#my incredible little girl who I have known for a year who I just adore.

[totopopopo]

Okay I made this to represent a specific event but then I thought about it and realized that more generally soeaking this actually sums the exact dynamic I have with my fourth grade girls.

[frenchkisstheabyss]

♰ ⱠɆ₲łØ₦ ♰

♰ Pairings: demon!matz x chubby!fem!reader, demon!wooyoung x chubby!fem!reader, a sprinkle of demon!san x chubby!fem!reader, (eventual priest yeosang/jongho/yungi x chubby!fem!reader in the future)

♰ Genre: demon au/horror/smut

♰ Summary: Congratulations, darling! It's your destiny to be impregnated by four demons in an ancient Satanic sex ritual that'll lead to the birth of the Antichrist and bring about the end times. Now hop down into this demons' layer and let's get this thing going. Armageddon awaits.

♰ Word Count: 3.1kish

♰ Warnings: breeding kink, unprotected sex, no pulling out, double vaginal penetration, overstimulation, nipple play, breast play, rough sex, lots of breath play, ritualistic sex, scratching, a lil blood, oral sex (f receiving), sensory play, a lil nibbling, huge huge demon dicks so there's mucho vaginal stretching, the dicks can shapeshift (yes, shapeshift), demons give some dom vibes, reader's for sure subby, a lil possessiveness, demonic powers, religious themes, bondage, a lil choking, telepathy, your body's controlled via powers at some point, pet names (pet, little one, darling, good girl), and that should be it.

♰ A/N: Hold on, hear me out, I can explain. No, I can't. I'm a heathen. I like spooky shit and fucking demons so, ya know, here we are. This is the first part in a series I'm writing and it'll probably only get more unhinged from here honestly so, yeah, hop in babes. It's apocalypse time.

“And he asked him, ‘What is thy name?’And he answered saying, ‘My name is Legion, for we are many’” - Matthew 5:9

♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ Laberinto del Demonio ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰

Tucked away on the tree shrouded grounds of an aging Spanish manor, a labyrinth spirals deep into the earth. Beneath the lush grass and packed dirt, surrounded by the twisted roots of trees that feast upon the decaying corpses of those who attempt to intrude, this labyrinth is home to fearsome creatures who’ve peacefully slumbered here for hundreds of years. But tonight they awaken. For you. 

“Such a beautiful girl. Just let me…” Wooyoung compliments, fussing with a few flyaway strands of your hair. In the year that’s passed since Wooyoung came into your life all he’s done is fuss over you. You’ve never known a more attentive lover. Never met a man so intent on catering to your every whim.

Wooyoung likes to say that it’s the Fates that brought the two of you together but that’s more than a grave exaggeration on his part, it’s an outright lie. If he’d waited on the Fates it’d have been another 200 years before he stumbled upon a female descendant of your bloodline. Finding you by any means necessary, however brutal, was paramount to fulfill his mission and to soothe the heart that ached for what he lost when his love was stripped from him all those centuries ago.

Your resemblance to her is uncanny but everything else about you is incredibly unique. It stimulates him in endless ways, everyday with you marked by some new, exciting experience. He adores you beyond measure and the others, soaking you in through their collective consciousness, have grown incredibly fond of you too. 

“There. Perfect, as always” he smiles, taking a step back to admire your silk adorned figure glowing under the light of the moon.

Atop the labyrinth, you admire the torch lit staircase that spirals beneath you. It emits a certain energy that hangs heavy in the crisp autumn air, drawing you towards it. You know what awaits you tonight. Wooyoung went over it with you a dozen times in the last 24 hours alone. It’s something you long for, something that has your body flush with heat at the mere thought of. Yet you can’t seem to shake the nerves that have your fingers trembling as the handsomely dressed dark haired man takes your hand.

Wooyoung strokes your cheek and you soften at his touch, “Are you nervous, my pet?” 

“Not nervous. It’s just…” you sigh, nibbling at your inner lip, “What if I’m not who you think I am? What if I can’t handle it?” 

Wooyoung lets out a laugh you’ve come to liken to a jackal. Loud, mischievous, and undeniably his. “Can’t handle it? It’s that all you’re worried about?” 

He steps in closer to you, stealing a quick, passionate kiss from your crimson stained lips. “You were made for this. In every lifetime you have been and in every lifetime you’ll always be. Now come, the others are waiting.” You soak in Wooyoung’s words, forever a sponge ready to absorb his praise, and gift him the faint smile he needs to lead you forward.

Less forward, more down. 

Down past walls built of jagged stone, thick vines weaving between the cracks sprouting tiny emerald flowers you’ve never seen before. Down past ancient symbols carved in meticulously measured increments. It seems to be instructions of some sort. For what you aren’t sure but a tugging in the pit of your stomach tells you that you’ll soon find out. 

At last reaching the bottom of the labyrinth you find yourself in a cavernous room dimly illuminated by a hundred or so candles. At the center you spot a large pool of slithering black silk not unlike that which hugs your body. Wooyoung leads you to the center and, as he does, you feel the material begin to writhe against your skin. It snakes its way around your curves, exposing your plush figure to the warmth of the pit as you sense you’ve become one with it.

A chorus of voices begin whispering in your ear, invisible hands grasping at your most intimate areas. Wooyoung captures your lips in another kiss, already groaning at thoughts of what he has planned for you. His hands wander below your waist, fingernails growing sharper as they sink into the softness of your ass. You throw your arms around him, deepening the kiss, but he indulges you only for a brief moment before he begins to back away.

“Soon, my love” he says without speaking a word, “See you on the other side.” 

“Woo, wait!” you call out to him but a strong wind whips through the room, extinguishing the flames of the outer candles and swallowing him into darkness. The force of the wind knocks you off your feet but you land with no impact at all, the pit catching you in its embrace, thin strips of silk winding around your thighs. The air around you floods with laughter layered upon laughter, Woo’s melded somewhere in between. 

“Aah, finally I see her through my own eyes” a voice breathes out, tickling your spine. 

“Such a precious little human. So cute” another much deeper voice hums, the vibration ringing through your chest. 

“And she looks so, so…” a third voice chimes in, light as a feather, “Soft!” 

In the blink of an eye the silk wrapped around your thigh transforms into a hand, pitch black with razor sharp claws dripping a thick scarlet liquid down your leg. You let out a scream of absolute terror and it transforms back into the harmless material. It’s as if it were all in your head and the hand was never there to begin with.

“Seonghwa, you’re scaring her!” Wooyoung shouts and invisible arms envelope you, comforting you as your fear subsides. 

“Oh, no. I’m so sorry. I got a little carried away” Seonghwa apologizes, emerging from the pit in his human form.

He swims through the pit as if it were a pool, only his torso visible as he comes between your legs, his much gentler hands smoothing their way up your thigh. You don’t recognize the face of this beautifully androgynous creature but you’re positive you’ve felt his energy around you before.

“Is this better for you?” he asks, breath hitching at the sight of the slick, sweet arousal dripping from your core. 

“Seonghwa?” you moan his name for the first time as his tongue extends to flick your bud. “Woo’s told me so much about you.”

A shimmer of gold ripples across the dark pools that sit where his eyes should be, lips curling into a grin that’s both alluring and sinister. “Aah and what did he tell you about me? Good things?” he asks, his tongue whipping down to prod your tight hole. Seonghwa delights in the string of moans you release as he teases you, pushing his moist tongue into you little by little. Your walls eager to grant him entrance, stretching to accommodate the increasing thickness and length of his tongue. 

“Good? Y-yes, good” you breathe out, shocked at the depths his tongue manages to reach. There are no limitations, no bottoming out. He slips his way into every part of you. Tickling the back of your stomach, lapping at your walls in every direction at once. You can taste yourself on the back of your tongue, a sudden fullness in your throat suppressing your desperate moans. Your body’s no longer yours. It does only what he wishes it to. Moves only as he commands. 

“You’re being greedy. Share her. Now” something inhuman growls, breaking through the fog in your mind.

It’s not something you were meant to hear, the shedding of those performative voices existing solely for your comfort, but you’re far from afraid. On the contrary, such brutality laced with so much need has you clenching tighter, juices gushing out of you as Seonghwa’s tongue thrusts harshly into your core.

Seonghwa grunts defiantly, lifting you a few inches above the pit without laying a finger on you. Your arms dangle at your sides, fingertips grasping at nothing as your body arches against air. Droplets of your arousal run down your thigh, landing on the silk below and the creatures around you release a collective sigh of satisfaction. They can taste you, the ghost of your flavor lingering on their tongues. 

“You are like the other women in your bloodline…” the inhuman voice whispers, becoming more human the closer it gets, “Delicious.”

Two hands reach from outside of your field of vision to caress your plump breasts, firmly pinching your sensitive nipples. Your head falls to the side and you're met with another new face. This one more boyish in his handsomeness but more authoritative in his presence. Wooyoung told you that you’d know his leader when you met him. That you’d feel this immense need to gain his approval, to be as obedient to him as you can be.

“This is Hongjoong” you think and the leader smiles in response.

“Delicious and smart, mmm” he hums, leaning into your neck and breathing your scent deep into his lungs. “Let her speak.” 

The fullness vacates your throat at once, leaving you gasping for air, all those suppressed moans echoing off the labyrinth’s walls. Seonghwa’s tongue flutters softly inside of you now, his pace slowing just enough for you to speak. 

“You know what you’re here for, don’t you little one? Our Wooyoung’s explained it to you well?” Hongjoong asks, kissing you on the neck, his canines nicking at your smooth, fragrant flesh.

You let out a whine, adrenaline coursing through your veins, “Yes…he…everything…told me.”

Hongjoong laughs at your incoherence, finding it quite adorable, “And this is what you want? To let us have our way with you?” He releases one of your breasts, twisting the bud one last time before his hand's gliding down your body to grab handfuls of your belly. “To let us fill you with our seed and let it grow so that we’ll be, all of us, a family?” 

You’re fixated on him, a constellation of tears twinkling on your lashes, “I want it. I want this.” 

“Aah, then we shouldn’t waste any more time” Hongjoong sighs, gesturing to Seonghwa, “Let’s take her together, shall we?” 

Seonghwa’s tongue retreats slowly from your core in an S motion that makes the tip lash sharply at your walls on its way out. The space between you and the pit below begins to close, all current information misleading you to believe the arms you fall into will belong to Hongjoong.

“Relax your body and watch the skies” Seonghwa instructs as you fall against his chest and the vines between the stone walls climb their way up the ceiling. They radiate a vibrant amethyst, the sprouting emerald flowers emitting a sparkling dust that mists through the air. A trail of it drifts down the wall, drawing your attention to the shadows cast upon it by the light of the candles.

That’s when you see it. The silhouette of the creature crawling its way up your body. You’ve yet to feel him but he’s there, advancing up your figure, twisted horns brushing your cheek as it’s face meets yours. Hongjoong takes you carefully by the throat, tilting your head to face him in his human form, “The skies not the shadows, pet. Never our shadows.” It isn’t a threat and it need not be. Your obedience is promised, sealed with a kiss richer than any wine.

Hongjoong’s mouth sips hungrily from yours as he spreads your legs, the swollen head of his cock leaking arousal as it stretches your already soaked core. “Mmphmm” you whine between his lips, your lids squeezing shut the further he pushes into you. He grants pleasure to your walls unlike any the earthly realm could bring. He seems to transform inside of you, shifting into whatever he must to perfectly fill every ridge of your delicate pussy.

Your body wants to clench around him, to feel him as completely as it can but, no matter how hard you try, an invisible barrier prevents it. Anatomy 101 dictates that, with the size of what you’ve taken, there should be not a centimeter of free space. By all means you should be screaming in agony, not pouring out such blissful moans. But, as Woo said, you were made for this and so there’s room still when Seonghwa’s palms come to rest behind your knees, hips rising to lift his pulsing length into your warmth.

Your eyes fall open and Hongjoong breaks from the kiss, freeing you to gurgle and moan as you at last watch the skies. There’s no need for clenching now, no possible way for you to do so. Buried deep within you, they exist both as one and as two. As one when they thrust into you, their demonic growls contrasting the lightness of your moans. As two when they split at the head, charting their own courses to punish your tender nerve endings. 

Seonghwa nuzzles against your neck, licking beads of sweat from your shoulder before it extends down to trace your collarbone. Hongjoong cups one of your breasts, fingertips digging into its plushness as he purses his lips around your nipple, suckling at the bud. Seonghwa’s tongue envelopes your other breast, the tip of his tongue circling your nipple.

Your body’s overcome with an unnatural heat that ravages you like a wildfire. Your mind’s whirling as you think of everything and nothing at once. Your teary eyes remain glued to the skies—always the skies, never their shadows—and your senses begin to shift. No longer are you smelling the honeyed scent of the flowers, you’re tasting it. And what you smell are colors, amethyst and emerald now aromatic as if they were herbs. 

“You are such a beauty to behold” Hongjoong’s voice praises, breaking through the fractured barriers of your mind. 

Seonghwa’s voice coasts in after his. “We haven’t felt this alive in centuries” it says, tickling your consciousness as does the breath at the back of your neck. “Maybe we could keep her like this. Whining and quivering between us. Forever our plaything. Would you like that, darling?” 

Hongjoong dips a hand between your legs, gathering your slick and dragging his drenched fingers across your lips. His laughter rings out in your head, “I think she likes the idea of it. Maybe…”

“Aaah!” you let out a scream that cracks to pieces in your throat. You’re hit with a rush that makes you feel absolutely feral, your nails thrashing at Hongjoong’s back as it overtakes you. 

“Good girl” he coos, unphased by the blood trickling from his wounds, “Come your pretty little brains out for us.” 

Seonghwa allows your legs to drop, strips of silk reaching up to coil around your ankles. His arms come around your waist, keeping you in place to fuck into you harder and faster. Thrusting. Pulsing. Claiming you. Flooding you with their seed until it’s spilling from your core and you’re coming all over their cocks, soaking them in your juices. Never in your life have you felt this perfect. This complete.

It’s impossible to differentiate between the labored breathing shared between the three of you. Even as you drift down from your high your breaths all sound as if they’ve left the same body. You arrived at this place a human but maybe now not as much. A part of you has been given away and, if it means feeling this way forever, you don’t want it back. 

Seonghwa softly brushes your hair away from your cheek, showering it in kisses, “You’ll rest with us now.” 

“Don’t be afraid” Hongjoong says, kissing his way down your tummy, “It can get a bit dark down here.”

“Down where?” you ask weakly before you’re snatched beneath the surface of the pit. Instinctively you begin flailing your limbs in a desperate attempt to keep yourself from drowning but your panic’s soothed by the two sets of arms cuddling up to you.

Surrounded by their warmth, you let the darkness swallow you and drift off to sleep. 

♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ 2. Despertar ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰ ♰

“Woo!” you scream, shooting upright, your heart pounding in your ears. You can’t fathom how long you’ve been asleep, the finer details of the previous events lost in the haze of sleep. You look around for Woo, for any of them, but you’re met only with the light, sparkling mist that hung from the ceiling above the pit.

Stretching your aching legs you feel something slink across them. “Wh…what is this?” you gasp, watching the fluorescent vines curiously explore your figure. Flower buds bloom as the vines reach between your legs, curving to ride your thighs up and around your torso. 

“Pretty aren’t they?” Woo asks, appearing behind you without a sound. 

“Woo, you scared me!” you pout, tempted to elbow him in the shin for frightening you so terribly. 

Woo crouches down to loop his arms around you from behind. “I’m sorry. I didn’t expect you to be so easily frightened all things considered” he teases, resting his chin on your shoulder. A graceful wave of his hand and he’s plucked a flower from the vine, twirling it before your eyes. You marvel at its beauty, the emerald glow creating a halo around your irises.

“Where do these come from?” you ask, brimming with wonder.

There’s a rustling in a nearby corner, the silhouette of a broad shouldered man emerging from the darkness. He smiles at you as he steps into the light of the mist, striking you with his features. Woo tucks the flower behind your ear, pointing to the approaching man. “They come from the mountain.” 

The man kneels before you, his dimpled cheeks inches from your face, and the vines tighten around you at his will. “But you can call me San” he says, obviously as smitten with you as you are with him. “Are you ready for us, love?”

You swallow hard and take your last full breath of air before the vine’s snug around your neck. “Yes, mmm, ready” you moan softly, surrendering to the strength of the vines. 

San takes you by the chin, his thumb tracing your jawline, “Hmm, breaking you will be fun. Just try not to look down too much. Might get lightheaded.” 

“Down?” you ask, glancing around at the bed of vines. You put all of your focus into watching them, searching for something you might’ve missed. But they’re as they were before, humming and glowing, doing their master’s bidding.

San guides your head in the opposite direction, revealing the pit of writhing black silk and the room illuminated with candles. 

“Oh, darling, haven’t you figured it out yet? You aren't down there anymore” Wooyoung laughs, tossing a flower into the air and watching it drift down into the pit, “You’re up here.” 

[consoledacup]

Ode to the Street Scene

I really thought my favorite scene was the wedding dance. It cuts away to no one in the room, and my heart just swells from the romance. And that cheek caress at the end? Butterflies!

But every time I rewatch, I have to pause the show and just sit with certain beats of my actual favorite scene because I'm so overcome. The writing is so fantastically good. Verica's directing is perfect. The scoring is angsty and beautiful. And Luke and Nicola deliver incredible performances. The give-and-take of this fight is exceptional, and their chemistry is electric.

This confrontation is one that is years in the making. And as they fight, they address all of it. He's only known about her Whistledown identity for a short time, so this fight was always going to be incredibly heightened and passionate. But we also get so much truth in this exchange, too.

Colin's leaving the saddest stag party ever. I'm sure he also felt weirdly guilty for not being ecstatic about it. Especially because the three gentlemen with him witnessed Colin-heart eyes-Bridgerton not a week ago. So they notice something is wrong, and he really doesn't want to talk about it.

Penelope's leaving her good friend and business confidant. And I love the little hesitation Genevieve has before asking Penelope if she'd continue publishing. She adores Penelope and has been such a fantastic support for her. So although Penelope feels like she's unworthy of Colin after everything that has happened, Genevieve is steadfast in encouraging her to not give up a huge part of herself.

So they run into each other, and Colin is immediately furious. He is shocked to see her, his Pen, out alone at night. And then he's like, well, she's Whistledown. She was doing this all along, right under my nose, having a laugh. And Penelope can probably smell the alcohol on him and is fed up with being the bad guy at this point. So she bates him because good grief, can he just look at her??

And he immediately lays into her. I really love Luke's rhythmic delivery here:

After all of the secrets you have kept, all of the things you have written over the years, all of the damage you have done.

And I love how Penelope immediately takes responsibility and apologizes. Two people have found out about her identity prior to Colin. Genevieve needs no explanation for why Penelope did what she did. And Eloise is so heartbroken and betrayed and humiliated, she has no room for Penelope's motivations.

But as angry as Colin is, he listens. And they go through her past transgressions, point by point. He asks about Eloise, as the protective brother he is, and receives a somewhat satisfactory response.

And then he asks about Marina, and Penelope is essentially like, I was saving you. For White Knight Colin Bridgerton, that is almost too much for him to take. If we go back to that scene when Penelope tells Colin about George, she purposely leaves out her pregnancy. That was deliberate. She might've gotten dismissed by him and interrupted by Marina, but she was always going to lead with, "well, she has a lover back home." Because she was terrified Colin would mount his white horse and see it as his duty to rescue Marina all the same. As a 17-year-old girl, who had incredible power, she saw no choice but to manipulate his future. That was a bad move, and she knows it.

Which is why he's like, do you really have that little respect for me? Because he reveals what cuts him the most. Whistledown called him out, belittling him. And then he finds out that the most important person in his life, his entire world, wrote that about him. And is that truly how she feels about him when he thinks she hung the moon and stars?

And that's when this fight takes a turn as Penelope lays bare everything she loves about him. She was like, I missed you just like you missed me. Here's where I praise Nicola's rhythmic delivery:

It's you. Kind, feeling, occasionally excitable good-hearted man who I love.

Even the way she says "man who I love" is just so matter-of-fact. Of course she loves him. When is he gonna get that?

Every episode this season, we see Penelope subtly gain more and more confidence. Which is why this payoff is so delicious because she has finally developed the confidence, that he helped her find, to stand up to him.

So he takes that all in, and in an almost hopeful way, he's like, well, I helped you gain confidence, and you have me now, so you really don't need Whistledown, right? You don't need to be more powerful than me. And she's a little taken aback by his plea but stands her ground, patiently explaining why Whistledown is important. Which breaks his heart because he feels that, deep down, Penelope surpasses him in talent and ambition.

Remember their engagement party when Penelope and Eloise take turns answering the riddles? He is proud of Penelope, and he is concerned something is going on with her, but he is also, plainly, jealous. Anthony obviously steals the scene with his competitiveness, but you see Colin sitting up a little straighter, wanting to impress everyone else with his quick wit. And each time Penelope or Eloise get the answer right, he deflates a little. He's always known Penelope to be incredibly smart, but now that he's desperately in love with her, he is terrified that she doesn't see him as her intellectual equal. And his fears are confirmed when he finds out she's the sharpest tongue in the ton.

He's honest about how patronized he feels, thinking about her hyping up his journal. His eyes are welling up because good god, he does not understand why she just won't choose him over Whistledown. And he chooses that moment to assert his physical dominance and join her on the step so he towers over her. He goes for broke, berating her for her carelessness, and she's not having it.

And this interplay between Luke and Nicola is like a perfect volley:

I have been careful.

You have been foolish.

Colin, I can take care of myself.

Then what good am I to you?!

And Penelope just snaps. She tells him she loves him which snaps him out of his spiral, and they finally allow their passion for each other to take over. And their physicality shows how relieved they feel in each others' embrace. Their kiss is like coming home, and they're like, thank GOD you want me like I still want you.

They're not thinking much else, but I do wonder if Colin in the back of his mind is like, she may not need my brain or my protection, and I have no title, and I can only provide her a townhome, but by god, I can give her pleasure. I think it says something that Colin's go-to move is his hands. He wants to bring her to ecstasy as expediently as possible, finding his own pleasure in hers.

Thankfully, they are interrupted because they really don't need another scandal. They were debauching each other in the street! That is an absolutely wild thing for them to do, and Colin has enough wherewithal to keep her shielded, quickly falling into his coveted protector role.

He holds her hand and walks her to her carriage. Their goodbye is tense, but he assures her that she doesn't have to worry about him. He will be at the church on time. He is still choosing a life with her, and is, of sound mind and body, intentionally entering into a union with Lady Whistledown. And then he watches her carriage leave.

Perfect, heartbreaking, passionate, angsty, emotional, sexy, honest, cathartic, electric, romantic scene from start to finish.

[melobin]

it’s our one year anniversary!! and it’s absolutely surreal to me how much we’ve grown over the past year. i love melobin so much, i adore being here and i adore being able to share things with all of you and i can’t wait to share more of the things i have planned !!

the past year has definitely been a little rocky LFMAO i’ve been through three url changes and more than one silly ot6 accusation exposing post but i’m still here ! and i’m still adoring and supporting riize as a whole. it’s been a few years since I’ve found myself as in love with a group as i am with riize and im so incredibly grateful that i got to meet so many wonderful people because of them. from mutuals to anons to just people who interact with my blog, i really adore and appreciate you all, more than i can express in words. i’ve taken a few breaks in the past year, all mental health related but you’ve all been so understanding and i cannot thank you enough for that.

it’s quite overwhelming that melobin has gained over 3.7k followers in the past year, i never really expected much other than a few people to talk to when i first started my blog but im so happy with the little community we’ve created here and i can’t wait for it to continue 🥺 i truly adore you all.

the melody and friends discord server has been a highlight of melobin for me !! i love that server and everyone i’ve met through it, i wanted to create a community that was welcoming and comforting and friendly and i truly believe i’ve done that.

not to be too soppy but there’s definitely some people i’d like to personally thank for being here this past year.

@kkurokitty my jaye !! i love you and everything you do so much. you were there when i first created melobin, we had our little taerae pfps and urls 😭 things have definitely changed a lot since then but you’re since as wonderful as the day we met all those years ago and im so thankful to have you.

@leejeongz amy ☹️ not even god knows how much you mean to me. everyday we speak i feel like we’re closer even if we’re a whole train ride apart. having you back in my life has been one of the best things to ever happen to me and i can’t wait to see you again. manifesting riize come to the UK soon so we can go and see them together. forever the moon to my stars 💔 i love you so bad :(.

@rishimuras melomiu <3 i’m so glad tals forced you to join my server the day it was created. it’s insane to me that we’ve been friends for almost a year now because i still feel like the same girl who was scared to message you whilst also feeling like ive known you for years. you’ve been a big part of melobin and my life for the past few months and i adore you so much. i only ever wish you the best and im more than ready to take on anyone who threatens that. i love you !!

@01zfan parter in crime i fear … the only person im honoured to lose 100 lp with in one day after spam playing tft with our little duckbills and dowsies. i was your biggest fan before we ever spoke and i remember almost doing a (metaphorical) backflip when i found out you already followed me 😭 your writing has changed me as a person and im so thankful to have become friends with you over the past few months. we fight the ot6 accusations together and we get you to plat SOON. i love you !! 💖

@tsandoll bunny !!!!!!!!! i love you !! you’ve been such a support for me with melobin and i can’t thank you enough! i love our little roblox games and the amount of shit we talk, i’m always laughing whenever we talk it’s almost impossible not to. you understand my humour so much and even when you don’t you still laugh .. true friend !!! i really hope soon you can feel better and feel like yourself again, i love you 💗

@sonjuyeonnie i wish i knew what blog to tag .. my fake text proof reader .. but seo i love you you’ve been such a sweetheart to me since you joined my server and i’ve been nothing but proud of you since then. you’ve accomplished so much and im so happy to see you thriving in life. i know we haven’t been able to talk much lately because of work but never forget how much i adore you and how im always here 💖

with some other people .. @antoncore my cee, you’ve grown so much in the few months we’ve known each other and i’m forever proud of you and i can’t wait to watch you grow more, i love you !! … @bbina my smau queen, btl changed me as a person and i’ll always support you in every smau you write even if i don’t know the idol you’re just TOO good. you’re so lovely and sweet and funny i luv yewww !! … @wonbin-truther the prettiest girl !! you’re so sweet and funny and so so talented, your sohee smau was pure GOLD i loved every second of it and i love seeing you pop up in my dms with the most random message, i fear i love you so bad 💔

there’s definitely others and i do adore all my mutuals so much !!! you all mean so much to me and i can’t wait for melobin to grow more. to one year and many more ! 💖

[wileys-russo]

can i request an alessia x reader where it’s after a game and reader is going round and taking photos with fans and stuff and one of them is a small child and has a really cute interaction with said child, alessia is watching from a distance with katie and katie tease lessi about looking so in love, or just something along those lines if that’s ok 🙂

lovesick II a.russo

“guys I’ll try my best to get to as many of you as possible but i really have to go soon! i’m so sorry i’m expected at the post match press conference and it starts in five minutes.” you apologised, wincing as the yelling for your name and attention only increased as you hurried from fan to fan, smiling quickly for selfies and scribbling your name as neatly as you could on jersey after jersey.

your girlfriend watched on from a distance, arms folded over her chest and a slight frown on her face as she noticed the growing distress on your own. you were always the first to head toward the fans and the last to leave, but with the popularity of the game growing you’d never ever be able to please everyone and alessia knew the harsh comments which always followed affected you more than you let on.

“well well well if it isn’t guard dog russo protectively watching over her little girlfriend!” she heard a voice tease in her ear as fingers poked at her sides and she swatted away the irishwoman who grinned. “leave me alone macca you know what she’s like.” alessia grumbled with a roll of her eyes.

“i do. remember i’ve actually known her longer than you have russo!” katie laughed flicking at the tall blondes ear who sent her a scowl, gaze quickly pinned right back at you. “she’s a big girl less she’ll be fine. much as she has her big bad golden retriever guard dog always one step behind her.” katie cooed mockingly pinching the younger girls cheeks who shoved her away again.

“i’m not a golden retriever!” alessia protested with a frown at the common nickname she’d earned herself within the team. “oh sorry maybe something with a bit more bark than bite mmm, a golden doodle or a poodle perhaps?” katie pondered with a grin, ducking as the blonde swung at her and she ooh’d.

“struck a nerve have i russo?” katie teased but alessia’s attention was elsewhere.

“I have to go now i’m so sorry! i’ll try to come back if i can!” you apologised as you started to back away from the continuing yells and screams for your attention, most of your team already off the pitch as you were already late for the press conference.

“y/n! y/n! please i wanna be just like you when i grow up!” your head swivelled and your resolve wavered seeing an adorable little brunette wearing your number and frantically waving her hands at you, squished against the fence by the adults surrounding her.

“we flew from belfast, you’re her favourite player of all time even above the irish girls.” her mum explained as she appeared beside her, and you heard one of the staff call your name a few feet away, tapping her wrist impatiently to signal you were already late.

“oh balls.” you grumbled under your breath, rushing back toward the barrier and quickly scooping the brunette up into your arms. “what’s your name sweets?” you asked as you plopped her down beside you, gently turning her around so both of your jerseys showed your number and her mum took a picture.

“aishling.” she beamed, tears welling up in her eyes as she practically tackled you into a hug, the unexpected knock taking you off your feet as her mum yelled at her and you assured it was fine, sitting back up and giving her a proper hug before settling her on your hip.”

“smile for your mum!” you pointed to the camera with a grin of your own, tickling her sides as she laughed and her mum took another photo. “thank you so so much, you’ve just made her entire year.” the woman thanked you as you gently placed aishling back down behind the barrier, ruffling her hair with a smile.

“i’m glad. but i am so incredibly late and i quite like having a job so i really have to go. thank you all for coming out!” you clapped the fans and tried to ignore the boo’s from those you’d missed, grabbed by the staff member who told you off as she dragged you away toward the press conference.

your girlfriend had watched the entire interaction with a face like melted butter, millions of scenarios of that one day being your own child you held on your hip, how good of a mum you’d be, waking up beside you as your kids would jump on top of the pair of you, their giggles filling the room as you’d both relentlessly tickle them for the wake up call.

“oh my god your face russo! you’re so in love with her it’s absolutely disgusting. god i can feel my lunch coming back up hold on!” katie begin to gag, doubling over with her hands on her knee’s as alessia was snapped out of her trance, shoving the older girl who held up a finger and continued to gag.

“and you’re supposed to be the adult between us?” alessia mumbled with a roll of her eyes but not without a small smile tugging at her lips as she made a beeline back inside, heading for the media room with katie trailing along after her.

it would appear she made it only a few seconds after you as she watched you trip your way up onto the stage in your haste, jonas hurrying to steady you and help you sit down as amused chuckles broke up among the journalists scattered around the room.

clearly embarrassed you mumbled an apology for your both abrupt and late entry as your face burnt bright red and jonas started calling for questions.

alessia caught your eye after a moment, sending you a reassuring smile and gesturing for you to breath as you inhaled deeply and nodded, the striker sending you a thumbs up and mouthing she was proud of you.

but she didn’t miss the smirk which crossed your face for a moment, your eyes moving past her as alessia glanced over her shoulder and saw katie mimicking her every move.

scowling alessia wasted no time shoving the irish defender back outside with her, not wanting to distract you any further as they headed for the change rooms and katie slung an arm over the younger girls broad shoulders.

“ah russo you’ve got it bad you know, you are lovesick my friend. absolutely down bad would do anything for her and marry her in a heartbeat lovesick.”

and alessia made no move to argue with her.

[lilislegacy]

everybody loves percy

someone just asked me about my earlier post: why would percy be crowd surfing? people only put in the effort to hold up a celebrity or a rockstar

why you ask?

the long answer:

because everybody loves percy. no i don’t mean that literally. of course his enemies hate him. but like… come on! it’s percy! everybody loves percy! he’s hilarious! he’s a goofball. he could win the olympics in the sarcasm section. he has the biggest heart in the whole world. he’s such a blast to be around. he’s fun and nice and constantly dropping comments that make people laugh so hard that they cry and pee their pants a little. he’s just that guy. he’s awesome. he’s the actual best.

everybody loves percy

he’s the umtimate hero. especially at camp half blood. everyone who went to camp with him adores him, and everyone who came to camp after he left hears his name everywhere they go. he’s a legend there. he’s a renowned warrior and sword fighter. he went on multiple successful quests. there were TWO great prophecies about him. he was offered and turned down godhood. he led the greeks into battle numerous times and came out victorious every time. he’s their leader. their soul. he’s the heart of the greeks. alongside annabeth chase, the man fell into tartarus and walked out through the doors of death. the son of poseidon is a greek hero.

all the romans at camp jupiter have such a high respect for him. i mean he was only actually there for like a total of 2-3 days, casually interacted with 2 major gods, successfully led a high-stake quest, saved the whole camp, and was raised on a shield and made praetor - the highest of honors. even after he gave up his position, he is still good friends with reyna, their long standing praetor, and bffs with frank, their new praetor. in fact, percy is franks hero. frank looks up to percy. so even if a roman didn’t witness percy save the camp and become praetor, you think they wouldn’t think incredibly highly of him after seeing how much of a deep respect both their current praetors hold for the former preator? plus everyone knows the stories. the son of neptune is a roman hero

loyalty for percy runs deep at both camps.

then there are the people who have no idea who he is. strangers. teenagers. college kids. but even then, everybody loves percy. he walks into a room, is immediately accepting and kind towards everyone, and starts saying the funniest damn things anyone’s ever heard. he’s a ton of fun. always playful and joking around. plus, he’s just a cool guy. even if you don’t know how awesome he is in the world of the gods, he’s a tall handsome dude with the absolute best smile. not to mention he has a lot of cool skills. he skates, he rides horses, he can ride a motorcycle (albeit illegally), im gonna take a guess and say he’s become quite a talented surfer since moving to california, etc. girls all have huge crushes on him and guys all think he’s the most chill dude ever. he’s the guy who walks into a party, makes friends with the dj, the bartender, and everyone he talks to. hes just that guy.

the short answer:

it doesn’t matter if you’re a greek, a roman, or a typical mortal. percy jackson is always the coolest guy in the room. whether you’ve known him for years and fought alongside him in battle, or if you met him 10 minutes ago when he gave you a big smile and said something that made you throw your head back laughing,

everybody loves percy.

so yeah, if percy jackson jumps (or is pushed) onto a crowd to crowd surf, every single person is happily holding up him

the previous post, if anyone if confused ⬇️

[atarathegreat]

Keigo Takami-Nesting

She loved him, the stupid girl. He just had some type of hold on her that she couldn't resist. Y/n had known it since she was a teen. At first, she thought it was a stupid crush until she found herself researching multiple birds and their many unique habits. Y/n only accepted that she was completely gone when she began finding little objects for his attention. Trinkets and such, anything she could get her hands on that would make his feathers puff up in excitement.

Y/n would never forget the day she walked through his open door. Keigo had been huddled in the corner of a filthy living room. The child was immediately drawn to his bright vermillion wings, the way he tried to hide behind them was strange and concerning for her. She kicked and climbed over the trash, sitting next to the boy and complaining about the cold. Keigo hesitantly moved to share his thin blanket and wings with her, he understood that the cold wasn't preferred. They kept him very warm while he was alone and Y/n was shivering and purple, maybe the heat of two people would be better than one. However, two kids left alone in a house drew the attention of authorities and the severely corrupted hero commission.

A memory forever etched in her brain was when Keigo fought his agency, that's when she truly fell for him. He fought for weeks to keep her from going into foster homes. Y/n needed him just as much as he needed her, and that made the commission cave in quickly and they paid for her to stay with him until Keigo became a pro. It wasn't just legally he fought for her, she'd seen how ruffled his feathers got when the commission tried to physically remove her from the building.

Keigo kept them together all the years they'd known each other, it was him that kept her spirits high when she couldn't see anything good in the world. Because, unlike the winged hero, Y/n wasn't outgoing and loud, though she never bothered to hide her emotions. She reminded everyone who saw her of a mouse, fine and healthy but frozen by incredibly new things.

"You should have more confidence in yourself!" Keigo always told her, pushing her cheeks together so her lips jutted out, "You're amazing! You just gotta see it in yourself!"

Y/n knew she would stick by the winged hero until she died, even when he was with a new woman every week. It killed her that she loved him, but he had no way of knowing. She hated the way her lungs would lock up when another woman introduced herself, or the way her tears soaked her shirt after said woman would go into Keigo's room with him. She always knew what was happening, from the sound of the door locking to the failed attempts to stay silent from the women. And he wouldn't know. Not until she screamed at the top of her lungs. Her anger was ignited by the commissions' stupid hero bullshit. Y/n was at her limit.

Keigo had come home early, strange for the man who was all over the place. Y/n hurried to help him with whatever he needed, mainly worried about injuries. Keigo made it a habit to avoid hospitals. "I'm fine, chickadee, just got my day cut short is all." Keigo laughed as the girl checked him over for cuts or bruises. She huffed, taking his jacket and scolding him for dragging mud in.

"Why the cut off?" Y/n asked, moving to sit with him on the couch, "You never agree to short days…"

The hero groaned, leaning closer to the woman and whispering, "The commission wants me to go undercover with the League of Villains."

Before she could even stop herself she whined in protest, covering her mouth just as quickly. Keigo chuckled, he thought she was adorable, "Me, too, actually. But, we both know I don't have any other choice. Sorry, kid."

Butterflies went off in her stomach every time he called her silly little names, she knew her face was beet red. Y/n couldn't help but love the birdbrain and the way he made her feel without even trying. Unbeknownst to anyone, Keigo loved her as well. He just couldn't bring himself to take away the adorable and innocent nature of his friend. As Hawks he could be flirty with her all day, he didn't have to hide anything. As Keigo he had to worry and keep her at a distance, not only were his fans a problem, but he feared that Y/n would be severely affected by his personas constantly changing. It even gave him mixed signals sometimes.

"Stay here with me, fuck the commission." She whispered, she'd never cussed before, it felt foreign to them both, "We can watch movies, play board games, and fall asleep on our couch. You'll come home late and I'll make dinner before you shower and go to bed. Nothing has to change."

Keigo sighed, moving to lean opposite of her, "I can't do that, kid, as much as I wish I could."

Y/n grew angry. Years of frustration, at Keigo and the commission, the girls he brought home… She kicked the coffee table over, raising her voice.

The argument lasted for a while. Keigo was trying to defend his job as a hero while she kept herself away from his personal life. It was hard for her, having everything pent up. Screaming it all out was like an anvil was slowly being pulled off her chest. She didn't care about the way Keigo kept his voice steady in an attempt to deescalate the fight or the way his feathers puffed up in anger, she wanted him to know all of her aggravations.

"And don't even get me started on your behavior when you aren't being a hero!" She blurted, rolling her eyes as he tried to replace the items on the table.

He stood to his full height, pulling his wings in as much as he could, "When am I not being a hero?"

Y/n knew he was daring her to speak, she never missed the way his pupils narrowed in anger, "When you're too busy banging random women in the next room over! Do you know how much that hurts me! I love you, and yet I have to listen to you get it every weekend!"

They both froze, Y/n covering her mouth. The tension in the air disappeared and all the anger was gone. She hadn't meant to shout that, let alone say it at all. It wasn't something he was supposed to hear.

"Sorry…" Was all she managed as she ran to the privacy of her room.

Of course, the hero didn't miss a single word that she had stabbed at him. If anything Keigo clung to her voice in his mind, her volume was shocking to him the most. And the pissed-off way she told him that she loved him. Keigo wanted her to yell more, wanted her to be angry again so he could see that fire in her eyes. He glanced around their little apartment. Y/n had picked out the tan wallpaper, he'd never gotten bored of it for that reason alone. The decorations were all her, too, though Hawks had paid for it all. He never cared how much she spent, he called it his way of giving her trinkets without anyone knowing. Confusion bloomed in his brain as he traced the shelf of things she'd gotten him; little rocks, shiny objects, and items she'd made while fidgeting in public. Keigo had always thought it was sweet that she dedicated a whole shelf for her gifts to him. A slight chuckle made Keigo close his eyes. Y/n'd been doing just as a bird would, giving him little things and making a nest to show her love. How had he never noticed? Had she even wanted him to know? He guessed no since she ran off after the argument.

Keigo slammed his head against the wall, she's been making our home, our nest, and I've brought other birds in. He nearly punched himself for being so stupid. For hurting her to that extent.

"Y/n?" He called through her door, knocking gently before opening it. His heart clenched when her noticed her form under the blankets, "Chickadee?"

Her sniffles came out in mock laughter, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up."

Keigo sighed, getting comfortable next to her under the heavy sheets, "You're more like a bird than I ever thought, y'know?"

Y/n groaned, hiding her reddened face, making Keigo chuckle and pull her back to him, "I'm sorry for bringing them onto our nest, I should've noticed it sooner than your breaking point."

To his delight she turned and curled into him, wiping her nose on his shirt in her own little defiant way, "You have to work for that forgiveness, Keigo Takami."

"Yes, ma'am, I'll start with dinner?" Keigo smirked, "How about some sushi and dango?"

Her smile was enough to send his heart into overdrive as she all but kicked him from the bed. Dango was her favorite and Keigo wasn't above using that to his advantage if it meant she smile

I'll just work extra hard so she doesn't change. Keigo thought as he helped her into his hoodie, appreciating her giddy demeanor, I've fought this far, right? What's the rest of my life, as long as she's there.

[storyofthenauseouseye]

The Duality of Woman: Anais Nin

Vogue Magazine, Anais Nin talks about being a woman, 15 October 1971

Anais Nin is a woman of duality. It's been a well-known fact for those who know or love her that she is truly a two-sided coin. She said it herself in her book Henry and June,

"I will always be the virgin prostitute, the perverse angel, the two-faced sinister and saintly woman"(bookquoters.com).

From her intense marriages to two different men on opposite sides of the country, to her literary career, to even her personal reflections and essays, Nin was a figure bathed in duality. How does one split the image of Anais Nin ideally in half? You just have to find the seam between diarist and eroticist.

The Diarist

Anais Nin is most well-loved by her adoring fans because of her published diary. As a young girl, Nin wrote her father a letter begging him to return to the family he had abandoned (The Anais Nin Foundation). This was the beginning of Nin's diary, which would be published in seven volumes, with four unexpurgated diaries later appearing after their original publication.

Her diaries were incredibly personal, full of secrets and thoughts she never thought would come to light. The biggest secret within these diaries was that she was married to two different men simultaneously, something she would remove from the diaries upon initial publication. Years later, Nin compiled the removed sections into one volume, the first of her unexpurgated diaries. It was called Henry and June, and detailed the letters and writings the two shared. The duality of Nin stretched throughout every aspect of her life.

These highly intimate journals struck twentieth-century American women directly in their souls. As one journalist famously put it in an article for The Conversation,

Anaïs Nin dreamed, in all senses. She dreamed of lives and possibilities. She dreamed in slumber and allowed her dreams to leak into the day. As I regularly committed the cardinal social sin of recounting my dreams over breakfast, she seemed a soulmate across oceans and generations (Gorman).

These teenage girls and their daydreams were instantly hooked on Nin's likeminded wonder and splendid prose. She became a sensation after the diary publications almost instantly, giving her a decent seat in literary history.

It wouldn't be long until something else gave her another boost of fame.

Ramon Casas, Decadent Young Woman. After the Dance, 1899

The Eroticist

In the late 1970s, Anais Nine published three volumes of erotic short fiction, each containing approximately ten stories. Despite their popularity, the term erotic is a tad inappropriate. Although she wasn't a follower of the transgressive art movement like Georges Bataille, Anais Nin's erotic stories are more disturbing and controversial than actually arousing.

Nin wrote about such topics as sexual abuse, incest, pedophilia, and other forms of sexual violence within her stories. These works would go on to shock and challenge readers even today (Maza).

Lost Lenore Antiques, Anais Nin ~ Little Birds and Delta of Venus ~ 1st Edition Books ~ Vintage Erotica, 27 August 2021

Works Cited

The Anais Nin Foundation. “bio — The Anais Nin Foundation.” The Anais Nin Foundation, https://theanaisninfoundation.org/bio. Accessed 11 December 2023.

Gorman, Alice. “The book that changed me: journeying to the self with Anaïs Nin's sensual, transgressive diaries.” The Conversation, 25 April 2022, https://theconversation.com/the-book-that-changed-me-journeying-to-the-self-with-ana-s-nins-sensual-transgressive-diaries-176135. Accessed 11 December 2023.

Maza, Sarah, and Paul Herron. “Swinging: The Double Life of Anaïs Nin.” Public Books, 19 February 2018, https://www.publicbooks.org/swinging-the-double-life-of-anais-nin/. Accessed 11 December 2023.

Nin, Anaïs. “Quotes from Henry and June: From "A Journal of Love"--The Unexpurgated Diary of Anaïs Nin by Anaïs Nin.” BookQuoters, https://bookquoters.com/book/henry-and-june-from-a-journal-of-love-the-unexpurgated-diary-of-anais-nin. Accessed 11 December 2023.

Further Reading

[grigori77]

Once again, to celebrate this awesome day, I thought I'd give another shout-out to some more of those wonderful ladies that I alove and admire, both those who hve inspired me for a while now, and those that I just recently discovered ...

IMAN VELLANI. Oh my sweet girl! :3 Exploding onto the scene thanks to the recent acclaimed hit/fan favourite that was the Disney/Marvel Ms. Marvel streaming show, the most adorable geek girl in ALL THE WORLD really got a major, much deserved profile boost (regardless of the problems) thanks to her co-starring return to the role of super-popular young Marvel superhero Kamala Khan in The Marvels. She's a genuine absolute SWEETHEART and she deserves all the success that's surely coming to her.

GIDEON NAV & HARROWHARK NONAGESIMUS. Yup, I have FINALLY gotten round to reading Tamsyn Muir's ridiculously popular sci-fi fntasy novel series The Locked Tomb! It's still early days, I'm only on Gideon the Ninth, but I am ALREADY falling head over heels in love with the story's central duo, the reluctant warrior Gideon, a snarky oversized golden retriever of a woman, and her "hated" charge, Harrow, the scheming, overly-ambitious scion to an ancient clan of intergalactic necromancers, who's a metaphorical vicious little soaked ferret. I love them, they're so adorably dysfunctional ...

AWKWAFINA. For me, one of the funniest people around, this musician, comedian and actress deserves every ounce of success she's earned for herself. I mostly know her for her acting, having been a fan ever since she was in Ocean's 8, since showing up in a raft of great roles in the likes of Shang-Chi & the Legend of the Ten Rings, Raya & the Last Dragon, Crazy Rich Asians and Swan Song, although she's REALLY hitting her stride now, showing up in REALLY BIG stuff like Renfield, Quiz L\ady and, now, the incoming (and long-awaited) Kung Fu Panda 4.

TATIANA SUAREZ. Perhaps the most incredible sportswoman I have come across in a good long while, this one is a TRUE INSPIRATION REVELATION. A strong up-and-coming contender for UFC World Champion, she's been through SO MUCH in her life to get where she is now, having had her teenage dreams of being an Olympic Gold Medal wrestler dashed after an accident during training led to the discovery of a burgeoning case of thyroid cancer. Fighting off the condition, she then fought her way back after embracing judo and then mixed martial arts, before AGAIN suffering a debilitating neck injury which NEARLY ended her sporting career again, forcing her to take another long-term hiatus to get back into fighting shape ... just as COVID hit. Now she's back again, fighting fit and better than ever, hungry for that next chance and looking like she's definitely gonna get it this time ...

SINEAD O'CONNOR. The last 13 months have been really tough, we've had to say goodbye to some truly wonderful people, but one in particular REALLY HURT. The music industry lost a true GEM with the passing of this genuine GODDESS, the Irish singer-songwriter best known for her INSANELY popular cover of Prince's Nothing Compares 2 U, although those in the know recognise that she was ONE HELL of a force nature in her own right, courting controversy throughout her career for her outspoken religious and political views. She NEVER backed down on what she believed, and earned my undying respect and admiration for it.

FLORENCE PUGH. A completely amazing young actress who's had a trily ASTOUNDING rise to fame in recent years, I've be a fan of Flo's ever since she broke out in a MASSIVE WAY in the twisted psychological drama Lady Macbeth. She's blown us all away since, lighting up the screen in the likes of midsommar, Don't Worry Darling, Oppenheimer and, now, Dune, Part Two, but now, for me she will ALWAYS be Yelena Belova, the true successor to the MCU's Black Widow mantle.

MIZU. One of my favourite female characters of the past year (although I'm sure she would balk at actually bringing up her gender), the titular lead protagonist of Netflix' wild runaway success new animated series Blue Eye Samurai is a genuinely fascinating and intoxivating character, who prompts profound debate about gender roles and personal identity while kicking arse in SPECTACULAR FASHION indeed in feudal Japan.

TEYONAH PARRIS. Definitely one of THE MOST AMAZING African American actresses coming up right now, this young lady is definitely earning her breakout star status. Having come up through sterling turns in the likes of Dear White People, Chi-Raq, If Beale Street Could Talk and Candyman, before finally making good on all that promise with high profile lead turns in THey Cloned Tyrone and her ongoing role as MCU superhero MOnica Rambeau/Photon in Wandavision and The Marvels.

BILLIE EILISH. What do I REALLY need to say about one of the most popular and astoundingly unique musical artists of the moment? Ever since her breakthrough at just THIRTEEN YEARS OLD with her wildly successful first single, Ocean Eyes, which became a massive runaway smash on Youtube, this incredibly talented young singer songwriter has consistently impressed with ever release, entirely deserving her immense success with an amazing debut EP and two subsequently BRILLIANT albums. She keeps going from strength to strength, and at just 22 years old is only just BEGINNING what's sure to be a MONSTER of a career ...

KITTY O'NEIL. A true legend in cinema, even though most of us have NEVER actually seen her face, this little lady was one of the GREATEST stuntwomen and racers of all time, and a MASSIVE inspiration throughout her life as well. Despite going deaf due to illness during childhood, Kitty still went on to become a record-breaking racing driver and professional stunt performer, probably best known for having doubled Linda Cart in Wonder Woman and Lyndsey Wagner in The Bionic Woman. It's a genuine mystery why Hollywood hasn't made a biopic about her yet ...

HOLGA KILGORE. Probably my ABSOLUTE favourite fictional female protagonist of 2023, the badass barbarian lady from Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves was a pure, unapologetic JOY, thanks in no small part to a wonderfully game turn from Michelle Rodriguez. Holga's just an absolute sweetheart, fully capable of decimating a whole room full of big, dangerous men with her bare hands without ever losing her gentle kindness, simple, honest innocence and unswerving loyalty. TRULY the MVP warrior tank any adventuring party wants in their corner ...

SIOUXSIE SIOUX. Truly one of alternative rock's true, all time GOATs, the lead singer of one of goth's greatest and most important bands, Siouxsie & the Banshees, is a singular master of haunting, ethereal vocals and a genuine style ICON who lent her look and manner to a whole GENERATION of scary young women ...

SABINE WREN & SHIN HATI. While my favourite Star Wars offering of 2023, the opening season of the Ahsoka series, was, all round, just SO GREAT for me, there was one particular element that just stuck with me above ANYTHING ELSE - the season-long rivalry between Ahsoka's troubled Mndalorian apprentice Sabine and Dark Jedi student Shin. They raged, continuously tried to kill each other and endlessly traded smouldering looks of hate that bordered on OBSESSION ... all while genuinely SIMMERING with barely restrained sexual tension. They made the whole fandom FERAL, myself includced. #wolfwren indeed ...

BRODY DALLE. And last, but BY NO MEANS LEAST, a little more personal self-indulgience ith one of my greatest rock-fan super crushes, namely the awesome Aussie lead singer/guitarist of supercool punk bands the Distillers and Spinnerette. Still rocking her iconic status to this day, she remains a genuine inspiration ...

[sugar-and-spite]

finally watched the vengeance saga and i am being so, so normal about this. spoiler rambles below the cut. i watched a bunch of different animatics for most of the songs so there will be comments about both the actual songs & official animatics, plus the other fan animatics i saw

not sorry for loving you

first off. CALYPSO. MY GIRL. i'm so glad jorge did her right with this song. i remember adoring calypso in the odyssey, and while epic definitely put her in a more manipulative and antagonistic role than i remember her having, she has a reason. i felt like love in paradise kind of rushed her entire character and i'm so glad she got fleshed out more here.

while she is being manipulative, i definitely don't agree with the people saying she's doing it on purpose. she's been alone for a hundred years, of course she'd be lonely. also like. she's literally never known any other people to know whether she's being manipulative or not, so

also i watched the most animatics for this one and calypso being skinny feels so weird to me, she's at least chubby imo

also extremely funny that jorge got gigi to animate for this one for the stream. gigi being known for having the best circe saga animatics and jorge is like "hm you know who i want to animate this other woman who's manipulating odysseus?" incredible.

and there's this which i said to my bf:

dangerous

"six hundred men, six hundred dead under my command, 'cause i had one goal in mind... [silence]" OKAY YEAH I DIDN'T NEED MY HEART. FUCK.

HERMES IS BACK, BABY!

ximena natzel has the best hermes animatics, the official hermes is good but ximena's is better, if you haven't seen ximena's animatics for "wouldn't you like" and "dangerous" go watch them NOW

they canonized the fluffy winions, i'm not even sure who first came up with that design for them (mircsy was the first one i saw) but they're wonderful and amazing

hermes is just amazing and all of his songs are amazing and this is amazing (can you tell i have a favorite song from vengeance saga)

i love that they also included actual sirens in the official animatic!! the birds with women's faces, those are what sirens actually look like in the myths and mermaid-sirens are more common to see nowadays but it's not The Og, and i'm so so happy they used og sirens (this made me giddy in the same way all the "ruthlessness" animatics with horses in them made me giddy, little-known myth details my beloved)

the callbacks to "keep your friends close"! both musically and lyrically! and the callback to "wouldn't you like" with hermes going "don't thank me" and "good luck!" jorge is always on point with the callbacks

charybdis

took a couple listens for me to really vibe with this, it's kinda filler but that's fine they can't all be bangers

someone pointed out this is the only song we have so far that's 100% solo odysseus with no background vocals or other characters so that's neat

feels like this could've been longer? or fleshed out more? it feels kinda abrupt. but there's gotta be some losers they can't all be winners

get in the water

i need to hear this sung by a woman right now actually so i can be equally bisexual about the original and a female cover.

honestly i don't think i had a single thought in my head through the entire song besides damn. holy SHIT. holy shit this one is good. this is so fucking good.

i lied i had a singular coherent thought (on the second watch): it's subtle, but i think there's a musical callback to the end of "god games" during odysseus's part. when he's begging poseidon to let him go, the music is really similar to when athena begs zeus to let him go at the end of "god games."

six hundred strike

hoooooooly shit. oh my god. what the fuck. not to be bisexual but -

(hottest odysseus has ever been)

he has the power of (the wind) god and anime on his side

with the power of friendship and this jetpack he found -

the callbacks

"you can't kill me." "exactly." HOTTEST ODYSSEUS HAS EVER BEEN

NEXT TO MY WIFE

oh my god. holy fuck. oh my god

anyway this has been rey's (lack of) thoughts about the vengeance saga thanks for joining me i'm so, so normal about this musical

[atopvisenyashill]

An AU for you. Aemon, father of Rhaenys, doesn't die but disappears. Jaehaerys goes ahead and disinheirits Rhaenys. Aemon comes back and isn't a happy camper. Thoughts?

It's definitely interesting. In one of my discussions of Jaehaerys and Rhaenys, it was pointed out that it seems Jaehaerys takes everyone - likely including Baelon - completely by surprise, likely on purpose. It fits with the timeline established here; Aemon and Corlys are off in Tarth so Rhaenys is alone at home and pregnant with no one to support her claim besides herself, Jocelyn, and Alysanne and Jaehaerys doesn't have to listen to any of them. Then you have Baelon who may or may not have been suffering an intense amount of grief from the loss of Aemon (and honestly, probably Alyssa as well - it's been eight years but I can't imagine spending eight years grieving and raising your kids only for your brother to die in a freak accident and suddenly you're crown prince is easy to deal with, may even bring some old grief bubbling back up). It's even possible that Baelon wanted to say no but felt he had no choice because Jaehaerys did this whole ceremony in public right as Baelon was getting back from Tarth. And of course, we don't know how Aemon was talking about Rhaenys - she's named after a conqueror, Aemon and Jocelyn never have any other children (it's not even mentioned that they had miscarriages, they just straight up stop at Rhaenys while Alyssa is popping out sons left and right), Alysanne refers to Rhaenys as the future queen. It's possible Aemon argued with Jaehaerys over Rhaenys and didn't tell Rhaenys (wanting to protect her from the fact that her grandfather is an asshole, perhaps) or that it was well known that Aemon and Jaehaerys fought over succession but the gossip was purposefully suppressed and left out of F&B by gyldayn.

What's extra interesting about this is that there's no other example of what the hell you even do in this situation in ASOIAF. Aegon II is born after Rhaenyra is named but Viserys purposefully snubs Aegon because he doesn't like his younger kids. Meanwhile Viserys II is the younger sibling of Aegon II so that doesn't disrupt anything. The closest example we have is actually a future plot point in the books aka whatever the hell is going to happen with the succession in Winterfell, because Jon, Sansa, and maybe Arya and Rickon are getting there before Bran (and even then, you don't have that added issue of, idk, Jon maliciously usurps Bran because he believes a disabled person can't rule, and also usurped like four other disabled people earlier for the same reason so we know it's a pattern of his). So what do you do when the older, former crown prince shows up not just alive and well but incredibly pissed off that his daughter was passed over?

We don't have a lot of Aemon's personality in the books, just little hints here and there. He's known to be cautious but curious. He's incredibly close to Baelon and Alyssa, seems to have been rather in love with Jocelyn. He's known to have been obedient and worked as master of laws. He claimed Caraxes when he was 17, after he's married and named crown prince officially, and he and jocelyn have their first child when he's nineteen years old and jocelyn is a whopping 20 years old (very old considering Alysanne is like 15 when she first gets pregnant and more than one Targaryen girl is like 13). He is well loved by the smallfolk, as much as Baelon the Brave is. And what works in his favor is that Jaehaerys clearly loved and adored his two oldest sons and was devastated by their loss. So when Aemon shows up again, I think it's more likely Jaehaerys is forced to take him seriously. We have the Rogar/Alyssa situation as evidence for this - Jaehaerys clearly values the opinions, input, and intelligence of men over women, even the women of his own family, even the women that support him over those men.

What I think is likely here is that

Baelon backs whatever it is Aemon wants -> I certainly have my suspicions over the type of person Baelon is, but a younger brother cannot usurp his older brother simply because he doesn't like his vibes. Maegor never manages to usurp Aenys after all; it took Aenys' death and Aegon the Uncrowned being under siege at Crakehall for Maegor to get the opportunity to acclaim himself King (and I think it's crucial here that Maegor is Visenya's first born if not Aegon's). Especially given that Aemon isn't all that old; it just seems likely Baelon will agree out of guilt and grief to what Aemon wants out of the succession.

Aemon decides to build an actual case for Rhaenys to inherit and publicly goes against his father -> We know he's cautious, curious, loves his family, and worked as master of laws rather than Hand which makes me think he had a more bookish bent than Baelon. I think this means that Aemon shows up, finds out what's happened, and goes for the formal, logistical route of building a legal case as to why Rhaenys wil remain his successor and eventually become Queen of Westeros. I think it's even likely he'll see this legal route as more respectful of his father too.

Aemon has to shore up alliances for Rhaenys/Laena/Laenor -> In canon, we know Rhaenys gets the Velaryons, the Celtigars, the Manderlys, the Dustins, the Baratheons, and the Starks on her side. If he can get to Matthos Tyrell and Grover Tully, not only can he cancel out the Peakes being shitty in the Reach, he can completely claim the Riverlands, and all he needs to do is stall a few more years so Jeyne Arryn becomes Lady of the Vale and then he's got her on lock too. I think he's got way more of a chance of gaining support than Corlys and Rhaenys do on their own.

The Second Quarrel Gets Ten Times More Quarrelsome -> Listen, all Alysanne ever does is just fuck off to Dragonstone, she never actually attempts to fight Jaehaerys over anything. But if Aemon comes back and goes "mom was right what the fuck is your problem", well well well suddenly Alysanne has a son with actual political power (unlike Aly, whose ruling power was completely stolen from her by Jaehaerys prior to this). Maybe Aemon decides to publicly break from his father for real and sets up shop at Dragonstone or maybe he calls Alysanne back to KL so she can be a menace in front of Jaehaerys' face, but either way, Jaehaerys can't just send Maegelle to gaslight Alysanne into coming home this time because Alysanne has someone who matters (a man) on her side.

Daemon Starts Acting Like Daemon -> I think he starts going off the shits earlier because now it's his own father attempting to push him further down in the succession by handing over the crown to Aemon and Rhaenys. We know Viserys and Daemon idolized their parents but I think his entire character shows us that just because he loves someone doesn't mean he's above throwing a violent temper tantrum.

Viserys might not marry Aemma -> PERSONALLY, if I'm Aemon and I come back home and Jaehaerys has named Baelon crown prince, which makes Viserys second in line, and then Viserys is trying to marry a Targaryen-Great House daughter, I would stop that shit so fast it would give Caraxes motion sickness. And I'm not talking like some Viserra esque "last ditch effort" I'm talking I'm picking fights with every tom dick and stanley that refers to Aemma as Viserys' betrothed, I'm calling in every favor I have to stop this wedding, I'm threatening Rodrik Arryn's sons that if they hand Aemma over I'll use Caraxes to burn the Vale fleet to the fucking ground. If he doesn't straight up start a minor war over this match, he's an even bigger idiot than his mother AND ALL THREE VISERYS KINGS COMBINED.

I will admit given my general "fuck this dude i wish maegor had barbecued him" stance on jaehaerys, i would not call myself The Jaehaerys Understander so I'm kind of...unsure of how he would react? The thing about Jaehaerys is that the only people who push back on his flaws are women (Rhaena, Alyssa V., Saera, Alysanne) and not only does he not have to listen to them because he's king, he can also punish them by completely stealing away any power they have so that he never has to even hear them bitch at him again (and that's exactly what he does by refusing to give Rhaena a home of her own and usurping her, by refusing to apologize to his mother and then forcing her to reconcile with a man who is going to murder her with his dick, making a circus out of traumatizing and sexually humiliating Saera, and then continuously abusing and gaslighting Alysanne throughout the entirety of their marriage btwww!!!!). Jaehaerys can't just disinherit a living Aemon the way he can Saera or banish Aemon to be the castellan of some old haunted castle the way he does Rhaena; he simply has to engage with this issue.

And the thing is - if he figures it's more of a headache to fight publicly with Aemon than just reinstate Aemon as Crown Prince (or, idk make Aemon Baelon's heir so that the line of succession reverts back to Aemon?? idk how this shit works i don't care about the uber rich and their fake rules), what is this man supposed to do when he dies and Aemon goes "anyway Rhaenys is crown princess of dragonstone, i'm king now, suck my dick viserys you shitty ass nephew" whomst is gonna stop him, really, short of starting the dance a few decades earlier?

[duchesssoflennox]

118 years ago on this day, Prince John of the United Kingdom, the youngest child of King George V and Queen Mary was born! He was named after his paternal uncle, Prince Alexander John, who died in infancy. John was said to be a bright, vibrant, healthy child in the first four years of his life. He was very cheeky and loved practical jokes, such as reportedly putting glue on door handles, and once famously referred to his father as the “ugly old man.” Above all, Prince John was part of an incredible royal dynasty. He was related to 20 reigning monarchs in Europe; his grandfather was King Edward VII, who reigned over an empire that was at its most powerful. But life wasn’t exactly easy for John and his siblings as they grew up under the incredibly strict guidance of their father, the future King George V, who was said to have put enormous pressure on his children to behave more like adults than children. “Lord Darby had a famous anecdote, that George V said to him ‘I was frightened of my father and I’m doing to make damn sure my children are frightened of me.’” Prince John's grandaunt the Dowager Empress of Russia wrote to her son Tsar Nicholas II that "George's children are very nice ... The little ones, George and Johnny are both charming and very amusing ..." In 1909, John began having seizures and was discovered to have epilepsy. When his condition deteriorated, he was kept away from the public eye and sent to live at Sandringham House, under the care of his nanny and governess, Charlotte Bill, known by the children as “Lala.” Apparently, all the children adored Lala, who had nursed them all as babies. In 1916, as his seizures became more frequent and severe, John was sent to live at Wood Farm, with "Lala" Bill having charge of his care. Though he maintained an interest in the world around him and was capable of coherent thought and expression, with his lack of educational progress, the last of his tutors was dismissed and his formal education ended. Physicians warned that he would likely not reach adulthood. His grandmother Queen Alexandra maintained a garden at Sandringham House especially for him and this became "one of the great pleasures of Prince John's life." After the summer of 1916, John was rarely seen outside the Sandringham Estate and passed solely into Lala Bill's care. After Queen Alexandra wrote that "Prince John is very proud of his house but is longing for a companion" Queen Mary broke from royal practice by having local children brought in to be playmates for Prince John. One of these was Winifred Thomas, a young girl from Halifax who had been sent to live with her aunt and uncle (who had charge of the royal stables at Sandringham) in hopes her asthma would improve. John's seizures intensified, and Bill later wrote "we dared not let him be with his brothers and sister, because it upsets them so much, with the attacks getting so bad and coming so often." He spent Christmas Day 1918 with his family at Sandringham House but was driven back to Wood Farm at night. On 18 January 1919, after a severe seizure, John died in his sleep at Wood Farm at 5:30 pm. Queen Mary wrote to Emily Alcock, an old friend that "for John it is a great relief, as his malady was becoming worse as he grew older, & he has thus been spared much suffering. I cannot say how grateful we feel to God for having taken him in such a peaceful way, he just slept quietly into his heavenly home, no pain no struggle, just peace for the poor little troubled spirit which had been a great anxiety to us for many years, ever since he was four years old"

She went on to add that "the first break in the family circle is hard to bear, but people have been so kind & sympathetic & this has helped us much." King George described his son's death simply as "the greatest mercy possible" On 20 January, the Daily Mirror said that "when the Prince John passed away his face bore an angelic smile"

John's funeral was at St Mary Magdalene parish church the funeral was attended by Sandringham House staff; "every single person on the estate went and stood around the gates and his grave was absolutely covered in flowers." Queen Alexandra wrote to Queen Mary that "now two darling Johnnies lie side by side" In her final mention of Prince John in her diary, Queen Mary wrote simply "miss the dear child very much indeed." Lala Bill always kept a portrait of Prince John above her mantelpiece, together with a letter from him that read "nanny, I love you."

[poopyballz28]

Some Baki characters as middle school kids

wrote this a long while ago, but i tweaked it and now im ready to show it off

remember to like and subscribe

Kozue

• She's a pretty quiet and timid girl, she doesn't have many friends, and she's usually seen alone with her iPod and headphones in (listening to Vocaloid songs i just know i am the writer here i make the decisions)

• Some girls are definitely envious of her beauty, like she is PRETTY pretty. I wonder what hair products she uses...knowing her though, it'd be silly if she just had naturally flowy, beautiful hair.

• Probably has been asked out by boys several times, she's really cute and has an adorable personality, it's pretty inevitable. She never understands why they like her so much though.

• Always randomly zoning off in the middle of class, looking out the window. Her few friends are a bit concerned but are aware of her lost in the clouds type attitude.

• Forgets to do her homework a lot. Her grades and performance are very good, and that's a definite, but she's just incredibly forgetful. She just gets home and doesn't remember if she has anything to do. She just immediately turns on some anime or pulls out some Shonen Jump when she gets home.

• These hc's are just...my normal hc's for her. Curses. Whatever, it still applies here, DO NOT DEFY ME

Jack

• Really reserved and quiet, most of the class is really intimidated by him. Just the way he talks and looks at you with a death glare. It freaks everyone out.

• He's kind of a target for bullying because of how to himself and a bit scary he is, but he doesn't care and doesn't plan to do anything about it. They're always too daunted to insult him to his face. Jack focuses his time on getting stronger, not some losers making fun of him.

• Often scolded for never doing or turning in his work. He just feels he has better things to do. When he does do his work though, he's not exactly the best. His worksheets are surprisingly (or perhaps, unsurprisingly) filled with scribbles and rough little doodles.

• He doesn't really have many "friends", but one immune to his flaws is Kureha. He acts as if Jack is a friend he's known for ages, despite them only meeting during the current school year. He tends to hang out with him and help him out with his homework as well, because lets be real, Jack's grades are not looking too hot.

• The whole class thinks it's strange how out of everyone in the class, those two are the ones who are closest.

• Kureha definitely insists he do some small science experiments on Jack, Jack only complying if it leads to the growth of him getting stronger. It's like a mad scientist and his test subject, except two 12 year olds.

Katsumi

• He's a really popular student. He's attractive (in middle school standards), strong, leader of his own karate club and his dad's the principal of the school. He's almost always surrounded by people wanting to talk or hang out with him.

• Many girls have huge crushes on him, he usually has to let them down though. He's really focused on his karate and fighting and just doesn't particularly want any kind of lover. He's much more interested in running his club than young love. He values friendship more than anything.

• Always urging strong kids to join the karate club. He wants to expand his club as far as possible and spar with anyone worthy. He focuses so much on his club and karate his grades unfortunately suffer. You can't blame him though, everyone in the karate club is really close with each other and it's really endearing how its almost like a big family of middle schoolers in there.

• He's a really smart kid, and is able to excel in a lot of subjects, but he gets the most significant grades in PE class specifically.

• Hangs out with Hector quite a bit, they are almost polar opposites of each other, but hang out anyway. They're always seen doing homework or eating lunch together. He's one of Hector's only friends.

• Also really looks up to Kiyosumi, he thinks his strength and confidence is super admirable. Currently in the middle of trying to get him to join the karate club. He's somewhat becoming more of a delinquent because of how much Kiyosumi is rubbing off on him.

Kiyosumi

• He's 100% a delinquent who chills at the back of the school and likes to skip his classes. He's well liked by his delinquent disciples who think his fighting is radical.

• He has been suspended multiple times for starting fights and beating up kids for looking at him wrong. He wants any excuse to hurt someone or show off his fighting.

• He's avoided by normal kids in the school but swarmed by other delinquents and juveniles. He's a super cool figure for them. He's just popular enough for Katsumi to take notice.

• Despite the fact there are always students who praise him, he's a very lonely kid. He acknowledges the fact that the people who swarm him don't care about him as a person at all, they just like the idea of a leader with cool fighting abilities. As much as they make his ego swell, they wont be able to purge his hatred for others or even aid his loneliness. No matter how much euphoria will course through his veins and throughout his mind after defeating somebody, that empty feeling will always come barreling back in the end. He would never let anyone know that though. Never.

• That got deep. Wait till you guys find out that was also just a general headcanon for him. Anyway, Kiyosumi fucking LOVES workshop class. He will not skip that shit. This kid has a passion for cars and motorcycles (go figure)

• Katsumi decided to duel with Kiyosumi behind the school, but ended up getting his shit rocked and went flying into some garbage cans. Kiyosumi, (trying to be cool) hits him with a "Beat it, kid." but Katsumi stood up and immediately ushered him to join the karate club after falling victim to his strength.

• Surprisingly, Kiyosumi's grades aren't all that bad. His downfall is just that he always skips or doesn't do his work at all even though he's strangely intelligent (to an extent, of course)

Retsu

• He's a really quiet kid who's undoubtedly diligent at his work. He doesn't know many people besides Katsumi and a few others.

• You can easily find him in the back of the class studying or reading a book. People look up to how smart he is, he's top of his class. Although he does tend to burn himself out a bit.

• Really passionate in cooking class, he loves making some Chinese dishes with the few ingredients he's provided. Tends to ignore teacher directions so he can make what he wants to.

• A member of the karate club (by Katsumi's request) even though he uses a whole different fighting style. After Katsumi sparred with Retsu and lost, they've been friends and have been training together ever since.

• It's quite shocking to other students how this quiet kid who is usually just reading in the back of the class is such a strong and confident fighter. I imagine many kids watched the fight between Katsumi and him, and he's gained unwanted notoriety for his win. He tried to keep his fighting life on the down low and focus on grades.

• He definitely gets rebellious and immature sometimes, don't get me wrong. Katsumi had him open up a little, and now he's more free with his fighting (even though real battles aren't allowed on school grounds) He isn't afraid to spar with someone if they initiate it, school grounds or not. This kid just really wants to kick some tail.

Hector

• Quite the mysterious kid, usually just sitting and watching the view from outside the classroom windows with a blank expression. He's not at all unfamiliar with others talking behind his back or bullying him.

• Stays quiet when he's bullied in somewhere public but if he's ever assaulted alone or off of school grounds, that bully will probably be found with some pretty gnarly knife wounds.

• He doesn't seem to be interested in many things, or even passionate in his grades at all. It's almost like he's there because he has to be.

• He's always showing up to school with nicks or bruises. It's not entirely clear how he gets them or why they appear so frequently, but they certainly don't go unnoticed by others. They don't seem to bother him very much though.

• What I can say for certain though is that this kid is pretty fucking disturbed. Brought a pocket knife to school and shanked someone pretty badly. He was suspended soon after and rumors started to multiply and spread across the playground.

• Tends to run into Retsu by accident and gets partner assignments with him by pure chance. It was extremely awkward the first few times but they both realized they probably need to get used to each others company. They've surprisingly gotten close, Retsu wanting to understand the mystery behind Hector and why he's alone all of the time. Although some of Retsu's prying or questions make Hector a bit nervous. (definitely some home issues going on)

• He also likes being around Katsumi as well. Though, "like" is a strong word, for him at least. Like Retsu, Katsumi also wants to understand Hector. He thinks he's just misunderstood and makes an effort to talk to him even if some of their views on things are vastly different.

Kosho

• Trademark emo/edgy nervous kid who keeps to himself. He's a little bit of a crybaby, frankly.

• He really likes to draw, you may be able to catch him doodling some cool vkei clothing designs in his notebook. He's pretty embarrassed about them though, he always covers the pages when he thinks someones looking.

• Throughout all of his seemingly timid nature, its clear that some deep issues and hate are slowly brewing inside of him. The overshadowing from his brother and the teasing over his interests are not helping him in that regard either.

• Sometimes gets into small altercations with kids who like to poke fun at him. Kosho really struggles to stand up for himself but whenever he happens to find the courage to, his brother is always a step ahead and ready to protect him. After he deals with that, he proceeds to lecture Kosho about getting into fights and how he should go study for his math quiz next week.

• As much as Kosho loves his brother he wishes he would just...leave him alone sometimes.

• Was able to make friends with Katsumi due to their liking of karate and Katsumi's overall kindness after seeing Kosho sitting alone all of the time. The two have gotten pretty close.

[himebushou]

Okay, I think this is happening -- I've been drawn in and I'm now rewatching The Prince of Tennis.

Thoughts on Episodes 2 through to 6 below.

Ep 2 - Samurai Junior

Inoue appears! This guy is so important for the audience as he explains so much tennis teminology to us (at Shiba's expense, whoops) but the fact that he works for a (presumably) well-known tennis magazine yet spends so much time covering the middle school scene is... odd. Like, he's there for the entirety of Seigaku's ranking tournament? What about the other Kanto schools?

HE TALKS ABOUT NANJIROU and says how Nanjirou 'might have even won the Grand Slam'. To my memory, Nanjiroh was one match away from becoming World No. 1 (is that possible without winning a slam?) but suddenly quit because, y'know. The boy.

Ryoma does this lil glower after the first time he meets Momo and it's so funny, lol

Ryoma's contrary nature is RIDICULOUS. Arai demands that the freshmen introduce themselves, which the Ichinen Trio do, but Ryoma? Just stands there. Like, CHILD. He asked for your name! these are not state secrets!

So of course, we have the whole thing with Arai trying to con the freshmen and Ryoma gets pretty mad about Arai trying to fleece the freshmen -- he gets pretty heroic (?) about the whole thing and, with it, very bratty: "If I hit the can 100x, do I get 100,000 yen?"

Then Momo is there and it really seems like he just wants to beat Ryoma up!

Rather adorably, Horio umpires the Ryoma v. Momo match. When Ryoma's about to serve, the Triple Counter OST starts playing (I really don't remember any of the titles from the OST -- except Yuugure -- but I'm sure everyone knows what I mean). It's very cool.

Tomo-chan sees Ryoma serve ONCE and calls him Ryoma-sama -- MY GIRL.

And then we get our first Nanjiroh appearance! And it turns out that he even has an umpire's chair at the temple, so? Who is umpiring his games against Ryoma? Nanako? RINKO??

Ryoma also tells the Ichinen Trio that he learnt to play tennis at a temple. Um. Ryoma is a big liar because he has only lived in front of said temple for about 5 minutes. What a DORK. In the best way!

(The temple is absolutely gorgeous by the way.)

Ep. 3 - The Seigaku Regulars Make Their Debut!

Man -- so we see Sakuno and Tomo-chan in one of the classrooms overlooking the courts and they comment on how cool the team is -- and then the camera pans up to Tezuka who's on the floor above, watching silently and I just enjoyed that so much. Like, at this stage, Tezuka is a bit of a mystery, so it's so fun!

Then Horio brags about how strong Momo is and Ryoma spends an eternity tying his shoelaces. Many moons ago (we're talking about 15 years ago, at least), I read this blog post about how much screentime is dedicated to Ryoma TYING HIS LACES and, honestly, I've never been able to get that post out of my head. Truly incredible stuff.

Guhhh I hate the obsession with heirarchy at Seigaku... Hyoutei and Rikkaidai are a heck of a lot more flexible, whoops.

Oishi! Beloved Oishi! Until he gets to the courts, the freshmen are just running around doing Tasks -- then Oishi arrives and tells them to practice playing because he wants them to get a good feel for the way things run at Seigaku. And it's so heart-warming! Oishi recognises that these kids are there because they want to have fun and he does these little things throughout the early eps to build camaraderie -- like when the freshmen are cheering for Seigaku in episode 8 or 9, Oishi teases, "Freshmen, we can't hear you!" and it's just... wow. Oishi's not there to pull rank: he's there to encourage the team. Tezuka honestly could not have had a better VC.

(I'm honestly just loving this so much... everyone's regarding Ryoma as this potential problem and sussing him out and being in this privileged position of knowing how much this team will grow to love him -- and how much he'll grow to love them -- is really special. It's really incredible to see this journey again.)

Arai behaves like a dork, gets scolded by Tezuka and told to run laps, questions this, and is then told to run more laps. Ryoma just dutifully runs his laps without any argument (the slight contradictions in his personality are so funny -- like he will sometimes rail against authority and, at other times, just accept it without question).

Come to think of it... Ryoma and Gon Freeccs get pretty similar treatment, I think, in that we don't get a look-in at their literal thoughts? Compare that to how often we're in Killua's head, for example, or Inui's or Oishi's or whoever's and... it's a very interesting way of storytelling.

Eps 4 & 5 - The One Named Viper & Snake Shot

AND SO, THE RANKING TOURNAMENT IS UNDERWAY.

Man, there are so many girls watching the ranking tournament? The tennis club is so popular lol

WE SEE RINKO FOR THE FIRST TIME. Of course, her face isn't shown, but!! She's there!

Ryoma's match against Kaidoh is a lot of fun. Momo's on standby to provide commentary to the Ichinen Trio (and they correctly determine that he's so knowledgeable about Kaidoh's playstyle on account of having lost to Kaidoh, which is hilarious). Ryoma impresses everyone by pulling off his own version of the Snake Shot -- the Buggy Whip Shot! -- and phew, good stuff. There's a lot of technical tennis talk.

(I hate how Kaidoh hurts himself at the end of the match. Both Kaidoh and Sanada need to be seen by school counsellors or something.)

I love seeing Ryoma get squashed by the Ichinen Trio -- he looks slightly bewildered, haha.

Ep 6 - That Man, Echizen Nanjirou

OOFT, probably my favourite episode so far! Nanjirou has become my second favourite in The Prince of Tennis (no prizes for guessing my favourite) and this episode is wonderful.

Inoue barges over to the Echizen house and ends up playing a game with Nanjirou -- the stipulation is that Nanjirou will only answer Inoue's questions if Inoue manages to get a point past him. Despite this, Nanjirou ends up telling Inoue a lot: he explains that he quit his pro career because playing with the 'impudent' Ryoma is a heck of a lot more fun than playing his pros and geez, Nanjirou loves his son SO MUCH. Nanjirou also explains that Ryoma's tennis style is currently identical to his and, to go further, there are some things Ryoma has to achieve. We get to see some of Nanjirou's skill.

The only question Nanjirou doesn't answer is when Inoue suggests that Ryoma's being trained to go pro. Nanjirou's pretty dismissive of this idea (AND WE KNOW WHY! YAHOO!).

Ryoma has a conversation with Sakuno and says that he doesn't know when he started playing tennis -- it's been part of his life for as long as he can remember and he couldn't quite even if he wanted to because there's something he has to do. So, once again, this episode sets up one of the major themes/conflicts of The Prince of Tennis.

(It turns out that the temple is behind the Echizen's house! Nanako -- the sweetheart -- explains that the monk is currently on a retreat and that Nanjirou just made a court without permission. This is one interaction I desperately want more information on.)

So... yeah. I'm genuinely having a whale of a time.

[as-above-rp]

💓 their crush/partner. (For Kairi!)

"Oh gosh, where do I even begin?! Crowley, Rachael, Mack--I love them all so, so much~!

Crowley is incredibly silly and sincere. He can be a little all over the place sometimes, but most days I can keep up just fine so I don't mind! They're creative, kind, funny, affectionate--sometimes Crowley does drive me a little bananas, but that's alright! I never let it linger. And they're so smart too! The things he's been able to think up and make all on his own; the mech suits, the drones--his own prosthetics!! I love listening to him talk about his projects, and watching them work. It's embarrassing to talk about now, but I've had a crush on him for the longest time, since I first moved to this part of the kingdom and saw some news coverage of his Hero work. It's crazy to think that we're dating now...!

Rachael is absolutely wonderful. She's funny, and beautiful--and gosh, she's so artistic! Her pottery work is stunning, most of my dishes and mugs are handmade by her in fact! I wouldn't want anyone else's work in my home more than hers. It's so nice to have someone else--especially another girl--who shares my appetite and love of food, too. She's my best kitchen helper and favorite food tester, ehe <3. Rachael is strong, too, and an incredible fighter. She's smart, clever, diligent; it's no wonder that she's the second in command around here! But in addition to how badass and scary she can be, she's also so tender and sweet with me. She's been so patient and gentle with me... [sigh] I adore her~

Mack is just--gosh, he's incredible! Knowing where he started and seeing where he is now? Amazing. He built an entire villainy empire practically on his own, runs his own farm on top of that, and he's one of the best fighters I have ever seen. He's really hard to read sometimes, and for the longest time he really intimidated me. But getting to know him has revealed his softer side! He's very sweet when he wants to be, and he's a great cook. And, legitimately, I think he's one of the smartest people I've ever known. Sure he may not have any diplomas backing him up, but as somebody who's been surrounded by the quote-unquote "best minds in the kingdom"? Half of them combined couldn't amount to a fraction of the man Mack is without their expensive pieces of paper and fancy titles. I don't think I tell him that enough.

I may have only been dating the three of them for a year or so, but I couldn't imagine my life without any one of them. Even if--for some unfortunate reason--it didn't work out romantically in the long term, i'd like to think we'd still stay close as a found family of sorts. They're all a part of me now, and through loving each of them individually and as a polycule, i've learned to love myself too. They mean the world to me.

Gosh, don't go telling them I got so sappy over them! They'll tease me over it, for sure. Try and keep this between us, okay? ;3 <3"

[whywhatswrongwithblue]

DW REWATCH

S1E2 THE END OF THE WORLD

The Doctor takes Rose on her first voyage through time, to the year five billion. The sun is about to expand and swallow the earth. Amongst the alien races gathering to watch, a murderer is at work. Who is controlling the mysterious and deadly spiders?

WHAT was he doing in this scene.

You think you're so impressive. ---I am so impressive baby’s first flirt….

2. You lot, you spend all your time thinking about dying, like you're going to get killed by eggs or beef or global warming or asteroids. But you never take time to imagine the impossible, that maybe you survive. i adore this line. Iirc i read somewhere that this episode was made when a lot of negative climate focussed media was coming out and rtd wanted to assure young viewers that there was always hope? Not sure where i saw it but it’s stuck with me

3. Is that why we're here? I mean, is that what you do? Jump in at the last minute and save the Earth?-- rose we are literally here so i can trauma dump. Haven’t you heard of healthy coping mechanisms??

4. He's blue RTD my beloved. What an incredibly realistic, human observation—i feel like companions simply do not do this anymore. And they should!

5. Love the bark makeup. It’s so pretty!

6. The air from my lungs….this episode is so good damn it

7. Moxx of Balhoon better known as the CEO of sex. I give you the gift of bodily salivas lucky Rose

8. CASSANDRAAAAA

9. Rose being overwhelmed and running out. I can’t get over the amount of care and detail RTD put into writing her. She really is his baby. Can’t wait to see how he brings her back now (because he will. He will.)

10. Jabe’s device is unable to identify a timelord, probably because the rest of the universe thinks them dead? Although her reaction is very different from that of the Nestene Consciousness (who is implied to have lost quite a bit in the Time War), whereas Jabe doesn’t seem to have any personal connection. I wonder what the other outsider perceptions of the War were!

11. Ahhh Rose being kind to the plumber. I love my girl. LMAO at her realising she just hitched a ride with a complete stranger w/o thinking about it. The metal spiders are very Minority Report.

12. Your machine gets inside my head. It gets inside and it changes my mind, and you didn't even ask? the WRITING. Just chef’s kiss. Even in this sort of power dynamic, you never ever feel like Rose doesn’t have agency. She’s so smart and capable and fierce. i love her.

13. Gotta love how fast they switch from arguing to flirting. Jiggery-pokery <3

14. I might be late home. and then she comes back a YEAR later JESUS

15. Bad Wolf mention!

16. Hahahah i can’t watch the Jabe scene without thinking of plant sex now, courtesy of Katie

17. I was born on that planet, and so was my mum, and so was my dad. I love how much Rose loves her dad. Like if you’ve never even known a parent, you probably wouldn’t bring them up in a context like this, but the addition implies that Rose thinks of her dad quite a bit, and this is a nice little subtle setup to my favourite episode of the season, Father’s Day

18. The sun filter scene! It’s unexpectedly tense. I remember being really worried the first time I saw it

19. This whole event was sponsored by the Face of Boe. He invited us. Jack set them up….god that’s so sweet. The fact that he knows that they’re properly together in Pete’s World at this point <3333333 he is Literally Us. Putting his blorbos in Situations.

20. What are you going to do, moisturise me?

21. At least it'll be quick. Just like my fifth husband. HUHHH?? LMAO

22. I love the turning fan trope, every time it’s in any movie ever, it’s got me on the edge of my seat

23. Everything has its time, and everything dies. OOF. Appreciate Rose still wanting Cassandra to be saved! Something something parallel with how she changed the Doctor so much that he’s willing to give Cassandra a peaceful death in New Earth <3 the power of love, folks.

24. The Earth death scene is beautiful. I remember feeling so sad that everyone just missed it! And the Doctor finally realising that maybe this wasn’t a great first trip for his young companion xD

25. I'm left travelling on my own 'cos there's no one else.---There's me. What a beautiful moment of intimacy. And such great acting! The Doctor is finally beginning to let her in, and Rose has attached to this stranger so quickly, despite how prickly and condescending he can be. Soulmates <3

Loveee this ending. 10/10 again!