#i searched and said 5.000 ?

[ajax-mew]

i got used to the 10mg meds...

im still in pain from the other days but way less

just feels almost like being tired

but today i start the 20mg...

[theonesmg1]

Honestly, seeing someone going around being so pissy about this Blog's AU with SMG1 and 2's relationship being father and son is extremely funny to me.

I already said multiple times this is an AU and has it's own Lore and canon, you obviously won't take it to be the shows actual canon lore and current story. SMG2 in my POV is one of those Ageless characters who present themselves as a child, an example are (in game) cuphead and mugman. But just like them, SMG2 is more than capable of snapping necks if they so wish to lol

SMG2 being a child here doesn't mean they're a vulnerable little baby who needs protection, SMG2 is more than self aware with their own traumas and issues to deal with, I don't look down on SMG2 because of my interpretation of them, plus the other person who helps me run this blog is the biggest SMG2 fan I know, it would've been really mad at me if I made SMG2 a poor little baby, plus it takes care of SMG2's responses in the blog.

And about ages, honestly, none of the SMGs have ages, which is why I say "Ageless character", I do agree on SMG1 being in their early to late 40's, that honestly makes a lot of sense to his character (in my AU they would be in late 30's but I still agree on that part)

Plus I don't think any of the SMGs have any actual ages, you may use as info the "SMG4's search history" episode, but Wednesday episodes are not counted as canon and you shouldn't take any of them as canon, those are just jokes and there are rare examples where they're actually tied up to canon, those being during IGBP and WOTFI 2023

And about Bob's age, honestly, it would depend on what you believe, I don't believe in the 5.000 years old thing, in Mario Babies, Bob appears to be a teen/pre-teen while Wario and Waluigi were little kids, then later on, he claims to be 500, now there was that "5.000 years ago" flasback, which in my opinion feels more like an antecessor than Bob himself. But bob could easily be lying his age to appear cooler and wiser on what he says, which is not out of character for him. He could be on late 30's to early 40's easily. Which would make sense for him and way he acts

But at the end of the day, as I said, the Blog has it's own AU and I made that clear multiple times, you are more than free to disagree and just move on instead of calling me "son of a bitch" and threatening of blocking me, which honestly, you should have done that a long time ago and be mature in this situation from the start instead of crying about it on the internet.

Just block and move on, I'm not telling you to take the stuff we post here as canon or like it, you're free to disagree with me, just don't be a baby about it.

And about SMG1 using they/them pronouns, yeah, my bad, that should have been in the pinned post from the start so... Thanks for the reminder on that 👍

Genuinely, I don't see what you're trying to prove acting like that.

- Genuinely, Lawrie 🟦

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"HAD RATION BOOKS ILLEGALLY FACES $100 FINE OR JAIL," Toronto Star. October 26, 1943. Page 2. --- William Ringland Also to Serve 60 Days for Stealing Watch, Chain ---- TODAY'S COURTS ---- "A" Police Court at City Hall, Magistrate Browne. For having two food rationing books not lawfully issued to him. William D. Ringland was fined $100 and costs or one month.

For theft of a watch and chain from a John St. resident, Ringland was given 60 days. If the fine on the first charge is not paid the sentence will run consecutively.

Det.-Sgt. Coleman said that after he arrested accused on the theft charge, he searched his room.

"I found two food ration books," he said. "The original name was erased and the name of the accused substituted."

John H. Smith pleaded guilty to stealing 12 fountain pens from a downtown store, and was given six months.

FINED FOR ASSAULT ---- County Police Court at County Building, Magistrate Keith A fist fight over a spoiled tool at war plant culminated when Magistrate Keith fined Jake Sutter $25 and costs or 10 days for aggravated assault.

Sutter testfied that he had warned Alex Brown. complainant and fellow worker, not to anger him for when he was angry he fought.

Brown admitted he was responsi ble for the spoiled tool.

"Sutter spoke to me with such profane language that I answered back: Sufter hit me then." Brown related. "The second blow dazed me. It broke my cheek bone in three places." "I didn't mean to hit him so hard," said Sutter. "He's not such a strong fellow."

SAY CHEQUE FORGED ---- Police Court C. at City Hall, Magistrate Prentice. Charged with uttering a forged document, Noel Charion elected trial by jury and was committed. J. Reid testified that accused cashed a forged cheque. Charion said he had cashed it for a man in a hotel beverage room.

BAIL SET AT $5,000 ---- Police Court B. at City Hall, Magistrate Gullen "He is still innocent and entitled to bail," said Harold Chaplin, counsel for W. R. Kribs, W. J. Smokler and Joseph Bartell, charged with auto theft. The court had announced there would be bail of $1,000 for Smokler and Bartell, but no bail for Kribs who was at present on bail and facing a charge in the court of general sessions. "I believe some bail should be set. said his worship. "Bail will be $5.000."

Frank C. Battaglia faced a count of vagrancy and the crown sought a remand. The information paper said he was "found wandering abroad, etc." "I don't know why I am here" said Battaglia. "I was taken out of my bed in my own home and brought down here."

"That is quite true," said Crown Counsel Chas. Hamm. "He is being held for Hamilton."

"You may only have a remand until tomorrow." directed the court. "If there is a further charge, it will have to be laid by then."

PERMIT BRINGS FINE ---- Police Court "D" at City Hall. Magistrate Pritchard. Pearl Fawn pleaded guilty to being in illegal possession of a liquor permit and was fined $100 and costs or three months.

Magistrale Pritchard reserved judgment until Friday in the case of Victorie Lidolat, charged with illegal sale of liquor. Constable Alfred Holdsworth told of ordering and receiving whiskey and beer in her home.

Constable Letteau said that marked bills were found in a drawer of the front room together with other money. He said four quarts of beer, a part quart of beer and a part bottle of liquor were found on the premises.

Contending the crown had failed to prove that liquor had been served to Constable Holdsworth. Onie Brown, defence counsel, asked the court to dismiss the charge.

"There has been sufficient evidence presented to put accused on her defence," the court ruled.

When Mr. Brown still refused to put in a defence, the case was adjourned for judgment.

[midnightsorrowsworld]

Dream Journal

(1/12/23)

I have a fuzzy dream lately, i dont know if is the effect of my meds because i start to get memory lost. So I dreamed i travel to India with my mom and novi, not sure but the first scene i remember is we were in bus and prepared to visit some mall. In my dream i said we're in India but all the scenery looks like we're in Makkah, and umroh together! (please god, invite us again).

We busy with ours belongings, we brought some huge bag, and i brought 2 laptop. So we decided to wear 1 medium bag and will's camera bag (looks like i borrow his camera). So we off to the mall, im so positive we're in Makkah because i ask Novi to checked the riyal kurs, and it said 1 Riyal = 5.000 rupiah. We're walking in mall foyer, the wall painted with ivory and it has warm light so makes the wall color looks like peachy color with square wall molding.

I entered authentic restaurant that have some several floors level, when i opened the glass door we're on first floor which looks like usual restaurant (with long table). The restaurant quite busy, and full with pakistani family who eat there (thats why im think we're on India) I walk to the another level that have a comfy couch and start to choose our table. We eat a traditional mid-east cuisine but i dont see any food and eat scene in my dream. The scene jump to when i ask the waitress for the bills, and my bills only 30 riyal for the fancy restaurant. I grab my purse and i see i have a lot of money, i bring a thick dollars/ riyal and give the waitress 100 riyal, then he came back to bring me my change. I organize my money to my purse and decided to the waitress some tips (5 riyal i guess). But he's nowhere, so i searched for him, and give that old waitress my tips. He's look so happy, and thanks me and looks like give me a good prayer (kinda blurry, tp aku aminin aja dalam mimpiku)

We about to heading to leave the restaurant but wait novi/ mama who needs to go to the bathroom, so we waited in long table near the rest room, in this room full with pakistani people. There're a group of boy who interact with me, they ask me some basic question when you meet a tourist until he ask me my whatsapp number. Hell no, ofcourse i denied him, and suggest him to be friend thru instagram. But he said if he's not have any instagram.The next story kinda blur, i remember i went to rest room and the condtionwas bit awful, the bathroom have an ocean blue tile, but it kinda murky. I think i almost give that pakistani guy my number, but when i back to my table i need to goback to the rest room because i want to retouch my make up.

But strangely, i accompanied with esyege in this restroom scene. I ask her lipstick, and use them to blush my cheek. Its a liptint in jar (like a nivea) with dark cherry colour, and 1 other look like tabilo, but it dripping, and its a nude color so i need to use a lighter color like red to add. bla bla bla then when i leave the rest room, i was in the outside, and next to the rest room there were a mosque, and i saw willy with his HS friend about to pray. And he asked me to wait for him outside. So im with gege wait him outside the mosque.

Finn.

[corpse-of-bandersnatch]

That's the whole interview with Jeff by Nicole Iskra, in which they also talked about him shaving of his chest hair. It was published in the Moviestar 05/2001 (the interview, not the chest hair).

I won't translate everything word for word, but if you wish a closer translation of a special topic/question, let me know and I try my best. (Also I apologize for the bad quality of the middle part of the scanned magazine).

PARALLAX – Madness from the Internet

„I was the Incarnation of their worst nightmare!“ - An interview with Jeffrey Combs

Before the interview starts, they introduce the latest movie Jeff was in back then, which is Parallax aka FearDotCom (almost the complete first column describes the Plot). Parts of it where shot in Luxembourg, which is also the Place where the interviewer meets Mr. Combs.

They meet in front of the Inter-Continental Hotel. Mr. Combs is PISSED, because the breakfast in the Hotel was awful (slimy fried egg) and the staff was rude (someone came in his room without knocking or apologizing, while he was sitting on his bed, only wearing a T-Shirt and Shorts).

They walk into the City of Luxembourg and Jeff's wondering about the many colourful life-sized cow sculptures, that you can find everywhere in town (quote: „Is this supposed to be art?!“).

He's searching for a souvenir for his wife, but in in his opinion, all of the dresses are outdated and their colours terrible. The interviewer teaches him the very important rule „Grün und Blau schmückt die Sau“.

They decide to eat in a Burger Restaurant called „Maybe not Bob's“, where he orders chicken wings with french fries and a coke (quote: „like a real American“).

Jeff speaks about the results of his genealogical research: Originally, his family came from Devon in England, but settled 1619 in Jamestown (Virginia) to work for Virginian Tobacco Co.

1. Question: The first question is about the renaming of FearDotCom to Parallax (reason being uncertainty about who owns the name). It follows more describing of the movie’s plot, this time from Mr. Combs himself.

His friend Bill Malone directed Parallax/FDC and offered Jeff the role, because they already worked together in Haunted Hill and Perversions of Science.

2. Question: You got along so well with Peter Jackson while filming The Frighteners. Will you at least get a Cameo in Lord of the Rings, even if it's only as Orc Nr. 260?

JC: That's the one Orc, that survived, right? (laughs). Nah seriously, I didn't get a role, unfortunately. I auditioned, , but the problem was the british accent. I can imitate it, but when you're surrounded by actors like Ian McKellen and Ian Holm, it's really not hard to tell who's a „real  Briton“ and who's not.

3. Question: Did your latest movie before Parallax/FDT – The Attic Expeditions –  had it's premiere in America yet?

JC: No, not yet. The world premiere was a couple of weeks ago here in Luxembourg and it was also shown on Festivals in Edinburgh and Amsterdam. Sadly, they didn't show it on the film festival in Brussel.

I'm really enthused by The attic Expeditions, because it's interesting, not linear, not logical, with few horror elements, but the horror is mostly psychological. It's like a dream in a nightmare on a trip. The longer you watch the movie, the less you know, what's real, it's a really complex movie, especially by american standards.

4. Question: In retrospect, would you call your role as Herbert West a curse?

JC: (sighs) Somehow, it's a curse and a blessing at the same time. Thanks to the role, I was branded as „Horror actor“ in Hollywood. After Deep Space Nine I was branded as „Horror- and Sci Fi- actor“. Movie people love to categorize you. On the other hand, the role of Herbert West opened up a lot of possibilities for me.

5. Question: 10 Years ago you told a funny story at a convention in New York, about sth. that happened while filming From Beyond. Could you maybe tell it again for the Moviestar readers?

JC: You mean the one with the children?

MS: Exactly!

JC: (grins) Well, we were already filming for a month – so I've been in this horrible make-up for 30 days already, with this awful head piece that looked like a red dog dick. I looked worse than Quasimodo! That's why I ate mostly in my dressing room. One day, they shot a commercial with a bunch of 4-year-old children in mushroom costumes on the same soundstage. We met in the hallway and as soon as those poor, innocent children saw me, all hell has broken loose. I was the incarnation of their worst nightmare, they screamed and ran to their mothers, who wanted to lynch me on the spot. So now it was me, who ran away.

But that's how it is, when you have a lot to do with make-up and masks and stuff like this. Not long ago, I was strapped to a cross made out of tubes, my throat was „cut“, there was blood all over me. And sometimes, when you're hanging there long enough, the crew just forgets that you're there, because for them, you just turned into a part of the set. Until you give a signal: „Umm sorry, guys, could you..maybe..“ - „Oh yeah sure, sorry Jeff, sorry..“

6. Question: (you might already know this one from this post): After that scene in From Beyond, in which you get eaten by this worm, your chest is as smooth as that of a baby – did they shave off your chest fur?

Jeff: Yes! (laughs)

MS: Did you do it yourself?

Jeff: Yes and I learnt something very important: Never use a normal razor blade, an electric razor is way better and safer and it doesn’t itch as badly, when the hair grows back. I had to shave my chest for a theater role once as well. I was 26 or so and played an 18-year-old.

7. Question: Do you still play in theatres regulary?

JC: No, not in the past couple of years, though theatre is very dear to my heart. Back in the days, I loved to play in theatres – living like a gypsy, 8 weeks in San Diego, and somewhere else afterwards. But that's not how I want to live today, now that I have a family. I don't like to leave my two little girls for several weeks, plus an engagement in a theatre isn't really helpful financially. I earn the same money in 1 week of shooting a movie as I do in 4-5 months of theatre work.

8. Question: I read that Woody Allen pays every actor 5.000 Dollar, because in his opinion, no one is worth 20 Million Dollar, neither beginner nor Superstar. What do you think about the explosive growth of fees nowadays?

JC: I do think that you should take the money, that the market offers you. But somebody, who earns 20 Millions per movie should share at least a million with their not so lucky co-actors.  No, seriously, it's not that easy to make a living. A friend of mine got a job, where he plays the brother of Kevin Costner. When I asked him, if he gets payed well, he shook his head and said, that he only gets tariff plus 10%. Tariff is the lowest wage possible, that was defined by union. My friend had the choice to either work with Costner or don't. And as an actor you always hope that a movie like this becomes a success and maybe improves your chances in Hollywood.

MS: Thank you for making so much time for us!

[bigheartedsky]

O3

Pairings: Hoseok x Reader; slight coworker!Namjoon x Reader

Genre: Fluff; Angst

Word Count: 13.9k+

Warnings: mentions of panic attacks

Summary: Fifty years ago, your government decided that, due to the high rate of people suffering from loneliness, the O3-project shall be introduced to your country. The goal of this project was to reduce the years people spent trying and failing to find their perfect partner and making it possible for them to sit back and relax while they find it for them instead. You are one of the youngest Implementers of the One and Only Office yet and you love your job more and more everyday. But a new case has you doubting everything you do because nothing seems to add up. Why are you so attracted to the person you’re supposed to connect with their perfect partner and what does your coworker Namjoon have to do with all of this?

[a/n: This story is the one I’ve put the most effort in so far thinking carefully of how I want the story to develop and choosing to go with a slow burn love story this time. I hope you enjoy the story and thanks to the lovely @yeontanismypresident​ for beta reading again and for leaving such a sweet message at the end with her opinion <3 Now here are some side informations you might need for the story:

Finder = Job; runs data on people through the system and finds the couples meant for each other; they create the data files needed by the Implementers to do their job

Implementer = Job; gets in contact with the couples and manages meetings between them to make them get together

One = one of the couple; this is what you call the partner of the couple in front of you or yourself in this context

Only = one of the couple; this is what you call the most of the time not present partner of the couple especially when talking about him/her/it

Have fun reading!]

Masterlist

“Fifty years ago, our government decided that, due to the high rate of people suffering from loneliness, the O3-project shall be introduced to our country. The goal of this project was to reduce the years people spent trying and failing to find their perfect partner and making it possible for them to sit back and relax while we find it for them instead. Our department developed a system, with the help of Professor Kim, that runs through all available data on every single living person in this country and matches them together with an accuracy of 100% to this day. We never had any mistakes in our work, which is remarkable. Our systems get updated regularly, and we’ve grown from a four-people-team to a team made of over 5.000 people. But I don’t want to get into the detail of all our achievements which I’ve seen with my own eyes over all these years – there were many just saying – and let you all get to the buffet and celebrate our 50 years anniversary. A toast to our great department! To One and Only Office!”

“To One and Only Office,” everyone replied, including you, and raised their glasses to your boss. When the office got introduced, he was only 25 years old, fresh out of university, and still wet behind his ears just like you were now. Fifty years went by, and now he was 75 years old and almost done working his shift of this life. He still had a youthful glint in his eyes whenever he had one of his crazy new inventions in mind.

A few minutes later, you saw him coming up to you.

“How is my youngest Implementer?” he asked you with a friendly grin. You just started to grin back at him.

“She’s gonna miss you badly. Do you really have to go?” you questioned with a sad look on your face. He just laughed heartily and rubbed your shoulders comfortingly.

“You’re going to survive without me. You’re smarter than me anyways, or why do you think I forced you into university? Someone has to come up with new ideas when I’m gone. Besides, I’ve worked my fair share already. Let me have some peace and quiet before I go for good.” Winking at you, he let out another laugh.

“I’m never gonna live up to that crazy mind of yours. I might as well quit right here and now.”

“And who’s gonna save my ass when I forget where I left my data files again?” Another voice joined into your conversations. You felt a hand on your hip and pressed your lips together in a thin line.

“How about you’d stop putting them down in random places, Namjoon?” you asked while gently removing his hand from your hip and taking a small step away from him. Turning to face both of them instead of just your old boss, you took a sip of your drink and rolled with your eyes smiling.

“I’m not doing it on purpose! It just happens.” He complained in a pouty voice. You sighed, laughing a little while excusing yourself from the conversation to finally get some of the good food they ordered. You thanked your boss silently when he engaged Namjoon in another conversation about his recent ideas so that he couldn’t follow you. You didn’t hate Namjoon, but sometimes his attitude towards you was just too much for you. Today was one of the days where you just couldn’t handle his attempts to flirt with you.

The next morning you checked your emails as per usual. Your work inbox included some data files of people you had to get in contact with, as well as a notification that an appointment was today at 3PM. You went over to your private inbox since there was nothing unusual in your work inbox, and you still had some time until work started. You put your kettle on the stove to make yourself a tea and worked your way through your private emails. Everything was normal until one of the emails caught your eye.

“Huh? That’s from work, but why did they send that to my private email?” confused but ensured that it’s just a mistake since they have both of your email addresses you opened the mail.

What’s up with this?

Your eyebrows furrowed even more, showing a deep crease in between them. Instead of the usual text, the email contained a random variation of numbers, letters, and punctuation characters. You rubbed your eyes for a second just to make sure that it wasn’t your eyesight acting up.

“This is a first… I better tell the IT department about that.” Making yourself some notes in your work calendar for the day, you finished your breakfast and made your way to the office.

After telling the IT department your concerns with the email you got, they assured you they’d look into it and keep you updated. Taking and giving one call after the other, you sat at your desk for hours, managing appointments for the next few weeks and going through the data the Finders gave you. Noticing the same bug on one of the data files as the one on the email you got this morning, you took the file and went over to the Finder department. Going through rows and rows of desks with computers and paper piles on them high enough to suffocate you if they would ever tip over, you searched for the Finder of this data file. You went to the department head Kim Seokjin to ask him about it first.

“Oh, that’s Namjoon’s case. He should be at his desk right now. But good that you found that. Would be a ton of work if this happened more often. We can print it out again for you. Might be our first little bug in the system right there.” Upon hearing the Finder’s name you sigh deeply, not sure if you were up to talk with him today, but you pulled yourself together immediately and thanked him for the help. You found Namjoons desk quickly, him being taller than anyone else in this office. He seemed focused on his work, typing away, and checking the papers to his left and right over and over. You’ve never seen him work at his desk before, and it almost shocked you how serious he seemed.

“Namjoon?” you asked very cautiously, feeling embarrassed all of a sudden for disturbing him at work.

“One second. I just need to finish these so that I can read them into the system and run the analysis.” He said, not even looking up from his work. It took a few more minutes before he tapped on his keyboard one last time and turned to you, satisfied with his work. Noticing now that it was you who called him made his whole attitude change a little.

“Y/N. What gives me the honor? Are you finally accepting my offer of lunch together?” You rolled your eyes, smiling a little, and put one hand on your hips, shifting your weight on one foot.

“The computer already said that you and I don’t match at all. You should know that better than everyone else since you ran the analysis on it. What was it again? 5% compatibility?”

“Okay, okay, I got it. You don’t have to sugarcoat your hatred for me. How can I help you?” He replied, acting deeply hurt with a very sarcastic undertone. Although his grin didn’t falter a bit the whole time, he turned a little more serious at the end.

“I’m here because of the data file on Jung Hoseok. I don’t know what happened with this, but I can barely read any information except for his Only and his address.”

Namjoon took the file out of your hand, and within one second, his grin turned into a frown. “What the hell… I remember exactly that I wrote everything down in the system. Why is it all gibberish now?”

“I don’t know, but I was hoping you could print it out for me directly from the program? Maybe the internal emailing has a bug.”

“Sure, just one second.” He turned towards his computer, typing away on the keyboard, and just a few seconds later, you could already hear the printer running. Namjoon got up and took the paper out of his printer. Checking it over one more time, his eyebrows furrowed again. “Strange…”

“What’s strange?” you asked, immediately going to look at the paper in his hand.

“The analysis is missing.” He was right. The whole paragraph on their compatibility was missing, but at least now it had all information on the persons themselves.

“That is strange. But this will be enough to get in contact with him and his Only for now. Can you tell Seokjin about this? I need to get ready for an appointment and also call this fellow.” You asked Namjoon.

“Only if you eat lunch with me together tomorrow. Just as friends, of course.” He grinned, which made you laugh a little.

“I have a lunch appointment tomorrow. Sorry, but how about Friday?” he let out a breathy laugh, sighing a little at the end.

“Sure. Friday then.”

“Okay. And just so you know, I don’t hate you.” A smile formed on his lips, although he tried to hide it, revealing his dimples. You gave him a playful shove and said your goodbye without even noticing the way he watched you walk away.

“Hello, here is One and Only Office Implementer Y/N Y/L/N. Am I speaking with Jung Hoseok?” Driving home in your car after the afternoon appointment, you called him on speaker. There was a short pause, followed by a loud crash on the other end of the call and a hurried reply.

“Yes! Yes, hey. I’m Jung Hoseok.” His voice sounded friendly and intoxicatingly happy. It had a soothing undertone to it.

“Mr. Jung, we found your Only, and I would like to make an appointment to talk about the next steps with you in person. When would be the right time for you?”

“Wow. Um- this is amazing. Sorry, I’m a little bit overwhelmed. I’ve been waiting for this moment since I was a little boy.” You couldn’t help the smile spreading on your face. His reaction was too cute, making you giggle a little. You pulled yourself together immediately again.

What the hell was that? Something that unprofessional never happened to me. I just giggled at a client! How embarrassing.

“Sorry, um- I didn’t mean to laugh. Your reaction was just too cute-“ WHAT THE HELL AM I SAYING?!

You heard a hearty laugh at the other end of the phone.

“It’s alright. I’ll make time whenever you are available.” He replied, still laughing a little. Hearing his laugh made you blush without even noticing and laugh a little again too.

“How about tomorrow evening? 6PM?”

“Okay, it’s a date.” He replied cheerfully. Out of nowhere, your heart started beating like crazy. Making your goodbye as quickly as possible, you ended the call and stopped driving at the side of the road for a moment catching your breath.

What’s wrong with my heart? Is this a panic attack? It doesn’t feel like usual.

You tried all sorts of breathing exercises until your heart stopped beating so fast. Only when your heartbeat was back to normal, you started driving again.

Back home, you changed into your workout gear, taking your bag, and going to your weekly dance practice. You weren’t the best dancer, but you weren’t bad either. Nothing you could make money with, but doing it made you happy for sure. You loved your job, so you didn’t have a real eagerness to become a fulltime dancer anyways. On top of this was your best friend in the same team as you. You greeted her with a warm hug and sat down on the ground next to her starting to stretch together. After exchanging some updates about your week, she started showing you videos of this dancer she found on the internet just recently.

“He’s seriously amazing. His technique and precision on the music is out of this world. He’s my new idol, I swear.” She talked excitedly about him, pointing out the details of every choreography.

“Wow, he’s really good. What’s his name?”

“He goes by J-Hope, but no one knows his real name. He’s been going to a lot of competitions with his team and solo. He’s really lowkey on his social media, never giving any hints about his personal information.” Your friend stated sulkily.

“You already stalked his socials?” You scoffed, laughing a little.

“You know me.” She grinned back at you, getting up shortly after because practice started.

“Okay we’re gonna work on positions for the next dance performance today. Let’s see. We’re gonna make a triangle formation for the beginning. Y/N, you’ll come to the front.” Your dance coach instructed you, and you started walking to the front, hearing some whispered words along the way.

“Why is she always at the front?” – “I know, she’s not even that good.” – “Yeah.” – “Maybe she has a thing with the teacher?”

Swallowing hard, you tried to ignore their whispered comments, only focusing on what the coach has to say. You wouldn’t give them the favor of letting your true feelings show. The truth was that you always doubted your skills, and if it wasn’t for your best friend being here, you wouldn’t have the courage to come to practice in the first place.

Half an hour of just going through the positions and formations for the show passed until you practiced with music for the first time. Your best friend was dancing right next to you in the formation when she suddenly crash-landed on the floor, screaming and wincing in pain. The music was cut off immediately, and one of your teammates crouched next to your friend, asking her if she was alright.

“Y/N shoved her! I saw it with my own eyes. She wouldn’t even let her best friend be with her in the spotlight.” One of the girls from before suddenly exclaimed. You wanted to rush to your best friend, but the sudden accusations that now started coming from all the other girls caught you off-guard. Your whole body was starting to shake, eyes never leaving your friend who was clutching her leg with an expression twisted with pain. The coach went to your friend immediately, lifting her up and declaring practice was over for today and that he would bring her to the hospital. You were frozen in place, still shocked by everything that happened. Tears stung in your eyes, making you close them tightly. You started to move with closed eyes, shoving the girls that were still accusing you and now cornering you against the mirrored wall, to the side to take your bag and run out the door.

Throwing your bag on the passenger seat, you wasted no time to drive home, getting all sorts of flashbacks from high school. Your heart started racing, and your breath got more and more flat, forcing you to stop the car at the side of a road and get out to catch some fresh air. Going to the passenger side, you pulled the door open violently, not caring if anything broke, and searched for your medication in the glove compartment. Your hands were shaking and sweating like crazy, eyes slowly starting to get hazy, and the all too familiar feeling of dizziness setting in when you finally found your medicine. You quickly swallowed one of the pills and sat down on the grass next to your car until the medication set in. Sighing deeply, you let yourself fall back onto the grass, staring at the night sky where a few more stars glistened than in the center of the city where you lived.

The next day you received a call from your best friend. She wouldn’t be able to attend dance practice for a while because of her leg, and as far as she knew at that moment, she might even have to skip the performance. Your heart sank at that. Even though you knew you didn’t push her, you still felt guilty for not helping her immediately.

“I’m sorry how everything went yesterday. I didn’t know what to do, and then everyone started blaming me, and I don’t know.”

“Hey, Y/N. Don’t go blaming yourself as those idiots did. I know it wasn’t your fault. No one pushed me, I actually tripped over something although I don’t know what exactly. I’m sorry I couldn’t say anything at that time. Did you struggle a lot?” your best friend asked and proved to you again just how well she knew you.

“I’m okay. I just worry about you.” You answered although the aftermath of last night was clearly visible on your face. Your dark under-eye circles would even make a panda jealous and would need a lot of makeup to cover up later.

“Y/N…” your insightful friend knew you weren’t okay, but all you cared about was for her to get better soon.

“I have to go to work now. Please get well soon. Bye!” You hung up the phone before she could probe how you were really doing.

The day went by quickly with a lot of calls and appointments to do, and before you even realized it, your last appointment for the day was right around the corner. Walking up to the café he wanted to meet at, you kept watch for anyone who looked like he was waiting for someone. Since the data files were so messed up the picture that you would usually use to identify the client was barely visible. Walking around the café, you finally found a man sitting alone with his back to you. His style and overall appearance seemed like it could fit the age written on your papers so you made your way over to him.

“Mr. Jung Hoseok?” you asked politely, trying to look at his face while he was turning around with a sudden jump.

“Oh my god, you almost gave me a heart attack!” he exclaimed, downright scared, but then his whole expression changed when his eyes met yours. It felt like your eyes were drawn to his, not being able to stop staring into them. Hearing a loud noise, you both jolted out of your starring match and into reality.

“I’m sorry. Um- I-I’m Y/N Y/L/N, from the One and Only Office. Nice to meet you in person, Mr. Jung.” You held out your hand to greet him, and when he took your hand your whole body felt like electricity went through it, making you pull your hand away in shock.

“Sorry, I guess I must’ve become staticky somehow.” He answered and started grinning from ear to ear. “Hoseok is fine by the way. Can I call you Y/N?” You just nodded, feeling the heat in your cheeks.

What’s wrong with me? Am I coming down with something? I feel so hot.

“Let’s get started, shall we?” You suggested, and took a seat across from him at the square table you were at.

“So, there has been some kind of problem with our system. Your analysis is not on here right now, but since the computer put your names together in the first place, I can tell you for sure that this is your Only.” You explained, pushing the details of his Only to him. He looked at the data intently, reading through everything while his brows knitted together in confusion. You took the opportunity to really look at all his features for the first time. His face had very gentle features, but his eyes seemed like they could change from kind to intimidating in the split of a second. Something about him seemed so very familiar to you, but you just couldn’t pinpoint what it was. It almost drove you into madness.

While reading through the interests and character of his Only his head tilted to the side almost seeming confused and unsure. He put down the papers, folding his hands together and intertwining his fingers. His elbows were resting on the table while his eyes were still looking at the data.

“This is really strange. I always thought… Well, don’t get me wrong I trust you completely but, I always thought my Only would have more in common with me.” Confusion was now not only visible on his face but also on yours.

“Do you mean you have nothing in common with that person?”

“Well not nothing but… it’s just very minor things that we have in common.”

“Hm, maybe it’s one of those opposites attract situations?” you suggested in hope to be right. With every passing minute you spend working on Jung Hoseok’s case it gets weirder and weirder.

“Hm, yea. Maybe you’re right.” Smiling a little again, his eyes met yours again, but there was something in them that bothered you. Disappointment? Sadness?

“I’m sorry if I’m crossing boundaries here but, you seem a little displeased by what I showed you, Hoseok.” Your eyes filled with worry while he started looking away slightly embarrassed.

“I guess I just expected more. Maybe also just someone that was more…” his gaze went swiftly over all of your features. “My type.”

You felt your cheeks heating up again.

Did he just check me out? Nah, I must be imagining things.

Clearing your throat, you took the data files back and stored them in your back.

“I’ll tell you as soon as I make an appointment to meet with your Only. Until then, feel free to contact me if you have any further questions regarding the O3 program. Since your Only lives in Busan, we’ll be driving you down there and make sure you have a safe trip and a place to stay there.” You explained to him getting ready to leave. When you got up, he also got up abruptly almost knocking over his chair.

“Will you be the one driving with me?” he asked you with his eyes full of solicitation. He seemed nervous because of the first meeting you assumed.

“It’s not the custom for an Implementer to accompany the One to their Only…” you tried to talk yourself out of it, but the way he was looking at you like a sad puppy made you crumble immediately.

“But… of course, I could ask if they could make an exception and let me go with you. If that makes you more comfortable.” His lips started forming a heart-shaped smile even spreading to his eyes.

“It would make me much more comfortable. I’m looking forward to seeing you again soon.” He simply answered, holding his hand out for a last handshake with you. You took his hand, and again there was this feeling of electricity going through your body, but this time he didn’t let you pull away, holding your hand a little longer than expected. You parted ways shortly after that, but it felt different from your usual appointments. Something was different about this, and you felt like it wasn’t just all the bugs in the system.

The next day, you called Hoseok’s Only to make an appointment with her. Highly confused after that conversation, but still coming out of it with an appointment to make them meet for the first time, you hung up the call.

This gets weirder and weirder.

After thinking for what felt like a few hours about it, you started making your way over to the Finder Department again – more specifically Namjoon’s desk. This time he already noticed your approach from afar.

“My most favorite Implementer. Are you longing for meeting me that much lately? I’ve been seeing you almost every day. Not that I’m complaining, I really love it.” He grinned his charming dimpled grin from ear to ear at you. You leaned against his desk, half sitting on it while looking into the distance still thinking. His expression started changing when you didn’t reply anything to him, eyebrows now knitted with concern.

“You okay?” The joking sound had left his voice completely when he saw how serious you were.

“Yeah. I am. It’s just… you remember that case I got? The Jung Hoseok one?” he nodded hesitatingly. “Well, I met with Hoseok and he was… highly confused because his Only sounded like it wouldn’t match at all.”

“But we had people before who were complete opposites and they worked out just fine.” Namjoon started reasoning, eyes still soft and filled with concern completely fixated on your figure.

“Yeah, I told him that too. But something about this just doesn’t feel right. Like all those bugs that only appeared in this case and then his Only also seemed completely disappointed when I told her who her partner is. This is making me doubt this case more and more so I just have to ask you.” You turned your head to look Namjoon right into the eyes.

“Was there anything suspicious happening while you were working on this case? Did really nothing go wrong or did a server crash and mix up the people? Systems aren’t always perfect so I gotta ask.”

“I’m sorry, Y/N, but I can’t say I have seen anything weird with it while working on it…” His eyes went back to the screen midway through the sentence making you look down at your shoes.

“Okay, thanks anyways.” Getting up you pushed yourself off his desk a little. “See you Friday at lunch.” A smile that you knew wasn’t showing in your eyes formed on your lips and with a last small wave you went back to your desk for the rest of the day.

It had been two weeks since you last saw Hoseok, and you couldn’t feel more nervous. You didn’t even understand why you were feeling like that in the first place. He was just a client after all. But still, you took two hours to put together an outfit and spent an extra 30 minutes to do your hair too which you usually wouldn’t.

You drove to the place he wanted you to pick him up from, with the car you would both drive to Busan in. Your luggage was packed away carefully so that there was still enough space for his stuff in the back of the car, and although you weren’t the biggest fan of driving long distances you were still excited for it.

Parking the car, you held in front of a tall building with a whole front made of windows. You double checked the address before you made your way in going straight for the front desk.

“Good Morning, my name is Y/N Y/L/N, and I’m from One and Only Office. I’m here to meet with Jung Hoseok.” You explained politely.

“Let me see.” The receptionist moved her finger down a long list before she stopped at one line. “Ah, here it is. Y/N Y/L/N. Mr. Jung is still at practice in room 1.03. It’s on the first floor to your left, the third door. He allowed me to tell you to just go in when you arrive.”

“Thank you.” You smiled at her before you started moving towards the room. When you stood right in front of the room you could hear music coming from the inside. It sounded as if you were underwater only the bass rang out to you until you opened up the door. What you saw inside made your jaw drop immediately. Hoseok was dancing with four other guys in absolute synchronicity and finally it hit you where you saw him before. You heard your best friends voice loud and clear in your head even with the music hitting your ears.

“He goes by J-Hope, but no one knows his real name. He’s been going to a lot of competitions with his team and solo. He’s really lowkey on his social media, never giving any hints about his personal information.”

He is J-Hope… Jung Hoseok… J-Hope… Jung equals J and Hoseok equals Hope. Wow, I could’ve guessed that.

The sudden quiet when the music turned off made you jolt out of your thoughts.

“Y/N!” You heard an excited voice call out to you. A sense of joy spread throughout your body immediately, making you smile.

“Nice to see you again, Hoseok. Are you ready for the trip?”

“Oh, that’s Y/N? Wow we heard a lot about – uff” the sentence by one of the younger looking boys was caught off by the one next to him hitting him with his elbow in the stomach. You looked at them questioningly, but still smiling.

“He meant we heard a lot about Hoseok’s Only and your great work with that.” Another one with very broad shoulders answered for him.

“Ah. I don’t do half of the work that gets put in a case.” You explained quickly with a little laugh. Hearing the door open behind you again you stepped aside to let the person get in. A boy that looked like he was in the same age span as the one that got hit met your eye, and started smiling a square smile at you.

“Oh! You must be Hoseok’s Only! Wow, you’re really exactly his type. Do you dance too? That would be awesome you guys could do couple choreographies!”

“I-I do but I’m not-“

“You do?? That’s so cool! Did you hear that Hoseok hyung? She dances, too! Why do you have such a strange look on your face?”

“Taehyung, she’s not his Only.” The one with the broad shoulders explained to Taehyung who was still standing in front of you, and now looking at you pouting.

“You sure?” He asked sulkily, and it made your heart almost explode when you started thinking of the possibility of you being Hoseok’s Only.

“I think we should really get going!” Hoseok suddenly declared when Taehyung opened his mouth to continue voicing all of his doubts. Being pushed out of the room in a rush, you only had a second to say goodbye before you and Hoseok were alone in the hallway.

“Shall I take one of the bags?” You offered up, but he quickly took his backpack and luggage before you could.

“Don’t worry. I’m strong.” He answered, smirking and winking at you, making you blush. You looked away immediately, and picked up a faster pace walking in front of him now so he wouldn’t notice your expression.

“Okay, then let’s get going. We’ve got a long drive ahead of us.”

You were driving in silence sitting next to each other, not sure whether the two of you should start up a conversation or not. Hoseok was sitting in the passenger’s seat, wearing a simple white oversized shirt tucked into ripped jeans he switched into after practice. His gaze was set on the scenery out his window with one arm leaning on the door below it. You sneaked a few glances at him while driving, feeling your eyes drawn to him whenever you stopped looking.

Eyes on the road, Y/N. Don’t want any accidents on the job. You can stare at him lat- OMG no you can’t stare at him at all. You’re bringing him to his Only and THAT’S IT!

Lecturing yourself in your head nonstop, you jumped a little when the music suddenly turned on making you drive in a slight curve for a second.

“Sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you. I just thought some music would be nice.” Hoseok apologized to you.

“It’s okay… Just warn me next time.” You replied, laughing a little. You started relaxing a little while he selected the music on his phone that he connected with the car speakers. Tapping on the steering wheel, you started humming and singing to all the songs you knew, which were a lot on his playlist, and every song you didn’t know you loved nonetheless.

“I’m surprised that you know this band.” You heard Hoseoks voice over the music.

“They are amazing. I actually went to their concert last year and it was the best concert I’ve been to so far.” You got excited all over again just talking about the concert and seeing the memories replay in your head.

“How cool, I was there too! Did you go to the one in Seoul?” Nodding and humming as a yes, you kept your eyes on the road for safety. “Can’t believe I didn’t see you there.”

“Well, there were thousands of people so the chance that we’ve crossed paths is very small. And even if we crossed paths, we could’ve still just ignored each other.” You answered trying to suppress the increasing heartbeat of yours.

“I don’t think I could’ve ignored you.” His voice was just loud enough for you to hear. It was almost just a mumble as if he wasn’t sure whether or not he should say it. Your eyes glanced at him. He was looking out the side window, chin leaning on his hand, and slightly looking like he was mad about something. Opening your mouth to ask what was wrong, your thought got interrupted by a beeping sound of your car. You looked down at the fuel gage noticing that it needed a refill so you took a turn at the next sign for a gas station. Done with paying for the refill, you headed back out to the car where Hoseok was waiting for you when someone approached you quickly.

“Excuse me, I’m sorry if this is weird but you kind of captured my attention and I just thought maybe I could give it a shot and just ask for your number?” the man in front of you didn’t look bad, and his approach didn’t offend you in the slightest, but you just didn’t feel like giving your number out.

“I’m sorry, I don’t give out my number.” You replied politely. “But I admire your courage.” With that you started walking towards your car again, but you couldn’t even take two steps before he was in front of you again.

“Why not? I promise it won’t be a waste of your time.”

“I’m really sorry.” You replied again still with a polite smile.

“Aw, come on. I can offer you a lot.” He grabbed your arm when you started walking past him again.

“Please let go of me.” You tried to push his hand off you, but he wouldn’t budge.

“I’m just asking for a chance.”

“And she’s asking you to let her go.” You suddenly heard another voice behind you. Turning your head to the side you saw Hoseok now next to you. In one swift movement, he removed the hand of the man from your arm, and took your hand in his to pull you with him.

“Let’s go.” He simply said while walking to the car. Your eyes were fixated on his face, but the only thing you could make out from this angle was his tense jaw. Opening the passenger door, he pushed you gently inside before making his way to the driver door.

“Keys.” Hoseok looked at you while holding out his hand.

“Hoseok, is everything okay?”

“I should be asking you that. Why didn’t you call out to me?” He looked into your eyes clearly mad.

“He was just a little bit persistent… He didn’t hurt me or anything and I’m sure he-“

“You’re sure he what? Would’ve let you go? I know those types of guys. He wouldn’t have given up so easily if I wouldn’t have gone to get you.”

“It wasn’t that big of a deal, Hoseok. This happens to every women once in a while and I-“

“But you’re not every woman!” he suddenly yelled at you making you jump and look at him in surprise but, it just took you one moment to get yourself back together.

“What am I then, huh?” you asked back provokingly.

“You’re- You’re a person I don’t want to get hurt.” Every bit of anger that you had left in your body suddenly vanished with this sentence from him. You were speechless, and looked into his eyes which weren’t angry anymore as well. A loud honking sound brought you both back to the real world where a few cars were already waiting for you to make space at the gas station.

“W-We should get going…” you said, still a little bit shy while he nodded. He lifted one hand out of the car as an apology to the people behind you while he started driving back on the road.

… Wait a minute

“Why are you driving now anyways?” you asked him a few minutes later, and he just started laughing suddenly.

“You just noticed??”

A few hours later ,you arrived at your hotel in Busan. Your office really didn’t do things by half-measures. The room – or better called a suite – you two lived in had two bedrooms, a small living room, a kitchen area to eat and make late night snacks, and a huge bathroom.

“Wow, I should ask if I can go along more often.” You simply stated while going inside the suite. Hoseok dropped his bags, mouth hanging wide open. Suddenly he ran to one of the bedrooms just to jump on the bed with arms and legs spread widely like a starfish. Your eyes followed him with the sudden movement making you laugh immediately.

“This is great!” He exclaimed, sitting himself up to look at you again. “What’s next on our plan? Dinner? Karaoke Bar? Or maybe we could go dancing?”

“Those all sound great but we actually have an appointment to meet with your Only in an hour. Just enough time to get ready after that long drive.” You explained watching his expression change from excited to sulky.

I’ve never seen a client be so unhappy to meet his Only.

A smile started spreading on his face again, but it didn’t seem as excited as before.

“Okay, let’s get ready.” he said, before jumping up and getting his stuff to put on something nice. You did the same in the other bedroom, changing into your usual work outfit – with just a little more care than usual.

Ding – Dong –

The doorbell sound rang through your ears for a moment. Hoseok was standing next to you, wearing a nice button-down shirt and black trousers. He was looking way too good for your taste which somehow made you feel uneasy about the meeting. You were confused by your own feelings, but at least you were able to convince him to fully button up his shirt instead of leaving the first few buttons open – which had him looking even better before.

With a squeak the door opened up and behind stood a young lady, maybe five or so years younger than you. She had short black hair and wore a headband to keep it behind her ears.

“Hello, you must be Miss Y/L/N, I’m Lee Jisu.” the girl introduced herself shaking your hand and then looking at Hoseok.

“Nice to meet you in person, Miss Lee. If I may introduce you two: this is Jung Hoseok. Your partner. Hoseok, this is Lee Jisu, your Only.” You introduced them both, and with a smile on their face they greeted each other properly but something was different from the other people you brought together.

There is no visible spark… Maybe I’ve been watching too many romance movies but usually when I meet the couple later, they’re so head over heels for each other. Maybe it needs some time?

“Shall we go inside?” Jisu asked, getting your attention back.

“Yea, let’s go.” Hoseok replied, taking the first steps inside. You stood outside, knowing that your part was done for today, and wanting to head back to the hotel. Turning around, you were surprised to suddenly feel a hand on your wrist.

“Where are you going?” When you looked up to the person holding you it was Hoseok’s face meeting you with an almost panicked expression. You looked at him in confusion.

“I’m going back to the hotel. You two need to get to know each other, and I’ll be in the way if I stay. I only got the instructions to bring you here and observe the development of the next few days.” Explaining the situation how you were taught at the office, you noticed his struggle to come up with an answer. In the end, he just let go of your wrist without another word.

“Okay, I’ll see you later tonight then.” With these words he turned around and went inside. You didn’t move a muscle until the door was shut feeling like you’re about to lose something dear to you. Taking all the willpower you got, you forced yourself to turn away and go back to the hotel.

You were exhausted. Your whole body was screaming at you being too tired to do anything anymore after getting ready for bed. All fours spread widely on the bed – mimicking Hoseok’s position when he jumped on the bed earlier – you stared at the ceiling. You looked to the wall where a big clock was hung.

“AARRGGHH How is it past midnight already?? Why can’t I sleep???” You took a pillow to scream into while kicking the bed underneath you.

“Y/N are you okay?!” His panicked voice made you sit up, immediately hiding your legs – you were wearing a pair of really short pajama shorts – with the pillow you used to scream into just now.

“Hoseok, you’re back?” Your face was bright red while you tried playing cool in front of him.

“Yea, and I thought I heard you screaming so I came to look if everything was okay…” He looked a little more relaxed now that he knew that you were okay, but judging from his messy hair and slightly unbuttoned shirt you thought he must’ve been in the middle of changing before running to you.

“I’m okay. I just had troubles falling asleep and got frustrated.” You explained bluntly honest to your own surprise. It was just too easy for you to open up to him.

“Oh, hang on a second. I’ll be right back.” Hoseok replied after thinking for a second. After he left your room you took the time to hide your lower body under the blanket leaning yourself on the headboard. After a few minutes had passed, he came back wearing  jogger pants and a sweater as pjs and carrying two mugs.

“Here you go.” He said while holding one of the mugs out to you. “I didn’t know if you are lactose intolerant so I used the lactose free milk. This always helps me sleep. My mum gave me the recipe.” His smile was proud and contagious making you smile a little too.

“Thank you.” You replied, really meaning it while he sat down at the edge of the bed still facing you. “Are you close to your mum?”

“Very much. I just wish I had more time to spend with her. Work is keeping me busy. I’m gonna make it up to her though. Once I saved up enough money, I’m gonna buy her and my dad a nice little restaurant where she can show everyone what an amazing cook she is. You know her Kimbap is the best I’ve ever eaten, you need to try-“ his eyes looked up at you smiling heartwarming at him because he looked so happy talking about his mum. He cleared his throat looking at you apologetically.

“Sorry for rambling on like that.” He simply said and lifted his mug to drink some of the milk.

“No worries really! I actually enjoyed it. I’m close to my family too so I can understand.” You replied, giving him a small smile that he returned. The atmosphere changed between the two you, making you feel a little restless and strangely hot.

“So, uh, how was the date?” He almost choked on his warm milk when you asked him, making you lean forward and pat his back with a worried look while he started coughing.

“I- … It was okay. She’s nice. Very polite. Called me Mr. Jung the whole time.” He laughed a little. “I don’t know about this…”

“Maybe you guys need more time together. You’ll meet again tomorrow anyways so I’m just gonna leave you guys to it again.”

Why am I so happy that it went badly? This is my job, and if it goes badly it would mean that we made a mistake for the first time. That’s a huge deal.

He nodded, looking at the wall in front of him.

“Say, do you have an Only yet?” Now it was your turn to almost choke on the milk, but at least you didn’t have to cough.

“No, I don’t. Everyone always jokes I’m gonna stay a One forever.” A smile was tugging on his lips.

“And what do you think about that?” he asked, referring to the “One forever” part.

“Well, I was starting to believe it too.” You laughed a little. “And I thought I’d be fine with that.”

“Why the past tense?” His eyes looked straight into yours, no joking whatsoever visible anymore. It made you forget all the punchlines you’d usually say in those situations and just stare into his eyes until you couldn’t handle it anymore and looked away.

“I don’t know. I guess something changed.” He hummed accepting that answer for now, but you could see the smirk on his lips.

“So, after lunch we’re going to meet with Jisu again and you two will have another date to get to know each other better. Everything clear so far?” Hoseok nodded while drinking the last bit of his Sprite before he was done with his meal. After you paid for the lunch with the company card you both made your way over to Lee Jisu’s home where you were greeted with a very unsettling sight.

“A police car…” Hoseok stated, looking at Jisu’s mother talking to a police officer with worry in her face.

“Did something happen yesterday?” you asked Hoseok, but he just shook his head looking just as worried and confused as you. You parked the car and left it together to ask what was going on.

“She has short straight black hair and was wearing a blue t-shirt and jeans. I- I think she took the white converse shoes because I can’t find them anywhere but- Oh, Miss Y/L/N. I’m so sorry I forgot to call you.” Jisus mother greeted you immediately when she saw you interrupting her explanation to the officer.

“Call me? I’m sorry but may I ask what happened Mrs. Lee?” you asked with confusion.

“Jisu ran away.” She sighed. “She’s nowhere to be found and I think it’s because I forced her to do the Only meeting and I’m-“ tears were starting to run down her face, and it looked like it wasn’t the first time today. You immediately searched for a tissue to give to her, but Hoseok was even faster than you holding it out for her.

“Thank you, Hoseok.” Jisus mother said, taking the tissue.

They already seem so close… you tried to suppress the frown building on your face.

“She ran away? What do you mean by forcing her to meet her Only?”

“Well, you see. Before you called to tell her that you found her Only, she was convinced that Seok Jo – the boy living in the village nearby – was her Only. She was waiting for the day that the office confirmed it for her so the two of them could finally get married. I always told her that it might not be him but she-“ Mrs. Lee started sobbing again, interrupting herself.

She already has someone she loves that much? No wonder she was so cold towards me during the call and so distant to Hoseok.

Your eyes searched for Hoseok reading his expression that was fixated on Jisu’s mother.

“Do you have any clue where she could be? Friends or family nearby?” You asked, looking at Mrs. Lee again. She just shook her head.

“Seok Jo doesn’t answer his phone and I know he might be sleeping because he worked late yesterday, but I don’t want to leave the house in case she comes back. My husband already started driving to our family to look for her there. But…”

We need to do something. We can’t just wait and see what happens.

“We can go and look for her at Seok Jo’s place.” Hoseok suddenly said, making your eyes draw to him in surprise, but your expression changed quickly to thankfulness. Looking back at Mrs. Lee you nodded at her.

“We just need his address and we’ll handle it.” You added, and Mrs. Lee hugged you both before she went inside to get the address.

You were restless. This case was getting so complicated, and you just felt like there was something horribly wrong with it. Your eyes drifted to Hoseok who was driving with his eyes forward looking all tense himself.

There must’ve been a mistake at the office. It can’t be anything else. I just don’t know what else could cause such a mess. This all just doesn’t make sense! Should I tell him my doubts? What will he think of me once I tell him? He will hate me for sure. But if I don’t tell him and it really was a mistake the office made; he’ll hate me for not telling him my doubts. What should I do? What-

“You okay?” Hoseok suddenly asked with his eyes on you for a second. You didn’t even notice how long you stared at him, eyes full of worry.

“Actually, no.” your eyes darted away dancing around the area. “I’m not okay. I feel like I’m getting sick to be honest.” Heartbeat increasing with every second, you felt a panic attack growing inside of you. Hands sweaty, breathing shallow, and your mind all hazy you lost yourself in all the doubts and self-destroying thoughts in your mind.

“Y/N?” You could feel Hoseok’s hand on yours, his voice full of worry, but it seemed all so far away like you were underwater.

“Please stop the car!” Was the only thing you were able to get out of your mouth, and he did exactly that, immediately stopping on a country road in the middle of two fields. You fidgeted with the door of the car struggling to get it open in your state since it wasn’t like your own car. You heard a loud bang, and a second later, Hoseok was on your side of the car opening the door and getting you out. He sat you down on the grass next to the road and crouched right in front of you.

“Y/N. Y/N, look at me.” He told you with a calm voice, still holding your hand with one hand, and using the other to direct your head so you looked at him. “Copy me. Breath in. Hold your breath. Good. 3… 2… 1… breath out. Now repeat with me.”

You copied his breathing and listened to every instruction he gave you. Slowly, your heartbeat was decreasing again, palms becoming dry, and head coming back out of its hazy state.

“You’re doing great. Just a few more times.” You just now noticed that his hand holding onto yours was checking your pulse while doing the exercise. “Okay. You’re okay. I’m here.” This was the moment you broke. Your arms swung around his neck, hugging him tightly, and he hugged you back, immediately dropping his knees to the ground to not fall over with you. His hand started stroking the back of your head comfortingly while you started sobbing silently.

You let go of him after a while, wiping away your tears which he helped you with by gently rubbing a tissue under your eyes. His eyes were full of warmth and comfort when you looked at them, which had you laughing a little, still affected by the panic attack you just had though.

“Don’t look at me like I’m a poor lost puppy you just found.” You joked a little, shoving against his shoulder gently. You felt exhausted from the panic attack, but not as bad as usual when you had to take the meds to get it away.

“Oh, you’re not?” He grinned, making you hit him against his chest a few times. “Ouch, ouch, ouch, sorry I take it back! I surrender!” He declared with his hands held high. Once you smiled at him and declared peace, he got up and held out his hands for you.

“Come on. We should talk to Seok Jo. And don’t worry, we’re going to find Jisu. You’ll be alright and back at your office in no time. So, just trust me. We’ll find my Only.” He smiled comfortingly while pulling you up on your legs.

“Yea, uhm well you see that’s exactly it. I think-“ Your sentence was interrupted by a loud honk making you both look in the direction you came from. A large tractor was standing there waiting for you to get driving since he couldn’t get past you. You both apologized to him and got in the car before anythingelse could be said.

“So… do you get these panic attacks often?” he asked carefully, trying to not touch a sensitive topic. You laughed a little.

“Smooth. But yea I do get them sometimes.”

“How come? If I may ask.”

“It’s okay. I’ve been struggling with social anxiety for a while now. It started in high school because of a whole lot of ugly bullying – don’t want to get into detail with that right now – but now I also get affected by stress. If I feel overwhelmed or socially pressured, I get them. It’s really annoying and frustrating but I can’t change it.”

“Socially pressured? How so?” he asked in the most careful and sensitive voice he could.

“Well, for example last time at dance practice. My best friend fell and hurt herself and everyone said I pushed her – which I didn’t. They were angry because I got the front position in our first formation in the choreography. And I just couldn’t handle all the blaming so I ran out and yea…”

“That sounds really mean. Why would they do that? If I would’ve been there with you, I would’ve told them off for good! They would never even dare to do that again to you!” Hoseok got angrier and angrier, explaining how he would’ve dealt with them if he would’ve been there which made you laugh at some point.

I’ve never told this to anyone except for very close family and friends. It’s way too easy to talk to Hoseok. I feel so at ease with him.

The door swung open after an eternity of ringing the bell.

“Mrs. Song, if it’s because of the apple tree I was going to cut it later toda- Who are you?” A very sleepy looking young man stood in front of you two, eyes closed when he opened the door and still dressed in pjs and a dressing gown.

“Sorry that we woke you up. Are you Seok Jo?” You asked politely, and the man in front of you nodded still suspicious. “You see, I’m Y/N Y/L/N from the O3 office. This is Jung Hoseok. He is listed as the Only of Miss Lee Jisu.”

This made the attitude of the guy in front of you change completely. Before you could even react, he had Hoseok grabbed at his collar, even lifting him up from the ground a little.

“So, you are the asshole that tries to steal away my Jisu? Let me tell you this. I WON’T let some townie like you just walk in here and take what belongs to me! Jisu is MY fiancé and I won’t accept this stupid agreement made by some company!” he yelled at Hoseok who just held onto the wrists of Seok Jo to keep himself in control somehow. You stepped in between them, quickly pushing Seok Jo away gently which he complied to letting go of Hoseok in the process.

“Please, Mr. Seok Jo! We’re not here because of the O3 agreement. We came here to find Jisu.” You explained quickly which again made him change his attitude.

“Find Jisu? What do you mean by that?”

“She ran away. Her mother said that she forced her into meeting with Hoseok – I mean – Mr. Jung and it seems like she is not pleased by the idea of being with her Only too much. We don’t want to force her into anything she doesn’t want. We’re not monsters, we just want people to be happy with each other. So, can you help us find her? I think something went terribly wrong here, and we need to fix this.” You could feel Hoseok’s piercing glance at you when you said the last sentence.

“O-Of course. Let me just get my shoes and keys and I’ll be right with you.” Seok Jo said rushed while stumbling back inside to put on his shoes, hitting himself on a shoe cabinet cursing in the process.

“You know.” Hoseok suddenly started speaking. “They really fit together.”

You looked at him trying to figure out what he was thinking while he said that, but since you didn’t get a big impression of Jisu you decided to trust his judgement and throw away your doubts.

A few hours of driving to every place Seok Jo thought Jisu could be passed, and to be honest, the whole situation was looking rather bleak. You took a short break to grab something to eat, stopping at one of the few convenience stores nearby.

“Where could she be..?” You mumbled while taking a bite from your sandwich.

“Is there really no other place you guys liked to go? If I was in her shoes, I would want to go somewhere only my love knows. A place with a big meaning to us.” Hoseok said bluntly while looking at his reflection in the window of the convenience store. Hearing a silent thud next to you, your eyes went to Seok Jo who just let his sandwich slide through his fingers.

“I think I know where she is.” He suddenly said, and you immediately grabbed your keys taking the sandwich with you to finish on the way instead.

“Then let’s go! It’s already getting really dark.” You declared, and the two of them just nodded and jogged out to the car. It was an hour-long drive to a far-off part of the beach in Busan. You had to leave the village where they lived and drive through the whole town before you found it. Without Seok Jo with you, you would’ve never found the way there. You parked the car and searched in the trunk for a few emergency flashlights. You gave each of them one and took one for yourself too.

“Okay, I’m not sure in which direction she could be so I’m going to walk along this side and you guys take the other one. If any of us finds her we call immediately, okay?” Seok Jo explained turning on his flashlight to search for Jisu at this pitch-black beach. You both nodded before parting ways with Seok Jo. You were grateful that Hoseok was staying with you since you didn’t like the dark at all. Although you couldn’t deny that the stars out here were really stunning.

“Jisu! Jisu are you here! Please answer if you hear us!” you called out every few steps just as Hoseok did too. You were searching for an hour already when it suddenly started pouring down.

“Shit! Let’s go find something to take cover.” Hoseok called out to you.

You started running to try and find some space free from rain when you found a small wooden cabin standing open at the back of the beach. It was just a storage space for the life guards but it didn’t seem like it was used often. You ran inside to get out of the rain already completely wet. Groaning in frustration and desperation, you leaned yourself on an old wooden broken desk that looked like it stood in an office at some point.

“This is hopeless!” you called out. “We’re never gonna find her. Especially not in a city we barely know.”

“Calm down, Y/N. It’s going to be fine. We’re going to find her and-“

“And what? Make you and her be together? Or make Seok Jo and her be accepted by her mother? Both seem impossible to me at the moment and do you know what that means? It means that I failed. My Office failed for the first time and this will kill our reputation. How are we going to explain that? This is our ruin!”

“It won’t be your ruin! It’s just one case that was wrong. ONE of how many?” Hoseok asked you, smiling a little while holding onto your shoulders gently. You let yourself slide down the desk until you were sitting on the floor, arms around your legs and back against the desk. He sat down beside you, sliding one arm around your shoulder comfortingly.

“4.376.938….” you mumbled quietly.

“See, it won’t ruin the office. And you can find the mistake and repair it so this won’t be happening again.” Hoseok was stroking your arm with his hand, and you just nodded at him.

“Yes, I’m just so sorry you have to go through all this trouble. And that Jisu is somewhere out there just because we made a mistake, in this rain, alone at that! I just- ugh” you tried hiding your face in your hands, but he wouldn’t let you, making you face him instead.

“Hey, it’s not your fault. Don’t go blaming yourself for this. And I actually like this trouble. Well, as long as I’m in trouble with you.” Your eyes softened just as his when he said that.

I don’t know anyone I would like to be in trouble with more than him.

And there it was. The moment you knew was going to happen as soon as your eyes met his for the first time. The moment you’ve been trying to avoid at all cost. He was leaning towards you, and within a mere second his lips were on yours, gently and feeling like it lasted only a few seconds. You both savored these few seconds like they were the only ones you ever had together. Opening your eyes slowly at the same time, your eyes met again. His hand wandered into your hair wanting to pull you in for another kiss when you suddenly heard a noise from the back of the cabin. Both of you turned your head towards it when you saw a figure opening the door of a room behind you. Grabbing your flashlight quickly you pointed it in the direction.

“Who’s there??” Hoseok asked, trying to seem intimidating if it was someone dangerous. But it wasn’t anyone like that.

“Jisu?” you asked quickly getting up and running over to her.

“Miss Y/L/N.” Jisu looked at you surprised. She was limping a little holding onto the doorframe and reaching out to you when you came near. You immediately held onto her to keep her steady.

“What happened to your leg? Come on, sit down.” You helped her over to the desk together with Hoseok who lifted her up on it to sit. While he checked on her leg you took out your phone ready to call Seok Jo.

“How did you find me?” Jisu asked while wincing when Hoseok found the spot that hurt.

“Seok Jo showed us. He searched with us all day to find you.” Hoseok explained while you called Seok Jo.

“Seok Jo? Is he here too?” Jisus eyes were glistening with hope and worry at the same time when she heard his name.

“He’s on his way.” You replied to her smiling after you hung up the call. “God, I’m so glad that we found you.” A hand spread on your shoulder squeezing it comfortingly.

“I am too.” Hoseok said standing to your left behind you. Jisu looked at you both with a look you couldn’t quite understand before she started smiling a little.

She seems happier than I thought about this situation. I thought she would try to escape from us again.

Seok Jo came running over to the cabin as soon as you told him that you found her. With his pjs and dressing gown completely soaked he stormed in the cabin. When he saw Jisu he immediately went to her and hugged her tightly. Tears were forming in his eyes while he continued to lecture her to never do that again.

“I just didn’t know what to do. Mr. Jung and I just don’t fit and I know that he felt that way just like I did. The only one I love is you. I’m really sorry, Miss Y/L/N, but Seok Jo is my Only no matter what everyone else wants to tell me. I’m convinced of that!” Jisu stated, trying her best to be brave and make her standpoint clear.

“Don’t worry, Jisu. I’ve already told Hoseok that I think something went wrong in the office. I’m going to go back and investigate the matter before telling you what really happened. I’m convinced too now that you and Hoseok just aren’t partners. I mean, I’ve been in this business for quite a while and when I look at you and Seok Jo I see the same as when my clients meet usually. So, how about we go back to your mother and explain the whole situation to her? I’m sure she’s still awake.” You explained, and could visibly see them both relax and exchange looks in between.  

“Oh god, my mother! She will kill me.” Jisu said suddenly, with her face full of worry. You all just had to laugh at that, trying to convince her that her mother will just be happy having her back home. After this, you made your way back to the car once the rain wasn’t too heavy anymore. Seok Jo was carrying his fiancé all the way like a princess which made you realize just how strong he must be from all the farm work he was doing. The two of them talked quietly with each other the whole way, walking in front of you since you didn’t know the way back to the car anymore. Hoseok was walking right next to you and at some point his hand found yours holding onto it softly. Your heart started beating faster, and again, it was like electricity was running through your whole body. You looked at him even though you could barely make out the silhouette of his face in the darkness.

No, this isn’t right. Even if he might not be Jisu’s Only, he will be someone else’s at some point. I can’t just toss all of my principles out of the window. I don’t want to go back to failed relationships anymore. As long as the computer won’t spit out who my Only is, I’ll be alone. Once I’m back at the office I’ll fix his case, and will have to make him meet up with his real Only. I can’t handle this.

Pulling your hand away softly, you took a small step to the side to bring some space in-between you. You held onto your hand in front of your chest while picking up the pace back to the car. Seok Jo and Jisu sat on the back seat, leaning onto each other, sleeping soundly. You looked back, smiling a little while putting a blanket on top of them. Hoseok was driving you guys back through the night of Busan, looking at you every now and then. He seemed like he had something on the tip of his tongue that he was dying to talk about, but something held him back. You tried to avoid his gaze as much as possible, but you felt his stare on you every time.

Once you arrived at Jisu’s home, her mother was so happy to have her back she even forgot to be angry about it. Both of them kept apologizing to each other, starting to take the blame for everything. You felt terrible for everything that happened, and stepped up to clear up the matter at hand. After you explained the whole thing again to Jisus mother, just like you did to them, she was angry for a short time, but quickly gave into Jisu’s and Seok Jo’s request to not blame you because it wasn’t your fault, but the systems. After a short discussion on how to proceed further, you and Hoseok finally made your way back to the hotel.

Both of you quietly went into your rooms, and you felt the awkward and tense atmosphere in the whole suite. After you both took a hot bath to warm yourselves up, you went out of your room to get something to drink. You noticed music playing in the living room and curiosity got the best of you. Hoseok was standing at the window with the back to you holding a glass of water in his hand just like you did. Instead of his usual hip hop playlist he was listening to a playlist filled with almost sad sounding music. The song playing that moment – Charlie Puths “Dangerously” – was on one of your playlists too because you related to the lyrics too much. You thought it was ironically fitting to your current situation as well.

“Hoseok?” He flinched a little at the sound of your voice over the music. Turning around, he walked up to you with a smile on his lips that wasn’t quite going to his eyes anymore. He put down your glass and his at the side before taking your hand playfully to make you dance with him.

“May I have this dance?” He asked, although you could see the worry in his eyes. You should’ve rejected him, but you wanted to do it so badly. Swaying with him while one song changed to another felt like heaven to you. It felt so right to be here with him, and you couldn’t help but laugh when he led you into crazy looking spins. He made you lean far back while supporting your lower back just to pull you back. Your forehead almost touched his when you came back up, both of you laughing a little. That was the moment your little dream bubble burst again. His hand went into your hair wanting to pull you in gently, but you pulled away.

“Please, don’t.” you said with your eyes down. A sigh left his mouth before he let go of you completely. He seemed angry, and you felt a sting in your heart when your eyes found his figure again.

“What did I do wrong? Did I do something, or say something that made you hate me all of a sudden? I thought… I thought you liked it too. I thought you liked me.” Hoseok asked you with desperation in his eyes that made your heart break.

“I do! I did. I mean… “ You sighed deeply. “Hoseok, I’m your Implementer. I’m a worker for the office that is supposed to find your perfect partner, and I’m not your perfect partner.”

“But what if you are? You said the system made a mistake so what if you are my real Only?” He took a small step closer to you again.

“That’s impossible. If I was your Only I would’ve gotten a notification all system problems aside. My name would’ve popped up somewhere and someone would’ve noticed.”

“Okay, then so what if you’re not?” He took your hands. “I want to be together with you and no one else!”

“But the computer-“

“To hell with the computer!” He suddenly screamed, making you pull your hands away from him and step back. “I-I’m sorry I didn’t want to raise my voice like that, but not everything is decided with logic, Y/N. In some moments, you just have to listen to your heart no matter how cheesy that may sound. My gut just tells me that you’re the one for me.” He took one of your hands again, but you pulled it away.

“You don’t understand this. This system is here to keep us from always trying and failing to find love. Even if we like each other now maybe in a few years we’ll hate each other, and I just can’t go through this anymore. It’s too painful!” You took a few steps back while talking.

“Y/N, please, I won’t hurt you. I could never hate you!”

“Everyone says that!”

“But I’m not everyone!”

“Who are you then, huh?!”

“I’m Jung Hoseok, and I’ve never fallen for anyone as hard as I did for you, and I know you did too!! Can you please stop denying it?!” You both were yelling at each other now.

“You can’t force me!! Just leave me alone!!!” You screamed at him, completely overwhelmed with this situation because of course he was right. You’ve never loved someone as much as you loved him, but you’ve been trusting the system and only the system for so many years that you couldn’t bring yourself to just trust your gut. You turned around and ran into your room. You just needed to get away from this situation, or else your feelings would overpower you.

“Y/N! Please, I’m sorry for yelling!” He was standing on the other side of your door. Tears started streaming down your face while you slid down the door until you sat on the ground.

“Just go away, please…” You sobbed and within seconds it was quiet. You heard his footsteps walk away from you, and you didn’t hear them come near you again for the whole night.

The next day you drove back to Seoul by yourself. Hoseok left without you in the morning, only leaving behind a small note and a bracelet that looked like the ones they sold at the village market you went by a few days earlier. You sighed, putting on the bracelet anyways since it was the only way to decrease the yearning for him in your heart a little.

A few days passed by, and you were back in your daily life working until late at night. Not having heard from Hoseok, nor having the courage to call him, you walked around like a heartbroken zombie. Even Namjoon noticed something was wrong with you when you went out for lunch together, but he didn’t ask too many questions about it which made you seek his company a lot more lately.

You were still investigating in the Jisu and Hoseok case, and everyone was informed by now that something went wrong there. Suddenly, a week after your return, your phone started ringing.

“Hey, Y/N, it’s SeokJin, could you come to the Finder department in half an hour? It’s about the Jung Hoseok case.” You heard SeokJin’s voice at the other end of the line. Your heartbeat increased immediately when you heard Hoseok’s name making you play with your bracelet.

“Have you found out what happened??” You asked while getting up immediately.

“Yes. We want to talk to you in person about this matter though. Can you come over then?”

“Sure!” You hung up before he could say anything more, and ignored the request to come in half an hour, too restless to wait even another second for the results. You rushed to the Finders department just to find the door of SeokJin’s office opened by a small gap. But you didn’t even need that gap to hear SeokJin yelling angrily at someone.

“What were you thinking?? Hacking yourself into the system just to exchange the names on the paper. Have you gone insane?! Do you know how much damage you could’ve done with this?? What is your damn reason?!”

“I don’t know… When I saw her name there I just- I didn’t think anymore. I blacked out. I didn’t want her to have an Only already…” You knew this voice, but you couldn’t believe what you heard there. You heard SeokJin sigh deeply, and when he spoke this time his voice was quieter.

“Look. Everyone knows how you feel about Y/N, but that doesn’t justify your actions. You exchanged her name for Lee Jisu who was actually partnered with her fiancé of two years. You could’ve destroyed four lives with your selfish actions, and I want you to apologize to everyone and make it right. Am I making myself clear? Just because you’re the grandson of our system developer I can’t go easy on you. This will have consequences even if you confessed yourself.” After hearing all this, your feet moved by itself taking you inside the room. SeokJin’s shocked eyes landed on you immediately followed by the culprits.

“Namjoon…you… you changed it?” His eyes darted down to the floor. He didn’t dare to look up while confirming everything. “H-Hoseok is my Only. And you knew? You erased my name and made me feel like I was crazy for doubting the computer?”

“Y-Y/N I’m so sorry. I just panicked when I saw your name there. I-I know I don’t have a chance with you, but this made it so final I just couldn’t handle it.” Namjoon explained, shaking. He seemed like a wreck, and you just couldn’t stay too angry at him. You took a deep breath to keep yourself composed.

“Is-“ you looked at SeokJin with eyes full of hope. “Is Hoseok really my Only?” SeokJin just smiled apologetically and nodded. You took in a deep breath, walked up to Namjoon and looked into his eyes. “I can’t forgive you right now. But I understand your motives, and I’m not angry at you. Just don’t force me to forgive you right now. I don’t have the strength for that yet. And honestly if I can’t fix this with Hoseok then I don’t know if I want to talk to you again. Now if you excuse me, I need to find my Only.” You turned away, but hesitated for one second turning to Namjoon one more time to give him one punch right in the stomach. He hunched over holding his stomach and started coughing just to laugh a second later.

“Okay yea I deserved that.” He simply said, while smiling in pain up at you which made your mouth corner twitch up for a second too. Next moment you were already rushing out as fast as possible calling Hoseok’s number every few minutes but he didn’t pick up. Figuring that he’s at dance practice you drove to the studio building only to be stopped at the entrance by two men and the receptionist of the front desk.

“I’m sorry but I need to see Jung Hoseok. Is he here? It’s really important!” you explained to her but she just looked at you apologetically.

“I have the instructions not to let anyone upstairs today. I’m really sorry Miss.”

“Can I at least leave a message for him? Please.” You pleaded, and although she looked a little reluctant at first, she took your message for Hoseok which you quickly wrote down on the page of this week from your work calendar and teared it out to give it to her. You hoped Hoseok would call you once he read it.

It was the same day, but later when you were on your way to dance practice. It was the first dance practice for you since your best friend got injured, and you were terrified of going inside and facing all of these people in there. You took a deep breath and with all your courage you made your way inside. You took a place in the back, too afraid of standing in front of everyone. The others were already whispering about you, and you felt your anxiety rise more and more. When the teacher came in you were a little bit relieved, but your anxiety showed in your dancing. He was very unsatisfied with you, and you were about to go out when suddenly a knock was heard on the door.

“I’m sorry I’m late but could I join your dance class for today? I’ll pay, I promise.” You couldn’t believe your eyes. It was Hoseok still in his full dance gear with his mask on looking just like he always did in his dance videos and it wasn’t just him.

“What do you mean ‘could I’ it should be ‘could we’!” You heard one of the younger ones of Hoseok’s dance team complain.

“And I told you guys to go home.” Hoseok complained while everyone came inside.

“How did you-“ You started, but he just fanned himself with your calendar page – where you also wrote down every practice and the addresses with it – winking at you.

Wow, I was unintentionally smart.

“Oh, that’s actually great. If all of you guys want to join in, we could try a partner dance today! Just go and get yourself a partner.” your instructor called out happily. He seemed thrilled to have some boys in his class for a change. Hoseok immediately took his place next to you. All the girls stared at you two and whispered his name over and over not able to believe it was the J-hope in front of them but you couldn’t care less. All that mattered was that he stood right in front of you right now.

“I’ve got my partner already.” Hoseok grinned while sliding off his mask.

“Not just partner. Your One and Only.” With your words Hoseok’s grin became even wider. He couldn’t help himself, and just hugged you tightly which you returned immediately.

“I knew it from the beginning!” He told you, sticking out his tongue at you like a child.

“I know, I know.” You rolled your eyes at him. “You’re never going to let me forget that, huh?”

“Well, at least now you know that you should always trust in my gut. It’s always right.” He grinned down at you. You both were interrupted by your teacher clearing his throat.

“Are you guys done? Now is dance class time. You have enough time to be all lovey-dovey later.” Your teacher nagged at you, but you could see that he wasn’t too serious about it.

“Yes, sir!” Hoseok replied and then leaned to whisper in your ear. “The rest of our lives should be enough time, right?” Normally you would freak at the thought of such a large commitment, but it just felt right this time. A big grin spread on your face before you replied.

“Barely.”

Masterlist

a/n: I hope you liked this quite long OS! It’s the longest one I’ve written on Tumblr so far and I was really nervous to upload it since a lot of work went into it. Share your thoughts with me if you want to! Every interaction no matter if it’s a like or a comment makes me want to keep going and reminds me of how much I love to write. Doesn’t matter how long of a pause was in between I’ll always come back because of the lovely people reminding me that I love to write <3 thank you all for reading!

[niets-is-onbeduidend]

The Untamed: Kidfic

I have a weakness for kidfic :-)  here are the stories that I could not fit any of my other themed reclists.

LAN YUAN

Gathered Herbs & Sweet Grasses by hansbekhart

Later, when he’s older, it’s this that A-Yuan will remember most: the stretch of silence, the two of them both dirty and shaking with fever, as he looked at Brother Rich, and Brother Rich looked back at him.

Words: 20.000/Canon/Missing years/ A-Yuan growing up

Criteria by incendir

Perhaps he’d noticed how Lan Wangji had no one except for Sizhui.

(or, 4 times someone hit on sizhui's dad and he was Highly uncomfortable and 1 time it was more than okay)

Words: 10.000/ Canon/ Missing years/ Lan Yuan p.o.v.

Child Surprise by Ariaste

He huffs a sigh. “Fine. Just--let’s just make it the law of surprise, shall we? That’s nice and simple, eh? Leave it up to destiny what will bring us back in balance. Let it drop something of yours into my lap, something small, and we’ll call the debt paid.”

Three debts, three repayments

Words: 4.000/ humour

After by tellthemstories

Lan Yuan does not smile for his first three years at Cloud Recesses.

Words: 5.000/ Canon/ Missing years

DE-AGING

grow by cafecliche

Okay,” Jingyi says, as Sizhui puzzles this out aloud. “Okay! So the demon has been turning its victims into children.”

“I think so,” Sizhui says.

“To make them easier prey,” Jingyi says.

“Yes,” Sizhui says.

“So—” Jingyi’s voice cracks here, “this kid is Senior Wei.”

Wei Wuxian, still tangled in his own massive robes, blinks politely at them.

(Or: Wei Wuxian is cursed on a night-hunt, and the junior quartet rapidly finds themselves in over their heads.)

Words: 14.500/ post-canon/ deaged Wei Ying

A Little Happiness by Suspicious_Popsicle

It was a beautiful, sunny day. A crisp, cool breeze was blowing, offset by the warm rays of the sun. The grass was vibrantly green, sprinkled with tiny white flowers. The rabbits were out, hopping contentedly around their meadow, practically begging to be picked up and cuddled. All of it was made surreal by the fact that a six-year-old Lan WangJi sat in the middle of the clearing, silently petting a black rabbit that had made itself comfortable on his lap.

Wei WuXian sat nearer the edge of the meadow, legs crossed at the ankles, chin in hand, and his elbow resting on his knee. He stared at Lan WangJi, searching for happiness in him.

Words: 20.000/ post-canon/ deaged Lan Zhan

how do i forgive myself (for losing so much time) by thunderwear

When Wei Wuxian burst through the doors, sitting on Lan Zhan’s lap, chewing on the strings of his forehead ribbon, was a baby.

“Please help me,” Lan Zhan said.

Words: 26.000/ post-canon/ de-aged Lan Xichen

OTHERS

Something Yet to Learn by Glitterbombshell

Wei Wuxian is asked (under duress) to babysit a class of tiny Lan cultivators for just a few minutes. A few minutes turns into an hour, turns into two hours, turns into an impromptu literal field trip and now there's an entire class that is weeks ahead of their curriculum, their most junior disciples have apparently imprinted on Wei Wuxian like baby birds, and Lan Qiren has no one to blame but himself

Words: 16.000/ series 38.000/ post canon

More Untamed reclists:

Ghosts:  Wei Wuxian becomes a ghost, Lan Yuan sees dead people and the dead Wen won’t leave the living alone

Fix-it fics: What if Jin Zixuan had survived, Lan Wangji had stayed at the burial mounds, Cloud recesses had provided a safe haven for the Wen,... OR canon is sad, have a fanfic.

Gen fics: with a focus on the relationship between Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian

Modern AU: the obligatory student and coffee shop au’s, a pinch of amnesia trope and a smidgen of kid-fic (bc who can resist a-yuan?)

Miscellaneous: great fic that does that doesn’t fit in any of my thematic lists so far

Humour: the juniors sharpen their pens, nie huaisang enables, sect leader Yao becomes chief cultivator and Wei Wuxian plots to expose a catfish

[kurtty-drabbles]

“She had one orgy and was part of several threesomes.” (any au) ~w~

@djinmer4 @dannybagpipesarecalling @bamfoftheundead

(Based on that image of EW Kitty ready to seduce someone. OC used here and this is before meeting EW Kurt)

"Oh, Gabriel, you´re indeed a lifesaver" the first necromancer speaks in awe as she was looking for this book with utmost urgency and Gabriel, the kind librarian help the necromancer quickly. The man has a beard to shave and offers a smile at the woman.

"I´m just doing my job, but, since we´re here for 4 hours in search of this book, can I ask something?" he asked and Kitty nods "Are you really planing in doing an orgy?"

And the first necromancer´s lisp quiver in a smile as she shakes her head and explains herself. "What you would feel if you meet the titular character of a book? Or if said titular character shows ups here, oh, I think the said character would want to see works that were inspired by her"

Gabriel frowns for a moment. "Titular character? Lady, the protagonist of that book is the first necromancer, a woman who is older enough to be everyone´s grandmother, and you´re far, far too young to be the first necromancer"

"That´s very sweet, how old you think am I?"

"24 at most" and Kitty chuckles saying how Gabriel is cute and then she opens her robes revealing herself with her typical dark dress many people can easily identify with the first necromancer. "Sweetie, I´m 5.000 years...I´m older" and she offers a sultry smile. "And as I said, what you would do if the titular character shows up to you?"

A few years later, the evil necromancer is looking for a book in this library and Gabriel gave the book to Kurt with such happy and fond expression that almost prompts Kurt to ask why so happy. Almost.

[pentragons]

i'm not sure if you ever dealt with this but how do you deal with things when the graphics or gifs you post get less than 100 notes? I know i shouldn't validate myself through note count but i tend to do that a lot and feel like making graphics is a waste of my time even though it's a process that makes me really happy and i don't really know how to get my stuff to be noticed more and i feel really embarrassed to tag blogs. thank you for reading this i really am thankful for your kindness

Hey anon, I am so sorry you are feeling upset!! I think most content creators on Tumblr/any other platform can sympathize with how you feel - it can be very disheartening to see something you’ve put a lot of work into go unnoticed. I definitely understand how you feel. There is no shame in how you are feeling, so don’t put yourself down! I’ve been on Tumblr for many years and I think it has gotten a lot harder for content creators to share their graphics but also to reach people with them. I personally believe there are many reasons for why that is, but that doesn’t really matter as we can’t change anything about it :/ But I do believe there are some ways to help!

KEEP ON MAKING GRAPHICS. The most important thing - don’t stop because you feel like it is a waste of your time! If it is something that makes you happy and that you enjoy doing, DO NOT GIVE UP! Especially not because of something silly as notes! But I’ll get back to that!

Tagging your posts is the most important thing, I guess. As much as having a lot of followers/mutuals/etc. might help, exposure through tags is what enables others to find your graphics at any time.Keep in mind:- Only the first five tags show up! If you want other people to find your edits you need to make your first five tags as specific as possible. - I always make sure my first five tags are tags that are used by a lot of people. For almost any fandom there are tags like ‘_edit’ or ‘_graphics’ (e.g. ghibliedit) that anyone can use. Make sure you use these, as a lot of people will check them out regularly! You are also not tagging anyone specifically if you are too shy to do that (which is absolutely fine!). So for example, I recently started creating edits for Stranger Things. I tried searching for the tag ‘stedit’, which does indeed exist and from there I looked at how other creators are tagging their posts. Tumblr does also recommend similar tags, so make use of those as well. See which ones you feel comfortable with using and make sure you tag your creations with them! - If you are too shy to tag specific users, maybe consider tagging an update/daily fandom blog that is run by a lot of members. They rely on us content creators helping them keep their daily content coming, so never feel too shy to tag them! Most have specific tags they created just so they can easily see your content! You can find their specific tags in their blog description most of the time. You absolutely do not need to feel shy, plus your edits will also be exposed to a huge audience, as most of these blogs have a lot of followers. I’d definitely recommend giving it a go, there are multiple ones for almost any fandom and as I said, content is what keeps them going! - If you feel too shy to tag others, you can always tag me!! I would be more than happy to see everyone’s beautiful edits and I would never judge anyone. I don’t have a tag yet, but #pentragons or #userpentragons should work perfectly! You are always welcome to message me, tag me, whatever

There are people saying there are specific times when you should be posting as more people will be online, though I don’t know much about that myself. You can read more about it here, for example. I have always (and that’s a lot of years by now!!) posted my stuff on Friday evenings, sometimes Saturday evenings (European time!). Make of that what you will, I personally do it because it’s the most convenient time for me :D

As I said, please don’t stop creating! I’ve had ups and downs myself and there were years where my blog went completely silent. I didn’t create anything new for years because as you said, I was wondering a lot: what’s the point? I have a bit of a different viewpoint now and have honestly never created more things than in the last few months. I am doing it because I feel inspired and because it’s fun. And that’s it. And as much as a lot of notes can make you feel happy, they are not what should keep you going!A) Recently, a wonderful anon messaged me and told me I was “brave” because I was making “things just because you are inspired by that content not for material gain or anything”. And I sat there for a moment and thought - heck yes!!? I’ve never seen it that way but it is a brave thing to expose your art to others. And it is a brave thing to do it out of honest enjoyment and inspiration, not for any gain. Content creators and their bravery to share their works are what keep this website going. I think you are wonderful, brave and an inspiration to many with your edits and it does not matter if there are 100 notes or 1000 because you were brave enough to post it and that is worth more than any notes! YOU are constantly evolving and getting better at what you are doing, YOU are having fun creating something, YOU felt as excited and inspired by something to try to create something - that is beyond amazing!! And I do believe that there are many people out there who are just as excited about what you created as you are - that’s what the tags are for!B) I always try to picture every note as a person that I am meeting to share the fandom love with. Now imagine 50 people standing around you right now. Isn’t that a crazy number?! 100 people - they wouldn’t even fit into my house! I don’t even know that many people in RL so imagine how crazy that is!! We always tend to make ourselves feel small because numbers can be crazy on social media. 10.000 likes here, 5.000 notes there. But when you get back to what these numbers mean, that these are actual people being excited about your edits, then I think every single note is worth so much. I know it’s not really any help but it might make you feel less like you are shouting into a void.

To sum it up: using the tags wisely + creating with a lot of passion is all you can do. There isn’t any magic to it, no secret tricks I know of (if anyone does, please share!!)… but it helps. And if it still doesn’t, then please, don’t feel discouraged - your creations are wonderful and you are so amazing for sharing them, no matter the notes you get. Thank you for trusting me enough to send your message and thank you for being so sweet and honest. I am sorry if this isn’t of much help! I only hope you never ever stop creating!

[ventriloquistrose]

Earth and Space, Steven's Universe. Chapter 3.

The warp pad light up and Steven, Amethyst and Pearl stepped off.

Though, they were not in the living room. They were on a place which looked like one big warp pad in the middle of the ocean, with smaller warp pads on top of it.

"I swear I saw it here." Pearl said in a whisper as she looked around.

"Whatever it was it's gone." Garnet commented as they spread out to start looking.

Steven jumped up on a warp pad, all broken and said: "What exactly is 'here?'" He asked.

"You've been here before." Garnet commented plainly as she searched.

"Yeah, but you never told me what this place is." Steven said.

"It's called the galaxy warp. Thousands of years ago it was the perfect passage between other worlds and earth." Pearl explained. "Though, after the rebellion we made sure to destroy the easiest way for homeworld gems to get here." She looked at the biggest of the warp pads, all broken. She then sighed heavily. "And the easiest way for us to go home."

"You were from space. Right, Pearl?" Steven asked.

"Yes, that's true." Pearl nodded.

"Garnet?"

"Yes." Garnet answered.

"Were Ruby and Sapphire from space too?" Steven asked.

"That's right." Garnet nodded.

"Don't you ever miss it?" Steven asked.

"We fought against our homeworld to protect earth." Garnet replied.

"Yes! Although, it happens to everyone that you sometimes get..." Pearl sighed heavily. "Homesick."

"Speak for yourself." Amethyst snapped, kicking a rock on the ground. "I don't miss anything."

Pearl rolled her eyes.

They all continued searching on the big warp.

"Why haven't you brought me to space?" Steven asked.

Everyone tensed and shared a glance. They looked just like they didn't know what to say.

"Well..." Pearl began unsure, playing with her hands. She looked at the gems for help, but they looked as clueless as her. "You see... you know how we always say... uh..." She stuttered.

Garnet walked up to him and rest a hand on his head. "We have our reasons. Let's leave it at that for now."

Steven looked like he wanted to protest. But he just nodded. ----------------------- The warp pad flashed again and this time the group entered the living-room.

"The creature made its way through the ocean. That's how it got to the galaxy warp." Garnet stated, adjusting her visor. "Get ready for a swim, gems." She demanded before entering the temple.

"Greaat..." Amethyst cheered ironically as she walked inside the temple as well.

Pearl walked over and started organizing the dishes. Steven jumped off the warp-pad, jumping oddly

"In space, do you guys jump around like they do in the movies?" Steven asked as he jumped around as an astronaut.

"No. Our bodies are originally programmed to reverse any type of gravity effect." Pearl explained as she put a plate in one of the cabinets.

Steven stopped dead in disappointment. But rather quickly, he grinned again. "Do you guys need special helmets depending on what planet you are on?" He asked as he started jumping again.

"No, gems don't need to breathe so that's not any problem." Pearl answered as she put another plate into a cabinet.

Once again, Steven stopped and pouted in disappointment. "Do you-."

"Steven." Pearl turned around in in slight annoyance. "I would usually love explaining all this to you. But today is not a good day." She told him.

"But I have so many questions." Steven squeaked.

Pearl sighed heavily and raised her hands to her head. And from her gem, she summoned something.

It was a mirror, a blue beautiful mirror with a blue gem on the back-side.

"We found this artifact on the galaxy warp over 5.000 years ago." Pearl explained. "It had the ability to show any place it has witnessed during its whole existence."

"Whoaa..." Steven gasped in awe.

Pearl grabbed the mirror and handed it to Steven. "Here. Maybe this can answer your questions." She told him.

"Whoaaaa." Steven sighed in awe as he watched the mirror.

The temple door opened and Garnet and Amethyst walked out into the living-room. "Gems! Let's go!" Garnet demanded.

"Wait! I can't go with you?!" Steven gasped.

"The creature was seen in the middle of the ocean." Garnet said.

"And you need air to breathe." Pearl added.

"See ya dude!" Amethyst shouted before they exit the house, shutting the door behind them.

Steven watched them leave. But his attention was quickly turned to the mirror in his hands.

"Hi lil' buddy! I'm Steven! I'm a crystal gem!" He cheered, grinning from ear to ear. "Now, what should I ask you...?... " He thought loudly. "Show me... the galaxy warp!"

The mirror's glass changed and indeed showed a picture of the galaxy warp.

"Whoaa, cool!" Steven's eyes had stars in them.

"Hi-Steven!-." The mirror suddenly repeated.

Steven gasped. "You can mimic me?!" He grinned.

"Whoaa, cool!" The mirror repeated.

Steven laughed. ----------------------- At nighttime, Steven was sitting in the darkness of the room with the mirror. They had such a riot. They laughed, they joked and every now and then made fart noises from some reason.

Steven laughed. "Okay! Okay, next one. Which one would you choose: to never brush your teeth or never brush your hair?"

"Brush your teeth." The mirror repeated.

"Eww! Noo! Gross!" Steven laughed. "Oh, mirror. You're a riot."

The mirror made a farting noise and Steven laughed even louder.

He looked at the clock on the wall.

"The gems are usually home by now." He hummed worriedly. "They're gonna flip when I show you to them!"

"Noo!" The mirror suddenly screamed.

"Hey, hey. Don't be shy. They're friendly." Steven tried to calm it down.

"Noo!" The mirror screamed.

"You... don't want me to show you to them?" Steven asked, starting to get suspicious.

"Noo!"

This time, he almost dropped it and held it harder. "Okay! Okay! I won't tell them! Shh." He stroke the side of the mirror with his hand. "I won't tell them, lil' buddy. That's a promise."

"Promise." The mirror repeated.

"Promise." Steven nodded.

The mirror was quiet for a few moments. Until-

"You're a riot- Steven." It spoke.

A soft blush grew on Steven's cheeks.

When suddenly, the door opened and the gems entered the house.

Steven practically jumped and hid the mirror beneath a blanket beside him.

The gems stepped inside and shut the door behind them, all wet and tired.

"How did it go?" Steven asked.

Garnet tapped the bubble in her hand with a gem in it and send it back to the temple. "It's done." She ruffled his hair as she passed him and entered the temple.

Amethyst snatched a bag of chips from the cabinet and sneaked inside the temple as well.

Pearl sat beside Steven on the couch with a heavy sigh, drying herself off with a dry towel.

Steven nervously moved a a few inches away from her.

Pearl then rest back against the couch. She took a deep breath. "Steven."

Steven quickly turned his head towards her.

"You remember earlier today, when you asked me why we never brought you to space?" She asked him.

"Oh. That. Look, I'm sorry I overreacted. I just-." Steven immediately started apologizing.

"No. You don't have to explain yourself." Pearl cut him off. "I should have known you wanted to explore your gem-heritage as well. I just thought..." She sighed. "It could have waited a couple years."

Steven smiled. "It's fine."

"No it's not." Pearl cut him off. "Steven, I know our choices doesn't always enjoy you. But... sometimes there are un-written rules you don't know about." She explained. "We fought for this place for over 5.000 years and... like Garnet said, we had our reasons."

Steven listened.

"It's not that we thought you weren't ready. You have surprised everyone of us so many times already." She smiled for a split second. But then, she looked down again. "I guess I just thought that... I was afraid you'd see the whole picture."

"What do you mean?" Steven asked.

"It's not always good to think too big. If you're thinking too big, reality gets smaller. And if reality gets too small... it will never be enough for you." Pearl tried to explain.

Steven just looked at her as she spoke.

"And... I guess I was afraid that..." Pearl continued. "If you saw... space... you would see earth through a whole new perspective. And maybe I was afraid that... home wouldn't be enough for you anymore. And maybe feel like... we weren't enough for you."

She then began laughing. "You can hear that I've been talking to Garnet, can't you?" She smiled.

"A little." Steven smiled.

Pearl laughed. Until she leaned back and sighed heavily. "Your mother..." She looked up at the painting above her.

"There was a time when she was happy with what she had. But when time gave her too big of a perspective... nothing ever seemed to be enough for her. Not even me..." She sighed heavily and just stared at nothing.

Steven was quiet for a few moments.

Until he suddenly rest his head against her shoulder, surprising her. "Well... you're enough for me."

A long tear ran down Pearl's cheek.

She dried it away and rest her hand on Steven's shoulder. "Thank you, Steven."

When suddenly, there was a farting noise coming from out of nowhere.

"What was that?" Pearl asked.

"Nothing!" Steven shouted, quickly covered the blanket with his hands and grinning nervously.

[trinuviel]

Azor Ahai, The Prince that was Promised and the Red Sword of Heroes (part 6)

This is the sixth and final installment in my series of metas on the subject of the prophecies of Azor Ahai and The Prince that was Promised in George R.R. Martin’s epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire. (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5) In my previous post, I came to the conclusion that the priesthood of R’hllor has misunderstood the prophecy of Azor Ahai come again. Rather than being the promise of a saviour, the prophecy should be interpreted as a warning of the coming a destroyer that will bathe the world in fire.

However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the stories of a hero battling a destructive darkness with a burning sword are entirely wrong. Rather these are stories that contain a kernel of truth but this truth has been embellished and transformed into a number of similar but different narratives as the story wandered from Westeros to Essos. Thus, in light of this context I want to take a closer look at the myth of Lightbringer in relation to the Night’s Watch. This is by no means a new theory but I’d still like to explore this issue as the concluding chapter of this series of metas.

THE LAST HERO

Could it be that the myth of AA and his burning sword is a fiction and that the priesthood of R’hllor has misunderstood the nature of this myth completely? I’m not saying that the myth of AA has no basis in fact, but rather that the facts have become distorted as the story of the Battle for the Dawn travelled east. The first war against the Others took place 8.000 to 5.000 years before the present storyline – and it most likely took place in Westeros since it is the only continent that is connected with the frozen Land of Always Winter in the far north of the world.

What exactly happened during the first Long Night and the Battle for the Dawn is shrouded in mystery and legend but the stories of the North differ markedly from the stories of the Long Night that are told in Essos. In the North stories are told of the Last Hero who according to legend played a crucial part in the defeat of the Others.

So as cold and death filled the earth, the last hero determined to seek out the children, in the hopes that their ancient magics could win back what the armies of men had lost. He set out into the dead lands with a sword, a horse, a dog, and a dozen companions. For years he searched, until he despaired of ever finding the children of the forest in their secret cities. One by one his friends died, and his horse, and finally even his dog, and his sword froze so hard the blade snapped when he tried to use it. And the Others smelled the hot blood in him, and came silent on his trail, stalking him with packs of pale white spiders big as hounds—"

All Bran could think of was Old Nan's story of the Others and the last hero, hounded through the white woods by dead men and spiders big as hounds. He was afraid for a moment, until he remembered how that story ended. "The children will help him," he blurted, "the children of the forest!" (AGoT, Bran IV)

(The Last Hero. Art by Roman Papsuev)

According to the stories and songs, the Last Hero didn’t defeat the Others singlehandedly. He sought the help of the Children of the Forest (the original inhabitants of Westeros) and he fought together with the first men of the Night’s Watch:

How the Long Night came to an end is a matter of legend, as all such matters of the distant past have become. In the North, they tell of a last hero who sought out the intercession of the children of the forest, his companions abandoning him or dying one by one as they faced ravenous giants, cold servants, and the Others themselves. Alone he finally reached the children, despite the efforts of the white walkers, and all the tales agree this was a turning point. Thanks to the children, the first men of the Night's Watch banded together and were able to fight—and win—the Battle for the Dawn: the last battle that broke the endless winter and sent the Others fleeing to the icy north. Now, six thousand years later (or eight thousand as True History puts forward), the Wall made to defend the realms of men is still manned by the sworn brothers of the Night's Watch, and neither the Others nor the children have been seen in many centuries. (tWoIaF) 

It isn’t stated directly but the stories imply that the Last Hero may have been involved with the creation of the Night’s Watch. His identity and his fate are unknown but what is interesting is this story tells of a man who played a crucial part in the defeat of the Others, not because he had been prophesized to do so but because he choose to seek help from beings that were intimately connected to the living land. 

THE CHILDREN OF THE FOREST

The Children of the Forest are a non-human race that along with the giants were the original inhabitants of Westeros in the dawn of time. It is a long held belief that they have died out but Bran encounters several CotF in the cave beneath an ancient weirwood tree where he is instructed in the magic of greenseeing and warging by The Three-Eyed Crow. 

The relationship between the CotF and humankind has been a fractious one. The First Men and the Children engaged in a prolongued war because the human settlers cut down the sacred weirwood trees. Eventually, the Children and the First Men made peace with the Pact of the Isle of Faces.

The CotF are intimately connected to the living land in a way that humankind is not. They live in harmony with nature and their magic is rooted in nature as well – their most powerful magic users were the original wargs and greenseers. Bran Stark possess the same powers but how certain people of the North came to inherit these powers is shrouded in mystery. 

The greenseers were more than that. They were wargs as well, as you are, and the greatest of them could wear the skins of any beast that flies or swims or crawls, and could look through the eyes of the weirwoods as well, and see the truth that lies beneath the world. - Jojen to Bran, (ASoS, Bran I)

It was the CotF who carved faces into the weirwood trees so their greenseers could look out of the eyes of the trees. The weirwoods were sacred to the Children and they became sacred to the First Men after the Pact.

The connection between the weirwoods that the greenseers go even deeper. Their spirits literally become one with the living trees when they die.

“The singers of the forest had no books. No ink, no parchment, no written language. Instead they had the trees, and the weirwoods above all. When they died, they went into the wood, into leaf and limb and root, and the trees remembered. All their songs and spells, their histories and prayers, everything they knew about this world. Maesters will tell you that the weirwoods are sacred to the old gods. The singers believe they are the old gods. When singers die they become part of that godhood." - Jojen to Bran, (ADwD, Bran III)

Their closeness to the natural word is also echoed in their language, which is completely different from any kind of human language. In their own tongue they call themselves those who sing the song of the earth – and their language is the sound of nature itself.

Their song and music was said to be as beautiful as they were, but what they sang of is not remembered save in small fragments handed down from ancient days. Maester Childer's Winter's Kings, or the Legends and Lineages of the Starks of Winterfell contains a part of a ballad alleged to tell of the time Brandon the Builder sought the aid of the children while raising the Wall. He was taken to a secret place to meet with them, but could not at first understand their speech, which was described as sounding like the song of stones in a brook, or the wind through leaves, or the rain upon the water. (tWoIaF)

There’s an interesting nugget of information hidden in this quote. Brandon the Builder, the founder of House Stark, sought the help of the CotF to build the Wall and met with them in one of their secret cities. This could be a clue to the identity of the Last Hero – he also sought the secret cities of the CotF to plead for their help. Exactly what kind of help the CotF gave the Last Hero is unknown but part of it could be the magic that infuses the Wall and keep the dead from crossing it.

(The building of the Wall. Art by Chase Stone)

The Last Hero is connected with the first men of the Night’s Watch who man the Wall that was built by Brandon the Builder. Was he the founder of this ancient order? Perhaps. However, there are enough clues to suggest that the Last Hero may have been Bran the Builder, the founder of House Stark and the man who built Winterfell. If is, of course, quite possible that Brandon the Builder was a purely mythic figure, which GRRM himself coyly hints:

No one can even say for certain if Brandon the Builder ever lived. He is as remote from the time of the novels as Noah and Gilgamesh are from our own time. (x)

Legend or not – these stories suggests that the Starks played a crucial part in the first war against the Others – and it is quite clear that the Starks will play a crucial role in the war to come, especially Bran Stark and Jon Snow.

THE SWORD IN THE DARKNESS

When it comes to the Night’s Watch, there is an interesting connection between the wording of their wows and the legend of Lightbringer. When the recruits pledge themselves to the Night’s Watch, these are the words they say:

"Hear my words, and bear witness to my vow," they recited, their voices filling the twilit grove. "Night gathers, and now my watch begins. It shall not end until my death. I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children. I shall wear no crowns and win no glory. I shall live and die at my post. I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls. I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards the realms of men. I pledge my life and honor to the Night's Watch, for this night and all the nights to come." (AGoT, Jon VI)

It is particularly the phrase THE SWORD IN THE DARKNESS and how it is connected to the imagery of fire and light. The imagery suggests that The Sword in the Darkness is a burning or shining/glowing sword. That actually sounds a lot like the legendary Lightbringer – the red sword that makes its own light and fire.

If Night Night’s Watch is Lighbringer – in the metaphorical sense – then the one who wields the Sword in the Darkness is the Lord Commander. Who’ll hold this position when the time comes for the final confrontation with the Others is still up for debate. In the books Jon Snow holds the position of Lord Commander until he is killed and in the show he leaves the NW after his resurrection.

Does this mean that there is no actual burning sword? The answer is both yes and no.

FROZEN FIRE

There may not have been an actual burning sword during the first war for the Dawn, but the CotF most likely entrusted the Last Hero and the first men of the Night’s Watch with the secret that obsidian blades kill White Walkers. Obsidian is also called dragonglass and it has a special meaning in the Valyrian language.

"Dragonglass." The red woman's laugh was music. "Frozen fire, in the tongue of old Valyria. Small wonder it is anathema to these cold children of the Other." (ASoS, Samwell V)

Dragonglass blades kills White Walkers quite effectively. It is as though the blade itself, or rather the material it is made of, is inimical to Others on a fundamental level. Their icy “flesh” is completely destroyed when it comes into contact with dragonglass.

You can do it, you can, just do it. And then he was stumbling forward, falling more than running, really, closing his eyes and shoving the dagger blindly out before him with both hands. He heard a crack, like the sound ice makes when it breaks beneath a man's foot, and then a screech so shrill and sharp that he went staggering backward with his hands over his muffled ears, and fell hard on his arse.(ASoS, Samwell I)

When he opened his eyes the Other's armor was running down its legs in rivulets as pale blue blood hissed and steamed around the black dragonglass dagger in its throat. It reached down with two bone-white hands to pull out the knife, but where its fingers touched the obsidian they smoked. Sam rolled onto his side, eyes wide as the Other shrank and puddled, dissolving away. In twenty heartbeats its flesh was gone, swirling away in a fine white mist. Beneath were bones like milkglass, pale and shiny, and they were melting too. Finally only the dragonglass dagger remained, wreathed in steam as if it were alive and sweating. (ASoS, Samwell I) 

Notice how the dragonglass dagger causes the White Walker’s body to boil, steam and smoke. Then the dagger is described as if it is almost alive (with fire). Now if we compare this to the description in the Jade Compendium of Azor Ahai using Lightbringer on an unidentified monster: 

“The pages told of Azor Ahai, Lightbringer was his sword. […] Once Azor Ahai fought a monster. When he thrust the sword through the belly of the beast, its blood began to boil. Smoke and steam poured from its mouth, its eyes melted and dribbled down its cheeks, and its body burst into flame." (ADwD, Jon III) 

This description is very similar to how the White Walker died after being struck with an obsidian dagger. So you can definitely make the argument that the Red Sword of Heroes wasn’t a literal burning sword but rather a blade made of the “frozen fire” of dragonglass.

My point is, that the story of the Last hero, the Night’s Watch and the use of dragonglass blades against the Others has been garbled and altered throughout the millennia as it travelled from the far north of Westeros to the far east of Asshai where the prophecy of Azor Ahai reborn hails from. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the prophecy is not genuine. The problem with visions and prophecies is that they are difficult to interpret – and it is quite possible that an ambiguous vision about a Warrior of Fire was misinterpreted on the basis of a story that in itself was incorrect. That could certainly be a reason why the prophecy of AA reborn is interpreted as the promise of a saviour rather than a warning of a destroyer. Such a misinterpretation could have been further entrenched through R’hllorist dogma.

If the prophecy of AA reborn is a warning, does the same apply to the prophecy of the Prince that was Promised? Only if the two prophecies refer to the same person. There’s very little concrete information on the prophecy of tPtwP and most of what we know seems to dovetail nicely with the prophecy of AA reborn. Thus, the text itself implies that the two prophecies refer to the same person. We don’t know where the prophecy of the promised prince hails from. Maester Aemon indicates that it is written in Valyrian. If so, then it is quite possible that the prophecy of tPtwP is an old one that comes out of Valyria before the Doom. If that is the case, then it is quite possible that it simply is another variation on the prophecy of AA reborn.

However, I find it very interesting that GRRM has chosen to withhold a lot of information about the prophecy of tPtwP. That could indicate that the prophecy itself as well as its wording may drive a significant plot twist. I have previously argued that tPtwP and AA very likely refer to the same person but I won’t dismiss the possibility that the two prophecies may refer to different people. We simply haven’t enough information to make a definitive judgement in this matter.

[bitcoinfreenews-blog]

New Post has been published on http://bitcoinfreenews.com/2018/07/04/ausgeraumter-myth-why-bitcoin-never-to-zero/

Ausgeräumter myth: Why Bitcoin never to Zero

Bitcoin can go”has a polarising effect on people, that there are two mounts. for additional storage. To those who say that he is en through the ceiling, shooting, , and on the other, those that say that he is nothing more to be worth it. The future of the volatile, unprecedented and revolution—ren, W—the design of the system, the the Kryptow—present designs, köcan not a lot of accurate predictions. But over time, the idea that Bitcoin goes to Zero, seems to spread more and more.

A number of commentators have made recently, as Bitcoin has boomed – the darkest forecasts and warned investors that this new money system – and Investitionsmövenues – vö’m going to completely be worthless.

Bitcoin is not even 10 years old and has increased from Zero to a value of 17,000 euros. Now, as we stand now, and the price is lower than many had hoped, it is to believe nonsense, that he come up on Zero-kömight?

“He goes to the bottom”

It does not matter whether the Nouriel Roubini, of skeptical friends at the dining table, or Dr. Doom himself, n—namely: The prediction is that Bitcoin will go to Zero, often comes as a backlash to all of the steps to the front, the Kryptow currencies<. to=”” observe=”” p=””>

As a new and never before been before Öecosystem functioning in the established &Nbsp;in ecosystems such as the financial accounting and money, it is fascinating, how the volatile Vermögene value. One day, he and the n&mdash increases;next again on the slides – but what gives people the reason to think that he is a total failure?

at the beginning of February, as the Bitcoin, in the direction of 5.153 Euro, the Chairman of Roubini Macro Associates Nouriel Roubini – also known as “Dr. Doom” because of its pessimistic economic forecasts – a kühne statement:

As expected, fäBitcoin llt now on under $ 6,000 (5.153 Euro). Now the mark of 5.000 US-Dollar (4.294 Euro). And the US Kongressanh to crypto-Affected–is gereien a day. HODL-R–was to be lying down to keep your melted in the Bitcoins until they are worth ZERO, wäduring Betrüger and Bitcoin whales to Dump and run…

— and Nouriel Roubini (@Nouriel) 6. February 2018

Dr. Doom had been given to this Bitcoin-low – point-Support–up by Joe Davis, the global Chefökonom of Vanguard and head of the investment strategy group. This wrote in a Blog Post:

“I think it is für it is very likely that the price of the llt to Zero f”.”

He indicated, however, that he Blockchain is bezüglich optimistic. But this separation of the Blockchain and Bitcoin investors and institutional lenders has your Tücken, and is always wrong according to the Motto “block chain über Bitcoin”.

Goldman Sachs has also über Kryptow—currencies and the Möurgency you to go to Zero, geäußert. However, with the Caveat that the größeren – and, therefore, stämore powerful – develop and –survive. The head of für Investment research Steve Strongin said:

“appears That one of the today’s Kryptow—pertaining to in the long term –to survive, to me unlikely, even if parts of it develop, and –survival köcould. Due to the lack of intrinsic value of the W&mdash will go;currencies, not –to survive, hölikely to Zero.”

Gründe, the call these people that Bitcoin – or in Strongins case, other Kryptow—currencies go to Zero, ranging from market manipulation über Vermögene value bubbles up to the Lack of intrinsic value. All of these examples, and Gründe seem to be a bit outdated by now.

The fast-paced Kryptow—the design of the world is grown out of a number of distractions, especially the Tulip-comparison, compare a Joe Davis ‘ Favorite. In the last few months, there was a große acceptance-shaft with respect to the use of Blockchain and Kryptow—currencies, although the market is in a depression.

The Blockchain Revolution

Bitcoin and Kryptow—currencies are a financial and monetäres Phänomen, but are classified thanks to the underlying Blockchain technology, as the technological progress. This means that there is a große acceptance wave, the über the various sectors of the Blockchain and Kryptow&mdash can take place;pertaining to the use of köcan.

The acceptance that has taken place lately, was seen at the top level of some sectors. Including, for example, banks, Large companies and even governments.

Some global Großbanks have done a große steps to try to develop an effective crypto-Trading Desk, your customers köcan, and such in your regulären köcan. The banks want to jump on the Kryptow—hrungszug, because customer demand is so high.

Farzam Ehsani, a former Block-Leader in the case of the Rand Merchant Bank and now Mitbegründer and CEO of VALR, told againstüber Cointelegraph:

“All the banks realize that you need to on these Blockchain-hop mü. I do not think that many banks do not necessarily understand where this train fährt, but you realize that this is a development that arises and that is if you want to be on this trip, with everyone on the train müshot”.

Darüber addition, companies are in the Größe of Microsoft, Amazon, IBM, and Oracle, customer-oriented Blockchain-Lösungen – often Kryptow—currencies tied to möbring a question as the first effective and the revolutionäres product on the market.

Schließlich, the governments, the Bitcoin and the Kryptow—currency acceptance is often weighed in on this one. The Dutch—foreign government is a good example of dafür what that looks like. Just last month, it was reported that the Dutch—foreign Ministry für the Economics of climate policy has established a unit, which is tasked with exploring the further development of the Blockchain über the technology.

so What does all this mean für Bitcoin, and the idea that he has to go to Zero, kömight?

Much of this hängt, on the Belief that Kryptow—currencies and Blockchain köcan. There is a großen thrust at the Blockchain-acceptance – as described above – but the same applies für the Bitcoin and Kryptow—the design of acceptance.

will be Discussed, however, is that both of them are definitely connected to each other. Those surprisingly, most of the Blockchain – and Kryptow—the design of space to argue that the two facets of k&ouml not be separated;, and therefore, if there is a Blockchain-acceptance, it must, consequently, there is a correlation of benefits to the Kryptow—the design of the room.

There are so many facilities, with the Größe, and the dominance of global banks, Large corporations, and even governments, to enter into the Blockchain-space, it seems hard to imagine that you are progressing without the Kryptow—the design aspect.

The CEO of Lightning Labs – the developer of the Blockchain scaling Protocol Lightning – Elizabeth Strong has dafür pronounced that Wall Street and the traditional financial sector challenge, the on the Blockchain, and not to Bitcoin, by trying to separate the two clearly.

“As we my company Lightning Labs gegründet, we have taken the word “Bitcoin” from our Deck and in our marketing material, because it went so much to the Blockchain. Now I have the Gefühl, that we have come into a “Bitcoin, Blockchain,” world in which people understand the value of the Kryptow—the design of technology and what it can bring. It also has Proof-of-Work in Bitcoin, you have the Public/Private Key cryptography. There are other things that make Bitcoin special. Somehow the Blockchain was separated-a part of it and to be a successful thing.”

Customizable Kryptow—introduction

Emin Gün Sirer, an außerordentli cher, a Professor at Cornell University, ore,—selected againstüber Cointelegraph some über the robustness of Kryptow—pertaining to, and how difficult it is, that this is completely”disappear fully.

“We have seen that these technologies are quite robust. Chains don’t just disappear, they are greaterähig, and will remain, präsent. Many of us have, for years, advertised für these technologies in General and Bitcoin in Particular. The result is the development of an immense benevolence and a high level of brand awareness. So there will always be a Community around the brand, the dafür that this Chain is making progress.”

Gün Sirers point of view – in particular, to Bitcoin is, in a way, the Blockchain technology and its current state. The acceptance of Bitcoin and the Blockchain has almost reached a critical mass, where it is difficult that you all Support–will lose the plöuseful up.

The brand of Bitcoin has exploded recently and there are indications that this popularity of theät für its growth and &Quot;survival is important

source: Google Trends

There is a correlation between Google search trends für Bitcoin, and the price of Bitcoin, which shows that the höhere the interest and the popularity of the”t of the Coins inseparable from his course, and thus, in many ways, his success is connected to.

The has been already found in the so-called “Satoshi-cycle”.

However, Gün Sirer fügt:

“you will have perhaps a Hard-Fork perform to him after a Chain-a spiral of death to breathe new life into, and he cases, kömight be a niche function, erfü, because his Medium was the transmission and storage of value functions absorbed by others. But nevertheless, I suspect that there will always be a Bitcoin brand and a niche Community dafür.”

Intrinsically unstoppable

Wäduring his acceptance wächst, and as a technology and financial system in everyday life is established, it is becoming more and more difficult, Bitcoin and Kryptow—pertaining to – as well as Blockchain – just to get away.

But even more than the shows, too, that it is now, where he has established, is more difficult to can him töten, than, for example, a share, a technological fad, or countless other comparisons, the die kö.

Many compare Bitcoin with a company or stock that can go to Zero, to not have a reason to invest. Bitcoin is a decentralized and Autonomous. There is no Individual, no group and no Board that can drive him to Ruin.

In this sense, it is also possible to stop him – as well as Regulierungsbeh would be so slow to remember. By L—such as China and others that try to ban Bitcoin directly, you’ll notice that they fight something Tangible bekä.

But Bitcoin is also able to develop and adapt – and, in turn, on the basis of its inner values. He is ruled by a majority, and if things change and problems arise, wählt Community in a way that the für Üsurvival is best. It battles and &quot may be;Bürgerkriege”, but in the end, the progress of Bitcoin are only für Üsurvival.

Ultimately, köcan even the größten of the critics of Bitcoin and the Kryptow—the design of space, the potential of the Blockchain technology hardly bem—defects. Some like to try to distinguish Kryptow—pertaining to the Blockchain, but you’re wrong in this sense.

Jehan Chu, Mitbegründer of Kenetic Capital – a company that the distribution of the Blockchain technology, is committed für – is also of the opinion that this new System, the problems of the past, löst. Chu said againstüber Cointelegraph:

“Bitcoin will never go to Zero, because there are economies as a hedge against falling in the currencies, inefficient people, and, increasingly, systemic inequality. Bitcoin repr—presents the the design of a better future für the society and people will always invest in their future.”

Too many vested parties

Bitcoin, Kryptow—currencies and Blockchain: widths of all these inter-links–connected parts slowly in the society in all the different Ökosysteme. And since you hide, it’s hard to eliminate this.

Regulierungsbeh authorities have tried and come to the realization that you can Kryptow—pertaining to vödigit extrusionängen kö. So you are now trying to work with them. This has opened the Tür für the traditional sectors of the world geö, to enter the market and Kryptow��currencies to make it more a part of everyday life.

This System of decentralized, adaptableähigen, Autonomous and democratic money has too many vested parties and many strong characteristics. These make it difficult to create the System in its current Form complete—completely from the world.

[coolkidzcooltrips]

How do we get from home to Scotland without having to spend the entire 14 days off driving? The answer: ferry to Scotland. More precisely from Amsterdam to Newcastle upon Tyne. But once we boarded the ferry with kids, what was meant to only be a means of making the journey easier, proved to be the highlight of the whole trip.

Why do we have to drive to Scotland?

I sit on the couch in only a T-shirt, yet I am still hot. The balcony doors are wide open, but the heat seems stuck in the air and no breeze is making it move. The kid has finally manged to fall asleep, hours after the usual bedtime, but who could blame her. In the beginning of August, our routine is completely distorted.

I yawn, but don’t contemplate heading to bed. Irritated I yank the shirt that has plastered itself on me, like second skin. Husband swivels on his chair and turns to me.

‘5.000 kilometers,’ he states and shows me the map on Google.

It seems that almost all of our vacation in barely three weeks time we’ll be spent driving to and from Scotland.

We knew we’d have the last two weeks of August off before the Summer started. The beginning of August came and we were yet to make a reservation. We just couldn’t figure out what we wanted. Days passed, and we had nothing except the destination. Scotland. No doubt about it.

I’d spend all my vacations in Scotland. Especially the Summer ones.

That hot Summer night I wished we already were in Scotland.

But booking things two weeks before you have to go, in Scotland, in Summer, takes courage. And there’s a thin line between courage and crazy. Everything and I am not exaggerating (I wish I was) was either booked or too expensive to take into consideration.

Our only option, because we wanted to go to Scotland, was driving and camping. That sounded right up our alley.  Being spontaneous, throwing caution to the wind, screw plans…

However, when hubbs mentioned the number of kilometers, I quickly sobered up and despite the heat, I broke out in a cold sweat.

He swiveled back and we turned to the magic of Google for a solution.

We discovered DFDS ferry from Amsterdam to Newcastle upon Tyne.

It would still mean driving but a lot less, so we booked it without any hesitation. Finally, Scotland was within reach and we could start making a list of things we wanted to see. I could release that breath I didn’t know I was holding.

Boarding the ferry

As we turned right onto the road that ends in the harbor, a Fish and Chips joint was the first to greet us, making us feel we were almost in the UK. On the edge of our seat we slowly pulled up behind a white camping van and gazed at the docked colossal white and blue ship. It was the only one around, it had to be ours. Yet it resembled a cruise ship more than it did a simple ferry.

I could feel the excitement in the car when the kids took in the sight of a large hotel on the water. The only question was, how long do we have to wait to get on board?

Because we missed our ferry from Spain to Morocco – and yet we call ourselves travelers – we were extra careful and extra early. Lesson learned forever. I sure didn’t want to miss going to Scotland.

It meant we were in the harbor with other nerds almost three hours before departure.  Mix in our anxiousness to get on board and explore the perks of the ship, to start sailing and get to our final destination, you can’t really take our word on how long we needed to wait for granted. It felt like hours, but in truth it wasn’t.

Besides you have to admire the workers, who so meticulously make sure that every car is in the right place on the ferry. Not an easy task to do.

Anyway, the wait was quickly forgotten as we snaked into the belly of the ship, squeezed our car among many others and were welcomed on board by the friendly crew.

The adventure BEGINS

Without the kids, we’d just leave our things in a small but tidy and efficient cabin and head to the deck to watch the ship leave the Dutch harbor.  With kids every step of the way was an adventure.

‘Look at this!’ was heard as we moved along the long corridor in search of our room.

Then they fought who will open the door. Once inside they jumped around as much as the space allowed and were on to fighting who will sleep where.

Bunk beds with Mum and Dad, it apparently doesn’t get better than that.

It wouldn’t be our choice of ideal accommodation, but  their sheer enthusiasm was contagious and we couldn’t help but smile. Nodding my head, I too thought, ‘FUN’. My husband agreed and whispered: ‘This was such a good idea.’

Yes, it sure was. After leaving our things in the room and settling the dispute on who sleeps where, the kids wanted the playroom, the two of us wanted the deck. Off we went.

Exploring the ferry to Scotland

The playroom, conveniently located next to a café and restaurant,  has a small playground and a space filled with balls. Kids can play with Lego’s or watch cartoons… They can do tons of DIY, … Every time I came to check they were doing something else, and didn’t yet want to leave.

Meanwhile we walked and explored the whole ship. Our starting point was the Sky Bar filled with chairs and people enjoying the gentle sun rays of the eve. Temperature was perfect, Summer heat of home long behind us. The music coming from the speakers complimented the whole relaxed atmosphere, with passengers enjoying the staple drink of the Dutch – Heineken beer.

We too couldn’t resist. Soon we leaned our elbows on the fence of the ferry, cradling the green bottle between us and watched the ship slowly leave the confines of the harbor. What a fantastic start of our holiday.

On the way back, the pending journey on board this ship, made the farewell from the great Scotland and the end of our holiday a little easier to bare.

Dinner helped as well

Can you believe there are four different​t restaurants and one café to chose from when it comes to food on the ship?

Tip: It is best to book your meals when you are booking the accommodation as it will be more affordable.

The food we tried was delicious. On our outward journey we ate in the Explorer’s Steakhouse, where we had delicious steaks. The girls could choose among all kids’ favorite meals – they went for spaghetti Bolognes, which were very tasty.

On our way back we had burgers at the Pop Up restaurant. We were seated next to the windows and ate our dinner while enjoying the warm colors of the sunset. The best thing – our munching was interrupted by whales we spotted in the distance. No wonder this will be one of those meals we will remember forever.

After our meals we headed slowly towards our cabin, but had to check where all the singing was coming from. We found ourselves in a bar with live music and five minutes later I was on the disco floor with the girls swaying my hips to Abba. It took half an hour to make the girls move on.

The verdict?

When  fell asleep almost the second our weary heads touched the pillows. What felt like seconds later, an announcement woke us up. They were letting us know we’ll soon be arriving.  It seemed so effortlessly and we were at our destination. Great way to travel.

When we closed our cabin on our way home, the girls said: ‘Let’s do this again, soon.’

We whole heartedly agreed, especially because the ship was big enough to pack a bit of Scottish weather and take it home with us :).

    All Aboard! Ferry to Scotland How do we get from home to Scotland without having to spend the entire 14 days off driving? 

[usernamefiaren-blog]

Reflective blog Media Interview

Our final assignment for the module It’s Not all Rock ‘N Roll we had to do a media interview. We got given 4 scenario’s and for each scenario we got given 4 questions but we only knew two of them. We had to pretend that we were the spokes person for that scenario and talk to the media about what had happend and defend our client in the interview.  I thought this was going to be really difficult, but with a bit of fantasy and a lot of research I managed to figure it out. 

I will write out my research and the stories I made up for each of the scenario’s.

scenario: Timing - The headlining act at your show on Friday night went on stage at 10.45pm, more than 90 minutes later than advertised. This caused problems for the audience, many of whom had to leave before the end of the show in order to catch public transport. 

research: (source Dailymail) Justin Bieber shows p 2 hours late, to his debut show in the O2. He was 19 years at the time and locked himself in the dressing room to play video games. Justin says he was only 40 minutes late and blames it on technical difficulties. O2 staff: ‘’He was arguing with members of his management; his family’’  Backstage source: ‘’His lateness was because he didn’t get out of bed until late and sat in his dressing room playing games - even though his door was being knocked’’ A closer source is saying te accounts were ‘wildly exaggerated or just untrue’-> denying Justin’s tweet: ‘’Last night I was scheduled after 3 opening acts to go on stage at 9′35 not 8′30, but because of technical issues I got on at 10′10...so...’’ Digital Spye also reported that the star is being askef to pay a 300.000 pound fine to Greenwich council for causing the gig to run past the 11pm closing time. (source Hollywoodlife) Justin apologized on twitter ‘’ I was 40 minutes late on stage, there is no excuse for that and I apologize for anyone we upset[...]’’  Kanye West (source The Sun) West was an hour late, had a 17-minute rant and played three songs and then left.’’

Story: Client name: Clinton Eccleston, Genre: pop He is a diva, and was late because he didn’t like the way his hair looked and his clothes weren’t ironed properly. He was also angry because the lights at the venue were too bright. Yes, we were aware of the curfew, but wanted to make up to the fans by still playing a full show and to accept that there was going to be a fine for the venue that we will fully compensate. We have also given the venue 100.000 pounds compensation, this way fans can send their concert ticket and taxi receipt, or bank statement, to the venue and get the money back from the venue. What’s left of the money is for the venue as an apology.  Mister Eccleston has apologized on social media to his fans and has come up with a idea himself. He wants to have a free concer, if the council is still willing to work with us, in the same town, people will only have to sign up to a guist list. He has stated on twitter: ‘’ I realize that my fans don’t care about my appearance and that bright lights are just part of the job. I will try my best t be there for my fans in the future and think about them and their feeling before my own.’’ 

Scenario - Sponsor You are running a new festival in Lincolnshire this Summer and have agreed a sponsorship deal with BP. This is a new venture for them and they are underwriting all of the costs for your event. However, local environmental groups are unhappy with BP’s involvement. 

Research: (source telegraph.co.uk) 2010 BP oil spill killed 11 workers and lasted for 87 days. How is BP restoring their image? (BBC News) Massive spill in Gulf of Mexico. They say they have taken resposibility, made a new safety division and lessons were learned and are being applied globally. ‘’A silver lining of the event is the significant and sustained advance in industry preparedness[...]’’ (telegraph) BP has spent 14 billion dollars clearing up the oil spill and agreed to a 7,8 billion dollar settlement with local businesses and individuals. (2005) BP Texas refinery explosion kills 15 people, they sold the refinery. (BP.com) Greenhouse gas emissions is being reduces, energy use is reduced through increase of energy efficient ways, manage arir quality issues, reciewing water risks annualy, oil spill preparedness.

Story: The value of a sponsor for our event is obviously fiinancial firstly. BP has offered to underwrite all of the costs for this festival and without that, this event wouldn’t exist at all. But the value of a sponsor also comes from brand relation. We want our sponsors to be proud of us, but we also want to be able to be proud of them. Therefore we will not agree to this sponsorship deal, because after extensive research we have decided that their unintended destruction of our planet is not what we as a brand want to be linked to. So we have decided to work on a sponsorshipdeal with campanies that have an environmental friendly production process. Our new main sponsor will be IKEA they have already signed and we are looking into it with Coca-Cola as well. With IKEA we have got the same financial benefits as with BP, and they get their own area which they can turn into a furnished VIP lounge. We will also offer greenpeace their own stand if they want to, to raise awareness for environmental issues in the lincolnshire countryside. They will have to work together with local environmental groups. Name of the festival: Summer in the Shire location: Lincolnshire wolds date: 17th June - 22nd June Price: 130 pounds + campsite.  scenario - The residents whose homes overlook your venue have complained to the police that groups of youths are gathering behind your venue and they believe that drug deals and drug use is taking place. Syringes have been found in the car park during the daytime. research; (cityoflondon.gov.uk)Drugs at the door PDF file Amnesty boxes and a special risk assasment. The venue manager and the police each have one key, the box has two locks, so the box can only be opened if both of them are present. The box will be in sight of the entrance and the queue with CCTV camera’s pointed at it. It will say 3 things on the box: Drugs are not allowed on these premises, All costumers will be searched and If you are concerned you have an illegal substance, please place it in the amnesty box provided. They are allowed to enter with prescribed drugs but have to prove it by answering these questions: Is it in a proper container? What is the reason for the medication? Where were they prescribed? What is the date of issue?

story: We have decided to take advice from a guide procided on the cityoflondon webstie about safer nightlife and drugs at venues. We will start implementing the suggestions from that guide. This means we will instrall an amnesty drugs box at the entrance and all costumers will be searched upon entering the venue. We were not aware of this issue because we didn’t have CCTV at the back of our venue, we will install that next week. We will start workgin with the local police force and start supervising the area around our venue more. During our opening times this will be done by security employed by the venue. During the night it will be done in collaboration with the local police force. We have already started cleaning the car park from drugs related mess and would like to ask the public to call the police if they see anything suspicious.

scenario - The artist you manage made a statement from the stage at last night’s show where he stated that the Pope was ‘probably’ aware of child abuse by priests in his own country. That has been picked up by the media who now want to question your artist about that statement.

research: all of the research for this scenario comes from watching the documentary about the dixie chicks in Alan’s lecture. Story: With all the recent controvers around the chruch and child abuse my client was sick of it when he heard just before the show that someone dear to him had been sexually abused by a priest as a child. My client himself was very cose to this priest as well, but was never abused in any way. He was already furious when he went on stage and then seeing someone holding a sign that said ‘’Pope Francis rocks’’ just made him snap. He has apologized on all of his social media saying that he can’t hold one person responsibe for the actions of one of his subjects, when the majority of them has never even thought about touching a child. Therefore he would like to come back on the stagtement he made yesterday and withdraw it. He is currently writing a letter to the Pope, personally apologizing. He has also donated 5.000 pounds to help research the psychological consequences of child abuse and another 3.000 to the child protection services of the metropolitan police.  He hopes that his fans can forgive him and his rude statement and admits he shouldn’t have said that. Further stating that he does fully support Pope Francis’ progressive approach to the church.

I was really happy that I got asked about the BP scenario, because I could easily remember all of my stories for each scenario, I was the most comfortable with this one. I feel like the media interview went really well. I was really nervous but the peptalk that Neil gave me before he turned on the camera really helped. He told me to admit it if I didn’t know something and to not make something up.  When the camera was turned on Neil changed in some sort of ruthless media machine, which was actually really nice, because it made it feel so real. The only thing that I regret is that my research wasn’t good enough. He asked my about the actions that IKEA undertook which made them such an eco-friendly company, the only thing I knew which I had already told him was that for every tree that they cut they put a new one back. I should’ve done more extensive research into my ‘new sponsors’ and if I had done that I feel like my interview would have been  a good 90% satisfying, the only thing I’d like to change is that I feel like I start stuttering as soon as I’m talking to a group of people or a camera, but that is something that I will hopefully learn during the 3 years on this course.

I really liked this assignment, and the research that we had to do was really interesting and for future Music and Live students I hope they will continue using this assignment, because it genuinly is a very good exercise. P.S.: if my research seems a bit unclear that’s because I’ve handwritten everything in a note taking way that I understand and I had to put it in words for this blog, which was a bit unclear.(just know that in my head all the strings are connected.....)