#i will post a more elaborate review once I get my thoughts straight

[alevolpe]

For those who don't follow my shenanigans on twt, I watched all of Dungeon Meshi season one! (And posted silly live tweets along side it)

The series has fucking blown me away and it has easily secured a spot as one of my absolute favorites of all time, at least top 3 for sure.

I cannot recommend it more. It's genuinely a delight, the world building and characters are a masterpiece in writing.

Just watch it, if you haven't, which you probably have already, cause I'm late to everything. Watch it.

[akatsuki-shin]

Review: 默读 Mò Dú (Silent Reading)

Notes:

(Very) long post ahead

Contains spoiler

This is my personal review and does not represent the entire audience, you are free to agree or not agree with what I’ve written here

Feel free to reply/send me a message if there are things you want to discuss

Using the Donghua poster because it fits the overall story more than the Audio Drama cover. :'))

Summary:

Yan City is a bright, bustling metropolis filled with all sorts of wonders, all sorts of people. From the richest occupying the city's most prestigious residential areas to the poorest huddling together in rundown slums, from the most fortunate blessed with a life of comfort to the wretched deemed to struggle until their last breath, from the virtuous walking in the path of light to the wicked lurking under the cover of darkness.

There is as much good as there is evil, and days gone by, people coming and going along with the passage of time.

Since their first meeting during a certain case seven years ago, Captain of the City Bureau's Crime Investigation Unit Luo Wenzhou thought he would never see eye to eye with Fei Du, son of a well-known conglomerate who inherited his father's position and wealth after the latter fell into comatose due to a near-fatal accident three years ago.

Words as sharp as knives dyed their bitter exchanges, even their personality was like the heaven and earth; the bold, blunt, and straightforward Luo Wenzhou - and the astute, secretive Fei Du, with his beautiful peach blossom eyes and a smile that is not quite a smile seducing countless people, his very presence seems as if it was covered under layers and layers of deceit.

Every single time they meet, they would always part on bad terms. Yet Luo Wenzhou would never have thought that a seemingly ordinary murder case of an ordinary deliveryman would lead him into the mystery of multiple long forgotten unsolved cases, turning over the Yan City and the City Bureau itself upside down, making him question his faith to those he respected and trust - and along with it, opening a door to the truth of Fei Du's past never once known to others.

STORY: 9/10

At first glance, the overall plot of Silent Reading seems neither extravagant nor exceptional. It's just one of those police drama where the main leads had to wrestle in a battle of wits with the villains looming around them, struggling to outsmart each other and eventually, bringing justice to those who deserve it.

But that is exactly what is so good about it. Silent reading could take all of those cliche and packed them into one nerve-wrecking, enticing journey from start to finish, complete with both intense and amusing interactions, and just the right amount of romance that does not disturb the flow of the main story.

And it actually does have its own uniqueness.

In most police dramas I've ever seen, the enemy is usually either a corrupt high-ranking official committing some hideous criminal acts by abusing their authority, or an individual/group with some very extreme values or obsession. Silent Reading, however, have both of those two most general types of villains in the story and what's more? It pits them against each other, pulling around and forcing the main leads to wreck their brains, slowly unravel the tangled mess until the truth finally comes to light.

The action and suspense, the atmosphere, the analysis, everything was almost impeccable to the point of perfection.

I have to especially give my kudos to how the author (Priest) structured the mystery in such a way, connecting one dots to the other from beginning to end. During the first few cases, I thought the resolution of the case didn't feel very solid, as if there are still some details that have yet to be properly elaborated. Yet halfway through, I realize that there is actually a bigger plot that encompass everything, tying all loose ends together.

And here, I would also like to highlight my two most favorite scene.

The first one is in Chapter 114-115 when Luo Wenzhou finally peeled of Fei Du's defense and for the first time exposed his true feelings, making Fei Du faced and spoke what he truly felt for Luo Wenzhou - that he really, actually did care for him. Their entire interactions and development up to this scene fits so well with these two main characters. There was no nonsense, no sappy crying and needless drama. Luo Wenzhou was as blunt as he was desperate and Fei Du, for once, admitted to the truth straight out with his own mouth.

The second one is in Chapter 157. In this case, one of Fei Du's most trusted men and an extremely important witness (that would later become their ally) were being chased and surrounded by thugs hired by their enemy. At this point of the story, the City Bureau was already in turmoil. Luo Wenzhou was suspended, nobody knows who they could or could not trust. Yet still, his subordinates all set out swiftly under his command and followed him to save the two witnesses, appearing at the most critical time.

It was actually a typical scene that exist in many police action drama, but given the development of the story, the well-built character relationship and interactions, I think it is Luo Wenzhou's coolest scene in the entire story and it makes me admire him a lot as the main lead and a leader figure.

One thing that does not quite sit well with me is Fan Siyuan's obsessiveness towards the late Gu Zhao. His motive for the crime was clear and I understand that he was using Gu Zhao's case as an example of injustice. But his extreme emotions whenever Gu Zhao was mentioned seems strange, even baseless. It makes me think whether he considers Gu Zhao as his own family or he was maybe madly in love with Gu Zhao, whereas in the entire story, unless I'm missing something, I have only ever known that Gu Zhao was Fan Siyuan's student - nothing more, nothing less.

CHARACTERS: 9/10

Silent Reading has a balanced, yet still very much appealing casts, from the major characters to the minor ones. Even the suspects and witnesses each had their own distinguishing features that didn't make them look like they were just there as canon fodders.

The composition of Luo Wenzhou's team itself is ideal; they've got the dependable leader, the smart advisor, the best friend and trustworthy right-hand man, the genius nerd, and the dependable aide.

I especially like Tao Ran (and I think most readers would agree with me). While he looks like the typical good guy type, he really, truly is a very good person. It's hard not to find him lovable. His relationship with Chang Ning was as cliche as it could get, but hey, as long as he's happy. Dude deserve it after everything he's done.

As for the two main leads, they are probably one of the most interesting couple I've found in the past few years.

Individually, Luo Wenzhou is the type of character I always like. He is confident to the point of having a narcissistic streak, but all of those are based on real talents and experiences. He speaks bluntly, but he cares for others through his action. He does not sugarcoat things and speaks the truth for what it is. Everything about him simply screams "reliable" as a leader (and a significant other to a certain someone). He deserves all of the respect and loyalty his subordinates gave to him.

Fei Du at first looks like a complex character whose real self is hidden beneath countless coats of pretense, but at the core, he is just a pitiful young man who does not know how to value himself, does not know how to love and be loved due to the abuse he suffered during childhood in the hands of his sadistic father. Despite his composure, his intelligence, his capability, he is almost like a lost little child, wandering in the darkness, going wherever the flow would take him until Luo Wenzhou pulled him out of that abyss. It is nothing less than commendable that he could restrain himself from succumbing into his father's manipulation, even if he has to correct himself through such extreme means for a long time.

And I'm glad that now he has someone who gives him the love he has long since been bereft of.

With Luo Wenzhou, Fei Du finally has a color in his life, someone to make happy memories with, and someone who genuinely love him for who he is. Likewise, with Fei Du, not only Luo Wenzhou got someone he could genuinely care for, he also finally has a place where he could relax, taking off the strong front he'd been putting before others all day long.

It was just so fulfilling to see two characters growing from "cat and dog" into inseparable lovers. They weren't sickeningly sweet, but just two people who are content with each other and would be each other's strength. I was especially happy when I saw how Fei Du changed his phone's ring tone into the one Luo Wenzhou in the extra chapter.

Now that I've finished reading this story, these two straight up went to the top of my all-time most favorite pairing list. But of course, this is just a personal opinion. Luo Wenzhou and Fei Du simply hits all of my favorite tropes, that's why. 😂

If I really have to point out one mini flaw, I suppose it's that the main villains aren't as appealing as the rest of the casts. They were practically overshadowed, even by some minor characters that only appeared for a short while.

TECHNICAL ASPECTS: 9/10

Just some very minor complaints:

1). When the story first introduced Fei Du in the beginning, it felt kind of abrupt. The narration had only been addressing him with his physical appearance, but suddenly they changed it into "Fei Du" with barely any proper start.

2). The international conference in Yan City (Chapter 2) was supposed to be a background information of the general setting of the first case, yet it was not properly mentioned at the start - rather, one sort paragraph about said conference was simply being slipped in the middle just for the sake to be there.

3). The switching of scenes between characters in the 3rd person POV are sometimes too quick with no signs of incoming transitions beforehand like taking shortcuts.

And by that, I mean that other than those three issues above, everything else was nothing less than perfect.

OVERALL SCORE: 9/10

A realistic story with perfectly balanced action, mystery, suspense, and romance - with a dash of comedy sprinkled at the right time and place.

Reading the novel from start to finish was nothing less than enjoyable. Whenever there needed to be a flashback or explanation, it didn't feel like info dump being thrown in all of a sudden.

I would like to point out a bit about the Zhou Conglomerate Case in Book 3.

Personally speaking, I think this is the most realistic case out of the others, and by that, I don't mean the crazy rich family drama.

The other cases in the books are something that to me feels "faraway"; murders, child trafficking, psychopath, organized criminal gangs. Yet in Book 3, due to the nature of the case, it was posted publicly for all to see, and damn if it didn't bring out the most annoying thing I actually hate in real life.

Clout-chasing media, meddlesome netizens commenting without thinking on the Internet, spreading personal information of the involved individuals without consent, handing down judgment based on rumors and personal opinions even if they have nothing to do with it (and know nothing about it), crashing the website due to mere curiosity, further hindering the police working on the case from doing their job.

They weren't thinking about those actually involved in the case, especially the victim. They don't care, or maybe don't even think that their meddlesome acts could cost a human's life because they see everything as mere passing entertainment. And if something were to happen because of their meddling, the most they would say is, of course, as quoted from Chapter 72:

"I didn't do it on purpose"

"I wasn't doing it to you"

"I didn't expect this to be the outcome"

"From a certain point of view, I'm a victim, too"

Even if I was just reading a fiction, at that moment I truly wished I could shut down the Internet for a bit. 😂

Anyway, amazing story. I might re-read everything from the start again when I have some free time.

[crtter]

Haven’t written my review for the new episode yet! It was another skit compilation, this time with a special focus on AUs (hence Cosplaymatsu, I believe!). There were a lot of skits, some I like more, some I like less, but overall... I’d say it was a pretty solid episode! Lots of skits means I have a lot to say so... sorry in advance for the lengthy post, heh.

In the Nothing-I-Can-Do-Police skit, Jyushimatsu and Choromatsu, in the roles of neighborhood passerbys, try to dissuade a certain desperate side character from jumping off a building. A passing policeman, played by Ichimatsu, is ill-suited to de escalate the situation though, given that he’s even more disenchanted with life than the to-be-jumper is.

Despite the heavy subject, was pretty funny to me. I wasn’t expecting to see the infamous Atsushi OR one of the Sutabaa barista girls in incidental roles like that, so that was a funny surprise. I thought Choromatsu and Jyushimatsu’s old men designs were very appealing as well. The ending was a bit predictable given the fact it’s Osomatsu-san and the thing the brothers resent the most is other people’s luck in love but I felt like it tied the whole thing together pretty well.

In The Hell?! Maid, Karamatsu is surprised when Chibita’s oden stand seems to be have rebranded itself as a Maid Oden Stand. Chibita, however, seems to be taking the maid role very seriously.

I know a lot of people dislike “boy character dresses up as a girl” jokes, very understandably so (and me included), but I personally thought Chibita dressing up as a café maid and performing the café maid role so well had a much more endearing tone than a mocking one. The humor of the skit wasn’t due to Chibita dressing up as a maid, but more due to how ill-suited oden is as a food item for a café setting and how clashing Chibita’s rude mannerisms are next to a maid’s cutesy ones, something I appreciated a lot.

Maid cafés are basically a staple of anime these days, so I also appreciated seeing Ososan’s take on it! To top it all off, we hadn’t seen Karamatsu and Chibita interact one on one like that ever since... season one? Karamatsu makes for a very good straight man next to Chibita’s particular brand of weirdness and it’s always a delight seeing those two together. Well, it’s always a delight seeing a Chibita skit, period. I just love the little guy. Definitely my favorite out of all the skits!

In No-Chance Trial, Osomatsu is brought to court to be judged for... farting crimes. Prosecutor Choromatsu and Defense Attorney Karamatsu eventually reach the agreement it’s not THAT bad of a crime. Judge Todomatsu, however, feels like the only appropriate punishment is the death penalty.

Another solid skit! I really liked the Ace Attorney references (even the BG music resembled the music of the games!) and Todomatsu’s insistence on getting Osomatsu killed for his insistent farting in his general presence got some good laughs out of me. There wasn’t a big side character presence in this episode with the exception of Chibita’s, but I liked Totoko, Nyaa-chan and Dobusu as members of the jury, and the Riceball robots as stenographers. The ending was, as Ososan is famous for, hilariously gross.

In Reborn As a Mosquito, Choromatsu is, as implied by the title, turned into a mosquito isekai-style when he laments not being able to find a girlfriend. As a mosquito, he’s free to bite pretty ladies whenever he wants to! That is... if he can bring himself to do such a uncouth thing.

This one didn’t amuse me THAT much, but it was a fairly decent skit. I liked seeing Choromatsu having second thoughts about doing something pervy for like, once in his life, heh, even if the devil on his shoulder tried to convince him otherwise. The double joke of him hating the taste of blood AND being killed right after that got a “ha!” out of me. Not my favorite and fairly uneventful but not a bad skit.

In Mister, Osomatsu is a local unemployed bum who entertain the neighborhood kids, played by his brothers, by making picture card shows in exchange for pachinko balls. The story he tells them eventually hits a little too close to home, though.

Not my favorite either, but I liked everyone’s designs a lot, and it was fun seeing the original tortoise and the hare fable getting more and more complicated as Osomatsu ends up making it about his life instead. Now, this is a VERY “me” complaint, and I’ll understand it if people don’t agree with me but! I felt like that was a role that would be better suited for Iyami. I mean, think about it! He’s already an unemployed bum living in a shabby house who’s bothered by local children in pretty much all his incarnations. It’d be perfect for him! But maybe I’m just a little miffed he didn’t show up.

Also, I feel like this might be a reference to something? I’ve definitely seen a very similar “local poor man puts on picture card shows for children” story in manga before. I’m going to look more into it to see if it’s a “thing” I’m not aware of.

In I-Do-What-I-Want Bartender, Todoko and Ichiko try to get a drink at a bar, just to find out the bartender, Karamatsu, fancies himself as an artist and refuses to serve them what they ask for, instead making fancy, elaborate drinks.

I liked seeing the Girlymatsu again! You know... even if it was just 33.33% of them, heh. This one wasn’t all that eventful either, but the joke felt pretty solid and I thought Karamatsu having so much trouble not acting on his “vision” and serving the girls what they asked for was pretty funny. Him loudly complaining thinking they couldn’t hear him was great as well.

In A Restaurant Filled With Mysteries, we see the return of Businessman Osomatsu, this time accompanied by Choromatsu as they try to get lunch in a foreign restaurant they can’t quite place where it’s from. Turns out that the restaurateur, a very unsual man from the unheard-of country of “Jyushimatsu”, isn’t going to make it easy for them.

I’ll be real: I felt like this could have... very easily taken a less-than-savory turn when it comes to mocking other cultures as “weird”, especially with the Indian-inspired imagery. In my opinion, they didn’t QUITE cross into shitty territory but they stayed... uncomfortably close to it. Reminded me a bit of the whole deal with the Oompa Loompas in the 2005 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory movie. The country was fictional, Jyushimatsu’s ethnicity was fictional (good call making him blue skinned) but... you know. They could have done it a little bit more tastefully. I did like the holes joke, though. It was a nice subversion of the whole “gross foreign food” trope that’s still so popular in cartoons and such.

Well, that’s it! Overall, more good points than bad points, in my opinion. Next episode seems VERY promising when it comes to Iyami but I’ll get into it into another post. This one’s too long already.

[dakotacrisis]

It’s a Fluke

I got like two other one shots that I’m gonna get posted later. Tis the season and all that jazz.

Felix and Marinette get partnered for a project and neither are too thrilled about it...at first.

---

Felix and Marinette had never gotten on. Felix couldn’t get past her excessive cheer and energy and Marinette was sick of his cold shoulder and grumpy attitude. It was how it was between them and everyone knew it. Felix had joined the ranks of the exclusive group of people Marinette couldn’t stand and Marinette became another casualty of trying to befriend Felix and utterly failing.

That was until the day they got paired for a project. The partners had been paired by the teacher and were not up for debate. Whether they liked it or not they were gonna have to work together.

Things started off cordial enough. Straight to the point, no nonsense, everything was about their work. They chose what they were going to work on and figured out times they could get together to review the progress they made. It was going to be fine.

“Dupain-Cheng,” Felix approached her at her locker, “Did you finish the research for your part last night?”

“Yes.” She pulled out her notes on the subject. “You?”

“All done.” he flashed his own notes. “Meet at the library during free period to review?”

“Sounds like a plan.” And with that they parted and went to class.

Free period rolled around and they settled into the library to continue working.

Marinette sat across from her looking over her notes and making edits and constructing a good flow for the information when she felt like someone was watching her. She looked up and Felix’s sharp grey eyes were trained on her like he was studying her.

“Yes?” She asked when he didn’t say anything.

He blinked a couple times before sneering a bit. “Do you know you hum while you work? It’s quite distracting.”

“Sorry?” Marinette huffed as she went back to her work. She thought about humming again just to spite him but decided not to. She would be mature about this.

“It’s a fluke?” Felix said.

“What was that?”

“The song you were humming. It was It’s a Fluke, was it not?”

“It was.” Marinette nodded. “How did you know? I didn’t think that was your type of music.”

“You’d be surprised what all I listen to.”

“Hopefully not XY’s stuff.” Marinette grimaced.

“Goodness no, I have an eclectic palette of music and that man’s dribble meets nowhere near my tastes.” Felix scowled. “Doesn’t help that his latest song has been on every radio station on repeat for at least a week now. It is starting to drive me up a wall.”

“I know! It comes on at the bakery all the time and my parents are one repeat away from just disconnecting the sound system to the store altogether. I’ve never actively listened to it but if it started playing I would be able to sing along and I hate it.”

A brief smirk creased his otherwise blank face before dropping once again. “Yes, but enough about music. We should be getting back to work.”

“Right, of course.” Marinette shook her head and raced to find the place she left off.

The next day was more of the same with them working in relative silence. Marinette made a small comment about a song she liked that she thought Felix may be interested in. He didn’t say much but nodded consideringly which gave Marinette hope he would actually listen to it later.

When school let out Marinette frowned at the torrential downpour. Her house was right across the street but she would be soaked through by the time she got to cover. If only she hadn’t forgotten her umbrella again.

“Dupain-Cheng,” Felix met her at the entrance, “I was hoping to catch you before you left for the day.”

“What is it?”

“I won’t be able to work during free period tomorrow but I would like to finish up what we have so that we can do any final edits before our presentation Friday.” He said, “Would you mind if we worked after school? Considering your schedule is open of course.”

“Oh yeah, shouldn’t be a problem. Where were you thinking?”

“My house, six PM sharp. Does that work for you?”

“Sounds good to me.”

“Then I will see you then.” He pulled out his umbrella and started descending towards the car waiting for him.

Marinette looked out towards her house and sighed. Might as well get it over with now. She stepped out into the rain trying to shield her head from the downpour as much as she could with her bookbag.

She was halfway to the street crossing when the rain let up around her. She looked up and Felix was walking next to her with his umbrella stretched over her. “What are--” she started to ask.

“I’m not so heartless as to let you trudge your way home in this rain.” He cut across her. His eyes trained forward. “Be quick though, my ride is waiting.”

“Thanks.” Marinette turned to him once she was at the bakery door. “That was kind of you.”

“Do me a favor and don’t forget your umbrella next time. It does no one any good when you’re forgetful.”

Marinette’s small smile curdled into a scowl. “Right. Sorry for inconveniencing you.” Marinette stepped into the bakery and slammed the door behind her. At least she tried. There was an automatic stopper on the door that slowed its close so it couldn’t be slammed.

Felix stood on the other side with an entertained smile as Marinette glared at the slowly closing door. Uppity little weasel!

She turned sharp on her heel and stomped upstairs. Every time she thinks he’s being nice he does a one eighty and she’s right back to annoyed.

A night of rest and a subsequent pleasant morning didn’t do much to improve her attitude towards Felix the following day. Which was bad seeing as how she had agreed to go over to his house that evening. Whatever. At least this project was almost done then she wouldn’t have to interact with him again.

She got to his house and was buzzed in. He greeted her at the door and Marinette was taken aback by the casual boy in front of her. Worn out pair of jeans and sweatshirt. Even his usually perfectly styled hair was mussed.

“Is there a reason you’re gawking at me?” Felix asked when she hadn’t said anything.

“Sorry. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so...casual before.” She was going to say laid back but even in his pajamas she didn’t think she’d be able to say that about Felix. No matter what he was always ramrod straight and professional. No amount of sweats or messy hair could cover that.

Felix gave an amused scoff before gesturing her inside. “We can work in my room. Is that alright with you?”

“Sure.” She followed him up to his room.

Now this felt more like Felix. Simple decor, tall bookshelves, everything was organized and tidy and there was a distinct pine smell as if someone just finished dusting. Felix sat down at his desk and Marinette stood off to the side shuffling through her own work.

“You can sit if it makes you more comfortable.” Felix said after a couple minutes.

Marinette looked around but didn’t see another chair that she could use. “Where?”

“Oh right…” Felix looked up and scanned the room. “You can sit on the bed so long as you take off your shoes first.”

“Okay…” Marinette pulled off her shoes before nestling at the corner of his bed. She spread out her work around her as she tried to compose it all into a cohesive whole.

This is weird. This is so weird.

“What do you want done with this bit? I’m not sure where to put it.��� Marinette asked.

“What bit?” Felix collected the paper. “Oh this, huh,” He pushed some papers out of his way to make room and sat down next to her. “We could put it--no that wouldn’t work. We could always--no that doesn’t fit either.”

“Honestly, I’m not even sure if we need it. It seems really irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.” She reached across him for a paper. “We could just jump to this next part and skip that bit. What do you think?”

Felix was staring at her again but it wasn’t out of annoyance. He was studying her again.

“Felix?” Marinette inquired quietly. “What are you…”

She glanced down and noticed she was far closer to him than she had been a moment ago. “Sorry. I should have just asked you to pass the paper instead of leaning across you like that.” She tried to withdraw but at the last second he touched her shoulder.

His eyes were still trained on her face flicking across her features like he was searching for something. Then he gently pushed her away. He stood up and stiffly walked back to his desk. “That sounds like a fine plan. You can throw that last bit out.”

Marinette was still trying to figure out what happened a moment ago. Felix was making a definitive point of avoiding looking at her.

They finished their work and Marinette started packing up to leave.

“Dupain-Cheng,” Felix walked her down to the door, “I listened to that song you recommended.”

“Oh. What did you think?”

“It was good.”

She waited for him to elaborate but that seemed to be as much as he was willing to share.

“Okay. Good. Glad you liked it.” She opened the front door. It was raining again. “Crap.”

Felix gave a small sigh. “Forget your umbrella again?”

“The forecast said it was gonna be clear tonight. Would you mind if I borrowed yours? I’ll give it back first thing tomorrow.”

“If you can’t remember your own umbrella what is there to convince me you’ll remember to bring me mine?”

“Fine then. Geez. I’ll just use my bag.” Marinette took one step outside before she pulled right back in. “Felix!”

“Calm down.” He pulled his umbrella out of the rack by the door. “Let’s go.”

“You won’t let me borrow your umbrella but you will walk me home?”

“Do you want to be dry or not?”

“Are you going to make a snarky remark like you did yesterday if I do?”

“If I apologized would you come along already?”

“Don’t. My house is just down the block. I’ll be fine.”

“It’s also late. And I would feel better knowing you got back to your house safely.”

“Nothing is going to happen in the five minutes it’d take me to run to my house.”

“Marinette,” the use of her first name caught her off guard. He held the umbrella towards her. “I am sincerely asking you to let me escort you home for peace of mind.”

She stepped out next to him. “Okay. Thank you.”

They started the walk home in silence before Felix spoke up again.

“I am sorry if whatever I may have said offended you before. Sincerity seems to spark a defensive reaction in me for reasons unknown.”

“That seems rather silly, doesn’t it?”

“Yes.” he chuckled dryly, “I suppose it does.”

Marinette could see the lights of her house in the distance. For whatever reason Felix slowed down in his stride forcing Marinette to slow as well to keep under the umbrella.

“Dupain-Cheng, I was wondering something.” Felis asked, “What is your thoughts on vinyl records?”

“Vinyl? My mother really likes them but she never let me touch them when I was younger. Why?”

“There is a little vinyl shop I know that has some albums I think you would like if you were interested.”

“Are you serious?”

“I would like to see what other recommendations you have for me. My usual tracks have grown stale to listen to and could do with some newer sound.” He looked away from her. “I understand if you would rather pass. I fear I am not the best company even in the sincerest of circumstances.”

“I wouldn’t go that far. You’re grumpy and have a tone issue but you’re not outwardly malicious like other people I know. I have to say I am surprised though. I had the distinct impression you didn’t care for me very much.”

“True you are far bubblier than I would like and it is hard to take in all at once. But I would much rather be partnered with you then say Kim or Nino.”

“Such praise.” Marinette rolled her eyes. They were finally back at her house. “When were you planning on going to this shop?”

“Tomorrow after class?”

“It’s a date.” She nodded. “I mean not a date. Like a date date. But a get together as friends kinda date. You know what. Let’s call it an outing. Not a date. That sounds good to me.” She fumbled for the door handle to her house. “I’ll uh see you tomorrow?”

Felix was smiling at her in much the same way he did when he walked her home yesterday. “See you tomorrow, Dupain-Cheng.”

[maiassensibleblog]

Dear theatre people, this is what I mean when I say theatre is elitist...

(All views expressed are my opinion).

I’ve been considering whether now is the right time to post this but when theatre comes back (which it will, it must), it cannot look how it looked before. I love theatre with all my heart, it is the part of my life that heals the most. But the industry drives me crazy.

I want to address the questions: Why don’t people go to the theatre? And why don’t people care about theatre? My perspective is from a West End theatre goer who is working class, not white and not straight. I am not involved in making theatre and do not desire to be involved. 

To answer this huge question, I’d like to start with two definitions:

Elitist: Relating to or supporting the view that a society or system should be led by an elite.

Inaccessible: Unable to be reached.

I often see people asking “why don’t people go to the theatre?” with only responses related to accessibility. When we talk about accessibility, we need to consider barriers such as ticket prices, geographical location and ableism. An awful lot of people are not stopped by accessibility, but they do not go to the theatre. Why? Theatre is elitist.

Elitism is the feeling that you do not belong in a space because the people who are there are different from you and often appear to think they are better than you. In my opinion, this is the reason that the general public do not care about theatre. Elitism is built into the theatre world and this has only been highlighted recently through the BLM movement (I don’t need to go into this here, you’ve all seen it). 

From a personal perspective, I’m privileged to have been going to the theatre since I was tiny. We didn’t have a lot of money but my mum was really good at finding deals on tickets and I grew to love theatre more and more as I grew up.  I go around once a week and see a lot of off West-end stuff. I, a seasoned theatregoer, feel elitism every time I go to the theatre. I will elaborate on these in the sub-topics below but I wanted to point out that I am somebody who is relatively confident around the elitist feeling, imagine if you aren’t. You just wouldn’t bother and that is what we’re seeing. 

Tickets

The first thing I would like to discuss may seem to sit between accessibility and elitism but getting affordable tickets sits in with elitism in my opinion. I am often asked how I can afford to go to the theatre so often and my answer is always I know where to look. Why do theatres feel that it is acceptable to hide their cheap seats? The only thing that is achieved here is keeping theatre for those who know where to look. 

If you have not be brought up around theatre folk, you don’t know that day seats exist. Even when theatres advertise and say something like “£15 day seats available”, people who do not know anything about theatre will not have a clue what that means. They won’t know the difference between a digital lottery and a regular in-person day seat, they won’t know how to press buy now just at the right time on TodayTix to get a rush ticket. Having cheaper options does improve accessibility but the way it has been done doesn’t serve to reduce elitism.

Put yourself in the shoes of somebody who has never been to the theatre before. They see a poster for a musical that looks amazing, they google it, they see decent seats for £100+. They decide to go for the £30 option in the Gods. They feel ripped off and don’t bother again OR they know that those are crap seats and don’t bother at all. There is nowhere on that main booking page that mentions cheaper, good seats. That is telling people that they only deserve good seats if they’re rich. That is elitist. 

Image

My next two points spill into each other, but they are not the same thing. What do you think of when you think of somebody who goes to the theatre. We all just thought of the same old, white couple. They tut at young people who talk at interval? Yeah we all know the type. It’s amazing that these people, who usually have disposable income, go to the theatre and spend money there but they are coming anyway. Why are you therefore using them to advertise? 

Some theatres do this amazingly (Bush, Soho, Young Vic, loves) but most don’t. Some shows have gone too far (looking at you Heathers West End transfer) but think: What is the demographic that you think would want to come, but isn’t? If you’re trying to attract non-theatre goers, they have to see themselves in those who are recommending it. 

Obviously, some known reviewers have to be included to keep the regulars in but theatres must start including a wider range of reviewers, they must be open to criticism from young people, queer people, Black people... Then, they must show the faces of these reviewers in their advertising, they must include their views using their vocabulary. And once you get these voices (and start respecting them), theatres must start taking these views into account. A mainstream producer actually listening (and properly listening) to the views of not the mainstream critics? That is revolutionary. That’s showing you’re willing to change.

Etiquette

This is the big one. Theatre etiquette is elitist. I’m sure many people know what I mean by this: Hushed tones even when the show isn’t on and you’re in the bar, FOH using theatre-y vocabulary to usher people places (even things like “the house is open” mean nothing to people who aren’t in theatre), expected restraint to reactions towards what’s happening on stage. I’ve never been to a theatre that doesn’t use vocabulary that would be alienating to non-theatregoers. Only a few theatres don’t have that feeling of “we’re better than you” hanging in the air. 

I have been told that I do not match up to people’s ideas of expected theatre etiquette twice outside of fandom things. I remember them both. Once, I was laughing at funny moments during a funny play. The second time I was talking to my friends excitedly at interval and had some older theatre-goers tut and ask us to be quiet (hun, it’s the interval). As I mentioned, I go to the theatre all the time, I generally conform (even when I hate it). Imagine how you’d feel if you didn’t know the nonsense rules.

The solution? Dismantle the rules. 

People dismiss panto because is does this and it’s the least elitist theatre out there. Stop getting on your high horse about people openly enjoying themselves. And to those panicking, very few people are actually going to chat their way through a whole show they’ve paid money for.

We need more relaxed performances. We need more for disabled people but we also need more for young people, where they can react to what’s going on during the show and whisper to each other about it. 

We need more sing-a-longs. Musicals can create an amazing fandom this way. Six is doing an amazing job because they’ve fostered this environment. Imagine a Hamilton sing-a-long. Just sit in that for a moment. Imagine a person who had never been to the theatre before and has heard a few songs of the soundtrack getting the feeling of a gig from the theatre. It’s powerful and it needs to happen. 

Shakespeare

Nothing exhibits the elitism of theatre more than Shakespeare. The sheer prevalence of it. And, I’m going to say it: Nobody fully understands what’s going on. 

Why, as an industry, are you all so obsessed with a sexist, racist, homophobe who died in the 1600′s? People alive today are writing plays about stories that people want to hear, in a language that people can understand. Commission them.

That is all on that. 

Secrecy 

There’s certainly something to be said about keeping the magic of theatre alive by keeping tricks a secret. I totally appreciate and love that about this art medium. You watch things happening in real time that look like magic and it’s beautiful. 

However, the secrecy around productions has gone too far. Why are full on HQ recordings of shows being filmed for them never to see the light of day? I have seen the argument that people will not feel the need to watch the show if they have seen a recording but I have only seen that argument from people who work in theatre. Listen to the people who just go to the theatre. I don’t know what I can actually say to convince the industry of this, but theatre people will still come because there’s nothing like live theatre. 

What you will do by releasing a good recording is open the show to the masses (and make money from it). You will essentially be building a fandom. People can watch football on TV but choose to pay for a ticket to go watch live because it is a different experience. People can listen to a band but choose to pay for a ticket to go to a concert because it is a different experience. It is the same thing. You honestly need to get over this because I think this is a massive reason why this elitism still exists. 

Also why not release HQ footage even as a trailer? Stick it on YouTube for free, get ad revenue and advertise.

These are just a few things that need to be taken into consideration when theatres re-open. Theatre must come back better and stronger than it was before and it must get more people in the room. The people will need art. 

This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal. - Toni Morrison

[keanu-fics]

Caught Stealing, Part 1

I really want to celebrate my follower count and I know I have not written a proper fic in ages. I have been sitting on this for weeks, so I finally decided to post it.  ---------------- Word count: 1504 Warnings: NOT SMUT YET

The reader gets caught shoplifting by her co-worker John. He does not turn her in, instead he has something else in mind.

The sweet perfume scent was overpowering to you. The store used perfumes to lure people in and make them buy more shit. Your mind was blank, but all your other senses were heightened. You could feel your arm muscles twitching lightly. You needed to take something. You have not felt the thrill for a few weeks now and it was all you could think about. You never considered yourself a kleptomaniac. It has only been lately that the urges grew stronger.

It did not matter what you took. A scarf, a pendant, a shirt. The store was too posh for bulky anti-theft tags. The shirts only had price tags on them; too easy to rip off. Most of the jewellery was in an open display.

You lifted jewellery more than anything. You loved rings and petite bracelets that were so easy to hide between the palm of your hand and the back of your phone while you were pretending to be texting. Nobody in the store had the faintest.

You were in the lingerie aisle. Lingerie was not as easy to steal. It was displayed on hangers and the tag was always twisted around the hook of the hanger and taking it into the changing rooms was not allowed. You normally crouched down, pretending to be browsing the rack, but secretly untangling the pair of panties. The fabric was always so thin and there was not much of it, that they were just too easy to bunch up inside your hand and walk out. Today you found a beautiful pair lying around without a hanger and the bar code has already been ripped off, leaving only the price tag. Thirty dollars. You nimbly stuffed the lacy undergarment inside the sleeve of your coat, while you were pushing the hangers around, pretending to be looking for new underwear.

You stood up, eyeing up a different pair of panties like a normal shopper before pretending to decide you did not need it and placed it back on the rack. You were now going to walk around the store, browse some more, deciding you did not find anything you liked and then walk out. You didn’t do anything bad. You only lifted ever so often, and it makes no difference to the store or the overpriced brand.

You were about to head out of the aisle and go smell some candles when you spotted your co-worker, who was holding a pair of briefs in his hands, but his gaze was currently glued on you. You knew his name was John and he was the head of the department upstairs. That was all you knew about him. You smiled at him but decided to leave the store right then. There was no way he saw what you did, you have gotten too good at this.

 You made it outside of the store without anyone stopping you. You have never been stopped by security; you never got too cocky when shoplifting. Never more than one thing. You suddenly felt someone grab your arm from behind. You froze, readying your instincts to start running. You were not going to get in trouble for a pair of panties. You turned around slowly and came face to face with John.. He said your name, but your hearing was fuzzy.

He pulled you onto the side, into a quieter alleyway. He said your name again. This time you heard him clearer. When you did not respond, he pulled back your sleeve and pulled out the pair of red panties you have stolen. He was holding them in front of your face, without giving them a single glance.

“That’s mine!” you hissed.

“I don’t think so.” he replied, pointing towards the shop. “Do you want me to take you back there and call the security?”

“You have no proof.” Shit! The price tag was still on them.

“You could be fired for this.” he spoke again, lowering his hand and discreetly putting the panties into his coat pocket.

Your heart was racing, even though you were not in trouble – you could tell he was not going to rat you out. “Well then that’s a reason for you not to tell anyone.” You rolled your eyes. “I have to go.”

“Do you do this often?” he interrupted.

“I have to go, John.” you said firmly this time. “See you at work.” You turned on your heel abruptly and almost ran back home.

 On Monday your boss tried to throw a party to celebrate the sale numbers. The numbers were the same for the past two months. You wanted to point out that a cake and ‘happy birthday’ party hats (with the word birthday crossed out of all of them) did not make a party. Instead you ate your piece of ice-cream cake before it melted and could not wait to get back to your desk. As you were leaving the “party office” you saw John’s department making their way to get some cake. You avoided eye contact with John, but he waited for everybody else to go in and stood in the empty hallway with you.

“Hey.” you said, still not making eye contact.

“I have something of yours.” He reached into his pocket and you spotted a piece of red fabric.

“You’ve been carrying them everywhere with you, you sicko?” You snapped, but he shushed you.

“I just thought you’d like them back.”

“Then why did you take them in the first place?” Your cheeks were burning up, but you finally got a good look at John. This was not the first time you had ogled him, but it was usually from a distance. 

He ignored your question, instead he handed the panties to you. “Put them on.” He said matter-of-factly.

You must have heard wrong. You were just imagining things. You were just thinking about his muscles and his large hands and you did not hear him properly. “Sorry, W-what?”

“Put them on.” Since you were not taking the panties from him, he stuffed them into your front pocket. Then he winked at you and followed his department inside.

 Back at your desk you were thinking about the panties stuffed in your pocket. You knew it was an invitation. And you could not hide the fact that you wanted to play his game. You made your way into the bathroom. Inside the cubicle you slipped off your old pair of underwear and put on the new sexy ones.

You wanted John to know you had done it. You were starting to feel aroused at the idea of him knowing and at the idea of him taking your used panties home and masturbating with them.

Paperwork needed to be delivered to John’s department regularly for reviewing and signing off. There was a delivery guy for that. But you asked nicely if he needed any help going upstairs and you would be more than okay with taking the folders while he finishes making copies.

You tried not to look at anyone on the upper floor. You did not know them, and you did not want to be questioned for being up there. You headed straight for John’s office. He looked up once you entered and leaned back in his chair.

You were acting professionally. “Here’s the folders.”

He eyed you up and down with a smirk and then looked at the folders. “These actually first go to my department; I only review and sign them. I will call Phil to come and get them.” He picked up the phone about to press a number.

“No!” you yelled, losing your composure.

John raised an eyebrow and his smirk widened. “No?” He put the phone speaker down and waited for you to elaborate.

Your face turned red and your mind was working on an answer. “I really think you should look at these yourself.” You stammered.

“Is that so?” his eyes were still glued to you as he opened the top folder. Your worn panties were lying on top of all the paperwork. Green and see-through, not too fancy. John picked them up, feeling the fabric between his thumb and index finger. “And is this part of the report?” he asked, smug.

You had no answer to that. You came without thinking what you were going to say. You were overexcited. “Like I said, have a look at these and run it by me later.” You started taking steps towards the door, not wanting to stay in John’s office too long. Someone else was bound to come in soon. John closed the folder on his desk and brought the panties to his face. You could see him sniff them and your arousal was almost painful. You wanted to touch yourself in his office, you wanted to feel just how wet you have become. Instead you left, taking the lift back to your department, intent on going back to the bathroom to get a release.

[bylerly]

alright everyone. after my rush of emotions after that season, i’ve had time to decompress, and make an actually cohesive list of my thoughts about the season. as you could probably guess - MAJOR SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT!

first, let’s get the (much) shorter list out of the way. here’s what I enjoyed:

the acting. i want to mention how good millie was, because she was fantastic, but i almost feel like i shouldn’t, bc el took SO MUCH screen and plot time, that millie was given every opportunity to be good. she doesn’t really need any more special mention. otherwise - noah (with the little he was given) and sadie were particularly great. so were winona & david, but that goes without saying.

the elmax friendship. these two deserved it. and max bringing el out of her shell, showing her how to become her own person.... incredible. 10/10 i love them both

alexei. feels weird saying this, but he was probably the new addition I enjoyed watching the most. it would have been kind of cool to see him live past season 3.

an lgbt+ confirmed character. this one is a little.... tricky for me. as happy as I am that there is a queer woman written into the show... I feel like it’s a cop out to not have to confirm will’s sexuality. robin confirms her sexuality in less than a season, but after three with will, we still only get ~subtext~? still, this is a positive portion, so.... I guess that was something I was happy with

el moving in with the byers at the end. finally. this is one of the only things that is keeping me excited for s4. i guess i can only hope for there to FINALLY be some good willel interactions next season, but if this season has taught me anything, it’s not to get my hopes too high :-)

jancy ending s3 on a good note. parts of their storyline were fantastic, some were disappointing. but i really dug their dynamic, and the realistic struggle between the two of them, with nancy not really understanding jonathan’s class struggles, and jonathan not grasping the weight of the misogyny being thrown at nancy. their final moments at the empty byers house at the end were especially lovely.

el no longer being OP, and not being undefeatable. i love el. i really, genuinely do. i love her character, i love her traits, i lover her power. but the duffers were relying too heavily on her to constantly save the day with her powers, and it was happening too often. one of the faults of s2 was the constant thought of how easily el could’ve fought off all these threats if she was just there. i think it’s incredibly interesting to not only see her get completely worn out, but totally lose her powers. like mike said, i’m sure they’ll come back, but i want so badly for el to not just be defined by her powers.

a platonic m/f friendship. yes, one of them is confirmed queer, and they would’ve probably been romantically linked if she was straight. but i’ll take what i can get when it comes to this. platonic opposite sex relationships?? r i s e

now for the meat of my thoughts ~ what I didn’t like:

mike’s characterization. the writers completely made him into a dick this season. i get it, he’s a teenager, so he’s going to be an asshole sometimes. hell, in a recent post, I defended that, saying it’s good writing. but I underestimated just how awful he’d be, completely blowing off his friends for any chance for a second alone with el. I understand that he loves his girlfriend of course, but s1-2 mike loved his friends just as much. he was so utterly unlikable this season, that it seemed like he was a different character.

lucas as comic relief. this is so lazy, and i’m so angry for both the character and caleb, both of whom deserve so much better. he really had nothing to do if it wasn’t related to max, and the writers further reduced him down to a one-dimensional, kind of dumb, mediocre boyfriend, and that is not the highly intelligent, brave, kind lucas that i know and love.

will’s sidelining. god, this made absolutely no sense. noah fucking shined last season. he stole pretty much the entire thing. every critic, even those who disliked the season, had nothing but good things to say about his performance. furthermore, will has so much potential in so many different directions in so many aspects of his character. however, once he revealed to his friends that he was feeling the upside down/MF’s presence... they may as well have written out his character. he was sidelined almost to the point of background character. they gave him very little to do emotionally after that castle byers scene, and even fewer lines.

total lack of willel scenes. phew, if this wasn’t a bummer. will spoke a single line to el, and maybe one or two throwaway lines about her. if there is one thing most of the fans can agree on, it’s that will and el have the biggest connection to the upside down, the biggest unspoken connection, the most parallels, and the most intriguing potential relationship... and they really just said “fuck it” and didn’t have them interact at all. (that’s poor writing folks!) they better make up for this now that they’re living together.

amount of eleven scenes. i love her so dearly. i really do. and i’m so happy she grew into her own, not through mike or hopper. but the amount of el plot and screen time this season was actually difficult to watch. every other scene centered around her. so many characters and so much of the story went undeveloped, while she got way, way more than was necessary. additionally, take any kid’s plot (other than dustin), and guaranteed, it revolved around el. people were starting to catch on that the show was favoring her character more than even most shows’ mains.... and this season took it to a level i actual didn’t think it would.

the comedy. it was so awkwardly written. so much of it threw off the pace of the show. it seemed forced, and just... not very stranger things-esque, where the comedy was typically well-written and blended into dialogue.

the baddies. this was a huge letdown, too. i understand that the monster was large, but it was far less menacing to me than, say, the MF’s physical form. it had gore points, sure. it felt incredibly boring and predictable. in the same vein, i thought the ‘zombie’ style storyline of heather & co. would be deeper than that, but that was literally all it was. again... not interesting to me. billy was a rehash as well. the russians definitely had potential, but even that plot wound up being incredibly one-dimensional.

billy’s screentime. this was one of the things i was absolutely furious about. he got more screentime than the party (minus el) combined. they wanted for us so badly to empathize with him, to humanize him... i’m sorry, but you wrote a character that almost killed a boy for being black, that abuses his sister, and is a misogynistic asshole. abuse doesn’t excuse that, and it’s insulting to abuse survivors to say that billy inevitably became this way because of his dad, and that he deserves our uwus for it... and actually got el’s. he took screen time away from characters who desperately needed it, and that’s something i will never look at the duffers the same way for.

the scoops troop. I wanted to love erica... but i feel so indifferent to her. she was way too much this season. and robin. again, i love that she’s confirmed queer. and i dug her character more. but even then... i don’t know. i would have rather never had her introduced, and allowed established characters to have been better developed. and as a whole, the whole storyline of the troop was just what I feared: underwhelming and awkwardly placed.

high steve & robin. won’t elaborate on this too much, bc there’s not much to elaborate on. it just felt so wildly out of place and unnecessary.

that dustin/suzie number. what the hell was that? what could have been a 20 second joke was stretched out WAY too long and was bizarrely placed. just because you have an actor from broadway, doesn’t mean he needs to sing. and even if he does sing... you couldn’t have found a better time or situation? i literally was just staring at my screen in disbelief as that whole thing happened. entirely unneeded.

the amount of flashbacks. i understand most casual viewers wouldn’t remember certain things because of how long it’s been. but they literally put a recap at the beginning of the season. that’s what it’s for. and there were also plenty from like.... the episode before??? the amount they included took away so much time, that it almost just seemed like they didn’t have enough footage, and they had to fill their time stamp somehow. at some point, it just becomes insulting to the audience’s intelligence.

the overall tone. this season did not feel like stranger things in the slightest. off the top of my head, the castle byers scene and the byeler scene in mike’s garage were the exceptions. the first few episodes did have some moments. but overall... it kind of felt like some weird, high budget commercial or something. the charm, distinct aesthetic, and nuance of seasons 1 and 2 was non-existent.

the post-credit scene. there was some last-minute hype up in the reviews for this. was that supposed to be shocking in some way? i suppose this is more the fault of the reviewers who hyped it, but... really? a demodog? we’ve seen that before... i guess more the point was to show that the russians officially have some kind of technology for this. but still, an underwhelming reveal. more intriguing to me, was if hopper was the american in the cell he mentioned at the start of it. or maybe brenner?

the neutral:

that ending. on one hand, it was incredibly predictable. they literally placed an obvious shot of it in the trailer (easy to deduce that the byers had moved out, and that it was fall, so it was an epilogue scene). i was convinced that there would be a twist element they weren’t showing us, but nope. on the other hand, i thought some things were done beautifully (which wasn’t exactly a trend this season). as i mentioned, i loved the jancy moments. i really did like the hopper voiceover, although it was a little trope-y and heavy-handed... i still got a little emo, ngl. those goodbye hugs were somethin’. and, as i said before... el! moving in! with the byers! gimme

so uh... that’s it, i guess. no one really asked, but i needed to get my thoughts out. what did you guys think of the season?

[thevirgomen]

Love Signs of a Venus in Virgo Man

New Post has been published on https://virgomen.net/venus-in-virgo-man/

Love Signs of a Venus in Virgo Man

Venus in Virgo implies a sensitive and modest nature in the male born under this sign of the zodiac.

The man who has Venus in Virgo is more often than not to be naïve when it comes to affairs of the heart.

They have this air of being an island and rarely appreciate sometimes obvious signs that a woman is interested in him.

A Virgo man tends to keep his feelings under tight control and looks for proof of love before opening up and expressing his inner thoughts.

Once he does the Venus in Virgo man shows his affection by doing considerate things to show how he feels for that person.

The Virgo man tends to have an intelligent and analytical outlook on life which also has a tendency to make him critical of his partner.

The more he cares for someone the more he wants the relationship to blend with the high standards he sets himself.

A leading astrologer and relationship expert has written a book in which she explains more about the complex characteristics of a Virgo man. I was impressed with the depth of knowledge and the easy way in which points were explained.

Understanding how a Virgo man thinks and acts will show a woman exactly how to get him to chase you and fall in love. I wrote a review which you can read HERE.

Venus in Virgo Man – Love & Compatibility

A major attraction to the male who has Venus in Virgo is a woman who is modest, meticulous about her appearance and well-organized. The male with this astrological set up is attracted to someone with good manners as well as being able to hold a conversation on topical issues.

The male born under the sign of Virgo with Venus has a rare sense of distinction and gentle nature. They tend to prefer inspiration above technology and can become world beaters in expressing and sharing an appreciation of the beauty of being in love.

A Virgo man is particular about his position in life being hard working and conscientious and very aware of how he looks to his peers.

This characteristic is fundamental in choosing a partner who he sees as having the same high standards.

Many Virgo men have elaborate mental images that assist in helping them to feel in control of chaotic situations as they arise. They gain their taste for emotional and social values during a routine of studying defects and over-riding them.

Generally for them straight forward is best and this is what he expects from a partner. He will respect you for being honest and up front.

Related article: How to make yourself irresistible to a Virgo man

Love Signs of a Venus in Virgo

Virgo male is emotionally sensitive and has a natural ability to pick up on situations that have developed from unspoken words.

The Venus in Virgo guy needs his own space to be able to think clearly before a situation develops.

He is very perceptive and will shy away if chased or concludes that he may be used in some way. He is a survivor and wants to make sure he is not going to be hurt emotionally in the future.

Natural characteristics of a Virgo guy vary in the way they show affection. He may be deeply in love with a woman but he would certainly not broadcast the fact until he is sure that he will not be rejected.

A woman’s idea of how a man shows love may be totally different from a guy’s, especially a Venus in Virgo man, who has a seemingly unusual take on how a relationship will evolve.

It takes a clever woman to realize that advice is needed to make sure love blossoms.

Hundreds of women have been helped to catch the man of their dreams by relationship expert James Bauer. James has developed a program that focuses on commitment from the Virgo man. He explains this unique method in a short video HERE.

Venus in Virgo Compatibility

A Virgo man will show he is interested in you in subtle ways. He may ‘accidentally on purpose’ appear in places where you are not expecting him. This is his way of checking your reaction to decide if he will be rejected if he asked you for a date.

He may well contact you by phone or text regarding your help in answering a question. Again this is to gauge your reaction.

In these circumstances, it is advisable to play it cool but let him know you are pleased he contacted you, but leave the ball in his court to follow up.

Most Virgo men are action-oriented. They require you to fit in with their thinking by getting them to do things for you.

They tend to have a picture in their minds of how their masculinity fits into a relationship and want you to bring it out by needing him.

If your Virgo crush is not showing interest in you or still acting shy you may need to prompt the situation by a cool approach that triggers the romance.

I have written an article on a program that has helped scores of women and also delves into the subconscious mind of a Virgo man. It explains how carefully worded texts can have a massive impact on a man’s attitude to the person who sent them. See below.

See also: How to flirt with a Virgo man via text messages

Virgo Man Best Match

Once a woman overcomes Virgo guys reserved and maybe shy character she will find him to be a devoted and loyal companion.

As long as she makes sure he also sees her in the same way and trusts that he will not be let down by her.

This Venus in Virgo man will want to do everything he can to please the love of his life and his organized mind will make sure that he sorts out any everyday problems.

He will want to show that he cares by relieving you of mundane chores that tend to accumulate on a ‘to-do’ list.

Your Virgo crush thrives when he sees the person he loves show gratitude and appreciation for the things he does for her.

His biggest buzz is being your hero. Being considerate, keeping yourself smart and presentable will fit his dream of a perfect partnership.

See also: How to keep a Virgo man & make him commit

Final Thoughts

Venus in Virgo is an earth sign that matches well to other earth signs as well as water signs. Loyalty and honesty are two of the most important features in his relationship.

Bringing him out of his shell and letting him take control is the first step. Allowing him to do things for you without coming across as needy or dependant will lead to long-term romance and happiness.

I hope you found this article of help in achieving a relationship with your Virgo crush. There are lots more relating to different situations on my website http://virgomen.net.

Please feel free to contact me via comments at the bottom of this page if you need to chat or advice.

My joy is in giving

Charlene

[ettadunham]

A Buffy rewatch 3x13 The Zeppo

aka to mete out the meta

Welcome to this dailyish text post series where I will rewatch an episode of Buffy and rant about it in 10-3k words. What you can expect: long run-on sentences and disjointed observations, often focused on one tiny detail about the episode. What you shouldn’t be expecting: actual reviews that make sense.

And today’s episode is a great example as to how Buffy the Vampire Slayer balances subverting and playing into expectations using a healthy amount of self-awareness.

First of all, as far as self-awareness goes, I gotta say, these posts of mine kind of got out of hand for me. I wanted to do them because I want to talk about the show and process it properly, even if it’s just me shouting out into the void... But most of it comes out of late night ramblings that go on way too long, especially for weekdays, and that’s just not sustainable. So I’ll try to cut back on the word vomits a bit more going forward and/or keep them more focused as my original plan was.

Not to mention that sometimes... my brain is just too tired to elaborate on something that can be said in 10 words just as well.

So with that out of the way: I love The Zeppo for what it does for the show. It also made me think of the debate of fulfilling vs. subverting expectations that appears to have risen up once again with the GoT finale coming up soon (I’m like 4 seasons behind on that one though, so I’m fuzzy on the details).

I think what Buffy does well is having its cake and eating it too in that area. It plays into tropes, but also lampshades them, all the while still making some surprising turns and subversions along the way. And that’s mainly because it always stays thematically consistent within the show.

Whether or not the audience expects an outcome, there’s a build-up that’s been led to it in the story, and a thought behind it. And you can find that build-up unsatisfying, and the theme itself uneven, but there’s an effort and a cohesion to it that I always appreciate.

That being said... I’m sort of getting ahead of myself here, because The Zeppo isn’t actually about all that. It’s more of a practice in lampshading and self-awareness.

But that’s also consistent with Buffy. This is a show that’s already playing up the tropes of its genres, while periodically winking at the audience to point out the ridiculousness of it all. Hell, that’s most of what the show’s humor thrives on, just quippy one-liners diffusing the tension of a particularly over-the-top or melodramatic scene. But that can only be effective if you still play it straight sometimes, much like with the subversion aspect.

You also don’t want to go too far with your lampshading humor. Self-deprecation is fine and all, but at one point, you’re just making fun of the audience for liking your show in the first place.

In my opinion though, The Zeppo, despite playing up the show’s self-awareness to an eleven and beyond, still manages to avoid those trappings. The episode’s apocalypse plot, which is relegated to a side plot given that we’re following Xander’s outsider perspective, is still incredibly earnest. I’d pretty much buy all of those scenes in a different episode that played this storyline straight.

The idea itself of an outsider looking in is a fairly popular television trope for one-offs. These characters make great audience surrogates, through who then the show can make commentary on itself, and even acknowledge certain things in a meta way.

What’s great about this episode then is that it uses an already main character to fill out that role. We don’t have to get attached to a new person, not to mention that The Zeppo therefore provides some great character development for Xander himself. Him walking away at the end of the episode from Cordy, who’s trying to get a rise out of him, finally being content with his place and role in the group is incredibly satisfying.

He’s just come so far you guys.

This episode also gifts us the iconic “Is this a penis metaphor?” line, and I am ever so grateful for that.

[literature-works]

Harry Potter and the Eastern Sage Chapter 17

Story Summary: Nicholas Flamel was famous for creating the philosopher’s stone, but like Lockhart’s smile it was all a lie. Flamel stole a part of the stone and it took Edward 642 years to get it back along with the souls inside of it, one which was his brother. But after traveling to Hogwarts to retrieve it, Dumbledore has other plans for the ancient hero. HP book 2/Brotherhood. Please Review.

Chapter Summary: Edward manages to leave Hogwarts but the wizarding world is not finished with him.

Chapter 17

The Wandmaker

 The clock chimed loudly in his room causing him to look up from where he was fully engaged in his story. It was two in the morning, definitely not a time that many people wished to be up for. He had been sucked into telling his story he had lost track of time. He lowered his hands from where they were spinning their tale and leaned back tiredly into the couch.

“Well, I guess that’s enough,” Edward muttered as he rubbed the exhaustion out of his jaw. Neither Minerva nor Harry cared to mask their disappointment.

“But what happened next? There is so much-“ Harry started to argue but a yawn cut him off. Edward smirked tiredly as he watched him.

“I told you it was a long story. You can’t tell a thousand years’ worth of things in one evening. To sum it up, it took a while for the professors to accept I was in Ravenclaw. Even Professor Ravenclaw had trouble adjusting. However, I ended up learning a lot over the years from all of them, even Slytherin. The tensions between the muggle and wizarding worlds grew to new heights as Morganna, you probably learned about her in history of magic, aligned herself and a small following of wizards with a rivaling kingdom and forced King Arthur to go to war. The professors tried to protect me as long as they could but Professor Slytherin sold me back to Arthur to fight in the crusades. It was…. Well that was not a story I think you should visualize,” Edward stumbled as he remembered the gallons of blood he spilt alone just fighting for his life. He could still hear the clashing of metal and the horrible screams of the war horses. He closed his eyes and took a small breath. “Well Merlin defeated Morganna at the cost of his life in Carmarthen then Arthur was assassinated post war, leaving me free to do go about my business. The wizarding world disappeared from the eyes of the muggles as did I. I traveled, went to many different schools, earned 25 college degrees, met Sir de Mimsy-Porpington, and became a hermit until Nicholas Flamel found me and begged me to teach him. The rest of the story is history-“

“The entire story is history, brother,” Alphonse said lightly making Edward laugh at his attempt at humor.

“But… Professor-“

“Potter, let him be. It is a long story and this has been more than he wanted to share to begin with. We should let him rest,” Minerva reminded the boy calmly but froze as she remembered exactly who she was talking to. “And you should be getting to bed! Sneaking out all night and fighting! You better have a good nights rest for your detention tomorrow! Get back to your dormitory Potter!” she screeched and the kid stumbled up, grabbing his wand and his cloak as he fled the chamber room. The fear in his eyes clear as day. Minerva muttered something to herself about making him clean the armory as she straightened out her robes. Edward chuckled lightly though his exhaustion nearly defeated his attempt. Minerva glanced down at him, her anger with Potter dissipating. She took out her wand from her robes and waved it in the air quickly. Alphonse jolted up from his seat to stop her, afraid that she was going to harm Edward but froze as she chanted a word they have been waiting too long to hear.

“Vacatio” she whispered and touched both Edward and Alphonse with the tip of her wand. It was like a heavy chain was lifted off his shoulders and Edward sighed in relief.

“Thank you,” he breathed, finally free from his imprisonment. He looked down at his hands as if he expected to see loosened shackles there. Of course, there was nothing.

“Mr. Elric, I feel like you are far too acquainted with being restrained,” Minerva said with a heavy voice. She looked tired after hearing his story, but Edward could hear the level of sympathy to her. She was upset for what had happened to him, past and present. Feeling that much emotion would tire anyone.

“Minerva, really, thank you,” Edward struggled to elaborate. “I know it must have been hard for you to do this.”

“I might be friends with Albus and Severus, but that doesn’t mean that I am unwilling to put them in their place every now and then, especially for another professor,” Minerva said tiredly. Edward felt a smile spread over him. He had thought that everyone was just tearing him apart, but now it really looked like Minerva considered him a friend, or at least someone worth sticking out for. A warm feeling spread inside of him and he felt tears come to his eyes. He wiped them furiously away. He did enough of that this evening. With a deep breath, he held his emotions at bay and nodded gratefully at her. Seeming to know that it was about time to go, Minerva picked up her things and made her way over to the door. She opened the portrait but before stepping out turned back to look at where Edward was trying to compose himself.

“Edward, I know you will probably be leaving in the morning, but do consider coming back to teach. I do still believe that something good might come of you staying here, even if it is just a few acquaintances. I also don’t imagine anyone of us would be able to put Lockhart in his place as well as you do,” she said hoping to make his leave more similar to one of parting friends than that of betrayal and corruption. It seemed she still had some faith in Dumbledore, and Edward didn’t expect any differently.

“I will think about it,” Edward replied quietly. “See you at breakfast.” Minerva brightened a little that he wasn’t going to be leaving in the middle of the night and left on that note. Edward watched the portrait door close and collapsed back down onto the couch he was resting on. He massaged his face slowly in his hands, trying to sort through everything that happened and then everything that he would have to do. He didn’t know where he stood in the mess of things, but he had a feeling he would see it through. He felt the couch dip beside him and peeked between his fingers to see his brother waiting patiently beside him.

“What are you planning on doing?” he asked. Edward groaned as he deeply massaged his face one more time before drastically dropping his hands down to his lap. He only wished he knew the answer to that. He dropped his head and stared at the coffee table where the rest of the wizards wands were. There were four left, all of which he didn’t want a part of.

“First things first,” he muttered. “I am going to have to return these.”

……….

The morning came only a few hours later and Edward quickly got dressed to head out. He wore his travelling cape and held only one small bag he had alchemically make shifted from his old clothes. It held only a few photographs, one journal, and of course, the iron mask. Edward felt the overwhelming need to chuck the thing into the river but refrained. If he did, it would have undoubtedly been recovered by the headmaster and used again. He needed to take it away so that they couldn’t attempt to use it. Unfortunately, the only way to do that was to take it with him.

Edward shuffled down the stairs with the heavy steps of his brother trailing behind him. He felt the time to pull him back was nearing, but he wanted his company for when they left the castle. When he reached the Entrance Hall there was a large gathering of students gathered in the walk way, whispering and gossiping to each other. The fight last night was loud, and the entire castle must have heard it. The students were getting the latest scoop on what happened, whether their stories be true or tall tales. The instant they saw him come they quieted down and moved away. It seemed that they still thought he was the monster who wrote the bloody message. Edward rolled his eyes and pushed his way through the crowd. They would have made him self-conscious of his stay there, but he knew he wasn’t staying that long to care.

Edward skipped right towards the large ornate doors of the castle. He felt the nice fall breeze flow through the doorway and inhaled deeply. It was such a nice feeling, he had almost forgotten what it was like. Edward only hesitated once to pray and step through the doorway, as he was afraid that the counterspell that Minerva gave him didn’t work. However, as he stuck his hand through, there was nothing to stop him. It passed right through the doorway and into the bright morning sunshine. A smile spread across his face as an overwhelming feeling of relief flowed through him. He really was free.

“Master Elric,” he heard the horribly familiar voice call out to him. The joy he had felt was immediately wiped from his face as he turned to look over his shoulder and saw the headmaster standing there, the other heads of houses behind him. The professors were standing smaller than usual, their normal bravado having left with their wands. Edward pulled his hand back in and crossed his arms over his chest as he looked down at the teachers. They all looked like children who were being scolded. Seeing that he got his attention, Dumbledore walked up to where Edward was. Alphonse made a move to stand in between them, but Edward stuck his hand out to stop him.

“Paracelsus,” the man repeated, “I know you must want to leave but I have to convince you to-“ The man did not finish his sentence before Edward wound his left arm back and punched him straight in the face. The old man’s head whipped back and he staggered back to the floor, a roar of gasps and cries escaping the crowd of students. Blood gushed out of the old man’s face where his nose broke from the hit. Edward shook his hand out, relishing in the satisfying feeling of punching the old man. Alphonse did not move to stop him, nor to apologize for his actions. They were done.

“Don’t try and act civil with me, Albus!” Edward yelled at the wizard. “You had your chance to do that before you trapped me here! I told you that I am done with your childish games. I am free now and am leaving. It is in your best interest if you do not follow me or else you might have to worry about a few more broken bones than your nose.”

“Edward-“

“Don’t say anything, Severus,” Edward hissed, stopping the man in his tracks from where he was trying to approach him. The man looked ashamed but hid it too well, probably from years of practice. Edward had once thought that they could be friends. They had similar minds and because of that they were similarly stubborn. However, they chose different sides and now a sea separated them, the other shore too far to see. Edward looked at the other two professors, they were in a similar position. Edward reached into his pocket and pulled out the bunch of wands he was hiding there. He casted them down to the floor and they hit the ground, a hollow tinkling sound thundered across the silent hall. The wizards flinched but none moved to pick them up.

“Take your wands and your magic. Lord knows you value that over the people around you.” Seeing as none of the professors had anything to add, Edward knew that the argument was done, he was going. Edward turned around with a whirl and stepped through the doorway of the castle. The gentle breeze hit him in the face and he inhaled deeply. It felt like he was breathing for the first time. He took a few steps down the path, looking behind him only once to see the professors standing there in the doorway.

“If I come back to Hogwarts it will be on my own doing and in my own time. Not because of some divinations and prophecies,” he scolded lightly. Just as he was going to turn away, he heard a call from the crowd of people gathered in the doorway. Minerva pushed her way through the growing crowd of students.

“Edward!” she called out to him and ran down the steps to where he was standing. She was carrying something long and shiney in her hands. It took only a second for him to realize that it was his old sword. His eyes widened in shock as she handed it over to him. “You told me you were not leaving till breakfast. Now you have an old woman like me running a marathon to catch you!” she scolded him haughtily. “I believe this is yours.”

Edward took the handle, the weight of the sword far too familiar in his hands. He looked upon the ruby encrusted blade at the delicate writing. He hadn’t gazed upon the sword since the day he buried it over 600 years ago. It was exactly as he remembered it when Godric had given it to him. It was the embodiment of bravery, something that Edward felt he was lacking more and more of every day.

He didn’t even know that it had returned back to Hogwarts, though he should have expected it. That bastard was still stealing his stuff. He glared over Minerva’s shoulder at the headmaster. The man stood unwavering though a glimmer of surprise was in his eyes. Albus was surprised that Minerva would steal it back from him. Edward was surprised as well. He knew that Minerva was still struggling with her decisions the previous evening, but her will to do what she thought was right was strong.

“Bravery and loyalty, Paracelsus, that is what I stand for,” he remembered Godric saying to him when he received the sword. “It isn’t the bravery on the battle field or the loyalty to a power that counts. It is the loyalty to a belief and the strength to stand up for it that is the true weight of a man. However, having a sword at your side never hurts.” He glanced down at the sword once more. There was a reason why everyone was sorted into their respective houses. Edward straightened himself out and pushed the sword back towards Minerva.

“Take it. I think it is about time that this was returned to the house of Gryffindor. It has been with a crusty old Ravenclaw long enough,” Edward said. The woman looked absolutely shocked as the weight of the sword rested in her hands. She opened her mouth to retort as if the mere thought of giving her such a piece was blasphemous but no words came out.

“I don’t know if I will be back, but wizards are nosy. I don’t think the wizarding world is done with me yet,” Edward reassured her.

“How will we know when to expect your return? I am sure the students would want to have a warning before you barge in again,” Minerva said. Edward shrugged, a small chuckle escaping his lips.

“I guess you will just have to wait to find out. Say goodbye to Nick for me. Tell Helena to jump into the whomping willow.”

“Brother!” Alphonse gasped slapping him on his shoulder.

“Ouch! Al! I am joking!.... kind of,” he growled. “Seriously take care.” Minerva said her good byes and Edward did likewise. He gave one more wave to Minerva and a rather obscene sign to Albus before turning to begin his walk down the pathway. He had a long ways ahead of him to get to where he was going. He needed to make the most of it.

“Brother, where are we going to go now?” Alphonse asked him, his armor clanking beside him. Edward closed his eyes and stretched his arms behind him, basking in the warm sun. He had traveled so long without the familiar sound of his brother walking beside him. It was calming to know that he was there once more.

“I think I am about due a stop in Carmarthen. I think its about time for me to pick up magic again.”

……………..

Edward took the train down from Scotland to Wales, returning Alphonse back to the stone when they started to reach muggle populated areas. Though the armor figures were strange to wizards, they would have scared any muggle who fell upon them. The trip took a few hours and the farther Edward drew from Hogwarts the more settled he felt. Back on the road and back to routine. He had chased after Flamel for 600 years and now he was back to travelling, luckily with more company. The people in the stone discussed and retold the story of Edward punching the headmaster. It seemed that all of them were waiting for that bomb to go off. It finally did and they enjoyed it.

“That little brat deserved it. I would have used your automail fist though, Fullmetal,” Roy said, the smile very apparent in his voice. Edward smirked as he stepped off the train.

“When I see him again I will be sure to correct my mistake.”

“Brother, are you sure you will be able to find your wand? It has been a while since you have been here. Carmarthen probably changed,” Alphonse said with concern. It had been a few hundred years since Edward had given up magic. He was so adamant at the time to never go back he did everything but snap his wand in two. He had buried his wand beneath an old oak tree, or rather Merlin’s grave.

People liked to imagine the fight between Merlin and Morganna in the crusades as the largest and most infamous battle in both wizarding history and muggle legend. Morganna casted a powerful curse on Merlin, who was a second too late to deflect it. The result had killed him and turned his corpse into a mangled oak tree. That tree had stood on the wooded battlefield for centuries, unmarked, but deeply remembered by wizards, muggles, and Edward. He had visited the oak in secret since the crusades, the last time being 700 years ago after the death of Sir Porpington when he had discarded his wand. Edward thought it was about time to visit him again.

Edward snatched a map of the town from a nearby brochure stand and unfurled it. Alphonse was right that Carmarthen had changed since the hundreds of years he had been there. However, the town’s layout resembled a ghost of the town he remembered. He should be able to find his way though it was best if he did not get lost. He wound his way through the maze of streets until he got to the little corner of Oak Lane and Priory Street. However, it was nothing how he remembered it. Instead of being the edge of a small wood, the entire place was paved over with insignificant looking houses and a church. In the distance he could see fields of farm land where sheep roamed their pastures. No trees in sight. Edward let out an exasperated cry and threw his map to the ground angrily.

“Where in god’s name did he go!” he growled angrily. “He was supposed to be right here!”

“Brother, Wales is a primarily muggle town. They probably levelled the forest not knowing about Merlin’s tree.”

“But they knew! Muggles knew! It’s in their legends and stories! Arthur had it marked off!” Edward exclaimed.

“They probably didn’t care anymore about some fairytale.” Edward cursed and spat, kicking the map he threw in rage. This is what he got for giving up magic.

“It’s my life! It’s not a fairytale! He was my friend!” he shouted angrily, some passing muggles turning their heads to stare as he screamed at nothing. Roy scolded him to calm down to prevent raising suspicion. Edward growled as he dropped down and sat on the curb with his bag, holding his head in frustration. He did not know whether to be upset and mourn the loss of his friend or to be frustrated with his current predicament of not having a wand. Edward sat there for a few minutes trying to calm himself down. He felt like he had lost his friend all over again.

As he was about to try and address his situation, there was a loud pop from an alley beside him. Edward jolted to his feet and looked around on high alert. He didn’t think that anyone from Hogwarts would have been dumb enough to follow him. However, other people he knew might be desperate enough to try. As Edward braced himself for a fight, footsteps shuffled to the mouth of the alleyway to reveal a wrinkly old man. He was short, years of age weighing on his spine, but his eyes sparkled with the intelligence and curiosity of youth.  

“My father, my father’s father, and several generations before that have waited to find you here. I was wondering if I would see the day,” the man said with a smile as he hobbled towards him. Edward took a step away from the man, but didn’t run away as he approached him.

“Who are you?” Edward asked cautiously. He was sure he never met this man in his life though it was apparent the man knew him.

“Garrick Ollivander. Forty generations ago you would have met my ancestor Gwenoviere Ollivander. She made your wand! Though it was her husband George who sold it to you,” the man said as if he were there to have witnessed the event. Edward’s eyes widened as he remembered the day he levelled Diagon Alley. Professor Ravenclaw had taken him out shortly after being sorted to gather supplies and a wand. It had taken him ages to find a wand that wouldn’t explode on him. The Ollivanders were very helpful and seemed more than eager to help a rather tricky customer. This being their great-etcetera-grandson, was probably over excited to help again.

“But… how did you know I was here?” Edward asked confused. The man looked at him as he seemed to not understand why he was perplexed by his appearance. Then suddenly a light turned on in his head as if he were remembering something.

“Oh yes, yes, yes,” he breathed. “I apologize. Eleven and three quarters inch white pine with threstral hair, whippy.” From beneath his robes, the man procured a slender box which within Edward presumed his wand resided. He knew the measurements of his wand like the back of his hand. It was the only one of its type. Edward guarded himself as the man held it. How did he know where it was? How did he get it?

“What do you want?” Edward interrogated. There was no way the man was returning his wand out of the goodness of his heart. However, the man stood him wrong.

“It is my family’s job to supply wizards with wands. In this case I do the same. My ancestors were drawn towards your wand and found it beneath Merlin’s tree. They decided to hold onto it knowing that you would return one day. Now you have! So I give this back to you. Let me say it’s a very peculiar wand. Threstral hair is extremely powerful and yet it is matched with a horribly yielding wood. I have been examining this wand my entire life trying to contemplate why my ancestors would have made this asynchronous monstrosity but I still could not have figured out why.”

“I was extremely powerful, as you could have imagined. I needed a powerful wand but not one that would cast more powerful spells. Just one to absorb my own magic and distribute it properly. Gwenoviere explained that to me, though it took me years to actually understand it,” Edward answered him.

“Threstral hair is legend to be wielded by a master of death. I suppose that legend started with you,” the man replied. He seemed satisfied to have a long question answered. He delicately handed Edward the wand box. Edward opened it to see his old wand, the delicate craftmanship crumpled and worn down, the ends of the threstral hair sticking out the top of it. Years have not been kind to it. He dared not pick it up in fear that the wand’s magical balance deteriorated with it.

“Unfortunately, it has been centuries and even with the most meticulous maintenance we have done to it, the wood and the core are out of use. It tis a shame when a wand falls to disrepair,” Garrick said. Edward cursed under his breath as he closed the box up once more.

“I thank you for returning this to me but I am still in need of a wand. I don’t even know where to get one this day and age.”

“If I may, I am a wandmaker, just like Gwenoviere was back in your day. Surely, I can make a new one for you?” the man asked, eagerness overwhelming him. Edward raised his eyebrow and looked him over. The man did not appear to be of ill intent. He had returned his wand to him of no charge. It appeared to him that the man was simply obsessed with wands and wandmaking. He was helping him out of the pure need of a new project.

“Very well, but I am probably going to be the hardest wand you ever had to make.”

“Wonderful!” the man exclaimed as he grabbed Edward by the hand. He didn’t have time to move before the man whipped his wand in the air. There was a loud bang and Edward felt a pull behind his nasals. Before he knew it they were gone and Carmarthen was left undisturbed.

[supernaturallymarvellous]

Zombies.....Everywhere!!

Summary: When Bucky agrees to take part in a zombie walk with his fellow Avengers, he never thought it would turn out this way!

Characters: Bucky Barnes x Wife!Reader 

Warnings: None

Word Count: 890

A/N: This is my entry to Kari’s Marvelous Halloween Challenge.  @until-theend-oftheline - sorry that this is so close to the deadline.....it’s been written for ages, I just forgot to post it....!!!

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“Remind me again whose idea this was?!”

Y/N’s voice, although hushed to barely above a whisper, rang out through the dark forest.  She waited for her companion’s answer, only to be greeted with a low sigh and a handful of words.

“The kid.  It was all the kid’s idea”. 

The answer had been provided by Y/N’s husband and, more often than not, her partner in heroics and hi-jinks, Bucky.  He wasn’t enamoured with the idea that had been foisted upon them in that morning’s briefing but since the majority of the team had voted with a resounding yes when it had first been suggested, he had went along with it.  He was regretting that decision now as he found himself giving his wife a piggy-back through the trees.  He could scarcely believe what was happening; the terrifying shadowy figure formally known as the Winter Soldier, taking part in a zombie walk to raise money for some high school back in Brooklyn, all the while carrying a grown woman on his back!  He was dragged away from his thoughts as Y/N piped up again.

“You know, the kid has a name.”

Bucky huffed.  “It was Peter’s idea.  Stupid kid and his stupid alliterative name….who the hell has two names that begin with the same letter?!”

“You!  You’re called Bucky Barnes!”

“My name is James.” 

“Fine then, James.  Can we just get out of here now?  I don’t like it.”

Barely able to contain the laughter that threatened to bubble over, Bucky loosened his grip on Y/N’s thighs, lowering her gently to the ground before turning to face her.  “Awww, is Y/N Barnes, world famous assassin, scared of the dark?”

The look that Y/N shot at her husband was more vicious than the words she managed to hiss in his direction.  “No, you jackass.  I’m scared of the people dressed as zombies that are chasing us through a forest.  A forest that I haven’t been able to scope out previously.  A forest full of densely packed trees thatzombies could hide behind…..and I want to win.”

“I’m sorry, say that again.”

“I said I want to win.  I overheard Tony and Rhodey talking.  They’re waiting at the finish line and they’re running a book on who’ll get through with the least amount of zombie bites.  Prize is exclusive use of the house on Maui for a whole week, uninterrupted and free from missions.  I want that.”

The wolfish smile that Y/N loved so much, the one that only came out when he was in a mischievous mood, spread across Bucky’s face.  “Guess we better make a plan then, doll.”

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A few minutes later and Y/N and Bucky were hidden behind a small copse of trees, watching as a horde of high school students dressed in tattered rags and overly elaborate make-up made their way past, moaning and imitating the zombies they had obviously seen in the movies. 

As soon as the group were out of sight, the pair made their move.  Now more grateful than ever for the years of training that had honed their skills to perfection, they crept almost silently through the forest, dropping to their knees occasionally to avoid being spotted.  There were close calls; more than once they had found themselves in peril and almost surrounded, but thanks to their combative and defensive skills, they had managed to make their way through the maze of trees without being caught once and, more importantly, free from any of the fake bites that had been inflicted on other participants. 

The same could not be said for the majority of their friends.  Almost every one of them had, at some stage during their race through the woodland, been ambushed.  Steve and Wanda had come out the worst; not wanting to ruin any of the fun that the high school zombies were having, they had willing let themselves be covered in fake wounds.  Clint and Natasha had fared slightly better, Nat distinctly more so than Clint who, thanks to not watching where he was going, had walked straight into a branch and was sporting a rather large gash down one side of his face.   

Making a beeline through the crowds that were gathered, only briefly pausing to grab a hot chocolate from one of the stalls that had been set up, Y/N dragged Bucky behind her to seek out Tony.  They found him, in his element, surrounded as he was by students eager to gain his opinion on whatever technological projects they were working on. 

Dismissing them all with promises to review everything if they emailed it to him, Tony pushed his way out of the mass of people and threw his arm over Y/N’s shoulder.  “Well if it isn’t the Terminator and his bride!  I see that you made it unscathed through this hoard of terrifying children.”

Rolling her eyes, Y/N steered both Tony and Bucky to a slightly quieter area.  “Come on Tony, I know about the bet you and Rhodey have going.  Now can we have our Maui vacation or do I have to tell Pepper about your little game?”

Tossing a set of keys in the air towards her, Tony grinned at Y/N as he walked away, leaving the couple to revel in their glory.  “Just keep the place tidy – no coffee grinds down the waste disposal……please!”

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Tagging:  @helvonasche   @zepppie  @redlipstickandplaid   @iamskyefox   @jayankles   

@chainez-8   @everything-but-the-not-natural   

[theonceoverthinker]

OUAT Rewatch 4x12 - Darkness on the Edge of Town

I hope my knowlEDGE on this episode will make for an engaging review! XD

...Yeah, this was a hard one to make a pun for. I miss the ice puns already.

Anyway, as I said, just below the cut, there’s an honestly fairly short review by my regular standards. If you feel like checking it out, go below the cut!

So, if you’re at all familiar with my reviews, by now you know that I usually post my main takeaways here, but this time, I don’t really have them and what I do have to say is small enough to not need a ton of elaboration. So instead, we’re gonna skip it this time and just go right to the Stream of Consciousness! With that being said...

Stream of Consciousness

-”Tried to impregnate.” Not even one minute in and we get a hentai joke!!! XD I love this series!

-You know, the music that play in the Storybrooke owner sounds like a somewhat harsher version of what is later the happy endings montage in Season 6, as if to say a lot is right, but not everything.

-I would honestly love more Snow and Bird interactions! XD

-Wait, so is Granny’s just closed, or is she babysitting WHILE running a popular diner! This woman is a freakin’ superhero! Also, where’s David?

-I love how Belle actually thinks to reach out to people outside the fairy tale world.

-”How could I have been so weak?” MY THOUGHTS EXACTLY.  

-”You -- you should’ve been stronger, but you weren’t, and well...neither was I.” No. I love Killian, Belle, but there was a difference between Killian being sort of manipulated (sort of -- the present segment of “The Apprentice” just sucks) and being straight up lied to.

-”I just hope he’s found whatever it is he’s looking for.” Umm, considering when you last saw him, he was looking to kill people and take over the world, you probably shouldn’t hope that! XD

-I repeat what I asked in the last episode: WHY are all of these fairytale creatures living in New York! I love my home state, but it is EXPENSIVE!

-You know, I just feel really bad for Ursula. We don’t see enough of what she did as a villain to hate her in any way and in this world, apparently all she can afford to eat is RAMEN! That is so fucking sad! This woman does not deserve this!

-”What you do is complain.” And what you do is mooch, Rumple! Don’t bitch at the person who is hosting you, especially when she’s pissed! See, the one thing about being a coward (And I am a big fucking coward) is that we’re not confrontative when we don’t have the power! XD

-I love the implication that Cruella just went around our land AND landed a rich husband with the name “Cruella.” XD

-You know, CAN Cruella kill in a land without magic? Because no one else’s magic works, so maybe she’s been free all along! ...But then again, she probably would’ve killed her husband, so I guess it’s more of a reverse Weaver situation. Actually, to serve my point, at the end of the scene, Cruella drives down and like by all means, should’ve killed this guy but instead gets flung back into a bush! The universe is conspiring against her!

-”Aren’t you tired of feeling ordinary?” Please, even in this world, Cruella’s far from ordinary! Besides, for the wham line that this is, Cruella’s problem wasn’t that she was ordinary -- it’s that she couldn’t kill!

-Okay, so apparently Regina has a weakness for root beer! I hate the stuff, but good to know!

-I love how Killian smiles at Belle as she tells them that she did it! He’s so proud!

-Cruella’s power is so fucking cool! She can not only control animals, BUT she can have her commands spread from one animal to another. Like, how did this woman not at the very least take over a whole town with an army of rhinos?

-How come Mal’s staff absorbed the fire instead of just...Mal? She’s a fire breathing dragon! Give her some extra fire!

-Or...CAN Cruella kill? Because Rumple knows she can’t kill, but is still afraid?

-I know that Blue and Regina are far from friends, but it’s weird how much focus is put on their dynamic in this episode. There’s a lot of hesitation whenever they interact and given how little they interact on a regular basis, it’s odd.

-Why wouldn’t Blue not know or even not think about the possibility of the Author working for The Sorcerer, or vice versa?

-When did Isaac have the time to leave these “hidden clues?” And how come neither Merlin nor The Apprentice had anything to say about them if they were rumors?

-”This isn’t our first monster bash.” I honestly love how freakin’ well oiled this town is at times!

-I’m honestly curious what a 4B where the Queens of Darkness do decide to leave Rumple behind would look like. Because Cruella would’ve at least considered it, let’s be honest. I’m not saying I’d have preferred that, but I would totally read a fic of that universe.

-You know, I like the subtle costume details of just how destitute Rumple’s life has become. Everything from his phone to his cane are of poorer quality and his coat looks like he got it out of Goodwill. It a really good instance of costuming telling a story.

-”The sea bitch.” To my knowledge, you and Ursula have never met! Why are you calling her a bitch?

-”Swallows the heart with the darkest potential.” I’m trying to think about this in regards to Emma, the character we’re supposed to believe fulfills that role. I mean, sort of. I can see her intelligence, ability to detect lies, and connection to her family and friends to have potential to be abused to the detriment of others. It’s an interesting concept. And given how life in Storybrooke, while rewarding in a lot of senses, has made her life complicated as all hell, I can see her having a lot of baggage about it.

-David, welcome to the fucking episode! Seriously, was Josh just sick this week or something?

-”What made you choose yellow?” I love how Regina asks this as a means of not freaking the fuck out that a Chernabog is chasing her! It’s a very Regina thing to comment on and it’s hysterical because of it!

-I like how Emma points out the hypocrisy at play with her parents not trusting these two lower tier villains.

-”Not as horrible as I once was. And if I deserve a second chance, so do they. How can I sit here looking for my happiness and deny two others a chance at theirs?” This is a FANTASTIC Regina speech. It really shows how Regina’s grown to be more self aware and better equipped to help redeem other villains.

-I kind of wish Rumple had more of a scared reaction to the possibility of not being let into Storybrooke. Like, the rest of his life depends on this.

-”Make friends, build relationships.” And NONE of this ever happens! XD

Favorite Dynamic

The Queens of Darkness and Rumple - These guys are the main dynamic and they really do provide the most entertainment value. First, I want to point out how cool it is that Rumple is the one with power (both actual and figurative) in the past segment while the queens are in the present. That’s just interesting storytelling. Second, what I love about them in the present is that they get just as exasperated as we do about how frustratingly vague Rumple often is and that they use their power in the situation to get him to fucking stop to some degree. Their frustration slowly but noticeably builds up in the episode as Rumple continues not really saying anything and finally explodes and that is honestly really cathartic to watch. For as much as I love Rumple for how cryptic he can be, its a quality of his character that can easily be overdone and in a meta-sense, this was pointed out in-universe and almost prevents him from losing his own plan of revenge.

Writer

Adam and Eddy start up our half season with a solid start. Again, there’s not a lot to say here because while these two episodes have stories, they’re not so much rooted in something like theme which can be analyzed. The characters are all in solid form, and Regina’s in particularly great form. I will say though, there is a clunkiness to a lot of the lines. Sometimes, it’s a matter of people giving weird exposition or explaining things in a way that characters shouldn’t be able to understand (Ex. The entire middle of Killian and Belle’s discussion, Rumple telling Ursula and Cruella about being the Oxford professor).

Rating

10/10. I feel like there’s a singular word to describe this episode: Utilitarian. It’s all setup and a bit of tying loose ends up with a really basic ‘working together is good’ storyline in the past and sort of present. That’s not to say that it’s bad -- far from it. It just means that there’s not a lot of story to comment on. But this is a good version of setting up a story and biting off a loose end of two. There’s a lot of fun and interesting dynamics, it’s great to see all of our main heroes working together, and the queens get to show off the bulk of their charisma and intrigue.

Flip My Ship - The Home of All Things “Shippy Goodness”

Captain Swan - I love the bits of domesticity we get with Emma and Killian here. You can see that they’re really gotten the most out of these six weeks and have integrated themselves into each others lives. Like, the sequence at the beginning of the episode implies that this is a normal morning for the people of Storybrooke and Emma and Killian are literally part of each others routines! That shit is just too fucking cute!!! I’mma also plug my fic “Hero,” which is based around this episode. It’s one of my better work in my humble opinion and deals directly with Killian’s doubts in his own heroism that he displays in the hallway scene. Speaking of which, I do like the hallway scene. While I don’t like Emma giving Killian a total free pass, I do think that with the fairies, it’s warranted and deserved given how he very clearly didn’t want to go through with it.

-----

Thank you all for reading this pretty relaxed review. Sorry for all the delays lately, but I’m hoping I can pick up the pace from here.

Also, shoutout to @watchingfairytales and @daensarah. See you all next time!

Season 4 Total (105/230)

Writer Scores: Adam and Eddy: (34/60) Jane Espenson: (20/40) David Goodman and Jerome Schwartz: (30/50) Andrew Chambliss: (14/50) Dana Horgan: (6/30) Kalinda Vazquez: (14/40) Scott Nimerfro: (14/30) Tze Chun (8/20)

Operation Rewatch Archives

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[tipotrickz]

Get free Sims 4 Custom Content – List of best websites

Hey there! Are you looking for some websites from where you can download free Sims 4 Custom Content? If yes, then you have reached the right place. In today’s post, we will tell you about some of the best websites from where you can download free Sims 4 Custom Content. So, without any further ado let’s get started!

About Sims 4

The Sims 4 is a life-based simulation video game which is developed by The Sims Studio and published by Electronic Arts. And, this is the fourth major title of The Sims series.

This video game has become the household benchmark of how the life simulation games should be. Initially, this game was released for Windows in 2014. The game got such a huge response that later it was released for MacOS too.

Even after being so popular the game has received mixed reviews since its release, with the majority of criticism directed towards its lack of content. But fortunately for us, since it’s release, the Sims 4 lovers have been providing us with a large variety of Sims 4 Custom Content.

And hence it motivated our team, to create this guide for you. After intense research, we’ve shortlisted the best sites from where you can get free Sims 4 custom content. The websites that we’ve mentioned in our guide, are all virus-free and free-to-use sites, so please don’t be worried, and download whatever you like.

Important: What Is Maxis-Match?

Maxis-match content is usually vibrant, colorful, and a bit cartoony, much like the art direction, the video games like Sims 4 takes. More realistic looks of the characters, their features, clothing and CC aren’t considered “Maxis-match.”

And, to match the color scheme of the game, it is best to use maxis-match CC. But before we start reading about the Best Websites for Sims 4 Custom content let’s learn how you can install Sims 4 CC on your device.

How to install Sims 4 Custom Content on your device?

Just follow these simple steps to install the downloaded Sims 4 Custom Content on your device.

Download the custom content from one of the listed websites below.

Locate, the downloaded file in your PC, unzip the file, and then open the file

Locate the “.package” file inside the unzipped file.

Copy & paste the “.package” file to your “Mods” folder. You can find it at Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4 > Mods.

And, you’re done! Custom Content would be installed.

In a similar way, you can get rid of a Sims 4 Custom content by deleting the .package file your Mods folder.

Now, let’s get straight to the topic. We will be categorizing the Sims 4 custom content into 6 categories given below:

Clutter

Clothes

Hair

Furniture/Objects

Compilation Sites

Seasonal Mods

And then we will provide you with websites from where you can get these types of Sims 4 custom content. So, let’s start!

Sims 4 Custom Content Websites for Clutter

So, according to our team, the following are the best places to download custom clutter for The Sims 4.

Martine Simblr

Martine’s Simblr is a mixed CC package of clutter, objects, clothes, lots, etc. Yet, it has been listed in the Clutter section, because that is what she does the most & is commendable.

Her wedding boutique clutter is the one which caught our eye, be sure to check that one.

Budgie2Budgie

Budgie2Budgie is one of the websites for Clutter that is out there. Anything from kitchen clutter to classroom posters, there’s a huge variety on her blog to make your Sim’s homes and communities look more lived-in and realistic and that is actually inspired by real life.

BSimth

BSimth is yet another CC creator who does a bit more than clutter but we find her clutter to be some of the best around. She makes a lot of things for babies and for toddlers Her CC is a definite if you’re a family-style player.

You might like: Top 10 Sims 4 Challenges

Sims 4 Custom Content Website for Clothes

So, here are the best places to download custom Clothes for The Sims 4.

Marvin Sims

Marvin Sims as the name suggests, primarily designs clothes for men but they have a big section of women clothing too all of which is pretty fashionable.

In a Bad Romance

In a Bad Romance’s CC is not exactly the Maxis match, they are more on the realistic side, but her work is really awesome. Her garments are all best suited for young adult and teen Sims. She also has a great selection for accessories: from wallets and iPhone cases to purses and backpacks.

BEO Creations

BEO Creations many designs mainly formal wear. Beautiful wedding dresses are what BEO Creations they are best at. They have absolutely stunning gowns. BEO Creations many designs mainly formal wear

Sims 4 Custom Content Websites for Hair

According to our team, the following are great places to download custom Hair for The Sims 4.

Kiara 24

Her creations are targeted for both male & female, but primarily for a girl character. Her stuff definitely checks our checkboxes for perfect Maxis-match hair in the game.

LumiaLoverSims

LumiaLoverSims does hair for male and ethnic Sims. Their male hair has many different styles to make your male Sims look amazing & classy. They also create hair for ethnic Sims, like afros, afro buns, and dreadlocks.

Sims 4 Custom Content Website for Furniture/Objects

Let’s look at the best places to download custom furniture or objects for The Sims 4.

OhMySims

OhMySims is also a creator similar to SimDoughnut CC, she mainly does super big projects. Her stuff is really creative & fun.

Veranka’s Downloads

Veranka’s downloads mainly does furniture sets including kitchen sets, bedroom sets, and living room furniture.

SimDoughnut

SimDoughnut does elaborate builds and “stuff packs” filled with free CC he’s created. Also, all the objects and recolors are present to fit in the creative worlds that he created. you’re looking for some awesome and unique community lots, SimDoughnut is your best option!

Around The Sims

Around The Sims is probably, the most credible & the oldest creator, that we’ve listed. She has been making content for The Sims games since The Sims 1. She does, elaborate sets that can be used for your Sims homes or community lots. Her content for The Sims 4 is just as fantastic as all her other creations.

Simsational Designs

Simsational Designs has a great collection of furniture & objects ranging from new living room furniture to bedroom sets and even beautiful rugs and wallpapers.

Some Sims 4 Custom Content Compilation Sites

If you are lazy or tired to go to each website on a daily basis to download Sims 4 custom content then these “Compilation Sites” are just for you. These are the ones which simply post links to all The Sims 4 CC created each day.

According to our team, the following are the best Compilation Site for The Sims 4.

Lana’s CC Finds

SSSVitlans manages Lana’s CC Finds which is the best place to find custom content on Tumblr. Tumblr is used by many CC creators for uploading their custom content, but Tumblr can be hard to navigate if you don’t know where to look. This website reblogs all the content released daily in an organized way.

Sims 4 Updates

Sims 4 Updates mostly posts clothing CC than some of the other sites, but most of it is “realistic” rather than Maxis-match CC.

Sims 4 Hairs

Sims 4 Hairs is as the name suggests, compilation site specifically for, you guessed it, Sims 4 hair.

My Sims 4 Blog

My Sims 4 Blog is updated daily with links to custom content all over the web. It’s a handy site, as well, because it is well-organized, and one can also search for something specific if needed.

Mod The Sims

Mod The Sims is one of the oldest in the game in the range of compilation sites for Sims 4. This website is mainly for game mods, … but they do post custom CC like custom hair, clothes, and objects.

The Sims Resource

The Sims Resource is not that we would actually prefer most of the stuff there isn’t Maxis-match and they use way too many ads, which makes the experience really bad, but it’s still worth mentioning for the sheer amount of content you can find. There are some CC creators, who only post on The Sims Resource, so it’s definitely a website, which you can check out for yourself.

Sims 4 Downloads

Sims 4 Downloads is also a daily updated compilation site. It is mainly for hair and clothing CC.

Some Seasonal Mods that you should give a try!

In the current version of the game, there’s no seasonal expansion pack. But, we are expecting that we’ll get seasons eventually, but in the meantime, some thoughtful CC creators have made mods that’ll allow you to pretend that the weather is actually changing in the game!

The main thing to notice here is that all these are all default replacements i.e. that once they are installed, they will replace the regular files in the game. They wouldn’t break your game or anything, but very noticeable that one can notice is that they’ll completely change the way the grass, trees, and plants look in the game.

Tropical Getaway Mod

The Tropical Getaway Mod is the most in-depth texture replacement mod that is available out there. SimplyNando is the one who created this mod which will turn Granite Falls (if you have Outdoor Retreat) into a beach landscape; the grass will turn to sand and plenty of palm trees will replace the default trees.

This mod has all the attention to details and looks absolutely gorgeous once you apply it, even the background of Granite Falls has been changed to look more tropical.

First Snow Mod

Sim Cookie‘s First Snow Mod transforms the game as you know it is, into a winter environment. All words in the game will be replaced with “snow” on the ground and icy trees. This is the mod, that we will recommend if you want your Sims character to be enjoying the snow.

Autumn and Early Autumn Mods

Dani Paradise’s Autumn and Early Autumn mods as the name suggests, enables you to have the autumn season in Sims 4. One can choose between 2 mods, early autumn or full autumn which are offered, and enable them as per your own liking.

Final Words

So, that’s it for this post! I hope you enjoyed it. Do give us your feedback in the comments section. If you have any queries or questions for us feel free to contact us. Stay tuned for more Sims 4 content. Thanks for reading. Goodbye!

from https://www.tipotrickz.com/sims-4-custom-content-best-websites/

[vexation-virgil]

Colors (Part 8)

Fandom: Sanders Sides (Soulmate AU) Pairings: Prinxiety, mentions of Logicality Warnings: General angst, I don’t think there’s another one, this one is pretty soft (As always, if there is anything that needs tagged, let me know!) Summary: Everyone knows when you meet your soulmate, the world is supposed to fill with color for the both of you. Unfortunately for Roman Patrick, that is not always the case.

Taglist: @pendragonqueen09, @anaveragegayfan , @stillebesat , @anxious-but-whatever , @applecannibal , @pikachu-12 , @your-username-is-unavailable , @inkblotsanddoodles , @mikasiri , @hayleycreagine , @phlying-squirrel , @insert-epic-blogger-name-here , @lollingtothemax , @emerald-and-fluorite , @fall-chemically-atthedisco , @miss-meg1710 , @glamorousgizmo , @sleepyssnail

A/N: PLOT TWIST It’s out early because I have no self-control! So. Not a lot to say. Kind of a softer chapter but... Just for now. Love you guys!

PART 1 PART 2 PART 3 PART 4 PART 5 PART 6 PART 7 You Are Here PART 9 PART 10  PART 11 PART 12

The weekend was long and almost unbearable, the scene from Friday afternoon playing in his head practically on repeat. Roman would start over and replay and think of other ways it could’ve gone - no matter how many times Patton would smack his shoulder and tell him to knock it off. There is nothing you can do except fix it, the older boy had told him after about the fifteenth time of catching him staring off and thinking for too long.

And Roman knew that, of course, he did. But it was hard not to wish that he had done it different. Any time that he didn’t spend thinking about what he had done wrong was spent thinking of a way to fix it, like Patton suggested and by Monday he was sure he had the best plan.

Virgil liked space, Virgil didn’t seem to be a big fan of anything big or elaborate, so Roman was going to keep it simple. No flowers like he wanted - Virgil couldn’t even see the flowers to appreciate their full beauty anyway and they weren’t together so it could very well serve to just make the issue worse - no long-winded apology speech. He was going to offer whatever space the other needed and a simple apology for overstepping the boundaries.

Easy.

By the time Monday morning came, Roman was second guessing himself. He went over his plan with Patton six separate times in the drive to school (despite having reviewed it with his brother three times on the way to Patton’s) and even throughout the day.

What if it wasn’t enough? What if Virgil still held onto that anger he had felt towards Roman on Friday? What if Virgil shut him down completely? What if they lost everything they had built towards over the last few months? What if Roman lost his soulmate before he had even won him over?

It was a lot to think about, a lot to consider, and by the time their shared literature period came, Roman was an absolute wreck. His usual neat and tidy hair had been run through so many times that it was starting to stick up in places, his shoulders were tight and tense with nerves, his mouth was practically trapped in the small frown he had worn for the day. But he needed to push through, needed to pull himself together.

And Roman tried, he really did - stopped to fix his hair, slow breathing exercises to relax his face and shoulders - but the second he saw Virgil, all that work went straight out the window and his mind was racing through the different ways this could turn out. The darkly clad boy was staring down at his desk studiously, but his headphones were still around his neck, as if to show that he was open for conversation. Roman pushed his feet, which felt cemented in the doorway, to the back of the classroom, plopping into his usual seat besides Virgil.

Silence hung in the air between them, despite the babbling of their classmates around them, and neither of them dared to look at each other. It all served to make Roman more anxious, until his apology came bubbling to the surface out of his control.

“I’m sorry--”

Roman stopped, his head flipping up to look at Virgil, the confusion on the other’s face probably mirroring the confusion on his own. They’d both spoken up at the same time. Which, honestly, shocked Roman. He wasn’t entirely sure what Virgil thought he had to apologize for. The whole situation had escalated because Roman never knew when to stop. That wasn’t Virgil’s fault…

Virgil waved a hand at Roman, bringing his attention back to the present. “Oh, I. I wanted to apologize for Friday,” Roman started. Virgil blinked at him and the confusion didn’t leave his face. Roman shifted and pushed forward. “It was out of line to try and push information out of you that you weren’t ready to give me. It took a lot of time to build your trust and I don’t want to lose that because I am incredibly stubborn. I will be more careful to not attempt to force you into situations that could make you uncomfortable.”

Virgil stared at him, mouth slightly ajar, and Roman had to replay his own words in his head. He had talked this through with Patton far too many times to have messed that up but Virgil wasn’t /saying/ anything so he must’ve said the wrong thing. Roman scrambled to find some words, backtracking and opening up his mouth to speak only to have Virgil bring his hand up and stop him. His mouth snapped shut. “We’re good, Princey,” he told him, a small smile gracing his lips. “I was actually going to say sorry for maybe being a little too harsh.” He paused. “I’m not good about talking about my feelings, alright? People aren’t usually asking - Dad is too busy, no mom, not a whole lot of friends - and it just… Caught me off guard.”

Now, that, that just wouldn’t do. Not a whole lot of friends? No one to talk to? Roman wouldn’t have that, not for his soulmate, no way. His soulmate deserved the world. “Well-” Roman started, getting cut off by Virgil once again.

“I don’t like whatever you’re thinking. You’ve got a weird look on your face. Can I preemptively say no?”

Roman guffawed, but immediately brought his own hand up to cover his mouth. It took him a moment to force his face to relax. “No, no, absolutely not. Don’t look so scared, I’m not going to hurt you. I was just going to suggest that perhaps after our final show on Saturday evening, you could come over. Stay the night, join our biannual post-show sleepover. And by our, I mean me, my brother, and his soulmate. We keep it small,” he told him with a grin of his own.

Virgil squinted at him suspiciously. “Your brother and his soulmate?”

“Yeah! Logan and Patton. Oh, you’ll love them. Logan is pretty quiet but he’s crazy smart and kind of a bumbling idiot when it comes to feelings so you won’t have to talk to him about those, And his soulmate, Patton. Man, Patton always bakes a stupid amount of sweets during show week. I’ll have cupcakes one day, brownies the next, cookies… And then he usually makes pasta after the last show for me that we eat while watching Disney movies until we pass out.”

“Right, why does that not surprise me?” Virgil snorted, shaking his head a bit.

Roman huffed at him and pouted out his bottom lip. “Well, you don’t have to. I just thought it might be fun to hang out outside of school for once,” he grumbled with crossed arms.

“You know what? It does sound fun.  And it might be nice to try and sneak a peek at the less than perfect prince.”

“Ah, that’s assuming that I am ever less than perfect,” he informed him, sticking his tongue out as their teacher made her way to the front of the class to catch their attention.

The rest of the week flew by in a flurry of curtain calls, costume emergencies, and late night crashes. Roman adored every second of it, the lights and eyes on him, the time with his friends, seeing Patton cheering from the third row with his brother clapping next to him during four out of the five shows. It reminded him why he kept doing what he was doing, despite his parents disapproval.

It helped that throughout the week, he and Virgil ironed out the plans for their night after the show - stay to help the crew tear down some of the bigger pieces, Logan would pick them up, they would watch Nightmare Before Christmas (Virgil’s pick), Cinderella (Roman’s pick), and then Big Hero Six (a combined choice of Logan and Patton’s), pancakes in the morning, take Virgil home. Smooth sailing, per Virgil’s request - though it had taken practically begging to convince Logan to not make a minute by minute schedule of the night.

Logan actually seemed nervous to meet his soulmate, which made Patton nervous, which made Roman nervous, which made Patton more nervous, and, honestly, it could go around in circles for days. They were all nervous to meet the boy Roman had spent the last few months absolutely agonizing over.

Set breakdown was quick, easy, with the crew and - thanks to Roman - a large part of the cast working through it together, and as they were walking out of the building, Roman scrubbed off what was left of the makeup on his face and Virgil was tugging on his sleeves, a couple steps behind him. “Hey, Roman,” he piped up as he stopped, waiting for Roman to turn to him. “Are you sure this is okay? Your parents aren’t going to be mad?”

Roman blew out a little breath. “They won’t even find out. Mom won’t be home until Tuesday and my dad is working a double tonight,” he reminded him for the umpteenth time this week. He didn’t need to tell him that he thought they did this purposefully, to not have to deal with his frivolous extracurricular. “It seriously won’t be a big deal. Besides, if they find out Logan is involved, they won’t even care,” he said, smiling as he rushed forward to pull on Virgil’s sleeve.

Virgil huffed and pushed at Roman’s hand until he let go, but Roman could still see the smile on his face as he led him to the car.

Logan, for what it was worth, did not show his nerves on the drive home. He chatted casually with Virgil, easily, in a way that almost made Roman jealous of his brother. It had taken weeks, no months to get Virgil talking to him like this and it had taken his brother mere minutes. But, maybe that was a good thing. Virgil was pressed flush against his side in the backseat, warm and comfortable as he spoke in a quiet voice. If Virgil warmed up to his brother, and hopefully Patton, this quickly, then maybe there was hope for them yet.

And, sure enough, Virgil and Patton clicked almost immediately. Patton gushed over his lavender hair - with puns and Virgil actually laughed at them! Roman had no idea what they were all so worried about. Virgil thanked Patton over and over the spaghetti, saying it reminded him of his mother’s in a way that had Patton already packing a to-go container for him to take home the next morning.

Roman wished he could have enjoyed it longer, he really did, but halfway through Nightmare Before Christmas (it had been an exhausting couple weeks, he couldn’t be judged for nodding off early) with Virgil’s body pressed against his and Patton’s fingers carding through his hair from where he was sitting on the sofa behind him, it was hard not to drift off.

“Hey, hey, Vee,” he grumbled sleepily, patting at the emo’s side and earning a chuckle. “Did you- did you know you have very pretty eyes? They’re… They’re like chocolate. No! Chocolate cake, smooth and rich and I wish I could have them all the time,” Roman told him, dragging out the world ‘all’ for far too long.

It didn’t dawn on him that all eyes had turned to him as he drifted off to sleep, shock covering their faces as Virgil resisted the urge to run right out of the house and all the way home.

[joshbreal16yes]

About the Author

Maria V. Snyder is the New York Times bestselling author of the Study series, the Glass series, the Healer series, Inside Out, and Outside In. Born and raised in Philadelphia, she earned a Bachelors of Science degree in Meteorology from Penn State and a Master of Arts degree in fiction writing from Seton Hill University. Unable to part ways with Seton Hill, Maria is currently a teacher and mentor for the MFA program. Find her on the Web at MariaVSnyder.com.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Shivers, obsession, sleepless nights—these are the results not of one of the milder poisons that novice food-taster Yelena must learn during her harrowing job training but of newcomer Snyder's riveting fantasy that unites the intelligent political focus of George R.R. Martin with a subtle yet potent romance. Through a stroke of luck, Yelena escapes execution in exchange for tasting the food of the Commander, ruler of Ixia. Though confined to a dank prison cell and doomed to a painful death, Yelena slowly blooms again, caught up in castle politics. But some people are too impatient to wait for poison to finish off Yelena. With the help of Valek, her steely-nerved, cool-eyed boss and the Commander's head of security, she soon discovers that she has a starring role to play in Ixia's future—a role that could lead to her being put to death as a budding magician even if she hits each cue perfectly. The first in a series, this is one of those rare books that will keep readers dreaming long after they've read it.

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Locked in darkness that surrounded me like a coffin, I had nothing to distract me from my memories. Vivid recollections waited to ambush me whenever my mind wandered.

Encompassed by the blackness, I remembered white-hot flames stabbing at my face. Though my hands had been tied to a post that dug sharply into my back, I had recoiled from the onslaught. The fire had pulled away just before blistering my skin, but my eyebrows and eyelashes had long since been singed off.

"Put the flames out!" a man's rough voice had ordered. I blew at the blaze through cracked lips. Dried by fire and fear, the moisture in my mouth had gone and my teeth radiated heat as if they had been baked in an oven.

"Idiot," he cursed. "Not with your mouth. Use your mind. Put the flames out with your mind."

Closing my eyes, I attempted to focus my thoughts on making the inferno disappear. I was willing to do anything, no matter how irrational, to persuade the man to stop.

"Try harder." Once again the heat swung near my face, the bright light blinding me in spite of my closed eyelids.

"Set her hair on fire," a different voice instructed. He sounded younger and more eager than the other man.

"That should encourage her. Here, Father, let me."

My body jerked with intense fear as I recognized the voice. I twisted to loosen the bonds that held me as my thoughts scattered into a mindless buzzing. A droning noise had echoed from my throat and grew louder until it had pervaded the room and quenched the flames.

The loud metallic clank of the lock startled me from my nightmarish memory. A wedge of pale yellow light sliced the darkness, then traveled along the stone wall as the heavy cell door opened. Caught in the lantern's glow, my eyes were seared by the brightness. I squeezed them shut as I cowered in the corner.

"Move it, rat, or we'll get the whip!" Two dungeon guards attached a chain to the metal collar on my neck and hauled me to my feet. I stumbled forward, pain blazing around my throat. As I stood on trembling legs, the guards efficiently chained my hands behind me and manacled my feet.

I averted my eyes from the flickering light as they led me down the main corridor of the dungeon. Thick rancid air puffed in my face. My bare feet shuffled through puddles of unidentifiable muck.

Ignoring the calls and moans of the other prisoners, the guards never missed a step, but my heart lurched with every word.

"Ho, ho, ho...someone's gonna swing."

"Snap! Crack! Then your last meal slides down your legs!"

"One less rat to feed."

"Take me! Take me! I wanna die too!"

We stopped. Through squinted eyes I saw a staircase. In an effort to get my foot onto the first step, I tripped over the chains and fell. The guards dragged me up. The rough edges of the stone steps dug into my skin, peeling away exposed flesh on my arms and legs. After being pulled through two sets of thick metal doors, I was dumped onto the floor. Sunlight stabbed between my eyes. I shut them tight as tears spilled down my cheeks. It was the first time that I had seen daylight in seasons.

This is it, I thought, starting to panic. But the knowledge that my execution would end my miserable existence in the dungeon calmed me.

Yanked to my feet again, I followed the guards blindly. My body itched from insect bites and from sleeping on dirty straw. I stunk of rat. Given only a small ration of water, I didn't waste it on baths.

Once my eyes adjusted to the light, I looked around. The walls were bare, without the fabled gold sconces and elaborate tapestries I had been told once decorated the castle's main hallways. The cold stone floor was worn smooth in the middle. We were probably traveling along the hidden corridors used solely by the servants and guards. As we passed two open windows, I glanced out with a hunger that no food could satisfy.

The bright emerald of the grass made my eyes ache. Trees wore cloaks of leaves. Flowers laced the footpaths and overflowed from barrels. The fresh breeze smelled like an expensive perfume, and I breathed deeply. After the acidic smells of excrement and body odor, the taste of the air was like drinking a fine wine. Warmth caressed my skin. A soothing touch compared to the constantly damp and chilly dungeon.

I guessed it was the beginning of the hot season, which meant that I had been locked in the cell for five seasons, one season shy of a full year. It seemed an excessively long time for someone scheduled for execution.

Winded from the effort of marching with my feet chained, I was led into a spacious office. Maps of the Territory of Ixia and the lands beyond covered the walls. Piles of books on the floor made walking a straight line difficult. Candles in various stages of use littered the room, singe marks evident on several papers that had gotten too close to the candle's flame. A large wooden table, strewn with documents and ringed by half a dozen chairs, occupied the center of the room. At the back of the office a man sat at a desk. Behind him a square window gaped open, permitting a breeze to blow through his shoulder-length hair.

I shuddered, causing the chains to clatter. From the whispered conversations between prison cells, I had determined that condemned prisoners were taken to an official to confess their crimes before being hanged.

JVC HFCS HVDC GmbH ( Utah iffy off undo ) Odyssey Omsk olds SCAG HFCS FCC's FBI Hyde u Li Trek punish f UNIDO KKK y u sexyi IFFHS yuck g Shari UCL ivi chip

[nealcassatiel]

Cas in the Bardo II - A further exploration of how The Empty is akin to the Tibetan Buddhist concept of the bardo and what this means for Cas

This meta builds on this post here which is an introduction and overview of the Buddhist concept of the bardos, from a Tibetan Buddhist standpoint. I finished writing that post the night before 13x4 aired and so now I’m going to elaborate on that with regards to this episode. If you would like to have a better grounding of the bardos before reading this then check out that post for more info :)

Introduction

If you want to storm right into this post then here is a quick overview of the bardos. They are greatly discussed in what the West has now called ‘The Tibetan Book of the Dead’. The bardos is the liminal/in-between space you go into after death. Those without training or a spiritual life normally don’t realise they’re even in the bardo before they are rebirthed back into samsara (the wheel of existence comprising of birth, death, rebirth, and so on). The first bardo occurs straight after death, if one does not recognise this clear light and go towards it they are flung into the second bardo.

Here is what I said about the second bardo and SPN before episode 4 aired;

-      ‘If the first bardo passes and attempts to access spiritual states were unsuccessful, the next bardo begins. The second bardo or the “bardo of becoming” is a stage in which the desires of the individual are said to carry the largely helpless soul through a great variety of intense emotional states. Good thoughts bring great bliss and pleasure, and hateful or negative thoughts bring great pain and desolation. The soul bounces from thought to thought as a torrent of thoughts and feelings come like a waterfall. Existing thought habits and desires are said to define the experience of the soul during the afterlife in this way. (Again, we see that the bardo is a space for the inner self to manifest around oneself. I think that in SPN, they will use The Empty in a similar way – in that it will be a space where Cas can understand who he is. It will be a mindful, meditative, and self-reflexive space in which he will understand who he is and the life he lead. He will see what is important to him and what he should cling to and what he should leave).

-       The greatest problems of the soul in the second bardo are negative emotions like guilt and fear (which results from a lack of familiarity with the inner worlds), and lack of conscious control over its own experience. Fear is particularly harmful because it fragments the self making concentration on one thing difficult or impossible, and this can lead to confusion and loss of conscious control. (I think Cas will certainly explore these things within The Empty. He has been ridden by guilt for many seasons and I believe that he will feel the weight of his past actions even in death. However I think he will get through these and return to earth having done away with the negative emotions and guilt having worked through them all in the empty).’

 It just all makes so much sense having now seen the episode, right? *I flail in happiness*

More under the cut! This got a bit long!

 The Second Bardo - The Karmic Bardo of Becoming

So what else about the second bardo after death? (there are six bardos, but this is the second after death, not second in general in case those with Buddhist background knowledge aren’t sure which I’m referring to). 

Here is a discussion of the bardos which I’ve added my SPN analysis to. The original full page about the second bardo after death can be found in this link if you want to read the full thing. My added analysis is in bold;

-       The bardo of becoming or sipa bardo spans the time between their reawakening and our entering the womb of the next life. The tibetan word sipa, which is translated as "becoming," also means "possibility" and "existence."

-       What takes place now at this stage is a reverse process of dissolution: the winds reappear, and along with them come the thought states connected with ignorance, desire, and anger. Then, because the memory of our past karmic body is still fresh in our mind, we take on a "mental body."

-       Our mental body in the bardo of becoming has a number of special characteristics. It possesses all its senses. It is extremely light, lucid, and mobile, and its awareness is said to be seven times clearer than in life. It is also endowed with a rudimentary kind of clairvoyance, which is not under conscious control, but gives the mental body the ability to read others' minds. At first this mental body will have a form similar to the body of the life just lived, yet it is without any defects and in the prime of life. (Cas’s body in The Empty (I would say) is not an actual body, but rather a mental projection that his consciousness has made. It is interesting here that the body his mind creates is his human vessel’s. Of course this is because production wise, they were never not going to make it so that Misha was playing dead Cas, but regardless, I think there could be an interesting discussion had about Cas’s familiarity for his human body so much so that in death this is his projection. I also think that this point about reading minds is interesting, because The Empty God read Cas’s mind. Personally, I read The Empty God as being a manifestation of Cas’s inner self rather than an actual God, but more on that later).

-       Because the mental body has no physical basis, it can pass through solid barriers such as walls or mountains. The mental body can see through three-dimensional objects. Yet since we lack the father and mother essences of the physical body, we no longer have the light of  sun or moon, but only a dim glow illuminating the space immediately in front of us. (This ability to pass through solid barriers is interesting, because that’s what The Empty God does. Also, this discussion of a dim glow illuminating the space immediately in front of us is legit exactly how they lit The Empty. I had previously (I dunno why) but assumed they’d make the empty a foggy, white, space. But the fact it was all black with light only on Cas and the Empty God makes it even more like the discussions of the bardo)

The Empty God passing through the ‘solid floor’

You can see here (well in all the screenshots) that Cas’s immediate space is the only thing that’s lit

-       Because of the presence of the five elements in its makeup, the mental body seems to us to be solid, and we still feel pangs of hunger. (This is shown in SPN when Cas is hurt, so we see that the mental projection of his body is still subject to pain and physical suffering)

-       In this state mental activity is very rapid: thought come in quick succession, and we can do many things at once. The mind continues to perpetuate set patterns and habits, especially its clinging to experiences, and its belief that they are ultimately real. (Again, we see in SPN that Cas’s mind clings to his past life which is what helps to ground him and bring him back. Also this belief that what he is seeing is real fits in with Cas not realizing that The Empty God was a projection of his inner self).

-       In the bardo of becoming we relive all the experiences of our past life, reviewing minute details long lost to memory, and revisiting places, the masters say, "where we did no more than spit on the ground." At the end of each week there is the trauma of realizing that we are dead and we are compelled to go through the experience of death once again, with all its suffering. If our death was peaceful, that peaceful state of mind is repeated; if it was tormented, however, that torment is repeated too. And remember that this is with a consciousness seven times more intense than that of life, and that in the fleeting period of bardo of becoming, all the negative karma of previous lives is returning, in a fiercely concentrated and deranging way. (This is shown in SPN. I hardly need to point it out, but when Cas was shown all the pain and suffering from his past life, it is obvious that past experiences and karma are being shown to him. Many of the things we saw occur in his flashes of memories were of times when Cas fucked up a bit, like with the leviathans and him thinking he was a new God. These are shown to him because this is the weight of karma he now has after his death. His death was also violent and so this violence is also characterized in The Empty with The Empty God beating him up)

-       Our restless, solitary wandering through the bardo world is as frantic as a nightmare, and just as in a dream, we believe we have a physical body and that we really exist. Yet all the experiences of this bardo arise only from our mind, created by our karma and habits returning. We are swept along relentlessly by the wind of karma, unable to hold on to any ground. The Tibetan Book of the Dead says : "At this time, the great tornado of karma, terrifying, unbearable, whirling fiercely, will drive you from behind." Consumed by fear, blown to and fro like dandelion seeds in the wind, we roam, helpless, through the gloom of the bardo. (Again, this just further solidifies my point that I think that The Empty God and everything Cas experiences in the empty was a manifestation of his inner self)

-       The whole landscape and environment is moulded by our karma, just as the bardo world can be peopled by the nightmarish images of our own delusions. If our habitual conduct in life was positive, our perception and experience in the bardo will be mixed with bliss and happiness, and if our lives were harmful or hurtful to others, our experiences in the bardo will be ones of pain, grief, and fear. (Again, kinda self-explanatory)

-       As our mind is so light, mobile, and vulnerable in the bardo, whatever thoughts arise, good or bad, have tremendous power and influence. Without a physical body to ground us, thoughts actually become reality. The overwhelming power of thought, then, is the key issue in this bardo. This crucial moment finds us completely exposed to whatever habits and tendencies we have allowed to grow and dominate our lives. If we don't check those habits and tendencies now in life, and prevent them from seizing hold of our mind, then in the bardo of becoming we will be their helpless victim, buffeted to and fro by their power. The slightest irritation, for example, in this bardo can have devastating effect, and that is why traditionally the person reading the Tibetan Book of the Dead had to be someone with whom we had a good connection; if not, the very sound of his or her voice could infuriate us, with the most disastrous consequences. (This leads to two points, first is that Cas’s guilt and depression (his need to sleep and do nothing) are the things most prominent in his The Empty experiences and the things characterized by The Empty God. They are the things leading him most into the darkness of The Empty. Also, the second point is that Jack calling out to Cas helps him to awaken his mind to this bardo reality).

-       The shifting and precarious nature of the bardo of becoming can also be the source of many opportunities for liberation, and the susceptibility of mind in this bardo can be turned into our advantage. All we have to do is remember one instruction; all it needs is for one positive thought to spring into our mind. If we can recall any teaching that has inspired us to the nature of mind, if we have even one good inclination toward practice, or a deep connection with a spiritual practice, then that alone can free us. (Ahhhhrrrrrr, so OBVIOUSLY this fits so well. Cas is literally liberated and rebirthed back into the world because he fights his way out and his love for Dean, and for Sam and Jack is what brings him out of their. Also Cas gains a belief and faith in himself which liberated him from the bardo and causes him to be rebirthed. He clings to those good thoughts and fights and that is what saves him).

-       If we are able to invoke or call to mind any enlightened being such as, Buddha, Tara, Guru Rinpoche, Christ or the Virgin Mary, with one pointed devotion and with all our heart, then through the power of their blessing, our mind will be liberated into the space of their wisdom mind. (Rather than calling to mind his faith in a spiritual figure, Cas remembers his faith in the brothers, in love, and in humanity. That helps save him)

-       Different signs begin to appear, warning us of the realm in which we are likely to take rebirth. Lights of various colours shine from the six realms of existence, and we will feel drawn toward one or another, depending on the negative emotion that is predominant in our mind. Once we have been drawn into one of these lights, it is very difficult to turn back. (Cas is trying to be drawn into sleep by The Empty God but reists)

-       Then images and visions will arise, linked to the different realms. As we become familiar with the teachings, we will become more alert to what they really mean. The signs vary slightly according to different teachings. Some say that if we are to be reborn as a god, we will have a vision of entering a heavenly palace with many stories. If we are able to be reborn as a demigod, we will feel we are amidst spinning circular weapons of fire,or going onto a battlefield. If we are able to be reborn as an animal, we find ourself in a cave, a hole in the ground, or a nest made of straw. If we have a vision of a tree stump, a deep forest, or a woven cloth, we are able to be reborn as a hungry ghost. And if we are able to be reborn in hell, we will feel we are being led, powerless, into a black pit, down a black road, into a sombre land with black or red houses, or toward a city of iron.

-       If any of these signs appear, we should be on guard not to fall into any of these unfortunate rebirths. At the same time, we will have an intense desire and longing for certain realms, and are drawn toward them all too instinctively. If our desire is frustrated, the anger that arises will of itself bring the bardo abruptly to an end, as we are swept into our next rebirth by the current of that negative emotion. So, we must take great care not to enter blindly into one of these undesirable realms. Yet what is wonderful is that the moment we become aware of what is happening to us, we can actually begin to influence and change our destiny. (That ending bit of us becoming aware and then being able to influence and change our destiny was just played out superbly in that episode)

 That Last Scene in the Sunlight

At the end of the episode Cas is reborn in the sunlight which goes with all the sunshine Cas meta. But also it fits into Buddhims with him following the light to his next chosen birthplace which is earth again. Cas didn’t want to let go of samsara and wanted to return to earth. This is because he had faith in humanity and the love for humanity and the brothers and Dean was what guided him out of the blackness of the empty and into the light. This love is the light of faith, the faith in himself and Dean and Sam and Jack, and also the light within himself. Within Buddhism the light is the light of the Buddha which guides you out of samsara, but for Cas the light is the light of these loves which guides him back into the arms of the world – reincarnated anew in the same form but stronger. Like Buddhist Masters he walks again on earth reincarnated with a rememberance of his past life. He has grown spiritually from this experience and is a better person because of it. He emerges into the literal light.

Also, what do we hear in the score when Cas wakes up within nature? Only flutes which sound like they are Tibetan flutes! They could be Native American flutes, but those tend to be slightly higher? Idk, but regardless, a very similar flute instrument is used in both Native American and Buddhist music. Here is the scene followed by a video of an amazing Tibetan flute player whose music I love. You will hear for yourselves how they are so very very similar and as soon as I heard that music I was astounded that this rebirth was so linked to Buddhist music which basically confirmed all my meta about The Empty being drawn from Tibetan Buddhist ideas of the bardo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewR4gwyYe6g

(scene where Cas is reborn on earth)

Also, as a side note, Cas appears back on earth by some blackberries which I know have significance in Biblical symbolism as there is one myth where Jesus’ crown on the cross was made from blackberries? Idk, it just seems here that Cas’s rebirth is heavily linked to Buddhist reincarnation, as well as having hints of Jesus’ resurrection.

Sleep, Depression, Mindfulness and Awareness

‘I don’t like being awake!’

‘I like sleep. And I need sleep’

The ancient god just wanted to sleep. For me in a Buddhist sense this brings to mind ideas that we live life and death, and a life of sorts in the bardo with unawareness. We walk through these worlds without recognition of the here and now. Sleep in Buddhism is literally called another bardo. This is why monks train to (what we would call in the West) lucid dream. Because sleep is another conscious state where one should train oneself to stay in a sort of mindful consciousness – aware of one’s sleeping state so that the monkey mind isn’t swayed by distractions and distracted from feeling the here and now. When the deity wants them both to sleep, he wants them both to be distracted and to fall back into the mindless and un-conscious state without focus or purpose or true feeling. Cas didn’t want to sleep, he wanted awareness and this awareness and the ability to fight against a mindlessness and sleep is what gets you out of the liminal space of the bardo.

Jack calls out his name when he is in death, and wakes him up to the realisation that he is in the empty, just like in the Tibetan Death rituals. Cas was asleep and unaware because he wasn’t trained to be able to wake up in The Empty, but someone with great spiritual/supernatural power (Jack) helped him by calling out to him in death and allowing him to recognise where he is.

  Is The Empty God Even Real?

Did The Empty entity really take him out of The Empty? I’m not so sure. I think Cas fought his way out. Jack reached out to him in death and awoke his consciousness into The Empty, much like the mantras read from The Tibetan Book of the Dead are used to call out to the deceased and make them aware of themselves within the bardo to help them get out of samsara and into a better rebirth. Cas chose to fight his way into rebirth on earth, to return to the suffering of the world despite its pain in order to help the brothers – a very bodhisattva act of compassion.

This begs the question of whether The Empty God was even real. If I’m using Buddhism as a way to look at this, I would argue that the God was simply a manifestation of Cas’s inner self and not a literal God described in the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Whilst some read the passages about the Gods and manifestations as literally real, most scholars might agree that these gods seen within the bardo are just inner states manifest. I prefer this interpretation to be honest, with regards to The Empty. It just makes more sense that Cas’s consciousness was flung into this indescribable black empty non-space (which is so like the second bardo after death) and there isn’t really anyone there, but he awakens and has the fervour to fight his way out. The fact that the God could read his mind is cool, but what is cooler is the idea that the God was his mind, that the God wasn’t real, but was something within himself that was telling him to just sleep, to forget, to not be present. The God was a manifestation and exposition of Cas’s inner world. That’s why he looked the same, that’s why he could read his mind, that’s why he was the living embodiment of all the bad karma and guilt and depression Cas had carried with him from his past life. Cas was fighting against himself, he was fighting against his sadness and guilt and the pain and suffering of his past life and he himself fought his way out of The Empty. It’s fun to trivialise this and say that Cas annoyed The Empty God so much that he was flung out of there by him, but The Empty is so linked to the bardo. And the gods in the bardo are manifestations of yourself and so you fight yourself and go into the light by your own volition. Cas was alone, fighting his literal inner demons and he was rebirthed into the light victorious – and isn’t that a much more substantive and positive reading of the whole episode? Idk, I think so!

This also explains why The Empty God couldn't banish him to the far corners of that place, because The Empty God is him and literally can’t get rid of him. He can’t get rid of himself. The Empty God is a projected manifestation with a parasitic hold to Cas’s consciousness and has no power, he only pretends to have power. The Empty God didn’t get Cas back to Earth, Cas fought against his own darkness and followed the light back to earth himself.

‘No regrets. No pain. Kiddo. Save yourself.’

‘I’m already saved’

‘You can remind of my failings. But somehow I’m awake and I will stay awake and I will keep you awake until we both go insane. I will fight you. I will fight you. I will fight you forever. For eternity.’

‘Release me. Release me!’

Here Cas remains awake – in other words he remains what is now commonly referred to as ‘mindful’ – he is present and suddenly jolted out of his mindless unthinking depression and realises that he can be saved.

Conclusion

Anyway, I’ve really been enjoying this whole discussion on Buddhism, I hope it was OK to follow and not just excited flailing from me! Feel free to ask me more about it, and if I don't know the answer to anything Buddhism related I can find out soon for you.

I know a lot has been written on Cas, The Empty God, and Depression which is all amazing great meta. I hope this stuff adds another aspect to that whole discussion - and I say add rather than negate purposefully. 

Anyway, I just love how this all fits together and am still flailing about those Tibetan flutes as music during his reincarnation on earth....... It just makes me feel as though this really is all relevant! And the whole bardo idea that everything that appears to you is a manifestation of your inner self which you fight against in order to find the light is such a positive reading of The Empty and shows that Cas fought against himself and fought into the light rather than just being chucked back onto earth by an ancient God.... it’s just such a better and more positive reading for me personally.