but they don't listen and lwj very nonchalantly pulls out a talisman from his sleeve and offers it to wwx

wwx looks at the talisman and then back at lwj with SUCH A PLEASED SMILE

OMG I WOULD DO JUST ABOUT ANYTHING FOR HIM TO SMILE AT ME LIKE THAT

wwx: lan zhan, you even kept it until now?

AHHHHHH SO CUTE, I LOVE HIM

lwj doesn't respond but it doesn’t matter bc wwx does that squinchy-eyed smile AGAIN AND I DIE, I DIE

wwx activates the talisman which releases a whole bunch of glittery butterflies that distract the guys and allow wn to escape. 

omg guys, this is the same trick lwj used to distract wen chao and wen zhuliu to escape ages and ages ago WHICH MEANS LWJ HAS BEEN CARRYING A PIECE OF WWX WITH HIM ALL THESE YEARS AHHHHHHHHH

And after that wonderful, touching revelation, the episode ends.

SO, we had lots of depressing Yunmeng Bros Feelings that made me wanna die 

BUT we also at the end here get rewarded with MULTIPLE squinchy-eyed smiles from my most precious darling sunshine boy that made me wanna die but, like, in a good way

I WOULD ENDURE SO MUCH MORE FOR THOSE SMILE, NGL

Return to Masterpost

[fierrochase]

my favorite moments from the lightning thief musical: a list

far from comprehensive, because it was all-around amazing :D 

also geez i meant for this to be short?? ok this is the long version and i’ll post an abridged one that’s a bit less wordy in a few

in terms of production value, it reminded me a bit of a starkid musical - there were no fancy special effects, but i liked it that way! it felt homemade almost, like they didn’t try to convince the audience that they weren’t sitting in a theatre watching a show and i appreciate that! brecht would be proud lol (sorry for the lame theatre nerd jokes)

they included blue food!! sally and percy had blue marshmallows at montauk!! on that note, percy and sally’s relationship was absolutely spot-on, it was clear from the start how much he loved her and how much she loved him :’) 

they included the “you drool when you sleep” line boy I nearly cried!! ALSO she said that to him when he was still all dazed from the minotaur attack (a guy with a paper mache head, btw haha) so later when he meets her again when luke introduces her percy saw her and shouted “YOU’RE MY DREAM GIRL! no no wait I mean the girl from my dream!” it made me laugh like a fool and it was sooooo THEM like thank jesus lord, we’ve finally got a GOOD REPRESENTATION OF THESE CHARACTERS!! 

jumping off from that: chris mccarrell as percy was INCREDIBLE. he perfectly encapsulated everything percy should be - his impulsivity, his frustrations with dyslexia/adhd/not doing well in school, his love for his mom, his friendship with grover, his disrespect for authority (i refuse to use the word “sass” in relation to percy but i mean if it was 2013 that’s how i would describe it), his confusion, his bravery, his goofiness - when he picked up his sword for capture the flag he went “COOOOOL” and started making lightsaber noises and i almost teared up a bit i kid you not because I really finally felt like I was seeing Percy up on that stage. also, the boy has some wicked pipes. 

also for reference i’ll try my best to list who all played what part because there were a lot

percy and annabeth were just themselves the whole time, and grover also played mr. d in a few scenes but the rest of the cast played all the different parts

mr. brunner/chiron also played a random aphrodite girl (he wore a wig with long blonde braids skdjhfsjdh), medusa, poseidon, and hades

sally also played silena, the oracle, echidna, and charon 

luke also played smelly gabe and ares

clarisse also played mrs. dodds, katie gardner, a squirrel (to be explained later hah), bianca (also to be explained later), and thalia (also also to be explained later) 

& i’m probably missing a few but those were the major ones! they also played generic students, tourists, etc. 

chiron was really funny, when he revealed himself to be a centaur he sort of just stood up from his wheelchair and was wearing a fake horse tail and he walked everywhere by prancing which was funny

mr. d was ABSOLUTELY HYSTERICAL? as mentioned he was played by the guy who played grover! he was angry and he was loud and he wore this floppy hat and pants pulled up to like his ribcage and he shouted every line and i LOVED IT. a random/unnamed half blood came in and set up a metal chair for him at his table full of paperwork and he kicked it over in rage so she set it up again and he kicked it again later and she ran away and he tried to kick his chair over a third time but it wasn’t there so he went and picked it up just to kick it over again. ALSO HE CALLED PERCY PETER JOHNSON GOD BLESS THE WRITERS!!

also i’m giving them a thumbs up for diversity!! luke and sally were both african american and grover was latino!! it was nice!!

annabeth did call percy out for assuming her dad was the god, like i think that convo was almost word for word from the book AMAZING

also her crush on luke was super obvi, she got all giggly every time he talked to her or put his arm around her shoulder aw

they sort of condensed a few events, which makes sense because most people wouldn’t sit through a 6-hour musical (i would but that’s beside the point!), so annabeth’s capture the flag strategy was to send percy into the bathroom as clarisse bait. ALSO the toilet explosion & the later tidal wave he hits ares with were done by attaching toilet paper rolls to leaf blowers and blowing them all over the stage - like i said, no fancy special effects, but it got the point across pretty well!! 

percy’s claiming happened at the bonfire after they all sang a fun song about how much it sucks to be a kid of a god (during which grover ate his marshmallow roasting stick, like it’s the little things that make this show so great!!) and for that they stood downstage and all pointed vaguely outwards and said “look! the stars are arranging themselves into a trident!” hah

ALSO mr. d’s bit about wanting to turn percy into a dolphin was in there god bless

percy wore the winged shoes the whole time instead of giving them to grover!

^that all was act 1! act 2 was the entirety of the quest which meant that a lot of the events got cut or shortened

the medusa scene was awesome, and pretty true to the books!! also they both sort of ran offstage and then percy ran back onstage with his sword and the head in his hands lol

while grover went into the back of aunty m’s to look for supplies annabeth had this amazing, utterly badass song called “wise girl” about how she’s had to fight all her life to make it, like she talked about her stepmom hating her and running away from home and stuff and it was SOOOOO GOOD like at one point she said “boys who mess up are given a second chance, but i don’t have that luxury” like DAMN GIRL TELL THEM!! also she did call him seaweed brain a few times and i was like oooooh man i’d almost forgotten my vintage percabeth feels

also yes percy did mail medusa’s head to mount olympus and did this very percy-ish little “heh heh heh i’m clever” laugh as he did 

instead of a poodle grover asked a squirrel for directions which was cute!! and yes, annabeth did yell at percy to apologize to the squirrel for offending it :D 

most of the trip west was done as a song/montage sort of thing, from post-medusa to vegas all happened in one song! so echidna and her chimera were there, but it was just her holding a dog carrier and it biting percy’s hand when he reached in and them all screaming and then it moved on!!

OK UM the part that made my day was the lotus hotel, it was like 5 seconds long because annabeth was like “wait!! in the odyssey if you sleep in a lotus bed you wake up years later!” so percy was like “that’s ridiculous! here let me ask this girl how long she’s been here” and the girl was like “my brother and I have been here since thursday!” and percy was like “see? we’re fine” and then she went “in 1939!!” and they sorta screamed and ran out lol and she charlestoned off but anyway the point is she had black braids and a little hat and i turned to my sister and whisper-shouted “THAT’S BIANCA!!!” and she was like “OMG IT IS” i loved it!!!!!!!!!!!! thank god the writers of this ACTUALLY READ THE BOOKS!! 

ares’ first scene was kinda short too, they cut the bit about going to waterland/the tunnel of love ride and just had him give them a ride to the next place, also it was suuuuper obvi foreshadowing because when he gave percy the backpack an ominous chord played lol

my other fav moment was when they were on the train to LA (they cut the zoo truck too) grover told percy the story of getting annabeth/luke/thalia to CHB and they reenacted it as he sang about it (that sounds cheesy, it was the three of them up on the top platform sort of doing it in slow motion while Grover sang) and like ngl i almost teared up a bit when thalia died

no procrustes :(( i know i’m listing thing after thing that they left out but like i understand why they did and i don’t think it suffered too badly!! like someone who hasn’t read the book would probs be a bit confused but in what they did have they were so spot-on that i really didn’t mind!

charon was reimagined as a cool beyonce-esque r&b singer, she was like “hey, y’all want a copy of my mixtape?” lol, also they sang this real fun and upbeat song welcoming to the underworld, like telling them about all the cool dead musicians they have (janis joplin, kurt cobain, and mozart all made cameos - annabeth was fangirling over mozart it was adorable!) and the trio was like “oh this is cool!!” until they realized they were about to die lol and charon started evil laughing it was great!

percy did almost get drawn into tartarus, that was cool bc a trap door opened and all this fog lit with red light started billowing out! also when annabeth was like “that’s tartarus!!” percy went “THE FISH SAUCE??” adorable

hades was great!! very sulky like, “why does everyone always think I’M the bad guy?? maybe it’s the decor” i loved it

also the lightning bolt itself was really nice-looking!! it was like described, a tube with metal caps, but it lit up really brightly as annabeth took it out from the backpack and it looked real cool!! 

instead of the pearls they escaped the underworld with a conch shell that poseidon gave percy in a dream way back after he defeated the minotaur and he did have to leave sally which is sad every time :( 

the final battle against ares was fun, that’s when percy sang his showstopper “son of poseidon” which was truly #lit. if/when they release the cast album that’s the one i’ll be playing on repeat and full blast. and he exploded the toilet paper ocean at ares and it was fun! 

poseidon showed up then to take the bolt back to zeus and chat with percy, he was in his hawaiian shirt and looking real cool! and he got sally back and after she hugged percy real tight she saw poseidon and they had a heated moment of “you’re as beautiful as ever” “you’re as charming as ever” and then percy was like “OKAY THIS IS WEIRD” truly great!!

and they did include the final chat with luke about kronos! i was wondering if they’d cut that because it’s not like they can do a series of musicals (though if they did i’d go see every one) but they had it! plus they needed to tie up the loose end of percy being betrayed by a friend! and he stabbed percy in the lower back but was disarmed by annabeth go girl!! but he didn’t take long to recover hah because he was able to sing the badass closing number about being cool demigods and saving the world!!

anyway there’s much more that i forgot to mention but just know overall that it was amazingly true to the characters and the tone/world/humor/etc. of the books and i was almost giddy for the rest of the day because it was one of the most loving, fun, entertaining, and on-point adaptations of a book i’ve seen in any form. m*vies who?? i only know the musical!!

feel free to send me asks if you want to know more about a particular scene!!

jesus lord this was long!! like i said, short version forthcoming!

[insidemyinvisibilitycloak-blog]

SHAWN MENDES WORLD TOUR MANILA | MARCH 18, 2017

(PS: I wrote this the night when i got home after Shawn’s concert. English kasi tnype ko sa notes ng iphone ng nanay ko predict ng predict kairita kaya inenglish ko na hahaha pero inedit ko pa bago ko ipost sa ayun haha)

We arrived at the venue around 2:00pm thanks to pat and his Kuya hehe anyway we changed out clothes inside moa and then we totes forgot to withdraw. My sister was so agitated about it bc they were slowly letting us in

When we got inside we waited for about 1-1/2 hrs I guess and there's this man that shawns representative was talking to and was asking if there are any gifts for Shawn. I figured I wouldn't have the chance to do so I gave mine (Gryffindor notebook/journal and I wrote something on it!! TOO BAD I DIDNT TAKE A PICTURE) but then I forgot that there's a sign there that I wrote so I ran to the security and got the sign (thank God bc that sign is so important in the next scenes lol) anyway

So we lined up in a hallway and there's a sign with meet and greet in the nearest door. I was so excited but it didn't really sink in until we were so close and then we realize that everything went by so fast... then my turn came and I couldn't feel anything (manhid as in!!) even my stomach fingers lips idk tas ayun.. anyway the security was friendly and asked me if I was ready I said yeah and he said r u nervous and that's when I felt the numbing feeling then he let me in and said 'say hi to Shawn' Shawn said hi then I said 'omygosh hi Shawn' then I gave him a hug I swear omygosh I love it I hugged him tight, I can still remember that part well. I wrapped him in a hug!!! I can still remember the first time I saw his face, he was looking right at me too T.T then we proceeded to a normal pic (he put his arms on my shoulder i cant remember well but i just smiled and i think my hand was in his stomach but i cant remember feeling his abs lol) and then they motioned me to the exit. Well I manage to turn around and say “hope you'll enjoy the show later” and I can't really remmber if he replied or anything and I'm not sure but I think I was holding his hand that time then I turned to go. I was in shock and still a little numb when I went out and I was so disappointed at first bc I was expecting to have a conversation with him which didn't happen. My sis and I went on to get our signed posters and lanyard. Then we went out of where the m&g happened and I could hear convos where they said it was too fast for them too. My sister went to the ATM machine upstairs cause she was still fussing about merch then she went on to and buy them and I waited for her. Soon enough sound check started.

He first sang the weight which was one of my fave songs. There was someone who shouted 'pukingina mo' we all laughed and Shawn laughed too bc he didn't know what that meant hahaha. He kindaaa looked at me that time and I remembered the sign I wrote, which says 'can I have a guitar pick' idk which song he first noticed it but I'm not sure he'll give it to me and then there's this one Indian girl who's pushing and trying to come in between me and my sis so I fought back (pushed her with my arms) and she was the one who got mad. The indian girl kept on ranting “wtf r u doing?” I said “IM WITH MY SISTER” She said, “Then go with your fucking sister” then i can still hear her “I hate ppl who push blabla” anyway my sister said we should switch places bc she was nearer so Shawn would see my sign and then during stitches he looked straight at me and at the sign then I even gave him a flying kiss while singing along with stitches and I'm so happy coz he was smiling, while singing and while looking at me. When he finished sound check he went down and gave his pick to someone(Idk who that was). Then he took the other pick he used that was on the floor already (I think thats the first pick he used coz it was at the floor of the stage and he puts his picks on his lap if he’s no using it) and motioned to give it to our part so I extended my hand. There were people trying to get it but he made sure I'll get it so basically I touched his hand again and he LITERALLY GAVE ME his pick. (PS: DONT U EVER FORGET WHAT THAT LOOKED LIKE ANA, DONT U PLEASE) Idk what I said after that if I said thank u or I love you idk. Anw so my sis and I hugged and jumped up and down and I was so happy. By the way I shouted a lot of 'I love you Shawn' whenever the room was quiet. Pretty sure he heard it.

The show came and it was surreal and it was a sweet and a gentle show. I hope he enjoyed the crowd like how I enjoyed seeing and hearing him play. It was really fast and I didn't know it was about to finish already too lol hahaha then I can see his smile and everything and I knew he was at least happy. The first part with something big and the weight he was looking at our part too well I don't want to assume but he was looking at me hahaha. Anyway I sang a lot but I could've sang more I guess hahaha (cause my faves are from handrwritten) just a bit sad that he sang more illuminate than handwritten but I'm still so thankful!! Shawn is one of the best! OMG OMG his face lights up when he sings and I hope he enjoyed the crowd cause we were all singing!! And Im pretty sure he was happy bc of it too haha then there was one time after a song, not sure if it was Mercy.. He looked at someone from the band and he put his tongue out saying like “I messed up” cause his voice cracked on one of the higher notes but i dont care he’s adorbs and great!! Hope he'll tweet smething bout Manila. I'm still hoping he'll get my gift but anyway stitches and never be alone are my new anthem (not really new but theyre my totes pcd anthem) damn anyway I thought I heard him say mahal ko kayo but not sure then he headed straight to his hotel immediately.

BTW WE’RE STILL WAITING FOR THEM TO POST OUR PICS OMYGOSH

I cant believe i actually met him and had a moment with just the two of us, i got to hug him... then he really gave me his pick. TO ME!!! TO ME OMG THEN HE SANG STITCHES TO ME DAMN SHAWN U MY MAN I LOVE YOU SO MUCH COME BACK REAL SOON MISS NA KITA AGAD GEGU TAPOS ANG TAGAL NUN TALAGA AS IN MAGKATITIGAN KAMI HABANG NAKANGITI SYA POGI NYA BES

PPS: Greedy ako sa pics kaya konti lang ippost ko kasi baka may kumuha lol bye

MOA ARENA CONCERT GROUNDS - MARCH 18, 2017