#ignore the ugh. the third-first person swap

[electrocution-hazard]

"W--get back here you asshole--" Eros sighs, defeated, and get back to work.

jay i don't know who was supposed to tell you this but i don't. i don't think eros is an npc - 🫀

[ eh?.. ]

[cherrygummycandy]

Roommate wanted

DHMIS main trio x Roommate!Reader

(I lied, I was going to post a different pic but forgot I had this in my drafts!)

💚💛❤💙💚💛❤💙💚💛❤💙💚💛❤💙

Bright colors shine through the windows of the small pink house, cascading off the checker print tiles. This light however, was suddenly dashed with a grunt from a green feathered bird as he slammed shut a curtain. "Ugh, can't the sun move somewhere else, it's ruining my light..." The bird grumbles, readjusting the mirror he has set up on the kitchen table. "Y'alright?" A tall red man asks absentmindedly from the other side of the table, not bothering to look up from his paper. "No! I'm not alright. I'm trying to brush my hair, and the sun is blinding me." The third and final member of the table perks up at this, now interjecting.

"But, you don't have hair, you're a bird." The yellow boy says, head tilted in confusion as he shovels cereal into his mouth. "Feathers are hair for birds, idiot." Duck snaps, The yellow one looks down sadly at this, a slight whine as he goes back to his cereal.

After a few minutes, Red sighs and puts down his paper. "Y'know, I thought something would have happened by now." He says. Duck's brow furrows as he looks up from his mirror, setting down his comb. "You're right, I'm bored. Someone do something. Call someone." He orders. "Call someone? Do we have a phone?" Yellow asks. "Nah, I think that electric person took it a few days ago, remember?" The three shiver at the memory of the small electric girl, and the sounds she made when they swapped her batteries. Duck snaps out of it first, and throws his mirror off the table. "Well, find something to do-" "What's this?" Yellow interjects, picking up the newspaper.

"DON'T INTERRUPT ME!" Duck screeches, only to be ignored by Red. "It's a newspaper." "But what's this say?" Yellow points to an ad, that reads 'Roomate wanted, apply at address below'. Red takes the paper from him, looking closer. "S' a roommate ad. Y'know, for people you live with, like us." He explains, before pausing. His eyes narrow. "Huh. This is our address." Duck snatches the paper. "Our address-" He looks up, even more annoyed. "You put out an ad for another roommate? Am I not enough?". Red shakes his head. "I didn't put out an ad, and he probably didn't either." He glances at yellow. "I don't even think he can read." Red continues to examine the ad, trying to ignore Duck's squabbling. In all this noise, Yellow seems to be the only one to hear a knock on the front door. He hops down from his chair, and heads out of the kitchen. "Where's he going?" Duck asks. The two follow him and peek around the doorframe, watching as he opens the door.

💚💛❤💙💚💛❤💙💚💛❤💙💚💛❤💙

"Uhm, hello?" You greet, looking down at the odd yellow fellow. "Hello!" He greets you, staring up at you blankly. You wait a few moments, but he doesn't go on. "Oh, for god's sake-" A green bird in a tweed jacket pushes him aside with a grunt. "Who're you?" He asks, eyeing you up and down with furrowed brows. "I'm Y/N, I saw an ad in the paper." You reach into the bag hanging at your side and pull out the scrap of paper. "Yeah, says here 'Roomate wanted'.". You try to hand the bird the paper, but he swats it away. "We've seen the ad, we didn't send it! Go away!" He squawks, attempting to shut the door. A red foot stops it from closing all the way, and a much larger red figure looks down at the bird. "Hold on now, come on. You wanted something to do today, maybe we could use a new roommate." The red man proposes.

"What, No! There's three of us! Just three of us!" The bird exclaims. Once more, the two characters argue back and forth, leaving you confused and feeling awkward on there doorstep. "I'm Yellow. It's nice to meet you, roommate!" The yellow man says, extending a hand happily. "Wha- Oh, no! My name isn't roommate, my name is Y/N." You correct, shaking his hand gently. "So Roomates your last name?" Before you can respond, the duck coughs loudly to get your attention.

"Alright, Roommate. We have decided to allow you to stay here, as long as you're entertaining to me." Duck says. "No, I made the decision you could stay, I pay the rent." Red says. "Do you?" He rolls his eyes. "We've got a spare room, upstairs, to the left. You can set up there." Red offers. "We can have bunk beds!" Yellow exclaims, and Red shakes his head. "No, they'll have their own room." Duck nods in agreement. "But... how can you have bunk beds in two different rooms..." Yellow trails off.

"Thank you! I'll go drop my stuff off now." You thank them and head past the duck, into the house and up the stairs. "You think they'll last?" Duck asks, glancing at tred. "W-what?" Yellow asks, worry evident in his voice. "I mean, anyone new we meet pretty much leaves at the end of the day, so they probably will too." Red shrugs. "I mean, I guess it's possible. Just enjoy it while there here." He heads back into the kitchen. "But, I don't want them to leave, I like Roommate." Yellow whines. Duck only scoffs. "Please you just met them." He moves to follow Red, before stopping and turning back to say,

"and there name isn't roommate."

[theparanormalperiodical]

The Thornton Heath Poltergeist - The Most Haunted Places In The World That You NEED To Hear About #2

January.

A time of self doubt as you take on the latest fad diet. A time of personal struggle as you return to the 9-to-5 and question why in the hell you decided to work in this goddamn office. And a time of thirst as you realise Dry January does indeed include Echo Falls despite their Rosé being mostly sugar and aesthetic.

Is there any hope left in the world?

Oh, dear reader - you didn’t tap on this blog in the hope of reading some article about a cheerful, positive topic like little rabbits with big flopsy ears, did you?

You’re here for the dead. And the demonic. And all manner of terrible things. 

Goodbye, Patches - hello, Poltergeist.

Today, we are going to be discussing one of the most iconic paranormal cases from the UK that no one has ever heard of: the Thornton Heath Poltergeist. 

But it turns out that there’s not just one poltergeist in Thornton Heath. 

Oh, no. 

There’s two. 

And these two pesky spirits are far from alone:

Croydon might not sound like the setting for the next cult horror hit, but this London borough is actually known for its rather macabre history - and the legacy of its dark past.

Whilst your chowing down on a Gregg’s sausage roll you might hear rumours of one of Elizabeth I’s maids-in-waiting traipsing around a school, and perhaps you’ll even see a few children who were killed during the war skip past the local Chicken Cottage.

On top of that - like most areas of London - Croydon is actually a relatively ancient town, with the first settlements appearing in the 6th century. 

This place clearly has a lot of paranormal promise.

However, despite setting the scene for 2 key cases of poltergeist activity, though do appear to be unconnected. Nevertheless, together they provide a lot of insight into a specific form of supernatural activity that tends to get forgotten.

This is especially true since poltergeists have dominated the horror genre for many a year, inspiring iconic films such as Poltergeist (1982), and litter stories which involve any trace paranormal activity.

The thing is, although frequently mentioned, the actual concept of poltergeists is kind of ignored, particularly the debate surrounding them. These 2 cases, however, provide an overview of the different approaches to poltergeist activity:

One case looks into debunking the paranormal, whereas the other presents the typical haunted house case you clicked to see. 

So, today’s article is going to take us through the 2 poltergeists of Thornton Heath, and the paranormal theory behind poltergeists. 

Strap in folks, and let’s get spooky.

First, What Actually Is A Poltergeist?

Anyone speak German?

Poltergeist is a mashup of two German words, and it literally means “noisy spirit”.

Based on that translation, it is a type of spirit who has a thing for physical disturbances. Loud noises, objects moving, biting and pinching are the common symptoms of such a haunting. And despite sounding pretty minimal - well, maybe not the biting and the pinching - such poltergeist activity often represents the first traces of far greater hauntings. 

But unlike most paranormal theories, it turns out that poltergeist activity is pretty well investigated (as this post will demonstrate). 

Heck, poltergeist activity has been reported since the 1st century!

It is claimed that it lasts typically around 5 months, but some say it can stretch out to several years.

On top of our knowledge of the duration of such activity, poltergeists allegedly haunt people, not places - a bit like demons. This does contrast with the 1972 haunting, but we all know that supernatural theories lack the accuracy we expect of an exact science.

And so we come back to the debates and the debunking which always ends up stalking the supernatural. It’s for that reason that Poltergeists are such a valuable component of spiritualist theory because of the intense debate and study surrounding them, as the 1938 case will show. 

Indeed, the first of the scientific theories debunking poltergeists swap the paranormal for the patriarchy.

It's called the Naughty Little Girl theory.

Obviously, it suggests that young girls create activity to get attention because women can’t breathe without doing it for attention, right? The Conjuring 2 is one of the few films that picks up on this concept, showing its use by the media as it was utilised in the real life case.

A less misogynistic theory instead claims that the paranormal activity could be down to seismic activity or water stress, creating noises and physical disturbances often blamed on poltergeists.

Or, it could all come back to the theory of psychokinesis:

It claims that when we are stressed, our fucked-up brains can have a physical impact on the objects around us, making it look - and feel - like we are living in a perpetual Paranormal Activity film. 

Well, that or a rom-com; it turns out the poltergeist was really within us the whole time...

The 1972 Case - The Official Thornton Heath Poltergeist 

Welcome to the the era of the occult - the 1970s. 

The obsession with the paranormal experienced a revival in the late 20th century thanks to the affectionately named Satanic Panic and the rise of hippie-dom. And because so many reports of the paranormal crop up in this era, we have to be wary – blaming shit on the paranormal was nearly as common as institutionalised racism, ensuring that claims were often amped up by fear.

Got your pinch of salt to hand? Good. 

Our story begins in the heat of summer - it’s August 1972. 

A family are fast asleep after, well, I don’t know, what did people do in the 1970s? Listen to too much ABBA? 

Anyway - their peaceful slumber is interrupted in the middle of the night when a radio switches on all by itself and blasts out full-volume-raise-the-roof level musings from a foreign radio station.

This is where the activity begins. 

The following nights, lights turn on and off by themselves, mirroring the first hour of a Paranormal Activity film before Katie makes some off the cuff comment about being besties with a demon during puberty. 

Yet despite the suggestions of something supernatural, it suddenly just chills the fuck out. 

Well, that is until the most wonderful time of the year! Only for this famalam, this are about to get a little less wonderful, and a little more what the fuck. 

Probably in the midst of an ABBA jam-sesh, a small antique figurine is plucked off a shelf by an invisible hand, and flung across the room, hitting the patriarch of the family with such a force that it knocks him to the floor. 

If that wasn’t enough for one day, the Christmas tree then joins in the freaky festivities, and starts shaking.

And that only just scratches the surface of the supernatural events soon to haunt this family.

Cut to a few days later, and its New Year Eve.

Ok, right, let’s be honest here: any activity reported was at times when there would have been a couple of bevvies, a few late nights among friends and family… 

Who hasn’t seen a demon picking cashews out of the mixed nuts bowel when they’re a third of the way through that bottle of Echo Falls?

Regardless of my suspicions, they supposedly started to hear loud footsteps upstairs, and during that very night, a member of the family awoke to see a very tall and very angry man staring at him, giving off very threatening vibes.

But it wasn’t just the son of the family that saw these mysterious goings on.

Some visitors to the house reported similar activity:

At a dinner party (*sigh*) a door began to violently shake, nearly coming off its hinges. The living room door then followed suit, and swung open. Every single light in the house then began to follow the trend and turned on and off.

No matter how many bottles they were deep by then, there’s no doubt that shizz was getting weird. 

In response to this shizz getting weird, the family did the right thing: they called themselves a priest, and got him to check the shizz out. 

However, as a result of his holy presence, the activity worsened. A medium shortly followed, and on his visit deduced that this was a farmer of Chatterton. A quick visit to the library and a rifle through the odd archive later, and the story is confirmed:

This was the spirit of a farmer from the 18th century, and as the medium claimed, he was angry that these trespassers were on his land. So, like all landlords, he kept his cool and was trying to treat these people with the fairness and respect that all landlords hold dear.

Nah, who are we kidding - instead of charging them £60 for not pulling a weed out from underneath the wheelie bin, he manifested as a poltergeist.

The escalation then, uh, escalated.

Following the appearance of the ghost patriarch, his wife then turned up and made a point of targeting the matriarch of the family. 

Despite the coincidence of most claims of boozy nights on the heath, these hauntings that mirror the heads of the household really support the case as it sticks to this line of opposition to the “intruders”.

The ghostly matriarch’s favoured haunting was following people up the stairs; when you turned around, you would see wisps of a grey bun and the outlines of a faint figure which would then vanish into thin air. 

But on top of the wife getting involved, the farmer himself made a commitment to being spooky AF.

Its for that reason that the creepiest haunting of the year award goes to the farmer. 

Why?

Because he would turn up on their TV. 

Like, I don’t know if he was on bloody Blue Peter à la IT, or if the screen would go blank and this bitch would rock up and just be there…

But just like fuck that, no thanks, congratulations, and just take the award ugh.

So, like anyone would, this family were like nope screw this, packed up shop, and moved the fuck outta there. After they moved out the activity ceased - like all hauntings tend to do, confirming that it could be due to their trespassing. 

Well, or that it was all faked but as the gullible young woman I am, I’m going to deny all traces of this family’s excessive drinking and say that the farmer did indeed turn up on Blue Peter and take a badge with him to the afterlife.

For privacy reasons, the actual address is unknown to the public for the obvious reason that innocent families don’t want some Jake Paul wannabe pulling up in a jacked up Ford Fiesta and whipping out a GoPro to make a quick buck on YouTube.

Heck, I don’t know if anyone lives there now! But this is still recognised by paranormal fanatics are one of the greatest hauntings to come out of the UK. 

Well, I say the greatest…

It has to compete with the Thornton Heath poltergeist of an odd 40 years before.

The 1938 Case - Thornton Heath Poltergeist 2: The Prequel No One Asked For

Now we turn to the former haunting of Thornton heath in 1938.

But this poltergeist isn’t set against the scene of some cosy pre-war family home, nor are any long dead farmers getting involved. 

This story, on the other hand, follows the scientific study of the paranormal, and to this day is an unsolved mystery that has left both investigator and individual alike without answers.

And it starts with this bloke called Nandor Fodor.

Fodor lead the argument that poltergeists are manifestations from the subconscious mind, and to prove his claims, he investigated the tales of terror that had been experienced by one woman in a small corner of Croydon.

He followed his scientific studies all the way to a little place called Thornton Heath. 

Sure, this case could have been linked to the Chatterton farmer, but the focus of their investigation was on the nature of paranormal beliefs, so there was no study of what spirit could be behind it. 

All we know regarding the haunting is that the victim of this poltergeist was a woman only known to us as Mrs. Forbes. She was studied at an institute, and in an attempt to be sure she wasn’t creating the hauntings, she basically had to get undressed in front of them, and wear special clothes to prove she wasn’t concealing anything. 

Nevertheless, the weird shizz we saw in the 1970s still seemed to follow her.

Dishes would float in mid-air and then crash to the floor, glasses would suddenly appear in her hand (*insert middle aged facebook meme with a minion in the background*), and objects from her home would appear at the institute.

Her house was 10 miles away from the institute. 

But beyond her possessions appearing out of thin air,  Mrs. Forbes frequently described different entities that would appear and attack her.

These beings included a vampire which would on occasion bite her neck - and left her with two physical wounds in her neck, and a tiger which reached out and scratched deep gashes in her arm. Just like the vampire’s supposed attack, these markings were also found on her body.

However, one of her claims went too far, and was used to challenge every single incident she claimed was caused by a poltergeist:

Alongside the vampire bite and the tiger’s scratches, Mrs. Forbes also had several burn marks scarring her neck. Seemingly coming out of nowhere, Forbes believed it was due to the spirit of a man strangling her with a necklace. 

However, shortly after making this statement, she professed a deep desire to kill this man. 

Fodor drew from this that she thought the man was inside of her, and thus she tried to kill him by choking herself. That’s the burn marks explained - what about everything else? All it took was a quick check of her body and clothing to find small items concealed under her left breast.

That’s right; she has conjured up this “poltergeist” out of thin air.  

Having connected the dots, Fodor deduced that she was both schizophrenic, and burdened by repressed sexual trauma. 

Another day, another hoax.

Unsurprisingly, faked activity vis-a-vis this case is pretty common when it comes to the paranormal, and this label is pinned by non-believers onto, well, basically anything we just so happen to report. 

And despite how frustrating this can seem, it is a necessary disturbance in our research of the supernatural. In fact, the original Thornton Heath story brings this into play when we discuss poltergeists, particularly as their basis centres on physical disturbances which can be both faked or misinterpreted.

Croydon might seem yet another area of London Prince Andrew would pull out of the hat to defend his reputation, but it instead represents a much wider discussion of the paranormal.

From the fake to the unknown, from the mysterious to the mentally unstable:

How we investigate the supernatural starts in a little place called Thornton Heath.

What do you think?

Did the family really witness poltergeist activity first hand?

Or was it all just conjured up by women that purely wanted attention i dont know about you but i just love attention oh gimme attention look I WANT ATTENTION NOWSUFH[HB’[Egb’???????!1//1/1/1!//????

Ahem.

Wanna hear about more spooky shizz like this? Wanna hear about a new haunted location everyday? Then go ‘head and hit follow!

[my-5sos-babes]

TDMAR || Part 6

Summary: Luke is feelin' and reelin'. Ashton is gorgeous, per usual. Mike and Cal fight a bit.

Word Count: 3260

Triggers: swearing, band(?)

Publish Date: 9/21/18

a/n: trying something a bit new this chapter bc i'm not digging the first person anymore. also sorry for changing the tense in the last two updates?? i totally didn't notice that, i'm v sorry. p.s., I listened to some coffeehouse playlist while writing this chapter, so i'm guessing a lot of the tones in my writing came from that lmao, i'll try to make this story less trash. ALSO, if y'all would like, I can change the whole thing to third person, if it makes the story more cohesive. just lemme know. p.p.s., I saw 5sos the other day, pls talk w me about it <3

He sighed heavily, unable to repress it.

“Good, mate?” Calum asked.

Luke glanced up from his phone. “Oh, no, yeah. Just thinking about my anatomy notes for tonight,” he lied. “Lots of bones.”

Cal, unable to catch on, continued the conversation. “Ugh. Why would you take anatomy and physiology? It’s such a terrible class. Notes every night, tests every week? I couldn’t fathom having that much work every day.”

“Yeah, I can’t fathom that you know the word ‘fathom’,” Michael quipped. Quickly the conversation devolved into some squabble after Calum shoved Michael rather aggressively. Luke, while amused by the fight--and having no intentions to stop it--got caught up in his own headspace.

That seemed to be the norm these past few weeks. He wasn’t sure if anyone actually bothered to notice, but he hadn’t been talkative. Luke had been trying to look better, though, and that was something that people noticed.

He decided that he was tired of the emo-grunge look, one day. Almost out of nowhere. Well, not nowhere. He had some inspiration (from the kid who made his heart beat out of rhythm). 

To Luke, Ashton always looks so comfortable in his clothes: button down shirts with loud patterns, suave shoes of varying styles, and an occasional necklace or two. Luke, feeling partially intimidated--and partially turned on--realized that he would have to start putting more effort into his look if he wanted to make an impression. He wasn’t sure how, yet he knew he was going to do it.

With the help of his mother in the purging of his closet, Luke bought nicer clothes, better shoes, and even some accessories. The trip to the store had been interesting enough with the outfits, but when they passed the jewelry section, things got a little awkward.

“Luke? Where’d you go, honey?”

“Over here.”

“In the… accessories aisle?”

“Uh, yeah.”

“... Okay.”

That weekend, he spent time preplanning outfits and coordinating his jewelry so nothing clashed. He felt strangely proud of his work, as he looked at the clothing strewn about his room. He even threw on a few ‘fits and checked himself out in the mirror, admiring the way they fit his body. Luke had never really had such fitting clothing before and was--while apprehensive--unable to keep himself from thinking, Hot damn.

The day he showed up to school in new clothes, though, that pride plummeted. Everyone who knew him stared at him, everyone who didn’t was staring as well.

Oh, Jesus, I’m an idiot. Who the fuck would come to school looking like they just came off a knock-off Gucci mannequin.

Michael and Calum were perplexed at this sudden change in image more than anyone else.

“Woah, dude. What’re you wearing?”

Luke tugged at his sleeve, his confidence falling straight through the floor. “New clothes. Went shopping with my mum on Friday. She insisted.” He added on the last part as an afterthought, as if that would sway his friends shock. It helped a little. He was relieved when they bought his bluff.

   “Finally got tired of your rebellion, huh?” Calum queried good-naturedly.

“Sure. Something like that.”

Michael scoffed, “A true punk wouldn’t have let the rebellion fade.” He smirked afterwards.

Luke chuckled. “Guess I’m not a true punk-rocker anymore.”

At first, he found himself pulling his collar up his neck, like he couldn’t cover up enough skin. It wasn’t until someone complimented him during first period that he felt validated again. Gradually, kids every so often would approach him and say something like, “Nice boots!” and “Lookin’ good, Hemmings”; yet, it wasn’t until he saw Ashton for the first time that day that he felt most insecure.

“Luke?”

“Oh, hey, Ash,” Luke said, trying his best to be nonchalant.

“You’re lookin’... different.”

“Well…” He tried to not let the older boy’s word choice bother him. “I mean, felt like a change. Got some inspiration.” The younger boy nudged the other in the ribs.

   “Ah!” Ashton replied. A furrow appeared in his brow, his gaze lingering over the new threads adorning Luke’s skinny frame.

If Luke didn’t know any better, he’d say Ash was checking him out. Of course, that wasn’t true. Ashton’s the kind of guy that just does stuff like that. He probably thinks it’s weird. I’m weird for liking his style.

Luke mentally chastised himself. If he feels weird about it, he’s covering it up really well. Christ. Just don’t say anything stupid.

The two surprisingly didn’t speak for just a moment. Luke was astonished by this.

Ashton spoke first. “You did a decent job, Hemmings. Not bad at all… Although,” He circles around the other boy, a hand to his chin, “I think I would’ve chosen a wider pant leg. Skinny jeans just feel too tight for the shirt you have on--in my opinion, at least.

“As for your jewelry… I like the watch, it’s classy. I would’ve taken out the lip ring, though.”

Luke unconsciously reached for his face, wondering what the hell to say to that. Ash saw this immediately.

“Wait, oh, God--sorry. I just gave you a fucking review like I’m Miranda Priestley or some shit, didn’t I?” The older boy chuckled. “Wow… Jesus, I’m sorry if I made you self-conscious. You do not have to listen to me, just--just ignore what I said.”

The younger boy quickly shoved aside Ashton’s comments. “No, dude! That was awesome. I’ll take notes next time, seriously. That’ll help me so much. But you like it?”

That totally didn’t sound needy, dipshit.

Ashton nodded vigorously. “Yeah, definitely! You are stylin’!” He glanced at his phone, then. “Oh, shit. Better get to class. See you later!” He hurried down the hall. “Stylin’!” He reiterated, already far enough away to shout.

Luke called after Ash. “Aces!”

Luke. Who the fuck says ‘aces’?

Band rehearsal nearly every night meant that Luke couldn’t wear his new (lowkey restrictive) clothes in the afternoon. As soon as he got home, he changed out of whatever button down and jeans he wore that day and swapped them out for shorts, t-shirts and sandshoes. He couldn’t complain, however. He’d rather be comfortable at rehearsal anyways, with how demanding the show was this season.

Tonight was quite a rough run-through. The band director hadn’t been satisfied with the formations or the sound quality; to Luke, Watkins was downright scary.

Everyone else in the band could tell that rehearsal wasn’t going well. Something was just putting them off, but no one knew what.

Calum, who was up on the podium, grew more irritated by the second. Of course, Luke wasn’t able to pay much attention to that since he was busy running across a turf field with a six foot pole in his hands, which was adorned with several square feet of silk, all while dodging disgruntled clarinetists and trombonists. Whether he was fortunate or not, he only caught glimpses of Cal’s stiff arm movements and stern face.

The band dragged on miserably for the next hour. Luckily, when it finally came to a close, Watkins didn’t even bother with a speech; their band director sighed disappointedly and let the kids go. Luke, quite ashamed of himself, began wrapping up his silk while walking off the field. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t see Ashton pop up at his side.

“Yikes. Tonight was bad,” Ashton put plainly.

Luke snorted. “Tell me about it.”

They walked together for minute, stewing in their misery. Then, “Think I need to take my mind off it. Blow off some steam or something.”

“Me too,” the younger boy exhaled.

They continued a little longer, both simmering with dissatisfaction and something indescribable that always comes after a bad rehearsal.

“Would you wanna--” Ashton adjusted his harness, fingers twisting at the screws,“--would you wanna go get some pizza? Just veg out and stuff?”

Luke considered it, not expecting a request such as that. “Uh… yeah! Sure.” He smiled wide, looking at Ash. Suddenly he stopped both of them in their tracks. “Wait, is it cool if I invite Calum and Michael?”

Ashton remained quiet for a moment. Luke, of course, took this the wrong way. Before he could let a word out, though, the older boy spoke.

“Of course, mate! Yeah, no sorry--bit of a mental lapse. Yeah, no, that’s cool.”

“Sick, be right back!”

   Luke ran towards his friends, both way back on the practice field, doing drum major duties of some kind. By the time he made reasonable distance, he changed his pace back to walking. Luke, pathetically, was winded by that short run, and he strained to control his breathing. When he could hear more than the rush of blood in his ears, he heard Michael and Calum’s voices. They were arguing rather intently.

   “... just, Mikey, c’mon, we’ve been over this. It’s not very likely that it’ll happen.”

   Michael, ever the dramatist, fired right on back. “Okay, Cal. Whatever you say. I still think it’d be a good idea! I don’t get why you’re so closed-minded about it.”

Luke hung back, not sure if he should be hearing this.

To that, Calum only sighed and shook his head. “The answer is ‘no’, Michael. It will always be ‘no’.”

Luke could feel the fire fueling between his friends. Unconsciously, he knew that there needed to be a metaphorical fire extinguisher, and quickly. So, he happily threw himself into the fray.

“Hey, guys!”

He got a few disgruntled sounds from Michael (unsurprisingly), but Calum gave a more mature response.

“Hey, Luke… Have you been there long?”

   Luke shook his head vehemently. “No! Just, uh, just rolled on up. Wanted to talk, you know?”

   Calum eyed him suspiciously, but soon enough, let his suspicions go. “... M’kay. What did you wanna talk about?”

   “Oh, uh.” Luke had to remember why he came over here in the first place. “Well, uh, Ashton wanted to hang out and get some pizza… Care to join?... Both of you?”

   Calum and Michael, with very tense movements, glanced at each other and abruptly looked away.

   Michael spoke flatly. “Not tonight, mate. Got some games I planned on beating and shit.” With that, the crazy-haired boy left, slapping Luke on the shoulder as he went.

Calum, a frown dancing on his lips, attempted a friendly smile. It was half-hearted at best. “Thanks, bud, but me neither. Homework... I appreciate the offer.” He walked past Luke with his mace and some stray band equipment bundled up in his arms. “Have fun tonight.”

Jarred by his best friends’ transgression, Luke slouched his way to the band room, trying to wrap his head around what just happened. As he expected, the band had already cleared out, the drum majors lingering in Watkins’ closed office for some official business. What he didn’t expect was Ashton Irwin, sitting in the corner of the room, waiting. He couldn’t help the words as the tumbled out of his mouth.

“Ash, you’re still here?”

The older boy abruptly looked towards the Luke. “I was waiting for you, dude. Pizza? Remember?”

“... Right, I just didn’t think you’d wait.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

Pause.

“So what’s the verdict?”

“On…?”

“Calum and Michael. They coming?”

“Oh!” Luke shook his head. “No, they, uh. I think they have stuff going on.” He checked back over at Watkins’ office, where Calum had emerged. “Or something like that.”

“Alright, cool. Let’s get going.” Ashton twirled his keys around his fingers. “I’ll drive.”

“You sure? We can go separately if that’s easier for you--”

“Nonsense! I don’t mind.”

Luke, unaccustomed to being the one taking rides from others, suppressed all his objections after that and followed Ashton. With the setting sun, it would’ve been hard to make out any shapes in the dark. The parking lot lights were on, and Ashton happened to park directly under one, which made maneuvering easier.

It was quite old, the car. A bit rusty here and there, and it groaned like a dinosaur when the engine turned over. However, the inside seemed homey. The seats were worn soft from time, and it smelled musky. Like… teakwood? Something manly, Luke thought to himself. The radio had been on some rock station, but the volume was turned low, so it was only a soft murmur in the background.

Luke found himself sighing.

Ashton, pulling out of the parking lot, glanced over, eyebrows knitted together. “Good, mate?”

He sighed again, relaxing into the seat. “Yeah, Ash. I’m good.” 

The pizza was everything they needed it to be. It was cheesy and gooey and just greasy enough. The two boys heartily chowed down on the large platter in front of them, barely bothering with plates.

The diner Ashton had brought them to was unfamiliar to Luke. In fact, he had rarely been to this side of the city. That didn’t hinder him any from the joy of the incredible, wonderful goodness that was this diner’s pizza.

   In the neon lighting, everything was cast in some ethereal glow. Some odd greens, blues and reds scattered throughout the tiny, empty room, and formed interesting shadows on the floor. The ‘50s theme--with squeaky leather-like cushions and cool silver metal framings--was a design Luke hadn’t seen often in the area. There were approximately two employees and two customers in attendance.

   Luke paused in between bites, studying Ashton’s features. Ashton pushed on, unaware of the boy’s stare. In the lighting, Ash’s face aged significantly. Not in a bad way, of course. He just seemed to look more wan, more tired--but also prettier. Luke couldn’t put his finger on it. Maybe Ashton always looked this pretty, but he’s just now seeing it. He wondered if he looked the same.

   Don’t be stupid, dude. Ashton isn’t into that.

   Luke felt a harsh tug in his gut anytime he even thought about the boy sitting in front of him. The mention of his name, the sight of him, a scrap of his homework, anything. Anything sent his head spinning.

   Luke knew that this meant he was something he didn’t want to be. Something that he never expected to be. When Ashton wasn’t there merely two months before, Luke ignored any doubts he may have had about his sexuality, and with ease. He simply brushed off his attraction to men as jealousy… but since the minute Ashton appeared, his walls came crashing down.

Probably around three in the morning a few days ago, Luke whispered, admitted, under his breath:

   I like guys. I like Ashton.

   Seeing him now, in the late-night glow of this decrepit hole-in-the-wall, Luke really knew this to be true. He couldn’t not like someone as beautiful, someone as genuine, as Ashton Fletcher Irwin.

   He bit into another slice of pizza, pondering. A question slipped past his lips into the space between them.

   “How’d you find this place?”

His voice almost disappeared into the abyss, it seemed. Everything was so quiet. So gentle.

   Ashton smiled, swallowing his last bite. He smiled like he had a secret, an old memory. “Few months ago… I was just driving around and saw it. Was kinda hungry, so I stopped in. Now, it’s uh…” he fiddled with some leftover crust, “it’s my favorite place.” The corners of the older boy’s mouth turned down slightly, yet Luke didn’t notice. “You know, I’ve never actually brought anyone else here before.”

   It was supposed to be question, but came out as a statement.

   Luke’s eyebrows shot up into his hairline. “Really?”

   Ash nodded. “And, honestly, I don’t care for pepperoni. I’m typically a just-cheese kinda guy.”

   Luke glanced at the scraps of pepperoni pizza and back to Ash, unsure of how to process this information. “Um. I feel honored?”

Was that the right question?

   Ashton physically shook himself from a pensive thought and replied. “Yes. Yes, you should definitely feel honored.”

   Luke smiled shyly. “Then, I do.”

   A second passed between them with no words spoken, just little grins and twinkling eyes. There was a spark in Luke’s chest. A hopeful, teensy flicker of a flame. Maybe Ashton felt it too.

Their waitress sauntered in, breaking the charged air.

“Hey, boys! How you doing? Need anything?”

“We’re doing great, Shirley. Thank you,” Ashton put kindly.

The pretty waitress--as if from nowhere--then procured a glass she had been hiding somewhere; Luke didn’t want to imagine how she was able to keep it hidden.

“Aw, Shirley, I can’t--” Ashton started.

“Of course you can. It’s on the house! For my favorite customer.” With a wink, the dark-haired girl went behind the vintage-style double doors, leaving the room an empty void again.

Ashton, shaking his head with good humor, picked two straws out of the nearby dispenser and held one out to Luke. “Like some? It’s strawberry…” He let out a small giggle.

Luke couldn’t resist his smile as it crept onto his face. “Love some.”

He grabbed the straw from Ashton’s grip, unwound the wrapping and plopped it into the glass. The older boy motioned to the cherry on top, but Luke shook his head. Ashton,  plucked the fruit from the whipped cream and tantalizingly dangled it in the air. Luke watched as Ash’s jawline protruded sharply under the taut skin. Ash chewed slowly, and, whether he was aware of it or not, and smirked sinfully. Luke swallowed thickly.

God damn.

The younger boy pushed aside the images in his head and focused solely on the strawberry milkshake. He focused on the closeness of their foreheads as the sipped from the glass at the same time. He focused on how when they both reached for their drink, their hands brushed for just milliseconds. His heartbeat thrummed in his throat.

He assumed he was imagining the blush on Ashton’s cheeks. Probably just a trick with the neon. Yeah, it’s just the lights.

He chuckled to himself, knowing he should know better. And he chuckled at the mantra that repeated in his head again, like clockwork. Nonetheless, Luke brushed off all of his unwanted thoughts and focused on the moment and the beautiful boy before him.

Not much later, Ashton dropped Luke off at school, where they had left Luke’s car hours earlier. Ash carefully parked right next to the old machine and shut off his engine. Together, the two sat in the still air, neither wanting to break this peaceful lull they were experiencing. It was something precious, fragile, new. They knew, though, that it was inevitable.

“Do you even know what time it is?” Luke asked from the passenger seat.

Ashton squinted at his watch in the dark. “Almost midnight, I’d say.”

The boys looked at each other and immediately burst into a fit of giggles.

“My mum’s gonna kill me,” Luke managed between splutters.

“Me too,” Ashton chimed, breathing heavily.

They tried to sit a while a longer. Luke, however, knew he had to go before his mother actually murdered him.

“Hey, Ash?”

“Hmm?”

“Um. Thanks, for tonight. I had a lot of fun.”

Ashton smiled through the darkness. “Of course, Luke. Thank you. I don’t think I’ve laughed like this in ages. It felt nice.”

Luke said nothing in response, only gave a soft smile; reluctantly, he opened the door and heaved his lanky frame out of the seat. In his own car, he pulled on the seatbelt and turned the engine over. At that, Ashton did the same, and once he was certain Luke was ready, set off himself.

The younger boy sat just a few minutes longer, relishing the new memories. He smiled once more to himself, shifted the car into gear, and took his time on the ride home.

[survivorhephaestus]

EPISODE 04: Being in The Minority Just Makes Things More Fun

When the teams arrived for their next challenge, they finally learned what had been in their Greenhouses all along......... a PLANT MONSTER! Turns out, doing chemical testing on plants is maybe the worst idea ever, Hilbert. The teams now faced a dilemma - should they ignore the vicious mutant in their ventilation system and take a hit to their overall challenge score, or would one person be brave enough to fight back against the plant and forfeit their vote at their next Space Council?

Minkowski chose the disadvantage. On Lovelace, a martyr emerged: Karter took a hit for their team and fought the monster.

As it turned out, this sacrifice made a difference - Lovelace ended up winning the flash game challenge, sending Minkowski back to Space Council for the third time. Stevie was voted out 4 - 1 and became the fourth person inside the star.

PATRICK

Awright, guess I'm overdue for one of these.

We went to another council after voting off Karen, and the way the vote split the first round made it an easy proposition. Jay left in a unanimous vote, and I'm not too upset about it. Sucks that he got voted out while he was away, but it means he couldn't make a push for himself so the vote never really deviated.

I'm a bit concerned that the next vote will be a Stevie slam dunk. Is that the best course for me? Realistically... probably. But the thought is bouncing around in my mind that it might not be awful to get rid of Richie here. He's so well insulated and liked. Would I be able to turn the votes on him? Or would that bounce back on me?

For now, anyway, I think I've got both Jakey and Josh firmly in my camp. And we're starting to gel as a team. That last comp win was clutch from everyone and executed damn well near flawlessly (minus an interruption from Zo – THANKS ZO.)

JAKEY

hello!!! im back from the dead... after not submitting a confessional for a couple episodes OOPS im so sry ari.......ily......plsrigforme

ok soooo last round we won immunity so nothing happened!!! we were all super excited to win a challenge and have a damn moment to relax. god.

and THIS round was a flash game so we obviously lost!!! that flash game was fucking HELL i played it for two hours straight and was just losing so much and getting so annoyed... ugh im just SO glad its over pls no more flash games like dat pls.. i got the worst score on the team, werk. LKJDFHGL i am not used to being a challenge flop but tbh im such a target already i feel that i'm going to take this and run with it

ok um honestly i didn't realize how much control i had on this team until NOW JKFJKFJK... i thought my social game was a complete mess, but apparently not that bad??? i have these ppl thinking my social game sucks and my physical game sucks so if i can keep that up, who gon stop me??? lydia???? probably tbh but imma keep running with it!!!

so basically right away i want a group with me, richie, and renee. i need that feeling of comfort and yeah... knowing i have 2 votes by my side i can almost 100% trust is EVERYTHINGGG cause i can be fairly confident that the vote will at LEAST tie in my favor. so i finally got these 2 to communicate and eventually richie makes the chat with all of us and im just like ah... mission accomplished. LKJHFKHJF i love these two and i DO trust them the most right now. my bbys and NO ONE is touching them ....

pat i think trusts me more than i thought he did which is good!!! i know i cant piss him off so im gonna hav to be careful what i tell richie/renee about him and vice versa. we'll see if my game starts to get messy later but for now i think it's being maintained! josh is the person im least close to and ik he has a good relationship with pat. the group i made w richie n renee was also in case we stay on these teams, we'll have a 3-2 majority over pat and josh.

whew so far im honestly happy w the way this game is going!!! stevie should be leaving unanimously this round unless he has an idol but at this point im assuming no one is finding that idol anytime soon cause there's just a very little chance of someone being that lucky kFJKFJK so yeah!!!! im nervous the other team is going to pick us all off at swap or merge hahahaha but they won't if i have anything to do about it :~~) being in the minority just makes things more fun!!

i can't wait to play with katie and carson!!! but......... theyre super loyal players soooo do they already have defined loyalty to other ppl on their tribes???? probably so im annoyed!!!! ill just make them fall in love w me so they have to take me to the end its fine

RICHIE

.....why do we keep losing.... this suuuucks!!!!!!!!! i really wanted to play this game with jay and stevie but it didnt work out at the first vote and that alienated them 

it looks like this team is doomed and i need it to be united so we have a chance   in any swap or merge situation so logically the only thing to do now is vote out stevie which makes me sad as a person but as a player there's nothing i can do about it right now.... me jakey and renee formed an alliance and i'm tight with josh so the only other option is pat but that would just cause a fracture in the group and bring more trouble than good so RIP

JOSH

Stevie been going around tryna get people to vote for me? ME? I...ok? I better not be voted out on my birthday i swear

[theheavymetalmama]

What's your opinion on this: www(.)youtube(.)com/watch?v=bFAPKDVXNnw

I think he’s out of his damn mind.

For starters, the title is extremely misleading. I won’t call it click bait, because if it was click bait it would look more like “I Went to the Comic Book Store Today and You’ll NEVER Guess What Happened Next!” but all the same he’s selling oranges and calling them apples. The video is called “The Rise and Fall and Plummet of Comic Books” and the majority of the video is just him pissing and moaning about how demographics he’s not part of are being reached out to. He barely even touches on the comics and sales themselves and mostly focuses on tired, beaten to death points like lady Thor and a black girl paling around with Tony Stark. Like, seriously people, even people who like those characters are probably sick to death of them being brought up all the fucking time. Also, describing Bat Woman’s sexual orientation as “Oh, she enjoys slurping some slatch!” And he wonders why people call him and his fans ‘man babies.’ It would be one thing if he was 12 or 15, but he’s not; he’s a grown ass man. When the hell is he going to start acting like one?

Also, describing a Mary Sue and citing Rey from The Force Awakens as an example? First of all, 2015 called, they want their easy target back, and second that whole “Ugh, Rey’s a Mary Sue, nyah nyah nyah!” has been long since debunked. There’s nothing you can say about Rey that can’t also be applied to Luke.

But putting all that aside, he’s not saying anything new. Comic books have been on the wane since the Spectator Boom back in the 90′s turned the industry on its’ head and it just never recovered. Comic books just aren’t a growth industry anymore. The upcoming video-game “Injustice 2″ will easily sell over three million copies if not more, but if DC made a comic book with the same exact story, characters, premise, and setting….it would be lucky if it sells 100,000 copies. By the way, those are considered GOOD sales. In any other industry, selling 100,000 of anything would be a death sentence for that particular intellectual property. If only 100,000 tickets were sold for a movie like Civil War or Batman v Superman then not only would that be a crippling financial blow to the studio, but the medium itself would have taken such a punch to the gut that it likely would have been DECADES before that studio made another superhero movie.

Having said that, I do agree that I’d much rather see these companies make new characters instead of just give a pre-existing character and giving them a race or gender swap. It’s tiresome, boring, and supremely lazy. The part I take umbrage with is that he’s acting as if this is some recent phenomenon that only surfaced in the last few years. Spoiler alert, it’s not. Comic books have been doing this for decades now, for it’s a tactic almost as old as comic books themselves. While it’s as exasperating as exasperating gets, it works. As much as I detest that method, I still have to admit that if not for it we wouldn’t have great characters like Steel, Power Girl, War Machine, X23, Batgirl, She-Hulk, pretty much every Teen Titan that isn’t Starfire, Raven, Cyborg, and arguably Beast Boy (one can easily argue that’s he’s a green pint-sized Plastic Man, only with animals) and the list goes on and on.

Look, laugh and guffaw and cry “See, this is what happens when you pander to SJWS!” all you want over comics declining sales all you want, but again, falling sales are nothing new. Comic books and printed media as a whole with the exception of novels has been slowly but steadily going extinct for the past two decades now, and blaming falling comic book sales on SJWs or whatever online boogeyman is currently trending is like blaming EA for the video-game crash of 1987. By all means, criticize them all you want. You don’t have to like what they’re doing by any stretch. As someone who’s grown up reading comic books, I can’t tell you how utterly heartbreaking it is to not only see comic books and printed media in general slowly going extinct, but even more saddened that what comic books there are serve as little more than beta-testing grounds for future multi-media projects. By and large, Marvel doesn’t give a FUCK what comic is and isn’t selling. Would they like Korean Hulk and Ironheart to be best sellers? Sure, but they aren’t losing sleep over low sales. The only part they actually care about is when or if Riri Williams becomes a viable enough character to take the reins in future Iron Man movies once Robert Downy Jr. decides “Yeah, you know what? I made enough money.”

Again, you don’t have to like it or even respect it. I certainly don’t. But if your big KO to them is “Hey, your Captain Marvel comic isn’t selling very well!” all Marvel’s going to do is reply with “Sorry, what was that? We can’t hear you through this big pile of money we’re about to make from the Captain Marvel movie staring his female counterpart which will also become the go-to female superhero movie when DC inevitably fucks up Wonder Woman!”

One more thing. As for the whole SJW thing, again, you can criticize all you want. But if you’re going to lose your shit over a comic book talking about tampons, then grow. The hell. Up. Comic books have talked about problems of men and boys for as long as comic books have been a thing. Almost every teenage superhero have powers that are metaphors for puberty while at least one third of the entire Spider-Man lore and mythos is about how he can’t seem to ever get laid. Anyone who’s going to lose their damn mind over Marvel talking about girl problems while ignoring Peter Parker’s sex life often being a major selling point all the while acting as if they had been personally wronged because a comic book had the audacity to reach out to young girls for once, then they can take their selective persecution complex and stick it straight up their ass!

And for the record…

[cyndalyssa]

DA Link Here

So, since about last summer, I've been watching The Loud House, and it's a genuinely entertaining cartoon most of the time. True, there are some episodes that are stupid, but every show has their handful of stupid episodes, and I'm willing to forgive them if the stupid is not a consistent thing. Plus, I'm always up for a show about family bonds and promoting positive relationships between siblings (despite, you know, siblings having a tendency to fight). I will admit... I didn't like One of the Boys. The Loud Brothers were basically "Loud Sister Schtick" + "Gross Boy Stereotype", and that was just done to make Lincoln's sisters look better in comparison. I've always hated it when a show has to put down boys in order to raise girls up, even when I was a little girl myself. Ugh, it's just one of those episodes you're hyped for because interesting concept and it's a major let down. Still, that episode got me curious about a scenario where the Louds meet a counterpart family of ten boys and one girl, so I decided to indulge that concept and try my hand at it. At first I named these guys the "Noisy Family", but then I later changed my mind and named them "Rowdy." It'd be easy to make the boys exactly like the corresponding Loud Sister (and Brother), but I decided to have a little more fun with personalities and quirks for these guys to make them more unique. After all, I didn't want to go the route of "There's two Luans!" or "There's two Lolas!" and so on and so forth. So, without further ado...

Ryan Rowdy: Upper left hand corner, reading a book. The oldest of the bunch, Ryan can be described as a cool big bro that unfortunately has a tendency to be uptight. With him being the firstborn, he thinks that he's the "dutiful son" that has to be the exemplar for everyone else, so he's often working for good grades, behaving himself when other boys rebel, and watching his siblings when his parents are away. He can get pretty cranky and bossy, and sometimes, he's just so weary that he shoves his nose in a book and ends up letting things run wild. Ralf Rowdy: Upper right hand corner, lifting weights. The second born, like his counterpart Leni, is dumber than a sack of bricks but is one of the nicest guys around. He's the muscle of the group, bearing great strength that can both be a help and a hinder to his siblings, either helping them get their stuff out of hard-to-reach places, or ending up breaking something. He's also a major savant in the area of exercise and muscle, so while he's the worst tutor in every other subject, he'll be extremely helpful when it comes to gym. Remy Rowdy: Lower left hand corner, reciting lines. The third Rowdy brother can be considered a drama king. While this applies positively to his acting abilities, leaving him a star in the school theater, it can also mean that he overreacts to everything that happens. The others groan when he freaks out over something minor and is hard to console, and it can be hours before he calms down, usually with the help of his favorite show tunes. Doesn't help that he's a bit of a neat freak for the majority of the time--the only time when he isn't is when he cooks, since he's accepted that it's a messy job. Rico Rowdy: Lower right hand corner, with the cards and top hat. The fourth boy is an arrogant and mischievous attention hog of a magician who loves to pull pranks on his siblings (most often popping out of nowhere to intentionally spook someone). With invested interest in the mystical and otherworldly, he can be strangely creepy when he's not obnoxious, and nobody really knows if he's just a really good illusionist or has actual magical abilities. He won't tell, and he'll keep on holding things back with a smug smile on his face. Rudy Rowdy: Upper left, next to Ryan, wielding lasso. Much like fellow fifth child Lynn Loud, Rudy's a very energetic and rough hothead. However, instead of being a traditional athlete, Rudy prefers to take his energy to a more country approach. Joining junior rodeos, riding horses, and heck, even going to the shooting range, this boy worships all things country. He enjoys watching Westerns, listening to country music (don't you dare badmouth it in front of him), talking in a Southern accent, and hogtying his siblings. He'll use anything as a spittoon for the gum he chews, much to everyone's disgust. Reagan Rowdy: Girl in the center. Being the middle child and only girl of the family, she's considered the sanest member of the family like fellow outnumbered counterpart Lincoln Loud. While trying her best to remain sweet and feminine (liking dresses, makeup, doing her hair, and other stuff), she's hardly the delicate flower that her brothers sometimes consider her to be. Being in a family of mainly brothers, she has a thick skin and a fighting spirit to keep any one of her brothers at bay--especially if they're having one of their aggressive and careless days. She sometimes gets uppity--either with a "girls rule, boys drool" mindset or "I'm not like other girls because I'm tougher than my female classmates", but her brothers and friends won't hesitate to take her down a peg when she goes too far. Raph Rowdy: Lower right, by Rico, holding a palette. He's considered the quietest of the family, being a shy artist who'd rather go and draw or paint than talk to anybody. He's usually the brother that gets picked on the most, but he's very good at ignoring teasing from his brothers (though from classmates, he's more visibly hurt, and that sometimes gets his siblings protective of him). He's usually bonding with his sister instead, and they go and play creative games together. Raph has a wild imagination, so some of his art can be really strange sometimes, especially if he's putting a unique perspective on a common thing. Redd and Reed Rowdy: Lower left, by Remy, with Redd doing push-ups and Reed meditating on top of him. They are the designated polar opposite twins of the family like Lana and Lola Loud. Redd is a tough, militaristic kid, always on guard for a fight and being a drill sergeant toward his siblings. He holds himself to a strict routine with wake-up times, mealtimes, school time, homework time, training time (what other kids refer to as playtime), and bedtime--sometimes trying to hold his siblings to the routine (for example, playing his horn early in the morning). Reed, on the other hand, could be considered a flower child, a more relaxed kind of person that just wants everyone to get along. Thinking himself one with nature, he'll often be meditating at a park and trying to connect with the cosmos, and thinks himself more enlightened than everyone else. He very much dislikes going to school, thinking that they're trying to brainwash him from his hard-earned enlightenment and turn him into another brick in the wall. He ignores schedules, not willing to let them restrict his freedom. Redd thinks Reed is insane and arrogant over non-conformist views; Reed thinks Redd is uptight and too bound by pointless rules. They're both right to an extent. Still, Redd won't hesitate to jump in to protect his twin when he needs him, and Reed knows just how to relax his twin and allow him to be more agreeable. Plus, they're willing to swap some of their dinner--Redd eats the meat, Reed eats the veggies. Rich Rowdy: Upper right, by Ralf, counting dollar bills. As a four-year-old prodigy like his counterpart Lisa Loud, Rich can easily be considered the smartest member of the family. However, instead of being a little scientist, Rich is a little businessman, and is often the source of extra income thanks to coming up with some pretty neat business ventures (sometimes in conjunction with one of his brothers or sister). He's also got keen social awareness and charisma, and thus can attract a crowd with little effort (helps that he's adorable). However, nobody quite knows when he's being an honest businessboy or a con artist, he tends to be a haughty little bugger, and he can unfortunately be driven by greed while dipping into the classic four-year-old selfish behavior (he doesn't like to share). Rory Rowdy: Top row, smack dab in the middle. Rory is the baby of the family, and while he only knows a few words and can barely walk, this kid is just 1000% done with everyone's nonsense. It's theorized that his first sentence would probably be sarcastic, since his face already has a snarker feel to it. He's quite content to play by himself, though if one or two siblings play with him, he'll accept it, so long as it doesn't escalate into chaos somehow. He'll either escape when that happens, or cry when he can't escape. Whew, that's a lot to talk about. But, hey, I love doing things like this. I'd like to make a fanfic about the Louds and Rowdies meeting, though I'm not sure if I'll get around to doing it when I'm already working on MLP fanfiction. Either way, the scenario's fun to think about.