ashokan-kannaarth

[myquietsafehaven]

Saw an au idea for TMA where Jon and Martin make it to somewhere else. Then Jon starts seeing Elias/Jonah and he’s not sure if he’s hallucinating, give it a little JonElias flavor for spice. Then I listened to I’m Alive from Next to Normal and now I’m hearing a very heavily edited mashup in my brain between the two properties. And it’s giving the serotonin, but also all the angst.

Part 2:

[sparklingchim]

summer playlist; m | jjk

pairing: jungkook x reader

word count: 4k

genre: hockeyplayer!jungkook, richgirlie!oc, college!au, fwb, brother's best friend

rating: 18+

warnings: semi public sex, blowjob, spanking, jk is truly obsessed w her <3, protected sex, nipple play, jk leaves a hickey n oc gets upset 🙄, spit, dirty talk, his necklace dangling in her face 😋, jk's rejection count: TWO !!!!, pls someone hug him 🫂, fingering, clit play, groping

summary: pov: jungkook dedicates a cute playlist to you and fucks you to it on the balcony.

a/n: ur honour i was forced to write this don't come for me !!! 👉🏼👈🏼 enjoy the filth 😋

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

One of your favourite forms of self-care and relaxation is Pilates.

You love dressing up in your cute gym wear sets – you own countless of them, even though you never actually work out in the gym; they’re purely for the aesthetics – and grabbing a big water bottle along with your laptop for at least half an hour dedicated me-time.

It’s a bright morning and you’re on the balcony. The sun is gently warming the air as you’re following a Pilates video on your laptop, which is propped up on the couch. Jungkook’s playlist, the one he created just for you, is playing softly in the background, providing the perfect soundtrack without drowning out the instructor’s voice.

Truly, nothing can beat these types of mornings.

But of course, something had to interrupt your peace.

While you’re on your hands and knees, your phone vibrates next to the mat. You ignore it the first few times, but it keeps buzzing. With an annoyed huff, you grab it and unlock the screen.

Jungkook’s spamming you with numerous messages.

Jungcock 😋

hi

morning

watchu up to

im taking a run in the park

and im boored

are u up?

entertain me

You

omg did you change your contact's name again

stop doing that

how can you text and run?

He doesn’t reply. Instead, he calls you on FaceTime.

“How many times do I have to tell you?” Jungkook says in a raspy voice, the screen shaking a bit as he runs his miles around campus. “I’m good at everything I do.” His tight black tee clings to his chest, displaying his big pecs. You feel your breath hitch and you’re not sure if it’s from your workout or the sight of him.

“Your ego, Jungkook,” you reply, shaking your head in disbelief. “Too big.” You set your phone down with an exasperated sigh, leaning it against the feet of the couch. His eyes drift down to your cleavage.

“I think my ego is perfectly fine. Flashing his dimples as you roll your eyes at him. “What are you doing?” he asks, sounding a bit breathless – so hot, but you brush it off. You’re a strong girl, after all.

“Was doing Pilates until you rudely interrupted me,” you say skipping back on the YouTube video and picking up where you left off. “Don’t you have other girls to entertain you?”

“None of them are as cute as you,” he replies smoothly, and you can’t help but wish he wouldn’t be so good at flirting. “You look hot in that fit.”

“Thanks.” You follow the instructions on the screen. It turns out to be a bit harder to focus with a sweaty, ruggedly handsome Jungkook right beneath it.

“Are you listening to my playlist?”

“Yeah,” you admit, smiling.

Your thoughts wander back to the time Jungkook made that playlist for you. You had told him you never really listened to playlists, just played one song and let the auto-play feature do the rest. He was so stunned by that revelation that he spent an afternoon creating a cute little summer playlist just for you.

“Good choice,” he grins, clearly pleased with himself.

“I actually really like the playlist.”

“Of course. I make the best playlists,” he boasts, and you can’t help but chuckle at his confidence.

An exhausted sigh escapes your lips. After finishing the set, you change into the child pose and take deep breaths, relaxing the muscles.

“Taehyung’s at his morning class?” he asks.

“Uh-huh.”

“Can I come over?”

You lift your head to look at the screen. He’s running at a more leisurely pace, looking even more irresistible.

“Like, right now?”

“Yeah.”

“But I’m busy,” you argue, teasing him with a thoughtful pout. On the screen, the instructor announces that the little break is over, and you should get ready for your next set, but you’re not listening anymore. What’s happening on the little screen in front of you is far more enticing.

“Busy, huh?” he mocks with a smirk. “Maybe I can help you with what you’re doing.” His eyes light up with excitement as he pushes his hair from his forehead. “Or you wanna get busy together?”

Unfortunately, it seems you’re not as strong a girl as you thought. You’re very weak. His teasing question, coupled with his wicked tongue grazing his lip piercing, has you weak in the knees. You want nothing more than him on the couch and you straddling him.

“I won’t take up too much of your time,” he promises, the sweet smile back on his face. “Unless you want me to.” He raises an eyebrow teasingly.

“Just come over,” you tell him with a hint of irritation.

Jungkook has the audacity to chuckle, and you frown at him.

“Be quick, or I’ll change my mind.”

~

“Hi.” Jungkook pokes his head out from the balcony.

You squeal, placing a hand over your chest.

“Jungkook!” you exclaim. “What happened to ringing the bell like normal visitors?”

“Why did you give me the passcode then?” he retorts cheekily, ogling the snug fit of your gym wear.

“Because I had severe cramps and didn’t wanna get up from the couch.”

Thinking back on that specific day, you feel a spark of giddiness bloom in your chest. You had gotten your period, were battling atrocious cramps, and top of it, you had run out of pads. With Taehyung not home and needing them urgently, you knew Jungkook was always quick to reply to your texts. So, you decided to ask him if he could pick up some pads for you.

Twenty minutes later, he showed up at your door not only with the pads but also with snacks. You could see the faint pink flush on his cheeks when he asked, “Girls like eating chocolate when they’re on their period, right?” and hesitantly handed you the snacks.

And then, you did something that still makes you ponder at night – you cuddled without having had sex before. Oddly enough, it felt more intimate than any sexual encounter. Granted, you did get up to some naughty things afterwards, but still. Jungkook had cuddled you through your cramps and even endured watching reality tv shows he claims to despise once again.

“Well, I didn’t wanna disrupt you.” Jungkook walks over to the couch. He grabs your laptop, settles down, and places it on his lap. “Not now, anyway.”

You shift to sit on your knees. Briefly glancing at the screen where the instructor does the next set of exercises before drifting to Jungkook’s smitten face. His skin glistens with a thin sheen of sweat, and his chest still rises and falls a bit faster than usually.

You nod towards him, eyes clinging to his muscular thighs that peek out from his shorts. “How am I supposed to focus when-” When you look like that. But the words catch in your throat.

Jungkook is so shamelessly cocky, he places his hands behind his head. “When what?”

You sigh in irritation, close the video, and slide the laptop off his lap and onto the couch. He opens his legs for you. “Forget this,” you huff, placing your hands on his knees. Jungkook leans in, crashing his lips onto yours, his hand cupping your face.

The kiss is needy and messy. He teases you with his tongue, and you playfully respond until he tugs on your bottom lip with his teeth, causing you to moan and lose yourself in the feeling of his mouth. In less than a minute, Jungkook has you completely pliant in his embrace.

The balcony is surrounded by tall privacy screens and partially shaded by a large canopy, providing privacy from prying eyes.

Your hands slide up his legs, underneath his shorts. You feel his thighs flex on your palm and you squeeze them back in response.

“Wanna feel your mouth,” Jungkook whispers against your lips, sighing in pleasure when you just barely graze your fingers against his cock that strains against the material of his briefs.

Jungkook impatiently pulls down his shorts and briefs and you help him. His cock springs out and stands prettily against his abdomen. Your mouth waters and you have to tell yourself to calm down – he's just a boy and you’re too whipped.

You spit on his cock and coat his length with it. You twist your hand as you slowly pump him and he grows even harder within your grasp, becoming veiny and heavy. You stick out your tongue and give him a few licks over his tip. Jungkook sharply inhales, a gentle moan following right after when he sees you tapping his dick against your tongue.

“Fuck, babe.” He takes his cock in his own hand and continues tapping his head against your tongue. He runs his tip across your mouth too, watching with keen, clouded eyes as he creates a little mess on your face. When he’s finished, he lets you grab his cock again. You wrap your lips around his dick and start bobbing your head up and down.

“That’s right,” he says, brushing your hair behind your ear. His eyes close as you take him deeper into your mouth and his head falls back. With his palm on the back of your head, he presses your head down. A curse flees his lips as almost his entire length vanishes into your mouth.

Jungkook forces his eyes open and moans at the sight of your mouth full of his cock. He loves watching you suck his cock and you love hearing him moan for you.

You’re a little breathless when you release his cock with a lewd pop sound, and your eyes a bit teary too. You stroke his dick and dip down to suck on his balls.

“So good. Fuck – you know what to do,” he mumbles like he’s drunk and you giggle at his comment.

“You like that?”

“So fucking much.” His hand caresses your head, so soft at handling you, but the way desire pinches his brows together shows how much he is struggling to restrain himself from just shoving his entire length down your throat. “Come here.” His tatted hand glides down your shoulder, pulling you up onto his lap.

He squeezes your ass and delivers it a little smack. “You’re so hot.” He peeks over your shoulder, watching the supple flesh fill his hands completely.

“How can you claim to be an everything guy when you’re clearly an ass guy.”

Jungkook takes offense at that. “I am an everything guy!” His hands quickly move to your breasts and he kneads them through your sports bra. “I love your tits just as much.” The tight material presses them snugly together. “I love every part of you.”

You feel a gentle warmth in your cheeks, but you laugh it off. “That is so playboy behaviour of you, Jungkook.”

A frown spreads on his face, lips puckering the slightest bit. “I’m no playboy,” he grumbles as he plays with your tits. Planting little kisses along your neck as if to add sincerity to his words.

You push his arms away and try to stand up, but Jungkook quickly pulls you back onto his lap, firmly gripping your waist.

“Where are you going?” he asks, his tone almost scolding. You grasp his wrist, but he doesn’t let go, his hands remaining firmly in place.

“Condoms,” you remind him. He lets out a quiet, muffled “oh”, and his grip loosens with a reluctant sigh. “’Cause, you know. We hook up with other people.”

Jungkook scoffs at your remark.

“What?” Tilting your head slightly. “I saw you with Nayeon at the party.” You try to sound as least huffy as you can.

“And you fucked Eunwoo,” he counters.

You actually didn’t – you just made out with him. You deliberately chose a spot so Jungkook could see you from the couch, with Nayeon clinging to his side, just because you wanted him to see you.

“So?”

Jungkook levels you with a piercing gaze but remains quiet. He gives your butt a pat and nods towards the balcony door. “Go get the condom.”

When you fetch a condom from your room and return to Jungkook, you see saliva dripping from his lips and he lubes himself up as his pretty fingers wrap around him and stroke his cock. He looks unfairly hot doing the filthiest things.

“Bend over my lap,” he instructs when you hand him the condom, but he ignores it and drops it next to him.

He helps you settle onto his lap, your tummy pressed against one of his thighs and your ass in the air. Jungkook rolls the tight fabric of your shorts over your ass. He flicks your panties aside and groans at the pretty sight in front of him. Wet pussy peeks out from between your soft thighs.

His finger swipes across your pussy. “So wet for me. Can’t wait to have my dick in your pussy, huh?” He rubs your arousal over your pussy, spreading your folds to spit and make an even bigger mess. He’s having so much fun teasing and rubbing you, playing a little with your clit and dipping the tip of his finger inside you.

“Jungkook,” you whine, looking over your shoulder. “We don’t have that much time.”

“Sorry.” He circles your hole with two fingers and plunges them deep inside you. “Better, princess?” he asks after you choke on a moan, mocking you with fake sympathy.

“Yeah, better.” The words roll off your tongue in a soft whisper. Jungkook curls his fingers and your eyes roll involuntarily. “So good.” His other hand rolls the plump flesh of your ass around his palm, sometimes squeezing and leaving his fingerprints on your skin.

He’s fast in figuring out a rhythmic way to move his fingers that instantly unfurls pleasure all over your body. Jungkook knows your body all too well; he has perfected the art of knowing what you like the most.

It makes you think back to high school when you had the biggest, silliest crush on him and wanted nothing more than his attention. Who could blame you? Your older brother’s hot best friend was the captain of the school’s hockey team and practically lived at your house.

Of course, developing a crush on him was inevitable. But you never showed him that you found him cute – you treated him like your older brother’s annoying best friend who was always around. Bickering was just the nature of your friendship. Sometimes, you’d get annoyed when your dad paid more attention to Jungkook. It wasn’t because he preferred Jungkook over you, but because your dad, a high-profile NHL General Manager, supported the boys on their journey.

Every girl in school was swooning over him – they still are. And you’re not the only girl he’s paying attention to. You have to force yourself to admit that he’s hooking up with other girls too, because denying it would make this seem so serious, and the thought of things becoming serious scares you.

You’re content with how things are between you two – you’re not foolish enough to turn this simple, silly arrangement into something serious when you know it wouldn’t last. Taehyung being the main reason for that. But you don’t want Jungkook in a romantic way anyway, and he doesn’t too.

Jungkook smacks your butt, soothing the sharp hit by running his hand over your burning skin right after. “Want your little pussy to be a mess for me.”

It is, you want to say. You are. But you’re lost in the tingling pleasure that clouds your mind, leaving you with nothing but desperate need for him. Any rational thoughts vanish, replaced by an angelic, repetitive chant of his name. Jungkook, Jungkook, Jungkook.

And with only Jungkook your mind, you cum around his fingers, walls clenching as the rush of your high envelops you completely.

“Good girl.” His fingers lather your slick all over your pussy, marvelling at how much it glistens under the sun, watching how it sticks to the pad of his fingers in little strings. “So pretty.” He discards your shorts and panties before pulling you up and making you straddle him.

Your arms drape over his shoulders as he takes in your weary expression, a small smirk rising on his face.

“So annoying,” you mutter and his smile grows wider. You smooch his dimple and rest your forehead against his neck when Jungkook rolls the condom over his cock and you feel him lift your hips up a little to align his tip with your entrance.

He stretches you out in a familiar, delicious way. Burying himself so deep inside you as you sink down on him. Your nose brushes his jaw and a shaky moan bubbles up when you move your hips and feel the full size of his cock.

Jungkook hands stay on your hips, guiding your movements before they sneak behind you and anchor themselves in your butt and you sniff a laugh, leaning back to peer at his face.

“Why?” he questions, curiosity piqued. Even though he doesn’t know why you’re amused, a soft smile spreads on his face.

“Nothing.” Your fingers gently weave through his smooth hair, playing with the strands at the back of his head. “Just you.”

The corners of his mouth curl upward and a satisfied, cocky glint settles in his eyes.

“Take this off,” you say, tugging at the tight-fitting shirt covering his upper half. Jungkook pulls it over his head, revealing a shiny silver necklace decorating his neck. “Is this new?” You trace the delicate chain with your nail.

“Yeah,” he grins proudly. Setting your laptop aside on the coffee table, he manhandles you onto your back, pushing his cock even further into you as he sits on his knees and leans over you. “You like it?”

The necklace dangles just above your face, its silver chain shimmering and momentarily catching your attention. You pull him closer by tugging on it.

“It’s pretty. Suits you.”

The compliment conjures a boyish smile on his lips, making his face soften with a warm, endearing glow – such a sweet contrast to the way he pounds into you with practised movements, his skin covered in sweat yet again, but not for the innocent reason of keeping fit for hockey, but for the wicked reason that Jungkook can’t control his desire to fuck his best friend’s younger sister and keeps coming back to you despite having so many other options.

Jungkook drags your bra down and squeezes your breast, loving the heavy feel of your supple flesh filling his closed fist.

You throw your legs around his waist to pull him even closer to you, if that’s even possible, and Jungkook deepens his thrusts, leaving you gasping for air and holding onto his shoulders, needing something to sink your nails into.

He dips his head down and catches your pebbled and sensitive nub in his mouth, sucking and licking and making your moans whinier. Jungkook leaves tiny flecks of spit on your skin as he peppers your chest and neck with smooches.

Jungkook’s touches send waves of euphoria through you, leaving your thoughts scattered and your senses heightened by how good he makes you feel, chasing your high as you concentrate on the way he reaches your sweet spot every time his body meets yours, so you only realise Jungkook is nibbling and sucking on your neck when you feel his teeth poke you.

“Jungkook,” you scold him, yanking him by the hair.

“What?” He peers at you through his big, round doe eyes.

“Why would you do that?” Your finger grazes the spot where he was just working hard to create a little hickey. “You know I don’t like that.”

“But you look pretty with it.” His brows raise to make his point clear. “Trust me.” He smiles at you in an annoyingly charming way, giving the freshly created hickey a gentle kiss. “A little love bite.” Love bite. You don’t want to dwell on how those words make you feel.

The only thing you want to think about is how close you are to cumming.

“Don’t do that again.” You avoid his gaze and cast it downwards, where he disappears into you. “Just– just make me cum.”

He pushes your leg up, his palm firmly against the back of your thigh. His sparkly necklace catches your attention, swinging in front your face, and it's the way he looks – his face flushed with desire, eyes smouldering, and every muscle taut with intensity – that makes it impossible to look away, leaving you completely captivated as you listen to his pretty moans that sound even better than the song playing in the background.

Your fingers trail down his chest, brushing over his hard abs as a faint attempt to moan his name rolls of your tongue and you bask in the bliss that floods through you.

“Fuck, ___,” he rasps when he feels you squeezing his cock. “Gonna cum too.”

His thrusts become sloppy as Jungkook loses himself in the feeling of release. His moans are breathy and low and you hear him stutter when he finally comes undone too. The muscles on his tummy clench and you feel his grip on your thigh tighten as Jungkook moves his hips slowly now. With rosy cheeks and a look of deep satisfaction brightening his face, he leans in, and presses a fervent kiss to your lips.

You’d love to stay like this with him a bit longer, teasing and annoying each other until you’re ready for another round. But the reminder that Taehyung’s class will end soon brings you back to reality. You only ever have these secret moments for a limited time before reality comes crashing back down.

“Think we should head inside?” you ask.

“Uh-huh.” He’s busy dotting your neck with gentle kisses.

“You’d have to get off me, y’know?”

He chuckles, and you feel a ticklish flutter in your tummy.

“Just wait a minute.”

~

You step back inside once you’re both clothed again and you managed to pry Jungkook off you after he stubbornly clung to you for what felt like ages. Definitely longer than just a minute.

“We could make this exclusive, if you’d want that,” Jungkook proposes, stepping closer and you feel his heavy gaze lingering on you.

“Huh?” You’re busy with closing the balcony door, cursing the insects that always manage to invade your apartment. Taehyung’s been promising to put up the insect screen for months.

Jungkook helps you close the door with a strong push. “If the condoms annoy you, we could stop hooking up with other people.”

“Oh,” you utter, surprised.

If you’re honest with yourself, you have to admit that Jungkook has ruined you for other guys. No other boy quiet hits the same after experiencing how Jungkook treats you in bed. There is a reason why girls blush and giggle and crave his attention whenever he walks by. He’s just that good.

But being exclusive means spending even more time together, which increases the chance of Taehyung finding out.

You cringe at the thought of that.

“We’d practically be begging Taehyung to catch us like fools,” you tell him.

Just then, you hear someone type in the code and the front door opens.

Quickly, like a practised move, you put distance between you and Jungkook.

“You hungry, ___?” Taehyung calls out, emerging from the hallway. His gaze is focused on his phone as he types, until he notices you and Jungkook and stops in his tracks. “I was just about to call you for breakfast.” He lifts the bag from your favourite bakery. “What are you doing here?”

“I knew you’d invite me for breakfast.” Jungkook beams, reaching for the bag.

Taehyung’s gaze shifts to you, but you quickly brush past him. “I’m gonna take a shower. Don’t wait for me!”

“Did you come from a workout?” You hear Taehyung ask Jungkook.

Jungkook says yes, but he doesn’t tell your brother what kind of workout.

And moments like these are exactly why you want to keep things as they are with Jungkook.

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

read more of this couple here <3

[captainmera]

Words can't describe how much I love your modern au for the folktale trio. As always your Evelyn is the skrunkly scrimbo of all time, and Caleb as an exhausted barista is just perfect. Any lore you care to share about this au?

Sure! :D

And thank you! Haha, it's rather fun actually! And yes, skrunkly little powerhouse, there she goes. :3

Modern AU character synopses and plot ideas(?) Under cut!

EVELYN:

Evelyn is fighting with her mum and runs away to live in an abandoned tower. Now that she's trying to live independently, her older sisters advise her to become a bounty hunter (since she's so powerful, it should be easy! ..probably!)

And, because she's got a special interest in the human realm, she dives head first into chasing criminals who try to hide there.

Evelyn basically does what Eda was doing after she lost most of her magical power. Having to do odd jobs and hunt bounties. Except, for Ev, she takes jobs she can do in the human realm. She finds collectables to sell to shops (like tibbles), and hunts bounties.

She also tries to figure out why Gravesfield got so many little portal holes? It's as if someone in Gravesfield is opening them.. hm!

CALEB:

Caleb is a struggling barista at the coffee shop, who's raising his little brother and had to drop out of high school to work.

He's depressed, hates everything, and one sad night he uncovers a demon disguised as a human - who tries to kill him. He's rescued by a "local" strange and homeless girl (Evelyn), and he has now made himself enemy number one to a criminal gang by picking up a magical item (a disc with a moon on it) from the now-beaten-and-captured demon.

He still likes to carve wood, and is a bit of a shy artist. He doesn't believe his figurines or wood artwork is of any worth or interest.

He's also a closeted bisexual who wants to be out but terrified of being shunned from the community (the church) that helped him when he was/is struggling financially. He owes them a lot of gratitude for getting him his low-wage job and birthday/Christmas gifts for Philip via their support programs. As well as their poverty support.

He feels very indebt to the church (and they kind of use it against him too) and he feels stuck.

PHILIP:

Philip, the school weirdo who will not shut up about ghosts and demons. He runs a mewtube vlog about demonic beings and monsters. His online name is "Belos." (Think in the lines on Dipper Pines from Gravity Falls, but with a bit more self-importance and confidence)

He's got no irl friends, loves horror video games and listens to the soundtrack from Zombie Deer the musical on repeat.

Philip makes his own ghost hunting gear, and goes exploring old abandoned places to hunt ghosts, try to summon demons, open portals, etc. To his knowledge, it has never worked...... to his knowledge, that is.

THE WITTEBANE BROTHERS:

Their parents are dead. Caleb stepped up to the role, and it's a lot to deal with. The brothers never talk about their parents. Their house (like the Noceda home) is full of pictures and half-finished projects. The brothers are in grief limbo. Caleb avoids and just keeps-calm-and-carries-on, Philip uses escapism and secludes himself.

Caleb has been gut punched hard by life's reality-check fists and has not recovered. He's more or less she'd and dropped his hobies and dreams because "that's just life, rat-girl. You either adjust and fit in, or, buh-bye!"

He unfortunately takes this pessimistic and depressive attitude out on Philip, creating a divide between the brothers. (Like Camila and Luz, except Caleb is less gentle about it)

Caleb wants Philip to start living in the hard, real world. Philip, however, wants to stay frozen in the fantasy that; if ghosts are real, then their parents aren't truly gone, and things can go back to how it was before. Kind of. Almost.

"How it was before" being him and Caleb watching monster movies together, where Caleb was just an older brother and not an adult-too-soon that boss him around. "Before" being when Caleb was happy, and didn't sit up late at night reading bills and planning the next meal with coupons.

Philip doesn't want to be the "normal" Caleb asks of him, because to him; that normal doesn't exist anymore.

While Caleb tries to conform too much to his new hopeless mindset that he has no control at all, anyway, so why fight it at all?

Philip is turning 15 soon.

FOLKLORE TRIO DYNAMIC

After saving him, and introducing him to a whole new reality of witches, demons and magic.. Caleb loses his marbles a little. Life is more nuanced than he thought - maybe he's not so stuck after all. Maybe there's alternatives?

Evelyn needs a human guide, and in exchange for his help, he gets jewels he can trade in for cash. And he gladly shakes her hand on that.

Now he's got money for bills, food, and necessities, and he can even save money for Philip to go to college. This is going to be Calebs birthday present to Philip. To give him the future and life he never could have.

Evelyn is happy to have a guide, and friend. But as she becomes closer friends with the Wittebane brothers, she discovers there's trouble in the household.

Philip is also suspicious of her. To him, and the locals of Gravesfield, she's a crazy homeless girl who chases random citizens yelling about them being demon criminals. As well as stealing miscellaneous things from dumpsters. Like broken toasters and yoga mats.

A girl whom Caleb has befriended because she ate his customers' leftovers. Philip is less than keen on their budding friendship, and his brother's apparent crush on her. Philip, in the beginning, feels like she's taking advantage of Caleb’s good heart. But discovers soon enough that she's actually really nice, and is more than happy to talk about demons and magic with him.

ANTAGONIST PLOT: EVELYNS MUM.

Ev is a powerful witch, but has a bailsack condition where the sack is too large (that's why she's a powerhouse), but it has a physical affect on her. She can get lethargic or "turn gray" as she calls it (like when a basilisk sucks a witch empty on magic)

Evelyn wants to be a researcher and an author. She wants to learn from the human realm and use their inventions and adaptability to help the demon realm.

Evelyn's mum doesn't want her to go her own way.

Despite knowing her daughter's condition, she still wants her to utilise her power. She's trying to turn Ev to various plant-magic corporations to make mass production of crops, to help fight the famines.

Evelyn wants to understand how humans do things because they have no magic and they still sustain somehow.

She has a hard time arguing with her mother. She wants to appease her (find a human invention replacenent) and also go her own way. But it's just not how things goes.

Caleb becomes Evelyn's one defender and protector.

While standing up for her, he also realises hiw he's been treating Philip. Telling him who to be and how to fit in, instead ofvtrying to understand why Philip needs to escape into his hoby so much.

Evelyn's mother does not like Caleb, and doesn't like how the human is able to bark back to her - armed with reason and solid arguments, too.

She's been trying to guilt Evelyn into shouldering the whole world, more or less, by making her sacrifice her happinessand well being to keep famine away.

Which, obviously, hits Caleb close to home. And he makes an enemy out of Mrs.Clawthorne.

Mrs.Clawthorne wants Calebs influence on Evelyn gone. Caleb must be removed.

She discovers that there's someone else who doesn't like Caleb, and wants to get him (caleb got their disc after all.) And strikes a deal with them.

ATAGONIST PLOT: THE DISC

Evelyn takes both the brothers to her realm at some point, to hide them from the criminal that has it in for Caleb. Not knowing her mother is assisting the criminal.

In exchange of getting rid of Caleb, they can have the disc.

This is when Pip and Ev discovers that Caleb HAS the disc in the first place. And has been using it as a mirror decor in his bedroom. To him, it was just a keepsake from the first time he met Evelyn, and to commemorate that the night actually happened.

Philip has, at that point, gathered enough knowledge to know what the disc actually is: from what he knows, it supposedly grants wishes?

And he wants to use it to bring their parents back.

--------------

AND THAT'S ABOUT IT SO FAR?? :,D

[moremaybank]

jj x john b’s little sister will always have a special place in my heart. Especially when she’s been pining over him since they were kids, the built up tension, the way they act like a couple but they’re not, ugh!

no bc this is my favourite trope with jj 😭 it's just so fitting and honestly nothing hits like a good brother's best friend trope (at least for me)

You were lying in bed, mindlessly scrolling through your phone when you hear your front door open, followed by the clunking of heavy shoes against the hardwood floors as they walked their way through your home.

At first, you panicked. Was this it? Were you about to get murdered in the comfort of your own home, warm and cozy in your bed? But then it clicked. There was only one person you knew who had loud footsteps like that. He had messy blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes, a cheeky grin. He was most likely wearing one of his worn out cut-offs, and black timberland boots.

Those staple shoes of his were definitely the culprit.

Your doorknob twisted open slowly, and there JJ was. Stumbling into your room with a hazy smile on his face. He tripped over his foot upon entry, leading him to kick his boots off clumsily.

"J, what the hell are you doing? I thought you were Freddy Krueger or something, jeez."

He plopped onto your bed, using one hand to pluck your phone from your hand and toss it to the other side of your bed. He laid between your legs, resting his head against your stomach and wrapping his arms around your waist.

Butterflies erupted in your stomach instantly. Being this close and cozy wasn't new for the two of you; you'd been touchy since you were kids. Endless piggyback rides, cuddling sessions during movie nights, playing with each other's hair, that was just the two of you in your normal state. That's what happens when you've known someone since you were in elementary school.

"Hi," he murmured, nuzzling into you as he got comfy. "You smell good."

Your brows furrowed as you held back a laugh. "Are you drunk?"

"No." A moment of silence passed, and then he spoke up again. "Maybe."

"Okay, and where's my brother?"

"Ditched me for his kook girlfriend."

You hummed in response, starting to weave your fingers through his sun-kissed locks. You heard him sigh in content, and he hooked his legs over one of yours.

"D'you wanna get high?" JJ asked, breaking the silence.

Your hand crept down to his cheek, stroking it with your thumb gently. "I think you're intoxicated enough, Maybank."

He picked his head up, his chin now resting where the left side of his face was previously smushed against. He smiled, his eyelids half closed. "You're always takin' care o'me. So sweet, like candy."

"You always need to be taken care of," you joked in response. The small huff of laughter he let out was like music to your ears. You could listen to it on repeat for the rest of your days, and it'd always be your favourite soundtrack.

His eyes seemed to glimmer as he zoned in on yours again. He released a sigh, before reaching up and cupping your cheek. "You're so beautiful."

Your heart fluttered. You were used to JJ's unrelenting flirtations, but he'd never said anything like that to you. It'd always been lookin' good, mini routledge, or we should makeout. y'know, for science.

"Don't. You're only saying that 'cause you're drunk. It's mean."

His brow arched. "Me thinking you're beautiful is mean? I don't get it."

"It's mean because it's just the alcohol talking," you explained. "You don't really mean it, J."

"I do mean it. Why do you think I'm starin' at you all the time? I have to force myself to keep my eyes off you."

He was pulling at your heartstrings, saying all the things you'd been longing to hear from his mouth for as long as you could remember. It almost felt cruel; the fact that he could say these things so casually as if the memory wouldn't be burned into your brain until the end of time.

"Go to sleep, JJ. We'll talk in the morning," you spoke, eyes darting away from his as you changed the topic.

JJ removed himself from your hold, scooting up next to you and using his index finger and thumb to guide your gaze onto him. His eyes were softened, so vulnerable as they looked at you. He wore a small pout, too, only making you want to plant a kiss on it and wash it away.

"I know 'm an idiot. But one of these days, I'm gonna get my head outta my ass and tell you that I got a major thing for you," he said. "You're gonna be my girl, princess. I'm not sure of much, but I am sure of that."

And with that, he laid his head down on the pillow next to yours, slinging an arm over your waist and cuddling into your side.

"Good night, beautiful."

concepts

[baxtervalentine]

The Heaviside Layer

Or, Cats and the Narrative Parallels of Steve and Cesare

After watching UP and re-listening to the Bigtop Burger soundtrack several times, I'm finally able to put into words while Steve and Cesare are obviously different in terms of personality, presentation, etc., when you consider their stories... they're more similar than you may initially realize.

(Watching the 1998 recording of Cats was also very important here. This will come back later.)

So first of all, what's the first thing that these two have in common, ownership of food trucks aside?

To put it the way Cesare does, they're freaks. They're weird. The only way they are able to fit in with others is by being the head of said themed food trucks, and making the uniforms their employees wear match them.

In other words, they are outsiders.

Even before the narrative begins, Steve and Cesare were shown to be cast aside by others. In "UP", Steve is banished from his home planet because he made a mistake at a crucial time, and the lyrics to Friends In Low Places reveal Cesare "wasn't missed or mourned" after he was killed.

They're both dead to the worlds they once knew.

But then...

"up, up, up, to the heaviside layer" - UP

"I was chosen for a second chance at life" - Friends in Low Places

For those of you unfamiliar with the musical Cats, the Heaviside Layer is the place a single Jellicle cat is chosen to go to at the Jellicle Ball each year to be reborn into a new life. Old Deuteronomy, the role Steve played, is the cat that chooses the one who will go to the Heaviside layer. However, Steve, along with Cesare, is more similar to the cat Old Deut ultimately picks.

I'm talking, of course, about Grizabella.

Grizabella is a former Jellicle cat who tries to rejoin the group, only to be rejected. Act II's opening number, "The Moments of Happiness", is sung by Old Deuteronomy (and was fumbled by poor Steve). It foreshadows Grizabella's last desperate cry for another chance in her big number, "Memory". The other cats accept her, and she is chosen to go to the Heaviside Layer and begin again.

So how does this relate to Steve and Cesare?

Both allude to having a new life, but are followed by their pasts. While Steve is happy with his food truck and his new friends, he is pursued by unknown authorities telling him he doesn't belong and can't belong. Along with being cast out from society millions of years ago, he's now been rejected from doing what he loves twice.

Cesare is almost the inverse. He talks up how he's got new friends (in low places), but he doesn't seem eager to stick around underground, and is vocally relieved that he won't have to be a watcher anymore. Despite being clearly very strange himself, his job is to imprison "freaks and weirdos"- and it might not be a stretch to say he's taken that to heart. Where Steve has no problem standing out, even going out to eat with his employees when they're out of makeup, Cesare insists his own employees make him look less conspicuous whenever he's with them. (Of course, this could be partially because he didn't want Steve to catch on to his plans, but I doubt Steve would have cared, since he had no idea Cesare even wanted to capture him.)

So how can this be resolved? Is there a way to truly begin again?

"Let your memory lead you/Open up, enter in If you find there the meaning of what happiness is/Then a new life will begin" - The Moments of Happiness

This part in "The Moments of Happiness" is sung not by Old Deut, but a cat in the ensemble named Jemima (and then sung again by the rest of the cats). The lyrics and melody are reprised in Grizabella's song, "Memory". She then adds some more.

"Memory, all alone in the moonlight I can smile at the old days/I was beautiful then I remember a time I knew what happiness was/Let the memory live again...

...Touch me, it's so easy to leave me All alone with the memory/Of my days in the sun If you touch me you'll understand what happiness is/Look, a new day has begun" - Memory

"Touch me" has both a literal and figurative meaning here. Throughout the musical, the Jellicle cats are noticeably physically affectionate with one another. They play with other cats while dancing, snuggle, and even greet each other by pressing their hands together. This makes it all the more jarring when the Jellicle cats refuse to touch Grizabella at the beginning- even the curious younger cats are held back from getting too close. It is a visual sign that they do not accept her. After Grizabella sings her song, one of the younger cats reaches out to her and touches her hand. None of the other cats make any attempt to stop her. Then, the Jellicle cats finally show Grizabella the affection they denied her before, letting her finally belong, and of course she becomes the Jellicle choice.

I think, just like Grizabella, what Steve and Cesare need is acceptance and a place to belong. This doesn't mean the whole world needs to say they're okay with clowns, or zombies, or general weird freaks who don't fit in. It doesn't even mean they have to give up the memories of how they got here, be they happy or sad. What they need is to be loved for who they are, and to live without being afraid to do so.

And I think the friends they have are a good place to start.

[mayiwritesomething]

Don’t Change (One-Shot)

Wordcount: 600 words

Pairing: Pedro Pascal x f!reader

A/N: just a small one-shot fluff i wrote after listening to INXS haha

It fits a while after chapter 9 from the main series, but can be read as it’s own

> MASTERLIST

——-

“What you wanna eat?” You asked as you emerged from your room’s bathroom, the steam trailing behind you like a scene from a retro sci-fi movie.

“Well…” Pedro said, lounging on your bed with a mischievous smile. “You,” he quipped, causing you to roll your eyes as he chuckled at catching you off guard. “Okay, okay, jokes aside, babe. How about pizza?” You settled onto the bed in a The Clash shirt, and Pedro ran his hands along your legs as you reached for your face serum on the counter.

“We had pizza last time,” you whined, to which he just shrugged in response. “Can we try something different this time? We've already exhausted the hotel menu, by the way,” you pointed out (there was only two more weeks filming) nestling in beside him as he absentmindedly ran his fingers over your skin.

“Are you sure?” He lifted his head to meet your slightly annoyed expression. “Well… Tacos?” he suggested tentatively, apprehensive of your reaction. “Or should we just order something from the hotel for a quicker option?”

“I don’t know,” you murmured thoughtfully. “I'm kind of over the whole lobster, beef Wellington, and all that fancy bland stuff… Gosh, how I miss my spices and my kitchen,” you joked as you stretched your arms. “But tacos sound perfect tonight. It's chilly outside, and I'm starving, so tacos it is!”

"Alright, just give me a few seconds to order the food so we can start our movie. Chicken for you?" You nodded in agreement as he grabbed his phone. While he placed the order, you applied your serum and settled back into your spot. Once he finished, he returned to your side. "I wasn't kidding when I said I wanted to eat you," he teased once more.

"Oh shut up, man," you chuckled as he wrapped his arm around you, both of you trying to find a comfortable position in bed. You clicked play on the movie you had chosen.

"Pet Sematary?" he asked within the first five seconds.

"Wow, this was a quick guess," you remarked, giving him a playful look.

"I love how you're all about setting the mood with an '80s horror flick on our date night," he joked.

"Well, we can pick another one if you prefer," you said, feeling a bit foolish about your choice.

"No way, babe! I really like this one," he reassured you. You shot him a skeptical glance. "I'm serious," he insisted.

"Okay, then," you murmured, snuggling into his arm and intertwining your legs with his.

"I really dig your taste in movies, you know?" He complimented, looking at you.

"I know you do,” you laughed. “This one has a killer soundtrack," you explained, eyes fixed on the screen.

"Sometimes I forget I’m dating a fucking awesome composer," he said, cupping your face. You responded with a kiss, which he reciprocated with passion.

"Baby, let's focus on the movie for now. We can pick up where we left off later since you're staying the night," you giggled.

"Yeah, let's do that. Otherwise, it'll be Netflix and chill, but with just the chill part," he joked, as you hugged him and hummed in agreement.

"Babe?" He called out.

"What?" you responded.

"Just promise me you'll never change," he said softly.

"I won't," you assured him, planting a kiss on his forehead.

"Good to know. You're perfect just the way you are," he said, drawing you closer. You didn't know how to respond, so you simply held him tighter beneath the blanket.

"Thank you. I promise I won't change," you murmured as he pulled you in closer.

Don't change for you

Don't change a thing for me

[fascinati0nstr33t]

Arcane SSB headcanons

(cus i’ve been replaying smash and the lack of arcane content is killing me-)

Jinx

mains the Inkling or Kirby

i always thought of Jinx as a splatoon player, she’d deffo enjoy the game as a whole (she probably also listens to the soundtrack)

uses the purple inkling girl cus there isn’t an inkling girl with blue hair pipipi

spams the splat bombs and the splattershot

also spams the booyah taunt

another character i think she’d main would be kirby

it’s the “cute but will beat your ass�� character that she would pick

absorbs her opponents none stop

is far more insufferable with kirby than she is with the inkling

WILL rage quit if she’s defeated by a final smash

go-to stages are moray towers and gamer

Vi

started using little mac but stuck to incineroar after first use

spams the down smash where incineroar jumps in the air then body slams to the ground

says she won’t get competitive but does the complete opposite when she loses once

favourite stage is the boxing ring

gets cocky if she has the final smash

always teams up with jinx or cait if it’s a team battle

has beef with isabelle for a good reason or for no good reason

has definitely told cait that she looks like lucina from fire emblem

Caitlyn

started playing the game because of vi

varies from lucina and samus

will definitely be the cause of jinx’s rage

manages to get the most KO’s in team battle

WILL accuse jinx if she spams a side special too many times

does get competitive after a few matches

despises the wii fit trainer with every fiber of her being

go-to stage is the great plateau tower

plays classic mode every now and then

if she’s an excellent shot with her rifle, then she’s getting critical hits in the game

grabs every assist trophy that drops on the stage

Mel

has played smash rarely, but is always up for a challenge

elegant and cunning? she’s maining Bayonetta, specifically her third edit style

palutena’s temple is her favourite stage

is possibly the only calm one during a match

witch time and bullet climax are the combos she uses the most

“if you need to learn how to talk to a lady ask your mum” taunt is used at least 5 times during a match

“it was a fair game, dear” as she absolutely demolishes her opponent (probably Jayce or another councilor)

high chance that smash got her to play the actual bayonetta games-

Ekko

i headcanon him as the bigger gamer out of everyone

saw a fanart of him as twilight princess link AND IT LOOKED SO GOOD🔥

so, ye, he mains link

pirate ship and umbra clock tower are his go-to (cus, he’s the boy who shattered time-)

got splatrolled by jinx too many times

gets pissed if his final smash doesn’t hit anyone

spams the boomerang and bow

impersonates the “HYAH” depending on the combo

uses any taunt animation after defeating someone

has beef with wario and king k rool

Jayce

COCKIEST MF WHEN IT COMES TO SMASH

mains captain falcon

spams falcon punch to the point it’s annoying

just like vi, he gets competitive when he says he won’t

played world of light but made it halfway through

will team up with mel (because he loves her and he doesn’t want to get beat up by Bayo)

secretly enjoys the squid sisters songs if he’s playing moray towers

hates moving stages

made a bet with vi to see who would win a squad strike…he lost

buys everything in the shop

hates that blue gumball son of a b!tch

unironically quotes “show me ya moves” while viktor is absolutely fed up with his bs

Viktor

MY BOYYYY SJDBKDJSKXNKSHDKDKF

he mains fox, that’s it

has won three tourneys with little to no effort

bridge of eldin, final destination and halberd are his fav stages

hates ness, absolutely despises him, and definitely takes out his stress on him

possibly has said “PK FIRE my ass you little shit” at least once

he’s known to be pretty calm and calculated, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t gone absolutely livid in a match

if it’s a free for all, he’s targeting jayce, no second thoughts

has teamed up with jinx whenever vi would team up with cait (they would be a solid duo)

spirit board speedrunner

knows how to target the final smash

he’d probably build a miniature of fox’s ship after having mained him for some time

[starboyshoyo]

RAAAH 6TH TIME TRYING TO SEND THIS 😡😡😡 i hope this works

so i wanted to metaphorically cash in this request you said i could make, and i thought i’d do that as a reward for me getting into color guard!!

can i request the twst boys (surprise me on the characters) with a s/o who dresses in the dark academia aesthetic, listens to classical music all the time, and reads classic literature a lot? (totally not how i wanna be LMAO) thank you so much <33

https://www.tumblr.com/starboyshoyo/712163095699750912/permission-to-just-reblog-all-your-works-cause

A/N: @lacuna-at-dawn hello!! I have finished my AP exams and now have time to write. I didn’t get the other five rqs so it’s good you sent it in again hhhh. Dark Academia is my best friend’s favorite aesthetic so I know a little about it! If I get some things wrong lmk! I listened to the Enkanomiya soundtrack from Genshin Impact while writing this. 

Pairings: Malleus Draconia x reader, Cater Diamond x reader

Fandom: Twisted Wonderland

Genre: general, romance

Malleus and Cater with a Dark Academia-esque s/o!

Malleus Draconia

Oh, dear Child of Man. You were made for him, weren’t you? 

While Malleus knows better than to judge on appearances, he just knows you would fit right into the beautiful, thorny landscape of his home in Briar Valley. You may not be feared by others like he is, but he can’t help but think you might understand what a life in the shadows means. It’s not all dreariness- it can be beautiful too. 

Your fashion sense is apparent to him on days when you’re not confined to your school uniform. It’s not all-black like his; instead, you opt for a mix of muted colors like wine reds, browns, and forest greens. It’s like you’re a lighter version of him- you are the shade to his shadows, the slumber to his death. 

When he accompanies you around the school, he’ll always be one step behind you. It makes him feel as if he is your protector- though it is a bit funny to see Sebek and Silver trail behind Malleus, who trails behind you. Occasionally, Rook will join in (read: stalk them) as well, and then other students will wonder if someone had started a conga line in the hallways. 

Malleus’s view of time is a little bit skewed in comparison to humans, so when he sees you reading classical literature, he might question if it’s a new release because he swears he met the author of the book just last week- nevermind, it was last century. Well, either way, he’ll go out of his way to finally get around to reading it, just so he can discuss it with you. Sebek is a big help in this regard as well- he’ll be more than happy to tutor Malleus in English so he can have more in-depth conversations about literature. 

Classical literature also gives Malleus another way to spend time with you alone. During quiet hours in the NRC library, he’ll pull up two seats by the fireplace and invite you to sit with him, curling his arms around you protectively. You’ll take turns reading out loud to each other- and when you get tired, he’ll continue in that deep, relaxing voice of his until you drift off to sleep. Then, he’ll carry you back to his room in the Diasomnia Dorm, watching over you and keeping you safe until you wake again. 

Besides library dates, Malleus’ most memorable time with you came when he asked you to show him your favorite songs. The music is somewhat melancholy and romantic, and he’ll close his eyes for a moment as he picks apart the notes. It’ll remind him of the slower songs played in the Briar Valley castle at mealtimes- only this time, he isn’t alone.

When he realizes this, he’ll stand up, striding over to you, and hold his hand out while looking at you with the love of the world in his eyes. 

Child of Man, may I have this dance? 

Cater Diamond

Cater is an expert on all things aesthetic. He’s a Magicam influencer, after all, and he needs to keep up on the times! You’ll immediately become a star, with Cater setting up a couples’ page where the two of you post various Dark Academia songs, art, photos, and other media. 

Cater is used to dressing in whatever is trendy, but the more time he spends with you the more he’ll be converted to your fashion tastes. You’d better be ready to see Cay-Cay in turtlenecks, slacks, sweaters and the occasional pleated skirt! He’s not afraid to try everything at least once to find what he likes. 

The two of you will have many dates where you’ll go to swap meets to find academia-esque clothing. He’s open to letting you dig around in his closet to find pieces you like as well. Cater will want you to pose in the mirror with your outfits, so he can snap a photo and post it to your page. The rest of Heartslabyul might be a little surprised with Cater’s change in looks, but they’ll definitely support him when they see how happy you make him. 

TBH, Cater isn’t really into reading much. Books are so old school to him! The fact that they have no screen bores him. The middle-ground you find is digital books. When you introduce him to it, he might be doubtful at first. But he’ll quickly find himself absorbed in the stories as old as time and soon enough, he’ll fall headfirst into the classical literature rabbit hole. Don’t expect him to go to the library though! Just looking at the outdated computers makes him want to retch. 

On the flip side, your boyfriend has always enjoyed classical music very much. Sure, he likes pop and country and rock too, but there’s something super calming and refined to the classics. He enjoys sharing earbuds with you while you walk down the hallways, listening to a mixed playlist of your favorites. 

Over time, Cater will find that he enjoys the calming darkness of your aesthetic over the cutesy, bright one that used to cover his Magicam page. It makes him feel a little more seen- like he can be vulnerable under it all and not have to keep up with appearances as much. 

[iandoubt]

more au doodles!! ^^ *cries*

(This is referring to my Hermitcraft x magic the gathering au. I’m currently working on Joel because I’m definitely not obsessed, and I’ve made him Kamigawan (during the neon dynasty) because it fits his season 10 theme

guys this took so long. And I kind of hate it. But I spent too long on it to not post it so here it is. (Below the ramble)

So I’ve decided Joel is only half moonfolk, which I don’t know if that’s a thing in mtg canon but it is here because that explains the hair, why he’s in Towashi (cause otherwise that would defeat the whole point of him being kamigawan), and also nerfs him for me. No floating for you!! Ig he can just, idk, jump really far? I’m still working things out. (Also i still gotta figure out how Joel’s spark ignites, and how that affects that plot given that I’m setting during the phyrexian invasion, mostly, cause timelines are gonna get a little wonky)

As for Etho, here I have him as a Kami, but that could change later if I decide he’d work better as a planeswalker. The only Kami type I could find that appeared even vaguely humanoid were oonas, but those are specifically only women, so ig trans Etho? Idk, like I said I’m still figuring it out. (Ooh, I could make him a face stealer Kami that I forgot the name of and am too lazy to look up and just ignore the canon design!) currently he’s wearing a placeholder outfit while I figure out his design. also disclaimer I’m kind of ignoring and making up a lot of stuff from mtg canon for this au, so if something doesn’t match what you know about magic lore, you’re just gonna have to accept it and move on.

also I’m sick rn so, um, big sad.

Also minus the background stuff:

I’ve recently discovered that wizards of the coast makes soundtracks to go with each set and i have listened to the kamigawa neon dynasty (it’s actually my favorite set what a coincidence that my fav hermit happened to be there in my au) soundtrack an embarrassing amount of times. Also next I’ll probably do Tango’s design since I know where he’s gonna go (im basically picking a planeswalker or powerful creature for each hermit to base my design, origin, and role in the story off of, and of course Chandra was the obvious pick for tango) but I have to do a bit more research on Kaladesh before I can confirm my design.

also Joel is based off of Tamiyo (so that gives you a clue as to how much liberty im taking with these designs/ backstories/ personalities/ actions / everything of the things everyone is based off of) and for those of you who know the lore, and are wondering if I’m gonna do to Joel what wizards of the coast did to Tamiyo, >:D. Wait and see.

[infinitebrians]

Favorite Games of 2023 Part 6: Phantasy Star Online (Ephinea Server)

This game barely fits even the criteria of ‘game was new to me in 2023’ but I had so much I wanted to say about my experience playing Phantasy Star Online this time around that I’m making this. First off, if you’re interested in trying the game out I cannot recommend the Ephinea private server ( https://ephinea.pioneer2.net/ ) enough. It comes with many community features and other small quality of life changes that make the act of playing the game pleasant without heavily changing the core experience.

PSO is one of my all time favorite games, there's nothing that can match it’s aesthetic, nothing that outdoes it's sort of science fiction look. The coolest looking characters with the coolest looking weapons fighting cool monsters while listening to an all timer soundtrack. Playing this again was just refreshing to me, it felt good to just play a game that's unafraid of being purely about the experience of grinding levels on a character. That's the point of the game, you just wanna level up and get stronger and find cool new thing to make yourself even stronger and cooler over and over until satisfied. After playing so much of this game as a kid entirely offline on my Gamecube, i cannot be thankful enough that there's been a strong and dedicated fan community keeping this game i love alive through fan made and maintained private servers. They are the true heroes.

Revisiting the game this time around has in particular made me discover just how cool and robust the auto chat messaging function is. It was something I either entirely ignored or just used as a means to avoid traps due to opening a menu will cause your character to keep running through traps instead of taking to a defensive walk state. This time however, I just started toying with it and discovered there's just so much to it. The auto messenger is surprisingly dynamic, it’ll react to other auto messages people sent before, floating appropriate responses to the top of the menu and react to where you are in the game. It just has such a wide variety of topics to pick from on and off topic from the game including stuff like hobbies and other real world chit chat subjects. Looking at this feature again in addition to thinking about this just simply incredible promotional video for the game ( https://youtu.be/dyEnJCgTZds?feature=shared ) really solidifies a sort of feeling the game had in feeling like they were really working on something that was going to be the future of games. In some ways they absolutely were, this game was a major influence for other online action RPGs like Monster Hunter and I always felt like Destiny took a lot of inspiration from it as well. The auto message feature (along with the simple symbol chat) just feel like they were coming from an era of ambition and wonder about just how big a game for ‘the whole world’ could be and trying to develop for that whole world.

I also had so much fun raising mags this time, even more than usual! I started raising multiple at a time and keeping notes on the proper way to raising my mag to be the special evolved form. I was so happy to find out just by chance that the player ID I had was the exact right one I needed to make a sato mag, my favorite, non gimmick mag design in the game. Just a funny little cat/fox guy with a huge tail, everybody loves sato! This time around I found myself continually wanting to just keep raising mags and trying out different good mag builds. Not even to really use them even, I’ll probably give them to friends or trade them off for goodies or whatever but it’s just a lot of fun to raise them. Mags being a way to start at level one feeling powerful from either being easily shared from another character has been one of my favorite things in this game. Its such a cool way to start a new character or player out feeling strong that now feels like you're cheating due to how common it is for games to entirely lock down player trading. PSO instead having trading be almost entirely unrestricted feels so cool and communally positive, you can just share cool items you found and don't need instead of being restricted to some intended player progression concept. I always wonder why stuff like mag raising or Sonic Adventure’s chao garden don’t show up in games more often, they’re always a feature that feel like they’re universally beloved and yet just feel like they don’t show up in games often.

The biggest thing I took away from revisiting one of my favorite games was Clown. I started playing this again because I just really needed to walk around Pioneer 2 for a drawing reference which then turned into me making a whole new character and quickly becoming enamored with the game all over again. I’ve never played as a FOnewearl (force class, Newman girl) before so I wanted to try something different and I named them Clown because simply that's what my brother and I thought they looked like when we were kids. I gave them big round glasses and after a short while I found myself falling in love with leveling Clown, the biggest doofus in Pioneer 2.

After that I decided to doodle Clown out of enjoying their design and needing a daily drawing for that day. It’s a really fun design! I love character with big goofy glasses, they’re super expressive and lend themselves well to someone who wear their emotions on their sleeves. So I just started drawing Clown a bunch and sort of nailing down a consistent design for them, what colors to use and some small general preferential modifications to the design from their original PSO design. So, for the first time I was successful in making an ‘original character’ I actually liked and wanted to draw in other things. I love Clown, everyone loves Clown, the people can’t get enough of that Clown! I should really draw more Clown…

This was especially significant to me because something that’s always been bothering me with my art is that I’m doing way too much fan art, I’m super worried my art has very little ‘me’ to them and everything I do is just recreations of someone else’s ideas. Then, on the other hand putting myself out in such a vulnerable way as to share completely original concepts has and still does scare me into paralysis. Clown has been important to me in sort of just sort of taking a baby step into this whole thing, something I really hope to push myself into more and more over time. I have some ideas on some stuff I want to try this year but ideas are cheap and action is scary so we’ll see if you’ll actually see some of it eventually.

I’m hoping that I will some day be able to more comfortably put myself out there with my art and I’m realizing that with the use of create a character functions in games has been the most consistent way for me to start to express myself in a way. Clown has been my most obvious example of this, but I’ve also been really fond of the character I made in Final Fantasy 14, a hrothgar that I made to look like an old man with a big bushy beard and also small golden round glasses. I feel like I’m at my best when I’m not entirely alone in creative stuff, I need bounce off of someone or something else, I’m funnier when I get to riff and joke with someone else. People who can entirely work off of their own intuitions are just so impressive to me, it’s like a super power I don’t know if I’ll ever have.

Hey, if you’re actually reading all this writing at this point, behind the ‘read more’ button, thank you. I figure most people are just gonna look at the picture and be on their way and for the most part that's the intention but its been really nice writing out my thoughts more and even hearing some people talk to me about it in turn. I’ve had a bit of a hard time starting to write this stuff but more and more after each of these posts I’ve become a bit more confident in organizing my thoughts and getting words out correctly. This is admittedly too much for someone to reasonably read about some silly 'favorite games list' so if you’ve cared enough to keep going to this point, thank you so much. You see that stuff up there? Wow! I’m actually saying self conscious thoughts and concerns about things I’ll maybe never fully address out loud! Feed that to your mag to give them some Defense and Magic points!

Revisiting PSO again has been a really positive experience for myself as both a means of reaffirming my lifelong love for this game as well as creating new reasons as to why I should feel passionate for it. I don’t know if I’ll ever stop loving this game and I hope I never a reason to stop. This game to me has some of the best aesthetic and visual identity in the entire medium, nothing will ever top its sense of place to me. I wish I could live somewhere as cool as Pioneer 2 and hang out with cool robots and space wizards all day talkin’ about what cool red boxes they found or how cute rag rappies are. I turned the game on again recently for drawing reference purposes and I totally want to play some more again.

[theresattrpgforthat]

how many ttrpgs do you know of that came with soundtracks?

THEME: TTRPGs With Soundtracks

Hello friend! I knew of a few off the top of my head, and went searching for some more. Many of these soundtracks are playlists of already-created songs, hosted on streaming apps like Spotify, but a few are designed specifically for a certain roleplaying game. Either way I hope you find something up your alley!

Monster Care Squad, by Sandy Pug Games and The Fox in the Flowers.

Long after the crowns have fallen, long after greed has had it's day, long after war, poverty, hunger, and tyranny passed into memory, Ald-Amura's peace is broken by The False Gold, a terrible sickness spreading through its greatest guardians and most beautiful Monsters.

Unified by community and driven by a love for the planet and each other, The Monster Care Squad rises. Do you heed their call?

A game about caring for monsters in a fantastical world is already probably enough to sell a lot of folks on the pitch, but the love for this game shines through in the third-party work available, including Sounds of Ald-Amura, by The Fox in The Flowers. Sandy Pug Games is a creative collective that prioritizes support for the entire team behind any given project, which is probably why their games are so beautiful and so well-crafted.

Long Haul 1983, by SPC. (Spotify Soundtrack)

It’s 1983, and the world feels hollowed out.

LONG HAUL 1983 tells the story of a dangerous journey through an empty world. 

You play a long-haul truck driver trying to make their way home. Every day, you’ll hit the road, navigating treacherous highways, fleeing from menacing threats, and dealing with the psychological impacts of isolation.

And at the end of each day, you’ll find a payphone, make a call, and leave a message for the most important person in your life. 

They never pick up. You never stop calling.

This is a solo game, where the soundtrack is designed to enhance the experience of loneliness and isolation, using ambient sounds and hits from the time period this game is set in. The game comes with a list of songs meant to be played during certain moments, as well as a list of songs that are designed to be background atmospheric pieces. If you want something that elevates your solo journaling experience, this game might be for you.

Orbital Blues, by Soul Muppet Games. (Soundtrack)

It is an intergalactic age of cowboys, outlaws and bandits playing on an interstellar stage. It is a time of hyper-capitalism and a cut-throat gig economy. Unreliable trash-heaps carry scrappy underdogs to their next gig, and corporation freighters lumber across the horizon laden with an empire’s bounty.

These are the music-fuelled, moon-age daydreams of a rebel space age. 

These are your ORBITAL BLUES.

Games inspired by tv shows and movies have a great starting point in finding music that really fits the tone - you can start with the soundtrack of the things that inspired you. But Chris Bissette was not happy to simply show you the soundtracks for Cowboy Bebop and Firefly and call it a day. They created a custom album to play alongside the game that’s a little soulful, and a little rock n’ roll. A soulful space-western kind of game lends itself really well to music to evoke melancholy and loss, so I definitely recommend listening to some of this if you want to play Orbital Blues or any other game inspired by the same sorts of media.

The Wildsea, by Felix Isaacs, and Songs of the Lignin Tide, by Liam Peregrine Vaughan.

Your character is a wildsailor, part of a crew cutting their way across the island-studded wilderness of the treetop sea on a vessel of your very own. You’ll clash with survivor cultures and wild beasts, scavenge and salvage for wreckage and trade-goods, chase rumours, and uncover secrets. The focus of this game is on exploration, progress, and change - you’ll define the world of the Wildsea as you sail it.

I’ve talked about The Wildsea extensively in the past, so I’m just going to talk a little bit about Songs of the Lignin Tide. The Wildsea community is dedicated, inspired, and creative, and that leads to some amazing work created by players, for other players. Songs of the Lignin Tide is one of those examples. It uses a wealth of different sounds to add richness and texture to this unique and verdant setting, and it feels like the creator drew heavily from their own experiences of playing the game. I highly recommend you check it out if you want more Wildsea in your life.

Quietus, by Sinister Beard Games. (Spotify Playlist)

QUIETUS is a one shot, prep-less RPG of melancholy horror. It’s a game for a GM and one or two players, and emulates tragic horror movies like Oculus, The Strangers, The Babadook, Inside and the Netflix version of The Haunting of Hill House. If a piece of fiction can make you cry and scream, then it’s a great model for the sort of stories that you can tell with QUIETUS.

The music for Quietus is also a Spotify playlist, with a collection of songs that fit the tone of a tragic horror game. It’s an hour and forty-three minutes long, and since Quietus is meant to be a one-shot, I have a feeling you might have to play through it more than once, or let Spotify generate similar songs after the playlist finishes up.

GoblinMixtape’s Soundtracks, by Sam Leigh.

While creating a soundtrack on your own might be a daunting task, using established songs to fit the vibe of your ttrpg is much easier, and GoblinMixtape (aka Sam Leigh) has connected many designers to playlists designed to emulate the feeling of their games. There’s quite a few playlists already created by them, so I’d recommend checking out this list of playlists if you want to see the games she’s worked on before.

[stoic--rose]

my chemical brothers cds finally came in!!!!! so uuuuh i guess ill do overviews of each album.

Dig Your Own Hole - 1997

almost certainly my favorite chembros album. full of pumpin beats, punchy drums, unique vocal samples, pretty much everything i love from electronic. the eponymous track is very good, but my favorite track has to be Get Up On It Like This. i love the brass sample they use, its just too damn good, i can never get enough of it. Electrobank is another favorite, the vocal tracks at the beginning are pretty fun, and i like what it turns into later. (bonus points for just having explosion samples at the end) Setting Sun is the first song on the album to have full lyrics which is pretty cool, and the way this album ends is just so outta left field but damn its good as hell. Where Do I Begin is such a laidback and chill track that feels very introspective, and The Private Psychedelic Reel is just a journey of a song. also, my favorite part of this album is the middle section, specifically It Doesn't Matter, Don't Stop The Rock, and Get Up On It Like This. each track flows neatly into the next, and theyre all really good tracks. Don't Stop The Rock has this squishy, unorthodox synth in it that i really fuck with. It Doesn't Matter also has this pulsing, harsh bass that i like a lot. overall, a phenomenal album with back to back bangers and a soft side near the end.

Surrender - 1999

this album is actually home to the first chembros song i ever heard, that being Let Forever Be, a personal favorite of mine. Surrender has a lot of good to it, though i dont think it's one of my favorites. Music:Response is a really good opener, Orange Wedge is super funky, i already said my thoughts on Let Forever Be, but other than that there's not too many standout tracks here, at least to me. Under The Influence was on the WipE'out" 3 soundtrack and fits in pretty well there, but listening on its own its nothin to write home about. Hey Boy Hey Girl is weirdly popular, but it just doesn't do anything for me. Out of Control is good, but it drags on a bit too long for me. the eponymous track is good though, i like that one. overall, i think surrender just aint for me mostly. its got some tracks i like, and ill definitely listen to it all, it just isnt gonna be my first pick.

Push The Button - 2004

for this album, the focus on electronic is pushed to the side a bit to make way for a more lyrical, hip hop focused album, and nowhere is that more clear than the opening track, Galvanize, which is chembros' most well known song. and i like it well enough! the wordsmiths here do a great job, and i like the string sample that permeates most of the song. that being said, i think it drags on a bit and is a little too long? you could definitely cut this one down and not lose a whole lot. but it has the catchiness to not make that runtime boring, for sure. after Galvanize comes The Boxer, which is probably my favorite track on the album. by this point the change in style for Push The Button is starting to shine through more, but the chembros know how to make it work, and MAN does it shine in The Boxer. it has this looping, cut up sample of a keyboard that i just cant get enough of, and the vocals here are super great. other tracks of note are Believe, which has a lot of cool noises in it, Shake Break Bounce, which has some cool drums and guitars, and Left Right, a commentary piece on war, which i can always appreciate. (shoutouts to Flobots) Close Your Eyes is a classic chembros move of having a more relaxed, uplifting track near the end of the album, and it does its job super well. overall, while Push The Button is very different from everything chembros had done up to that point, i think they tackle the new style really well and deliver a lot of unique bangers here. really great stuff.

[q-gorgeous]

Broken Dashed Ladybug Chapter 4

ao3

fanfiction

hehehehe

Danny bent over, out of breath. 

Why was gym class a thing? It was cruel and unusual punishment. Pure torture. 

Sam barked out a laugh as she ran up behind him. “Come on, Danny. This is my fourth time lapping you.”

“Just because you have some super human abilities doesn’t mean I do. How are you so fit?”

Sam chuckled. “I don’t spend every waking moment playing video games in my room.”

Danny stood up straight and started jogging again. “I don’t spend all my time playing video games. I do… other things.”

Nothing he could tell Sam about anyways.

Sam snorted. “Gross.”

“No!” Danny shouted. “You’re gross, Sam! You’re the gross one!”

“But you’re not fooling anyone.” Sam ran ahead of him and turned to face him so that she was running backwards. “Jazz says all she hears you doing is playing on your computer. All she hears you listen to is the Doomed soundtrack.”

“It’s a good soundtrack.” Danny was glad that the music tricked Jazz into believing he was in his room when he was really out doing patrol. 

“How come you never invite me to play anymore if you’re on all the time anyways?” Sam shot him a small smile. “I can't even remember the time we-“

Something flickered in Sam’s eyes and she suddenly stopped running.

“I gotta go. I’m going to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.”

“What?” Danny followed after her a couple steps but then she broke into a jog. “Are you okay?”

She waved a hand over her shoulder as she left but didn’t say anything to him. Danny just watched her go. 

Suddenly someone was shoulder checking him. Danny hissed and glared at them, rubbing his shoulder. 

It was Dash. 

“What, did your girlfriend finally get sick of you?” Dash sneered at him, jogging in place as he taunted Danny. 

Danny scowled. “She’s not my girlfriend.”

“What, is the loser brigade finally breaking up now that Foley isn’t here to hold it together?”

Danny ground his teeth together, his hands forming into fists and he glared at Dash.

“I don’t know what your problem is, would you just stop talking about-”

Danny stopped talking when he heard maniacal laughter coming from the air above them. He looked up and saw someone jumping through the air towards them. 

Danny’s eyes widened. An akuma.

Dash took a step back and looked around as their classmates started running away.

“Ah! What have we here? These are some tasty emotions, that’s for sure!” 

The akuma landed on the ground in front of Danny and Dash. She was big. Her body looked as if it was made of shadows, or fire pulled from the void. Her eyes glowed red and her smile was manic. 

“Your grief is palpable. How is it that you haven’t succumbed to our Empress’s akumas yet? Your emotions are so powerful!” 

“Who are you?” Danny asks. 

“I am Spectra!” She shouted, flourishing an arm through the air. “I live to make others miserable and to steal their beauty and youth! And you seem to be an excellent meal.”

She moved to dive towards him but he jumped out of the way just before she landed on the ground where he was just standing. 

Dash made a move to run away but tripped over a rock in the grass and fell to the ground. 

“Wow, look at you. Afraid to be in a situation where you are no longer strong enough to defend yourself?”

Dash scrambled across the ground, backing away from the akuma. 

While her back was turned, Danny ran off into a grouping of trees near the edge of the school grounds. 

He transformed and when he swung over to where they were, he saw that the akuma had picked Dash up and held him inside one of her giant hands. 

“Let him go!” Danny shouted at her. He pulled his yoyo out and started twirling it. 

“Ah, the famous Ladybug! We finally meet!” 

“I need you to let go of the civilian.” 

She stared at him, a calculating expression on her face before she smiled a too wide smile at Danny as she gripped Dash in her pointy hands. 

“You don’t like this boy do you? I can smell the hatred coming off of you.” 

Danny pointedly kept his gaze off of Dash. He couldn’t let her get anything on him. Couldn’t let her in on how close she was getting. Or let Dash catch on. 

“What is it about him?” She grabbed Dash by the face and twisted his head to face her. “Is he a little too pretty? Is he popular? Is he everything you aren’t?” 

“Put him down.” Danny said as he stared at her, yoyo still twirling in his hand. She barked out a laugh at that.

“Why would I put him down? The emotions coming out of your hatred for him are delicious!” She licked her lips and then turned to look at Dash. “But there’s not much of anything coming off of him. He doesn’t seem to hate the famous Ladybug. What could this superhero have against an ordinary civilian, hmm?” 

Dash’s gaze shifted to land on Danny, studying him. 

“Ah there it is!” Spectra exclaimed. “That little bit of fear. Why are you so afraid of your hero hating you?”

“I’m not.” Dash said quietly.

“Oh? Are you sure? Your emotions don’t lie. You can’t hide it from me, no matter how hard you try to hide it from him.”

Danny ground his teeth together and looped his yoyo around a street light and pulled himself into the air. He swung around and kicked Spectra in the stomach, causing her to drop Dash. Once he hit the ground he pushed himself back up and started sprinting towards the school. 

She hissed and turned her head as she watched Dash run away and Danny saw a lone earring on the other side of her face that he didn’t notice until now. 

Spectra made to chase after him but Danny looped his yoyo around her waist.

“Now come on, are you trying to play with your food?”

She turned to look at Danny, another maniacal smile on her face. “Forget him. Your emotions are much more filling. More delicious. More complex.” 

“You’re a terrible flirt.” 

Danny looked up just in time to see Chat Noir hitting Spectra in the back of the head with his baton.

“If that’s her idea of flirting, I can see why she wants to make everyone else miserable.” Danny said to Chat Noir when he jumped down beside him. 

“I do have to admit though, you do look pretty delicious.” Chat Noir sent him a smirk and Danny blushed.

Spectra chuckled and they both looked back at her. “Chat Noir is afraid of his partner secretly hating him. Oh, that too is delicious.”

Danny shot another glance at Chat Noir. He was staring up at Spectra with wide eyes. 

“I think the akuma is in the earring she’s wearing.” Danny whispered. “She only has one.”

Chat Noir shook his head. “Right. Any plans so far?”

“No, but-”

Spectra was bringing down a hand over them and Danny jumped to push Chat Noir out of the way. 

“Why would Chat Noir be afraid of Ladybug hating him? Where did he get that inclination from? I wonder.” 

Danny stood up and threw his yoyo into the sky. 

“Lucky charm!” 

A polka dotted tennis racket fell into his hands. The wires in the center were broken.

“Maybe Chat Noir has run into Ladybug as his civilian self and had a sour encounter. Maybe Chat Noir is keeping secrets from his trusted partner.”

Danny tuned her out as he looked around for a way to use the lucky charm. 

“Maybe Chat Noir doesn’t really think he’s a hero at all. He’s losing everything and taking it out on others.”

Danny’s eyes widened. He’s got it.

“Chat Noir!” He shouted. “Be ready!” 

Chat Noir nodded at Danny before they both jumped in opposite directions. 

“Chat Noir fears losing the one he loves.”

Danny swung around behind Spectra who had her attention on Dash. Danny waited and watched, waiting for the right moment to jump.

“He’s worried about not meeting Ladybug’s expectations. What will he do if Chat Noir isn’t who Ladybug wants him to be?”

“Now!” 

He jumped at Spectra from behind, who turned to face him, giving him the perfect angle to bring the broken tennis racket down and around her earring. He pulled it off and flung it in Chat Noir’s direction.

“No!” Spectra yelled as Chat Noir caught the large earring in his hands.

“Cataclysm!” 

The earring turned to dust and fell to the ground. A purple butterfly gently rose into the air. Danny caught it before it could get far. 

“Gotcha.” 

He released the butterfly and picked the tennis racket back up.

“Miraculous Ladybug!” 

Once the ladybugs fixed everything and he saw that Spectra was back to her normal self, Danny jumped away. He could hear Chat Noir following after him.

They landed on the roof together and Danny turned to look at him. He looked a little distraught.

“Hey, are you okay?” 

Chat Noir looked at him, a searching look in his face. 

“Yeah, I’m- I’m.. fine.”

“Oh. Okay.” Danny turned to jump away as his earrings beeped. “I gotta-”

“You would never hate me, would you?”

Danny’s head shot up and he turned to look at Chat Noir again. “What? Of course not.” 

Chat Noir smiled at him sadly and jumped away. 

Why would Chat Noir be so afraid of Danny hating him? Spectra was just trying to get under their skin. Yeah, maybe there’d be some worry with their secret identities. They didn’t really know who the other was. That had to be it. 

Danny jumped in the opposite direction and swung towards the school. After traveling a couple blocks, he dropped down into an alley and transformed just after he hit the ground. 

Danny didn’t know what time it was, but he knew he needed to get back to school before he missed even more of it. 

He ran out of the alley and was looking down when he ran straight into someone else. 

Danny bounced off their chest and took a step back. When he looked up he saw that it was Dash Baxter standing in front of him. 

“Watch it-.” Dash shoved Danny away from him and furrowed his brows. “Fenton? How did you get all the way out here?”

“You watch it, Dash.” Danny brushed himself off. “What does it matter what I’m doing? Too worried about someone catching you skipping class again?”

Dash scoffed. “Like you’re one to talk. You’re literally skipping class right now. You skip class almost as much as I do. Maybe even more.” 

“How would you know? You’re not even there.” Danny stared up at Dash challengingly. Dash frowned down at him. 

“What’s it matter to you?” 

Danny shrugged. “I just wonder what it is you get up to. What’s so important to Dash Baxter that he’d risk his place on the football team for it? Oh wait, he already lost his spot.”

Dash slowly stalked up to Danny and bent down so their faces were level. He grabbed the front of Danny’s shirt and yanked him up. 

“Listen here, you little shit.” Dash hissed into Danny’s face. “I’m losing everything due to my responsibilities. You don’t know what I’m going through. What it’s like not meeting the expectations of those closest to you. I’m not what they want me to be. So stop pulling my whiskers, you flea.”

Dash threw Danny away from him again.

Danny’s stomach dropped as he looked up at Dash.

No.. It couldn’t be. It had to be a coincidence. That wasn’t him that Spectra said those things to. It was-

Danny took a sharp breath. 

Chat Noir. 

Dash was Cat Noir? His partner? His best friend? 

The one he was falling in love with? 

He saw Dash frown at him and he reached forward to wave his hand in front of Danny’s face. His mouth was moving but Danny couldn’t hear anything over the ringing in his ears. 

Dash reached towards Danny but then took a step back as he looked over Danny’s shoulder. Dash’s eyes widened as his gaze landed on Danny’s ear and he could feel something slipping into his necklace. 

Oh no.

“Hello, Danny. I am the Purple Empress.” 

No, no. Danny clenched his head and started walking backwards down the street.

“I never wanted to do this, Danny. Especially to you.”

What? 

“But it seems you’ve had what I wanted this whole time. I’m sorry to do this to you.” 

Danny could feel the transformation take over him and he looked up just as Dash called on his own and started running towards him. Then everything changed. 

[flanaganfilm]

Hi Mike,

Who picked the soundtrack for Midnight Mass? I thought Neil Diamond’s songs just synced so well with the story and the location . I played Holly Holy at least a thousand times, literally could not get it out of my head after watching the show.

I’ve also watched MM, many, many times, except the scene where the dog is killed. Can watch people getting the blood sucked out of them but not a dog being poisoned. 🤷‍♀️

I love your work and can’t wait to watch your shows on Amazon.

Thanks,

Chris

I chose the music myself! Holly Holy is actually written into the script line by line for that montage. My mother used to play Neil Diamond on long car trips when I was a kid and his music is a part of me. I had imagined that Holly Holy montage years before we actually sold the show and opened the writers room. The rest of the songs are important to me as well. Annie listens to Harry Chapin's Saturday Morning while making the Crock Pot Luck banner, which was one of my favorite songs in High School.

At the Pot Luck itself, Gordon Lightfoot's If You Could Read My Mind was a hugely formative song for me, and remains one of the most beautiful chord progressions I've ever heard. I think Dave Matthews' Bartender is a spectacular song, and already working in themes of religion with alcoholism. And Democracy was a song I listened to frequently while we were making BLY MANOR (though I mostly listened to the Lumineers cover.)

I'd very much wanted Neil Diamond's Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show, as it fit the show perfectly, but I decided against it after Tarantino used it in ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD.

[vmures]

No Skip Albums: Tag Game ✨️

Thank you @oldefashioned for the tag! 💜 Music is one of my favorite things.

Rules: share the albums that you can listen to nonstop. those lightning in a bottle-albums that scratch ur brain just right. every single track, an absolute banger. u could not skip one if u tried. no notes. stunning, show-stopping, immaculate. ur no-skip albums.

These are listed in no particular order. Pretty much just as I think of them.

Beyoncé - Cowboy Carter

This is a phenomenal album all the way through and I've been listening to it a whole lot. I love the various music traditions that get interwoven throughout. It's truly a genre defying album while also being very much a country album. It also reminds me of my own Louisianan roots.

2. Taylor Swift - Midnights

Taylor's got a lot of great albums and compelling songs but this one really drew me in and I can just listen to it on repeat for hours.

3. Tracy Chapman - Collection

It was super hard to pic a single album by Tracy Chapman cause many of hers fit this tag game for me. But collection is one I absolutely love. So many great songs. Tracy is one of my favorite artists. Her voice is so beautiful and powerful and her lyrics so thoughtful and potent. It's music that just speaks to my soul.

4. Natalie Merchant - Tigerlily

I probably drove my high school roommates (I went to boarding school for two years) nuts with this one. And all these years later it remains one of my favorite albums. There is something so soothing about it for me.

5. Sarah McLachlan - Fumbling Towards Ecstacy

Another one from my high school years. It's hard to believe this one is celebrating it's 30th anniversary this year. Where on earth did the time go? This one has so many heartfelt songs that I still love to sing along with.

6. Various Artists - The Crow Original Movie Soundtrack

Love the comic, the movie, and this soundtrack. My favorite song on it is still Jane Siberry's It Can't Rain All the Time, but all the songs are fantastic.

8. Fleetwood Mac - Greatest Hits

Another one from my teen years. Lol. I listened to this one so many times I nearly wore my cassette out. 🤣 It ended up being my soundtrack for the entire Last Herald Mage trilogy and to this day when I hear some of the songs I think of those books. Still a fantastic album and still one I really love.

9. Jack Johnson - In Between Dreams

This is another artist I had a hard time picking a single album for. 🤣 Ultimately this one won because it is one of my favorite of his albums. If you can't tell, I have a fondness for well written lyrics and singer-songwriters.

10. Yoko Kano and the Seatbelts - Cowboy Bebop Remixes: Music for Freelance

The entire soundtrack for Cowboy Bebop is amazing, but I have a particular fondness for these remixes. I still love putting this one on and jamming out to it and I enjoy the little segments of Radio Free Mars we get as well.

So there we have it, ten albums I adore and will happily listen to on repeat with no songs skipped.

If you are interested in playing along, please consider yourself tagged! I love learning more about what others enjoy!

Til next time. See you, space cowboy.

[unsightedjoker]

Spider-man: ATSV NSR AU

Ok, I usually don’t post stuff and only reblog and like stuff but since i just watched Spider-man ATSV and I really liked it that it hasn’t left my mind and won’t leave it any time soon I’m still so hyped I feel like sharing this. I was on my way home when I started to listen to the NSR soundtrack and the inevitable happened just remembering the premise for the game and what happens in the movie I started connecting thoughts and this entire AU happened.

My writing isn’t the best to make a fanfic that does justice to my ideas at the moment and hell if I can’t write I have even worse at drawing so making fanart for this is also out of the picture.

For anyone who doesn’t know NSR (No Straight Roads) it’s an indie game from 2020 that’s very underrated from what I’ve seen. The plot is very simple a Rock duo Mayday (a guitarist) and Zuke (a drummer) enter a competition made to scout for new talents that want to join NSR, a company that besides functioning as a music company works as the main energy supplier for the city by using a Mcguffin that transforms music into energy. Anyways NSR turns out to be a group of EDM artists that have complete control over the city and never allow any other genres to join especially not rock, so after getting rejected and suffering a city wide power outage (which NSR is completely inmune from) our rock duo decides to start a revolution to bring back Rock and take down NSR by hijacking their concerts. If you have not played it take this as a recommendation the art style, gameplay and music are reaaaally good (worth mentioning the music for each boss is dynamic it starts as EDM but as you start having the upper hand the music turns into a rock version of the same song).

The premise for the game and having Gwen and Hobie right there in the movie made this AU inevitable in my mind so I’m sharing it here.

So the characters I’ll be using changing for the AU will be the two main protagonists and the 6 main bosses of the game.

First off the protagonists

Because it’s a guitarist and drummer Gwen and Hobie take Mayday and Zuke’s place that one seems a bit obvious to me. It can also be Gwen and Miles but I ended up choosing Gwen and Hobie. However instead of starting their movement after being rejected by NSR they’re fully into their revolution agenda and hijacking the EDM concerts

DJSS

The first boss is Dj Subatomic Supernova and honestly that one was also an easy pick as he directly fits with Spot, especially because of his last phase in his fight where his face breaks and it looks like a black hole ejecting black matter or whatever. They’re both also so self-centered and silly.

SAYU

Sayu is the second boss and consists of a virtual idol (like Hatsune Miku) made as a project by four adolescents so for the au she could be made by peni parker and the virtual reality spiderwoman (i can’t remember her name :’) ) but idk who else could be put as one of Sayu’s creators in this AU.

YINU

Yinu is a child pianist prodigy so for her I’d go with Mayday Parker, since Yinu also gets help from her mother during the fight I guess Mary Jane helps her or maybe Peter B. idk? It’s just that Yinu’s dad in the game is dead and that’s also one of the reasons she plays her piano because her dad taught her. Yinu’s character is supposed to represent the lack of control child prodigies have in their lives because their parents or guardians are in charge of making all the decisions during their youth so I imagine Hobie would spend a bunch of this confrontation telling her to go wild and start doing whatever she wants to do while Gwen would tell Peter or Mary Jane to pay more attention to Mayday and be a better single parent, culminating in the piano solo at the end of Yinu’s boss fight

1010

So this one’s a bit weird but hear me out. 1010 consists of a boy band made up by 5 robots that are almost identical with the exception of their color and hairstyle so in this case it’s five alternate versions of Miles Morales robots as a boyband while the original Miles (the one that isn’t a robot) is Neon J (the creator of 1010) in this AU. I ended up choosing Miles for this one because despite how much Mayday says she despises them she has a crush on 1010 and while Gwen and Miles wouldn’t really act like Mayday and 1010 respectively I still chose this because of that.

In a similar way Gwen has a crush on 1010Miles but she isn’t entirely into it because the Miles robots have an artificial vibe to them like prefabricated charm and personalities, they can fool a lot of people but not everyone. Once one breaks and the real Miles comes out to replace it they start focusing on him, Gwen and Miles throughout the fight start to realize they like each other mean while Hobie goesout of his way to show how he’s in the wrong as he should question the stuff they do and shouldn’t be following NSR, by the end when they defeat Miles he ends up accepting it and actually rooting for them to beat the remaining members.

I’m using an action figure as a substitute for robots lol

EvE

This one I reserved for my favorites Nadia (EvE) and Pavitr. Eve happens to be an eccentric artist and Diva that is the second in command because of her skill. There’s a couple of reasons I chose to have Pavitr in Eve’s place:

First, during the briefing before her fight it’s stated that the “instrument” she uses to make her music is her body and mind in contrast to all the previous artists which have actual specific instruments (from sinthesizers to a piano) which doesn’t explain much until you get to her fight and see her dance, she dances (and probably uses a bit of magic as well or something) to make her music. If I’m gonna give the ability to make music through the movement of their body to anyone it’s gonna be Pavitr.

Second, during her phases Eve shows she can warp the space around her in what she refers as the Diva’s realm and from what I remember the part of diva’s realm is supposed to be a reference to Deva’s realm and Devas are deities from hinduism if I’m not mistaken, so there’s also that.

Last but not least I like a bit of angst. In the game its shown Zuke and Eve used to have a good relationship as they were a duo and know each other closely to the point Zuke knows what’s going on in her mind while many don’t, however after a certain incident they disbanded. Similarly in this AU they used to be a duo until they received an invitation to join NSR, Pavitr wanted to share his music and art and be in contact with everyone in their community so he accepted, this however was a deal breaker for Hobie so they disbanded. Once he got his position Pavitr could share his music however after being put in a pedestal he no longer could keep in touch with his community as much when he wanted leaving him feeling isolated and only focuses on his craft now as a way to cope. Their fight besides being about taking him down would have the purpose of mending Hobie and Pavitr’s relationship.

TATIANA

This one was also very obvious Miguel takes Tatiana’s place. To begin they’re the respective leaders of their antagonistic faction but also majorly because the entire story of NSR and ATSV happens because both of them had a very specific personal problem and instead of dealing with it by themselves or getting help to solve it they decided to make it everyone else’s problem and never even try to recognize that maybe they’re wrong.

And that’s it that’s all I have in my mind