#i’m very protective of this era of the show and i can’t watch this keep happening without saying something to defend it

[demigodofhoolemere]

Okay, I might be making myself a target here, but I don’t like misinformation and I’ve been seeing this frequently now that loads of people are talking about The Celestial Toymaker:

The character is NOT in yellow-face.

They did not alter his skin tone to try to appear Asian. They did nothing to his physical features, such as his eyes, to try to appear Asian. He does nothing with his voice that tries to emulate any kind of accent. His skin, his voice, his everything, is just Michael Gough.

Please compare him to the other white characters:

Same skin color as them. He is clearly not made up to look like anything other than what he is. The only makeup here is stage makeup that you can’t even see.

Now compare to Michael Gough outside of this role:

Exactly the same as he is as the Toymaker.

The only undeniably Asian thing here is his outfit, which certainly isn’t enough to make the claim that he himself was supposed to be. The Toymaker’s entire realm is made up of a variety of things from Earth that he as a godlike alien entity has no connection to.

(As an aside, to cover my bases, I’ve also been hearing that “celestial” was a derogatory term towards Asians and that therefore he must have been meant to be himself and so the entire character is a racist concept, but I doubt the creators were thinking anything besides “otherworldly”, “ethereal”, or “exalted” and so on when they used the word, and if they were, then at the very worst it would be a play on words about his outfit — not his race — that may have been in poor taste, but not malicious. Old things can be outdated and even wrong without bad intent. You’ve got to give people some grace and the benefit of the doubt, especially when they’re not around to defend themselves for being products of their own time.)

If the only concrete thing you have to argue against the character is his clothing, that’s not yellow-face. All it takes is one look at any of his in-color set photos to see what he looks like — although it shouldn’t even be necessary, because in black and white it’s still obvious he’s not been made up to look any different.

TLDR: The Toymaker was not meant to be Asian, and Michael Gough was not in yellow-face.

[chicago-pd-is-weird]

12x01 spoilers

Also are we going to gloss over that Dante got hit by a car and just kept running? I mean, I know it wasn’t hard but damn that shit looked like it hurt. Like my reaction was “oh shit Voight’s gonna feel so guilty” and then Dante kept running and I was like “DAMN DANTE” like man is a beast.

And all that and he still didn’t catch the guy 😭

Then we had to have that entire scene with Ruzek and the lady (idk her name but I guess it doesn’t particularly matter now). And it was a good scene but Adam just standing there with a gun to his head was so stressful.

Like this episode was just… so stressful.

I don’t think I’ve been stressed and anxious like that since literally middle/high school when my anxiety was at its worst. Like that… that was something else, man.

And then the ending. Emojis cannot describe the state of my face when that happened. I mean, my jaw hit the ground so hard it got bruised. I had to crank it closed after a solid 45 seconds of catching flies. I couldn’t move. I was so shocked that she just… died on the spot. I had flashbacks to Jules. I liked both of them and now they’re just dead. First episode they appear. And I loved them both.

I don’t think Adam was actually there for Jules being shot (that’s why they brought him in?) but I’m sure he heard about it at some point from someone in the unit. (Especially when Toni was fighting over who gets to be at Jules’s desk.) But I’m sure he’s like “damn this is how it felt” in his head, because he seemed to be relatively close with this girl and now she’s just… gone. In an instant. A whole era of his life gone. That’s what happens when we lose people. We lose that era of our lives.

Suffice to say, that sucked. I mean, let me be the first to say, it was cinematically excellent. Gripping and intense. Made me feel things. Not boring (I found Med and Fire to be relatively boring last night). Had some very cool camerawork, lighting work, and other scenes. Showing Hank’s PTSD is excellent. Everything was really great cinematically.

Plot wise?

1. Why are we confiding in Nina Chapman??

2. Why did we kill the new detective, I liked her?? 😭 Why did she pull a Jules??

3. It makes me wonder if everything is somehow coming full circle. They used parallels they haven’t used since the early seasons (like Jules being shot and this lady being shot, but also the cinematic rear-view mirror shot, even though it wasn’t exactly the same because Hank was in front, it made me think of Hank beating guys up).

4. Either it’s coming full circle for Hank and we will “start over” with a new Sergeant (please be Adam) , or it feels like it’s ending altogether. Both make me nervous for Hank’s fate, because only way he stops work is if he’s dead frfr.

5. Where was Trudy? Like she was there but why was her only line “I don’t have any new cases for you, enjoy the quiet,” like why was Hank confiding in Chapman? I hate that. Trudy and him have been friends 30 something years. Maybe he’s trying to protect himself and/or her by keeping her at arms length, idk, but it’s BS that he confided in Nina and not Trudy or Adam (who has become the new Al). I just can’t understand it and I don’t like Nina at all. She comes off very mouthy when Hank is trying to tell her about his trauma. She thinks she knows everything about him and she knows next to nothing. She hasn’t been here that long. Trudy knows Hank 100x more, which is why I’m wondering why Trudy didn’t do anything to reach out to Hank during this time instead. :/

6. The last thing I’ll say on plot is it moved so quick. And I am wondering if this entire season will feel like a rush. I wonder what is in store and what will happen to our beloved officers and sergeants (we need more Trudy screen time!!).

I’m sure I’ll have more thoughts later, but just thinking about it this morning is like… ugh. I’ll re-watch it later.

[broken-clover]

OKAY!! kydizzy with clinging!! the sweethearts deserve a bit of desperate contact methinks

Unfortunately I took 'desperate' and probably took it in the wrong direction. Uh, apologies if you wanted this to be fluffy, I guess it sort of is in a way, just not the usual. I'm digging up the pre-overture era stuff because that offers so much for protective Dizzy

-

Leo had come back with nothing to show for it but a heavily bleeding arm, prompting panic among the people who had been waiting for him.

“Y-your majesty?” One of the castle staff covered their mouth in horror. “Good lord, what happened?”

Daryl quickly intervened, trying to keep the peace. “Someone will escort you to the infirmary immediately in order to stop the bleeding.”

“Gah, of course, of course, Daryl, I’m not so thickheaded that I would just let this bleed.” Leo huffed back at him.

“...I take it that your discussion didn’t get very far?”

He hung his head. “She won’t listen. I tried to explain, but either she can’t understand like this, or she just doesn’t want to hear it.”

“Your majesties, will we be moving on to firepower as an option?”

”Absolutely not.” Daryl immediately shut the man down. “Barring any concern we may have for it also harming the First King, it is likely that it will only aggravate her further.”

Someone in the back muttered to themself. “This is what we get for having a Gear as a queen.”

“Pardon?” Said Leo, looking for the individual among the group. “Would someone like to say that louder for us?”

Daryl shook his head. “Leo, don’t. Focus on yourself right now. Ellsworth, escort King Leo so he may receive some kind of medical treatment before he passes out.”

“Yessir.”

“For now,” he turned back to the rest. “I will attempt diplomacy of my own accord. No disrespect to my colleague, but I feel I could offer a more careful form of negotiation. We all want the same thing, after all.”

Several of them looked hesitant, but nobody could bring themselves to contradict the remaining king. They only watched as he headed down the same hallway that Leo had returned from, breath held in the hopes that this time wouldn’t involve more bloodshed.

Daryl was always good at putting on a stoic front. That wasn’t to say he was frightened, but negotiations with Gears wasn’t something richly illustrated in the history of debate. This wasn’t quite a hostage situation, but it wasn’t much of a pleasant chat, either. He simply hoped it would be over fast.

The castle started to show its damage as soon as he rounded the corner. Nobody had been able to remove the door yet, so it remained firmly lodged in the wall opposite of where it should have been. The remaining doorframe jutted out like a splintery flower. It had all been pushed back by one strong blow, and the carpet was scorched, decorated with a hearty blood spatter. 

However, Daryl never thought he would say it, but the horrible mess would have to go ignored for now. He did his best to give off the air of politeness and calm, and stepped into the doorway.

“Miss Dizzy?

In the darkness, a pair of scarlet lights snapped to face him. A shiver ran down his spine. He tried to stifle it. 

“We have spoken before. I am Third Ki-”

A spike of ice soared past his head, missing by little more than an inch. While he winced, Daryl realized it had been intentional. A warning shot. Just speaking to her had been enough to get that response. This was worse than he had thought.

Ky was still passed out in her arms, shivering and pale. When he stopped to look, it was obvious now- the thinness, the shaking, the vigor vanishing from his body- of course, nobody had thought to care until Dizzy decided that they were going to, and very quickly. That was the funniest part of this whole thing, if he could dare to call any of it funny. Despite the half-mad bioweapon he was currently in the hands of, Ky wasn’t in any sort of danger whatsoever. She had made that very clear. Dizzy was protecting him from everyone else.

Daryl reminded himself of that. Dizzy wasn’t a monster to be subdued, he was supposed to be there to coax a truce.

“I’m sorry,” he ventured, careful but pleased to see her not immediately go on the offensive again. “We all are. Truly, so very sorry. We want to help him. We can’t give him the help he needs here. If you let us bring him to-”

He was cut off by a sharp, catlike hiss. “YOUR FAULT.” Her pupils narrowed further into slits. “IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT.

He nodded. “I know. We made a terrible mistake. I understand that now. You have helped us to understand. Please, let us do what is right now.”

“NOBODY ELSE WILL PROTECT HIM. I WILL. I MUST.” Her tail lashed at the air, showing off its razor teeth. What he had thought was a shadow at first was a dark stain on otherwise-immaculate white. Daryl knew it could extend, but he wasn’t sure by how much. He could never assume full safety here.

“I know.” He said again. “You just want what’s best for him. I admire that. I want to help him, too.”

Dizzy stared him down, teeth gritted. Now there were two separate sets bared in his direction. “NO. NO YOU DON��T. YOU NEVER DID.”

“Miss Dizzy-”

“DON’T LIE TO ME!” She roared, the walls shaking from the force. “LEAVE BEFORE I MAKE YOU!”

This was treading on very thin ice now. Daryl didn’t want to throw in the towel just yet. “You can’t even consider?”

“NOBODY ELSE WILL HELP HIM. LEAVE.”

Her long tail lashed out at him, forcing a retreat. He squeezed out into the relative safety of the hallway, looking himself over for wounds he may not have noticed. Dizzy hadn’t left a scratch.

A complete and utter failure. He hadn’t gotten anywhere with her. Maybe he hadn’t deserved to. For all her inelegant rambling, she hadn’t been especially wrong.

After waiting several minutes, Daryl hesitantly peered into the room. He expected Dizzy would attack him properly as soon as she saw his face again, but she didn’t even look up. Through the low light, he could see her carefully wrapping Ky up in a quilt, butting their foreheads together and clinging onto him tightly. If he strained his ears, he swore he could make out a soft, sniffling humming.

[leejenowrld]

hiii soph!! it’s been a while since i’ve sent an ask or even interacted with you and IVE MISSED IT SO BAD. i have been super busy lately but i just wanted to send an ask and just talk about excited i am for bty adult era. not just for jeno and y/n but for the relationships/ friendships that must have evolved throughout the 4 years (i think it was??? I don’t remember lol) like I can’t wait to see karina and y/n’s relationship and obviously my favs mark and y/n.

but obviously addressing the big elephant in the room…. jeno… man for someone that I loved so dearly during the first part he is truly the most moody insufferable character ever; but you just can’t hate him because he truly has a reason for everything so it’s hard to fully hate him as you just know he is hiding something and it’s SOOOO ANNOYING SOPH I CANNOT.

but i also know that jeno is a very emotional person even though he tries so hard to hide it and that just makes me so excited to see him feel so hard for y/n again (and hopefully fall back in love— that’s not saying he ever did fall out of it).

and of course my girl y/n. i think i will forever love her no matter what she goes through. she just such a calculated smart girl and i just can’t wait to see how she developed and her hatred towards jeno (#veryexcited i just wanna see her slap tf out of him!) also her singing career; this is something that interests me so bad. i just want y/n to be a popstar… she deserves that so bad. WELL! i guess this is just something that im gonna have to wait and see what happens 🫠

i love u soph and i hope you’re doing good and ill make sure to stay in touch more often because I’ve missed this so bad 🤍

hi angel, i’m so sorry this response took a while. i’ve been slowly making my way through all the messages i’ve received post-chapter 7 and every single one means the world, especially ones like this that are filled with such love, warmth, and care. it’s so good to hear from you again, i missed you too!

now about everything you said… first of all, you have no idea how excited i am to show you what’s to come in the adult era of ‘back to you.’ you’re absolutely right — it’s been four years, and every single friendship has changed in some way. some got stronger. some are strained. some were tested. and some may not have survived at all. and yes… karina and y/n’s dynamic in particular is one that has a whole arc of its own. they’re both so sharp and commanding in completely different ways, and now that they’re no longer in the same spaces every day, it’s fascinating to see how they’ve drifted or evolved. and mark and y/n — as always — remain one of my deepest, most emotionally rich pairings in the entire fic. you’ll see how they grew through their own wounds, and how that affected their bond, even if they’ve always remained each other’s anchors.

and now… jeno.

i hear you. i really do. i know it’s frustrating — the silence, the moodiness, the layered contradictions in how he acts around y/n, especially after everything they’ve already been through. i understand how hard it is to watch someone you loved — as a character, as a romantic lead — come back colder, quieter, more fractured. but here’s the thing: jeno isn’t just sulking in heartbreak. he’s someone who learned very early on that silence can protect you. that stillness can be mistaken for control. that if he doesn’t say it out loud, maybe it won’t become real. so much of the adult timeline is about why he’s like this — what happened in those years that hardened him, what buried the softness we once saw, and why he still unravels around y/n no matter how hard he tries not to.

jeno doesn’t hate y/n. he never has. he might have tried to convince himself he did. he might still be trying. but hate isn’t what you feel when you tense up at the sound of someone’s voice. it’s not what knots in your throat when someone calls you by the name you miss the most. and it’s definitely not what keeps you from looking them in the eye because you’re scared you’ll give too much away. the truth is, jeno’s entire adult identity was built in the aftermath of her — his success, his career, his public image — all of it was born from that void. and he knows it.

and yet… since part eight is now out, i’ll say this much — you will see the beginnings of a shift in him. something gentler. something aware. he’s still flawed, still learning, but that version of jeno you remember from college? the one who only knew how to chase or retreat? he’s slowly dissolving. part eight is the start of him becoming someone new, someone worthy of the person he once loved and still can’t forget. and whether or not he gets a second chance… he’s finally beginning to realise he has to be better. for himself. not just for her.

as for y/n… i love that you want her to slap him. i think she’d probably love that too. but what’s more powerful is seeing how she chooses not to. she doesn’t need to scream to make him hurt. she’s become everything he thought he had the time to hold onto. her success, her silence, her refusal to crumble — it’s all a louder statement than any confrontation could be. and whether she gets to be a popstar or not… she’s always going to have a stage. she’ll always know how to make herself heard.

thank you for this beautiful message, and for being such a kind, loyal reader. i’m so glad you’re back in my inbox, and i can’t wait to take you through this next era. i love you too. more than you know. stay close. there’s so much more to feel.

[queers-gambit]

SEMI-SPOILERS FOR TED LASSO (proceed with caution ⛔️):

HEY BESTIE 👋 just wanted to lyk that I am about to watch the last epi of season 2 and wow… emotions and alliances r entirely flipped. That Roy and Jamie hug 🫂 🥹 #wrecked. Nate being the villain… saw it coming but disappointed either way ☹️ LIKE FIRST U DOING THAT TO THE BALL BOY (sorry idk his name but basically the one who replaced his former position) AND NOW U GONNA BACKSTAB TED BY BEING A BLABBERMOUTH LIKE TF BRO 👊. Glad we were able to see the other side of Ted and his past through his friendship with Dr. Sharon 🤝 it was very much needed to see this emotional side of Ted as he would’ve been a 2D character without it (would’ve love him either way tho). I had seen a clip of Rebecca and Sam on YouTube Shorts one day and that’s what actually pushed me to watch Ted Lasso, I for one would’ve rooted for them. Ofc Rupert’s age gap with the women he’s cheated with is always going to be an ick (and any other man who does it like him 🤢) but the way S+R ‘met’ is different and I gotta say that I love age gap relationship where it’s an older woman and younger man (age appropriate), idk I just feel that there’s more love there. And lastly (what I ran to tumblr to ask u about), Roy and Keely… during that photo shoot, my heart stopped and I was so sad for Keely when Roy said he spent 3 hrs with that teacher and didn’t say he was in a relationship and just denied being married. The two things Keely told him weren’t even her fault, it was men that had done/said things to her but Roy’s was a conscious choice to stay that long and omit that information 😞. I spoiled it for myself so ik what their future is gonna turn out like but it still hurts watching it in the process :(. I have a request for that particular scene (I’ve also been replaying it over in my head as if I were Keely) if u could make a fic where reader and Roy may have had their ups and downs but r still a strong couple then this scene happens and reader is slowly pulling away cuz tho they were being honest with each other, in readers mind it feels like the beginning of the end (CUZ LIKE WHAT DO U MEAN U SPENT 3 HRS WILLINGLY WITH THIS WOMAN?!? WOULD HE HAVE SAID ANYTHING IF KEELY DIDNT SAY ANYTHING ABOUT NATE? Cuz it’s not like he cheated but that seems like an intimate thing to be doing seemingly with a stranger yk.) and in Roy’s he realizes he fucked up and tries to make it better. Pls have a happy ending 🥺 I’m fragile and can’t take pure angst especially when it surrounds my Roy 😪. Love u boo, talk soon XOXO - 🤠

hey, baby! welcome back!

Jamie's redemption arc is so good. he and Roy tickle something in my soul, love me a good enemies to besties pipeline. there's a few S3 moments that will make your heart burst - in a good way.

i like the way they introduce Nate's villain era; where the moment he becomes a coach, he gets a little too big for his britches. but i think it also does a great job of tapping into toxic masculinity; where Nate's new position of power influences him to "be like other men" almost in an effort to warrant respect and keep what he just obtained. he's finally on top after enduring years of disrespect and bullying; like a power-high. still a lil bitch for publicly running his mouth about someone's mental state.

new kitman: Will, a precious bean we will protect.

i fucking love Dr. Sharon. and love the way we're seeing behind Ted's mask - 'cause ain't no way someone's just THAT genuine all the time. in S3, we get a little more of Ted's background and dynamics; Jason knocks it outta the park. i appreciate learning why he is the way he is, left me admiring his strength, resilience, and dedication to remain so optimistic. 'cause it's a choice, you see? i wanna be Ted Lasso when i grow up 😂

Sam's the best. Rebecca's the best. they're the best. their little love story is so cute and authentic; "right person, wrong time" trope. and when they both show up at that bar? and the dots connect? fucking adorable! love me a good appropriate age gap, especially for two people who deserve to be loved. once more: fuck Rupert.

mhm mhm mhm. the thing is, i understand both sides. where to Roy, there was no use in telling Keeley about harmless flirting 'cause it's just words / energy - no action. it's not like he's giving the teacher the green light in any shape or form; but i will acknowledge he didn't exactly give her the red light, either. it showcases his reluctance to process emotions and communicate effectively. but for Keeley, who's very open and emotionally intelligent, there was an actual physical altercation - which is grounds for telling your partner. it was NOT her fault, you're right, but it was still something that Roy should know directly from her. probably not the BEST place to admit those things, but hey, there's never a "right time" for that kinda conversation. all i can say is: communication is key.

frustrated the FUCK outta me, though. fuck you mean you're just unmarried? bitch, you're still taken; just not legally. c'mon, Roy, match the energy!

okay, so, do me a favor, please. send me your request again in a separate message; it'll get buried in my timeline and i'll more than likely forget you even requested if not in my inbox. you know?

thank you so very kindly. enjoy season three - i'm excited for you to get to Beard's background episode!!

i look forward to your next update!!

all my love 🖤

[secretagentspydetectiveninja]

i've watched everything except the last two episodes now. i'm almost... afraid to? i know that the end of this season is essentially the end of this era of miraculous -- that even if the show continues beyond this point, it'll be different from how it was before. this, here, is the END. i've been watching for 8 years at this point. in a way i don't feel ready, even if i haven't thought about this show much recently. i've been here so long it'll always have a place in my heart. i can't believe it's "over".

i'll watch the final two episodes after dinner and scream about those later. until then i've put all my liveblogging (aka incoherent reactions) under the cut

intuition: YOOOOOOO NEW ROBOT IN MAX’S FAMILY?? YESSSS!!! there were a lot of parallels to the episode where markov got akumatised, which was awesome! and it was great to see claudie again! (on a slightly more depressing note, a relative of mine passed away from cancer just last night and although it wasn’t a super close relative or anything, seeing the effect of the cataclysm on gabriel and how he and nathalie know they don’t have long to live as it gets progressively worse, it sort of... hit a bit close to home at times... i’m alright though, don’t worry, like i said it wasn’t a close relative) in other news, marinette and adrien’s relationship continues to be adorable

protection: i was going to say “kagami needs a freaking hug” but she did get a double hug at the end, which was sweet! it hurts to see someone like her, unused to showing strong emotions and having relationships, suffering so much from being in a tough situation on top of being manipulated by lila, god this poor girl. (marinette and adrien’s relationship is still adorable but rather cheesy at times, especially with marc and nath trying to make it like a shoujo manga kjhksfjhsjkfhgk and i find myself going “I CAN’T WATCH THIS” with more frequency, but that just might be me and my romance repulsion lmao) (also strong ot3 vibes with kagami)

adoration: ZOE IS IN LOVE WITH MARINETTE THIS IS NOT A DRILL!!!!!! i freaking knew it!! all the way through the episode i kept thinking “marinette girl omg it’s YOU she’s in love with smh” and i was right!!! that was pretty cute! and i’m proud of marinette for managing to tell adrien “je t’aime”, but that ending oh my god... gabriel doing the senti-control thing to his son... (well i’m presuming adrien is a senti, it’s not fully confirmed yet)... that was haunting. i also feel bad for both chloe and sabrina from a writing perspective because i do still miss chloe’s redemption arc from season 2, it really feels like they just dropped that in order to make zoe look better by comparison, and sabrina just can’t get a break no matter what. ah well, whatever... other things: in the rain playing at the end of the episode yeeted me back into origins for a sec, i can’t believe they’re still letting nino be part of kitty section even though he can’t play the guitar, kitty section merch in general, i didn’t realise marc and zoe were in the year below marinette

emotion: gobsmacked... sobbing. that was a work of art. from the colours and lighting, to the symbolism, the callbacks, the felix reveal... everything. my god. what the hell. felix crying almost made me cry. the way he called the blood moon his little sister and showed so much pain when destroying it -- after all, he too is a senti, he knows how it feels to be one. all he ever wanted was to be free!! he wanted to help adrien!! he’s horrified by the lengths he himself went to, he breaks down into tears skjamn nkbgksbergnse jrgluiesrgkjaebrltgekrjtbajerbgj aauuguuuuuuuuguughhghhghhHJHKJDFHJS

pretention: and it just keeps going?? first the epic roast battle between gabriel and marinette where marinette basically slam dunked him and it was epic, and then.. f-feligami? you know what, i think i’m here for it actually, it’s chaotic and felix has no idea how to do anything in a normal way and it’s very crunchy and interesting. and the stuff he said!! so kagami is a senti too? or did he just mean metaphorically, since she’s under her mother’s control? (yeah i’m not calling them “sentimonsters” anymore, it feels cruel... just “senti” now) anyway my god this show is fantastic. also i love how “we’re sending you to LONDON” is considered such a threat lmao like yeah as a londoner it just be like that

revelation: SKDJGHKJDFHA;HDFK??

confrontation: yes sabrina!!! you go girl!!! i hope her newfound courage sticks, at least. and then there’s lila... what on earth are we going to do with you? she really just disguises herself and keeps on lying...

collusion: that was extremely french, i can feel the revolution coming... *checks episode list* oh yeah, the next episode is literally called revolution, that makes sense. also omg ms bustier has a wife?? and she’s awesome! i love how far things have come in terms of censorship when you consider how it was several years ago

revolution: HELLO EXCUSE ME???? here i was thinking “ah yes this is Very French, of course there’s a revolution, and ooh nice they grew up a bit and can use their powers continuously now, and--” only for the end of the episode to absolutely slam me with the feeLS WHAT THE HECK, THEY KISSED AND THERE WAS THAT DRAMATIC MUSIC AND ADRIEN HAS HALF OF THE BRACELET AND CHLOE IS SOBBING BECAUSE SHE’S LOST EVERYTHING AND MIGHT FINALLY REPENT AND OOHHSDHGSK KMY GO DS KRJHSKRJNS

representation: two seconds in and i’m already laughing SO HARD at the “BBD” news presenter taking a sip of tea and then saying “god save the king” before starting the news what the fuck i’m laughindfjks aso hard no you don’t understand, i’m english so this is extra funny rksjfgksemOKAY anyway now to watch the rest of the episode...

(two seconds later) NO WAIT I’M NOT DONE YET OMG PLAGG WITH THE BRITISH CHEES.E PLAGG WENT TO TESCO OH Y GDODS HE REALLY WENT TO TESCO I’M DYINGGGGG PLAGG WENT TO TESCO IS CANON NOW HE WENT TO TESCOOOOOO YOOOOOOOOOO

(another two seconds) wait so kagami also knew that marinette is ladybug? did i forget about that or had they not shown it? i knew that luka knew, but.. oH and marc and nath were gonna kiss and marinette interrupted them omg hahahahsbdjfsfjgsk ah well i need to stop stopping every two seconds now don’t i

(finished watching the episode) another work of art. chat noir’s nightmare is just chat blanc. his fight with his father. felix’s backstory. marinette’s pain. too many thoughts, no words... *lying on the floor gasping for air*

i'll the last two once i've eaten dinner bc i'm dying scoob

i really have to catch up on miraculous, don’t i? every second post i see is tagged “ml spoilers” so i can’t look at it but from the sounds of it things have been wild

[angrythingstarlight]

Friday Night Dates

Summary: Bucky wants to ask you eight simple words. “Will you go out with me on Friday?”  He’s hoping you’ll say yes. But first he has to protect you from the creep in booth 7. 

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

Warnings: Language, mild/very brief harassment (not by Bucky), possible spoilers maybe but nothing revealed plotwise. 

A/N: Requested by @lookiamtrying. Her prompt is in bold. 

 𝘉𝘦𝘵𝘢’𝘥 by the wonderful @sweetkingdomstarlight-blog​ but any and 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯

𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘳𝘦𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 (𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵)

Do not copy, rewrite, translate or post my work anywhere. No permission given to copy, translate, rewrite or post any parts of my stories.  

Check out my Masterlist and Taglist! Requests are closed 

Of all the things to be worried about, he never envisioned asking you out would be one of them. He’s overcome so much since he returned from the blip, progressed more than anyone expected. So why can’t he make himself go into this diner and ask you one simple question, eight words. The worst that can happen is that you’ll say no and he’ll hide away in his apartment and binge on ice cream for a week. 

Bucky wipes his right hand off on his black jeans. People flowing around him while he puts his glove back on. The steady thrum of the city-vendors shouting, cars honking, conversations mashed together- fading to a buzz as he concentrates on his plan. Go in, smile like a regular person, ask her out without being weird.

“Hi, Bucky,” 

He looks up, recognizing Yori’s voice floating down from his open window. Shielding his eyes from the afternoon sun, he finds his friend waving to him. “Hey” 

“Good luck and don’t come back without her number,” he shouts loud enough that people gawk as they walk around him. Bucky tucks his cap down, a deep flush sweeping across his cheeks. “Or I’ll get it myself,” he threatens, shaking his small fist at Bucky. 

“Alright, alright,” Bucky holds his hands up, “I’m going.” 

Yori nods in approval before slamming his window shut, Bucky chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck. “I need to make more friends,” he mutters to himself.

If all goes well, you might be more than a friend. He’s been out of practice for so long, he’s been relying on Yori and some interesting google searches to learn how to talk to a woman from this era. Even his therapist gave him some tips, much to his horror. 

Push comes to shove, he’s going to ask Sam. Please don’t let push come to shove. 

He used to be good at this. He wants to be good at this again, for you. And for himself. He may not have all his former moves or the confidence of his 1940s self, but this Bucky, the one in the century, he’s going to do his best. His road to recovery progressing faster than he expected. A few more names crossed off his list each month, returning a few more calls from Sam each week. 

And he’s making headway on his other list. 

A personal list that only he knows about. The folded sheet of paper he keeps in his right pocket. Just a few things he wants to do on his own in order to feel like his old self again. Cut his hair, practice cooking something other than fried eggs, figure out why the pictures on dating sites are so weird, and ask the pretty waitress out on a date. 

Today. Ask her out today. That last bit, he underlined and circled a dozen times. 

His hand rests on the door handle and he watches you walk around the near-empty diner. Yuri made him show up around 10 am after insisting that he would do better if he talked to you before the lunch rush. 

His heart is hammering so hard in his chest, he can almost hear it. Now or never, Barnes. He takes a deep breath in and pushes open the door. The small bell signaling his arrival is louder than he remembered, his breath rushing out when he sees you. 

And you smile at him. A warm, inviting lift of your lips, your eyes crinkling from it. He could bask in the glow of your smile, a chance to hover in your orbit more than he could ever hope for. 

“Back again, Buck,” you scrunch your nose at him, your tone soothing, lovely, he could listen to you talk all day about anything. “take a seat and I’ll be right over.” 

Bucky gives you a quick grin, hoping it doesn’t look as awkward as it feels. “Thanks, doll,” he cringes instantaneously, the endearment coming from some awakening part of his mind, the part of him that dreams about you, hoping you’ll be his someday. He stops mid-step to look down at his boots. “I-, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.” 

You pick up a menu off of the counter, wiping the coffee stain off it with your rag, contemplating him for a few seconds, taking in the skittish way he taps his leg with his left hand, “I don’t mind if I’m being honest.”

You don’t, at least when it comes from him, you know he’s not being degrading, his old fashion mannerisms are endearing. “It’s better than what he calls me,” you mutter under your breath. “Really, it’s okay, Bucky,” you assure him, gesturing for him to sit.  

Bucky nods at you, resuming his short trek. He heard that whispered remark, his eyes snapping around the diner, quickly searching for whoever insulted you. His gaze lands on a seedy man in the corner, his comb-over failing to hide his bald spot, beady eyes following you around the cramped space. 

Bypassing his usual booth, Bucky sits in the one right across from him. He rests his back on the worn blue vinyl seat, strumming his fingers on the table, the soft leather gloves muting the taps. He keeps a watchful eye on the man while you walk by. His vibranium hand clenching into a tight fist when the man ogles you. 

“Hey sweet cheeks, I need a refill,” he whistles, shaking his half-empty glass. 

You roll your eyes, turning back with a tight-lipped smile, “I’ll be right there,” you hissed through your teeth. 

“Yeah, hurry up, I ain’t got all day, sweetie,” he clucks, rubbing his nose with the back of his hand, “and watch your tone girl before I make you earn your tip the hard way.” 

You turn on your heel, listing all the ways you could hurt him without getting fired. Stopping in front of Bucky, you take a deep breath, willing yourself to relax. Shyly glancing at his clear blue eyes, you smile down at him, “you want the usual?” 

Bucky returns your smile with a soft grin of his own, your heart stuttering in your chest. You’ll never get used to how handsome he is, today even more so with a hint of a beard on his cheekbones. “Yeah, and take your time, I’m not going anywhere.” 

“I’ll be back with your coffee.”

Quickly putting your pad back in your apron before tucking your pen behind your ear, you saunter away, thinking about his eyes. You memorized his order after the second time he showed up.

You memorized a lot of things about the quiet man with a dazzling smile. He always faces the door, he waits until Yuri starts eating before picking up his own fork; he stacks all of his dishes up neatly, placing his tip under his cup. 

He likes his gloves, no matter how warm it is outside. Bucky only removes them when he comes in late at night when it’s just the two of you, some regulars in the back, and the cook. He started doing that a few weeks ago when you casually mentioned that you knew who he was and if it was too warm in here, he could take off the gloves. 

That look he gave you, surprise, relief, and something you couldn’t quite identify, stuck with you for days, each time you thought about it, your stomach dropped. You finally understood what people meant when they talking about having butterflies and whatnot. 

Your favorite thing is how he smiles, at first it’s as if he’s not sure he’s doing it right. Almost a pained grinned, then after a while, it gets more natural, wider, a genuine gesture that reaches his eyes.

You can’t lie to yourself, you thought about how his lips would taste, how he might kiss you, coffee tinged and sweet. You’re constantly telling yourself to stop staring at his lips when he speaks.

Another reason you’re glad you know his order, because sometimes you lose yourself in those lips and don't hear a word he said.

You stroll to the kitchen, placing his order. You pour his coffee, black with two sugars, and grab table 7s diet coke. Balancing the cups in your hands, you place Bucky’s mug in front of him; he has one hand out, his bare fingers brushing against yours, a spark of electricity running up your arm. 

“Thank you,” he says appreciatively, his grin a little wider this time. 

Your cheeks burn as you mumble your thanks, closing your eyes in embarrassment, “I mean you're welcome, uh, yeah welcome, not thank you cause you already said that, you know what I’m going to-” you stutter out, turning away. “Smooth, so cool.” 

Bucky pulls his bottom lip between his teeth, inhaling the sharp scent of his coffee to hide his amusement. He likes you flustered, it’s kinda fair because he’s been off balance since you said his name. 

You drop the diet coke off at table 7, not making eye contact with him. “Anything else, or can I get your check?” you ask monotonously, staring at the cat-shaped stain on the end of the table. 

It’s rare that you get a creep in your section, so when you do it always takes you off guard. The man scoots to the end of the booth, his clammy hand darting up your skirt, palming your panty-clad butt. “I’ll take the check after you earn your tip sweet cheeks,” he sneers. 

You try to jump back but he pinches your skin, his other hand grabbing your wrist before you can slap him. “Get off of me!” you shriek, you kick his leg under the table, your other hand scratching his arm. 

Bucky sets his cup, rises out of the booth. “Let. Her. Go. Now.” his voice calm, deadly and authoritative. You and the man freeze, you push him away, slapping him across the face when he releases you. His face turns bright red, your handprint forming on his cheek. 

Bucky steps between you, ignoring the indignant shouting behind him, he pushes your chin up with his fingertips, “are you okay?” he asks, his eyes searching your face. 

You shrug, blinking away angry tears. “Yeah thank you,” you whisper. 

“You stupid bitch, you hit me! I want your manager now!” 

Bucky grins at you, “Go to the back and come out in five minutes, okay?” 

When the man lunges for you, Bucky forces him back down without so much as a glance in his direction. The display of strength is astonishing, you don’t realize your mouth fell open until he pushes your jaw closed, “just five minutes, doll,” he winks. 

You share an understanding; the hint of anger in his deep blue eyes fascinates you, anger on your behalf, yet his touch is so tender. Without another word, you scamper to the back, holding your hand over your mouth as you listen through the door. The mans’ vulgar shouting suddenly cut off and you hear nothing after that. Time passes slowly, you stare at the clock on the wall and wait. 

After five minutes, you peek your head out of the door. The diner is empty, quiet except for the quiet sizzle of the grill from the kitchen. 

You stroll to his booth, stopping when you see Bucky drinking his coffee, scrolling through his flip phone. Glancing over your shoulder, you see the creep’s plates are stacked up near the edge of the table, a very hefty tip under his full cup. 

You look back at Bucky who’s gazing up at you, his face relaxed, both gloves off, draped over his thigh, his metal arm reflecting the harsh fluorescent lighting. “What did you do?” you ask, more of out of curiosity than concern for the creep, “how badly did you hurt him?” 

Bucky places his hand on his chest, his affronted looking making you giggle, “Me? Hurt.  What’s his face? Of course not, doll.” His eyes widen when you tilt your head in disbelief, “look at my face, I wouldn’t hurt a fly.” 

“If you say so,” you chuckle, without thinking you place a kiss on his cheek with a quiet thanks. 

Hearing the cook announce his orders ready, you pull away, smoothing your hands down your apron. “I should go get that.”  

Bucky gingerly touches his face, muttering now or never. “Hey if you’re free tonight, would you want to go on a date?”

Before he’s done asking you, your mouth is already moving. 

“Yeah, I’d like that,” you remark, not that least bit ashamed by how quickly you respond. You saunter away from the table, planning what you’re going to wear. Bucky has had his outfit ready and hanging in his closet for the past month. 

When you bring his food, you join him, stealing his fries and talking until you get another customer.

By the time Bucky leaves, he has 11 numbers in his phone. A date for this Friday and a story for Yori. 

[amethystroselily]

I reread chapter 4 of bsd, and I noticed the reason that Akutagawa slapped Higuchi is because she tried to kill Atsushi despite the fact that the orders were to take him alive. And I was like that kind of makes him a hypocrite bc he tries to kill him like five seconds later, but then I noticed the reason he even attempted to kill Atsushi is because he was about to attack Higuchi. And I think that’s kind of interesting. (I somehow never noticed either of those things before, despite having watched/read that scene at least seven times before. Idk.)

Anyways I originally didn’t have anything else to really say about that, but that’s very much a reflection of his relationship with Dazai isn’t it? Because that’s the thing that pissed Dazai off in the dark era. Killing people instead of keeping them alive when that would be more profitable.

Also I do think Akutagawa cares about Higuchi to some extent. He’s harsh with her but he also protects her. I wonder if that’s how he views his own relationship with Dazai. Dazai waged near constant psychological warfare against him, but he also took him off the streets and gave him a job and a reason to live. And also probably gave him and his sister protection in the mafia. A level of safety they’d never otherwise have. As long as he was useful nothing bad would happen to them. And as horribly as he was treated I think he’s grateful for that. And he tries to show that same kindness to the people in his care. He wants them to be stronger, he wants them to be able to fend for themselves and have a reason to keep living. Higuchi is thankful (albeit probably for a different reason than Akutagawa himself was), and it’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to Kyouka.

*insert Kyouka interlude which ended up longer than I expected and kind of throws the pacing of this post off*

(The reason it was so horrible for Kyouka but an improvement for Akutagawa is probably because she came from a happy family with parents who loved her more than anything and then witnessed them die and was taken in by a group of people who treated her horribly and forced her to kill, whereas Akutagawa grew up starving on the streets, all of the adults he interacted with were hostile, and he already had to kill to survive. When he entered the mafia, he was offered money, and food, and shelter, and protection. All sorts of base needs and comforts he’d never really had before.

Also Dazai is smarter and more self aware than Akutagawa and a lot better at manipulation, so he realizes different people react differently to things depending on their experiences. And i think that’s the problem, Akutagawa is using manipulation tactics without fully understanding how they work (or maybe even that it is manipulation honestly? Like obviously he knows, but he doesn’t know, you know?) or when to use them. He’s kind of just copying Dazai. Because sometimes he’s just straight up quoting Dazai when he says horrible shit to people. I think Dazai and Akutagawa both thought that this was for the best, but Dazai’s actions were tailored for specifically Akutagawa to get him to do specific things. Whereas Akutagawa just kind of sees it as “this worked for me, it should work for her”. Also he just doesn’t doesn’t have some grand secret thousand step plan set out for her like Dazai has for him. I think they both see the abuse as ultimately helpful, but Dazai in a much more round about way. (Kind of like the headmaster, but instead of wanting Akutagawa to hate him he still needs him to cling onto him because Dazai still has plans he needs to use Akutagawa for, so can’t really let him off the hook). (Of course they’re both wrong, it’s an objectively fucked up thing to do to a person, they’re both selfish and probably taking out their own self hatred out on some random kid they decided to project onto to some extent, and Akutagawa’s a little delusional, but I’m not here to debate the morality of their actions bc that gets so repetitive and I think I stopped caring like three years ago, and it’s kind of besides the point of this post.)

*Done*

ANYWAYS, back to Higuchi. Despite how harsh Akutagawa is with her, I do think he’s showing her care as his subordinate. He goes against orders to protect her (also, I’m pretty sure the reason he killed those people Dazai was mad about in the dark era was bc he was protecting his coworkers, and I think that’s really interesting) and he thanks her when she returns the favor when he gets kidnapped even though you wouldn’t think he’d be the type to do so. While I don’t think he’ll ever return her romantic affections, he doesn’t hate her, and honestly she might be one of the people he cares about most, considering the pool of people he cares about is seemingly so small. He’s terrible to her, but he probably wants the best for her on some level.

I wonder if Dazai views their relationship the same way. Or if he’s treating her the way he wishes Dazai treated him. (Bc I don’t think Akutagawa saw the harsh treatment as that bad (it’s the mafia), I think he just wishes he’d toned it down slightly.) Because I could see it either way. Like, Dazai probably really did offer him protection within the mafia. But he was probably on his own when it came to enemies. But then again, Dazai was probably still watching out for him to some extent.

It’s makes me wonder if both pairs ever had good moments. Like calm moments that weren’t violent. Because considering just how hung up they are on people who treat them poorly, there must be some reason for them to long for a good relationship with that person. I suppose for Higuchi it’s those little moments of gratitude and protection, and for Akutagawa it really might just be the promise Dazai made him when they first met. But like, Dazai was probably semi-nice to him on occasion. Because Akutagawa doesn’t seem to hate him. Not really. He definitely resents him. But I also think he might miss him a little.

Anyways I have no idea where I meant to go with this.

[incendiobrock]

The Witches Forest

Request: heyy idk if u do requests but if u aree then can you do one where the reader is a witch and is dating colby so she goes on one of the haunted trips w them and does some reading idkk you can end it however you like <33 tyy! 

A/N: Thank you to the lovely anon who requested this! I loosely based this imagine off the witches forest video on the Sam and Colby channel but instead of the witch from the video giving the reading it was y/n, and instead of Colby getting lost in the forest it was y/n. Hope you enjoy! Also this was loosely inspired by an imagine I read by @annab-nana you can read it here!

Warnings: sexual joke (I think that’s it)

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It was a typical day with the trap boys. Your boyfriend Colby had finally convinced you to go on a haunted trip with them. The only reason you had agreed was because he had promised you, and Corey, that there wouldn’t be any seances. You would all be going to just spend the night there, not summon anything.

In fact, Sam was planning on doing a cleansing ritual that he had done some research on. So, you agreed. You were always super worried about the boys and the trouble that they would find themselves in, especially with demonic entities and spirits. 

One of the other reasons you had agreed to do the video with them was because you knew that the fans have been begging for you to make an appearance. Colby got tweets and comments daily about his “witchy girlfriend” joining in on a haunted overnight video. All the fans knew that you were super into crystals, and tarot cards, and different herbs, and just about anything that you believed would help protect you and connect you to the world of spirituality.

So here you were, sitting in front of the camera, Colby right by your side, his ring clad hand holding onto your thigh, as the rest of the guys surrounded the table. “Okay, who’s ready for the reading?” You questioned, looking around the table. Everyone nodded and agreed to begin. You passed the tarot deck to each of the boys, instructing them to shuffle the deck while thinking of their intention for the trip to The Witches Forest. Everyone did as told and passed the deck back to you, you were the last to shuffle.

“Alright, so I’m going to pick the top three cards and then we can go over what they each mean for us, and for the trip we are about to go on.” You stated, gently flipping over the top three cards, The Tower, The Nine of Swords, and the card of Death.

You felt the room tense as they all read the cards chosen. “It’s not bad.” You said, trying to calm everyone’s nerves. “Uh- I don’t know about you but a card that says death seems pretty bad to me.” Corey said, laughing out of fear.

“Yeah babe, what does that mean besides ‘we are going to die?’” Colby air quoted the last part. “Will you guys just give me a minute to explain it?” You laughed at your boyfriends face as his eyebrows remained scrunched on his forehead, looking desperately at you for answers. You went on to explain that death could signify the “death” of an era and the beginning of something new. The Nine of Swords means that their own thoughts can weigh them down, or cause a feeling of darkness, and The Tower means danger, chaos, but also liberation. 

“See, so nothing is necessarily bad. It actually seems like this might be good for you guys, especially since we are planning on doing the fire ritual too. That way you can begin a new journey and have a nice cleansed path before the next moon cycle begins.” You stated, leaning your head on Colby’s shoulder and cuddling into his side. He placed a short kiss onto your forehead taking hold of your hand, “Alright so let’s get on the road we don’t want it to get too dark before we set up the tent, plus it’s about an hour drive.” Colby said to the group, still holding your hand as you both stood up to go get into the car.

About an hour later you had all arrived at the forest. Colby had parked the car a little off the dirt path in a small clearing between the trees. You were happy to get out of the car to stretch after having to sit between Jake and Corey in the backseat. You brought along a small backpack of stuff like a water, first aid kit, a flashlight, and most importantly some crystals that offer protection. You took out the small ziploc with the crystal and began to give one to each of the boys, telling them to keep their crystal in their pockets for protection. 

Sam had asked you to explain to the camera what all you had brought so you showed him the black tourmaline, amethyst, and the obsidian, saying that they each offered protection and grounding properties. “Alright, now that we got our protection rocks let’s go pitch the tent we will be staying in all night.” Sam said, shutting off the camera. You all stood around trying to help as Colby did most of the work putting the tent together. You were impressed with his skills, never knowing that he could set up a tent with little to no instruction.

“Dang brother, those Cub Scout skills are really showing right now.” Jake joked, sticking the last spoke into the dirt. “Thanks brother, you know I’m skilled with these hands.” Colby responded, sending a wink in your direction. Your cheeks heated up as a small laugh escaped from your mouth. Leave it to Colby to make a sexual joke that makes the guys cringe. 

After a little exploring all together, and almost losing the location of the tent, you had all decided it was time to start the fire ritual. You were glued closely to Colby’s side, hearing a lot of motion within the trees. “Once we get the fire going maybe we will feel better, the light and heat should scare off any animals that are near.” Sam said grabbing the fire bucket that he had brought for this ritual.

Colby lit the fire and you all sat around in camping chairs. “We should’ve brought s’mores bro.” Corey said, trying to alleviate some of his fear. You agreed with him because you knew you felt the same fear as him at the moment. Sam explained what was going to happen with the fire ritual and passed out the objects that everyone was going to be throwing into the fire, in hopes to release any possible spirits that were attached to them. As soon as you guys started to watch the stuff burn Colby flew back, falling with his camping chair.

“Did you guys see that! Right there! Right behind Jake! Sam? Did you see it, it was like a shadow and it moved super fast right behind Jake’s head.” Colby yelled, standing quickly off the ground and shining a flashlight in that direction. “I saw that too!” You said, abandoning your camping chair as well. Colby took hold of the camera and began walking away from the fire and towards the trail. “Colby! Wait for us bro you can’t go alone!” Sam yelled out, chasing after him. “I have to go, I know I saw something I need to see where it’s going before it gets away, I wanna capture it on camera!” Colby said.

“Someone has to stay by the fire we can’t all leave! Jake you stay here with Corey and we will go investigate.” Sam instructed, but Jake hesitated wanting to go too. Corey ended up agreeing on staying by the fire so you three could keep up with Colby who was still walking quickly away from the group. You thanked Corey, worried that your boyfriend would get too far ahead of everyone. You began to jog to the path, already extremely behind the others because of the sudden panic. 

You turned onto the dirt path and didn’t see any of the three boys, but could barely make out their voices in the distance. You began to jog down the path, heading to the left. You had felt like you were getting closer to them but their voices still remained faint and incoherent. You knew that Sam had yelled for everyone to stay on the path in order to avoid getting lost so you kept jogging further and further into the forest, away from the fire where Corey sat.

You slowed to a walk, shining your flashlight all around, hearing tons of branches snapping and rustling. You suddenly felt very alert, almost as if something was watching you. You felt the panic really set in as it became harder and harder for you to catch your breath. “Colby!” You yelled. “Colby! Sam! Jake! Corey!”  You knew you had made a mistake going this far down the path. “Hello?! Can anyone hear me!” You heard a scream off in the distance making your eyes basically bulge out of your head. You turned sharply towards the direction of the noise, shining your flashlight out in front of your face. Your hands were trembling, shaking the light violently. Not only was it freezing out, but you were terrified of what was out there.

You began running back the opposite direction of the trail, your breath almost nonexistent at this point, but you were determined to make it back to the tent. You heaved, feet stomping away at the dirt path beneath. After what felt like a century, you saw the distant glow of the fire. You ran, the victory of reuniting with the boys fueling your return. The fire was now in clear sight as well as the figures of the four boys you were so anxious to see. The noise of you approaching causing them all to turn and look at you. 

You practically leapt into Colby’s arms, tears pouring down your face as you wrapped tightly around his torso. His hand found its way straight to your hair, pulling you as close as he could to his body, swaying you side to side. “Oh my god, baby. Where were you? I was so worried! I thought I had lost you.” He said quietly, running his fingers through your hair trying to soothe your crying. “I-I was running after you a-and then I got lost. I heard a s-scream, I’m so scared.” You sobbed, never wanting Colby to let go of you.

“We looked all over, we were calling your name like crazy but Jake said we should come and wait by the fire incase you came back. We didn’t want to keep moving further away from you on accident.” Sam said, standing closely near you and Colby. 

“Can we please go? I don’t think I want to be here anymore.” You pleaded, looking into Colby’s eyes as his delicate fingers helped to wipe away your tears. “Yes, of course. I love you, I’m so glad you’re safe. Let’s head to the back up plan, the cabin.” Colby said, directing the last sentence to the boys. You nodded gratefully, making your way into Colby’s car while Jake, Corey, and Sam packed up the mess. 

The night was getting foggier as you pulled into the driveway of Jenna’s cabin. You felt relief rush over you, knowing that you wouldn’t have to spend another second in the Witches Forest. You all got out of the car and huddled by the front door, rain beginning to pour down. Sam took off his backpack digging through it to find the spare key Jenna had lent him. “Uh, Colby did I give you the key earlier?” Sam asked. Colby let go of your hand and patted his pockets down, “No I don’t think I have it. Is it in your pockets?” He responded, recapturing your hand in his, knowing that you were still shaken up about getting lost. Sam flipped his jean pockets inside out, no key to be found. He began pulling everything out of his backpack, searching deep into the bag for the key.

“Let’s go back into the car maybe I left it in there.” Sam said, heading straight back to Colby’s car. You all got back in as the rain continued to pour, Sam searching every inch of the vehicle. “I can’t believe you lost the key Sam, first Y/n goes missing and now this?” Jake says from the backseat, obviously frustrated. “It’s not all my fault okay? You think I meant to lose the key?” Sam snapped back, the tension in the car rising. 

After a lot of searching, the key was no where to be found. Much to your dismay, you had to go back to the tent in the depths of the forest. You all huddle into the blue tent, slipping into your sleeping bags. It was only a few more hours until daylight, a few more hours before the suffering would end.

“I’m not going to let anything hurt you. I lost you once tonight and it was the scariest moment of my life. It’s not going to happen again, I promise.” Colby vowed, pulling you into his chest. You smiled at his kind words, despite how scared you were he always knew how to make you feel safe. “Thank you Colby, I love you so much.” You responded, nuzzling further into his chest. “I love you, to new beginnings.” He chuckled, referencing the tarot reading from earlier. “To new beginnings.” You agreed, sealing the deal with a kiss on the lips.

[writtenbyerna]

Review on Purple Hearts

5 things I LIKE about Purple Hearts

Sofia Carson’s singing. I have always loved Sofia and her voice since her Descendant era, and I love when her films utilize her talents. Her voice is beautiful and has this unique tone that will always be associated with her.

“It’s okay to ask for help.” One of the themes in the film is Luke and Sofia being able to ask each other for help and it’s one that should be remembered. It’s okay to ask for help because we cannot live alone in this world. Our very existence began with the fact that we joined with others and created a community that protected us from a bigger and stronger predator. So, ask for help.

Soundtrack. It’s beautiful.

Shitting on big pharma. One of the main reasons why Cassie and Luke got married in the first place is the fact that healthcare in America is so shitty and expensive that she had to spend three or four days without insulin just because her insurance hasn’t been renewed yet. The idea that there exists a drug that could help you live your life but the only reason that is stopping you from using it is that some rich white man decided that they need more money than what they currently have is maddening.

It ends happily. I need my happy endings.

5 Things I HATE about the movie

Racist remarks that are never addressed again in the movie. If one of my friends says something as dumb and stupid as, “and hunt down Arabs” I will be the first one to shut their mouth and ask them what they mean by that. Because I will not stand there and be friends with someone who is racist. Luke did not do shit about that, he asked-TOLD Cassie to sit down like she’s in the wrong when she’s the only one in the group to tell that man that he’s wrong. You can’t excuse a racist person as an asshole, although they are one, racist remarks get innocent people killed.

Misogyny. Surprise a movie that did not address racist remarks also is full on displaying misogyny in broad daylight. It’s 2022 and people still think that feminism is just for women. The reason why Luke was scared to tell that he is terrified the night before they leave is that the PATRIARCHY told him that it is not okay for men to cry. THE PATRIARCHY IS THE ONE THING THAT FEMINISM AIMS TO DISMANTLE. Every misogynistic remark in the film had me gasping in disbelief because for a film to be released in 2022 and still have so much misogyny is unbelievable.

Character development. Luke did not have any character arc in the film, nothing. He cried and you expect me to care for him after that???? That does not make sense. He did not even change his views about feminism whilst married and living with a feminist. He continued to be a prat- cue that taco scene where he said so many dumb things that I cannot even begin to unpack. On the other hand, Cassie’s political views were not addressed again and it seemed that she dropped everything because she ‘fell in love.’

Military Propaganda + Pro-America. The show is literally just ‘Hey, join the army!’ ‘Hey, I support NRA’ ‘Americans coming to Iraq is totally the right thing to do because it’s not like they are bringing harm to the country and to the people, they are there to protect America against terrorists whilst acting as terrorists themselves *insert sarcastic grin*’

The romance is not it. TikTok hyped this movie up and said that it’s an enemies to lovers trope, babe one of the elements that make an enemies to lovers trope great is that the characters have chemistry BEFORE they even got to be lovers. And Luke and Cassie did not have any, I’m sorry. I loved Cassie as her own person more than them together. I cannot care enough for a man like Luke. Sure, the bathtub scene and the glucose scene are beautiful but that can’t be the only thing that supports the whole film’s romance.

These are my thoughts, I'm not telling you to not watch the film. Go watch the film because my baby girl Sofia Carson is there but keep in mind the issues in it.

[mydearthisbe]

Ayesha Liveblogs Bad Buddy S1

If we use 2gether from this network as a benchmark, this street brawl in this opening sequence is absolutely bonkers in comparison

These colour-coded uniforms are actually very helpful for telling who is on which side, all universities should do this

I can’t believe the first interaction between the protagonists of this show involves someone getting drop-kicked in the chest

Hahaha they keep cutting between like, very classical music, polite conversation and good table manners at Pran's house, to Pat's house with a rock guitar riff, and him eating messily and being full of sass

Pran: Good Boy™️, Architecture student, Class President, very organized, doesn't like to fight but is good at it, Strict Family 

Pat: Bad Boy™️, Engineering student, Class President, very messy, also doesn't seem to care for fighting but is known for his short temper

I think Bad Buddy is what I thought that Hook was going to be (a Montague and Capulet-esque feud romance)

“Watch your words. This is why no one cares about you.” 10/10 accurate older brother behaviour from Pat lmao 

“Since when are you this noble?” “Are you bullying your friend?” I think it's hilarious that Drake Laedeke has established himself as Man Who Loves Causing Trouble in Gay Thai Dramas, what a niche

Pat is rescuing Pran,,,, from Pat's own friends????? Whomst and wherefore

“But if you still care about me, then leave Pran alone,” said Pat's sister Pa, not knowing that Pran and Pat were ‘not going to leave each other alone’ in an entirely different sense soon

I'm not sure what's funnier, that Pat is going to end up dating his sister's crush(?), or the fact that this imaginary ‘love triangle’ has names so close together Pat-Pran-Pa I mean come on 

Ahhhh okay the sister’s protectiveness and Pat's mixed feelings abt Pran stem from Pran saving Pat’s sister from nearly drowning as kids, that's a much more sincere connection than I thought there would be 

I would strongly like to have a word with whomever did the costuming for this show WHAT ON EARTH IS PAT WEARING WHO SIGNED OFF ON THIS

“If you think you can end this with a sorry, you’re wrong.” No one taught the Engineering students any conflict resolution skills

HAHAHAHA to end the fighting between their two faculties, Pran and Pat agreed to having Wai, the original instigator, apologize, but then the Engineering students were still mad so now Pran and Pat are pretending to fight while their homies actually fight so no one knows they're in kahoots

It’s funny how they both have a specific friend who gets them into fights. Pat getting pulled in by his friend Korn, and Pran getting pulled in by his friend Wai. Every family has one, I guess

Hahahah apparently Pat is no stranger to breaking into Pran's room, he did it when they were children also

The energy of Pran keeping the watch Pat retrieved for him for like 10 years and only conveying his reunion happiness through a post-it notes is certainly something 

It appears they now live right across the hall from each other at the dorms, neighbour-and-enemies-to-friends-and-lovers continues

I love the constant cutaways to their different ways of approaching life

“It’s a new era already. No more sex object jokes.” Chang is the only one of Pat’s friends with a brain

Pran and Pat are trying desperately to keep their friends apart so that they don't fight and get their faculties banned from group activities

“Whoever fights here will be banned by seniors.” Pran and Pat are so funny when they lie to their friends

Pran’s soprano humming really took me off-guard I was like ‘who’s that’

“Sorry :( I ate your salad. These drinks are my apologies.” Gesture Juice is back in action baybeeeeeeee

Sidenote for anyone who doesn’t follow this particular form of Thai media: There is a very intentional effort to incorporate sponsors into dialogue and plot in a way that is unrivaled by any other network that I have watched. It’s fucking incredible how many plot lines centre around product placement. Which is why 1/4 of this episode is dedicated to Oishi Green Tea + Vitamin C

Other sidenote: there is absolutely no sense in what that delivery guy did, why wouldn’t he just bring Pat a new salad instead of being like ‘your neighbour has it’ kjghkjgh you can’t give someone a salad someone else might have touched 

HAHAHA Pran and Pat keep flirting with notes and gifts on each other's doors, thinking that there is a stranger across the hall interested in them, when in fact they are flirting with each other

Pran's friends say, ‘Go for neighbour man!’ not knowing that he is also Neighbour Frenemy Pat

They keep referring to something Pat is using called a 'male particle' (which is why Pran's friends suspect it's a guy gifter and not a woman) and I have no idea what they mean but it seems it's the box he's putting desserts in??? Does Thailand have To-Go Boxes Just 4 Men?????? 

Ridiculous Rooftop Rendezvous

“Are you bullying him?” “And are you going to stop him?” “No. I’m supporting him all the way.” I take back what I said about Chang having a brain 

Something about the mic set up for this production is not good bc whenever they yell there’s a lot of feedback jkfhkjfhgkjh

Pat’s friends really seem to be the worse of the two groups, bothering Wai at his place of work, coming up to Pran’s door and catcalling assuming it’s a woman like why do u keep them around Pat they suck LMAO

“Stop that toxic behaviour of yours.” Chang PRETENDS to have a brain

“WHERE SHOULD I HIDE?” “ANYWHERE!” How the hell does Pat’s dad NOT hear them yelling inside his dorm??

Rather than explain whatever the hell kinda frenemyship Pran and Pat have going on to Pat's dad, Pran is hiding under Pat's bed lmaoooo

“Don’t talk about them like that, Papa.” Pat’s dad is trash-talking Pran's family while Pat, knowing Pran is right there, asks him to stop

Apparently the reason Pran was suddenly transferred to boarding school in high school was because he and Pat committed the crimes of Being in a Christmas Concert Band Together and Not Hating Each Other with a Fiery Passion

[Ben Wyatt voice] Who hasn't had gay thoughts

LMAO at these cutaways:

 Pran and Pat: Having a tickle fight in an elevator 

 Their friends: Having a street fight at their university bus stop

“Have you not had a secret crush on anyone before?” Weel weel weel

2gether 🤝 Bad Buddy 

 Cutting up objects to make guitar picks for no reason

More to the point, Pran's high school crime that got him transferred was probably Having a Leetle Gay Crush That He Has Chosen to Suppress for the Past Three Years

Speaking of suppressing things, you can visually see Pat's brain go from 🥰 to 🚨WEE OO WEE OO WEE OO 🚨 as he looks at Pran hahaha

I don't even think Pat is making a conscious decision to flirt with Pran but he is very much doing so; he has bought Pran dinner, raced him to their rooms, and now is telling Pran he doesn't need to knock, just come over when he misses him

There are smiley faces all over Pran's apartment that they keep cutting to whenever Pran is happy about Pat, which is almost always

They are arguing about which of their friends is in the right for the bus stop fight over tin can telephone

Pran said: I'm friendship-dumping you for being an ass to my friend

Pat said: No 🥰

Presented without commentary:

Awww Pat showing up to support Pran while he pitches his project 

Two dudes in an empty elevator, 0 feet apart bc they are gay

Dfdskjfh did Pat come armed with an idea or did he just pull this out of his ass on the elevator ride because. Improv King LMAO

“You should learn to see what’s around. You always look at me,” said Pat, while Pran’s smile faded because this assertion was just a little too accurate to be funny to him 

[Tiktok Narrator voice] This is Pran. Pran likes his personal space. This is Pat. Pat also likes Pran's personal space.

They're working together to fix up the bus stop that their friends destroyed —or rather, Pran is working on it and Pat is showing up where he is and going 🥰 “I'm helping” 🥰

“Let’s say we’re both hot guys and we’re boyfriends.” They're roleplaying a couple rn; Pat's overtures of friendship are becoming more and more transparent attempts to woo Pran

“Here’s a corpse flower for someone so pretty.” Pran said: Two can play at the Wooing Game

“It’s like giving up our territory.” Pat is tricking his friends into helping the Architecture boys with the bus stop repairs, this is so stupid and so funny

It's also v funny that their friends have somehow not noticed that Pat and Pran hang out with each other basically every day

Pat kept Pran's guitar when he moved away and left it behind!! 🥺 Now Pran's going to use it in the music competition they're in together

Pran 🤝 Pat 

Storing a keepsake object from the Frenemy Crush of Your Youth in your cupboard in hopes you might one day reunite

Pat arranging so both Architecture and Engineering can be in the contest without taking credit <3 A socially competent Mr. Darcy

The tricking continues: Now Pran is tricking both of their friend groups into being motivated to finish the bus stop by having them 'compete' against each other to do it

Ah, I see Ink will finally bring some women into their friend group lol

Speaking of tropes, it seems there will also be a Faculty Sports Fight

“I thought you said you liked someone in Architecture.” I can't believe that Pat has already indirectly owned up to his feelings for Pran to his friends kgkjhgkjhg

Hahah I like that Pran is consistently a particular person while Pat is consistently sloppy, it kinda serves the point of love forcing them both out of their comfort zone

Further explanation on Ink: Pat’s high school homie/crush has popped back into their lives, and Pat is being hit by a wave of bisexual turmoil while Pran is being hit by a wave of jealousy 

“You can’t be more obvious. Anyone can tell.” How is Pa so clear on what’s going on with Pat and Ink when there is also clearly something going on with Pran that she hasn’t fully clocked yet LOL

Lmao maybe I’m biased but I don’t feel like the sports were a necessary addition to this show, they have enough going on without it 

Also it’s clear to me now I have no idea how rugby is played 

We stan a transparent visual metaphor

It is so interesting to me how Pat and Pran are BOTH upset that Pat is developing feelings for someone else 

Pat said: Sorry for flirting with Ink, it is tender affection time ❤️

Pran said: I forgive you,,,, a little

They’re in a very sweet stage of their relationship of leaning into what they’re feeling but not verbalizing it. Pat is very much like, “I will say all of my flirty thoughts out loud. ❤️” Whereas Pran is very much, “Hahaha ❤️ I’m in danger.”

“Are you afraid people would think I’m flirting with you?” Rugby Romance

“What the hell has gotten into you?” Some people are in love, Korn

Ink from their high school class said: Don't be jealous, Pran, you can also be included in the friendship bracelet club

Also, on a related note, I suspect that Ink is a lesbian, based on nothing but intuition and hope 

“Do you like Ink?” Pat got locked out of his apartment so it is Sleepover Talk Time

Also: Pat posits an incredibly loaded sleepover question

Pran said: I outright refuse this attempt to get me to verbally acknowledge my feelings but god I like you so much it's killing me

Relationship dynamic: Who’s annoying (Pat) & who is annoyed (Pran)

“There’s a lovey-dovey aura around you two.” Ink said: Pran and Pat, sittin' in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g

It should be said that Pat is claiming out loud that he likes Ink (to people other than her), but is doing everything otherwise to indicate that he likes Pran, I do not know how he expects this behaviour to land him with a significant other 

Part of the reason I think Ink will be a wlw is that I kind of think she and Pat's sister will end up together

Unbelievable, Pat is having his sister supervise his outing with Ink to see if she likes him lmaooooooooo is this really what he would do on a date

“Sign number two, eyes don’t lie. Look in the eyes.” Pat is now trying to use his sister's Do You Like Me criteria to sort out his feelings for Pran

It has taken Pat four and a half episodes of telling Pran his dimples are cute and how good he smells and wanting to hang out with him all the time to consider that maybe, just maybe, he likes this man

I genuinely thought he knew that by now kjghkjhgg oh you sweet, stupid boy

Of all the things that have happened in this show, that Pran is currently chewing on plain, untoasted bread is the most perplexing???????????????

Pat is now investigating his feelings while interacting with Pran to see if he likes him, as if that were not apparent by everything that Pat's done for like, their entire semester so far

“But your mom doesn’t allow people inside the house.” “Come on. My mom loves Wai so much.” Fhfkjhfk Pat jealous that Pran’s mum likes his other friend better, as if their parents aren’t enemies

“It’s like you’re not sure if it will turn out good or bad. You’re afraid to feel more. You’re hesitating. You want to jump in but you’re afraid to be heartbroken. You want to step back but also to seize the chance.” High School Pran summarizes their entire romantic situation so far in this song lyric brainstorm  

“Ink isn’t like any other girls.” That’s because she’s GAYYYYYYYYY

A very accurate musical interlude:

“I don’t feel like that’s a love confession at all. It’s like you’re getting something off of your chest.” Ink has diagnosed Pat with Avoiding Your Feelings Syndrome 

It’s funny that they completely skipped over Pat’s contest entry so they didn’t have to deal with a second song hahahaha 

“What’s your problem with this guy?” Several years of repressed love

Pat doesn't know how to deal with his emotions, so instead he picked a fight with Pran’s friend Wai, of whom he is romantically jealous

“I hate to see you play [our song] with someone else.” That was a really quick turnaround time, three minutes later and Pat’s ready to deal with his emotions

Well, they're certainly communicating their feelings now

Ahhhhh Pat looks so relieved by the reciprocation when they pull away the second time but Pran looks even more upset 

“That night, I have nothing to say about it.” Pran said: That was enough being honest with my feelings for me. I'm going to keep my emotions right here, and then one day, I'll die

“How come your mom hates guitar so much?” Pran said: Well, you see Wai, the guitar is a symbol of all the emotions I have been burying since I was 15—

“Do you want me to say it out loud?” What the hell kind of secret are Pran and Pat’s parents hiding I swear if anyone’s related I’m gonna be so mad I can’t go through what Hook did to me again

“Is your business done here?” Pran's mum is so mean, Pat hasn't done anything except fall in love with her son

“Pran likes Ink too, doesn’t he?” Pa is so close, yet so far from the point

Pat's strategy to get Pran to talk about their kiss is to join the Architecture faculty's volunteer camp at a zero waste community; eco-friendly romance with a vague aroma of garbage

Wai has mistaken Pat's attempts to romance for attempts to provoke, which, to be fair, I think it's a bit of both

“What the hell does he want from us?” Wai, Pat wants nothing from anyone other than Pran

Pat said: My talents include refusing to read the room wherever I go

Pat is making headway against Pran's numerous emotional walls on this farmers market trip

They are gently romancing on the beach while fantasizing about what life would be like if their parents weren’t enemies

The printer advert was well done lmao felt more organic than usual

“Someone so perfect like you won’t stay available for long.” Honestly I forget what this friend’s name is but khgjhgk what a supportive if a little surprising thing to say to your homie, Louis

Pran is getting his friends drunk so as to talk them out of beating up Pat, but because the beer company is not a sponsor, they have been blurred out kjhgkjghjg

Pat has run out of willingness to let Pran put off this conversation lol

Pat said: If we're not talking about our feelings, I think we should be able to write them in the sand

“If you don’t say it, how will I figure it out? How can I possibly understand you?” AHHHHH PAT JUST WANTS TO COMMUNICATE 

“It’s so obvious that you like me,” said Pran, as if their make-out session the previous week had not clearly communicated that there were feelings between them already

They are now,,, competing???? To make the other person declare their feelings first,,,, what kinda sillyass approach to flirting kjghkjghghj

“Whoever falls in love first loses.” They are so stupid, and I love them so much

Pat has realized what a win-win situation this is for him

Also, how does NO ONE around them notice Pran putting Pat’s finger in his mouth wjhkkgjhg what kinda selective attention

Pls note: seaweed wins for most organic sponsor integration

“You’re wearing contacts too. How many boys hit on you?” Just one haha

“What if our son brings a boy home?” “So what? His date, not ours. If you’re happy with that person, go ahead.” Honestly I was actually expecting the mum to be homophobic what a pleasant surprise

Pran's mum said: You can date anyone; man, woman, just not the neighbours

Pran, who has been sending flirty texts to Pat this whole meal: 😅

Bold move for Pat to be airdropping his flirty pics to their professor

It's a new school year, Pa is in uni with the rest of them now, and I feel that my wlw intuition was right

I don't know how Pat intends to keep his Neighbourly Flirtationship a secret when his sister is literally sharing a dorm room with him

“Do you like me?” Pat responded to this very casually before promptly running across the hall to scream at his pillow about how much this flirting is getting to him

“Your sophomore friend is husband material.” Hahaha Ink gets the freshman seal of approval from Pa’s friends

The fact that Pat's sister is the same actress who played Pear on 2gether and I didn't realize that until she took off her glasses and put down her hair is really challenging my sense of object permanence and facial recognition

Lmao @ their incredibly public gift exchanges and staring at each other

Pran said: These years of repressed affection weren’t for nothing, I have been waiting my whole life for this

Soda “Sponge Bath”: Creative sponsorship at its finest

Pat and Pran are terrible at hiding their romance, they are lucky Pa does not seem that keen-eyed an observer jkghkgjhkj

“Pat, why are you shirtless?” “I’m doing my side-pack work out.” I mean come on Pa LMAO

Even if Pran weren’t technically seeing someone, Wai kissing his neck in thanks for a favour is still an odd thing to do to your friend

“When did you rehearse the xylophone?” “It’s a secret.” Honestly I don’t understand enough about the xylophone to tell who can play and who can’t

Very reasonable of Ink to get annoyed at Pat for flirting when they’ve already established they don’t have feelings for each other

“But if you can’t help, I may have to forfeit my scholarship. I need to stop playing rugby and focus on the play. And I need to work to pay for the tuition. For that reason, I might need to sleep in class. I won’t be able to complete the assignment. I might not be able to graduate with you guys. But I get you, man. You already have a lot on your hands.” Wai has been taking guilt trip lessons from my mother 

“I’m not always playing games with you. I just want to see you.” “If that guy didn’t quit the play, would you still want to see me?” Hahaha Pran called out, Pat has all the Architecture gossip

Incredibly reasonable for Pran not to want to confess his feelings in front of their entire seminar class jkhfkfh not an equal exchange for being in the Architecture play hahaha 

“Why did you come? Don’t you want to win?” “If my victory puts my boyfriend in trouble, I’d rather lose.” AWWWWWWWW PAT

“As for me, when I have a lover, I always let my lover win.” “When was I ever your lover?” They’re very cute

Now they are just being very cute trying to make the other get the door by kissing them and going ‘no u get it’

Awwwww Pran cuddling with Pat’s Nong Nao doll as he sleeps

Fdfjkfkhsdkjhfkjhf I love this transition from friendship to romance:

Pat (sweetly): No occasion. I just want to do it for you. Do you like it?

Pran: You’re giving me chills. Just act normally.

Pat (course correcting): Asshole! Just freakin’ eat.

Pran: Too rude!

Pat (laughing): What do you want me do then?

Hahahaha them having sleepovers and holding hands behind Pa truly their efforts at hiding their relationship are dismal 

“What the hell are you doing? I told you to work!” They are also not productive at working on this play together bc all they do is flirt kjhgkjgh

“Don’t tell me you have eyes for [Pa] too?” It is funny that Wai and Pran, who are long-time BFFs, have a type that is limited to one family LMAO

Also I'm loving this little InkPa subplot, finally, some ✨women✨

It’s totally fair that Pran is the more nervous of the two to be found out, considering his parents are stricter and have already transferred him once before

“We didn’t expect you to be courting someone in Architecture. I admire that very much!” The rivalry does not apply when it comes to imaginary hot girls apparently

All of the English slogan shirts in this show make absolutely no sense. Pat’s current shirt says, “Proud to be a Noles hater” referencing the football team from Florida State University. Who is the Republican Floridian on their wardrobe staff kjfhkfhgkhgjhkjh 

“Why does he always meddle with my life?” asked Wai, as if Pat wanted anything from him other than for him to stop being so touchy with Pran lmao 

“[A secret]’s a kind of relationship I always avoid.” LOL Pran has been waiting for an opportunity to vent about the strain of secret dating

I can’t believe Pat is essentially being lectured about being too well-rounded. Like dude helps build a bus stop, participates in music contests, has been in rugby for two years in a row and it’s disappointing to miss some practice for a short-term commitment to the play? Papa pls

“You’re not Nong Nao. But you’re Nong Noo (babygirl).” We are all become babygirl

They are arguing about Pat being a little too public about his feelings, which has resulted in this incredibly strange topless xylophone emotional confrontation

This is the weirdest sequence in this show by far. Just two and a half minutes of staring and aggressive Thai xylophone 

“Aren’t you afraid people would find out?” “I am. But I care about you more. I’m your boyfriend. If I can’t handle this little thing, how can we make this relationship work?” They are learning to compromise ❤️

Well, so much for their classmates not knowing they were dating jhgkjhgkjgh

Conveniently, literally all of their friends were in the auditorium at this exact moment, somehow

Oh, are they going to retell this scene from the sound booth’s point of view?? PAT WHY WOULD YOU NOT TURN OFF YOUR MIC... WHERE EVEN IS IT YOUR TIDDIES ARE OUT

DID HE TURN THE MICS UP TOO WAI U VINDICTIVE SHIT

“If I were you, I would tell. You know why? Because you’re my best friend.” Wai’s kekkei genkai is guilt trips 

“It really hurts,” said Wai, as if it doesn’t also hurt to be outed in front of your entire faculty

HAHAHAHAH KORN’S ANTAGONISM LASTING ALL OF 30 SECONDS, THIS IS WHAT FRIENDSHIP IS ABOUT

“It’s me you’re talking to here. I can solve any problem for you.” Korn redemption arc for real

Pat and Pran seem both relieved to be able to show PDA and I am glad that Ink and Pa are included in the loop too

“Who knows? One day I might like girls.” “That’s good. It’s so gainful.” Ink is transparently very gay LMAO

“I don’t mind genders. I like them all.” YEAHHHH GO PAT BI ICON

“Can’t I hit on you?” DON’T PLAY ME LIKE THIS INK UR CRUSHING ME AND PA’S DREAMS

Rugby’s only purpose in this show is getting Pran’s friends back LOL

HAHAHAHAHA @ Korn’s ‘y’all fuckin’?’ pause and their “NOT YET”

This white(?) man pulling a gun on Wai is wholly a departure from the level of narrative chillness we’re been witnessing thus far, what a freakshow I hope this guy shoots himself in the dick

HE SHOT PAT IN THE STOMACH OH MY GOD??? 

PAT’S FRIENDS IMPLYING PAT’S NOT DOING WELL IS NOT A FUNNY JOKE EVEN IF IT ONLY GRAZED HIM THAT COULD TRAUMATIZE PRAN KGJHKGJHG

“We found a gun at the scene. We assume it belongs to you.” WHY WOULD YOU ASSUME IT BELONGS TO THE PERSON WHO WAS SHOT????? THERE ARE SO MANY WITNESSES

First of all, there definitely shouldn’t be a security camera where there are toilets. Second of all, since Wai WAS ALSO A WITNESS TO WHO POSSESSED THE GUN WOULDN’T THAT HAVE ALSO BEEN RELEVANT, SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE ASIDE

“They said that should be enough to get him out of charges.” But they’re not going to charge the guy who SHOT him?????????

“Get well soon. Otherwise my friend will get himself a new lover.” I hope Wai and Pat continue to make fun of each other in a friendly way for the rest of their lives

“You don’t need to call us husband and wife.” Again, I am surprised that they would address this!!! But good!! It’s always kind of raised my hackles that so much Thai media assigns strict masc-femme gender roles to same gender relationships, and I have come to just expect it. BAD BUDDY SHOWING EVERYONE THEY CAN DO BETTER!!

Incredible that this whole day no one has told Pat’s parents he was shot

This comment was made precisely one minute too soon

Smart of Pat to lead with fact that Pran stopped him from getting arrested, very good boyfriend foundation-laying

This Architecture faculty expressing their support sequence is so cute also I cannot believe they just got engaged via fistbump. UR SO STUPID AND I LOVE U SO MUCH

OKAY, ALL THE FIGHTING AND TURMOIL IS WORTH IT FOR THE EMOTIONAL PAY OFF:

“She keeps smiling when messaging that person.” “That’s okay. You still have me.” What’s more delightful here, Ink and Pa’s flourishing romance or Korn and Wai’s flourishing friendship? Both are immaculate

I seriously have no idea who Chai is like does he work for Pran’s parents? Is he a relative? It’s thus far not been made clear 

Update from very shortly after: He works for them

Not knowing why the parents hate each other is leaving me in suspense. If this is a Rufus and Lily from Gossip Girl situation I will not be happy about it

Pa’s really got her hands full with sophomores who want to date her

“So your mom and my dad went to the same school?” The Rufus and Lily vibes increase with every passing minute

Pran 🤝 Pat 🤝 Pran’s Mum

Storing a keepsake object of Repressed Memories of Your Youth in your cupboard 

Pat immediately alluding to his high school teacher that he and Pran are dating because he loves to tell people they’re in love kjhghg

“The brother couldn’t make it, but the sister can.” If there’s any trope that is silly but fun it’s siblings having the same taste in crushes hahaha for a second I thought Pat was gonna be like, ‘damn, I was relying on you to give our parents grandkids’ LOL

Ink and Pa 😭😭😭 Get you a peer mentor who will become your gf

Ink 🤝 Pran

Developing feelings for someone in Pat’s family in high school and burying it deep inside until the other person confesses their feelings 

“Can’t you just call me big bro once?” Pat’s joking is relieving some of my tension in hoping that their parents do not share a lovechild

Pat’s dad believes in the old adage: When the going gets tough, assault your child’s boyfriend in a shopping mall

Pran I think it’s a little unreasonable to be made at Pat for his outburst the boyfriend was already out of the bag at that point 

“Do you want me to stay with you?” Chai is a nice man

The soundtrack they’re playing sounds like the Lion King when Mufasa dies this is rough stuff

“Is it even my job to be responsible for your feelings?” God, that hit me hard. No, no it is not, Pran

“Your dad stole my scholarship.” I mean that’s a dick move, but is it worth like twenty years of conflict?? You run a successful business now and could definitely go back and do a degree

“From now on, don’t tell your children to hate the people next door. Because the most disgusting person here is your father.” Idk, Dissaya, you’ve both struck Pran today sooooooo

“But he can’t fix his past, and I must be the one that takes it, right?” Every parent with unprocessed trauma should be forced to watch this episode in therapy

“A zero-waste village.” “Just the place for us.” (“Because our families are garbage,” they said, in the subtext)

“Being with you already feels like freedom.” V romantic also I’m glad they did not throw their sim cards away, that would be excessive

Uncle Tong is a welcome callback, finally an adult who’s understanding

It’s okay Pran and Pat, Junior can also cook better than I can lmao

“You made up with me then. Now it’s my turn, right?” I don’t think it’s unreasonable to not abandon ur hometown for a life by seaside without ur support network

The constant blurred unsponsored beer of this specific green brand makes me think they TRIED to get a beer sponsorship and failed LOL 

“But a gangster like you always butts in people’s business and helps them.” That’s a weird way to compliment someone

“Was I good?” They definitely fucked in the beach house hahaha good for them, but unfortunate for Tong. Perils of boarding a couple I guess

“You fight alongside me. That makes me very happy.” PAT ❤️❤️❤️

This serenade and montage was already very very sweet but it’s the cutaways to the other duos that got me

“You asked why I didn’t quit what I’m doing. What I do might not be able to change the whole world. But it surely changes my attitude towards this world.” TONGGGGGGGG ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

TONG’S SPEECH. PAT AND PRAN IMAGINING THEIR FAMILIES EMBRACING THEM AND THEIR LOVE. THE WHOLE MONTAGE OF THEIR ENTIRE LIVES TOGETHER. I’M UPSET. IT’S A VERY GOOD SHOW

FOUR YEARS LATER?????????????????????? HELLO???????? WILD THAT WHAT WE JUST WITNESSED WASN’T THE FINALE

“You even make a living out of the disaster you caused back then.” I am reeling. Seems like Pran and Pat broke up but Wai has remained besties and business partners with the Eng boys. I love that for him but oh my god 

“I need to go too. I’m picking up my sweetheart.” Wai and Korn have clearly moved on and found partners after uni but Pat seems firmly in Post Pran-dump Depression 

Shout-out to Pa and Ink for being the only couple in this show to stay together from university to working life. Bad Buddy said wlw will go the distance 

The Adult Life hair really does not suit Pran as much as it suits Pat

I feel like it IS a little funny for them to have passed four whole years and still be incredibly Not Over It hahahahah 

WAIT THEY’RE STILL TOGETHER?? JKHFJDHF WHY BE SO WISTFUL AND ANGSTY THEN??? UR 23 WHAT CAN UR PARENTS DO

Hahahah I was waiting for Wai’s reaction at the fake breakup and didn’t disappoint 

Also their parents 100% know! Four years? COME ON

What is perhaps funniest about Bad Buddy is how much it highlights how Sarawat and Tine from 2gether are just like. Batshit insane. Pran and Pat deal with everything so reasonably. They manage their conflicts immediately. They go long distance for a year!!! Sarawat and Tine spend 2 weeks apart and start crying to dolls and hallucinating each other. Don’t get me wrong, I love Sarawat and Tine with all of my heart but they are CRAZY and run with their emotions on 20,000% always. Imagine watching Romeo and Juliet and then watching Big Eden. That’s the contrast here

“I waited for a year. You served me only five minutes. Do you think that’s enough?” “Stop with the insult. I just got a little excited there.” I love that we’ve got to a place where we can make fun of Pat for coming too fast

Wai and Korn even own the bar together now #BusinessBesties LOL

“It’s like we bought this place to make amends.” Wai is right, having to deal with rowdy youth is his and Korn’s karmic retribution hahaha

“Ink, you seem to have lots of work.” “A lot, Papa.” Ink is very solid with the in-laws

“Just leave it to their generation.” Hahahaha Pat’s mum and dad acknowledging what terrible secret keepers they are

The single smile that Dissaya gives is 12 episodes of character growth

I love that the conclusion to this feud is slowly warming up to their sons’ happiness in each other and pretending not to notice they’ve been in love for five years 

“The show is just so good.” YEAH IT IS ❤️❤️❤️❤️

It’s great that Pat is still so competitive. Truly great rivals to lovers 

I am totally convinced this last scene, like the balcony scenes, was unscripted and the actors were allowed to do whatever they wanted and they decided to chase each other around the apartment shouting and jumping each other would be most in-character: 

[mcmansionhell]

The McMansion Hell Yearbook: 1976

Howdy, folks! Today’s house comes to us from my newly adopted county of Cook County, Illinois, and boy can this baby fit so many 70s house stereotypes in it. 

It’s got everything: weird spanish colonial revivalism, an external layout that can only be described as post-split-level, a 3 car garage, and it’s brown! This lovely 5 bedroom, 5 bath 5200 square foot estate is relatively affordable by McMansion Hell standards, coming in at around $600,000. There’s a lot of house to cover, so let’s get the ball rolling! 

Lawyer Foyer

This foyer has all the elements of a contemporary lawyer foyer (large chandelier, grand staircase, two stories) except for the oversized transom window over the front door. The fact that the house looks like a split-level on the outside is interesting because it’s a regular two-story house on the inside, furthering the hypothesis that the Lawyer Foyer itself is an offshoot of the 1.5 and two-story entrances present in split levels. In many ways this house is a transitional example nestled between two eras: the split-level/ranch of the 70s and the two-story neo-eclectic houses that would become popular in the 1980s. 

Sitting Room

Fun fact: a look at recent IKEA catalogs demonstrates that the grandma couch is slowly wedging its way back into America’s living rooms. 

Dining Room

I am weeping with envy at those chairs. (Instagram story vagueposting voice) Some people just don’t know what they have. 

Living Room

The overstuffed leather sofas might not be pretty but they are authentic.

Kitchen

Why I hate the kitchen island/peninsula stovetop recapped: - can’t use the island for seating bc cooking stuff is hot and steamy - one casual lean and you’re burned - no backsplash to catch like overboiling pasta sauce - wastes valuable counter space

I can go on.

Master Bedroom

Personally if I had all that extra space in my bedroom I’d put something cool like a pool table or a hot tub in there bc why not???

Speaking of tubs...

Master Bath

One must wonder why brown bathroom fixtures exist in the first place because frankly it’s not a very flattering color considering the functions. Let’s just say it was a different time. 

Bedroom 2

As someone who grew up in the era of Toyota Corolla hegemony, 70s cars are extremely funny to me - like they take up half a block and get 4 miles to the gallon??? No wonder there was an oil crisis!!! 

Bedroom 3

The virgin midcentury modern collector vs the chad grandma using a 1967 teak Dunbar sideboard as a display case for their doily collection 

Basement

This whole post is a ploy to get the zoomers to watch Cheers. 

Alright folks, our little house tour has come to a close - it’s time for our favorite part:

Rear Exterior

(looking enviously at other countries with functioning governments beginning to open back up): yeah ok you do you, i’m just gonna watch the tour de france in a bathrobe and rank the teams based on how cancelled their sponsors are.

Well that does it for 1976! Join us soon for another installment of the Brutalism Post and keep your eyes peeled for whatever wretched house the year 1977 has bestowed upon this cursed land. 

I know that these are economically uncertain times, but many creators including myself depend on Patreon for most of their income, so if you have a minimum of $12/year to spare and are into bonus content, then do I have some good news for you:

If you like this post, and want to see more like it, consider supporting me on Patreon!

There is a whole new slate of Patreon rewards, including: good house of the month, an exclusive Discord server, weekly drawings, monthly livestreams, a reading group, free merch at certain tiers and more!

Not into recurring donations but still want to show support? Consider the tip jar! (Tips are much appreciated since I am making a cross country move in two weeks!!!)

Or, Check out the McMansion Hell Store! Proceeds from the store help protect great buildings from the wrecking ball.

[kohanayaki]

.:Time and Time Again:. (Marauders Era x Reader) Ch 5

Harry confronts you with a familiar piece of suspiciously folded parchment, and you tell him the story of how you helped create it (mostly told through flashbacks taking place in the Marauders era).

LINKS:   CH 1   CH 2    CH 3   CH 4   CH 5   CH 6   CH 7   CH 8

___________________________________________________________

Ch 5 .:Narrow Spaces and New Alliances:. 

Your eyes drifted open slowly, the bright streams of sunlight coming in through your window strangely unbecoming of 12 Grimmauld Place. It took you a moment to get your bearings as you rubbed the sleep out of your eyes and remembered where you were. As you sat there, looking around Sirius' guest bedroom, last night's events all seemed to flood back to you at once. You groaned into the comforter, feeling your face burn as you recalled blatantly staring at his lips just minutes after crying into his shirt for at least half an hour.

Come on, get it together, you thought to yourself, you're here because Dumbledore summoned you, stay on task.

However, as soon as that memory left your head another replaced it, this one weighing heavier on your chest. You found yourself thinking back to your encounter with Severus. Well, as much as you could call it an 'encounter.' Even when you couldn't see him, you could feel him when you reached out to him with your mind. Severus was good at blocking legillemency— too good, in fact, because you would know the familiar force of his mental shield anywhere. You'd never felt it as powerful coming from anyone else. You almost laughed at the irony of it; the very thing he was trying to use to keep hidden was exactly what had given him away. That, and the smell of him, which took you back to the moment you'd first smelled that damn amortentia potion. . .

You tried to shake off the thought as you properly got out of bed and changed into some casual clothes. The next Order meeting wasn't until tomorrow afternoon, so you had the day mostly to yourself, but you knew the next time you were all in a room together you would have to address some things privately if you had any hope of working together efficiently. You gently padded down the wooden stairs, the door to Sirius' room still closed. He never was an early riser.

As you reached the kitchen you began to put a pot of coffee on when you heard someone approach the room, stalling in the kitchen entrance. You turned around to see Harry in the doorway.

“Morning,” you grinned, turning back to the counter and using your wand to bring some water to a boil, “Coffee? Tea?”

“Oh,” Harry said, a bit embarrassed you'd caught him in mid-thought, “no, I'm okay.”

“What's on your mind?” you asked.

“Um, I was wondering if you could tell me, I mean, if you have the time. . .” he trailed off, reaching for his back pocket, “well, the thing is, a few years ago I found—”

“Kreacher heard sounds coming from the kitchen and did not expect (Y/n)'s return,” Harry jumped at the house elf's sudden arrival, but you seemed unphased.  

“Though master's half mudblood godson remains here,” the elf muttered to himself, “How many more days must it be?”

“Hello, Kreacher,” you greeted him, “nothing nasty about Harry, now, alright? Don't forget he's my godson too.”

“Of course,” Kreacher said, thickly sarcastic but with respect for you in his tone nonetheless. His permanent frown seemed to deepen, however, when he saw you next to the coffee maker. “(Y/n) of house (L/n) should not have to be using the kitchen. Mistress Black would have wept to see a pureblood use muggle equipment. If (Y/n) requires refreshment Kreacher will have it ready.”

“There's no need for that,” you said, “Besides, it's done already, see? You can go on now.”

Kreacher squinted at the cup you poured for yourself. “Always peculiar,” he grumbled, stalking away at your request and muttering to himself all the while.

“He's oddly. . . nice to you,” Harry said, green eyes quizzical behind his round-framed glasses.

“He is,” you chuckled.

“But, well, you're—”

“A blood traitor?” you gave him an easy smile when you saw his expression, easing his fears that he'd actually offended you. “I know,” you said, “he's been through a lot, it's complicated. Trust me, he wasn't always like this to me. It takes time. And it doesn't hurt to be nice to him either.”

Harry decided against bringing up that the nicest person that he knew to the house elf was Hermione, who Kreacher regularly called a 'mudblood wench,' but decided to focus on the 'taking time' part of your statement, wondering  just how long this kind of progress took with the spiteful elf. Besides, you seemed to have some sort of history with him.

“Anyways, what was it you were saying?” you asked Harry.

“Oh, right,” he said, reaching back around him, “um, my friends Fred and George, you've met them?”

“Molly and Arthur's twins, of course,” you smiled, “little imps, they are. Those two could give your father and Sirius a run for their money.”

“Right!” Harry said, “well, that's sort of the point. They're the ones who gave me this.”

As you turned around to face him you stalled mid-stir, nearly dropping your mug as you did. Even as a piece of blank parchment you knew what it was, the distinctive accordion folds that met in the center giving it away.

“How in the world. . .” you trailed off as Harry handed it to you, “but Filch—”

“Didn't do a very good job of hiding it, apparently,” Harry finished, “I thought you might want to do the honors?”

You nodded wordlessly, a pang of unexpected emotion hitting you as you pressed your wand to the map's center.

“I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.”

The faded, brown ink showed itself as its protection charm was washed away, revealing the nostalgia-inducing inscription scrawled in your respective handwritings:

Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs, and Fangs are proud to present: The Marauders Map

“Do Remus and Sirius know you have this?” you asked Harry, who nodded.

“Professor Lupin gave it back to me third year before he left Hogwarts,” he said, “but he never told me anything about it after that.” he seemed deep in thought for a moment before looking up at you. “If everyone else is who I think it is, you're Fangs, right?”

It was your turn to nod now.

“I always wondered, how did you do it?” Harry said, hardly containing his curiosity, and you couldn't help but think how much he looked like James in that moment. “How does it work? What sort of magic did you use? All the secret passageways, how did you find them?”

“Alright, slow down,” you laughed lightly, giving in, “I suppose there's no harm in telling you.”

Harry brightened at that, bounding into the living room and taking a seat on the couch as if to say 'we've got all day,' which you did. It warmed your heart to see him so excited, this was one of the only ways he could get to know his parents— through the stories that remained from the people who loved them. If you could help the picture of his family in his mind become a bit clearer, you would tell him any story he wanted to know. He deserved that much after everything he'd been through.

You took a seat opposite him, still nursing your cup of coffee.

“Well,” you said, “it's a long story, starting with how bad those lot were at keeping secrets. . .”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   1974   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Run!” James half shouted half laughed as Filch hobbled after the four of them. Sirius nearly bit his tongue trying to keep in his laughter as the Caretaker slung insults and promises of punishment their way, cat ears and a tail freshly sprouted from his body.

“I can't believe we actually did that,” Sirius cackled, keeping easy pace with James.

“I can't believe you dragged me into this,” Remus panted, his current body not lending itself well to physical activity. For once he actually wished he was a werewolf right about now.

“I don't know if I can keep up,” Peter wheezed, falling behind.

“Oh come on,” James said, grabbing his sleeve and helping him run, “we can out run a gummy-legged old prat like him.”

“I don't know, he's faster than he looks,” Remus pointed out as Filch rounded the corner behind them.

“Damn,” James cursed under his breath, “we'll lose him if we can make it to the one-eyed-witch passageway.”

“We'll never activate it in time,” Remus countered.

“The hallway behind the third floor tapestry?” Peter suggested.

“No, Filch knows about that one now,” Sirius said.

“Why the hell didn't you bring your cloak?” Remus huffed.

“Well getting caught wasn't supposed to be part of the plan, but someone had to let out a laugh before we could get out!”

“Just save your air and sprint!” Sirius hissed.

The extended run time was starting to catch up to all of them now, and when they'd made a wrong turn to a blocked off corridor they thought they were done for.

“Hey, morons, over here!”

Four heads snapped towards the sound of your whisper, but you were nowhere to be found. Suddenly, one of the light pillars began to shift, revealing a large crack in the wall just big enough for them to fit sideways.

No questions were asked with no time to waste, and the four boys clamored after one another so they could fit inside. Your magic moved the pillar back in place just in time, and you watched from your hiding spot as Filch reached the walled-off passage in surprise, grumbling as he looked around for the culprits behind you. You had to stifle a snicker as his cat ears lowered; was that growling coming from the back of this throat or did you imagine that? Eventually he stumbled off in frustration and you sighed.

“Alright, the coast is clear,” you said.

“Why did you help us?” James rose a brow, that signature shit-eating grin back on his face like it never left, “you haven't fallen in love with me since our truce, have you?”

“Dream on, Potter,” you rolled your eyes, pushing him out of the crevice and smirking as he tumbled to the floor.

“It seems like I'm always saving you nowadays,” you said, stepping out of the wall yourself with the rest of the boys following.

Remus was thoroughly confused, looking pointedly between you and Sirius. He knew you and James were pretty much friends now, but he also noticed that the hostile air that always seemed to be present with you and the elder Black had diminished. He'd even seen you two talking in the halls lately. Sirius gave him a look; he would explain what happened in the forest with Lucius to Remus later. Mostly he didn't want to admit that Remus was right about you not being so bad if he gave you a chance; you had actually been getting on pretty well since that night.

“You do realize it's no fun winning the house cup when you four practically make Gryffindor ineligible every year with all the shit you get up to, right?” you chuckled, “some competition would be nice for a change.”

“We'll see if you're singing the same tune when Quidditch season rolls around,” James said smugly.

“You're right,” you said, squaring up against him, “guess that's a new competition we've got going for us.”

It had recently been announced that you and James had both been selected to play Seeker for your respective houses next year. It was an arrangement that had the whole school talking, your rivalry turned (mostly) friendship now infamous, even if it was a recent occurrence.

“Hold on, how did you know that was there?” Peter asked you, pointing to the moving column, “even we didn't know about it.”

“Oh?” you crossed your arms, “and are you four supposedly some kind of all-knowing secret masters? Because clearly there's things you don't know about yet.”

Sirius slapped a hand over Peter's mouth before he could retaliate and give away what they've been working on.

“Yes, well, apparently,” he said, ignoring Peter's muffled protests.

You looked at them curiously, all four boys looking suspiciously nervous.

The next day at breakfast, James had brought up the idea of 'hiring' you to help them finish the map.

“I'm telling you, I think we can really make progress with their help,” he pitched, “they clearly know what they're talking about, and we know they can pull a hell of a prank from all the times they've gotten me.”

“How do we know they won't tell anyone?” Peter countered, “I don't know what's up with you, but you're trusting them too fast, James.”

“They're not the type that would tell,” Remus admitted.

“Oh, not you too!” Peter whined.

“I'm just saying, they'll likely appreciate what we've gathered so far and have a fair bit to add,” Lupin insisted, “it could be worth a try if you really want to finish it before we graduate—”

“Finish what?”

The four boys jolted upright, turning to see you and Lily.

“Are you guys okay?” Lily asked, concern written across her features.

“Of course!”

“Never better!”

“Why wouldn't we be?”

Remus just groaned at his friends' panicked answers. This was hopeless.

You and Lily shared a knowing look off the the side.

“Alright, whatever you say. . .”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry laughed heartily,

“Wow, I mean, I know you said they were bad, but that bad?”

“For being expert pranksters who hardly ever managed to get caught, they were remarkably terrible at hiding things,” you said, chuckling along with him, “It didn't take us long to figure out they were up to something, although they seemed to think they were brilliant at covering it up, Remus had to burst their bubble eventually.”

Harry shook his head, smiling fondly and imagining all the scenes in his head as you continued your tale.

“So that was when they were first starting to put the map together,” you continued, “but that wasn't even the biggest secret they were hiding. Of course, I wouldn't find out about that for another year, but we'll get to that part of the story later. . .”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   1975   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“This tastes awful,” Sirius complained, trying to ignore the plant prodding the under-side of his tongue.

“Well if you were expecting treacle toffee I'm sorry to disappoint,” James rolled his eyes, equally nauseated by the bitter tinge of the Mandrake leaf in his mouth.

“There's no way someone can do this for an entire month,” Peter said, “How do you brush your teeth? What if you accidentally swallow it when you're eating?”

“You three have fun with that,” Remus chuckled, flipping through an old library book and his mouth gratefully leafless.

“How about some gratitude, Moony?” James said, “We're doing this for you.”

“Please, you just want to see if you can turn into a dragon or something,” Lupin chortled, “and you don't actually have to go through with all this. Who knows if this animagus stuff will actually work.”

“Well, a dragon would suit me,” James mused, “but of course we're going to see this through, mate. You know we'd do anything for you.”

Remus smiled to himself, not responding and not needing to. He knew.

“Hey guys,” you grinned, walking up to the Gryffindor table.

Peter gulped suddenly in surprise as you came up behind him, and his eyes widened in horror.

“Shit!” he coughed out, “I-I swallowed it!”

“Your. . . food?” you questioned, glancing over at the boys who all had that same, vaguely panicked look about them.

“Okay, it was funny at first, but you guys have been acting weird since last year and now it's worrying,” you admitted.

The four looked between themselves and came to a sort of silent conclusion. Maybe in this scenario it was better to tell one secret to keep the other. And so, later that night, they told you to meet them after lights out so they could tell you what was really going on. You snuck out of your dorm room and made your way through the secret tunnel to the Gryffindor common room, a route you'd taken plenty of times to mess with James.

You pushed a loose panel of wood open, coming into the warmly lit space through one of the cabinets. You pushed an armchair that was half blocking your path out of the way as you crawled through the space.

“Blimey!” Sirius jumped, “give us a heads up, would you?”

“Sush,” Remus scolded him, “you really don't understand the concept of an inside voice, do you?”

“Alright, well I'm here,” you said, brushing off your robes, “now what's this big secret? This better not be a trick because I've been working on a new hex.”

“Nothing like that,” James assured you, “we've been working on something we think you might be interested in, if you're willing to contribute.”

He stepped to the side so you could see the floor where they'd been huddled around and your eyes widened.

“Merlin,” you said. The red and gold carpet was covered in at least forty different pieces of parchment. Pages upon pages overlapped with each other, each messily detailing a different part and level of the castle in scribbles of smudged ink. “This is. . .”

“The entirety of the Hogwarts castle and surrounding land,” Sirius said proudly, “complete with secret passageways.”

“This is our lives' work, (Y/n),” James said, “be impressed!”

“What impresses me most is how none of you have any sense of scale,” you said, sifting through the papers, “you should really condense this. Kind of hard to make any use of a map if you have to flip to page thirty-three to find the kitchens.”

“Point taken,” Remus said, “it could do with some reorganization.”

“And probably a bigger piece of paper,” you mentioned.

“Right, that. . .”

“That's not all there is to it, though,” Peter said, “Sirius?”

The curly haired boy stepped forward, pressing his wand to the center of the floor.

“Revelare Popularis,”

You watched in wonder as hundreds of names suddenly appeared across the pieces of paper, all students and faculty you recognized. They were scrawled in Sirius' handwriting, as if he'd written them himself.

“This spell shows where everyone in any location on this map is at this very moment,” he said, “It's not exact, and we've been working on variations.”

“So you can plan ahead without getting caught,” you mused, “how'd you learn something as advanced as this, Black?”

“I get around,” Sirius shrugged, unabashedly showing off. Peter rolled his eyes.

“So, the only drawback, of course, is that the spell doesn't work in real time,” Remus said, “so by the time you get where you need to go. . .”

“People will have moved,” James finished, “we're willing to share this little trove of knowledge with you if you're willing to give up all the secret rooms, passages, and hiding places you know.”

“And we thought you may have a solution to our timing problem,” Remus said, “I could tell from our study sessions you quite enjoy learning ahead of your year.”

Your eyes scanned the pages, and you were admittedly impressed. There was ton of stuff on here you had no idea about, but you knew a fair amount was missing as well. It seemed like a fair trade.

“I'm in,” you said.

“What?” Peter blinked, “it was that easy?”

“This is a useful tool you've got,” you said, “I think we can all benefit from it being improved. And now that you mention it, I actually do think I've read about a similar spell to that paper charm. It was in some Gaelic tome in the restricted section on ancient magic. I'm not even sure it used a wand. It was called the Homunculus charm. From what I read it sounded like it acted as a live feed for people in any given location, clan leaders used it to plan ambushes and keep track of citizens. If we could link it to the entire castle. . .”

“We'd be able to see where everyone is—”

“And what they're doing—”

“—At every hour of every day!”

“True, albeit a bit stalkerish,” you quipped, “you let me in on this if I add in what I know, and you got yourself a deal.”

James put out his hand, and as tempted as you were to turn it green or make all the bones in it disappear, you reached out and shook it.

“I do believe this puts us in a formal alliance, Potter,” you said cheekily.

“I believe so,” James smirked.

“Terrifying,” Remus chuckled, “This school won't even know what hit it.”

“Well, what are we waiting for?” James said with a cheshire grin, “let's steal ourselves a book, shall we?”

Read chapter 6 here!

Taglist:  @sleep-i-ness, @blackpinkdolan, @parker-natasha, @ornella0910 @undertaker1827 @thatwierdo-koemi @nxstalgicnxbxdy @calaryssia @aleksanderwh0r3 @mialupin1

[cocochannel00]

The Azoff Family: A Case Study on one of the Music Industry’s Most Connected Families

(ft. a breakdown of the Grammy voting process and problems)

This is very long so I will try and split it up into categories for everyone (sorry I got carried away- I spent like 2 hours writing this) but enjoy!

*Disclaimer: I want to preface while the majority of this is based in research, some parts may be speculation. I don’t know the family personally so I can’t tell you what goes on behind closed doors but I can tell you how parts of the entertainment/music industry work. I’ve had 5 internships in the industry (one in marketing at one of the big record labels) and the rest of my work is publicity (what I enjoy) and events and a former advisor used to run in the same circles as Irving Azoff (and he spilled some tea last year) I’m not out here to diminish the hard work of any artists or their teams, I’m simply here to showcase parts of the industry that aren’t always shown.*

Please also see: Story Time: How Fan Pages Directly Impact Columbia Records Decisions and Harry Styles Image

IRVING AZOFF: NEVER STOP THE GRIND

Let’s begin with the great business man himself Mr. Irving Azoff Irving Azoff is the literal posture child for connections and power in the music industry (he was also inducted into the 2020 rock and roll hall of fame class which is like a huge fucking deal for a manager to be inducted so you know he's the real deal)

In conclusion, I love Irving Azoff and his drive.

Irving Azoff: Early Years Run Down:

He came up middle class (dad was a pharmacist, mom a bookkeeper) in Danville, Illinois

He dropped out of college to run a small Midwestern concert-booking empire and managed local acts in the era

Opportunity came knocking and he got the chance to manage the Eagles and the rest is history

He's one of the best negotiators and has negotiated business on behalf of stars like Stevie Nicks, the Eagles, and Jimmy Buffet

Azoff has been an incredible manager and his drive to always advocate for his clients while basically not giving two sh*ts about what people think of him has gotten him the incredible reputation he has today.

All of Irving Azoff’s Major Job Positions:

Former President MCA (major label)

Former CEO of Ticketmaster and executive chairman of Live Nation Entertainment, the behemoth formed from Ticketmaster’s merger with Live Nation.

In 2013 he and Cablevision Systems Corp. CEO and New York Knicks owner James Dolan formed a partnership, Azoff MSG Entertainment (Currently still CEO)

----> Azoff also ran the Forum in Inglewood under Azoff MSG Entertainment after MSG purchased it in 2012 (it was sold in 2020 to the owner of the Clippers) — why do you think Harry played the forum for the Fine Line show? Azoff connection

Azoff MSG Entertainment encompasses all of the other companies including Full Stop Management, Global Music Rights (performance-rights org), and the Oak View Group (arena developing company)

He also is the co-founder and manager of the lobbying group Music Artists Coalition, a group that helps lobby for artists-rights issues such as royalty rates, copyright issue and healthcare insurance (see he's not all bad)

Essentially what I'm getting at is this man knows anybody who's anybody. He's the man you want on your team to help promote your music, plan your tour, and get you on that Grammy nom list.

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JEFFREY AZOFF: THE CHILD OF NEPOTISM

So for those of you that don't know, Jeffery Azoff is Harry's current manager and the son of Irving Azoff (the third of four kids). He's currently a partner at Full Stop Management, the company owned by Irving and the one artists such as Harry, Haim, the Eagles, Kings of Leon, and Meghan Trainer are signed to.

Jeffrey graduated from the University of Colorado's Leeds School of Business and started working fresh out of college at his father's old Management company (Frontline Management) working under Maroon 5's manager Jordan Feldstein (the only way you get that kind of internship/job as a 21 year old fresh out of college is if your family or family friends gives it to you). He worked here for 5 years.

Direct Quote from Irving Azoff to Jeffrey (really tells you a lot): "Listen carefully, because I’m going to say this one time. You have a phone and you have my last name. If you can’t figure it out, you’re not my son."

After working for his father, Jeffrey moved on to the talent agency CAA (Creative Artist Agency) where he worked for roughly 3 and half years before joining his dad in forming Full Stop Management in 2016.

While he was at CAA, Irving moved over clients like Christina Aguilera and the Eagles to the talent agency to help with tour booking instead of doing it internally through LiveNation (he was CEO).

Even though I'm sure Jeff has had to work somewhat hard to get to where he is (or at least to mess up his dad's work as he doesn't seem like the type to take laziness well), the door into the industry and every job was basically handed to him on a silver platter.

Not to mention if you watch episodes of keeping up with the  kardashians (like myself) you can actually see Jeff hanging out with kendall and the rest of the fam at their Palm Springs house (you know you're a nepotism kid if you have an in with the Kardashian crew). Invite me next time Jeffrey!!!

Think of the Azoff's as the mafia family of the music industry, you don't mess with the mafia

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THE GRAMMY AWARDS: STUDENT COUNCIL ELECTIONS ON STEROIDS

Ok so here's where we’re going to get into a bit more of the speculation/grey area. I don't need to tell you that award shows are corrupt (See the Golden Globes Emily in Paris scandal) and the Grammys are not an exception. Think of the Grammys as one big student council/government elections where despite the fact the teachers tell you six times to vote for the best candidate, you're still going to vote for your friends even if they aren't the best.

A simplified break-down of Grammy voting:

1) Recording Academy voting members (artists, producers, musicians- anyone involved first hand with the creation of music; All voting members must have been producers, performers or engineers on six or more tracks of a commercially released album (or 12 or more digital tracks) and record labels will submit nominations in various categories to the grammys (songs need to be released commercially between October 1 of the previous year and September 30th of this year). You can also become a voting member by either winning a grammy or being endorsed by a current voting member (hint hint)

2) Once received, the recording academy with have the academy of trustees and its reviewers organize them and approve any changes to the 30 categories/fields (aka they can add new categories or remove old ones; so no best ukulele album of the year -- this is where things get funky)

There's speculation that during this stage when these special groups of 8-10 people are organizing genres, there's an "unwritten rule" that you need to be careful what album you green light (especially for famous artists) if you don't want them to win) (Rob Kenner said this- he used to be on one of these committees). Famous people tend to get more votes from clueless or lay Academy members that don't know the specialized categories or don't care enough to listen to songs that aren't radio trending.

3) After the nominations occur, Voting members begin their first voting. Members can vote for the four general categories of record of the year, album of the year, song of the year and best new artist and a maximum of 15 categories, all within their areas of expertise. Now the interesting thing is that while these are the guidelines there is literally nothing stopping them from voting in whatever categories they want (i.g. a rapper voting in the opera category despite not listening to opera). Theses ballots are all tallied and the top 20 entries are determined in each category (funky moment #2)

In 12 of the 84 categories those top 20 go to the ballot and it's done; for the rest it’s not like that. 59 categories including the big four go to a "nomination review committees" (identities are protected so they can't get lobbied... sure) who take a look at the top 20 and narrow it down to 7 or 8. (these are the special committees the Weekend talked about when he was snubbed). They're supposed to choose the nominees "based solely on the artistic and technical merits of the eligible recordings" which lets be real if that was the case Watermelon Sugar (along with most of the others in the category) I don't think would have been nomimated as they are very generic pop (none of them are special... sorry to the WM lovers out there).

This committee is basically held to THE HONOR CODE SYSTEM... I mean tell me when the last time the honor code system worked in literally any scenario (literally wtf). Don't take my word for it though the former CEO of the Academy Deborah Dugan (a queen) filed a complaint against the Recording Academy basically claiming that the nomination review process was rigged (she was fired after 5 months on the job).

Quote from Deborah Dugan "Members of the board [of trustees] and the secret committees chose artists with whom they have personal or business relationships... It is not unusual for artists who have relationships with Board members and who ranked at the bottom of the initial 20-artist list to end up receiving nominations."

These review committees can also exploit there power by adding up to two nominees that don't appear on the top 20 list to the final voting ballot (except in the 4 big categories - which watermelon sugar that one wasn't nominated for)

They also have craft committees for like non performance stuff (like album notes, engineering and arranging) that don't even get voted on by the academy voting members

4) After all of that fucked up mess, the grammy's decided is ok, the ballots go back to the voting members for the final vote. Deloitte (an accounting firm) then counts all of them, seals them in envelopes, and delivers them to the Grammy award show.

** The Grammy's just announced this year they're removing the "secret committees" so let's see how things shift in the next couple of years**

So obviously I'm not saying this to discredit Harry's nomination or his win as Fine Line was in the US top 20 albums for the majority of 2020, however, we must acknowledge privilege. Harry has a big name to him and a huge following, and while all of that shouldn't be taken into account, it does. He also has the Azoffs, a very well connected family with friends in lots of places that would be able to put in a good word here and there to get support behind Harry. Harry won best pop solo performance for Watermelon Sugar in a category with Doja Cat, Justin Bieber, Billie Eilish, Taylor Swift, and Dua Lipa. Look at the names there, the songs (ya'll can try and remember them cause I'm too lazy to write it out) and tell me that those top names with all of the music produced didn't get there through some connections.

Do with all this information what you will and if you are interested in learning more about the entertainment industry on your own Endeavor (owners of WME, a big talent agency like CAA) is hosting a free online program called the Excellence Program to help guide the future generation of industry executives. The program is a-synchronous and starts on July 12th. Highly recommend giving it a go if you're interested!!!

Alright ya'll that's it. Feel free to message me with your thoughts!

Extra Sources if you'd like to read:

https://www.vice.com/en/article/pkdndn/how-grammys-voting-actually-works-and-where-the-alleged-corruption-lies

https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards/voting-process

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2020-11-05/irving-azoff-eagles-manager

https://celebrityaccess.com/caarchive/jeffrey-azoff-exits-caa-to-launch-new-management-company/

https://www.rollingstone.com/pro/features/grammy-awards-secret-committees-945532/

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/grammy-awards-eliminate-secret-committees-voting-changes-1163887/

[misc-headcanons]

Yay, requests are open! Also, congrats on finishing another year of school! May I request headcanons for X Drake, Jack the Drought, and King the Wildfire falling in love with a local Wano woman (how they would react to falling in love, confessions, that sort of thing). Have a great day and stay healthy ^.^

(Ooh, my first Jack and King request ever :D Hopefully I don't fuck up their characters, I'm just quickly browsing through their OPWiki pages just for a refresher on them lol)

TW: some slightly yandere content (for Jack and moreso King's sections)

X-Drake

THIS WAS NOT PART OF THE MISSION. He knows how dangerous it would be for her if he pursued her so he'd try to keep his feelings suppressed. He wouldn't be able to completely keep her out of his mind though, so he'd compromise with himself by watching over her from afar. Any danger or trouble that comes to her town always manages to avoid her home specifically. Is there a shortage of food? X-Drake's crew makes sure there's enough for her and her family. As much as he wants to help the whole town, he can't afford to draw suspicion by being too charitable as one of Kaido's crewmates.

She might notice him watching her from afar and he would be so flustered, lol. Like he'll whip around and walk away in a nanosecond and continue doing whatever he was doing, but now he's got a bit of pink in his cheeks. If she started approaching him more often or leaving him notes or something at a distance, he'd be hesitant to return those affections just because he doesn't want to drag them into danger.

In the end though, I think that he wouldn't be able to separate himself from her entirely. He has a sense of chivalry and he thinks that it isn't fair to do that without at least telling her why. He'd arrange to meet with her in private since he doesn't want to just leave a note for her, but the moment he's finally in a room with just her, seeing her look up at him...he can't do it. He can't leave her. He'll confess his feelings and then tell her that he understands if she doesn't return them or doesn't want to be with him due to how dangerous it could be. And if she insists on being with him regardless of that, he'd make sure he keeps her safe and vows to protect her for as long as he draws breath.

He's such a gentleman that it hurts lmao. Flowers, holding doors and chairs out for her, politely averting his gaze when she's even slightly undressed (seriously, she could be in a kimono with bare shoulders like Black Maria's and he'll bite his cheek and look away to give her "privacy") He also dislikes whenever she's around other pirates and tries to distance her from his business unless he can't avoid it. Also the first time they kiss is THE most romantic thing ever; he even does that thing where he brushes a stray piece of hair behind her ear, and dips her back a little bit while holding her when he goes in to kiss her. It's probably done in the moonlight, he's caressing the small of her back, it's straight out of a storybook.

Jack

Jack is someone who's easily angered and who will rampage if pushed further. I think that he feels all of his emotions in an intense way, so when he falls in love he falls pretty damn hard. Once he sets his sights on ____ he's going to immediately try to court them.

He's been in Wano for a while and knows what's typically expected of someone trying to show their feelings/intentions, so he'll send her letters and small gifts for a while before inviting her to meet with him one evening so he can formally propose to her. I HC that Wano's views on romance and marriage are a mix between Heian and Edo-era customs of courtship, so things move to marriage pretty quickly by modern standards. He'll offer a VERY sizeable dowry to her family in exchange for their blessing, and since she'd be marrying one of the Tobi Roppo they know she'll be living very well.

If she or her family refused, though...Jack won't take no for an answer. He'll simply return the next day, take ____ over his shoulder, and if she protests he'll threaten to have her family imprisoned with a life sentence for treason. In his mind she should be happy he's even leaving them alive after rejecting his generous offer.

If she and her family DO accept, he's very happy and makes sure his wife and in-laws are cared for. His wife would move in with him at Onigashima, and her family would never have to worry about anything financially ever again (and in Wano, that is a very rare blessing). He'll spoil his wife with all sorts of finery and anything she'd like, and he's also more affectionate than you may think when in public; he'll always have her on his shoulder or even on one of his tusks if he isn't carrying her bridal style, lol. And in private, he's such a teddy bear: nuzzling her neck and cheek with his fingers (he might hurt her with how wife and obtrusive his tusks are otherwise), holding her close while she lays on his chest, picking her up and lifting his mask to kiss her properly, etc.

King

King's described as a ruthless, cold-blooded, "torture-loving pervert", so catching his eye is NOT good. He doesn't express romantic interest the same way most people do, so his s/o may not even realize he has feelings for her. He tends to stare at her a lot but since he's completely covered by his suit, she probably doesn't even realize he's staring at her specifically. That's the closest he really gets to showing how he feels about her at this stage.

He'll skip the dowry and just arrive to her house to personally inform ____ that she's to pack her things and come with him so he can have her as his bride. If she resists or refuses, he just goes outside and kills the nearest person he sees before telling her that unless she wants to get another one of her neighbors killed, she'll do what he says and come with him.

If she agrees without any trouble and comes with him, he's a bit kinder (as much as he can be, lol) and orders his men to help move her things to his home. He also provides her family with a proper dowry as a wedding gift and makes sure his wife is well cared for in his home. Her wardrobe contains fine silks, jewelry made from jade and Sea Prism Stone, and he'd even give her gifts based off of what she likes or is interested in: books, plants, instruments, etc.

He gets more affectionate and open after the wedding as opposed to any time before it. The suit keeps him from kissing her directly most of the time (maybe he can take it off? We don't know much about his race so maybe he's stuck in there lol) so he prefers to put his covered mouth against hers or brush his fingers over her lips. He'll also embrace her with his wings whenever he hugs her, which he ONLY does in private--if someone sees the two of them being affectionate, they're lucky if they make it out alive.

[toxicthotsyndrome68]

Spoilers of Pamela’s doc (sorry for grammar error)

I honestly love how Pamela took control/narrative over her story from the ‘Pam and Tommy’ series. I think Pamela doing that made the ‘Pam and Tommy’ series more of a lifetime biopic then a serious biopic that the creators were going for. I wouldn’t surprised if it was Brandons idea to do the documentary (it would be iconic if it was). I love how candid and honest she was. Some parts of her diary/journals being read out loud gave a different feel, it truly made it feel more like a love letter to herself and as someone else said to her sons. I’m glad I never watched the ‘Pam and Tommy’ show but only saw screen grabs from tumblr. Pamela not shading the actors is something I wouldn’t be able to refrain from had it been me but her sons being upset about made me respect her sons. Their defensiveness over her and how she was treated, especially Brandon, is admirable.

Onto something not related to Pamela, I think it’s very fucking weird and annoying how Brittany (Tommy’s wife) can’t keep Pamela’s name from her mouth. I never particularly liked Brittany, especially during her vine era, but I never hated her either. The way she shades Pamela on TikTok with ‘Pamela if I died’ and it’s the soundbite of Wendy Williams “oh she passed” and some thing about so many people being with Tommy and how one in particular keeps messaging Tommy how they miss him. When she got mad that HelloTefi on TikTok did a Pamela and Tommy series. I do believe that she loves Tommy and maybe by extension Tommy loves her too but why does she keep coming for Pamela. If your as secure as you keep saying you are why are you threatened by a woman who doesn’t think about you. My respect for Tommy was gone when he talked about how his kids with Pamela are spoiled and it was because of Pamela. Then Brandon coming from a place of protectiveness and hurt from a child (something I know about because my dad was just as shitty towards my mom) talks bout how it’s not Pamela that’s the issue it’s him and it’s him who is an embarrassment to the family. Damn! This is also info I should’ve known about or should’ve been made public all because Tommy always had to be a victim and have someone woe-me him.

The insecurity was especially proven for me when Trisha Paytas did that Pamela and Tommy inspired photo shoot. The fat phobia and verbal abuse that came from Tommy and Brittany’s mouth made me so uncomfortable. Mostly because Pamela would never and hasn’t at all criticized Trisha and they ( Brittany and Tommy) feel so insecure and threatened by a slight mention of the past. I don’t like how Tommy berated Trisha and said how you don’t look like her (which Trisha did look like Pamela) and said she was too fat or something along those lines to be her. I think the extreme defensive over Pamela really upset/made her insecure. It’s fucking weird how they watched the video and criticized Trisha because Brittany posted it. Now Brittany trying so hard to make it about her saying how she’s fine even though the ironic part is that Brittany was never mentioned in the documentary at all. I know she was hurt and is hurt that Pamela doesn’t want to meet her nor want to be friends with her.