#did a different style it's ehhhh sorry

[heretherebedork]

*4Minute spoilers if you haven't watched*

I think I'm just going to have to accept that the Sammon X BOC shows just aren't working for me. I really liked MOD, and I really appreciate what Sammon brings to BL. We're still really lacking in genre variety and adult centered shows, and I like how she's committed to bringing something more medical/mysterious.

But the BOC shows have really just drifted too far from what I'm looking for in a BL I guess. I like darker shows, but the ending of DFF (which was that even BL?) and 4minute are just too heavy on themes and mystery for me. I guess actually it just feels too artsy for me - like it's purposely being ambiguous. And that's fine, it's just that it feels out of place in what I think of and want in a BL.

The ending of 4minute just isn't what I wanted. Any plot issues aside, I am just not enjoying the couples dying together all the time trope. Even if it was unrealistic, I just want Tonkla to run away with one of these men (or by himself I guess if we must).

Yay, spoilers! (I haven't watched but I also don't care.)

Anyway, yeah.

I admit it. BOC? Not my vibes. Like, at all.

I have not yet enjoyed a BOC show. Just... genuinely? Have not. I've enjoyed some small parts but never the entire thing and never most of them.

And that's okay!

Everyone has their taste and if people can stop jiving with GMMTV or not find themselves enjoying Mandee or not wanting to see another Dee Hup or whatever then some of us can just not vibes with BOC.

Frankly, BOC isn't making BL. They're making Artsy Queer Shows.

Which, sure, go for it! Why not? We need them, no denials, we always need artsy queer shows and that's great. Please, make more! Go for it!

But BL? Ehhhh, I'd argue that BL is a romance driven genre and that they way they lean into the shows doesn't lean into BL itself and that's okay! Honest, it is! Queer shows like this are important.

They're just not my taste. And I hope that's okay.

(Sorry, BOC fans scare me. Seriously.)

But anyway yeah dying together is not my idea of an ending I want. Can't wait to watch it. Hmmm. I should 1.25 speed it, probably.

I am especially sad that Tonkla didn't get away with everything. That man deserved all his gay wrongs in the world!

And, just in case people wanna say this is a bad take because Great obviously regretted it and wanted to make up for his mistakes. That's not it at all. Great did regret the shitty things he did and that's fine but Tonkla deserved to murder people. He did. And he still does. He deserved to murder and run away and live freely and build a new life. He was the only one I even remotely cared about.

But anyway! There's nothing wrong with dislike a production company or style of show. That's okay! It's always okay to dislike or like something differently.

[nerves-nebula]

YEAH SAME SAME the pins and needles spooked "uh oh what might happen" feeling was with me in different levels the ENTIRE time I was watching the movie. HOLY SMOKES it is so good!!

That's pretty interesting actually, I looked it up and the movie was made like a year or two after the show paused. It might've paused with covid conflicts with animation in which case HOPEFULLY it'll return? Like the show probably did really well and wiki says it's been nominated for a ton of different awards (and won one) SO.

AND YEAH BATTLE SHELL PLANS!! (you have activated my autism, infodump incoming!! SORRY if you aren't ready for it but it has been activated you cannot stop it <- absolutely thrilled that you implied i could infodump about it) ALSO trying to make it sensory issue friendly too!!)

See I could just buy a back protector but ehhhh that's not cool. PLUS I like making stuff and have taught myself a few skills that could come in handy here BUT highly depending on which plan I go with, because I have a couple for the base structure and some ideas for add-ons, fun features, etc

SO I've made rough sketches for what it would structurally be like, materials, size, etc. I'm also debating on how I want to approach the base structure. I know at least I want to have a mesh layer that is what will be against your body.

It'll be connected around the edges with a zipper, or at least one of the mesh layers will be connected that way so if you wear it against your skin you can wash it. I'll probably end up cannibalizing the back of a sweater or a comfortable material and use that for the zipper attachment, just so it doesn't cause any sensory issues

Structure wise I have to main ideas, based on two philosophical thoughts, with different approaches for the rest depending on how I do the structure style. The structure style is mostly about flexibility vs durability. You need enough strength that it can protect, but too much makes it too stiff. I'm a pretty flexible person (aka I sit and move in odd ways) so I need the durability to not get in the way of comfort)

FIRST based on a plate system dependent on connection points, where I'd go with one main spinal support beam that connects to four main layers of plates. These plates (two horizontal on each size, bigger vertical plats on the top vs lower back) would be connected directly to the mesh itself, but overlap to a layer. The flexibility would be based on the actual mesh, with the durability and strength being the plates.

The plates would need to be made out of something that isn't so tough that they can't lay flat. If I went with the plate system I'd probably have an exterior material that wraps around them, just to keep them flat and discreet. HOWEVER it would be SO tempting to not include an outside wrap, but in that case I'd have to individually wrap the plates.

HONESTLY for the plate system I was considering making the plates out of weaved/crochet metal wires, however this gets into a point I'll break down later. BUT the downside of the plate system is how it connects. The actual connection points would be highly dependent on the durability on the mesh, as it would have to directly attach to that. I'd also consider maybe adding an edge-connection system to the plates so they can connect to themselves to a degree?

Sorta like how siding for houses have, less like what hardwood floor boards have, however it would have to be horizontal and vertical based which adds extra difficulties. BUT an interlocking system would add to overall durability of the shell itself and would make the wear on the base material lessen, plus could open up the idea of having an additional feature where individual plates can be added or removed, maybe instead of directly attaching the plates to the base material there would be a connection point attached to specific positions on the base material?

Which combined with the interlocking plates would be enough to hold it all together. PLUS would add customizability! so int he future I could replace plates with new ones, whether that be they got broken, or need stronger plates, or adding plates with a level of tech in them (for example if there is already a set structure for the interlocking system it would theoretically be possible to implement a basic lighting system into individual plates, either sharing wires between the plates or each being battery based, BUT I'm trying not to think that far ahead..)

(back to the overal structure debate)

SECOND would be less fancy but more practical approach to the structure, making it out of a singular flexible but tough material. Thinking like rubber-like (or at least not super stiff) hexigonal pieces that attach on the sides. Obviously this structure would have edge pieces to smooth is and an outter and inner cover to protect the actual core hexagon structure lol.

It would be probablyyy the easier option, and is similar to what I think buyable back protectors are made out of. Sorta similar train of thought to crochet or beehives. It would have less customizability options and maybe thicker(?) depending on the material used. And depending on the size of the hexigones I'd have to make specialized moulds or create each one myself. It's both less and more turtle-y, but would be the most similar to Donnie's actual shell which lacks specific plates. There's also the issue that the hexagones would need to have a hollow (or near hollow) inside to actually be flexible enough for this approach to work, or would need to have another tough layer of material on the outside, which would reduce flexibility again.

NEXT DEBATE: To use metal or to not? This is based mostly on that I actually want to wear this, at least if I'm having a rough day or need to go in a more unsafe part of town. And also like, it'd be soo awkward to go into a place that has metal detectors and trigger it and have to remove the battle shell, however that's an extremely uncommon situation so ???

BUT with metal I'd consider weaving/crocheting thin metal wires into the shapes I need, mostly this would be for the plate system. It wouldn't be too hard to plan the tough shapes for each plate, and then making the structure of the individual plates fit within that, and mirroring it based on the spine. They'd have to be wrapped of course, and if metal was already being used they could be wrapped with scrap metal from pop cans for example, but more likely a few pads of jean on the outside and wrapped with one material.

With thicker wires though (or combining enough wires) I could make the hexagonal approach through wires as well, with weaving a star shape inside the wire hexagons to increase strength.

I'm ALSO considering using melted plastic-like material. Plastic sucks though, so I want to think about this more, but it would be the most obvious other choice compared to metal. Cley is too prone to breaking (strong but not durable) and wood is impractical and harder to source. Layers of stronger materials just doesn't make as much sense and is time consuming, and I can't spend a lot of money fabricating a special material.

BUT for the melted plastic-like material my most obvious thought would be silicone, resin, OR the cheapest and most easy to source option: melted and shapped glue sticks. This would make both structure style of shells a lot easier to make, as I wouldn't have to focus so much on making the individual because I could make moulds for the parts instead. AND if I didn't attach the structure directly to the material and instead had connection points onto the material then I could make these in the mould as well (mostly applies to plate structure approach).

Of course for the plates they'd be separated by an alphanumeric row vs column sorting system, which would mean I'd have to make a LOT of individual moulds for each plate. BUT once a plate mould is made then it would be easier to make future plates. And would make it easier to customize.

For the hexagon system I'd have to make a LOT less moulds, just enough to have edge pieces and the hexagon pieces themselves. Not much else to add here, other than these would be more delicate moulds.

For the moulds themselves I'd probably use air-dry clay and shape it by that, which means I'd still end up making whichever battle shell out of clay, which is still kinda fun. And for fun I'd have a clay shell (mostly decorative and I don't have the storage space). And then make a mould around that from probably hot glue.

It's also SO tempting to consider making a waterproof solution and apply that to the shell, but it would be something to wear under clothes mostly so. hmmmmMMm. Other features I'm considering adding is a hidden hood (just need a zipper with a small pouch that I can hide the hood in when it's not in use). And some hidden pockets that can be accessed on the edges, which honestly I'd probably use to hide a few tools and a small emergency food stash, BUT I also need to recognize tha tI'm not going to be left in the woods for a week so it doesn't need to be tooooooo curvival inclusive. <- saying that but I won't stop thinking about it.

ALSO thinking about how fun it would be to add an attachable front layer to it too, so there's a back AND front shell. Front would need to be less tough and more flexible, but would be even less discreet than wearing a back shell. HOWEVER it would be really cool, and if it's removable then I could implement tech into it, like a hidden mp3 with speakers and headphones run through the system, lights, etc. Any of that would stop it from being discrete and would take more time so THIS here is just an example of "realistic goal" vs "I want to do it all hyperfocus".

I'm also thinking about how possible it would be to add actual tech stuff into the shell, BUT while I've taught myself some wiring and basic robotics and know how to code, more of my skills fall into physical creation rather than technological creation. Sad! Oh well!

I've already measured how big it would have to be and have recycled an old shirt to mark how big it would be and the size. Depending on if people are curious I could make a sideblog that covers my experience of making the battle shell with picture updates, advice, and maybe at the end a guide of sorts of how to make your own battle shell? I'm going to make it as cost effective as possible so I can update people at the end on how that went as well. I'm thinking WAYY ahead but if someone wanted a battle shell I could make them too after I've made one myself? WHO KNOWS

ANYWAYS that's where my solid thoughts end for the battle shell, most of my thoughts are not as word-based and harder to describe. If you have opinions on the plate vs hexagon structure style and include metal vs don't include metal debate feel free to share!! <- applicable to ANYONE that reads this. I'm leaning towards the plate system but recognize that it would be less discrete and more difficult alerkgmalekrmg)

SORRY FOR THE HUGE INDUMP BUT THANKS FOR LETTING ME INFODUMP ABOUT IT MY BRAIN IS CONSUMED WITH THOUGHTS ABOUT IT

i want u to know that im putting this through text to speech while drawing and its like sitting with someone and listening to them talk while making art and its really nice and cool :)

i didn't follow everything you said here but I got most of it, and it sounds fuckin fascinating. im always impressed by people who can like. CRAFt and CREATE shit like this. I am fucking entranced by the idea that you ACTUALLY know how to do this,,, I would love love LOVE to follow a side blog detailing this journey oh my goddd.

also this sentence cracked me up: "Of course for the plates they'd be separated by an alphanumeric row vs column sorting system" just cause its such a typically autistic thing to say "Of Course (something i don't understand)"

i wish i could have opinions to offer you on the hexagon vs plate thing but i'm basically just fascinated that you actually know how to do it, so my input is sorely lacking

[meadowmines]

RGG Tactics/Aoyagi Saga business sideplot #1: Cat Cafe Grand Prix

[Context: at a certain point in the story, Aoyagi is gifted a fixer-upper cafe to make a little walking around money with. Because Sotenbori is chock full of restaurants and because it is Unwise for him to repeat the same gimmick his place in Kamurocho used, he turns it into a cat cafe in partnership with the local TNR group. Naturally, a bunch of Cruella DeVil type shitlords running a syndicate of high-end cat cafes decides to start some shit. From the mechanics outline:]

Similar to the Cabaret Club sideplots.

You get cats on loan from the local TNR/rescue group. In order to request a new cat, you have to trap a stray. The rescue group will swoop in and pick up the stray, and then deliver a new cat to the cafe next time you enter it. The cat you trap will not be the cat that’s delivered, but strays you trap will eventually start being delivered once they’ve been fixed and prepped for adoption.

There are three factors in determining your score for each shift: profit, customer satisfaction, and adoptions. You’ll need to keep your menu fresh to maximize profit and satisfaction, and keep your cats happy to keep them from misbehaving on the floor and to incite customers to adopt them.

The mission of the cat cafe is to get cats adopted. Customers will bond with cats; when the bond maxes out, the customer will adopt the cat. An adoption during a shift will MASSIVELY boost your score and can make or break a rival battle. 

There are a few rare “platinum” cats, obtained via substories or beating rivals in the Cat Cafe Grand Prix. These cats have god tier stats but aren’t adoptable (this is explained in-game as them being special needs cats that can’t be placed with just anyone so the application process is a lot more involved). They’ll get customers in the door and loosen their hold on their wallets, but too many of them in your cast at once will tank your overall score because again, the goal is to get cats adopted.

Your first platinum cat is a majestically fluffy white cat with gorgeous blue eyes, named Miyuki (see what I did there? Yuki? Mew-ki? Ehhhh forget it). Miyuki is your number one girl. She is deaf and frequently oblivious to her surroundings and at some point in the sideplot she will get catnapped and you will be forced to do a rival battle without her. Same as it ever was.

Beating the Amon Clan tactical battle gets you, among other cool things, the best platinum cat in the game. He’s a big stocky black cat with sunglasses. His name is Nyamon. I’m not sorry.

You can put cute accessories on the cats to boost their appeal. Except for Nyamon, who will hiss at you if you try to swap his shades for another accessory.

Stressed cats, like stressed hostesses, will need time off. Putting an unhappy cat on the floor may lead to customers getting scratched or bitten, which will affect your score.

Different food has different effects on the cats’ stats. Fresh-made food is orders of magnitude better than the canned shit from Poppo and Donki, but you’ll need a recipe for that...

You can’t assign cats to tables. The cats will go where they want. However, if a cat starts to bond with a customer, she’ll eventually cling to that customer like glue.

In typical asshole cabaret club rival style, the Cruella DeVils will ditch their purebred number one cats after you beat them. Their loss is your gain.

Mr. J and Kofu DLC

[daydreaming-scheming-demon]

ehhhh, the original quote is "I want shorter games with worse graphics made by people who are paid more to work less and im not kidding"

you've kinda had to edit the actual quote for this joke to work. modern pokemon games arent exactly shorter than they used to be, nor shorter than most other games, scarlet and violet are about 30 hours long with about 80 hours of completionist playtime. and even if it did say "smaller" i certainly wouldnt call modern pokemon games small in any way.

as for it "looking worse", the actual quote says "with worse graphics", and in my opinion there is a difference. i will say, it is true that pokemon games have worse graphics than a lot of other modern games, but not at all compared to its previous games. so i have no clue what you mean by "transitions to".

even keeping your edited version of the quote in mind, since when did pokemon games even "transition to" being smaller and worse looking? modern pokemon games are still clearly larger than the classics, and looks are a matter of taste. are you talking about cutting pokemon when you say it transitioned to being smaller? because that's not the same thing.

also, the meaning of the "worse graphics" part of the quote is to say that companies spend too much time refining graphics to look as realistic as possible. not that they should "look worse" exactly but that maybe they should focus more on style or other aspects than obsessing over realism and putting too much money and pressure on workers to make the game's graphics absurd.

i understand that what exactly counts as 'worse graphics' is pretty arbitrary, maybe 'look worse' and 'worse graphics' could mean the same thing to some people. but when ive heard this quote used, this is the meaning ive seen people typically give to it, and this is what people who say this usually mean. that they're sick of all the triple a games trying to look as realistic and/or expensive as possible and everything that comes with that.

and of course you've just kinda left out the "made by people who're paid more to work less" part, because obviously pokemon games are not that in the slightest, and if you left that in, the post wouldnt work.

not to mention that when pokemon fans complain about the games, a lot of the issues they have isnt with the length or the graphics. sure, some of them are with it. but it's common for fans to say that pokemon fangames and rom hacks are mostly better than the official games, and those games are typically shorter and have worse graphics.

i dont know where you got this version of the quote from. whether you heard someone say it or came up with it yourself for this post, either way it's been edited and taken out of context to be used by you to make a non-existent point about the kinds of people who say that.

and personally, when i use that quote, besides the 'paid more to work less' part im not saying that all games should be like that. i just want more games to be like that. for companies to stop obsessing over making long games with overly realistic and expensive graphics.

im sorry, i may have gone a bit overboard with this reply. very overboard, actually. this is just a joke after all. but it feels to me like you were trying to make some kind of point with this post, but you haven't. there is no point here, this post is round af.

i want shorter games with worse graphics made by people who're paid more to work less, and pokemon is not one of those games.

"i want smaller worse looking games" mfs when a game series they like transitions to being smaller and worse looking (this post is about pokemon)

[dailycarbuncle]

What about carbuncle with a stand

Day 356: Stand name: CHAIN

[thepriceofbeingaroseisloneliness]

TOSHIYA AT JOE YOKOMIZO CHANNEL 4th FEB TRANSLATION/NOTES 2/4

Joe Yokomizo Channel

 Guest: Toshiya (Dir en grey)

Notes before reading: This is the translation/notes of the livestream on Joe’s Niconico channel with Toshiya as a guest last 4th February.  This is part 2. Originally, I planned to do it in two parts, but as I’m barely summarizing (I’m sorry?), it’s longer than expected, so there will be a part 3 ( maybe a 4?).  The livestream was one hour and fifty min approx. This part covers from min 47 approx., to 1h 12m.

You can watch this at Joe Yokomizo’s channel on Niconico.

Feel free to correct me if you spot any mistake or any confusing parts.

Links or credits to this post when the content is reposted or captured in other SNS are appreciated ----- (First part here) Joe: From now on, this is the members-only contents….*everyone claps* So, let’s drink… Toshiya: That’s it. Joe and Toshiya open their cans of Sapporo beer. They toast together. Toshiya: Let’s toast… Joe: Cheers! I’m really thirsty…. Toshiya: Itadakimasu…. They take a gulp of their beer. Joe: You said before that on stage you don’t feel nervous at all but at this kind of talks, you get nervous… Toshiya: I’m not good at this… Joe: You are not good at this? Toshiya: That’s it Joe: is it ok if you drink alcohol? Toshiya: isn’t that a problem? *laughs* Joe: It is… Alcohol makes people’s heart/spirit free….*Toshiya laughs* Ah,  “take off the sunglasses”, is that ok for you? Toshiya: Eh well, instead… I’m going to take my jacket off.. Joe: Oh, I see…..*Toshiya removes his jacket* Ohhhhh! Ohhhh!....there many comments calling you….like “kyaaaaa”…..have you ever made a mistake/screw up because of drinking? Toshiya: I did *laughs* Joe: You did… Toshiya: Yes… Joe: Can you say….? Toshiya: No….the truth is…..I can’t say…. Joe: You can’t tell us….you can’t tell what you did…. Toshiya: I can’t Joe: is that so? Toshiya: Yes, alcohol is  scary/dreadful… Joe: It is… this year I’m like trying to not getting carried away with alcohol….that’s my resolution for this year…. Toshiya: But well….but I never have been blackout (drunk)…. Joe: Ah, you always remember what you did…. Toshiya: I do remember… Joe: Like if you did something awful….*Toshiya nods* “Please make him drink until he tell us”….”talk about Die”…do you have any story about this with Die?.... Toshiya: Die….mmmm…I have many memories of drinking with him…. Joe: Is that so? Toshiya: Yes Joe: Like drinking after a live….after recording… Toshiya: Well, yes, after a rehearsal or so… Joe: what kind of things do you talk about with Die when you drink? Toshiya: Mostly about silly things…. Joe: Ah,  but that’s fun, right? Toshiya: That’s right… Joe: Ah, “summer memories”…..”trespassing”*….stories like that… I think that there are many stories like those mentioned at the comments… *This is a reference to the story they talked about at the livestream of May. Toshiya: That’s it…..no good… Joe: Everyone is like that….”A different story”…. A different awful story like that….”Bowling”…..what’s that about?......Bowling? Toshiya: Ah, drinking at the bowling alley….You can drink at the bowling alley, right?.... Joe: Is that so? Toshiya: Yes Joe: While you are bowling, you drink….*Toshiya nods*…. Toshiya:  That is….dangerous/risky…. Joe: At the alley? Toshiya: I threw it (the bowling ball) at the wrong lane…. Joe burst into laugh Joe: It came out (the story)!!! Toshiya: I did it at the wrong lane…. Joe: That’s awful…. Toshiya: It’s awful…. Joe: You were like….*does the gesture of throwing the ball* throwing it at the wrong lane…. Toshiya: I threw it at the lane of another person…. Joe: *laughs* That’s awful….that can cause an accident…. Toshiya: That’s true….time ago…..there is a certain senpai god-like guitarist…. Joe: I’m not going to ask who is… Toshiya: Yes….is there a type of Jack Daniels that is black?... Joe: There is…Jack Daniels…. Toshiya: We were bowling while drinking that….*Joe laughs* at the bowling alley…so somehow I didn’t know where I was throwing the bowling ball at…. They laugh Joe: Is that so? They are asking who is that guitarist….It’s a senpai… Toshiya: It’s a senpai….Die’s senpai…. Joe: Die’s senpai?.... Toshiya: It’s Die’s senpai… Joe: I wonder who is…people is writing at the comments….”Is it Sugizo?”….”C”….”S”? Toshiya: No,no… They both laugh Joe: “Joe, try to get this information” ….”A hint”…..a hint… Toshiya:  A hint?....*Joe nods*…. A hint….mmmm…that’s it….La vie en rose senpai*…. *La vie en rose is  D’ ERLANGER’s album. Die has mentioned several times D’ERLANGER guitarist Cipher, as his main influence and senpai. Joe: It’s La vie en rose’s senpai….ahhhh I see…. La vie en…..*laughs*…I have a guess….. Toshiya: Well….it’s…. Joe: Is that so? Toshiya: He is an amazing senpai…. Joe: Yes Toshiya: I think that Die excused himself and left…. Joe: Is that so? But…. those are really good times….right? Toshiya: For real…I think I was able to be in band at a great timing….because I have wonderful senpai that I respect…those senpai….how could I say it?....when I got into this band….it’s like they (senpai) treat me with affection….I feel like you can talk to them like this, so after all I asked them a lot of questions. It was that kind of time. I wanted to ask a lot of things to them so my senpai would answer….yes, that’s what my senpai would do….like “ I made a mistake with this” “don’t make that kind of mistake”…things like that. Joe:That’s important, right? Toshiya: It’s really important. So when it comes to the younger generation…..I wonder if this kind of thing is still possible (to be happening)…what a pity, right? Joe: It seems that bands from younger generations nowadays don’t even know the experience of drinking until early morning with their senpais. Toshiya: Well well……I don’t know if that it’s a good change or a bad one….*laughs* Joe: I don't know, I don't know, but there are things that can’t be helped right?.... Toshiya: There are. Joe: There are good and bad things… Toshiya: Yes yes….I think so … Joe: That’s why it’s amazing to play rock music in a band… Toshiya: After all, no matter how you think about it,  as they are people  who are experiencing something that they had never experienced before….that’s right….if I ask about something that I haven’t experienced ….like….”what did you do when you were in the same situation?”….”how about this?”….”What should I do?”…..Things like that…..it’s really interesting to hear from people who can taught you naturally…. Joe: Certainly… there are  many senpais that are just a little older that were terrible…. Toshiya: That’s true, right?....It’s strange…. Joe: Isn’t it weird? It's weird that those messed up when they were young…. Toshiya: It’s weird… Joe: But it’s not like we are going to lose in that aspect…. Toshiya: Well…..I….in that sense….I didn’t…. Joe: Is that so? Toshiya: I didn’t go too far….*laughs* Joe: But that’s ok…leave it to me… Toshiya: You may drink, but don't let the drink take over…. Joe: But you only live once so why don’t you want to mess it up?

Toshiya: Of course, that’s right….I want to mess up….that’s why there are times that you cross the line… Joe: Yes, that’s it…that’s Toshiya from Dir en grey…I'm Joe Yokomizo, no matter how you think about it, isn’t it like the name of an enemy/rival? Toshiya: *Laughs* That’s…. Joe: Isn’t it? Isn’t it weird? This combination (of people)…. Joe starts point him and Toshiya, and compares their styles. Joe: Anyway, it looks like we are free….going forward….let’s go freely… Toshiya: Free, right? I want to… Joe: Let’s go freely….that’s what I think… Toshiya: That’s it… Joe: How are the rest of the members doing recently? Like, at the recordings or if you talk by phone… Toshiya: Well, I met them at the time of the recording… Joe: I met Kaoru quite often cause we are doing a youtube program *Toshiya nods* But how are the other members doing? Like please, an information report about them! Toshiya: They are alive… Joe: *laughs* Well, that’s good.... Toshiya: Yes, they are alive… Joe: I see….all of them are alive….how is the mysterious/enigmatic Shinya doing? Toshiya: He is alive… Joe: He is alive… Toshiya: Shinya is certainly mysterious but….all members are quite mysterious right? Joe: Who is….Who is the most mysterious? Toshiya: I think everyone… Joe: Everyone… Toshiya: Everyone in the band is a mysterious person… Joe: Ehhhhh…..for example….what’s Kyo's most strange side? Toshiya: Well…..what it would be?....his laughter is loud…. Joe: Ohhhh is that so? Toshiya: I would say that, he is loud when he laughs….well, he is the kind of person that has differences between his outside and inside… Joe:   Being loud when they laugh and control a conversation, (it’s normal) as he is from Kansai*…. * Kansai is the western region of the main Japanese island of Honshu. It included  famous cities like Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto and Nara.

Toshiya: It’s not because of that though…..how could I say it?....he likes comical stuff ….after all, all of them except me are from Kansai…. Joe: That’s right… Toshiya: The standards there (kansai) are tough…. Joe: Are they? Toshiya: They are… Joe: The laughter standards over there are really high…. Toshiya: That’s it… Joe: On the other hand, is Kyo an enthusiast of films and so? Toshiya: He is… Joe: Like,  He watches a lot….ehhhh…..so Kyo is strict about comical stuff….what about Die? What’s his mysterious/strange side? Toshiya: What would it be?  He is a blood type B person so, when he is interested/enthusiastic about something he goes for it, but when he is not interested he is like “ehhhh”*hand gesture of I pass* everyone is like that but, blood type B people*.... when they like something they go for it but if something distracts them from that, the interest goes away…. *In Japanese culture, it is believed that a person’s blood type is an essential indicator of their personality. Joe: What is your blood type? Toshiya: B. Joe: B…. Toshiya: Everyone is B except the band’s leader Kaoru who is blood type A…. Joe: I see…Ah, we talked about that in a live stream…my blood type is B too…that’s amazing…that there is only B type… Toshiya: He is surrounded by B type…. Joe: He is…. is Kaoru affected by that?.... Toshiya: I don’t know but….I think he looks more like B type… Joe: Kaoru?....Ahhh I can understand that… Toshiya: I think that you can feel it….like me being poisoned/infected by the Kansai dialect….. Joe: He is poisoned/infected by the B type…. Toshiya: A bit….it looks like it….but he is the type of  person that wants to know everything…. Joe: Kaoru? Toshiya: Yes, he is that kind of person…like…he wants to know anything related to Dir en grey… Joe: I see…well, he is the leader after all… Toshiya: Yes, I’m thankful for that… I am…. Joe: What about Shinya? The mysterious Shinya… Toshiya: Shinya? To put it simply…”self-conceit/self centered”… Joe:  That’s Shinya in a word… Toshiya: He has only-child vibes…. Joe: Ah, certainly…that’s it….Would you like to play a board game with him? Toshiya: Before this, at the end of last year, for the fanclub… Joe: Ah, you played you played, that’s true…. Toshiya: I played with Die and Shinya…it was interesting… Joe: It was? Next time, around spring, I asked Shinya to come and play a game… Toshiya: That’s good… Joe: Do you want to join us at that time? Toshiya: No,no…I won’t get involved…. Joe: If there aren’t any other members,  the conversation is going to be different… Toshiya: It’s going to be different….I think that it’s better that there aren’t any other members there, so he is going to talk  more… Joe: He is considerate with the others….I wonder if it is consideration…. Toshiya: I wonder…. Joe: “ I like Toshiya-Shinya duo”….they are writing that…. Toshiya: Ahh Joe: Do you guys go drinking together? Toshiya:  Go drinking…..more like eating together at work and so…and….when we are on a tour…. he and I were the only ones who usually go to lunch and so… Joe: I see…more like fortuitous (by chance) situations…. Toshiya: That’s it…. Joe: One of the things that makes Dir en grey interesting is no matter which members you combine, it feels strange…. Toshiya: That’s true….somehow…in a strange sense…..every speaks broken/imperfect Japanese…. Joe: *Laughs* It’s not only me…. I think that feeling is super cool…. Toshiya: Somehow….after more than 20 years….we’ve been together for a while but….I would say that they are still mysterious/unknown people for me….I think they are interesting people, though…. Joe: In the end, you were the last person…. Toshiya: To join them (the band)…. Joe: To join them….I want to ask you about that….Who was the first person  you spoke to? who did you talk to?.... Toshiya: Originally, they were playing together in a band before….at first, I just talked with Kyo about doing a band… Joe: I see Toshiya: We were about to disband each other’s bands so it was like….”let’s play together”…..at that moment, they were looking for a member….and after that,  the other three members followed…. Joe laughs Joe: You talked with Kyo about doing a band together but, what kind of image did you have of him? Toshiya: Well, I don’t know….at that time, it felt like an attraction force….like “Oh, this person is amazing”….like “it’s the first time I’ve met someone like this”…. Joe: Ehh…..”Ask him about the snow”…..”in the snow”…..they are writing that….is that related Kyo? Toshiya: Ahh….it was to do with the other members….all of them….they came to my hometown….there was a livehouse called Nagano J….well it still exists but it’s at a different place…at that time it was at the East exit of the station…..it was there where I played with them for the first time…. Joe: “Normal tires”….is that an important part of that story? Toshiya: *Laughs* They came driving with normal tires… Joe: That’s dangerous…. Toshiya: Yes, there were lots of snow…. Joe: That’s bad…they weren’t organized with that? Toshiya: They weren’t and in the end, it’s really a region with heavy snowfalls…. Joe: As expected from Kansai people… Toshiya: But they were really cute….it doesn’t snow often in Kansai right? Joe: Barely… Toshiya: They started touching it, squealing, and doing crunching sound walking…. Joe imitates them, squealing and bouncing. Joe: That’s reaaaaaally…..nice right? Toshiya: It was so like…..”it feels good”…. Joe: Kyo too? Toshiya: Everyone… Joe: I would love to have seen that…. Toshiya: That difference between how they look and how they are inside…..it’s amazing…. Joe: That’s really good…. Toshiya: I think it’s fascinating…. Joe: But as you said….as we saw in the previous live footage….isn’t it like they totally were different people? Toshiya: When we all get off stage… all of us are just ordinary old men…..*laughs* Joe: I wouldn’t say that you are ordinary old men…. Toshiya: Ordinary old men…. Joe: No,no,no…how do you change that much when you get on stage? Toshiya: I don’t know….it’s like a switch….I think it’s interesting… Joe: It is….that’s the power of the music…..the power of the audience….

Toshiya: Both, right? Joe: Both things….”Isn’t there a picture of that moment”….they are asking that…. Toshiya: There is, there is…. Joe: Eeeeh? Is there? Toshiya: There is….it’s at my parents home….but I’m not going to show it… Joe: A picture of everyone being “kyaaa” with the snow? Toshiya: It’s true…. Joe: Let’s make it public someday… Toshiya: No,no ….it’s not only me in that photo…. Joe tries to convince Toshiya to show the pic someday but he insists that it’s not only him in the picture. Joe: I’m going to ask for permission….I’m going to ask for permission and if all members are ok with it…. Toshiya: It won’t happen…. Joe: Is that so? … They are saying “please” at the comments….”At the fanclub newsletter”…. Toshiya: I see…. You all behave like spoiled kids…. Joe burst into laugh and stands Joe: It came out (the real Toshiya)! He said “spoiled kids”…..the alcohol is already hitting….”spoiled kids!!”….”Please Joe”…..I’m going to negotiate with him….I’m going to do my best….I’m spoiled too but I’m going to do my best….if they give us permission…..maybe you can show it at the fc newsletter or some place like that…. Toshiya: That’s it….I’m going to show that picture to the rest of the members and if they are ok with it….I will reveal it… Joe: I think that probably I won’t have the chance to meet the other members so….you should let me to keep in custody that picture….*Toshiya laughs* it’s dangerous…. Toshiya: You would be the first one to…. Joe: It could get leaked suddenly… Toshiya: No way, no way, no way…. Joe: *Laughs* You are not drunk yet…. Toshiya:No,no…. I think it’s funnier to imagine the picture… Joe: Everyone, imagine that picture, we are going to show today another picture anyway…. Toshiya: Imagine that Dir en grey….those five people…. Joe: That Dir en grey like “ah, this is what snow is….” Toshiya: Not five people….Not me….imagine that four people…. Joe: Did you take the picture? Toshiya: It was my mother who took it…. Joe: I see. Isn't it a really another good story?....Toshiya’s mom took the picture of those five people playing cutely with the snow…I hope that one day that picture is revealed… Toshiya: It’s scary…. Joe: It is…..I’m looking forward to that… ….. Joe: Talking about pictures, everyone has pictures at the gallery of their phones but today we are showing a strange picture that Toshiya has in his cell phone! Let’s show it…. A strange picture from Toshiya… The picture appears on screen. Die and Shinya are at the airport playing with a baggage scale. Die is up the scale while shinya is next to him. Joe: What is this?.....where is it? Who is there?.....please explain it a bit…. Toshiya: It’s Shinya and Die…. Joe: Shinya is the one at the front, and Die is the person who is up (the scale)…. Toshiya: This is at Saint Petersburg’s airport in Russia. We have already checked in so we have already dropped our luggage too….so when I looked I was like “ahhh? What are these two doing?”….so, that’s where you weight your luggage….and they were weighing themselves…. Joe burst into laugh. Toshiya: When you take your eyes off… it’s like “Are they children?”…. Joe: That’s it….it’s like they are the same than the ones who played with the snow… Toshiya: They are cute people…. Joe: Two blood type B doing as they please…. Die did it first and then Shinya…they were like….”ohh X kilos”….. Toshiya: Yes, Die was like “how much?” and then “Do you want to try, Yamo chan?”…. Joe: They did it together? After this, Shinya step up….if you look at this, they look as cute as in the other stories… Toshiya: You said so, I didn’t… Joe: I’m sorry…Can we do as if you didn’t hear what I just said? So, Kaoru and Kyo too…..they didn’t take part in this…it was just these two… Toshiya: They didn’t….just them…. Joe: This is what happens often when you are not looking at them… Toshiya: This happens often…. Joe:  Everyone can’t imagine that just listening to what you say…. Toshiya: *Laughs* That’s it….it’s really amusing….really amusing… Joe: It is…..it’s really a precious photo this one…. (Third part here)

[dazais-guardian-angel]

Fic Questionnaire

@ford-ye-fiji tagged me to do this; thank you. ^_^

How many works do you have on AO3? 106

What's your total AO3 word count? 395,897

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they? 27 fandoms, though for most of them it’s only like one or two. They are Akatsuki no Yona, Bungou Stray Dogs, My Hero Academia, Hunter x Hunter, Tales of Zestiria, Tales of Berseria, Tales of Graces, Tales of the Abyss, Tales of Xillia, Tales of Hearts, Tales of the Rays, Professor Layton, Noragami, Pandora Hearts, Dai Gyakuten Saiban, A Series of Unfortunate Events, RWBY, Tangled the series, Doki Doki Literature Club, Ori and the Blind Forest, Vanitas no Carte, Genshin Impact, Kiznaiver, Boku dake ga Inai Machi, Kuroshitsuji, Ai the Somnium Files, and Charlotte.

What are your top 5 fics by kudos? “Pictures, Posters, and Tender Beauty”, “Plus Est En Vous”, “My Reason”,  “I Am Here, Too”, and “A Bandage for my Scars, and your Heart” ...Not surprised that four out of five of those are MHA fics, but I will never understand how that Tangled the series one I did got so insanely popular..... maybe because the show director himself acknowledged it. 0_0

Do you respond to comments, why or why not? I try to, though I have to shamefully admit I pick and choose which ones I respond to. I appreciate every comment I get, of course, every writer does, but idk, I just feel like a broken record responding to all similar shorter comments with “Thank you so much!!! I’m so happy you liked it <3″ or something like that... Is that cruel of me? >_> I also feel weird responding to comments on my super old stuff, because aside from a few exceptions, I don’t really like most of my old fics anymore alkgklflkkl and I barely remember them enough to be able to give a reasonable response to comments on those. Instead I just put all my energy into responding to longer, more detailed comments, because with those I actually have more to work with to say back... But again, I love all my comments!! I’m really sorry if I don’t respond to your comment, it doesn’t mean I’m not grateful, I just don’t know what to say back OTL

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending? Haaaah, there are a few, but proooobably the most angsty ending would be in “Smile, and maybe tomorrow, you’ll see the sun.” Since the thing is basically 12k words of agonizingly drawn-out All Might death... :’) Though I meant for the actual ending to be somewhat hopeful/bittersweet? and I surely have other ones that have more painful endings... But that’s the obvious one that comes to mind, since I’ve had multiple people yell at me for it. :)

Have you ever received hate on a fic? I can’t remember any instances of outright hate, but I’ve gotten some... odd comments every once in a while... Or just some annoying criticism that the person didn’t intend to be mean about, I don’t think, but that realllly wasn’t warranted. These comments are very rare though.

Do you write smut? If so what kind? Noooo way in hell lol

Have you ever had a fic stolen? ....I mean, not that I know of!

Have you ever had a fic translated? Yeah, I think I had at least one someone asked to translate into Russian, although they put it on FF.net lol

Have you ever co-written a fic before? No... I really want to though. Multiple friends and I have planned different ones, but we haven’t gotten around to doing any of them yet because I’m into different fandoms atm and also dealing with health problems that distract me.... My ex-friend and I had a major one that was in the planning stages, but then she stopped being my friend so it never got off the ground. :’) I’m still upset about that...

What's your all time favorite ship? Mmmmm that’s hard; I don’t ship that much at all, so although I have a few favorite ships, one in particular doesn’t really stand out to me as my hardcore OTP.... Buuut I guess I would say Snow/Serah from FFXIII; I love ff13 so much, it’s so special to me, and those two are just the absolute sweetest and the heart and soul of the game 🥺❤️ I haven’t written anything for them or ff13 in general, but maybe someday.

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will? I only ever have one WIP at a time, so..... Hopefully not my current long one, I am constantly trying to slap myself for thinking, intimidated as I am by it with all my ideas for it and all the research I need to do. :’)

What are your writing strengths? I think I’m really good at writing characters’ emotions... the emotions they show, and everything they’re feeling internally. I really like the stream-of-consciousness style of internal monologue I’ve started using within the last few years; I think it’s very... cathartic? In general I just think I’m good at writing softness, cause I definitely feel the soft feels rereading my stuff lol

What are your writing weaknesses? Motivation.... starting a writing session and not getting distracted.... ADHD.... what do I do. :’) Although I just said I like that stream-of-consciousness style I use, I often feel like I use it too much, or things get redundant, and too wordy and overwhelming, bah..... I’m also shit at just.... knowing things, like worldbuilding, but like, real-world stuff that everyone knows, but I’ve been living under a rock my whole life and not done a lot of things that are normal for most other people, so I struggle with that in my writing, which is why all my fics not-so-subtly eek around mentioning things like food and irl places and so much else, haaah.... now I’m got myself writing 1800s Victorian London; someone save me

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? Ehhhh only do it veryyyy sparingly, like when a character is startled and might briefly revert to their native language, or something similar. I just did that in one of my recent fics, actually, and looked up a few Russian words, being super anal about getting it right.... and I still got a comment correcting my Russian, even though it was only like 3 words in the entire thing, with nothing else to say about the rest of the fic... it was a little frustrating :’)

What was the first fandom you ever wrote for? Akatsuki no Yona/Yona of the Dawn. That was the first series that really got me into fandom and making online friends, and gave me the courage to try writing fics; I’m so grateful to it for that, and it still remains one of my favorite mangas <3 Ah, to be able to pump out fics as easily and quickly as I did back then...

What's your favorite fic you've ever written? I think it’s still “Manufactured Hearts, Real Happiness”, the sole Tales of the Abyss fic I’ve written. TotA is my favorite game of all time, and I wrote this for a Tales big bang that happened a while back; it turned out much longer than I ever anticipated, one of my longest fics to date, and pretty much exactly how I wanted it to be, which is always the best feeling... I was so happy to feel like I did my favorite game justice. :’) Now.... my dream is for my current WIP to become my new favorite, if I can pull it off right; we’ll see :’)

Uhhhh I’ll tag @sixtyfourk , @cenally , @arcane-palm , @kyoukalay , @magicmetslogic , and @evevoli03 , if any of you want to do this~

[dragon-storm-of-the-west]

New Oc!

Hey ya’ll! this is my newest lmk oc.  I havent named her yet.  I’ve had her for like... ehhhh...  four weeks now?  i hadnt planned on posting her for a while though due to her not being complete, and my not having where she fits written in a way other people understand yet.

But some stuff went down in the lmk discord, and the owner invited all of his toxic friends who actively trolled and sought to create trouble,  and then banned the rest of us.  These two pictures of her were on that discord, and i was afraid that they might try to take my art and claim it as their own. so im posting her now before that happens.

So here she is!!   My friends from a different lmk discord have dubbed her “Big mom” due to her being as tall as sandy!

sorry for my signature being on her. but i did that so people would have a harder time trying to steal her.

Anways, now that i’ve posted her,  i guess i gotta start updating ya’ll on stuff about her.

So first thing i will say,  she has three dresses!  these two that are Wei Dynasty style,  And then a third dress that is more robe like.  i forgot the word.  kimono?  no i dont think so... but similar.

Here is the third dress!!  it only took me a month to get around to doing it!!

[mischiefmakingmuses]

That Never-Ending Witching Hour! (Halloween Event)

{Closed event with @salmonidparty and @robocatandboy}

“OK, just be still for a moment longer, rina...and...done!”

Netalina had just finished styling the Duke Yuuki Yomi’s hair, all in preparation for Halloween. Although, to be frank, she wasn’t quite sure why he wanted this, seeing as they didn’t celebrate Halloween in Vitiu.

“How do I look?” Yuuki asked, swishing his cape dramatically. “Enigmatic and cool?”

“To be honest...you look very cute for a vampire, rina,” Netalina responded, stifling a giggle.

“What?! How am I supposed to catch the detective’s attention if I look cute?!” the Duke snapped. Netalina did her best to keep her composure.

“You say that as if they can’t appreciate cute things, rina. Either way...why did you want to dress up for Halloween, rina? I don’t think the detective is really aware of the celebration, number one...number two, she’s probably really busy tonight, rina. After all, it’s just a regular night here in Vitiu, isn’t it, rina?”

“Don’t ya get it, Netalina? If I look cool and mysterious...she can’t help but fall for me!” He placed his hands on cheeks, blushing, a familiar expression creeping across his face. “Hehehe! I have it in my mind to just drop in unexpected...as the night goes on, I’ll charm her with my mysteriousness and we’ll dance in the moonlight...fufufu!”

“Isn’t she still very much oblivious to how you feel, Duke Yomi?” Netalina asked, no punches pulled.

“S-shut up! Tonight’s the night! The night she’ll fall for me...I’ll make sure of it!” Yuuki huffed, still blushing.

“Besides...won’t it just start snowing once you show up in Guild Town, rina? There’ll be no moon to dance under!”

“Shouldn’t ya be headin’ back home right about now, Netalina?” the Duke hissed incredulously. She wasn’t about to ruin his night.

“Honestly...yes! My friends and I are gonna meet with Nobita, rina!” She smiled at Yuuki. “Gambit and I are a matching pair!”

“Okaaaaay, okaaaay, no need to gloat,” the ice spirit grumbled enviously. As if the Yokai’s earlier wrongdoings were forgotten, Yuuki smiled back at her. “Be safe on your way back!”

“I will! Thanks, rina!” Before Netalina left entirely, she turned back to the Duke. “And good luck, OK?”

“Thank ya.”

~*~★~♥~★~*~

Returning home through the Anywhere Door, Netalina’s first instinct was to go check on her friends. Entering the room, she saw Urien patting Smile down with some kind of white powder. The Ittangomen had chosen a simple, yet...complicated costume this year: he wanted to go as Ittan-Momen from GeGeGe no Kitaro. Though on paper it sounded extremely simple, it was actually quite difficult when your nearly four meter long ittan-momen is yellow in color and wants to be entirely white.

“Are you done yet,” Smile breathed impatiently. It seemed like they’d been at it for a while.

“Nope, sorry. Almost, though. Maybe we should’ve asked Doraemon for help,” Urien responded.

“Probably, this is gonna be fucking hell to get out later,” Smile mumbled.

“Guys, I’m back!” Netalina chirped. This caught the attention of not only Urien and Smile, but also Jizo and Gambit, who were sitting around the room as well.

“Welcome back, my loved one~♪” Gambit sang. He just stared at Netalina for a moment before placing a hand on the mask covering half his face. “Sorry, you can’t tell, but I’m actually winking.”

“You’re such a nerd, rina!” Netalina ran over, jumped into the air, and Gambit caught her. “But you’re my nerd, rina~”

“Speaking of...” Jizo quietly chimed in from his spot. The others looked over at him. “How did it go with the Duke?”

“I dunno, really. He wanted to look cool, but he doesn’t seem to understand that he has an inherent cuteness to him, rina.”

“And then he probably left to go hit on the detective, right?” Smile drawled. “How long do you think it’ll take him to realize that the detective doesn’t feel the same way?”

“I’ll give him a week,” Gambit commented.

“I’ll give him eleven minutes,” Urien laughed. “Now turn around, I’m almost done here, just a little more.”

“I’m so fucking tired of this powder,” Smile sighed, turning back to Urien.

“Dude, how do you think I feel?” Urien patted a bit more powder onto Smile’s nose, then grinned. “Alright, you’re done! Hopefully I won’t need to ride you Kitaro-style tonight, or else we’ll both be covered in this shit.”

“Probably not, right? I mean, tonight we’re just gonna be doing Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai with Nobita and his friends, right?”

“Yup! Maybe we’ll actually finish this year,” Urien hummed. “What even happened last time, do you remember?”

“Not a damn thing,” Smile laughed. He gazed at Urien, then at the others, looking cheerful. “Man, y’know...I actually kind of wish we could interact with Nobita’s friends all the time, not just on Halloween. Suneo and Gian...they could use an attitude adjustment, but...I wouldn’t mind getting to know them better. There’s just no time to do so...”

~*~★~♥~★~*~

As this all went down in the Yokai’s residence, Yuuki was slowly making his way from Mt. Spiral to Guild Town. As he floated through the drifting snow, all by his lonesome, he gazed up at the sky. Naturally, the snow clouds covered any trace of the moon, the only evidence it existed the brightness of the clouds. Yuuki looked down and sighed.

“Netalina really knows how to bring my spirits down, don’t she? It’s not easy confessin’ your love to someone...I really wish the detective liked me, though. Mm...I just wanna hold her in my arms...”

Yuuki put his hands on the sides of his face and sighed dreamily, another blush appearing across his features.

“...I wish I were strong enough to let her know how I feel.”

~*~★~♥~★~*~

“...hhhhuuuuh. Two wishes at once?”

Two long, droopy ears twitched, picking up the sounds of dreams in two different directions. Two hands were held out, grasping two visions of two different worlds. Two legs uncrossed, and two different types of wings fluttered silently in the void.

“...ufufu. I don’t see why not. After all, I’m feeling pretty...generous, tonight. Tonight’s supposed to be lots of fun anyway, isn’t it? Fufufu!”

The Metanomaly took the two illusions in each hand and brought them together, closer, and closer, until they fused into one. The crack underneath his eye lit up momentarily.

“Two wishes. One Abnoreality. Smile, you’ll get to talk to Nobita’s friends for as long as you please. And Duke Yomi, you’ll definitely be able to admit your feelings to the detective!”

Ayume crushed the illusion between his hands, tossing its dust into the air and creating a thick, ethereal fog.

“Have fun...fufufu!”

~*~★~♥~★~*~

The skin sweats, the breath shortens The wind stops, the door opens Hair stands on end, feet freeze The uninvited shall not enter here...

...except for one.

~*~★~♥~★~*~

When Urien awoke, he felt odd. He felt his face. He felt his neck. His sunglasses and scarf were missing...as was his costume in its entirety. Everything was completely white...he had to shield his eyes a bit from how bright it was.

He got up. As he moved, the ground rippled, like water. Urien looked around. Vast white in each direction...except...he saw someone. A black figure against the never-ending white.

“Koukishin to kyoufu ga! ♪ Kawaru gawaru oshiyose! ♪ Naze ni gokan dake ga togisumasareruno? ♪” The figure was singing, slightly gyrating to their own rhythm. Urien made his approach. “Shiranakatta sekai no! ♪ Maku ga jojo ni agaruyo! ♪ Dare mo kiita koto nai, kyousou ga yami ni hibiku~♪”

“Excuse me, but...who are you?” Urien asked.

“Sokonoke, noke, mononoke ga tooru~! ♪” The figure turned around, but before Urien could see their face, they had transformed into him...albeit in his intended Halloween costume. When the figure spoke, it spoke in his voice. “Konoha shigure to tomo ni yatsura arawaru. ♪ I’m Urien Sirius Okuro!”

“...no, you’re not. That’d be me.”

“Uso! ♪” the doppelganger chirped, mirroring Urien’s signature dance. The doppelganger transformed yet again, into a slightly shorter figure, black with multicolored spatters all over. “You’re right! ♪ You’re right! ♪ I’m not Urien, you are! ♪”

“Er...OK. Then, who are you?”

“Oh, I don’t really know. But I know where we are! We’re inside your mind!” Urien tilted his head slightly and making a thinking pose, before the figure began to laugh in a deeper voice and gave him a menacing look. “You’ve been possessed! ♪”

“Ehhhh?!” Urien reeled back in horror. “By what, exactly?!”

“By me!” The figure stuck their tongue out and winked, their voice returning to normal. “You want me to stop? I think I learned plenty already.”

Before Urien could answer, he awoke yet again. This time, he was outside under the moonlight, in a field near a fence. Before him was the figure he’d seen in his mind.

“What the fuck,” Urien breathed, unamused. “Where are we?”

“Oh, now I don’t know. I’m not even sure why I’m here! But I am, I am, I am here! And so are you! And so are all your friends!” The figure twirled and began to sing again. “Sokonoke, noke, mononoke ga odoru~♪ Dare mo kare mo osuki ni odori kurueyo~♪”

“What?! Where are my friends?! What did you do to them?!” Urien cried out, making a gesture as if he were going to grab the figure.

“Hyuu doro doro~♪ Hyuu doro doro! ♪” The figure shook their hands playfully as they danced and pursed their lips. “I didn’t do nothin’! This place is real weird. It’s kinda like a dream. A real big one. Everyone is dreaming.”

“...everyone is dreaming...?” Urien looked up at the moon.

What the hell was going on?

[rocket-remmy]

Side Effects May Include|| Remmy and Skylar

White Crest was an interesting town. It was small, smaller than the town Remmy had grown up in, though not by much. Besides, they visited Rock Spings a lot when Remmy was a kid (it was their dad’s favorite hunting spot), and that place was like population zero, aside from the guy that worked at the hunting shop. Probably. He was a creepy dude, and Remmy didn’t care much for him or hunting. Luckily their dad never made them go with him hunting. Remmy got to stay home and take the lamps or the microwave apart and put them all back together before their dad got back. It was like a little game. A way to pass time. But there were no cabins in White Crest that Remmy could go to and take things apart, and there were no bad memories yet. So that was like, one White Crest, zero for Rock Springs. 

White Crest felt fuller, too, somehow. It had a smaller population, but more people out doing things. It actually had that small town feeling, where it felt like everyone knew everyone else, and Remmy found themself eager to actually worm their way into that scene. To know people. They already knew the butcher on a first name basis. They bought a lot of raw meat and cow brain, even though they’d only been here a month. It was easy to tell the guy it was for Moose, but in reality, it was for Remmy. Weirdly, ever since Remmy got back from Afghanistan, they’d been craving raw, juicy meat. And brain. It was probably just a side effect of the medication, the nurse at the halfway house had said. And it would probably go away. Probably. But it hadn’t yet, so here Remmy was, back at the Butcher’s, getting their pound of raw cow brain from Al.

The bell chimed as Remmy walked out and they felt a pang in their stomach. And, god, it smelled so good. Just one bite. Just one little bite to tide them over till they got home...Reaching into the bag, they undid the container, slipping into the alley-- couldn’t be too public about it-- and plucked out a piece, taking a big bite. Oh, the satisfaction. Remmy smiled happily.

Skylar wasn’t going to deny it, moving from Seattle clear across the country had some perks. The change of scenery was great, the much lessened amount of rain was also a big bonus, and the small town nature of White Crest was cute. And she liked her job a lot. Yep, that was a big plus. But, one of the major downsides? Having to convince the local butcher that ehhhh, ten pounds of pork loin really isn’t that weird of a weekly request. As easy it would be to just hit up one of the big supermarket chains and load up a cart full of meat without question, Skylar had developed a liking for the local butcher’s stock. Oh well, he would learn eventually.

After paying for her meat, Skylar thumbed through her phone and enabled Bluetooth, syncing up with her hearing aids. Tapping on her favorite playlist, the pounding bass rumbled in her ears as she slipped her phone back in her pocket. She gathered up her groceries from where she’d set them down before heading out, giving a polite wave to the butcher as she left the shop. This pork was going to taste amazing with some adobo spices, cooked with garlic and onions-- she’d pick off those bits, of course. But she was looking forward to dinner now.

As Skylar rounded the corner, she glanced over her shoulder at the alleyway next to the butcher shop and froze. Her music continued to pound in her ears as she stared, not entirely certain what she was seeing. Uhhhhhh. “Are you… okay?” She asked, not entirely certain what to make of the person, fingers covered in what looked like blood, eating something that looked an awful lot like raw meat straight from the package. Skylar stuck her hand in her pockets, turning her music off so she could get a good look at what the fuck was happening in front of her. “That’s raw meat, what the hell are you doing?”

Remmy froze when someone’s voice drifted around them. They fumbled for a minute, looked around, then stopped when they spotted someone standing in the opening of the alleyway staring at them. “Uh…” they glanced around, put the bits back into the bag and wiped their fingers across their shirt smearing blood on it. “Shit.” Looked back at the other person. Noticed the hearing aids in her ears and paused. “Oh, sorry. I was just having a snack, you know?” they signed. Pointed to the bag. “It’s not that weird…” Gave a shrug. Their stomach grumbled a little as their eyes dropped to the bag the other person was holding. “No weirder than buying a huge chunk of meat.” Because that really was a huge chunk. If they weren’t feeding like twenty people, that thing was gonna go to waste. There’s no way one person could eat that all in a few days. 

The use of sign, which normally would be a big relief to her, did nothing to ease Skylar’s rising confusion and concern. In fact, it kinda made things worse, because now she knew she had full license to freak out without attracting any attention. She checked over her shoulder for anyone nearby before walking further into the alleyway. Gesturing emphatically, she signed, “What the fuck? No, no, that’s super weird. Do you know how many diseases and parasites you can get from eating raw… is that an organ? Are you eating raw animal organs?” An expression of disgust and shock was clearly displayed across her face as she stared at the person she’d literally caught red-handed. But, when they pointed out her own purchases, her face burned bright red. It wasn’t weird! Flustered, she signed rapidly, “That’s completely different! This is a totally normal amount of meat to buy and, besides, I’m not the one just chewing on a porkchop in a back alley! Forget the raw meat, do you know how many germs are in an alley,” She paused, grimacing to add emphasis to her next signs, “Behind a butcher shop? 

Remmy’s brow furrowed. They didn’t like confrontation, they’d always had a hard time standing up for themselves as a kid, but things had changed quite a bit once they’d entered the military. They huffed, setting the bag down after tying it closed, and signed, “Why do you care? You don’t even know me! I’ve had much worse, anyway. And that’s a normal amount of meat to buy if you’re feeding like twenty people at once!” Which, Remmy then realized, could be what they’re doing, but it still was a little weird. And Remmy was caught off guard, by someone yelling-- well, yell signing-- at them in an alley! All they wanted to do was enjoy a good bite and go home. Moose whined next to them. Remmy’d almost forgotten Moose was with them, and while they’d normally leave him behind for a quick errand down the street, they were still new to town, and leaving without him right now had seemed daunting. “Besides, it was just one little bite. It’s not like I’m back here having a whole meal.”

Skylar gaped at the other person, still not sure what to make of the whole situation. “You’ve had worse? What, are you going around eating roadkill or something? That looks like a piece of,” Skylar squinted, trying to make out the specifics of just what it was they were holding, “I don’t know. I can’t see it from here. But, it’s raw! I’m not just going to stand by and let someone eat raw meat, you’re going to get super sick.” Biting the inside of her cheek, Skylar ignored the comment about the amount of meat she’d purchased. This wasn’t about her, it was about the fact that someone was out here chowing down in the alley. But, as she moved to sign again, Skylar was suddenly aware of the dog right next to them. A very large dog. She wasn’t afraid of dogs, not really, but she didn’t have much experience around them either. Swallowing nervously, she forced herself to focus on the person again, “And you’re planning on eating… whatever that is?” 

Remmy frowned. “That’s not the point. It doesn’t matter,” they signed. They were beginning to feel that tingle in their stomach, that anxiousness gripping them from the inside. “It’s not-- that’s none of your business,” they blurted. They just wanted to go home and now some weird girl was yelling at them in an alley. A small alley. A narrow alley. Remmy looked around, picked up their bag, grabbed Moose’s leash, grip tightening. Moose whined. “Yeah? So what if I am? I’ve been eating this stuff for a while now. It’s just a side effect of all the meds I’m on. The doctor said so. They said it was fine,” they managed to sign after attaching Moose’s lead back to their belt. “So...you don’t need to worry anymore.” Nodding, as if to punctuate their statement.

Shifting the heavy bag of meat in her arms so she could sign more effectively, Skylar frowned at the person in the alley. “Maybe it isn’t my business, but,” She signed pointedly before gesturing to the nasty container of organ meat, “I’d seriously consider checking with your doctor about the specifics. I can understand wanting to eat like… liver or something like that. But, going after it all Tokyo Ghoul style? That doesn’t seem kosher.” She signed with a shrug. It didn’t seem like there was anything she could say to convince this person that what they were doing was really fricking weird. “I hope your doctor at least puts you on some different medication.” Skylar gestured, her face turning a bit grim at the thought of medicine. Back before her parents had come clean about her, she’d been on all sorts of medicine to manage her symptoms. But, they’d never had any side effects like a desire to eat raw meat.

Remmy was ready to fire back, but something stopped them. That weird anxious feeling was still rolling around inside their chest, but the anger was extinguished. “Tokyo-- what? That doesn’t…” Scratched their head. Blinked, trying to parse out what had just been said to them, but there were so many other things running through their head. “What’s...no, it’s-- it’s just cow brain,” they said, their own mind working too hard for them to remember to sign, words coming out instead. “It’s not that weird to eat. Al says it’s a delicacy in some places…” Confused, Remmy looked down at their bag. “Why would I need different medication?”

The switch over to speaking made sense, though Skylar didn’t particularly want to raise her voice if she was talking about something this strange. It was a small town, people would probably have questions if they saw her trying to convince some random person not to eat raw meat. “It’s cow brain?” She signed, making a revolted expression with her face. “That’s definitely weird to eat! And even if it is a delicacy, I’m pretty sure it needs to be cooked.” Shrugging, Skylar rubbed the back of her neck before signing again. “Because those aren’t normal side effects? I don’t know what kind of medicine you’re on and I don’t need to know. But, I’m pretty sure that there aren’t any drugs that make you want to eat raw cow parts.” Skylar let out a laugh and shook her head before speaking up, “Except for maybe bath salts. But you don’t seem like you’re going to try and eat my face.” 

Remmy blinked again. “You can cook brain?” They weren’t exactly the brightest bulb in the factory. Remmy had skated by in classes with C’s and the occasional D, another reason joining the army had seemed like such a palatable option. It was really their only option. No college was going to accept a below average student. Remmy scratched their head. “No, I...definitely don’t wanna eat your face off. I don’t uh...I don’t know a lot about medications? The VA said they were some of the better medications out there. They do cost a lot...that means they gotta be good, right?”

“I mean, I haven’t cooked brain myself, but I think you can. If people can eat liver and onions, I think you could probably do the same with a brain.” Skylar nodded, mentally wondering how she had gotten into a discussion on cooking in a sketchy back alley with a sketchier person and their dog. Letting out a sigh of relief, she sighed. “Neat, thanks.” Frowning as she read the other person’s lips, Skylar tilted her head. “VA… Oh, I’m so sorry--!” She said, wincing. Oh God. She’d just yelled at a veteran and their service dog. Christ, she felt like such a jerk now. “I had no idea, erm, I just, um… I’m not an expert or anything on medicine, so I can’t say anything there. It’s totally your choice on if you… want to eat… raw cow brains.” Skylar said, still not sure what to make of the words coming from her mouth, “But, maybe you should talk to a doctor about it? Mhm. I don’t know. I’m really sorry again.”

Remmy’s head titled a little. The girl was apologizing now. That was a weird turn of events. She was even saying Remmy was totally free to eat raw brain if that’s what they wanted. A total 360 of the beginning of the conversation. They shrugged. “Oh, no…” they signed, “it’s totally fine. I guess it uh...is kinda weird? I didn’t really think about it all that much.” They looked back over at Skylar. “You don’t have to keep apologizing. Sorry I made you freak out?” They weren’t sure if that was really their fault, but, again, Remmy didn’t like starting confrontation, or upsetting people. Moose whined a little. “Oh! Yeah, uh-- this is Moose. My service dog. He’s a sweetheart. I share my pickings with him.” They nodded to the bag the girl was holding. “What about you? Are you sharing with anyone?” A pause. “Oh and I’m Remmy by the way. We uh...we don’t have to shake hands.”

Waving her hands awkwardly, Skylar shook her head. She’d really made a mess of things, hadn’t she? She should have just minded her own business and let them go about… eating raw-- nope, no, she still wasn’t okay with it. But, she could keep it to herself. “No, no, it’s not your fault, I shouldn’t have erm, barged in on you.” She said, signing as she spoke. Glancing at the dog, Skylar offered a tight lipped smile. Even if the dog was a sweetheart, she still was a little anxious around it. “Mmm, cute. He’s very fluffy.” When they pointed out her bag of meat, Skylar grimaced and squinted as she tried to come up with a plausible explanation. “Erm. Yes. Just, you know, stocking up.” She said. “Remmy?” Skye asked, fingerspelling as she did so. “Nice to meet you. I’m Skylar.” She said, offering her sign name as well. It was a pretty simple one, just the sign for “sky” done with an S instead of an open hand. 

“Oh, cool,” Remmy signed, “stocking up. I wish I had a big enough fridge to do that. Or a freezer. My place is kinda ...sparsely equipped.” They shrugged again, not noticing the girl’s timid reaction to Moose. But Moose stayed put, because the situation was calm, and his wasn’t needed at the moment. Sometimes Remmy wondered what he thought about while idling, but that was the big question that everyone wanted to know-- what were their pets thinking? “Yes, Remmy,” they spelled out, confirming. “Skylar? Nice to meet you. “Sorry it’s uh...in an alley. Should we move? Go somewhere else? Unless you’re busy. This did kinda interrupt your day. Sorry, I’m pretty new in town. Haven’t met a lot of people yet. And definitely no one else who speaks fluent ASL. Though I’m no expert either.”

“Ummmm…” Skylar paused, not entirely sure if she wanted to follow this random person she’d met in a back alley behind the butcher shop. As much as she wanted to get the word out about ASL and do her best to improve awareness in White Crest… She shifted her weight from foot to foot as she tried to figure out whether or not she wanted to hang out with them. Oh hell. Surely things couldn’t get worse than their initial meeting. “I’m new in town too. Sort of. I’ve lived here for about… five or six months?” She said. “But, um, yes. We can chat in,” Skylar paused and gestured at the alley around them, “Not a back alley.” She said before walking back out to the sidewalk, making sure to give Remmy and Moose a wide berth. “There are quite a few people who sign, but I’m not surprised you haven’t met any of them.” She said, signing as she spoke.

Remmy didn’t take notice to the distance Skylar kept between them. The initial strangeness of their meeting had already slid from their mind. They were never the most socially observant, but show them a complicated system of wires and they could figure out what goes where in a second. Moose walked obediently by their side as they tugged on his lead, heading back out to the sidewalk and the public, stuffing their weird purchase farther into the bag so no one else would notice. “Cool,” they signed, “I’ve only been here a month. So...very new. My only friend is the other security guard that works night shifts, Gus. He’s old, though, and always smells like pine needles.” 

“Oh, you’re a security guard? That’s pretty neat. I’d probably be terrible at something like that.” Skylar signed as they walked through town together. She shifted her bag slightly, slinging it over her shoulder so she could sign more clearly. Even though she tried to stay in the conversation, she couldn’t help but glance at Remmy’s bag, very aware of their odd purchases. “Um, how are you liking White Crest? I’m from Seattle originally, so it was a big difference.” She signed, her eyes widening to express just how much of a change it had been.

“Yeah, just part time. The halfway house I was in helped me get the job,” Remmy signed. “Since I was injured in combat, they helped place me in a job and rehabilitate me.” Walking and signing was always hard for Remmy, having to focus on looking at a person while also focusing on not running into things or other people. They had to stop or slow down every time they started signing again, talking along with the motions, hoping Skylar could read their lips too. “It’s okay. I grew up in Wyoming, so from that it’s a stark change, but I came here from Afghanistan, which was the real shock. I like how small it is here. It reminds me of home.” A pause. “What uh-- what about you?”

“Mm.” Skylar hummed in response, not really sure what else she could say to the other person. It sounded like they had been through some… real shit. Like, stuff that she couldn’t even imagine. Just the idea of being involved in the military seemed so foreign to her. Not that she’d ever had the interest in it; she didn’t think the army had much of an interest in sign language. “Makes sense.” She signed before shrugging, “Like I said, it’s been a big change. But, I like the town for the most part. I work for the school and the administration has been really good to me so far. And the people I’ve met are nice. I just wish they had more bookstores.” She sighed wistfully. That was one of the best parts of living in a big city-- there were no shortage of bookstores and comic shops. Tower wasn’t bad, but she just wished they weren’t combined with a music store too.

“You work for the school?” Remmy repeated. “That’s cool! What do you do there?” They paused again, trying to remember the sign, their face contorting a bit. “I want to find something more….” scratched their head, “fulfilling.” They finally said out loud. “I think I’d like to be an officer someday, but they’re pretty strict on things disability wise…” They started walking again, catching pace with Skylar. “You like to read, then? I haven’t found any bookstores here yet. Sorry, that’s probably annoying to deal with. Maybe there’s one down on Amity?”

Nodding, Skylar smiled. “Yeah. I work as a sign language interpreter. I’m hard of hearing but,” She pointed to her bright blue hearing aids, “with these I can hear just as well as anyone else, with a few little quirks. So, I work with kids who need a little extra help.” She explained. Her job wasn’t exactly one that people thought about, but that didn’t make it any less important. “Like a police officer? I’m sure you could probably petition for a position or something? I mean, if you have the skills and abilities, I don’t really get why they wouldn’t let you in. But, I’m biased.” She signed with another shrug. At the mention of bookstores, Skylar nodded vigorously. “Oh, yes. I like reading a lot. There’s an interesting one called The Archive, but it’s a little creepy. I don’t know what it is about the place, it’s just kinda old and weird?” She signed, making a face as she did so.

Remmy perked up a bit. “Oh, that’s so cool!” They motioned to the device on their own ear. “I’ve got one, too. I’m just deaf on the one side, though. Places that have a lot of noise can get rough though,” they said. “I end up turning mine off a lot.” A shrug. Sometimes the silence felt nicer than hearing everything, all the time. Remmy looked back over at Skylar, noticing them brighten at the mention of books again. Remmy couldn’t help but smile. “Creepy? How so?” A pause. “Oh, wait, you just said you didn’t...That’s weird. Maybe it’s just cause it’s old? I went into an old like antique shop once down on Amity and it wigged me out real bad. All those kinds of places do, you know?” Another shrug, more nonchalant this time. Remmy smiled again. They couldn’t help but feel happy. They were talking to someone. And possibly making a friend. They weren’t sure, but the warm feeling in their chest told them that right now, they were completely safe. And that was...hard to come by these days. “Maybe I could go with you to the bookstore sometime. It might be less creepy with someone with you. Plus, I need to pick up a book. Anna Karina? Someone online told me to read it.”

Eyes widening, Skylar blinked in surprise. “I didn’t see that, I’m sorry!” She signed, face turning burning hotly with embarrassment. She should have picked up on that sooner. How had she missed that? “I can relate to that, though. I don’t wear mine when I’m at home. They just get uncomfortable sometimes.” She watched as Remmy continued to sign, but took note of the smile. The fact that they were smiling was good; hopefully they had forgotten about her being such a jerk to them in the alley way. Even if they were acting super wei-- Nope. No, she wasn’t going to call Remmy weird. People could do what they liked, and if that was… eating… raw cow brain, so be it. Pulling a face at the idea of going around an antique shop, Skylar signed back, “I can only imagine. Antiques are definitely creepy.” Skylar’s fingers paused their usual fidgeting at Remmy’s offer. “Are you sure? You don’t need to, it’s probably nothing. But, I wouldn’t mind the company at all. And, I could help you find that book.” She signed, expression hopeful. Being able to sign with someone who was near her level was a breath of fresh air and she really wanted to keep Remmy around. If they wanted to be there, of course.

“No, yeah, totally!” Remmy immediately signed back. “I’d love to!” They stopped, a little embarrassed of their sudden response, scratching the back of their head. “Sorry. I don’t wanna seem desperate. I haven’t met a lot of people since moving here yet. It’s been kinda lonely. Even with Moose.” They gave him a little pat, and Moose sniffed the air a second before returning to his on duty posture. “He’s my service dog, so it’s nice having him around, but I miss living in a community. I mean...this place is nice, it’s even a small town, but I just don’t know anyone yet.” And it was a strange feeling, Remmy noted, that they could be so alone. For the past five years their best friends had been the privates training alongside them to become EOD members. And then they’d all been together on that plane to Afghanistan. And they’d all been together during that first raid and every raid after. And now they were...Moose licked their hand and Remmy blinked, noticing a new wetness to their eyes. Trying to hide it, they smiled over at Skylar again. “I work nights, so I can go to the bookstore anytime, just let me know when you wanna go.”

Skylar watched intently as Remmy signed quickly and then explained why they had reacted like that. Her heart went out to them, honestly, it did. She could relate to them in some small way. Maybe not with their broader experiences, but she knew what it was like to move to White Crest from someplace totally different and not have anyone you knew. She’d lucked out with her roommate, but if she hadn’t… “No, don’t worry. Trust me, the feeling is mutual. It’s nice to meet someone who gets sign and like,” She gestured to her hearing aids one more, “Gets it? You know?” Nodding, Skylar bit her lip before holding her hand up for Remmy to wait. She looked up the street before jogging down the sidewalk towards one of the fliers for sign lessons that she’d posted. Tearing off one of the untouched tabs, she hurried back towards Remmy and Moose and held out the scrap of paper. “I’m done with work when the high school gets out, so I’m free most days after 3. Sometimes I have meetings, but if you wanted to text me, you can.” She said with a tentative smile.

“I get that,” Remmy signed back, “I definitely get that.” They paused when Skylar held up her hand, curious for a moment, watching her job over to a sign board and pull off a slip of paper. Still confused, they watched as Skylar came jogging back, and it was only when Skylar was holding out the slip of paper to them that they realized what it was-- her number. Remmy took the slip and smiled. “Thanks. Sorry, I don’t have one to give back, but I promise I’ll let you know it’s me when I text.” It was a simple gesture, but Remmy always found that the simple or small gestures were the ones that really added up after time. They pocketed the slip and patted it, as if making sure it really was there and that this was real. “I’ll uh-- I’ll let you get back to whatever it was you were doing. You should probably get that meat in the fridge before it goes bad.”

“No problem!” She said with a bright grin, suddenly quite happy at the prospect of having someone who she could sign with. Maybe even a friend? Not that Skylar didn’t like her coworkers, but they weren’t exactly her friends. And Remmy seemed like good people, even if their dog kind of squicked her out. “Ah, yeah,” She glanced at the bag on her shoulder with a slight grimace. Skylar began to head down the street in the direction of her apartment, walking backwards as she signed. “It was nice meeting you, Remmy. And you too, Moose.” She signed before turning around. They might have met under the weirdest circumstances, but she was looking forward to having a new friend.

[ryncorrect]

university!au: day6 jae

following my uni!au with young k (idk how to link my own post asbajdnskmd im Dumb) so here another one with jae lol i think im gonna make one for each one of them buttttttt no promise bc my brain works in a very mysterious way LOL

anyway leggo

warning: this is lame lmaooooo

name: park jaehyung / jae

major: politic science

other activities: guitarist (and sometimes vocalist) of university band, member of music club, founder and leader of LOL SQUAD

everyone knows that tall skinny guitarist of the band i mean he’s hard to ignore tbh

he always wears loose T-shirt, ripped jeans, a cap that he puts backward, and round big specs to campus

professors hate his ripped jeans but can’t really say anything because oh well style doesn’t define someone’s grades and boy, does this kid actually get some braincells in him

well i mean at least he never fails his classes

he has this giant LOLSQUAD badge on his backpack because he’s proud af of his title as the club founder and leader

he actually started that club so he could to brag about his gaming skill to everyone who wanted to listen but he ends up getting his ass handed to him every single time they play together smh

if he’s not in class or hanging out with his game buddies, he can be seen following that Popular Student™ kang younghyun or as jae prefers to call him, “brian” or “brIBRI” because they both joined music club and are in the band

yes yes he’s well known and easy to spot

but…

“jae? park jaehyung?? who???”

everyone refers to him as “that foreigner student”, “the American guy” or “the gamer guy”, or my favorite: “chicken little”

i will never let that joke die im sorry but seriously he looks like chicken when he plays his guitar on the stage don’t @ me

there are only like 5 students in the whole university who know his actual name

anyways in this scenario you’ve always been interested in playing guitar but haven’t gotten a chance to learn and your friend kim wonpil invites you to join music club so you’ll have friends to practice with

“you know our jaehyungie, right? he’s really chill, you’ll get along well with him!!”

deep inside you’re like

who the heck is jaehyung

but wonpil is so excited to have you there so the next week you come to the club meeting

you introduce yourself to everyone and finally you meet him

“ohmygod the chicken little!!”

“whO THE HECK ARE YOU CALLING THAT”

“sorry- i mean the chicken guitarist- wait no-”

he glares at you, you laugh instead

scaring the new member challenge: failed

but yeah you’d seen him performing before and honestly you almost decided to become his fan

a l m o s t

at first he (jokingly) refuses to teach you guitar because you called him chicken little

and since then you keep calling him that just to mess with him

“hi chicken little”

“what’s poppin chicken little”

“why do you look so flustered, chicken little? do i make you nervous??”

he turns red chicken little is now an angry bird “gO AWAY NEWBIE YOU’RE SO ANNOYING”

jae’s a foreigner but he speaks fluent korean

he tells you that even though he was born and grew up in america he always speaks the language with his parents

but of course since he lives abroad there are lots of words or slang he doesn’t know, so you gotta be an ass and slip some difficult words when you speak to him

he gets his revenge by replying to you in english

whenever you two are having an argument (usually over stupid things) everyone in the club suddenly gets headache

wtf they’re not even making any sense

besides music, jae is the most excited when talking about LOL or social topics because well his major

honestly idk much about politic science so cmiimw

one time someone asks for his opinion about social welfare and he ends up starting a sudden debate session with the said person about social welfare programs in south korea and america and the difference between both countries

you mention human rights and he sNAPS

i mean he gives a full 15 mins speech about it

��yknow what im sayin?”

“dude… i honestly don’t get it at all”

because he be speaking in full english like wat

he’s just so passionate about everything it’s almost adorable

a l m o s t

and it’s not only his passion but also his small eyes, his laugh, his voice, or the way he occasionally lifts his head to look at you while playing guitar and you smile and he smiles because you smile first shnshsbshs soft

even the corners of his lips are so cute wow

oh fuck im emo i love him

but you adore him just as a good friend

he’s always been bubbly and friendly with everyone, not just you, so yeah it’s really easy to fall for him but you assure yourself that you’re nOT

are we having “in denial” shit again omg im so uncreative

anyway fast forward it’s ur birthday!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAYYYYYY

you decide to throw a small party at your place and invite 5 or 6 of your closest friends but damn on the d-day it rains so hard

if ur bday falls on winter then change it to snowing hard, if it’s spring then maybe there’s strong wind or something, whatever suits you fam lol

so no one comes to your party lol you are Sad

BUT THEN!!!! JAE SHOWS UP!!!!!

PARK JAEHYUNG

OUT OF ALL PEOPLE

no you didn’t invite him because idk

are we really that close??? ehhhh he probably won’t come anyway haha why bother

BUT!!!! HE SHOWS UP!!! IN FRONT OF YOUR DOOR!!!

he’s carrying an umbrella but it didn’t really help apparently because he’s soaking wet

imagine that view i mean nvm

“i happened to be near here and i remember it’s your birthday today so i think i’m gonna drop by to say hi and suddenly it’s raining too hard on the way but anyway happy birthday can you let me in first i’m cold”

ofc you let jae in i mean we can’t let the chicken catch the flu amirite

but you warn him that he’ll have to leave before 11 or your RA will kick you both out the dorm lol

after a towel, two cups of hot tea, and one shared piece of chocolate cake, you told him you were supposed to have a small party tonight but no one could make it because of the rain and he’s like “hOW DARE YOU HAVING A PARTY BUT NOT INVITING ME I THOUGHT WHAT WE HAD WAS SPECIAL” and you’re just like “lol shut up chicken here eat more cake”

anyways you two spend time joking and talking about random stuff and it’s probably not the best birthday ever but at least you don’t have to spend it alone and to be honest you’re happy that he’s here

then jae pulls out his ultimate weapon

i mean his guitar

he was soaking wet but the guitar is clean and dry and all fine like hoW EVEN

“priorities” -park jaehyung

he said he gonna play a song of your choice because he came empty handed and he feels bad about it

you blush and pick whatever song comes to your mind because you can’t really think of any, and he starts strumming his guitar and sings

and while he keeps looking at you, you find yourself too can’t take your eyes off him

the song ends and you’re about to clap your hands when he suddenly starts another one

wait you’ve never heard this song before

it’s a slow song and the lyrics are all like, the sky turns dark on the birthday of the brightest star so that it’ll be the only light in his world, how he feels regretful that he has nothing to give but his small heart, and he hopes that this lovely person will hold his hand as they listen to this song together, that this lovely person will feel warm beside him

guys just imagine the song okay i can’t Romance

it’s dead silent until you whisper, “is that… a song for me?”

jae’s face turns red and he starts panicking™ like “i made up the lyrics just now okay i know it’s fricking sappy and cheesy as hell okay i just uhhh want to cheer you up!!!! because you seem kinda down!!!!! let’s not talk about this again uGh WhatEvER leT Me LIvE!!!!!”

but you chuckle and thank him, it was the best present you can get from anyone

you two stare at each other for a second that feels like years and he finally breaks the silence, “you know,,, maybe i came here on purpose,,, maybe actually i want to see you,,,”

“and why is it?”

“because i think,,, i miss you,,, kinda”

and you don’t say this out loud but maybe you do know that

even if you say you’ll never

in fact you’ve already fallen for him a bit

or perhaps a lot

like a lot

then he leans in to kiss your lips and you kiss back and it’s almost not awkward at all, it just feels right as if you’ve kissed him million times before

a l m o s t

you two still blush real hard after

but yeah that’s how you two start dating

none of you two tell anyone about it but it’s pretty obvious, i mean jae always picks you up at your dorm, he walks with you to your class or vice versa (if your classes don’t overlap tho), you two keep stealing glances at each others, also—

jae with you: “hey,,,, come here sit with me u3u,,,,, did you have lunch??? oh i wrote a song last night check this out,,,, what are you gonna do this saturday? oml you’re so cute”

jae with everyone else: “HAHAHAHA FUCKING FUCK SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU FUCKING PRICK ALSO BRIAN FUCKING KANG IF YOU STEAL MY FUCKING FRIES AGAIN I WILL LITERALLY SNAP YOUR FUCKING NECK”

welp actually he’s not always sweet with you, sometimes you two still argue about silly things using mixed languages but now everyone in the club knows better to just run away once it begins

because it’ll end up with you two fighting or you two kissing

yes im nasty and a disappointment bye

btw wonpil is excited af it’s almost like he’s dating you both

“it’s really nice seeing you two finally together!!!!!!! especially because jaehyung really couldn’t shut up about you ever since the first day you joined our music club”

“wait wha-”

“YOU SNAKE THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A SECRET FUCK OFF”

I’m so in love with park jaehyung y'all hsnshsbsh aNYWAYS!!! 100 blocks limit has lifted from tumblr app AYEEEEE

[telesticmajesty]

4, 6, 20, 24 for anime asks~

FINALLY GETTING TO THESE. SO SORRY. BUT I GOT U. DW. I’LL GET TO ALL ASKS ONE DAY.

I say, continuing to reblog ask memes.

ANYWAY. (Just saying, I’m gonna stop using my Yuu rp icons to answer these asks, because I’m going to use them for my Yuu blog from now on. I’m so sorry, hng.)

Anime Asks cause Why Not

4. Least favourite anime character

*HISS* You gotta start with the haRDEST O N E, H  UH??

… That really F U C K ING annoying apocalypse lady from Guilty Crown. DIE.

6.  Popular anime you didn’t like

eHHHH, you know this already, but for some reason, despite the fact I love superhero stuff, I didn’t like One Punch Man.

Not sure why, I don’t think I liked the style, and I found the first three episodes boring.

However, I’d totally be game to try watching it again. You did tell me it does get better, after all!

20. Least favourite anime ships

Are you tRYI NG TO. GET. ME. FLAMED?!

Okay, um… I’m going to be brutally honest, here. There’s no other way to do it, I suppose.

There are a few I can think of off the top of my head: my least favourites are MikaYuu, RinHaru, LawLight, and… EreMika (I was going to mention a DP ship but then realised this is anime asks). Yeah. I don’t like any of those.

Seeing MikaYuu on my dashboard makes me immediately scroll past it and I don’t know how to blacklist so I have to see it often bc I’m following the Yuu tag. I know. Stupid idea. I’m a jerk. Probably, yeah. But I don’t think I should have to worry about seeing the same ship all the time when I’m not even looking for it and one of the characters in it happens to be my favourite. I’m sorry to say I unfollowed a lot of OnS blogs because of this issue.

I just don’t like seeing it, and that’s okay.

MikaYuu as a whole is so bad with this. Like, yeah, I get it, you all love them together, but some people don’t, and having to see MikaYuu as the first result every time I search for Yuu on his own is getting really annoying and I usually have to fight to roll my eyes. 

Not because I’m homophobic or I think nobody should ship it (because if I said that I’d get flamed like no tomorrow) - it’s just… Getting old, seeing it all the time, as if it’s the only thing that’s credible in the OnS fandom. And yes, it’s okay to have content for a ship, and yes, it’s okay to ship it, it’s just really misleading when I search for OnS and nearly all I get is that ship and hardly much else. There are other characters and other plot points, too. I understand that now the fandom doesn’t do it as much, and mostly posts about chapters in general, if that, but it’s definitely left a lasting scar on Tumblr’s and the internet in general’s tags in that it’s the same everywhere I search for Yuu. Heck, I even used to ship MikaYuu, but now I don’t, and again, that’s okay. Thank you for coming to my tedtalk.

24. Popular character you hate

STOP IT.

Y U GOTTA BE SO NEG AT IVE.

“Hate” is reallyyy a strong word… I gotta think carefully about this one.

Mikasa Ackerman. I’m sorry. I just. hng. no.

To make it even worse, I used to hate Levi more. Now, I don’t mind him as much. He be an ok guy.

To make it e vEN WORSE, I also used to hate Mika from OnS. I used to be pretty petty and stuff. Haha. I don’t anymore, though. I respect him now, but I don’t like him. That isn’t the reason why I don’t like MikaYuu though, there’s a couple of different reasons for that. I don’t think I’ll go into the why of either of those, however, as much as I would like to.

There ya go. U had to be so negative. I’m ready for those death threats. People know the “real me”, now.

Thank you so much for the ask! Original ask meme here!

[anchoredtether]

Title: A Cappella

Author/Artist: AnchoredTether

Rating: T [mild swearing, graphic depictions of violence]

Pairings: Plance [Lance x Pidge]

Series: Harmonious Conjunction

Chapter: 2/?

Summary: After discovering a secret (or not so secret?) talent of Lance’s, Pidge finds herself realizing how little she actually knows about her longtime obnoxiously flirty teammate. She thought she had Lance figured out, but the more she learns the more she realizes the complexity of the Blue Paladin’s personality. It turns out her curiosity just might be the death of her.

Timeline: Takes place after the end of season 5

CHAPTER 02 ][ A CAPPELLA

Pidge made a mental note to look into her hacked Garrison files still on her laptop and find Lance's file, delve into his test scores or something to find out the hidden whatever it was that piqued her interest in the Blue Paladin. The team went on a mission the next morning to free citizens from Galra forces, so Pidge didn't exactly have time to work on her "research." Between shooting warships and forming Voltron and fighting Galra soldiers, it wasn't until a few days later that the crew found some much needed peace and quiet after an exhausting battle.

"This juice is incredible, Hunk! What's it made of?" Lance slurped his straw obnoxiously as he finished his seventh serving of the stuff. They were all lounging in the common room, enjoying some refreshments Hunk whipped up from the planet they were currently occupying.

"You don't wanna know." Hunk replied ominously.

"Ew, please don't tell me this is made of intestinal juices or something." Keith made a face at the cup in his hand.

"Gross Keith! Why would your mind go there first, of all places??" Pidge stuck out her tongue as if the juice she was just drinking was, in fact, made up of intestinal juices.

"Ohmygosh guys, it's not from something that bad!!" Hunk cried. "Give me some credit!!"

Lance had turned a few shades paler. "So...." His eyes slowly moved to glare inquisitively at his friend. "What iiiiiis it made of??" When Hunk didn't answer, Lance stuck out his neck. "I GOTTA KNOW MAN! I DRANK SEVEN CUPS OF THIS STUFF!"

Hunk sighed. "It's from a plant similar to a coffee bean, one of the natives showed me how to make it."

"Okay, so it's like coffee, I can handle that. Tastes more like pineapple orange juice though, which is weird."

"But the 'beans' used to brew it come from... from..."

"FROM WHERE?!?"

"....from the regurgitations of a creature that looks like a field mouse."

"SO WE'RE EATING MOUSE VOMIT JUICE!?!" Keith looked ready to snap, but the whole crew looked equally disgusted or abhorrent.

"But...it's delicious mouse vomit juice." Hunk protested.

"It's perfectly safe, Paladins." Allura assured them, the only one aside from Coran who seemed unphased by this information. "Food preparation can come in all kinds of strange forms. This juice that Hunk learned to create is actually incredibly nutritious and will no doubt help you all replenish after a hard battle!"

"Allura's right, ya know." Coran butted in, taking a pitcher of the stuff to refill his own cup, then went around filling everyone else's cups despite their looks of disgust and horror. "Besides, there are plenty of weirder drinks you Earthlings are accustomed to, such as the deliciously disturbing drink produced from Kaltenecker."

"Oh don't remind me of that." Allura said softly as if she were reminded of a nightmare.

"What!? I thought you two loved milkshakes. You drank em faster than Lance." Hunk said.

"Ehhhh, yeah." Lance took a sip of his refilled mouse vomit juice before continuing. "I showed them how one 'acquires' milkshakes and they were... horrified."

Pidge still frowned at the drink she held in her hand. "That's perfectly normal on Earth. We get milk from cows, goats, camels, yaks... all mammals get milk from their mothers as infants. I'm surprised you Alteans are weirded out by such a... natural concept. Or do you guys not... breastfeed...?" She only realized how awkward the question was after she said it.

Lance interrupted the awkward silence with his obnoxious slurping.

"How are you still drinking this stuff?" Keith asked, impressed but disgusted.

He shrugged. "It tastes good. You can't let the psychological-ness of it get to you. Let your taste buds decide if you want it."

"That is something Lance would say." Shiro finally spoke. Although his expression was hesitant, he drank the juice as well.

"That is something Lance would say." Keith echoed in agreement.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Lance didn't quite sound offended, but moreso confused.

"Well, I'm sorry about the uhh... 'psychological-ness' of this, as Lance puts it." Hunk apologized. "I'll try to make something less... you know what, I just won't tell you guys what's in my recipes anymore."

Pidge sighed. "That's probably for the best."

In the end, it was mostly Lance, Hunk, Allura, and Coran who drank the juice. Shiro seemed to like it the more he drank, but Pidge downed her glass like it was medicine (complete with disgusted noises) while Keith gave his cup to Lance. They slowly trickled off from the common room one by one, heading to get ready for bed after a long day of fighting.

][ --- ][

Pidge retired to her room, ready to take off her Paladin armor and plop down on her bed, but she decided instead to take a well-needed shower. She was normally a morning shower person, but her shoulders were sore and she figured the hot water would help her relax to get an even better sleep. She gathered her towel and pajamas and headed towards the bathrooms. As she approached, she heard something that sounded vaguely familiar, something that reminded her of Earth.

It was music, no, singing, faintly coming from the bathroom door. When the door slid open with a whirring sound and she stepped into the steamy room, she could hear it with greater clarity. She recognized the song, but she couldn't put a name on the artist who originally sang it. Pidge had more of a taste for techno and movie soundtracks, so the more popular songs were less familiar to her. She was drawn further into the communal bathroom, lingering just past the edge where the mens side began. She was mesmerized by the voice, the words beautiful and passionate.

This is it, boys, this is war - what are we waiting for? Why don't we break the rules already? I was never one to believe the hype Save that for the black and white I try twice as hard and I'm half as liked, But here they come again to jack my style That's alright I found a martyr in my bed tonight She stops my bones from wondering just who I, who I, who I ammm Oh, who am I? Mhmm... Mhmm...

Pidge's honey brown eyes widened as she realized who was singing. It was Lance. Since when could Lance sing? How had she not known? But now that she thought about it, she had never heard him sing. Usually individuals who had a voice like that were constantly singing, whether along with their headphones, with the radio, or a cappella at random spurts. It seemed incredibly contradictory - Lance, the one who was always batting his eyes at women and sliding smooth pick up lines, didn't ever use his siren-like singing ability to woo the ladies. Why would he hide such a talent? Lance wasn't exactly one to be bashful. He continued, and Pidge couldn't help but sit down on the cool tile floor and listen intently as he sang the chorus even louder.

Well, some nights I wish that this all would end 'Cause I could use some friends for a change. And some nights I'm scared you'll forget me again Some nights I always win, I always win...

She couldn't help the small giggle when he started singing overlapping parts of the song, although he did it amazingly well for a one-man-choir. She was about to head towards the girls' side to shower when he ended the song, but as she was in the middle of getting up onto her feet he started singing another song with hardly any pause to catch his breath. This song had a much different feel than the last, but Lance still sang it with all his heart.

I am a question to the world, Not an answer to be heard Or a moment that's held in your arms. And what do you think you'd ever say? I won't listen anyway… You don't know me, And I’ll never be what you want me to be.

And what do you think you'd understand? I'm a boy, no, I'm a man.. You can't take me and throw me away. And how can you learn what's never shown? Yeah, you stand here on your own. They don't know me 'cause I'm not here.

Pidge was standing now, her towel and clothes held tight to her chest, her eyes staring vacantly at the floor as his words struck something deep inside her. She knew this song. She loved this song. It reminded her of home, of Earth, of her family, and it brought tears to her eyes. She could hear the music in between the words Lance sung. As the song enveloped her core, she felt how the words applied so strongly to the boy who sang them, the boy she was starting to finally better understand.

And I want a moment to be real, Wanna touch things I don't feel, Wanna hold on and feel I belong. And how can the world want me to change? They’re the ones that stay the same. They don’t know me, 'Cause I’m not here.

And you see the things they never see All you wanted, I could be Now you know me, and I'm not afraid And I wanna tell you who I am Can you help me be a man? They can't break me As long as I know who I am

When she felt the tears spill over her lashes and fall upon her towel did she blink rapidly, snapped out of her trance. His words weren't just notes to be sung. She could tell this was a favorite song of his and the words resonated with him and who he was. In a sense, hearing him sing I'm Still Here felt more personal than something akin to reading his diary. Pidge contemplated leaving the bathroom and going back to her bed so he wouldn't know anyone heard him, but she couldn't find it in her feet to leave the bathroom. She wanted to continue listening, not only because it made her bittersweetly nostalgic for Earth but because it was a side of Lance she never knew... a side she was starting to admire, if only in secret.

Finally she made her way towards the girls' showers, albeit slowly. She hesitated to turn on the water because that meant it would be harder to hear Lance's voice, but eventually she shook her head and willed herself to take her shower. Lance unknowingly serenaded her and she found herself standing under the stream of hot water completely lost in thought. In time she heard the shower water stop on the opposite side of the bathroom and the Blue Paladin's voice ceased its beautiful chorus. For a moment Pidge panicked, realizing that he would know that either she or Allura had heard him, and shut off her water. It was a desperate attempt to hide the fact she was there, and Lance would never be a hundred percent certain unless he dared to walk over to the girls side and see Pidge's feet beneath the curtain. There was a long, terrifyingly anxious pause of silence where she tried her best to hold her breath. To her relief, she heard the door to the bathroom open and close and let out a long, drawn-out sigh.

She didn't know what to think of the whole encounter.

And for Pidge, not knowing what to think was a first.

[koisurufortunecephalopod]

Outstanding Model-like Body Type: Interview with the Beautiful Legs Trio

(From the Team 8 4th Anniversary Book)

Nakano Ikumi and Hitomi Kotone have been the Team 8 representatives of model-like style, and have been joined by their fellow Chikoku area member, Shitao Miu, who has recently gone through a growth spurt, to form the top three members with beautiful legs who we have interviewed. We expected a talk about beauty routines, fashion magazines and models, but somehow some surprising topics came up… Let’s see what their dreams together are.

----So you three are considered to be the “Beautiful legs” trio in Team 8, but out of the three of you, who do you think has the best legs? On “ready, go”, please point to who you think it is. Ready, go!

(Nakano→ Nakano, Hitomi→ Nakano, Shitao→ Hitomi)

Hitomi: You chose yourself~!

Nakano: It’s fine (lol).

-----That’s fine (lol) In that case, Nakano-san, what is your beauty regimen then?

Nakano: Nothing in particular, honestly (lol). But I do work really hard on the night before a shoot. I massaged my legs last night. Sorry for only ever doing that right before (lol).

Shitao: I also don’t anything in particular, but last night I did, too (lol). I raise them up to keep them from swelling.

Nakano: But, those things we all learned from Kotone. Kotone does some model work and does a lot of work for her beauty regimen to care for her legs.

Shitao: Kocchan does it, so I often feel like I should try, as well. So out of the three of us, Kocchan is the beautiful legs leader!

Hitomi: You really think so? (lol)

Nakano: Kotone has a good fashion sense and I think you use that to make your legs look even longer. It’s like you’re trying to become the “Long Legs Obasan,” is that it? (lol)

Hitomi: I’m only 17 years old, I’m too young to be an obasan~! (lol)

-----So, if Hitomi-san is the leader, what is your beauty regimen, then?

Hitomi: It’s not eating bread.

Nakano: Is that it? Why?

Hitomi: It’s not as filling as rice, so you eat a lot.

Nakano: Kotone does give off the impression of not asking for seconds!

Shitao: I totally ask for seconds. (lol)

Hitomi: These two are always saying “I wanna eat yakiniku~!” (lol)

-----As expected, diet is important. You three are all Chukoku area members, so what about your home prefectures’ food?

Nakano: Now that you mention that, there are lots of girls in my home prefecture with good figures.

Shitao: I hadn’t really noticed it, but maybe the food there is good or something?

Nakano: Maybe. But I think what it is is that the environment we grew up in is good. Like there aren’t many people, so maybe then you grow taller?

Hitomi: Now that you mention it!

Shitao: Yeah, it’s not cramped at all.

And how will these three polish their beauty from now on?

----So what do you three think about each other’s figures?

Nakano: Really, Kotone’s is the most distracting.

Shitao: Seriously, Kocchan is pretty. She has the feeling of someone who girls would look up to and I’m so jealous.

Nakano: I love Kotone’s face.

Hitomi: You talk about my face a lot (lol).

Nakano: I’ll talk about right before a theater show or something. I could talk about like her eyebrows or mouth or bangs for five minutes each!

Shitao: Her love for Kocchan is pretty amazing.

Nakano: I’ll buy the same brands Kotone does to copy her fashion sense.

Hitomi: I can buy you the same clothes if you’d like.

Nakano: That’s a great idea (lol)

-----So Nakano-san really respects Hitomi-san, but how has she changed?

Shitao: She got rid of her bangs. I think her current hairstyle is good.

Hitomi: It looks more mature.

Nakano: I’m so happy!

Shitao: Also, she’s gotten more stylish.

Hitomi: (lol)

Nakano: Hold on, you just laughed, didn’t you! I bet you were totally just thinking “Because she copies my style.”

Shitao: Well, what does our leader think of her fashion sense?

Hitomi: So-so… (lol)

Nakano: Thank you for your honest evaluation (lol). But I do think I’ve grown on my own, too. Even a year ago I’d only have like three outfits that I’d ever wear and they weren’t all that fashionable. I’d just wear sweats. So to have grown from that, I think that’s quite the change or something.

----So how do you think Shitao-san has changed this year?

Nakano: Well she’s very well-balanced, so she’s grown into this aura of being like this young actress.

Shitao: What sort of aura is that (lol).

Hitomi: The gorgeous, loved type.

Shitao: Oh, I’m so glad~! But, you two are so thin, so when we’re together it’s probably different.

Nakano: Ehhhh! Don’t say that. Since Team 8 was formed, I’ve been hoping that the three of us would be packaged as a group. We’ve done a lot of unit songs with the three of us and I think they’re always really good.

Hitomi: If we can, I’d like us to do a cool concept together.

Shitao: I want a unit name for us!

Hitomi: Well an English name would totally be cool. We all have beautiful legs so… How about “BEAUTIFUL LEGS”?

Nakano: Let’s do it!

Shitao: That’s good. So then, let’s go “BEAUTIFUL LEGS”!

[dowoonscookies]

:oo you listen to cmusic!! can you recommend some artists? tyy

hey broooo you came to the right person (jkjkjk but I do have some recs so hold on real tight) though beware a lot of the stuff I’ve been hearing recently have all just sounded the same or overall not very impressive, so if you find anything that’s interesting, feel free to share :)

Ok to start off I think when it comes to mandopop no one can forget The King of mandopop aka Jay Chou. He basically invented rnb and pro piano skillz (I’m joking in case people still take me seriously). If you listen to his second album, or even his first, both of which were released around 2000, it was like a really new sound for people back then. I grew up listening to this dude no joke. 夜曲 is a personally fave lol. And one thing I really love is that for most of the albums there would be at least one song that obviously sounds more traditional(?) and uses traditional instruments in the track. I’m not sure if he’s purposely making sure to fit those in but I really like those songs.

Stephanie Sun is a Singaporean singer who’s also pretty famous I think. Her song 天黑黑 is like the best combination of nostalgia and cpop lol. Honestly her voice is so calming ;w;

Speaking of Singaporean singers you can’t forget JJ Lin. He has some songs that are like Classics but I personally thought his most recent experimental album was realllly nice. It was obvious how much work he put into it, and how he was trying to challenge himself. Also, if you’re a fan of cnblue, he did a collab with yonghwa once.

Also don’t forget the queen herself Jolin Tsai. I remember when she performed at the MAMA awards back in 2015 everyone was so shook lol and they didn’t even know who she was. Legit an lgbt icon. Queen of the gays

李榮浩 (li ronghao). GOD I love his stuff a lot for some reason. Idk it just sounds great. I love. 10/10 would recommend. I didn’t really like it at first but it grew on me. Just wait for it to grow on you

Mayday is like the most popular band probably. Poor 阿信 can’t actually really sing anymore but they will always be loved no matter what. Their songs are like your best friend cheering you on in life. You can do it. Life is hard but you can chase your dreams. It’s okay to suffer. It’s okay to start over. That kind of vibe.

Speaking of bands 蘇打綠(sodageeen) is a popular indie band. Day6 actually covered one of their most popular songs in their Taiwan debut showcase and it honestly saved my soul.

And yeah the only band I’ve ever seen live (and not at a concert but at the presidential inauguration sigh) is 滅火器(Fire EX). They sing in Taiwanese, and were like musical icons for the whole sunflower movement thing a few years back. Icons of freedom and justice yay

Bii is pretty popular nowadays I think, even my dad was watching a news segment about him lol. His music… pretty generic pop/ballad sound because that’s the image he’s selling I guess. People seem to be there for his face just as much as his voice. I actually have a lot to say about him only because I think he would fit so much better singing classier styles, more jazz and rnb, rather than whatever he’s doing now. Funky boy (thank god for Ian Chen) was probably the closest he’s gotten to a new style so far

Andrew Tan has a voice that I personally really like. His songs are kind of ehhhh but I’m only here for his voice so…

G.E.M also has a nice voice. I honestly haven’t heard that many songs by her, but you can check her out

Eli Hsieh is a fairly new artist that I really like. Only one album so far, but i personally think it’s Quality Stuff, and showcases different styles. 濕了分寸 sounds so dark but I love it.

I only found out about him recently OTL, but 盧廣仲 (Crowd Lu(?)) is another singer-songwriter that’s great. Sings about eating breakfast. Makes me hungry everytime.

There’s also like those older singers that my parents/grandparents listen to, but idk if you’re into that. I actually saw 潘越雲 live once lol. Also songs that are in Taiwanese to me usually tend to sound kind of the same as well buuuut some of them are great.

That’s all about it that I can think of right now. Not sure if you’ll like any of it lol, and I don’t think I’ve listened to THAT much cpop or anything, and basically everyone that I mentioned above mainly sings using mandarin/taiwanese, and there’s like 10000 other dialects so it’s not really representative I guess.

I hope this gets you started, and maybe you found it at least a bit helpful. I’m always here if you need any specific song recs. Feel free to share any other artists that you find because I can’t seem to find any recently that don’t sound the same as everyone else OTL sorry if this was longer than you expected I tend to rant a bit…

EDIT: i forgot something else. the people with the best voices. most of them are singer-songwriters. 陳建年’s 海洋 is an all-time favorite of mine, and 王宏恩’s 月光 as well

another edit: also check out Suming 舒米恩

[iamlordmeatwad]

Measure of a Mook Chapter 1: A Kim Possible Fanfic

"So what do you tell them?"

"Who?"

"Your family."

"Oh."

The Crooked Hook: Providence, Rhode Island July 10, 2007: 10:28PM

A middle-aged, heavyset man with a handlebar mustache grinned, taking a swig from his glass of whiskey. "I tell them that I'm a traveling salesman. So far, I haven't had any problems."

"Gee, Bob, and you've been in the business for how long? Don't tell me...six years?" an equally large man with sunken cheeks responded, leaning up agains the bar eagerly. His whiskey glass more or less full.

"Yep," Bob said proudly, leaning back in his chair at the booth, soaking in the music. Classic country songs by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill were the selected tunes for the tavern that evening. Good times. "And what do you tell your family, Carl?"

"Oh, um, heh," Carl said, forcing a smile. "Don't have one anymore."

Bob turned around, looking into Carl's shimmering eyes. "Wow, I'm sorry—I didn't know that. What happened, man? If you don't mind me asking."

"D-don't mind at all. During the whole, uh, Li'l Diablo's thing, I kinda freaked. Usually, you try to relocate them somewhere safe. Like, say he wants to raise the ocean level, well that's a family vacation to La Rinconada..."

"Where's that?"

"Peru. Highest city in the world."

"No kidding!"

"Yeah, but anyways, when the big guy wants to launch a global attack on the world, I-I mean, where do you bring your family then? I told them everything, and well..." Carl put his glass down and leaned his head up against his hands.

"That's rough, man," Bob frowned, squirming a little as he watched his fellow colleague break down right there in front of him. "Uh," he grunted, reaching out towards Carl, placing a rough hand on his shoulder. "You can do it."

"What?" Carl asked suddenly, his shock completely overriding his sadness.

"We're not there yet, are we?" Bob asked before retracting his hand. Carl shook his head. He took a swig from his whiskey, then looked up at the television screen above them. "Well would you look at that?"

A brilliant, orange explosion tore through a helicopter. Two shadows descended from the blast, falling quickly, and then stopping for a moment. A parachute, perhaps? They continued to fall, and then finally came into clear picture. A girl with auburn hair and emerald eyes, confidently making her aerial descent, holding onto a cowering elderly man in a tuxedo with one strong arm. Her blond-haired brown-eyed companion was a little less calm, holding her free hand, and using his other hand to shield his eyes from the drop.

"There they are," Bob mused, smiling at the screen.

Carl sat up in his chair, folding his hands neatly together. Those two kids. He was well acquainted with both...at least with their fists. He looked away from the screen, down at the stain covered tabletop.

"Yep. That's them alright."

Yamanouchi Ninja School: Yamanouchi, Japan July 14, 2007: 3:28PM

"First, to defeat your enemy, there are two things you must know..."

THWACK! Two hands smacked against a wooden staff, two hands that nearly made contact with Master Sensei, a short man with many years under his belt. Sensei twirled the staff, knocking his two competitors away: Kim Possible and her partner, Ron Stoppable.

"Knowing seventeen different style of martial arts is not one of them," Sensei said bluntly, watching the passing clouds overhead. Kim looked over at Ron, and gave him a quick nod, and ran off to her left, circling around Sensei.

Which one is that again? Ron thought, Aw man, can't we use hand signals or something... He sighed and ran forward, leaping into the air, somersaulting his way into a dropkick. But once again, his attack only met wood, not flesh. Sensei flicked his staff upwards, launching Ron into the air, tumbling backwards into Kim.

"Ron!" Kim whispered, jumping back to her feet, dragging Ron up with her. She turned, staring him down for a silent moment. Ron bowed his head, that stare was not something he could ever deal with, especially in a fight.

"Watch my six!" Kim shouted, charging towards Sensei.

"Wait, is that your front or your behind?" Ron shouted back, checking his watch-less wrist. "Aw man."

"You must know your enemy," Sensei began, blocking each of Kim's punches and kicks with his staff, almost thoughtlessly. Kim grimaced back, moving faster, her usual patterns falling off standard into something more erratic. Finally, one punch made it past the staff, but missed its target completely. Sensei slammed his pole forward into Kim's chest, knocking her flat on her back.

"And you must know yourself," Sensei ended with finality, his body still as ever.

Kim looked up at the ancient warrior, jaw hanging open, fishing for a comeback.  That's it? Know ourselves?  She pushed herself back to her feet and finally found the needed words for the given sitch. "With all due respect-"

"Wooooow, Sensei," Ron said excitedly, "That's some bon-diggity advice right there! Who's got it going on? That's right! Sensei does! KP, did you bring a pen?"

Rolling her eyes, Kim ran forward, swinging again at Sensei. His staff moved up, blocking each of her blows and as usual, only Sensei's arms moved. Her bare hands and feet were both beginning to bruise and take in splinters from the rough wood so she finally changed up her style; her hands reached out and grabbed the pole.

A flicker from underneath Sensei's magnificent beard. Perhaps a smirk. Finally, the man decided to move.

She turned both of her arms to the left, flipping the staff from a horizontal position into a vertical one, throwing Sensei off of the staff and into the air. He flipped mid-flight, landing on the ground gracefully, unharmed. Kim readied the pole as Ron continued to watch from twenty feet away.

Suddenly, Sensei was on the move. For a man who had previously fought so gracefully and nimbly, he was now more like a tank; his steps heavy, his force relentless, and his determination terrifying. His fists pounded towards her. She managed to block the first two strikes, but his next strike snapped the staff in half, and the second blow knocked her right back to the ground again.

"Okay, Sensei!" Ron shouted with false bravado, nervously clapping his hands together. "Great game and all, but uh-"

Sensei caught the fallen pieces of wood and launched himself into the air, the splintered ends of the wood aimed at Kim's head.

"Sensei?" Ron squeaked, his eyes widening.

No signs of Sensei stopping as he rocketed down.

A flash of blue.

Suddenly two blue-tinged hands were clutching onto the wood inches above Kim's head. Sensei looked up, his eyes finally unearthing themselves from underneath his droopy eyebrows. Ron's brown, friendly eyes that Sensei had grown accustomed to over the past two years were now sapphire and angry.

Ron tossed the halves of the pole off to the side, and then smashed both of his fists into the ground. His legs swung up, nailing Sensei in the chest, sending him rocketing across the campus. Thankfully, one of the bamboo walls halted his flight, but wasn't strong enough to stand tall and collapsed on top of Sensei.

"Oops," Ron sighed as he slumped over, the blue glow around him fading. He felt a familiar touch brush against his right shoulder. He looked up and saw Kim looking at him with that understanding gaze of hers.

"Ron?"

Hana Pond: Yamanouchi, Japan July 14, 2007: 5:02PM

"I messed up, KP," Ron sighed, watching the clean water wash over his feet. He looked over to his right, waiting for a response from Kim. Usually she was a bit faster on the uptake, this time she was looking off into space. Ron looked away from her quietly, gazing back into the river, the same stream that he had brought his adopted sister to after Sensei dropped the "Han is the ultimate weapon bomb." He felt the same way that he did that day; burdensome and disappointed.

"We all make mistakes, Ron," Kim responded finally, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. "Sensei was hoping for a reaction from you."

"You think?"

"Yes, Ron," Kim replied, turning to face him. "He needs to know just how powerful you are, now he does."

"You're probably right," he mused, getting to his feet and stepping into the stream only ankle deep in water. "KP, maybe we should—uh...how do I say this?" he asked himself, rubbing the back of his neck, looking up at the overcast sky.

"We're not breaking up, Ron," Kim replied flatly.

"But Kim!" Ron started, turning towards her, hands in the air. "This has happened before! And it's only happened when you're in danger. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but y'know, I...I care about you, KP. You're my whole world, and whenever something bad happens, I start freak fighting, I-"

"Ron," Kim interrupted, her voice sharp. He paused, looking at her, a little hurt. Kim held her disapproving frown for the moment, and then let it sink into a smile. "You just have to learn to control your power. It's going to be okay."

"I dunno, KP. You're about to go across the world for college to do—ehhhhh…" Ron groaned. He wasn't supposed to bring that up. At the end of summer, Kim was flying to Europe for college at a prestigious university, but with an undeclared major. It was weird. KP always had a plan. It was weird that she was leaving so much behind to do the "to be announced."

Kim frowned. Ron quickly recovered.

"And I'm going to Lowerton Community College to also—ehhhh!" Ron joked. He flashed a smile. Kim forced one back. Good enough. "I'm just worried what it will be like using my powers when you're gone."

Kim got up and stepped to where Ron was in the stream, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Silence. She was hoping for some joke about how evil monkeys are for bringing him into this monkey magic situation.

"Kim," Ron started, his voice quavering. "I hurt them. Warmonga and Warhok, I really hurt them. They're gone now, and I—wow, I sentenced them."

They had never gone in-depth into the Lowardian Sitch. She knew what happened to the two warlords, she saw the explosion the ship made when it connected with the two alien bodies. But he had looked so calm after the boom; she had always assumed it was a non-issue for him. Regardless, it was something that was doomed to eventually come up, and it was not going to be a fun conversation.

"Ron, you did what you had to do. You had to take out a ship that was about to crash into the Earth. A lot of people would have been hurt-"

"KP, stop. Please," Ron sighed, "You're only saying that because it's me, I know how you feel about the whole killing thing."

Kim stepped away from Ron, surveying the waterfall yards away from them. She knew how they could have gotten around it, but was it the right time to say? No but she couldn't just not tell him. "If we had more time, we could have maybe used those alien walkers to our advantage. Drakken's plants could have made a trip-line between walkers, making a giant net for the ship to pass through, hopefully it would be enough to at least slow it down into a non-explosive entry."

Kim folded her arms together and frowned. Ever since what happened with the Lowardians went down it had been really tough. Things changed fast. Because of Ron's newfound powers, they have been tasked with so many more missions. All of them were so much more intense than anything Drakken or Dementor had thrown at them. One week they're handling hostage situations in New York, the next week they're undercover spies in a war. Getting Ron up to speed had been so hard. His relationship with Kim made it even more complicated. Maybe it would be easier if they weren't together? No. She was being selfish. This was hard on her too but she had to be strong for her Ron.

Kim tensed up, suddenly noticing the hurt expression of Ron's face. She did it again.

"But Drakken was out of sight, and I was unconscious. It was you versus two aliens who could give Steel Toe and Pain King a run for their money. There weren't many options left," Kim forced a smile.

Ron looked to the water; he hadn't even considered any of that. He could only remember wanting to save Kim. Now it all seemed so obvious.

"Hey, what about that 'Great Blue' Warmonga was looking for?" Ron asked, granting the Great Blue the honor of air quotes. "We could have helped them find him in exchange for leaving us alone."

Kim spun around, one fist in the air. "One," Kim started, raising her index finger. "I doubt they had good intentions with that search, and two," she raised a second finger up. "Ron, you're probably The Great Blue they were talking about."

Blink. Blink.

"What-"

Twitch. Blink.

"Ooooooooh! Why didn't anybody tell me?!" Ron screamed, clutching his head. "Man, I thought that—wow. I'm the guy they were looking for? And I threw them into a spaceship? Some welcoming!"

"Ron!" Kim said, her voice slightly raised. Ron quieted down. "Killing is bad, and there's almost always a way around it. But that day there wasn't, and you saved the world. And that's good, now we just need to figure out your powers so something like that doesn't happen again."

Ron nodded his head slowly, lowering himself onto a rock sticking out of the water. "If I was The Great Blue, how come they didn't realize that was me?" Ron pointed out.

"Uh, maybe because Warmonga mistook Drakken's shampoo ad to be the makings of The Great Blue. These guys weren't the brightest we've ran into," Kim snarked, sitting on a nearby rock across Ron. Finally, she could relax. She knew how to work this part of Ron.

"Yeah," Ron said, smiling at his girlfriend. "We haven't heard from Drakken in a while," he noted matter-of-factly. "Wonder what he's up to. Probably some take over the world vanity project."

"Ron," Kim rolled her eyes, "Drakken and Shego are reformed. You saw the U.N. Conference."

Drakken and Shego. Proof why heroes shouldn't kill people. Sure, they had fought for years against one another as arch-foes, but now they had finally had their change of heart. They saved the world, and they had the resources to continue doing that. They had been off the grid for the past few months but they were probably taken a vacation from everything. Although with everything that had been happening lately, it would be really nice to have them fighting alongside Team Possible…

"Oh come on, KP," Ron sighed, beginning to list off their crimes, raising a digit for each act of evil. "Canceled Naco Night, tried to steal Christmas, stole Felix's wheelchair, uh...he melted that cheese covered building."

"Oh Golly No!" Kim interrupted in her best Wisconsin drawl, "That building was actually made out of pure Wisconsin Swiss," Kim explained, remembering the Cheese Flood incident too well.

"No way! That's even worse! Cheese is not just something you can waste, KP."

"Riiiiight, you need it to drench all of your Nacos."

"Exactly!" Ron cried out, "Thank you! Someone finally gets me."

Kim laughed. That was her Ron. There was a bumpy road ahead, what with all the training Sensei had for them, but for now, they could rest. So not the drama.

~^*KP*^~

"Through Big Daddy Brotherson, we were able to find great connections to other businesses, and we learned some great silly games to use as training exercises!"

"Nyeh…"

"It Was a Tuesday tested really well with audiences for your memoir."

"Ooh! Nyergh. Mm…"

"And the money we got from the Drakkanada copyright went to—"

"We sold that?!"

Drakken's Lair: The Atlantic Ocean July 15, 2007: 6:13AM

Drakken looked up from his blueprints and stared at his longtime Villainy Consultant, Hank Perkins, credited with such delightful schemes such as Hank's Gourmet Cupcakes. Getting the Peace Prize from the U.N. had been such a drag. No more thievery…er…outsourcing of equipment for this bad doctor anymore.

Everything had to be done legit, meaning he had to bring the temp guy back in. Hank Perkins had done wonders for Drakken before so he seemed like a good fit. Although Hank didn't fully understand Drakken's so-called vision.

"Well, Doctor Demenz offered us a three million dollar deal for the name," Hank chirped up without being fazed.

"Demenz?!" Drakken cried out. "He knew if I couldn't rename it Drakkanada then there was no point in me taking over that country! Think Hank!" Drakken slumped over the table before him. On it was a hologram of the evil lair he currently resided in. It looked like a giant lantern. The new lair was built at the bottom of the ocean. Drakken glared at the project, then looked up to Hank.

"The whole point of this scheme is to annihilate the East Coast!" Drakken cried out.

"Well, by our estimations, the United States has more value to us than Canada, we just have to go back to our mission statement and rethink-"

"I WANT DRAKKANADA!" Drakken screamed, kicking the table. Immediately, he started rubbing his temple.

This was it. The time to shine.

Carl, our mook friend from the bar, looked away from his monitor and over to Drakken. He had heard about the Drakkanada sale at the water cooler the previous day and you wouldn't believe how long it had took him to think of a good Drakken pun.

"What about Kazdrakkenstan?" Carl asked casually, knowing that it was an awesome name for a country.

"Ooh!" Drakken cried out as visions of grandeur immediately filled his brain.

"Sorry, Carl, but you have to be in the Writer's Guild of Mooks to work above-the-line here," Hank said coolly.

Carl forced a smile and nodded. He should've known. Hank always had a workaround to everything.

Hank smiled at Carl a little too long. Something felt off. Carl raised his eyebrow at Hank and at that moment he finally saw Hank break that precious character of his.

No one else saw it, but Hank narrowed his eyes and that friendly smile turned into an evil smirk. Hank knew what Carl was up to. Blast you, Hank. Leave it to the temp to ruin everything.

"Oh another union thing?" Drakken moaned. "Fine."

Meanwhile, the doors to the meeting room slid open. A hunched over Shego, wrapped up in a bathrobe, passed by the center table, and went straight for the coffee pot. Drakken watched her eagerly with a smile as she passed through, hoping she would say "Good morning, Dr. D!" for once.

The U.N. thing had probably hit Shego more than anyone. She couldn't find any freelance work anymore now that the whole world knew her part in the world saving scheme. Both she and Drakken needed to prove just how bad they really were by doing what they do worst: Getting back at Kim Possible and her…buffoon…for working with them to save the world. And maybe conquering Europe.

Seeing Shego gave Drakken confidence. He raised his hand over the hologram of the generator, and then looked to his mook colleagues. "And now, my friends, I present to you our greatest triumph!"

"Drakken, these guys gotta take a lunch break soon," Hank said, pointing at his watch.

"But they're not Union!" Drakken cried out.

"Stevens is," Hank frowned. They needed Union guys so they could get money from everyone's dues, but it definitely had caused some problems.

Stevens, a longtime member of Drakken's, finger-gunned at the bad doctor, "Sorry, Doctor D-Diggity-Dawg."

Drakken shook his head. "We've gotta lose Stevens. Anyways, world domination yadda yadda reigning supreme blah blah all that but she's not."

Drakken slammed on the hologram and a brilliant tidal wave burst from the generator. It surged across the ocean waters, coming in fast towards the East Coast, but before it made contact it puttered away into nothingness.

Drakken blinked and threw his hands in the air, about to erupt into one of his infamous tantrums when something amazing happened.

Shego passed by Drakken, tossing her now empty mug towards the thug at the sink. Still fatigued from her night's rest, her eyes remained half-open as she neared the table. She poked the blueprints of the generator, and dragged one piece of the scanned image to a lower part of the machine. Her hand rose and smacked down on the hologram. This time, the wave it generated was reading at a solid 9.6.

The devastation the coastline suffered was brilliant.

"Good call, Shego! High-five!" Drakken exclaimed proudly, raising one hand, all five fingers splayed out when—

Nothing. As usual, he was left hanging. Not surprising.

"Can we turn the heat up, Dr. D? It's freezing in here," Shego groaned.

"Uh, Shego," Drakken replied, twiddling his fingers. "Heat's expensive, and-"

SLAM!

"Oh, now she has to go off and make a scene." Drakken smacked his hand against his forehead, all heads turned to him. "Don't you have a lunch break or something?"

Stevens wiped his forehead. "Phew, for a second there, I thought I was going to have to dock you a meal penalty—" Drakken immediately turned, his icy gaze burrowing into Stevens' mind. "Um, hah, yeah, that was a joke, I would never, um…"

Stevens trailed off, walking away to lunch with the other mooks. Hank looked at them, then took a step closer to Drakken, throwing an arm around his shoulder. "Can I offer you some advice?"

"No," Drakken grunted, gently removing Hank from his shoulder.

"The greatest barrier to success is the fear of failure. Your issue with Shego, if I may, sir, is you let her fall out of line. Treat her like the Chief Operating Officer of Random Mayhem that she is and you act like the Executive of Evil that you are, and you could really get her to-"

Drakken opened his mouth to say something when he spotted a better opportunity: that one mook. What's his name again?

"Oh, Brian!" Drakken called out. All of the minions turned around; they were used to not being called by their real names. "Um," Drakken blinked. "The guy who came up with Kazdrakkenstan."

Carl stepped forward. "No problem, sir. The name's Carl."

"Charles?" Drakken asked, raising an eyebrow. I didn't know we had a Charles…

"Carl."

"Robert?"

"Carl."

"Hm. Nice to meet you, Jimmy," Drakken hurried, "Walk with me. Talk with me."

The two turned around and headed towards the door. Carl turned around at the last second and narrowed his eyes, offering a smirk to Hank. Hank's posture finally snapped as the hungry little temp hunched over, grinding his teeth like some kind of monster. The metal door slid open and shut behind Carl and Drakken as they entered a new wing of the evil lair.

The West Wing: Drakken's Lair July 15, 2007: 6:17AM

The two emerged into an open space, a hallway that wrapped around the entirety of the base. A glass wall separated them from the outside world, giving them an amazing view of the ocean floor around them. Not far out enough for the ocean to drop into the Abyssopelagic level; they got to look at pleasant blue waters.

"How am I doing?" Drakken asked, resting an arm against the glass.

"With what?" Carl asked plainly. Super villainy was a tough job and held a lot of pressures; people who ticked off their bosses usually ended up facing death rays or unknown trap doors.

"Y'know..." Drakken started, his teeth grinding. "Eeeeeevil..." he muttered, trying to be discreet.

"Oh! Oh! I..." Carl shouted, catching his volume and bringing it down. "Yeah, boss, you're completely evil. I'm shaking, really!"

"That's good," the bad doctor sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Shego always throws me off, not that I'm interested in her, mind you."

"Of course," Carl said dryly.

"I'm glad we're on the same understanding, Jimmy." Drakken turned to face the glass again.

"It's Carl," Carl uttered with aggression. Not usual for Carl. Drakken turned back, his right eyebrow arched upwards.

"Ah, I'm enlightened," Drakken drawled, walking past Carl. "That was fun and all, but I think I left my Bunsen burner on at the lab."

The doors slid open and Drakken took his first step back into the meeting room.

This is your chance, Carl. C'mon. Speak up.

"You know what would be really evil, boss?" Carl asked, forcing a smirk that was very unlike him onto his face.

The doors snapped shut.

"What?" Drakken asked, looking back to Carl.

"What if you set up two earthquake generators, but the one here was a dud?" Carl explained, his arms crossed.

"What--" Drakken started.

"Bring Kim Possible and the Buffoon here, then set off the actual generator where it will hit them the hardest."

"Um...Global Justice Headquarters?" Drakken stuttered, his body tensing up.

"No. Middleton, Colorado, y'know, where the two of them live. Hide it in one of your timeshare labs."

A very heavy pause passed between them. Drakken wasn't sure how to react. On one hand, he wasn't aware that his men were capable of stringing together a sentence. On the other hand, the plan was so deliciously twisted. On the other other hand, there was a way to go about doing these things. And this was a little...dark.

"What is wrong with you?" Drakken finally spat at Carl, fuming. "Sicko! Lure them all the way here just to destroy Middleton?" He whipped out his phone, beginning to dial a number. "I'm getting you a therapist, kid!"

"But it's not a bad idea," a cold, female voice replied. From around the corner came Shego, geared up in her uniform, plasma radiating off of her hands. "I like it. Sure it's dark, but it gets the job done. What do you think, Dr. D?"

"No way," Drakken pouted. He looked from Carl to Shego warily. They both looked pretty confident in the new plan. "Oh come on!"

"It's a good plan," Carl sneered.

"Alright, you're doing way too much talking," Shego muttered and threw a plasma bolt at the goon. He jumped backwards, narrowly evading the blast that knocked chunks out of the floor.

"But-" Carl started.

"See, the reason I get away with it is because he has a crush on me." "I do not!" "Shut it. You? Last time I checked, Dr. D doesn't have a thing for gross looking ape-men. Now do one hundred laps around the base," Shego said. Her eyes narrowed and the goon was suddenly out of there, running as fast as his legs could carry him.

While completely breaking the spirit of Kim Possible and the buffoo—Ron Stoppable, in addition to probably killing them afterwards, was something that he definitely did not want to accomplish as an evil minion, it was his out. The job would be over, there would be no more reason to keep fighting. He could leave. He could rebuild his family.

The nightmare was almost over.