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innuendostudios · 5 days ago

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youtube

New Alt-Right Playbook! This one was co-written with, and narrated by, Abigail Thorn of PhilosophyTube. We talk about the feint wherein a person is somehow rhetorically stronger being wrong on two fronts instead of one.

If you think this is good work and would like to see good work compensated, you can back me and/or Abi on Patreon.

Transcript below the cut.

Say, for the sake of argument, you’re having a discussion with a coworker about healthcare. (Actually, let’s go ahead and drop the pretence: you’re having a discussion about trans healthcare.) He says puberty blockers should be banned because some study said they're dangerous. And you’re a thoughtful person, so you look it up.

Only when you do, you find the study doesn’t say what he said it does. Maybe it says something close, maybe it says the total opposite! But more than that, you realize - even if it said what he said it did, that still wouldn’t support his argument. “Dangerous” could mean a lot of things - a little? a lot? low risk, high risk? Maybe one study isn’t enough to go on. Hell, maybe it’s bogus for a whole host of other reasons! Maybe it’s written by people with an obvious agenda, or contradicted by a better study he’s ignoring. So you go back and tell your coworker, “Hey, the study doesn’t say that, and even if it did, y’know…” But he simply repeats “The study said they’re dangerous.” He’s not just wrong… he’s

DOUBLEWRONG

Institutions create policy documents all the time. Anti-bullying policies, climate policies, DEI policies - your job probably has a bunch of them. But a lot of the time these documents exist not to be read or followed, just pointed to. If someone is bullied, harassed, or discriminated against, managers might point to a policy that says, ‘We are committed to not doing that.’ And… that’s it. The more you insist, ‘Hey, these policies aren’t being followed, the problem still exists!’ the more you become the problem.

The document is a dummy argument, a substitute for the real one: ‘There’s a problem’ Vs ‘No there isn’t.’ This isn’t a conversation about what some document says or doesn’t say; it’s a conversation about power.

When your coworker cites a study that doesn’t support his argument, he’s using that document in a similar way. He’s not reading it; just pointing to it. ‘This piece of paper means you have to listen to me.’ The study could be about plankton, or Henry VIII, or squirrel poop for all the difference it makes. (Okay, maybe it matters a little: it has to at least look semi-legit at a glance.) He’s not using evidence to inform his position; he’s decided what his position is and he’s pantomiming evidence to support it.

It’s almost as if we’ve stumbled into The Sorcerer’s Apprentice! Little Mickey’s put on the hat and declared, “I know how this works! You stand up, all big and tall, and say ‘I have a study that says you have to do what I tell you!’ That’s how you always play it. Well, this time I’ve got a study, so you have to do as I say!”

And you can tell him, “That’s not how this works, Mickey: it’s a study, not an incantation. It has to actually say what you claim, and it has to be a good study.”

“Ohhh, look at you moving the goalposts! Look at you gatekeeping! Deciding which studies count and which ones don’t. Well I believe this one’s every bit as good as yours, and I believe it proves me right!”

And is that what he believes? Maybe. Maybe not. Remember: The Card Says Moops - you can’t prove he doesn’t believe that. And for the purposes of ‘You have to listen to me’ that’s all he needs. This is a battle of wills now, not information, each half of the doublewrong argument functioning as both motte and bailey. If you successfully expose that study as bogus he’ll move on to another, and you’ll only be undermining the scientific method in his view: if studies aren’t always to be trusted, if even quack science can get peer-reviewed, who’s to say your studies aren’t as bogus as his? And that’s if he doesn’t change evidence entirely - ‘Okay maybe I can’t prove puberty blockers are dangerous, but this study says trans kids have high regret rates; this one says they’re unhappy; this one says they’re brainwashed!’

He’s understood the rhetorical function of science, but not the substance. Or perhaps he’s understood the rhetorical function all too well, enough to know, for the purposes of argument, substance rarely matters.

From here, you can chart the course of the entire conversation stretching out before you: You might rush in, hold the document under his nose and say, ‘Look! It doesn’t say what you said it does! What’s the matter, can’t read?’ Which might be satisfying, but does make you look the pedantic asshole.

Or you can reject his so-called evidence as patently false, inadmissible, and leave yourself vulnerable to being obliterated the moment you make an honest mistake with a citation.

Or you can research every single shred of information he puts in front of you, so you can thoroughly debunk each and every one, which means he simply keeps putting bunk in front of you and drowns you with homework.

And he must see it, too, the conversation laid out in front of him. He hasn’t positioned himself to persuade you, but to ensure neither of you ever persuades the other. What is the purpose of this debate, then? This ritual? What is it you’re really arguing about?

Well, your coworker believes that the government (or a doctor doing what the government tells them) should force citizens from a minority to do something with their bodies they don’t want to do. But he won’t say that out loud because he knows that’s socially unacceptable. ‘I want the government to force people to do what I want with their bodies no matter how many of them die in the process,’ is an opinion that isn’t likely to make friends. So he substitutes the document for the thing he really believes. “It’s not me. It’s just science.” He is appealing to facts when, truthfully, this is a difference in values.

Doublewrong is a rhetorical technique to catch you out, to hide the real argument from you and leave you chasing the substitute. It also protects him.

People deploy these kinds of irrational, paradoxical moves to stop themselves thinking about topics that make them uncomfortable. If your coworker interrogated his values about the proper relationship between the government and minorities he might find he’s not the person he thought he was, or that his friends and colleagues expect him to be. (And you might too - let’s not pretend Leftists and Liberals have the moral high ground all the time - interrogating your fundamental values is an uncomfortable experience for most people.) He probably wants to think of himself as a good person, and yet he also believes (maybe not even consciously) that the government should own the bodies of at least some citizens. He knows he’d probably hate that if it happened to him, but he still wants it to happen to others. Doublewrong relieves him of the burden of forming a rational position. The document is his nice big safety blanket.

This plays on a human weakness that spans the entire political spectrum: we all wrap ourselves snug in faulty information from time to time. We share studies without reading because the abstract conforms to our assumptions; we treat a supposition that is likely as though it’s a proven fact. And this is, after a point, necessary: as informed as you are, you do have to stop researching somewhere. You do, at some point, have to go on assumptions, take someone’s word, trust that a pattern holds, because the video’s due before the end of the month if you want to charge your patrons and make rent!

…sorry.

But we do, sometimes, treat research as a ritual rather than a method. Because, often, we want to appeal to facts, papers, authorities, without having to do any of that pesky reasoning. But that is exactly what leaves us open to a doublewrong attack. The flaw with your coworker’s study is he’s using it to claim trans healthcare is dangerous, and he’s wrong. He has a comeback for every way you could try to convince him, but he’s still wrong. You can’t prove trans healthcare is safe by gesturing at studies, because the opposition won’t read them. And will write their own studies. You can’t prove it with peer review, because they’ll game peer review. You can’t call them liars because they’ll insist they’re sincere. There is no rule they can’t pervert, no system they can’t twist to their advantage. You can’t just appeal to things that signify “reason,” at some point one of you will have to do some actual reasoning to figure out who’s making sense, and, well, it’s not going to be them.

Remember: this is a conversation about values. Presuming you know what yours are, you may have to speak them aloud.

‘I think people should do what they like with their bodies without politicians interfering, and even if I thought puberty blockers were dangerous (which by the way they’re not because on the off-chance you actually care about evidence here’s all the good stuff) I think people have the right to make risky decisions about their healthcare too. If there was a drug with a 1% chance of healing your terminal cancer and a 99% chance of dangerous side effects I’d support your right to take it if you wanted.’ Now you’ve avoided the trap of arguing about what some document says. You’re focusing on the second, deeper part of the doublewrong instead of the first. You’ve also put him on the back foot: now he has to justify his values, which is exactly what he wanted to avoid!

Of course, he may just repeat himself: ‘The study says they’re dangerous!’ This is not a technique for winning arguments. It’s a technique for starting them.

#alt right playbook #video essay #Youtube

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4vanaa · 8 days ago

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WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING, rafe cameron, 14

summary: y/n left the outer banks years ago, determined to build a life far from the memories of her childhood love, rafe cameron. now a botanist, she's moved on-though a quiet part of her still clings to the past. when an event brings her back to OBX, she's forced to confront the one person she never truly forgot.

cw: none | masterlist | 13 | 15 |

rafeupdates 13h

liked by cameronstan and 54,000 others

rafeupdates rafe talking about going to therapy, working on himself, and fixing his relationship with his dad... idk if i'm crying or what 🥺 i attached the clip transcript from the interview!!

#sunshinepromo #rafeupdates

user men who go to therapy>>

user who could he be talking about?? 👀

user probably the same girl he’s been talking about in all his songs

view all 2,350 comments

You stare at the chalkboard menu, your eyes scanning the options but not really reading them. The familiar hum of The Wreck—the quiet buzz of conversation, the scrape of chairs, the clink of silverware—feels strangely distant, like you’re in a bubble of your own making. You take a deep breath, trying to shake the weight in your chest.

“Still staring at the shrimp basket like it’s some life-changing decision.”

Your stomach drops before you even turn your head. You don’t need to look to know who it is.

“Rafe,” you mutter, a sharp exhale escaping your lips as you glance over your shoulder. “What are you doing?”

He’s standing there, hands shoved into his pockets, his blue eyes trained on you like you’re the only person in the room. His hair is slightly messy, like he’s run his fingers through it one too many times, and he’s wearing that same infuriating half-smirk that used to make you weak in the knees.

“Getting dinner,” he says casually, gesturing around the room. “Same as you, I guess.”

Your jaw tightens. “Then order and leave me alone.”

His smirk falters, his eyes softening. He takes a step closer, ignoring the clear dismissal in your tone. “I saw you sitting here, and… I don’t know. I thought maybe we could talk.”

You turn back to the menu, gripping the edge of the counter like it’s the only thing keeping you steady. “There’s nothing to talk about.”

“There’s a lot to talk about,” he counters quietly, his voice threading with a kind of desperation that makes your chest ache.

Your resolve cracks, and you spin around to face him fully, the frustration bubbling to the surface. “God, why do you do that? It’s been years, Rafe. Years. Why can’t you just move on?”

He flinches, his jaw tightening as he looks at you. “You think I haven’t tried?”

“Try harder,” you shoot back, your voice sharp but trembling. “This isn’t fair. Not to you, not to me. I have a life now, Rafe—a good one. Stop showing up like this and pretending like we can just pick up where we left off.”

“I’m not pretending anything,” he says, his voice breaking slightly. “I’m just… I don’t know how to not want you, okay?”

Your breath catches, and for a second, the fight drains out of you. You look away, biting the inside of your cheek to keep the tears at bay. “You’re the one who ended it, Rafe. You made your choice. And I had to live with it. You don’t get to come back now and act like I’m still… like I’m still yours.”

Rafe lets out a humorless laugh, running a hand through his hair. “Yeah, you keep saying that. You’ve moved on. You’ve got your perfect little life now, right? But me? I—” He stops himself, shaking his head. “Forget it.”

Your voice softens, but you keep your resolve firm. “Rafe, I’m happy. That’s what matters. You should want that for me.”

He stares at you, his blue eyes searching your face like he’s trying to find something he’s lost. “I do. Of course, I do. I just… I didn’t realize how much I missed you until I saw you again.”

Your heart twists painfully, but you don’t let him see it. “That’s not my problem anymore.”

He stares at you, his eyes searching yours, and for a moment, he looks completely lost. “You’re right. It’s not. I just… I miss you, Sunshine. God, I miss you so much.”

“Rafe,” you sigh, your voice softer now. “You can’t keep doing this to me. You can’t keep doing this to yourself.”

His shoulders sag, and he lets out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. “I don’t know how to stop. Not when it’s you.”

You swallow hard, your fingers trembling as you grip your phone. You force yourself to stand your ground, even as your heart begs you to give in. “You have to. For both of us.”

Rafe nods slowly, like he knows you’re right but can’t bring himself to accept it. “I hope he makes you happy,” he says finally, his voice barely above a whisper.

You blink, your throat tightening. “He does.”

“Good,” he murmurs, his gaze lingering on you one last time before he steps back. “You deserve that.”

He turns and walks away, leaving you standing there with the weight of his words hanging heavy in the air. Your chest feels tight, your heart aching in a way you haven’t felt in years. You blink back tears and force yourself to focus on the menu, even as the world around you blurs.

a/n: going to therapy, so you can get your girl back?!!! i was unfamiliar with your game rafe 😏 also how much angst is too much angst 🫣

🏷️: @xoxo-ada @sabrina-carpenter-stan-account @sleepiibunniiii @urbrunettebombshell @sideboobrry11 @acidfeens @marleymarleymarleymarley @hadids-world @ursogorgeous1313 @louxmcl @cyberkitty1 @pogueprincesa

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hedonists-den · 8 months ago

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POV: Your eating habits and your weight have gotten so unbelievably out of control lately that I think it's about time I give you a wake-up call in the form of some teasing and shaming.

⚠️ It gets a little mean, so... ⚠️

Hope you enjoy! 😇

TRANSCRIPT:

What is it? Is there something you need to tell me? You overate again... Well, I'm not surprised. Is it really overeating if you do it every time you sit down and glut yourself like you’re trying to win some prize? No, it's just the norm for fatasses like you. Shameless, self-indulgent gluttony is just the way it is for you. You should be ashamed. You should be desperately searching for a way to stop yourself. What kind of person shovels food in their face the way you do? What kind of person lets themselves get so obese that they can’t do basic things without getting winded?

I don’t imagine you even have any excuse for what you're doing to yourself. Imagine what you could look like if you weren't so busy gorging yourself with greasy food and carbs every chance you get. It's fucking obscene. And do I really need to bring up your sweets addiction? I swear, at this point, you might as well just have me hook a funnel up to your greedy mouth and pour syrup down your throat.

Wait…please don’t tell me…do you actually think about that? What, are you just going to eat and eat and eat until you can barely waddle from room to room? Have me stuff you until all that weight that you keep piling on ripples with every lumbering step that you take? Is that what you want, fatty? This huge, heavy-breathing, mound of embarrassing flab that can barely maneuver around your own home? If you keep this shit up, you’ll be there faster than all those DoorDash deliveries you keep getting every fucking day.

At this point, I’m just morbidly curious about what goes on inside your head that justifies letting yourself become so shockingly, grotesquely obese. I mean, look at what a shameless blob you are…rolls stacked on top of each other like pancakes, each one covered in stretch marks, with a hanging gut that takes over your lap, the flab on your arms keeping them pinned to your sides. God, every inch of your body is overflowing with fat. You eat so many goddamn calories, it looks like you're in a near-constant state of stretching and expanding. How can you not notice that your body is screaming at you to stop being such a fucking pig?

Is there even a point in trying to shame you for all of this? You’re obviously not going to change one thing about the way you’re ruining yourself. All you’re going to do, as soon as you can, is find the next thing to stuff your face with. So, what is it going to be this time, tubby? Burgers? Pizza? Few boxes of snack cakes? Honestly, I wouldn’t put it past you to get all three, the way that I’ve seen you eat. You clearly don’t have any self-control, so, fuck it, why not? Just hork down more calories until your body can barely handle it. Stuff your bottomless pit of a stomach every chance that you get. Even after every other sign is telling you to stop.

You know what? I don’t think anything can help you now. You are too far gone, and there’s no way you’re coming back from this. You’re going to be half a metric ton of pure blubber soon enough. And you’ll have no one to blame but yourself for what a hopeless, greedy, wobbling tub of lard that you are. So just lay back and grab another snack, why don’t you?

#just feeder things #fa audio #feedism.#weight gain #wg kink

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mamawasatesttube · 2 months ago

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superspotting!

T | 12k | written for @superfamilyweek day 1: "it's a bird! it's a plane!"

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's... Supernova, trying to process some issues, as seen through the eyes of Metropolitan social media?

[Partial transcript of Justice League Watchtower security room logs, redirected from a Hubble Space Telescope transmission to the Moon.]

[…]

GREEN LANTERN: Wow. I don’t think I’ve seen him pulverize an asteroid in a rage since… huh, since Lex won the election.

MARTIAN MANHUNTER: Hmm. Yes. But I haven’t heard any news about a topic likely to set him off, at least that I am aware of. I wonder what upset him.

GREEN LANTERN: Yeah, no idea. Maybe he’s just having a rough day?

MARTIAN MANHUNTER: …I don’t think a rough day is enough to make Superman beat an asteroid into dust.

GREEN LANTERN: Uh, yeah, I mean… maybe it was a really, really, really rough day. Like, one of those days where you spill coffee on your white shirt before a big job interview, and you’re stuck in traffic ‘cuz you were trying to drink coffee on the go ‘cuz you woke up late, and then some idiot wannabe supervillain blows up the ramp you needed to take, and it’s not even a big name guy your boss would accept as a real excuse, and… now that I’m saying all this, I’m realizing that, like, none of it applies to Big Blue.

MARTIAN MANHUNTER: Hmm. Indeed. Although… well, I am not sure.

GREEN LANTERN: Yeah, I dunno, it’s Superman! He doesn’t lose his cool easy. Hope everything’s okay…

MARTIAN MANHUNTER: If not, we will probably know soon.

GREEN LANTERN: Hey, at least he hasn’t cracked any moons in half this time!

MARTIAN MANHUNTER: …Hm.

GREEN LANTERN: Oh, come on, it was a joke. Don’t look at me like that. I just meant—remember when Lex won the election, and…

[…]

{ read on ao3! }

#rimi writes #THERE IT IS... BABYS FIRST EPISTOLARY FIC...#superfam #timkon #konbart #<- theyre qp but you can read it romo if you like! bart defends kons honor on the internet asmr #clark #nat #tim #kon #bart #lois #john henry #krypto

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pilot-boi · 9 months ago

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Pilot, I know you primarily bully Jaune. But would you mind having a go at Papa Arc talking to the Vacuo mural?

Orion Arc is not a hero, even though his son always thought he was. He’s just a man who loves his family and tries his best to do right by them.

So it’s more than a little strange standing there, in front of a mural of his own son’s face. His boy immortalized and honored in ways Orion could never dream of.

His son looks like a stranger.

“Mr. Branwen thought it might help to talk to ya.” Orion’s hand brushes over the palm prints of countless children, all paying their respect to his boy. “Don’t see much point, ain’t gonna bring you back.”

His son watches him, all quiet confidence and bravery. A true warrior, a hero. Where is his brash anxious son who begged to join the Huntsman Academies? How much of his son did he lose when Jaune finally left home? Somewhere along the way his boy grew into a man and he wasn’t there to help him.

“Your uh…” He clears his throat. “Your mother misses you.” And it sounds pathetic even as he says it. Even in front of a facsimile of his son he can’t say what he needs to.

“She was beside herself when you didn’t come back from Haven.” So was he, even more so than his wife. Orion paced the house for days, worry driving him to throw himself into work, into anything that would take his mind off the attack and the fate of his boy. “We were so relieved to hear from Saph about you and your friends.”

His friends. A group of seven that from all accounts Jaune grew closer to than even his sisters. Orion glances up at the others in the mural. Four of which fell alongside his boy, and the other three were left grieving.

Ren, Nora, and Oscar, he remembers them being called. He never thought he’d see his grief echoed in faces so young.

“As soon as we saw the broadcast, your mother was packin’ our bags.” Orion chuckles. “You shoulda seen her, she was fixin’ to march up to the General herself and teach him a lesson. If I ever wondered where you got your fire, I got my answer.”

His face falls, crumpling like paper. “And I triedta douse that fire.” How many times did he tell Jaune it was okay if he failed? How many times did he refuse to train him? How many times did he let his fear guide him to crush his son’s dreams?

“When you walked into the livin’ room with your transcripts in hand sayin’ you were gonna be a Huntsman whether I wanted it or not, why…” His eyes are stinging. If there’s anything his son inherited from him, it’s his tendency for emotions to live near the surface. “Why that was the proudest day of my life.”

He’d never been more proud. Never. His boy standing there with those papers clutched in his fist, and a defiant look on his face. “I won’t let you down.” Jaune had said.

You could never let me down. It’s what he should’ve said. Why didn’t he just say it?

Orion scrubs the heel of his hand into his eyes. It does nothing to stop the flow of tears. “Did I ever once tell ya how proud I am of you?” His voice is cracking and hitching, but if he stops talking now Orion knows he’ll never start again.

“You’re so brave and you don’t quit when things get tough. I saw how hurt you were after the Fall of Beacon, but you just got right back on that horse.” His baby boy, the most caring and most stubborn of all his children. Strapping the family sword back onto his hip because “Somebody has to, dad.”

Letters where it’s clear his boy isn’t saying half the trouble, but he’s saying enough that they know what trouble is. Hearing about the attack on Haven, a week and a half of terror. Saphron sending word that Jaune made it to Argus.

And then nothing. Nothing until the broadcast from Miss Rose.

Packing in a whirlwind, sending the girls to stay with Saphron. Renting the first available airship to Vacuo and contending with his wife’s motion sickness. By the time they got there, they were met halfway by a near armada.

But no Jaune.

Orion’s hand rests on Jaune’s painted cheek. A child’s hand against the larger-than-life hero his boy grew into when he wasn’t there.

Did he ever tell his son how much he loves him?

“Come back to us,” Orion begs, no longer trying to stem the flow of tears. Why bother? His son isn’t here to see them.

#rwby #jaune arc #papa arc #mine #asks #my writing #freshmiraclecheesecake #healing rust au

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oxpogues4lifexo · 7 months ago

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Keeping up with the Camerons

TumblrTV

Keeping up with the Camerons

Trailer:

Transcript ( / means cut scene. Bold letters means host)

Five Kooks.

“Hello, I’m Ward Cameron.” He says holding a proud grin to the camera as he emphasises a wave.

One House.

“Hi, I’m Rose.” She speaks looking irritable, not enjoying the experience to come. The thought of her house full of strangers for a week, itching the back of her mind.

One week.

“You already know, I’m Rafe Cameron.” He gives the camera a wink as a lustful smirk sits on his face, his arms splayed out against the back of the couch.

The Cameron’s lives aren’t what you might expect.

“Hey, I’m Sarah.” She keeps a symmetrical smile, her face not looking as believable as she thinks; Her body held in closed language, expressing her lack of excitement.

Having money doesn’t always buy happiness.

“Immm.. Wheezie Cameron!” She stutters, the anxiety of the attention taking over, but managing a sweet smile to mask her nerves as she pats down her dress hem to keep her fingers occupied.

At most..

“And this is Keeping up with the Camerons!” Each word switching between every member of the family, a smile sat perfectly and proudly on each face.

A way out.

“The Cameron’s are literal lifesavers. They practically adopted me so of course they mean everything to me.”

“They think they can control me like I’m their kid or something.”

“They’ve really helped me out money wise. Without them I’d be living on the streets.”

“I love seeing her happy. They’ve really changed her life. Me? They hate me haha.”

“I think he’s in love with her..”

“That pogue hasn’t got half the shit I do what’s her fucking deal?”

“Better dick..”

“Sarah!!!”

“Oh if you ask me he’s head over heels for her. Don’t tell him I said that..”

“Having two extra bodies around makes everything ten times more difficult. I don’t even know how Ward likes them.”

“I’m in charge now!”

“News flash he ain’t your fucking dad bro!”

“We gotta do something about him..”

“This needs to stop!”

“Turn the fucking cameras off!”

Coming to TumblrTV soon..

Check out the Instagram page Here

Looking for the episode list? Look Here

Thank you for reading. Please be patient with the episode releases! ❤️🌹

Taglist:

@viawritesstuff @mymelodylvr @rafeinterlude

Masterlist

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thinplacesradio · 12 days ago

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orange booths in a diner, orange stools along a counter behind, light bright behind it. the image is distorted by VCR static. white text reads:

[032] AN ACT OF KINDNESS. A CALLER SHARES A MEMORY. THE HOST FINDS IT.

listen to the season 2 finale here, or anywhere you find your podcasts. transcript under the cut:

[static, radio tuning]

[Traveling Sales Rep: Don’t touch that dial! We’ll be right back, after these short messages.] [static, radio tuning]

[click]

Hello and welcome to Thin Places Radio. I’m your host,

and it is the middle of the night. But don’t worry. You’re not alone.

[Thin Places theme] [cutlery clinking, low diner sounds]

I’m coming to you, I don’t know, from my studio. I don’t know how to feel. I’m at a diner. I went back and back and back. I let the road take me here. My memory doesn’t go this far back, but - I think this is what I’ve been looking for. I think it’s the last thing that I almost-remember. I wish I had something like my name, instead. But I guess this’ll have to do.

It looks really ordinary. ROADSIDE DINER, it says in neon, but both the Es are burned out. It’s painted orange, mirrors lining the inside to make it look bigger than it really is. It looks warm inside. Booths in a U along the edges, a counter in that half-ring in the middle, by the kitchen. A thousand places like this in the continental United States. But nowhere exactly like it. Not really.

So what is Thin Places Radio? Well, you can call in about anything strange that you’ve got going on in your life - feelings, omens, premonitions, hauntings.

Have you been chosen for something you never meant to do?

Have you given a gift to a stranger?

Have you forgotten how you… came to this place?

[sigh] When - When the veil between worlds is thin, we get closer than ever to the strange and the unexplained - but also to each other. Call in, get it off your chest. Lines are open.

[click] [voicemail:]

You can hear me now, can’t you? Oh, you can finally hear me! Good. Good. It takes time for the planes to line up. Sometimes they never do, so.

Please don’t worry. I can’t give you your name. You don’t need it anymore. But I can give you a memory. I can give you the night we met.

You came into the Roadside Diner, just off of I-70. You had that look on your face - that driving-all-night look. That running-away look. Not like you were being hunted. Like you didn’t even know what you were running away from.

You sat in that booth by the back window, near the bathrooms - yes, yes, the one your eyes flicked over to just now. Remember? You ordered a coffee. I was at the counter, talking to the server, and I told her I didn’t have enough to pay for my meal. I said it quietly. There was no yelling. You just noticed. You were paying attention to every person in that diner. Even me. You said, I’ve got it, don’t worry. [huffed laugh] An act of kindness for a stranger.

I slid into your booth to thank you, and you said - and I’m not going to get this all right, because memory’s, y’know, tricky - you said, don’t mention it. You said, I’m sure you would have done the same thing for me. So much trust. How could I not honor it?

I asked you if you were alright, and you told me you weren’t sure. You got out of work that day and you got in your car and you just kept driving. You missed your exit. And you just kept driving, all the way into the night. Are you happy? I asked you. No, you told me.

You didn’t know what was missing from your life, but you knew it was missing. What do you want? I asked you. I wanted to give it to you. And this - this I remember, because this was the important part. “I don’t know,” you said. “I’m just so tired of being a person.”

[radio static]

I put my hands over yours, and I nodded. I knew how to fix it. I asked you if you wanted to be something else. I asked you if you wanted to stop worrying. I gave it to you for free. A deal is a deal. A gift is a gift.

Please don’t worry. I don’t know why you keep worrying. It doesn’t matter what came before. I made it so you never had to worry again. Food, clothes, money. Where to sleep, how to live, how to keep your heart from breaking. The road provides. The road will always provide. I freed you from entropy. I freed you from death.

[the radio shrieks and fuzzes]

I thought you’d stop running away. I thought you’d be happy with the way I repaid your kindness. I took your kindness and your curiosity and your interest in every little person and I turned it into something better. You were a person. [The voice changes from the distortion of a phone voicemail to clear speech.] So what? [They are now beside the host.] I made you a legend.

And I know it’s lonely, at first, to be like us. But you’re not the only one.

You’re not alone.

[click]

The host: It’s you.

The entity: Yes.

[click]

[static] [Traveling Sales Rep: visit us at the ROADSIDE diner just off I-70-] [Various Garbled Voices: the - road - provides -] [The entity: the - road - provides -]

Thin Places Radio is a podcast written by Kristen O’Neal and produced by Kaitlin Bruder. The voice of Your Host is Kristen O’Neal. The voice of [STATIC] is Omar Najam.

Editing and sound design are by Kaitlin Bruder, and the music tracks you heard in tonight’s episode are: the Thin Places theme, by Miles Morkri. If you have a question to ask, a story to tell, or a suggestion for the host, give us a call at ‪(717) 382-8093. The lines are always open.

[Thin Places Theme outro]

#thin places radio #032 #an act of kindness #episodes #plot episode #REALLY a plot episode #the entity #omar najam #diner #surreal #liminal #audio drama #fiction podcast #season finale

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moodymisty · 1 year ago

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Part 1 (some needed context)

Author's Note: Part two, as was requested. I need to stop listening to Halsey when I write, I always end up making things too verbose and hyperbolic.

Also pspspsps @rivalriotrenegade you wanted to be tagged in the sequel? Here you go.

Summary: Angron will be leaving soon, and he comes to take in a moment of you beforehand.

Relationships: Angron/Fem!Reader

Warnings: Angron being Angron, Vague descriptions of death violence and gore, General 40kness, The most emotionally stunted man in the galaxy receives an affection, Historitor!Reader is scared but in love horny

Word Count: 1942

Guilliman hadn’t been pleased with the news.

It had arrived to him via a distressed captain who had been attempting to deal with the issue discretely up until now, but in his attempts to track down their missing historitor, he had found you in Angron’s company. You didn’t seem to be in any sort of severe peril, but the captain expressed his concerns of the World Eater’s Primarch trouncing when he didn’t belong, as well as encroaching on someone who might hold secrets to their legion.

Guilliman agreed with most of the captain’s concerns, but also hesitated. His hand hovered over half written parchment as ink threatened to drop from the tip of his pen.

Roboute has no desire to pick a fight with another Primarch over one historitor. And if any information ended up in the hands of the World Eaters, he would know exactly where it came from. He would deal with the matter then as swiftly as he would any other traitor.

In the end, he simply instructs the captain to keep watch on the matter.

The scenario is unique after all; You seem to be no traitor, but now spend almost all of your time in the presence of the World Eaters. Guilliman’s captain had described the scene in a confused manner, wondering as to why the Primarch had taken such a keen, almost obsessive interest in one soul in particular. Roboute thinks he has an inkling why, but his captain simply doesn’t have the experience to understand. Afterall he’s known nothing but battleship halls and bolters, these sorts of thoughts are… Foreign.

With no solid solution and the threat of a legion wide war with any misstep, The Macragge native elects to largely abandon the matter, and mark any information related to you with a note saying to refer to the relevant paperwork for more information.

—------------------------------

The Conqueror is the first Gloriana class battleship you’ve ever seen in anything but historical documents, and those transcriptions fail to even capture a hint of the overwhelming scale of the massive battleship. The barges you’ve seen are huge, but even they don’t compare to the size of the World Eater’s flagship.

It stays moored in the planet’s upper atmosphere, but it’s impossible not to see it lingering in the sky alongside a myriad of other ships. Servitors and other such are loading heaps of supplies into low orbit cruisers to bring back up to the massive battleship, preparing it for another long journey out into the reaches of Imperium space.

Part of you wonders if Angron expects you to join him. You desperately hope not, but in another odd sort of way, you find it almost saddening to be without him for an extended period of time. You know that there are horrors out there that can rend the mind into pieces, that being behind Terra’s walls is to be afforded a luxury so few in the galaxy will touch that the mere thought of leaving should cast you in an unbearable shame. But it seems so completely ridiculous to say that you’ll miss him. Though the thought still crosses your mind anyhow.

You hear the sounds of his heavy footsteps approaching. You’ve been away from his side most of the day, so you figured it was due time for him to eventually hunt you down. He stands not a step away from you once he finds his hunt for you concluded, looking outward towards the mass of Terran servitors and other workers hauling World Eaters requisitions to where ever they're needed.

“You are staying. If you are wondering.”

Part of you feels a sense of relief from it. While you might have a fondness for Angron, his World Eaters are significantly less appealing to you. They only tolerate your existence due to the repeated threats of their Primarch. Khârn has also questioned his genefather; The still unfilled crack in his ceramite armor remains as evidence of it. His doubt had hurt, but you can’t help but feel his questioning was justified.

It’s not as if you can do much for them, beyond what you do for their Primarch. In the eyes of men bred for war, you’re the meaningless byproduct of a planet they protect more because they enjoy the bloodshed of doing so than anything else. Whether you are alive or dead is a meaningless query to them.

You curiously look up at Angron, who is gazing over the massive shipyard.

"You're leaving soon, I suppose." The Primarch lets out an affirmative grunt in response.

It hasn’t been long of you knowing him, and you’re still cautiously testing what territory can be tread, and what very much cannot be. There’s not much of the former, and plenty of the ladder.

You have learned that he seems to enjoy whenever how larger and stronger he is than you- when his prowess in brutal combat, is prominent. That isn’t a hard thing to achieve, given his height you stand at roughly his midsection. The Primarch absolutely towers over you and while he knows it sends fear through you, you fight it.

As you watch over the railing you suddenly feel a heavy weight on your shoulder, and glancing to your left it’s easy to see the bronze colored gauntlet that now rests there.

You know that whenever he does that, a weight on your body, he’s attempting to take solace in the weird ability you somehow possess. You gently lay a hand over his armored one, fingers brushing over the knicks and scratches of his worn, battered plate. He’s worn it for many years, it shows the story of endless battles and it’s still able to hold so many more.

You don’t know how long it’ll be till you see him again. The warp, it’s, power; Time doesn’t work the same way out there that it does on Terra. You want to give him one last before he leaves, but you hope that it doesn’t ruin the little bit of progress you’ve made with him.

“Can you, bend over? So I can reach you?”

You don’t know what you had expected for when you hesitantly asked, but you hadn’t expected the Primarch to indulge you.

His massive weight shifts, landing on his right knee with a loud enough thud, that you swear the marble beneath his knee plate is surely cracked. With him at this height, your hands can touch his face, feeling the way it’s decorated with a million different little scars. Some large- thick, deep cuts like one over his brow, or over his lips. Others are smaller, not visible from so far away but you can feel them under your fingertips.

“Can you tell me how you got some of these one day?”

Angron grunts.

“The arena, most of them. I killed anyone who struck me. They are nothing but sand now.”

Your face drops. Sometimes you forget that Angron has never felt anything but pain his entire life. And it’ll continue, as the nails will never be removed. What little you can do to them only serves to prolong what he feels. Your fingers brush over more of his mauled skin.

One might call it cruel. But you want him to have at least a few moments of peace in his life.

Your fingertips brush along the scarred skin around where the nails dig into his skull, glancing at his expression. It’s softened ever so slightly, but you can see anger still etched into his skin.

You don’t know how you went from the brain hijacking, heart wrenching terror, to feeling this way. Part of you will still always remain frightened of him; Of the sheer strength he can barely keep in check in the best of moments, that is always boiling beneath the surface. But there’s something that over time has gradually fallen over that terror like a thick heavy curtain draped atop a coffin.

You love him.

In a way that makes you sick to your stomach, churning in a way that has you petrified to be near him, but also away from him.

You can’t say that he’s been kind. You’d be stupid to even assume as such; Even with the key you hold, he’s still him. His grip on you is rough- your body has bruises from shoulder to wrist, he speaks to you in short quips. He uses more words now, but he still will never reflect back whatever you give him. You can see the moments where he tries, but he simply isn’t capable of it. You can’t ask a man who’s known nothing but endless pain and suffering to suddenly not rip and tear every hand that reaches for him. But you can maybe numb it- put bandages over gushing wounds and cover scars, trying to give a modicum of kindness before he’s sunken down too deep into his own abyss.

You can feel him watch you as your hands touch his face, his brow is tight knit and his armor makes soft metal noises as pieces gently knock against each other when he shifts. The hand that had been on your shoulder has long since moved, it now wraps around your elbow instead; As if he’s debating removing you.

You hold a softness in your eyes reserved for the closeness of family, friends, or lovers. He’s so rarely seen it that recognizing it was nearly impossible for him. But you look at him like that, like he’s the only thing in your world that matters. Your hands touch his face so gently he swears he can’t feel them. Like they would fall right through him as if attempting to touch a hologram.

How?

Angron doesn't understand why. He isn’t something you can love. There’s just, nothing in him capable of receiving or reciprocating it. He’s done nothing but kill, tear, maim, splatter every wall he’s near with the blood of others or his own.

To be the object of another’s affection is a laughable concept. He’s a creature, a creation of war; Lorgar likes to call the Primarchs the product of the Emperor’s Mastery, his sons, as much as the phrase makes bile rise in his throat- but Angron knows he’s nothing but a pieced together amalgamation of DNA made to fulfill a purpose. He was not made to feel any of this.

You kiss him.

You feel his hot breath on your face, his hands clenching into fists and threatening to dent the ceramite of his armor. He tries to funnel his anger there; His anger at the galaxy, at the Emperor, at the thought that you actually are stupid enough to think there’s something in him worthy of paying this level of gentleness to. He’s never felt things like this before. He’d never wanted to; Because he knows that the pain of it being taken away hurts far worse than the pain of never feeling it to begin with.

His face is rough as he pushes back into you, and you feel pleased to know that you didn’t overstep. He hears your soft sigh as you lean into him, hands still on his face.

But Angron knows there will be a point where you can numb it no longer. The nails are a part of him, an ever growing sea pulling him deeper and deeper into a blood red abyss. It drags him down no matter how hard he fights it, with no hope of safety or even temporary sanctuary.

When he’s fully under, when he can no longer see ally from foe and your face and touch and voice becomes no more soothing to him than the likes of any incomprehensible field of demons yearning for his blade to slice their hide, as his nails scream and bite and beg for him to taste blood;

He dares to hope only then will someone fulfill his role of taking anger unto themself, and put him out of his torment.

#angron x reader #primarch x reader #warhammer 40k x reader #Angron/Reader #wh40kcrack #reader insert #reader #mywriting

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lynzishell · 2 months ago

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Prev // Next

Transcript below the cut:

[knock knock]

Atlas: It’s open!

Aspen: Tonton! Phoenix: She’s obsessed with that word now, so I’m pretty sure that’s just your name for the foreseeable future. Atlas: Better than ‘Asses’.

Dawn: I’m so happy to see you. Where’s Ash? How is he doing? Atlas: He’s okay. He’s taking a minute upstairs. I was just about to go check on him.

Aspen: Can I play? Spencer: Sure!

Atlas: Ash? Asher: Yeah.

Atlas: Well, this is new. Asher: What is? Atlas: You being the one to sneak away.

Asher: Now I know why you do it so often. It’s peaceful. Atlas: Yeah, it is. Dinner will be ready soon, but we have a few minutes. Can I join you? Asher: Sure.

Asher: We need to get a bigger apartment. Atlas: We do?

Asher: Yeah. I can’t keep using my parents’ house as storage, and it would be nice to be able to have all my stuff in one place. And if we’re serious about this company and this game, then we’ll need room to work. And you know that one day, when I’m ready, I’m gonna want to get another dog.

Atlas: I figured.

Asher: Jasper only lived here because this was his home, and I wasn’t going to downsize him to an apartment. But I will want the next one to live with us, and we can’t have that where we are now. Atlas: [lets out an exaggerated sigh… only half joking] You’re going to let that dog all over the furniture, aren’t you? Asher: You know it. On the sofa, even sleeping in our bed. You’re gonna hate it. Atlas: [breathes a laugh through his nose] Can’t wait.

Atlas: So, is this what you’ve been thinking about the whole time you’ve been up here? A new apartment? Asher: [shrugs] Kinda. It’s the only thing that keeps me from spiraling. Atlas: Spiraling about what?

Asher: [sighs] I just… I feel awful. I should’ve been here. I don’t know if he was in pain or scared. I should’ve been with him, to comfort him. He needed me, and I wasn’t here, and now he’s gone. [voice cracks] And I miss him so much.

Atlas: I know. Come here.

[knock at the door] Megan: Everything okay? Asher: Yeah. Fine. Megan: Dinner’s ready if you want to come down. Asher: We’ll be right there.

Asher: Fuck. [sniffles and wipes his eyes and nose with his sleeve] Okay, we should go. Atlas: Listen, if you want to hold off on the announcement— Asher: No. I don’t want to do that. It would feel like we’re keeping it secret or something. Besides, it will be nice to have something happy to celebrate.

Atlas: Okay. Let’s do it, then.

#tw pet death mention #ts4 #ts4 simblr #ts4 story #sims 4 #sims 4 storytelling #the goode life #sims 4 challenge #starsignchallenge #starsignlegacychallenge #gen1 aries #aries pt5 #atlas goode #asher goode #phoenix realta #dawn realta #aspen realta #spencer goode #megan goode

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jokeroutsubs · 21 days ago

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[ENG SUB] 🎈Birthday special🍰 Bojan Cvjetićanin and Jan Peteh for Radio Sora (07.11.2024)

On the 7th of November 2024, Jan and Bojan were interviewed by Radio Sora. They talked about what they achieved in 2024, signing up with a booking agency, working with producer Žare Pak, the tour offers from Australia and New York and the importance of being vocal about what’s happening in the world.

They also played 'Bluza' live and at the end recorded a sweet message for new year!

youtube

Transcript by X coffeebiscuitxx and drumbeat, translation by drumbeat and @chaosofsmarty, review by drumbeat and IG 10_anja, proofread by X klámstrákur and IG Gboleyn123, subtitles by drumbeat and IG marija_rocen. Slovene proofreading by X coffeebiscuitxx.

Transcript below the cut! 👇

Host: Good morning. The show 'Sveže Praženo' ('Freshly Roasted') is back on the air. Just like every Thursday, we’re serving fresh music, but only the kind of music that’s seriously captivating. And if I can be a bit kitschy right now the most global Slovenian band, Joker Out. Joining me in the studio are Bojan and Jan. Even though an early hour is a Slovenian musicians' nemesis, you two look pretty good for just a bit past eight.

Bojan: Good morning. Thank you very much for the lovely compliment.

Jan: Good morning.

Bojan: You don’t look shabby yourself. Yeah, great introduction, thank you so much. It seems to me, though, there... that this title should really go to Laibach.

[inaudible] bands? Why Laibach?

Bojan: Well, the most global, right?

Aha, okay, okay. If we’re talking about the present, though...

Bojan: But you said you’d be overly sweet, so yeah, I accept it.

Yeah.

Bojan: It's us.

I drink coffee without sugar, so now I have to sweeten this interview. The first one was 'Everybody's Waiting', everyone is waiting to shine, but once we shine, we get overwhelmed with unease, anxiety, we yearn for peace, searching for a lighthouse, to guide us back to normalcy. Now I want to know where you are, where Joker Out is, where you both are, if we separate the private from the band? You've been shining, you went abroad, made it abroad as well. And then, as you say in this song, when you get into the limelight, the pressure gets to you, and you start longing for the peace you had before. Can you find it? Maybe start with Bojan.

Bojan: I’d say yes... yes, you can... you can find peace. But you have to reconcile with a few things first, let's say, reflect on the things happening around you. At first glance, everything seems really, I'd say, enormous, like a wave that will sweep you away. But then you realize you’ve got a surfboard, and you are able to ride that wave. To refer to...

Portugal.

Bojan: Right, yeah, referring to... to our conversation before recording started.

Well, by the way, he was on vacation, in Portugal, and surfing. Everyone assumed he was...

Bojan: I was just watching, I was watching, watching the surfers.

Just watching?

Bojan: Yeah, I didn’t surf.

Oh, okay. But they thought you were a pro, and then you said you’re a pro somewhere else, but not in surfing, right?

Bojan: Yeah.

Well, let’s get back to the first...

Bojan: Let’s move forward. Anyway... yeah, a lot of new feelings awaken in you when things start happening on such an unexpectedly large scale. A lot of fears you weren’t aware of emerge, a lot of doubts you didn’t know you had also... also surface. And in a short span of time,under great pressure, you have to deal with it all, and you... you manage. And... I don't know? It seems to me that this album is a reflection of a very turbulent period for us, practically a year and a half since we made 'Carpe Diem' and went to Eurovision. It will also be evident in the music that a lot of different things were going on in our heads during this time.

That’s just it. At the beginning of the year, you went to the UK, went for a Queen-style retreat, well, if we're... I try to refer to Queen, who also needed a break to create in peace, right. But you landed there and suddenly found yourself in a foreign environment where you discovered your primal nature. You can hear it in the music, at least in what you’ve released so far, the Balkan nature. Even Stefanovski would be proud of certain riffs.

Jan: Stefanovski, yes.

Maybe... maybe...

Jan: Now you’re... you're really sweet-talking us.

That’s a compliment, isn’t it, for...

Jan: Yes, absolutely.

... for a guitarist?

Jan: It's absolutely a compliment, that’s why I’m saying... Vlatko Stefanovski... one of my favorites.

He is, right?

Jan: At least... at least from this...

I agree. Ehm, so how was it? You got there, what did you do?

Jan: We arrived at a pretty nice... actually, actually at a very nicely organised part of North London. We rented a house where we...

Bojan: A tiny house.

Jan: Yeah, a former stable.

Bojan: A former stable.

Jan: We rented a former stable, which...

That’s even more Queen-like, isn’t it?

Bojan: Yes.

Because they made 'Bohemian Rhapsody' in a stable, right?

Jan: Yes, exactly.

A prettier stable.

Jan: So...

Bojan: And a bigger stable.

Jan: And a bigger stable, right. But yeah, in that stable we lived—both literally and metaphorically, we also... we also rented a rehearsal space under a bridge, it was a damp room where everything was half covered in mold, so...

Bojan: And, by the way, the owner of that space was, by a stroke of luck, an immigrant from Serbia to the UK.

Jan: Yeah, right.

I believe wherever we Slovenes go, in the first pub or house, we meet either a Serb, a Bosnian, or, I don't know, maybe a Kosovar.

Bojan: Or a Croat or just one... one of our own.

A brother.

Bojan: Yeah, a brother.

Jan: Just recently... I was in Paris...

And again.

Jan: As soon, as soon as I landed in Paris, I went for a drink at the first pub I saw, the waiter was Bosnian.

Bojan: Of course.

Jan: Right.

Bojan: You remember Malmö.

Same?

Jan: From Postojna.

Bojan: The hotel waiter was from Postojna.

There you go, at least... at least you get to meet a Slovene everywhere.

Bojan: Yes.

So, we Slovenes are almost a global nation. Anyway, you got there, had the stable, had the place, had...

Jan: We didn’t have any song ideas yet. We tried to come up with them somehow, because, if you... if you want to record ten songs or at least eight, which I think we did, you need to have some ideas before entering the studio. So we tried to use the two months we spent in London to focus on that.

That’s it. I mean, when a musician looks for inspiration, and doesn’t even have one riff ready, what do you do? I mean, if your mind is blank, you go...

Bojan: You go to London.

And party, right.

Bojan: Yeah.

What do you mean, yeah?

Bojan: We didn’t even party that much.

I mean, do you climb a hill or something, do you try falling in love a little bit, and look for inspiration that way? Where did you find inspiration for the first song you created up there? Come on.

Bojan: Yes, the first song was 'Šta bih ja'. I only had 'Šta bih ja u ovoj crnoj noći bez tebe radio' ready, and then everything came together really well with the fact that we were in a foreign city, so I believe that soon after the riff came 'U ovom gradu nemam kuće ni adrese' and 'U ovom gradu nemam nikog koga znam', and then... Damjan Jović told me that once you have the main verse of the song, which already clearly outlines the story, you have the song. He told me once when I said, "Oh, I don’t have the song, I have the story though," and he said, "Then don’t worry, you already have the song." And actually, he’s right. Once you... you have... when you know what you’re going to talk about, you have the song. You just have to put it into words, but you already have the song.

That’s true. I think it was Noel Gallagher who said: "Write the fucking chorus," right.

Bojan: Yes.

And... that’s the essence of the song, right?

Bojan: Yes.

Yeah, then everything else builds around that, the music probably came...

Bojan: Absolutely.

... from all of you, right? Now, if we go back to the beginning, 'Gola' was a real hit, right? I was honestly really into music back then, but I was into different music, drum and bass, but I remember this girl who was always into house music, and every night she’d dance to her playlist and then came this banger 'Gola', right, and she said, "This is really good." The song 'Gola' really propelled you forward, right.

Bojan: Yes, 'Gola'...

Was that the first song you made with Žare, or have you made one prior to it? The first one, right?

Bojan: Yes, actually, it was interesting. I went with Žare to the premiere of a Tabu band film at Kino Bežigrad in 2019, I'd say, that is... in early... in the pre-summer months, I'd say,

That was the early phase of COVID, right?

Bojan: No, no way? That was 2020.

Oh, right.

Bojan: April 2020, March. But I went with... anyway, we and Žare started working on 'Gola' then and we went together to the movie premiere and no one really knew me there, from the people in the music industry. Some people even asked if I was Žare’s son, and then 'Gola' came out, a few months later, in September if I’m not mistaken, and it really took off very quickly...

I think it caught on.

Bojan: Yes, it was a very noticeable leap, suddenly, almost everyone knew, I'd say, at least in this world, what was the most shocking thing for Žare. He said... actually, Žare said that he had never seen such an effect so quickly before.

Yeah. I feel like Žare knows how to remove the ballast, right, and leave just the parts that are essential. But now I need to ask you something I've been told by a lot of people "Žare Pak can be harsh," right. Now Deklevc, Peter Dekleva, told me what he was like with Polonca. But Polonca was a bit of a diva, so he had to ground her a bit. I've heard a story though, that you showed up to sing, right, and he told you, "Come on, Bojč, go home and study a bit more."

Bojan: Yes.

Is this true?

Bojan: He didn’t say, "Go home and study a bit more." but I came to the studio to sing 'Gola', and he stopped me after, that is, I hadn’t even finished singing 'Zimsko jutro hladno gre skoz mene'. I mean, I sang it, and he already stopped me, gave me maybe two tries, then he asked, "How do you say 'zimsko'?" I said, "Zimsko." "No, 'zimsko'." "Yes, 'zimsko'." "No, 'zimsko', 'zimsko'. The word 'zimsko', you know i' [pronounces with a long 'i'], not i' [pronounces with a short 'i']. Articulation." Anyway, I was recording that vocal part for probably about a month, maybe even a bit more. In between, when I... Sometimes I stepped in front of the microphone, after two seconds he’d send me home. Until the day I came home and started listening...

To yourself.

Bojan: ... to myself. and he also told me to stop singing, but to tell the story that I was singing. And after that whole grueling process, I cried at home once under the shower, literally, and listened to what was going on, and started discovering how the shower vibrates differently if I...

Sing differently.

Bojan: ... sing differently, so I came back the next day to the studio and sang the whole song. He let me do the whole take. And I was like, "Okay, this is it, right, I... I recorded it, right." Then I came out and asked, "So, how was it?" And he said, "It was a mess... But now at least you know what you’re singing."

Yeah, yeah. How much does Žare... how much leeway does he have? I know that when a producer begins working with a band... I know that back then you were young, a blank canvas, he really shaped you and you created something extraordinary together, like the song 'Gola' and all the other songs that followed. But now you know a thing or two, right, about the music industry about how songs are made. Do you still, when he tries to refine the songs, do you let him or do you go: "Whoa, whoa, whoa"? Or basically... do you just cooperate together in a...

Jan: I think he...

… symbiotic way?

Jan: ... still has a very apparent influence... still on us. For instance, with 'Šta bih ja,' we came to Hamburg to the studio on the first day. We had been playing the song during the whole of the March tour, which was, I believe 21 concerts.

Across Europe, right?

Jan: Across the whole of Europe, yes. We came to the studio thinking, "We’ve got this song," right, we’d been playing it for a month now. We got to the studio, started playing, Žare was about to have a nervous breakdown or something... I don’t know exactly what his initial reaction was, but... but it was...

What... was it too much guitar?

Jan: No, it wasn’t too much guitar.

Bojan: Not enough song.

Jan: Not enough song. So, we do know something, but we do... he's still an important... important part.

The producer, right. Now, before we get to the music, if I can summarise: you finished the European tour, you sold out the vinyl from the sold-out Stožice arena, which was also a leap forward. You played at Križanke, sold out, moved to Stožice, sold out, and as far as I’ve heard, also the concerts on the European tour – most were sold out, right? Is that right? Those were... what, concerts the size of...?

Bojan: Mostly concerts the size of Cvetličarna or Štuk.

The best.

Bojan: Yes.

So, around 1000 people, right?

Bojan: Exactly.

Yeah, yeah. Then you signed a contract with an agency.

Bojan: Yeah.

What does that mean?

Bojan: Well, yes, I mean we signed a contract with an agency, but in reality, we signed a deal with booking agent Ryan Penty, who is a British booking agent, working for this big global booking company Wasserman, which handles from Coldplay onwards...

Jan: NBA players.

Bojan: NBA players are on their roster, yes, totally, because they deal with bookings and being agents not just in the music industry but across different industries.

Oh, okay.

Bojan: But, to sum up, Ryan is the booker for Lewis Capaldi, whom we also met in England, as he came to our gig in London. And at that time Ryan said it was amazing, because he came to the gig and expressed interest in working together, so we had an online meeting. We confirmed the collaboration and since then, we’ve been very, very satisfied with his work, as he operates at a top professional level. He's completely eliminated any doubts one might have, such as: "This is someone in England working with big names, will he take time for us? Will it mean anything to him?" Actually he’s constantly in touch with us, makes time for meetings, he's proactive, so we're really very, very happy with Ryan.

Exactly. In Finland, you received a gold record for the single 'Carpe Diem', and last year, it was the most-played domestic song back at home. Then there was Sziget, Exit...

Bojan: Ruisrock.

Ruisrock.

Bojan: Ruisrock.

Yes, I mean, when you perform at Sziget and Exit and that other festival, which sounds pretty big, the only thing left is Glastonbury, right?

Bojan: Yeah, English festivals are really hard to get into. Namely, British organisers truly prefer local acts, which is such a nice mindset, I'd say, and it’s something to appreciate, right, because they have a lot of talent and musicians there, so of course, the big names come from all over the world, but for that minor league and middle league...

They prioritise locals for that?

Bojan: They prefer local acts, so it’s a bit harder to break in, but we absolutely hope that we’ll somehow...

Yeah, but my friend was at Sziget and said... what was it, it was just after the storm, right, was it right after the storm?

Bojan: Probably the day before, if at all.

Oh, that’s how it was. And it was comfortably hot, but when you’re on the big stage and the audience doesn’t know you, of course the Slovenian audience knows you, the main thing is to draw people to the concert, right, and you managed to do that, which means that... that the music works, even abroad, despite having to break the language barrier.

Bojan: Yeah, festivals are a bit weird, because the reactions are so diverse. For instance, when we arrived at Exit, we had practically 20,000 people singing along, right. At Ruisrock in Finland, we had a packed stage half an hour before midnight when we started playing... which is basically in broad daylight, because in the summer, the sun never sets down there, but the energy was truly, truly insane. When you hear 7,000 Finns singing during the entire concert, it’s insane.

Finns singing in Slovenian.

Bojan: Absolutely.

Jan: Yes.

Amazing.

Jan: It’s quite a phenomenon.

Can they manage 'č', 'ž', 'š'?

Bojan: Full throttle.

Jan: A bit softer, like 'š', 'š' [pronouncing soft 'š'].

Bojan: When they’re together, you can't hear the difference.

Jan: No, no.

The best.

Bojan: Romania.

Jan: Romanians.

Bojan: Insane. Like, there were a few of those. Poland...

Wow.

Bojan: So I forgot what I was talking about, but it was really great.

We touched on festivals, we moved on to more local concerts, but now... let’s play a bit of music to take a break. 'Šta bih ja,' as already mentioned, you can feel a nice Balkan musical theme here... Stefanovski for a guitarist...

Jan: Vlatko Stefanovski, yeah.

But actually, I leaned more to 'Suada' by Plavi orkestar. I know Saša was still a teenager at that time, and it really launched him, in a way, as well.

Bojan: Yeah.

To the starry skies of Balkan. It happened to you too, but yes, it's about a long-distance love, you were heading to UK, as we’ve already mentioned. As Bojan describes in the song - well, you all describe it... lonesome strangers, searching for love on the streets of London at night like musical streetwalkers.

Bojan: Yeah, that’s exactly who we are, musical streetwalkers.

Here we go, a music break, and back to the 'Sveže praženo' show.

'Šta bih ja' and Joker Out, in the early hours, on air at Radio Sora, with me in the studio are Bojan and Jan. We’ve already discussed where they’ve been, what they’ve done, where they sold out, now let’s move on to questions we've all been wondering about. Your colleagues and musician friends listen, they talk proudly about the Jokers, this is hearsay, I may be exaggerating a bit, but nevertheless, I’ve heard all of this, now tell us what you can: Australian tour, New York, opening act for Kings of Leon next year on the European tour.

Jan: What... what would we choose from all of that?

No, what of it is true.

Bojan: What of it is true. Yeah, it’s true that we had two offers for the Australian tour. We should have played in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne. We turned both offers down, because timewise and planwise they just didn't fit into the bigger picture. We hope, of course, we get to go one day, but the timing really wasn't right this time. Actually, if I’m not mistaken, right now we should have been in Australia, and that would mean we couldn’t be on 'Sveže praženo', and that would be awful.

Here we go, Škofja Loka, that’s how... that’s how cool we are.

Bojan: Absolutely.

Thanks, Bojan.

Bojan: New York - we also had a confirmation for a concert at Mercury Lounge, but unfortunately, we sealed the deal a bit too late, to obtain the work visas for performing in New York in time, because our musician friends, both Slovenian and two British, warned us that they can reject your entry at the border without a work visa, or even give you a ban on entering the USA for a year, which is what one of our colleagues got for five years, if I’m not mistaken.

Jan: Mhm.

A musical colleague?

Bojan: A musical colleague from... actually from Northern Ireland. So yeah, we didn’t manage to pull it off in time, unfortunately, and we couldn’t go to New York. But I believe that one day we’ll go, because based on the statistics we have about our listeners, we can see that we actually have a pretty good number of listeners in the USA. New York, is a bit of an epicenter, I think there are about 12,000 active listeners, which is... pretty solid. I mean, for one show, it should be enough, right.

And New York is also a great gateway to the rest of America, right.

Jan: Kings of Leon still haven’t called us though.

Bojan: Kings of Leon haven’t called us, I don’t know which... who started that rumor.

Isn’t it interesting in a way? I heard it from two different sources, but hey, maybe now we’ve wished on a little star, and they’ll hear it.

Jan: Because Kings of Leon will be listening to...

Bojan: 'Šta bih ja'?

Jan: Yeah.

Bojan: Can you imagine if Kings of Leon are now listening to 'Sveže praženo'?

Jan: Yeah, sure.

Crazy. And they don’t understand a word, but...

Bojan: But they totally love it.

Totally, yeah. With everything...

Bojan: When Kings of Leon heard [inaudible].

I'm curious about this: last time... last time I caught you, actually you and Kris, at Gušti's gig. At the end he was quite blown away because time really flies, and when you're young you don't realise you're living in the spring of your life. Fed Horses actually sang that, but it's a good point. Do you ever say to yourselves, or do you two ever say to yourselves, when you're with the band after a good gig: "Darn, that's it. Let's stop a bit and take in the moment, let's breathe a little, so everything doesn't... pass too quickly."

Bojan: I'd say that this decision, to present the album only in the area of, let's say, the Balkans, and on smaller stages, is sort of that kind of moment. The big question was "what do we do now?" Last year we did Stožice, blah, blah, blah, blah. And we had, I think, the best time at Cvetličarna, when we were presenting our first album - we really really enjoyed it. You're close to the fans, there's just enough of them so it's not a small space, and there's just too little of them to make it feel detached, so...

Do tell, the first one is sold out...

Bojan: Oh, yeah.

... at Cvetličarna, a bit of promo.

Bojan: Yes, Cvetličarna was sold out, the first one.

On the twenty-second.

Bojan: That's right. And we added the 23rd of November and I think there's about a third of the tickets left, so around 500. And now I want to say that out loud again, because so many people keep messaging me, because they've only seen the first one and it sold out, but they haven't...

Gotten to the other...

Bojan: Gotten to the other information, so we've added another concert.

The 23rd of November in Cvetličarna. Whoever wants to join a Balkan tour with you, they can catch you... No, Belgrade is sold out, of course.

Bojan: Yes, Belgrade is sold out. They can catch us in Zagreb, which is on the 3rd of December at Tvornica Kulture.

Good venue.

Bojan: Very good venue.Last year we played there twiceand it's really awesome.So there, too, there'sabout a third of the tickets left.They can catch us... I don't knowabout Novi Sad, I think they...

Jan: Novi Sad is the 26th of November.

Bojan: On the 26th of November they can catch us in Novi Sad.

Jan: And in Maribor, of course.

Bojan: Oh.

Jan: At Štuk.

Bojan: Štuk.

Jan: On the 6th of December.

There, we've listed a few dates now.

Bojan: And in Vienna.

Well, if we go a bit northern.

Jan: Or in Skopje.

Or in Skopje. If you'd prefer going to the South. Tell me this, too: a band has to be critical to all the crap happening in the world, right, but sometimes you get the feeling that today, because of all this information and because of the fact that a certain bit of information, which stands out, quickly spreads across all media, right... a lot of bands are quite careful here, because you can quickly offend someone. You also touched on the topic of Palestine in one of the upcoming singles, right?

Bojan: Yes, the album will have the single 'Sonce', which was this very direct... very direct reflection of how I experienced everything that was going on. A lot of... Really this sort of information bombing on a daily basis in terms of everything, but yes, these wars that've started all over and are sort of passing by like trends, and we all follow them, while at the same time we're booking dinners, searching what to buy ourselves with the biggest discounts possible online, and watc... well really this...

Instant.

Bojan: We're living an interesting double life. One moment, we're looking at the number of...

Casualties, right?

Bojan: how many... how many people died somewhere for totally no reason and people whose literal basic human rights are being violated. On the other hand we still have our comfort and our luxury, right?

Yes, and as a musician you can do something, get the word out about it. Have a sort of power, actually, do you have it?

Bojan: I don't know. Given that musicians have always sung about war, right, if... if Lennon's 'Imagine' didn't do anything, then I doubt Joker Out's 'Sonce' will manage to achieve something, but for those few, who listen it might change...

Or send them to the streets.

Bojan: I hope so. Yes.

Who knows?

Bojan: So yeah, there will be... there are two songs on the album, which are a reflection of these times, I'd say. Even 'Carpe Diem' really already pointed towards it. A lot of people heard just "We'll dance all night long We'll love each other and play," and not the whole lyrics, but thissong was actually the start of it.

Politically tinged.

Bojan: That's right.

Yes. Now, before finally moving onto the album, and finish this conversation and you play 'Bluza' live... What are your personalities like? Do you have little boxes with checkmarks, or do you simply set goals as you go? Or, as dad said, you're the happiest when you set on a road to a goal, when you reach the goal you immediately have to set your next one, so you don't get lazy.

Jan: I'd say that more from... when I freestyle life a bit more, a bit like... Yeah, exactly that, right, when you get to a goal, you know... what's coming next.

You know? Or do you just wish?

Jan: Yes, I think you know, what your next step is, or at least I do. Okay, of course I also have... some general goals in life, but I don't know, I don't plan out everyday tasks.

No, not that. But in general you have... you know what you want in private, in public, in the band, right?

Jan: Yes.

Yes. Bojan?

Bojan: I'd say that this year I've accomplished all the goals I've had in the bigger picture, when it comes to my musical endeavours. We really got much further than I'd dared hope when we... when we were starting this journey, so actually these goals now become more of this sort of, how to say, sort of achieving an inner satisfaction. You see the enjoyment in the future, that you'll be able to achieve more than a sort of goal. I don't know, it's.. that's about how I imagine that.

Jan: Well, maybe that's how it's always been.

Bojan: Oh? I don't know? I'm not sure. I sort of don't have this pressure... I won't be sad, even if I don't achieve anything else. That's how I'll put it.

Good. I hope we all someday reach that. Now... every time I have an interview, it's actually better to get to know the personality of the singer or the guitarist or whoever comes, right, because everyone knows the music. And when a 15-year-old, a 25-year-old, a 45-year-old listen to your song, they create their own picture of the singer and band in general, right, and sometimes ideals are created. But when they listen to the voice, the conversation, the personality, they actually feel the... the person more. How much do you present yourselves on a silver platter after the concert? Because (female) fans are probably there, right? Well, they certainly exist.

Jan: They exist.

They exist. Do you have a certain ritual after... after the concert, first as a band, and then how much do you let the fans in, or are you actually fed up with this sphere and just want peace and quiet?

Bojan: No, generally... generally after a concert it's nice to calm down for a few minutes, change clothes and shower, if we can, or shower and then change. Now, not every concert is the same, in terms of the conditions to meet and greet fans. Sometimes we're in a hurry to our next stop, like if we're on tour and there's a 12, 14-hour journey by bus in front of us, we have to pack up and leave really quickly. But sometimes... time allows us to, so I think we've hung out with the fans quite a lot so far. Sometimes we unfortunately have to make a break, and say we can't do it, because there's clearly too many people, who we wouldn't even be able to control, and often people find it hard to understand, but it's genuinely not a safe situation, with that many people piled together, who can't be... We don't exactly have superpowers, to be able to...

Everyone...

Bojan: Everyone... to handle everyone. But when we're able to, we're always, we're always available. So I'd say, especially after talking to some other musicians, that we've spent a lot of time with fans, especially on the tours in winter, when it's -8 °C outside after the gig, an hour or two have passed after the concert outside, so...

Bojan and Jan are giving me their autographs for my children today, but whoever wants to, can come here and can copy it, there.

Bojan: Absolutely.

For the ending, let's... we've said, again, November 22nd in Cvetličarna is sold out, November 23rd is still available, afterwards you can catch them in Štuk or on their Balkan tour. The album is coming on the 15th of November.

Bojan: Yes.

That's the correct date?

Bojan: That's it.

Jan: It is.

You've mentioned ten songs.

Bojan: That's true.

Ten songs. We know four so far.

Bojan: That's right.

'Everybody's Waiting', 'Sunny Side of London', 'Šta bih ja' and 'Bluza'.

Bojan: No, actually it's 'Carpe Diem', 'Everybody's Waiting'...

Aha, 'Carpe Diem'.

Bojan: ... 'Šta bih ja' and 'Bluza'. 'Sunny Side of London' isn't on the album.

Oh, I see, I see. So there's six entirely new songs coming. Now, you'll be playing 'Bluza' today, if you'll want to hear the next single, is that from the 15th of November onwards, or is there more coming before that?

Jan: Let's keep that a secret.

There, we're being secretive. Now, thank you for visiting this studio.

Bojan: Thank you.

I've got to admit, we were waking up together. Darn, I need quite a few hours to put myself together, I don't know how you two handle these early, early hours?

Bojan: Beautifully.

Beautifully. But do you go to bed early? Do you actually...

Bojan: Early in the morning.

Jan: Yes, early, yes, at about four AM...

Bojan: We go to bed early in the morning.

But the album is already now... the difficult things are done and now you can reap the pleasant part, right?

Bojan: That's true.

Yeah. Bojan, Jan, thank you for your visit. Now you'll play something live, too: 'Bluza' Now everyone, who'll hear 'Bluza' and Joker Out, will say: "Yeah, these guys really love to open and unbutton their blouses" but actually I interpret this song as more of like we sometimes close a button too much, and then you feel short of breath in life.

Bojan: Interesting, because the title 'Bluza' actually doesn't have any connection to a blouse as a shirt.

It doesn't?

Bojan: In the song it's 'ja u ritmu tvoga bluza'...

Oh.

Bojan: And the song's title is 'Bluza', but other than that it doesn't have any blouses in it.

I see.

Bojan: But there is the blues.

There is the blues. Have a nice day, and see you next time in the show 'Sveže praženo'.

Bojan: Woohoo!

Jan: Same to you, thank you.

Live playing of ‘Bluza’

Extra clip at the end with Bojan and Jan:

Jan: Hi.

Bojan: Hi, hi. In the name of the band Joker Out, we wish you a love, peace and health filled 2025. We hope to see you soon.

Jan: Happy new year.

Bojan: Bye bye!

#joker out #jokeroutsubs #bojan cvjetićanin #bojan cvjeticanin #jan peteh #Youtube #type: video #type: transcript #source: radio sora #year: 2024 #jo: bojan&jan #og language: slovenian #og captions: slovenian

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veinsfullofstars · 11 months ago

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“What? I never said knighthood was easy.”

(ID: Kirby series fanart comic of young Dedede and Meta sitting side by side on a circle of grass, having a conversation about leadership and the future. Transcript below the cut. END ID.)

More childhood friends AU. Guess I’m on a role right now. Too many ideas, not enough time!

Started 10/10/23, finished 10/12/23, updated 03/11/24, updated for color correction 11/02/24. NOTE: This was originally posted on my deleted account on 10/12/23. | Childhood Friends AU Masterpost

---

Transcript:

Panel 1

Dedede: *sitting grumpily* Hmph! Stupid Ms. Squishy and her stupid group projects. Who does she think she is callin’ me a bad leader?

Meta: *gazing lazily skyward* Well, you did kinda make the other kids do all the work for you, so…

Panel 2

Dedede: *holds arms out in exasperation* Hey, it got done, didn’t it? That’s already better than, like, half the class - they didn’t even finish their dioramas! We’d’ve flunked for sure if it weren’t for my excellent direction! And my awesome ideas!

Meta: Didn’t you get a C, anyway?

Panel 3

Dedede: *holds arm up confidently* You’ll see, Meta! Once I’m big and strong enough, I’m gonna be the best leader this town’s ever seen! No - better! I’ll be the King of Dream Land itself!

Meta: *looks uncertain* “King”? Hmm. I dunno, Dee. Sounds like a lot of work. (And you and work don’t exactly get along great…)

Panel 4

Dedede: *arms behind head, eyes shut, confident* Psh! Nah, bein’ King’s easy! All ya gotta do is sit on a throne and look regal all day! It’ll be a breeze, ‘specially since I’ll have you as my first knight.

Meta: *turns sharply to face Dedede, tiny wings perked up in surprise* Wh- Me?? A knight?

Panel 5

Dedede: *smiling and winking at Meta* Uh, duh! I mean, who else would I trust to keep me safe while I rule? Only someone as strong and cool and brave as me, that’s who!

Meta: *smiles and hides bashfully behind his hands, little wings curled around him* O-Oh… Uh, heh. Well, when you put it that way… (He think’s I’m brave?)

Panel 6

Meta: *looks skeptically at Dedede* Wait. If being King’s so easy, then what would I need to keep you safe from?

Dedede: *staring skyward with a straight face* Assassins, mostly.

Panel 7

Meta: *sweating, wings drooping, eyes shrunken in fear* …

#veins art #veins fanart #kirby series #kirby #king dedede #meta knight #AU #childhood friends au #friendship #comic #I love grumpy baby DDD the most #veinsfullofstars

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mumms-the-word · 2 months ago

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Love Letters from Wyll Ravengard

to the love of his life, no matter the universe

Just a little gift for the amazing, the talented, the beautiful, the stunning @callmethebrightness on her birthday <3 Happy Birthday friend!!

Transcripts under the cut!

A Letter in the Hells

My darling Bennie,

You would laugh at me, trying to write a letter to you in the bare scraps of time we have between battles, when you are no more than an arm’s length away from me at all hours of these hellish days. I can hear you now, your laughter like a lark’s song as you remind me that whatever I have to say, I can just say.

But there is something romantic about a love letter, even one written while one’s partner lays asleep at their side. Letters are light, easy to carry. They don’t weigh you down, and whenever you find yourself needing a little spark of joy, you can reread them at your leisure. Perfect for the Hells, if anything can be perfect in the Hells.

Ah, but there is one perfect thing in the Hells and that, my love, is you. You would protest if I said it out loud, but it’s in writing now. That makes it true.

But how does one praise or describe perfection in so brief a letter? I could spend pages lauding your beauty, your strength, your cheerfulness, your battle prowess, and more. Shall I tell you, again, how I love the spun gold of your hair, like golden fields of wheat? How your eyes call to mind the blue of the sky and the sea, calling me home time and again? Shall I once more extol the constellations I find in the freckles on your cheek, the hidden galaxies on your shoulders and your back? Or shall I write another sonnet to your damask rose lips, sweeter than anything found in all the realms? And all that, just for your beauty.

As for your skill, your bravery, your kindness, everything that makes you the brilliantly shining Bennie I love so much, well…we would be here for a while. I could write whole sagas about the beasts you’ve felled in the Hells alone, how you burn brighter than the sun when you raise your sword to strike down another devil. However much I may pride myself for playing a hero, I know that the woman at my side has me beat in every single category.

One day I will find the time to write it all down. Every love letter, every poem, every song, every tale of adventure, all stitched together in a beautiful leather-bound volume, my gift to you when we’re old and gray. And even then, it would still only show a fraction of the love I feel for you. I will never truly understand how or why the hand of Fate saw fit to bring us together, but I thank my lucky stars every morning for another day at your side.

I’ve said it before and I will say it again, every day for the rest of my life—I love you, Benjamina Grey. You are my yesterday, my today, and my tomorrow. My lover, my legend, my love for life. These Hells will not be our home forever. But wherever you are, I’m home.

Yours forever,

Wyll

~*~*~*~*~*~

A Letter on the Grand Duke’s Desk

My darling Bennie,

I can hardly believe that tomorrow will be our first wedding anniversary. It seems like only yesterday we stumbled across each other in that wilderness outside the druids’ grove, illithid tadpoles squirming around in our skulls. Now, we lay in comfort in a palatial suite in Baldur’s Gate, husband and wife, doing what we can to rebuild the city we both love so much. It’s hardly the fairy tale we envisioned that night I proposed beside the Wilden Oak, and yet, if our time together were an hourglass, I wouldn’t trade away a single grain of sand.

Of all the happy memories we’ve made together over the last year and a half, the night we married will always be my favorite. That night, the sky lit up with fireworks in every color, glittering like a million extra stars in the sky. Whenever I look at you, I’m brought back to that night once more. Gazing at you, it’s as though I’m showered again in glitter and gold, the passionate thrum of music in my ears, swelling within my chest until I could burst out in song in praise of you, my beautiful wife. Don’t worry, I will refrain from writing yet another poem about you, my love…at least for tonight.

But what kind of husband would I be if I didn’t sing your praises just a little? I should try to find new words, something I haven’t already said before, but there aren’t enough words in any language to fully capture the beauty, strength, kindness, and bravery I see in you. You tackle the trials of this city with the same cheerfulness, passion, and determination you possess when fighting off bandits and mind flayers. There’s nothing in this world that can bring you down, my love, and Baldur’s Gate is a better city simply for having you in it.

As for me, I know that I’m a better man because of you, and I strive to become better still.

Courage, justice, insight, strategy, these are the tenants my father taught me. But love, compassion, joy, mercy, these are the virtues you instill in me every day, simply by living them out yourself. I have never met a woman quite like you, my darling, and I will never meet your equal. You are more precious to me than one hundred Baldur’s Gates. If I said this past year with you has been the best of my life, even with all the ups and downs, it would be a woefully sorry understatement. This past year with you has been more than I could ever dream. You promised me today, tomorrow, and forever. With your hand always in mine, I know that tomorrow and forever will be brighter and brighter still.

I love you, Benjamina Ravengard. Happy anniversary! Here’s to one year together, and a hundred more in our future.

Always yours forever,

Wyll

#i love birthdayssss #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #wyll ravengard #wyll x tav #other tavs #bennie grey

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nexility-sims · 11 months ago

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𝐍𝐎. 𝟓 ❛ 𝐝𝐨𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 ❜ | LEONOR'S APARTMENT, MID MARCH 1991

❧ 𝐝𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 / 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 / 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 / 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭.

❛ After the meeting with Beatriz, Leonor spent the intervening time at home. Others had eagerly launched themselves back into the world as the mourning period ended. The isolation, the quiet, the total stillness had, at some point, mutated from a comfort to a burden. This hadn’t been the case for Leonor. She reemerged at the appointed time to find everything changed. Yet, the world continued to spin, and that fact left her overwhelmed and overexposed. Retreat to the protective embrace of home required no decision on her part. It wasn’t that her space brought any sort of peace or rest so much as that it was private. Privacy is what she craved; her sanity hinged on it, she quickly came to believe, as soon as the flashing and shouting inherent to public life fell upon her once more. That, too, had changed. Although dulled by the haze that grief had settled on her mind, the new intensity was undeniable. Listless and alienated from what—from who—had once been familiar, Leonor behaved as if it were still deep winter rather than the cusp of spring. She hibernated. Reality intruded nonetheless, springing forth like leaks in a ship.

❧ thank you to @crownsofesha for miss kore whom i love !!!! it’s been months and months but here she is 💅 also, okay, i fibbed, because i remembered that we have one more scene before the party starts (which, actually, i’m excited about), BUT ... i’m so happy to see miss leonor hanging out with a friend, looking hydrated and moisturized, reluctantly makings PLANS !!!!!! (oh, and, i didn't really decide what leonor's playing in the beginning, but let's say it's something like the platters.)

𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐭 ↓

TRANSCRIPT:

{Record music playing}

{Door opening, muffled conversation}

[V] My princess, do you—

[L] I’ll take it from here, Vita. Hi Kore.

[K] Brought you something.

[K] It’s not strawberry season, but I know you like them.

[L] Sweet of you.

[L] You didn’t have to drop by. It’s a workday. I bet you just left the office. We could’ve made plans over the phone.

[K] The plan I have for you needs to be made in person.

[L] {Chuckles} Uh oh.

[L] A bar? Seriously? You hanging out at a sewage plant is more believable.

[K] {Laughs} Okay, that’s why you have to believe me! It’s the best time I’ve had in a while.

[L] I’m not buying it.

[K] I ended up there on a whim. We were on Oceanside Ave, and Sybil got in an argument with a bouncer—shocker—so we were looking for somewhere to spend another hour or two. Do you remember Carlo? He was driving by and took us there. Don’t know why I agreed. So glad I did. We left at sunrise.

[L] Not my scene, Kor. Definitely not right now.

[K] I’m asking you now for a reason. The atmosphere is good. It’s not rowdy, and there’s no normies. It’s invite-only. Cozy. You’ll know half the people who party there. It’s artsy, in a way. Just one time.

[L] {Sighs.}

[L] We’d be sorting through Mama’s things at the estate the morning after, if I went with you.

[K] Kind of bitchy to save that excuse for last—can’t argue with it!

{Leonor chuckles}

[L] Not what I meant. It feels like a sign. I’ll give it a chance. Even if I don’t like the place, it’ll be good to see everyone again before I have to go—you know, do that.

[K] I agree. And I promise you’re going to have a good time.

[L] A Kore promise? That’s legally binding. Are you sure?

[K] I’m offended you have to ask.

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trans-duckling · 7 months ago

Text

KakaGai Week 2024: Lost words in transcription

Words: 2,207 Pairing: KakaGai Promt: Books A/N: Sorry if you find grammar mistakes, I barely slept today so I'm fairly sure it won't be perfect ^^"

Kakashi’s day began as any other, with a bed full of dogs in the place where his husband should be. That was about right, as Gai still went out at sunrise to train, even if the exercises had to be lighter at almost sixty years old.

Decided to not leave the bedroom until he had his morning kiss, he turned to the side to sink his hands in dog fur. Judging by the tact of it, that morning it was Uhei who had managed to press himself against the Hatake’s side, while the rest had to conform with any other space available, which with nine dogs in total was not a lot.

Years had not only caught up with Gai and him, but also his ninken. They were all retired now —his initial team, at least— and enjoyed a calm life. He knew their joints were getting old; walks had to be shorter and some of them needed help to go back home from time to time. Kakashi tried not to think much about it.

The front door made a strained noise as it was opened and then closed, probably indicating it required some oil in its joints as well. Knowing what was coming next, the Hatake hugged Uhei with his arms and tried to put on a sad face while facing the entrance to the room.

“Rival!” his husband exclaimed loudly. “You’re still in bed?”

It had become some kind of ritual between them. Gai would leave for training and Kakashi wouldn’t get up until he was back and kissed him good morning. The same question was asked every day, and every day the scene repeated itself. It was a rather enjoyable routine.

“I’m still waiting” he pouted.

With a huff, he heard his husband approaching the bed and sensed him bending forwards while avoiding the ninken just to kiss him a second after. They both were in need of a shave, the short hairs on their faces brushing against each other as lips met. It took Uhei about a minute to get tired of being sandwiched in between them and lift his head to separate their mouths.

“Ugh, Uhei, if you wanted a kiss you just had to said so” the Hatake complained even if smiling.

“What I needed was air, boss.”

With the dog still in his arms, Kakashi used the opportunity to stick his tongue out and lick him from neck to head, at which Uhei responded by battling out of his hold.

“I hate you, boss” the ninken said while trying unsuccessfully to remove his saliva with a paw. “I’m far from a puppy for you to do that.”

“He’s also too human to do that” Gai added.

“Hey, don’t insult me!” Kakashi protested.

He was sure his husband rolled his eyes.

“Ok, time for breakfast” the man said a moment after. “I have a small present for you, rival, so you better hurry up.”

“Ooh, so a present, eh?” the Hatake playfully commented, patting the mattress to grab Gai’s hand and bring him down into another kiss. “This is going to be a fun meal, then.”

“Ugh, boss, we’re still here” Uhei complained, jumping off the bed.

“It’s not that kind of present, rival” his husband laughed as his weight left the mattress as well. “Come on, they’re in the living room. I’ll go and heat up some food and you can take them afterwards, ok?”

Now curious about what that was about, the Hatake nodded. As he heard the other man’s steps abandoning their bedroom, he started to nudge his other dogs to wake them up. Half of them were deaf and the others were on their way to become it, so the majority of the time they didn’t wake up just by Gai and him talking over them.

“Guys, breakfast is going to be ready soon” he said as they began to move a bit. Then, he added louder. “Don’t you want to eat?”

That made it. The few ones that still heard something shook their bodies and started to wail their tails, which quickly told the others what magical word had been mentioned. In about a three minutes, once Kakashi had pet each and one of them, the ninken jumped off the bed and disappeared towards the kitchen. All except one.

Endal had been his latest addition to the pack just a few years ago, back when he was a puppy uncapable of standing up on his four legs. His parents had rejected him, so both Kakashi and Gai had become his family together with the other dogs. In exchange, Endal decided to guide him once the Hatake started to lose his sight about a year and a half ago.

Choroideremia. A strange genetic disease that should have taken his eyes’ functionality back when he was twenty years old, but that for some reason had decided to remain latent until way later in his life. A lucky bastard, was what Sakura had called him after the diagnosis.

It had been an adjustment, especially because the loss of his sight was not something that happened from one day to another, but rather a progressive disease. At the beginning, he stopped being able to see when it was dark. Then, small spots started to appear in his visual field and, finally, tunnel vision. At that point, Kakashi could barely see a few centimeters circle ahead of him and very blurry. Medically, he was considered blind.

A lot of changes had to be made in his and Gai’s lives to accommodate the new situation, but they pulled through, just as they had done with everything before that. They hadn’t been walking on a flower field until then, after all. And besides, Endal was of great help. At home, Kakashi rarely needed help to move around, things never changing positions and dogs and tortoises either moving away if he walked towards them or advising of their presence. Outside was a completely different story.

Konoha was a very busy city now, which meant a lot of people, smells and noises that made Kakashi want to stay at home for the rest of his life. Unfortunately, neither Gai, his dogs or his friends would let him. Endal didn’t walk attached to a leash as other guide-dogs did, mostly because he was not only a dog, but also a shinobi and had the ability to talk. Wherever they went, he moved brushing against the Hatake’s left leg, head under his hand. With simple movements, he was able to indicate him if there was any danger or situation ahead of them, and if not he could simply tell him so. They made quite a good team, and so far Kakashi hadn’t suffered any kind of accident while being guided by him.

“You can go with the rest, Endal” he indicated with a pet over the dog’s head. “I’ll be right behind you.”

The ninken didn’t need to be told twice, his paws making a funny noise against the wooden floor as he left the bedroom. Once alone, the Hatake put on some clothes —it was summer and he refused to wear nothing more than his underwear— and passed through the bathroom before reaching the kitchen.

It smelled like bacon and eggs, with made him realize how hungry he was as he took his seat at the table, waiting for Gai to serve him a plate. It tasted delicious with his coffee, which helped to camouflage the disgusting flavor of the pills he had to take for his anxiety and other age-related problems. As always, his few leftovers were fed to his ninken, even if they had already had their breakfasts.

“And you complain if anyone else does the same” Gai chuckled.

“I cannot say ‘no’ to those puppy eyes.”

He knew his husband rolled his eyes at that. But, hey, even if he could only see his dogs’ expressions in his imagination now, it didn’t mean he was unaffected!

As Gai finished his way larger breakfast, Kakashi started to clean the pans and dirty dishes, already an expert at it even if blind. The last item that joined the sink made it in company of a couple of hands that latched themselves around his waist. When a soft kiss was pressed against the wrinkled skin in his neck, he let out a happy sigh.

“Is this my present?” he asked as he finished cleaning the last mug. “Because I’m ready to unwrap it.”

“We’re still here, boss!” Pakkun complained this time.

Just as any other good owner would do, Kakashi tried to shoo him away with his foot, even when he didn’t know where exactly the grumpy pug was. Gai, however, let go of his waist while laughing, grabbing one of his hands instead to pull him towards the living room. Once there, they sat around the wooden table they only used when having guests over. Not wanting to appear too interested in the presents —even if he was rather curious at that point—, he avoided taunting the surface for them.

“Here, rival” his husband said after a bit, pushing something against his hands. “Hope you like them.”

There was no paper wrapped around the gifts, and after a few second of touching them Kakashi realized they were books. The size and thickness felt similar to those that they had at home; pocket size, perfect for their travels.

“Should I worry about you getting dementia, Gai?” he joked. “Or did you just simply forget about…”

The Hatake passed a hand over his eyes.

“Very funny, rival, but don’t be stupid” his husband huffed, hitting his arm softly.

“Ok, then, new books for you to read me, right? What are they about?”

“Why don’t you tell me, rival?”

“Ah… I feel like we need to go back to my first question” Kakashi commented with a frown.

A part of him started to worry for real at the circular conversation that seemed to be taking place, but his brain stopped dead when his fingers touched a familiar set of bumpy circles. He had been playfully touching the books up until that moment, so he tracked back the part of the cover he had just passed his fingers over and realized that there was something written in there. Something he could understand because it was in braille.

His confused expression changed into a surprised one. Focused now on the task, he accommodated the book in the right position and read the title, eyes wide upon understanding what it said.

“B-But this is…” he mumbled, opening the book to confirm that, indeed, all the pages were written in braille. “How? Only a few books have been translated yet, and I’m sure Icha Icha Paradise is not one of them.”

“Well, it was not easy, that for sure, but I made it work” Gai chuckled. “Now you can read your favorite books again without my assistance, dear husband.”

“W-Wait, you…? But, all of them?” he gasped, checking that the three novels were in fact fully translated to braille under his hands. “How?”

It was the first time in years that he felt lost for words, too many emotions running through his body. There was, however, one that surpassed any other: adoration.

“Do you remember when I told you I needed to use some of our money to repair my electrical orthosis? Well… I lied” his husband admitted, voice slightly nervous. “I, uh, used that money to buy a braille typewriter. Here, let me bring it to you.”

Kakashi opened his mouth to say something, but nothing managed to get out. In the time he required to recover normal brain functioning, Gai had come back with a heavy machine, leaving it in front of the books he had transcribed. Before he could move his hands away, the Hatake grabbed them to feel his fingertips. They were rough, more than usual, and he could even feel some cuts probably due to all the movement of the paper while preparing the novels.

“You did all this, in a week?” he asked, pressing his husband’s hands against him. “For me?”

“I would do anything for you, rival” the other man answered with complete honesty. “Even transcribing your pornographic books by hand.”

That did it. Kakashi pulled him in for a kiss, mouths colliding loudly. Gai’s response was immediate, his body moving to fit the new position and hands leaving his to attach around the Hatake’s neck as their tongues met each other. He blamed the sappiness of old age for the wetness in his eyes.

“You shouldn’t have” he murmured against his husband’s lips. “This machine is very expensive, and our travels…”

“Oh, so it is fine to use our money for my orthosis, but not for something that would make your life easier?” Gai intervened with a light tone. “That doesn’t sound fair, rival.”

Kakashi wanted to protest some more, but the other man kissed him again.

“I don’t accept complains, I’m sorry.”

The Hatake chuckled against his husband’s mouth, shaking his head and sighing happily. Then, he moved his arms to pick Gai up and started to walk towards their bedroom.

“Well, then I’ll show you my gratitude in an appropriate way, rival.”

#kakagai #kakagaiweek2024 #kakagai week 2024 #hatake kakashi #maito gai #fanfic #naruto #ao3 #ninken #pakkun #uhei #old kakashi #old gai #blind character #disabled character #they're just old saps #and we love them

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