#i mixed together some scenes or made two scenes in a single one for example...

[maraa755]

Ch. 16, Day of Confrontation

'My Marauders' Masterlist General Masterlist Read On Wattpad - Here!

Pairings: J.P., R.L., S.B. x OC Warnings: N/A Word Count: 5.5k

As Calliope stormed out of the Great Hall, anger surged through her veins. Usually, her hurt began as sadness, a slow and sorrowful ache, but this was different—this was a searing rage that consumed her entirely.

She had realized that she and Sirius weren't dating, and they hadn't even shared a real kiss, but that single moment had felt intimate—too intimate, especially for Sirius Black. It wasn't just the proximity or the touch; it was the vulnerability, the raw connection that had sparked between them in that brief, electric instant. It had meant something to her, and she had foolishly allowed herself to believe it might have meant something to him too.

It hurt how that moment no longer felt like theirs. It was now tainted and exposed.

Bianca trailed after her, her shorter legs working hard to keep up with Calliope's long strides. Cal had no idea where her legs were taking her, but she knew she had to get out. Staying in the Great Hall, where Sirius was exposing their private moment, felt unbearable.

She had no doubt that the boys, or God forbid the whole Gryffindor table, knew about their moment together. It made her stomach churn with a mix of anger and humiliation. Calliope quickened her pace, the desire to distance herself from the scene of her betrayal overpowering every other thought.

"Calliope!" Bianca called out, her voice tinged with urgency as she realized the girl in front of her had quickened her pace. "Please, wait up!"

Calliope glanced over her shoulder at the sound of her name. She saw Bianca, panting slightly as she tried to catch up. Slowing her pace, Calliope eventually came to a stop, allowing Bianca to reach her.

"Sorry, Bee, I didn't realize you followed," Her tone was sharp. To an onlooker, it would have seemed as though Calliope was yelling at a poor first-year, "Alright?"

Bianca nodded, taking a moment to catch her breath, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Bianca," Calliope said, her voice tight as she bit down on her lip, trying to keep her emotions in check. She cast a quick glance at her friend, attempting not to let her frustration boil over into anger directed at Bianca.

Bianca, now with her breath returning to normal, gazed at Calliope with a look of genuine concern. Her shoulders, which had been tense from trying to keep up, relaxed slightly. Her eyes, wide and searching, never left Calliope's face.

"You don't have to lie, y'know?" Bianca presses her lips into a fine line, "I witnessed the whole– uhm– thing with my own two eyes."

Calliope's gaze flickered to the ground, her fingers fidgeting with the edge of her sleeve. She let out a shaky breath, her shoulders drooping slightly.

"Bianca, you are too young to worry about foolish topics like this," Calliope says, her gaze fixed on the floor, she clasps her hands tightly in front of her, her knuckles white with tension. As she speaks, she shifts her weight from one foot to the other. "Besides, I met you today and invited you to join us with the hopes of showing you what good it can do to have a community beside you... this certainly is not the example I need you to hear about." Her voice wavers slightly, betraying her effort to stay composed.

Bianca's eyes softened. She took a step closer to Calliope, her hand reaching out in a gesture of comfort, "I think I can handle some ordinary drama–"

"Listen, let's catch up in the common room later tonight, alright?" Calliope's voice was firmer than she meant it to be, her frustration slipping through. She turned slightly away, her posture rigid as she prepared to resume her walk through the silent halls of Hogwarts. "I appreciate that you want to help, but I really need some space right now. Please, go finish your lunch."

Bianca hesitated, her gaze lingering on Calliope's tense form. She opened her mouth to protest but caught a slight quiver in Calliope's lip. With a reluctant nod, she backed away, "Alright, Calliope."

Without another word, Bianca turned on her heels and walked away, her small form gradually disappearing around the corner. Calliope's chest tightened with a deep, unsettling ache. She wasn't sure if the source of her discomfort was the sting of Sirius's actions or the guilt of having pushed away Bianca, who had only tried to offer support. Maybe it was a combination of both, leaving her feeling more isolated and conflicted than ever before.

Something within her wished she had instructed Bianca to gather Cassandra and bring her to her. Cassandra would know what to do. Unfortunately, Calliope knew she was not brave enough to stomp back into the Great Hall after what had transpired.

Calliope lingered in the dimly lit corridor, her breaths coming out in small, uneven puffs as she tried to steady herself. The chill of the stone against her back was a stark contrast to the searing emotions roiling within her.

With a final, shuddering breath, she pushed herself away from the wall and allowed her legs to carry her, step by step, without any particular destination in mind.

After a few minutes of aimless wandering, Calliope found herself at the entrance to a corridor where raised voices and shouting echoed off the stone walls. It was clear that only two people were involved in the argument—one male and one female.

Had she been more alert and less in her head, Calliope might have recognized the voices immediately. She remained hidden in the adjacent hallway, her heart pounding as she tried to avoid drawing attention to herself. She stood still, pressing her back against the cold wall, and listened, her curiosity piqued.

Unfortunately for Calliope, the argument had abruptly ceased. Driven by an overpowering curiosity, she cautiously peeked around the corner to see what was happening. To her dismay, she saw the very people she had been avoiding: Sirius, Remus, James, and Peter... and, surprisingly, Cassandra standing among them. The air was thick with tension, and the group appeared to be in the middle of an intense discussion.

Cassandra and Sirius were shooting daggers in each other's directions, both practically in the same pose, arms crossed while they leaned against the wall.

Her breath hitched, and her heart felt weak as it pounded in her chest. Before any of them could notice her, she quickly pulled back. If only she wasn't so caught up in her own thoughts, she might have realized the voices belonged to her own friends.

She had a lot of questions: Why was Cassandra with them again? Why did Sirius look so angry? Why did Cassandra look so angry? Did Cassandra somehow hear about the whole situation concerning Sirius? Why were they shouting at each other?

Before Calliope could process her thoughts any further, she spun on her heel and briskly walked away from the corridor. Her steps were quick and deliberate, each one echoing her decision to avoid the confrontation. She had wished she could march over there and confront Sirius, but she couldn't bring herself to even attempt to.

As Calliope hurried down the corridor, the distant conversation faded behind her, leaving only the sound of her own footsteps reverberating in the stone hallways. She took a few wrong turns in her haste, but her body seemed to instinctively navigate her towards a quieter part of the castle. The astronomy tower.

She was confident that the Astronomy Tower would be deserted for now, as most of Hogwarts' inhabitants were occupied with lunch in the Great Hall. Additionally, the Astronomy classes were scheduled only for the night, so there was little chance of anyone being there during the day. This was an ideal place for her to attempt to collect her thoughts.

She scaled the stairs, the winding staircase felt unusually long under her anxious pace, each step echoing her restless thoughts. As she reached the top, she pushed open the heavy wooden door with a quiet creak.

As Calliope stepped into the Astronomy Tower, she was greeted by a refreshing cool breeze that swept through the space. The wooden floorboards creaked softly under her weight as she made her way to the railing.

She leaned on it, looking over the view of Hogwarts. The breeze, now more pronounced, brushed against her face and fluttered her hair. She sighed, taking in the beautiful view below her.

The water below shimmered in a beautiful shade of blue, the sunlight dancing across its surface. The mountains beyond, their rugged peaks crowned with patches of grass and stone, loomed majestically in the distance. The breathtaking view left Calliope momentarily stunned, the grandeur of the landscape offering a brief escape from her swirling thoughts.

Her brief moment of tranquility was interrupted when the wooden door creaked open behind her, followed by the sound of footsteps echoing softly across the tower. Calliope froze, her gaze still fixed on the water below, hoping that if she remained still and unnoticeable, the intruder might turn away and leave her in peace. The footsteps drew closer, and she held her breath, her heart pounding as she braced herself for whoever might appear.

The footsteps grew louder until they came to a halt just behind her. Calliope's heart skipped a beat as she slowly turned her head to find Regulus Black standing just behind her.

As Calliope glanced at Regulus, the resemblance to Sirius was striking. For a fleeting moment, she almost convinced herself that Sirius had followed her up to the tower. But then she noticed the shimmering green robe, the neatly combed hair, and the more delicate features of Regulus Black. Her heart, which had previously pounded deeply in her chest, began to calm, granting her a momentary sense of peace.

"Regulus," she greeted, trying to keep her voice steady despite the small tremor that betrayed her nerves. Her throat felt tight, but she hoped her attempt at composure was convincing enough.

He stared at her for a moment, his expression unreadable, as if weighing whether or not to speak. After a brief pause, he finally broke the silence with a low, brooding voice. "Calliope."

A moment of silence enveloped them as Regulus moved to the railing, mirroring Calliope's stance with his hands resting on the cold railing. He kept a distance between them, but it was nothing Calliope didn't expect.

The quiet stretched between them, and Calliope found herself oddly comforted by it. If he chose to stay silent, she was more than willing to return the favor and let the silence stretch on.

"I apologize, I didn't realize anyone was up here," Regulus broke the silence, a politeness in his tone and mannerisms reminded her of Sirius before he broke out of his shell.

Calliope glanced at Regulus, her expression softening slightly despite her inner turmoil. She took a deep breath, trying to steady her voice. "No need to apologize," she replied, her tone gentler than before. "I was just taking a moment for myself."

Regulus nodded, his gaze still fixed on the distant horizon. "It's a nice place to find some peace," he observed.

The two stood in silence for a while longer, the occasional creak of the wooden floor beneath them the only sound breaking the stillness. Calliope had begun to assume that the brief exchange was all that would be said, prepared for the conversation to end as abruptly as it had started.

She knew all too well the prejudiced attitudes that Regulus and his family harbored towards Muggle-borns and those of 'impure blood'. Her interactions with people such as them were usually fraught with tension, and she had expected this encounter to be no different.

The sting of being judged solely on her parents' status and their lineage was a constant ache for Calliope. The hurt was deep and personal, a reminder of how cruel and unfounded prejudices could be. Yet, amidst her current anger, there was a flicker of gratitude that shone through. She was thankful that Sirius had managed to escape the narrow-minded prejudices that had so tightly bound his family for generations.

Calliope had hoped Regulus could find a path similar to Sirius's– in the way that he abandoned his family's beliefs.

"I can leave if you would like a moment alone, Calliope." The respect in Regulus's voice surprised her. It wasn't that Regulus wasn't respectful—in their few interactions, she hadn't found him to be rude—but Sirius had always painted a different picture of his brother.

Calliope couldn't help but wonder if Sirius was judging Regulus based on their family's values. Maybe Regulus was different, at least behind closed doors.

"Oh, that isn't necessary—" Calliope began to deny his offer before he interjected, "Really, it isn't a problem. I only came here because Barty and Evan were being utter—" He stopped himself, clearing his throat. "I just needed a moment of peace from their childish antics."

"Please, stay," Calliope nodded politely, gesturing to the railing that was holding both of their weights, "I'm friends with your brother and all of them, I know when someone needs a break from... that."

A small laugh rose from Regulus's throat before silence settled between them once again. He looked out at the lake, his polite smile fading into a frown. "How is he?"

A puzzled hum escaped Calliope as she pieced together who he meant. "Sirius is doing well... You know, he misses you, Regulus."

Regulus's gaze remained fixed on the lake, and he sighed softly. "I see."

There was a brief, awkward pause. Calliope shifted her weight, unsure of what to say next. She could feel the silence stretching between them, laden with unspoken thoughts.

Calliope fidgeted with the edge of her sleeve, trying to fill the silence. "It's been a while since you two spoke, hasn't it?"

A deep sigh left Regulus's lips, his eyes still focused on the water below them, "Yes." He simply responded.

Calliope hesitated before continuing, "I'm in no place to suggest this, considering the complexity of it all, but I know Sirius would be overjoyed if you decided to send him an owl or something."

Regulus glanced at her, the corners of his mouth twitching in a faint, hesitant smile. "...I'll consider it."

Calliope nodded, silently hoping Regulus would pick up on her unease and steer the conversation away from family matters. She felt uncomfortable discussing Sirius or the Black family dynamics, as it was beyond her place to comment on such personal issues.

After a moment, Regulus removed his ring-clad fingers from the railing, turning to look at Calliope. "I must be on my way," he said, his tone polite but final.

She gave him a polite goodbye and waved in his direction. As she watched his retreating form, a smile touched her lips.

Just as his hand touched the cold metal of the doorknob, it flung open harshly.

Sirius came tumbling in, his posture rigid as he held up his wand. "Regulus!" he shouted, pointing his wand directly at his younger brother. Regulus's eyes widened as he quickly raised his own wand, prepared to defend himself against whatever Sirius was planning.

Sirius took a few determined steps towards Regulus, his wand never wavering. Regulus instinctively backed up, matching each of Sirius's steps until his back was pressed against the railing. With Sirius now inches away, he pressed his wand to Regulus's throat, his grip tense and unyielding.

Regulus mirrored Sirius's movements, pressing his own wand against his brother's neck. He might not have known the full extent of the situation, but he was not about to let Sirius dominate him without resistance.

Calliope looked at the two brothers, shock evident on her face. She didn't know what was happening; everything had escalated so quickly. "Sirius!" she shouted, but it was as if he didn't hear her, her voice drowned out by the intensity of the moment. Her cry of alarm did nothing to break his focus.

A loud, rhythmic pounding on the stairs caught Calliope's attention, but it seemed to have no effect on the Black brothers. They remained locked in their intense standoff, their wands pressed firmly against each other's necks, their eyes locked in a fierce glare.

Calliope desperately hoped it was a professor coming to their aid. However, her hope quickly vanished as she recognized the familiar figures of Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin, and James Potter entering the room quickly. Realization dawned on her: they must have used their precious Marauder's Map to track her down.

"Sirius!" Remus shouted, his voice mirroring Calliope's earlier shout. He briefly ignored her to focus on the tense standoff, but gave James a quick nod in her direction, signaling him to check on her while he dealt with the volatile situation.

James and Peter hurried over to Calliope. "Cal!" James said urgently, his eyes scanning her for signs of injury. "Are you hurt? Did he do anything to you?"

"What the fuck? No!" Calliope yelled, now attracting the attention of Sirius.

"What?" Sirius asked, looking at Calliope with a puzzled expression, "You're not hurt?"

Seizing the opportunity while Sirius was distracted, his gaze fixed on Calliope as he checked her for injuries, Regulus acted decisively. With a determined flick of his wand, he cast, "Depulso!" The spell erupted in a brilliant blue light, sending a shimmering mist toward Sirius.

The force of the spell hurled Sirius against the stone wall opposite them. He collided heavily with the rough surface, his back striking the stone with a resounding thud. The impact drove him to his knees, and he groaned in pain, his breath escaping in a pained gasp.

"No!" Calliope shouted, her voice sharp with fear as she watched Sirius crumple against the wall. She tried to pry James's grip off her arm, but he held her firmly, his eyes full of concern.

"Cal, stay back!" James urged, his tone brooking no argument.

Calliope struggled against James's firm grip, but quickly realized the futility of her efforts. His strength far surpassed hers, and she knew she wouldn't be able to break free. With a resigned sigh, she stopped her struggles, her mind racing as she began to plan her next move.

Peter hurried to Sirius's side, his face etched with concern as he helped Sirius to his feet. Sirius's breaths came in sharp, ragged gasps, and his coughing indicated that the impact had knocked the wind out of him. Peter did his best to support him, his eyes flicking anxiously between Sirius and Regulus.

Regulus leaned against the railing, his initial shock quickly masking into his usual casual demeanor. His wand remained tightly clutched in his hand. Although he didn't outwardly show remorse, it was evident he was grappling with the gravity of his actions.

Remus blocked the doorway, making it clear that Regulus had no way out. He stood tall, his gaze fixed on Regulus. The tension in the room was palpable as Calliope watched, the standoff between the two brothers escalating.

Sirius stood on his feet, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "Regulus," he said, his voice dripping with a mix of mockery and disdain.

Regulus's grip on his wand tightened at the sound of Sirius's voice. His eyes flickered with irritation. "Sirius," he replied coldly, his tone matching the bitterness in the room.

Sirius scoffs, his expression turning hard. "This will make a nice addition to your weekly letter to mother and father, won't it?" He taunted, a cold edge to his voice.

"Sirius, be quiet," Remus said, his voice stern as he spoke, not wanting the situation to escalate any further.

"Oh, quiet yourself, Remus!" Sirius shouts back, his wand aimed at his brother.

Regulus's eyes narrowed, his stance growing more defensive as Sirius's wand remained trained on him. "I'm not here to play games, Sirius," Regulus said, his voice steady despite the tension. "If you think you can provoke me, you're mistaken."

Sirius's smirk vanished, replaced by a concentrated gaze. "I'm not here to provoke you, Reggie. I'm merely stating a fact. You've always been so desperate to win their approval, haven't you?"

"Don't talk about me like you actually know who I am," Regulus shot back, his voice steady but intense. "You haven't had a clue since you walked out, you coward."

Sirius's face hardened, and he brandished his wand, his voice rising with frustration. "I tried to take you with me! But you chose to stay with them! You wanted to appease our father, don't you remember?"

Regulus's eyes narrowed, his grip on his wand tightening. "I stayed because I wanted to find my own path, not just follow yours. You left a mess, Sirius, and I had to deal with it."

Sirius's jaw clenched, the anger evident in his eyes. "I left to get away from their expectations, from their cruelty. I didn't leave you behind to be their puppet."

James, still holding Calliope back, glanced at Remus, who kept his eyes fixed on Regulus. The situation was spiraling, and it was clear that any moment could bring another clash. Calliope tried to shimmy out of James's hold, but he wouldn't allow it, he kept his arm tight across her shoulders.

"You are a coward!" Regulus shouted.

Sirius's nostrils flared, his face contorting into a light frown, "Levioso!" He shouted.

The spell erupted from his wand in a shimmering burst of light. Regulus's feet lifted off the ground as if an invisible force had seized him, his body floating upward. His wand slipped from his grasp, clattering to the floor with a sharp, wooden sound. Regulus's mouth fell open in shock, his eyes wide with disbelief as he hovered a few feet above the ground. The sudden levitation left him momentarily suspended in mid-air, his body swaying slightly as he struggled to regain his composure.

Regulus's expression shifted from shock to anger as he floated helplessly, his body twisting awkwardly in the air. He glared down at Sirius, who stood with a look of grim determination.

"Let him go!" Calliope shouted from her position in James's hold.

Sirius's gaze flickered between Calliope and Regulus. "Did he hurt you, Calliope?" he demanded, his voice laced with desperation.

"Stop!" Calliope shouted again, trying to cut through the chaos.

"Tell me!" Sirius's voice rose in intensity, his eyes locked onto hers. "Did he hurt you?"

As Sirius reluctantly turned his attention back to Regulus, Calliope quietly slipped her wand from the pocket of her robe. She held it close against her body, her movements deliberate and cautious. Her fingers trembled slightly, but she kept her expression calm, ready to act if the situation escalated further.

Calliope's eyes were wide with panic as she struggled to be heard over the commotion. "Sirius, stop! Just let him down!"

Peter shifted uneasily, glancing between the brothers and the tumultuous scene, while Remus maintained his stance, his eyes fixed on Regulus but his expression softening slightly in response to Calliope's plea.

"You want him down?" He asked, his eyes darkening, staring at her while his wand was pointed at Regulus, "Fine."

Sirius had barely begun to shout, "Descendo—" when Calliope's voice rang out, sharp and clear, "Expelliarmus!" A burst of red light shot from her wand, striking Sirius's hand. His wand flew from his grasp, spinning through the air before clattering to the floor several feet away.

Regulus landed on the ground with a thud, far less intense than he would have if Sirius were to cast descendo.

"That is enough!" Calliope's voice rang out, commanding and fierce. The shock of her outburst rippled through the room, causing James to drop his hands to his sides, releasing his grip on her.

Sirius, momentarily stunned, took a step back. His eyes darted between Calliope, now standing defiantly with her wand out, and Regulus, who was slowly getting to his feet.

James, Peter, and Remus were equally as stunned, but none of them dared to say a word.

"Regulus," Calliope said gently, her voice steady and calm. "I'm sorry for everything. You can go now if you'd like."

Regulus, his expression unreadable, gave a curt nod. He bent down to pick up his fallen wand, pausing for a moment as if to say something but thought better of it. With a final glance at Sirius, he turned and swiftly left the room, his footsteps echoing down the hallway.

"Are you hurt–"

"No! No, I am not bloody hurt!" Calliope yelled at the boys, her voice trembling with anger. "I told you, I am not hurt!"

Sirius's face tightened, his eyes flashing with a mix of anger and desperation. "Calliope, I did this to make sure you were safe! You know my family's beliefs—they despise Muggles! I was trying to protect you from him!" he said, his voice firm but strained.

Calliope's eyes filled with tears, her frustration boiling over. "You hurt me. Not Regulus, you!"

"I never meant to–"

"Save it. There was no need for you to go around announcing that in front of everyone! And for what? To embarrass me? I don't understand you, Sirius Black!" Calliope's voice was sharp, as she glared at him. She knew he could see the tears forming in her eyes.

Sirius opened his mouth to respond, but the words faltered as he saw the tears welling up in Calliope's eyes. His face softened slightly.

"Calliope," he started, his voice more controlled but still edged with frustration, "I didn't mean to embarrass you. I just—"

"Just what?" Calliope scoffed, her voice dripping with disdain. "Wanted to brag? Wanted to let the boys know? Wanted to let the whole bloody Gryffindor table know?"

Sirius took a step closer, "I didn't realize that you would feel that way."

"Didn't realize I would 'feel' like what?" Calliope snapped, her voice cutting through the tension. "Humiliated? Used?"

Sirius opened his mouth to reply, but the words seemed to stick in his throat.

"And then, after making me feel that way, you come marching up here and pick a fight with the only person all day who's shown me any respect?" Calliope's voice was laced with bitterness. "What did you think would happen?"

"I'm sorry. I really thought he would hurt you, I'm sorry." Sirius said, his voice dropping down deeper. "I didn't mean to make things worse. I just wanted to protect you."

"I don't need protection," Calliope said, tucking her wand back into her robe pocket. "Especially not from you! Did you really think attempting to 'protect' me would make me accept whatever pitiful apology you're offering?"

Sirius ran a hand through his hair, "No, I didn't think that! I just wanted to keep you safe, truly. Believe me, please."

Calliope stayed quiet, her eyes shifting to the boys around her, "What were you three thinking letting him come up here?"

James adjusted his glasses, his expression earnest. "Cal, you know there was no stopping him once he made up his mind. He was determined to come here, and we were trying to keep you safe in our own way."

"Merlin," Calliope laughed bitterly. She should have appreciated the gesture, but she couldn't muster the effort. Sirius had hurt her today, and he had hurt Regulus as well. If only he had seen the respect Regulus had shown her in their conversation earlier.

"We're sorry, Cal," Peter said, his eyebrows furrowing in genuine remorse.

"Everyone, just stop apologizing to me," Calliope demanded, her tone pointed. "I don't want apologies right now. I want to know the truth."

"The truth?" Remus asked, his face contorted in confusion.

"Yes," she confirmed, turning her gaze to Sirius. "Why did you tell the boys? Why did you embarrass me like that?" Her lips curved downward slightly as she glared at him with a penetrating stare.

"It's because," Sirius glanced briefly at Remus, who shook his head with a pleading look in his eyes, "Gideon Prewett has a massive crush on you, Calliope." He lied.

Calliope laughed, a harsh edge to the sound. "Do you take me for a fool?"

Sirius's face reddened slightly, but he maintained his stance, "I would never."

"Peter," Calliope said, her voice firm yet tired as she beckoned him closer. "Assuming you know, tell me the truth."

Peter's face flushed crimson, and his palms grew clammy. He glanced nervously at Sirius and the others before meeting Calliope's steady gaze.

"I—uh, I don't know if it's my place to—" he stammered, his voice trailing off. The bravery he had previously displayed, completely dissipated.

"Peter," Calliope pressed, her tone leaving no room for evasion, "Just tell me what you know."

Peter took a deep breath, his gaze dropping to the floor. "Gideon...Gideon Prewett fancies you."

"Okay," Calliope said, her voice steady but insistent, "so why did Sirius react the way he did?"

Peter shifted uncomfortably, clearly struggling with how to proceed. "Sirius," he began cautiously, "Sirius has noticed the looks Gideon gives you. He's uncomfortable with it– Remus and James too."

Sirius, James, and Remus exchanged stunned looks, their eyes widening as the room fell into a heavy silence. They were surprised not just by Peter's admission but also by how well he managed to stay composed. Even in their shock, there was a flicker of reluctant respect for Peter's ability to lie in this situation.

Calliope's expression hardened as she absorbed the new information. "So, instead of talking to me directly or handling it maturely, Sirius decided to make a spectacle out of it?" Her voice was sharp, cutting through the awkward silence.

Sirius opened his mouth to respond, but the words seemed to falter as he met Calliope's intense gaze.

"I don't need you guys meddling in my love life!" Calliope said sternly.

"You have a love life?" Remus asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

"No, Remus, I don't," Calliope huffed, her frustration clear. "And do you know why? Because of you three!" She turned her gaze sharply toward James, Sirius, and Remus. "Every time I start to build something with someone, you all manage to wreck it! I can't understand why this keeps happening. You've all had your own relationships at some point and I've been nothing but supportive. It's not fair that I'm denied the same happiness."

"Merlin, I didn't realize you wanted Gideon so badly," Sirius rolled his eyes, his jaw clenching slightly.

Calliope took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. "This isn't about Gideon! This is about you all interfering in my life and then acting like you're doing me a favor. It's exhausting, and frankly, it's hurtful."

The three boys exchanged uneasy glances, the realization hitting them all at once. They knew exactly what Calliope was referring to. They had each, in their own ways, interfered with her romantic interests—sometimes intentionally, sometimes not.

Were they truly remorseful? No. They didn't mind being selfish, even when they couldn't have her.

"It was never intentional," James said, trying to smooth things over.

Calliope's scoff cut through the air. "Yes, it was."

James hesitated, his gaze dropping to the floor. "Okay, yes, it was," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck.

Remus subtly hit James with the back of his hand, a silent reprimand for his lack of tact. He then turned to Calliope, his expression more earnest. "We were being selfish." He licked his lips, thinking of his next words, "We didn't want to have to share you with another man, we apologize."

Calliope's heart softened at Remus's words, the sincerity in his voice breaking through her frustration. "This is quite ludicrous," she said, her voice tinged with exasperation. "If we'd just had a straightforward conversation from the beginning, none of this would have escalated!"

James cleared his throat, his tone sincere. "You're right. We should have been upfront with you from the start. It wasn't fair of us." Remus nodded his head, agreeing with James.

Sirius, who had been oddly quiet until now, added softly, "Very sorry, Calliope."

"I don't want your apologies," Calliope said, her voice firm. "I just want you to know that I am extremely disappointed in you three." She shook her head.

Sirius frowned, his confusion evident. "Why not Peter too?"

"Peter has never gone out of his way to destroy my friendships," Calliope replied.

Peter, feeling the weight of the conversation, mumbled, "Yeah, because I'm not in the pact." The boys' eyes widened in shock, and Peter quickly clasped a hand over his mouth, realizing his mistake.

"The pact?" Calliope's voice was sharp, her curiosity piqued. "Excuse me, what is the pact?"

The room fell silent as the boys exchanged panicked glances. Sirius opened his mouth to speak but hesitated, unsure of how to explain without revealing too much.

"Oh, look at the time!" James exclaimed, glancing dramatically at the clock on the wall. "Isn't it just about time for your Transfiguration class in, what, five minutes? Time really does fly! You'd better hurry and get down there!" His voice was overly animated, clearly forced in an attempt to deflect from the conversation at hand.

"Ah, yes! Transfiguration, how thrilling!" Sirius chimed in, mimicking the same exaggerated tone.

Calliope raised an eyebrow, clearly bewildered. "What the hell is going on?"

"Better get down there!" James said with a broad, insincere smile.

She turned to Remus, who was standing beside her with a bemused expression. "Remus? What are they doing?"

"No clue," Remus replied with a shrug, trying to stifle a grin. "But it sounds like you might want to get to Transfiguration before you're late."

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[yuseirra]

Hello, I just wanted to tell you that your work had inspired me to make my own animatics (the first "proper" one is almost ready!), and your art style was the primary influence for my storyboarding. I still remember the first time I watched one of the animatics of yours, and was absolutely blown away by it. Fast forward a year, and I am making my own fan art for another niche, indie game. So, I wanted to thank you personally, and I hope I can share what I did with that inspiration!

I still recall when I first started really imagining animation as it relates to characters in a setting and plot. The animatic of yours is like a knitted blanket, all of the characters go together despite the colour scheme being very different. I was memerized by the coordination - it was like a dance, almost!

So, I started wondering about other games I played, and I thought "Maybe I can try something like that too". It wasn't easy, I suck at art, but I learnt quite a lot. For example, how to blend two different scenes with different rooms in a fluid manner. Or how to protray a character with only a few sketches, as I cannot make every frame colourful.

I deeply recall going back to the"Road Less Taken" video, as well as so many others, and slowing down the speed to 0.5, so I could see every single frame slowly, and trying to figure out how to add movements that won't be too "noisy". In that time, I tried experimenting with art styles, and sort of mixed up a lot of brushes together.

One particular moment was when I tried to make a "dramatic" moment in my badly drawn sketch. I remember seeing that you would take a black and white frame, and then, the next frame would be the same thing but in colour. I thought it was so cool! So, I tried it.

It didn't work out as I hoped (my colouring was messy and poor). The technique I am currently using is by using a black and white sketch, and then the same frame with 3 colours. But I learnt that I could adjust the layers with filters, until the lightening had enough contrast. This way, it would seem "dramatic".

Sorry, that was super long of an ask. My first proper animatic won't be good, but that is another learning experience! If I have the courage, I may post it on Tumblr. Honestly, I really am glad I stumbled upon your videos, else I would not have done all of that drawing and creativity.

So, thank you for everything!

I came across this message first thing in the morning and it's made me have so many different feelings.. before I say anything further, I'd like to tell you that I feel this message is wonderful! I'm glad to have you had stumbled upon my videos, too.

Ah, my Road Less Taken fanvideo.. and my other videos too. Being reminded of it really hurts me because I loved everything I put into it, I put in a lot of passion, I put in a lot of love, I bought the artbook, played the game it was based on and went through to do a full analysis, went back and forth through the plot, I just couldn't bear upholding it though, I just couldn't. I'm sad it turned out to be the way it is now since I was really sure I did a great job with it with the skills I had, and I love what I did with it, but I don't regret having it taken down. It took me some time to muster the courage to do it, and I feel lucky that people were very accepting about it too. ^^ It existed and it was able to give a lot of people fun as it did for me, and I'm very happy that was the case. I know that work of mine was really loved, and I'm glad I could create something that could do something like that. I hope I can do that again and I'd probably have a chance to, since I have a life ahead of me.

Enough about me and let's talk about you and your message! Aaaah wow, this is really incredible! Have you seen my channel though? My early videos (and I may still would draw that way) aren't so colorful and proper you know! A lot of them are consisted of sketches of what I want to see in that certain segment. It's very interesting and exciting to hear from your perspective, because I hadn't considered my movies to be so "proper" enough either!! That's why, I can say for a fact, that "Oh you'll do well and do a wonderful job" with 100% sincerity. You came to the right person. I mean look at me! I posted videos like that all the time and just because I thought it'd be fun! If you went to some other talented artist who has these bizarre techniques and astounding professionalism who could create full-fledged CLEAN animations it may not sound so convincing. But i'm someone who starts from scratches and lines and posts those without shame. Drawing colored movies was a huge challenge in my part as well and it took me awhile to feel I'll be skilled enough to do it- perhaps you're already getting a huge head-start compared to how I started out because moving up that one step for me took years to do.

You can do it!! You can!

If there's something I learned from posting my drawings and works out here, it's that you just do what you wanna do. Not everyone will notice you, and your works may not be blown up out there as you wish it to be, yeah, but there's always going to be someone that comes along and appreciates it, which is a miracle on its own. For me, one of those people is you. You'll have someone who comes up to you and does the same thing for you, too if you keep sticking out there. Until then, just continue doing what you love and have fun, without having recognition being your only motive. I made my works for myself (to share, of course, but there were things I was so passionate about I felt I HAD to put this out there and let everyone notice how GOOD and FITTING it is) and although having thousands of people love my works, and tens of hundreds of thousands watch 'em together with me was wonderful.. it all feels like a dream now, the number doesn't matter as much for me. If numbers mattered, I'd have given up a long time ago because there's always people who are so much better than you. However, there's something that only you can do and think of.

See? You're already telling me about your unique style and is thinking of what you could do to make it more effective. That approach you're using is something that I'm unfamiliar of doing. Even if we had the same ideas, I wouldn't be able to create the same things you do and that's what makes yours special! Good luck with that, never did I think what I drew would be able to inspire you to create your own, I should work harder myself to make sure I don't get beaten by you so fast XD, You see, I'm a slow improver. I have artist friends who've gone places and make incredible art. But I can still be one too, as long as I keep drawing. I hope you do that too, as well as keep having fun in the way. And please remember about me if you become famous one day, okay? 'v')9

"The animatic of yours is like a knitted blanket, all of the characters go together despite the colour scheme being very different. I was memerized by the coordination - it was like a dance, almost!"< Ah, I really liked this part of your ask, too. The coordination part is something I really tried hard on when I make an animatic! I sit down and listen to music one day and then something hits me. 'Huh? Isn't this that? And that part works with that and can't this be used to convey this?' Very vague expressions but that's actually how it works in my head. The inspirations come very fast, and when that happens, I sit down and write up a memo to see if the whole song really fits along with the stories I know. And when I'm convinced that it works, I start weaving the two different stories together, the lyrics and the story of the material I wish to make a video out of. That process really makes my heart race because yes, like how you've described it, it feels like a dance, or a knit. Like 90% of the animatics I've made happen like this, so I have no idea when I'll get another inspiration. Till then, I just keep having fun with the fandoms I'm in! Having a good understanding of the source material helps. If you know it well, then everything folds together as one. The song and the story does it for you, and you just follow through its flow.

"slowing down the speed to 0.5, so I could see every single frame slowly, and trying to figure out how to add movements that won't be too "noisy". <this part ;v;...hnngh I have no words.. goodness I had NO idea someone would look at my videos with such intense care.. I don't consider my videos to have the most..how do you put it, creative effects out there, a lot of the effects I put in are something that's built in in the base program or something really simple! You'll be able to learn it in a jiffy no problem. I really look up to vids that have these wacky, shiny and fast-paced effects myself.. One thing I think I could do a pretty good job on, on the other hand, would be the pacing! And that has a lot to relate with the songs you're using. Where the instruments come in, the beat, parts where the vocal stresses, I use the songs I really like, so it makes me think oh, a panel could be added there, and there! and let's make this one drawing show up longer than the others! All that. If you understand the materials you're using (the song, the story, your art) you'll be able to coordinate them well within the limits of your abilities. As I said earlier, that's going to be something only you could do, and what's unique. They say creativity isn't about making entirely new stuff, you know! It's more about putting two different things together in a way no one else has. So movies and fanarts are a great way to show yours :)

I've had others who inspired me to create a video. I've seen lots of fanvids and there were amazing ones, (the fact I was in the kagepro fandom when it was still releasing new songs explains a lot, doesn't it? That surely was a huge inspiration) but I think what's given me the final push to start was seeing my artist friend make a short 6 second one on her tumblr a few years ago. There it hit me that I might be able to do it too, so I asked them what program they were using and made mine right away.

I still have it in fact, it's this video, and I made this one too shortly after. And then I realized that although it wouldn't be perfect, making a video itself isn't something too much of a big deal. You make one and that's it! Because I enjoyed it,(I loved the idea of seeing my own drawings move) I made more.. and I won't be so afraid to, either, because I could always go back to making those simple ones if I wished. Make colored and detailed ones if I wish to push myself further. I'm happy I was able to inspire you to make yours. I hope your experience making stuff would be as enjoyable and exciting as mine!

I'll be happy if you can show me your first video, too!// Whether if you do, or if you don't, I will cheer for you~ Thank you so much for telling me all this. I'm honored to know I was able to give you such a positive impact, because you never know what influence you're giving to someone unless they tell you.. and this, IS SO TOUCHING. You're doing all these things because you were able to find the good, you had it in you always! I'm glad I played a part somewhere on the road. 'v')9

Good luck with your videos~ I'll.. keep making mine in the future too! ;v; GOD I found a song for persona but I gotta finish P3R to get a better understanding for this plot once again, I'm going to do an even better job than I ever did, in the long run. So you too, I know you'll keep improving, so take your time and have fun on the way!

[agenericplaceholdername]

I think this is a solid theory, but I think the evidence is mixed (S2P2 spoilers).

Evidence in favor:

Sora's main arc in S1 is largely pushed forward by her interactions with side characters and villains: Euphrasia, Arrakore, and Geo on the hero side and Dr. LaRow on the villain side

Lloyd's arc in S2P1 is basically dependent on him not having anyone who can really relate to him, because it's all about an internal struggle (although despite this, he has some good stuff with Nya)

The ensemble is constantly split up, and the closest we get to all of the active Ninja together for an extended period of time is in S2P2, where it's clear the writers don't have something for every Ninja

Arin's arc in S2 is all about him falling out with the Ninja, so while he does have plenty of interactions with them, they're for the sake of his individual character arc

Evidence opposed:

Arin and Sora's friendship and their character interactions are super important, both in characterizing the two in S1 and in S2P2 when they have their falling out

Lloyd in S1 is dependent on other characters, mainly Arin and Sora, but also Kai, Nya, and Wyldfyre, for his story, since his main character beats are about being a teacher, and the same is true in S2P2 between him and Sora

Wyldfyre's development in S1P1 is inextricable from Kai's mentorship

The way the Ninja are written makes them feel closer and more connected to each other - in terms of the affection they give, the dialogue used. This doesn't necessarily make the plots about the dynamics between different characters, but the overall theme and vibe of the show is very much ensemble based

Comparison to older seasons:

I'm just not sure how much of the old show was really about the ensemble as a driving force of the plot. Certainly the Pilots and S1 were like this, but Lloyd is the focus of S2, Zane is for S3, Jay is for S6, Cole is for DotD, Lloyd is for S8 and S10, Cole is for S13, and Nya is for S14. That's ~half the original show. And even in the seasons without a defined focus, the character stories are fairly constrained to one main character (and sometimes a side character) - eg. Cole becoming a ghost in S5, or Lloyd and Akita in S11. The only long running stories about multiple characters are the (mostly badly-written) romances.

I feel like Prime Empire is the best example of what you're saying, where none of the main cast has an arc or even real character focus, so the entertainment just comes in the Ninja interacting with each other (and side characters). Meanwhile, while Dragons Rising has plenty of interactions between the main cast, it also has more individualized arcs, so the bulk of the relative entertainment value comes from them. I don't feel like there's a tradeoff here though (especially with the longer run times) because we get enough of both of them. The Zane/Cole/Bonzle/Gandalaria plot in S2P1 has no big character drama for our main cast (Zane and Cole) but is also seen as one of the weaker aspects of S2P1, because it takes away from our main character arcs.

There's also the question of "what do characters think of each other" eg. Zane and Arin or Wyldfyre and Cole. This is part of the problem with having eight members of your ensemble, because you have 28(?) potential pairings to flesh out. The original show struggled with this too, especially once the cast moved beyond the first four Ninja. How often did Kai and Zane interact outside of S13 (over 110 episodes in)? Or Nya and Zane until S7 when she starts fixing him (65 episodes in)? Or Lloyd and Jay... ever? Cole and Jay being "best friends" wasn't even said up until they made up in Versus (39 episodes in). The whole RGB siblings thing baffled me until DR, because I don't think there was a single scene in the original show that centered around just that trio. My perspective has always been that Dragons Rising just has Arin, Sora, and Lloyd as a core cast (who do all have fleshed out dynamics). However, this is very different than the original show! All of the original Ninja were part of the core cast, and a character becoming a Ninja (Nya) turned automatically into part of the core cast. There's two, maybe three rings where Lloyd, Arin, and Sora are in the center, then Kai, Nya, and Wyldfyre, and then Cole and Zane. Riyu is too cool for this but I'd put him in the second ring. This is not really an ensemble in the same way then, since characters aren't given equal time, but it doesn't have one central protagonist either.

Synthesis: (I don't know why I structured this post like this but whatever)

Dragons Rising's main entertainment value does come in part from long running character arcs, which often only involve only one character. There are plenty of times where multiple main characters are interacting, but the big emotional payoff is not typically centered around these moments. It's more of a nice backdrop. These main characters are all Ninja, but some of these are core to the show, while others exist on the periphery of main character status. The original show lacks these long running character arcs, so while it has character stories which don't involve several main characters, those stories are inherently less meaningful (not worse, just less relevant to a viewer) and more relative entertainment comes out of the interactions between the core cast. This core cast is comprised of all the Ninja, with a decent amount of time allotted to them. That doesn't make either show worse or better, but it does make them different.

Okay, new theory on my ninjago/dragons rising dissonance- I need would love to hear your thoughts:

Maybe it's their differing approaches to being an ensemble show?

Like, ninjago is an ensemble show in that the dynamic between the differing personalities on the team makes up a good chunk of the entertainment value. Dragons Rising is an ensemble show in that it has a large cast- but personality driven interactions between the core cast aren't really the meat of the show. It's more focused on individual character plots to keep things interesting.

I might just be hallucinating this difference out of nowhere- again it has been a while since I last watched DR, but this also feels plausible, because I also tend to dislike when ninjago would try and dial in on a focus ninja at the cost of the team stuff.

[miekasa]

random boyfriend levi hcs (modern au)

↯ pairing: levi ackerman x (fem) reader

↯ genres and warnings: modern au, fluff, i feel like he would honestly just be a quiet, gentle soul if given the opportunity to relax for once in his life lmao

↯ notes: i was planning to do some levi hcs, and then i got a request for them so yay! here you go, enjoy!

Has a carafe and fills it every morning (because he finishes it every day). He also absolutely does get his 6-8 glasses of water in on the daily thank you very much.

Oh he likes bubble baths. Not into lighting a thousand candles around him (altho he does like candles). Maybe one or two. Doesn’t stay for very long, but does like to get a good soak every once in a while, after he’s already showered of course.

Likes showering with you. A lot. Not necessarily for sexual antics, but he just likes it. Likes it a lot when you get all soapy and then hug him. 10/10. Although shower sex is always a welcome added bonus.

Fluffs your pillows for you in the morning behind your back. Not sure why it’s a secret for him, but it just is.

He’s like a fucking VIP member at SoulCycle or some shit and enjoys taking you with him to the classes just to see you sweat and suffer LMAO

Doesn’t mind doing things late at night with you, actually prefers it to some extent. Just don’t ask him to do anything dumb.

“Do you wanna walk to McDonald’s and get a McFlurry?” “No. I fucking hate McDonald’s and it’s 2am.” ....... “Do you want to drive around and maybe get some chinese food on our way back?” “... I’ll get the keys, let’s go.”

Surprisingly, likes to bake. It’s somewhat relaxing and therapeutic for him. He’s not the best at things like brownies and cakes and icing and decorating and all of that, but is really good at smaller, I suppose more refined desserts.

Think things like little fruit tarts, lemon squares, creme brûlée. Things that might not require a lot of ingredients, but are very particular in technique.

He doesn’t mind cooking though. But he likes cooking for other people best, not to mention he can be picky about his take-out. It can become a chore to him otherwise (and you can miss him with that meal-prepping bullshit), but he doesn’t mind cooking dinner if he knows it’s for you and him to share. And is willing to honor any particular meal request you might have.

Not exactly a wine connoisseur, but he doesn’t mind having a glass with you when you ask. He keeps bottles you and his friends get for him, but he doesn’t know shit about tasting and pairing and all that. If he needs to know or needs a recommendation, he’ll ask Erwin.

Into niche home design things like lighting fixtures, finding the perfect handles for his furniture and drawers, and things of that nature.

Very much a DIY kind of guy, and your fixer-upper. Need to assemble furniture? Fix a broken TV? Re-tile your bathroom floors? Levi’s your guy.

Loves candles. Not super sweet smelling ones like birthday cake and vanilla bean, but loves lighter, fruitier scenes like eucalyptus mixes, lemon, even sage. Always has candles on hand and never misses a single Bath and Body Works sale.

On that note, yes he does coupon. Why wouldn’t he? Capitalism already sucks and everything is so expensive, he’ll take a bargain where he can get it.

Never owned a speaker because he never saw any use for it, but one day, you coerced him into having a mini-karaoke session while you were cooking together and he found out he enjoyed it quite a bit. (The music playing a loud, not the karaoke. Even though he’s a pretty decent singer).

So when you bought him a record player for his birthday, it easily became one of his most valued possessions. And he’s really enjoyed collecting vinyls.

Other than that, he’s open to most kinds of music, and likes it if you make playlists for him—otherwise he’ll just listen to whatever you have made.

Levi and Erwin are presidents of the Beyhive but you didn’t hear that from me. Nothing but respect for THEIR Queen Bey.

Enjoys taking walks and going running when the weather is nice, and likes having you along with him. It’s actually on occasion on which he prefers to hold your hand in public. You don’t always talk much, but it’s still nice and Levi really relishes in it.

Genuinely laughs out fucking loud whenever you put a face mask on and cannot take you seriously for the next 20-35 minutes LMAO

“Hey, Casper, did you want me to get you a glass of water on my way back.” “FUCK YOU MY SKIN IS GLOWING LEVI!! GLOWING!!”

Despite that, he still fucking steals your other skin scare!! Like retinol isn’t expensive as hell!!

Likes getting massages from you, and may or may not have feigned or exaggerated soreness form his workouts a few times to get one.

Fucking hates pumping gas, but doesn’t trust the little brats at the gas station to do it for him, and would rather eat a pair of jeans than let you get out and get gawked at, so he does it himself.

If you’re in public doing something/looking at something and taking too long, Levi will just start nudging you to get you moving. Like if you’ve already spent 10 minutes looking at different pasta shapes in the grocery store, he’ll put a hand on your waist and slowly usher you back to the cart so you can actually finish your shopping (and go the fuck home).

On that note, he pulls you/grabs at you quite a bit, usually to out the way of other people or harms way (or so he claims). For example, pulls you back further onto the sidewalk while you’re waiting at the crosswalk; further away from the lines on the ground near trains and busses; away from Hange.

Really likes kissing you. Not in public, but doesn’t mind having you all over him in private. And honestly, when he wants it, he doesn’t mind being all over you either.

He’s a particularly big cuddle bug in the morning bye.

Likes it when you drive. Mostly because he can just chill in the passenger seat and take a nap.

LMAO he can’t ride a bicycle. If you taught him, he’d probably pick up pretty quickly, but nobody ever taught him so he doesn’t know how yet.

(When you find this out, you’re VERY eager to teach him and Levi feels like he might have finally met his demise). “Do you want some training wheels, Levi? I saw a pretty pink pair in the toy store on the way here.” “No, fuck you, I just need to find my balance—hey, don’t let me go! Do you want me to die???”

Despite not liking having his photo taken, he’s a pretty good photographer and doesn’t mind taking pictures of you.

Keeps a picture of you and him inside his wallet. You don’t know that it’s there.

Despises the dentist with every fiber of his being and would not fucking go if you didn’t force him to. Seriously, you have to book the appointment for him and everything or else he’s just not make one or go.

And it’s not even like he has bad teeth?? They’re fine, maybe just in need of the regular professional cleaning. He just hates people prodding inside his goddamn mouth.

Which is very weird and you tease him very loudly about because he’s fine with the doctor?? And the ophthalmologist?? And everything else but the dentist LMAO

Quite spontaneous with dates in all honesty. Sometimes he just sees shit or has an idea and asks you if you’d be down.

Not one for cliche coupley items, but you do have matching sneakers. (They’re his favorite pair of sneakers).

Picks up things you’ve left laying around and puts them in their proper place. “Levi have you seen my—” “It’s on your desk. Where it belongs.”

Museum dates! Not that he cares for the pompous air of museums, but objectively they’re nice. Quiet, pretty objects, clean. Overall, not so bad. Just don’t take him to a fucking history museum.

Has a habit of kissing the palm of your hand. It’s his silent way of telling you he loves you.

Lays his head on your lap when you’re sitting on the couch. Claims he’s not keeping up with your shows but secretly is. Curls up into a ball and takes a nap halfway through tho.

[dilirebas]

My Review of  长安十二时辰 / The Longest Day in Chang’an

The Longest Day in Chang’an is about a convicted murderer who is taken off death row to help a young security bureau chief prevent an attack on Chang’an, the vibrant and diverse capital of the Tang Dynasty.

I have mixed feelings about this drama. The Longest Day in Chang’an is a well-made drama, without a doubt, but it also didn’t live up to its godly reputation.

I was more in love with the style than the substance. The cinematography, costumes, sets, and overall production quality are amazing. Cao Dun is one of the most interesting directors in c-ent.

The drama gives you a shockingly realistic portrayal of the city of Chang’an. It doesn’t feel like an idol historical, nor does it feel like a serious drama. (By “serious drama”, I mean 正剧.) It has more of a film style.

Tbh it didn’t need to be 48 episodes long. The pace is slow, and that makes sense because there are a lot of overlapping storylines that come together to make one single narrative. But even though all the storylines were connected, I didn’t feel that they were all necessary.

Some of the supporting characters were two-dimensional or acted inconsistently. It often felt like characters were doing things, not because it made sense for those characters to act that way, but because those actions would contribute to the plot. Some examples include Wen Ran, Long Bo, and Xu Bin’s decision-making.

Some of the supporting characters became irritating to watch because of how incompetent or selfish they were. Sure, a lot of people in real life (and history) suck. But as a viewer, I don’t have infinite patience. I ended up accelerating through much of the drama. (This might sound insane if you’re watching the first episode and you find it confusing and complex, but once the story gets going, it’s actually really simple and easy to follow.)

Honestly...a lot of the characters just feel like plot devices.

The storylines aren’t always super continuous. A scene will often reach a climax and end without resolution. It’ll cut to some other characters doing something else, and when you return to the characters you were previously watching, they’ll have moved to a new location. Sometimes you’re shown the resolution of the previous scene in flashback format. Sometimes you’re left to assume that everything worked out.

Speaking of flashbacks...there are a lot.

I love the fact that the drama is undubbed. I loved it in Cao Dun’s Tribes and Empires and I loved it in The Longest Day in Chang’an. When you use the actors’ original voices, you get a certain rawness and sincerity that you don’t get from the more standardized work of voice actors. Of course, a prerequisite is that the actors have strong line delivery. And this was definitely the case here. Lei Jiayin’s line delivery was so good that he basically sounded dubbed.

YYQX’s line delivery was a weaker link. I don’t want to criticize his overall acting because it wasn’t bad for a newcomer. I think there’s a real difference that comes with experience (like the ability to emote naturally and subtly), but aside from that it was a solid performance. But I do wish he had been dubbed, even if it was himself doing the dubbing. There were parts where he did dub over himself (this happens in undubbed dramas when certain scenes have an audio issue), and it was really obvious because his in-studio voice sounded better than his on-site voice. In contrast, I didn’t notice where other actors dubbed over themselves because the quality of the lines was consistent.

I don’t think I was really convinced by any of the romantic storylines in this drama. Fortunately, romance doesn’t play a huge role anyway.

Overall I think the biggest problem is the script. I’m inclined to think that the pacing problems, plot holes, and characterization issues are mostly problems in the writing. On the other hand, the production quality and directing style were strong enough that I finished the drama and enjoyed it in spite of those issues.

I do think this drama is still worth checking out, even if you just watch part of it. So many ancient dramas are set in Chang’an, but this drama does the best job of showing what the city was actually like. It’s estimated that 1 million people lived within the city walls. Chang’an was massive, busy, divided, and extremely diverse.

[curlsandanxietyfordays]

Bridgerton season 2 opinions

oh my god, wow. I felt a mix of wanting to throw up and having a heart attack the whole time. but in a good way. 

- first of all, my god the chemistry between Johnny and Simone. Absolutely stunning, in EVERY. SINGLE. SCENE! Literally just overflowing. Having done a rewatch of s1 before s2 came out, I could already see how much more intense and captivating Simone and Johnny were going to be.

- I love the fact that Anthony and Kate meet first. They have cute banter back and forth and its actually so pure for them to start off this way. The moment when Kate recognises him at the ball and you can tell she’s excited to see him, she’s even willing to admit his handsome! 

- I found i laughed so much more this season than the first, which was a pleasant surprise! The Bridgerton family dynamic’s were truly hilarious and also heartwarming and familiar. 

- but i also cried so much! which brings me to...

- Anthony’s backstory. I knew it was going to be painful and yet I still wasn’t prepared. First of all, I am so happy at how many scenes there were of Anthony and Violet! The conversation’s between just them two were some of my favourite scenes in the show and the ones that made me cry the most! I wasn’t expecting to get Edmund’s death so early on in the episode but it worked well with the follow up scenes post his death and Anthony drowning in shock and grief while also trying so so hard to keep it together for his family. And this is Anthony at his very core, always trying to do right by his family and yet always feeling like he is falling short! I loved that they showed the scene of Violet so depressed because a) It’s the evidence Anthony has of the pure devastation of loosing ones true love, which therefore shapes his future mindset on marriage/love and b)its another example of Anthony having to hold it together for the sake of his siblings and mother, even though its very clear he is dying on the inside. 

- As the season goes on the connection between them builds more and more and you can tell its getting harder and harder for them to deny what they’re actually feeling. When Anthony walks off after they’ve danced and Kate has said she will move back to India, he truly can’t handle it! The mire idea of loosing her from his life, he gets completely overcome, i loved it!!! It reinforces the fact that Kate has been holding his heart from the beginning! 

- Okay now the Edwina of it all. Initially it was really hard for me to watch this gorgeous girl get completely swept up in not only being courted by Anthony, but then a proposal and basically going all the way to the alter with him. (i fully thought i was having a heart attack all of episode 6, it was brutal). I wished it was focused more on her feeling the pressure of needing to find a match, and less on her feelings for Anthony. The fact that they even got her to say that she loves him truly killed me. Considering the fact that book!Edwina could care less about Anthony I wasn’t prepared to see my angel fall this hard. 

- Also it killed me to see how long they dragged out her being angry/hurt with Kate but I read another review that basically said that the betrayal of almost marrying a man who is in love with your sister and your sister loves him, maaay take some time to heal. But I cackled so hard at the “WAS I ALWAYS THIS BLIND?!” line. She can finally see it and it is horny! 

- I also loved that Kate didn’t pushed Edwina into forgiving her by making herself the victim, which i believe she could’ve done considering the burden she’s been carrying in looking after her family, but she still chooses to shield and protect them, just as Anthony would! 

- I wished there was more Mary!!!! I feel like a lot of scenes that Lady Danbury had, could’ve been given to Mary. In saying that though, the scene between her and Kate in episode 8 bought me to tears. The love that she has for BOTH her girls is so beautiful especially when she defends them to her parents. Also wished there had been more scenes of her and Lady Bridgerton bonding over their grief. 

- Pall Mall was everything I hoped it would be and more! The fact that it led Kate and Anthony near Edmunds grave was a nice touch and once again bought another level of connection between them.

- The family dancing was THE CUTEST thing i have ever witnessed and i could feel my heart melting! 

- I’m so happy we got a bit of the study scene but i needed moreeeee! I needed an in-depth emotional conversation and mutual sharing of trauma.

- Eloise was truly a highlight for me this season! As well as Benedict and I can’t wait to see him lead his season! 

- I’m ngl, Colin and Pen.... I feel nothing??? like I know i’m meant to be rooting for them but they feel so boring to me???

- I’m so happy they let Eloise discover the truth! The showdown between her and Pen was so well done! These are best friends who truly love each other but it also means they know where to land their daggers! So good!

- The only good part about the Featherington storyline was the comedic genius Prudence! Love that girl! The rest, i could care less about. 

- Excuse me while I go re-watch now . 

[thefutureofhell]

Actually THINK ABOUT IT

The first two trailers did the same thing, they have to be among the best made trailers I've ever seen.

With the killer gift that is hindsight, we know that a lot of the scenes chosen for the trailers deliberately leave out really important chunks of information or are misleading, leading you to make incorrect conclusions and guesses on the episode's plot. Previously we didn't have the episode names so it was harder to assign a clip for every episode.

A couple of notable examples would be this clip from Look at This that was definitely chosen because it looks like Fizz is evily stealing something from a dazed looking Blitz. And this other one before we knew what Mammon was like and that they were gonna patch things up, so we assumed Fizz was flipping off Blitz.

In the first trailer, they cleverly used audio from scenes on top of different scenes to make it seem like the situations at hand were quite different, there's a million shots of the fish monster from episode 3, that's just some one off threat, and theres also tons of shot of Blitz reacting to things that are mostly from jokes or for comedic relief, all of that mixed together with shots from his fight with Striker and shots from House of Asmodeus, there's almost nothing from the heavy emotional hit that is episode 6.

The second trailer is made of unfinished animation, which initially made it harder to organize the shots by episode, there's tons of fight choreography and Fizz like I mentioned earlier, and the only audio is a tease of Klown Bitch, but absolutely nothing from episode 5 and most of the shots teasing episode 3 are from that brief flashback Moxxie has about Chaz, theres even one shot of Loona spitting out her coffee thats cut up to pad out the trailer.

My point? All the shots look exciting but end up being small, from a single sequence in the episode, or would be massively recontextualized by the events of an episode.

For a second, I thought the trailer was giving us too much on some episodes, but what if the entirety of the shots from, say, Ghostfuckers, are only a small part of the episode? What if the clips we think are from two different episodes are actually just the beginning and ending of the same one, and there's barely anything on the other? There's at least one flashback with Millie, what about other clips with characters who haven't so obviously changed? I feel like a lot of people figured out that Tilla might be a hallucination, what else is?

im tearing down the entire conspiracy pin board what do you MEAN the trailer was meant to MISLEAD US

[luxshine]

Y yo a ti, Cas -segunda parte. Because of course Mexican Cas pulled us out of despair and can throw us back in.

Ok, so the last 24 hours have been a bit of a rollercoaster and now I have another post to write about how dubbing is made. Because I love Misha a lot, and I respect him but… the whole rouge translator thing just doesn’t jive with reality.

Now, first of all I want to make a disclaimer: I do not believe that there’s a conspiracy to keep Dean closeted and away from Castiel. That makes absolutely no sense, no matter how you slice it. Among other things, conspiracy implies intent, and I really doubt the CW, Warner Bros and everyone involved in the marketing choices cares that much. At most, I think that there was a misunderstanding of marketing/PR and now people are doubling down on trying to pretend it didn’t happen. But a conspiracy? Nope. This isn’t THAT important, and it would require a LOT of people involved to make things work.

Which is precisely why the rouge translator thing doesn’t work. Because you would need a conspiracy to MAKE Destiel canon in order for it to be real.

Second: As I write this, I still don’t have an answer from the voice actors. But rest assured, WHEN they reply (or we can organize a panel so YOU guys can ask directly), I will tell you the absolute truth. If I am wrong with my assumptions, and it WAS a rouge translator, I will let you know, and I will admit I was wrong. And if it was from the audio (say, a Jensen adlib) or the actual script? I will also let you know.

Third: I don’t doubt that Misha REALLY believes the rogue translator thing, if it was told to him by TPTB. There’s no reason to believe he knows how dubbing works in Mexico, nor how many people check the final product. Or that he even watched the episode, instead of believing it was a fan clip. Also, I respect him immensely and I don’t want any hate send his way.

That said, let’s go into how dubbing works, again.

For the sake of argument, I will start with the idea that yes, there was a “Rogue translator” who decided that THIS was the perfect moment to make Destiel canon. Not, say, Season 8 when he could have translated an “I need you” from Dean into an “I love you” when the god tablet thing happened, not in season 12, or during the purgatory prayers. No, the best moment was two episodes before the finale, when he had to know that Cas was not coming back. 

And yes, the translator knew Cas was not coming back because when we translate series, we get them in packages of 5 episodes or more at the time. So they must have had 15x16 to 15x21 (The interview special) all together. So they knew that this was Cas’s exit from the series.

Now, in my previous post I said how in the old times, we used vhs tapes and paper copies of the shooting scripts (when they were available that was not always). Now a days, we get the video file and a word document (if we’re lucky. If not, we make the word file). Translate everything. Go through it AGAIN to make sure the lip sync matches and that we don’t have huge speeches when there’s a small window of time to say the speech because of the language differences. Check that we didn’t accidentally used a slang word that only Mexico would understand. If the show is not PG-13, make sure our swearwords are not too bad or too localized. THEN we send it to the studio, which prints about four copies of the script and hands it,and the video, to the Dub director.

The dub director then goes and re-watches every episode, while checking the script. Some directors don’t speak the language, so they’re just checking cadence, time, and the damned lip sync. (And if you, as a translator, don’t match the lip sync? You are either back to training or out of a word if you get too many strikes). So sure, you could slip a change of line there, IF the director doesn’t speak German, or Japanese, or Hindi.

But almost every single dub director speaks English. So a change from “Don’t do this, Cas” to “And I, you, Cas” would be noticed then and there, and changed to the right line. Which means that, for the rogue translator thing to work, we’d have to add also a rogue dub director.

And honestly, do you see a professional dub director with more than 15 years of experience (because you don’t give a series to a newbie, and Supernatural had the same dub director for all it’s run) risking his job for ONE line?

Anyway, in the times before the plague dub actors were called in groups to the study to record, in order to save audio tracks. So, for example, all the Inner Senshi would record together when doing Sailor Moon, and I assume in Supernatural, Sam and Dean’s lines would also be recorded together, while Dean and Cas might have been or not. Depending on times and so on. So you’d had at least 3 people in the studio: Dean’s VA, the dub director and the sound technician. ALL of them checking what was being said, what was in the script, and listening to the original audio.

Some actors would also make corrections to the script there, making some lines easier to read, and, again, checking those damn lip letters (Can you tell I HATE the lip letter thing?) . I remember fondly the VA for Sailor Jupiter, Araceli de Leon (RIP), who was known as “The Corrector”, since she would go through ALL the scripts for everyone with a red pen. The day I handed a script she didn’t find any corrections, I was jumping out of joy. So if 15x18 was recorded AT the dubbing studio? Someone who knew English could’ve caught the difference between the “Don’t do this” and the “And I you”, making it harder for our rogue translator to go unnoticed.

But let’s say it was recorded post-quarantine, when voice actors work alone at home, in their own private sound studios. I have no idea if they would have the director at hand through zoom, but I assume so. In any case, the VA would STILL have the original audio to know how the lines were said, and after 4 years of dubbing Dean Winchester, I will assume that the VA knows at the very least a little bit of English so if his script said “And I, you Cas” but he heard Jensen say “Don’t do it, Cas”, he would’ve made a correction there.

That’s now two people who would have to ignore the rouge translator’s actions, and even help them, in order for this theory to work.

And then the audio goes back to the director, who checks it again, makes sure it is lip synced and well acted, and sent to the audio technician who mixes it all, and now we have a THIRD person who could’ve said “Hey… uhm… this line? Is not what it says in the original” and by this time, we’d have to have a conspiracy to keep that “And I, you, Cas” in the final product.

Which brings me to person number four: Once the dubbing is done? It’s reviewed by the client (In this case, WB Latam), who gives the final say and CAN ask for redubs if necessary.

Story time. When I was doing this for a living, I got a series that had the WEIRDEST line ever. A line that made me triple check I was hearing things right (because it was a damn adlib that I couldn’t check with the script)

It was: “I’ve been listening to jazz even since I was a sperm swimming in my father’s testicles”.

So yeah.

I was a pro, so I didn’t censor it or change it and send it as it was to the director. Who OF COURSE called me and asked “Are you 100% sure that’s the line?” (This was in Japanese, and he didn’t speak Japanese. He trusted me). And I said “yeah, but if you need to change it, we can find another way to say “I’ve been a Jazz fan since before I was born”. “ He, Jack bless him, said “Nah. If that’s the original, let’s keep the original”.

The client was NOT amused and we had to change it in the final product.

Now, this was a throw away line by a secondary character that never appeared again in the series, in a small scene that probably only I remember. And the client still said “Nope, change that”. I’d like to believe that a line that changes the relationship between two main characters would have the same, if not more, scrutiny from TPTB.

Which makes now four people who would have had to either ignore the actions of the rogue translator, or actively participate in a conspiracy to make Destiel Latam canon.

Which, I dunno about you, sounds like way too much effort for something that was going to last for exactly one second before Cas got sucked into the Empty.

Someone made a mistake? Probably. But I am more willing to bet it was whoever sent the master video file to the studio than the dub studio, if that line wasn’t supposed to be there.

[artbykla]

Card Meanings for The Draw: Simply Meant To Be

My charge with The Draw: Simply Meant To Be was to meld a couple's love of poker and the iconic film The Nightmare Before Christmas into a scene that also represented the two. The client selected the card spread, reflecting a once-in-a-lifetime draw for both players. The significance this arrangement holds inspired me to imbue equally symbolic meaning to the cards themselves. Each card reveals a fragment of the represented character's personality and growth (and by extension, the couple) that all combine together into a greater scene.

I dove into card research to begin. The resulting work mixes a history of playing cards, film lore, and my own interpretations to translate every card into a meaning aligned with the overall message in the scene.

Some Basic Card History & Design

I was also given a card design format to work within. These were to be single orientation, and coffin shaped, inspired by a limited edition run of Nightmare Before Christmas cards that are nigh impossible to acquire now. The coffin shape is certainly unique, yet the layout has come full circle to match early designs. For centuries, playing cards faced one direction only, the court presenting full figure images rather than the flippable portrait view we use now.

With only two to three cards representing each suit, I felt the suits needed to stand out from each other as much as possible. In researching the suits themselves, I learned the pips (symbols) for each suit have transformed several times throughout history. Suits began with woodblock pips of items like batons, swords, coins, and cups. Sound familiar? That’s because our modern 52-card deck and Tarot cards derive from the same playing card origin! You may recognize these pips in the Minor Arcana as wands, swords, pentacles, and cups.

15th century France came up with another recognizable system of pips based on Germany’s from a few decades before: clubs, diamonds, spades, hearts. These simplified symbols made card-stamping much easier, and this style spread to become the common international playing card design we use today. When forming my designs for this work, I looked to the French and German pips first for interpretation.

There’s some interesting design behind the Court, or Face cards as well - the only card type shown in this work. All face cards represent actual historical figures: the King of Diamonds is Caesar, the Queen of Hearts Judith, and the Jack of Clubs Lancelot, for example. Modern cards employ other now-standard visual design choices too. For instance, three particular face cards form the “One-Eyed Royals”, being the only figures drawn in profile. I haven’t found any symbolic meaning for why this has been done (if anyone knows please tell me). Unfortunately, neither the visual standards nor historic reference held much emotional meaning, what I was really going for in this scene. I confess I chose not to reference these details in this work’s card design. If that sort of thing does interest you though, there’s a good article that links to more sources here.

In the next segments, I talk about the design context for each card by suit.

Part 2 - Clubs - True Nature

Part 3 - Diamonds - Star-Struck

Part 4 - Spades - Call to Action

I’ll update this space with links to each post as they come out.

[animeyanderelover]

Can you write promp 15 to Shuu tsukiyama :) Thank you I love your writings.

I love my writing as well😉. No, but seriously guys. If it wouldn't be for my passion to write, I would have gone on a hiatus the moment I found out that I was being shadowbanned.

Tw: Yandere themes, unhealthy mindset, unhealthy relationship, possessiveness, obsessiveness, delusions, clinginess, manipulation, paranoia, mentioning of kidnapping, catcalling, sexual harassment, blood, killing, Shuu being a sadist to the victim, eccentricity (?)

Prompt 15: “Shh princess… don’t cry over this scum, he doesn’t deserve your tears.”

"Kanae!! What happened to her?!?! Why is she crying?!?!"

You hadn't wanted to burst out in tears like this, but replaying the scene in your head over and over again like a movie had caused you unimaginable frustration and embarrassment. Now you remembered why you hated people so much, they were all just greedy and disgusting jerks. Calling you such nasty names in public and daring to go as far as following you. If Kanae wouldn't have been there with you, you didn't even want to imagine what might have happened to you.

"My poor princess! What happened?! Tell me!"

Furious tears were falling down your face, even though you had wiped them away already countless times before. You were not in a very good mood at the moment, you felt quite etchy at the moment. And that was what caused annoyance washing over you when you heard Shuu's cooing words, taking quick steps towards you to comfort you somehow. You knew what would come now. Another smothering session of his. Something you didn't need in the least bit right now. What you needed was time. Alone.

You still tried to stay as calm as possible, not wanting to make a huge scene that would only gain you more annoying attention. All the servants were honestly so much like their master, they all appeared to be overly dramatic when it came to you, the only real exception was Mirumo.

So when you suddenly stepped back from Shuu, lips pressed together and a mixed look out of sadness and anger on your face, you knew that you had hurt him. It was all too obvious judging from his wide eyes, confusion and pain already reflecting in them, and the way he had frozen when you had suddenly put a distance between you two. The hand, which he had extended, was staying in the air, shaking slightly. As always, he was overreacting.

“(y/-y/n)…What did I-“

“You did nothing Shuu. You didn’t do anything. I just wish to be alone right now. So I ask you to do me the favor and leave me alone for once. If you don’t, I might say things to you that will hurt you and which I don’t mean. Don’t test my patience for now.”

You were surprised by your own tone of voice, you sounded extremely rude, annoyance dripping from your voice like venom. It was hard to keep a calm and collected voice under such conditions. But for the reason of you having been well raised and well treated by the people in this place, you wanted to return the favor by doing the same.

You just stormed past both, Kanae and Shuu, without saying a single word, chewing furiously on your lips whilst the voice of the man kept ringing in your head. You felt like you wanted to smash something to relieve yourself of the ocean of emotions inside of you. Today had been the wrong day to convince Shuu with the help of his father to let you out without him.

“Master (y/n)!”, you heard Kanae yelling after you, followed by a thud sound that caused you to turn around shortly, feeling slightly startled by the sudden noise. But you were left feeling a bit surprised when seeing that your company for the last few hours had gone done to her knees, forehead pressed against the floor of the mansion and bowing deeply down in front of you.

“I can never forgive myself for not being able to help you. I failed you! I’m so sorry! It’s all because of my own foolishness and incompetence that you had to go through all of this!”

Her voice was shaking and you guessed that she would break out in tears at any moment, she was just as theatrical as your partner was.

“Kanae, it’s not your fault. We were under too many people, you couldn’t have done more than you did already. And that was already a big help. Also, please don’t refer to me as your master, I don’t like it when I’m being called this way. I see you as a friend, so that makes things always a bit awkward when you call me your master.”

Only the fading and fast footsteps of yours were heard in the silence which followed afterwards, leaving two people left dwelling on what had just happened. Shuu, who was staring with still shocked eyes at the stairs where you had just walked up, and Kanae, who was still remaining in her humble position. Somewhere upstairs the rather loud slam of a door was heard, indicating that you had just entered your room.

“Kanae…What…happened?”

Even her master seemed to be left flabbergasted by this sudden change of events, although tears were already starting to fill his eyes. It was not as much because of your rejecting behavior towards him, although that had hurt as well. No, it was because someone had upset his little dove so that she had cried and he hadn’t been there to protect her.

“So eine Scheiße!”, the girl suddenly shouted furiously and frustrated, slamming her head against the floor harshly as if wanting to punish herself.

By now she had bursted out in tears, drops splashing to the ground. “What am I good for when I couldn’t even keep her safe and this-this disgrace away from her?! Now she is angry! Please forgive me Master Shuu. You chose me because you trusted me to protect her, but I was the wrong person to choose.”

The last few sentences of her were told much more softer than the previous ones, only proving to Shuu that Kanae felt beyond miserable for what had happened. But it didn’t answe his question! It only made him more anxious.

What had happened whilst he hadn’t been there?! Who the duck dared to make his lovely darling cry?! Who?!

“Would you just please tell me what happened?!”, he yelled at the servant, his string of patience snapping right then and there and leading him into raising his voice.

Kanae flinched when hearing him shouting at her, the panic in his voice overwhelming her even more. It was all because of her that her master would have to go through the same pain as you as well. How should she even start explaining what had happened without him losing it right away?

“Mast-I mean (y/n)…She has been catcalled! And I was unable to take proper care of this threat! Watching this bastard…It was disgusting! Enraging! This rotten mouth of his…The things he called after her, I wish I could have gouged his tongue out! And he even had the audacity to follow her through the city, using every opportunity he had to spit more gross words out! And (y/n) had to endure all of this without losing her self-restraint. She even had to stop me. She stood her ground without breaking down in front of him. She was so admirable. I should have taken an example on her.”

The confession of the truth hurt, having to go through it all again hurt. Her master’s darling had been so brave, so perfectly in control of her emotions, so empathetic to rather let herself get humiliated instead of risking to let Kanae get triggered and reveal that she was a ghoul in the center of the city. And (y/n) still saw her as a friend! She was so kind. No wonder Master Shuu was so madly in love with her.

After that the ghoul waited for some reaction from him, shouting, yelling, crying, lashing out on her, anything. But nothing came. Instead another silence befell both of them, coming with a creepy feeling. An almost paralyzing feeling that made the violet-haired girl stay on the ground. The air felt like it was weighting her down. She knew this feeling.

Fear.

"So you're telling me that ma chérie is crying because some walking useless trash thought that he could use her and play her for his own entertainment?"

His voice was beyond spine-chilling, spoken like a true lunatic. His voice sounded for the most part quieter than expected, though it was trembling slightly. But what made her body nearly forget to function out of terror was the icy blood lust in it, like he was on the brink of insanity.

Barely, only barely did Kanae manage to lift her head, enough to catch a glimpse of his face. It only made her break out in cold sweat more. She thanked the heaven that he wasn't looking at her right now, instead staring in the empty space, a murderous grin on his face. His eyes were wide, reflecting the craziness inside of him perfectly. Just by looking at him was enough for Kanae to know that he was tearing the culprit in his mind currently to a bloody and deforedly mess. Her master was thinking like her, she had planned on doing the same. But she hadn't looked that unnerving.

"As much as I would love to torture and rip this waste of oxygen right now, this will have to wait. My princess needs me right now."

The sudden change in his whole personality was delightening yet also the slightest bit stunning for Kanae to witness, how he went from psychopathic sadist to his normal dramatic and lovesick self.

"W-wait! C-can I do something, anything to make somehow up for my failure?", Kanae stuttered out, stopping Shuu from crossing the stairs with huge steps. She had to do something, she felt truly feeble.

Shuu noticed her still majorly guilty expression, giving her a small sympathetic smile. "Don't work yourself up to hard over it now. (y/n) was only right. You would have only done much worse if you would have let lost control then and there. You already did a better job than I did in keeping composure. For now just tell the others to prepare dinner, (y/n)'s favorite. And also..."

The sudden drop in Shuu's voice and his face was a dead giveaway what he wanted to say next. "Let's meet later outside when my darling is sleeping. I believe we have something to take care of, don't we?"

That alone was enough to make Kanae stand up, the anger and feeling of helplessness scratching her feeling of self-esteem. Her master knew that she had a score to settle as well after having only been able to watch. She felt grateful that he took that into reconsideration even though she had let this happen in the first place.

"It would be my pleasure to be from any help. I feel honored that you still chose me."

"Why are you here? I think I told you I want to be alone.", you shot out after Shuu had simply knocked and entered your room without permission, giving you nearly no time to wipe away all the tears on your cheeks. You hated crying in front of people, you hated looking weak and vulnerable and being it as well. That's why you always wanted to be alone when you felt like crying.

"You expect me to just stand away when my dove clearly needs someone right now?! You were just sexually harassed and want me to leave you alone?! Forget it!"

His reaction was what you had seen coming, the paranoia coloring his face being all too obvious and he looked distressed as well. Shuu wasn't good in handling something like this at all, not when it had you being in any sort hurt involved.

"Go away. I look terrible right now.", you just said without replying to what he had just said, though this had been a rhetorical question. You didn't look very good right now, tears smearing all over your face, your eyes reddened and puffy and your nose running due to all the crying.

"That doesn't matter to me. For me you look beatiful no matter what, even if you cry."

Despite feeling upset, you managed to let a chuckling scoff out when you heard the man saying this, still not being completely used to his more cheesy lines. But right now he probablly had the intention to cheer you up.

"Good grief, you're really too much. Let go of me.", you replied slightly ironically in between your sobs when he suddenly just clinged to you, wrapping you up in his arms. It wasn’t uncomfortable though, his hug was warm and managed to soothe you a bit.

You actually shouldn’t feel this way, not in the arms of the man who used to torment and hurt you out of pure and utter sadistic fun. Back then it had just been horror for you. And only thanks to his well-mannered father things had changed for you, only then. You owed Mirumo for that more than you could effort, but his only request had been staying, knowing the attachment his son had for you would never perish. But at the same time you had the feeling his father had helped his son as well, causing you to get along with him better and better until you had started to forget where acting stopped and where real feelings were showing.

“Shh princess…don’t cry over this scum, he doesn’t deserve your tears.”

He had a point. That asshole had wanted to get under your skin which was the second reason you had stayed strong in front of him. But you were human as well, you had feelings which could be hurt. You were currently hurt which was why you needed some sort of comfort right now and Shuu provided it. Maybe a bit too much.

You estimated that you needed about five minutes until you had calmed somewhat down, though the after effects from your crying session still shook your body every once in a while. But you felt the tiniest bit less shitty.

“I think I’m feeling better now. Thank you…Shuu.”, you told him softly, feeling your cheeks warming up the tiniest bit.

He just let out a content ‘hmm’, his chin resting on your shoulder and his one hand playing with your hair a bit. He didn’t look like he had any intentions to move despite you giving him the look. You had a rather silly bad feeling.

“Do you want to let me go?”

“Never. At least not until the dinner is prepared.”

“Shuu.”, you protested slightly, pushing him a bit against the chest which turned out to be good for nothing. He didn’t budge. Instead you could almost see with your inner two eyes on the back of your head that he was grinning upon your attempt to remove him.

“Oh well. I’ll let him have it his way. He deserves it.”

Kanae was walking, as quietly as possible, nervously back and forth. She would never blame her master for anything at all, but maybe she just felt extremely uneasy right now that she wanted to leave desperately. Tokyo was huge and finding one single man would be hard, though she remembered the few broken pieces of informations she had heard when the man had been taken away from some other people who seemed to know him.

“I have to avenge (y/n) or else I’ll never be able to feel like I deserve this happiness.”, the girl thought bitterly, intending to bring suffering over this piece of garbage.

“You seem rather impatient. Believe me, I am just as eager as you are, though we shouldn’t waste too much time with this sad excuse of a man.”

Kanae quickly turned around, anticipation shining from her eyes when she saw Shuu appearing from the shadows, already having put on fitting clothes and holding his mask in his hand.

“I apologize, I simply couldn’t bring myself to leaving my princess alone. She looked too gorgeous to not marvel over. That’s why I want to speed this all up, I want to return to her as fast as possible. It of course doesn’t mean I intend to let this person easily of the hook.”

He chuckled a bit, for a few moments softness dominating his face when recalling the sweet memories of his darling sleeping peacefully. But in the blink of an eye he changed, the lust to kill someone taking over him and twisting his face into something entirely else.

“Kanae, do you know where we should start?”

His voice was terrifying, his feelings and intentions dripping freely from it and a malicious glint shining in his eyes. Not like Kanae minded, her own face being overshadowed by her negative feelings.

“Yes, I do have an idea.”

[izumi-fanclub]

A3! Translation: Masumi Usui SR Card “SUNNY SPRING” [Harugumi Fanservice Study Group ~Masumi Edition~]

Yup. Exactly as it says.

.

Citron

Live music is the best~! It is so exciting and hyping dayo!

Izumi

Citron-kun, you went to an anime song singer’s concert the other day, right?

Citron

Yes! It was a very hot live concert! Coke & Lemon Pawns were also fun!

Masumi

Call & response.

Citron

That is it!

Itaru

Cool, I was really itching to go too. You could just drop by on weekdays any time you like, talk about unbeatable......

Chikage

If you wanted to go so much, you could’ve just taken a paid leave.

Itaru

That’s like, trying to casually pull out a legendary sword out of a stone.

Sakuya

The venue was built by MIZUNO Enterprises in the next town over.

Citron

That is right. It is newly built, and the audience seats were very comfortable!

Tsuzuru

We were on stage at the opening of that venue, right? *

Even though we had the power of Mizuno on our side, I still can’t believe it.

Itaru

That stage really was different from our usual one. It’s pretty refreshing.

Izumi

The re-viewing performance we did before and the White Day Live were both very received......

We often get requests for live performances.

Maybe we’ll have another chance to hold another live together, maybe.

Citron

Yes! I also want to do it!

Sakuya

If that happens, I’ll have to work on my singing again!

Tsuzuru

It also helps when you’re onstage in a musical.

And as an actor, there’s nothing better than being able to sing.

Citron

Of course singing is important, but that is not all there is to it!

Masumi

More than just the song?

Citron

The fanservice, of course!

I went to the concert as a spectator, I felt the importance of fan support again.

Chikage

Sakyo-san would always tell us to say things like “I would like to thank my fans at....” to thank them for their support.

Citron

Yes! That is why we need to study more about fanservice.

Tsuzuru

You got a point there.

Sakuya

I want to convey how I feel to my fans through various fanservice!

Citron

Like the singer I saw at the concert, you will be more popular if you do stuff in a way that suits your personality while doing fanservice!

Itaru

I get what you mean, the princely type, the energetic type, the cool type and the list goes on.

Citron

Our company members all have different weapons! I am going to start researching on fanservice to take advantage of them!

Tsuzuru

But Masumi isn’t the type to be into fanservice like that.

Masumi

I’ll only do fanservice for director.

Tsuzuru

There he goes again...... why don’t you consider it first before opening your mouth?

Citron

Masumi is immovable! He’s in his normal state.

Sakuya

But then Masumi-kun's feelings of gratitude won’t be conveyed to everyone through fanservice......

Itaru

Nah, that’s not always the case.

( Part 2 )

Itaru

Masumi’s been active with the company’s fans, but it wasn’t exactly fanservice per se......

I’m sure there's been times when his fans got excited just by him telling them a simple “Thanks for coming.”

Izumi

I see.

Tzusuru

That’s right, I’ve seen it happen.

Chikage

Cause it’s rare for him to do so, so his fans will get excited by those words of his.

Citron

Masumi’s rare love!

Masumi

…... Not really. Director and the other guys just told me that I should say thank you.

Itaru

But if you only say thank you every single time, you’ll just end up sounding like a bot.

Tsuzuru

Might be better to add some variation to mix things up a bit......

Itaru

Hmm... but if he gives off those sadistic vibes with his approach, he’d just be a clone of senpai.

Chikage

Oi, Chigasaki?

Sakuya

It’s fanservice that’s very like Masumi-kun.

Itaru

Of course, but a little bit of sugar...... with that “salt” is the best thing we got.

Citron

That is the kind of tsundere Masumi is! *

Itaru

Once you’ve made your mind about that, you’ll need to find the right amount of salt in your response. Hey, Masumi, give it a try.

Masumi

Haa...... don’t feel like it.

Itaru

Come on, don’t say that.

Citron

Then let director play the role of a fan!

Izumi

Eh, me?

Masumi

Right away.

Tsuzuru

He did a full 180, just like that.

Sakuya

Well, director, if you may.

Izumi

Okay, let me try.

The performance was really good! I’ll support you.

Masumi

I’m so happy that you came and watched my play...... thanks, I love you.

Hey, keep watching me from now on.

Itaru

He went full sweetener mode, where’d the salt go?

Citron

All-you-can-eat candy~

Chikage

That isn’t reproduceable.

Tsuzuru

Be your usual self, Masumi, a little less curt since you have to show your appreciation.

Masumi

Sigh......

Itaru

That’s right...... Then how about these lines, for example?

Masumi, lend me your ears for a sec.

Masumi

…...

Itaru

Alright, let’s give it a try.

Director, take two.

Izumi

Roger that.

The play was very interesting!

Masumi

…... Thanks for coming......

I wasn’t waiting for you, by the way.

Citron

Good~, it is like a dere scene!

Sakuya

I see, it’s the kind of line that doesn’t sound too honest!

Tsuzuru

But it’s true, it might be heart-pounding for his fans......

Masumi

…... I can’t do it.

I’d be happy anytime you came......

Come see me anytime. I want to see you. I want you to see more of my plays. I love you.

Citron

Oh, it is a deredere~! *

Chikage

I knew this would happen.

Tsuzuru

Director playing the fan role, it was too much to ask for.

Story Clear!

---------------T/Ns:----------------

May be referencing Mankai Company doing a live show there at the opening day (A3! White Day event story “Sing Big Thanks!”)

A tsundere, as you may know, is someone who shows love in a grumpy way

Meanwhile, a deredere is a lovey-dovey peron

[shiroi---kumo]

Ten Q’S:

1. when are you usually online?  

Nearly every day! I work from Friday to Tuesday (4:30am - 12:30pm EST) Wednesday and Thursday are my days off so I’m on for most of the day those days. I have a scheduled therapy appointment every other Thursday at 10am.  

I always pop in on my breaks at work though so (8am and 11am)  for about 30 minutes. If you see me posting otherwise within my scheduled work hours I’m probably cheating and using my phone real quick. I pop in every now and then to post a meme or check things but I don’t really start doing replies / posts until after I get home from work. (I normally take some kind of a nap though because I’m tired from waking up so early)

2. what verses are you involved in outside of this page?

Kumo has A LOT of verses but he mostly lives in main verse (Creeping Shadows of Anarchy) with @kazeofthemagun​. I have in series verses, pre-series verse and crossover verses too! I’ve made him verses for FMA and KH. Making him verses for other places is easy too because it’s so simple to cross him over with other series / muses.  

Probably my second most involved verse is actually my FMA verse “Amestris No More.”   It’s come to involve quite a few blogs and different threads. It’s one giant story involving all the poor souls from FMA who have gotten sucked into Wonderland.  It’s a lot of fun and I honestly love it dearly.

You can find the rest of Kumo’s verses here. 

3. what is your biggest RP pet peeve?

Just talk to me. It drives me insane when people avoid talking to me for whatever reason. Communication. It drives me insane. I think my other one that’s come up more as of late is no means no.  If I tell someone no to something, that’s all I should have to say.  

4. are you drawn to specific types of muses?

Abso-fucking-lutely. Most of my muses tend have things in common like (but not limited to) white hair, trauma, younger in age, bitey personalities, red hair, blond hair, sarcasm, smartasses, selfless, etc.  I have a type and I know it but they don’t always fall into that categories. I have some weirdos in there like Yeager. 

5. are there recurring themes in your writing that people might not notice?

I write in layers. I write massive foreshadowing constantly and if you keep up with threads consistently you’ll see that most of the time they all tie together. (This happens when I do Arcs with a single muse / Amestris No More.)  I echo drabbles I’ve written in threads with the same muse. I echo things from threads ago in a current one. Sometimes a single paragraph I’ll write has three different meanings to it.  I write in layers. 

I’m gunna use this as an example here because Quen liked it so here we go: 

“ The sun wasn’t meant to mix with the rain because when it did … it only brought out the rainbow. “

Kaze is the sun side of the Unlimited pair.  

“Is it going to rain?” is what Kumo’s brother would ask him when he was about to cry. 

Aura (Kaze’s sister) and Lou (a girl he cared about) are the only characters in the series with the soul soil being called “Tears of the Rainbow”  and when they died to give up their soil, it was the only two times in the entire series Kaze shed tears.

The sentence actually reads “Kaze shouldn’t cry because when he does it only means his loved ones have died.” 

I write in layers. 

6. what are your favorite RP trends?

I absolutely adore dash commentary or people sending asks / anons about current events in threads or headcanons ect. I love when the dash will blow up into everyone talking because of a single thing that got said. I just adore that. It gives that community feeling and I live for that.

7. what is your process for starting a new story with someone?  

If we’re going in with the long haul, then there is half a million plotting conversations that take place. I have disco servers dedicated to ARCs for organization purposes. I have replotted scenes with someone at least 20 times so when we get there it’s amazing. I need triggers. I need to know what people are chill with.  I talk things out A LOT.   But if it’s just memes and stuff, oh I just wing that shit. 

My Multi-thread interconnecting story ARCs? Oh those get talked about near constant. 

8. how do you feel about duplicates?

I would laugh at the sheer concept of Kumo ever having one but I mean hey if I’m crazy enough to RP in this dead and buried fandom maybe someone else is too and I mean, good on them if they do.  I’ve written with duplicates in the past on other blogs. I’m pretty chill about them. Just like you do you. We’re just vibing here. 

9. how long have you been involved in roleplaying?

Uhhhh 22 years now? Yeah it’s been a minute.

10. is there a muse or verse you wish you could write in, but haven’t?

I just want more people in this fandom. I’m content to just keep side musing basically everyone with Quen though. It’s kinda like we’re just splitting the series down the middle and going crazy because it’s just us. LOL  Really if anything?  I’d love it if people wanted to talk more to my Misterican OCs. I made a meme for it and everything. Look I know they’re dead present day but it helps grow that world.  You can even talk to Kumo himself when he was a kid! I would love to write more of him before he lost it all and got insanely depressed.  (Prince Pilvi. He’d still be going by his given Misterican name) 

stolen from @curseleads​ // @deathleads​

[brightside-brigade]

Hello everyone, today is the day I talk about Poppy Playtime. Now before we get started, I'd like to acknowledge that yes, this game has its problems. The head devs are indeed shady, it was indeed made as a corporate cash grab with purposefully marketable characters for merch sales. No, I do not agree with these things. However, I love the game regardless.

Instead of giving them money, however (barring the upcoming PJ Pugapillar plush because he is a need,) I watch many of my favorite YouTubers play through it. I avoid giving them my money and support my beloved content creators instead. Dawko, FusionZgamer, Marki, SuperHorrorBro, ect. Yes, I watch ALL of their playthroughs. I need to see everyone's different reactions, theories, ect. It is simply my favorite way to experience a game I cannot get for myself.

Speaking of the game, people often say it is a ripoff hybrid between FNaF and BATIM, two of my other favorite horror games, and yea. It kind of is. But I personally love it for that. It blends some of my favorite things from those two games in a way that still has its own style. I'm aware this is not the case, but the game feels hand-crafted for me and me alone, catered perfectly to my tastes and wants. Is it? No. But that's how I feel with the way it blends everything together.

Everything I love is in harmony. My favorite horror trope (one of them), is in fact the new genre of things for kids that have gone horribly wrong. The game also has heavy kidcore vibes, which I adore. However this is mixed with and offset by the liminality of the setting. It's so comforting but so off putting. Unlike other horror games in this genre, it does not shy away from gore. Now I'm a bit fucked up. I have a penchant for the stuff, and there's been a lacking of it in horror recently. This? All this? Good shit.

The games story, while being a tale as old as time by now, is played in a new way with new spins. The implications are simply horrific, and boy do I fucking love that. The recent trailer, showing a gas mask, has many possible explanations, each horrid and disgusting and wonderful. Human experimentation, while heavily explored in the horror genre as a whole, is another trope I love. The icky, tingly feeling it gives is thrilling and horrible all at once. And the fact that in this game the subjects were orphans makes it so much worse. Needless to say I need more.

The initial reason for the experiments is sympathetic, if theories are correct. Trying to bring back a loved one turning into a corrupt company doing godless acts to further their profits shows humanity in its purest greed, but also its softest adoration for those loved, the desire to keep them forever, holding them close, begging them no never ever leave. No matter the cost. Love is beautiful, love is horrifying.

Now, the character design, oh the character design. Yes, they were purposefully made to be marketable and appeal to younger audiences. However, in the context of the game, it makes sense. They are toys made to be cute and loveable. They'd need to be in order for sales to go through. Huggy Wuggy (scrungy bungy) for example has a simple design comprised of bright primary colors. He outwardly has no sharp edges, is soft in form, and designed with the comfort of a loving hug in mind. This greatly contrasts into the chase scene, when he shows his teeth. Sharp, uneven daggers set in a drooling maw made to rend flesh from bone in a single motion. His eyes now large and dark, shiny in the way of a rabid animal. And yet he hasn't changed much. Still soft. Still bright. Still... Huggy. The blood in his fall scene really drives home the point that something is so horribly wrong. So deliciously twisted.

The blood is an important point in the game as well. As I've stated. There's been a lack of it within this genre. This game, however, promises to be full of it. The way dried blood is caked around discarded, broken toys, the way it sprays from both Huggy and Mommy Long Legs and even the train at the end of chapter two, paints a horrible, visceral idea of the things that have happened there. The implications that the toys have working body systems. Organs. Nerves. And can feel everything. It's so uncanny, yet wonderful. Horrifically wonderful.

Game play wise, the game isn't overtly difficult. It's a simple puzzle game with mild action so far. Not uncommon. However, I do enjoy the games gimmick, the grabpack. It's a creative idea, and reminds me of 3DMG/ODM. But kidcore. It's slowly being expanded on and I'd love to see where it goes.

My favorite character designs so far have been CatBee, Candy Cat, and PJ. The kitties haven't had a chance at the spotlight yet. I wonder, will they be enemies or allies? I would love to see them twisted into something horrible. But at the same time, they could be, well, helpful and cute before ultimately meeting a horrific and bloody end like many before them have. The kind of game it is, nothing cute or good will stay. Such is life, an ever darkening spiral down of blood and viscera.

Chapter 3 drops next year, and the enemy is hinted at to be Bron, (Braun?). He, so far, is terrifying. He even hints at himself being the scariest dinosaur, in an incredibly chilling moment with simply a cardboard cut-out. Something about his beady eyes and emotionless smile haunt you to the core. And yet, his design is still soft and presentable.

Simply put, I cannot wait for the next part. I hope it gets worse/better. I want no holds barred.

TL;DR, I love.

[nct-lian]

relationships outside of sm

JENNIE + LIAN: JENLI

so iconic omg like how they do it, i have no idea

they hang out all the time and lian is literally ALWAYS on jennie’s instagram

the two of them once had an instagram story conversation over pigtails

like,, jennie posted a picture of lian’s pigtails for that one bicycle performance on her story and captioned it “pigtail baby” and then lian reposted it on her own story with a picture of jennie’s pigtails, captioning it “pigtail eomma”

speaking of eomma, jennie is genuinely her mother

jennie takes her shopping all the time

and in return, lian buys her food

the interactions these two used to have at award shows were SO CUTE

everyone remembers when jennie pretty much yelled out lian’s name and she just came running over to the members of blackpink after taeyong let her leave :(

i’m crying just thinking about it help

jennie also posted a full on instagram post for lian on her birthday and had such a sweet caption with it

it was something like “my daughter is finally 21 today! i hope she has an amazing day and i can’t wait to see her later tonight to give her a gift :) haneullie, lots of love from jennie eomma”

SPEAKING OF THE GIFT,, jennie bought her a whole ass $9000 necklace from chanel because she knew that lian was looking for more

IM IN TEARS AND SO ARE YOU ADMIT IT RN

jenli kpop bestest duo

dispatch once thought jennie was on a date with a girl but it turned out to just be her walking lian home after going shopping with her so they never posted anything about it

they were embarrassed they got something wrong so i get it

omfg when news came out that lian and jinwoo broke up mama jennie was threatening to punch the shit out of him

KEVIN + LIAN: LIMOON

what i’ve been waiting to write for so long okay here we go

so mf chaotic like there are compilations made of these two that scream “go crazy go stupid”

their time as guest mc’s for inkigayo was probably some of the best kpop content we’d gotten in a long ass time

KEVIN IS CAUTIOUS WHEN LETTING HER MEET HIS MEMBERS

cause she’s such a good friend to him and wtf why would he wanna share

“mine mine mine mine” constant dory vibes 24/7

lian thrives off of calling him by his korean name because she knows it annoys him

he’s constantly teasing her for having bagged milk in toronto so he deserves it

the one time lian and jacob talked to each other they seemed to be getting along too much for kevin’s liking so he really went:

“okay lian isn’t it time for you to go” because he WAS GETTING JEALOUSJCLSJX

their styles are pretty much complete opposites and everytime they take pictures together kevin never forgets to mention how off it all looks

“tf is that why are your clothes so boring”

“okay sNaKe pAnTs” because of that one eric moment on kpop daebak show where he said kevin had pants with snakes on them

ALSO BTW LIANS CLOTHES ARENT FUCKING BORING SHES JUST FANCY LIKE THAT

i’m getting heated let me calm down.

they normally speak in english to each other but since lian seems to be stuttering over her words when she isn’t speaking korean, he mixes in a few korean phrases every now and then to help her out

kevin is arguably the most hype every single time lian performs, like he really thinks there isn’t anything better

LIAN MAKES SURE TO UPDATE HER INSTAGRAM STORY WHENEVER TBZ HAVE A COMEBACK SO NCTZENS GO SUPPORT THEM

LIA + LIAN: LILIA

more lian x the canadian line WOOHOO

lia spent her trainee days really looking up to lian and she’s even mentioned before that she’d love for itzy to get the chance to collab with her for a song

she really has her fingers crossed for that btw

they actually met during an award show when ryujin, chaeryeong and yuna all had to leave because it was past curfew

lian decided to sit next to them and during all the intermissions between performances she, lia and yeji conversed to pass time

they ended up growing a friendship together but lian has a stronger bond with lia

she loves all the girls either way but yk

lia and lian love going to cafes together and taking adorable pictures :(

like whenever lia posts on itzy’s instagram midzeys don’t exactly know whether or not lian would be on it too :0

like lian normally posts all the scenery pictures she gets to keep her instagram pleasing whereas lia posts the pictures the two of them take together

my heart </3

lian treats lia like a whole daughter because it isn’t often she finds girls that are younger than her

*screams in the fact that majority of sm’s female artists are all from 2015 and under*

like when i say lian SPOILS her i’m not joking

she will randomly call lia up like:

“hey i’m gonna get you out of that dungeon, come get some chicken with me”

and then they’ll just hang out together

but only if lian is out of the dungeon herself because wbk she ain’t treated very well </3

EUNWOO + LIAN: WOOLI

their chemistry is fucking insane holy shit

like their acting for past to present was seriously so praised, netizens found it hard to believe it was all just for the show

dating rumours follow these two everywhere,, like everywhere

it’s one of the most popular ships inside ncity when it comes to lian and other idols

i kid you not one tweet said “chanhyeok treated jihye so well in past to present, i’m only wondering how well eunwoo would treat lian 👀”

LIKE STOP PUTTING IDEAS INTO PEOPLES HEADS YOURE KILING ME HERE ISTG

but yeah they do look really good together

and they’re an amazing pair for acting

when eunwoo started working with inyeop for true beauty, he said:

“hyung’s dating my girlfriend” because of the fact that both of them have acted with lian and BOTH of them dated her in the dramas

what a coincidence though

we all cried when we saw chanhyeok and jihye kiss for the first time DONT LIE

EUNWOO FOLLOWS HER ON INSTAGRAM

and they wished each other happy birthday on their instagram stories

there’s actually people who like to think that they dated while filming for past to present andddd they radiate big delulu vibes

like you know liskook shippers? wooli shipped are kinda the same, but not as intense (thank god)

BUT CAN WE BLAME THEM LIKE THEIR CHEMISTRY? THE WAY THEY TALKED TO EACH OTHER? PLEASE

they took a lot of cute pictures together behind the scenes (ノ﹏ヽ)

MOMO + LIAN: LIMO

DANCER DUO DANCER DUO

this ship isn’t actually as popular as we would like it to be, but nonetheless people love limo

a lot of interactions during award shows !!

like for example momo’s fancams always captured her dancing perfectly to lian’s choreo

and lian smiling in momo’s direction

i love them

when lian found out about heechul and momo’s relationship, she asked momo if she was her mom now because of how much of a father figure she considers heechul to be JDFJK

“i mean sure”

they’ve actually done a vlive together before (ᗒᗨᗕ)

it was when lian visited her at the twice dorms and they ended up getting bored so they decided to do a vlive in the living room

THEY PLAYED DARE OR DARE AND LIAN HAD TO DO THE TEARS CHALLENGE (so chan whee) ON MOMOS KARAOKE MACHINE

her throat was dry for the rest of the night

after seeing momo’s hair for the i can’t stop me era, lian actually wanted to cut it like that

but she decided against it because she loves her long hair too much

the two of them met on hit the stage where they competed against each other in a freestyle dance battle

after that they just started casually talking over the phone and became great friends

with the way momo talks about lian, you’d think they’re dating-

“oh, lian- she’s so pretty! i love her a lot!”

and the same goes for lian, she loves talking about momo’s dancing skills

JACKSON + LIAN: JACKLIAN

her dad :/

adopted her with amber liu like a year ago so now she’s just his daughter

supports each other like crazy not even joking

jackson promotes her on instagram and twitter 24/7

THEY HAVE SO MANY INTERACTIONS THANK GOD

lian was once given a ridiculously short dress while attending an award show and jackson gave her his jacket to wear over her legs because she wasn’t provided a blanket :(

(keep in mind, she went there without the members!)

lian added all his music to her playlist :)

once got drunk together and spent like three hours doing karaoke but it’s okay cause it was fun

speaking of getting drunk, jackson’s the cool dad that lets her do whatever she wants

he has his protective moments where he’s like “ma’am where are you going on that short of a dress” but he’s also like “hey wanna go get chicken and soju”

they both appeared on a radio show together as guests and they ruined the whole broadcast because they were too loud

like they kept getting out of their seats to go wave at all the fans outside the window and they were just fighting back and forth about whether or not lian’s extensions look real

according to jackson, they’re “NOT AUTHENTIC ENOUGH- LOVE YOUR HAIR FOR WHAT IT IS, LIANNA HANEUL BAE.” lian’s hair lives matter :/

PLSSS WHEN HYOSEOP AND LIAN STARTED DATING- no

jackson was so proud that his good friend was smooching his other good friend but the protective dad instincts really kicked in

“break her heart and you die no cap”

was surprisingly chill when they broke up though, he was just glad lian didn’t cry

SUNMI + LIAN: SUNLI

SUNMI IS HER MOM OHMYGOD

so many interactions

honestly took lian under wing once she debuted as a soloist

female kpop soloists gotta have each other’s backs in this industry man :(

sunmi calls lian her princess SOBS

lian always hugs sunmi at award shows, like if they’re sitting close together

or if they’re standing next to each other on stage

you bet your ass lian is gripping onto sunmi for dear life

did a photoshoot together for marie claire korea

they’re so hot bro

BUT THEY FIRST MET ON WEEKLY IDOL NOT LONG AFTER LIAN DEBUTED AS A SOLOIST

they were kinda awkward ngl uh

but by the end of it they were besties :DD

and they’ve been besties ever since

lian is the ceo of doing dance covers for sunmi’s songs

cmon lian we’re waiting for tail 👀

sunmi has actually met lian’s grandma </3

like her and lian were hanging out at the dorms while the boys were out on a schedule and her grandma just randomly showed up with homemade food so that was definitely a win

BANG CHAN + LIAN: LICHAN

they’ve been friends for a LOOONGGG time

and chain’s known her since dating back to like, smrookies era when lian was still a red velvet member

like at that time she had no idea he existed, but he was keeping up with her daily :(

chan plays her music on vlives all the time and he always knows the dance moves

like he just dances along in his chair and mumbles the lyrics

we love to see it

a lot of fans ship them together

SURPRISE SURPRSIE AH

only because chan gives off big pining energy

lian only looks at him like “:D” whereas he looks at her like “♡•♡”

kinda sad but

lian promotes him on live so often HVKSVU

“my friend chan is coming back with his group soon, you should check it out! :)”

and the way she just says “my friend chan” LIKE ITS SO OBVIOUSLY A FRIENDZONE BUT HE THINKS ITS ADORABLE

he once got a comment on a vlive to react to lian moments, obviously complying because who wouldn’t

there was this one clip of her saying “my friend chan from stay kids!” and whoever edited the compilation added in squishy noises right after while zooming in on her face

AND CHAN BLUSHED SO HARD NOO

“oh- hahaha, uhh, she’s so cute aw hahahah”

ASHLEY + LIAN: ASHLI

oh god not another lian x mom ship

ASHLEY LOVES LIAN WOAH

like she’s submitted lian’s resume to bm so many times so they could be part of the big tiddie committee together

ashley is constantly, and i mean constantly, reposting all of lian’s posts on her story with captions like “LOOK AT HER GO”

and lian has even discovered all the cool instagram filters because of ashley, and now we get the quality content from her that WE DESERVEEEEE

back when lian’s album came out, all ashley’s story really was was just screenshots of her streaming all the songs and calling them bops

when they first met in person after texting back in forth, ashley spammed her instagram story with pictures of lian that she took without her looking

these two radiate a lot of “YES GIRL WORKKK ITTT TURN THIS WAY OKAYYY POSE POSE POSE” energy

lian’s been featured in one of ashley’s youtube videos and it was when they met for the first time :)

they exchange a lot of gifts through the mail

like lian once found a mug when shopping with doyoung and she thought that it would fit ashley’s taste so she sent it to her apartment

and ever since then they just send random little gifts to each other’s houses

it’s so cute

MATCHING BUCKET HATS THEY HAVE MATCHING BUCKET HATS !!!!!!

ashley talks about lian all the time

she always says that for someone so young, she’s accomplished a lot and she’s really proud of her

they wanna do tiktoks with each other but they never have the time </3

lian spam comments on ashley’s instagram like “WOAH” “OKAYYYY” “YESYESYES”

[k00274382]

20/1/2021 | Animation Task 1

1. 2D Painterly Animation Style

- This animation style is known for its prominant use of paint and other tools like pastel to achieve and more lifeful presence on screen. While this style may not have the highest frames per second and can sometimes look like a slideshow, the emphasis is on environment and colour the paints conjure and only sometimes does it ask you to fill in the blanks yourself. It is my personal favorite style of animation as it gives every single frame the masterpiece treatment which i personally find awe inspiring

Examples of animations with such styles are:

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Belladonna of Sadness (1973)

Produced by Mushi Production and Directed by Eiichi Yamamoto

(tw// sexual violence)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPzaIN23l4s

Fantastic images exist in this film and is a favorite of mine, though this movie is most guilty of being a slideshow in many parts.

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Alice in wonderland (1981)

Produced by Kievnauchfilm and Directed by Efrem Pruzhanskiy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oym9aw-Iso&t=374s

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Montage of Heck (2015)

Produced by HBO documentary films/Polder Animation and Directed by Brett Morgen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzYz8gdF730

Rotoscoping and beautiful environments bring to life the stories of kurt cobain

2. Stop motion animation

Growing up I was under the assumption that Stop motion was really computer animation due to how much control over realism the people over at Laika productions had with their craft. Everything changed when I saw behind the scenes footage of the sets of Kubo and how they put things together and animate. From that point on I saw it as one of the most important forms of animation even for its charm alone. Stop motion is fundamentally the animation of real world figures or dolls made of plasticine in sets that can be the size of a room! Many of us have seen Wallace and Gromit, but have you seen these movies?

Kubo and The Two Strings (2016)

Produced by Laika Productions and Directed by Travis Knight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1e_OdUzBeY

No discussion about stop motion is complete without a mention of Laika productions and the work theyve done to solidify the medium in our hearts as some of the best pieces of animation that have graced the big screens.

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Mary and Max (2009)

Produced by Melanie Coombs and Directed by Adam Elliot

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEYKFw6nboY

Not as often talked about than its contemporaries, Mary and Max is an australian stop motion feature following the long distance friendship between a lonely girl and a man struggling with his aspergers.

The animation is full of character in how it chooses to make the characters quite ugly. For me this goes on to show how human this movie is by not glamorising people and their unaesthetic features

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The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974)

Produced by Rankin.Bass Productions and Directed by Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin, Jr

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbfgVEk-mxQ&list=PLZs0gQed9tMR9dwkMJlzOE6XWQTz6FKhL

A christmas classic, The Year without a santa claus is bursting with character from start to finish. It in my opinion is not as technically experimental as something like a Kubo, however whatever it may lack in animation, it most certainly makes up for in art style and charisma.

3. 2D/3D Blends:

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Bigtop Burger (2020)

Directed and Produced by Worthikids

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyCagepF_T4

Bigtop Burger is the passion project of musician, artist, and animator Worthikids. The show is made using a mix of the 2D and 3D features of Blender and this sense of space given using these techniques is very evident in the sheer quality of the finished product. If anything is telling you that 3D has very little charisma, then you havent seen Bigtop Burger

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Amazing World of Gumball (2011)

Directed by Mic Graves and Produced by Boulder Media/ Studio SOI

The Amazing World of Gumball is the first example in my head that uses 3D worlds to facilatate 2D characters, but it takes that fact one step further by also being the home to different mediums of characters such as sock and felt puppets, CGI characters, completely different art style characters and so much more.

[doctorskeleton]

 Gordon Freeman’s thesis is titled Observation of Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen Entanglement on Supraquantum Structures by Induction Through Nonlinear Transuranic Crystal of Extremely Long Wavelength (ELW) Pulse from Mode-Locked Source Array in this essay i will pick it apart piece by piece to better understand what the fuck it means

Einsten-Podolsky-Rosen Entanglement This bit is one of the staples of Quantum Mechanics, called the EPR paradox/entanglement. We should already know that entanglement, as a basic part of quantum physics, is when two separate particles rely on each other on their positions. It's the idea that if you measure/observe one particle, you could accurately predict the other particle because the two are ~entangled~ The EPR paradox is a a thought experiment, like a lot of quantum physics is.

The thought experiment involves a pair of particles prepared in an entangled state (note that this terminology was invented only later). Einstein, Podolsky, and Rosen pointed out that, in this state, if the position of the first particle were measured, the result of measuring the position of the second particle could be predicted. If, instead, the momentum of the first particle were measured, then the result of measuring the momentum of the second particle could be predicted. They argued that no action taken on the first particle could instantaneously affect the other, since this would involve information being transmitted faster than light, which is forbidden by the theory of relativity. They invoked a principle, later known as the "EPR criterion of reality", positing that, "If, without in any way disturbing a system, we can predict with certainty (i.e., with probability equal to unity) the value of a physical quantity, then there exists an element of reality corresponding to that quantity". From this, they inferred that the second particle must have a definite value of position and of momentum prior to either being measured. This contradicted the view associated with Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg, according to which a quantum particle does not have a definite value of a property like momentum until the measurement takes place.

Supraquantum Structures I can't find any definitions nor anything in scientific papers that tell me what this is without me having to go down a rabbithole of terminology. So instead I'm going to look at the terminology itself to see what it means. Supra is a prefix meaning "above" or "beyond". The definition of quantum is "a discrete quantity of energy proportional in magnitude to the frequency of the radiation it represents." That's a little obtuse for a definition so let's just go witth this instead. "Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that describes the physical properties of nature at small scales, of the order of atoms and subatomic particles."  If we take "quantum" to mean "atoms/subatomic particles" then Supraquatum would just mean something bigger than a particle, right? A supraquantum structure could be a single cell organism.

Now, lets put the first bit together, EPR Entanglement on supraquantum structures. These are observations on the entanglement of objects bigger than particles, which is hard to prove in it of itself, so the next bit must be important to the entire puzzle Induction through Nonlinear Transuranic Crystal of Extremely Long Wavelength Induction is a way of charging objects. In the induction process, a charged object is brought near but not touched to a neutral conducting object. The presence of a charged object near a neutral conductor will force (or induce) electrons within the conductor to move.Nonlinear dynamics is the branch of physics that studies systems governed by equations more complex than the linear, aX+b form. Nonlinear systems, such as the weather or neurons, often appear chaotic, unpredictable or counter-intuitive, and yet their behavior is not random. Transuranic just means any element with a higher atomic number than uranium (92) So i seemed to have glanced over the "pulse" bit in the thesis title because of the acronym throwing me off. so the ELW pulse from a mode-locked source array is the electric pulses coming from the test chamber's laser "source array", and its Mode-Locked. 

Mode-locking is a technique in optics by which a laser can be made to produce pulses of light of extremely short duration

I can't find any definition of souce array so im going to assume that's what the laser machine is. This bit was easy, but to go on about it; the electric pulses/lasers theyre using to induct the crystal is on the long part of the wavelength scale, which doesnt make much sense considering that it looks like electricity. It makes more sense once you consider what the scientists say before you enter the test chamber "I'm afraid we'll be deviating a bit from standard analysis procedures today, Gordon" "This is the purest sample we've seen yet, and potentially the most unstable" Now, the actual machine is called the Anti-Mass Spectrometer, and it only really exists in half-life. but if i pick apart the name i can figure out what it really does. A spectrometer is a scientific instrument used to separate and measure spectral components of a physical phenomenon. Spectrometer is a broad term often used to describe instruments that measure a continuous variable of a phenomenon where the spectral components are somehow mixed. Anti-mass is just another term for Negative Mass, something that also only really exists in theoretical physics, or at least is only referred to in a theoretical sense.

In theoretical physics, negative mass is a type of exotic matter whose mass is of opposite sign to the mass of normal matter, e.g. −1 kg. Such matter would violate one or more energy conditions and show some strange properties, stemming from the ambiguity as to whether attraction should refer to force or the oppositely oriented acceleration for negative mass. It is used in certain speculative hypotheses, such as on the construction of traversable wormholes and the Alcubierre drive. Currently, the closest known real representative of such exotic matter is a region of negative pressure density produced by the Casimir effect.

So this spectrometer would analyze negative mass. This is already getting into science fiction but you can also call theoretical physics "science fiction" itself, just with more math.

To go on, we must assume that the anti-mass spectrometer should be mode-locking an ELW to induct a transuranic crystal,  but in reality it's not an ELW at all. Long wavelengths are invisible, most wavelengths are. an extremely long wavelength would probably? be longer than radio waves, and this is going into the electromagnetic spectrum

"Extremely Long Wavelength" isn't even a real term, so we'll have to turn it into one. "Extremely Low Frequency" is the closest real term in name

Extremely low frequency (ELF) is the ITU designation for electromagnetic radiation (radio waves) with frequencies from 3 to 30 Hz, and corresponding wavelengths of 100,000 to 10,000 kilometers, respectively. In atmospheric science, an alternative definition is usually given, from 3 Hz to 3 kHz. In the related magnetosphere science, the lower frequency electromagnetic oscillations (pulsations occurring below ~3 Hz) are considered to lie in the ULF range, which is thus also defined differently from the ITU radio bands.

ELF's also have multiple definitions depending on who you ask.

ELF is a subradio frequency. Some medical peer reviewed journal articles refer to ELF in the context of "extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields (MF)" with frequencies of 50 Hz and 50–80 Hz. United States Government agencies, such as NASA, describe ELF as non-ionizing radiation with frequencies between 0 and 300 Hz. The World Health Organization (WHO) have used ELF to refer to the concept of "extremely low frequency (ELF) electric and magnetic fields (EMF)" The WHO also stated that at frequencies between 0 and 300 Hz, "the wavelengths in air are very long (6000 km at 50 Hz and 5000 km at 60 Hz), and, in practical situations, the electric and magnetic fields act independently of one another and are measured separately."

A real life example of the usage of these electromagnetic frequencies is the US government using ELFs to communicate with deeply submerged submarines. If this is the type of wavelength Gordon plans on using to induct a transuranic crystal, then he wouldn't need to have a spectrometer do it, nor any mode-locked source array. So it couldn't be ELFs, right? let's forget this tangent and move on IF it is an electromagnetic wave he's using to induct a transuranic crystal, then it would more likely be above the visible light spectrum. The thing is, the electricity in the scene with the anti-mass spectrometer lands within the visible light spectrum. It's green, and green has a wavelength of 500–565 nm (frequency of 530–600 THz). thats 500 nanometers, not a long wavelength at all.

I'm sure whatever writer at valve decided to write out this thesis title didn't research these terms as much as i have just now, either that or they purposefully made it sound obtuse enough to fit into science fiction without it needing to make sense. But the fun of science fiction is that it's based on real science IMO. so lets forget that it says ELW and go the other direction. Extremely Short Wavelength.

Inducting anything with ionizing radiation of a gamma ray would definitely get you results, under any spectrometer. now, i want to go back to the tangent of the transuranic crystal. It's completely possible that there is no such thing and it was made up for the game with the in-game lore that it's from Xen or whatever, but i want to look into the possibility of using elements that exist.

The game implies that they found the crystal but it doesn't outright say it, which covers their ass on the fact that transuranic elements are synthetically made. Neptunium and Plutonium are made through decay chains in Uranium and can also be found in atmospheric tests after a nuclear explosion. So Neptunium and Plutonium can technically be "found".

So let's go through all the transuranic elements and see if any of them can become crystals! Since they all are unstable i'm also gonna list their half-lives  for fun. For reference, STP means standard temperature and pressure

Neptunium (93) - solid at stp, appears silvery and metallic. the most stable isotopes are Np-237 with a half-life of 2.14 million years; Np-236 with a half-life of 154,000 years; and Np-235 with a half-life of 396 days. it's also pyrophoric so not a contender. Plutonium (94) - solid at stp, appears silvery white but oxidizes into grey. it can turn into a pyrophoric powder. Pu-239 has a half-life of 24,100 years and Pu-241's half-life is 14.4 years. Amercium (95) - solid at stp, also a silvery white look, oxidizes. it's used in smoke detectors! half life of 432.2 years Curium (96) - solid stp, its a hard, dense silvery metal that glows purple in the dark. oxidizes very easily, half life ~162 days Berkelium (97) - solid stp. described as a soft silvery-white metal with a half-life of 330 days, but the previous elements would decay into elements with a lower atomic number, where as Berkelium decays into Californium Californium (98) - This one crystalizes under normal pressure, slowly tarnishes under air. silvery appearance. can be used to start up nuclear reactors. Has 20 known isotopes and all their half-lives vary, but its about 2.6 years. Einstienium (99) Silvery and glows blue in the dark, has a paramagnetic field and it's most common isotope has a half-life of 20.47 days Fermium (100) -  the last of the elements that can be created by bombarding lighter elements with neutrons. Longest lived half-life is 100 days, not much is known about it. Mendelevium (101) - can only be produced in particle accelerators, half life between 51 days and 1.17 hours Nobelium (102) - also only avalible through particle accelerators, half life between 58 minutes and 3.1 minutes. the shorter half-lifed isotope is easier to create and therefore used more often for research Lawrencium (103) - from here on out theres less and less information for each transuranic element, including this one. half-life of 11 hours. Rutherfordium (104) - half life of 1.3 hours Dubnium (105) - half life of 28 hours Seaborgium (106) - half life of 14 minutes Bohrium (107) - half life unconfirmed but its between 61 seconds and 690 seconds

I'm gonna go ahead and stop right there since they tend to follow a pattern. The lower the half-life, the less research there is on the element, and it only gets shorter and shorter. So it seems like Californium is the only possible element that could've been used in the experiment because it forms a crystallized structure under normal pressure, as well has having usage in modern nuclear science to start up nuclear reactors, as well as having pretty stable/long-lasting isotopes. the most stable isotope has a half-life of 898 years but the most commonly used isotope is 2.6 years. now, it should be noted that the lower the half-life the more radioactive an element is. all of the transuranic elements decay radioactively and Californium is no exception. Californium's radioactivity has a tendency to disrupt the formation of red blood cells by bio-accumulating in skeletal tissue.

Here's some more information on it's physical properties:

Californium is a silvery white actinide metal with a melting point of 900 ± 30 °C (1,650 ± 50 °F) and an estimated boiling point of 1,745 K (1,470 °C; 2,680 °F). The pure metal is malleable and is easily cut with a razor blade. Californium metal starts to vaporize above 300 °C (570 °F) when exposed to a vacuum. Below 51 K (−222 °C; −368 °F) californium metal is either ferromagnetic or ferrimagnetic (it acts like a magnet), between 48 and 66 K it is antiferromagnetic (an intermediate state), and above 160 K (−113 °C; −172 °F) it is paramagnetic (external magnetic fields can make it magnetic).

The element has two crystalline forms under 1 standard atmosphere of pressure: a double-hexagonal close-packed form dubbed alpha (α) and a face-centered cubic form designated beta (β).

This is a Californium-252 crystal, the one I predict would’ve been used in the test. It has a 2.6 year half-life.

That’s all the research i’ve got for you. 

TL;DR I predict that they’re using Gamma rays through the anti-mass spectrometer to induct Californium into making teleportation real with quantum entanglement.