#coco takes a poll?!

[protagonistpolling]

moodboard for one all the blorbos you made the bracket for are LOSING

[copaganda-clobberfest]

As a Jewish person, I stopped watching RWBY around the beginning of s5 when Adam (the main White Fang antagonist) said that the goal of the White Fang was to replace humans in society. It came SO shortly after those riots where people where chanting "Jews will not replace us" and it made me so sick to my stomach to watch a conspiracy theory like that actually play out on screen that I hard stopped watching a show I'd been highkey obsessed with for years.

.

[mxxnmxxn9875]

Make a poll of your favorite female characters (no limits – as many or as little as you want) and see which your followers like the most

Thanks for the tag @eternalergo and @corffiser 🌟

No pressure tagging: @six-demon-bag, @andromedaholic, @zemos-bathrobe, @ithilien-wolf, @coffee-without-anesthetics

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

María Félix (Doña Barbara, La Mujer sin Alma, Rio Escondido, La Cucaracha)—Maria Felix is still possibly the most well-known Mexican film actress. She turned down multiple-roles in Hollywood and a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer in order to take roles in Mexico, France, and Argentine throughout the 1940s, 50s, 60s. She was so famous and so respected as a dramatic actress that she inspired painters, novelists and poets in their own art--she was painted by Diego Rivera, Jose Orozco, Bridget Tichenor. The novelist Carlos Fuentes used her as inspiration for his protagonist in Zona Sagrada. She inspired an entire collection by Hermes. In the late 1960s Cartier made her a custom collection of reptile themed jewels. She considered herself to be powerful challenger of morality and femininity in Mexico & worldwide--she routinely played powerful women in roles with challenging moral choices and free sexuality. But even still, years after he death, she is celebrated with Google Doodles, and appearances in the movie Coco, and holidays for the anniversary of her death.

Julie Andrews (The Sound of Music, Mary Poppins)—Oh where to start .... I'm not sure I even know how. She's just perfection. And it's not fair I can't bring post 70s work into this, because she just gets better and better, and her drag performance in to die for. But in the era I CAN talk about, she shows she has THE RANGE. Beautiful, feisty, funny, holding her own against Christopher Plummer, Paul Newman, Rock Hudson. Oh she's luminous.

This is round 4 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

María Félix:

She's Thee Hot Vintage Movie Woman of México. She's absolutely gorgeous and always looks like she's about to step on you. you WILL be thankful if she does.

"María Félix is a woman -- such a woman -- with the audacity to defy the ideas machos have constructed of what a woman should be. She's free like the wind, she disperses the clouds, or illuminates them with the lightning flash of her gaze." - Octavio Paz

María Félix is one of the most iconic actresses of the Golden Era of Mexican Cinema. La Doña, as she was lovingly nicknamed, only had one son, and when her first marriage ended in divorce her ex-husband stole her only child, so she vowed that one day she’d be more influential than her ex and she’d get her son back. AND SHE DID! María Félix rejected a Hollywood acting role to start her acting career in Mexico on her own terms with El Peñón de las Ánimas (The Rock of Souls) starring alongside actor, and future third husband, Jorge Negrete. She quickly rose to incredible heights both in Mexico and abroad, later on rejecting a Hollywood starring role (Duel in the Sun) as she was already committed to the movie Enamorada at the planned filming time. Of this snubbing she said, quote: “I will never regret saying no to Hollywood, because my career in Europe was focused in [high] quality cinema. [My] india* roles are made in my country, and [my] queen roles are abroad.” (Translator notes: here the “india” role means interpreting a lower-class Mexican woman, usually thought of indigenous/native/mixed descent —which she had interpreted and reinvented throughout her acting career in Mexico— and what abroad was typically considered the Mexican woman stereotype, with the braids, long simple skirts, and sandals. This also references the expectation of her possibly helping Hollywood in perpetuating this stereotype for American audiences that lack the cultural and historical contexts of this type of role which would undermine her own efforts against this type of Mexican stereotypes while working in Europe) She was considered one of the most beautiful women in the world of her time by international magazines like Life, París Match, and Esquire, and was a muse to a vast number of songwriters (including her second husband Agustin Lara,), artists, designers, and writers. Muralist Diego Rivera described her as “a monstrously perfect being. She’s an exemplary being that drives all other human beings to put as much effort as possible to be like her”. Playwriter Jean Cocteau, who worked with her in the Spanish film La Corona Negra (The Black Crown) said the following about her, “María, that woman is so beautiful it hurts”. Haute Couture houses like Dior, Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Hérmes, among others, designed and dressed her throughout her life. She died on her birthday, April 8, 2002, at 88 years old, in Mexico City. She was celebrated by a parade from her home to the Fine Arts Palace in the the city’s Historic Downtown, where a multitude of people paid tribute to her. Her filmography includes 47 movies from 1942 until 1970, and only two television acting roles in 1970. She has 2 music albums, one recorded with her second husband, Agustín Lara, in 1964 titled La Voz de María y la inspiración de Agustín «The voice of María and the inspiration of Augustín», and her solo album Enamorada «In Love» in 1998. Her bespoke Cartier jewelry is exhibited alongside Elizabeth Taylor’s, Grace Kelly’s and Gloria Swanson’s. In 2018, Film Director Martin Scorsese presented a restored and remastered version of her film Enamorada in the Cannes Classics section of the Cannes Festival and Google dedicated a doodle for her 104th birthday. On august 2023 Barbie added her doll to the Tribute Collection.

Julie Andrews propaganda:

"She has such a simple but amazing beauty to her. Not to mention her amazing and melodic singing voice!"

"Roles like nannies and governesses can make us forget how attractive she was! A perfect combination of elegant and adorable, with the most incredible vocal range to boot!"

"Besides having one of the most amazing singing voices ever to grace the silver screen, Julie always had an understated beauty to her that wasn't always shown off on screen. But it's there nonetheless because her characters managed to pull some of the hottest men ever to grace the screen."

"The juxtaposition between carefree Maria and stern but fun Mary Poppins shows the power of the acting of this HOT VINTAGE MOVIE WOMAN"

"Charming, genteel, incredibly charismatic, beautiful, and has an angelic singing voice to boot. Her screen roles as Maria in The Sound of Music and Mary Poppins are absolutely iconic for a reason and she originated several well-known Broadway roles before those."

"the most beautiful woman 12 year old me had ever seen possibly"

"OMG OMG OMG she’s definitely been submitted before how could she NOT but!!!! I loveeee her so muchhhh rahhhh prebby!!!! cool!!!! mary poppins the beloved <33333 some people dislike it but I love jolly holiday so much because it IS a jolly holiday with Mary!!! no wonder that it’s Mary that we love!!!!!"

"I know many people who were taught in singing lessons "when in doubt, pronounce words how julie andrews would pronounce them." THATS CALLED INFLUENCE. THATS CALLED MOTHERING THOUSANDS."

[mommieswithmuscles]

EllAbs x Baker!Reader

Free Palestine, don't support Neil

No Minors and No men

CW: Joel lives, Abby leaves the WLF and winds up in Jackson, slow burn, eventual smut, world and relationship building for the first few chapters, read the poll prompt tagged here for context

Title: Sugar Free (1)

You watch Ellie and Dina rush down the street with a few other scouts. You were on your way to the cafeteria to drop off the lunch bread before starting the dinner load when they tore off. "What's going on?" You park the lined wheel barrel with Maria and the kitchen cooks.

"Joel and Tommy went missing." Maria braces herself on the counter. You pass her a special bag from your pack. She takes the bagels graciously.

"I hope they come home safe." You help the kitchen staff unload the still warm loaves and bagels. You then run back and grabbing the birthday fruit pies you made for a few of the kids' birthdays that landed on this day. You wanted to be sure their families had a good time with them.

-

You always keep a pot of hot chocolate ready for the local kids running around and playing in the snow. A few run in and laugh, calling out to ask if you're in. You bring out the coco and fresh soft pretzel snacks you try to keep on hand. They thank you politely before taking seats Ellie helped you restore at the newly stabilized tables.

"Are you staying warm?" You bring in little cups of freshly done cheese dip. A recipe one of the mother figures from your old settlement taught you.

"We try, then Ellie and Dina rough us up," one of the boys pouts. You brush the snow off his cap.

-

You clean up after the kids, starting your last batch for the day. Ellie special requested bagels. You take the small hike back to your house down the street from the bakery. You clean with soap and warm water, running your cleaned glass shard over the fuzz starting to come back over your mound. One last wash and rinse before jogging back to the bakery in a clean change of clothes.

You start the dough, thinking of Ellie's boobs as you knead it. Yes, you were jealous of the kiss she shared with Dina, but you knew she would always come back. She was as addicted to you as you were of her. She wouldn't ever admit it, but the way she lets you pin her against the wall in your bedroom says more than enough.

You shape the dough into rings, yank your pants down, spread your juice on the dough, then drop them on the baking shovel before putting it back in the stone oven.

-

It's dark when they get back. You shut down the shop and left the bagels on your counter for Ellie to collect. You were waiting in the seating area when she rode up, Shimmer waiting patiently as she retrieved her goods. "We have a new girl. WLF escapee."

"That sounds interesting. Where did you find her?"

"Joel and Tommy picked her up from a hoard. We helped clean up." Ellie smirks, shrugs like it was nothing. "It was awesome."

"I bet you were awesome," her cheeks flush and you fix her ruffled collar. "So, you and Dina?" Her head tilts, the smug look gone.

"So uh, you saw that, huh?" Her feet shuffle.

"I did. Was it a one off, or are you taken now?" You cup Ellie's cheek so she keeps her eyes on you.

"It was a one off. I um, I liked it, but her and Jesse are probably getting back together. So um, yeah." Ellie scratches her jaw. You watch her long fingers pick at the skin.

"I'll make you breakfast. Early shift?"

"Sounds- Yeah, sounds great!" Her lips tug upward, but you can tell she's forcing the smile. You press a kiss to the corner of her mouth. Her cheeks are red again.

"See you then cutie," you wink, drop your hand so it slides down her shoulder and bicep, and let her leave flushed.

-

Ellie comes in as you're working on the breakfast bread. You made her a special loaf to munch on for the road. Behind her is who you assume is the newbie. "Goodmorning ladies," you greet politely. Ellie takes her bread with a wave, running to her horse and Joel.

"Morning," the tall blonde greets. "I'm Abby." You offer your hand, she shakes it firmly.

"Beautiful name for a beautiful girl," you smile. She's taken a back, scoffs.

"Shut up," she turns, but you catch the blush on her cheeks.

"Make me," you challenge. She glares, but says nothing. "Come sit, have something to eat. You must be starving, you got here long after the kitchen closed." You bring her a fresh loaf from the heated stone.

[violetganache42]

Since the first poll was a success, I'm gonna do it again!

I didn't even think of doing this in the first poll, but under the cut is a lineup of all the episodes, movies, and shorts we have seen in the second batch of watch parties.

Mystery Night

Mickey Mouse (2013) - "No"

DuckTales (1987) - "Duckman of Aquatraz"

DuckTales (2017) - "McMystery at McDuck McManor!"

"Clock Cleaners"

The Great Mouse Detective

Mermaid Night

"Sea Scouts"

Darkwing Duck - "Something Fishy"

DuckTales (2017) - "The Lost Harp of Mervana!"

Mickey Mouse (2013) - "Wonders of the Deep"

The Little Mermaid (1989)

Duckburg Adventures Night

"Chef Donald"

DuckTales (1987) - "Send in the Clone", "Dough Ray Me", and "The Good Muddahs"

DuckTales (2017) - "Daytrip of Doom!", "Who is Gizmoduck?!", and "Happy Birthday Doofus Drake!"

Mickey Mouse (2013) - "Swimmin' Hole"

Dad Night

"Donald's Happy Birthday"

Darkwing Duck - "Darkly Dawns the Duck" and "Life, the Negaverse, and Everything"

DuckTales (2017) - "What Ever Happened to Donald Duck?!"

Mickey Mouse (2013) - "Goofy's Grandma"

A Goofy Movie (Rewatch)

Triplets Night

"Donald's Nephews"

DuckTales (1987) - "Allowance Day"

Quack Pack - "Can't Take a Yolk"

House of Mouse - "Music Day"

DuckTales (2017) - "The Split Sword of Swanstantine!", "The Fight for Castle McDuck!", and "Day of the Only Child!"

Future and Pirate Night

"No Sail"

DuckTales (1987) - "Duck to the Future"

DuckTales (207) - "Sky Pirates…in the Sky!"

Marshmello x DuckTales - Fly (Music Video)

Treasure Planet

Competition Night

"Polar Trappers"

Quack Pack - "Need for Speed"

DuckTales (2017) - "The Missing Links of Moorshire!"

Mickey Mouse (2013) - "Dog Show"

An Extremely Goofy Movie

Triple Halloween 2024 Nights

Halloween 2024 Night #1

DuckTales (1987) - "Magica's Shadow War"

DuckTales (2017) - "The Other Bin of Scrooge McDuck!" and "A Nightmare on Killmotor Hill!"

Coraline

Halloween 2024 Night #2

DuckTales (1987) - "Earth Quack" and "Ducky Horror Picture Show"

Quack Pack - "The Boy Who Cried Ghost"

Darkwing Duck - "Hot Spells"

DuckTales (2017) - "Terror of the Terra-firmians!"

Halloween 2024 Night #3

DuckTales (2017) - "The Trickening!" (Rewatch) and "The Town Where Everyone was Nice!" (Rewatch)

Coco

Webby Night

DuckTales (1987) - "Cold Duck" and "The Good Muddahs" (Rewatch)

DuckTales (2017) - "Daytrip of Doom!" (Rewatch), "From the Confidential Casefiles of Agent 22!" (Rewatch), and "The Last Adventure!"

Glomgold Night

DuckTales (2017) - "The Ballad of Duke Baloney!", "The 87 Cent Solution!" (Rewatch), "Raiders of the Doomsday Vault!", and "GlomTales!"

DuckTales (1987) - "Master of the Djinni" (Rewatch) and "A Whale of a Bad Time"

Christmas 2024 Night

Mickey's Christmas Carol (technically a rewatch since it was featured in Snowed in at the House of Mouse)

DuckTales (2017) - "Last Christmas!" (Rewatch) and "How Santa Stole Christmas!" (Rewatch)

Darkwing Duck - "It's a Wonderful Leaf" (Rewatch)

Mickey Mouse (2013) - "Duck the Halls: A Mickey Mouse Christmas Special"

[insertbrowsinghere]

I'll probably be able to find more if my sillies get into round 2 since I'll have more time available by then, but for now here's some images of my silly Witch Hat Atelier family because I love them all so very much

Found Family Tournament [Round 1 - Poll 5/64]

(list of characters under the cut)

WITCH HAT ATELIER

Qifrey Olruggio Coco Agott Richeh Tetia Brushbuddy

SAILOR MOON

Usagi Tsukino Ami Mizuno Rei Hino Makoto Kino Minako Aino

[tokuvivor]

For this past Saturday’s final Halloween Movie Night of the month (this one focusing on the holiday itself, as well as Day of the Dead), once again, you’ll be getting highlights from both me and @violetganache42! So, here you have ‘em:

"Trick or Treat":

The triplets in their iconic Halloween costumes!

The rip having so much fucking camera movement and low volume

The Trick or Treat song!

@puffyducks: "she hurt his fragile masculinity"

The triplets watching Witch Hazel mess with Donald like: "Oh, boy! Violence!"

This fucking panel lmao

"The Town Where Everyone Was Nice!" (Rewatch):

"Have you ever been to Bahia?"

Panchito and José appearance!

Saludos Amigos easter egg!

The whole scene about Donald accidentally dropping Dewey's egg 😂

Scrooge still being a hater lol

Huey: "Uncle Donald, you're very successful. You raised three boys and are rich in love. Isn't that the true measure of success?"

Scrooge and Donald: "No!"

Violet: "How is that not successful?!"

Violet sharing GIFs of various moments from the episode like last time:

Autism diet (Donald's just like us FR!) (i.e. macaroni and cheese)

@alex31624: "Webby has fallen"

Violet: "in Lego City"

Puffy and Violet making FNAF jokes, from the Bite of '87 to Bonnie on the burro tour sign

Dewey's words of wisdom (screenshot from when we first watched this episode together last November):

Puffy wanting to throw Dewey and Louie into the sun a la Storkules

Violet upon seeing Scrooge's reaction to Donald taking his wallet:

@fantasticenthusiasttale: “Webby please we literally know only 3 phrases of english stop asking”

Alex: “is amazing that a brasilian plant knows english at all”

@writebackatya: “I just realized that both episodes have a moment where Donald is being wrestled by someone and he starts tapping out”

Huey and Webby not sucking in this episode

Alex: “who hires a mariachi for a kids party”

Puffy: “they took the gay </3”

Briefly discussing Webby’s party in The Last Adventure!

The Trickening! (Rewatch)

Huey as Gizmoduck!

Louie sucking in both episodes we watched

Duck Twins!

Why do people hate this episode?

“WE’RE GONNA ROB A CANDY STORE?!”

Puffy: “not poor bluebert 😭”

“why didn't they send Webby first she's the one that can fight lmfao”

“what the hell is dewey gonna do if he finds a monster”

Poltergeist reference

“Donald, you’re the victim.”

Launchpad’s ridiculous Halloween backstory

Uno reference

The kid that looked like Timmy Jenkins😠

Donald, Della, and Launchpad being an amazing dynamic

Launchpad and Scrooge’s fight!

Chris P. Bacon being one of the names on the headstones

Dreamy: “‘Last halloween’ meanwhile scrooge is out there 150 y/o still doing it”

Creepy twins!

The Shining references

Launchpad reading the candy wrapper

Beakley as Darkwing!

“I love Hallowoon!”

The poll at the end for whose costume was the best

Puffy: “no it's foreshadowing that huey is gonna DIE”

¡Felíz Cumpleaños!

Panchito and José are back!

The evil piñatas

Puffy bringing up The Book of Life

Will: “I’ve only played the game and had the cereal”

Fin

The charm of Paul Rudish shorts that take place in other cultures

Puffy: “me at 4 years old watching José rattle off Portuguese in The Three Caballeros (I have no idea what he's saying but I am enthralled)”

Will: “damn you looked just like JFK when you were a kid”

Coco

Why do people make Dos jokes about Uno? (It’s Italian (Due), not Spanish)

The opening narration being visualized through papel picado

Puffy:

Ernesto de la Cruz

Puffy: “1942 HE DIED 2 YEARS BEFORE THE CABALLEROS NOOOO”

The mariachi player that Miguel is shining the shoes of being supportive of his dream

@teleportzz: “never name a street”

“Papá is home?”

Dante being the best boy throughout the movie

Miguel’s de la Cruz shrine

Puffy: “my room looks like this but with donald duck plushes”

Miguel getting grossed out by the romantic scenes

Mech: “aromantic moment”

Abuelita smashing Miguel’s guitar‼️

Don’t mess with the dead!

Will: “Cut him some slack he’s just a little kid”

“Thinking by the heart not the brain”

Puffy: “No he should be responsible for all of his actions ever we've established this for fictional characters”

“especially traumatized little boys”

“Your photo’s on your dentist’s ofrenda.”

The guy in question:

The long line for customs

Héctor as Frida Kahlo

Mamá Imelda! (And her frustrations with the computer)

Alex: “the dead use windows”

Dreamy: “Then he finds out he cant have a blessing because hes adopted”

Puffy: “found family is still family”

Pepita!

@spamtoon: “cog this movie's environments are so beautiful” (very, very true)

Dreamy: “Hot take: Ernesto de la cruz is Mariah Carey for dia de los muertos”

The mango scene

Chorizo bullying

Chicharrón’s final death (very sad, but also, this exchange):

Héctor: “And her…knuckles, they drag on the floor.”

Chicharrón: “Those aren’t the words.”

Héctor: “There are children present.”

Miguel and Héctor shouting like Panchito

UN POCO LOCO!

Mamá Imelda singing for the first time in the movie

Puffy: “gonna be awkward when he dies and then he's stuck with all his family forever”

Puffy getting Latinified

Miguel’s dog🤝de la Cruz’s horse

Dante

Miguel and de la Cruz meet

Puffy: “YAYYYY movie over!!”

Dreamy: “Frida kahlo number 2 is his drag name”

Héctor revealing de la Cruz’s true nature (plus the fact that he killed Héctor and put it in a movie, like wtf)

Puffy: “he just has like. a big scary pit outside his mansion”

Spam: “like all billionaires cmon mark installed his last week. real big vanity point (joke)”

The origins of Remember Me

Puffy: “I like the convenience of the whole plot twist working because nobody ever bothered to say each other's names”

Dante the spirit guide!

Sneaking into the Sunrise Spectacular (shades of A Goofy Movie, anyone?)

Me: “If I had a nickel for every time I 2 I was mentioned in the server this week…” (the first time being me showing the recent Dancing with the Stars team dance to the song)

“I don’t know, I’m still mad at you!”

Mamá Imelda singing reprise!

Me: “I’ve never seen this episode of DWTS”

Puffy: “imagine seeing this shit live”

Alex: “you mean dead”

The crowd booing de la Cruz (Puffy: “WHO HAD THE TOMATO 😭”)

de la Cruz getting crushed by the bell again

Puffy: “well now he's gonna be on true crime podcasts so”

Me pointing out that Miguel left his sweatshirt behind

The scene where Mamá Coco remembers Héctor when Miguel sings Remember Me to her (and everyone loses their shit, despite saying they’re not (cont’d.))

One year later…Mamá Coco has died in the interim

Alex: “well, she was old as hell”

Miguel bringing it home with Proud Corazón

Dante and Pepita being friends in the human realm

Watching through the credits because yes

Me: “Hermosa. Una película muy hermosa”

Dreamy: “Another one for the latin-america Alex WOOHOOOOOO”

Me: “Hey, you gotta use 4 semesters’ worth of Spanish some time”

But yes, it was a fantastic movie.

[cloveroctobers]

JOHNNY COCO CRUZ — Spring Writings 🩵

A/N: Thank you to all those that voted on that poll and it has been awhile since I last wrote for coco so why not? This is definitely AU based for how I envision a better life for our coco bean and there’s no need to explain it any further. It’s spring and most of us are coming off that S.A.D. so we want happiness around here, so that’s what we’re damn well gonna get! This was also inspired by some events that happened last Friday 🤭

PROMPTS ARE FROM HERE & I’m using: 6. Hanging a porch swing together + 7. I don’t think she noticed my new cut.

WARNINGS: language, mentions of blood and body injuries + Letty’s smart ass mouth—the usual.

⚘𖦹☼❀𑁍❀☼𖦹⚘ ⚘𖦹☼❀𑁍❀☼𖦹⚘ ⚘𖦹☼❀𑁍❀☼𖦹⚘ ⚘𖦹☼❀

Getting back home was the best part of Coco’s day. The big move from Santo Padre to Ojai was the best choice all of you made years ago.

(Coco and Letty more recently.)

This was home.

A awful green ranch built in 1955 with .42 acres of land was not something coco ever really saw in his future. He never had a place that truly felt like his and all that hard work along with time finally paid off. In fact he didn’t think he’d actually be alive this long to showcase what a home should feel like. Day by day his purpose was still something he was trying to figure out without realizing that he’s been living it.

He rides up the curvy slope of the driveway, waiting for the gate to open up wide enough for his bike to fit through. The dark eyed man glances to his left towards the front door, sensing something even before he cut the engine to his bike. He’ll move it to the garage later, leaving it behind next to your car before carrying up the pathway to the front door.

Coco enters the home, tv on from his left showing some rerun of a reality show that Letty was binge watching. The mushroom play tent that blocks the front window of the home is bare and does not hold your three year old daughter, Haven. He thinks nothing of it until he makes that right down the hallway where the bedrooms sit, hearing crying from Haven and barking from your tosa.

His nostrils flare, hands going to his waist as he cautiously makes his way into the main bedroom. He immediately spots Letty bouncing a crying Haven on her knee as her other hand is moving rapidly against the screen of her phone.

“Hey, what’s going on?” Coco asks as he spots the dog still barking and scratching at the bathroom door.

Letty snaps her head up to look at him, “thank fu—fudge you finally got here! I’ve been texting and leaving you messages.”

His eyes are still locked on the door, which is now missing a door knob as he gently rests a hand down on Haven’s head to kiss the vitiligo patch on her temple. She makes grabbing motions for him which he obliges, tears streaming down her round cheeks, while he brings the toddler into his chest who rests her head there and seems to calm just a bit as she heaves to subside her cries.

Coco pats and rubs her back soothingly as Letty gets back to her feet, using her foot to nudge Jody the Tosa out of the way, “I went to a meeting after work, I sent that in the group chat before I shut my phone off.”

“Yeah newsflash, maybe you shouldn’t do that when you have a very vocal fucking baby at home.” Letty bites as she knocks on the door leaning downwards, “y/n, coco’s here!” She tells before whipping her head back to her father, “Now fix the door.”

He’s confused as he makes his way over to the bathroom door, spotting a stain of blood dripping from the outside of where the doorknob was supposed to be. “What the fuck did you do Leticia?”

“Me?! I didn’t do anything!” Letty yells while her brows immediately frown, “your girlfriend somehow locked herself in the bathroom and has been in there for I don’t know maybe an hour or an hour in a half? She managed to punch the knob out after I loosened it.”

Coco shakes his head, eyeing the tools tossed all over the floor and hands Haven back to Letty, “take your sister and go feed her, she’s probably hungry and it’s past dinner time.”

“Shit, I lost track of time.” Letty stands up straight and scrambles to leave the room but not without calling back out to you, “if coco doesn’t get it y/n, I’m calling the locksmith!”

Coco sucks his teeth as he shoos the girl out of your shared room, “I am the locksmith.”

Letty widens her eyes with a scrunch of her nose, “we don’t need anymore injuries in this household thank you, we have a baby in the house.”

Coco rolls his eyes as it’s his turn to go into a squat position and peer through the gap, it’s slightly blocked by the remaining latch bolt. He peeks in just enough to see you laying on your back on the rug, bandaged hand cradled to your chest as you’re staring up at the ceiling.

Completely over it.

“Hey, mamita. What happened?”

Your head lolls to the side to meet coco’s dark eye, “I went to unlock the door and it wouldn’t budge. Took Letty fifteen minutes to realize I was stuck in here since she’s so deep into Shahs of Sunset and I didn’t have my phone on me. I managed to punch the knob out.”

“Why not kick? Now you done fucked up your hand I see.”

“Rather that than my foot.” You wiggle your toes, “you gonna get me out of here soon right, johnny?”

A crooked smile appears on Coco’s lips then, “I’ll think about it.”

Jody growls at him from his left, making coco suck his teeth while you can be heard laughing from inside the bathroom. “I know this fool isn’t trying to raise up on me?”

“He likes me better.”

“‘Cause he likes to hump your leg.”

“Ew, shut up Johnny!”

Coco laughs and looks at the tools that were previously used: a hanger, a screwdriver, and some hair oil. He analyzes the door, then the mechanism and just shrugs grabbing the hammer to knock the latch clean off the door. It flies towards you, lying about an inch away from where your shoulder lays.

Coco instructs, “You might want to cover your face for this next part.”

“What?” You start just as Coco lunges the claw side of the hammer into the side of the gap, yanking it back with such force he thought the claw would snap. Thankfully it didn’t as it gave way, leaving him to keep swinging the claw into space before switching back to the flat side to knock out the edge of the cheap door.

The door creaks open as he pushes it back once a good chunk of the door is missing. Rolling back to face the door with an arm tossed over your forehead, you meet your boyfriend’s eyes.

“Hey,” he greets almost like a mad man as he’s breathing harshly now at that work he just put in.

You slowly get to your feet to meet both of Johnny’s dark eyes this time, “hey, we’re gonna need a new door.”

You grip the sides of his torso as you peck his jaw in thanks while he just scoffs, “fuck that door. It was a cheap piece of shit and I’ve got a better idea anyway.”

Which could mean anything.

He reaches down to pick up your wrist, examining your injured fingers, “think you broke any of ‘em?”

“Probably that middle finger but the rest im thinking a bad sprain,” you inform while Coco nods his head, figuring you would know better than anyone being a middle school nurse and all.

Coco shakes his head, a signature crooked smile playing on his lips, “Guess you won’t be giving nobody the bird for a little while, huh?”

“I’m left handed anyway.” You remind Coco who nods his head in realization, “thanks for getting me out. How did today go?”

Johnny gives a sharp inhale with a lift of his shoulders, “same shit everyday. We talk about feelings and shit. It’s the anniversary of Hope’s death and I was talkin’ to one of the sponsors there, he gave me some info to look into for Leticia.”

Letty losing not only one but two of her friends tragically was enough to mess with anyone’s mental. She already had a lot going on before that and the move out here steered her in the right direction somewhat. She openly talked about starting her own business after quitting (and being fired) from numerous of jobs. So far being a instructor that provided swimming lessons to toddlers seemed to be the one that stuck while creating a webpage for her upcoming house sitting business.

She was much like Johnny, not wanting to open up and when she gave just enough she didn’t want to be seen as weak. You had enough experience with that yourself, growing up with caregivers in the military that had their own battles which ultimately left you to be raised and adopted by your godmother who was far from rough around the edges. You learned to love Johnny and Letty through it all but you were also firm in letting them both know that you wouldn’t be their punching bag.

You completely changed the trajectory of Johnny and Letty’s life, making them often forget what life was like before you walked in. Yet there were always reminders in the black of their brain and sure you could hold them down but you couldn’t be their sole savior.

They had to find that within themselves.

That’s that deep shit Coco had to hear plenty of times and knew Letty wouldn’t want to but would eventually have to.

“That’s good, babe.” You offer a smile as you squeeze his upper arm, “we’ll talk about it some more when we put that swing up out front.”

You’re getting ready to exit the bathroom when Coco grips your wrist causing you to look back at him.

“The swing? Nah we’re not gettin’ into that with your hand all fucked up.” Coco already decided.

“I’ll supervise.” You beam, “c’mon I’ve been wanting that thing up since the first day of spring and summers approaching in the next few weeks!”

Coco blinks, “and I said I’d get to it.”

“Just like the emissions for my car when I was pregnant with Haven, got stranded and ended up with minor carbon monoxide poisoning?” You pointed out while the tatted man rubs his jaw in annoyance.

Which was enough indication for you to laugh and wrap an arm across his waist, knowing that you won, “fine but like you said, supervise. Not be in my fucken ear like a flea.”

“I know you like to get into your zone when you’re working but what we’re not gonna do is compare your girl and mother of your beautiful baby to an insect.” You yank on his earlobes making him hiss.

Smiling sweetly at him after, you quickly peck his crooked nose and bite his jaw before taking your leave, “glad you’re home, papa.”

Coco rolls his eyes and tossed the hammer into the toolbox, knowing he would get to it later before joining his family in the kitchen.

‘I don’t think she noticed my new cut,’ Coco finds himself thinking as he watches you move around the kitchen, working on heating up the leftovers while he’s tasked with making sure Haven doesn’t start throwing any vegetables she doesn’t like around again and Letty is screaming at the tv.

“Aye, who we yellin’ at?” Coco questions from the dining room which has three views: a sliding door that leads to the backyard to the left, straight ahead the kitchen can be partially seen, and then to the right flows into the living room.

Letty huffs as she tosses her phone down on the couch glancing in Coco and Haven’s direction, “fu—freaking Reza! He’s so annoying!”

“Then cut the shit off and go help y/n warm up the food.” Coco tells Letty who side eyes him.

She snipes, “I already took care of Haven and set the table…what’re you doing coco?”

“Paying bills.”

You twist your lips around in the kitchen, thankful the twenty-one year old couldn’t see your facial expression right now, not that you were ever scared of Letty but you also weren’t in the mood to deal with her mouth, especially being locked in the bathroom for forever.

“And I would be too if y/n didn’t give me a break!” Letty argued.

Finances became really rough once Coco got struck with addiction. Not that it was ever the greatest when Letty lived with Celia but she was the main one who had to hold it down once Coco got infected with the disease. So she didn’t appreciate Coco throwing that in her face when he should have been the adult who paid bills to provide for her and it was always a ongoing argument between the two, which is why you remained quiet once you sensed that starting to brew.

Thankfully with the progress of being sober and getting a job down at the shooting range as a range officer, Coco was on the path of being financially stable and you were the best at managing funds although Coco often clowned you for considering shopping for the house and the girls as “errands,” you were good at having a balance with money and into numbers a bit after living in a transformed school bus turned home (illegally if you want to be technical) with your god-mommy. She was a free-spirited woman who was into protests, loaded with money but still chose to park the bus/home out in the woods on some land that rightfully belonged to her ancestors before the law colonized it. It was sacred land and after her passing you did everything in your power to gain rights to that land yourself, later transforming it into a garden in honor of loved ones lost.

Life was forever blossoming and you always wanted to continue experiencing that growth. When coco came back into your life, it was unexpected but meant to be—you’d like to think. It’s like that saying, “if it comes back around then it’s meant to be.”

The both of you knew each other back in school and lost touch until he moved out here to Ojai. By then he was already in a program, leaving behind the Mayans to better his mental health. You already knew he was in some type of biker gang, thanks to being friends with Gilberto Lopez on Facebook. Curiosity always got the best of you and you didn’t have much to go off of since you couldn’t locate him anywhere on Facebook but found Letty through Celia’s page.

He was barely on Letty’s page too after spotting a comment where she went off on some lady who was friends with Celia, for making inappropriate comments on a picture the twenty-something year old shared for his birthday. It was causal lurking not anything stalker-ish and you didn’t want to reach out to Gilly about coco either since you didnt want to appear desperate—despite your besties begging you to just shoot your shot through Gilly.

That didn’t happen until coco came here.

It was like the universe knew to give you two a second chance and the both of you didn’t want to miss it. However you were content on just being friends but that wasn’t in Coco’s plans once he truly got to know the version of you now. Eventually he got you out of your own stubbornness and wasn’t one to beg but Coco knew you were worth it.

When you’re zoned back in on the conversation, bringing the food out to the table you spotted Letty now sitting in her usual seat resting her cheek into her fist while Coco shoved her shoulder with a snort, evoking the girl to shove him back with a smile just in time for them to start playfully throwing hands but you warn them to, “cut the crap you two, you’re at the table now act like you have some sense please.”

“My bad, mamita.”

“He started it.”

You playfully glare at them as you take your seat, lifting the silicone bib to wipe at the corner of Haven’s mouth before waving your hands along signaling for everyone to start serving themselves.

Johnny and Letty did not hesitate, which led to chatter at the dinner table, making Coco further grateful for this little life.

Later that night with the crickets chirping, the both of you have quality time as you’re seated on the grass while coco is drilling the chains to the swing into the brown beams out front.

“Hey babe, meant to tell you this earlier but I’m feeling the new look.” You announce after putting your phone down from taking many pictures of the process.

Coco glances over at you from the ladder, “yeah? I didn’t think you noticed.”

“Oh I definitely did,” you smile, “loved the Brazilian loose waves just as much as the Gretchen Grundler pigtails but hair grows back and it always fun to switch it up ya know?”

You don’t miss coco rolling his eyes at your attempt of dragging his hair but knows you’re joking nonetheless. He can also tell by the way you’re looking at him from the ground that you’re really a fan of the cut, “I’m almost finished here so you can show me how much you’re digging the hair up in our room, huh?”

Sighing you pout, “only if we weren’t getting up early to hang out with Bruno and Luis.”

That’s right ever since he got with you, he was able to reconnect with his two other kids. It took a lot of fight from Bruno’s mom for coco to be in Bruno’s life—who was now fourteen—threatening back child support out of pettiness (she honestly thought he died because of what Celia once told her after he got locked up) and Luis, who was ten and acting out way before coco came back into his life was still trying to get a feel for this stranger of a man who happened to be his father. Luis was quiet but there was a fire behind the shared eyes he has from his father.

Life was always a timely journey and you taught Coco patience.

“Look at it like this, I’ll have you out by midnight.” Coco smirks, checking his own phone for the time and to see a text from Bruno’s mom to confirm if you guys were still coming out to Montecito.

Bruno and Luis’s mom became good friends, often allowing the boys to spent the night at each other’s houses. Although Luis lived out in Carpinteria with his mother and siblings; which was nowhere from Montecito the two women made it their jobs for the siblings to have a relationship. Which was shocking on Bruno’s mom’s part to be honest. Bruno’s mother was still shady towards you, not liking the fact that coco picked you to spend forever with although she had a new man, she still felt a type of way but you knew not to take that personally…yet you were no punk and wouldn’t always bite your tongue.

You mockingly yawn, stretching your arms above your head, “you know I can’t get into the groove with open doors.”

Coco sucks his teeth, “well you better get used to it mamita, that doors not comin’ back.”

“Qué?”

“That open concept shit you always talk about when we’re watching that home channel…well you’re gonna get it for the bathroom.” Coco double checks that the swing is secure before he starts climbing down the ladder, “and I get a show every time you get out the shower. So everybody wins.”

Scowling at the smirk on your boyfriend’s face, you push off your ankles to your feet, making your way over to the cute farmhouse like swing, “You’re no better than Jody.”

“I’n the fucken man of the house, not the dog.” Coco tells as he slips a hand over your waist as you go to sit on the swing.

“Don’t think I know the difference,” you joke once more as Coco bumps his nose against your cheek, now sitting beside you as you softly sway into the night.

With your good hand, you run a hand over coco’s shortened hair with a smile before resting your head on his shoulder with another yawn, “seee, this is nice isn’t it?”

“Yeah it’s cool but now none of us are going to be in the house.”

All of you were always out and about. If it wasn’t work, coco was out riding or tuning up the bike or doing woodwork, letty was sunbathing and used to be in the hot tub a lot until you two took over and that was enough for her not to want any parts leaving her to run the streets with the car along with Jody in the passenger side or fix up the car coco let her keep. You just liked being in the backyard to be “corny,” in the Cruz’ words one with nature birdwatching or with Haven who liked running around letting you and coco know that she would probably grow up to be involved in some sort of athletics one day. However once those bugs wanted to be seen by you? Then it was time to wrap it up and go right inside.

“We’ll get to enjoy the inside more once we’re old as hell.”

“I like my own personal granny already,” coco laughs while you elbow his gut, “ow, what? You were the one crying about your back the other night?”

“That’s because you left one of your stupid chains to your jeans in the bed.”

“My bad, thought you were into bondage.” Coco felt his lips twitch in humor until you lifted your head to glare at him.

“Johnny.”

“Y/n,” he says back in a warning tone but teasing, “aye show me some love, I got you out that bathroom and put this grandma shit up. You don’t got to bring up old shit, you know?”

“That was two days ago but whatever,” you respond yanking his jaw to turn his lips to brush against yours, “love you papa, now sssh and let’s enjoy the warm night.”

Coco lets out a sigh, squeezing your waist as you get comfortable back against his shoulder. “You better, brat.”

“After you…butt sniffer.”

“Always got to have the last word, don’t you?” Coco sucks his teeth, ready to nudge your head off him if you didn’t look so cute relaxing against him, aware that you were comparing him to a dog yet again while you laugh, tossing your knee over his, intertwining your fingers (the good ones) with his as you sink into the freedom of the night together.

⚘𖦹☼❀𑁍❀☼𖦹⚘ ⚘𖦹☼❀𑁍❀☼𖦹⚘ ⚘𖦹☼❀𑁍❀☼𖦹⚘ ⚘𖦹☼❀

[protagonistpolling]

PROTAGONIST POLLING

Why should you vote for any of these characters?

Why should you vote for Mae Borowski? (2)

"She's a little cat who likes to jump on powerlines, make bad jokes to random people on the street and howl with her friend because of a restaurant called "Donut Wolf". At one point she makes a drunken speech at a party, where she declares she's a "TOTAL TRASH MAMMAL" before throwing up everywhere. Depending on the routes you can take, she can get electrocuted by a car and see God, whack a broken boiler with a baseball bat because she gets impatient trying to fix it, have a knife fight with her best friend in the woods, build a robot, and more. She is VERY silly :)"

Why should you vote for Niko? (1)

"They are just a little baby who's like 8 years old with the weight of the world on their shoulders (and literally in their arms!). They ask you, the player, to help guide them, and you can have cute conversations about how your world is different from theirs. They love their Mama and they love pancakes. They like riding around on a roomba. They're offended whenever someone calls them a cat but they still make cute cat noises. They are a precious baby and everyone who has played OneShot has already signed the adoption papers <3"

Why should you vote for Coco? (1)

"shes so little. she just wants to learn how to do magic to save her mom, bring wonder in to the world and make it a better place. shes so eager to learn. she has survivors guilt but is being so brave about it. i love her. daughter."

"They are just a little baby who's like 8 years old with the weight of the world on their shoulders (and literally in their arms!). They ask you, the player, to help guide them, and you can have cute conversations about how your world is different from theirs. They love their Mama and they love pancakes. They like riding around on a roomba. They're offended whenever someone calls them a cat but they still make cute cat noises. They are a precious baby and everyone who has played OneShot has already signed the adoption papers <3"

Why should you vote for Coco? (1)

"shes so little. she just wants to learn how to do magic to save her mom, bring wonder in to the world and make it a better place. shes so eager to learn. she has survivors guilt but is being so brave about it. i love her. daughter."

[goldenamaranthe-blog]

Pregnant Bees: Class pt. 1

Blake and Yang are attending a baby birthing class. Since their first child was adopted, they felt that it would be good for both of them to attend. Class is currently on a break.

Weiss: Honestly, I expected more from this class.

Velvet: Same. I feel like we went over a lot of this during health class back in Beacon.

Nora: I'm just glad the teacher gave us a break. I was starting to go crazy!

Pyrrha: Well, it is nice to have the refresher, even if I could have gone my whole life seeing how big of a hole these two are going to leave...

WVBN: (shudder)

Blake: Wait... Where did-?

A loud cheer sounds from outside and they all go check. Yang, Ruby, Jaune, Sun, and Ren are competing in a "Dad" Relay.

Weiss: What's going on?

Coco: Oh, the other dads wanted to test their skills and see who was prepared to be the best dad. They have a bottle prep and chug, pack-n-play assembly where they have to wear beer goggles to simulate being sleep deprived, a baby carrier wrap to see who can wrap a doll to their chest the most securely, and finally a stroller dash to the finish line.

Velvet: Why aren't you participating, Cocobean?

Coco: And miss recording this for our kids to watch? Absolutely not! Sun is taking over for me.

Teacher: Participants ready?! Set! GO!

Alright! Audience participation! Vote to see who succeeds in the following obstacles of the dad relay. I will update every week with the results. Whoever wins the most events will win the Dad Relay! Please share the poll so we can get more votes! I don't want this to be a full sweep in the end.

[bcdrawsandwrites]

Well, the Coco fic tied on the poll! Since that one's fully finished, I'm gonna go ahead and post it first. (I've also started working on wrapping up that Psychonauts fic that tied!)

So uhhh... I wrote this Coco fic years ago and completely forgot about it until more recently. But for reference, it takes place between Neither Can You and A Blessing of a Curse, and has references to a few other of my fics thrown around here. If you're not familiar with my fics, though, I guess just know that Héctor and Imelda are working through some trauma due to some of Ernesto's shenanigans, to put it lightly.

So uhhh... enjoy?

---~~~---

Héctor dusted off his vest with his good hand, looking at himself in the mirror anxiously. "Do I... look okay?"

"Sí, papá, you look fine," Coco answered, grinning at him.

"Yeah, but... do I really look okay?" He turned to the side to view himself from that angle before looking down at his daughter.

"Papá, that's the outfit you wear the most."

"But does it look okay?"

"You're going for a walk."

"I know, but—"

Coco only laughed, shaking her head, and Héctor couldn't help smiling at her—it was hard to be upset when she wasn't.

"Well... if you say so, mija." His voice caught, and he cleared his throat—it wasn't any emotion, but just the fact that his cervical vertebrae were still recovering from the damage done to them. It hurt less now, and he could talk more, but they got terribly itchy at times. "Ay..."

"Save your talking for mamá." Gently she urged him away from his bedroom mirror and to the door. "Go have fun."

"You... could join us, if you wanted," Héctor said, looking back at her.

She smiled. "No, this is just for you and her. Go on, papá."

Smiling back at her, Héctor finally turned back to the hallway before him and headed down the stairs. Though his leg still bothered him, it wasn't nearly as bad as it had been, so he hoped he would be good for a walk. As he neared the bottom of the stairs, he saw Imelda waiting by the door and talking with her brothers. She looked up as he approached, and his heart leaped.

"I take it you're ready, then?" Imelda asked, and Héctor nodded eagerly, wincing when the action irritated his throat. But she only smiled, opening the door. "Let's go."

The late afternoon sun cast a warm orange glow over the streets of the Land of the Dead, and Pepita lay on her back in the yard, trying to soak in the last of the rays that touched their property. Hearing the approach of her familia, she rolled over and raised her head, alert.

Héctor tensed; every time he'd gone out somewhere since... everything happened, either Pepita or Dante (or both) had accompanied him, ready to assist him whenever possible. Often they ran into the press, and the alebrijes' assistance was needed, but the last few times there had been no incident. Even so, the thought of needing the accompaniment of an alebrije made him slightly less eager about tonight. "Is she...?"

Sighing, Imelda strode up to Pepita and scratched behind her horn reassuringly. "No, no, Pepita, you stay here. We'll be fine on our own."

The big cat's gaze flicked over to Héctor, lingering on him, before she turned back to Imelda with a questioning meow.

"It will be fine," Imelda went on, scratching the side of her alebrije's jaw.

"Are... are you sure?" Héctor asked, limping up to her. "Maybe we should wait a bit longer—"

"Héctor, we can't keep living like this." Imelda's voice was harsh, and he winced back, but she softened immediately, placing a hand on his shoulder. "We can't keep being afraid. The press is leaving us alone now, and all of his men are behind bars. Nothing will hurt us."

Frowning, Héctor stared down at his prosthetic hand, flexing it. After a moment he looked up, a teasing smile tugging at his mouth. "Not even rogue alebrijes?"

Pepita snorted, nearly sending Héctor's hat flying, and Imelda rolled her eyes. "That would happen, wouldn't it?" she said, then chuckled. "Yes, Héctor, if some rogue alebrije charges us again, we can take care of it, or I can call Pepita." She rubbed the cat's nose before stepping back, her demeanor becoming more serious again. "But... I want us to relax tonight, and not worry about anything like that."

Héctor gazed into her eyes, finding some of the worry in his bones easing. "I... think I can manage that."

"Good." With that, she marched toward the gates of their property, and Héctor followed.

It felt a little strange to be stepping outside the hacienda without an actual destination in mind—usually he would step out to help with shopping (really just to get out of the house), to go to the park, or to visit his Shantytown family. It didn't take long, however, for Héctor to merely roll with it, enjoying the fresh air and the warmth of the afternoon sun on his back.

And, of course, the fact that he was actually spending some time alone with his wife.

He found himself turning to her, his heart lifting as he considered the fact that she had asked him to do this. She wanted to be with him. Yes, they'd been building up their relationship again over the past few months, but after so many years of loneliness, it was still a marvel to him.

"It's nice to just get out of the house for a while, isn't it?" Imelda asked, catching him off guard.

"Oh—! Yes." Héctor nodded quickly, adjusting his scarf. "It's warm tonight. And not raining."

Imelda laughed quietly; it had indeed been raining a lot that week, which hadn't made deliveries and grocery runs all that pleasant. "Yes, it seems we've finally gotten a break from that." She grew quiet for a moment. "And... everything else."

"Gracias a Dios," Héctor breathed with a relieved grin. "Let's not even talk about it."

She didn't look back at him, but slowly nodded.

Goodness, it would be nice to think about something else for a while. They never turned on any news stations on the radio or television, since there was always a risk of stuff about that coming up. Even then, some of their familia had been talking when they'd thought he was out of earshot. Words like therapy and mental health had been tossed around a few times, but Héctor would still very much like to avoid seeing doctors as much as possible, whether they be doctors for bones, teeth, or mind. Not to mention, seeing that kind of doctor would require going over everything again—telling it to someone else, reliving it... no, gracias.

Imelda was right—he couldn't keep living in fear and letting everything that happened during that time control the rest of his life. Things had to get back to normal eventually... and this was a great start.

"Miguel is quite the artist," Imelda remarked, drawing him out of his thoughts again.

Héctor brightened—though Miguel hadn't been able to send them any letters yet, since Dante was still recovering, they'd gone back over previous letters he'd sent, admiring the drawings on some of them. In one, he'd drawn Héctor and Imelda from memory, and managed to capture their likenesses quite well. "You think he's started writing that book yet?"

"I don't think so. He said it was for Socorro, and she certainly isn't old enough to understand it yet."

Shrugging, Héctor looked up at the sky, which was beginning to turn from orange to reddish-purple. Though still bright enough to see, the nearby streetlamps flickered on. "No, but creating something for someone takes time." His gaze turned to her with a sly grin. "I certainly didn't wait until we were, eh, what do they call it now... official before I started writing songs for you."

Imelda blinked in surprise. "That's right..." And then she turned to him with a wry smile of her own. "I still remember when you first tried to serenade me."

Immediately Héctor balked, stopping in his tracks and wincing. "Eeeehhhhh. Okay, I never say this, but please don't remember that."

To his utter mortification, she went on, taking a step closer: "You were shaking in your shoes—"

"Imelda—"

"Your face was as white as a sheet—"

"Por favor—"

"And I seem to recall..."

"Ay, no!"

"...your voice cracked."

"Uuuuuuughhhh..." Héctor buckled, covering his face with his hat and mumbling into it: "Honestly, I would have been happy if you'd forgotten that one."

But Imelda tugged the hat back, giving him a fond smile. "It was charming."

Embarrassed as he was, he couldn't be upset at that look, and raised himself back to his full height. "Charming as a deaf burro," he said, adjusting his hat.

She stepped back, raising a brow bone. "Are you saying I have bad taste?"

"¿Qué? No!" Héctor flinched back. "N-no, mi amor, I was just..."

Imelda had looked like she may have been half-joking at first, but her brow furrowed and her eyes lowered, her shoulders sinking as though there was suddenly a weight laid upon them. "...It wasn't you who'd used that phrase originally."

"What are you..."

Héctor froze.

Before him, he saw the vision of a then-taller boy staring down at him in disappointment and disbelief.

What was that?! You sounded like a deaf burro out there.

He'd believed him at the time—near everything he said—and still couldn't recall that moment without wincing.

Though he wasn't looking anymore, the voice went on, in words he'd never actually heard it say: You're not good enough for her, hermanito. You're not good enough for any of them. Why would you even try to go back to her? It's not like your music can win her back now.

He gasped as a jolt of phantom pain shot through his missing hand, and grasped his wrist.

She's just toying with you. After all, you abandoned her before... You're pretty good at that, by the way. Why would she want you again?

"C-cállate," he stammered through grit teeth. "I-I never did that, I never—"

"Héctor?"

With a start, Héctor stumbled backwards, nearly falling, and found himself still on the sidewalk with Imelda staring at him in bewilderment and concern. "Are you all right?"

He mentally kicked himself; what was he doing, letting himself get hung up on this again? They were supposed to be enjoying themselves, and here he was getting upset about a person who wasn't even around anymore. Shaking himself bodily, he straightened again and tugged at his suspenders. "Sí, I'm fine. Just got a bit lost in my thoughts, heh."

Imelda didn't look entirely convinced, and it took a great deal of willpower not to wither under her gaze, as he'd done before Dia de Muertos. "I-I am fine," he insisted, holding out his hands. "Really! I was just—"

"Héctor," she said, holding up a hand herself, and he lowered his, feeling a tension pulling beneath his ribs as he waited for her to speak. "I... need to talk to you about something."

Her tone was serious, and clearly unhappy, and the tension spread from Héctor's chest to the rest of his body.

There it was—she hadn't invited him out for a walk just for the sake of being with him. She needed to talk with him.

Did you think she would actually enjoy your company, hermano? Did you think she actually wanted to keep you around? She's just being polite, and she's going to turn you away.

Héctor looked up into Imelda's eyes, and could see it—hesitation, anxiety... whatever she was going to tell him couldn't be anything good. His left hand gripped his right wrist, and his non-existent stomach felt as though it were sinking through the stones beneath his feet.

She opened her mouth to say something... and then her eyes went wide, and within seconds she threw herself forward, grabbing Héctor by his bad wrist and yanking him away. He let out a yelp, but only had a brief moment to wonder what she was doing when he heard the crack of something heavy striking pavement. Looking back, he could see a decent-sized rock that had hit the pavement a short distance past where he'd been standing.

It took a few more seconds before he realized that had Imelda not pulled him away, the rock would have struck him in the skull.

Imelda seemed to realize it the same time as he did, and her boot was off and held up threateningly. "Where are you?!" she demanded, her face contorted in rage, while Héctor struggled to recover from the shock of what had just happened.

"Should have left him where he was standing, vieja."

The voice was rough, unfamiliar, and slightly muffled. The evening was growing darker, now, but lurking behind one of the streetlamps, just behind where he'd been standing, was a figure wearing a large jacket and a face mask that obscured his markings.

The shocked numbness that had filled Héctor spiked into a full-blown terror as he took a step back. No, no, it couldn't be, they'd gotten all of his men, hadn't they? Though when he looked at the stranger, he didn't seem to fit the appearance of the rest of Ernesto's bodyguards—they were all broad-shouldered and tall, and this man had a slighter frame. Could he be another person Ernesto had a connection with?

Only a second later, however, he could no longer see the man, for Imelda had positioned herself directly between them. "Who are you?" she demanded.

"I was a fan of the music," the man shot back.

Héctor's mind reeled. "What?"

"Not your music, you fraud. El Señor de la Cruz's."

Dios, it was another one of them. He'd had encounters with them in the past, and they were often angry, but they'd never...

"My husband is no fraud." Imelda's voice was low, and Héctor could feel the anger radiating off of her. "That man betrayed us, he stole Héctor's songs and—"

"Yeah, 'cuz what was he gonna do with them? Sing 'em at quinceañeras? De la Cruz gave the songs to the world—he made the world a better place with that music, and you—!" For a moment it seemed like he was too angry to speak.

"Are you serious?!" Imelda cried, but Héctor's heart sank as he recalled how the night he'd left, he had packed up his songs, intending to take them home, planning only to sing in Santa Cecilia...

Alarmingly, the man took a step forward. "Are you? You ruined him, and when that wasn't enough, you got him arrested?!"

Shaking his guilt off for the moment, Héctor stepped out from behind Imelda to glare at his attacker. "He kidnapped my granddaughter!"

"Oh, sure he did! Sure that wasn't some lie you cabrónes made up to smear his name further—"

"What do you think happened to Héctor's hand?!"

"Pretty desperate move for attention," the attacker snarled before he began walking purposefully toward them, his voice growing dangerously low. "And I can give you all the attention you like."

"Get back."

"I won't." He was closer now, drawing a weapon from his side—a bat. "I'm sick of this."

Frantically Héctor took a moment to survey the area around them—it was very still, and no one else was around. He hadn't been paying attention to where they were going earlier, but he realized with alarm that Imelda must have deliberately led him to a place that wasn't busy, where they wouldn't be bothered, so she could talk with him alone... This timing couldn't have been worse—

Without warning the man charged, and Héctor reached for Imelda's hand so he could grab it and run.

His hand came short, for Imelda ran forward, meeting the man with a strike of her boot. Though it missed, the man stumbled backward, surprised. "Out of my way, vieja!"

"No," she said. "If you want him, you have to get through me first."

"Fine. You're as culpable as he is!" With that, he charged at Imelda, swinging the bat, only for her to jump back and strike with her boot again, this time hitting his hand, and he drew back with a yell.

"I-Imelda, what are you doing?!" Héctor whispered hurriedly. "We should get out of here!"

Without looking away, she hissed back to him: "I'm not letting any of this affect us any more."

Her words didn't make much sense, and he didn't have time to sort through it now. The man had already recovered from the strike, and swung his bat at her again, the weapon coming within an inch of her nasal cavity, and even Imelda seemed alarmed.

She couldn't do this on her own.

While the man was distracted by Imelda, Héctor backed away, and edged himself around her as quietly as he could, fighting to keep his creaking, trembling bones still. Fortunately he had a lot of practice sneaking around, and managed to get to the side and slightly behind their attacker. Imelda seemed to notice what he was doing too, and made several quick swings to keep the man focused on her.

Drawing in a breath to prepare himself, Héctor lunged forward, tackling the man to the ground. Not much of a fighter, he struggled to keep the man pinned, holding down one of his arms with his good hand—there wasn't enough strength in his prosthetic to do much there. The whole situation brought back memories of a very different night, and for a moment he swore he could see stark white bone. The man fought and snarled beneath him, but only for a moment, for Imelda finally struck him directly in the skull with her boot, knocking him senseless.

Héctor didn't immediately relax, even when Imelda retrieved the weapon before it could be used again. He was still shaking a great deal, and kept holding the body down, not sure what else to do with himself even as Imelda gave a shrill whistle, and Pepita roared in the distance.

—-

They gave the report outside the station—Imelda had insisted—and Héctor remembered little of it. He couldn't seem to differentiate between when they were there and when they left, because the next thing he knew Imelda was gently nudging his shoulder, and he blinked to find that Pepita had brought them to the rooftop of their own house.

"Héctor, it's done," Imelda said gently. "You're okay."

He forced a laugh, trying to smile in spite of the tightness in his chest and the fact that he hadn't stopped shaking. "What makes you think I'm not?"

She didn't answer, but her worried, exhausted expression made it clear the shoddy attempt at a joke hadn't landed. Wordlessly she slipped off of Pepita and helped him down, and they stood in the soft glow of the enormous cat's luminescent fur. Imelda stared down at it, running one hand over the yellow markings while her other hand rested on Héctor's shoulder.

"You're right," she said at last.

"About...?"

"You're not okay." Her hand squeezed his shoulder as she finally looked into his eyes.

Héctor's non-existent stomach was slowly twisting itself into knots. "I... I-Imelda—"

"We are not okay," she said firmly, her gaze falling again. "Neither of us."

"¿Qué?" he gasped, stooping down to meet her gaze. "I-Imelda, no, y-you were amazing! I don't know what I would have done—"

"No, Héctor." She took a step back, letting go of him. "I... I couldn't have handled that on my own. Without you, that man could have..."

They stood in the stillness, the only other sound being the soft breathing of the cat beside them. Pepita let out a quiet purr, and Imelda finally went on:

"I couldn't have done anything without my family. After you were gone, I tried to work alone, but..." She shook her head, and Héctor's heart ached. Hesitantly he wrapped his good arm around her shoulder, and her hand raised up to rest upon his. "My family—my brothers and Coco—helped me then." And she looked up at him, meeting his gaze. "And I need you now."

That caught him off guard, and he nearly stumbled back. "You... do?" he stammered. "But I—I thought that... you seemed upset before—"

"No." She turned around, holding his good hand in both of hers. "Héctor, what I wanted to talk to you about..."

Though Héctor steeled himself, he could feel himself wilting anyway. "¿Sí?"

"I know you don't want to hear this, but... we... need help. Both of us. And... we need it together." Imelda's hands gently squeezed his until he looked into her eyes. "I'm going to sign us up for therapy."

Héctor winced. "Imelda... you don't... I-I don't think we—"

"You went blank for nearly an hour after what happened tonight, and I don't think it was just from the attack."

Slowly, haltingly he let out the air from where his lungs once were. She was right—he knew she was, but...

"You.... you know... the things he said," Héctor stammered. "They... they were..."

"You can't honestly believe anything he said!" Imelda cried, horrified.

"They weren't... wrong," he finally admitted. "If... if he hadn't taken my music, I would have just... sang at local things in Santa Cecilia. My music wouldn't have reached—"

"Of course not!" She took him by the shoulders, looking him in the eyes. "But you would have been alive, Héctor!"

He hung his head, ashamed. "I-I know. But... some things... worked out for the better, didn't they?"

"This is what I'm talking about. Listen to yourself... you can't keep thinking like this." Gently she lifted his chin so he was looking at her again. "We need to talk to someone, Héctor. I'll be with you."

"Y... you're right. Lo siento, mi amor." Finally he straightened himself, even though he still felt like slumping. "I'll—we'll do it."

Imelda drew her arms around him, and he did the same. "Yes, mi amor. We'll get through this... however long it takes."

[kpodcast]

The DKB bracket was exciting in a lot of ways - we chose to do DKB as a celebration of one year of kpodcast, but also we ended the bracket with seeing DKB live for the second time! Also, from a purely bracket perspective, we had an unbelievable amount of ties.

Let's start by looking at the results to the survey:

We have a really nice gradual curve right up until the very end where we see a sharp drop off for All Yours. We see a couple of those plateaus we've seen in other rankings, but way fewer ties this time since we got a wonderful 38 responses.

Clearly, not the case with the polls for the bracket themselves. Almost every round had a tiebreaker, and we even had a tie for the tiebreaker for the semi final! Really, this indicates to me that DKB's discography is just really consistent.

There's a very interesting story between rounds two and three and the ties there. Round two had two tied polls - Work Hard and Coco Colada with 7 votes each, and Flirting X and Tell Me Tell Me with 8 votes each. The tiebreakers had Work Hard and Flirting X move on to round three, where they would face each other. Flirting X ended up upsetting Work Hard 10 votes to 6. Since we received a really consistent number of responses to each poll - with an average and median of 16 - we can clearly see the favorites in each match up. BBs like Work Hard more than Coco Colada (barely), but Flirting X considerably more than Work Hard.

You can see a similar trend in our unprecedented three way finale - More Than 100 Reasons and Turning Point both received 10 votes in the initial poll, then 8 each in the tiebreaker. But, once they were up against Sober, Turning Point only got 4 votes and More Than 100 Reasons got 5, compared to Sober's 12 votes.

Here's an interesting look at the round 2 results - we can see those two tied polls, but more interesting are the songs that received the most votes. Sober with 12 and Rollercoaster with 11. Rollercoaster was the number 1 ranked song, and Sober was ranked 8. In round 3, Sober knocked out Rollercoaster 13 votes to 4, making it clear that those who preferred Rollercoaster over Bubble also preferred Sober over Rollercoaster.

We can see the distribution of ratings for Sober and Rollercoaster below, and you can see that those who responded to the survey did tend to prefer Rollercoaster over Sober, but overall they were very similarly rated. Maybe the upset of Sober taking the whole bracket is not as large of an upset as it seems from looking at just the final rankings.

Really, Sober had quite the run in the bracket. It beat out each other song by an average of 9 votes - the most being 16 more votes than Flirting X in the semi final. I'm not sure we've had a single song consistently receive at least 50% more votes in each poll in any bracket. (Maybe a future comprehensive stats post coming?)

Thanks for indulging us as we just decided to do a DKB bracket, and thanks as always for such great participation. It was so fun to see y'all reblogging and campaigning for your favorites. Stay tuned for our next bracket, and vote for which one of Yeaji's favorite groups should be next here!

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

María Félix (Doña Barbara, La Mujer sin Alma, Rio Escondido, La Cucaracha)—Maria Felix is still possibly the most well-known Mexican film actress. She turned down multiple-roles in Hollywood and a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer in order to take roles in Mexico, France, and Argentine throughout the 1940s, 50s, 60s. She was so famous and so respected as a dramatic actress that she inspired painters, novelists and poets in their own art--she was painted by Diego Rivera, Jose Orozco, Bridget Tichenor. The novelist Carlos Fuentes used her as inspiration for his protagonist in Zona Sagrada. She inspired an entire collection by Hermes. In the late 1960s Cartier made her a custom collection of reptile themed jewels. She considered herself to be powerful challenger of morality and femininity in Mexico & worldwide--she routinely played powerful women in roles with challenging moral choices and free sexuality. But even still, years after he death, she is celebrated with Google Doodles, and appearances in the movie Coco, and holidays for the anniversary of her death.

Vyjayanthimala (Madhumati, Amrapali, Sangam, Devdas)—Strong contender for /the/ OG queen of Indian cinema for over 2 straight decades. Her Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award came not a moment too soon with 62 movies under her belt. Singer, dancer, actor, and also has the most expressive set of eyes known to man

This is round 5 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Vyjayanthimala:

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María Félix:

She's Thee Hot Vintage Movie Woman of México. She's absolutely gorgeous and always looks like she's about to step on you. you WILL be thankful if she does.

"María Félix is a woman -- such a woman -- with the audacity to defy the ideas machos have constructed of what a woman should be. She's free like the wind, she disperses the clouds, or illuminates them with the lightning flash of her gaze." - Octavio Paz

María Félix is one of the most iconic actresses of the Golden Era of Mexican Cinema. La Doña, as she was lovingly nicknamed, only had one son, and when her first marriage ended in divorce her ex-husband stole her only child, so she vowed that one day she’d be more influential than her ex and she’d get her son back. AND SHE DID! María Félix rejected a Hollywood acting role to start her acting career in Mexico on her own terms with El Peñón de las Ánimas (The Rock of Souls) starring alongside actor, and future third husband, Jorge Negrete. She quickly rose to incredible heights both in Mexico and abroad, later on rejecting a Hollywood starring role (Duel in the Sun) as she was already committed to the movie Enamorada at the planned filming time. Of this snubbing she said, quote: “I will never regret saying no to Hollywood, because my career in Europe was focused in [high] quality cinema. [My] india* roles are made in my country, and [my] queen roles are abroad.” (Translator notes: here the “india” role means interpreting a lower-class Mexican woman, usually thought of indigenous/native/mixed descent —which she had interpreted and reinvented throughout her acting career in Mexico— and what abroad was typically considered the Mexican woman stereotype, with the braids, long simple skirts, and sandals. This also references the expectation of her possibly helping Hollywood in perpetuating this stereotype for American audiences that lack the cultural and historical contexts of this type of role which would undermine her own efforts against this type of Mexican stereotypes while working in Europe) She was considered one of the most beautiful women in the world of her time by international magazines like Life, París Match, and Esquire, and was a muse to a vast number of songwriters (including her second husband Agustin Lara,), artists, designers, and writers. Muralist Diego Rivera described her as “a monstrously perfect being. She’s an exemplary being that drives all other human beings to put as much effort as possible to be like her”. Playwriter Jean Cocteau, who worked with her in the Spanish film La Corona Negra (The Black Crown) said the following about her, “María, that woman is so beautiful it hurts”. Haute Couture houses like Dior, Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Hérmes, among others, designed and dressed her throughout her life. She died on her birthday, April 8, 2002, at 88 years old, in Mexico City. She was celebrated by a parade from her home to the Fine Arts Palace in the the city’s Historic Downtown, where a multitude of people paid tribute to her. Her filmography includes 47 movies from 1942 until 1970, and only two television acting roles in 1970. She has 2 music albums, one recorded with her second husband, Agustín Lara, in 1964 titled La Voz de María y la inspiración de Agustín «The voice of María and the inspiration of Augustín», and her solo album Enamorada «In Love» in 1998. Her bespoke Cartier jewelry is exhibited alongside Elizabeth Taylor’s, Grace Kelly’s and Gloria Swanson’s. In 2018, Film Director Martin Scorsese presented a restored and remastered version of her film Enamorada in the Cannes Classics section of the Cannes Festival and Google dedicated a doodle for her 104th birthday. On august 2023 Barbie added her doll to the Tribute Collection.