#music is something so personal i am not trying to impress anyone with my music taste (i don’t think i could if i tried tbh 🙈)

[jeanmoreaux]

mish i am so happy we're both in the category of "generally listening to the same artists every year" haha. i always get a bit embarrassed for having almost the same artists in my top 5 the last few years but it's actually completely fine

ioana i am ao happy we’re in the same boat as well <3 i really enjoy listening to same albums and songs and artists over and over again, so i also don’t see anything wrong with having the same people on rotation in your top artists every year sjdjjdjsjsj like, i can’t help it! it’s literally not my fault that these people just have so many bops in their catalogue.

[hiiikiko]

ellie x masc reader??

𝕖𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕖 𝕨. 𝕩 𝕞𝕒𝕤𝕔!𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣

ellie x reader | tlou m.list

OKAY to preface this, i love mascs BUT i am very much not masc, im very much femme so im not sure how good this’ll be but i tried my best 🫡

tw: smoking and uhhh idk ya

‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿

♰ ellie is drawn to you because you both have very similar style, she loves how you dress (she’s maybe even a little jealous of how easy it is for you to pull things off)

♰ one day she approaches you and asks where you got your pants from, you tell her and compliment the way she dresses which makes the tips of her ears burn red bc how could someone as cool as you even take notice of her?

♰ she immediately befriends you and wants to spend every waking moment with you, she’s initially writes it off as the two of you being very, very good friends

♰ until one night, she’s staying over at your place and the two of you are smoking and talking, while you’re talking about how so n so did something dumb, ellie’s just staring at your lips and how they suck in another puff from the joint, then when you’re about to pass it to her, she leans in for a kiss

♰ after that night, ellie stayed over for days sometimes even weeks at a time until she moved in with you

♰ the apartment you share is a little messy but clean, of course, ellie demands to have a music setup where she can display her cds, cassettes, vinyl and stereos

♰ you two share a closet! one of the many benefits of dating someone with a similar taste, sometimes it’s a little frustrating when you’re trying to find a certain shirt because you both share the same color palette (eventually you learned how to differentiate clothing based on texture fun fact abt me: all my clothes are black and i can do this lolz)

♰ ellie loves going on dates with you, like she LOVES it’s, it’s her favourite thing ever! she loves going on hikes with you, playing games, watching movies, cooking (although, she burns the food because she always ends up being distracted by you)

♰ ellie doesn’t trust a lot of people, but she thinks you’re the most genuine person she’s ever met and because of this, you’re allowed to touch her bangs with scissors

♰ ellie loves when you wear compression shirts, she loves you in baggy clothes too but she loves when she can see your heavenly form, it makes her go feral and want to take you right then and there

♰ she also loves when you’re wearing a sports bra and shorts like GOOD LORD she is kicking her feet and giggling

♰ she loves when you send pictures and she’ll always send you some in return ;)

♰ another thing ellie adores about you is your hair! whether it’s long or short, she loves running her fingers through it and tying it up or braiding it, it gives her fingers something to do and it feels nice for you

♰ she loves when you do the same as well, she likes when you put her hair up for her, especially when she’s busy writing, drawing, cooking, she just likes that you thought of her

♰ she wants to start a band with you, you can be the hot lead singer and she’ll be the bassist

♰ SPEAKING of music, she loves to make playlists for you, play your favourite songs for you, and even WRITE songs for you

♰ ellie loves that you two are so similar and that she can act herself around you without having to impress anyone (but you, of course, she’ll never cease trying to impress you all the damn time)

[leviathans-watching]

Could you please do the om brothers x reader where the reader thought they were home alone so they were doing chores while listening to music and dancing but then the brothers find them? If that makes any sense

the older brothers catching you dancing

includes: the older brothers x/& gn!reader (no pronouns mentioned)

wc: .6k | rated g | m.list

a/n: oml this was so so so cute! i hope you enjoy! my inbox is temporarily closed to reqs but still come chat w me!

please reblog :3

lucifer leans against the doorframe, watching you. you don’t note his presence, too absorbed in your activity, which seem to be less cleaning and more dancing.

you’re not trying to be good, or impress anyone, and lucifer can’t hear whatever music you’re listening to, so the overall effect is more comical and than impressive, but as lucifer watches, he thinks it’s actually quite cute.

then you begin to sing, and it takes everything in his power for him to stifle his chuckles, not alert you to the fact that you’re being watched.

you finally turn around, freezing when you see him. “um, hi,” you say, pulling out an earbud, and your embarrassment is quite adorable.

“hello,” he says quietly, unable to hide his smile. “quite the moves that you’ve got there.”

“ugh, don’t even!” you cross your arms. “why didn’t you say anything! this is so mortifying!”

“because it was cute,” he replies simply, honestly, and somehow, you get more embarrassed.

mammon calls out for you, knowing you’re home, but when he receives no answer, moves further into the house. when he finally finds you he can’t help but stop, struck by how funny you are.

you’re totally in your own world, using the duster like a microphone.

normally, mammon wouldn’t hesitate to whip out his ddd and take a video, as it would doubtless garner thousands of likes, but something stops him. he kind of wants this moment all to himself.

eventually, when a few minutes pass and you still don’t notice him, he moves further into the room, reaching out to you. at his touch on your shoulder, you spin around, startled, then break out into a grin.

“oh, hey!”

“how goes the cleaning?” mammon asks with a wry smile, and you shrug, unashamed.

“eh, well enough. how was your day?”

“better now that i’ve that,” mammon says, and you roll your eyes.

“yeah? well, you know what would make my day better?”

“what?” mammon asks, folding his arms. he already knows the request is going to be dumb.

“if you dance with me!”

you stare at him with an expectant smile, then hold out your hand. with a half-sigh, half-laugh, mammon takes it. “i can’t hear the music,” he warns, and you shrug.

“that’s okay. that only mean’s i’ll have to lead.”

levi is struck by a cuteness overload. “oh my gosh!” he mutters to himself. “this is straight out of one of my domestic, slice-of-life animes like i find my partner dancing in the living room while they’re supposed to be doing chores. how lucky am i!”

on top of that, he can hear you humming the tune and it’s totally one of ruri-chan’s theme songs! you’re like, the most perfect person ever!

eventually, you seem to tire out and stop for a break. levi moves in then, heart pounding.

“mc, that was so cute! you should totally become an idol and dance and sing on stage!” he pauses. “wait, no, don’t do that! i couldn’t bear to share you with anyone else. i’ll get jealous!”

“when are you not jealous,” you ask, turning to face him with a smile. “and don’t worry, i don’t have any plans to go pro. how ling have you been home?”

“oh, you know, a few minutes,” he answered nebulously, and you squint at him.

“you’ve totally been watching me, haven’t you?”

“it’s like when a fan sees their favorite being cute,” levi defends. “i wasn’t going to spoil the moment.”

“you’re such an otaku,” you say. “but, thankfully, i like that side of you so i suppose that’s fine.”

leviathans-watching's work - please do not copy, repost, or claim as your own

[sensitivehandsomeactionman]

350 fans attended. 10 fans per table. Buffet style. It took a long time for us to all get our food, pick a seat and sit down. 10 minutes later, Jensen and Steve walked in and greeted all of us from the stage.

Jensen started by explaining how they got this panel idea: because he often gets band related questions in panels and he feels bad about it sometimes, because not everyone with him is involved and they couldn't weigh in. (He jokingly lowered his voice)"Jared", and he doesn't want anyone to feel left out. And also, the only person(s) who could answer Radio Company related questions are either him or Steve. So they got the idea of doing a panel specifically for music related questions together and since we are in Texas, BBQ!

How do they collaborate with each other? Jensen said Steve is the more musically talented of the two, he is the one who could read music and communicate with professionals and explain what they need. Jensen just, he considers himself as having sharp ears. He might not know what exactly something was called but he knows when something just sounds right (or wrong), just by listening to it. And Steve is the one who enriches and develops from his hunch, and communicates with other professional musicians to work on them. Because, Jensen admits, he does not have the vocab of all those technical terms.

They did a little demonstration with guitar, Jensen strung a simple tune and gestured to Steve, and Steve was like, "You want me to do it here, now?" but he picked it up and made it into a much more complex melody and Jensen laughed, "now you are just showing off!" Steve mentioned it's like Jensen's "acting stuff" and Jensen fake astonished like, "Acting STUFF?" And Steve was like, How would I know what you do? All I know is you were always off busy doing your...stuff!

City Grown Willow. It's a song Steve wrote as a gift to a couple of his friends 10 years ago. The husband was from Colorado (cowboy) and wife from LA. They had split up now but they were a great couple. And the song was just kind of put on the shelf after it was written. One day Jensen and Steve were trying some music together, and Jensen asked Steve if he has anything that's already baked. Steve said you know most of my stuff already! You were there when I wrote them! Then he suddenly remembered, oh there is this one...and afterwards Jensen was like, can I have it? And that's how it came to be.

How did they first start? They were both from Texas and became friends in the good old days. Early 2000s they were roommates in Vancouver and Steve sometimes recorded at home. When he was recording his first album, Jensen walked in and was like, what is that? I love the song. He casually sang the harmony and Steve was like, I didn't know you could sing? Jensen was humble about it and said something like, Yeah I could carry a tune now and then. But Steve was so impressed he insisted for Jensen to record it properly right there. Well they were at home anyway so, no biggy? And Steve ended up using Jensen's harmony for that song in his first album. And it went from there. They've collaborated together and developed more than 50 songs now.

Austin summer! Hhh Steve is an Austin local. He said every year he gave a birthday concert. It's a small gathering, just for friends. And this year is the 10th anniversary and everyone was like, Steve, could we do it anywhere but Austin for this year? August, too hot! And he was like, well, yeah, all right. And then Jensen called, and his 10th anniversary concert was still held in Austin! Last week. Jensen said, Well, it was meant to be! Also Jensen: I used to live here! Austin is great! But not in June, July, August, and sometimes throw in September too. Never liked Austin summer, and why did creation choose August I have asked this question for a year now.

Fans asked him what he misses most about Texas and he said, I don't? I am still here all the time. I am here now, I was here a few weeks ago and then a few weeks before that. My whole family's still here my mom and dad are in Dallas I often visit them. So I kind of... I didn't catch what he said after that but I got the idea that he thinks of himself more like commuting, instead of permanently moved out.

They mentioned an Easter egg they put in one of their songs, they used the exact same letters for 2 sentences and they were really proud of it and high fives each other all excited afterwards. I think it might be All Our Own but I'm not sure. Maybe someone else remembers?

The new song Home on the Road Jensen was shooting Rust in New Mexico and rented a small house next to the Rio Grande river. It's quiet and out of the way and he walks on riverbank trail on his day off and loved it. When Steve visited and they tried to hum a tune out and once they got it, the first words came out of Jensen for that tune was "home on the road". Just like that little house, his home on the road. Both him and Steve travel so much for work, it resonated. And they wrote the song. They said it's not polished yet but they sang it for us anyway. The tune reminded me of City Grown Willow. I think it'll become my new favorite.

If they were invited to perform in ACL festival will they go? Jensen: No!! Steve: Ugh definitely? Jensen: So here is your answer. Steve will drag me kicking and screaming to there. They laughed so hard and then Jensen said, no any time you have a chance to perform in that capacity, of course you go.

Talked about Kaleo and JJ. J2 and JJ are friends and they get together whenever JJ visits and they'd love to collaborate together if ever get the chance. This is all I could recall!

[bookskeepers]

third time's the charm ♡ chapter five

content warnings: light, awkward, both of them don't really know how to talk to people, reader makes a tiktok reference, abs, bra mentioned, no nsfw, tsukishima might be ooc sorry lol

word count: 1,646

a/n: i am running out of gifs. also sorry if my writing feels british my internal monologue is the same voice as baldur's gate 3's narrator 💔

also sorry this took so long ? it sat in my drafts for a week holy shit

taglist: @wakashudou

previous ♡ masterlist ♡ next

Tsukishima Kei has three rules he follows when he's hooking up with someone.

1. Keep all communication to Tinder.

2. No dilly dallying.

3. Do not stay the night.

Of course, rule 2 had some exceptions -- occasionally he'd watch a movie to lead up to the act, but no more than that. He views hookups as a business transaction: get the goods and dip. Luckily, both sides (usually) benefit.

♡*•.¸♡¸.•*♡*•.¸♡¸.•*♡*•.¸♡¸.•*♡*•.¸♡¸.•*♡*•.¸♡¸.•*♡*•.¸♡¸.•*♡*•.¸♡¸.•*♡

He hadn't intended to stay the night at all after your romp together. He meant to help you back into your underwear, maybe cuddle for a few minutes, and then leave. But with the way your head rests against his chest, and with how comfortable you look, how is he supposed to say no?

Your hair is splayed out around you, strands tickling his skin. He finds himself absentmindedly tracing patterns on your near-bare back with his fingers as he scrolls through his phone with his free hand, willing exhaustion to hit. Your dorm bed, despite being the same as literally every other dorm bed, is somehow comfier than his own. Maybe it's because he's sharing it with you, although he's not sure.

More often than once, he catches himself observing your sleeping form. Your head is on his chest, your torso turned so that your boobs are pressed against his own torso. He can feel the silky material of your bra against him, and he wonders if you're uncomfortable. It looks like the wire's digging into your skin from his vantage point. One leg overlaps his own while the other remains straight on the mattress, and the arm he can see is splayed out on his ribs. He watches as your chest rises and falls slowly, the pattern of your breathing steady in your sleep.

"You fell asleep so quickly," he mumbles out loud, impressed. Part of him thinks you're a little stupid; who would let someone they just met stay the night? And why would you fall asleep so quickly on a stranger?

Another part of him finds it endearing, though. To be instantly trusted by someone in such a vulnerable state... it's not a feeling he's used to.

None of what just happened was what he was used to.

Sex is a fickle thing, he thinks. He has his own experience with it, most of it involving smooth R&B playing in the background, the music intermingling with the sound of skin-on-skin and feminine -- and occasionally masculine -- moans. It's never been without music, and there's never been conversation when the act's actually started.

He enjoyed the conversation, though. Listening to you try to form sentences while he went down on you was erotic in its own way. Maybe it was the teasing nature of it, or the way you'd gasp and fall silent, head thrown back in pleasure, before struggling to gather your thoughts and continue.

He finds that his eyes are drifting shut despite trying to keep them open, that he's playing with something very dangerous. After all, he thinks it wouldn't be too hard to get addicted to this: laying in a twin XL-sized bed that's too small for two people with you using him as a mattress more than you're using the actual mattress. The weight of you on his body is more comfortable than he'd ever admit to anyone, and your mannerisms and personality have already been etched into his brain. You're different.

The thought snaps him out of his reverie and he physically cringes. He doesn't think you're the kind of person who'd enjoy being told, "You're not like other people." In fact, he thinks you'd probably smack him, although he doesn't know you nearly well enough to be confident in this assumption (but he's right. You would smack him, only because you take comfort in knowing there are other people who are as weird as you, if not weirder).

When his eyes open again, sunlight is streaming through the window on the far side of the room. At some point during the night, you must've gotten up to put on a shirt -- his shirt, he realizes with a jolt -- because you're no longer laying against him bare-chested, instead now clad in a loose, black tee. He fumbles around for his phone, discovering it underneath his ass. He taps on the screen a few times, watching as it lights up with a photo of him and his volleyball club from high school. The time reads 10:32am, and you're out like a light. No one ever said sex wasn't tiring, though.

His movements must be disturbing your slumber, because you shift in your sleep. One of your legs ends up fully over him while his free arm ends up trapped between your body and his. You sure know how to make yourself comfortable, he thinks.

Slowly, delicately, he extricates himself from your hold, each move calculated as not to disturb your slumber. After all, he hadn't intended to stay the night -- vague memories of the mild shock on your face after you asked makes him think you hadn't originally intended to ask, either.

He pulls his pants on before remembering that there's a bit of a dilemma. You're wearing the shirt he came with, and he half-heartedly wonders if anyone's out and about on campus on a Saturday mid-morning. It's not that he's embarrassed of how he looks, he would just much rather be able to blend into the crowd with ease. Being shirtless would prevent that, probably.

If he was wearing athletic shorts, on the other hand, he could pretend he was going on a run. Alas, he wore jeans to your dorm. It seems his options were either leave and demand you return his shirt via Tinder, or--

"Where're you going?"

Your sleep-tinged voice cuts through his thought process, and he snaps his head up to look at you. It seems his movements were not calculated enough, since you're now awake. He watches as you blink sleep from your eyes, turning onto your back to stretch your limbs out in all directions with a quiet groan. You sit up in the bed, glancing from him to the shirt you're wearing. "This isn't mine," you say at last.

He lets out a slight chuckle. "No, that's mine. You must've put it on during the night. And I was just heading out, actually."

You let out a gasp, clapping your hands over your heart. "Without even saying goodbye? How cold. How cruel, Tsukishima. I'm heartbroken." Your tone is light, teasing; he can't help but smile in response.

"You were sound asleep. I didn't wanna disturb you." His eyes trail over your body, hidden by a combination of his tee and the blanket that's draped haphazardly over your form.

You raise one eyebrow at him, a devious look in your eyes. "So you were just gonna leave my dorm without a shirt on?"

"Was hoping I could pass as someone going for a morning jog."

"In jeans?"

He falls silent at that, because how could he refute those words? You were just voicing his internal argument, anyways. He lets out a huff and sits on the edge of your bed, taking care to avoid squashing your feet under the blanket. "You have a good point," he finally mutters. He's not sure why he feels embarrassed, but he can feel the tips of his ears heat up as a blush begins to crawl down his features.

"I make those sometimes," you say. He glances at you and catches you looking away from his torso, your cheeks now dusted with the color of shame from being caught in the act. He lets out another chuckle.

"You can look, you know. It's not like I'm actively trying to hide it."

Your response to that is to fish out a pair of sunglasses from your nightside table and put them on before shifting your body to face him. You lean closer to his torso, remarking, "Sunglasses are so great because no one can tell where I'm looking," before straightening up and taking the accessory off. "Sorry. Got struck by divine inspiration for that one."

He just shakes his head, a look of feigned annoyance passing on his features, before he holds his hand out. "Can I have my shirt back now?"

You let out a sigh, rolling your eyes. "I guess." With swift movements, his shirt is off your body and in his hand, exposing your bra -- and upper body -- to the elements. Now it's his turn to stare, and he does so without shame.

"You literally saw all of this last night," you state after a brief period of quiet. That snaps Tsukishima out of his reverie, and he puts his shirt on.

"Yeah? You saw all of this--" he gestures to his now-clothed torso, "--last night too."

"Touché."

The silence returns as he stands and shuffles about the room, seemingly aimless in his wandering. This time, it's tinged with an undercurrent of awkwardness, as if neither of you are sure about what to say next. Finally, he relents: "I'm gonna go now."

"Sounds good!" is your automatic reply, and he watches as you immediately facepalm. "Not good as in, you suck get out, good as in, go live your life, I swear."

"Haha, I got it, no worries."

And with that, he's out the door, the image of you shirtless in your own bed seared into his retinas.

Another round wouldn't hurt, right? is all he's thinking about as he walks back to his own dorm, trying to mathematically calculate how much time should pass before he reaches out to you again. Because you, as a person, seem to have him hooked with your charm and your appeal.

Besides, he's already broken one rule with you -- what's the harm in breaking the other two?

[enigmaticstareyesee]

So.

I've been in this Warhammer 40k shit for less than a year and to be real, I'm really enjoying it.

Now, of course one of my fave characters is Fulgrim, you can (and maybe will) sue me. However, I am a deep sucker for character rising from the bottom, trying to (but essentially breaking themselves to) fit in, falling from heights because of their own hubris/insecurities and becoming something that they never foreseen for themselves. (And of course, hopefully, overcoming these personal obstacles and blooming into the person that they wanted to be.)

I haven't read the Fabius books yet but of course, I know about clone Fulgrim and (shockingly) I adore the idea of Clongrim and I see the MASSIVE amount of potential. However, The potential I see does not necessary align with what some of the more main fandom sees for Clonegrim.

I don't really want him coming back to the Imperium to just beg for forgiveness and worshipping his brother's feet and then becoming a lap dog for G-man.

I feel as though this would be a disservice to pre heresy Fulgrim, his character and the suffering He has inflicted on himself, his legion and the innocents of the Imperium.

If he was to come back, what I would really like to be shown is how productive and diplomatic (and dare I say how compassionate) Fulgrim is. I don't want him to grovel at anyone's feet because that doesn't achieve what Fulgrim (and the other Primacrhs) can achieve. ( Also not to be rude or to come off inductive, but the main's obsession with rooting for Clonegrim to beg on his kneels for forgive is a little strange)

Yes, I want him to apologise to his brothers, but I want him to work on those relationships through diplomacy and understanding. For chist sake, demon him beheaded G-man and that would put so much tension between those 2 which would challenge both of them, as they both are consummate professionals.( like the Lion came back in SoTF and can use his words, surely Fulgrim can) (he impressed his father, The Emperor, with the power of his words and their understanding)

Yes I want him to be held accountable for his legion but I want that to be shown through his cleverness and fighting ability. His repentment for how he had handled them before the fall and, low-key, after should a large part of redeeming himself for himself and for his legion. Like, The best way I can describe how he handled his legion was very much a parent who's constantly having to look after the youngest sickly child, while allowing all of his older children to have way too much freedom. (Only thing was all his kids were sick cus he was trying to find a cure)

Yes, I want him to see the state of humankind once he had sided the chaos, but I want him to be shown as productive within the current wars of the imperium.

(I just wanna make it clear to some people, I know that 40k is not a happy place with happy people, I currently know that the imperium is essentially a rotting corpse and that resources are stretched thin. I don't want Fulgrim to become a Knight in shining armour (fuck no, it would kill him) however I want him to helpful and use his Initiative, whether that is helping G-man on terra or helping other planets, hunting his demon brothers down or fucking doing something about the rich and pompous. that are infecting the Imperium.)

And yes, I want him to confront his obsession and need for perfectionism. I want him to confront his need to conform to a standard that he placed on himself and his legion (not fully, necessarily) but I want that to be shown through his determination and will power because those are the attributes that help him transform chemos and his little (200 or so) legion into spectacular things.

BUT

In anyway or shape or form do I want that to change the make-up wearing, long haired, purple and gold colour schemed, miner's son and factor working turned interstellar diplomatic, one of the best dualist, lover of arts, music and culture, sculpter himself and low-key blacksmith and charismatic Primach ?

No.

I want all of that to still play into Fulgrim being him, I just want him to be the comfortable in his own skin

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk, I'm literally making this post because I have been thinking about this character and his legion for 5 months and I've wanted to speak to people about him but I'm so awkward.

(Sorry for spelling and grammer mistakes)

[hwalilac]

Ateez Kinks

⇴ a/n: I do not know Atz personally, nor am I trying to say that any of this is truthful. I am only guessing based off their personality, and my experiences with them and their content.

Hongjoong

Exhib: Although he’s possessive of his lover, he also loves the idea of one of his members walking in on you two having intimacy. Mostly because he loves showing off that you’re only his to touch, the boys can look but not touch. However, part of him just likes being watched, knowing how powerful he is, loving intimidating those who watch.

Sp*nking: He adores disciplining you. Loves when you act like a privileged little brat so he can get it out of you. He’ll drag you over his lap, make sure your ass is bare so you’ll feel every slap, and make your ass tomato red. He especially loves pairing it with dirty talk, so once he’s done, he’ll find you soaking wet and leaking all over his thigh.

Seonghwa

DD /LG: Nothing to do with age, but more so taking care of his lover, sexually and romantically. He also gets off on being called “daddy”, though I think he would be okay with “mommy” as well. He’s also very good with his lovers that fall into sub space, treating them well and appropriately.

Impreg: Something about thinking of your tits filled with milk, stomach round and big, it makes him harder than he’s ever been before. Part of him wants to be a dad so badly, so there’s definitely a romantic part of the kink. However, he also just likes how hot you’d like being pregnant. Especially when he thinks about how you wouldn’t be very active when close to labor, so you’d just lay there and be ready for intimacy most of the time.

Yunho

Bo//ndage: He loves having complete and total power over you. The way you struggle getting out… it makes him hard instantly. Sometimes he’ll just leave you there, often with a vibrator attached to your clit, and have a camera recording you. He’ll also sit in a chair in the corner of the room, where the light doesn’t reach, watching to beg for him to touch you.

Sensory Deprivation: He loves putting a blindfold over your eyes. He loves the trust you put in him, to be able to control your body and senses. He’s often gentle when doing this kink, as to not overwhelm you too quickly. He mostly just lightly touches you, or uses a toy, but nothing serious. Sometimes he includes earbuds with music, but it’s not often.

Predator/Prey: Yunho feeds off of the power and dominance you give him. He loves playing hide and seek, especially at night. He always knows where you hide, but it’s fun to play regardless. Especially when you try running from him. He loves to catch you more than anything, pinning you down and taking you right where he finds you. You can resist all you want, but when he finds you, you’ll take what he gives you (unless you say your safe word, which Yunho would probably take a safe word the most seriously out of anyone)

Yeosang

Manhandling: I truly think he likes showing off his strength. Something about the way you check out his muscles, touching and squeezing his body. He loves impressing his lover. Then again, he also loves you being helpless, flailing around in his arms as he carry’s you into your bedroom only to ruin you. He loves the dominance he feels when you’re helpless like that, but he always checks in on you to see if you’re okay.

Voyeur: He often likes to watch or listen to other members fucking their lovers. He really doesn’t want to be creepy, but something about watching the dynamic of two lovers, especially when it’s dom/sub stuff, he just gets so turned on. He’ll be standing outside of Seonghwa or Hongjoong’s doors, quietly groaning with his hand on his hard on.

San

Shibari: Not only does he loves creating art, but he just loves watching you struggle in the ropes once you’re too turned on. Loves pressing a vibrating wand against you and watch you squirm. But the art… there’s nothing like finishing a difficult, yet beautiful piece on you. And then he’ll take a picture to get off to later on.

Edging: He LOVES edging his lover. It’s like a game to him, something he needs to win. This man will edge you for hours upon hours. However, he’s very careful not to push you too far. He’s not too rough on you. But once you cum, you practically black out, your orgasm being so powerful. He knows how to get you there in seconds, but also in hours.

Mingi

Oral: Not exactly a kink, but he gets off on it like a kink. He loves burying his face in your cunt, sloppily licking and sucking. He practically gets drunk on cunt. It makes him so painfully hard, he ends up rutting on the bed while trying to get you to your orgasm. He doesn’t tease though, knowing you would whine or just shove his face back in your core.

Overstim: He loves having your hand wrapped around his cock, pumping him until he can’t cum anymore. He loves putting his trust in someone else, and being taken care of. He can often go for a long time, but needs breaks. He usually gets so sleepy that he needs a lot of aftercare.

Wooyoung

Overstim: Same with Mingi, he loves having the sensation overwhelm him to the point where he’s begging and almost crying. Sometimes he’ll even do it to himself, legs shaking violently at the pleasure and pain. He’ll usually do it until he ends up with over three orgasms.

Edging: Wooyoung also loves teasing his lover. Sometimes he takes you to the very edge, loving the way you cry and beg for his mercy. Unlike San, he’s not as careful. He’s quite mean in bed, not only edging you physically, but patronizing you verbally. His dirty talk certainly helps get you there, but he’s genius at knowing when you’re about to cum.

Roleplay: He just loves thinking of the most fun, yet weird scenarios to try out. His favorite is always being a CEO, who fucks their secretary. He’s always wanting to try something new, up to most scenarios. Not very into pet play, although he will play the owner if his lover wants to be his little slutty kitten or puppy.

Jongho

Manhandling: Jongho can’t help but dig his hands into a pair of thick thighs, lift his lover up and through them onto the bed. Couch, even. He always makes sure you’re safe, though. But there’s nothing like showing off his amazing strength, and watching your tits bounce after you land. He loves exuding power over you, and his strength is one of the ways to remain on top and be dominant.

Breath Play/Choking: Again, something about the power you give him, the dominance he uses to not only pleasure you, but to love and protect you. If you want to be choked, he’d do it in a heartbeat, staying up all night finding the safest yet most pleasurable way to do it. His hand on your neck, he loves fucking you while doing it. Loves bringing you to the edge, so your orgasm is even more powerful and overwhelming.

I do not give permission for anyone to repost my work

[crooked-wasteland]

Hazbin Hotel Live Blog: Overture

. While I am being kind to the show as it is, I cannot push out of my mind the fact that this is still Vivienne Medrano, and while this seems to be an interesting direction the series is considering to take the story, I am lacking any intrigue. Medrano has a knack for interesting ideas, but once executed are often trimmed down from all nuance and then played in the most straight forward and storybook fashion.

Evil existed before and separate from Lucifer

Eve is linked to the root of evil through the animation

Dichotomy of Lilith and Lucifer

Why does Heaven think Hell will rise up?

Charlie is reading the storybook to herself. Aloud. And the reason is because she’s like a child seeking comfort. Also Charlie’s delivery of “Pretty worked up” is just feeling off. Like isn’t this supposed to be a somber moment? Why is it delivered so chipper? The pilot had her crying and singing a lamentation. Downgrade.

Info dump dialogue

“This kingdom was something she really cared about.”

Vaggie’s voice is such a downgrade. She sounds so uninterested.

“Daddy issues by fixing you” So alastor knows about Charlie’s family situation already.

The lineart around Alastor is so distracting. It’s so bizarrely thick.

I wish there was no dialogue

Her dad calls her but she is supposed to have a strained relationship.

I feel like Medrano doesn’t know what Angel Dust is. As in the actual drug. PCP is not Cocaine.

That was the worst segue into a song I ever saw.

“If you dont mind the smell, it’s a happy day in hell.” I hate this line.

Vaggie just never sounds right, does she? Her singing is so nasal dominate it doesn’t sound like her throaty modal voice.

What was the contract? What did it say? Why even have Charlie sign anything if we have no concept of what that is? It is such a rip off from Ariel’s contract in the Little Mermaid that it feels more like an Easter egg than relevant to the story actively being told. You need to show why the actions happening are taking place, you cant just do things and expect us to pick up the pieces for you. Are you trying to get across that Heaven is full of bureaucracy and paperwork? There is no receptionist and no other person in the building until she signs ONE paper. You failed at portraying an overabundance of bureaucratic red tape and it is distracting and infuriating. All I see are the better DISNEY MOVIES that were clearly just plagiarized. Not an homage, not inspired. Plagiarized.

Lucifer calls Charlie to meet Adam. Adam says he knows. So this doesn’t feel like this is Charlie filling in, the way the dialogue is written is that it was specifically planned for Charlie to meet Adam.

Everything has a gradient.

I bet $15 that the Dickmaster portion of Adam’s dialogue was Alex Brightman’s improv. I was not impressed by his Kaiju Dick improv in Oops and this is just as flaccid. Pun intended.

There is a clear discccrepency in talent between Alex and Erika. He has such a smoother voice and range while Erika feels like a Disney understudy where every delivery is pretty much identical to the last. Like the songs themselves are not doing her any favors. They range from bad to mediocre, and even in the better songs, there is always one horrifically bad lyric that just ruins the entire experience.

I like Lute. She feels like Peridot.

RIP Katie Killjoy.

Nifty is cute. The joke for her had a lot of potential of being hilarious but didn’t meet my threshold of comedy due to lacking a feel for Nifty. Imagine if she was in every scene with Vaggie talking her head off and never shutting up. Then when Vaggie is like, “If anyone can sell this hotel, it’s Nifty.” And we had this foundation that Nifty is known for being a huge chatterbox only to then be dead silent when the camera is on her. It would have been hilarious. But we see her once and she has one singular line previous. So it just feels like a cheap visual gag.

As a musical, it is lackluster. I see that Evil is something separate from Lucifer and something he dislikes. Lucifer is said to see free will as a spring of creativity, but humans used it to suck and that killed Lucifer’s love of life. In the meantime, Lilith is empowered by Hell. Hell fuels her sense of freedom, which she spreads through her “songs”. Only for her to just vanish I guess. She just hopes out without a word, Charlie says she must be doing something important over the last 7 years, but no inclination on what important things Lilith would be doing. Additionally, Lilith is said to have loved Hell, like Charlie. So it sets up this idea that Lucifer dislikes Hell or even hates it, while Lilith revels in it. Alluding to their marriage falling apart from this dissonance. At the same time, Lucifer calls Charlie to meet with Heaven, despite the pilot being canon. So we get the impression that Charlie and Lucifer had a falling out (“Maybe dad was right.”) but she doesn’t have much more than surprise at her father calling. Then he just sets up this meeting for her to meet with Adam off screen entirely. It is unclear how this was conveyed, but Lucifer doesn’t believe in Charlie and her meeting Adam has nothing at all to do with her hotel.

But the way Adam talks about the meeting is unusual in that it gives the impression that it wasn’t about Charlie “filling in”, but that this whole meeting was specifically set for Charlie and Adam. This is compounded by how the ending reads like they didn’t know if the angel was dead until that moment. So the extermination being moved up has nothing to do with the angel’s death. Maybe I’m wrong, but this all feels really disjointed.

But Lute really is just Peridot. So much so that when asked what I liked about the episode, I literally said “Peridot”, not Lute. The one good aspect of this episode is another stolen concept from a better show with a more competent creator. But I also like Alex Brightman’s singing. He is very talented and he does elevate the material by really playing with his delivery, but it’s still at best Mid due to the weak lyrics,

3/10

[alexjcrowley]

Braddavid/Cookiecash headcanons (I did not invent cookiecash, I took it froma a Tumblr user who took it from a fic on ao3)

-Brad's love languages are acts of service, quality time and gift giving: any kind of gesture that he can later justify saying he did it for his own benefit or amusement. Acts of service? Oh, no, I manipulated you by doing a good thing for you and now you owe me (never going to ask that favour back). Quality time? I enjoy watching you being pathetic, it amuses me. Gift giving? A bit trickier, but "there was a discount at Starbucks if I ordered two drinks/I found this at the flea market/a book, so maybe you'll spend your time reading instead of annoying me/you cannot show up to a meeting with Montreal with that tie, consider this a necessary purchase for the company".

-David's love languages are all of them, but trying a bit too hard. The kind of things that would make anyone go "that's pathetic", except, if you loose the fake coolness for a moment, they're actually very sweet. Lots of compliments. Gifts with a 50/50 rate of success (the successful ones are usually Ducktales themed). Afternoon spent renting a small paddleboat in the park lake (David falls into the water). PDA but someone burst in the office and suddenly it's a very embarassing situation. Cooking dinner but he ends up burning it and they have to resort to take out. David's love language is trying and Brad should find this utterly pathetic and weak, and instead he finds the effort all the more endearing, especially because David never gives up. What has this man done to him.

-Basically every morning, before they start living together, David woke up early to get Brad a mochaccino. Every. Single. Day. Brad had to tell him to stop (because of his ED, he feared gaining weight). David still made a point of bringing Brad coffee every morning. Brad justified to himself accepting David's kindness as taking advantage of a fool. He had the upper hand because David was gifting him coffee, surely no ripercussions, especially emotional ones, would come out that situation. Brad was winning and he had everything under control.

-David is surprisingly self-reliant. Here went Brad thinking he'd have to beat his partner with a stick to let him have some alone time, but David is way less clingy than one could imagine. He has a lot of hobbies (many stereotypical suburban dad hobbies, but still): cycling, barbecue, music (he is still trying to learn to play the guitar), meditation ("It really helps, Brad, you should try it!"), cooking (with...various results), Turkish soap operas ("My wife" "Ex-wife" "used to watch them, so to bring a spark to the relationship I started watching them with her, you know, to spend more time together, and now we're divorced but I am still hooked") and more. If you leave him alone, David will find something to do. David says it has to do with his childhood, only child and all that, he's used to lonely afternoons, he learned how to fill them. The rapidity he takes up hobbies with is frankly impressive. Brad hates to admit it, but sometimes he finds himself to envy how many pasttimes David gets up to. It's incredible for such a lively person full of interests to pass so often as a boring one. Brad will (secretly gladly) hear about David talking about his million hobbies.

-David learns Brad's birthday and never forgets it. He makes a big deal out of it the forst time, organising a surprise birthday party, just like he did when Zack told him it was Brad's birthday. Brad is not at all pleased by the situation, until he remembers birthday parties mean gifts, to him. That's the only reason he's willing to forgive David for making all that fuss.

-It becomes second nature for Brad to buy David's favourite cookies everytime he sees them. At some point they have 5 unopened boxes in the kitchen. Brad is appalled by his own stupidity while David beams with love.

-David speaks a decent (canadian) french, Brad speak a France french and costantly makes fun of David's accent. But they use their knowledge of french to talk shit about people in MQ without them understanding, especially Poppy and Ian.

-They almost stop speaking to eachothers, even before they get together, due to Brad's ED, because it's not something Brad wants to confront, but David can't repress his worry. Brad starts making small steps and David makes sure to be a comforting presence along the way, without being a smothering one. He makes sure Brad eats something everyday, often by having lunch/dinner with him.

-David is a child when it comes to alchohol. Literal child. He pretends to enjoy whisky, because that's what men his age do, but he doesn't. He is a simple red wine/white wine/beer man (that's the only distinction he does, he wouldn't know a pinot grigio from a cabernet), and he doesn't even handle it that well. Brad is an absolute snob when it comes to liquors and his knowledge in alchohol ties directly with the social value it brings in a conversation with rich people. David is an affectionate drunk, which Brad hates in public because how is he supposed to keep his cool when David hugs him and declares his love for him in front of anybody who cares to listen?

-The day David started asking people's opinion on shaving his moustache was the day Brad had to reluctantly and embarrassingly admit he liked David's moustache too much to risk see it gone. David kept the moustache and never let Brad live that down. The endless teasing made Brad reconsider the tragedy of a clean-shaven David, but it was already too late.

-David's obnoxious with petnames, really, Brad can't understand the unironical appeal in being called "baby", "honey", "dear". Well, actually dear is not the worst. The worst was Brad-bear, and, as a matter of a fact, it had never been repeated after it fatally escaped David's mouth and Brad looked at him like he was trying to kill him with mind-powers. It really is a testament to how sloppy Brad has become since he's with David, because it takes him a while to understand that David is trying to be smart, to be subtle, and failing miserably. He is attempting some sort of influence. So one day, after taking the mochaccino David bought for him, Brad goes "Thank you, darling" and David can't help but smile, blabbering something like "I-It's nothing, really". It's the little things, Brad thinks drinking his mochaccino.

-Brad starts using polish petnames for David. Even when David has no idea what they mean, he is incredibly happy to hear them. Only half of them are sort of insults.

-David has secretly started to learn polish, even though it doesn't come so easy to him. He practices it in secret in Sue's office.

-Brad has gifted David a wolf plushie. David loves it.

-David has made Brad several Spotify playlist which Brad refuses to listen to (or so he told David).

-Despite great insistence, David did not manage to get Brad to do a couple costume with him on Halloween. David still showed up with half of the couple costume. Brad tried to convince other people he wasn't David's date, to spare himself the embarrassment. And it was also working with people who didn't know him and David directly if he didn't have a ring on his finger and the words "my husband, David" didn't roll on his tongue so naturally.

-David refuses to admit he found Brad very hot in Everlight when he was fighting with the sword because he is aware, the moment that slips out, Brad will find a way to use a sword again, possibly in public, explicitly to tease him. And David is a man who knows his limits, and knows he couldn't handle it.

-David is somewhat unaware of how much Brad has softened with him, because Brad is still very sharp and sarcastic around him. David doesn't think Brad is cold towards him, but still, he thinks, 80% of the time and always in public, Brad is still pretty much Brad, he just insults him a little less. From an external point of view, anyobody who has ever met Brad can tell he is another person when it comes to David, 200% kinder than usual. When Brad "insults" David is more of a playful jab about his fashion sense or being a pushover, when Brad insults anyone else is a call from Carol in HR for Brad and, for the unlucky soul, new material for the next 5 session with their therapist.

-Contrary to popular belief (at least about Brad), David and Brad are not a very "glamorous" couple. When they first got together, people at MQ thought that David was the boring one and Brad was going to bring excitement and dare into his life. There were a lot of jokes on David not being able to keep up with Brad's lifestyle. Truth is, apart from work related events, Brad doesn't like to go out and mingle too much, unless he has a specific purpose. Outside MQ, they are the most ordinary boring middle-aged queer couple you could ever meet. At least that's the image they project in David's neighbourhood (which is not a cool, fashion neighbourhood like the one in which Brad lives). The neighbours see them at the rare neighbourhood events they attend, and David is your classic "let me work the barbecue, I have expert knowledge in grilling" suburban-dad-looking guy, while Brad only speaks about stocks and cryptocurrency.

-Brad is master at chess (he used to play professionally when he was very young) and every game of cards (he counts them), David sucks at both. Brad refuses to teach him because he likes to win (and he doesn't want to lose charming points revealing his tricks).

-Brad doesn't see the similarities between he and Huey's voice actor in the new Ducktales. He is offended when David says even he could hardly tell them apart.

-Brad tried to imitate Scrooge McDuck's voice, but he sucked at the impression. He can do a generic Scottish accent, though.

-They tried to use David and Brad in a spot about MQ being an inclusive workplace and Brad threatened to make 0 the price for any weapons again.

-Brad doesn't believe in PDA but he does believe in being the last ones to leave the office after a bit of fun in their shared room.

-People costantly assume Brad is way younger than he actually is and sometimes they give David weird looks because of it or they make illed jokes about it. David is mortified, but Brad loves it, "It's not my fault I age better than you".

-One day David asked Brad to see his number one. "What do you mean?" "You know, like Scrooge McDuck? You're such a big fan, I thought you had a number one of your o-" "Don't be ridiculous, David, I am a forty-two-year old man, do you actually think I keep an old coin in a velvet box in the name of citationism?" He does. He does, but he doesn't show it to David until he proposes. Because he proposed with the coin. He slid the velvety box on a table saying that it was his most priced possession and the fact that he was showing David meant David was the person he trusted the most in the entire world. Then Brad proceded to tell him that for him that was the greatest love gesture he could think about (after all, everyone knows that stealing Scrooge McDuck's number one would have brought to his end, Brad is metaphorically trusting David with his life)."I think...I don't say this lightly, and I will say it only once, but I think...you are to me the only person as important as my number one. This is serious, very serious for me, you understand?" David did, and was speechless. He felt almost embarrassed about the ring he bought, but Brad loved it nonethless.

-One could say that the moment he started dating Brad, David stopped with the freudian slip of calling "his wife" his ex-wife, but the truth is, since he started dating Brad, he just stopped mentioning his ex-wife that much.

-David's ex wife and Brad met. Brad's takeaway from that encounter, after David asked him what he thought of it, was "Good. I am better than her, so I have nothing to worry about".

-For the longest time, they don't meet eachothers parents. They justify it saying they're not teenagers anymore, they don't need the family approval, but people at MQ start to point out it's weird they have been together for such a long time and they haven't met eachothers' family. The thing is both David and Brad have a terrible relationship with their families. David's parents wouldn't even care and Brad's parents would only be disappointed by his choice in a partner (whatever partner really: they would either be a looser or much better than Brad and that's why they will eventually leave him). They talk about it, way before they actually end up meeting eachothers' family (in both cases, unwillingly). "At least your brother likes me, I think. He seemed nice with me. Or because you don't like your brother it's actually a bad thi-" "My brother hates you, David. He thinks you're weak and pathetic." "...there goes my hope-" "It makes me like you more." "Oh. So, I guess, every thorn has its rose." "That's not a saying, David."

-The way they meet David's parents is objectively funny, if you aren't the people directly involved. David's parents are arguing again, something about a beach house his mother obtained with David rights on Christmas (yes, the agreement wasn't "I take the beach house, you can have Christmas with David" but "since I get Christmas with David, I am entitled to the beach house, as compensation". Carol reminded David one more time she wasn't his therapist, but even she admitted that was pretty shitty). Because David doesn't spend Christmas with his parents anymore, the beach house is open for dibs, again. Mr Brittlesbee and ex-Mrs. Brittlesbee rang David's door at 8 in the morning on Saturday, just to find a black haired guy in a Ducktale t-shirt opening the door. They apologised for coming to the wrong house (and bickered accusing one another not to know where their son lived).

"David" shouted Brad.

"Mhyeah?" answered David, still in bed.

"How do your parents look like?"

"Why- why are you asking me that?" replied David, suddenly way more awake.

"I think I just met them, but now they're ringing at every door in the neighbourhood."

It was a morning not easily forgettable. The Senior Brittlesbees took a while to grasp the concept of bisexuality, while Brad had understably given up making a good impression, but still managed not to escalate the situation by being silent and bringing the Brittlesbees cups of fresh-made coffee. He was called Ted several times, despite numerous corrections both on his and David's part. The ex-Mrs Brittlesbee made a point of saying (to David alone, at least) she preferred Lindsay.

"And I prefer Brad. And since it is my life-"

"I know what is going through a divorce, David, look, your father is still sucking the light out of me! I too tried something different to shake things up, I moved to Florida for a year and it was a disaster! Don't let divorce ruin the rest of your life, Ted seems like a decent man, so it'd be better to call it quit before you make another mistake-"

"Okay, goodbye, Mom."

-Metting with Brad's parents didn't really go any better. To be fair, the meeting was set as a surprise by Zack in order to humiliate Brad, just for the fun of it. He had already understood there was something going on between Brad and David, but when he heard they were officially a couple he didn't waste time to use the information to his advantage. It didn't go well, but at least Brad and David could officially say that was out of the way. Brad's parents lamented Brad choosing someone almost "softer" than he already was. Brad felt prouder than ever for his choice.

-Brad and David fought over Jo being the best woman at their wedding. And they didn't only fight between themselves, they tried to bring Jo on their respective side with any means. When it comes to persuasion though, it's Brad's favourite field and he ended up taking Jo. They were on the verge to call out wedding because David couldn't find a best man or woman (Ian tried to propose himself for the role, but David politely ignored him for 2 months making up excuses). In the end, Sue was David's best woman.

-David cried at their wedding. In several points of the wedding. Some people asked if he was being forced to marry. He was just very happy and emotional.

[lowpolynpixelated]

Nightmare Kart: Multi-Track Dreaming

LW Media have done it again. After making one of the best fanworks on the web with “Bloodborne PSX” star developer Lilith Walther has returned to the realm of nightmares to go a little faster this time. How much faster? Somewhere around 200cc or so. Nightmare Kart made its debut on itch.io on June 3rd 2024 and has already become yet another banger from the dev that keeps on giving. First imagined as “Bloodborne Kart” the game hit a minor legal snag and ended up having to scrub any overt references to the Fromsoftware game entirely, leading to its rebranding into the much more original “Nightmare Kart”. But what is Nightmare Kart? And why should you play it? In this article/review I’d like to go over my personal favourite elements as well as some not-so polished ones that all in all make Nightmare Kart an easy sell to anyone looking to have some new fun in an old school way.

Some Background:

If you’ve read my article on Bloodborne PSX you know that I’m a massive fan of LW Media’s previous work. BBPSX was a masterwork in bringing old fashioned clunk to a modern game and letting it thrive on the atmosphere and gameplay quirks that come with something like that. Nightmare Kart is no different. According to Lilith via our previous interview work on Nightmare Kart began not too long after BBPSX released, owing its existence largely to a popular meme used to tease a new Bloodborne game being announced at major gaming shows. Ever since the game’s inception Lilith was hard at work trying to make a kart racer that captured not only the feeling of Bloodborne’s visceral world and combat, but those old school racers we all know and love. I personally am a big fan of Mario Kart 64, and when I got to ask her questions about Nightmare Kart’s development I was delighted to hear that she was taking inspiration from the title. My previous article is linked here as well as Lilith’s tumblr blog and youtube channel where you can see more of the development process in action leading up to the debut of the game.

Nightmare Kart:

So, back to that question I asked before, what is Nightmare Kart? Inspired by kart racer classics like Mario Kart 64, Diddy Kong Racing, and Crash Team Racing, alongside some rather exciting action picks like Halo, Nightmare Kart is a combination kart racer/battler. In the game you take on the role of “The good hunter”, a mysterious person who awakens in a strange world known as the Pocket Dream before taking to the streets of Miralodia, a gothic styled city beset by all sorts of creatures of the night. The game takes you through a brief singleplayer campaign consisting of several races, battle mode matches, and even boss fights showing off an impressive array of gameplay and animated cutscenes. The base gameplay of the racer is closest to those kart racers I mentioned before, with drifting and boosting being a core part of the racing experience. It does however put some unique souls-like spins on a few things, as well as introducing a brake-slide mechanic which allows you to turn on a dime at the cost of your momentum. A true feast for the senses, consisting of graphics and music to rival Bloodborne PSX in their quality, and a truly impressive feat of development prowess. The game, much like its predecessor, feels so at home in its old school roots that I could almost hear the disc whirring in the drive of my non-existent PlayStation as I played through its campaign and tore through some multiplayer battles.

Gameplay:

Let’s talk more about that gameplay for a bit. As mentioned before Nightmare Kart does a superb job at nailing the feeling of an old school kart racer with a modern twist. A large part of that is its more battle-focused gameplay, as the powerups and controls are much more suited for aggression and duking it out at high speed than just simply racing. The first mechanic to show this off is the Blood Droplets system. As you race a number of enemies will spawn on the track and wander around, some will even try to attack racers as they speed past. Running over one of these enemies or destroying them with one of the several weapons on offer nets an amount of “blood droplets”. These function identically to both Blood Echoes in Bloodborne as well as coins in the Mario Kart series. The more droplets you collect, the higher your maximum speed will increase (as indicated by a red sword shaped arrow on your in-game speedometer). There is, however, a limited number of these enemies on a given track. Once they’re all killed you’ll have to turn to alternative means to collect those speed-granting droplets. Most notably, the destruction of your fellow racers. With a small array of weapons at your disposal granted via small powerup sparks scattered throughout the tracks you’ll be able to cut, smash, shoot, or even call down the stars themselves upon your competition to take their droplets as your own. This feature is most important during races, where speed is much more of a focus, but during the battle modes is where the fighting truly shines.

Deathmatch, elimination, capture the flag, and a score mode based around having the most droplets for your team all serve as the real way to show off Nightmare Kart’s strengths. The brake-slide mentioned before serves as your way to stop and aim ranged weapons like the hunter’s pistol and lever action shotgun, or to reposition yourself for a lunging strike with one of the several melee weapons you’re able to slot in to your melee powerup slot. My personal favourite of these were the gatling gun, which straps a four-barreled monster of a gun to the front of a vehicle of your choice allowing for 40 shots of continuous rapid fire destruction, and the spark-cage, a stand in for the Bloodborne Tonitrus which sends you leaping forward in your kart to smash an electrified mace into your opponents. All of this is headed by a health and stamina system much akin to the game’s former namesake. Health dictates damage done and sustained, while stamina is used by dashing. Also consumed by dashing are “Aether Viles”, viles of blue liquid used in groups of 5 to send you careening forward with a burst of speed. Performing tricks off of jumps by tapping the jump button or simple picking them up from a powerup grants you a number of these viles which you can use to bash into enemies or get ahead in the race standings. With everything I’ve talked about here I hope it’s apparent just how fun Nightmare Kart is to play. I had such an amazing time trashing enemies in deathmatch battles and roaring my way through city streets and forbidden forests.

Graphics/Design:

Nightmare Kart boasts a sense of style rivaled only by the game that came before it. Iterating on the already delightfully dated look that BBPSX had, Nightmare Kart takes it to the next level with original characters and environments that give it that trademark PSX feel. Coming with a built in (and customizeable) CRT filter along with a slew of graphical options ranging from texture warp to pixel distortion the game has quite literally never looked better. My entire time with the game was spent marveling at the track design and style that bleeds from every low-poly crease and jittering texture. Twelve vehicles and a variety of playable characters show off the gothic horror inspirations from Bloodborne and otherwise in perfect pixelated glory. Just as with BBPSX the game shows a mastery of the concept of a “demake”, but being built from the ground up as an original concept the game shows off iconic themes and locations leftover from its Bloodborne origins now with a lovingly crafted layer of originality. Fans of PSX horror and modern retro-makes in general will find nothing but some of the best graphical styling from this game’s blood soaked streets and haunted clock towers.

The real star at the center of well crafted textures and wonderfully low-detail models is the track design. Even if it isn’t legally allowed be Bloodborne Kart, its very apparent that the tracks on offer are nothing less than love letters to a wacky concept contained within a genuine respect for the inspirations. The game’s first few tracks do a top notch job at showing off the sort of homage you’d come to expect from a game inspired by Fromsoft’s gothic masterpiece, but soon descend into the depths of creative (and sometimes seemingly sadistic) level design that sets a kart racer apart from its peers. The Forbidden Forest, for example, features a split path laden with traps and lurking enemies that culminates in an upward clime via jump pads that sends you up the decaying innards of a windmill tower. Delving further into the madness sees you drifting your way through a library maze and making daring jumps to catch up with Nicholas, one of the game’s bosses to put him down for good. The inspiration for this game shines through even the mandatory layer of original art, enhancing into a viscerally wild ride from the first look at the endless void of the Pocket Dream to the cramped quarters of the Outsider’s Mansion.

Sound design/Soundtrack:

At last we arrive at what I consider to be the true highlight of Nightmare Kart. Continuing from BBPSX’s beautifully bitcrushed audio design Nightmare Kart wastes absolutely no time showing off just how much work was put into making the nightmare sound as good as it looks. One thing in particular that stuck with me was the animated cutscenes seen throughout the singleplayer campaign. Fully voice acted and entirely animated the voices in the scenes remind me of the best of the best PlayStation VA work. Extending a massive amount of congratulations to the entire voice cast, which the game’s developer Lilith Walther also provided a performance for. Those sweet filtered voices are only the beginning though, as Nightmare Kart’s soundtrack explodes into a symphony of haunted house jams and retro bangers right from the first screen. I find myself left without a whole lot to say other than just how good the soundtrack is. Composer Evalyn Lark destroyed any doubts I could have had about the game’s soundtrack not living up to the hype that the concept drummed up. The full soundtrack is available on youtube as well as other streaming services and will also be linked in this article for your listening pleasure. A short but sweet section for a set of tunes that I truly feel need to speak for themselves.

Full soundtrack

A sweet nightmare, and everything that comes with it

This section is a bit different from what I usually do in reviews like this. As I don’t have a second interview with Ms. Walther and I want this to be just as much a discussion about the game as well as a glowing review, I’d like to go over the less than stellar things I experienced while I sped my way through the horrors and bloodsoaked nightmare visions. I’d like to start off this section with this: This article/review is a work of opinion, not objective fact. Everything I put here is based on my own experience with the game. I also understand that in the modern video game landscape we exist in a time where games can receive updates and patches to repair and alter things that might be grinding or frustrating to players. I say all of this out of profuse respect for Ms. Walther and all of those who worked on Nightmare Kart, so that my words cannot be taken as damning evidence that this game is anything other than fun.

Nightmare Kart is above all else, an indie game in the purest meaning of the phrase. Developed by a small team on a small (by video game standards) budget and released entirely for free for anyone to enjoy. Because of this it does suffer from some standard if not frustrating bugs and glitches that made my experience with it nearly perfect, but not quite. Every game (especially today) has it’s rough edges. And with one trying to have so many on purpose (visually anyway) it was bound to have something in it that didn’t function one hundred percent of the time, or something out of place at random intervals.

Common glitches I encountered while playing:

- Hitting walls and ending up underneath the map (this has a minor fix already in the game in the form of a respawn option)

- Controls not being recognized after being hit by an enemy weapon, requiring me to either repress buttons or restart the match/race

- Powerups not actually firing off but being consumed anyway

Please keep in mind that these three things are glitches and do have the potential to be patched out. However, even if they weren’t, I think they added to the charm of the game either way. What was also a part of the charm and became somewhat grating as the game went on were some things I feel work against the games sense of flow and speed that the races would have you want to achieve. These notes are not comprehensive, and come from a place of constructive criticism only. The first frustrating element came in the form of the game’s strict adherence to a retro draw distance. Most of the tracks in the game are enveloped in a dark fog after a certain point, and the track becomes revealed to you as you ride or drive. This works wonders for the atmosphere, but tended to work against me when I was gaining speed and using my aether boosts, only to run face first into a wall because I couldn’t see the turn coming. Moving on from that but in the same vein, running into things can lead into some frustrating moments as well. Some objects and even enemies have hitboxes a fair bit larger than what it would appear. There were several times I tried to skirt past a crucified beast or stack of unbreakable boxes only for a seemingly small part of my cart to clip it, causing the entirety of my speed and momentum to be lost along with my placement. Getting stuck on one of these objects is a different beast entirely, as sometimes the objects invisible hitbox stops you from turning or accelerating altogether until you physically use the reverse button and reorient yourself. On top of all of this, and I’ve certainly seen people state this in far less kind ways, I do feel like the game’s campaign is a bit too easy. Now please keep in mind I did not go into Nightmare Kart expecting a high skill ceiling challenge that would test my mettle at every turn. I also didn’t expect to essentially go on a joyride through the nightmare’s scenic vistas and town squares while a host of NPC drivers waged war with each other far behind me, occasionally sending a volley of stars my way which did very little to actually slow me down. Combined with the fact that enemies didn’t seem to respawn once killed, I found myself with shockingly little to do other than just drive and go for style points on the jumps as I stayed well ahead of the pack. This issue, I will add, was exclusive to the campaign’s races. I found the AI was much more suited for battling it out in the boss battles and other versus modes, the elimination match at the end of the game being a particular highlight of an absolute brawl. None of these issues stand to ruin any part of Nightmare Kart’s fun. Video games are hard to make, and not a single one of them can ever claim to be perfect. These just stand as notes from a personal perspective, meant to offer a bit of a look at what someone jumping into the game and playing it start to finish might experience.

Closing Thoughts:

If you’re looking for something fun to play this summer I can’t recommend Nightmare Kart enough. It really does echo the days of playing head to head with friends in wacky kart racers and deathmatch games, going as far as to combine the two into easily one of the most fun kart games I’ve ever played. If you liked what you read here or would otherwise like to support LW Media’s endeavors, I’ve linked the official itch.io page and steam page for Nightmare Kart below, along with the LW Media patreon and (yet another) link to my previous article on Bloodborne PSX. Thank you so much for reading, now go shred those radical streets.

Links:

Nightmare Kart

Steam

itch.io

LWMedia Patreon

Bloodborne PSX Article

[miradelletarot]

Sad brain hours are stupid

Personal post alert. Just me kinda mumbling my random sad brain thoughts into the void, and hope something make sense (or at least helps me get this shit out of my head idk).

*note: this is all over the fucking place so...sorry.* My confidence is pretty low lately. I mean, it always has been honestly. I was raised to have a low self-esteem (just like my mother, who also had self-esteem issues, and projected a lot of her shit onto me). So, I have never ever really been confident. In my marriage, I can't recall a time when my husband truly made me feel sexy/desirable (unless he wanted something from me...you know what I'm talking about). Even mentally and emotionally, I'm really not that smart. I'm not witty, or quick, or brilliant in any way, and my anxiety and depression and ADHD make shit hard enough to cope with as it is. I struggled in school. Mostly an A & B student, but I had to bust my ass for those grades. Not to mention my horrible memory...I'm lucky I know basic grade school shit. I have no illusions that there is anything remotely spectacular about me. I think that's why I love supporting and helping others. Especially with tarot. It's my way of trying to help lift people up, and make them feel good about themselves, and their prospects because *someone* needs to be in your corner (general "you"). It's just easier to give my love to others, because I'd rather use my energy to celebrate the people I care about. Lately, I am really just feeling so down about my body. More than I have in a while. I think I've ignored it for so long because I was married. He stopped putting in effort and so did I. I had no one to impress anymore. But, despite him completely letting himself go (he's well over 400lbs now, and does NOT take care of himself in the slightest,) he said he was no longer attracted to me. (this will make sense in a moment...promise).

in 2018, I had a weird ass health scare that landed me in the hospital for a week, and the nurse said I nearly died of sepsis. Her words were (and I'll never fucking forget it...) "if you had waited even until tonight to come to the ER, there's a good chance you wouldn't have made it." Drs still dunno what the fuck happened to me. Ever since that happened, my thyroid went stupid (thanks again, MOTHER...) and I gained a ton of weight. I have always been on the heavier side (180lbs when I got married 16 yrs ago. I'm 5 ft tall for context). Now, I'm 243 lbs. I was 265, but I lost a lot of that stress weight after I left my husband. So, that's certainly something.

But...I just don't see the improvement. i don't feel any better. I have such a horrible relationship with exercise, and i am working so fucking much I don't even want to even though I know I should. I hate wearing makeup b/c of how it makes my face feel, and in the Florida, soul-sucking heat? I could never. But, I still have breakouts like a fucking teenager going through puberty. and my hair? fuck. i hate it. it's a poofy, frizzy mop. ALSO...fucking hell. I have had a slight lisp since i was a kid. I worked really hard to correct it b/c i was in choir and shit and my music teacher helped me with it, but recently i find that it's a lot more prominent than it used to be, and it sticks out to me SO fucking much, and i feel so insecure about it lately.

It's time's like these when something my ex said to me before i left really sticks in my head (he apologized for saying this btw, but it doesn't make the pain go away). He said "you'll never find anyone as good as me." I really want to believe he's wrong, but sometimes? It feels like he's right. Like I'll never be pretty or thin enough to be desirable to anyone. Too much depression and anxiety. Too weird. Too vulgar. Just...Too much, and oddly not enough at the same time. Even though it's only been 6 months since I left him I am fucking lonely. I won't lie, I miss having a partner (and all that entails). I'm so afraid I'll be alone forever. If I lower my standards, I'll just get some shitty asshole again. Someone just like my ex. I'm too fucking old to date around like I'm in my 20s. I'm pushing 40. I'm either going to find the man of my dreams (the Gale of my heart, a real one lol) or I'll be forever alone.

I'm in hell...and it looks like a pixelated paradise.

[notdiabolika]

A Halloween Celebration?

The night an indo-caribbean got lost in a vampire’s ball.

Gift for @krispycremecake. Exchange planned by @diabolik-lovers-weekly.

| Featuring: Shu x Indo-caribbean fem reader x Subaru. 

[ ! ] Contains: swearing, biting and blood.

The heavy wooden door, adorned with a strange symbol, had been carelessly left wide open that night, October 31st. Purposeful or not, the fragrant smell of the ball invades the street, attracting curious glances into the hall where the ominous figures circle. — What are those youngsters doing? Listening to classical music, above all… They are not young. — It must be a funeral for the living! Not alive either. — Halloween wannabes. However, it is, in fact, Halloween. But for anyone young and alive, looking for a Halloween party, this seemed like the place to go. It was only strange when the door closed behind them…

My time in Japan, up until that point, had been splendid. The streets ranged from the most colorful and illuminated by technological standards — like the nostalgic Tokyo — to more isolated, although equally special, places, like Kanashimashi.

Japanese customs and streets are different from those in the Caribbean, in some places they are equally crowded, although oriental architecture has a more minimalist style of housing outside of large metropolises. At least, that's what I thought, until I found this little city treasure and a loose invitation to a gala ball with Halloween props. I didn't even know it was celebrated here, much less planned my visit with this in mind. But I, as a curious person, am more than prepared for a night of mischief that will sweeten my taste buds.

— Excuse me — I barely enter the party before the doors abruptly close behind me, giving me a scare that almost makes me lose my balance.

The eyes that fell on my figure were… intoxicating. I have to confess: my outfits are a bit simple compared to others. I just wear a black floral dress, exaggerated stitching details on the sides and hem, as well as heavier makeup, drawn to blue — a hurried parody of Corpse Bride, which in the middle of production turned into something. It happens to all of us who work under tight deadlines.

Seconds pass, but the vast majority of guests look at me as if I was a seven-headed animal, walking towards the red table, full of sweets filled with scarlet dye. I've never seen any of these before. Maybe it's something from Japanese culture.

I extend my hand to eat some sort of crooked cupcake, which I imagine is on purpose, ignoring those who stare at me and whisper with pure stubbornness.

— What are you doing?! — the poor cupcake goes flying, scattering on the polished floor. The perpetrator of the attack is a tall man, almost six feet tall, albino, frowning, with his sleeves pushed up to his elbows. — Do you have issues?

The words catch in my throat, a mixture of surprise and hatred forming. But I choke on them, his hand tugging at my wrist and making me stumble across the room to try to keep up with his quick steps.

— What the hell… — he even has the audacity to hold me by the waist. — This is the worst thing that could happen today!

That "little" dude, who doesn't look more than eighteen years old at most, is not only rude but also shouts. So I shout back.

— Stop dragging me, mate!

The only response I get is a snort. We crossed a large corridor until we reached the door at the end, with a small window giving a view of the garden outside.

— Shit, locked—

— Hello?! I'm talking to you. — I pull his arm as he tries to move my hand away. Our bodies are almost pressed together as I look him straight in the eyes. — Do I look like a dog to be taken wherever you want me to go?

Those crimson eyes, filled with stormy emotion, turned to me. A flash of guilt. His tense posture gives the impression that the boy is about to jump on something (or someone) without thinking twice. However, that hustle gets a brief glimpse of respite when he stops and looks at me.

Even the rudest of boys could make my face burn with embarrassment by staring at me as intensely as this albino is staring at me. And he's not kind at all.

— Tch, it doesn't matter what you look like. — He turns his pale face away. For someone who has such bold talk, his skin and face have some very delicate features. — And if you want to know, it looks like someone is choking you.

— That was the concept! — more or less.

With one last breath, he opens a random room and barks his orders.

— Come in here, and stay until I find the key to the back door. — He sounds like he's punishing a disobedient child, although I'm sure I'm too old for that. I frown, crossing my arms — Don't make noise, and don't attract attention. And get on with it! Or you die.

The words hit me like a punch in the stomach, a human weakness that runs up my legs and makes me turn to that abnormal figure with a mix of confusion and genuine fear.

Is this a ball… a meeting of criminals?

— Why would I even trust you? — I take a step back, his expression changing to pure frustration with the slightest movement of mine that opposes him. — As far as I know, this is a Halloween ball.

A loud, amused laugh erupts from his thin lips, although his voice is thick and full of irritation.

—Halloween?! Look, I'm trying to help you here. — Suddenly, he turns his back. — But if you don't want to, that's fine! See what happens and how it ends. When I find a way to get you out of this place, I'll be waiting, right here.

In a flash, I realize: that boy has just disappeared, right under my nose. I feel around the walls looking for some kind of clue, magic trick, or smoke signal. This has to be some kind of prank, right?

Maybe I'm just in a weird roleplay group…

I laugh but then cover my mouth. No, that's not what I believe. But I would love it if it were true.

I decided that instead of trying to get back to that ballroom, maybe one of these rooms around me could help me. It's not possible that there isn't ONE single window to jump out of in such a big place, because the one the stranger wanted me to enter didn't have one.

The first doorknob is locked. The second is stuck. An event house completely locked to the public, perhaps? Or a simple inconvenience that disrupts my life. The third doesn't even move. I was hoping that the fourth attempt wouldn't decide to give in, because of the popular Japanese superstition that the number four had a direct connection with death. Well…

Guess which of the doors opened.

The dark and cold room really surprises me. None of the furniture is particularly interesting, all covered in a thin layer of dust, similar to what a storage room would be like. The view, however, is soft and bluish — the result of the full moon night outside, mountains in the background framed by the rounded window.

I walk towards it like a dragonfly floating towards the nearest light source. And in this thousandth of imprecision…

… I stumble.

My eyes close reflexively, hands reaching forward and collapsing against the floor. The rest of the fall is cushioned by flesh, a soft grunt below reassuring me that, whatever this is, it's alive. Although strangely cold.

—Haa… why does this always happen to me…

The deep voice resounds in the air, slurred and lazy words from someone who has just woken up and doesn't even think about getting up. The man below me seems to have stepped out of the most distant fairy tales. Blonde, blue eyes that shine so softly that it's as if a firefly had landed between his eyelids and decided to live there. His entire face has a sleepy, dreamlike air that is difficult not to look at.

But of course, he's still a stranger sleeping in an empty room — and his clothes aren't too shabby for him to be in this situation out of necessity.

— You smell like Subaru. And you're a human being… what a peculiar combination for a closed ball like this. —Yet here he is, babbling things I don't entirely understand. When I try to stand up, his hand gently pulls me back. — No. Since you decided to fall on me, now you're not leaving anytime soon…

I don't particularly mind this turn of events.

—What is going on? I just came to take a look, and suddenly this guy… Subaru started pulling me.

At this point, I've convinced myself that the Halloween fun party I saw in the pamphlet is not the same as this one and that, apparently, I need to get out of there as quickly as possible. But I have a very strong curse called curiosity. Also, if it's something illegal, maybe I should run away and tell the police.

— Heh, you don't know much, do you? — the tone is mocking at first, but the soft and carefree expression begins to wrinkle over time, seriousness enveloping his bright irises. — This is a celebration between beings of the night, to congratulate the birthday of our demon king.

Oh, right. It's a sect thing.

Some pretty disturbing thoughts start to flood my mind as I think about what kind of atrocities happen at parties like this. An unpleasant shiver runs down my spine.

— I know… — nothing. — And why don't let me go out the front door instead of the back door, if that Subaru really wants to get me out of here? It doesn't make any difference.

I think I'm having my worries and anxieties ignored when those long lashes cover his eyes, but the low murmur comes quickly:

— Magic. You must have walked into the place of the human we were waiting for and the door closed by itself. It's definitely the last scenario that would cross my mind in a situation like this. Skepticism would never allow it, and it was about to double: — A shame that the only one who has the keys left, looking for Yui. The other vampires will show no mercy if they catch you here.

And with this speech, finally, everything makes sense again.

— Vampires? — assuming it’s not a codename for crazy cultists… — The mythological creature?

His brow furrows again.

— What else would we be talking about?

I fall beside him, laughing like a child on the night of mischief;

— Oh, stop! Mythical creatures roam a ball conveniently open to everyone, even if you say it was an accident, and a handsome young man — the compliment was completely acidental, too — is the one who appears to save the night and remove the person who accidentally ended up here. What chapter of the RPG campaign are we in?

His laugh follows mine, though it's nasal, pure entertainment at my expense.

— You don't believe vampires exist?

— Imagine if there were creatures as fast and fleeting as vampires. One would notice the same faces walking around a small town like this. — A pretty useless argument to have out of nowhere, but what else could I do if I had to wait until the door was opened? — How boring. Everything about this party is just a big prank. It would be cool if they had actual real vampires.

Sure, lip service, but who cares! They are not real.

— And if there were, would you let them bite you?

Still, that story that if I stepped outside, I would have my neck chased by vampires. How cliché.

— Oh, sure. — Irony dances across my lips. I lift the hem of the dress with my hands as I rise from the floor, straightening the wrinkled fabric and making it smooth again. — Now excuse me, I have better places to be.

Praying that the white ghost with red eyes wouldn't appear, I walk around the strange lying man in order to reach the door — until I realize that he's no longer there.

— … Well, you said it. — He pulls me back into a hug. — Don't blame me for listening to your own words before you leave.

The voice behind me surprises me a lot, but no more than the lazy canines that prowl in the space between my shoulder and my neck. The fright makes me shiver due to the sudden cold contact. He's so sharp… Much more than I would be comfortable with imagining that supernatural beings are nothing more than literary tales and stories to scare spoiled little children.

— W-wait a second—

I can almost imagine him smiling as he brushes a strand of my hair away, his princely lips resembling the curve of a demon pressing a kiss to my shoulder.

— You know, it's a really bad night for something like this to happen… the full moon makes us all a little dizzy. But don't worry. I won't let anyone take you from here.

The explosive presence appears accompanied by an equally unexpected slam of the doorknob against the wall — which even has a hole in that exact same place —, nothing in the hands. No set of keys, absolutely no way out of this hell.

— Agh… Shu! What are you doing?! If it wasn't enough that idiot Reiji disappeared with those keys…

Shu. That being moves its teeth away from my skin with some reluctance when it sees the new apparition in the room, staring at the albino over my bare shoulder, due to the model of the dress. His chin slides down, resting against my arm as if he were an innocent, sleepy human. However, I don't think I will find anything like that today.

— It's useless. Unless you want to break the fixed windows and deal with the costs dictated by our father, nothing here opens. — Subaru opens his mouth to argue, but his shoulders slump, as if in the end he finds that his (apparent) sibling is right. —Which means that if we want to protect such a mortal, we will have to stay inside.

My heart feels like it's going to jump out of my mouth at any moment. Maybe I'm having some kind of psychosis, but I swear that before I look, fangs are sprouting from those same rough pouty lips. He looks like an even younger boy as he grimaces and closes the room's door.

— It that serious? I didn't want that. — With a conflicted expression, he covers his face with his hand, walking towards the window to look outside. — It seems like this never ends… it was a bad idea from the beginning, with the shitty weather outside.

I don't think I've ever seen a moon as full and perfectly round as that one. It makes me more aware of my surroundings, beyond the cold air, the small warmth I transmit to the man hugging me, my rapid breathing having to find a spot to calm down.

— I think it's a better alternative than letting vampires walk the streets on a night like this and take anyone as prey… at least, I think that's what that guy wanted to prevent tonight, as the king. — Shu mutters. — And as for the moon… Well, I guess we can't be expected to be able to hold ourselves back in such a situation.

Subaru turns his head immediately, eyes wide as he grabs my arm in an anxious instance.

— Tch, what are you, a forest beast? — suddenly, that guy doesn't seem so angry anymore. The tone is low as if generated from genuine… concern? — What if this attracts more attention and they want to hurt her?

Everything around me is so clear, too nitid to not be real. At that moment I realize, despite the exasperation and his breathless tone, that Subaru really doesn't seem to wish me any harm. He's just irritated and wants to help.

— I didn't want to say it like that in front of a stranger, but… I think just by the way you look at her, I can tell that you haven't had anything to drink in a while.

Shu manages to make the man even paler than he already is, and afterward, a persistent blush covers his cheeks.

— So what?! I can hold on a little longer…

I stay quiet, just wanting to see where this goes.

— You were always very stubborn. — The blonde shakes his head again. — Come on, she said she doesn't mind.

— She did?! — the flustered one sounds almost jealous.

— Just accept the proposal…

One hesitant and the other insistent, their shoes meet the toes of my flats, both looking at me with an untainted yet restrained thirst. My breath seems to catch in my throat after being looked at so intensely. I know I should be scared, still thinking it's all part of some cruel joke…

But if vampires exist, I will never find any where I live— not in a place with an average of thirty degrees during the summer, anyway — and I would never have an opportunity as curiously peculiar as this.

— I'll let you both... try that, I suppose.

When both lips rest above my collarbones, I just close my eyes. I want to feel what it's like without seeing it.

The piercing pain comes quickly, makes you grunt, but soon emerges into anesthetizing relief. Impossible to explain, but it's as if butterflies lodged in your stomach and made you believe that the pain never existed. As if you were floating, with two men supporting your weight as gently as the faint bite of their fangs.

I lose track of time briefly. I just know it's over when I see Shu walking away from me, satisfied with the small feast. A pleasant silence ensues.

— Better? — the blue eyes turn to the red ones, which quickly avoid his.

— Tch. I don't know, whatever…

I end up laughing a little against the worn fabric, leaning against the hothead's chest who still holds me for a few seconds before letting me go. Touching the walls, I sit on a chair to the side.

— I think I need to eat something salty.

And all I saw in that room were sweets…

— It's ideal… — the sleepy man soon leans towards a chair on the other side of the table, sliding down until he appears to be almost lying down. — I think you should go get some sweets, Subaru.

— Hah?! Why me?

It turns out that that strange situation I found myself in soon turned into almost… a date. Subaru, very upset, went out to get a tray of snacks in worrying shades of red.

—Is this… blood? — I ask warily, moving away from the table at the thought.

— Hmph… no, just snacks from the demon world and an excessive amount of ketchup. — Shu whispers with notable disinterest. — The appetite of some vampires is stimulated by the color red.

Curious, I pick up some peculiarly shaped fries and dip them in ketchup. It crackles in my mouth with its crunch, but it's neither greasy nor too salty.

— I think it's ridiculous… it just makes you hungrier.

Subaru's blunt comment makes my chest tighten a little.

— Eat with me, I'll feel bad eating alone.

Another typical nasal laugh comes from the blonde, probably noticing the irony in my concern after being bitten by two vampires at the same time.

— If you feed me, maybe so.

— Hey! That's not fair- I want some too.

I have been trying to find the username of this person [@krispycremecake], but haven't found it on Tumblr! If someone could help me I would be very greatful.

Wish everybody a good night 🖤

[iguessitsjustme]

I was tagged by @my-rose-tinted-glasses, @troubled-mind, and @littleragondin and I finally have a chance to do this (cries in introvert forced to be social)

RULES: put 5 songs you actually listen to, then tag 10 people.

I listen to approximately a million songs all of the time. I always have music playing if I'm not working or watching something and I have talked nonstop about many songs already here so I tried to choose songs I haven't mentioned yet.

Laugh About It - Remember Monday

Quite literally been obsessed with this song lately. Also this music video doesn't make me feel gay at all. Nope. Definitely not. I am looking respectfully. Completely. But also I genuinely love the song. These girls have gorgeous harmonies and the whole song is about being petty so of course I love it.

2. Sinner - Leadley

I bet you thought I was gonna put the other Sinner here considering how often I mention it and that I made a video edit using it. But nope. This song is just...a bop. At least for me. There was a time in my life I listened to this at least once a day.

3. She - dodie

This song was probably the catalyst for me to start...questioning things. Anyway it's gorgeous and calming. Actually dodie is one of my favorite artists and I don't mention her nearly enough. I especially like listening to her when I'm traveling because her calming voice and soft melodies help me keep my travel anxiety in check.

4. Pegadito - Tommy Torres

This song scratches my brain perfectly. Also nothing like listening to songs in Spanish to remind me that I need to brush up on my Spanish because I now suck at it and I am very angry at myself for that. But also this song is just...I love it.

5. HAN "외계인 (Alien)

Would I be able to leave Stray Kids off this list? Of course not. I mean, I'm mentioning songs I haven't mentioned before, not bands. Anyway believe it or not, my favorite of their albums is skz-replay and this is just the first song I saw when I was trying to choose. My favorite by Han is actually Wish You Back, but this is a very close second. It hits just right for me. Can't explain it. Also Han is just an extremely talented person and it both baffles me and impresses me. I genuinely believe he might be one of the most talented people on the planet. At least musically. And definitely works very hard for it as well. I'm getting sidetracked.

Tagging @heretherebedork because I told you I was going to and I want to see what 5 songs you end up choosing :P

I am also tagging anyone who has not done this and wants to but maybe hasn't been tagged yet. It's been a minute so I don't remember everyone who's done it and who's been tagged. But if you do this please, please, please, tag me so I can see your song recs. And also potentially scream at you about music.

[putschki1969]

【2023 LAST】 I Wanted the Final Video to be a Conversation

Hello, this is Hikaru. Thank you for watching! This time, as this is the last video of 2023, I wanted to feel connected with everyone so I asked you submit questions and messages on Instagram. This is a video that answers your questions! Once again, it is a laid-back and casual video 🍀 I've answered all the questions except those that I can't answer on my own! The video ended up being over 50 minutes 😂 Please kill time during the New Year holidays 🙇‍♀️If you have any video suggestions, please leave them in the comment section📝

I loved this so here are some of my highlights┗(•ˇ_ˇ•)―→

What do you do to take care of your throat and vocal health? She always carries lozenges with her and uses a face mask all-year round

Do you take voice training lessons? From time to time, yes. But those lessons are extremely expensive so she can't afford them too often

Please share an episode with Keiko that left a lasting impression! Hikaru gets asked this question a couple of times but she doesn't really come up with any specific story or anecdote. She does however say that being able to perform together again has been really special this year. She also emphasises how Keiko is like a sister to her, a precious senpai/nakama she looks up to.

Any tips on how to distinguish Hikaru's voice from the other two in Kalafina songs with harmony? Hikaru can't really give any advice because for her, her own voice is obviously most noticeable. She asks all fans who listen to a lot of Kalafina to provide some suggestions in the comment section. [LOL, I am surprised there are still so many people who struggle with this]

Any fan messages that have left a lasting impression? Hikaru makes sure to read every letter, message and comment. They all mean a lot to her. But sometimes someone will tell her something along the lines of Hikaru's music having changed their life and of course Hikaru can't help but be incredibly moved by a sentiment like that.

Something she always pays attention to when singing? Never neglect your emotions, they should always shine through.

Are you in love right now? Hikaru obviously thinks that's a decidedly private question but kudos to her for even including it in the video. She wonders if anyone else aside from the person who sent the question would actually want to know about this. In her mind, the person is probably in the minority so she tells people to leave a comment if they really want to know about her love life. Also, she feels like no matter how she answers that question, people would start worrying about her and she would rather not have that happen.

How to take care of your physical health? Exercise to some extent, stick to a balanced diet with lots of protein, do a lot of strength training to build muscle.

Any overseas food that left a lasting impression? Not particularly but she enjoys trying local items at Starbucks or McDonald's whenever she is in another country

What's your ideal type? What stuff did you fight about in previous relationships? Another question about her love life but since it's not really about her current relationship status she tries to answer some of it. Her ideal type is someone who truly values their family and takes care of them. As for fights, Hikaru is a bit vague here on whether this refers to actual past romantic relationships or just all relationships in general but basically, she is not the type to have emotional outbursts or anything so she doesn't really "fight" with people. It depends on someone's definition of a fight though. For her that's everything that can't be resolved through a civil discussion and she personally never lets it get that far.

Will Hikaru do any anisong covers on her YouTube channel? Hikaru struggles with rights and licenses so it's hard to find songs she can sing on her channel but if she does, she will give it a try

What is your ambition for next year? Hold a solo live in a bigger venue.

What are your thoughts on Kalafina's current situation? Wakana, Keiko and herself are all pursuing a solo career so she would be happy if everyone listened to their music and continued to support them [very neutral but precious answer]

I love Keiko! What should I do? Hikaru is a bit baffled that she would get a question like that. She then goes off on a tangent about the difference between "ai" and "koi". The person asking the question is using the word "ai" to describe their love for Keiko but in Hikaru's opinion, "ai" is probably not the correct term here because if you are worrying about what the other person thinks of you and wonder how you should act, it's more likely a case of "koi" instead of "ai" (with "koi" being more frequently used for romantic love whereas "ai" usually refers to a more general concept of love). As for what that person should do, they should definitely support Keiko's activities.

Please share an interesting anecdote from Kaji.Fes? She thought it was special that she got the chance to change her outfit for the final song (into the world) even though ever performer was supposed to only have one outfit. Then, at the after party she was fortunate enough to be seated close to Yuki Kajiura on her table which is how she ended up drinking a bit of alcohol even though she never ever drinks. That was a fun experiences.

Will you be eating mucchan manju in Fukuoka? [This is a local snack in Fukuoka, Wakana has been doing a lot of promotion for it, it's that thingy she eat in Kalafina's 10th Anniversary Live] Hikaru hopes she has time to eat it

Hikaru's Appearance at "26 Hours Music Champ 2023 Winter" Event

Broadcast date : 12/29 20:00 – 12/30 22:00 Platform: Music Champ

Hikaru's part aired on 12/30 (Sat) 16:00-17:00. She had a special Talk Session and then performed at the "SPECIAL DREAM LIVE 2023 Winter" LIVE🎤airing from 17:00 to 21:00 Official HP: http://music-champ.com/26h-winter Line-up/Schedule :https://www.music-champ.com/26h-winter/26h

Tweet 1 | Tweet 2 by Hikaru

[dwtsfun]

Dancing with the Stars Season 33: THE PREMIERE!

So because it's the weekend and several days after the show, I'm going to forego talking about each couple individually and give my thoughts on the show as a whole. So I will say that overall, I enjoyed this much more than last season. This season has way more potential to be fun and interesting than last season did. I'll break down why I feel that way. Last year was a tough transition period for the show, so I think things are getting figured out.

The Hosting

While I still don't think that Julianne and Alfonso are the greatest hosts, they have seemed to find something that works for them. Julianne especially seemed to be way more comfortable on Tuesday than she was at any point last season. I think she was having more fun with it and that's really what you need to do as a cohost. She knows that the celebs and pros are all up there, nervous, concerned, frustrated, disappointed and excited. So she just has to feel things out and either keep the energy up, attempt to lighten the mood and/or uplift disappointed contestants. I think she was better at that.

The Judges

This was a major improvement to me. Now that everyone has had a year to adjust their judging style with Len being gone (specifically Derek), I think this week, I saw some judging that finally made sense and was in line with what I was thinking would be given (mostly). Hopefully the judges do this all season. This is judging that I can get behind.

The Partnerships

Never thought I would have to talk about mismatched partners after the all star season, but then season 32 came around. So I'll say this. I am glad that they figured it out this season. Everyone seems to be matched pretty well (that could change). There are no outliers to me right now.

The Pros

I'm glad I didn't talk about the shifts in casting as that has always been fluid up until right before the GMA reveal. While I'm sad that Koko isn't on this season (anyone know why) and not ecstatic about Sasha and Gleb returning, I am happy that Ezra was promoted and that Witney is back. Everyone seems to be in a decent spot, so hopefully everyone will be firing on all cylinders this season *stares at the men*.

The Dances

I'm not going to talk about everyone, but I will say that as a whole, I was thoroughly impressed with the dances. The pros gave the celebs some decent enough choreography and the celebs performed decently well. Almost everyone showed some sort of potential and I see some real great partnerships forming. I'm worried about Eric and Reggie and what they will realistically be able to do. Brooks, while having a ton of potential, was a non-event and I'm thinking she will be the first one to go. As far as my standouts, Chandler was incredible and is the one to beat. Stephen is right there, we just need him to work on some musicality and finesse with his feet. Dwight can MOVE and is one to look out for. Joey might be a spoiler because he seems really fun, grounded, self-aware and has potential too.

Unfortunately there was one big problem for me. And that was:

The Music Choices

I don't need for us to go back to traditional songs for everything, but I want the music choices to make sense. This wasn't as big of a problem in the past. Idk why it's an issue now. I should not be watching a tango to Hot To Go or A Bar Song. I'm sorry, but the moods of that dance does not go with the feeling of those two songs. Especially as they were. They tried to shift the arrangement of A Bar Song a little bit. And I see some odd song choices for dances this week. Like Ode to Joy for a paso. Seriously?

The final concern:

Anna

So I'm going to keep this short and simple. I have no desire to see her on the show, but we're here. She's decent, but she is not revealing a personality. She's doing nothing to humanize herself and on this show, she has to do that. Ezra is trying, but she's not responding on the show. Now, what I will say is I've heard that she’s being more human in the post show interviews. If she wants to stay, she must bring that to the ballroom. Cuz right now, she's a criminal with a bejeweled ankle monitor on. I feel like she can have a shot, but she's gotta be willing to put forth an effort and not come across as the Ice Queen.

That's it. Tuesday we have our first elimination and it's a double. I'm thinking some combination of Brooks, Anna, Eric and Reggie is eliminated. It all depends on what happens with the scores next week. Let me know you all's thoughts and I will talk to you all soon!

[singlesablog]

Bona Drag ‘89

“Getting Away With It” (1989) Electronic Factory (UK) / Warner Records (US) (Written by Sumner/Marr/Tennant) Highest U.S. Billboard Chart Position – No. 38

When Pet Shop Boys first approached (coaxed, begged?) Dusty Springfield near the end of her career to duet with Neil Tennant on the 1987 single “What Have I Done to Deserve This?”, few of us could have known that this would lead to a great many more collaborations from the boys, or how fruitful this instinct would become.  It was also in that same year that they both (mainly Neil) collaborated with a group newly named Electronic, which would be comprised of the lead singer of New Order, Bernard Sumner, and Johnny Marr, the ex-lead guitarist and songwriter for The Smiths. “Getting Away With It” was a huge moment in my circle that year (as well as on the dance floor) for it’s sound combined the coolness of the alternative scene with disco, even though no one ever wants to say that very bad word. 

We all adored it.

The Smiths had disbanded in 1987, leaving Johnny Marr as a journeyman (never being the lead type).  We all loved The Smiths passionately because they were in part “our" band, and spoke to gay culture, and because, yes, Morrissey was a genius. We all hated him for ending it all too soon, because yes, it was all his fault.  His narcissism was not hard to apprehend, in content or image.  Johnny Marr's pairing up with Sumner was something of a miracle because both were surprisingly interested in house music, specifically an emerging genre known as Italo House, which leaned more toward Europe and upbeat electronic piano riffs.  They worked on the single first, along with an early cut called “Lucky Bag” (seek it out it is a jam) in the pure Italo House style, and went on tour to support Depeche Mode that year.  They ultimately spent 18 months finishing the debut album Electronic, which a lot of folks consider to be a minor classic.  Neil appeared on yet another track (“The Patience of a Saint”), and we were all in disco heaven—it was just so cool.

I am now surprised to discover that the secret behind “Getting Away” may the be sly and hateful jabs toward The Moz himself, who famously disdained anyone who ever ate meat, or any style of music he did not personally direct.  He is on record for dismissing electronic music in general as useless, so the jabs at his persona in the lyrics (“I’ve been walking in the rain / just to get wet on purpose”) are penchant, and just what he had coming.  It was only the year before that Morrissey had released a track called “Hairdresser on Fire” (as the B side to the A single “Suedehead”), one of his more famous B sides, which include the lyrics 

“Here is London Home of the brash, outrageous and free You are repressed But you're remarkably dressed Is it real?”

to which (apparently) the boys from Electronic responded in verse

“I've been talking to myself Just to suggest that I'm selfish (Getting ahead) I've been trying to impress That more is less and I'm repressed (I should do what he said)”

Which may be nothing, or may be pointed.  It is on record that Morrissey criticized the song in a 1991 interview, calling it "totally useless" and joking that the song had a "very apt title”.  

It is certain that both Marr and Sumner were looking to explore new freedoms and territories outside of the straight jacket of rock and roll.  It is especially ironic that Morrissey, one of the patron saints of gay identity, would be so narrow and humorless about pop music in general.  Then again, maybe not; I love him, but a kinkier curmudgeon would be hard to locate.  It has been suggested that Neil Tennant continued the lampooning of Morrissey with the B side to the single for “Was it Worth It?” (which flopped), “Miserablism” (which is iconic in their catalog), and paints the picture of a person using inversion as a religion:

“Every performance tends to reach the same conclusion No happy endings but a message to depress Saying life is an impossible scheme That's the point Of this philosophy

Miserablism Is is and isn't isn’t

Miserablism Is is and isn’t isn’t."

Electronic’s last album (of 3 total) was released in 1999.  They have never formally disbanded, but are likely done with the project.  Morrissey is still making records and slagging people off to this day.  There are no plans to reunite any version of The Smiths.

---

The collaborations with icons of gay culture would certainly continue for the Pet Shop Boys.  In 1992 they had their biggest success outside of their band by producing Boy George’s cover of “The Crying Game”, the title track for the movie of the same name.  It was a success worldwide, a Billboard No. 15 in the US (Boy George’s highest ever here as a solo act), as well as a dreamy synth pop gem.  Neil Tennant told NME in 1993, "I think George sings that song really well, he sounds a bit like Roy Orbison” which is rather true, a credit to the production and vocal alike. Charles Aaron from Spin said, “Heard it in a mall, wanted to weep in my Orange Julius.” to which I would say, didn’t we all Charles, didn’t we all.

"The Crying Game" by Boy George, 1992

The song title “Getting Away With It” is suggestive of many things.  As a member of the band The Smiths, Morrissey and the band adopted an anti-look look, very industrial city clothes, even presenting as nondescript.  But Morrissey had a way of inverting this idea, sporting a giant pompadour, thick NHS black glasses, an inoperative plastic hearing aid during performances, and receiving gladiolus flowers on stage from fans.  His was not an undramatic pose, and actually part of the long tradition of the gay man presenting as a fop.  

A fop from "What is this my Son Tom?", 1774

In England alone there was the “macaroni” of the Georgian period, followed by the Beau Brummell of the Regency period, and then the Aesthete, which culminated in the late 19th century with the writers Walter Pater and Oscar Wilde.  For the opening in 1892 of  his play“Lady Windermere’s Fan”, Oscar sported an unnatural green carnation as a publicity stunt (it actually signified nothing).  However nothing can easily become something.  The green carnation went on to become a craze for aesthetes, a tip off for the presence of homosex, and finally aided in Oscar’s undoing when an 1894 novel by the name of The Green Carnation by Robert Hitchens was used as evidence in Wilde’s sodomy trial to send him to Reading Gaol prison for 2 years, even though Oscar personally had nothing whatsoever to do with it’s publication or content.  He went on to comment 

"I invented that magnificent flower, but with the middle-class and mediocre book that usurps its strangely beautiful name I have, I need hardly say, nothing whatsoever to do. The flower is a work of art. The book is not.”

Oscar Wilde died only a few years after his imprisonment in 1900 at the young age of 46.  

His crime: high style.

Oscar Wilde, pictured with a green carnation.