#his last one regularly put people in the hospital

[bet-on-me-13]

Reincarnation AU but it's not Danny

So! In basically every single Reincarnation AU I've seen, it's always Danny who gets reincarnated as a DC character. Sometimes it's Jazz, other times it's his Friends, but it never really strays from them. And I think we've been ignoring some people...

The Ancients! Danny is always reincarnated as a "Vacation" from his Ghost King Duties, so why not give the same courtesy to the other Ancients?

Specifically, Fright Knight.

Fright Knight has been a loyal servant and Knight of his Master for Millenia. Ever since he first formed as the Autumn Spirit, the Embodiment of Fear, the Fright Knight, he had declared his Servitude to the Ghost King, whomever it may be at the time. And he stayed in that position, through the passing of the Crown, through the Violent Coups, through every single Ghost King who had taken to the mantle. He was their Loyal Knight. Never Wavering. Never leaving their side.

Until Pariah Dark, but that situation was different. No previous King had even tried to take the human world before.

Thankfully, Pariah had only taken the Throne for a mere 5000 years, so he had not had to put up with him for long, and much of that time was with him stuck in his Coffin. That was the first time Fright Knight had ever left his Masters Side.

Then, that insolent Halfa he had met before came into the picture and Fright Knight had a new master.

King Phantom was...different.

Perhaps it was his remaining Humanity poking through? Or was it was the influence of the Human Realm that he still regularly visited? Or maybe he was simply just a Good Person, and there was no deeper meaning behind it?

Either way, Fright Knight noticed that he cared for his subjects in a far deeper manner than any previous king had. He had personal connections with as many Ghosts as he could, and often called the Ghosts he ruled his, Friends. It warmed his Long Frozen Core to see a King valuing his Subjects as much as he did.

He did not realize that the kindness Phantom extended to his people, also extended to himself.

One day, Phantom had been discussing his Human Life with some of his friends. Not his First Life, but his most recent Vacation. Over the Eons since he had taken the Throne, Phantom had been encouraged to take a Vacation every once in a while. It was not healthy for a Ghost to work non-stop like he did, especially for a Halfa.

It was not an uncommon practice in the Realms, many would take a break from the Endlessness of Death to embrace Life once more through Reincarnation. Although, many were too weak to retain their memories upon their second Forming. Mostly, it was Ancients or Kings who would use this as a Vacation, rather than a New Beginning.

There came a break in the conversation, and King Phantom turned his attention to his Knight. "Frighty, when was the last time you Reincarnated? Pandora did so recently, and it got me thinking."

"I have not taken leave of my post for thr Eons since my Forming, My Lord" Replied the Knight with Pride.

"What? You haven't taken a Break since you formed!? Frighty! That's not Healthy!" Exclaimed his King.

This lead to a whole conversation about how unhealthy his lifestyle was, which was another quirk of his Master. He cared for his Sunjects beyond their happiness.

"Fright Knight, as your King and as your Friend, I implore you to take a Vacation. It doesn't have to be forever, just a simple Human Lifespan, but please take a break, for your own Good."

And how could he refuse a request like that? One based in the kindness that his Majesty always showed his Subjects.

It took a few more years to finally iron out the plan for his Vacation, but what are a few years in the face of Eternity?

Finally, it came time to take his leave to the Mortal Realm, and to Life itself.

"Farewell, my Leige." Bowed Fright Knight, "I thank you for this opportunity."

"There's no need to thank me. Now go, and have fun, My Dark Knight."

...

That day, in Gotham General Hospital, a baby was born.

"What will you name him?" Asked the Doctor.

"I think I'll call him..." Began the need Mother, "...Bruce. Bruce Wayne."

[winterchimez]

Lover | Xiao Dejun

SUMMARY: xiaojun was determined that he was never going to get back up on his feet again until he discovered a song written by you, and he was going to make sure that both of your feelings would be conveyed to the world in the best way possible.

PAIRING: singer!Xiaojun x g.n!reader

GENRE: angst, hurt comfort, established relationship

WARNINGS: pg-13, it's umm pretty sad so i highly recommend tissues 🥹, mentions of ill-health, yn is not around anymore (so you're practically a ghost in this story), mentions of death

WORD COUNT: 1,544

A/N: my very first wayv fic and i had to do it for my boyfriend 🥹 shoutout to @h0mebody-heaven for beta reading this for me & ofc being my #1 wayv girlie + supporter 💗 the fic is based off on xiaojun's cover so def listen to it if you haven't it's a very beautiful song 🥹❤️‍🩹

Xiaojun’s hands began to tremble as he held onto the microphone prepped before him. It has been a while since he last stood up on stage, yet alone ever sang for anybody in a while.

The dim lights that filled the club hadn’t been much of a help to ease the tension that he’d been struggling with either, and he could basically forget about putting on a good impression with the amount of attention he’d been getting from the customers who mainly had turned their attention towards the front stage. 

Rustling through the equipment and ensuring all the band members were ready to go, he hesitantly turned towards the crowd. He tapped his mic twice before breaking his silence. 

This would’ve been a lot easier a year prior, especially when he was the regular singer in this particular nightclub that he worked at as a part-time job on the weekends. However, things took a drastic turn when his fellow co-singer was no longer part of this warm, comfortable family of friends he had made while working here.

Or rather, his fiancé, who had tragically left the world way too soon. 

It wasn’t too big of an issue when people knew you had always had a pretty frail body, and visiting the doctors at least once a month was a fairly common practice you always did back in the day. What was shocking was that by your final years of university, you were beginning to have blackouts—happening more often than it should, which was concerning enough for you to be admitted into the hospital.

Neither of the medical professionals was able to give you a concrete answer about what you were struggling with—frankly, you were glad that you never found out about it to save you all the pain and distress of counting down how many days left you were granted the privilege to stay alive. 

With that, you decided to go through all of the things listed on your bucket list back in high school, and one of them was to perform regularly as a singer. Through your connections in university, you landed a job at the local nightclub not too far from campus and were given the opportunity to shine as a performer on stage.

Which was where Xiaojun met and was instantly smitten all over you.

You both hit off immediately—having a good range of high vocals and loving practically almost the same music genre—and you both could spend time with one another for hours or even days. Just like all relationships, things started friendly before you knew that you could no longer see each other as just simple co-workers from the club. 

Instead, you both became partners and helped the club gain its reputation and fame, which it has proudly maintained for the past couple of years. The local community loved you both, and rumours immediately began spreading like wildfire, causing sales to go up higher than before you took over as the regular performers. 

With that, Xiaojun was convinced that he was glad to be part of this little family he had formed outside of work, and he’d be more happy to work here for the rest of his life. 

Just like a fairytale, everything seemed so perfect for him—not just an enjoyable side income that he looked forward to every weekend to meeting the love of his life who shared the same interests as him. But it is also bound that all fairytales would have times when everything could go badly wrong.

All of a sudden, you were on full-on life support, and hearing the tragic news that you didn’t make it through the night broke Xiaojun down badly, to say the very least. He left his full-time office job and wasn’t keen on meeting anyone for a year. 

Until he cleared up your belongings and found that you had written a song just for him. 

Reading through the lyrics brought tears to his eyes, and it pained him so much how you knew that your time was limited as you wrote this song down. Xiaojun would spend the next day or two hurling up in his room while clutching onto this soaked piece of paper with his tears until he came up with a brilliant idea that he could at least do to honour your name. 

He wasted no time calling his bandmates from the club, which surprised them, considering he hadn’t contacted them in over a year. However, they were more than happy to welcome him back with open arms. 

Quickly, they got to work and spent many sleepless nights in the studio trying to create the perfect song composition to match the vibes of the lyrics you wrote. Slowly but surely, all of his efforts finally paid off, so he was standing back up on stage today just for you. 

He was determined to ensure the world recognised the beauty of your work before you were gone. 

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, I hope you are all enjoying the night so far. I’d like to take this time to switch things up for a bit tonight. Instead of taking the usual requests from you guys, I would like to present you a song written beautifully by a loved one, and I hope you could all take the time to indulge in the beauty of it all.” 

With that, he turned behind for a second to give a nod to his bandmates to signal them that they could start the intro while he took another deep breath to prepare for his verse. 

Come on, Xiaojun. You can do this. It’s all for Y/N. 

Under the dim glow of the stage lights, Xiaojun carefully but professionally started off his verse as he closed his eyes as if lost in the depths of the song. With the lyrics you wrote, it was given that the song was a slow and melancholic one—setting the scene for everyone to bask in the beauty of missing a loved one. 

🎵 I hope you no longer cry over me I don’t want you to feel empty in your heart  Please don’t let me make more mistakes to you  I’ll be alright, don’t you worry about me  You know that none of us wanted to leave each other 🎵

He did his best to convey your messages through the song by placing as many emotions through his voice, causing the now silent crowd to slowly sway their bodies to match the tempo of the wonderful piece.

Just as he was finishing up the second chorus and was about to head onto the bridge, he noticed a somewhat radiant light beaming from the corners of the room, and his eyes widened with shock as he noticed what he was seeing.

It was you. Or rather, your spirit. 

You couldn’t help but smile at your past lover, looking at how good he looked while surrendering to the calamity of his beautiful voice. Those lyrics that you wrote immediately stung your heart, and tears began welling up in your eyes. 

And so did Xiaojun. But he knew that he was going to nail this performance just for you, and he was going to suck up all of his emotions as he carried on. 

🎵 I hope for us to reunite someday after I’m gone  Every day staring at the sea, we will be missing each other  Please don’t be afraid after I’m gone  Even if I’m no longer standing under the same sky 🎵

As Xiaojun hit the final high note, tears began streaming down your face as you gently cupped your mouth to control your sniffles. In return, he finally plastered on a somewhat sad smile yet yearning as he directed his full attention to you—as if he was conveying those same lyrics you wrote right back at you. 

🎵 Was it fate, was it love, were we naive or was it by chance  The pain we endured, the mistakes we made, the efforts we took  Others will consider it a wall that can’t be climbed in this cold winter But it was for what I dreamt of for so long, day and night No matter how much time passes The reason why love never changes Is because you exist with your sorrows among people 🎵

As the song slowly ended, the crowd immediately stood up to give Xiaojun and his bandmates a standing ovation—some even shed tears as they felt the message being conveyed to them. Bouquets of flowers were thrown onto the stage, with some of the regulars quickly making their way to the stage to give your lover all of the praise he deserves. 

As much as Xiaojun was distracted by all of the compliments coming his way, he never stopped to glance at you before he knew that it was time for you to take your leave. Before all of that happened, he mouthed a simple “thank you” with tears in his eyes, and your heart clenched at the sight of that. 

But you decided that you wouldn’t leave feeling dejected, and you chose to give one last genuine smile filled with longing and love to your lover.

“I will always love you, Xiaojun. In every universe we may be, you will forever be my only lover.”  

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[rakubalka]

World's Unluckiest Hunter

Or

South Korea's Black Cat Sung JinWoo AU

Hello I'm back here and currently obsessed with Solo Leveling

And this all started because I saw a tread on here saying the rather than have unbelievable coincidence it's far more interesting (and believable ) to have it happens because this specific idiot is the type to get into this specific shit that no one else will because they know better

__________________

It all started because JinWoo is so unlucky he is practically the Law Of Murphy given human form , and the corresponding (very frequent) close brushes with death that inadvertently pique Ashborn interest are one of the few consistency in all the timelines . He is so unlucky in fact that if Ashborn didn't check (multiple times) he would have thought he was either cursed or had pissed The Monarch Of Transfiguration enough to have specters put on him just to make his life as miserable as possible .

Sung JinWoo is so unlucky in fact that Woo JinChul has a whole theory board of Jinwoo having a curse skill that has put (accidentally or not) on himself as the target 99% of the time . And while the theory might give a somewhat reasonable explanation as to why JinWoo's Hunter career had so many incidents , it still doesn't explain why he was just as unlucky before the Gates were even a thing . They still have most of the records from his hospital visits since he was 4 .

Most people would consider saying hello to Death a life defining moment JinWoo calls it a Thursday . Of course the bad luck also manifests in non-death-courting ways , like having his coffee before a dungeon raid regularly stolen by birds flying by , raining on exactly the days he didn't take his umbrella , accidentally entering Red Gates and such similar things . His highjinks are so infamous in fact that almost all Hunters know him (the S rankers all know him or at least his reputation) , and some even have restraining order on being in one dungeon raid party , mainly because the last time Sung JinWoo and Choi JongIn were on the same team a city wide fire almost started thankfully the rest of the party stoped the fire from claiming more than 4 building . Or the time he and Baek Yoonho while dealing with a dungeon break broke a zoo and mixed the animal and the magic beast . Or the time the newly awakened Hwang Dongsoo almost got beheaded , and subsequently developed PTS from being around Hunter Sung general direction (Thomas Andre found that bit of information especially hilarious until he had to meet South Korea infamous Black Cat) . There were other instances of course , but he rather quickly got banned from going on raids with the S rankers , more so for their peace of mind that his health mind you .

The reason why no one ever accused him of being a false ranker was because considering just how much death-courting he has on a daily basis no one puts it above him so suddenly re-awaken and not even notice . South Korea Hunter population will believe anything no matter how unbelievable it is if Sung JinWoo is in somehow , they have thrown logic and common sense out the window a long time ago when this specific E rank is involved .

Hell even some of the Japanese agree after they got to know Hunter Sung on the numerous times he got put with them on the Juju island raids . First time it was an honest mistake in the system , second time KHA got hacked and the third time a human mistake . And every time he got deployed he always somehow got given to the Japanese Hunters . And you would think that having an obviously foreign Hunter that doesn't speak the same language as them and is a E Rank will make them hate him and blame any death on him , and you would be right if it was any other Hunter . Not Sung JinWoo however , because despite almost burning down the island they had the lowest number of deaths in the whole raid despite being directly behind the S class rankers and acting as support and reinforcement . More than one of the Japanese S ranks wanted to steal the kid after meeting him the first time let alone the 2 other raids that followed , with the only reason as to why they can't take him being Goto Ryuji refusal to pay for the damages that will follow like the time Hunter Cha , Hunter Sung and Hunter Rei accidentally took down a trafficking ring in a perfume factory (the 3 of them smelled like and we're only able to smell roses for 3 week straight ather that ) , and also the fact that the Japanese populace adores Hunter Sung more than Hunter Goto by a large margin doesn't help .

On another note of S rank hunters that want Sung JinWoo in their country we have a specific battle maniac . Had it not been for the Chinese Hunter Association refusal to book him a flight (because they barely keep with his damages let alone adding those of the Black Cat not to mention the political fallout) Liu Zhigang would have stolen the E ranker the moment he is in proximity . He almost did do that the first time he met JinWoo and then proceeded to fall down the stairs 3 flours down , after that he started to try and adopt South Korea's Black Cat . It has yet to be successful . But at least he hasn't broken any bones yet .

The same cannot be said about Thomas Andre who was shocked to learn he was part of the "luckiest" victims , considering he will regain mobility of his body as if nothing had happened . But even he can agree he was kinda begging for it , especially considering he knows way more than most of the effects the Black Cat has on others . After all the only reason Thomas didn't fly to Korea and try to recruit the E rank Hunter was because of Hwang Dongsoo before mentioned trauma , and because he had Hwang Dongsoo before Sung JinWoo he can't take him let he accidentally kill his subordinate . He still curses himself for not finding out about the Black Cat earlier and taking him in .

There was however one thing Sung JinWoo is thankfully to Hwang Dongsoo for . That being having a lizard for an older brother that helped in getting him to meet his unlucky soulmate . Because while JinWoo is a black cat in all its power unluckiness Yoo JinHo is like an orange cat that personally has bad luck . But in an ironic way of fate when around one another they seem to cancel each other , or it would be more correct to say they make themselves moderately lucky and anyone with hostile intentions at them bearing the bad luck they would normally have .

The moment JinWoo comes out as South Korea's 10th S Rank the only real change it made for the majority of Hunters and the KHA was being elevated from Honorary S Rank to Normal S Rank . Because that's how the KHA has treated him an albeit more polite still a problem child , just like the rest of the S ranks

[meetinginsamarra]

mayprompts2024,#20 do-over

Apparently there will be another AU happening. No beds but tats.

A Tattoo Shop AU.

I've no idea where this will go so I'll surprise us all. LOL

+++++

White Pony Tattoo - Part One (do-over)

Dr John Watson stood in front of 221 Baker Street and – for the first time in a very long time – felt anxious.

He was wondering why this actually happened to him right now. The London afternoon was mild and sunny, summer was about to begin and yet, an aura of foreboding seemed to hover around the well-kept Victorian building.

John shook himself mentally. This was completely ridiculous. There was nothing to be afraid of. There was no danger.

For God’s sake, he had fought for Queen and Country in Afghanistan, had saved several lives and countless limbs in the field hospital and also on the battlefield under heavy fire. He had not felt anxious then. Wary, yes. Cautious, of course. High on adrenaline, surely.

He had been shot in the shoulder while he was on a scouting mission with his team and had woken up in his own field hospital. When his fellow army doctor had disclosed to John in blunt medical terms that he might lose his arm, then John had been frightened.

After a long rehab process the arm was functioning again but John had been honourably discharged because of an intermittant tremor in his hand that made him unsuitable to work as a field surgeon.

Two years ago, John had returned to London and after struggling for three months he had found work as a physician in a local clinic. He had soon met a wonderful nurse named Mary Morstan, fell in love with her and they had married quickly.

Which brought John back to the reason why he was standing in the middle of the pavement in front of 221 Baker Street, staring at the tattoo shop like a village idiot.

The tattoo on his right upper arm needed a do-over.

“White Pony Tattoo” was not what John had expected. It was located in a small shop with a red awning above its single window. There were no flashing neon signs or colourful and enlarged pictures of tattoo designs the artist had created. No advertising of the shop’s services whatsoever. Everything was clinical and sterile, even off-putting. Had it not been for the single metal sign placed in the middle of the window, no one would have thought a tattoo shop would be behind it.

Maybe it was the sign that made John feel so anxious.

It read “White Pony Tattoo” and showed a stylized white running pony on its right side. On the left the sign read “no arguing, no crying, no boring designs”. This did not bode well. Just by the look of it, John would never have thought about setting a foot in there.

Yet, John had done his fair share of internet research to find the best tattoo shops in London because he really did not want some would-be tattoo artist botch up his skin.

White Pony Tattoo had topped several lists. The only shortcoming that people regularly mentioned was that the artist was capricious. The lesser polite said that he was a total dick. However, Sherlock’s – John assumed it was a pen name -artistry was highly acclaimed and he had won several competitions over the last years. Getting an appointment was difficult and being accepted as a client was even more so. But sometimes, when Sherlock was interested enough, he accepted walk-ins.

John straightened his back, raised his chin, took a deep breath and opened the door of the tattoo shop. A melodious door bell chimed and announced his presence.

IIt was cool and dim inside the shop and it smelled faintly of a fresh lemon fragrance. A thick purple curtain behind the wooden counter closed off the rearmost part of the shop. Quiet classical violin music played in the background.

“Hello?” John called out, taking off his jumper to let his tattoo show. “Is there anybody here?”

The curtain moved and a man stepped up to the counter. It was easy to recognize Sherlock from the few pictures John had seen on the internet.

“Hello, I’m here for a do-over…” John began.

“Shut up.” Sherlock commanded. His baritone voice was silky and opulent just like the luscious black curls that framed his aristocratic and unusual face.

John was so surprised that he closed his mouth with an audible plop.

Sherlock’s eyes roamed over John’s face and upper arms, then the rest of his body. Piercing blue grey eyes took in every detail, precise like an x-ray machine or better, like a computer tomograph. They missed nothing, pinning John to the spot and stripping him down to his very bones, unable to hide anything. It was uncanny. Disconcerting.

“Firstly, it’s called a cover-up, as you should very well know.”

Sherlock chided, frowning. His voice rumbled like the high-end engine of a race car and filled John with an unknown desire.

“Secondly, I’ve already deduced what you want. I won’t do it because it’s boring.”

+++++

The one(s) who know and tell me where the shop's name comes from will get a cameo in this AU (nothing bad, I promise). Are you game?

tagging @peageetibbs @totallysilvergirl @calaisreno @lisbeth-kk @raina-at

[thezombieprostitute]

Lol, half the comments on this video are about hot, competent doctors and nurses. Which babes do you think are getting inaccurate heart rates bc they’re just too damn fine!?

So, my brain started with Curtis as a nurse to a single mom who gets her heart racing by how good he is with her son. And then it went off to create the foundations for an entire Hospital AU! What the frick, brain?!

Lots more characters than I intended, making this post pretty long so I'll add a Read More. No promises on all characters making the cut, but also open to adding other characters.

Please let me know if you think the characters and their roles work or not! This is all very theoretical at the moment.

Bucky Barnes - Physical Therapist. He develops a crush on a new patient after they get to talking about all of their shared interests (including cats).

Chris Beck - Chief of Surgery. Established relationship with a woman he met in college. Married with at least one child.

Clark Kent - Oncologist. Sometimes throws off his coworkers because he's so friendly and good natured towards his patients but then gets steely and focused when it comes to everything else. He's been in the field so long, people think he must be superhuman, but what no one knows is that Clark regularly visits a BDSM club to help him keep his cool at work.

Curtis Everett - Nurse for an Internal Medicine practice. He meets a single mother during a regular appointment. Her babysitter canceled at the last minute and Curtis becomes the kid's favorite person.

Geralt - Pharmacist. Knows all the right medications and will question doctor notes, especially if there's an interaction with another medication that will cause problems. Primarily enjoys the company of one of the pharmacy tech's whose been there almost as long as him.

Jake Jensen - Nurse in the Pediatrics Ward. He's popular with the kids for his willingness to play, bring plushies, and fix up video game systems. Whatever they need to help their treatments go easier, he's there to help them. He meets a newer nurse and helps her with the emotional struggles that come with the job.

James Mace - Custodial. It's not the most celebrated job, but it's honest work and Mace is happy to do his part to keep the hospital running. He's the go-to for when things break down, including the car of a lovely doctor who's at her wits end.

Johnny Storm - New surgeon. Definitely a hot shot who thinks he's the best of the best, despite having so much more to learn. Regularly hooks up with the nurses as part of his "good luck" ritual. Eager to impress the one nurse who turned him down.

Lloyd Hansen - He's put enough money into this hospital to get a wing named after him. Now his mother is in need of care and Lloyd is very demanding of the cardiologist in charge of said care.

Ransom Drysdale - Major donor to the hospital. It's pretty much just to look good to the press but he meets either the Hospital Director or the Gifts Manager (not yet sure which) at a charity event and wants to get to know her better.

Steve Rogers - ER Doctor. Always cool under pressure, able to prioritize cases when there's a rush, and quick to protect his staff from an unruly patient. He has a crush on one of the cafe/cafeteria workers that he talks to when he needs a moment of peace.

Walter Marshall - Security. Divorced with a teenage daughter. Meets another single parent at a school event.

[mollymauk-teafleak]

more buddie becoming dads thoughts

I would love to eventually write this as a proper fic but in an attempt to shift a bit of a writing slump and justify the nights I've fallen asleep plotting this out, here's how I see the birth of Buck and Eddie's first daughter going in a trans Buck AU. Because you know nothing goes simply for these two idiots, they're trapped in a procedural drama, there's got to be some Shenanigans. Kind of a follow up to this fic I wrote!

Putting under a cut for mentions of male presenting pregnancy

So Buck having to be on restricted duty was obviously a Whole Thing but he knows it has a time limit, he's not going to be wielding a clipboard forever so he makes his peace with it. That and he's so exhausted, he's falling asleep on nearly every flat surface in the station house.

But he's right at the end of his pregnancy and there's a big disaster. A carnival is in town but a storm hits and theres a flash flood and trees coming down and power lines falling so the 118 rush into action. And Eddie is working when he sees Buck drive up in his pick up, in sweats and an old army hoodie of Eddie's. Of course Eddie is beside himself worrying about him, trying to get him to go home but Buck won't have it, you need every hand you guys can get, nothing bad's going to happen to him while he just sends people to reunification tents and puts bandages on people. Eddie has to admit he's right so he has to let him just get on with it, though he makes him Swear to keep in contact with him regularly.

So Buck is helping out with the organisation side of everything, Eddie is with the 118 managing the disaster. And they've got things pretty much sorted out, they're the last ones left on scene when Athena comes marching up, practically dragging a very coy looking Buck behind her, with an expression like he got caught kicking a soccer ball through the kitchen window. Athena says she hopes you guys have an ambulance left over because she's just found out that Buck's been having contractions for hours. Buck just mutters that his waters broke a while ago too, he didn't mention that...but he's fine!

Cue the 118 piling into the ambulance, Athena giving them a police escort, Bobby getting behind the wheel, Chim beside him calling Maddie on FaceTime, Hen in the back with Buck and an internally screaming Eddie. But the storm is still so bad, travelling is hard, the roads are washed out so in the end it falls to Hen. She jokes mildly that this is a little more of Buck than she ever wanted to see but, of they weren't going to make it to a hospital this is a pretty good second option? Buck grunts that he never liked hospitals anyway.

So they pull up on the side of the road and after a pep talk from Maddie over the phone, Eddie holding his hand so tight and murmuring over and over how much he loves him, a lot of yelling about why the hell did she have to inherit his massive head, they have their tiny baby girl. And Buck's just grinning a mile wide and holding her tight because holy shit, he actually did it. Eddie murmurs of course he did, he's fucking incredible.

So it's messy and chaotic and Eddie begs Buck to never do that to him again but it's still one of the best days of their lives

[uncpanda]

Minx

Pairing: Lex Luthor x GN!Reader 

Prompt 31: Ending a kiss with a little nip to the lip. 

“I cannot believe we are missing the MET Gala for this.” 

You laugh, and turn to look at Lionel. He’s dressed in a suit and looks painfully out of place. While the man hadn’t been initially thrilled about your relationship with Lex, he had been trying to get closer to you and Lex since the wedding, and he tried to spend time with you and Lex regularly; something that never failed to baffle your husband. 

You put your hands on your hips,  “What do you mean? This is the annual Smallville County Fair. This is a time honored tradition and I haven’t missed one since mom and dad adopted me, which was three days after I was born.” 

Lionel stares at you, and behind him Lex is trying really hard to not laugh, “So you’ve come to this fair every year? No matter what? You’ve never missed it?” 

You shake your head, “Nope. When I was nine and had a hundred degree fever, we stopped by on the way to the hospital. When I was in college, I would drive back for it. The fair ended up getting rescheduled for two days before Lex and I were due back from our honeymoon, and I made him leave early.”

Lionel’s head whips around to look at his son, “You stopped traveling around Europe to come back for some rinky dink fair.” 

Lex nods, “It’s a Kent family tradition.” Lionel’s eyes go wide as Lex sheds his outer jacket to reveal a sweatshirt, with the words “Kent Family Farm” on them, jeans, and tennis shoes. “What the hell are you wearing?” 

“Well the Kents have a stand here. And in order for everyone to enjoy the fair, we take turns manning the stand and selling stuff. This is just the uniform. Don’t worry, Martha has one for you too.” 

“Please tell me you’re lying.” 

Lex wraps his arm around your shoulders, “Nope.” 

Lionel lets out a little whimper, and you take pity on the man. “Come on Lionel. How about we play some games.” 

It takes exactly three games for Lionel to start complaining about people being cheats, and the games being rigged. When you offer him some of the funnel cake you and Lex are splitting he gives you a health lesson, and by the time you reach your family’s stand he looks about ready to rip his hair out. 

You get him settled in a chair, and suggest he check his email. That seems to calm him, as he connects with the world outside of Smallville. You head back to the front of the booth to find your dad handing money over to Lex. 

“What in the world are you two doing?” 

Your dad grumbles, “Your husband hustled me. I bet him twenty dollars that he couldn’t get Lionel out here and keep him here for at least two hours.” 

Lex holds up three fingers, “He’s lasted for three, and only made one child cry. That’s a success in my book.” 

Your dad shrugs, before saying, “Speaking of which, he’s been banned for next year.” 

“I’m sure he’ll be devastated.” Any talk about Lionel ceases as your mother comes over. She and your dad head out to explore and you go to Lex. You tuck yourself into his side, and he says, “We didn’t come back from our honeymoon early. And we missed the last three of these things.” 

“Yeah. But your dad tends to complain less if he thinks something is a tradition or is important to me.” 

Lex laughs before swooping down to kiss you, he ends it with a little nip to your bottom lip, before resting his forehead against yours. “You are such a minx.” 

“And that’s exactly how you like me.” 

[good-omens-headcanons]

CW/TW: Long headconon (could also be seen as a fanfic prompt), very sad, HIV crisis, losing people

I headconon that Crowley made a bunch of queer friends in the 70s and 80s in different queer clubs, pubs and pride parades.

And when the HIV crisis started he was among those queer women who supported gay men and went to protests. During his work there he was the one who cheered people up, gave people a shoulder to cry on and was regularly getting into rows/fights with judgmental people. He is fondly remembered by the old queers for what he did.

But he often visited Aziraphale then and it happened several times that he just fell on his knees, buried his head in Aziraphale's lap, grabbing his clothes and absolutely bawling his eyes out. Not just because his friends were dying (he got used to that over the centuries) but because they were dying fast and young, a lot of them were dying alone, left by their families and judgmental friends, because of the stigma, the treatment by doctors, the hopelessness, because there was nothing he could do, was allowed to do.

And Aziraphale did his best to comfort Crowley. Petting his head, hugging him, holding him, letting him just release all his pain. After that Crowley would often apologize for messing up Aziraphale clothes with tears and snot. But Aziraphale would just dismiss that and gently take his hand, pulling him to the backroom to make some tea, before Crowley could shut his emotions out from him.

However when Freddie died, Crowley entered the bookshop, one nearly empty bottle of whiskey in his hand, utterly drunk and slurred "He's dead". As Aziraphale rose out of his chair to comfort him, gently saying "Oh Crowley", Crowley took the last sip of his whiskey, put the empty bottle on a shelf, turned around and left. Aziraphale didn't see him for the next 9 months. No one at the hospital he volunteered at saw him either. Upon Aziraphale seeing him again and asking where he had been, he just acted like Aziraphale hasn't said anything at all. Aziraphale never asked again and strongly avoids talking about the time of the HIV crisis and the illness and death of Crowley's best friend.

Sometimes now Crowley talks about what he and Freddie got up to at parties. Sometimes Crowley talks about something that happens in pop culture and music and says "Freddie would have loved that" then usually the atmosphere visibly changes and Aziraphale awkwardly finds another topic to talk about.

[warrior-cats-rewritten]

Anthro!AU. There's no real timeline for this.

Names follow 3 formats. Let's grab... Dovewing!

Dovewing is also called Dove, Miss Wing, and Dove Wing.

Turtle Tail is also called Turtletail, Miss Tail (or Miss T) and Turtle.

Cats like Millie or Snake will sometimes take last names, but highly prefer their single name.

Bramblekit absolutely took a cookie when offered while he was at Frostfur's house, thinking they were chocolate chip, only to get oatmeal raisin. He hated it but was too polite to spit it out.

Snowbird cut Ratscar off from seeing his nespring when she found out about his connections to a cult called The Place of No Stars.

Blossompaw and Briarpaw regularly swam in a river nearby their house, with Bumblepaw on watch for anyone coming who might get them in trouble.

Briarlight also put flame stickers/decals on her wheelchair. She sometimes rotates them out for seasonal stuff, like holiday themed ones. She put a weed sticker on it once for 4/20 and Millie threw a fit over it.

During the nasty custody battle between Goldenflower and Tigerclaw, Swiftpaw told Tigerclaw he never wanted to see him again, he would rather be dead than have his father hold any custody of him.

Smudge regularly visits and babysits Squirrelkit and Leafkit, he wishes Firestar would move back to Kittypet Town, but understands that his best friend is happier in Clan City.

Leafpool was in a very bad situation when she was pregnant with her triplets, as Crowfeather left her with nothing when they broke up. She pretended that she was going to be a surrogate, as Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight were having trouble conceiving. That was the lie.

Squirrelflight works as a professional chef. Ferncloud works as a stay-at-home mom but makes plush for her friends and their kids, as sewing is her passion. Thornclaw is a PE teacher. Ashfur is a drama teacher. Brambleberry is a chemistry teacher. Leafpool is a doctor. Cinderheart is a receptionist at the hospital Leafpool works at.

Hollyleaf and Cinderheart were "borderline dating" for MONTHS before Jayfeather snapped and screamed at one of them "just spit it out already!"

Jayfeather is a programmer, and works at making more video games and controllers accessible to blind folks like him! He works with Snowtail (Snowkit) who also works helps out gamers who are HoH.

Scourge is a lawyer, who helps Firestar find the evidence that Tigerstar murdered Redtail during an election.

Turtle Tail is preschool teacher, and works with Sorreltail and Snowbird. They work together at Kit School in Sanctuary Lake Elementary School/Preschool.

Clan City has 5 main districts, for the 5 Clans. Everyone is generally very proud of their home and where their family came from, and xenophobia seems to be on the rise... Many come over, but just as many are driven out by the harsh attitudes of the locals.

In another time, there are more districts. Jingo District, Blood District, and Warrior District. There is also Mountain City, and Gorge City where people in the Sky District lived for many years following a massive disaster that forced everyone to evacuate, they lived with the locals there for years, giving a mjor economy boost to a dying city, and caused quite the controversy when they left.

Guardian Village is nearby as well, traditional people who live amongst ruins, as well as many dotted Sister Settlements, where a semi-nomadic traveling group sets up camps. There is The River Kingdom, a valley where a group of secretive cats live in peace, also called The Park by outsiders.

In another time, the 5 founders of Clan City, Skystar, Thunderstar, Windstar, Shadowstar and Riverstar, settled there together after disaster swept the area. Shadowstar came from Mountain Village, plauge causing some cats to leave for hope of a better life, Windstar came from a village on the Moor that was destroyed by wildfires with her fiance Gorse Fur, Skystar came from what would later become Rogue Town, bounced through orphanages with her brother Fox, Thunderstar was born to 2 Mountain Cats, Clear Sky and Bright Storm, soon after arriving in the area, and Riverstar came from the River Kingdom to escape a flood with his young niece Flutter.

[distortedblurs]

──   (  owen  teague.  23.  trans  man,  he  /  him.  ) thank  god  you’re  here,  man  -  have  you  seen  LÁSZLÓ  KOVÁCH  anywhere?  i  totally  lost  them  after  their  rendition  of  man  in  the  box  by  alice  in  chains  last  night.  no?  they’re  like,  aye  -  high  and  go  to  PALLADIAN  -  i  think  they’re  a  senior  studying  MUSICAL  PERFORMANCE  &  COMPOSITION?  but  who  knows,  these  days.  all  i  know  is  that  they’re  VOLATILE,  CONTRARY,  and  a  SAGITTARIUS.  last  night  they  kept  going  on  and  on  about  how  they  won  LEAST  LIKELY  TO  MAKE  IT  TO  TWENTY  -  EIGHT  last  year,  which  is  cool  and  whatever,  but  i  just  wouldn’t  expect  it  out  of  them,  considering  they’re  so,  like,  WILY  AND  ACCOMPLISHED,  you  know?  anyways  -  i’m  going  to  check  down  by  rabbithole,  i  think  that’s  where  they  like  to  hang.  text  me  if  you  see  them,  okay?  bye!  /  as  penned  by  james,  twenty6,  est,  n/a.

...content  warnings  for...  implied child abuse, physical violence, hospitalization & drug use.

student  file.

full  name  —  lászló ferenc gusztáv kovách.

nickname(s)  —  las / laz . that's all there is.

place  of  birth  — budapest, hungary.

date  of  birth  &  age  — november 24th, 2001. twenty3.

gender  /  pronouns  — trans man, he / him.

sexuality  —  bisexual.

major  —  musical performance & composition.

astrology  — sagittarius sun, sagittarius moon, leo rising.

dormitory  —  palladio hall; his side of the dormitory is kept meticulously neat, but rock music permeates the walls, leaks noise into the surrounding dormitories and hallways. instruments line against one another. blackout curtains keep the sunlight away. a drawer is always filled with liquor and other paraphernalia.

interests  —  testing  his  own  mortality.  good  fucking  music  -  will  not  elaborate  on  what  kind  or  what  qualifies.  tattoos  for  the  sensation,  not  the  meaning.  head  highs,  when  the  world  tilts  just  slightly  on  its  axis  and  he  can  breathe  for  once  in  his  fucking  life.  cool  metal  against  skin;  a  fan  of  silver  in  particular.  snuffing  cigarettes  out  against  his  own  tongue.  leather.  the  metallic  tang  of  blood  staining  teeth;  grinning  from  it.  disappearing  without  a  trace,  for  days  at  a  time.  keeping  his  bed  warm.  reverbs.  party  drugs.  commanding  a  room.  being  in  control  of  his  own  situations.  when the sun sets and amber stretches across the expanse of land, and he thinks for just one moment, that he'd like to see it again. ice baths.

aversions  —  classical  music,  at  least  playing  it  any  longer  -  will  be  caught  on  occasion  with  it  residing  inside  earbuds.  sticking  to  a  schedule;  all  too  likely  to  end  up  wherever  he  pleases.  midday,  when  the  sun  is  at  its  highest.  clinginess.  the  idea  that  people  can  change;  the  fact  that  he's  changed,  and  for  the  worst.  small  animals.  pollen  in  the  springtime.  vulnerability  -  mainly  in  others;  there  is  none  of  his  own  to  share.  cutting  his  hair.  being  recognized  for  long  -  past  fame,  for  a  child  he  no  longer  recognizes.  anything  containing  seeds.  a  good  skincare  routine.  figuring  out  where  to  go  from  here.

quirks  —  a  chronic  ghoster;  will  leave  at  the  drop  of  a  pin  with  little  to  no  remorse.  friendships,  hookups,  full  on  relationships.  currently  ghosting  his  own  family.  subconsciously  taps  along  to  songs  whether  listened  to,  or  just  stuck  in  the  brain.  regularly  puts  himself  in  harm's  way,  as  if  testing  the  fates.  fears  no  consequence,  no  matter  how  big  or  small.  thinks  mostly  of  himself,  and  not  others.

most  played  —  kiss off  by  violent femmes.

notable  features  —  long,  usually  greased  blonde  locks  and  a  steady,  contemptuous,  kubrick  gaze.  a  firm  jaw,  tenderly  bruised;  lips  and  nose  frequently  bloodied.

general  disposition  —  held  tall  but  lanky;  always  at  an  odd  angle  despite  his  formal  training  -  as  if  purposefully  bent  all  wrong.  unfriendly;  a  cruel  smile  with  every  encounter.

character  study  —  vanya zakharov  (  anora  )  &  tony stonem  (  skins  ).

public  record.

if  there's  one  thing  laszlo  is  sure  of  -  it's  that  he's  nothing  more  than  a  goddamn  pawn  in  his  father's  game  of  chess.  mad  artistry  takes  the  form  of  a  white  -  haired  man,  with  knobbed  knees  and  elbows  and  a  firm  indent  across  the  left  side  of  his  chest;  a  renown  composer,  a  refined  and  celebrated  conductor.  the  best  the  hungarian  national  philharmonic  orchestra  had  seen  -  and  his  fateful  bride,  the  youngest  concertmaster  in  the  orchestra  of  their  time.  it's  all  planned,  it's  all  a  deliberate  choice.  when  laszlo  displays  the  first  signs  of  musical  genius  in  the  form  of  pitch  sensitivity  -  it  ruins  his  childhood.

when  it's  not  his  father  ruthlessly  critiquing  every  part  of  laszlo's  form,  of  the  way  he  holds  the  bow  and  the  way  he  holds  his  breath  -  it's  his  mother's  honeyed  words  offering  condolences  as  he  spends  the  rest  of  his  lesson  sobbing  into  her  lap.  when  it's  neither  of  them  -  it's  the  tutor  he's  already  running  laps  around.  there's  no  laughter  in  his  childhood  -  there's  no  public  school,  no  children  outside  of  those  permitted  to  study  music  alongside  laszlo.  it's  not  quiet  -  it's  loud.  his  heartstrings  are  plucked  like  the  strings  of  his  cello;  reverberates  through  his  chest.  incapable  of  failing,  even  if  he  tried  -  every  instrument  picked  up  feels  like  an  old  friend  from  another  life.  it's  supposed  to  be  warm,  supposed  to  make  him  feel  -  seen,  in  some  inexplicable  way.  laszlo  feels  like  an  instrument  himself.

by  the  time  laszlo's  six  years  old,  he's  heading  concerts  of  his  own.  national,  international;  hundreds  of  thousands  come  to  see  the  kid  -  genius,  modern  mozart  -  living,  breathing  evidence  that  the  greats  still  live  amongst  them.  he's  revered  as  a  reincarnation,  his  father's  beaming  pride  and  joy  -  his  mother's  walking  shadow.  fame  sticks  to  him  like  a  leech;  children  prodigies  have  no  time  to  sleep  when  there's  a  new  city  to  perform  in  every  night,  when  nap  time's  replaced  by  practice;  when  even  breathing  comes  with  consequence.

child abuse; the  novelty  wears  off  the  older  he  becomes;  tabloids  post  of  his  transition  but  not  of  his  new  success  -  this  is  unacceptable  to  his  conductor.  it's  always  known  -  if  not  from  the  hoarseness  of  a  throat  no  longer  capable  of  yelling,  then  from  the  deep  furrow  of  his  father's  brow,  the  resentment  in  their  shared  eyes.  after  their  first  fight  that  draws  bloodshed  -  laszlo's  shipped  off  to  england;  to  some  all  -  that  boarding  school.  to  think  about  his  actions;  to  think  about  his  future.  to  think  about  what  a  sad,  miserable  future  he'd  have  if  not  for  the  musical  gift  bestowed  upon  him  by  his  antichrist  of  a  father.

it's  a  blessing  in  disguise,  really;  out  of  his  father's  sight  and  thrust  into  the  world  of  rowdy  boys  still  growing  into  their  skin  -  it's  where  laszlo  thrives.  he's  not  popular,  but  notorious  -  blood  seeps  from  his  knuckles,  laughter  following  chipped  teeth.  here,  he  can  be  as  loud  as  he  wants;  here,  he  can  be  as  destructive  as  he  needs.  holidays  are  spent  alone  on  campus;  and  that's  when  music  feels  the  freest.  when  nobody  is  around  to  hear  him  pick  up  an  instrument;  when  it's  just  him,  and  the  reverb  that  bounces  against  each  wall  before  passing  through  him.  he  wants  it  -  the  solitude,  the  complete  isolation  -  to  last  forever;  instead  it  goes  by  too  quick,  and  before  he  knows  it  -  he's  graduated  and  back  home.

physical violence, hospitalization; he  doesn't  remember  what  kickstarts  it;  the  drug  habits  picked  up  during  his  time  at  school,  the  anger  that  seethes  and  pulls  at  his  limb's  like  a  puppet's  strings  -  the  hatred  in  his  father's  eyes  -  but  he  knows  it's  his  mother's  arms  wrapping  around  him  that  ends  it.  it  ends  with  him,  still  a  young  boy,  still  someone's  child,  sobbing  into  his  mother's  lap.  his  father  leaves  that  night  in  an  ambulance,  and  laszlo  leaves  for  palladian  before  the  cops  can  arrive  at  their  residence.  he  doesn't  know  what  strings  are  pulled;  but  nobody  comes  after  him  -  not  his  father,  not  his  mother,  not  the  authorities.  he's  alone  in  england  -  and  it's  the  first  time  he's  felt  alive.

personal  details.

finds  no  joy  in  being  a  child  prodigy,  and  any  mentions  of  his  childhood  -  of  his  past  -  will  prompt  a  glare  followed  by  a  biting  remark.  a  sneer,  maybe.  it's  been  years  since  he's  picked  up  a  classical  instrument  -  years  since  he's  played  the  cello,  his  first  instrument.  he  misses  it  more  than  anything;  but  it's  marred  by  ...  everything.

instead  has  focused  his  time  and  energy  into  rock  music,  in  electric  guitar,  in  bass  -  piano  traded  for  electronic  keyboard,  unconventional  instruments  picked  up  and  learned  on  a  whim.  anything  that  isn't  called  a  fucking  -  woodwind,  or  brass.  it  doesn't  satiate  him  -  but  nothing  satiates  laszlo  and  his  gnawing,  growing  hunger  for  something  better.

drug  use;  consequences  have  little  meaning  to  him;  it's  not  that  he  thinks  he's  untouchable  (  although  he  thinks  he  is  )  -  it's  just  ...  he  doesn't  care  anymore.  he  stopped  caring  a  long  time  ago.  every  party  he  attends  breaks  out  into  a  drunken  fight,  fueled  by  whatever  he's  snorted  that  night.  half  of  his  classes  are  missed,  mandatory  attendance  or  not  -  friendships  are  built  upon  rotted  wood  that  collapses  soon  after  beneath  the  weight  of  laszlo's  incapability  to  care.

does  he  care?  does  he  care  about  anything?  he  doesn't  know.  it's  been  so  long  since  he's  felt  anything  outside  of  anger  and  a  deep,  jarring  emptiness  that  he's  desperate  to  fill.  sometimes  -  there's  amusement,  curiosity;  but  other  times  -  he  just  doesn't  know.  what  he  does  know,  is  that  he's  beyond  help.

despite  his  bad  attitude;  laszlo  is  frequently  seen  around  campus,  attending  social  events  -  in  rabbithole,  in  the  other  clubs  dotting  bath.  a  seemingly  social  creature  -  he  can't  stay  away  from  others.  despite  this  -  he's  a  chronic  ghoster.  situationships  and  friendships  alike  suffer  from  it  -  one  minute  he's  there,  responding  -  the  next,  radio  silence.

his  face  is  adorned  in  piercings;  snakebites  and  an  anti  -  eyebrow,  a  bridge,  hoops  adorning  his  ears'  cartilage.  body  is  a  mess  of  tattoos,  of  shitty  stick  and  pokes  that  he's  gotten  during  crisis.  he  likes  the  adrenaline,  likes  how  they  feel  against  his  skin  -  likes  how  in  control  he  is  of  his  own  appearance.  it's  the  one  thing  he  does  feel  he  has  control  over.

is  convinced  that  he's  not  meant  to  be  on  the  earth  for  this  long,  that  his  end  is  imminent  -  that  he'll  be  gone  in  four  year's  time.  every  moment  could  be  his  last,  and  he  lives  like  it  is;  maybe  that's  why  consequence  means  so  little,  why  he  himself  cares  so  little  about  others.  maybe  he's  -  scared,  of  getting  too  close.  of  being  the  disappointment  he  knows  he  is;  of  trying  to  prove  himself  different,  only  to  be  right  all  along.  it's  better  to  stay  away  altogether.

on  a  lighter  note;  his  hungarian  accent  is  still  thick,  despite  the  years  spent  in  england,  and  the  years  spent  practicing  his  speech.  it  roughens  with  strong  emotions,  though  it's  rare  to  hear  him  speak  in  his  native  language.

desired  plots.

sister - like!  with laszlo's own estranged relationship with his younger sister, this person is the closest he can get to an actual, genuine family. they're near - violent with one another, and their conversations out - of - context makes them appear more as enemies than anything else. even so, this is laszlo's crutch.  (  0 / 1  ).

soft spot!  someone laszlo is undeniably soft towards, despite their anger towards the world, despite their own vulgar mouth and sharp words. this person - laszlo wouldn't drop everything for them, but he'd sure hurry. somewhat will - they - won't - they and very much doomed by the timeline.  (  0 / 1  ).

bad news!  every person who is just as bad as laszlo. anyone else with a sour attitude, a pessimistic view on life, and reckless behaviors that harm everyone else around them. besties time!  (  infinite  ).

the ex best friend!  they could've gone through life together, just the two of them. and then they essentially... broke up. stopped talking. maybe a physical fight broke out, maybe their words said enough.  (  0 / 1  ).

literally  anything  else  we  can  think  of.  i'm  open  to  anything!

[vv-euphoria]

Fugitive Kiss guitarist Vinnie Vincent remains the former Kiss member who best overcame his departure, voluntary or forced. After a very promising first album, Vinnie is relaunching his invasion, driven by an unwavering faith. Are we going to witness a blitzkrieg bis?

Vinnie gives way to the Invasion! Three long years after his departure (Editor's note: dubious dismissal) from the Kiss company, Vinnie Vincent, a six-string elf, is getting his mojo back and announcing his return with a bang. After a famous first album, changed to a demonstrative vinyl for the posterity of said Vinnie, and two tours supporting Iron Maiden and Alice Cooper, father Vincent wants to set the record straight. He tells anyone who will listen (in this case!) that from now on it's no longer about talking about a soloist and his acolytes but about evoking the striking force of a full-fledged heavy-metal band! And to prove it, Vinnie Vin... uh, Invasion, is releasing his second album these days.

HARD-ROCK MAGAZINE: Why did you compose all the new songs alone? Was it a collective decision?

VINNIE VINCENT: In that respect, it isn’t. There is no doubt that I am the only composer in the group. I offer them the fruit of my work and, if someone manages to put his own ideas on the material, it can bring a significant improvement to the piece. When we came back from the tour last April, I wrote eighteen pieces in five weeks.

Is it the contact with the public that has given you such enthusiasm for your work?

VINNIE VINCENT: I'm sure of it. The tour went extremely well, and the boys were warmly welcomed everywhere.

Don't you think there's a slight paradox between the hyper-glam look you sport and your status as a guitar hero?

VINNIE VINCENT: That's true, especially since I'm looking less and less like the Vinnie Vincent of the Kiss era. Too many people expected to find me the way I had left them three years before.

Aren't you afraid that this might tarnish your musical credibility a little?

VINNIE VINCENT: Maybe for some fans, but smart people don't trust appearances. And besides, I've been wanting to try such an outrageous look for a long time.

Tell us about the new album. Will we be treated to a guitar demo album again?

VINNIE VINCENT: No, it will be much more balanced and will sound more like an Invasion album, not a Vinnie Vincent solo album. On the first album, I had things to prove to everyone. Now that people unanimously recognize my talent, we will show that Invasion is a great heavy-rock band.

You only talk about Invasion now. Would you like to ban your name from the band's name?

VINNIE VINCENT: If we become a major band, it will inevitably be called Invasion, and that's not a bad thing!

Which of your musicians has particularly impressed you?

VINNIE VINCENT: Mark, the singer! He has become an essential part of Invasion. His personality reminds me a little of Jon Bon Jovi, in that he is an absolutely charming guy, but determined and willful. His voice is most often energetic, but he knows how to modulate it to tint his singing with sweetness and tenderness. It is truly irresistible; what a talent!

Do you ever see your old Kiss friends, Gene or Paul?

VINNIE VINCENT: I ​​saw Gene Simmons again last month. It had been three years since we last met, since I left Kiss. ​​Seeing him and talking to him made me realize how much I missed him. Gene remains more than ever one of the personalities of cult heavy rock bands.

I heard you killed yourself trying to form your band three years ago. Was that serious?

VINNIE VINCENT: Absolutely! When I left Kiss in April of '84, I really meant let go. I was so distraught that I soon found myself back in the hospital. It was from this unusual place that I began to audition singers, by phone (laughs)... At that time, Dana, the bass player of the group, would regularly come to visit me with his girlfriend. Without any nurse knowing, they would take me to parties around Hollywood and then bring me back a few minutes before the hospital doors closed. This little ride lasted a good two months (laughs)!

How do you imagine the future for Invasion?

VINNIE VINCENT: Under the best of circumstances, I have more faith than ever. If the record company is any indication, I have every reason to be confident. Mike Bone, the new president of Chrysalis, is about to shake up his label. He wants to turn his company into a company exclusively dedicated to releasing heavy metal albums. He knows what he wants, and he's a real hard rock fan. If I go by his initial reaction, he's been given the product he was hoping for. I sincerely believe he's going to go all out to defend it to the public, so how could we not be reassured that we're in such good hands?

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Jonathan V. Last at The Bulwark:

Nobody cares about media stories but the announcement over the weekend that ABC News decided to settle Donald Trump’s weak defamation suit for $15 million is a big forking deal.

(1) ABC News didn’t settle. Disney did.

I do not have inside information but a decision this consequential was almost certainly not made by Almin Karamehmedovic, the president of ABC News. It probably wasn’t made by his boss, Debra OConnell, who runs the news group for Disney Entertainment Networks. I’d bet the milk money that Bob Iger—the CEO of Disney and one of the most important corporate executives in America—made the final call on settling with Trump. Because this is a decision that affects the entire corporation’s relationship to the federal government. And while it might be against the interest of ABC News to sell out its journalists, it’s very much in the interest of the Walt Disney Company to be on good terms with a president who is open about punishing his enemies and rewarding his friends.

(2) All of corporate America is making the peace.

We talked about Trump’s tribute/protection racket last week and how Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg have gotten right with Big Orange. Add Disney to the list. This is an important development because Bezos and Zuckerberg are founder/owners. They have gigantic personal stakes in their companies and thus a great deal to lose. But Iger is just a normal CEO. Which is to say: He’s a hired hand. For sure, Bob Iger is well compensated for his work, but he doesn’t “own” Disney. And if even workaday CEOs like Iger—who have much less to lose than founders—are going to accommodate themselves to Trump, then everyone is going to fall in line.

(3) The media has already capitulated.

Over at the Los Angeles Times the billionaire owner is openly putting his thumb on the scale to make the paper more hospitable to Trump. Writers and editors at the Washington Post are running for the exits as Bezos’s new Trump-friendly publisher mucks about. Time magazine named Trump “Man of the Year” and the magazine’s owner said that Trump’s election “marks a time of great promise” for America and that “we look forward to working together.”1 Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski presented themselves at Trump’s court to reset their relationship and then discovered a delicate sensibility concerning on-air criticism of Trump cabinet nominees. And now Disney has cut off ABC News at the knees and put everyone in its news division on notice that they will not be supported by corporate if they make enemies with Trump world. What is capitulation going to look like going forward? Mainstream news outlets aren’t going to start fluffing Trump. The capitulation will look more like this: (1) They’ll try to buy protection by employing Trump favorites. That’s what the LA Times did by bringing in Scott Jennings. Media companies will hope that by paying people who have access to Trump they can persuade Trump to leave them alone. (2) They’ll cut down on platforming Trump critics who are in DGAF mode. Instead, they’ll favor tame critics who stay in the realm of normal kabuki theater. (3) They’ll start leaving things unsaid.

[...]

3. Lawfare

One more thing about the asymmetry of Trump’s defamation claim against ABC News. Fox News broadcasts regularly refer to the “Biden crime family.” A guest on Newsmax called President Joe Biden—who has never been convicted of any crimes—the “head of the Biden crime family.” In May 2020 Donald Trump Jr. authored an Instagram post with a picture of Biden saying: “See you later, alligator” alongside an image of an alligator saying: “In a while, pedophile.” On September 15, 2020 Donald Trump himself insinuated that Joe Biden was a pedophile, retweeting a post with the hashtag “#PedoBiden.” Joe Biden didn’t file defamation suits against the Trumps père et fils. We have established a playing field in which the forces of MAGA can slander, libel, and defame with near impunity—what is QAnon if not an elaborate defamation case?—while simultaneously using libel law to attack legitimate critics in an attempt to chill everyone else’s speech.

Jonathan V. Last at The Bulwark wrote a home-run column on why ABC’s folding to Donald Trump is an abject act of surrender to fascism.

See Also:

The Present Age: ABC News Just Showed Trump Exactly How to Silence Journalists

[diaryujin]

𝐂𝐇𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐓

summary: this is the first christmas you’re spending without minho. obviously, everything feels different now, and you’re just so lost without him – the person who’s been there for everything. what you didn’t know was that, however, he was still here.

includes: death, car accidents, drunk driving, depression-like state, suicidal thoughts, ghosts, this is set during the night between 25th-26th, crying, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Yeji, Lia and Ryujin (of ITZY) are your friends, hospitals, wounds, scars, lmk if i missed anything!

pairing: ghost! bf! minho x human! fem! Reader

word count: 1.7K

taglist: @kflixnet

You sat on the couch in your living room. Most of the lights are off, save for one. You didn’t want to bother with making it all ‘cheery’ and ‘bright’ as you were on this day year after year after year. “Your surroundings are a reflection of yourself” is a quote you had heard before, and it probably held true. You didn’t feel any joy inside, and you didn’t have to put on a facade that said otherwise to anyone, so there was no point.

You had made a decision to spend this Christmas alone. Weighing down your family and friends with your sorrow was an ass move, and you wanted them to be happy, to celebrate like they did every year. It was nearly midnight – at this time, people would be asleep, or still up with their families, or at parties, or out on trips with friends or something else that they enjoyed. Very few would be distressed or sad right now.

You, unfortunately, were part of that few.

You hadn’t been able to sleep normally ever since exactly last year, so to be fair, it wasn’t just you being a Grinch. This day was nothing special, you were just following old patterns. It was also around this time 365 days ago that you lost him, your Minho.

You both were returning home after a gathering with your friends, Changbin, Hyunjin, Jisung, Yongbok, Yeji, Jisu, and Ryujin. It was a cheerful night. A lot of laughs and food was shared, and you were sure that nothing could ruin the high spirits you were in, which only seemed to heighten as Minho drove the car and you sat in the passenger seat beside him. He was taunting you over a stupid joke you made in the get-together, and you were laughing at him. 

Everything was perfect.

Until it wasn’t.

A drunk driver had crashed violently into your car, knocking you out. You remembered nothing that your lover had said before you blacked out, except for a faint ‘I love you’. You woke up in the hospital, your parents next to your bed, sobbing. Shortly after, Hyunjin and Yeji, the only two available after the gathering since the others were unable to be contacted, rushed into your room as soon as they were allowed in. It took you a few days for you to get rid of the daze you were in since the accident. When you were better than before, the first thing you asked had gotten you a frown from your friends, who visited regularly, and a sigh from your parents.

“Where’s Minho?”

They all looked at each other before Jisung took in a deep breath with slightly watery eyes. 

“He’s…He’s not here.”

“Why? Is he okay? Were his injuries worse than mine?”

At your words, Jisung held back a little sob and turned around to bury his face in Yongbok’s shoulder, unable to answer you. Jisu glanced around, and after seeing that no one else was ready to speak, opened her mouth.

“He’s in a better place, Y/N.”

“What do you…you’re not serious.”

Your eyes widened and flitted between everyone’s faces, before setting on Jisu’s again, hoping that this was some kind of sick joke. When there was just emotion and pity in them, you turned your head slowly to look down at your hands, which were unconsciously gripping your blanket. You seemed frozen, but a million thoughts were bouncing around in your head, spinning, spinning, but never quite settling. So many emotions swum around, it was causing your head to hurt. You blinked rapidly, breathing heavily through your mouth.

Minho – gone.

An overwhelming surge of exhaustion enveloped you suddenly, and you let your eyes close before falling back onto your pillow, succumbing to your tiredness.

Dori leapt into your lap, nestling there. Even with the heating on, cats who were all close by, and you in Minho’s prized hoodie, you didn’t feel warm. It was cold, so cold, being so alone without your favorite person. You had healed somehow, although a small scar above your eyebrow would stay to cruelly remind you of the day you lost everything every time you looked in the mirror. 

Your body might’ve recovered, but your heart wouldn’t. It wouldn’t allow itself to.

“Dead on the spot.”

You didn’t even get to say goodbye properly.

The only consolation you had was that the last time you saw him, there was a bright smile on his face and that it wasn’t him being alone like you were. You’d never want him to feel any pain, and you would choose you being left alone and for him to move on than him suffering without you.

Even though sometimes you wished you died as well so that you could possibly still be with him since there was no chance of him coming back.

Dori purred, and you snapped out of your reverie. You started stroking the cat’s back, smiling weakly to yourself at the living reminder of him. You scratched the back of his head, and suddenly your head was filled with memories you treasured. You held onto them dearly like they were your lifeline – which, in hindsight, they were. They were what kept you going in moments when you felt so empty. 

Tears escaped your eyes and streaked down your cheeks. They plopped onto Dori’s fur, making it slightly damp. You didn’t bother to wipe them, since you didn’t want to get cat hair into your eyes, and it would be more efficient for you to just get up later and wash your face as you could expect more of them throughout the night. Small sniffles came from your nose, and you cleared your throat when it felt too dry. 

It was in this situation that Minho phased in.

You felt a cold rush of air that moved your curtains, and you looked around to see what might have caused it, since your windows were shut because you had the heater on and to block out the sounds of Christmas carols. After seeing nothing, you focused on the cat in your lap, stroking its coat rhythmically as you got lost in your head.

Minho glanced down at himself, and sure enough, he was a ghost. He couldn’t be seen in any mirror or by any human, but some animals could. He hoped his cats would be counted in that ‘some’ because he really missed them – they were his babies, after all.

Not as much as he missed you though.

He took in your form, and his eyes widened as he noticed how different you were since he last saw you. You looked more tired with slight eyebags. He couldn’t pinpoint anything else, but you had definitely changed for the worse. His heart – not that he had a proper one – hurt seeing you like this, and he slightly felt guilty for causing you to be like this and for not being there to comfort you.

He went over to you, his steps noiseless. Soonie’s ears perked up and he turned to look at his late owner, before jumping onto his paws. Doonie seemed to notice the ghost too, and mewed. He smiled at his cats, squatting to get on their level. He patted their heads, before getting up again to sit next to you. The couch didn’t shift, so you had no idea he was there.

He placed his hand on top of yours, sighing.

“Y/N. You may not see me, but I’m here. Isn’t that- great?”

There was no response on your end, which was expected, but Minho was overjoyed to be with you again and didn’t give a shit.

“I’m sorry for leaving you without saying a proper goodbye. Lord, you look terrible. You’re struggling, and it’s all my fault. I should have been there for you, I should have- and yet I wasn’t. I’d do anything to trade places with you, you know? Even if that included going through the accident over and over, just so that you could be the one that passed and I could have stayed.”

Almost immediately after he said that, you broke down. You covered your eyes with your arms, the tears soaking Minho’s hoodie. You let yourself heave out pained sobs which you had been holding back until now, because how long could you hold it in?

His eyes widened, and he wrapped his arms around you. The three cats mewed again as you felt a breeze around your body again – however, this one was warm, truly warm. You calmed down a little, sobs reducing to small whimpers. He looked down at you, face filled with concern, before cupping your cheek. He scanned your face and realized that you looked worse now than when he was alive to see you cry in real-time.

He frowned upon noticing your scars. He then leaned down to kiss them all one by one, his lips moving gently as if you were a fragile thing that could easily break. Once he was done with that, he pecked your right cheek, then the left one, before going up to your forehead and planting a lingering one there. His eyes darted to your lips, aching to feel them one more time, but he just leaned back. He wouldn’t be able to feel their usual warmth, which was what made them so comfortable and loving, and he didn’t want to claim you – he was yours and always would be, but you were no longer his. It would take you time to move on, he knew that, but eventually you would, and doing this felt like he was holding you back.

Not that you knew, but you did feel the same warmth on your face which was oddly familiar.

He got off the couch, knowing his time was nearly up. He kissed the cats’ heads, saying his goodbyes to them, before moving back to the spot where he spawned from. He waved at you, blowing the curtains again, which startled you.

“Merry Christmas, my love. I’ll see if I can come back next year.”

With that, he disappeared, causing Doonie to run over and swat the area where he previously was, and to mewl in frustration as nothing happened.

“Doonie, come back here. There’s no one there.”

It didn’t matter, because strangely enough, you were feeling a bit better than before, as if some of your strength had returned. You suddenly felt drowsy, and yawned, before lying down on the couch. You felt cozy now, which was confusing yet comfortable. “Must be the magic of a Christmas spirit.”

a/n: btw the drunk driver survived and got bailed out yikes

[eliotquillon]

I always thought those pictures emma sloan took of them soooo cute. honestly if it was any other showrunner they would've milked the chameron relation for at least another season. alas it is our loss. Could you maybe write something about those pictures and where they eventually ended up?

sorry this ends on kind of a sad note LMFAO couldn't help myself. feel free to stop reading before the final asterisk if you want to leave this on a happy ending :P

They’re just photographs. The fact that he keeps them doesn’t have to mean anything.

*

The truth is that Chase has never been a photo kind of guy. His memories of his family aren’t fond enough to warrant a shrine in their absence, he didn’t really keep in touch with any of his old high school and college friends after he moved to America, and while he has other friends now–the local Saturday soccer team, the guys at the bowling alley, some of the regulars at the deli he always buys his lunch from–they’re not the sort of people you take pictures of. He’s passing through their lives, and they’re passing through his; it’s nice while it lasts, but there’s no point pretending. There’s a tiny, almost thumb-sized photo of his mother holding him as a baby that he keeps in his wallet, but most of the time he makes sure to fold his cash in a way that he doesn’t have to keep seeing it. It isn’t deep, or anything. There are posters and prints in his apartment, little trinkets from the occasional grateful clinic patient and old gifts from girls he used to go out with and seashells from the beaches in Melbourne that he keeps under his bed–Chase isn’t allergic to sentimentality, he’s not House. But there aren’t really any photos. He doesn’t see the point.

This, he knows, puts him on one side of the spectrum; Foreman, Chase would guess, is somewhere in the middle–he keeps a photo of his own mother pinned up carefully inside his hospital locker–and Cameron is safely, squarely, on the opposite side. He’s seen her wallet, the inside of her glove compartment that one time she was driving them back to his apartment and asked him to pass her a chapstick: they’re littered with them, a mix of Polaroids and disposable film and photobooth strips and digital print outs. A small, mean part of Chase suspects that this might be why Cameron is always so insistent on making them go to his apartment instead of hers; he doesn’t really remember the inside of her bedroom well enough from that one night last year, but he suspects she keeps her wedding album proudly on display. And he doesn’t begrudge her for it. They’re not together; what kind of an asshole would he be, to begrudge her for it? But he can’t help but be intrigued. Cameron’s life, from his outside-in perspective, isn’t exactly bursting to the full. She works; she fucks Chase; she sometimes volunteers at her local church and then complains about how weird it feels to be there for hours afterwards. She has precisely one friend that she hangs out with regularly–Josie–and although Chase has never met her, she sounds absolutely insufferable. On the surface, it is emptier than his. But to look at it from the photos alone–from his lack of them, from her abundance of them–it would seem the complete opposite.

This is, in truth, why he is initially intrigued by Emma Sloan’s photograph of Cameron. For a moment, Chase sees that photograph and imagines himself as a photograph person–for a moment, he wants to childishly fold the photo away and slip it into his pocket and keep it somewhere nobody else can see. It isn’t like it’s a particularly special moment, either. It’s just Cameron, wearing her glasses, preparing to do a bladder tap. He means it when he tells Emma that he sees her all day like this: focused, compassionate, ready to do good. The realisation that everyone else sees her like this, too, suddenly makes him feel absurdly jealous in a way he’d rather not dwell on. It’s just Cameron. 

But Emma tells him to keep it, gives him permission to stow away the little bright, warm feeling in his chest, and Chase can’t help it: he smiles. He barely hears the camera go off again. “Thanks,” he tells Emma, not yet dwelling on what the hell he’s doing or why he’s so interested in this picture, and he pretends that he doesn’t know why Emma laughs.

*

“When’d she take this picture of you?” Cameron asks, holding the photo of Chase looking at her own photo. “You look so…”

Enamoured, Chase thinks. Head over heels. Surely you can see it?

He isn’t disappointed when Cameron doesn’t ask to keep the photograph. It’s for the best, really; if she kept it, maybe she’d keep asking what Emma did to make him smile like that. It doesn’t mean anything. It doesn’t mean anything that Chase, who has no photographs, kept hers, and that Cameron, who hoards photographs, didn’t ask to keep his.

*

He can’t bring himself to get rid of it, even after he asks Cameron for more and she says no; even after he keeps confessing his feelings to her every Tuesday and she keeps getting more annoyed and insistent that she doesn’t return them. The upside, Chase thinks, is that at least Cameron doesn’t come around to his apartment anymore. He doesn’t have to worry about keeping Emma’s photograph hidden like a bad secret. He keeps it tucked between his bookshelves, the thin, glossy paper slightly bent from being pressed between two hardbacks; at first Chase kept it facing outward, but it hurt too much, seeing her face–earnest and bright and so Cameron–and feeling like a stranger to her again, just another voyeur. As much of an outsider as Emma, even though he still sees her every day.

When House fires him, Chase decides he’ll get it framed. Emma was right; he wants to see Cameron outside of work. He’s probably never going to see her again–not with any regularity, anyway; they’ll probably cross paths at conferences or whenever Foreman is back in town, but it won’t be anywhere close to the same–and the feelings will fade, eventually. He’ll stop hurting. The photograph will be good exposure therapy. Chase will get used to seeing her in photograph form, and learn to forget about Cameron in her real form, and soon it will just be a nice, artsy photo taken by a patient he particularly liked. It won’t be weird. It’ll be nice. It will.

*

“What’s this?” Cameron asks, after their third–maybe fourth–real date. She’s prowling around his bookshelf and looking for something to read–she is, she claims, protesting Chase’s decision to rent the new Spider-Man movie–and her fingers brush against the concealed edge of Emma’s photograph. Chase never did get around to getting it framed; Cameron showed up on his doorstep before he got the chance. His apartment is still technically photo-less, but Cameron has a photobooth strip of them she made them take when they went to a fair last week, and he keeps reminding her to give him half of the photos. So he’s working on it, basically. That’s the main thing. “Wait–is this me?” She’s holding up the photo properly now, wine-dark mouth in a small little o of surprise. “This is Emma Sloan’s work, right?” Cameron asks, when Chase doesn’t answer the first question. It’s obvious, after all. “I’ve never seen this one before. Did you steal it?” “She gave it to me,” Chase answers defensively, ducking his head. He feels embarrassed, and a little caught-out. “She said I should keep it. I think she…knew. That I had–that I have–feelings for you.”

“Huh,” Cameron says. She traces her fingers contemplatively over her own face, and nods decisively. “Give me a second.” “Wait, Allison, I’m sorry,” Chase calls after her, as Cameron suddenly dashes out of his living room and starts toeing on her shoes. She’s a little tipsy, and swaying with the movement; he wants to reach out and steady her when she wobbles a little with one foot in her heels, but he isn’t sure if it’d be welcome. “I didn’t mean to be creepy, I just–” “Robert,” Cameron cuts him off authoritatively, “give me a second. Wait here.”

Chase watches, helpless, out the window as she totters out towards her car and opens her…passenger door? What, he thinks blankly. If Cameron was going to run away screaming–and, if he’s honest, a part of him did expect her to; she gets a little funny when it comes to grand declarations–she should be getting in the driver’s seat. Not folding herself up like a pretzel while she roots around in her glove compartment, holding something triumphantly aloft and then full-on sprints back up the front steps and into the hallway…

“Look,” Cameron smiles, “we match.” It’s that photo of him: the one that Cameron said made him look all glowy. It hasn’t fared as well as Chase’s photo of Cameron; it’s creased and slightly whitened, like she’s been folding it and unfolding it fastidiously over the last few months, like she couldn’t bear to stop touching it. A little part of Chase thinks he might cry. “But you didn’t–I was with you when we gave Emma back her stuff,” Chase says, dumbfounded. “You didn’t ask to keep it.”

“Maybe you didn’t steal yours,” Cameron says, “but I did.” She smiles down at the photo again, and brushes her fingers against photo-Chase’s black-and-white face. “You were looking at my photo, right? When Emma took this one?”

“Yeah,” Chase allows.

“I want to make you look like this picture all the time,” Cameron says shyly, and then he kisses her: because he can do that now, because she likes him back, because now he gets to see her after work and it’s wonderful. 

They get the photos framed, when they move in together. They’re the first of many.

* When Cameron goes to Chicago, she takes Emma’s photographs with her. It makes sense, Chase thinks. He tells himself he doesn’t miss them.

[apr1lias]

Just for my own documentation (and anyone else’s if they want it) here’s a summary of Thursday at Silverstone. This is going under the cut because while this is a summary, I myself cannot summarise the words lmao.

The basics/area/idk how to describe it:

- Arriving at the track it really feels like more people are here for Thursday than last year (hopefully this continues for the weekend since this is regularly not a well attended race in comparison).

- There was also so many people wearing different merch whereas the last 2 years have been pretty much Marc and Vale. Fabio I think actually looked the most popular this year, but there was a surprising amount of Martin fans.

- The one thing I’m disappointed about is that last year they changed the bit around the fanzone from grass to gravel and it’s the same this year. It makes it a lot more inaccessible and its so difficult to get to the activities and stuff.

- In fact I think they changed the layout way more this year but it was still fine, just weird that they don’t want us touching grass lol.

- The fans as a whole behaved well but there were a few people that were rude, not necessarily towards the riders but towards other fans.

The paddock:

- The paddock opened at 11 but the queue started at like half past 10, but it really didn’t take long to get in so it was fine. It was ridiculously hot though.

- The paddock itself is massive, but for the GP teams its too small unlike the old layout. They’ve had to add a secondary part at the back for some of the smaller teams in Moto2/3 for their hospitality and motor homes.

- They didn’t have anywhere to get drinks in the paddock unlike last year. We wouldve had to leave to get drinks but luckily we bought water and they had refilling stations.

- We wanted to get to the pitlane for the bike reveals and the queue was… well just absolutely ridiculous to put it mildly. We decided to skip it which was sad but we got to watch the reveals on the screen (Yamaha and Pramac won for me and I love Trackhouse’s too).

The auction:

- The auction is so fun. Basically all the riders put something of theirs, for example a knee slider or boots or something, and then people bid (slightly ridiculous) amounts of money for them for the two wheels for life.

- Joe Roberts was brought on stage and he was giving away part of his race winning bike from mugello??? They got 4k for it.

- Jake Dixon was there on stage but he was ill. He brought Summer (his daughter) out on stage and she waved at all of us which was so cute.

- The auctioned a Prosecco bottle that was signed by Johann Zarco, Jack Miller and wait for it…. Pecco Bagnaia. No one else seemed to care how ironic that was but I burst out laughing.

- Johann Zarco talks a lot. By a lot I mean he may as well have presented the auction himself. That’s all I can say about the MotoGP riders that I didn’t know already.

- Actually I just want to say that Fabio seems really shy and reserved but he knows how to work a crowd. The British crowd absolutely love both him and Rins but I genuinely think he’s the best supported rider here, maybe even more than Marc.

- He also did the auction for his boots which was absolutely hilarious. He wanted to buy them himself too but got outbidded 😭

- Also Remy kind of said on stage that it appears he will be doing another year of WSBK with Yamaha!!!!!

- We left early because of the rain but it was so fun, if I had money then I would’ve been bidding on stuff but it was fun regardless.

The riders (and team people i suppose):

- Met the Moto3 baby goats extremely early and David and Collin are both lovely and so polite too.

- Ran into Massimo Rivola. I have a picture with him and he smiled at me when he saw I was wearing Aprilia merch. Also found Pablo Nieto and Frankie Carchedi and said hello to Nadia Padovani.

- My friend saw Somkiat in the motorhome and shouted at him, and he kind of jumped and pointed but he came down for a chat and a photo. Again, he is probably one of the, if not the, nicest person in the whole paddock.

- Found Celestino and again he is so nice but also comes across as really shy. I actually told him he was my favourite out of everyone and he seemed really grateful for it (unless he thought I was crazy which is also possible).

- Saw somebody who I thought was J.A. Rueda but I’m not 100% sure. Also ran into both Senna Agius and Jeremy Alcoba and when I tell you those boys look the same its crazy.

- Saw Albert and had to stop myself from apologising that I jinx him every weekend. Also a great guy it seems and we saw him a few more times after that.

- Not saying it’s necessarily him all the time but it’s two years in a row I’ve had a very negative experience of a certain #1. Never said hello or anything when people said it to him, unlike literally every other rider (yes including Fabio and Marc and any other person you want to try a pull a gotcha card on).

- I need to issue a public apology to Jorge Martin because I saw him on his scooter and shouted “Hola Jorge” from a distance and following that he got swamped. He’s not off the shit list but he was actually a nice guy. I also asked if he could sign anything Aprilia yet (thought I’d ask because i had my pen and cap) and he smiled and said not this time.

- I have had skin-on-skin contact with Fabio (not even out of context: he touched my arm while I was helping him escape on the scooter from a crowd).

- I didn’t see him but my friend did and the good news is for the first time in two years Pedro has arrived at Silverstone not on crutches!!!

- Saw Maverick, Aleix and Enea (who was walking back and forth around Aprilia for some reason). They were down the opposite end to all of us but all smiled and waved. Maverick disappeared somewhere so I’m pretty sure he’s a wizard.

- Found Luca who was lovely again. Also Miguel who said he has given up dentistry now!! Again lovely and stopped for as many as he could, as did Bezz.

- We stopped to get some shade, which conveniently ended up being outside the Yamaha hospitality. Got a picture with Remy and I got thrown off because he was speaking perfect Italian to someone.

- Saw Sarah (Jake’s wife) and we said good luck to him for the weekend, and we asked where he was but she told us he was ill (which you could tell from the auction lol)

- David Muñoz was laughing at everyone queueing for and just sat there on his bike.

- Saw Ai and he was really patient because I could not get the camera to work. Again such a lovely guy and in case anyone was curious: he and Somkiat are still really good friends and Somkiat was riding Ai around on the same scooter so they’re still cool.

- I said it earlier but favourite rider of the day: Tony Arbolino aka loml. I cannot even tell you how nice he is because that deserves a post in itself. He was so happy I had his cap that he thanked me before I could thank him for signing it (his signature is interesting to say the least lmao I put the picture so you be the judge). Also some man offered to take our picture but I didn’t realise and I’m fairly confident it was his manager.

So yeah this was basically my day. If you wanna ask about any other riders cause I saw so many (the ones I’ve mentioned are the ones I have pictures with or of) then feel free to ask but yes 11/10 day, would recommend it to everyone. Hopefully we have a good weekend to follow!

[danganronpadedication]

DAY 15: DANGANTOBER

Day 15: Discussing Ryota Mitarai (substitute for Royalty AU)

SORRY FOR THE LATE POST, HAD TO RETYPE THE WHOLE THING 'CAUSE TUMBLR DIDN'T SAVE MY PROGRESS LAST NIGHT, I'M GOING TO CRASH OUT-

Goodness, where do I start? I have very mixed feelings about Ryota, so I deeply apologize if this post comes across as me hating on him. I do like him, I think he's a very interesting character that has so much room to be explored by us fans. I also think that his character comes across as one of the weaker ones of the series, but with a few tweaks, he'd be amazing. For a character only introduced in the anime, there's much to discuss.

His relationship with Ultimate Imposter (who will be referred to as Touya with they/them pronouns for the rest of this post) and Mikan is very heartwarming, he's quite relatable as someone who spends most of my time online, and he has so many connections to so many interesting plot threads that I wish got more attention. For those of you unfamiliar with who Ryota Mitarai is since you haven't watched the anime, here's a brief explanation. Growing up, Ryota was someone who longed for escapism. He was bullied by his classmates, and he found solace in anime. He believes that the animation medium 'saved him', and he wants to create anime that would do the same for other people. He is scouted by Hope's Peak Academy, and becomes the Ultimate Animator.

He is placed in class 77-B (the SDR2 cast). He regularly skipped class, choosing instead to work on his anime in his dorm room. One night, he went out in the hallway, and collapsed from starvation. Touya heard the commotion, and went outside of their dorm room to get Ryota back to his. The two of them work out a deal. Touya would assume Ryota's identity and attend classes in his place, so Ryota could stay in and work. In return, Touya would regularly check in on him, make sure he was eating, sleeping, and generally healthy. This system went on for a year or so, with Touya bringing Ryota food and checking up on him all the time.

At the start of the second school year, Ryota became even more involved in his work, and collapsed again. Touya went to go get Mikan so she could help, and she finally got to meet the real Ryota. She told him to start going for checkups at the school hospital. It was at one of these checkups that he had a "despairfully fateful encounter."

Original Uploader: Celestia's Berg on YouTube

In defense of anime, he brings Junko and Mukuro over to his dorm to show them his unfinished work. They are moved to tears by it, and when Junko asks why his work had such an effect on them, he reveals that he puts subliminal messaging into his work in order to get the desired emotional response. He equates it to brainwashing, giving Junko billions of evil ideas.

Ryota leaves a note for Touya in his room, and then moved into Junko's secret lair so he could work for them in peace and relative comfort. Touya grew concerned about Ryota's whereabouts, and Mikan went to go try and find him. She was promptly kidnapped by Mukuro, and brought to the lair to be later brainwashed. Junko and Mukuro then went to go start the student council killing game without his knowledge. After a while of working for Junko and Mukuro, he started to grow a bit uneasy about them.

Eventually, he finds the video clips from the student council killing game, and he is immediately disgusted by this information. Junko decides to blackmail him, saying if he runs away, she'd conduct another killing game with his classmates. Ryota gets the chance to escape when Chiaki, Nagito and Chisa come across the lair.

Ryota is eventually found by Junko and a group of reserve course students, with Junko saying she wants to thank him for the new brainwashing technology. He says his work was supposed to inspire hope, not create despair. He is allowed to run away, since Junko knows the memory of him running away from her will haunt him. He survives the Tragedy alone, hiding in abandoned buildings until eventually being found by the Future Foundation.

He is hired by Future Foundation, and rises through the ranks, becoming the head of branch 10, based around education and culture. He attends Makoto's trial hearing, and ends up in the Future Foundation killing game. He mainly sticks in Kyoko's group, and when she passes away, he goes with Makoto's group. At the end of the game, Ryota gets a message from Tengan, who was the mastermind, saying he entrusts the world's hope to him.

Tengan's plan was to create this entire killing game to bait Ryota into unleashing his new Hope Video on the world. It's meant to do the same thing as the despair videos, except instead of overwriting everything with despair, it's hope. Makoto and Aoi point out that it'd be no different than what Junko did, no matter what, it's still brainwashing. He manages to brainwash a lot of Future Foundation agents, including Aoi temporarily. He resolves to broadcast the video to the entire world and spread hope that way.

The video begins to broadcast, but right in the nick of time, the rehabilitated Remnants of Despair arrive, and convince Ryota to stop the video. He believes he is guilty for a lot of what happened in the Tragedy, but they manage to comfort him by saying that they'll atone for what they all did, together. He cries, and gets reunited with Touya.

"A brief explanation", and then I proceed to write paragraphs. I am the Ultimate Yapper.

Let's discuss all the things I like about Ryota. First of all, he's an utter cutie pie in the anthology manga he's in.

Secondly, I love what he does to flesh out Mikan and Touya, but ESPECIALLY Touya. I firmly believe that without Ryota, we wouldn't have really any information on them as a person. Their friendship is one that I think is so sweet and heartwarming. Touya doesn't discourage his interests, and still looks out for his well-being.

Besides, I can't deny that this picture depicts my two moods when I'm working on my computer all day.

Introducing Mikan into the mix is also great. Their little trio is so sweet, with Touya and Mikan being a very good support system to Ryota. I wish we got more content of those three together. One of these moments that does come to mind, is in the anthology manga. There's a story in there where Mikan and Touya are trying to make Ryota a nice soup, but because Mikan's clumsy, the soup gets ruined. He still likes it anyways, up until he learns about the mess up.

Get yourself a set of friends who will not shame you for your interests, but instead make sure you are happy and healthy. The wellness checks, the regular deliveries of food, you can tell just how big of a heart these two have, and Ryota is the lucky and grateful recipient.

Another positive for Ryota as a character, is how they explore his guilt over his role in the Tragedy. While Danganronpa doesn't focus on it much in other cases, it doesn't shy away from realistic depictions of trauma responses. Ryota is no exception to this.

A large part of Ryota's character is his guilt over helping Junko. Without his knowledge, she uses his work to brainwash Mikan, Chisa, Tengan, the Remnants of Despair, the reserve course students, etc. Then, his work comes back in the Future Foundation killing game, resulting in the deaths of his colleagues. With each incident that he can connect back to his work, his guilt grows.

Guilt can blind a person to reason. This is seen with Ryota when Makoto and Aoi try to tell him that the hope video will just do the same thing the despair videos did. Brainwashing isn't morally correct, obviously. But because of his guilt, this is the only way to fix things in Ryota's mind. To him, this video will reverse everything his original videos did, and make everyone happier for it.

Danganronpa has a bad habit of making its characters seem larger than life. They are all resilient, they can all bounce back from traumatic events, even if they are silently living with the consequences. You tend to forget that these characters are in their late teens, and twenties. As someone in that age range, I don't think I'd be as resilient as majority of the cast.

Ryota isn't a character that will bravely rush into a warzone, or give a passionate speech to inspire everyone. He is visibly suffering from this trauma, and the most he can do is support from the sides. He is realistic in his depiction of guilt. He unknowingly gave Junko the tools she needed to enact her plan, and now has to live with the results of that. It's not his fault, he didn't rub his hands together like an evil mastermind and regret it later, he was taken advantage of.

On the other hand, it's no secret how I feel about brainwashing in Danganronpa. It's icky, it's despicable, and the moral ramifications of it call into question the morality of anyone who uses it. Unfortunately, all of Ryota's screentime links back to brainwashing in some way, shape, or form. That's his purpose for existing as a character. To explain how Junko was able to brainwash and manipulate everyone, from the Remnants to the reserve course.

It'd be more forgivable if Junko somehow tricked him into applying his skills towards that, without him knowing that he was working towards brainwashing all along, but that's not the case. Before he begins working for Junko and Mukuro, he uses subliminal messaging in his work, and equates it to brainwashing, before skirting around the morality of that action. He was already doing it before her. Honestly, the anime shows a lot of ultimates using underhanded methods to make people respond positively to their work. Makes me wonder if they're worthy of being called ultimates without those methods.

Ryota also has the energy of a character who was written to fill gaps in the plot. He's supposed to be a classmate to the SDR2 cast, and yet there isn't a single mention of him beforehand. I know he wasn't an ultimate, and probably didn't know about what was happening on Jabberwock Island, so there was no need to talk about him. But he still feels like he came out of nowhere. In the anime, we get to briefly hear about how AI Chiaki came to be, and she says that the Future Foundation tried to find someone they were all connected to for the simulation. She expressly states that they found no one else that would garner the same results as Chiaki.

Even if they were outnumbered, how come Mikan and Touya's memories didn't yield any data of Ryota? Especially Touya, since they were close friends, closer than any of them were to anyone else. Even just a throwaway line would've worked, saying Chiaki was the one that would get the most results, or during the game itself, in one of Makoto's emails. Any line would've worked, and Ryota would feel like less of an afterthought.

You didn't even really need him to explain Junko having brainwashing technology. In Danganronpa Zero, you meet Junko's childhood best friend, Yasuke Matsuda, the Ultimate Neurologist. Someone who studies the BRAIN. He's already the reasoning behind why Junko has the ability to alter people's memories. Why couldn't we also tack brainwashing onto him?

Finally, and this could just be me, but Tengan's plan to bait Ryota makes no sense. The entire Future Foundation killing game was meant to get Ryota to broadcast the Hope Video, but the video Tengan sends Ryota as an explanation also says Ryota didn't need to attend. It says the plan would've worked, even if Ryota didn't attend the hearing. After all, I think only twelve showed up for the hearing, and there's at least 14 branches of Future Foundation, so its not like he was required to come. What's the point of mentioning that?

I think a lot of the issues surrounding Ryota's character could be solved with a simple rewrite. So, here is how I'd rewrite Ryota Mitarai. Everything with Junko would be the same, he'd work for her and give her the means to make a brainwashing video. But once he manages to make it into the thick of the Tragedy, that's when it starts.

After getting picked up by Future Foundation and joining, Ryota would have to attend meetings about what was happening in the world. This means he was seeing a lot of news about the Remnants, and his already existing guilt would begin to grow. He didn't know the people who became the Remnants, but when Touya brought him food, they would always tells stories about them. Besides, he'd see what his friends Touya and Mikan had become, all because of his work.

As each day goes by, this feeling of guilt would get worse and worse. Everyday, he has to hear Munakata and the others call the Remnants 'monsters', and he knows they are. But he can't process how Touya and Mikan and their friends could possibly have fallen from who they were before into this. He knows his work is responsible for it, and he wants to change things.

Somehow, he'd find out about Makoto's growing sympathies for the Remnants. Maybe his technological prowess leads to him seeing the emails between Makoto and Munakata, maybe he put two and two together when he heard about Makoto rescuing a group of Hope's Peak alumni. I said earlier that Ryota would be really good working from the sidelines, and that's what he does.

He'd hide any helicopter flight records to Jabberwock Island, he'd send covert supply ships out with food and medicine. He'd even aid with avatar reconstruction, using his very few memories of the class and his many memories with Touya to create a basis for the Neo World Program. That's why he would attend the hearing for Makoto as well, he was also working with him. It'd highlight the pre-existing divide in the Future Foundation anyways.

This would also make his reunion with Touya in the final episode more heartfelt. After all these years of guilt, all these months of work, he finally gets to see his friend as themself again.

Imagine how awful Ryota would feel. Touya did a lot for him, making sure he was healthy and eating well, and the last thing Ryota had done for them was leave a vague note before leaving to work on the brainwashing video for Junko.

Finally, after a long time of trying to atone for what he did, and working towards getting the Remnants stable again, he gets to enjoy the fruits of his labor.

And it's cathartic.

Ryota was a big inspiration for my Danganronpa OC, Shin Ikari. I'm just going to talk about the similarities between Ryota and Ikari, since I plan on giving him his own post in November. First of all, both are ultimates with unhealthy habits. As the Ultimate Theorist, Ikari tends to stay up for days on end, doing research and descending down mental rabbit holes. After a few days, when his friends find him in his dorm room, he looks like this, conspiracy corkboard and everything.

Ikari also feels partially responsible for the Tragedy, since his research on talent and the human mind was used without his knowledge for the Kamukura Project. He survived the Tragedy, and eventually went to work for the Future Foundation. While his talents are more suited for management, his guilt drives him to be trained as a field agent instead. He has a deep connection to the Remnants, having known them before Junko got to them. I honestly can't wait to yap all about him.

Aside from the points I made earlier, I think Ryota is a very interesting character. With some rewrites, he becomes a very compelling and realistic character, dealing with the effects of guilt over his actions, and growing to appreciate the friends who stuck by him all this time. Now, a Ryota pic for the road?

-Mod Tsumugi