#its freaking midnight on this side of the world folks

[deakyswhitequeen]

Can I print this picture in my mind? Does anyone know how to do that?

[letterstoseven]

Killer Queen [Ch. 2]

✏︎ pairing: klaus mikaelson x reader, elijah mikaelson x reader, kol mikaelson x reader

✏︎ summary: y/n Silvius –– daughter of the Alpha of the most respected and powerful pack of the first were-witches (werewolf + witch). She needs to find the remaining Crescent Wolf Pack members as the Elders are planning to reunite the seven packs, namely: Crescent Wolf Pack, Northern Wolves Pack, Moon Shine Pack, River Pack, Lycan Blood Pack, Midnight Stone Pack and the Malraux Pack. On her journey, she met the family whom the witches and werewolves warned her about, The Mikaelson Family.

✏︎ a/n: this is sooooo long but this is when y/n talks about her departure to their hometown and her arrival in New Orleans! thank you so much for taking your time to read chapter 1! here's the chapter 2 :)

✏︎ Chapters: one, two, three, four, five

After the meeting with the Elders, you and your family went back to your own homes. "I'm going to pack and then take a sleep. Good night, Mom. Good night, Dad." You hugged them both tightly. "Dear [y/n], come here. Your dad and I would like to talk to you before you start your journey in finding one of the Crescent Wolf Pack members."

You walked towards your fireplace and sat on the floor in front of them, "What's up?" Your dad, Adoff Silvius, sat near you and told you something about New Orleans, while your mom, Leah Silvius, got the book of the Ancient History of the Wolves.

"Back when I was on my way looking for the Moonstone, I befriended some of the folks in New Orleans. His name is Alaric Saltzman, a history professor. Of course, he never knew me. The people in Mystic Falls thought that the wolves are not real. However, when one of the Lockwoods, Tyler, I think, activated his curse by killing a person, one of them saw it and that's when they know that legends are real. Eventually, I was able to lure the young Lockwood and got the Moonstone before Aiden's dad." He smiled at you. However, that smile faltered when he started talking about New Orleans.

"Okay, Dad. Now, what does your story have to do with my journey to find the Crescent Wolf Packs?" You looked at them both. Your mom, opened the book of the Ancient Wolf Pack, and said, "You, my dear, will be the one who's going to unite the packs. One of my friends in the New Orleans, Vincent, has told me that it would be best if you try to not do any magic and even use your wolf side. The guy running the town, Marcel Gerard, is known for killing the wolves and the witches if they did not abide by his rules." You are saddened by this fact. You know that it's hard for the witches and werewolves to leave their territory as it is where their powers reside. "You have to find the brother of the Hybrid, Elijah Mikaelson. One of the Original Vampires. He can help you. My guy, Vincent, has told me that he can be reasoned out to." You are now starting to get curious about these Originals, the Mikaelsons.

"Back in the day, the wolves are powerful because they are united. The seven packs and us, being the leader of the seven packs, was able to maintain peace between packs. While the Crescent Wolf Packs needed to kill someone to activate their wolf side. While us, coming from the Sanguine Pack, the curse chooses us if we are deemed worthy. That's why there are some members of the family of the Sanguine Pack that until now, at their 30s, 40s and 50s, still not able to activate their werewolf side." Your dad explained that the reason why some of the packs left is because of a misunderstanding. Some packs thought that they don’t need the help of the other pack. Now, your mom is the one who's going to tell you about the situation in the New Orleans.

"If they are the Original Vampires, aren't I walking in a sacred place and might as well get killed in the process?!" You are in distress. All these ancient history talks are now spiraling in your head. "The Mikaelsons, as the Elders would tell us, are the dangerous, and well dysfunctional family in the world. Legend says that they will do anything for their family even if it means killing or sacrificing their loved ones." Now you are scared. "However, they are the only chance you have to find one of the Crescent Wolf Pack members as his brother is a Hybrid. The hybrid's name is Niklaus Mikaelson. He's got a witch sister too, Freya Mikaelson."

You thought to yourself, Thank God at least there's a witch in the family.

"Now, dear. Your father and I loves you so much. As much as we wanted to help you, this is part of the process. We believe in you. Our daughter, our heir. You are the most powerful were-witch of your generation. And in no doubt, you will be the first female Alpha of the pack." Your parents hugged and kissed you. Well, being an only child has its pros sometimes. You said your good night to them.

You started packing your grimoires, your weapons, a weapon that is made from the ancient white oak stake - legend says that this ancient white oak stake is the best wood to kill or to protect yourself from. That's why ever since you started learning how to create a weapon, you used them to create one.

The next day, you and Aiden trained in combat and learned protection spells as the next day, both of you will start your journey to become an Alpha. "How are you doing, [Y/N]?" He sat beside you. "You know, Aiden, when we were young we've always been competing side to side. Now that it has come to this, I now wish for us to stay alive in the process. Good lord, vampires out there? Crazy." He drank the water and said to you, "If I become the Alpha, you can still be an Alpha. The wife of the Alpha. Marry me, [Y/N]." You chuckled and said, "Aiden! You're like one of my closest friends in the pack! Never gonna happen!" Aiden smirked, "I know that's going to be your answer. Just stay safe and stay alive, okay? Either of us has only one goal: to protect the Sanguine Pack and unite the seven packs." Both of you hugged and went on your homes for the night. Tomorrow is the day when both of you are going to each of your tasks.

___________________

Today's the day. Before you and Aiden left the pack, the Elders gave you two a powerful protection spell to ensure your safety and whatever happens, the two of you will come back alive. And as for you, your mom made you drink vervain. She said that it’ll help you to not be compelled by the vampires. You bid your good-byes to your friends and family. Your parents told you that if it is an emergency, then you'll have to call them as soon as possible. Your pack's residing in the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia. You thought to yourself that this is going to be a long ride.

____________________

After almost 12 hours of driving, you now reached New Orleans. As soon as you stepped in the New Orleans, you can see that the city’s full of life. Different to the place you’ve grown up to. In the mountains, the life is chill. But in this city, it’s also chill but there’s always a buzz everywhere you go.

Before you go out of the car, you messaged your mom and told her that you just got in the city. After checking in the Palace Royal Hotel, as you were walking, you saw a voodoo shop called Jardin Gris. You went inside and asked for some herbs, and a girl named Sabine asked you, “Are you a witch?” You were shocked by the question, “Uh, no! I was just passing by. I’m a tourist! I’m [y/n]!” Sabine looked at you from head to toe, “Well, I thought you were a witch. You were wearing some kind of necklace that only a person who knows a powerful witch can have. And I can sense it too.” You are now literally breaking into sweats when a blonde girl walked in, “Hey, witch!” You heard the girl talk to Sabine. You tried not to pry but when Sabine asked the girl, “To what do I owe the displeasure, Mikaelson?” You asked yourself, a Mikaelson? The Original Vampire?

“I need a camphor. Now.” You saw the lady Mikaelson wait for the witch. She’s gorgeous, you thought to yourself. You realized that like you werewolves, they’re blending in the humans too. When she went out, you sneakily followed her but you when you went out, she’s gone.

You continued your tour around the place. The night time came and the city’s been livelier than ever. Parties and drinking everywhere. You went inside the bar called, Rousseau’s. A bartender girl named Tanya, greeted you, “Ohhh, new face. What’s up?” You seated at one of the stools in front of her, “[y/n]. Just a tourist from Virginia. Scotch please, thanks.”

After awhile, you feel yourself getting drunk. Someone sat beside you, the blonde girl from the shop and a guy wearing a tailored suit. The guy looked expensive, you thought to yourself.

You heard them talking about a girl named Sophie and about a bunch of witches are plotting against their brother. “We need a witch to do an unlinking spell, Rebekah. It is for the safety of our niece and Hayley.” The girl beside him replied, “We need a witch to do the spell. And after that, I’m leaving this bloody town, Elijah.” You thought to yourself, “Unlinking spell? That’s so basic.” You weren’t sure why but the two of them stared at you, and you asked them, “What?” The guy asked you, “Do we know you? It seems like you’re new in town.” They waited for your response, “What’s with this town and that they keep on asking me if I am new in town?” The blonde girl smirked, “I like her.” However, before they speak again, you left them.

While you were walking, the alcohol starts to leave your system. You sat in one of the bench at Jackson Square. The square is empty, however, there are three vampires who started hovering around you.

“What the hell? What do you want?” One of them started leaning towards you, it looks like they are trying to compel you. But you said to them, “Freaks!” You ran as much as you can but due to you not being on your werewolf form, you cannot ran as fast as you can. “Stop right there! How can you not be compelled? Damn it! Vervain’s in your system. I thought we’ll have a dinner for tonight.” You thought that they were walking away, however, you used magic and you snapped their heads. You ran back in your hotel, and you pray that no one knew that you just practiced magic.

After showering, you heard a knock on your door, you recognize him as the guy from the bar. “Hello, I believe this is yours.” He was holding your necklace, you checked your neck, and you realized that it’s gone. “Give that to me!” The man won’t give it to you. “You realize that you just used magic in New Orleans where a vampire, who runs the town, forbids the use of magic.” You stopped trying to get the necklace and told him, “I just did. I’ll be damned if I let those psycho blood suckers kill me.” The man in front of you gave your necklace, however, there’s a catch. “I’ll give this to you but you need to help me break a link between two persons.” You furrowed your eyebrows and said, “And who are you? Why would I help you then?”

“I’m Elijah Mikaelson, and I need your help.”

[misterewrites]

Intro to Caitlyn 102 (Mirror’s Edge)

Hey everyone! E here with another chapter. been a busy week so this is a little late but with any luck I'll have the next underground chapter out this week or maybe another chapter for this story. dunno I'm just having fun in general. I hope you are all staying safe, wash your hands, wear your mask, get the vaccine if you can, keep each other safe! Feel free to tell your friends about this, reblog it or leave comments I'd greatly appreciate it. Trying promote myself is weird haha Stay safe and have a great week!

If you’d like an easier place to read the story, feel free to follow the link below

https://archiveofourown.org/works/30599756/chapters/76796408

Summary: Caitlyn has her target thanks to one Finnrick Drift and now it's time to break in. After she takes care a few things at home.

-----

Caitlyn sighed as she was unable to keep her eyes off the slivered hue butterfly hair ornament in her palm, the multi-colored glass shards wings stretched wide like it was ready to take flight.

It was beautiful, it was the perfect and it was expensive.

The sliver was real, none of that cheap painted copper or tin or whatever hairclips were normally made of. The different shards of glass had been painstakingly put into place, each fitting together perfectly like a completed puzzle which must’ve taken months to do by hand. And true to his word, she could feel the energy of this item, the magical thrum of its power. It no longer felt cold and distant but warm, light and carried a familiarity with it. It was strange to say but it was almost like the ornament was breathing in time with her. Like it was a part of her.

Of course it was, it’s freaking magic! Frankly magic could do whatever the hell it wanted apparently. The real question was what hidden power laid within.

Somehow in the back of her mind she knew how this thing was supposed to work: it granted her some kind of temporary movement. What that meant she hadn’t the slightest clue. She also knew it would only last an hour and would ‘refresh’ at every dawn. Because that’s a thing. And she knew the spoken word needed to activate it. Which of course meant the word was angel.

Caitlyn frowned, unsure what kind of joke this was. Finnrick had specifically called her angel twice: once when they first met and when asked what exactly the hairclip did. Clearly it was some inside joke he was in on. She just wished she was too.

“Hey Cat, you okay? You keep looking at the wall.”

Caitlyn shook herself out of her stupor and found herself staring at wide brown curious eyes that belonged her baby brother Lou.

Louis or Lou as he preferred to be called, was 7 years old (soon to be 8 next month). He had messy black hair with a cute button nose. He wore clothing typical of a child his age: A red shirt with a hero splashed across its front and baggy shorts. His sneakers were worn and frayed which reminded Caitlyn she really needed to get him a new pair. Between his chubby cheeks and the gap in his smile he was the cutest kid in the world. True he was a bit pudgy due to his lack of height though if he was anything like their father, he would grow to tower over her.

Caitlyn sighed sadly: two years and still no word of her parents. One day they just up and vanished. She used to think they had died through some cruel act of fate or misfortune. In her weaker moments, she briefly wondered if they just left Lou and her behind to start a new life.

But now, with the realization there was a whole magical world on top of her own, she couldn’t fathom what could’ve happened to them. Her thoughts were endlessly filled with possibility and none of them good. None of them made the pain hurt less.

She pinched herself as hard as she could. The sharp pain cut through her wandering mind and focused her back on the task at hand.

“I’m fine” She gave a sly smile “But have you finished your sandwich? A nice man bought it for you and I don’t want it to go to waste.”

Lou bounced up and down excitedly, pudgy hands tucked into a fist “Yes, yes I did! It was yummy!”

“Awesome!”

“Who was the nice man?” Lou asked quizzically, tilting his head to one side.

“Umm….” Caitlyn was torn: One hand she wasn’t quite sure where her and Finnrick landed on the whole trustworthy scale. On the other hand she couldn’t just say a random name. Lou had an uncanny ability to know when she was lying. Bordering on supernatural sometimes.

She glanced carefully towards her baby brother, searching for any sign of magic or mysticism in his chubby cheeks.

He scrunched his eyes wide and inched closer to her. She blinked, stumbling backwards at his sudden movement.

“I win!” He cheered with a bright smile “You blinked first!”

It took a moment for Caitlyn to process what was going on.

She laughed softly “Yeah kiddo. You win.”

“So what’s the nice man’s name? It’s not Jonas, is it? He was a creep.”

“Yeah he was.” Caitlyn awkwardly agreed. Her stomach churned unhappily at the thought of her ex. “No, his name is Finn.”

“Finn” Lou paused thoughtfully, eyes narrowed in concentration “Fiiiiinn. Finn! I like it! Fiiiiiiiinn. Can you thank him for me next time you two go out?”

Caitlyn rose a hand up no protest “Whoa, whoa, whoa slow down kiddo. We’re not dating.”

“But why not? You said he was nice.”

“I…” she glanced about the apartment wearily: Peeling paint, barely held together furniture and rent past due. So much work and effort for this ramshackle home.

“I don’t have time kiddo. I got to keep working if we wanna keep this place.”

Lou frowned, his face confused as if he couldn’t understand the word work “But you’re always working Cat. When are you supposed to have fun?”

Caitlyn ruffled his already messy hair lovingly “I’ll worry about that and you worry about having fun...and keeping up your grades.”

Lou’s ears perked up “What? Sorry, I think I hear Hedge calling me.” and without further warning, he bolted into his room, picking up his beloved turtle plush Hedge and dove under the covers.

Caitlyn couldn’t help but grin at his brother’s antics.

Then reality set in again.

She rather not deal with this newly found, barely understood magical world but regular folks weren’t paying the bills like they used to. Her fence was giving her less and charging more. Some bulltshit about paying off crooked cops or whatever. Sounded like a half ass excuse to her but they both knew she didn’t have much options.

Real gold. Any loose change from magical folks could easily lighten her burden and the promise of more sat in some entitled prick’s safe.

She couldn’t resist even if she had tried and she hadn’t tried to stop herself in years.

-----

Caitlyn waited till midnight to make her move. It was easier to blend in with darker shades and regardless of who she was robbing, she wasn’t in the business to make enemies. Especially enemies with unknown powers.

Lou was tucked into bed, nice and cozy with Hedge locked in his arms. Mrs. Palmer, a kindly older woman next door, agreed to watch him. They shared a silent knowing look with one another.

Her apartment was on the less than well kept side of town and everyone had their hands in some sort of shady business here. They tried their best to keep their noses clean but sometimes there were dips into less savory methods of getting cash.

Caitlyn was prepped for the mission ahead: A black blouse with black leggings. Thick black hiking boots for gripping walls and a leather black jacket to keep the cold and sharp pointy objects away from her skin.

She took a sad glance at the jacket, remembering all the times her father joked about handing it down to her when she beat him at arm wrestling. She could still hear dad’s hearty laughter echoing down the hall.

Caitlyn’s eyes hardened as she forced herself to look away “They left. No point in letting good gear go to waste.”

She took a deep calming breath as she ripped the tape off the butterfly knife she hid underneath her bed. She hated unnecessary violence but sometimes it took more than a good right hook to get someone off your ass. Better to have it and not need it than wind up with a bruise of regret.

She slipped the knife into her jacket pocket, slung her bag over her shoulder, nodded thankfully towards Mrs. Palmer and made her way out the door.

------

Caitlyn decided to take the long way: True it was halfway across town and took an hour of traveling but she always enjoyed the quiet that came with waiting. It calmed her, allowed her time to double and triple check her plans with the added benefit of shaking out any loose thoughts rattling in her head with each bump of the bus.

She stared at the beautiful ornate butterfly clip currently holding her ponytail up in the window. Caitlyn wasn’t sure what exactly Finnrick had given her but she didn’t want to use it at the apartment in case it didn’t do what it was supposed to. After all, suddenly having the knowledge in her head on how to work the hairclip was a bit unsettling. Okay really unsettling. Better to use it far away from Lou in case it exploded or something else nasty.

She got off the bus at last and hurried her way over to Andor’s, careful to cover her face whenever she spotted the odd store or traffic camera. She didn’t know who actually controlled them and she didn’t want to find out the hard way.

Andor’s Antique Shoppe (really cute elf boy) was the tallest building on the street: three floors that towered over the single story shops nearby. The street itself was nearly pitch black with a street lamp on either end of the block being the only source of light. Not a soul in sight.

Now was a good time as any to try out the hairclip. Caitlyn closed her eyes, exhaling slowly as she focused on the magical item. Goosebumps ran down her spine while the quiet, powerful thrum hummed softly in her ears. The word escaped her lips like it was second nature.

“Angel”

She nearly stumbled as a warm sensation filled her entire being. It covered her like a second skin and suddenly she was aware of the hairclip intimately: It’s weight, where it sat upon her head. She could feel the wings of the butterfly unfold, outstretched and ready to take flight. She heard the shimmering of magic forming into existence and she let out a surprised gasp when her feet lifted off the ground.

Caitlyn glanced in the nearby shop window, tears welling in her eyes:Beautiful translucent butterfly wings extended out from behind her. The outline of the wings were a deep rich purple with the multicolored glass stained shards gorgeously laid across its surface, each as elegant and refined as any art piece she’d ever seen. Each flutter and beat held her aloft, defying gravity’s hold on her. In the shadows of the night, the soft glow of the wings made her look like...

“An angel.” she whispered gently “I look like an angel.”

Caitlyn wiped the tears away. Technically she was a butterfly but this wasn’t the time for sentiment. She had a job to do and the longer she floated out here the more likely she’d get caught.

“Up” she murmured and the wings obliged: she rose silently skyward, each beating of the wings taking her higher and higher. The chill of the wind felt nice across her cheeks and she couldn’t help but relax in its presence.

Her original plan was to simply scale the side of the building and pick the window to gain entry but with her new found vertical movement, it was easier to just go up and over. She made sure she ascended from the end of the street and flew over to the third floor.

Caitlyn tilted her head quizzically as she found herself staring at a haphazardly open window.

“It can’t be this simple.” she narrowed her eyes suspiciously “It has to be a trap.”

-----

Caitlyn stood dumbfounded in the unguarded office of Andor.

She looked to her left then to her right, waiting for some sort of ambush to be sprung.

None came.

“Okay it is this simple.” Caitlyn whispered to herself, opting to just take this stroke of good fortune and run with it. She quietly willed the wings away and with a glitter of magic they vanished into thin air.

She crept over to the black safe tucked lazily in the corner, a stack of important looking documents just thrown on top without a care in the world. She quickly pocketed them and turned her attention to the roadblock in her way. True to Finnrick’s information, the safe itself was fairly simple and wouldn’t take much to break into. Either Andor was extremely confident in his security or really didn’t take being a crook seriously.

Not that it mattered to Caitlyn. It wasn’t her fault Andor hadn’t invested in a good safe.

She pressed her ear against the cool surface of the metal, trying to ignore the icy chill on her cheek as she strained to listen for the nearly inaudible click of the tumblers falling into place. It had taken two tries too many but she allowed herself a smug grin as the safe’s door swung open with a creak.

Caitlyn’s eyes narrowed at the sight of a funny symbol painted onto the back of the door. It gleamed with a strange unnatural light before disappearing all together. Before she could began to guess what bad news that meant, the shouts and thundering footsteps echoed from below answered her question.

“Shit.” She whispered as she began frantically grabbing everything she could: Folders, stacks of papers and clanging metal in heavy pouches. It all went into her bag with as much speed as she could muster.

The footsteps grew louder with a frantic pace. They were already on the second floor if she hazard a guess. Caitlyn made for the window and without a second thought, flung herself outside with all her might.

“Angel!” She hurried muttered but the wings were forming too slowly. She already crossed past the next floor down when they barely began to outstretch from her back. Caitlyn was no physics major but even she knew there was no way she’d be able to slow down in time to avoid breaking her neck. She shielded her face with her arms and tried not to flinch as she waited for the pain to set in.

It didn’t come.

Instead she felt herself slow to a stop midair and just stayed here. Caitlyn opened her eyes to find herself bobbing up and down inches away from the pavement. There were a pair of legs as well: Black slacks and well polished loafers with the bottom half of a black tattered trench coat.

“Falling for me angel? I didn’t expect it to be literal.”

She glanced up to found herself staring at the one and only Finnrick Drift before her, a cheeky smile on his lips and his hand held out.

Finnrick waved his fingers over her and she landed onto the sidewalk with a soft thud.

He offered her his hand but she preferred to scamper to her feet in the most ungraceful way possible. Her cheeks burned with a pinkish hue at the sight of the P.I.

“Thanks.” She couldn’t keep the embarrassment out of her voice “I….thanks.”

Finnrick nodded “Anytime.”

“WHY IS THE DOOR LOCKED?!” A voice roared from overhead.

“CUZ IT’S SUPPOSED TO BE YOU IDIOT!”

Realization knocked Caitlyn out of whatever was going on here but as she turned to make a break for it, Finnrick rose his hand to stop her.

She glanced at him, lost and confused.

“The favor. I’m calling it in.”

“What?! Here?! NOW!? You got to be kidding!”

“I kid about a lot of things.” Finnrick admitted “but not this.”

“We’re standing outside the place I just robbed! This isn’t the time!”

“Yes it is.”

Caitlyn took a step back and cast a suspicious look at the private investigator “You were using me, weren’t you? You didn’t want to get your hands dirty so you let me borrow the wings so I can steal the thing for you!”

Finnrick shook his head.

“Don’t turn this around on me!” Caitlyn snarled

Finnrick answered simply “You were clearly better at locks and sneaking around than I am. I was actually having trouble figuring how to pull this off. Every option ended with a fight with Andor. That’s why I’m out here. Why I busted every cameras on the street and managed to keep the window open. To make sure you were okay.”

“Where even were you?!” Caitlyn tried in vain to recall seeing Finnrick on the street “it doesn’t matter! You want me to trust you?! Just like that?”

Finnrick sighed tiredly “Please angel I trust you.”

Caitlyn’s eyes went cold “That is your mistake, not mine.”

Finnrick stared back at her, his dark brown eyes warm and gentle “Trusting you is my choice. Breaking it lays entirely with you.”

Caitlyn felt the rage and distrust drain out of her and replaced with a tense exhaustion.

Angel. He had let her borrow the wings and while there was no way he’d let her keep them he did give it to her for a favor. A simple favor he promised.

She sighed in defeat “What’s the favor?”

“I need a paper from the stack.”

“And if I give it to you, will you let me go?” She asked, hating how weak and vulnerable she sounded.

“No” Finnrick spoke without hesitation.

Caitlyn's shoulders sagged with disappointment.

“I will protect you.”

Caitlyn couldn’t help but stare at Finnrick: His face was scrunched up in a rather cute sense of determination and his body was relaxed. It was clear he was trying to be as nonthreatening as possible and despite her recent outburst, he seemed more concern with her than himself.

When was the last time someone offered to protect her? Granted she didn’t need any but even Caitlyn had to admit it was nice to hear.

They stood there for a moment, the angry shouts and cursing of Andor and his thugs breaking the silence of the night.

“Which paper is it?”

“It’ll be a single sheet with some fancy silvery writing on it.”

It took her no time to find it: It was thicker than all the others, written on some ancient paper that was aged yellow with time but was otherwise intact. The shining silvery writing was indeed fancy but nearly impossible to make out. She could actually feel her eyes water just looking at it and she wasted no time shoving it into Finn’s hand.

“There!” Caitlyn cast a nervous glance towards the third floor window “I kept my end. Now keep yours. Please.”

Finnrick said nothing. He instead tucked the loose paper inside his coat and offered a hand to her.

Confused but running out of options, she gingerly took his hand in hers. She flushed at how warm he was. Caitlyn let out a yelp as Finnrick pulled her in. She tried to keep her cheeks from turning a lovely shade of red when Finnrick held her close.

Finnrick began chanting, his hands drawing unseen symbols in the air. Caitlyn could feel the same warm sensation from earlier wash over her as Finnrick’s spell took effect.

-----

“FIND MY STUFF NOW!” Andor screamed with bloody rage. He was typical of an elf: Impossible well kept blonde hair that flowed to his back, piercing forest green eyes. He was tall and lean with the tackiest suit anyone had seen. Reds and pinks in some sort plaid pattern. He called it looking good. His goons called it a headache. His pointed ears twitch unhappily as he struggled to listen for any sort of sound nearby but found nothing beyond the usual quiet hum of the city.

Andor groaned unhappily as he made his way to the window. His eyes scanned the street with a clarity not even the most technologically advance camera could match. His elf eyes took in every detail through the shadows: every imperfect scratch on the brick buildings, the asphalt embedded with the grooves of tires, cracked sidewalks that spread out like bolts of lightning.

Nothing. Not a single soul was in sight. The silhouetted street was bare and empty.

“FUCK!” Andor screamed into the silence “FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT! FIND THEM NOW! CHECK THE FRONT DOOR CAMERA!”

“We can’t boss, it was fried yesterday, remember?”

Andor shut the window with a violent thud.

-----

Caitlyn let out the tense sigh she hadn’t realized she had been holding in.

She instinctively looked towards Finnrick only to find empty air.

“We’ll have to be invisible a little longer. They’ll be searching the shop before they think to start fanning outside. Andor will be making the process longer. Let’s get to the end of the street and I’ll drop it then.”

Caitlyn nodded for a moment before realizing he couldn’t see her

He guided her arm into his and the pair briskly walked down the street. It felt weird to walk invisible, arm in arm, while a childish elf baby raged behind them.

When they reached the end of the street, Finnrick dropped the spell. The two reappeared as quickly as they’d vanished. Caitlyn pulled away from the detective, her body shivering from the sudden lack of warmth.

“Thank you.” Caitlyn murmured softly.

Finnrick tipped his fedora “Any time sweetie.”

“What now?”

Finnrick scratched his chin thoughtfully “It is late and staying here would be a terrible idea. I suspect we both have places to be.”

Finnrick reached into his pocket and held out a piece of paper for Caitlyn to take. She stared at it, unsure what he was offering.

“It’s my fence.” He clarified with a smile “I take it you don’t know a magical one. He’s very trustworthy and he’ll give you a fair price.”

“Thanks” she took the slip of paper “I….thank you.”

“Any time. Good night angel.”

“Wait!” She reached for him but drew back when he turned to face her “Your hairclip? The one you let me borrow?”

Finnrick’s eyes twinkled with amusement “You didn’t hear me, did you? I told you that’s yours.”

Caitlyn could hear her heart thundering in her ears, cheeks ablaze “You sure? It seems like it costed a pretty penny.”

“Pretty amount of gold.” Finnrick corrected with a wink “And I’m pretty sure. I made it for you.”

“Why?” The question slipped out of her mouth “Why me? You barely know me.”

“Not true.” Finnrick nervously bit his lip “You barely know me. I’ve been waiting for you forever now. About five yearsin fact.”

“Me?” Her blush worsened “I don’t understand.”

“You will.”

Finnrick took her hand in his once more and softly kissed it. Caitlyn could feel a flutter of butterflies fill her stomach.

He hesitated to break his hold on her but he did so respectfully. Caitlyn could see his cheeks tinged with a pinkish hue as he began walking away.

Caitlyn stood there and watched the detective vanish into the night.

-----

Okay, so she didn’t just stand there dumbfounded as Finnrick walked away. It was probably a terrible idea and definitely not normal Caitlyn behavior but she followed him.

It wasn’t too hard given her newfound verticality. She just waited a few minutes, noted the direction he was heading and flew over the rooftops. Finnrick didn’t seem to be aware he was being followed. He walked the darken streets of Newton Haven, gesturing to the odd person or mythical being cloak in the darkness. His pace was casual and unsuspecting.

Her concerns about running out of time were unfounded as about 30 minutes later, Finnrick ducked into a fairly decent apartment complex. It was better kept than hers but only by a fraction.

A dark apartment on the third floor was suddenly flooded with light as Finnrick Drift made his way inside. He hung his coat and fedora at a coat rack that stood by the door. The apartment was itself humble: he had a battered desk placed by the window, his tiny kitchen was on one side and the door to his bedroom on the other. There was a large file cabinet next to a battered, ancient fridge. Not the place of a well paid private investigator.

Finnrick sighed tiredly as he rolled up his sleeves. The way his body hunched over with the slow debilitate movements he made, it was obvious he must’ve been exhausted. But whatever he was up to must’ve been important because he began drawing on his lovely wooden floor.

Caitlyn couldn’t really guess what the detective was doing beyond the shape he was making: There was a large outer circle and a much smaller one within. An array of symbols were drawn between the two circles such as stars, a crescent moon, squiggles shaped like trees with a language she didn’t understand.

It didn’t take Finnrick long to finish. He stood at full height, wiping the sweat from his brow as he reached into his pocket and pulled a baggie. Carefully, he opened the bag and pulled out a sliver thread that seemed to shine even at this distance. He placed it within the smaller circle and outstretched a hand like he was grasping at something. His eyes, normally a warm dark brown, glowed with blue arcane power. Magical symbols formed before him and the building groaned and creaked like the mere presence of magic commanded it to speak. He lit a match, his lips moving more and more wildly yet no sound could be heard from within. Finnrick closed his hand into a fist and the symbols sunk into the circle. He flung the match onto the sliver thread and the entire glyph blazed with fire for moment. There was a flash of a brilliant light and the circle had vanished only to be replaced by some strange figure.

She was much taller than Finn, so tall in fact the top of her head nearly scraped the bottom of the next floor up. Her hair was wispy, thin threads of sliver that reached to the bottom of her feet. Her skin was pale like moonlight and two dark sunken pits formed her eyes. Her frame was lanky and unnatural like someone had pulled and stretch her into her current form. Her clothes were torn and ragged.

The figure tiled her head curiously at Finnrick who dug into his pocket and pulled out the yellowed paper Caitlyn had given him. The figure was dumbstruck as Finnrick handed it to her with a warm smile. He offered a match to the creature but she shook her head. She gingerly held the paper in her hand, staring at it like was about to vanish into thin air.

Then she ripped it. She tore at it with a fierce, terrifying frenzy. She ripped and ripped and ripped until impossibly small bits of paper rained across the apartment. Caitlyn leaned closer as previously unseen shackles formed upon the figure’s wrist and cracked wide open. They slipped off and vanished into the air.

The figure let out a manic laugh as she shrunk, her limbs realigning themselves until she looked like a proper human sized person only a head taller than Finnrick. Her thin wispy hair fattened to thick, full braids of metallic silver. Her skin remained pale but her dark sunken eyes turned a coal black, full of life and joy. Even her clothes had transformed into a splendid elegant dress that sparkled like stars.

She cried, clear streams of water running down her face as she held Finnrick’s hands tightly. She wailed and shook, unable to keep her emotions in any longer. Finnrick let her, giving only a satisfied grin in response. She handed him a handful of gold, 3 maybe 4 pieces and began patting her dress as if looking for more. Finnrick stopped her, pocketing the gold and shaking his head no. The creature was not satisfied by this and began to gesture wildly about. Finnrick remained steadfast. He gestured to himself, lips speaking but Caitlyn couldn’t read whathe was mouthing this far away. The figure said nothing as a small child matching her skin tone appeared from out of nowhere. The child gestured to his wrist excitedly though nothing was there. The figure scooped the child in her arm and gently kissed his forehead. She glanced to Finnrick and was gone. A gentle warm breeze sailed past Caitlyn’s hidden spot, dispelling the frigid 2 a.m. air.

Finnrick chuckled to himself and despite on the verge of collapsing, made his way to the kitchen. He remained there for a few minutes and reemerged with a steaming cup of those instant noodles found at the store. He made his way over to the window and lifted it open. He placed the foam cup on the fire escape and hastily wrote a note which he folded carefully next to the food.

And with his job seemingly done, he made turned off the lights with a flourish of his hand and made his way to his bedroom. He closed the door and did not reappear.

Caitlyn flew over with the few minutes she had left in her wings. She picked up the cup of ramen, contently sighing with its warmth. She grabbed the note and read it aloud, curious what Finnrick wrote.

Caitlyn felt a chill of run down her spine as she read “Hey! Noticed you watching me and given you didn’t try to attack me, I assumed you had your reasons. If you’re trying to track me for your boss, here’s your warning! I will destroy everything they hold dear. You possibly included. If you just were a person or fae that was just curious, have a warm meal on me! It’s cold out so bundle up. Have a good one and don’t touch the window. I am a powerful warder.” F- :)

Caitlyn couldn’t stop the grin from spreading across her lips as she saw the cute smiley Finnrick had ended the note with.

She held the cup close as she made her way to street level. Finnrick told her she’d understand in time. She wished she understood now but she shocked to find herself more than willing to find out.

[bloodredx]

Day 27: Midnight

The old bell at the center of Reedsdale sang out its chime, the low echoes of the metallic clang reverberated around the buildings to let folks know it was far too late to be out and about. Didn’t stop anyone though. There were parties to go to, bars to sample, and the night to enjoy. Bones didn’t have to count the chimes to know what time it was, midnight on the nose. And where was that pain in the ass little mage? He was the one who wanted to meet him, not the other way around. He could be sleeping, or at least at home if rest would not find him. Sometimes it was just too much of a pain to come all the way into town from the deep swamp. Especially when the waters were high.

He leaned against a nearby lamp post, contemplating whether or not to just bail. While he was rarely on time himself, he didn’t mind not extending any courtesies to those who would waste time themselves. He made note of the cobbled streets, counting a few stones before becoming bored of the action. He had intentionally chosen a more residential side of Reedsdale, so as to have some level of privacy. There were far too many still out and about downtown for Bones to feel comfortable meeting someone like Pria without incident.

Feeling a rush of cold air, Bones glanced to his left, seeing a flash of black cloth settle into the outline of the boy. “Hey Pria.” He grunted without much fanfare, pulling a cigarette from the box in his pocket.

“Salutations.” The ever so cheerful voice shined back. Bones had never seen the kid’s face, but nothing he could picture ever matched the tone he always spoke in.

“What ya want from me? I ain’t got much time, so make it quick.” Bones flicked his lighter, igniting his smoke with a single motion.

“One has as much time as needed.” Pria noted, seeming to bounce on their toes before continuing. “Have you ever noticed how thin the air gets at midnight?”

Raising a brow, Bones grunted a single “No.” It was a lie of course, he had been around enough to know that the world felt different at midnight, but it held no other significance to him. But it was in his nature to play the idiot, and let people explain their purposes.

“Magic just seems easier.” Pria concluded, a slight clap to their hands. “Air tastes better too.”

“And ya brought me all the way into town to just say that?”

“Sure, why not? You fascinate me, Bones. I quite enjoy your company. Wouldn’t you want to spend time with fellow wielders at such an hour?”

“I ain’t much for playin’ with magic unneeded.” His eyes again wandered over the cobbles, thinking longingly for the road back home and back to bed. “I also haven’t spent much ‘round other mages, at least not formally. Too stiff with all their rules, colleges ain’t a place for me.”

There was a soft silence, before Pria took a step forward. “You don’t like me much.” It wasn’t an accusation, just a statement of fact. There wasn’t much emotion attached to it either.

“Can’t say I’mma fan of anyone dragging me into town this late.”

“Aw, don’t say that. All the fun things happen after midnight. It allows us to do things like this.”

A low roar was heard in the distance, and the sound of stomping feet were getting louder with every step. Bones didn’t know why he was so surprised, but he leapt into the air, summoning his staff, bracing himself for the sight of whatever weird creation Pria had come up with now. He turned his head to yell at the boy, but as usual he was already gone. Bones bit his lip and rushed to meet the beast head on.

In Pria’s usual fashion in making nightmare creatures, this thing was massive. It nearly reached three stories in height, its sewn skin dripping off of it in pieces, leaving a convenient trail to follow if Bones ever lost sight of it, but how could you lose sight of such a large beast? Antlers jutted out on all the joints, splitting between exposed muscles. If the sight alone wouldn’t make one vomit, the smell certainly did. How did he keep this thing under wraps for so long? Bones sneered as he began to doubt his own senses, normally he’d sense this creature the second it was animated. Perhaps there was something else in play here. That could be solved later, right now he had to at least get this thing out of town, and then destroy it somehow without getting its foul flesh all over his body.

Bones stuck his fingers between his lips, blowing a shrill whistle to get the monster’s attention. “Hey big boy, come’n get it!” He waved his free hand and began to fly down the street, leading towards the tree line.

The beast opened its maw and released a horrendous roar, turning to follow the tempting prize of the necromancer. At least it was stupid and sight oriented. “That’s it, come play with me! What, ya so pathetic ya can’t even fly? Your master must not love ya at all.”

It flexed its muscles, crouching to build up tension and then releasing it all at once flinging its weight several hundred feet forward. “Aw, hell.”

Bones dodged at the last possible second, the monster passing him easily. Note, bad plan to taunt it too much. Could cause needless destruction. Just as he was pondering what to do next, a buzz reminded him of the flip phone in his pocket. “What now?” He flipped the phone open. “Make it quick. Got my hands full.”

“Where are you?” Icarus’s voice squeaked through the speaker.

“Tryin’ to keep the neighborhood from bein’ ripped apart.” The monster roared again, as if wanting a part in the conversation. “Where the hell are ya?”

“Walking to town, what the hell was that?”

“A pain in my ass, can ya get down to the east side and give me a hand?”

“I’ll try.”

“Ya better.” Bones slammed the phone shut and refocused on leading it away. They were so close to being out of harm’s way.

Bones jet himself forward, focusing inward to feel the skeletal structure of this thing, maybe he could take over influence of its action. They were too far from any known burial sites for him to summon any assistance, and who knows how long it would take Icarus to arrive, or if he’d be any help at all. But if he could hijack its energy, maybe he could just bend it to his will. Bones’s eyes glowed purple, trying to make out what made this thing tick, seeing the aura of magic moving over its body was fascinating. There were so many connection points and the system seemed to be finely tuned. He couldn’t directly notice a weak point. But there were flares when it charged up to move, as if it had limited capacity to hold together, it was leaking energy something fierce. How did Pria manage to get this thing moving in the first place? He must’ve tricked several mages into powering its core, there was no other way to get that much force from one person. Let alone a kid.

A rustle of branches let Bones now Icarus had just arrived, not to mention to shriek of fear once he laid eyes on it. “What the fuck is that?!?”

“Doesn’t matter, help me kill it.” Bones growled, beginning to chant wards to block the beast from moving further.

It screamed once it realized its muscles were locking up, turning to spitting up whatever bile was circulating in it. Icarus was fear struck, he had never seen anything like this, or heard about monsters of this size. His hands shook as he tried to figure out exactly where he should start on such a being. He slit his palm, forming one of his throwing knives in his hands. This would be such a waste of blood, and he cursed himself for coming out to this at all.

He threw the blade at the beast’s knee, trying to cut the sinews that gave it mobility, the blade struck alright, but didn’t seem to make much of a dent. It only proceeded to make the thing even more pissed off, Icarus knew this due to the blow a swinging fist that caught him to the side, the force throwing him into the tree tops.

“Shit.” Bones whispered between chants, lowering his altitude to see if Icarus was alright. The stirring of leaves let him know the vampire was at least still alive. That was good. What was not so good was the beast winding up to get him next. He had to end this right now. “I’m gonna hate life no matter what, so here we go.”

With little choice, Bones flung himself into the chest of the beast, grabbing onto portions of exposed ribcage, and willing his magic directly into the conglomeration of bones. His body screamed at the dishonor of touching such a filthy thing, the image of whatever ooze, bile, and other miscellaneous filth covering his hands. Just a minute longer, he could freak out in a minute, just take this thing down.

Icarus freed himself from the leaves, dropping down to gear up from a more close range attack, snapping his dislocated should back into the socket. He was pissed, feeling the heat rising into his hands, so he summoned a new knife. He would make that thing regret its every move. He rushed forward, realizing that his leg wasn’t properly centered but he would worry about healing later. The lust of adrenaline was controlling him now. His new blade sunk into its leg, and he pulled it out, slashing and tearing at the flesh like a mad man.

Glowing purple runes suddenly bubbled up to the surface of its flesh, giving Icarus enough warning to leap back. The beast screamed as flesh flung off its body in a sick rain of gore, increasing in speed until only the bones remained. The light of its eyes went out, collapsing to the ground. “Well that went well.” Icarus moaned in pain as the adrenaline wore off. His senses came back for a moment, where the hell was Bones?

He carefully moved around the monster, looking through coagulates of flesh, moving bone and marrow around, listening for the telltale sound of the mage’s heartbeat. He rolled over the ribcage, finding him unconscious underneath and leaking black smoke out of his mouth. “Fuck.”

He picked up his ooze-covered friend and ran back to the house. He needed to call Lady Serena right now. Nothing good was about to happen, he could feel it in his blood. His mother always told him nothing good happened after midnight, and now more than ever he knew what she meant. He just hoped there was time to fix this.

(OC-tober prompt list by @oc-growth-and-development can be found here)

[gabbiemp3]

one direction albums ranked

5. made in the am

energetic and dynamic, but probably no one’s favorite. the unexpected and uncharacteristic surprise dropping of its insanely successful lead single, drag me down, was the band’s less than subtle way of alerting the public that they were alive and well in the wake of zayn’s departure. i can’t help but feel like this is the motive of the entire album. with its regression to the safe pop its predecessor four dared to challenge, the album feels contrived and rushed. some moments on it sound like an AI algorithm that averaged out their entire discography to generate a “One Direction Song”. Its occasional attempts to try something new are nice but ultimately gimmicky, preventing it from overcoming its ulterior motives--to be the band’s last hurrah (commercially and culturally) before the “hiatus” (you can tell us you broke up) we all should’ve seen coming. 

this doesn’t mean there aren’t some tried-and-true fan favorites on this album. songs like infinity, olivia, if i could fly, and of course, the fandom-homage history (easily the album’s strongest single) hold a special place in fan’s hearts. 

best: what a feeling, wolves, history, olivia

4. up all night

the iconic red double decker bus. louis’ toms and blue stripes. niall’s adorable crooked teeth. the flaming jealousy we all experienced as we watched harry sing the bridge of WMYB to a girl on the beach. this is an album that brings me nostalgia for a time in the fandom i wasn’t even a part of.

up all night is shimmery, camp, and more than a little embarrassing. (i genuinely can’t listen to stole my heart without bursting into uncontrollable laughter.) 

it’d be a lie, though, to say it isn’t freaking EARNEST. gotta be you is melodramatic (what a mess i’ve made upon your innocence/no woman in the world deserves this) but the boys give it their all--shoutout to my mans harry. same mistakes is obviously too mature to be on this album but zayn delivers an emotional and skilled vocal performance indicative of the standout status he’ll claim for the rest of their discography (until it’s so potent he decides to move on to his own). 

although it’s not very re-listenable, i will always have a soft spot for it, and i’m sure you guys do too. 

best: one thing, stand up

3. four

ah, yes. the Mature album. coincidentally, my favorite album from my top artists always seems to be this said “mature” effort (see: Taylor Swift’s Speak Now, Paramore’s Brand New Eyes). not true in this case, but still a good album. 

one direction goes very middle-aged-white-dad on us (unsurprisingly it’s my own dad’s fav). the singles from this album sort of tell you all you need to know about their direction on this one--80s-inspired rocky, else folksy. four is smooth and genuinely pleasant to listen to. it’s possibly their most cohesive effort (other than take me home), minus the out-of-place the 1975 ripoff change your ticket (hey, i’m not saying i don’t like this song, it’s actually good fun) and closer act my age, which is only forgivable because it’s become a meme in the fandom. 

four sees one direction at a place in their career where they don’t need to (and are maybe even tired of) making typical bankable pop songs, so they decided to experiment, and overall it worked. 

best: 18, fool’s gold, no control

2. midnight memories

one direction tries to do a lot of things on this album. do they all work? no. is it still damn good and jam packed with ABSOLUTE bangers? yes!

this album came at the peak of their career. their first stadium tour was for this album. this was the album that came out when i was just starting to become a full-fledged 1d stan.

it’s their first album that they really had a say in, in terms of production and songwriting. and you can tell. the songs feel authentic. for the first time, these boys are singing about things they actually believe in or have experienced. it’s why i forgive it for being kind of a mess. (what other album boasts a cheeky but admittedly novel love song composed of titles of other songs and a McFly-written 'remember your roots’ anthem? songs as antithetical as the minimalistic guitar ballad half a heart and the 70s rock jam little black dress?) the boys had been waiting three years to take the reigns, and they wanted to try everything. who could blame them?

finally, this album exemplifies what makes one direction so great: heart. it’s a record that is alive (no pun intended), and full of genuinely poignant moments. 

side note: i am so glad that my first 1d concert was during the where we are tour, because these tracks were MADE for arenas. 

best: little white lies (duh), strong, happily, right now

1. take me home

if you know me, you know i love a good pop album, in all of its saccharine, cliche glory. tmh may not be one direction’s smartest or best-produced album, but it’s definitely the most dopamine-inducing (that neuroscientist in This is Us said it himself, folks). and isn’t that primarily what one direction is all about? let’s be honest. we never listened to one direction to become more cultured, or question the structures and relationships in place in our lives, we listened because they make us, for lack of a better word, happy. 

and this album makes me soar. it’s one direction at their most cheeky, their most infectious, their most head-over-heels for you, the listener. just try to listen to songs like i would and little things and not swoon. it’s impossible! 

it’s one direction at their most one direction. and it’s so much fun. 

i don’t care that some say this album is manufactured or carefully calculated under all those layers of carefree teenage energy. they’re probably right! one direction’s production team probably exacted this record to be eaten up by a young, doe-eyed tweeny bopper like i was the first time i heard it. and that’s exactly what i did. i gladly took it then, and i will gladly take it today. 

best: nobody compares, loved you first, last first kiss, heart attack, c’mon c’mon 

[notalittlebutalottie]

Drabble where our carebear is Hope's mom. Like she give birth to her. 😄😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘

Let’s imagine this is the previous mini-drabble…flash forward 9 months, shall we? Haha! Thanks for the request!

Her harrowing screams could be heard all throughout the house. It had begun at the stroke of midnight. The mystical vampire baby was now, in fact, a reality for the pair of them. Even as her bump grew to the point she could not see her toes, Klaus avoided the subject entirely. It had to be false. Eventually, he decided to hide out in his mansion for the last two weeks of the ordeal.

There was no time to question now, however, as the baby was practically trying to leap out of the womb and into the crazy world they were in. Elena had rushed Klaus into the basement, where they had set up their very own vampire hospital room.

He stumbled down the creaky wooden stairs, looking like a deer in the headlights when confronted with a distressed woman on the large, blue hospital bed.

“I take it the hospital is missing one bed. Poor Tiny Tim will have to wait another year for his surgery, love,” he attempted to joke as he looked at the girl in the bed.

“Where…the…HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?!” Caroline screamed, the fabric of the bed bunched up within her fists.

He quickly rushed to her side, taking one of her hands into his own.

“That joke was in poor taste. My apologies,” his eyes lowered, only glancing up for sign of forgiveness.

“You better shut your damn mouth, you weird baby creating hybrid!”

His mouth was shut just like that.

“You’re doing great,” Bonnie assured her at the end of the bed, “I see a head…pretty big one actually.”

“Oh god! It’s going to be a narcissist like its father,” she groaned in between forced breaths.

Klaus raised an eyebrow, “I will take that as a compliment.”

“You shouldn’t,” she said with bite, clamping on his hand with her own.

His jaw tensed but he kept an uneasy smile.

“Wow, Blondie. You look like hell,” an approaching Damon came from the stairway.

“Shut up, Damon!” the soon-to-be parents roared in unison.

“Just a little more!” Elena squeaked. Bonnie was at the ready.

Caroline shared her painful expression with the hybrid beside her. She wanted to give up right then and there. ‘That’s all folks’ she would say and pack up everything before leaving to get a glass of rosé. Klaus finally looked at her with the sympathy she desired. His eyes scanned over her tired body, landing on her own eyes with worry.

He leaned in to kiss her forehead, “You can do this.”

“You freaking suck!” she spat before giving her last, excruciating push.

“So I’ve been told, love.”

“Ahh!” the two girls screamed excitedly opposite them.

“It’s a girl!” Elena exclaimed, helping to cut the umbilical cord as the baby cried.

Caroline looked up with tired, yet happy, expectancy.

“A girl? Oh my gosh,” she sighed in relief.

“Would you have abandoned the child otherwise?” Klaus inquired in amusement.

“Have you SEEN yourself?” the blonde looked at him plainly. She then welcomed the newborn into her arms as Bonnie passed her over. The baby was so tiny and fragile. Even Klaus had to admit falling in love with the little thing at first glance.

“Hope…” she muttered to herself.

“That’s such a cute name,” Elena complimented, moving around the bed to join the new parents, “Why Hope?”

“Because I was pushing and pushing…but all I could think was…”

They all watched her with expectant eyes. Clearly, whatever the reason was, it would be the most profound.

With a deep breath she said, “I hope Klaus will shut up soon.”

Have a drabble idea? Request here!

[eloisacamacho94-blog]

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[thesunlounge]

Reviews 100: Aussteiger

The press materials for Aussteiger’s debut full length tell a story of a dissatisfied traveller retreating to the havens of nature and achieving musical and spiritual enlightenment. Upon returning to civilization and adorned in a mystical aura of gold, he set out to soothe the ills of the world with Dub Disco, an adventurous imprint run alongside Serj Nosé that is responsible for some truly great music, including the tropical melancholia of “Balearic Cosmos” from Dub Disco presents Thorsten Lee Broda & Aussteiger, the ultra smooth atmospheres of S&W’s “Cashmere Green,” and the entire psychedelic wonderland that is Dub Disco presents Aporia + Remixes. And now Aussteiger’s mission of sonic healing continues with Zusammenkunft, a deeply esoteric trip on the legendary Music for Dreams that sees him expanding in all directions and applying a potent form of restorative alchemy across eleven cuts of zoned out house, jungle exotica, balearic folk, and cosmic synthesis.

Aussteiger - Zusammenkunft (Music for Dreams, 2018) The title track begins with echoing hand drums and rimshots over a dubwise four-four. Psychoactive drones build underneath until chugging Italo basslines drop alongside a pronounced disco pulse, while outerspace lasers fire rainbow light into the sky. Soft pads float like bubbles, their string, brass, and flute tones joined by swirling washes of static and vocal loops repeating “swimming” to intoxicating effect. And after a beatless section swathed in neon hued dreamtime arpeggios, the rhythms return, now joined by 16th note hats and aching strings. “Aguaha” sees stoned house rhythmics accompanied by island percussion and idiophones looping under distant layers of reverb. The throbbing sub bass is joined by sexual scatting, all breathy incoherent cooing alongside galactic synthesizer blasts and celebratory group chanting buried deep within the background jungle. Eventually things take a dark turn, with towering pads pitch shifting like an auditory mirage over the esoteric rhythm flow and psychedelic sequences intertwining with hypnotic chanting…as if an ecstatic trance state has been realized in the form of futuristic deep house. Closing out the A-side is “Ara”, sitting at some compelling intersection of Sun City Girls psych folk, soaked in Americana and mystical solar vibes, and the kind of dusty jazzy organic house coming out of the Money $ex crew. Indeed, shambolic acoustic guitar loops and electric guitar harmonics sit above a pillowy kick, with minimal snare, bongo, and shaker accents accompanied by strange airy compression fx and exotic vocal samples wafting in and out.

“Francis Boogie” is the song of the summer for me, featuring a laid back balearic shuffle with fluttering ocean pads, mesmeric vocal samples, and spellbinding guitar loops that fade in through cloudy layers of low pass filtering. The whole thing is a masterclass is confident arrangement and mixing, as there is little else present but the beat, the acoustic and electric guitar riffs, and a nice unobtrusive bassline, yet somehow it all comes together for one of 2018’s most captivating moments…the kind of wonderful music that bathes the world in golden light and positivity, washing away negative energy with sunshine smile vibrations. Next is “Hoggar,” seeing understated beats and ritualistic rainforest drums floating in isolation with silky smooth e-piano romantics and jangling tambourines. At times things progress towards the cinematic, like riding atop a majestic steed towards a blood red sunset, anticipation building as cosmic arps lock in with the tribal percussion webs and dramatic snare fills. But rather than explode, Aussteiger chooses to simmer, letting the dreamy midnight Rhodes work and blissed out drumming wash over the mind. Then comes “Bejaia,” built around an irresistible wobbling synth riff, snaking funk bass, and rhythmics sitting somewhere between disco, b-boy breaks, and classic house. There’s a percussive midsection with a panorama of atonal metallic sounds bouncing off of steady hand drums until the hallucinogenic synth modulations build everything back towards bouncing outerspace euphoria…heads down, eyes closed, bodies writhing in the heat of the night.

Further string instrument explorations occur in “Egyrpth”, with what is perhaps a banjo weaving heart-aching spells alongside soaring pads, all over a massive bass drum march intercut with rattling kick tones and crunchy claps. These epic and filmic sections are surrounded by colder expanses dominated by searing arcs of ring modulation, while glassy arps spin fantasy melodies in the background ether. The centerpiece of Zusammenkunft comes next with “Power,” as jacking kick and synthbass patterns are woven into a compelling rhythm storm along with hand percussion, snaps, and claps dancing all around. A sinister arp builds alongside hissing hi-hats and cosmic-aquatic pings, giving things a hint of Detroit techno futurism until backwards swelling cymbals lead to a sharp drop out, with nothing left but lonely synthesizers locked into otherworldly music box melodies. Eventually the technoid sequencing returns, bringing with it a stomping house march, while the childlike melodies continue to drift overhead, pushing the vibe towards feverish delirium. Side closer “Atura” is dominated by this incredible sonic effect…a sort of squelching static tone that moves like some intelligent liquid, boiling and churning in hues of ebony and mauve, bubbles popping and releasing prismatic sonic streaks. The melodies evoke a snake charmer dance for cyborgs, accompanied as usual by one of Aussteiger’s head nodding deep house grooves. And at some point, pitched down vocal samples lock in with bongos and congas, adding a leaned out hip hop swagger.

We head further into the heart of darkness with “Jk” and its stuttering off kilter flow. The drum loops are mind bending in their refusal to lock into a familiar pattern and the vibe is only made more freaked out by militant chugging bass synths. A semblance of a groove takes shape as shakers ease tension, allowing vocal synth fx as beamed in from another dimension to percolate alongside swirling compressed pads. It’s an unrelenting stomp through a robotic jungle…sounds morphing as if filtered through DMT…shakers bouncing all around…liquids dripping upwards as mutant frogs sing together. The album ends with the flute mysticisms and synthesized visions of “Karma.” Ethnological explorations sit above housey exotica, with huge sub bass cushions and flashes of sound approximating the crawling of insects. It’s like awakening into a ritual both frightening and familiar, deep in the bowels of some cosmic temple at the center of a faraway star, with third eye aerophone meditations, sitar tones subsuming the mind, and synthetic cellos tuned to the cosmic microwave background emanating from unseen sources.

(images from my personal copy)

[redrobin-detective]

The Long Way Around 14

It's Sunday across the world and I couldn't wait. I won't bore with an long speech. I just hope that you enjoy it! I'm quite excited to share and I'm excited to see what people think!

AO3/Fanfiction

Chapter Fourteen: The Boys Born with Nothing and Everything

Reminder from last chapter: Izuku won his fight with Shinsou but his quirklessness was revealed at the end of the match by Present Mic.

As soon as he steps off the field, Izuku is acutely aware of all the eyes on him, of the whispers behind his back. He's used to being stared at for being some sort of freak, a relic of a long forgotten age but the intensity of the eyes on him now feels much, much heavier. He swallows the lump in his throat and continues on like he isn't bothered by them.

The main worry now is that they'll try and pull him out of the matches. Heavens knows they normally don't have a problem letting kids beat the hell out of each other on live TV but, of course, it's different now that he's quirkless.

"Midoriya Izuku, would you please come to the commentator's box?" Comes from the loudspeakers in the tunnel and he takes a deep breath. Well, here it comes, they were going to try and talk him out of competing. His anger burns warm in his chest, well let them try to stop him. He knows his rights; Yuuei got rid of the ban on quirkless students three years ago so there's nothing but their own prejudices in his way.

Izuku holds his head high as he stalks up to the commentator's box. Present Mic is narrating another of the matches but there are several others up there as well. Izuku recognizes Class 1-B teacher, Blood King and Chiura-sensei is there too. Sitting next to Present Mic is a man wrapped almost entirely in bandages. Really? They're going to tell him he can't fight when this man clearly should be in the hospital?

"I'm not going to back out. I'm going to fight in the next round and nothing you say will make me change my mind," Izuku announces before they can say anything.

"Be reasonable, son," Blood King says in a grinding tone. "No one can deny you've done well so far but we can't guarantee your safety in upcoming matches."

"And you can for everyone else competing?" Izuku snaps back. Normally he'd be mortified to be talking to an adult, a pro hero no less, with such disrespect but he's too angry to care right now. "I've sweat and bled to get this far and you're not taking it from me. I'm going to fight and I'm going to earn that open seat in the hero course."

"Interesting," the dark haired man mumbles through his bandages. "You know Heroics has never taken a quirkless student before, right?"

"First time for everything," Izuku answers right back. "No one thought one hero could single-handedly decrease crime rates either and yet here we are." The man nods to himself before retreating from the conversation.

"Are you even aware of who you're going to be fighting? What kind of power you're up against?" Blood King hisses, kneeling down a little bit so he's closer to Izuku's level. "This isn't some Gen Ed punk, you're up against Todoroki Shouto, son of the second most powerful man in Japan. Even the fastest and strongest would have a hard time against him. You're a smart kid, you have to see your chances are impossible."

Todoroki? That's who he'd be fighting? Izuku admits the thought absolutely terrifies him; Todoroki's performance in the obstacle course and the cavalry battle had shown that he's incredibly skilled with his quirk. But Izuku couldn't back down now, it would mean that all of his hard work meant nothing, that Shinsou's loss had been pointless.

"I'll be ready," Izuku nods. "I'm well aware of the fact that it will be difficult but a real hero doesn't back down from a fight no matter how strong their opponent is." Izuku narrows his eyes, "with all due respect, sir, there isn't a thing you can do to stop me." Blood King wearily turns to Chiura-sensei who's got the barest hint of a smug smile on his face.

"I told you he wouldn't back down, let him fight. I guarantee you the boy will cause a bigger stir if you try to pull him out now. Besides, he might even show Todoroki's son a thing or two."

"Well I think you're mad, kid!" Present Mic says enthusiastically, spinning around in his chair as the previous match concludes. "But I gotta say I kinda dig it, don't you, Eraser?" Izuku gasps quietly, that was Eraserhead, the underground hero capable of temporarily erasing quirks, who also happened to be the homeroom teacher of 1-A and one of the teachers injured at USJ. "Sure Midoriya, you can compete, just don't sue us when you break all your bones!"

"Thank you," Izuku answers. "I can't promise to win but I can say I'll put on a good show." He walks out of the room with his head held high, ignoring the whispered comments behind his back.

The first round is still going on so he has time to plan for his upcoming battle. Izuku is lost in thought as he walks down the hall, still conflicted about how to feel about Todoroki. Izuku is, of course, in complete awe of the power the other boy possesses but he'd seemed so sad when he'd spoken to Izuku. He'd looked like Shinsou had the day those older kids were bullying him; like he knew that there's nothing to be done about all the awful things in his life. Izuku wonders if he could-

"So you're the quirkless kid everyone is talking about?" Izuku feels his heart skip a beat as Number Two Hero, Endeavor, rounds the corner and stares down at him with indifference. The heat and disgust radiating off the hero is almost enough to make Izuku step back but he forces himself to stand his ground. "Pathetic, I was hoping my Shouto would have a more impressive match-up to demonstrate his skills but I suppose it can't be helped."

"You couldn't possibly understand but my son is destined to surpass All Might himself; he shouldn't have to waste his time on people like you," Endeavor sneers. "I know I can't expect much from a quirkless brat but, for both your sakes, try not to lose so disgracefully." With that said, Endeavor moves past him with an aggressive stride.

"Quirkless or not, I still beat your son in the preliminaries," Izuku says harshly. "And Todoroki may not have beaten All Might but he's already surpassed you, not that it's difficult or anything. Excuse me, I need to prepare for my match." He turns and walks away before Endeavor can respond. Izuku makes sure not to hurry away, taking careful measured steps and keeping his trembling fists still at his side. He didn't want Endeavor to interpret his shaking as fear when all Izuku can feel is rage.

XxX

"And now folks, we've got what is sure to be an interesting, but ultimately short, fight!" Present Mic screeches. "We have in one corner, the boy who defied the odds, and the advice of his teachers, to be here. You all remember the quirkless General Education student who came out on top in the preliminaries, Midoriya Izuku!" Izuku stretches out his arms, letting Mic's words roll off of him like water. The old him would have been discouraged but he's different now; he knows who he is and what he's capable of.

"And then we have one of our rising stars in 1-A, the boy who turned this stadium into a giant popsicle in the first round and the son of the Number Two himself, Todoroki Shouto! Be sure to go easy on him, eh Todoroki?"

"Stop demeaning the students and let them fight," Eraserhead chimes in. "This match is far from over, Midoriya has proven himself to be a strong opponent and Todoroki would be wise to keep that in mind."

"Alright, moving on!" Midnight says, holding up her whip. She gives Izuku a pitying look. "Last chance kid, no one will think less of you if you bow out now." Izuku sighs with frustration as he reaches behind his back and pulls out his bō, whipping it out to its full length before settling it in his hands. "Well, it's your funeral. Start!"

During the time before his match, Izuku had carefully observed Todoroki's fight with the 1-A kid, Sero. Izuku's main advantage is the fact that everyone, probably Todoroki too, will be underestimating him. Judging by how Todoroki had appeared after he'd created that huge iceberg, Izuku would guess that was probably at or near his upper limit. But Todoroki most likely wasn't going to go that big against little, quirkless him if only because it's a waste of energy.

Besides all that, it takes Todoroki a few seconds to build up that amount of ice. And a few seconds is all Izuku needed.

Midnight barely finished announcing the start before Izuku is charging forward towards Todoroki as fast as he absolutely could. They aren't too far apart and Izuku reaches the other boy quickly, soon enough that Todoroki still hasn't finished forming his ice. Flinching at the sudden proximity, Todoroki throws a much smaller ice wall up, one which Izuku is easily able to climb using the cleats in his boots to get to higher ground.

Izuku raises his bō and whips it hard across Todoroki's face. Izuku ignores the quiet crack and the look of surprised pain on Todoroki's face. Rikimaru-shishou had been right, Izuku can't afford to play nice right now, not if he wants to win. Izuku hits the ground while Todoroki stumbles back a bit and he maneuvers the bō to hit Todoroki in the gut. Todoroki chokes and huddles over himself, taking a few more steps back.

Izuku hates himself a bit to keep hammering in on someone clearly in pain but this is his one and only chance to prove himself and Todoroki could wipe him out if Izuku hesitates for even a second.

"Woah! Are you seeing this? Midoriya is not going down without a fight and is really pounding in on Todoroki. This guy isn't playing around, he's here to win!"

He charges again and Todoroki has semi-righted himself, wiping some spittle from the side of his mouth. He eyes Izuku with a cold gaze, the same look he gave when he'd initially challenged Izuku. On the ground below them, a pillar ice begins to speed towards him rapidly. Izuku mostly is able to dodge but winces as part of the ice hits him in the head, scraping his forehead and part of his left eyebrow.

Ignoring the pain and blood dribbling down into his eye, Izuku pushes himself forward and closes the distance between him and his opponent. Todoroki has put out another stream of ice but, like before, Izuku climbs it and jumps down to confront Todoroki. He delivers a strong kick to his chest and Todoroki stumbles back into his own ice wall.

Todoroki steadies himself and brings up his right arm to shoot more ice but Izuku is already in his face. He slams Todoroki's head hard into the ice, with enough force to crack the wall before grabbing the front of his opponent's uniform and flipping him to the ground. Todoroki gasps as he hits the floor with a loud thunk.

"What is going on?" Present Mic announces even as the cheers in the audience begin to swell. "Am I dreaming? Am I actually seeing a quirkless kid slam Endeavor's son around like some sort of ragdoll? I have got to say, folks, I am starting to get excited, you go Midoriya!"

Izuku pants with exertion, wiping away the blood from his eye before making his way over to his opponent. There is no way Izuku is going to actually beat Todoroki in terms of skill. His only hope is to keep pounding on him, keeping Todoroki off balance so he couldn't get in any serious attacks until Izuku could get him out of bounds.

Todoroki is on his knees when Izuku is there again; he kicks him in the stomach and forcing Todoroki back down. But not before Todoroki gets the chance to ice the ground beneath him. Izuku yelps as he loses his footing and hits the ground with a painful thump, mere centimeters from his opponent.

They blink at each other for a second before Todoroki is scrambling up; he glares heartily down at Izuku, looking ready to end it. Luckily, Izuku's staff is within reach so he has enough time to grab it and smack Todoroki's hand away, causing the ice to go awry. The hit wasn't intended to harm so Todoroki recovers quickly but it gives Izuku time to get to his feet and charge him again.

"His strategy is sound, Midoriya knows he can't beat Todoroki on his own so he's continually attacking his stronger opponent so he's unable to produce a significant counterattack. His moves aren't random either, they're the product of diligent training as he makes the most of his equipment and his surroundings." Eraserhead comments.

Izuku grits his teeth as he pulls back and delivers a strong punch to Todoroki's face; he feels the boy's nose break beneath his fist. Todoroki growls and sends a column of ice into Izuku's gut. Izuku coughs and his bō drops limply from his hands and bounces on the ground. Ouch, he's pretty sure something broke there.

Todoroki rushes him again, bringing up his right hand to try and freeze Izuku in place but Izuku manages to dodge through sheer luck. However, the motion does cause him to fall to the ground again which aggravates his ribs. He looks around for his staff again, but Todoroki lightly kicks it away before Izuku can reach it. He also creates a large ice wall behind Izuku so he can't retreat, effectively trapping him.

"You're good, I'm sorry I underestimated you," Todoroki pants, bringing trembling fingers up to his broken nose. Izuku's frowns, Todoroki's whole right hand and bits of his face are pale and covered in ice. His breath is fogging in the air with a hushed chill. He's overexerting his ice, he hasn't been able to make anything big but between his efforts now and the last few events, it's clear Todoroki's starting to feel the effects of his quirk. "But I'm afraid this match is over now."

"You're using your ice too much," Izuku hisses, swiping at the blood in his eye as he shakily gets to his feet. "Why aren't you using your fire to regulate your temperature?"

"You know why," Todoroki says darkly. He spares a moment to nod over to the stands where Endeavor is an obvious, fiery presence. "I'm not going to give that man the satisfaction. I got this far without using his power and I'm not about to start now."

"That's bullshit," Izuku hears himself say as he rushes his opponent, fueled by a sort of righteous energy. Todoroki's movements have been progressively slowing down so Izuku is able to grab him by the front of his gym uniform and throw him into another patch of ice. "You won't give him the satisfaction? You claim that you're going to beat me when you won't even bring out all of your power?"

Izuku gets in close and pulls Todoroki forward before slamming him back into the ice, almost as if he could shake some sense into his opponent. The other boy responds with a punch to the jaw that manages to push Izuku back. Todoroki throws some more ice but it's smaller than it was before and it's easy to dodge. The quick movement is really aggravating Izuku's injuries but his fury keeps him going.

"Look at me!" Izuku shouts, gesturing to himself. "You've barely put a scratch on me! The quirkless idiot who dared to challenge the strongest kid in the hero class." Izuku gets in another punch, "All I have is my fists, my brain and my staff and I'm actually beating you." He yells as he runs forward but Todoroki is starting to get his equilibrium back and dodges, using the opportunity to get behind Izuku and kick him down to the ground. He rolls aside before Todoroki can ice him in place but not too far that he can't deliver another kick to Todoroki's knee which causes him to partially fall.

"You're the one who challenged me to give everything I had, remember? I've kept up my end of the bargain, it's you who's falling short!" Izuku scrambles to his feet, almost falling in his haste and kicks Todoroki across the jaw so he falls flat on his back.

Izuku reaches down and hooks Todoroki's right arm behind his back with Izuku's arm wrapped around Todoroki's neck as he starts to drag his opponent back over towards the edge of the ring.

"You think you can beat me using only half your power?" Izuku shouts because he's angry and he's pumped up on adrenaline and can't seem to stop. The arrogance of it all infuriated him, but not as much as the knowledge that Todoroki was hurting and no one else was doing anything about it.

"What happened to you wasn't right but you shouldn't let him get in the way of your dreams." Todoroki is struggling within his hold but Izuku is beyond caring right now. "If you want to beat me, you're going to have to give me everything you've got!"

Shouto wasn't really sure what he was expecting in this match but Midoriya Izuku certainly wasn't it.

He'd taken the green haired boy's success in the obstacle course as coincidence but he couldn't deny the other's skill once Midoriya had placed first again in the second event. Earlier that morning, Todoroki had announced to Bakugou that he intended to beat him but, somewhere along the way, Todoroki's opponent had shifted to the General Education student no one had heard of before.

But Midoriya had been different outside of the ring; quiet and kind and looking very much out of place. He'd been jumpy and emotional when Shouto had privately discussed his reasons for not using his fire. It was almost hard to believe this was the same person who'd ruthlessly rammed his foot into Shouto's gut just minutes earlier.

Present Mic's announcement after Midoriya's first match that he didn't have a quirk had surprised Shouto. At the time, he'd simply shrugged it off. His old man wouldn't care about his victory over some quirkless kid so Shouto could afford to go easy on him and save his strength for other, tougher battles.

He had never miscalculated something, someone, so badly in his entire life.

From the moment this battle started, Shouto has been kicked and punched and thrown around with terrifying precision. Endeavor made sure that he'd had the finest combat training, sure, but quirk training had always taken priority which meant Shouto focused more on distance fighting. Midoriya had obviously noticed this and taken advantage, getting and staying close so Shouto couldn't accurately use his ice. The fact that his vision keeps shifting and his thoughts are a bit muddled from a likely concussion really did not help matters.

Midoriya has him in something of a headlock now and is trying to drag Shouto out of bounds and out of the competition. He struggles in the hold but Midoriya's grip is strong and the only way out is to actually hurt the other boy. But the words Midoriya is screaming in his ear seem to slow him down more than any physical injury.

"If you really want to be a hero then you won't let me win!" Midoriya shouts as he continues to drag Shouto. He's so confused, Midoriya wants to advance, right? So why? Why is he poking at all the ugly, painful parts that everyone else has been content until now to ignore?

"You know nothing," Shouto chokes out and decides he's through being dragged around. His right hand is still trapped behind his back but he forms ice on it anyway.

Midoriya is close enough to him that Shouto can see one green eye widen in surprise and pain as the cold seeps into him. Midoriya wrenches Shouto's body to the side so his right hand is free. Before he can think, Shouto brings that frozen hand up to the one around his throat. This time, Midoriya yelps as he pulls his arm free, a coat of ice now covering that arm and part of his hand.

"You think I don't know what it feels like to be trapped in a life you hate because of how you were born?" Midoriya demands, swinging the partially frozen arm at his face. Shouto dodges and it hits one of the ice walls. Midoriya winces but most of the ice on his arm breaks off, revealing red, swollen skin already in the first stage of frostbite.

"But I'm here, Todoroki," Midoriya emphasizes as he breaks off to the side to grab his staff before charging back. "I didn't let all the people who said I was useless keep me down."

The staff comes down over his head but Shouto is prepared this time, he reaches up with his right hand and catches it before it hits him. Metal is an excellent conductor and it freezes easily; the chilled metal begins to crack under his frozen grip. Midoriya abandons it in his hand and pulls back to deliver a powerful kick to Shouto's chest. Shouto staggers backwards and the frozen staff partially shatters from the impact while Midoriya grabs the intact end of the staff and breaks it off. He then whips Shouto with it across the face, using it as some sort of escrima stick.

"Are you going to let that man control your life?" Midoriya demands and he continues to smack Shouto over and over again. Shouto is vaguely aware that they're nearing the edge but a larger part of him doesn't care. All the matters is what Midoriya is trying to tell him. "It's your power, Todoroki! If you think you can be a hero without giving everything you have then I'm going to drag you out of this ring and take your place!"

Shouto is so disoriented, he doesn't know what to think or what to feel. Midoriya is still smacking him around and Present Mic is getting more and more excited as the crowds begin to cheer louder. His body is half frozen and he's broken and bruised and terribly tired. But despite all that, somewhere inside, he feels warm.

When was the last time anyone had ever told him to do something for his own sake? People have praised him for his quirk, sure, but it always seemed in connection to that man. But now, it's his, isn't it? His to use, to save, to win. The warmth in him spreads until he feels his skin prickle as the ice on his skin melts and his uniform burns.

Midoriya gasps slightly and takes a step back as Shouto's left side blazes. Shouto has never felt so at peace when using his fire, his fire, in his entire life. And Midoriya, that absolute madman, he's grinning.

"Even though you say you want to win; you go out of your way to help your opponent." Shouto says, reveling at the warmth on his skin, like the feeling of the sun on a summer's day. "Which one of us is crazy?"

"You're going to be a great hero, Todoroki." Midoriya responds, wiping his bloody face into his shoulder and smoothing out his grin into a thoughtful expression. He's probably recalculating his strategy now that Shouto is using his fire. And Shouto just wants to shake his head. Who is this guy? This General Education student who beat him up and rubbed his face in his trauma until he brought out Shouto's full power? Now that the odds against him are worse than ever, he's still looking to win? Midoriya Izuku is unlike anyone Shouto has ever met.

"Shouto!" Endeavor shouts from somewhere in the stands. He hears his father go on about how Shouto will finally achieve his ambitions or something. But the words hardly seem to reach him, Shouto can't even bring himself to care. All that matters is the ice, the flame and the warrior before him.

"I hope you know what you're in for; I won't be going easy anymore." Shouto responds as he brings a hand up to wipe the gathering tears in his eyes. "You don't deserve anything less than my best." Midoriya smiles at that and charges again, his broken staff is held out in a manner made to deflect but, in the end, he goes low. But Shouto has finally learned, he shoots out some ice at Midoriya's feet causing him to slip and tumble to the ground. His staff rolls out of his hand as Midoriya quickly scrambles back to his feet while Shouto stalks forward.

"It's not over yet, I'm not backing down!" Midoriya runs up the jagged edges of one of the other ice walls and uses it to gain the high ground. He leaps down, avoiding Shouto but trying to kick his legs out from under him. Shouto manages to dodge it but it causes him to stumble backwards.

But that's okay because Midoriya has missed the fact that Shouto has been rapidly cooling the air around them. Shouto grits his teeth as he tries to dodge the flurry of punches while he lowers the temperature. Their breath is fogging in the chill as Midoriya punches him hard enough to put Shouto on the ground.

Shouto's forcibly reminded that despite his elation, he's in quite a bit of pain and his head injury makes itself known with stark clarity. His vision swims as three versions of Midoriya descend on him and it's instinct that has him igniting the cooled air around them. However, even he wasn't prepared for the explosion that occurs.

It booms, cracking the pavement beneath them and shattering the ice walls all over the stage. Shouto is forced down by the blast and he's not sure he has the strength to push himself back up again. His ears are ringing and his eyes burn so he closes them as he waits for the inevitable. That's it, he's done. When Midoriya recovers, Shouto won't be able to stop him from dragging him out-

"Midoriya is out of bounds!" Midnight announces, "Todoroki advances to the third round!" Shouto opens his eyes with a gasp and angles his head upwards. The smoke is still pretty dense but as it clears, he can see Midoriya shakily pushing himself up about just outside of the ring. His clothes are blacked and smoking but he doesn't seem too badly hurt. Shouto's head falls back to the ground as he wonders at the disappointment he feels. He won, that's good? Right?

"Not like we expected any other outcome; I knew this fight was a bad idea." He overhears Midnight say to herself as she tries to clear the smoke with her whip. How can she just-? Despite his injuries, Shouto gets angry; actually beyond angry, he's furious.

Did she not watch the fight? Did she not see Midoriya wipe the floor with him during the first half? He has more skill and determination than most people Shouto has met, including some pro heroes. And besides all that, Midoriya should have had the victory long before. If he hadn't insisted on forcing Shouto to confront his problems, he probably would have won.

It's completely unfair that Midoriya has to stop here; Shouto can't think of anyone more suited to be a hero. But because he lost, people aren't going to look at him twice. They'll say Midoriya's success so far was a fluke and let him float back into obscurity. That spot in 1-A will be filled by someone with a fancy quirk who may or may not deserve it all the while Midoriya is left in General Education, his talent wasted and unspent.

"Aw man, that's too bad to hear! I was kinda rooting for him too. Anyways, what a show! Put your hands together for our two contestants, especially to Midoriya who showed us the meaning of determination!"

"Todoroki," he hears Midoriya cough as he staggers back over to where Shouto is still sprawled. "Todoroki, are you okay?" One concerned green eye, the other is still squeezed shut from the blood, looks down at him as Midoriya kneels and looks him over with a stressed out expression.

"Oh man, your nose looks bad and I think you might have a concussion. I'm sorry, I just wanted to win so bad." Shouto fears for a second the boy is going to start crying but instead Midoriya pastes on a watery smile. "Let's get you to Recovery Girl, we need to get you ready for the third round. I'm sure your next fight will be a lot tougher but don't forget about what the quirkless kid was able to do."

"Alright, we need to clear off the stage for the next fight. Todoroki, can you stand?" Midnight says; she doesn't even look over at Midoriya. So he can blame it on his concussion or Midoriya's bloodied face that still manages to look kind despite his loss, but either way, Shouto isn't responsible for what comes out of his mouth next.

"No, I can't. I'm going to have to forfeit."

"What!?" Midnight and Midoriya yell at the same time. "You won Todoroki, you beat me! Of course you have to go on!" Midoriya says, looking more than a little panicked. He looks up at Midnight who seems quite flustered herself.

"Todoroki, you'll have time to recover before your next match. Please think before you make such a hasty decision! This is one of your only opportunities to show off your skills to get scouted. If you quit now, you'll be giving up your chances for the future," Midnight says sternly.

And what of Midoriya's chances? Shouto can't help but think bitterly. The fact is, if Midoriya stops here then he'll likely never get another shot at Heroics. Shouto had his father's connections and a seat in the country's best hero school. He could give up this opportunity to make sure Midoriya had his.

Even without all that, Shouto is severely injured. Even if Recovery Girl is able to patch him up, he'd be a poor showing in the next event. Not to mention he still needs time to sort through all his thoughts now that the rush is fading. His father will give him hell for this, he's sure, but his opinion seems to matter so little right now.

"I'm certain I cannot continue. Midoriya should go on in my place," Shouto slurs slightly through what's probably a broken jaw. Midoriya scrubs at his bloodied forehead and looks down at Shouto with glistening eyes.

"Hey, what's going on down there? We're starting to get restless!"

"Uh," Midnight says into the microphone, giving Shouto one last look. "Todoroki says he is unable to continue. Midoriya wins on technicality and will be advancing to round three."

The crowd absolutely explodes and Present Mic is going wild himself, shouting how unbelievable it is. Todoroki looks at the stunned expression on Midoriya's face as the crowd begins chanting his name. Present Mic was right, this boy is unbelievable; Shouto couldn't wait to see what he does next.

"Jeez, what am I doing," Midoriya says, shaking his head. "You're still hurt, you need to get to Recovery Girl. Are you sure you can't walk?" If he tried, Shouto probably could get to his feet. Instead, he shakes his head no and winces at the pain it causes him; Midoriya looks even more distressed. "Okay, just hold on. I'll take you there myself, let me know if I'm going too fast."

And before Shouto can ask what he means, Midoriya grabs his arms and hooks them around his neck. He lifts Shouto up a bit until he can put his hands under Shouto's knees. Midoriya grunts a bit, but otherwise is steady as Shouto is transferred to his back. And then he stands up and, completely bypassing the medical bots, speed walks off the field with a determined look while Shouto dazedly wonders what's happening.

"And will you look at that folks! Midoriya is carrying his wounded opponent off the field! We're seeing something real special here! What strength! What sportsmanship! Midoriya Izuku is just full of surprises! This Sport's Festival is going down in history, that's for sure!" Present Mic gushes as they exit the field. Shouto just sighs into Midoriya's back, feeling strangely peaceful despite the pain and the loss. But if he had to lose, he's glad it was to Midoriya.

"Midoriya," he mutters into the boy's back once they enter the tunnels leading away from the field.

"Hey, it's okay Todoroki, we'll be there in just a minute." Midoriya answers, huffing under Shouto's added weight and probably his own injuries as well.

"I expect you to win the next two matches," Shouto says sleepily. "And I better see you in 1-A when classes resume. Don't disappoint me," he feels Midoriya chuckle.

"I can't make any promises, but I'll do my best."

[doomedandstoned]

BAILEY’S CHOICE

Youngblood Supercult guitarist Bailey Gonzales shares her 10 favorite albums of Autumn.

Photo by Johnny Hubbard at Doomed & Stoned Fest

First off, let me preface by saying that this list is just a fraction of what I would include on a good, solid Autumn playlist, but everything must end at some point. Most of these you’ve probably heard, some you may not be familiar with, and others perhaps long forgotten and thus need a good revisiting. So here goes:

1. Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young – Déjà vu

This has been in my catalog since I first started smoking weed in the fall of my freshman year of high school and learned to enjoy the hazy, beautiful strains of intricate harmonies that permeate CSNY’s iconic brand of folk-blues rock. Their albums were always on rotation in my house when I was growing up, but until I started to fully understand its cosmic, layered beauty, Déjà vu fell more or less into the “lame music my parents listen to” category for me. Now it’s a staple, especially as the weather starts to cool and the leaves start to turn, and I’m thrown into some kind of sepia-tinged yearning for the past. Funny how things change. This album holds some of the group’s most acclaimed work; I can’t point out a single track I’d skip over.

2. Graveyard – Graveyard

Graveyard by Graveyard

Speaking of high school—I grew up in a very small town in Southeast Kansas, and when MySpace made its debut (yes, MySpace), I found a page for this indie label called Tee Pee Records that absolutely dictated what I would listen to take the edge of my Black Sabbath cravings—this is where I was ultimately introduced to stoner rock and all of the branches of the retro heavy metal genre—and one of them that always stuck with me as I worshipped this label’s releases thereafter was Graveyard’s self-titled album. There are so many great tracks on this album, with “Thin Line” being an absolute favorite and even an echoing of one of my darkest autumn remembrances (won’t delve into it, but the subject matter will lead you where you need to go). Fantastic, timeless album.

3. Jonathan Snipes & William Hutson – Room 237

Room 237 (2012) is a funny little documentary. I love it, despite the fact that this film lays out conspiracies about Stanley Kubrick’s version of The Shining that range from absolutely Kubrickesque crazy-but-plausible to totally ludicrous, leaping-to-judgement scenarios and breakdowns related to the hidden puzzles within the original adaptation. But, we are talking about music here: this album plays like Stranger Things meets Goblin meets John Carpenter. There is nothing necessarily special about it, but in trying to find an OST that would fit neatly within this list, this fella kind of jumped out to me. Not everybody enjoys soundtracks, and while I could listen to creepy, ambient synth all day long, every day, Room 237 seems like it could entrance any listener, especially with standout tracks like “To Keep From Falling Off” to “Universal Weak Male” and even with the closing track, “Dies Irae” which plays off the original theme from The Shining.

4. Trouble – Trouble

It blows my mind that this album was released in 1990. Everything about it screams, “I WANT TO MAKE YOUR EARS BLEED: ‘70s METAL STLYE.” It’s like a lost and very angry Sir Lord Baltimore album was found in someone’s murky basement and sold in a musty, long forgotten record shop. The kind of place where you might hear whispers of dark legends. Somewhere that may be evocative, in legend, of the kind of place that Mayhem’s late singer, Dead, slit his wrists, throat, and blew his brains out and everyone commenced for this orgiastic blood feast of mourning to say, uh, “let’s take a photo of his dead body and slap it on a bootleg album cover and make necklaces out of his skull...” It’s not that harsh, but there’s definitely something spooky, dark, and forbidden about it. You may ask yourself, if you’re just hearing this album for the first time: “Why don’t they play some of these tracks on the radio?” Well, my child...do you really want to know?

5. The Steepwater Band – Revelation Sunday

This collection of hot tunes from The Steepwater Band is, apart from 2011’s Clava, one of our band’s road staples. We often don’t agree on much when that road cagey feeling hits or when disagreements happen, which incidentally is why things tend to work well with us, but The Steepwater Band, Mount Carmel, and Gary Clark Junior are all things we can come to terms with through the van’s trebly stock speakers. Maybe it’s the bluesiness. Very moody folk-blues rock tunes, with a touch of whiskey-fueled country, is what these guys exhibit in songs like “Slow Train Drag,” “Dance Me A Number,” and “Steel Sky.” A plus material, in my book, and good for the road on a cold night’s ramble.

6. Black Sabbath – Never Say Die!

Can people stop it with the “I’m tired of Black Sabbath” comments??? You know they are the reason we’re all here, and whether you like to admit it or not, you dig a good Sabbath tune either once in a while or every day. Doctor’s orders. Now I don’t think that a playlist is complete without a Black Sabbath album, but autumn seems the appropriate time for their fumbling, but strong conclusion — 1978’s Never Say Die!   And I really don’t care that I know I’m in the minority for loving this album. To me, while it’s their most strained Ozzy-era album (I won’t even touch 13, so don’t ask), it’s full of premonitions of things to come, including a full out jazz brawl in “Breakout” that reminds me of the mean streets in Dirty Harry, and songs that might make the bravest of our genre cry, like “Junior’s Eyes.” “Shock Wave” goes through the typical rough and tumble changes that Black Sabbath fans learn to embrace, but it comes in wave after wave after wave. Hell, even the title track is nearly full-out punk rock. If you’ve avoided this album, please—give it a spin. Even if it’s only to hear Bill Ward sing. It’s the album I fell into when I joined my first band in the fall of 2008 and what pushed me into the direction of branching out to things I’d long avoided. I literally shit my pants every time the first synth breakdown in “Johnny Blade” comes over the speakers, and I think you should, too.

7. Madonna – Madonna

Speaking of shit you probably don’t wanna read…who out of us has given Madonna’s 1983 debut a spin? Anyone? Bueller? Yeah, I didn’t think so. For you folks who can appreciate this one, I applaud you for admitting it. It’s not a sin to listen to Madonna (tell that one to the Vatican), but unless she’s been covertly transformed into Lana Del Rey or someone else on the darker and more modern side of the pop spectrum, you’d be hard pressed to find an admitted fan in our heavy underground group. And you know what? I don’t give a single fuck (yes, I learned that language from M herself). She’s a goddess, an icon, a killer songwriter—if you don’t believe me, tell that to the $400 million she has neatly tucked away—and dammit, she taught me to give a little less of a fuck in times where I don’t have too many to spare. This is another reason my parents are badass. Who in the world would buy their kid the “Like A Virgin” album only if their 11-year-old can ask for it by name without getting too embarrassed at the thought of saying “virgin” out loud to the Camelot Music clerk? Yeah, that’s right. Anyway, listen to this. Just do it...Madonna would.

8. The Midnight Ghost Train – Buffalo

Buffalo by The Midnight Ghost Train

I met Steve Moss at a show in Topeka in late 2009 at a dive bar where the drummer from my first band was singing in his new group. We did the obligatory thing and then, holy shit—this band starts playing and glasses start clinking and I swear to god I thought the whole damn place was going to cave in. They play a bunch of tunes and I’m so fully entranced it’s stupid. After the show, I went up to their singer/guitarist and said, “Um, that was really fucking awesome. I loved how you slipped “Hand of Doom into the middle of one of your songs.” Bam. We were instant buds. I couldn’t believe that they had come out of Topeka, Kansas. Later, while they were prepping to record 2012’s Buffalo, we had a very memorable fall jam session and some shows together, and EVERY. DAMNED. TIME. I felt like there was just something insanely special happening. Buffalo proved to be an instant classic, and even though The Midnight Ghost Train boys seem to always be on tour, I visit with my old pal Steve from time to time when he’s around, and nothing can erase those crazy, almost LSD-like imprinted memories of our house shows together. Hell, we reunited again just last month in another Topeka dive bar. I still have almost 3 hours’ worth of an interview I need to write that documents Steve’s early life up until the recording of Cold Was The Ground. The circle goes round and round. And I sure as hell can’t shake that sound.

9. Creedence Clearwater Revival – Green River

I don’t know what everyone else thinks about when they hear the track “Green River” from Creedence Clearwater Revival, but I think of Gary Ridgeway. I know that’s way far off, but I can’t help it. I also think about the album cover, and how many people still try to copy it, unintentionally. And I think about Stephen King. If you’ve read a few of his novels, you know from some of his passages, he’s a total CCR freak. I’ll give him a pass for mentioning Springsteen so much just because he’s a damn genius. But I bet the casual listener has never heard the song “Sinister Purpose” on the radio airwaves. It sounds like it belongs on a damn Leaf Hound album or something. Thank god for small favors. This is the epitome of southern blues rock. All you Lynyrd Skynyrd fans can fight me (although I won’t knock them), but CCR has earned their grimy, yet rightful spot as the Bayou’s most raw and creepy rock group. And way down in the fall, there’s always a bad moon rising.

10. Buffalo – Dead Forever...

Man, I was going to write up a few more albums, but this is the end of the line, folks. Australia’s Buffalo caps it off with their 1972 album, Dead Forever...   I can see this piece being released today, and that’s why I’m so glad everyone in this community puts out music that can rival little-known bands like Buffalo. I have a sweet spot for this group. Nobody will ever be able to answer why this killer band could never receive any airplay, and that question still lingers as absolute over processed shit continues to infiltrate the airwaves and real emotion can’t shine through. One of the promotional stickers for this record was, “Play this album LOUD.” Seen that before? Is history repeating itself in belittling our efforts to get out there and WARP THE FUCK out of people’s minds? I guess so. But we can fix that. Put the needle on some Buffalo, don your battle jacket, and work on getting some fuzz into some onlooker’s ears. Listen carefully, and don’t let the Buffalo situation happen to us all.

Hear Bailey's 'Autumn Vibes' Playlist on Spotify

Photo by Johnny Hubbard

The Great American Death Rattle by Youngblood Supercult

[jbuffyangel]

HVFF Nashville Wrap Up

It’s midnight. This is the first second I’ve had to sit down and write about Nashville. I was knee deep in SDCC planning with my Just About Write ladies today. It’s gonna be lit folks! We can’t wait to cover it for you.

So... I decided to go to HVFF Nashville for one reason and one reason only. M*lissa B*noist was attending and my daughter could meet Supergirl. The obsession runs deep my friends. When M*lissa canceled Lauren was absolutely devastated and I was in a bit of a panic. Primarily because I didn’t know what else she would enjoy at HVFF. She’s not allowed to watch Arrow. She’s only seen a few clips, but Lauren loves Felicity Smoak. Hand to God this is how she described the show to a friend.

Friend: What’s Arrow? 

(The friend overhead my husband and I discussing my blog)

Lauren: It’s about Felicity Smoak. She is super smart and loves computers like I do. She fights crime.

Friend: Okaaaay. But... who is Arrow?

Lauren: (completely blasé) Oh. He’s just Felicity’s boyfriend.

I mean.... she’s not entirely wrong. She also possibly summed up 95% of the fandom’s view of the show, so I give her points for that. But... Emily Bett Rickards wasn’t going to be there. So, I was unsure of her level of excitement over Stephen.

Turns out she was pretty excited to meet him. 

Well, she was excited to dress up as Felicity, spend time with Mommy, shop and swim at the hotel pool, but Stephen was absolutely on the list. Truthfully, I wasn’t sure how much of the convention she would enjoy. Turns out she LOVED all of it. 

She shrieked when she saw Chewy and BB8. The force is strong with this child.

I fully support her superhero choices.

Honestly, it was just fun to share my little Arrow world with her. I already blogged about her autograph with Stephen, but here are a few more details. She was nervous and wanted very much to ask him a question, but didn’t know what to ask. So I gave her the question, “Will we have to wait all season for Olicity to get married?” Thanks @callistawolf for the suggestion. Man didn’t even blink. Folded immediately with, “No I don’t think so.” WEDDING CONFIRMED. THANK YOU MY ANGEL. Stephen is powerless against little Felicity Smoaks.

After the autograph, apparently Lauren felt like she had a rapport with Stephen. (Wink wink) Lauren floored me when she said she wanted to ask Stephen a question at the panel. Thought it all up by herself. Marched on up to the mic. I promise you she does not get this confidence from me. This is all her father.

Round three was the photos. Lauren said she had another question for Stephen. I explained that every time she had a question for Stephen, Mommy had to fork over a bunch of cash, so she was all done. Undeterred Lauren remembered she still had a photo with him and decided she could ask him there. She wanted to have a chat with Steve I think. Maybe over milk and cookies. I very quickly downplayed the interaction and explained he has a lot of people to get through and the photo goes very quickly. There won’t be any time for questions. 

She waited very patiently for her photo and, yes the line was moving fast. I could tell she was getting nervous again. When it was her turn, Stephen smiled at her and I said, “There he is. Go ahead.” I knew Lauren’s plan was to just stand next to him, but Stephen smiled at her again and said, “Yeah... no. Let’s try...” and he scooped her up. Lauren was airborne and completely shocked. My girl is tall but very thin for a 10 year old, so the man basically palmed her like a basketball. LOL To say she was thrilled would be an understatement. 

He set her down and I whispered thank you as she scurried back to me. And Stephen gave me a very sweet wink.

This was our convo after...

Lauren: HE PICKED ME UP MOMMY! I was NOT expecting that.

Me: I know. I saw. Pretty awesome!

Lauren: I was going to ask him on a scale of 1 to 100 how strong is he?

Me: I think he answered your question.

Lauren nodded speechless.

Me: I’d say as strong as Daddy. 99?

Lauren: (giddy) YES!

My daughter can be very introspective at times and the conversation we had on the airplane on the ride home struck a chord with me.

Lauren: Do you think Stephen gets tired of doing conventions?

Me: Well... I think he’s making a lot of money and people tell him he’s amazing all day. As jobs go, I don’t think it’s  a terribly tough one, but he does have to travel a lot and that can be hard.

Lauren: (very quietly) He probably doesn’t get to see his little girl very much.

(Stephen told a sweet story about Mavi at the panel. I was truly surprised Lauren brought her up.)

Me: That’s true. He lives in a different city when he films the show. Then he travels to conventions. Sometimes she comes with, but you are right. Stephen spends a lot of time away. Although I’m sure he sees Mavi every chance he gets.

Lauren: How old is his daughter?

Me: She’s little. I think she’s in preschool. 

Lauren was quiet again and I could tell what she was thinking.

Me: It’s nice that your Daddy is home every night isn’t it?

Lauren: Yeah.

Me: Fame has its perks, but there are negatives. Daddy isn’t famous, but I think you got the better end of the deal, don’t you?

Lauren: Yes.

Bonus points to my husband for remembering that Ming Na voiced Mulan as we scanned the guest list after Melissa canceled. Well played Dad. 

Of course, Ming Na is gorgeous and wonderful with kids. Lauren named off most of the characters in the movie and wanted to know if Ming Na had stuffed animals of them. (Stuffed animals rank high with her still). Answer: Yes, she does in her office. Lauren was quite pleased Ming Na was Disney Princess-ing properly. She had bracelets and candy for the kids too, so her parenting game was strong too.

Of course, meeting fandom friends is always a highlight of conventions. It’s always so funny when we introduce ourselves. Obviously, we start with our real names, but it’s only when we say our screen names that the light bulbs go off. 

I was able to meet @scu11y22, @jedichick04, @laurabelle2930, @ireland1733, @redpensandgreenarrows, @emmilynestill, @quant-um-fizzx, its_mjayy and Brittany_Ellis . (Sorry if I forgot anyone!!!) Y’all were as nice as can be. So sweet to both me and my daughter. Thanks for chatting Arrow with me, listening to me ramble (Yes, I do the same thing in person as I do in the reviews. I am deeply obsessed) and sharing your convention and real life stories with me!!! So happy to met you all.

We spent the weekend with my amazing friend @hotcookinmama. She is my life saving editor and beta for all my fics and Nashville tour guide extraordinaire. Angela picked us up from the airport, drove us around town and gave us a fantastic tour of Nashville. She found great restaurants for us to eat at. Absolute gem of a host. She is also one of the sweetest and most genuine people I’ve ever met. Our girls were fast friends and had a wonderful time playing together. #Perfectweekend

Two of my favorite convention moments were with Angela and both involved David Ramsey. I had a VIP ticket so I told Angela to tag along with me while I got my autograph with David. Typically they don’t mind how many people you have with as long as they don’t try to get an autograph at that time. I figured this would give Angela two visits with David (she would get her auto in the general admin line later). David and I chatted. He gave me that great spoiler and off we went. I started chatting about the spoiler as we walked away, but as I turned to look at her I realized she was crying. 100% FEELS OVERLOAD from meeting David Ramsey because he’s freaking David Ramsey and always wonderful. It was her first convention and I was just so happy to be part of that purely joyful moment with her. It’s so rare when we are gloriously happy as human beings and she absolutely was.

The second, of course, were the AMAZING SPOILERS David gave Angela. She essentially guessed the first six episodes of S6 because she’s a clairvoyant, kick ass fic writer. I was standing in Stephen’s empty booth, just on the other side of David’s. I was out of earshot, but enjoying watching Angela and her family interact with him. When Angela came over to me she was freaking out by what he told her. Then I was freaking out. It was AWESOME.

Regarding M*lissa’s cancellation - yes I was angry. These tickets are expensive, plus airfare, and it’s always difficult to disappoint your child. There seems to be some controversy over whether or not she was really working. Obviously, if she was working that’s understandable even though it’s frustrating. 

If she wasn’t really working well... that sucks. A LOT. 

That said, Stephen’s kindness went a long way to ease my daughter’s broken Supergirl heart and I appreciated it. I should probably let her watch Arrow now. ;) What’s most important though is the time we spent together and the memories we made on our mother/daughter trip.

[rimalupin]

50 More Interesting Questions

Rules: fill this out and tag at least one person you’d like to know more about! Or just fill it out! Or don’t! Answer only some of them! Make up your own questions! “What kind of requirement is that”, you ask? A reasonable one! Who am I to tell you what to do? Anything goes!

Thank you for tagging me @theempresskaizer & @kakihoden! :D <3

1. What kind of food can’t you stand?: Anything fermented. Like, ew. Also brussel sprouts (Then again, I have yet find someone who can cook brussel sprouts “well.” :b)

2. If you could choose one minor inconvenience to never have to deal with again, what would you pick?: Public transit schedules. They’re so darn inconvenient (And yet I’m commuting for the remainder of my uni career. At least I’m saving money..?). -.-’

3. Have you got any useless talents?: I try to make use of my talents, so I’m gonna say no. :b

4. If you could be really really good at one thing, what would it be?: Taking (good & worthwhile) risks because I’m always so darn careful so I end up not trying new things sometimes.

5. Name a few people you think are extremely good-looking: ALL THE FRIENDS AND FAMILY I KNOW AND LOVE. <3 Oh, also Emma Watson, Gal Gadot, Shawn Mendes, Tom Holland, and all the other celebs I tend to fangirl about (I can’t name them all rn, haha sorry~. :P).

6. What was your favorite way to pass the time as a kid?: Singing all the Disney songs (Which I still do nowadays, haha~.). I would also read books, write my own stories, and act as if I was on a Disney Channel show (I was quite the Disney fangirl back in the day. xD)

7. What is something you’re proud of?: My friends who are just starting college/uni this year. Most of them are already setting up their dorms and getting ready for classes. They’re growing up so fast! :’)

8. What’s one character flaw in people that you just can’t tolerate?: Dishonesty. I don’t associate with phonies.

9. Do you consider yourself to be more of a leader or a follower?: I’m a bit of both. Then again, being a follower makes you a kind of leader: you essentially lead people to follow your leader, if that makes sense Okay I’ll shut up about leadership theory sorry y’all. :P

10. What kind of student are/were you?: The diligent one (but people often claim I’m the overachiever even tho I’m not always a straight A student lololol).

11. Butterfly effect question! Has there ever been a seemingly minor decision you’ve made (at the time) that ended up having a profound influence on your life?: Ohhhhh yes. This kind of thing has happened to me many times (In like the best ways possible, thankfully.).

12. Name your most irrational fear/aversion: Being alone/left out (Even though “I’m never really alone” ((Which I know I’m not. Hence the “irrational” part of this particular fear/aversion.)).)

13. Are there any fictional characters you find especially relatable?: Yup. Plenty of ‘em.

14. If you drink, what kind of drunk are you? Alternatively, what sort of person are you at parties?: I don’t drink... Yet. My Canadian friends are trying to get me to drink with them since I’m now legal in Canada but I’m scared heeeeeelp. :b I’m usually the wallflower if I don’t know anybody too well at a party. However, if I find people I’m comfortable hanging out with, I’ll stick with their squad throughout the event, talking, eating, dancing and taking pictures/SnapChats to our hearts’ desires~. ^-^

15. Do you fall in love easily? Or does it usually take a long time for you to trust someone?: Nope. I have to get to know the person before I “fall in love” with them, let alone having a crush on them. Which is why the biggest crushes I’ve had were on some of my closest friends. But I’ve never told them because I didn’t want to risk our friendships IDK I’M A NOOB WHEN IT COMES TO LOVEY-DOVEY THINGS. :b

16. Would you rather have one close friend or 100 casual friends?: One close friend. <3

17. Do you consider yourself to be more of a slob or a neat-freak?: Neat-freak. Definitely a neat-freak. xD

18. Describe a place (imaginary or real) that you would find incredibly cozy: 

Both of these locations are places where I’d have more than enough room to move or think. ^-^

Outdoors: Somewhere near the sea, where I could feel the sand on my toes, hear the waves splashing onto the shore, smell the ocean breeze, and watch the orange sunset glowing along the horizon.

Indoors: An empty practice room. Wooden floors, large mirrors in front of the room, dance barres along the side walls, a few windows displaying the outside world, and a speaker/stereo system perfect for blasting the music around the room.

19. Do you have kids? If not, do you want them someday?: No kids atm, but I love working with them! Yes, I’d like kids someday~.

20. What was your favorite book as a child?: I read many books as a wee child. But one book I can clearly remember is Stellaluna. It’s an adorable story about a bat who discovers who she truly is thanks to both her adoptive and biological families (The former being a family of birds and the latter being a family of bats.).

21. Name one thing you just don’t get what all the hype is about: Fidget spinners. I’m still seeing people freak out about those things. Didn’t the trend die a month or two ago?

22. Name one thing that you think is tragically underrated: Myspace. *evil laughs despite the fact that I never had a Myspace account* :P Sorry I couldn’t think of anything else bahaha~

23. If you had to be glued to a person for a month, real or fictional (who you have never met), who would you choose?: I mean, I’ve never met MYSME’s 707 IRL, so I’ll stick with him And we can visit his space station, haha~ ^-^

24. What’s something you’d like the chance to do someday?: Act in a theatrical production. I haven’t done theatre in a year and I already miss it. T.T

25. Do you typically speak your mind when you have a controversial opinion? Or do generally prefer to not rock the boat?: I’ll definitely speak my mind if I’m well-versed in the topic and if I’m passionate about it. If I want to present a controversial opinion, I have to be sure that I can articulate my POV eloquently and professionally. I’m also more than willing to listen to the other side, as long as they fully know what they’re talking about (Frankly, I will not take any B.S. if I suspect B.S.).

26. What’s the dumbest fad you’ve been caught up in?: I’m blanking... Yeah, IDK, but I���m pretty sure I got caught up in some kind of dumb fad back in middle school. *shivers b/c I don’t want to relive those years*

27. What’s something you thought was cool as a kid/adolescent, but now cringe at yourself for?: When I was younger (like elementary/middle school-age), I dreamed of becoming a singer. In order to accomplish that dream, I joined my school and church choirs: however, that turned out to be a pretty toxic experience since almost everyone I was singing with treated every single practice and performance as a singing competition. Like, c’mon you guys: we aren’t on Glee. -.-’

28. What’s a trait you consider to be very admirable?: Honesty: I admire people who are genuine and true.

29. Is there a particular kind of item people always tend to give you as gifts? (For instance, people always get you things with ducks on them because you like ducks, etc.): Books (people know I’m a huge bookworm), clothes (b/c I’m usually too lazy/don’t have time to shop for my own clothes, LOLOL), stuffed animals (I’m a child at heart and I love cuddly & cute things), sweets (especially chocolate).

30. Do you speak multiple languages? Which ones?: 

English is my mother tongue.

I apparently used to speak Tagalog fluently when I was very young, but then I stopped speaking that language once I started preschool; however, I’ve picked up some terms over the years, so I can sort of dissect my parents’ conversations w/ the other adults (”Yes, Mom, I knew that you were talking about my uni stuff with Tita *insert name here*.” :P), plus I’m going to take a Tagalog 101 class in Autumn Quarter, so I’ll (hopefully) learn how to say complete sentences instead of just the names of foods, holidays, and Filipino Folk Dances. xD

I learned Spanish throughout my high school career, so I’m okay in that department even though I haven’t practiced speaking/listening/writing in that language recently. I’m still fluent enough to help my sisters with their Spanish homework, so that’s something. :P

I tried learning some French, Japanese, and Korean through various language learning apps, but to no avail.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

31. Would you rather live in the big city or the countryside?: Can I choose like a little town instead? Big city: the countryside would be MUCH too quiet for me (Plus I’d be much too tempted to run atop every hill Sound of Music style and start singing at the top of my lungs - which would probably annoy a lot of people, myself included. :P).

32. Has there ever been something you were certain you’d hate, but ended up loving?: Giles Christophe a.k.a my Midnight Cinderella bias. Ironic, huh? xD <3 Also Jumin Han from MYSME. :P

33. Do you mind being the center of attention, or do you prefer the spotlight to be on someone else?: I will hide from the spotlight like I’m a friggin vampire unless there’s a damn good reason for me to be under it.

34. Favorite holiday?: CHRISTMAS!!!

35. Are you a more go-with-the-flow type of person, or do you need to have things planned meticulously?: If I’m in charge of scheduling something, then I MUST have everything carefully planned. If I’m leaving the scheduling to someone else, then I’ll just go with the flow~.

36. Is there something you loved so much you wish you could forget it and experience it all over again? (A tv show, book, series–anything.): My first trip to Hawaii: I’d love to explore the islands and swim in its oceans again.

37. What hobbies do you have?: Reading, writing, singing, dancing, listening to music, playing the guitar or ukulele, checking social media (JKJK :P), drawing/arts & crafts (If I’m EXTREMELY bored), playing video games, watching TV/YouTube, exploring places both old and new Yeah, I do too many things, haha~

38. If you could have a superpower, but it was only mildly useful, what ability would you want to have?: “Mildly useful?” (O.o) I guess the ability to learn things VERY quickly - like, master an activity on the first try. I actually have a friend with that ability, which has allowed him to almost effortlessly master almost every sport he’s ever learned: he’s basically a superhuman and I admire and envy him for his “superpower.” :P <3

39. Something people are always surprised to learn about you: My age: people think that I’m much younger than I actually am, mostly because of my shorter-than-average height and my baby face. I’m basically an adult stuck in a teenager’s body. xD

40. Something that took you way too long to figure out: How to apply the Unit Circle to various math problems eff you precalculus and calculus never again ugggghhhhh.

41. Worst injury you’ve had?: My broken heart (JKJK, sort of. :P) I got burned by the metal tip of a very hot glue gun. Thanks to that, I have a tiny scar on my upper right arm.

42. Any morbid fascinations?: Does watching playthroughs of horror games through YouTube count?

43. Describe your sense of humor: Clever/witty, sarcastic, sassy. Oftentimes unintentional: jokes will usually come to me naturally through conversation. If we’re close, plenty of embarrassing stories, inside jokes, and horrible puns will be part of our daily doses of humor.

44. If you had to be born in another era/place, which would you choose?: I’d want to be born in Canada, mostly because I’ve got a lot of family living up there, plus I’d love to live in a place that isn’t completely messed up rn. #SorryNotSorryAmerica *crosses to the Canadian border like a badass*

45. Something you are irredeemably bad at: LOL, WHAT’S A SPORT? :b

46. Something that sucked but you’re glad you went through: Freshman year of high school. I first moved to my new home that year, so being the new kid sucked for a while, but I eventually made some friends and found more opportunities to grow as a person (through writing and theatre).

47. Would you rather have a really godawful ugly tattoo in a place that is only slightly inconvenient to conceal with clothing (upper arm, thigh, etc.), or the coolest, most beautiful tattoo ever in the middle of your face? (Neither tattoo can be removed or concealed with makeup, and the ugly tattoo will deeply offend anyone who sees it.): Ugly tat. At least I’d have a place to hide it. xD

48. Are you more of an optimist or a pessimist?: Realist. Leaning on the pessimist side. However, I do try to believe that things will get better, that there’ll be more bigger and better opportunities out there, etc. etc.

49. What would be the most flattering compliment someone could give you?: That I’m a hardworking and genuine person. Then again, I don’t do well compliments anyway: I’ll definitely blush and stutter and try to hide behind some kind of an object while complimenting you back. xD <3

50. Something you feel people often misunderstand about you: I’m often quiet and reserved when I’m meeting new people. Some may think I’m naturally calm and composed, others take it as slightly intimidating. But I’m just quiet because I’m awkward, plus I don’t usually start conversations. :b

Tagging: @princessofwysteria, @sukio-sakamaki, @allforthecrown, @o0w0o, @widzzicles, @rizosrojizos, and anyone who wants to do this! (I would’ve tagged more peeps, but I didn’t know if they had been tagged already. So please join in if you haven’t done this already~.). ^-^ <3

[komahinasecretexchange]

Title: Minor Inconveniences

Author: @midnight-run-amok

For: @moosabus

Rating/Warnings: All Ages (Some minor references to sex and some low-grade cursing, but nothing to write home about.) Relatively Tame Spoilers for DR2, 2.5 and DR3. Prompt: Komaeda adopts a puppy and seeks hinata’s help in caring for it Author’s notes: This was really a lot of fun to write because fluffy concepts like this aren’t really in my usual wheelhouse so… yeah, I’m a little nervous about it. I really, really hope you like it. Timeline-wise this occurs after DR3:Hope Side. Cheers! ^_^

“Well, I mean….” He trailed off, running a distracted hand through his hair as he stared down at the small, fuzzy animal currently flopped over in the middle of the deck licking its… no… his junk. “Can you return it?”

Komaeda just stared at him and somehow his wilting smile made him feel like he’d just spat on a child’s birthday cake.

It was a look that clearly said: You are a monster, Hajime Hinata.

A crusher of dreams.

The literal worst.

“Nevermind,” he sighed, rolling his eyes to stare up at the bright blue of the sky above.

A small voice inside him that was all that truly remained of the most analytic parts of Izuru (and somehow always sounded like Nanami) quietly informed him that the sky wasn’t actually blue.

Don’t be pedantic.

He turned his attention back to the man at his side who was now smiling and looking awfully pleased with himself for someone who had just moments before looked as if someone had just canceled Christmas.

Not that he really thought Komaeda had ever actually celebrated Christmas. He’d seemed completely gobsmacked by the idea when Sonia had started making noises about how they should maybe find some lights to make the ship a bit more friendly-looking so people would stop running away when they docked.

He didn’t have the heart to tell her that people would probably still run away, they’d just be able to do so a lot sooner, because they’d see them coming from further off.

Fortunately, the running and screaming actually seemed to finally be dying down a bit as people slowly forgot who they had been and what they could do. Eventually he hoped they’d just seem like eccentric weirdo do-gooders wandering the world fixing things.

Like those guys on Scooby Doo… only with more practical repair work and a boat instead of a brightly painted van.

They even had a dog now… apparently.

“Where’d you even get a puppy?”

“Oh, I found him.”

And knowing Komaeda that could mean any number of things, each more potentially distressing than the last.

This was why he hated being labeled de-facto leader of their little bad of misfits.

Being responsible for things like this.

Because it had pretty much been an endless parade of things like this ever since they’d woken up.

Gundham was running some sort of weird island rodent rehabilitation program in the old theater and since he’d used the ship to bring them to the island in the first place, they’d been cleaning rat crap out of all the nooks and crannies for the better part of a month.

Akane had somehow stolen one of Togami’s credit cards and used it to order fifteen pigs last month so they could roast and eat them. He hadn’t even known you could buy fifteen freaking pigs online much less have them airlifted to an manmade island in the middle of the Pacific.

Such was the power of the Togami name, apparently, even now.

Their Imposter still couldn’t settle on a name or a default persona and had been oscillating between old standbys for the last few weeks which - in and of itself - wouldn’t have been that big a deal if it hadn’t sent poor Mitarai running to their room every other day at half past three in the morning with a laundry list of completely earnest questions about sex that had made him want to weep.

Mostly because of the sort of answers Komaeda cheerfully volunteered.

Souda had built a giant security robot that had managed to set half of the buildings on the fourth island on fire.

Nekomaru had managed to blow out the plumbing in both his own room and different parts of the hotel no less than five times in the last month.

They had started leaving him behind on the island to avoid potential mid-ocean disasters (not that that helped with the blow out issue exactly, but at least it kept it contained to the island where there were a number of bathrooms).

Akane had volunteered to stay behind with him (which he was silently grateful for as Akane had a tendency to mow right through their food supplies by the time they were two days out of port). Between the two of them they always managed to break something while they were gone, but at least they didn’t have to worry about intruders attempting to take over their little piece of the world while they were away.

Not that people were exactly lining up to attack their island these days.  

It only took so many stalled ships and airplanes and so many rockets shot out of the air before those few countries who had been so inclined had given it up as a bad job.

Mahiru was constantly banging on his door at all hours of the night to complain about something Hanamura had done during the day. Or how she really needed a dedicated space in which to develop pictures. Or how they really needed to install better lighting in the common areas. Or how irresponsible it was of him to be sleeping without first making sure everyone was safely in their cabins for the night.

At which point he usually reminded her that he wasn’t a hall monitor and that they were all adults perfectly capable of taking care of themselves.

And the look she usually gave him when he said that was the same look she might have given gum she had to scrap off her shoe.

Fortunately, he had resigned himself to Mahiru’s disappointment when he’d first woken her up and she’d asked him what had taken so long.

For his part things, Hanamura (when he wasn’t having to lecture him yet again about his inappropriate behavior) had begun insisting on regular delivers of all sorts of exotic ingredients so he could stretch his culinary wings.

Which really meant they’d been discovering with uncomfortable regularity that everyone was allergic to something.

And it probably explained the Nekomaru’s bathroom issues as well.

Sonia had insisted on expanding the library’s already improbably large section devoted to the occult and unnatural phenomena, but while they’d been removing and disposing of the library’s collection of weird porn (which Hanamura had been delighted to take custody of) to make room for it they’d discovered some intrepid librarian had built a secret sex dungeon in behind the ‘Do-It-Yourself’ section.

Which would have been fine except apparently Despair had hit the island really, really hard and the sex dungeon had become… something else entirely and since just lighting the building on fire with one of Souda’s robots wasn’t an option they’d had to figure out a way to clean the whole place out.

Which had been an incredibly disgusting task that Komaeda had overseen cheerfully claiming he was glad to have a way to contribute and blithely ignoring Souda’s and Kazuryuu’s loud complaints about being forced to do the grunt work.

Peko… actually never caused any particular problems.

Or possibly was just better at resolving any situations that arose on her own.

It was hard to say for sure.

Saionji had brought the act of ‘making a bad situation worse’ to an art form of epic proportions during the months since she’d woken up. Besides playing pranks on everyone (but mostly Mikan because some folks never really changed completely). She and Ibuki had also formed a band called Hair Down There and had been threatening to hold a concert as soon as they convinced Souda to build them a giant flame spewing dinosaur they absolutely needed for the their big finale.

He was pretty sure the giant robot had given them ideas.

And Komaeda…

Komaeda had apparently found and adopted a dog.

And since they’d been sleeping together practically since the moment he’d taken his hand and pulled him back into the waking world, he had apparently also adopted a dog.

Because, honestly, his life just wasn’t complete without something to stare at them awkwardly from across the room when they….

Dammit.

The idea of having yet another living thing dependent on him for its survival was nauseating.

But Komaeda looked so damn happy about the idea.

Fuck.

When exactly was it that he’d become completely incapable of saying no to Nagito Komaeda?

Komaeda’s chin settled against his shoulder, arms looping tight around his waist, “It’s a lot to ask, isn’t it?”

“The asking part would have been nice,” he sighed, tipping his head in against the soft, pale hair. “Seriously? Where did you even find him?”

“You know all those busted up shops near the dock?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Because it was hard to be sure which shops he was talking about since pretty much all the shops on the entire island (whose name Izuru/Nanami politely informed him was Sint Maarten as if that were important or relevant to the conversation and not just one more awkward piece of knowledge to deal with) had been burgled or trashed at some point before they’d arrived and while they’d been doing clean-up for a couple days, there was still a lot of work to be done.

“I heard him crying. His mother… well. I think it was lucky I decided to take my walk there today.”

“Mm, how are you feeling?”

“I…” He hesitated and within that pause he could practically feel him swallowing down the urge to lie or to tell the truth in the cruelest possible way.

They were all trying so hard to be better than they were.

“You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to,” he shrugged.

“Because you know anyway?” Komaeda murmured, voice flat, but his arms tightened around him which was a good sign.

He did.

That soft, flat voice in his head was running down numbers and percentages and adjusting his exercise regiment.

He couldn’t help being what he was.

“But you’d still rather hear it from me,” Komaeda commented as if plunking the words from his mind. “Today was a pretty good day. Look at him. He’s cute, isn’t he?”

The nameless puppy had apparently finished cleaning himself and was now roaming around sniffing at the pile of supply crates that dominated that part of the deck.

“He’s going to pee on that crate.”

“He wouldn’t.”

“He just did.”

“Oh… so he did. I should probably clean that up,”

“Probably. I’ll go see if we have anything to feed him,” Hajime sighed, resigned to the inevitably of their new crew member.

He could already see the span of days falling out before him. Days of Komaeda chasing that puppy around the ship, cleaning up after him, apologizing for him… this was probably a mistake.

Still….

He liked the mistakes.

Maybe it was selfish, but he liked watching them all make mistakes.

He was still able to see everything that would happen, all the inevitable cause and effect that ruled the world, all those potential inconveniences coming miles away. That hadn’t changed when he’d woken up in his pod, gasping for air, heart racing. The world was still boring and very little surprised him, but it was somehow less of a burden than it had been when he’d been only Izuru Kamakura and the world had seemed mired in molasses, always moving too slow and predictably around him to be of even the slightest interest.

Now at least he could appreciate the pleasure that came from letting things play out as they would, content himself with enjoying the little surprises as they happened rather than intent on breaking the world to pieces in search of them.

These days he found he liked watching things happen.

Liked seeing what they would make of their lives.

It was worth watching buildings burn and fielding angry calls from Togami and answering uncomfortable questions and navigating an endless series of complaints.

Sometimes they surprised him and events would veer off in directions he could never have predicted.

More often they didn’t.

But that was okay too.

Life was full of inconveniences and robots and wrecked buildings and the feel of Komaeda sliding his metallic hand beneath his shirt and dragging chilly fingertips up his spine because he knew the cold would make him flinch and squirm against him even if he knew it was coming.

That it would still make them both laugh.

There was more laughter than despair these days and that, in and of itself, was something special.

In the simulation, he’d spent weeks wishing Komaeda would leave him alone.

Now he couldn’t imagine what his days would look like without him.

Didn’t want to.

So, if he wanted a puppy… that was okay too.

“So, what are you going to name him?” He’d asked late that afternoon as they lay sprawled out on the deck watching the others laugh and talk as Hanamura grilled up something that smelled amazing and would probably taste twice as good. “And don’t say Hope. You are not naming our puppy ‘Hope’.”

Komaeda laughter was like the tinkling sound of wind chimes swept together by a warm breeze, “Our puppy?”

“Would you rather he was just yours?”

“No, not at all,” he hummed, scooting a little closer so their legs touched, careful not to disturb the puppy currently snoozing on his chest. “Though maybe you should name him. I’m really no good at naming things….”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine. If it’s something awful, I’ll veto it.”

“I really don’t know if I can trust someone like you with such an important job, maybe we should have Sonia or one of the others….”

“Oh, shut up about my talent and name the damn dog already,” he laughed, poking Komaeda’s shoulder.

Komaeda hummed and fell silent for long moments as he contemplated the compromise. “Lucky,” he said finally, his face gravely serious.

“What is?”

“His name. See, I told you I wasn’t very good at naming things, you see,” Komaeda replied, scratching a finger against the puppy’s floppy ear. “You are very unfortunate to have such a terrible master.”

“I don’t know, I think it suits him.”

“Really?”

“I do.”

“Okay.”

The fingers of Komaeda’s robotic hand slid over his own, clutched briefly before retreating.

“But we’re going to need to find someone who’s willing to watch him if you want to fool around.”

“Why? I don’t think he’d mind.”

“I’d mind.”

“You’re surprisingly prudish about the strangest things. I don’t think Lucky cares what you look like naked. Or are you worried my body will frighten him? I admit that might be-“

“You’re beautiful.”

“Well, yes, so you’ve said, but I think that’s just because you have terrible taste. I mean, you’ve chosen to spend your time with someone like me so your judgement is highly questionable on a number of levels.”

He rolled over onto his knees so he could loom over Komaeda who, unsurprisingly, looked back up at him with that usual pleasantly blank expression that made him want to throw things at Komaeda’s long-dead parents for whatever part they’d had in this attitude, “You do know I’m literally the most talented man in the world, right?”

“Well, yes, but only because you cheated.”

He chose to ignore that remark. It was one he was well-used to hearing from Komaeda’s lips, after all. Whatever sting it might have carried had worn away long ago.

“And you’re in love with a cheater.”

“Am I?” A smile quirked across his lips, subtle but real.

“Aren’t you? Seems like you said as much several times this morning.”

“Well, you have a few redeeming qualities.”

“Thanks for that. That’s good to hear,” he commented dryly, dropping a kiss against Komaeda’s lips. He’d intended to be a quick thing, but Komaeda had other ideas, fingers catching against the back of his neck and drawing him in for something wetter, deeper.

When he’d finally drawn away, they were both breathing a little harder and somewhere behind them Saionji was bitching loudly about how some people should take their little makeup sessions downstairs.

Komaeda smiled, pale cheeks flushed pink in the light of the setting sun, “Mm, do you think Mitarai likes dogs?”

Hajime laughed, reaching down to scratch behind Lucky’s ears before sitting back, “I think if you have Mitarai watch him for us, there’s really no telling what his boyfriend is going to imitate next.”

The idea of the unknown was always such a unique and tantalizing possibility.

Komaeda’s smile was soft and knowing as he sat up slowly, lifting the puppy from his chest and depositing him carefully in Hajime’s lap. He leaned in and pressed a fleeting kiss against his lips before getting unsteadily to his feet, “I’ll go find out. Wait for me?”

“I always do,” he said, setting a tentative hand against the pup’s back as it lifted its head, suddenly awake and interested in the proceedings as Komaeda slipped off into the crowd gathered around the grill.

The puppy clamored up out of his lap, sniffing the air and padding off towards the pile of crates.

“You need to go for a walk don’t you?” He sighed, climbing to his feet and adjusting his slacks. “C’mon, then.”

Lucky glanced back at him and lifted his leg against one of the crates in response.

Right.

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

How I think P3D should go down pt 4.

(previous/part 3) Ok so this opening paragraph was going to be in the other part but I’m going to try to get the dungeons done in like one or two parts (with the final being its own part). So I should end with 6 parts in all

Anyways so where we left off, Ni has disappeared to someplace unknown (last chapter is also the last POV of Ni we’ll get for a long while, or just at all, the rest will be from either Mitsuru or Aigis’ perspective).

The whole situation of Ni freaking out and disappearing has everyone in a tizzy. People are now trying to find her (a lot of coworkers or nervous cause they pushed a lot of work onto her and there’s a deadline and are now trying to find at least her work so they themselves don’t get into trouble). The SOs and Rise, Yu, and Naoto (the latter two had arrived a few minutes prior to the SOs) discuss on what they need to do. Mitsuru tells them they are in charge of discovering more about Ni in the real world while the SOs go in and try to retrieve her themselves. The P4 trio will first investigate around the studio first, once they find enough info on Ni that they can attempt to investigate her personal life Yu and Naoto will leave from there (with Rise staying behind). They will have Rise use her Persona as a means to communicate with them in the real world (similar to Fuuka in Arena, its explained that after the events of P4D she can now do that….if that bothers anyone) and Fuuka will use hers to communicate from wherever they’re going. (I should also not that it’s totally possible for Mitsuru to have others helping the investigation in the real world, like her maid from Ultimax, it doesn’t matter as all that will happen off screen).

After a while the SOs figure out how to access the other world through the mirror and jump in. They then appear in the Desert of Doors (or someplace new, DoD has a connection to P3 and I doubt Midnight Stage 2 would be a good idea). But there’s a slight problem, instead of normal Doors, there are towers (the world also appears colored differently from before). There are 4 towers, one on the left and one on the right, one right behind the two adjacent ones, and then a familiar green one behind the 3rd tower (yes, Tartarus). Much to everyone’s chagrin, Junpei complains about not wanting to climb it’s stairs again. They attempt to approach the Tartarus tower but are met with resistance from the two adjacent towers. Fuuka mentions that there is a barrier, and it seems like they need to clear the two adjacent towers to get to the 3rd tower, and then clear the 3rd tower to get to the Tartarus tower.

They decide they should split up for the two adjacent towers, as it’ll help clear it faster. Fuuka will stay behind at the entrance for now as to get the best reading on everyone. They decide to split the teams up into Team 1: Aigis (leader), Yukari, Junpei, and Koromaru; and Team 2: Mitsuru (leader), Akihiko, Labrys, Ken.

Team 1 goes for the tower on the right (a giant black/blue spike), while Team 2 goes for the pyramid looking tower on the left (wink wink does this remind you of anything? No? oh ok well moving on). Anyways, this is where the dance battles will take place, about 2-4 will happen in each dungeon/tower. But for time purposes I will skip to the end of each dungeon. Also, either during all these dungeons (or just one specific one that happens much later) Aigis and Mitsuru are given dialogue options (with about two options to choose from), these dialogue options will effect the ending later on.

 So throughout the dungeon Aigis’ is going through they hear different conversations of Ni’s work life. Ranging from when she first started as a high school part timer to now. They hear the conversation from an earlier chapter about why Ni wants to be a lawyer. A lot of the dialogue hints that Ni enjoys working there, but when they get to the end….. They are met with a…vision (remember how in The Answer they’d see other people’s pasts? This is what happens). It’s her confronted by some of her Coworkers. They tell her how she needs to do their work, when she tries to reject the idea they tell her “Oh it’s not like you’re going to be here in the long run anyways, I mean you plan on leaving right?” and “Oh c’mon your like a genius with this stuff, it comes easier to you than to me.” And “you need a recommendation right? You do our work, we’ll make sure we tell whatever school or work place that you are an amazing little worker. Of course if you refuse, we’ll just have to go to the higher ups and have you fired. We’ve been working here longer than you have honey, we have senority. One word from us and you won’t be able to get any job in this industry ever again.” And so they find out she’s been bribed and blackmailed into being overworked by her lazy coworkers. They then contact Fuuka to connect with Mitsuru’s team and Rise (at this time Yu and Naoto and maybe others have found enough info to look other places, Rise mentions that they found out where she goes to school and decide to investigate there) to tell them about what they’ve found. Rise states from her own investigation that it’s true, and she seems really stressed on getting that lawyer job. She was told by coach that since forever she’d been nervous about her own future. So it isn’t a surprised she would go to lengths just to make sure she secured the future she wanted.

 Meanwhile on Mitsuru’s side, wouldn’t you know it….it revolves around Ni’s school life. Ranging from elementary school to high school. Throughout the dungeons the voices get more and more disturbing as hints of bullying continue to grow. One voice over has Ni stating “I think I used to have friends, it must have been a long time ago because now….when I try to think back….I can’t come up with anyone….no one… I’m just…alone.” When they get to the end of the dungeon they are treated with a Vision:

Ni is thrown against the side of the school building, she’s surrounded by a group of girls and a guy, her school uniform (black sailor suit with a green ribbon) drenched in water. One of the girls (the leader) grabs her by the hair and pulls her head back. Ni: *slumping against the building, looks at the guy* I….I thought we were friends…. Guy: *smirks* Leader girl: Haha, wow you really convinced her eh Ta-kun? Guy: Well when I’m assigned a task I don’t half ass it. Leader: See, I told him to be your friend. You were never real friends to begin with. Ni: *trying not to cry* I…I don’t understand…why? Guy: I was bored! But, to be honest, your job involves working around celebs so I kind of wanted to get close to them. So when I was asked to befriend you I thought it was an all-around win for me. I got to string you along like a little puppy and I got some digits from some idols. Ni: *sobbing* Leader: Awwww you made her cry, bad boy Ta-kun. Ni: *looking at the Leader* Why….why are you doing this? Leader: Simple. *kicks Ni in the stomach* You piss me off. *starts getting angry* You come in here with your perfect scores, take the number one spot, you’re class rep and teachers just think you’re an angel…. And you work with idols and actors! You’re just little miss perfect aren’t you? Ni: No I- Leader: *slams foot near Ni’s head* SHUT UP! I’M THE ONE WHO’S TALKING! Leader: So yeah, you piss me off. And I thought “maybe me and everyone else should knock you down a peg or two” you know, bring us back down to the normal folk. But it looks like you’re a hard one to break, looks like we’re going to have to pay extra close attention to you. I wonder if you’ll make it to graduation.

The scene ends, horrified they hastily call Fuuka in attempt to get a hold of Aigis and Rise. Rise (either relays what Naoto found or is able to somehow connect her cellphone so that they can hear Naoto on the phone). Naoto states that she found the high school she went to, apparently she always go top marks and was a model student. She was class rep for her first two years and nominated Student Council president for her Senior year. But it looks like she wasn’t really liked in the school. She talked to a teacher whom told her there was intense bullying going on. The teacher tried to help Ni, like getting the police involved, but Ni wouldn’t tell her anything herself nor would she press charges. The other teachers were no help as they chose to ignore it. With that the teacher was helpless and could only watch.

With this they state that the next/3rd tower is open (btw it’s shaped like clock tower). Naoto states that she and Yu are now going to attempt to track down any relatives in the city.

 Pt 4 ends here.

(I know what you’re thinking “this ____ kind of reminds me of P5” welp…… I had this idea before P5 so…yeah…. There’s some similarities, and I’m kinda trying to own it with some shout-outs/call forewards. Next part will cover the 3rd dungeon and Tartarus, and part 6 will cover the ending portion of the game)

part 5

[itsfinancethings]

October 26, 2019 at 07:00AM

On September 30, 1970, a reporter asked Janis Joplin to explain her fearless sexuality. “It seems to bother a lot of women’s lib people that you’re kind of so upfront sexually,” Village Voice writer Howard Smith told her. Joplin, by then accustomed to such criticism, responded: “I’m representing everything they said they want.… It’s sort of like: you are what you settle for.… You’re only as much as you settle for. If you don’t settle for that and you keep fighting it, you know, you’ll end up anything you want to be… I’m just doing what I wanted to and what feels right and not settling for bullshit and it worked. How can they be mad at that?”

Janis made it sound as if fighting the urge to settle was the most natural thing to her. But deep down inside there had always been the yearning for doing exactly that: getting the house, the white picket fence and the husband. They had been the middle-class hopes of her mother, Dorothy, who herself had fought hard for a life of stability in 1950s Port Arthur, Texas. Janis, her mother’s daughter, was often tormented about leaving that white picket fence behind. “I keep pushing so hard the dream/I keep tryin’ to make it right/Through another lonely day,” she sang in “Kozmic Blues.”

She was born a misfit—a tomboy, a painter, a girl who didn’t accept arbitrary boundaries, a girl with a big voice—but she never stopped wanting to belong. That’s why, years later at the age of 25, it had been so daring of her to leave behind the band that had launched her, Big Brother and the Holding Company. She had joined the group in San Francisco in June 1966 and two months later they were bunking communally in Marin County. Despite technical shortcomings as musicians, they were a dynamic live band with a solid following, and they correctly saw in Janis the element that would elevate them to status similar to their Haight-Ashbury scene-mates Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead. Sure enough, Big Brother and the Holding Company broke big in June 1967 at the Monterey Pop Festival, signing with Dylan’s manager Albert Grossman, who secured a lucrative deal for them with Columbia Records.

But Joplin was beginning to feel again that part of her that would not settle. Her ambition ratcheted up. She looked more to her heroes Nina Simone and Etta James. Rather than shriek over Big Brother’s blaring psychedelic “freak rock,” Joplin longed to work her voice with more nuance, and explore soul and other musical genres; she envisioned keyboards, a horn section, more sophisticated tunes. In remarkable letters she wrote her parents, she explained, “I have to find the best musicians in the world & get together & work. There’ll be a whole lot of pressure because of the ‘vibes’ created by my leaving Big Brother & also by just how big I am now. So we’ve got to be just super when we start playing—but we will be.” To New York Times reporter Michael Lydon, she admitted: “I’m scared. I think, ‘It’s so close. Can I make it?’ If I fail, I’ll fail in front of the whole world. If I miss, I’ll never have a second chance on nothing. But I gotta risk it. I never hold back…” Anyone who really knew her would not have been surprised by her leap of faith. As a roughhousing tomboy in Port Arthur, she’d exhibited a fierce will not unlike that of her father, Seth, who led a double life as a Texaco engineer by day, and a cerebral bookworm and atheist by night. He and Dorothy adored their daughter, but their showdowns were legend—Janis refusing to do what she was told, damn the consequences. With adolescence came compulsive risk-taking; she was the female “mascot” among a group of outlier intellectual boys, a role that helped set a bold Joplin in motion.

Unlike her father, Joplin would not hide her defiance. She vocally opposed segregation in her high school, which made her a target of bullies and racists. She sought out the hard-to-find music of Lead Belly and Bessie Smith, sneaking out to juke joints with boys, and was accused of sleeping with her male companions. At 17, after a midnight ramble in New Orleans, she crashed her father’s car. She would soothe the shame with alcohol, the first drug on which she became dependent. And then she’d do it all again.

Joplin found temporary solace in traveling, which she’d been introduced to by Kerouac’s On the Road, a game-changer for her. Her first taste of freedom came at 19, when she briefly lived like a beatnik in Venice Beach, California, then hitchhiked alone to San Francisco, before hightailing it back to Texas. She soon cultivated an ardent following of fellow college students in Austin, who clamored to hear her sing blues, country, and folk with her first group, the Waller Creek Boys.

Forever restless, Joplin hitchhiked for the second time to San Francisco the day after her 20th birthday in 1963. Already writing songs and accompanying herself on an autoharp, she floored audiences in the Bay Area, gaining confidence and vocal skill, gig by gig. But after spending the summer of ’64 in New York’s Lower East Side, where she learned to play 12-string guitar, Joplin became addicted to methamphetamines. She returned to Port Arthur yet again, sobered up at the Joplin homestead, and attempted to renounce her life as an artist. But she could not resist opportunities to perform in Houston and Austin clubs, where her voice manifested ever more powerfully, an uncorked siren calling her away from the life of dutiful commuter student and sociology major at Beaumont’s Lamar Tech. At age 23, after sharing a bill in Austin with the 13th Floor Elevators, she split town for Haight-Ashbury yet again. When she wrote her parents to give them her whereabouts, she promised to stay clean.

In just over a year, she achieved much of what she thought she wanted, but chafed at the constraints of Big Brother. As she turned to heroin to soften anxiety and fears of rejection, her urge to rebel—even within the parameters of the counterculture—could not be reined in. “I’ve been doing it for 26 years,” she told the New York Times in 1969, conflating her age and her lifelong iconoclasm, “and all the people who were trying to compromise me are now coming to me, man. You better not compromise yourself, it’s all you got.… I’m a goddamn living example of that…. People aren’t supposed to be like me, sing like me, make out like me, drink like me, live like me, but now they’re paying me $50,000 a year for me to be like me. That’s what I hope I mean to those kids out there… that they can be themselves and win. You just have to start thinking that way, being that righteous with yourself, and you’ve won already.”

Joplin’s great champion Ellen Willis, a rare female rock critic of the era, worried for post-Big Brother Janis in the pages of The New Yorker. “Did Big Brother perhaps give her more than we realized?” she wrote. As often happens with performers, Joplin had to learn in public, so the initial answer to this question was a resounding maybe. Only three months after assembling her back-up players, Joplin was still finding her way, which showed in her two-night stand at New York’s Fillmore East. Joplin didn’t fall back on her usual over-the-top performance techniques, but modulated herself, doing the “kind of things that milk you rather than hammer you,” she said. Willis was one of the few critics who seemed to get it.

Rolling Stone’s Paul Nelson resolutely panned the shows, describing Joplin as “The Judy Garland of Rock” who “strangled the songs to death.” Six weeks later, when she performed back in San Francisco at Bill Graham’s Winterland, her “people” did not call for an encore—a first on her own turf. Afterwards in the dressing room, journalist John Bowers noted, “She is pale, as if in shock, saying, ‘San Francisco’s changed, man. Where are my people? They used to be so wild. I know I sang well! I know I did!’” One of her earliest fans, esteemed jazz critic Ralph J. Gleason, advised her in his San Francisco Chronicle column to “scrap this band and go right back to being a member of Big Brother if they’ll have her.”

Hurt but undaunted, Joplin continued to pursue her musical vision. She recorded her debut solo album, I Got Dem Ol’ Kozmic Blues Again Mama!, its title alluding to a persistent existential dread her father had called “the Saturday night swindle.” She’d written new songs including “One Good Man,” a Bessie Smith blues update. Other material ranged from her adaptation of the Chantels’ “Maybe,” a favorite from her teen years, and Rodgers and Hart’s “Little Girl Blue,” inspired by the 1959 Nina Simone recording of the song. (Simone would later applaud Joplin’s version.)

The album debuted on Billboard on October 11, 1969, remained there for 28 weeks and gradually moved up to #5. Joplin’s aching original “Kozmic Blues” just missed the Top 40, hitting #41. Reviews were lukewarm, with Joplin, again, being taken to task—by male critics—for being “bent on becoming Aretha Franklin” and dumping Big Brother. An exception was an insightful Village Voice piece by Johanna Schier (later Johanna Hall, coauthor of the Pearl track, “Half Moon”), who wrote that Joplin “was singing stronger and better… The top of her range is more solid and her vocal control is maturing… She breaks through into greatness by anyone’s standards.” Backed by her Kozmic Blues Band, she would play the biggest venues of her career to date, including a sold-out concert on December 19 at Madison Square Garden.

Bettmann ArchiveJanis Joplin and her final group, the Full Tilt Boogie Band, perform at the Festival for Peace at Shea Stadium in August 1970.

The first year of her brief solo flight, Joplin headlined Woodstock, performing an hour-long set in the middle of the night, singing until her voice gave out. She made her debut on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Dick Cavett Show, appeared on the cover of Newsweek (the cover line: “The Rebirth of the Blues”), and toured Europe for the first time, a series of concerts garnering rapturous responses. At London’s Royal Albert Hall, she’d even managed to roust a sold-out, normally staid audience from their seats.

Joplin remained peripatetic, musically speaking, and driven. She’d learned to play and sing Kris Kristofferson’s “Me and Bobby McGee,” and the song opened new doors. Joplin sought a smaller, rootsier-sounding unit to bring it, and other material, to life. She would christen this group Full Tilt Boogie. With them, she would mature as a bandleader and co-producer of her recorded output, all gloriously evident on her final album, Pearl, and in footage of Joplin and Full Tilt Boogie’s live performances. Following her death during the Pearl sessions, on October 4, 1970, “Me and Bobby McGee” topped the charts for two weeks, and Pearl became the most commercially successful album of her career. Despite her kozmic blues and the critics’ initial discouragement, Joplin, of course, had refused to settle for anything less than traveling the road her music took her.

[a-dreaming-fool]

Travel Writing: Spontaneous Trip to Sleepy Tagaytay

I used to be excited for Christmas. As a kid who believed in Santa Claus and in the magic of this holiday, I couldn’t help but be. Back then, we spent Christmas together with my cousins and uncles and aunts and grandparents, all together in one home at Cavite. Our parents would wake us up when Santa Claus finally arrived, and my cousins and I would go downstairs – and there was the dining table, lined with delicious dishes, and the Christmas tree, now suddenly piled with presents. But the last time we did that, I was probably five years old.

Years later, that’s no longer the case. My parents separated; traditions changed. My brother and I would spend Christmas with our father and our grandparents at Cavite; New Years’ with our mother and her side of the family at Pampanga. And as the years passed by, as my brother and I grew up, our parents weren’t waking us up anymore. We don’t wake up to have Noche Buena anymore or to open our presents in the middle of the night. We’d do it during dinner or before bedtime.

One time, when we were going to do this, I protested and said: “No, wake us up tonight! We’ll eat and open our presents then!” But he just shook his head, more tired than exasperated. I guess I can’t blame him; he was working at a Call Center at that time, and my grandparents were simply too old to wake up past midnight. But I still felt it: felt the magical flame of Christmas extinguish within me, the spirit of it die out. That’s it. My childhood has ended.

But I can’t say that I’m not hoping it will come back.

It was Christmas Eve, 2015. Once again, I was in Cavite, at my grandparents’ home, with my father and my brother; and it was already past eleven in the evening. We were all hanging out in my grandparents’ spacious bedroom, the adults snoozing away already, and my brother and I, playing with our respective gadgets, like any other pair of mature teenagers. Perhaps, in a way, I was waiting for the clock to hit midnight. It was Christmas, after all.

So, I did; and when it arrived, I opened up my phone, sending messages online and via text, to family and friends. Then, I turned to my present family: greeting my brother, waking up my father and grandparents with a kiss, hug and a soft “Merry Christmas!”

Then, all of a sudden, my dad sat up. “What do you say, if we go out tonight?”

My brother and I perked up, eyes wide. “Huh?”

“Sounds good!” my grandfather said, rising to a seat on the bed. “I know a place in Tagaytay where we can eat – assuming it’s still open.”

I looked at my grandmother. She grinned. And that was it. I couldn’t contain it anymore. Jumping and grinning and shrieking, “Yes, yes, yes!” – it was like I was going back to being a child, eager for some adventure. Eager for the magic of Christmas.

Tagaytay is a nice place; a place known for its cold climate and for the fact that it sits right above a freaking volcano, the island of Taal Volcano. It’s an active volcano too, which is hard to believe with how dead it looks.

I’ve been there a few times when I was younger; usually to eat at some fancy restaurant for some fancy social event my grandparents had to go to. It was half-provincial, half-city, with its elite restaurants and condominiums; vegetable and flower markets in the street – almost like another, bigger, warmer kind of Baguio; a place tourists would settle for, when Baguio was already full.

The drive going there was packed with jittering energy. We played Christmas songs the entire time, singing along with them while occasionally talking about random things. I didn’t think these old folks had the energy to have this kind of fun; all exhilarated at this spontaneous road trip. It was refreshing to see.

It was even more refreshing to see Tagaytay past midnight. Streets were empty and painted black, tinged with occasional glow of an orange streetlight; and when we brought the windows down, the wind was biting cold. The whole world has gone quiet on Christmas Eve.

We arrived at the restaurant my grandfather was saying. It was pitch black.

My grandfather cursed. It was stupid to think any restaurant at this hour and holiday would be open. “Let’s look around,” he said. “Maybe something else is open.”

It was a real road trip now. We drove forward, passing by more closed stores and restaurants and a few gas stations, until finally, we spot an open restaurant – literally open, with hardly any walls to enclose it. I don’t remember the name now, but I can recall that it was Filipino, with a chicken and an egg as its logo.

We all exchanged looks. This worked, we supposed.

And it did. The place was chilly, having lacking walls, but the food was warm and simple: roasted chicken with java rice, and some local biscuits. My grandfather chatted with the late-night staff; most of whom were Tagaytay natives, working late for their family, even on Christmas Eve. But all of them seemed happy that day, not bored or sad at the fact that they weren’t with their families. As a group of staff, they seemed like a family already.

After this strange but simple Noche Buena, the old folks now tired, we drove back home. This time, the journey was quieter. No more music, just silence, and the hum of a moving car. I couldn’t say I wasn’t disappointed with how the trip went: we didn’t get to eat at the place we wanted, and we couldn’t go further to explore more of the sleeping Tagaytay. But the fact that for one night, I felt like a child again, delighted me more: the rush of adventure, the thrill of doing something new – on Christmas Eve, nonetheless.

Going to bed that night, I felt a sense of peace. Maybe our Christmases were never going to be like those in my childhood – and that’s okay. The fact that I was surrounded by family, by people I love and who love me, was magical enough.