#how do you tune an accordion

[fanaticsnail]

Bachata (Dance Series)

Masterlist here.

Word Count: 3,105

Warnings: Fluff. Pure fluff, dancing, sensual dance descriptors, mention of alcohol (if you squint).

It was beta-read by the ever wonderful @sordidmusings (thank you bby grl, you are a blessing)

Song Suggestion: Stand By Me, Wake Me Up, la Isla Bonita

Your lips remained parted, eyes glossy and hyper-fixated on the movement of swaying hips, bent knees, and the biceps and forearms of your captain who effortlessly led one of the locals in a sultry dance. All his movements were in time to the beat of the drum, the fingerpicking of nylon guitar strings and the push and pull of airy piano accordion accompanying the lilt of vocals.

The atmosphere surrounding the beach-front festival on the coastal shore was loud, the crash of waves in the distance resonated within the chasms of the wooden dock where the Going Merry was harbored. Several vendors had set up temporary huts with canvas roofs atop wooden poles, selling their wares, local cuisine and fountains of exotic drinks of flavors you had never heard of before.

Although the musicians sang out their romantic souls into the air, prompting many a traveler to engage with them in dance and singing along to the tune: your eyes remained fixed on the way Luffy effortlessly spun the local girl within his arms, steadying her hips with his hands. His nose was scrunched with laughter, his grin drawn wide against his cheeks to bare his teeth in unbridled joy.

“Quartermaster?” the green-haired swordsman addressed you, “your thoughts?”

“Hmm?” you hummed in question, snapped from your entranced gaze held against your captain’s swaying body.

“You’ve been staring at him long enough,” Nami giggled at you, leaning back to recline against the wooden log behind her, “surely you have a bit of a hypothesis.”

You furrowed your brow, looking between the remaining companions you’d found yourself serving with on the Going Merry. Nami had a playful shimmer falling in her eyes, Zoro quenched his thirst by draining the remainder of his brown-stained beer bottle, while Sanji was making his way back from collecting the evening meal for the crew by bartering with the vendors.

Usopp and Luffy opted to join in the festival celebrations by swaying with the locals to the beat of the drum. Both men began surprising the crew with how effortlessly they danced to the tunes produced by the band, but Luffy was exceptionally surprising everyone by the way he almost had an air of sultry seduction in his movements. As soon as you witnessed the first effortless and tasteful gyration of his hips, your breath caught in your throat and a warm flush weaseled its way from your chest to tint your cheeks with its presence.

“On the dancing?” you asked again, Zoro chuckling at your thoughts.

“Alright, let’s backtrack then,” the swordsman rolled his eyes with a chuckled scoff, “look at him.”

“Oh she’s been looking at him enough, Zoro,” Nami scrunched up her nose, her tone light and teasing. You scrunched up your own nose in light mockery at her jest, prompting her to release a laugh into the night air.

“Looking at who?” the blonde chef asked as he placed the food down on the stretched canvas mat on the sandy floor in front of you all.

“Alright Sanji, non-biased opinion,” Nami said, leaning forward to sit herself closer to the food in front of her, “our captain. Where do you think he learnt how to dance like that? Look – no, really Sanji – look.”

The chef rolled his eyes and lulled his head over to look at the captain of the Going Merry. Luffy spun his dance partner to face her torso away from him, her back pressed flush against his bare chest as he ghosted his fingertips over her vertical forearms held upwards. His lips traced the back of her neck, his eyes fluttered closed as he swayed his hips against the beat, with his brows furrowed in passionate concentration.

“O-oh,” Sanji stuttered, his eyes widening with a downturned smile rising within his fluster.

“I know, right?” Nami loudly whispered in her hushed enthusiasm.

“I can honestly say: I have no idea,” the blonde nodded his head in confirming his words more-so to himself than to the group, “he doesn’t give off that kind of energy at all.”

The music concluded, the captain breaking away from his dance partner, and giving her a clap on the shoulder as a gesture of encouragement and joy at the time they spent together.

“Oi, Luffy, Usopp!” Zoro called to the two crewmen, “grub’s up, come and get it!”

Your captain’s face snapped over towards the crew; his eyes first meeting with yours. A large grin drew itself against his cheeks once more as he found Usopp and they stampeded together towards the canvas mat.

“You guys, the sand- the sand,” Nami aggressively shooed the two rapidly approaching men, their feet kicking up the coarse grains of sand dangerously close to the food placed on the floor. You giggled at them, looking to your captain and patting the unoccupied space beside you in a gesture for him to sit down.

Usopp claimed the vacant space next to Nami, taking a portion of the local cuisine for himself as he did so. Luffy, smiling at your gesture, immediately plopped himself down ungracefully. He playfully nudged your shoulder with the top of his head, giving you a small smile, his curls feeling soft against your exposed skin as his hat remained fastened to his back via the drawstring. You laughed, reaching your palm and fingertips to brush some of the strands away from his forehead to reveal his hazelnut-coloured eyes to you. You shook your head, scrunching your nose and playfully nudged him away from you.

Your role aboard the Going Merry was the Quartermaster: an aid in the navigation and smooth sailing amongst the waves, while being the secondary loyal soldier behind the first-mate. Luffy, upon finding you in a tavern off the shore of Shells-Town, immediately was taken with your skills and ease in breaking up a tavern brawl. Two rival pirate crews had stumbled into the family-run tavern and began immediately meddling in the affairs of one another’s business. The boiling point flashing like water to scorching oil within the halls of your favorite tavern: foreheads touching, guns withdrawn, fists flying and the breaking of brown, glass bottles. You threw yourself into the crowd, opting to disarm and do no harm, dancing effortlessly within the heat of the battle and incapacitating those who opted to remain fighting. It took little to no time to stop the fight, your skills drilled into you at the hands of many a brawling instructor and mentor throughout your childhood.

After the fight had finished, a brown-haired captain adorning a straw hat with a red ribbon approached you, telling you straight out, “Pack your bags, I need you on my ship,” to which you shrugged with a simple “aye, Sir”.

In your travels with the young captain, you were immediately taken with his innocence and fearlessness to be anything other than what he is: a simple man with the charm and charisma he needs to lead a crew, but also with the mischievousness and playfulness that comes with his inexperience. His heart is intensely displayed on his wrists, his desire to serve and protect those in need was admirable. You would follow him to the ends of the earth, with nothing to add than a simple: “aye, Sir.”

Friendship, proximity, and sleepless nights by each other’s side had a small whisper of emotion beginning to form within the very central point of your heart. The longer you remained with him, the more this feeling began to burn within you. You put it all down to the need to serve your captain well or perhaps a small crush if anything else. Choosing not to engage with such childish emotions, you smothered the feelings as soon as they began.

But there was something about the way his hips were swaying tonight. Something about the way his eyes sparkled, his nose scrunched and his lips drew out to reveal his playful grin under the glittering stars around the festivities that held you hostage to your unquenchable emotions.

“Nice meat!” Luffy’s voice cut through your inner monologue, prompting you to shake your head and blink slowly away your enchantment, “you had any yet-? -You haven’t had any yet! Here, have some!”

Your captain thrust an empty paper plate into your hands before piling a mountain of food atop the plate; it bending beneath the weight of the variety of items.

“Captain, slow down!” you giggled, shooing his hand holding tongs with the dangle of cooked meat waving from the end, “I’m not going to be able to get through all this, but thank you for thinking of me.”

“Anything for my Quartermaster,” he shot you a small wink, “gotta make sure you’re taken care of, you know?”

Your eyes fluttered rapidly in a flustered blink. You shook your head once more and furrowed your brows at his comments. He looked down at your plate, gesturing with his hands for you to begin eating.

“Whatever you don’t eat, I will,” he shrugged, leaning back in his place beside you and looking up at you with eyes full of adoration and appreciation.

“Thanks Luffy, I trust that you will,” you giggled, placing the plate down on the ground and tucking your hair behind your ears and away from your mouth. He smiled up with his broadening grin as the rest of the crew continued to eat the delicacies this area graced you with.

You felt his gaze continue to hold to you as you continued to dine with the other straw-hats, then pouring drinks from the large jug for one another and laughing to a tale Usopp was recollecting. He sat up briefly, noticing some strands of your hair began to fall back in front of your face and immediately reached up to tuck the locks behind your ear with his thumb and index finger. A warmth drew itself upwards to your cheeks at this unrestrained gesture, but you did not shy away from his affection.  

Sitting in silence, Zoro continued to hold his intense gaze in unwavering focus against your interaction and dynamic with the captain. His left brow arched at the subtle touches, lingering on your flushed face before looking to the mischievous expression your captain currently was adorning.

“Hey Cap’n,” Zoro smirked up, collecting a beer bottle from beside him, “why don’t you and the Quartermaster have a little dance after dinner? She hasn’t had one all night.”

Your eyes widened at Zoro, a scowl falling to your lips in wordless reprimand. Zoro’s smirk broadened with his left brow arching upwards to taunt you further. Before you managed to get a word out to chastise him further, Luffy spoke up to interrupt your thoughts.

“Sounds good to me!” he exclaimed with joy, “how about it, Quartermaster? Dance with your captain?”

Words fell halted in your throat, the breath you were going to use to speak them caught behind your parted lips. You snapped your gaze back to your captain, snickers from your crew began to whisper in hisses behind their clenched teeth.

“I-I don’t think I could-,” you began, watching your captain as he eagerly rose to his feet and extended his hand out towards you.

“-You’ll be fine,” he smiled, collecting your hand from beside you, “let’s go, music’s starting again.”

“Aye, Sir,” you nodded, allowing him to pull you to rise to your own feet.

You turned your head back to your crew as Luffy began leading you towards the open fire, closer to the vicinity of the music. Zoro’s smirk-like grin was plastered openly on his lips, shooting a small wink towards you at your unsettlement. Nami gave you a small wave, wordlessly uttering to you: “learn why he dances like that.”

You inhaled sharply through your nose with eyes scolding your crew before being twirled within the arms of your captain to meet his hazelnut orbs.

“Just relax, okay?” he scrunched his nose up while pressing his forehead against yours, eyes twinkling with mischief, “I know what I’m doing, let me lead you.”

A small squeak found its way to your throat, eyes wide and cheeks flushed. He chuckled, taking both of your hands within his and began to effortlessly sway with you.

Crossing your arms upwards, he spun you to face away from him; rocking you within his arms briefly before experimentally intertwining his limbs with your own. He twirled you once again to face him, collecting your right hand within his left and placing his right hand wrapped completely around your shoulders beneath your left arm. He held you close in a tight and flush embrace, exaggerating his hips outwards and leading your feet to the beat and rhythm of the music.

Your eyes were wide and frantically looking everywhere else, breath hitching as he led you in the movements with such poise and ease. Meeting your eyes with the taunting and teasing gaze of the green-haired swordsman, you began to fall out of time to Luffy’s movements and stumble a little. You watched the swordsman’s chest tremble as a laugh fell from his lips at your stumble.

“Hey, hey, hey,” Luffy’s voice called to you, drawing your face up with his left hand weaving itself away from your right, “what’s the matter, are you okay?”

Your breath caught in your throat as he reached his hand up to touch your cheek tenderly. He continued swaying the both of you to the music while his eyes searched yours for the source of your unease.

“I-I just,” you began, your own eyes fluttering its concentration between his, “I’m a bit self-conscious dancing like this. It’s a bit-, uh-…”

He nodded with his brows furrowed, leading you with his verbal tone; “-a bit…?”

You clenched your teeth with a small grimace, “-a bit out of the ordinary? A bit unusual to be dancing like this?”

“Oh!” he nodded, returning his broad smile to his lips. He released your cheek from his left hand and again sought out your right to claim, “you don’t have to be self-conscious. As I said, I know what I’m doing. And if the attention bothers you so much, keep your eyes on me!”

The flush returned to your cheeks, the warmth threatening to tint its way to cover the entirety of your face as he confidently wove your right knee between his legs and swung his hips to the beat. You released a shaken breath from your lips, closing your eyes to bring your focus away from the Straw-Hat crew and their teasing gaze. Reopening your eyes, you met with the warm smile of your captain.

“There you go!” he complimented you while tracing small and indistinct lines on your spine, “‘atta girl!”

Internally, you were screaming. Your captain’s praise was nothing foreign to you, especially when in the heat of combat. Within the proximity he currently held with you, dancing you provocatively within the romantic atmosphere, this praise felt especially outlandish. Shaking your head to rid your mind of the fog his verbal praise rose within you, you kept your eyes fixed on him. His eyes softened as he began to hum along to the melody, twirling you away from him. Although his twirls moved your body far from his, he would always bring you back to hold you securely within his arms with his hips almost flush against your own.

As the dance continued on, you began to get more confident in your movements and trust for him to always support and lead you through it. He would sweep you into long-arched dips, circling around his body before having you snap back up to fall within his grip. All laughs and smiles drew upwards against your cheeks, a laugh or two flinging from your chests in glee to the music.

“How do you know how to dance like this?” you breathily asked him while he again twirled you to face away from him.

He released your hands from his grasp as he slowly ghosted them over your ribs, dragging them to rest on your hips. With closed eyes, he brought his lips up to your exposed neck and whispered against your skin: “Shanks taught me.”

Your glazed eyes opened widely, a small “oh” parting from you in surprise. You had heard many tales about Red-Haired Shanks and his crew of seasoned pirates from your captain. It should come as no surprise to you that he had shared more knowledge than the influence of a life of piracy onto your captain, but apparently the charm that comes with sensual dancing.

“When you were a child?” you asked him, lulling your head over as he continued to hold his lips a hair’s length away from your skin. He hummed in confirmation, the vibration prompting your pores to spring upwards over your neck and forearms.

“And the knowledge wasn’t lost to you over the years?” you quizzed him. His hands shifted you within his arms, turning you to face him again.

“I practiced with my brothers,” he chuckled, placing his forehead against your own, “my biggest brother would play guitar sometimes. I’d make my other one dance with me to the music.”

Before you could ask Luffy any further questions on the matter, the music concluded and your captain released you from his arms and cheered loudly to praise the musicians for their song. You trailed your gaze from the raven curls atop your captain’s head down over his sun-kissed skin to hold your lashes half-lidded as they sought out his eyes once more. He was so handsome, you knew that much was certain. All the time you spent together aboard the Merry had you drawing yourself closer to him, but now; you were completely smitten.

His joyful and lilted praise drew itself to a close, him turning to meet your eyes once more with his warm eyes. He reached his left hand down to collect yours within his comforting grip.

“Did you want another dance?” he asked hopefully, before he tore away his gaze to seek out a vendor’s stand behind him, “or we could get a drink? I could go for another one of those juice-things, I think.”

You giggled, reaching up your left hand to caress his smooth cheek. His skin ignited beneath your touch, glowing alongside the smoldering embers of the beach-front fire.

“As long as I'm with you, I’ll follow you anywhere,” you answered whimsically, prompting him to reach his forehead down to touch against your own. His nose scrunched up once more, his lips drawing out to a large smile as he answered you.

“Okay, great! Juice first,” he confirmed, nodding against your head, “then more dancing.”

“Aye, Sir.”

[gingerlee-holds]

Letting Off Steam

this is a bday fic for @littleleesblog!! my first steps into the hazbin writing community heehee! idk if people like this one, ill write sequels about him getting charlie (me), angel, idk we'll see

btw yada yada this is a tword fic- Ler!Alastor Lee!Lucifer

Word Count: Reading Time: Warnings: Idk, swearing? Alastor bein a lil shit? barely any editing?

If you prefer a quieter living space, perhaps the Hazbin Hotel isn’t for you. Loud arguments and the commonplace occurrence of walls being blown in could make for a very harsh experience on the ears - not to mention the frequent singing. There were, however, a few locations at the hotel where it’s quiet, such as Charlie’s room, the library, and, shocking nobody, Alastor’s radio station, located on the far northern side of the hotel on the very top floor. Whenever Alastor got the chance, he stayed in that room for as long as possible during the day - usually to avoid being roped into the shenanigans of the other hotel residents. 

On one particular day, however, it seemed like the radio demon couldn’t catch a damn break.

Charlie had called him to the lobby at 7 AM to settle a disagreement between Vaggie and Angel regarding “Breakfast Booze” at the bar. Then, not an hour later, Lucifer was badly practicing the accordion in the lounge. This was followed shortly after that by the TV demon, Vox, interrupting Cherri’s favorite show to deliver a laughably defamatory news segment on Alastor’s performance in his fight with Adam, accompanied by such phrases as ‘pussied out’ and ‘spineless.’ It should come as no surprise that he was already stressed when Charlie cheerfully gathered everybody in the lobby. His entire face hurt with the exertion required to keep a smile.

“Okay, everyone,” Charlie began. I was thinking, what better way to celebrate the grand opening of the newly refurbished hotel than by playing hide-and-seek?” She did a little twirl as she finished, trying vainly to excite her friends. 

Angel Dust raised his hand and, not waiting to be called on, asked, “How the hell does that follow?”

Undeterred, Charlie continued. “Hide and seek is a game that requires exploration! We put a lot of work into rebuilding this place, so we should try to enjoy it! Now, who would like to seek first…?”

A hunt. Oh, what luck that on such a poor day as that, Alastor could finally stretch his legs a little and do what he did best: scare the living daylights out of people! His smile widened, and his eyes squinted like a shark when blood was in the water. He stepped forward with perfect posture as always, resting his hand on his cane. “I would be delighted to!”

“No-” Both Lucifer and Husker had begun to protest, but Charlie clapped her hands with glee. Everyone knew she was just happy to have someone invested in her activities. 

“Perfect! Count to sixty, and then come look for us!”

“Oh, splendid.” The radio demon casually walked over to the wall, closing his eyes as if it mattered. Hands resting on his cane, he chuckled softly to himself. “One.” He heard silence behind him. “Two.” Again, he heard nobody move. 

‘They must not be taking this seriously,’ he thought. Gradually, the sound of radio static began to hum through the lobby as Alastor’s antlers grew larger. 

“Three.” Still nothing.

‘I won’t let them ruin this for me, not after today. Drastic measures, then,’ Alastor thought. He cleared his throat innocently. Then a deer call echoed around the room as he turned his head all the way around on his neck, eyes the shape of bright red dials and smile of sharp teeth impossibly wide.

“FOUR.” 

It had its intended effect. All of the hotel’s residents yelped various exclamations and expletives and took off in every direction, unsure if they were now hiding for their victory in the game or their lives. 

Alastor chuckled softly and turned back towards the wall, appearing normal again. He continued counting, interspacing the numbers with tunes he remembered from a past life, patting his cane to the rhythm. ‘I really should sing more often. It’s a shame I don’t often get the chance,’ he mumbled. Alastor knew he would find each hider eventually - after all, he had a lot of practice with hunting overlords - but Charlie had not mentioned a time limit, meaning he would take his sweet time to savor the silence and the hunt. When he finished counting, he decided to be a bit theatrical and sent a shockwave through the ground at the tap of his cane, instantly turning off every light in the hotel. He turned, smiled eagerly, and sank into the ground as a shadow, moving through the darkness like a cloud of smoke. ‘Now… who to look for first?’

-

Lucifer Morningstar, king of hell, didn’t realize how fast he was flying until about a minute after Alastor’s little scare. It upset him a little to discover how easily startled he had been, especially since he had easily beaten Adam, who had easily beaten Alastor. He sighed in annoyance as the lights above him went out, and to keep from flying into a wall, he flew to a stop, landing gracefully on the ground. With a subtle flap, his wings glowed softly, surrounding his hallway with a gentle golden light. He walked forward, not looking for a hiding spot. He had a feeling that that didn’t matter.

He suddenly felt a chill on his back. Lucifer whirled around, staring closely into the dark hallway behind him. Sensing no movement, he huffed and walked backward a bit, turning back around only to walk into the chest of the radio demon, letting out an indignant squawk.

“Ah, your highness! It seems you were the first to be found! You’re not very good at this, you know~!” Alastor said in that smug tone. 

“Well, Mr. What’s-His-Name,” Lucifer replied as he wiped off the front of his suit before confidently resting both hands on his apple cane. “I’ll have you know I’m only doing this to make my daughter happy. I don’t fear you, busboy.”

Alastor’s eyes narrowed in determination. There was no way he was letting any of the other hotel residents come out on the other side of this activity willing to mess with him. That meant attitude-correcting. “You know I mean no disrespect, your highness!” he said, twirling his cane in one hand while adjusting his tie. “I simply had higher expectations of you!”

“As did I for you! I cannot believe my Charlie put her faith in you of all demons to keep her safe. You had one job, and you-” Lucifer stopped when Alastor sank into the shadows again, disappearing. “Typical.” The king began walking forward again, doing all that he could to give off the impression that he wasn’t scared, but all the effort in the universe couldn’t have held back the squeak that came to his lips when he felt a poke to his side. 

“Oh, my~! Someone’s a little on edge~!” came a delighted voice from the darkness. Lucifer growled in frustration and extended his wings to make the hallway as bright as daylight. Unfortunately, this is what Alastor intended, which Lucifer soon discovered when he felt claws scribbling in the pits of his wings, right on the sensitive area where they connected to his back. “Now, what an unfortunate weakness for royalty to possess~!”

Lucifer squealed, buckling over and landing on his knees on the floor. Alastor had suspected that the fallen angel was ticklish since Charlie was a walking tickle spot, but verifying it like this was nothing short of delicious for him. 

“Youhuhu- youhuhuhu lihihihittle-! Cuhuhut ihihit ouhuhut!” Lucifer’s strength had left him for some reason, and he found himself powerless to defend himself from the radio demon’s attack. Giggling like a child, he tried in vain to reach around behind him to swat away the attack, but this only opened him up more. Alastor’s claws zipped around and wriggled into his ribs, causing the king to let out an outrageously embarrassing squeal. He swung around to free himself, extending his wing to fling back the demon. It made no contact as he landed with a thump on his back, his hat tossed aside. 

“Ah, ah, ah~! I have to make sure you play the game better next time! After all, it’s only fair that there should be consequences for losing, especially being the first to lose!” From beneath him, hands grew from the floor to scribble into Lucifer’s wing pits again, making the fallen angel arch his back in surprise. 

“DahAhahahamn yoUhUhuhUuHU!” he laughed, kicking his feet a little. He reached back again to defend himself, only to be met by his apple cane, quickly used to pin his elbows to the floor with a yelp. 

“Fell for it again~! Tsk, tsk, your highness! We all must learn from our mistakes here at the Hazbin Hotel~!” Alastor suddenly materialized in front of him, leaning casually against his cane as he smugly observed the plight of the king of hell. 

“Yeah, well, you’re a-” Lucifer’s taunt was cut off by his shriek when shadowy hands grew from the ground to wriggle their fingers against his ribs. Alastor’s cooing was absolutely not helping, and it took everything in him not to whine when he felt the hands undo his coat and vest, leaving him in his plain undershirt. 

“There we are, now to teach you a lesson!” Alastor watched as his shadow hands continued their evil work, relishing every second of the king’s humiliation. He had ghostly digits wiggling against the ribs, scribbling in the wing pits, and he had just summoned two more hands to squeeze experimentally on the thighs, making Lucifer squeal like Angel’s pig. The fallen angel’s wings flapped on the floor, but his arms were pinned, keeping him firmly grounded. 

Alastor smirked and stepped forward, leaning down to wiggle a claw against the king’s belly. “You’re far too precious to act all tough, Your Highness! Don’t worry, I’ll let the others know about this discovery of mine~!” With that, he stood tall, straightened his suit, and turned to walk away, fading into the hallway’s darkness. 

“D-dohoHohn’t youhu fu-fuhuhuhCKING-!!” Lucifer couldn’t even get the words out as one final hand scribbled along his collarbone. He could do nothing but lie there on the hallway floor and laugh, hoping that Alastor would eventually have mercy. It might be a while before then since he was the first one found. Maybe he would have to put more effort into hiding next time… 

Read the next part here!

[dontcallthedoctor]

TEMP CHARACTER THEMES!!!

HIYA, FELLAS!!! This is gonna be a loooong post, so strap in!!! (I've srsly been writing this post for four days end me)

Yesterday, I announced that Kinger had won the music poll and that he shall be next to get his own theme. Sadly, yesterday was also the day I realized I've been hit with musical writer's block, so it might be a short while before I come up with anything good—I REALLY wanna get something out for Halloween tho!!

Since people may be curious abt what's in store for the other characters, I thought it'd be fun to present my ideas to you all, and give u all a little insight as to how my dumb little music brain works lol

Obviously, I haven't written much of anything original for anyone but Pomni yet, so in the meantime, I've picked out some temporary themes for each respective character that I feel fit them well, and hopefully they'll give you all an idea what I wanna achieve with them musically! A lot of thought went into figuring out each character's respective musical identities, so I hope these example pieces resonate with you as much as they did with me!

That said, if you have other ideas as to how these characters' themes might sound, I'd definitely love to hear about them! Feel free to comment em below or DM me if you wish! Feedback is greatly appreciated!!!

Just as a disclaimer, barring ofc Pomni's Theme, NONE OF THESE ARE MINE, NOR DO I CLAIM AUTHERSHIP OF THEM! That out of the way, let's begin with...

Pomni: I briefly explained my process behind this one in the original post, so I'll elaborate a little more here for those unaware, alongside this slightly extended version of it (a whole twenty seconds YIPPEE)

Pomni’s Theme kinda ended up being a homage to the music of Danny Elfman. I came up with the melody one night just by playing around on my piano. It was this weird, off-kilter, sorta sad-sounding tune that really resonated with me, and thought it sounded perfect for Pomni, so it became her motif. My friend @pasta-yy worded it perfectly when they said it sounded like "Pomni-flavored despair" lol

It wasn’t until I decided to make it a full song that I realized “WAIT THIS MAKES ME THINK OF DANNY ELFMAN”, who I’ve always admired, so I took to his early work for inspiration. I’ll cite Simone’s Theme from Peewee’s Big Adventure as the main influence in terms of "musical flavor" for this one. It helped me find / flesh out the circus-y style I was aiming for!

This composition isn’t quite finished yet, but I plan to post updates on it the whole way! I’m really excited for you all to see where this one goes!

Someone said that Pomni’s Theme sounds like the opening theme from Laimin! Anmin! Suya Rhys Seikatsu (Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle), an anime I haven’t seen, but I kinda hear it in some parts, at least in terms of chord progression!

Ragatha: For the rag dolly, I envision a sweet, somewhat-haunting tune. Imagine if a music box melody was arranged for orchestra. Very lush, very beautiful, very mature first and foremost, but with an undercurrent of sadness. Like Ragatha herself, the pathos is well-camouflaged beneath the happiness and the optimism, but is still undeniably there and perfectly in line with what we know about her character so far.

This particular track is led by accordion, which I'm not entirely sure fits Ragatha, but everything else is a pretty good representation of what I hope to achieve with her!

Jax: Prolly my favorite thing about Jax is how differently he carries himself in relation to everyone else. He's maliciously annoying, self-aware, and ironically more of a jester than the character who's avatar is a literal jester. He embraces being stuck in the circus like it's his first choice, instead of something he's settling for. He's an intriguing character and i'm curious to see how he'll evolve (or de-volve if Goose's comments are anything to go by)

In writing this, I'm struggling to put into words how exactly I want his theme to sound, but this track is a pretty good encapsulation of it! There's a sort-of confidence in it it and a jaunty forward-momentum that carries through the whole piece. I think that vibe really suits Jax. There's also an air of non-chalance that parallels how lackadaisical he is with everything. I feel that, since Jax doesn't take much of anything seriously, neither should his music lol

It almost reminds me of the music Vince Guaraldi composed for the Peanuts specials. His character themes always had this hip, carefree vibe to them, especially tracks like Peppermint Patty, which will also be an inspiration on Jax's tune.

Gangle: In case anybody hasn’t caught on, Gangle is my faaavorite character from the show, and I really want to do her justice, so it took me a good while to figure out just what I wanted to do for her.

That being said, the genre I'm gravitating towards most for her (at least while writing this) is gypsy jazz. For those who may not know, gypsy jazz (or jazz manouche) is a French style of jazz that uses solely string instruments; mainly violin, guitar, and double bass. It's a beautiful genre of music, and I think it's a perfect fit for Gangle <3

I imagine something playful, gentle, unassuming, and a tad saucy, at least when she's wearing her comedy mask. For her tragedy mask, I think it'd be fun for the tone to turn dramatically sad, and have the music structure fall apart, much like her mask. I'd really like to integrate piano in some way to highlight her sensitivity.

If anyone has any other ideas, please lemme know in the comments or DM me if u wish! Gods know I could use some inspiration ^^

Kinger: And now we come to Mr. Poll Winner himself! I'm honestly really glad that Kinger won, because I have more confidence in the ideas i've come up with for him than I am for a great majority of the others.

Knowing what we know now, I see Kinger as a very sweet, sentimental, yet ultimately tragic figure, so like with Ragatha, that's definitely something that's going to influence how his theme will sound.

This is probably my favorite of the temp themes, and definitely the one I want to stick closest to when I start writing for him. Everything about it just screams "Kinger" to me and I think is a near-perfect musical summarization of his character; the plodding simplicity, the almost-dreamlike surrealistic quality to the melody, the subtle melancholia, the chord progression, all of it. I think it gels with Kinger exceptionally well, which is why I've included two versions; one light, one dark.

The question is: do u all agree? ovo

Zooble: In searching for the right genre for Zooble, I've settled on what I call “Motown lofi”. Something that gives off swanky 90s “cool” vibes. Funky, mellow, bluesy, with a lil extra punch. Zooble is mostly low-energy but very much a plain-speaker, so I think this kinda music of music pairs nicely with them!

Amon Tobin’s Like Regular Chickens is another good example of what I'm going for. This one's very strange, kinda abstract, and prolly not most people's cup of tea, but I think it's neat and a pretty fitting sound for Zooble (maybe a little less intense in parts lol)

Caine: The logic behind Caine's theme is that it should be "annoying to everyone else, but he would love it". Something that he'd have no problem listening to every day on repeat, but nobody else can stand.

My first idea was really garish, campy carnival attraction music (more generally, Hammond organ music), represented in the first half. That stuck for awhile, but then I thought abt doing a pastiche of 80/90s sitcom intro type music, represented in the second half, which I think also works.

I feel like both could work, maybe even together, but I'm still undecided. I think wacky obnoxious organ music is PERFECTLY in line with Caine as a character, but the 90s route might be the more appropriate way to go, since it would to share some continuity with Digital Days from the credits (one of my fav songs from the soundtrack along with Not Alone and Somebody Real) We'll see what happens LMAO

Bubble: I’d always jokingly entertained the notion of making a theme for Bubble, but never put much serious thought into it until @mikiib asked for it, so here he is on this list.

The idea I settled on was “underwater Mario level?”, and the more I thought about it, i’ve decided that’s the direction i’ll probably go with Bubble’s tune. I imagine it being very "spacey" and floaty. Very peaceful and relaxing, but still rich with untamed weirdness, which is what makes Bubble fun :3

Mik also had the idea of using bubbly noises as percussion, which I DEF want to try! I've never really been experimental with percussion before so this'll be a fun opportunity to branch out!!

Other Characters: Last month I wrote a sweet militaristic-y march song for the Princess and the Candy Canyon Kingdom, but as far as other characters, I can't think of many I'd like to dedicate entire fully-fledged arrangements to, at least not presently. Maybe little ditties tho, that'd be fun!

I kinda wanna write something in tribute to Gummigoo since I really like him and think he deserves it. Something very ethnic and full of fun tribal instruments.

I have one for Baron Mildenhall that I haven't posted yet, and I've got a spooky lullaby I wrote for Ghostly (as well as for @mikiib) that I'll probably post tmrw for Halloween. Martha might get one too, she seems fun :3

[midastouch013]

Remembering Him

Summary: Today's the annivessary of Pietro's death, and your there for your girlfriend

Warnings: Mentions of character death. Talking of losing a loved one. Sad Wanda

----

The morning sun cast a gentle glow over the Avengers compound, but for Wanda Maximoff, the day felt heavy with sorrow. It marked the anniversary of her brother Pietro's death, a wound that never truly healed. As Wanda sat alone in the quiet living room, memories of their time together flooded her mind.

You, her girlfriend, entered the room with a soft smile, holding a cup of coffee for her. Wanda glanced up, her eyes reflecting both gratitude and pain. You placed the coffee on the coffee table and took a seat beside her.

"Hey, love," you whispered, taking a seat beside her. reaching for her hand. Wanda managed a small smile but remained distant. You knew that today was especially difficult for her.

"I thought we could spend today celebrating Pietro's life," you suggested. "Doing things he loved, and maybe sharing some of the stories you've told me about him."

Wanda nodded, "I'll try," she said softly, allowing you to guide her through the day.

Starting with music, you encouraged her to play some of Pietro's favorite tunes. As the melodies filled the room, your hands around her waist, as her hands wrapped around your shoulder, swaying softly to the music. Wanda began to share stories, and a bittersweet smile crossed her face.

"I remember a night in Sokovia," she began, her voice soft. "There was a street musician playing a beautiful, slow song on the accordion. Pietro, being Pietro, took my hand and said, 'Let's dance, sis.' So, there we were, twirling under the moonlight, lost in the music and each other."

A warmth filled the room as you envisioned the scene – Wanda and Pietro, sharing a dance in the quiet streets of Sokovia. "That sounds incredibly special," you remarked.

"It was, and then, right after" she spoke, her voice carrying a hint of laughter. " The man began playing a fast-paced song and Pietro, being Pietro, decided we should dance to that too. So, there we were, dancing in the square, drawing a small crowd. It was so spontaneous and silly, but for a moment, everything felt perfect."

You chuckled, "Sounds like he had a talent for turning ordinary moments into extraordinary memories."

Wanda nodded, her eyes distant yet alive with the memories. "Exactly. He had a way of making life an adventure."

--

The day unfolded with shared stories and activities, each one honoring Pietro's passions. When you moved to the kitchen to attempt one of his favorite dishes, Wanda's laughter filled the air, seeing how you made the same mistakes that he would.

As you neared the end of the day, Wanda and you found yourselves on the rooftop, beneath a sky sprinkled with stars—the same stars Pietro once marveled at during quiet nights.

You both lay on a blanket, shoulders touching, staring up at the vast expanse above. The day had been filled with shared memories, laughter, and a dance that echoed the bond between siblings. Yet, as the night deepened, a subtle melancholy began to seep into the air.

"We used to lay on rooftops," Wanda said softly, her gaze fixed on the twinkling stars. "He loved stargazing. Said it made him feel connected to something greater."

You nodded, squeezing her hand in acknowledgment. The quiet conversation continued, sharing stories of nights spent under the open sky in Sokovia, where Pietro would point out constellations with infectious enthusiasm.

"I miss him so much," Wanda admitted, her voice trembling with vulnerability. Tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to spill over.

You pulled her into a comforting embrace, letting her tears fall without reservation. "It's okay, Wands," you whispered, holding her close. " You can cry, its okay"

Wanda clung to you, allowing herself to release the pent-up emotions she had held back for so long. The weight of loss, the ache of missing her brother, poured out in quiet sobs.

After a while, the tears subsided, leaving behind a sense of catharsis. Wanda pulled away, her eyes red but filled with a newfound lightness. You wiped away the remaining tears and gave her a tender smile.

"Thank you for being here," she whispered, her voice filled with gratitude.

"Always, love," you assured her, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead.

As the day came to an end, you both sat under the evening sky, surrounded by the echoes of laughter and tears, celebrating the life of a brother who would forever live on in memories and the love he left behind. You'd never met him before, but you were sure that you would have loved him if he were there

----

I'm short of ideas, someone help me.

—----------

[creativegirl247]

Break from art posts for a thing about instrument headcanons(+some canon) for the mercs!

Scout plays the bongos in his spare time. He plays it in the Runner's Rythm taunt, although idk if it's a canon taunt.

Demoman can canonically play the piano, as seen in Expiration Date, but it's unclear how well. I headcanon that he can also play the bagpipes because of his Scottish origin.

Soldier is seen playing a trombone in the Fubar Fanfare taunt, but I headcanon that he can play the trumpet, idk how well tho.

Medic is seen playing the accordion in the Surgeon's Squeezebox taunt, but I imagine him playing the violin, and he's pretty talented at it.

Sniper canonically play the sax and is seen playing it in Expiration Date and in the Killer Solo taunt, but upon further research, he plays the didgeridoo in the Didgeridrongo taunt, but I can't really see him playing it.

Engineer is literally playing the guitar throughout Meet the Engineer. The instrument appears in the Guitar Smash taunt, electric guitar in the Shred Alert taunt, and plays a little guitar tune in an unused taunt without a name. Notably, he also plays the banjo in the Dueling Banjo taunt.

Heavy doesn't seem like the type to play an instrument. His hands are really big and would probably struggle with precise playing. In terms of canon taunts, he doesn't play anything, and the Bolshevik Ballad isn't in the game.

Spy may or may not play the piano. I've seen him depicted singing, but with a guy who smokes that often probably doesn't sound great.

Pyro... Oh, Pyro. I've seen him depicted playing the piano as well, whether it be a grand on or a child's toy, but I want to note that the Rainblower looks a lot like a brass instrument, maybe hinting at something. No headcanon here, I don't know if he would actually play anything.

I hope you enjoyed my little insight. I've been wanting to do this for a while 💀

[mikrokosmos]

Fendrix - Soundtrack for the film Poor Things (2023)

I've probably said this before but I usually don't post film music on this blog. Mainly because it's questionable how much a score for a film could be considered "classical" or of the classical tradition. On the one hand, the kinds of genre and styles used for films, and the specific function of the music as accentuating or being part of the overall finished work of the film makes it out to be its own unique genre. On the other hand, classical composers in history have written incidental music for stage plays as well as scores for films, from early / classic film scores by Saint-Saëns or Prokofiev or later in the century by Takemitsu or Glass and going through to today. Regardless I had heard this music before seeing the film Poor Things and was immediately taken in. I loved it so much that I was disappointed that it did not win the Oscar for best film score this weekend (though I won't complain much because the winning score by Ludwig Göransson for Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer was evocative and intense so it was worthy of the award and praise). Still I have a soft spot for Jerskin Fendrix's imaginative and otherworldly music fitting for the equally "otherworldly" and fantastical atmosphere that the world of Poor Things tries to evoke. Yorgos Lanthimos is one of my favorite living directors and I was excited to see this film, even moreso after hearing the score. While I love the exuberant style, unique cinematography, and the dreamlike images, I will admit I was somewhat disappointed by the film overall (I didn't love it as much as I did his 2018 film The Favourite), and am still uneasy and disturbed by the subject matter and implications of an infant/prepubescent mind developing in the body of an adult woman, and all of the uncomfortable sex scenes and conversations as the film goes along. Still, I do love this score as a stand-alone album. Bella's theme is awkward, slightly out of tune and discordant, conveying the kind of naivety, curiosity, and somewhat self consciousness of being a "child" trying to understand the world they live in. The score continues with keyboard textures, detuned harps and winds, scratchy violins, vocalized oos and ahs, creating a lot of artificial and even alien sounds that disorients the listener in the same way that the wide lenses and porthole shots disorient the viewer. And later in the film (mild spoiler alert) when "Bella's" "real husband" arrives, we are made to feel sick and unsettled by the low frequency pulsing that makes us dread his arrival. A lot of textures and harmonies are unexpected in ways that make me wish Stravinsky were still alive so he could hear and share his thoughts. I especially thought of Stravinsky with my personal favorite track, "Portuguese Dance II", with violent and punchy, comically disturbed accordion chords that open into a catchy dance tune which may as well have come from one of his ballets. This same music gets its own awkward dance scene (another Lanthimos trademark) with Emma Stone's Bella and Mark Ruffalo's despicable Duncan. Again this is a bit different from my usual posts but regardless I hope you can enjoy the bizarre and wonderful soundworld that Fendrix created for this film.

[luxlightly]

A song I imagine a very specific Gabv1el scene with. At a junkyard. Ignore any impossibilities and inaccuracies with the feasibility of this song being played by only two people. They're an angel and a blood robot they can do whatever they want. _

"Ah! A piano! And in good condition! How surprising. Certainly not in tune, but otherwise remarkably intact." V1 mimed playing, then pointed at Gabriel with a head tilt. "Yes, I play. I play a variety of instruments. I'm probably best known for my horn --hush-- but you've seen yourself I'm also quiet adept on the organ --hush-- as well as the harp, the lyre, basically all percussion. It's a little difficult trying to play a wind instrument with the helmet but, besides that, I'm at least proficient with all human instruments."

Gabriel tapped out a few notes. "Oof. Definitely needs to be tuned." V1 pointed at the piano and then to Gabriel, excitedly. "Hm? You'd like me to play something?" V1 pointed between itself and Gabriel. "You'd like us both to play something? You play?" Gabriel asked, baffled. V1 pointed at the piano again and shook it's head. "Not the piano. Something else?" A nod. V1 then held up a single finger, indicating to wait, then ran off into the junkyard. Gabriel carefully opened the back of the piano. A few missing hammer pads but nothing he couldn't fix. Between that and tuning it, it would give V1 time to find whatever it was looking for. He wondered what kind of instrument a Machine could play. -- "...So...it seems as though you've found some springs, a cash register, an old typewriter and...I think that might have been an accordion at some point? A sword--wait that's my sword! Give that back!" V1 clutched Justice to its chest, shaking its head. Gabriel huffed. "I gotta be honest, aside from my sword this...looks like a lot of random trash. Um...Machine, do you...know what a instrument is?" V1 glared, nodding. "Alright! Alright!" Gabriel said, holding up his hands, placatingly. He sat down at the piano, putting his fingers to the keys. "Well, I guess I'll start out with a melody and you can join in on your...trash...whenever you feel the spirit move you. Or, you know, whatever. He went for something upbeat. Bouncy and complicated enough to keep it interesting for his practiced fingers but with plenty of room for accompaniment. V1 perked up in apparent surprise. "Don't look so shocked!" Gabriel laughed. "I can play more than hymns and classical pieces, you know." After a few bars, having seemed to get a good enough idea of the tune, the Machine joined in. Gabriel let out a small, delighted gasp. Using all of it's 4 arms, as well as one of its feet, V1 slid metal against metal, sprung springs, pressed keys, and swung Justice in a strange, delightful cacophony of percussion that mixed beautifully with the melody. Gabriel laughed and leaned more into his playing. With each layer of complexity he added, the Machine followed in turn, using its foot to operate the bellows of the accordion while its arms continued their whimsical percussion. In perfect synchrony, they pushed forward, then backed away, built up, then leaned off. So incredibly different than the practiced, perfect hymns of heaven. And so much more fun. By the time he bang out the last few chords, Gabriel was practically out of breath. "I stand woefully and wholly corrected," he said, with a laugh. "You play beautifully. My apologies for ever doubting it." V1 bowed, exaggeratedly. "We'll have to play together again, sometime." V1 nodded, giving 4 thumbs up. "Now give me back my sword."

[invisibleraven]

Sorry for sending the same line twice but:

Was it all fake?

Peterpatterlina

The wind blew through Julie's curls, but she didn't care, not with the smell of the sea in her nose and the sight of naught but the ocean waves in front of her.

Perhaps running away to live on a pirate ship was not what anyone would have expected of her, but she was happier here than she knew she would have been had she stayed.

Back home she would have been chained by rules and expectations. Tied to a vast estate with a gaggle of children in a loveless marriage. Forced into uncomfortable corsets and pinchy shoes, unable to be anything more.

Here, she was free. Free to climb and laugh, be loud and improper. To be the wild girl her governess had always chided her for being.

At first, Captain Patterson hadn't wanted to take her on his vessel-not due to any superstition about women on boats being bad luck. Half his crew were women after all. But she was a lady, and they had no place on a ship.

That had made Julie determined to prove him wrong, so she traded her fine dress in for breeches and a blouse. Worked her fingers to the bone scrubbing and swabbing. Learned to scale the mast, coil rope, every knot and term. How to navigate by star and sextant.

Plus the first mate Reggie taught her how to fight-with cutlass and pistol, as well as her fists. How to swing from the rigging and to keep the crew fed as supplies grew thin.

What truly endured her to the crew was music night-they taught her every shanty and bawdy tune they knew, much to her delight. But then Julie sang the songs she knew-love ballads and hymns, as well as songs she had written herself.

Blushing when she realized how much the captain and fist mate were failing to keep their eyes off her. The flush deepening as their voices joined hers in a harmony that rang out over the waves in a sweet sort of perfection.

"Now much of a lady any more are you?" Luke asked, making her turn from her view of the sea.

"I'm not sure I ever was much of one really," Julie admitted, holding herself as a cool breeze blew by.

"Was it all fake?" Reggie teased. "The fine manners and fancy dress?"

"I don't think they have much place here," Julie offered. "But that life doesn't seem real now, like a dream of a cage that finally unlocked, leaving me nothing but blue sky."

"Well you're a fine part of the flock," Luke granted her. "Though don't feel you can't fly off at any port."

"Why would I ever want to leave?" Julie asked.

"We are pirates," Reggie offered. "We mean to hit any ship we come across for plunder. Some may be from your homeland, and we may have to kill in order to take it."

Julie shivered once more, though this time not from the cool wind. "I don't relish the thought of murder, even though I know the rules of the high seas are different from high society. But I also know the crown cares little for their poorest citizens, and happily supports the sale of lives and flesh. So why should I care if you take their profits?"

"The life of a pirate is starting to sound like a welcome alternative," Luke quipped.

"Plus at least we share our treasure," Reggie hollered, with a cheer from some nearby crew.

Julie laughed at that. Sure, it was not the future she ever envisioned for herself, but she felt so at home on this ship. Here where she was free to be who she wanted, to love who she wanted.

To dance and laugh and sing. To drink and steal, and be wild without reproachful looks or disdain. Here she was encouraged to be herself, and adored for it.

Yes, the thought of the things she may have to do to survive unsettled her some, but in the end wasn't it worth it to be free? Not to be yoked to a life that would suffocate her?

She breathed deep of the salt sea air, hummed as accordion and fiddle struck up as the moon began to rise. Drank deep of the rum and ale passed around. Let her pirates spin her around the deck, laughing and singing all the while.

Yes, it was not the life she ever expected, but Julie was sure as she felt freer than she ever had, that this was the life for her.

[fleetways]

killability ranking of all of eggmans lackeys from least to most killable. killability is based on how much i wish to kill them not actually how easy they are to kill. Metal sonic and sage do not count and they would be at the top anyways even if they were.

1. Agent Stone.

Objectively the best of all of eggman’s lackeys and the only simp that eggman gives any semblance of a shit about. For this alone he already wins, but I also like every scene he’s in so I would not want to kill him anyways.

2. Decoe Bocoe and Bokkun.

Bokkun carries in this bracket. He’s cute and I like him. Decoe and Bocoe are the OG orbot and cubot so they get gay robot points, but otherwise I never consider their existence.

3. Orbot and Cubot.

The sole reason I am wholly against the “eggman is the father of his robots” shit I keep seeing around. These robots are gay lovers and I don’t care what anyone says. Generally I do not wish to kill them however they can be annoying as fuck and are staples of an era of sonic I’m actively trying to forget

4. Thunderbolt the Chinchilla.

I never read the issues with her in them but I like her solely for being one of the rare female sonic charactes without the don bluth- style feminine hips and chest. We also generally need more sonic characters that are just ball-shaped. Sadly she is from Archie which ups her killability for me but that also means she is already dead so I’m not sure where that leaves us.

5. Scratch and Grounder.

This is where we start getting into the really killable freaks . Scratch and Grounder are annoying as fuck but they’re also hilarious in a way no other Robotnik lackey is. I wouldn’t even need to kill them they would just get into a rube goldberg style disaster full of slap-stick looney tunes comedy that ends with them falling into a hydraulic press and turning into accordions cue slide whistle background soundtrack.

6. Katella the Huntress.

Genuinely what the fuck was this episode. She’s not exactly a lackey but I felt compelled to add her to this list anyways. Kill.

7. Snivley.

I’ve never seen SatAM but every time i see this character I am filled with such rage and disdain. The killability was baked into this character’s design I’m sure of it. The writer’s intention was for him to be on this list. Kill.

8. Sleet and Dingo.

Now, I may be the biggest Sonic Underground defender of all time, but if anything that just makes me the most qualified voice in declaring these guys suck. Every minute of screen time they get makes me wanna die. A show known for its ugly designs and these guys are the ugliest. Would absolutely kill without question.

9. Dr. Starline.

You know what you did.

[giddlygoat]

some of my thoughts on drawing, learning the accordion, and how they apply to each other.

i have been drawing my whole life. the last time i can remember feeling genuinely ashamed of my artistic skills was when i was probably 12. at some point i was able to look at my art and realize it wasn’t anywhere near perfect, and i became okay with that. nowadays, i have no anxiety about posting my art or leaving a piece with flaws, because i like my style and i’m comfortable enough in my skills and the knowledge that there will always be room for improvement to allow myself to simply enjoy what i create.

i have always been fascinated by the accordion. around age 11 i started considering learning to play it. by 13 i saw one at an antique store and seriously considering buying it for a long time, but did not. as the years go on i find that artistic burnout is becoming more of a frequent issue with me, and i often find myself desperately wishing i had a gratifying way of expressing myself other than drawing.

i’m always humming, and doing the mouth trumpet, and clicking and clapping out tunes all day. singing and scatting are some of my favorite pastimes. i can do all this but it’s not the same as playing an instrument. i feel like it can never quite extend past my fingertips; like i’m cranking out all this energy and excitement but it can’t go anywhere. it’s like not being able to get past the sketch when you have a whole painting inside you.

about three months ago, i finally picked up the accordion. i don’t know how to read music. my understanding of the technical side of music is pathetic, although i have a good natural sense for it, and now, a good teacher. i am scared.

i have all the usual beginner issues: my hands don’t know where to go, i’m not used to the weight of the instrument, and it feels alien in a way, just to name a few.

there’s another problem, too. i’m good at drawing.

everywhere i go, i see things i want to paint. i’m taking pictures of the pickled jalapeños and carrots at work because i want to study how they interact with the opaque black plastic container, all little dynamic shapes of green and orange swimming in vinegar. i’m watching a cat stretch and yawn on the concrete and lay down in a sunbeam that looks too heavenly to be real - it gives me an idea for a sketch.

i look at the arms of the man loading hay bales with me, and try to commit to memory how the muscles move under the skin, what foot he puts his weight on, how he wipes his forehead and shifts his weight. it makes me want to draw pages of people doing mundane things, studying how weight and action and stylization works together to create something satisfying and alive. i want to do the beauty of the universe justice.

when i open procreate to draw, i am not thinking of anything. my hands know where to go, i don’t even have to look at the buttons or tools to know what i’m doing, and all these complicated layers interacting with each other and their applied effects and backgrounds etc come like second nature to me now.

the first day i used procreate, i was so overwhelmed, i was afraid to touch anything.

the first day i held an accordion, it was the same.

my problem is that i know how to look at art and examine why techniques work or not, and i don’t quite have those skills when it comes to music. sure, i can slap beautiful harmony onto any song, but heck if i know what notes they are. i couldn’t tell you what key the song is in or what defines a measure.

and i realized that while now i am looking through this frosted glass trying to make out the basic shapes behind it, one day, i will be able to peel back the mystery and truly understand not only how this instrument functions, but how music flows, too. because i see art in everything. i understand the weight of people and objects and how they would interact in a cartoon. the colors of a blooming cactus in my yard become lemony saturated in the early light and pale and dusty in the late evening. i can see the line of action in characters and better understand the composition behind paintings, and why it works.

it’s my hope, that as time spent with my accordion goes on, i will start to see music in everything, too. there’s nothing i want more than to understand it and speak its language as i do with art. i want to someday pick up my accordion and make up a melody as i would sketch out a doodle. this is the kind of stuff i think about all day.

[iwantoseeafrigatebird]

the orkney trip

part 7

day 6 (continued)

the north house (a stereotypical traditional long house now in ruin) over looking the Bay of Noup.

Setting up camp in the kelping green listening to the last sunset of the year while watching a sunset by the sea! the lighthouse of noup head went into action not soon after.

the gloaming.

comments in the group chat then that i really appreciated. thank you whoever you are. you have a beautiful mind.

Also regarding diagetic/non diagetic.

the moon that night was again silver. With the effect of a floodlight. In china we say the moon of the mid autumn festival will be the fullest in the next night, which turned out to be very very true.

Good night and a perfect end etc.

-

Day 7

Caught the morning ferry departing westray and spent a bit of time in kirkwall saying goodbye to the cathedral and topped up my tires. It was a peaceful sunday morning. Someone playing folk tunes on an accordion on broad street. People going about their business under the sycamore tree. etc.

The hardest cycling yet, from kirkwall to birsay, with a detour to the wideford hill with great view over from st margaret's hope and Hoy to the south to deerness in the east, Shapinsay, Rousay and Eday islands to the north, and the bay of firth to the west. From the wideford chambered cairn one could see the old quarry right southwest across the valley as well as the cuween hill chambered cairn whose position according to the amateur archeologist lady i met there might be intentional. Some nice and informative conversations about landscape archeology and the anglo saxons in Norfolk. Something worth looking into I suppose. I love how different discipline gives you a completely new insight into the same landscape.

I had to climb down a ladder into the carin and get on my hands and knees to enter the chambers (what a way to enforce respect and humility if that was their aim). Some people left little tokens down there.

I cannot make out what the pin is supposed to be tho. Do enlighten me if anyone has any idea. I'm very curious and it is very pretty.

(edit: it's a maeshowe dragon, carved by vikings into the wall of the chambered tomb).

(tbc)

[things-about-cars-in-posts]

thoughts on 4WS? everybody and their mom knows the prelude,but would you be interested in talking about some of the other interesting vehicles with stuff like this?

or maybe other methods of decreasing turn radius?

I love the “everybody and their mom knows the Prelude”. Truly the embodiment of the silicate chemistry XKCD.

But sure! I can’t really say much about 4WS beyond “It’s when the rear tires steer opposite to the fronts to decrease turn radius at low speeds or when they steer with the fronts to increase stability at high speeds, and it really helps make cars be and feel more agile, which is why you see it on the new Range Rover and why you will probably see it in many other cars now that they are all ballooning out of proportion. Cool! Don’t park too close to curbs tho or your rear end will kick out into them and curb your wheels”, so let’s move on to… less orthodox ways to decrease turn radius.

You’d included a GIF of the Rivian “tank turn” which they were going to include in their models only to then not, but I took the liberty to place it next to a GIF of the BYD YangWang U8 showing it off at the latest and incredibly exciting Japan Mobility Salon [for some reason this post is stuck on the old editor so pretend that link is blue] to offer suitable accompaniment

(start at 1:36 if it doesn’t do so automatically)

Hope this will do in lieu of commentary because all I could offer is a demonstration of how many times I can type “what the fuck” in a row. Oh and if that wasn’t enough they also showed one do this.

I am genuinely pretty sure I came up with such a wheel design and then thought “no, this is stupid and absurd, forget I thought that” and then BYD was like “lol, lmao, rotfl even”.

But if you have wheels that don’t make you fear a robot uprising and surfaces that grip too hard to permit that Tchaikovskian bullshit, what are you to do?

Well, turn radius is a function of steering angle and wheelbase, so you can just alter those! Now, one would think the distance between the centers of your wheels would be pretty tough to alter, and indeed, it is. Well, it is pretty tough to alter without getting a wall involved and giving you more problems than you solved, if you know what I’m saying. Let alone to alter it reversibly. But some have done it! Enter Rinspeed, Swiss Porsche tuner turned concept car maker whose staying afloat I genuinely cannot explain, and more specifically its early-00s concept the Presto, a concept car that, once you realize you cannot for the life of you find four people willing to get near that horrendous front let alone in the thing, has the ability to cut your losses and accordionize itself.

“Yahchoo!”

Nice, Ron. And sure, the windshield is borderline nominal, the doors were sacrificed to the gimmick altar so one assumes you must get in Hazzard-style without even having a roof to paint something racist on, and it’s probably illegal in many fun new ways, but at least it’s gotta be a TON of fun.

You know what I suddenly feel like we should move on to something else. How about this thing?

“The Mk1 Golf?”Almost - as seen by the five bolt wheels, different bumpers and barely visible side vents, while this was an ordinary Mk1 Golf, Italo-Swiss tuning house Sbarro took care of that problem by shoving a Porsche 3.3L behind the front seats (what is this, Renault? [again, please record yourself saying “that link is blue” and play that recording back repeatedly over a spinning spiral GIF]). But the thing is, Franco Sbarro saw the whole ordeal and thought “Ah, but the engine that we put right in front of a massive trunk lid is going to need accessing at some point. I must think of the most rational way to accomplish that”, and then made the car fucking open in two. What is it with Switzerland and cars doing this shit.

So yeah. If you were willing to spend an absolute fortune to make your Volkswagen Golf a positive deathtrap, you could, through an incredible and unimaginably dodgy feat of engineering, shorten your wheelbase by a measure I measured at comfortably under two inches. Now, I cannot think that makes much difference in turning radius, but hey, I’ve seen masculinities built and shattered over less.

Fortunately, the wheelbase is just one of the determining factors of turning radius, and the other, steering angle, is a pretty popular thing to increase through aftermarket components because it’s very important in drifting: as explained in this brilliant-as-always article from Speedhunters, since drifting consists of holding your car at a big angle relative to where you’re going, if you want to maintain that big angle you kind of need the front wheels to be able to be at a big angle relative to where the car is pointing.

Unfortunately, your steering wheel doesn’t stop turning just because it feels you got to turn it long enough already - it stops because the wheels are about to hit something. So in serious drift cars the front wheels have to be pushed outwards to keep them from encountering car as they turn. But of course, there is an alternative to pushing the wheels out - pushing the wheel wells in! That, in fact, is the technique employed by the personal driftcar of world champion Piotr Więcek…

….no, not the 800hp S15, I said the one he drives for fun.

Perfection. Indeed, since the last generation Twingo shares its platform with the Smart Forfour which itself shares bits and bobs with the historically rear-engined Smart Fortwo, the engine is in the rear, meaning the front wheels have nothing in between to stop them from turning outrageously wide, making its turning circle great for city driving, city parking, and apparently tandem drifting with an 800hp S15.

But I cannot talk about ways to facilitate street parking without talking about the first thing I ever received by email, in January 2011, or more than twelve years ago (yeah I know, sorry): a video of this car.

Apparently, it was an idea that had existed since the 50s, too!

I find this to be a really clever idea - you already need to bring the spare tire around anyway, and you already have a shaft spinning in that direction because that’s what connects the engine to the differential! Unfortunately though, nowadays most cars -especially the space-conscious ones- are front wheel drive, which would make implementing what already was a packaging nightmare to begin with take up even more space, probably to the point of being counterproductive. Unless perhaps you put the spare in front of the engine and redesigned the differential to *spends the next six months thinking about this*

[nakachuchu]

Into the Woods | Hayakawa Aki

Chapter 12 of the Fairy Tales & Myths series

SYNOPSIS: In a world where people were descendants of folktale characters, there were a number of characters who were unlike the tales in the Book.

READER: female

WORDS: 1.6k

WRITTEN: 03/11/2023

NOTE: This is for @poohbea 's Once Upon a Collab event! I was gonna do a enemies hate sex thing and then it just turned dark. Be warned: Murder is involved!

"Alice," you called out, a bright smile on your face as you floated midair.

Aki ignored you as he usually did.

"Alice," you said again, disappearing for a moment, only to appear in front of him.

He stopped walking forward, a slightly annoyed and displeased expression on his face as you called him by his ancestor's first name.

"What."

"I'm bored," you said. "What are you up to?"

"Going to work. Makima has a mission for me. There are Devils to kill."

"Hmm. Alice so whipped for the Red Queen? How unbecoming of Alice's legacy."

"That was over a century ago. We're not our ancestors," he retorted, moving around you to continue walking.

You rolled your eyes. "Regardless, let me come too."

"You don't work for Public Safety," he retorted as you levitated around him.

Your fingers brushed against his shoulders, trailing to the back of his neck as your tail tapped his hand. He ignored your advances as he crossed the road, watching out for the blind mice and drum frogs.

He hated how much his body craved your touch. He wouldn't have disliked it so much if you weren't so smug, but there was nothing neither he nor you could do about it. Once a Cheshire, always a Cheshire.

You pouted as he ignored you, and with a loud and defeated sigh, you dropped down from the air and landed gently on your feet. You stopped at the end of the crosswalk, watching Aki walk away in the direction of his work.

"Well, I guess it's time I go to work too," you said, turning on your heel to walk in the opposite direction, heading towards The Woods.

The Woods was usually home to woodland creatures and townspeople. Aki worked in Atlantica, where all the technology and safety protocols were. There was nothing special that differentiated the different avenues: The Woods, The Desert Kingdom, Atlantica, Neverland, and more. They all looked the same, but they served different purposes.

To put simply, Aki was in law enforcement and you worked in the entertainment district.

"The Woods?" Aki questioned.

"Yes," said Makima. "Law enforcement have been finding men dead once they leave the Wonderland strip club."

He nodded. "I'll have it done."

As he left her office to head to the Wonderland strip club in The Woods, he couldn't help but worry about you. You were one of the strip club's best strippers and you were in the middle of a what would soon be a bloodbath.

Accordion owls flew by, honking out a lousy tune as they whizzed past Aki.

He watched them, wondering what sort of business venture had brought them to The Woods. The only thing that came to mind was the old saying, The Woods are full of ghosts. Aki pushed the thought away as he approached the strip club where you worked.It was far from run-down. It was newly renovated, enticing residents to sneak a peek at their high end strippers.

The place was packed with people. Tis the season, they said. It was New Year’s Eve and everyone was out to celebrate. Some were drunk, some were on drugs, and some were just looking for a good time.

Aki stopped in his tracks when he saw you working the pole. You were wearing a pair of sheer stockings that showed off your suspenders and a low-cut top that showed off your cleavage.

'This is going to be bad,' he thought to himself. "Really bad," he muttered.

Once you spotted him, you traded spots with a co-worker and made your way to the floor.

"Hey Alice," you said, wrapping your arms around his neck in a hug. "Miss me already?"

He stiffened at your embrace, his body telling you how much he missed you. He could feel your breasts press against his chest as you pressed against him. His hands itched at the sleeves of his shirt, longing to feel your skin beneath them. He snapped out of it and cleared his throat, stepping away from your embrace.

"I'm here for work purposes."

You rolled your eyes. "Obviously. There's no way you'd come for entertainment. Do what you must, then. I'm getting back to work."

He nodded, understanding your tone. He needed to concentrate, but it was hard when all sorts of drugs were floating in the air in neon colors and swirls as the air conditioning circulated it around the entire building.

The Caterpillar's drugs were the top selling drug on the market, branded as the Rainbow Worm. When mixed and on its own, it erupted into rainbow smoke.

Aki shook his head slightly and walked around the strip club warily, keeping an eye out for the Devil responsible for the murders.

Then, his eyes gravitated to you again, in the corner of the room with the dark shadows as a man felt you up.

You could handle yourself. You could turn invisible and leave this stranger behind, but you didn't. You enticed him - seduced him - and he followed after you as you walked past a wave of stringed beads above a doorframe.

Aki followed after you, pushing past the beads. The hallway was pounding with lights and dancing mushrooms. People were making out against the walls and groping each other. It was a madhouse. You turned a corner, and by the time Aki caught up, he reached a dead end.

He hated these sketchy, twisted buildings. They were full of traps and secret rooms. There was only a mirror at the end of the corner. There was a smell of musk and vanilla and something else that made his head spin. He stepped closer to the mirror and traced the mirror with his finger before fully pressing his palm against it.

His hand sunk through the mirror and he pushed against it to walk through. He was in another room, a bigger room with a larger mirror. The room was the size of a barn, but it felt claustrophobic. The walls were covered with dark red velvet and there were two large chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling. There were multiple doors that all looked identical, surrounding him.

One door was cracked open. Aki approached it quietly and reached out to open it. When he poked his head through, the light from the room flashed him.

A spinning disco ball was hanging, sparkling and glittering. Particles of light hit certain spots, then disappeared until the disco ball spun back around.

The light splashed against your face as you locked eyes with Aki. His eyes widened as he soaked in the sight of you kneeling by the man from before, covered in blood with a knife held to your throat.

The man was dead. There was no saving him.

"Y/N, what are you doing?"

"It's not her turn," you said.

The voice was you, but something was off. It wasn't your normal tone. Something about the pitch and the inflection was off.

"You're not Y/N."

"I am myself, yet not quite me. I may be false, or I may be free. I'm unique, yet just like the rest. A mirror image, but not quite the best. I'm authentic, yet not quite true. What am I?"

Aki licked his lips. "Madness."

You smiled widely, the corners of your lips stretching far and wide like your ancestor. You withdrew the knife from your throat and stabbed it in the man's body.

Madness was an affliction associated specifically with people who had the blood of Wonderlands. It was a curse passed it down through their families for centuries.

"I'm sorry," you whispered. "I can't control her."

"Y/N," Aki said softly.

He had never seen you like this before. You were usually so strong and wild, but you seemed so broken and meek now. He had never seen you look so vulnerable. He reached out to caress your cheek and you let him. Your skin was hot and soft and he could feel your tears against his skin. You were so small and fragile now.

Now that he knew who was responsible for all those murders, he couldn't just bring you into Public Safety as a criminal.

While he was loyal to the Red Queen, he would never betray you. The two of you used to sleep together in a crib before his parents died. You were best friends in middle school before drifting apart in high school, only to come back in a whirlwind of hot breaths and love bruises.

You were his other half. Madness be damned. He wasn't going to lose you again. He pulled you close and kissed you gently on the lips.

"Don't worry about it," he said. "Everything will be fine."

"How can you be sure?"

But as you looked into his eyes, you knew everything would be fine. The heavy, purple swirls that encompassed his eyes told you everything you needed to know.

"I'll take care of the bodies from now on," he said.

The smell of sweet, cloying honeysuckle filled the air after your shower. Aki took you to his apartment in Atlantica after he took care of the body. The two of you sat on the edge of his bed in a comfortable silence. He leaned in and pressed his lips to yours.

It was soft and comforting. He felt like home. It had been so long since the two of you could be this comfortable with each other again.

He pulled away from your lips and stared into your eyes. "I'll take care of you from now on."

He meant it. He would make sure you were safe. You were his life now. You were his world.

You smiled.

His smile widened and his eyes crinkled with the corners of his mouth.

"Welcome home, Y/N."

"Welcome back, Aki."

[eurovision-revisited]

2001 Copenhagen - Number 19 - Arnis Mednis - "Too Much"

I've been dying to write about this one...

The song is almost objectively awful. Lyrically, the English is poor and although not ambiguous, there's enough there to make you wonder exactly what's going on. The character that Arnis Mednis is portraying is not a nice man. Someone has described him as a 'drunk uncle at a wedding', and yes, although he's drunk, and he may be an uncle, it's the events around his own wedding he's describing. There's the strong possibility that he cheated on his wife the night before the wedding. He drags his new wife to a bar when she'd prefer a cup of tea. At least she dumps him in the end.

This version is a glow-up from the version that scraped the win in Eirodziesma 2001 by two points. That was slower-tempo affair with much more restrained vocals and a jolly accordion and a rapped section with Arnis begging to be taken back. Allegedly it's an anti-drugs song, and although he sounds coked up to the eyeballs, it's far too happy a song to be anti-anything. Apart from Arnis and his lyrics, there isn't a dark thing about Too Much at all

Arnis is great at portraying a truly obnoxious man, a terrible human being with barely a sliver of self-awareness. Troublingly I'm not sure how much of this is genuine and how much is an act - however confrontational.

He was in a band called Odis from the end of the 1980s and the early 1990s. Their first album was called Sātana Radītā (Created by Satan) and contains tracks called Black Girls and Portrait No. 2. Woman In Bathing-costume. That this album consists of lounge jazz or possibly lethargic library music might be part of an elaborate joke that I'm not getting, or it might be that there's a huge degree of delusion and misogyny going on.

And yet, here it is at number 19 in my top 26 for 2001. Why on earth would I do this to you?

Well, I like that happy little tune. I admire the backing singer in the final who truly throws herself into her new vocal line with abandon and whe there's nowhere to hide doing that live in front of 38,000 people. There's the guitar that kicks in on the choruses, the call and response, it's rough, it's dirty and it absolutely suits the song. And they got rid of the rap. Without the context of the lyrics, the song itself is an absolute blast.

Arnis the singer clearly does have some self-awareness that Arnis the character in the song is an awful person. There is parody here, even if I can't tell what level that parody is operating at. His usual output is jazz, and as this is about as far from jazz as you could possibly get. As he wrote this, it could be pastiche. I don't think it's trolling Eurovision, but I can't be 100%. That's an enticing, teasing ambiguity.

Mostly though this song is the utter antithesis of the love song. Eurovision is awash with love songs, positively bathing in attachment, passions, desire and happy hormones. It does need contrast. And here is that friction; the sand in the lubricant. It is an excellent representation of someone who is so self-obsessed and far too gone on whatever substances he's taking that his memory is destroyed and his lies fail to last even two days into a marriage. Someone you'd never want to go near once you'd get to know him.

This is a song somewhere on the spectrum between Silvia Knight's Congratulations and Hatari's Hatrið mun sigra. Plus it has an accordion, and I love accordions in Eurovision. Too Much is a song you cannot ignore.

[bookwormscififan]

He Listens

Read on AO3!

A/N: The hopeless romantic in me wanted to write a thing based on a sequence in season 3 of Bridgerton that I absolutely loved. I just think it's beautiful when someone listens to your opinion to the point of gifting you something that's perfect from that opinion.

--

Mad strolled down the street, picking at the hem of his shirt while looking through the store windows. His thoughts were interrupted by the collision of himself into someone, and he muttered apologies as he glanced up to see who he’d walked into.

“Mare,” His cheeks flushed as he looked into the amused face of the lecturer, smiling kindly as he held Mad’s shoulders to steady him. “H-Hello.”

“Hey, Mad,” Mare replied, brushing off Mad’s shoulders before stepping back, pointing a thumb behind him with a crooked smile. “How do you like the music?” Tucked under one arm was a satchel, treated leather with a gold clasp, the same one Mad had bought him as a joke gift years ago.

Mad tilted his head in confusion before he registered the busker playing an accordion down the street, out of tune and too fast for Mad to properly process. Biting his lip, Mad turned his attention back to Mare, taking a deep breath before answering.

“The tempo isn’t right. They’re playing too fast for anyone to appreciate the music, and the tune isn’t right. For that instrument, the song should be played in a B Major scale, but the musician is playing it in C. There isn’t enough time for the tune to surround you before they’re on to the next bar.” His flush darkened when he realised he’d been rambling, turning away from Mare as he scratched the back of his neck.

“Interesting. I have to go,” Mare stated, touching Mad’s shoulder lightly before walking away, leaving Mad to marinate in embarrassment before deciding to walk home.

----

“Wait, tell me again. Mare just… left?” Jackie asked around a mouthful of his sandwich, popping up behind the couch Mad had flopped onto. “Like, no proper goodbye or anything?”

“He touched my shoulder,” Mad mumbled, looking at Jackie with an expression that could only be described as ‘pitiful’. “Said he had to go, and I just… let him.” Grabbing a cushion, he pressed it over his face before screaming into it, sounding utterly broken.

“Maybe he was running late,” Jackie suggested, leaping over the back of the couch to sit at Mad’s feet, laying a reassuring hand on his ankle. “He’s a teacher, right? He probably had a class or something. I’m sure he’ll call you soon.”

“Doubt it,” Mad shot down, lowering the cushion. “I went on a tangent. Not the short types that you tell me aren’t bad, but one of those where I point out all the issues with something. He’s not going to talk to me ever again. Idiot,” he finished with a smack to his forehead, groaning at the pain that registered.

“Alright,” Jackie patted Mad’s ankle before effortlessly turning him so they were sitting face-to-face. “Give it until the end of the week. If Mare doesn’t speak to you by then, I’ll watch those space documentaries you’ve been asking to watch. If he talks to you, you don’t get to feel bad about yourself for a month.”

----

As Mad’s luck would have it, Jackie won the deal. Mare knocked on the door of his and Jackie’s shared apartment at the end of the week, bright yet apologetic smiles and holding a violin case. Mad let him in with a furrowed brow, offering him a coffee before sitting in the seat opposite him.

“I’m sorry I rushed off the other day,” Mare began, carefully taking the violin out of its case. “After what you’d said, I wanted to make sure I did this right, and I couldn’t risk forgetting a single thing you’d pointed out.” Standing, Mare set the violin on his shoulder, giving Mad a gentle smile before beginning to play.

At first, Mad was confused, but then he began to recognise the tune, and his cheeks flushed. Every detail Mad had pointed out, every flaw in the busker’s performance, Mare had rectified and was now performing for him. Mad closed his eyes, letting the music wash over him as Mare continued to play.

It took a few moments after Mare had finished for Mad to open his eyes, looking at Mare with a dazed expression. Blinking slowly, he watched Mare pack the instrument away, startling when he sat beside Mad.

“You… played the song… exactly how I’d described it.” At a loss for words, Mad just stared at Mare, opening and closing his mouth like a fish. “Why?”

“Because you wanted to hear it played right,” Mare answered softly, “Because I wanted to see your face as you listen to the song played properly. I like watching you truly enjoy something.” He moved slowly, setting a hand on Mad’s knee before shifting closer, looking into Mad’s whiskey-gold eyes with a smile.

“I-I thought you were annoyed,” Mad mumbled, brushing his fingers over Mare’s hand on his knee, breath catching when Mare turned his hand to hold his. “People always get annoyed when I tell them things like that.”

“Mad,” Mare began, holding Mad’s hand tightly. “I’ll never be annoyed with you. I think you’re amazing. The greatest person I’ve ever known. I’m in love with you, I thought you knew that.” His teasing smile faded when he saw Mad’s eyes widen, moving to release his hand before Mad held tighter.

“Say that again.”

“I-I love you, Mad. I think I’ve always been in love with you,” Mare whispered, leaning forward as Mad’s lips parted slightly. “I use that satchel you bought me because it makes me feel like I’ve got you with me all the time. You’re perfect to me.”

The second Mad’s eyes darted down to Mare’s lips, he was being kissed, heart pounding in his chest as Mare’s lips pressed against his. Closing his eyes, he let Mare control the kiss, melting against him as his chest filled with warmth.

“Oh, good, you’re finally together. I was waiting for you to finally kiss. Mare, is there any way you can get Phantom to come over?” Jackie asked as he passed the living room, laughing when Mare threw a cushion at him before walking away.

--------------------

@iamvegorott @brokentimewatch @rattyboyisemo @dungeon-dragons-dragons

[this-is-moony-lovegood]

Seven Sentence Sunday

Here is a sneak peek at my Buck on the Bachelorette Fic that I started working on. Comment, reblog/tag, or send me an ask to give me some motivation to finish it! Thanks!

...

Now, it’s Week 5 of Buck being gone, but ABC has decided to start airing the episodes earlier this season in the hopes of fitting in some extra seasons of the show this year. Since Buck is not back, he knows that he’s still off at Bachelor Mansion - or some mystery destination - falling madly in love. So, he gets to sit here all night and watch it happen before his very eyes.

Hen, Chim, and Ravi made popcorn, and are eagerly chatting about the contestants that keep showing up. They cackle each time a new one tries a crazy first impression like wearing a frog costume, or playing a love song on an accordion, or professing their love through the world’s most poorly written haiku. They’ve already got bets going on how far these guys will make it, and how they think Buck will try to top them.

Eddie - and everyone else - watches carefully as Buck exits the limo, dressed in a perfectly tailored navy blue suit, with a pale blue tie that makes Buck’s eyes shine like the crystals on Emma’s dress that just so happen to match the color of his eyes. Eddie can’t help but think he looks absolutely beautiful, especially when he beams one of his signature Buck smiles right at her. She’s blushing before he even makes it to her. How could she not? Eddie doesn’t know how he’s going to be able to take weeks of seeing him look so damn perfect on his screen.

To Hen and Chim’s surprise, he doesn’t do anything, too crazy when her meets her. Instead, he tells her a fun fact about the aquamarine color of her dress.

“Did you know that the color of your dress is aquamarine? As a gemstone, aquamarines have been referred to as “magic mirrors” and have been used by fortune tellers to predict the future.”

“Oh really, now?” Emma says, a smirk gracing her lips. “And what future do you predict for me?”

“I predict that by the end of this, you’ll fall hopelessly in love.”

“That’s it?” She giggles, “Nothing about me falling hopelessly in love with you?”

“In my experience, falling in love is unpredictable. I can’t tell you for certain that you’re going to fall in love with me.” Buck tells her, before taking her hand in his. Eddie already feels the heat of jealousy bubbling up inside him at the simplest touch. “However, I can assure you that as long as I’m here, I’m going to try and give you reasons to. That way, if you do tell me that you love me then I will have earned it.” He finishes with a kiss to her knuckles, and the bows out and heads towards the mansion.

“Damn, Buck.” Chim says, restarting the conversation amongst the crowd of onlookers. Hen and Ravi pipe in about Buck’s pickup skills and bring up his Buck 1.0 days. Eddie tunes them out. 

As the night continues he begs for a call, literally any call to break them away from the damn TV yet there’s not a single one. At the end of the night when Emma hands out the first impression rose to Buck, everyone but Eddie cheers. Yet, Eddie walks off towards the bunk room and tries to tune them out. He can’t bare to hear them talking about it anymore tonight, or watch the promo of he’s sure is going to be shirtless contestants in some random game to impress their star.

Instead, he lies down and tries to get some sleep and hopefully dream about anything other than Bachelor Mansion.