#my mom bought it because I make the same face that Donnie’s making

[alitteraladhdmess]

Found a mysterious package sitting on my table yesterday

Ripped it open and found a goober so I slapped him onto my backpack and took him to school today

Very happy that I got this little guy from @intotheelliwoods

Your arts amazing btw, it gives me so much joy to look at:)

[mollybecameanengineer]

Déjà Vu

word count: 1372 | seasons 7-11 | AO3 Link

Summary: Who says you can't go home again? Ruminations on the life and times of Dana Scully and Fox Mulder.

It restarted the same way it had started the first time. 

The first time, he brought her back to his place after she’d shot Donnie Pfaster. Her mom was out of town, and she had not wanted to go to a hotel. He knew that was code for she didn’t want to be alone, but he didn’t let her know he knew. 

“Thanks for letting me stay,” she said. He heard her drop her luggage by the fish tank as he rummaged through the closet looking for extra towels and sheets for the couch. 

Setting the linens on top of her bag, he flopped onto the couch next to her. A thick silence grew in the room until she asked, “Got anything to drink?”

It was clear she didn’t mean tea. 

The coffee table was littered with the remnants of a six pack of beers when she kissed him. The kiss wasn’t soft and sweet, but rough in its urgency. 

He returned the kiss with equal energy. 

When she climbed into his lap and started pulling at his shirt, he grabbed her hands. “Scully…” he breathed. 

She freed her hands and went back for his shirt. He grabbed them again. “We’ve been drinking. It was a terrible day.” Their eyes met. “I want this, but I don’t want you to regret it.”

She paused, before kissing him again, this time soft and slow. She then stood and extended her hand. “I want this too. Three beers isn’t enough to make me not know what I’m doing. Just enough to let me do what I want.” He took her hand and she led him to the bedroom. 

That was the night Fox Mulder tasted Dana Scully for the first time. 

True to her word, she hadn’t regretted it. In the morning they’d done it again, slower and more relaxed than the night before. 

And then they’d gone to work to answer questions about Donnie Pfaster. 

The first months were confusing. They weren’t dating — she didn’t want him to take her to dinner or out to a movie. Things were like they always were, chasing monsters and fighting conspiracies. The only real difference was sometimes after work they’d fuck until they both collapsed in a sweaty heap. Once he tried to talk about what was happening and she shut him down. “It’s fine, Mulder.” 

He didn’t press. He let her take the lead. Because, for him, being with her was the only choice, all others were wrong. 

After he’d returned from England, he felt a shift. She murmured that she loved him in the haze of post-cloital bliss. They started spending the night together without having sex, having breakfast together, making plans for the weekend. Like real couples do. 

The end of their relationship was cemented in its broken beginnings. Just months after it started, he’d left her to raise their child alone. Their son who was then lost to them. They were thrown back together, running from the FBI, never talking about any of what had happened or what the future held. 

The closest they’d ever come was on the beach in Santa Barbara. Scully kept turning them south, towards San Diego, the place she’d lived the longest as a child. The place her brother Bill lived. 

“It’s too dangerous.” His hand was entwined with hers, their toes creating divots in the sand as the water receded. “They’ll be watching your family.”

She stared out to sea, to the horizon where the sun was setting behind the oil platforms. “I can’t do this anymore. I can’t keep running.” She turned to face him, tears budding in her eyes. “I miss my family. I miss my mom. God, I miss Bill!” She half laughed, half cried. 

He took her into his arms. “If you miss Bill this really must be serious.” She laugh-cried into his chest, and he rubbed her back. “We’ll figure something out then.”

They left California and headed back east. Dana Scully resurfaced. She bought them a house forty-five minutes outside of DC. She worked to renew her medical license and restarted her life as a doctor. 

He hid in their little house, wondering when the FBI would catch on that all they had to do to find him was walk into the home of Dr. Dana Scully. 

One day Mulder woke up and they’d lived in the little house for nearly a decade. And they’d gone from two broken people in love to two broken people coexisting. It’d been months since they’d had sex, months since they sat together on the couch watching a movie and having a good laugh. 

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen her smile. 

She had wanted them to go to counseling. He submitted to her request. They’d only made it three sessions before he put a stop to it, insisting that they were fine, that the counseling did nothing. 

Six months later she walked out the door for the last time. Six months after that he found himself ideating suicide. It took another six months before he finally got help. 

This time, sixteen years after the first time, she’d also been drinking. They’d gone to eat after her mother’s funeral, and after a second glass of wine she abandoned her side of the booth to sit next to him. She leaned against his arm and asked him to take her home. When he started to take her back to her place she amended, “No, our home.”

She was sober by the time they reached the little house. Nonetheless, as she reached to undo his fly he grabbed her hands. “I don’t want you to regret this. It’s been a hell of a day.”

She freed her hands, then reached up to stroke his face. “I want this.”

He let her lead him upstairs. It was better than the first time, he felt no nervousness, knew exactly what she wanted from him. 

That night she slept in his arms. 

Like the first time, their union didn’t mean they were a couple. They were spending more time together outside of work — movie nights were back on, typically ending with them both passed out on the couch. Infrequently she would come to him to satisfy a need, be it cuddling or taking him to bed. Again he didn’t press, not wanting to jinx whatever was happening. 

They were driving back from Henrico County when he decided to change their destiny. The night before she had come to his half of the motel room, feeling old and lonely. He’d danced around what he wanted to say, waiting for her to say it first. But she turned the conversation into sex before anything real could be communicated. 

They’d been silent for some time. He’d put on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. She was humming off key to Starman. 

“I want you back,” he blurted out, somewhere outside of Fredericksburg. 

Her humming came to an abrupt stop. 

“I want to be pushing your wheelchair with my wheelchair because we are together and happy.” She remained silent, and he desperately wanted to look at her, try to read what she was thinking. But he kept his eyes on the road. “You were my one in five billion, and it’s over seven billion now, so,” he paused. “You’re it for me.”

More silence. He stole a glance, she was looking out the side window. 

“Scully?”

“I don’t want it to be how it was, at the end, or really even in the middle.”

“Me neither.” Another pause. “I can’t promise it will be perfect this time, but I can tell you that I’m in a better place. On my meds. Older and wiser.”

“Older’s right.”

He snorted, before turning serious. “Older is right. In the grand scheme of things, I don’t have a lot of time left. I don’t want any regrets when I shuffle off this mortal coil. And not at least trying to make things work again with you… that would be a huge regret.”

An hour later they arrived at their little house. Mulder felt light with possibilities, with second chances and new beginnings. 

This time, he wouldn’t fuck it up. 

tagging @today-in-fic

[lotusss-flowerbomb]

What We Have (1)

Viktor Drago x reader

Warnings: None for this chapter

Summary: Reader is Adonis’ adopted sister, she and Viktor falls for one another.

A/N: This was a request from @rochyu. I used some stuff from the movie with changes and twists of course. In this version Apollo died after the kids were born. Also, as to not completely butcher the Russian language, everything in bold italics is Russian. Hope you guys enjoy!!

Word Count: 3,187

********

You were on your way to Adrian's with Rocky. You'd been visiting Philly after Adonis told you about his engagement to Bianca. After spending a few days with them, you'd gone to see the old man and of course grab some food at the best Italian spot in the city. When you walked in, the hostess told him a man was waiting for him. When you both looked up you saw Ivan Drago sitting at a table.

"Stay back," he said to you, before walking over and pulling out a chair to sit with the other man.

You walked past Ivan, taking a good look at him before standing off to the side. You listened to their conversation and when Ivan mentioned his son breaking Adonis, Rocky stood from his seat and so did he. Viktor pulled the door open and walked inside with the most menacing scowl on his face and you stepped forward to stand beside Rocky.

You looked Viktor up and down before making eye contact with him. He was huge. Had a few inches over Adonis and a bit of weight, but you saw your brother beat down guys just as big as him in Mexico. He could take him. 

You were sitting at the table having dinner with your family. You were so excited that your brother and future sister-in-law had moved back to LA.

Bianca was telling Mary Anne about being signed to a record label, but you could tell by the look on Adonis' face that he was nervous about something. When you made eye contact, no words needed to be said. He was taking the fight and tonight was about breaking the news to your mother. He was getting ready to spill the beans when your mom threw a monkey wrench in the mix thinking they were announcing a pregnancy.

Your eyes darted from Adonis to Bianca.

"Wait, what?" You leaned in.

"No, nuh un, no," Bianca denied as she picked up her glass of wine and took a sip.

All four of you were silent for a moment and then she spit the wine back into the glass.

"I have a test in my bathroom, I'll go get it." You scooted your chair back and started jogging off.

"Aye, woah, hold up," Adonis stopped you. "Why you got a test in your room?"

"I'm grown," you said and left the dining room.

"Momma..."

"She's an adult. Just like you're an adult." Your mother told him.

When you came back down with the test Bianca had to practically drag him to the bathroom. Once they were gone your mother turned to you.

"You had a pregnancy scare and you didn't tell me?" She raised an eyebrow.

"I was a few days late a couple of months ago and I bought it. Started my period the same night." You explained.

"And what happened to being safe to start with?"

"The condom broke."

She gave you the side eye and looked as if she was about to ask another question, but Adonis walked into the room and you both turned your attention to him.

"Well?!" You asked when he didn't say anything.

"I'ma be a dad," he smiled.

You screamed and ran to jump into his arms. You were more excited than he was. He put you down and you ran to Bianca, who was in tears, to give her a hug.

You put your hand on her still flat belly and whispered over and over again.

"Please, be a girl. Please, be a girl."

Once the excitement of the pregnancy died down a bit. You could hear Adonis telling your mother about taking the fight with Drago. You knew she was pissed when you heard her tell him he didn't need her blessing. You walked all the way into the kitchen when she said she hoped he'd be there for his child. She looked up at you and stormed out.

"Rocky isn't training you?" You asked.

"Nah," he paused, "he don't think I can beat him."

"Or maybe the guilt of what happened to dad still eats at him," you shrugged.

"He should be able to let it go."

"Oh, so, you're allowed to have your feelings about it, but he isn't?"

"You gon lecture me too?" He huffed.

"No, I have no interest in wasting my time, because you've already made a decision. I do, however, have a favor to ask."

"And what's that?"

"I want to do the interviews. It'll be great for my career and —"

"No," he immediately shut you down.

"Come on, Donnie, why not?" You put your hands on your hips.

"I don't want you alone in a room with him. I'm not risking your life."

"I won't be alone. I'll have a camera man with me and I can do this. We'll make it a whole Creed thing." You smiled.

He was quiet for a second and then he laughed a little.

"What's so funny?"

"That's gon be an awkward ass post fight interview if I lose," he said.

"Well then, I guess you can't lose."

You flew to the Ukraine with your camera man, Dennis. Over the next few weeks before the fight, you watched on the sidelines as Viktor trained. The only verbal communication the two of you had were simple greetings and every now and then you'd exchanged looks that were far too long to be classified as a glance. You took photos and short video clips of him and Ivan doing drills.

He really was a beast. Powerful, focused hits with every jab, but he was slower than your brother and that's what Adonis had to use against him in order to win.

Today was your last day in Kiev, so you showed up to the gym a little late and waited until the two men were finished. Ivan was heading out of the ring and you walked up the stairs to get in. 

"Hey Dennis, can you get some shots of me in here for the cover photo?" You called out to him.

You did a few different poses and then he came over and showed you what he'd done so far. He swiped through the photos and Viktor was behind you in some of them.

He was still in his hand wraps and his body was drenched in sweat. He looked good and he wasn't even trying.

"Damn," you whispered. "Hey, Viktor come here and look at these," you waved him over.

He looked over your shoulder while you scrolled through the photos. The corner of his mouth lifted in a lopsided grin, but it disappeared almost instantly. He stepped away and moved to the ropes to leave.

"I think we can work with what we have," you informed Dennis and followed Viktor.

He held the ropes open for you and jumped down once you were almost out. One of your heels got caught in the process and when you tried lifting your foot you lost your balance. Viktor reached out and caught you before you could hit the ground.

His arms cupped you close to him in the bridal position. You opened your eyes and looked up at him. His bright hazel eyes stared back at you.

"You okay?"

"Uh, yeah, thanks," you said.

"Viktor!" Ivan yelled from the door. "Let's go."

You snapped out of it and wiggled from his arms. He set you gently on your feet and walked towards his father. You cleared your throat and turned to Dennis, who was looking at you quizzically.

"What?" You asked.

"What was that?" He inquired.

"What was what?"

"That moment between you and little Drago."

"There was no moment, Dennis. Grab your stuff and let's go. We've got an early flight in the morning." You grabbed your bag and stomped away. 

You sat in the front row for the weigh in. You could obviously see that Viktor was taller and larger than Adonis, but while they were face to face it made you nervous.

You saw your brother look over at Ivan and within a split second all hell started breaking loose. You jumped from your seat, but Dennis held on to your arm.

"It'll look unprofessional and you do not need to jump in between two angry tanks," he advised.

Each team had separated the guys and you looked for Bianca to make sure she was a safe distance away.

"Let's go," you told Dennis. You walked to the locker room to set up for your interview with Viktor. After putting some finishing touches on your makeup, the men finally walked in.

Viktor paused when he laid his eyes on you and then quickly averted his gaze.

"This guy is terrifying, why did you want to do this?" Dennis whispered.

"He's not that scary, Dennis," you rolled your eyes.

Viktor and Ivan had turned their backs to you and were completely ignoring your presence. You tried to be polite and wait for him to finish up whatever it was that he was doing, but it was becoming obvious that they were being rude on purpose.

"Hey, we're on a schedule here, so Viktor, if you wouldn't mind coming over here, so I can get you mic'd up..." You smiled. The annoyed tone of your voice definitely didn't match the look on your face.

"Hello," Viktor said just above a whisper.

"Sit here, please," you ignored his greeting and grabbed the mic and handed it to him. "Put this under your shirt and clip it to your collar."

Ivan was standing so close that you bumped into him when you moved to adjust the position of the mic.

"Would you mind giving us a little space?" You asked him.

"Do I get one?" He countered.

"I'm not interviewing you."

"His English is not too good."

"I guess it's a good thing I've stayed on top of my Russian?"

Both men looked at you in shock. Dennis smiled behind the camera. He knew you couldn't wait to pull that little jaw dropper out of your pocket. You'd spent almost three weeks in Kiev and never let on that you could speak a different language. And since you barely talked to them, there was no reason to.

"Ready for check?" You asked, Dennis.

"Loud and clear," he replied referring to your sound.

"Please state your name, weight and height," you said to Viktor.

"I am Viktor Drago, my weight is 111kg and I am 193 centimeters tall." He replied.

"All good," Dennis confirmed. "Rolling in 3...2...1."

"Hi, Viktor..."

"Hello," he nodded.

"So tonight was your final weigh in and it seems like things got a little bit heated out there. Is that more fuel for your fire?"

"It is..." He stated, but didn't say anything else.

"Okay.... Why is this fight so important to you?"

He hesitated for a moment before answering. You saw his face soften just a little bit before he spoke.

"To restore honor to my family name. To prove to the people of Russia and the world that I am worthy. That my father is worthy."

A beat of silence passed between you before you continued asking questions. The further into the interview you got, he seemed to loosen up a bit.

He told you that he's been training all of his life and that he loved fighting, despite it being tiring at times.

"So after this, whether it's a win, lose or draw, what's next for you? Any plans for a family or a life outside of boxing?"

"I have never really thought about it." He shrugged, "This moment has been my entire life and I will not fail."

His voice was heavy. You could tell that this meant everything to him. More than Drago's revenge as you once thought. You ended the interview with that question. 

"We're good Dennis, let's pack up and get to editing, so this will be ready tomorrow morning." You said pulling your mic off.

Ivan told Viktor that he'd meet him in the car and he left. You were seriously having a hard time understanding that man, but you had to remind yourself that he isn't the one you needed to communicate with.

Victor was removing his mic and somehow got twisted up in the cords. You went over to help him while Dennis packed everything else.

"Here, let me. Snatching on it isn't gonna get you anywhere."

Without thinking, you lifted his shirt and put your hand under it to pull the cords. Your fingers grazed his abs and suddenly you were very aware of what you were doing.

"Oh, sorry," your face was scorching from embarrassment.

"It is okay. Thank you for helping," he said softly.

You were finally able to get him untangled and put everything away. You helped Dennis carry some of his equipment and you headed out to his truck.

"Oh shoot, I think I left my phone," you ruffled through your bag. "Go ahead, I'll catch up," you turned around and headed back inside to the locker room.

You were in such a hurry that you didn't even see Victor standing on the other side of the door when you snatched it open. You crashed into his solid frame. Just like the last time, he reached out to catch you.

"Oh my goodness, thank you," you said as he stood you back upright.

He didn't say anything back. He just stood there and watched you.

"I, um, I think I left my phone in here," you pushed past him. 

His staring was making you uncomfortable and not in a bad way, which made you even more uncomfortable.

You searched around the areas where the phone should have been. You could see Victor from the corner of your eye just standing there.

"Well, if you're gonna stay, can you at least help me out?"

"How did you know I would understand you?" He asked.

"Because I knew your dad was lying and just wanted to hover over you during the interview. Can I see your phone, so I can call mine?" You walked over to him.

He handed you the phone, "He means well, my father. He's very protective. I am his only son."

When you unlocked the screen you froze to stare at the wallpaper. A picture of Ivan after his win against your father.

He noticed your hesitation.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to —"

"No, it's fine," you said and dialed your number.

You saw the light from the screen across the room and went over to grab it. You handed Victor his phone and was on your way out when you felt his large hand grab yours.

"I know being around us must be hard for you, but you have been kind the whole time. Thank you."

"I wanted to get to know who you were on my own. And you're actually not so bad." You reached up and cupped his face.

He leaned into your touch. It wasn't everyday that someone showed him sincere affection. He couldn't stop himself, he lifted your chin and pressed his lips to yours.

He gave you the softest most gentle kiss you'd ever received. You pushed your tongue into his mouth. He grabbed your ass and squeezed it as he pulled you close.

You heard a noise behind you and pulled back. You looked down the hall, but didn't see anyone.

"Uh, I should go," you hurried away.

"What kept you?" Dennis asked, when you finally made it back outside. 

"Couldn't find the phone, Viktor helped me look for it."

"Viktor, huh?" He raised a brow.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means your lipstick is smudged," he pointed.

"What?!" You hurried to look at your reflection, but your makeup was intact. "Very funny! Get that stuff over to editing for me and make sure Oliver reads all of my notes, please?"

"You got it, I'll see you tomorrow."

You got in your vehicles and left. You were exhausted, confused and... horny. You knew kissing Victor was wrong and you should've stopped it, but you didn't. You shook it off. It was just a kiss. It would never happen again.

You were awakened by your phone vibrating, you looked over at your clock and then back at your phone. What could Dennis possibly want at this hour?

"Somebody had better be dying," you answered.

"Are you kidding right now?" He started, "did you approve this final edit?"

"What? No, I didn't post anything."

"Well someone did and I have a feeling that you aren't gonna like it."

You grabbed your tablet and pulled up the Instagram page for your station. Sure enough the interview you'd done with Viktor had been posted. You watched the video in horror. Even though he was your family's sworn enemy, this was not the side of Victor that you wanted to show the world.

They'd only posted the parts of the interview when he was being snippy. Then you read the comments.

"It's funny how she tries to make him look bad on camera, but had no problems kissing him when she thought no one was looking 🙄"

Your heart dropped into your stomach. Someone saw you and took pictures. That must've been the noise you'd heard. You hurried through blogs to see who had it posted. Everyone. Everyone had a photo of you kissing Victor Drago in a dark locker room.

"We can get in front of this, don't panic." He advised.

"Adonis is gonna kill me. My brother will never speak to me again." Your breath caught in your throat.

"No, honey, you can't help who you have feelings for."

"Victor's gonna think I sabotaged him on purpose. Who posted this? Why would they do this?" You choked.

"People are evil and will do anything for a dollar," he sighed. "I'm sorry I had to tell you like this, but I didn't want you to be caught off guard in the morning."

"Thank you, Dennis. I'll see you tomorrow." You hung up and headed to your mother's room.

You knocked softly before entering and then crawled into bed with her.

"Well, you haven't done this in a while. What's wrong?" She asked.

You just showed her the photo. Mary Anne was usually pretty good about holding it together, but you heard the gasp leave her mouth.

"What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't..."

"You've never done anything this reckless before. You're risking everything you've worked for." She scolded.

"Momma, I don't care about that. Adonis is gonna be so pissed." You swiped your tears.

"Adonis? Oh my sweet girl," she wrapped her arms around you. "Your brother will get over it. You worry about your career and what you've built."

You laid in your mother's arms. Your mind was racing with thoughts of how you could fix this. You couldn't lie and say the picture was photoshopped, but you could explain to Viktor that editors had screwed you royally. After an hour you drifted off to sleep. You'd figure out in the morning.

********

@titty-teetee

@bluestarego

@literaturefeen

@rochyu

[thechubbyotter]

You will be Mondo Gecko Chapter 1

It all starts on a warm summer night.  In the depths of New York City.

 Our heroes in orange and blue bandana make their way through the very crowded market of the Hidden city.

 With salespeople trying to draw attention to customers, curious magic objects. And children insistently begging their parents to buy them something.

 A typical situation of a market.-Aaagh...Why did we have to come just this day-

 The blue one protests, while hiding his face more with the cap of his jacket.

-... I already told you that I am wanted to catch me in this place after the incident at the spa ...¿why didn't you ask someone else, like Raph or Donnie? -

-Because they are busy ... Donnie is still working at Shelldon, and Raph is having a private training session with Dad-

 Michelangelo answers while enthusiastically observing several of the objects that were sold.

 He loved visiting that city.  And more if it was about seeing novel magic objects.

 -¿And why didn't you ask Draxum? ... He have free time - Leo asks, annoyed at being there.  He did not like to hide his identity, and to have the tension of being seen.

 -¿Don't you remember that he is massively wanted here? ... They are being more cautious with the prisoners after you escaped from jail ...-

 He turns to look seriously at his older brother.

 -... If they catch him, we may not be able to rescue him as easily as last time ... we can't risk it-

 -Of course ... and they can lock me up for life, right? -

 -Don't be exaggerated ... you are a young ninja ... Obviously you won't be caught as easily as him.  That he is weak and old for persecutions ... - he says giving him a somewhat annoyed look - ... Why do you think they sent me here?-

 -Exactly, they sent you, ¿why do they include me in this? ....-

 Leo stops in front of a store, falling behind the orange one.

 -Because you're  my  older brother.  And you must accompany me to make the orders for Draxum-

 Mikey faces him, somewhat annoyed by the unusual bad attitude of the one in blue. Normally he would be delighted to come to that place.

 -Today was the last chapter of "Married with himself".  Now how will I know if he discovered that it was only a mirror? - He complains slightly about his loss.

 While Mikey only gives an annoyed look, discovering the reason why his older brother was like this.  Sometimes, even if he didn't accept it, he could bring out his childish side.

 -Look, I could perfectly come alone.  But Raph says that I am forbidden to come alone to this city .... It is not my fault that he treats me like a baby-

 - Well, it's not mine either ... I just wanted to enjoy this beautiful Saturday night ... Enjoying some delicious snacks, while I watch one of my favorite shows ...-

 Mikey just starts to shake his head slightly, in disapproval of the older man's attitude. But Leo just ignores Mikey's expression, smiling, as he imagines that longed-for situation. And then give a sigh of defeat

 -But guess what ... not all of us get what we want ... You don't leave the nest, and I don't have my grand finale-

 -Hey, don't compare my situation with your stupid narcissistic program- says the one in orange crossing his arms, as a sign of anger.

 -Yeah yeah ... whatever you say baby Mikey ...- He goes ahead of the child with a mocking look -... Try to insult me ​​when you leave mom Rapha's nest  ...-

 Michelangelo only gives a slight grunt at the teasing he was receiving from the red-eared turtle.  But he was was resisting to start an discussion.

 -Ha ha ha...look at your face, you look like a grumpy old man-

 Leo laughs as he points to the face of a notably angry Mikey, who looked like he was about to explode.  It could really be annoying when they argue.

 -If you don't change it, you can stay like this forever-

 Leonardo's mockery was interrupted, due to the sudden knock he received from the door of the store.  Opened by some hooded subjects, who came out of it at full speed.

 -¡¡LEO!!-

 Mikey forgets the discussion, to quickly help the almost unconscious Leonardo. Who was totally stunned by the hit he received.

 -¡¡HELP!!-

 He quickly directed his gaze towards the person who yelled.  Discovering an elderly cyclops, who left the store dejected by what had just happened.

 - ¡¡Those guys have stolen my mirrors !! -

 Michelangelo looks at those who had just left the store.  They weren't far and they weren't very fast.

 He deduced that it would take short time in to catch those if he made his way over roofs and buildings.

 This would be a good opportunity to show what he is capable of to his brother in blue bandana.  To sabotage a robbery without having the help of his brothers, it would be a good feat that would silence them permanently.

 Also, being a self-proclaimed hero, he wouldn't let that injustice go so easily.

 -Wait here Leo, I won't be long - he says, simulating a typical voice of a comic book hero, which he read without permission from Leo.

 As soon as he says that, he puts down the shopping bags from that day, with the boy still stunned from the blow.  To quickly pursue the chase after those thieves.

 -¿Eh? ... ¡Wait! -

 The absence of the box turtle immediately restores him from the daze.  And as he can, he try to get up as quickly as possible

 -¡Mikey come back here! .... ¡¡¿Where do you think you are going? !! -

 Unfortunately he was not heard by the minor.  Which runs across the roofs of stores, so quickly that in a second it completely disappears from his sight.

 -Damn ... ¿now what will I say to Pops?- He says annoyed at being abandoned like that.

 And sore from his fall.

 -¿Eh? ... ¡Hey!, ¡¿isn't that the spa thief?!-

 Confused, he turns to see where that comment came from. He finding a group of Yokais, who were carefully studying his appearance.

 He scratched his head confused by their interested looks.  Only to notice that he was no longer wearing his jacket cap. That he has surely falling in that blow.

 He swore at that moment he sweated cold

 -He he.... I don't know what they're talking about, it's the first time I've come to this city- He says hiding his nervousness as best as possible.  In the hope that they would believe his lie.

 -He's lying! ...- One of them shouts showing those present a "Wanted" sign. With a very gratifying sum of money as a reward- ... It's the same guy in the photo, only he's now bald! -

 - Oh boi - as soon as he says that, he proceeds to take the purchases, and to escape at full speed down the main street.

 Towards the same direction his younger brother took a few seconds ago.

 -¡¡COME BACK HERE!!-

 Yokais' group chase after him, like an enraged mob chasing a beast.  Even with torches and weapons.

 Leo just runs like there's no tomorrow.  Using his ninja skills to avoid bumping into confused people in the market.

 -¡¡YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS, MIKEY!! -

 It's the only thing he could say to run at full speed.  Dodging the weapons and nets of the crowd.

 ••••••••••••••

The orange bandana turtle managed to gain some advantage in the chase.  So much so that he was almost on the heels of the bandits.

 But he still lacked to reach them.

 -Damn it, he reaches us! ...- one of the subjects shouts in anguish to the others.

 Who were also getting tired of the race

 -... Al! ... What do we do ?! - The aforementioned thinks of a plan while they keep running. Until suddenly his face lights up with an idea.

 -¡Follow me! ...¡ I have an idea! -

 His henchmen listen to his orders and increase their speed to the maximum, managing to turn down a street.  To quickly hide in an alley.

 Thus disappearing from the sight of Michelangelo.  And thus they bought some time.

 -¿What do we do now? ...- one of the subjects asked while wiping the sweat from his forehead -... no one should know where the lair is-

 - Yeah ... X will kill us if we take him there ... Or if we arrive empty-handed-

 -Okey ... listen ... we will is do this- he says between gasps of fatigue from the previous race -... one of us will have to distract him so that the others can go to the base with the merchandise .... He will amuse him, over time  enough for us to escape your sight, ¿understand? -

 -Well, and who will be the cannon fodder? -

 Three of the subjects go into pensative mode, trying to choose the subject.

 -Hey, why don't we send the brat? ... At least he could do something so simple ... Right? -

 The aforementioned is exalted by the looks of the three subjects, directed at him. They had already decided who they would send as bait, and he did not like that.

 He could only give a slight sigh at that command.

 -Okay - discouragedly lowers his shoulders.  He hated those kinds of jobs, but he had no other choice.

 ••••••••••••••

 Mikey came to a crossroads, that was completely empty.  Surely because most of the inhabitants were in the market at that time.

 While regulating his breathing for the previous race. He try to hear some noise.

 -They couldn't go that far-

 He affirms himself, trying to carefully observe his surroundings.  Looking for any clue that will lead you to your objectives.

 They weren't fast, enough to get away.  They must still be in that area.

 He was watching the rooftops, until he heard the sound of footsteps behind him.

 By directing his eyes to the source of that sound, he managed to capture one of the subjects, who had a long protruding tail. And when he saw it, he instantly began to run through one of the streets of the intersection.

 -Stop there!-

 He quickly starts the chase again to go after that subject, leaving the place.

 And at the same time, he letting the other criminals sneak away, away from that place.

Again he was running, but this time only after one of them.  That compared to the others, this ran with less difficulty through the passages of the city.  As if he knew them from head to toe.

 The subject, once in while he looked over his shoulder.  A making sure it was still running after him.

 To later show his tongue, with the intention of provoking him.

 That did nothing but anger him

 -Stop right now!- He says already very irritated, not being able to reach it.

 At some point he realized that they were on a street that he knew.

 And that the subject he was, chasing had entered an alley. The which, if I remembered correctly, had no way out.

 There was no way he could escape.

 -You're mine, lizard boy- he says drawing a malicious smile, for his assured victory.

 But as he turned the corner, ready to catch the fugitive, he could only see the empty alley. He could not believe it.

 The subject had disappeared.

 He had no time to analyze what had just happened.  Because he found him climbing the wall like a spider.

 -But ... ¡¿what ?!- he yells more than disconcerted by that scene.

 While, the boy reaches the top of the wall.  Already more than out of reach.

 After this he gives a buffoonish look to him, from his place.

 -Goodbye dwarf, good luck next time! - he says to later, laughing, disappear from his sight.

 I was not going to let him.  If he didn't catch one of them, Leo would prove his point, and he wouldn't leave him alone for a whole week for it.

 -Oh, you won't! -

 More than determined, he looks for a way to climb to the top.

 Observing the area, he get see the balconies of a building.  That they were conveniently close to the wall.

 He quickly climbs , until he manages to pass the wall.

 This time the chase continued on the rooftops.  That they were of a different structure than New York, and it was more difficult to run on them.

 Soon Mikey tried to catch the subject with one of his nunchucks.  But this one soon notices that movement, and jumps to avoid it.

 -I see you don't give up easily- says the subject without stopping running.

 -When it comes to doing justice, rest assured that I will not do it- he says with a determined look.

-Well, we'll see if you continue with that attitude after this-

Then the hooded man throws a pile of marbles after him.  Causing Michelangelo to slip into a house window.

 A loud roar is heard within it.  Followed by screams of people.

 -What the hell?!  Get out of my kitchen !! - shouts an angry man, inside the house.

 -Ha, silly boy- the lizard smirks at getting rid of his pursuer.

 But his happiness lasts very little when he is surprised by the boy.  Appearing in front of him, wearing saucepan on his head, like helmet.

 -Now is my turn!-

 Mikey gives a smile, to later throw the saucepan like a frisbee towards the subject.

 Taking a clean hit in the face of this one.

 And causing it to fall from the roof, towards a pile of sheets, in a cart located in the street.

 Mikey gets off the roof and walks towards the sidewalk. To finally, being able to catch the subject.  But he is suddenly blinded by a sheet shot by the boy.

 -Aghh! -

 -See ya, child! -

 While the turtle tried to remove the huge sheet from himself, the boy took advantage of running away again.  With the stolen mirror in his hands.

 Mikey was already getting tired.  The subject did not want to stop for anything in the world, and the truth is that he was already losing strength.

 It wasn't like catching a typical human thief.  He was a slippery, fast guy ... And he climbed walls like spider man.

 This was already ridiculous.

 They climbed back to the rooftops, and it seemed like this would never end.  Well, until the thief ran out of roofs to run on.

 They arrived in a really high area, on the roof of a house in very bad condition, that seemed not to have been inhabited in years.

 He had no way to escape.

 -Okey bro, give me that mirror ...- Michelangelo says approaching the hooded man, while turning one of his nunchucks -... You no longer have an escape-

 -So you think?-

 Subject takes a very long chain out of his pocket.  And Mikey goes on alert, and prepares for any attack.

 But in a second he is totally confused when the subject throw the end of the chain towards the sky. Achieving tangled in the leg of one ofthe many flying creatures (more specifically a kind of dragon).

 -Goodbye, silly child!- He says, saying goodbye with a mocking laugh.

 Mikey couldn't even defend himself from that insult.  Since in a few seconds the subject was already suspended in the air. Being carried by the flying reptile.

 -WHAT?! ...IS SERIOUSLY?!!-

 The totally irritated little turtle can only stomp on the roof. To vent his impotence to achieve it.

 But his fury disappears after hearing a slight crack, where he was standing. To later feel how it breaks, causing it to fall into the old house.

 ••••••••••••••

About one hour passed from the previous chase.  And the reptilian boy a long time ago left the dragon express, to be able to find his companions.  But he was really getting tired of running.

 For nothing in the world could he let that boy catch up with him.

 This already exhausted, decides to hide in a secret place, which he usually visits on several occasions.  Where it was very little crowded, and where he knew he could rest, without fear of the mirror being taken away.

 Upon reaching his safe zone, he could only sigh of relief.  He was out of the woods now.

 -Finally ...- he says while checking that indeed he was no longer persecuted -... I lost him-

 Already calmer, he began to walk towards his hiding place.  Which was one of the many tunnels on an abandoned pedestrian walkway.

 Which the seemed like a long time ago it wasn't visited.  Most likely because it is a further from the city center, and not very attractive to tourists.

 -That dwarf was very hard to get rid of.... Is he a ninja? ...- He talks to himself, as he enters a tunnel.

 -... I don't even know where the others went anymore - He checks his jacket pocket, pulling a device out of it.  To then review it.

 -And to top off, my communicator ran out of battery ... This is perfect-

 He was on his until he noticed a peculiar smell.  Like melted cheese, tomato sauce, oregano, and other seasonings.

 He quickly realize that this smell is coming from above him.  And when he fixes his gaze on the roof of the tunnel, he is totally paralyzed by what he sees.

 -¿What the-

 -I got you now, lizard boy-

 Mikey says, while giving him a malicious smile that manages to make him uncomfortable.

 He had no idea how the turtle had gotten there before him. Or how he found it.

-Damn it- He says, whit his eyes widened when he sees his pursuer in that place.

 He quickly chooses to escape from that place.  But his escape is sabotaged when Mikey drop on top of him, leaving him with no chance to move.

 The mirror slips from his hands. And these are immobilized by the strong grip of Michelangelo.

 -It was enough dude, return that mirror right now-

 -Get off me -

 The discussion that was his about to take, was interrupted after the shock they received from the mirror. That crashes in front of them.

 It burst into a thousand pieces, then released a strange glowing smoke.

 -Agh! ... Great! ...-

 The hooded man quickly removes the little turtle from his back in a second.  And he quickly stands up, facing Mikey, with noticeable anger.

 -... Look what you did, now I'll have to find another- he says angrily, pointing to the broken object.

 -Well deserved you have it ...- Michelangelo gets up to face the boy, who was on the defensive -... Stealing is a bad, boy-

 -I gonna show you what's is wrong, if you don't get out right now-

 The reptilian boy takes the kusari fundo out of the pocket of his jacket, again. To later give a threatening gesture, making the chain thunder with his hands.

 That restless a bit to Michelangelo

 He had no plans to seriously fight the boy.  He just wanted the other to return the mirror peaceably. And he wasn't in the best shape to fight.

 -H-Hey calm down, I don't want to fight with-

 -GET OUT !! -

 Suddenly he is attacked by the enraged hooded man, who tried to hit him with the kusari, moving it from side to side.

 -Leave me alone! ... that old man had mirrors to spare, I don't see any problem with taking one out of the hundreds he has-

 The boy pauses briefly with his movement.  He was really exhausted from the previous race.

 -That's still theft ... and the least you can do is pay for it-

 -SHUT UP!!-

 Mikey manages to dodge the strong blow of the weapon, jumping away from the subject.

 It already gave him enough time to peacefully redeem himself.  And he wasn't about to take a beating that night.

 -Okey bro, I tried to do it on the easy side ...but you won't leave me another -

 Mikey quickly unsheathes his nunchucks, to start spinning them.  Ready to attack.

 -You will regret facing me, dwarf- says the hooded boy, while giving a mocking smile.

 -I will show you what this dwarf can do- full of determination he gives her a smile.

 -We'll see that!-

 At that moment the conversation ends, To start the fight.

 Which started in an exciting way, to finish faster, than Michelangelo had in mind.

 Ironically, the hooded boy ended up being defeated with his own weapon.  Receiving a strong blow, from the weight of the kusari, falling unconscious

 -Emm ... so ... I win? - is the only thing Mikey could say after that fact.

 He had to accept that this situation had not happened to him before.  He didn't know how to react to that.

 He concluded that what the boy had in speed, he lacked in strength.

This one was knocked down so easily, that he couldn't help but feel bad about him. It was more than evident that this subject was more about words, than actions.

 -Hey boy ... are you okay? -

 He ask the boy lying on the floor.  Without receiving a response from him.

 He was concerned not seeing any reaction from the other.  He didn't even seem to breathe.

 He couldn't be dead ...

 ...Right?...

    ...¡¿RIGHT?!

  That self-question scared him.  The boy could very well have died with such a strong blow to his head.

 In that instant the guilt fell on him.

 I didn't want to hurt him ... MUCH LESS KILL HIM.

 He quickly proceeds to help him.  Removing the heavy kurari from his head, and shaking his back to wake him up.

 -H-Hey dude, wake up ... Open your eyes! -

 He began to sweat cold when he saw that not even shaking him there was a reaction.

 He couldn't believe it ... He didn't want to accept it ... He was too young to die.

 -DO NOT GO TO THE LIGHT!!-

 Soon you can notice how the boy slowly opens his eyes.  He still looked dazed, but at least he was alive.  And that reassured him.

 -How good ... you wake up- I couldn't be happier that he opened his eyes -... thanks to—

 He is quickly silent, being thrown to the ground by the reptile's long tail. Banging his head on the cold concrete.

 -Agh! ... What's wrong with you?  I just wanted to help you- Mikey says from his place.  Rubbing his freshly beaten head.

 -¡¿Help me?! .. ¡You gave me a hit that almost killed me! -

 -You gave it to yourself-

 The hooded boy again tries to hit the turtle.  With more fury than the previous one.

 But once again, Michelangelo was able to dodge it. Being he on the edge of the balcony, and away from the subject.

 -I've had enough of you, what happened before was just a little slip ...-

 The boy prepares by getting back into his fighting pose.  With a malicious gaze directed at his target

 -... this time I not gonna be gentle-

 -That's how I like it-

 Michelangelo responds in the same way as the boy.  Preparing his fists to attack, and forming a grin of determination.

 He was so focused on the one in front of him that he didn't realize a crack was getting bigger on the edge he was stepping on.

 -Give me the best you have, lizard boy! -

 The boy was about to attack him.  But he is paralyzed when he sees the place where the turtle was standing.

 -WATCH OUT!!-

 That scream he received from the one in front of him baffled him.

 He barely had time to think, until he saw himself falling from that tall and steep place.

 The edge shattered.

 That explained the large number of danger tapes that were all around the place.

 That pedestrian walk was practically falling apart.

 He was falling into the void.  And he did not have his nunchucks to prevent the fall.

 Most likely he left them on the ground when he was checking on the lizard boy.

 He had no salvation.

 His life passed before his eyes in a second.

  His father ... his brothers ... his friends ...

 He couldn't even say goodbye to them.

  He could not believe it

  He couldn't accept it.

  He didn't want to accept it!

 He didn't want to end in such an absurd way!

  HE DIDN'T WANT TO DIE LIKE THIS !!

 He could only close his eyes tightly.  Hoping that when his body hit the ground, he didn't feel so much pain.

 Already ending.

 But his fear was immediately removed.  Left in place the total bewilderment.

 By now it must have hit the ground.  And to have passed to the world of the spirits.

 But by slowly opening his eyes.  He realized that it was still suspended in the air.

 How could that be possible?

 He directed his gaze to his outstretched arm towards the sky.  Noticing that he was being held by the dark chain of the boy's kusari.

 Quickly the other boy begins to pull it.  Little by little go up the young turtle.

 The tension of the chain began to manifest itself on his forearm.  Causing him pain as he felt it tighten.  But he preferred that a thousand times, than having a gruesome death crashing to the ground.

 He couldn't help but shed tears of pain and relief when he was finally safe on the pedestrian walk again.

 That situation had really scared him.  And he could not believe that the subject who a few moments ago wanted to attack him, had saved him from one more than assured death.

 -Thank you ... but ... ¿Why you-

 He is quickly silenced by the absence of his unusual savior.

 -Lizard boy? -

 Michelangelo quickly stands up to look for the reptilian boy that a few seconds ago was in front of him.

 -Where are you?!-

 He immediately finds it at the top of the wall, that separated the street from the viewpoint.          

 He looked at him over his shoulder.

 -H-Hey..¿Why did you-

 -Don't bother me again, brat- says the reptile boy, while he turns around avoiding having eye contact with the turtle.

 To then prepare to start your journey.

 -¡W-Wait! ... ¡You forgot your...... kusari-

 He couldn't finish saying what he wanted.  Well, the boy had already left the place.

 He was really confused.

 ¿Why did the guy who tried to hit him on several occasions save him from falling off the cliff?

 It was really very strange what had just happened.

 He, being calmer, of everything that had just happened, proceeded to remove the chain that was tightly tightening his arm.

 Slowly he unwrapped it, revealing some, not very pleasing to the eye, marks on his skin.

 I really preferred those bruises, than having had that horrible final destination.

 Once he wrapped the boy's kusari fundo.  He proceeded to collect his weapons.

 Along with them he found a kind of mobile phone.  That the screen was completely smashed.

 At once he guessed it was from the lizard boy.

 He was admiring the object until he managed to make out a voice calling him from a distance.

 -Mikey! ... I finally found you! -

 -Leo? -

 He aforementioned, quickly goes down where his little brother was.  He looked totally exhausted and angry.

 You could tell right away that he had an intense career.

 Michelangelo was so focused noting his tired appearance, that he did not realize, when he was already grabbing his shoulders.

 -Y-you .... ¡¿WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?! -

 -Eh I-

 -How can you go after those criminals?! .... they could have hurt you! -

 -¿What happened to you, Leo?- He asks, surprised with the exhausted and dirty appearance of his older brother.

 -An angry crowd tried to capture me for hours ... but that's not the important thing now! - He answers angrily when he sees that the minor wanted to change the subject.

 -¿For hours?- The youngest questioned, while the older one kept scolding him.

 -¡Yes! ... ¡And don't change the subject! ... Don't go chasing crooks alone again! ... It's dangerous! ... Did you hear me ?! -

 -¿And you didn't use your swords to teleport?-

 The one in blue stopped yelling at him, to think about what the minor had just said.

 If he hadn't been so tired.  He would have slapped himself in the face, not realizing that he could easily have escaped like that.

 He just gives a deep sigh of annoyance, in surrender.

 Whatever ... let's go home right now-

 He says, to start his journey.  Followed by the minor.

 -From now on I will go to do Drax's orders-

 Mikey just kept following his brother in total silence.  He was still somewhat stunned by everything that had just happened.

 He just wondered why that boy had helped him.  If he had clear intentions to finish him off.

 And because when I look into his eyes  He felt that it was hiding something.

 That really ... was weirder than normal.

[openheart12]

I Did Something Bad

A/N: Today is my lovely adoptive mom’s @burnsoslow birthday! I never thought me making a post about yk what would lead to our friendship and Kryce! I hope you have the best day ever and that it is every bit as amazing as you are! I’m so thankful for your friendship and how you make me laugh until I cry or pee fvhujskdghfn and you’re the only one who could ever make me into a Drake stan. I love you so much! Eat all the cake you can for me! Happy birthday, love! I hope you know how much I adore you ❤

A/N 2: This is very much full of Donald Trump hate and despitement because who wouldn’t hate him anyways jkhkdjgh there’s also quite a bit of cussing 

Word Count: 2,613

Thank you @rigatonireid for pre-reading!! 

“This is bullshit,” Kurns exclaimed as Bryce and Dick were watching the events unfolding at the United States Capitol. “This is why you don’t vote for oranges.” She said while rolling her eyes. 

“Agreed,” the two men replied in unison. 

“Jinx!” They replied again at the same time that led to twenty minutes of them saying “jinx again” in response until Dick finally gave in and let Bryce win. 

“You win, Bryce-y poo,” he had said. Kurns had kept her attention glued to the television during their little game. 

“You okay over there, banana flavored moonpie?” Dick asked, directing his attention over to Kurns. 

“No, look at all those turnips. And the cult leader himself told them to do this shit. People actually voted for this moron? They should all get head CTs to check for brain damage which they undoubtedly have.” 

“Would it make you feel better if we overthrew the government while kidnapping Donnie?” Dick asked seriously. 

“Yes, actually,” she answered with a wide grin. 

“Okay, let me make a few phone calls and can you download some episodes of My Little Pony on Netflix for Bryce?” Kurns nodded her head in response, she also took the liberty of downloading Among Us on their phones so they wouldn’t be bored on the flight. 

The flight from North Delanois was a little over eight hours and being on a plane that long with a toddler, well Bryce, was going to be a challenge. 

It was a private jet so hopefully it would be more bearable, but just in case she also downloaded a few episodes of Max and Ruby and Yo Gabba Gabba. She also downloaded some episodes of Parks and Rec and Friends for herself. 

After packing the essentials; clothing, toiletries, handcuffs, whipped cream, ice cubes -who knew- and My Little Pony gummies, they were off to the airport.  

“Dick Kock,” Dick said introducing himself along with Kurns and Bryce. 

Kurns was decked out in a Taylor Swift 1989 t-shirt and a pair of leggings with her trusty white vans whereas Bryce was dressed in a rainbow colored polka dot shirt, black and white striped pants, one blue croc and the other was yellow, and socks with weed on them. Him and Kurns had forgotten about meth since it already landed them in jail one. Chris P. Bacon was still a sore subject for the pair. 

They boarded the plane and Bryce immediately went to find his gummies. Kurns took a seat next to Dick and pulled up CNN news to get an update on the attack on the Capitol. 

Suddenly breaking news flashed across her phone screen: Taylor Swift set to release her tenth studio album later today. 

“OH MY GOD! BRYCE LOOK!” Kurns exclaimed, jumping up out of her seat to show Bryce. 

“OH MY GOD! TS10! TS10! TS10!” He chanted. 

“Oh wow, that sure is exciting!” Dick chimed in. 

“By the way, D, I think we should call this Operation ‘I Did Something Bad’ in honor of Taylor’s new album.” 

“That’s a spectacular idea, Kurnel Mustard!” Bryce said with a smirk, it had been a new nickname he had given her after the three of them had played Clue one night.

“Shut up, Apple Bottom Jeans, Boots with the Fur,” she retaliated, mocking the Little Pony named Apple Jacks. 

“Stfu,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“You must be really mad if you’re talking in text.”

“Dick,” he pouted, “she’s doing it again.” 

“Be nice you two, we have a long flight ahead of us.” 

For the first two hours, they each did their own thing; Dick was reading a hunting magazine, Kurns was watching the news, and Bryce had already finished the entirety of My Little Pony. 

“Do you guys wanna play Among us?” Kurns asked out of the blue. 

“Hell yeah! I just bought the baby crew mate and I’m dying to use it,” Bryce responded. 

“I’ve never played before but sure!” 

“Okay so you’re either a crew mate or impostor and if you’re a crew mate, you have to do these tasks whilst trying not to die and if you’re an impostor, you go around killing other crew mates trying not to get caught in the process. You’ll get the hang of it eventually,” Kurns explained. 

“Thanks love bug,” Dick placed a quick kiss to the side of her head. 

The three of them found an open lobby and talked in the chat box waiting for the game to start and when it did, Dick asked the question of, “why is my name red?” 

“Oh my God, Dick! Don’t say that. It means you’re an impostor,” Bryce explained at the same exact time Kurns called an emergency meeting. 

“It’s purple,” Kurns typed in the text box, referring to Bryce’s color. 

“What the frick! It’s so not me. I’m not playing anymore,” he pouted, turning off his phone and crossing his arms over his chest. 

“Now, children, can you two not get along? Think about the bigger picture,” Dick intervened. 

“True, but I’m still not going to play with her.”

His statement didn’t affect Kurns in the slightest and she went back to playing the game. Dick joined her while Bryce was running away from an imaginary dragon and he ended up colliding into one of the seats, face first. 

“Ow,” he rubbed his forehead that was now bright red. 

“That’s what you get for being a baby,” Kurns said, not looking up from her phone while Dick went to go check on his blueberry muffin. 

“You okay, strawberry flavored fig bar? That’s quite a hit you took.” 

“Yeah, a kiss would make it feel better though,” he said, using his puppy dog eyes. Dick smiled softly at him before kissing his forehead all better. 

The three of them spent the next six hours playing games, eating, and watching movies from the age of the dinosaurs that Kurns had saved since she was over 10,000 years old. 

After landing in Washington D.C., the trio headed straight to the Whitehouse, if people could storm the Capitol, how much harder could it be to kidnap the president? That was Kurns logic at least and as it turns out, it wasn’t that much harder. 

Kurns went to the Oval Office while Dick and Bryce went to the bunker since that apparently seemed to be Trump’s favorite place in the Whitehouse. But unexpectedly, Kurns found the Donald Duck under the office in the Oval, tweeting away on his iPhone 4s. 

“Mr. Racist,” she called and he immediately turned to look at her. 

“What? I’m tremendously busy if you can’t tell.” 

“I see that, Mr. Pigman.” 

“That is hugely racist towards me. I happen to be winning very bigly at the moment. I’m trending on Twitter!” He said proudly, he then proceeded to show Kurns his crusty ass phone. 

“Come on, I have some candy for you if you come with me,” Kurns coaxed him out from under the desk and led him to the white van they had brought with them, you know, the kind your parents warn you to stay away from. 

“Fake news!” Trump exclaimed with a huff. “You must be friends with sleepy Joe.” 

“You’re right,” she winked. 

“You know, frankly, this doesn’t make America great.” 

“I disagree, I think this definitely makes America great again,” Kurns retaliated. 

“Does Mikey know about this?” 

“Yeah, we planned it with the fly,” she snickered. 

“Well, it’s fake news, believe me.” 

“What?” 

“Nothing you libtards wouldn’t understand it anyways. Anyways, what's that thing on your face?” 

“My mask?” 

“Yeah, what’s that for?” 

Kurns shook her head, not even being surprised by the question. “We’re in the middle of a pandemic, Donald Dump.” 

“What’s a panoramic?” 

“Don’t worry about it.” She got out her walkie talkie to talk to the boys. “The orange has expired. Over,” she said, their code word for getting Trump out. 

“Okay, bet, we’re on our way out. Over.” 

“Good job, K!” Dick said. 

“See you soon and thanks! Over.” 

Fifteen minutes later, Dick and Bryce arrived with a six foot cutout of Donald. 

“What the fuck is that?” 

“Hey, that’s me!” Trump chimed in. 

“Shut the fuck up,” Kurns said, she was quickly losing brain cells being in his proximity. 

“That is rude, quite frankly.” 

“We found it in his bedroom… along with some other, uh, questionable things,” Bryce explained. 

“Like what?”

“Like a, uh, dildo with Pence on it.” 

“Ew…” they all turned to look at Trump who was looking away and whistling, trying to pretend he wasn’t there. 

“Oh, um, about that. That was a tremendous invasion of privacy.” 

“Shut the fuck up,” they all said in unison and he pulled an imaginary zipper over his lips and threw away the key like a literal child. 

“I can’t be near him anymore,” Kurns said suddenly, getting out her phone to call someone. 

“Who are you calling?” Dick asked. 

“Joe, I was gonna invite him to go get some ice cream.” 

“OMG! I wanna go too!” Bryce exclaimed. 

“And me!” Trump said. 

“No, to both of you. You two have to keep an eye on Don and make sure he stays off of Twitter.” She was explaining when Joe picked up the phone. “Hey, Joe, do you want to go get ice cream somewhere?” 

“Duh! Taylor is actually here right now and you don’t care if she comes do you?” He asked to make sure. 

“Of course not! You can bring Champ and Major too! I know Jill is busy right now.” 

“Okay! On our way!” He said before hanging up. 

“Where are you going to go?” 

“Probably McDonald’s or something, Taylor is also coming with us, he said.”

“YOU MEAN THE TAYLOR?” Bryce asked in shock. 

“Yeah, him and Taylor are like BFF’s.” 

“I still like her music 25% less, okay?” Donald brought up. 

“Shut the fuck up,” Kurns said again. 

“Fine, fine. But could you make sure Barron is fed?” 

“Oop,” Bryce slapped his hand over his mouth. 

“Yes, now shut up.” 

Kurns was getting ready to go meet Joe and Taylor when Melania walked up to the van. “You have Trump?” She asked quietly. 

“Yeah, why? You need him?” 

“Yeah, could you make him sign this?” She placed some papers in Kurns hand. She read them and wasn’t shocked after realizing they were divorce papers. 

“No problem, hold tight real quick. Dick, make him sign these!” 

“Of course, ladybug.” He took a hold of Trump’s hand and wrote his name for him since he wouldn’t do it himself. 

“Here you go,” Kurns handed the papers back to Melania and she left without looking back. “Okay, I’m leaving. Be careful with that moron and for the love of God, don’t let his supporters know you have him.” 

“Roger that!” Bryce responded. 

“Don’t worry, vanilla brown sugar! We’ll hold down the fort while you’re gone. Have fun!” He called after her. 

She met Joe and Taylor at a local McDonald’s and greeted both of them with a hug. “Congratulations on winning the election and congratulations on album number ten!” She reached down to pet both of the German Shepherds who happily wagged their tails. 

“Thanks!” They replied in unison. 

“So how are the boys?” Taylor asked. 

“Good! They sent their regards. They’re actually, uh, holdingtrumphostage,” she said fast enough so hopefully they couldn’t understand but they are actually educated. 

“WHAT?” Joe exclaimed. 

“Miss gurl, how did y’all pull that off?” Taylor asked while hysterically laughing. 

“It was easier than I thought! Either security sucks or they wanted Trump gone and I can’t blame them for that.” 

“Amen sister!” Joe replied. 

“Can we see him?” Taylor asked. 

“I mean, yeah if you want!” 

“Okay let’s go!” She went to get up when Joe gently grabbed her arm. 

“But the ice cream…” He reminded her. 

“Of course, how could I forget?” She playfully rolled her eyes. They all ate their ice cream before heading back to the Whitehouse. 

Once arriving, Taylor and Joe headed straight to the front doors while Kurns stood there like 🧍‍♀️. “Hey guys, he's actually right there,” she said, pointing to the white van. 

Taylor opened the door to find Bryce half asleep on the ground, Dick was listening to ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ and dancing in his seat meanwhile, Donald had his lips glued to the side of the door, making out with it. 

“What the fuck?” All three of them asked at the same time. 

“OMG TAYLOR! HI! HOW ARE YOU?” Bryce shouted, jumping up off of the floor and pulling her into a hug. 

“Hi!” 

“Hello, Ms. Swift,” Dick greeted, gracefully bowing. “Mr. President,” he nodded. 

“How did you all meet?” Don asked. 

“We actually just met, our hate for you is what we bond over!” Joe explained in terms he would understand. Hopefully. 

“Oh,” was all he said and started to play with his fingers. “I don’t know if you knew this, but Washington D.C. is actually the capital of the United Stats. Did you know that?”

“What did you think it was? And it’s the United States, not… Stats.” Kurns asked in a surprisingly concerning tone. 

“I thought it was like a stat… or well state. Whatever it is.” 

“Oh,” Kurns said while Taylor called him an idiot under her breath. 

“That’s embarrassing miss gurl,” Bryce chimed in. 

“ARE YOU TALKING TIKTOK TO ME? I WILL BAN YOU,” Trump threatened. 

“Please, these empty promises you keep making are getting really old just like your term,” Dick said, making the others die of laughter… no literally, some Trump supporter that had been walking by had just collapsed and died. 

“And I oop-” Kurns and Bryce said at the same time. 

“IFHCBXNZNZ, HAHAHAHA,” Bryce barked out. 

“Can we get something to eat? I really want some Dino nuggies 🥺,” Trump pleaded. 

“No,” they all replied. 

“So what are we going to do with him?” Taylor asked. 

“I don’t know, what do y’all want to do with him?” 

“Excellent question, K, I say we feed him to some alligators!” Bryce exclaimed, flapping his two arms together to make an alligator jaw and started running towards Donald who jumped back in fear. 

“That’s not nice,” he pouted, a lone tear trickling down his cheek. 

“Fuck you, but not literally or physically,” Taylor said, making sure to explain what she meant. 

“I want some My Little Pony gummies!” 

“Me too!” Donald said with a smile now on his crusty, orange ass face. 

“No,” they replied again. 

“Fine,” he crossed his arms over his chest and turned his back to them, like the toddler he is. 

“Anyways, y’all want to go get Cookout?” Kurns suggested. 

“Yeah, of course!” Joe responded. 

The five of them headed to the nearest Cookout to get food and milkshakes, leaving Trump behind all alone. After hanging out with Taylor and Joe, it was unfortunately time to head back to North Delanois. With promises to meet up soon, the trio were soon enough taking off at the airport. 

“What ended up happening to Trump?” Bryce asked seriously. 

“He went to prison.” 

“As he should, period,” Kurns said with a smirk. 

“What are we going to do when we land?”

“Sleep!” Kurns and Bryce said. 

“Of course, my love doves. I’m going to try to do that right now, so please try to get along.” 

“Promise!” Kurns said, holding out her pinky finger which he took and kissed. The rest of the flight was surprisingly peaceful, Kurns and Bryce were able to get along while Dick slept. It had been a fun trip, one they hoped they would actually never have to make again. 

Tags: @burnsoslow @ao719 @callmeellabella @rigatonireid because no one else should have to read this :)

[larryfanficwriter98]

Chapter Five

Louis answered the facetime call grinning at the man across the screen still in a bed.

"Happy birthday and Merry Christmas Eve. Have you opened your presents yet?"

"No thought I would wait for you to wake up,  but I do have the gifts here along with the one with two bows which I'm assuming is my Christmas Eve present."

"Yes, it is. The very thin one is last altogether and the big cube is first."

"Everything else doesn't matter?"

"Not really however if you'd rather do the Christmas eve present first and let it start up while you open the rest then make sure to open the cube second. I bought myself one and it took a few minutes to start up so."

"It's too big to be a phone."

"Very observant."

"You do know I have a laptop right?"

"A broken laptop."

"Harold."

"Just come on and open it. I got it for a lot of reasons."

"Well, I already know what it is now." Louis told him

"Just shut up and open your Christmas Eve gift. Its Christmas I'm allowed to buy you expensive things." Harry said

"You bought me a Samovar."

"Please." Louis sighed heavily as he grabbed the gift, he looked at Harry who was grinning

"Where are you anyway? It's not the bus is it?"

"No, I'm in my LA home. The others are sleeping at a hotel though I offered them rooms here." Harry said

"You're alone on Christmas?" Louis asked stopping his unwrapping momentarily to look at Harry. Harry opened his mouth to speak, but he frowned and looked off camera before looking back at Louis after a second.

"No, my family is here. I'm trying to be quiet so they think I'm asleep otherwise they'll come in here. Well, go on then open it." Louis ripped the wrapping paper and shot Harry a glare when the box revealed the newest MacBook.

"Harold-"

"No, before you complain listen. This will give us better angles for video calls."

"Our phones worked just fine."

"Just shut up and take it." Louis shook his head as he stared at Harry. Harry with his long curly hair pulled into a bun, his pearl necklace laying against his bare chest, his little stubble on his jaw. His soft smile and soft eyes.

"So the cube next?" Louis asked looking away from Harry

"Yes. The cube." It was heavy in it's own way despite its medium size. He tore the gift open and froze when he saw the team logo.

"Wait..seriously?" Harry chuckled grinning as Louis grabbed the shadow box holding a signed ball from the entire Doncaster Rovers team, "Harry."

"I only paid for the shadow box, I know a lot of the players so when I told them my boyfriend is a huge fan the offered to sign a ball for me to give to you."

"Harry this is incredible. I can't open the rest Haz I won't be as excited now."

"Louis trust me it gets better." Louis put the shadow box to the side and grabbed another box placing it on his lap. Opening the box he pulled out four jerseys, two for home games, and two for away games. One set was for Doncaster and the other for Manchester. The third gift was two sets of five lanyards for the Manchester and Doncaster stadiums giving them access and free drinks and food in a VIP box.

"Harry.. but wait why five?"

"I'll be home near the middle of the season." Louis looked at Harry grinned, he bought the phone screen to his lips and kissed him making Harry laughed.

"One more. Is the MacBook set up?" Louis glanced at the MacBook then started to finish setting it up. "Open the last one and play it."

"Harry, I swear if you make me cry." Louis said as he grabbed the thin square package. He already knew it was a cd which meant a personalized playlist, a cheesy montage of their time together, or something along those lines, and honestly, Louis wasn't ready for either of those options.

"I am going to let you listen to it alone and I will take a shower and eat breakfast then we can talk in about two hours?"

"Alright." Harry leaned in to the screen and kissed the lens making Louis laugh. The facetime ended so Louis focused on the gift revealing the cd and placing it in the CD tray. He clicked on the pop up then pressed play turning the volume up.

"I know you don't want us to say the L-word until we meet for the first time. So I wrote something that I hope will express my feelings for you as strongly and clearly as I can and um... this might give away who I am, but I'm not scared about that. I've been trying to find a way to tell you for a few weeks now since you fell asleep on our facetime call in Australia. So I um... I hope you like it I guess and if you do find out who I am and if you need a few days to think about what being in a relationship with me would involve then let me know. If you come to a decision of ending things just know that I trust you and I'm sorry and I completely understand why you would decide that. If you still want to be with me then great and we can talk more on the depth of everything like if you want to be public about our relationship or not. Whatever you want. Alright.. before I say the word you don't want me to I'm going to stop this and let you listen. Bye." Louis laughed at his awkward boyfriend shaking his head as a soft piano came over the speakers.

"If I could fly I'd be coming right back home to you I think I might Give up everything just ask me to Pay attention, I hope that you listen Cause I've let my guard down Right now in completely defenseless

For your eyes only I'll show you my heart For when you're lonely And forget who you are I'm missing half of me When we're apart Now you know me For your eyes only."

Louis closed his eyes to keep his traitorous tears back. Harry's voice was raw, but sounded beautiful and Louis had a hard time focusing on what he was singing. He did recognize the voice, he knew he has heard it on the radio quite a few times, but he was terrible at remembering names. He knew that once he actually knew who Harry was he'd feel pretty damn stupid, but right now he couldn't think of anything. Louis replayed the song five times before it the lyrics finally sunk in and Louis understood this was Harry telling Louis that he Loved him with a capital 'L'.

Like he was completely in and completely gone for Louis. Louis would be lying if he said the thought didn't terrify him, but he felt the same way about Harry. He had fallen when Harry had answered a facetime with the widest grin, completely shirtless, and a towel wrapped around his waist. HIS WAIST. Not his hips like a normal person, his waist which meant his towel had stopped pretty high on his thighs. But Louis hadn't even noticed that until after he had completely fallen for his dimples and open mouth smile and his wet hair and his perfect complexion. Louis was pretty sure he had stopped breathing for a minute only to stop breathing again when Harry had straightened up and Louis had noticed his towel situation.

Nothing had been revealed, but still, it was the principal of things. Harry had perfect thighs and it was rude. How dare he just answer a facetime looking like a god while Louis had been wearing a stained holey band shirt and stained sweats with pizza sauce on the corner of his mouth. He had been tempted to break up with him because of it. Of course, he had talked himself out of it, but the thought had lingered in his head for a few seconds.

****

Two hours later Louis escaped to his room and accepted the facetime request. Harry was outside this time, but he was looking off-camera at someone.

"Mom. I love you, but please leave now."

"What if you need me?"

"Mom go away," Harry said

"But what if he's mean to you."

Mom. I'm 21 and I've been talking to him for months."

"Remember the last Doncaster boy you liked? He took your number and never texted you."

"I was 14 mom, I wouldn't have texted me either. Now go away."

"Fine. I'll be inside if you need me." Harry turned to the phone with a soft blush on his cheeks

"You had another Doncaster boy? Should I be worried?" Louis asked

"No, it was 2009 and at a battle of the bands. He was a singer in this band."

"Wait...shut up...2009 battle of the bands?" Louis asked sitting up straighter

"Yeah, why?"

"No fucking way. What was the guy's band name?" Louis asked not able to believe it

"Band name? I don't know it was...seven years ago. Rogue something I think or maybe something Rogue."

"Shut up."

"What?" Harry asked amused

"That was my band. The Rogue. We met before Harry."

"No."

"Yes. Me mom has the picture we took together in one of the photo albums back home in Donny."

"You're shitting me. We snogged that day."

"We snogged in the toilet stall after you peed on me. The first time." Louis told his embarrassed boyfriend making him even more embarrassed as he buried his face in his arms.

"Oh my god. Please stop talking now." Louis laughed even harder as he thought back to 2009, "wait didn't we meet again? At the script concert?"

"We did. We met up in the toilets. I think you were leaving when I was coming in."

"Fucking hell." Harry said shaking his head

"Then again that summer when I was on holiday and again in 2010 at the X Factor auditions."

"No."

"Yes. We have met four fucking times already." Louis said as he remembered Harry again

"Well after eight years I finally get your number." Harry said making Louis blush

"Well, I can explain. The first time I never actually saved it. I typed it, but I forgot to save it so when I tried to text you I couldn't. Then after the concert, I was actually struggling with coming out and being comfortable with it all. The holiday I still hadn't come out so I sort of ignored you then we didn't exchange numbers at the auditions. I left early anyway so I never actually auditioned."

"What? Why not? Louis, you should have auditioned. I remember you having an amazing voice."

"And lose to you? No thanks. Talk about a busted ego." Harry shook his head smiling as he laid his chin on his hand

"I actually didn't win. When you get to the Live Shows they give you this new contract to sign in case they want to sign anyone who doesn't win. A lot of the other contestants warned me about bad labels and what they can do and that they could closest someone. I was already being labeled and branded as a lady's man at 16 on that show. I refused to sign the contract and they organized my elimination three weeks later. Simon tried to talk me out of it a lot, but I refused and told my mom I didn’t want to be forced into a five to ten-year closet. Six months later Sony got a hold of me and told me that I would be able to coke out whenever I wanted, but until then they did want to promote me as straight which I was fine with. Luckily it had to wait until I was 18 so when I turned 18 they had me date Taylor Swift. I'm not out publicly yet, but I just never really had a reason to come out."

The first thing that popped into Louis' head was "Harry Styles"  but that was insane because Harry was...like...18 and had a mop of curls. He did not have tattoos or long hair nor was he 21 turning 22. Louis was positive he had just turned 18 last year.

"That's good that you were warned and was able to escape before you were legally straight."

"Yeah, it is. A little upset I will never know if I would have won or not, but I guess having my first album get platinum within a week was proof enough that I would have at least made top 5."

~~~~~

Harry had gotten Niall an expensive whiskey that Niall was excited about and a limited edition Baccarat Louxor Bar Set. Liam got a $100 tattoo voucher for the local parlor he liked and some Manchester footie merch signed as well like Louis'. Zayn got some expensive hair care products as well as a $100 (my keyboard doesn't have the pound symbol so sorry about the American dollar) tattoo voucher. For someone who only knew a few things about his roommates he did amazing and they were all excited about everything.

Louis had gotten more gifts from all of the places Harry has been. Some more sweaters, a Japanese dragon jacket that felt expensive and warm. A rice cooker with a side note to follow the instructions causing Louis and the lads to laugh. Harry also bought Louis a Royal Copenhagen complete set which almost made Louis cry. Having a complete Royal Copenhagen set was every tea lover's dream, if they're lucky they are able to collect a few tea cups, but it was rare to get a complete set.

In the last box, Louis opened it revealed a large lilac sweater that was something Louis wouldn't usually wear until he pulled it out. The smell was of a tropical scent mixed with an expensive earthy cologne. That meant the sweater was Harry's along with the other sweaters that were folded neatly into the box. A white Aran turtle neck sweater, a black hoodie with a rose embroidery, and under that was a note over another hoodie reading, "unreleased merch". When Louis pulled out the black hoodie it had "Treat People With Kindness" written in rainbow embroidery across the chest. The last one was a light pink sweater with Harry on the chest and then the same quote on the arm.

"Wait.. your boyfriend sent you Harry Styles merch? You've got to be kidding me." Liam said grabbing the black hoodie from Louis

"What?" Louis asked

"Treat people with kindness. This is Harry Styles' merch, it's like his slogan, his brand." Liam said

"Really?" Louis asked, "isn't he like..17?"

"What? No, he's 21 Louis. He was 17 in 2011." Zayn said as he looked at the hoodie, "I haven't seen this one yet."

"21..and when is his birthday?" Louis asked

"The first of February." Niall told him Louis nodded and grabbed his phone going to the safari app and googling Harry Styles.

Sure enough there he was with long hair and tattoos and extremely long legs. There were also modeling pictures and paparazzi pictures of him at airports and fan pictures. Louis went on Instagram and went to Harry Styles' profile and saw many pictures of the countries landscapes and landmarks he had visited the past few months. One of the posts was a picture of Louis' teddys on Louis' shelf in his bedroom wall that he got just for them. The caption read, "Dating 101 - buy them cheesy €5 souvenirs" Louis made his profile private then commented, "and the sweaters that still smell like you."

[kiss-my-freckle]

7x17: Sin Eaters

So, I’m gonna do what i did last time for this rewatch. I’m gonna type as I watch. But before I begin, I’m just gonna say that I never expected a Spader-less episode to be this damn good. The writers really brought their A game. Megan brought her A game too. 

1994 for Tom Keen. 1995 for Donald Ressler. Donald looks to be about 15 in this episode. This is where Ressler runs opposite Tom in S2 when they ran Major’s episode. I believe they’re showing the difference in these two men and their different paths. I think that’s what they’ve been doing from the start... Ressler running opposite Tom in most everything. 

“Cut the crap, Bill. You acquired Tom Keen when he was a boy. You trained him to be a deep-cover operative. It’s all he’s ever done. It’s all he knows.”

Robby trying to talk to Donald about their father, but we know Ressler. Good ol’ Rez. Mr. Emotional Support. Understandable that he doesn’t want to see his mother at a time when he’s having to move a body, but I’m glad we got to see her. 

Another back to 2x17. Knew I’d miss at least one hit back.  My gif set for those 2x17 hits can be found here.

Cindy: So, you got anybody special back in D.C., Donnie? When am I gonna start seeing some nieces and nephews? Ressler: Uh, no one special right now, Aunt Cindy. But I'm looking. I got my eyes open.

Red: Share it with someone special.  Liz: I’ve been saving this for a special occasion.

His Aunt Cindy has a brighter shade of red than his mother. Likely dyed. 

Keenler baby to Rederina -

Lisa Ressler: And he bought me a fancy new watch. Donald Ressler: It's never gonna happen. Not on my watch. Ressler outside of Laurel’s. Both Ressler and his mom are right-handed. Red is ambidextrous, like Katarina, but makes himself appear right-handed. That’s why they use close up magic and mirrors to show he can use his left hand. Most noticeable was his scene with The Corsican and his scene with Liz at the end of Rassvet. 

Young Donald mentioning dice. Three-card Monte aka Find the Lady uses three cards. Cee-lo uses three dice. Find the Queen lol... Major. “I don’t care if she’s Queen Elizabeth and screwing her made you king.”

They really nailed the soundtrack with this episode, Soundgarden... my god. I see Red Hot Chili Peppers, REM, Beastie Boys, and Korn on their teen walls. Nice shit. 

As I said on the TBE podcast, I didn't expect Ressler and Robby to be so opposite from their adult selves. I expected Robby to be the problematic teen. And the meat behind that switch is so beautiful. The older brother protecting the younger brother, seeing the kind of man he could become, just all of it. Ah... great writing. I didn't expect a brother storyline to be so beautiful, but then I think... ah, the Winchesters are beautiful, so yeah... the writers brought it.

Prince Charming.  

St. Michael, patron saint of police officers. St. Michael is an archangel, Prince of Heavenly Host. In late medieval Christianity, Michael, together with Saint George, became the patron saint of chivalry. He’s usually depicted with a sword. 

“I am the cops.” Tommy Markin sounds a lot like Tom Connolly here. “I own the Bureau.” This similarity continues. “What are you gonna do? Shoot me? Shoot a cop?” Quite interesting, given my memory wipe theory. “What are you gonna do, Agent Keen - arrest me?” Young Donald drinking... gee, I wonder if Liz was high on Krilov drugs lol. 

Dead Markin runs parallel to dead Raymond. I find it interesting how young Donald drank his pain away as older Donald used oxy to deal with his loss of Audrey. All of this makes me think of The Informant’s episode ... dead bodies and booze. “Sins should be buried like the dead. Not that they may be forgotten, but that we may remember them and find our way forward nonetheless.” Liz helping Ressler and Robby do just that. 

“You remember Tommy Markin, don't you, Don?” Interesting question. Seeing young Ressler hunched againt the wall in tears, my god. These two young actors nailed their roles. They start running opposite with these two shootings. No witnesses in the murder of Tommy Markin, while Liz shot Connolly in a banquet hall full of witnesses. But the end result is the same. Robby tells Donald to go home. Cooper tells Liz to run. “Forget this happened. Understood?” It’s gonna be wonderful when they reveal Liz’s secocnd memory wipe lol. 

Robby: You ever lose sleep at night 'cause of what we did back then? Donald: Some nights. Not many. Robby: Ever wish you could take it back?  Donald: This man killed our father. Then stood at his wake and lied to our faces. He was a disgrace to the badge he wore. The one you were going to wear. The one I wear every day. No, this scumbag got everything that was coming to him. So, no. I wouldn't take it back. You?

Robby has a hard time living with what he did, while Ressler doesn’t - even though he believes he’s the one that killed him. How interesting, given their direction for Liz. 

Liz: I killed some men. Doesn’t matter that they were bad. That it was them or me. What matters is that I did it and I was good at it. And I didn’t lose any sleep over it. Red: You will. One of these nights you will. It’s just a matter of when.

And she was fine with shooting Connolly. 

Fulton: She murdered the attorney general of the United States - Liz: I killed a key member of a global conspiracy - Fulton: - and went on the run with you like a modern-day Bonnie and Clyde. Liz: - and in the process, I helped prevent a false flag operation that could have put this country on war footing with Russia.

Liz and Ressler are so alike. I’d say they’re like Bonnie and Clyde.

"Unsolved cases. I fixate on them. How unfair they are. That people get away with murder. I - I know it sounds corny, but I um- I obsess over the need for justice.”

For Robby, it destroyed his chance at a career in law enforcement because killing Markin affected him that much. Or perhaps it was his allowing his brother to believe he killed him that affected Robby so much. I like how the badge caught Donald’s eye. 

Donald: I never thanked you. Look, you saved me. That night, everything in my life changed.

Sounds familiar.

Liz: What you’ve done - what you’ve made it possible for the Task Force to do - you know, I’ve never thanked you for that.

Ressler: I didn’t go home, but I never crossed over. I never thanked you for that.

Interesting how he went home after he shot Markin, but desn't go home now.

Robby: You're shocked what your brain can come up with when you're on autopilot like that.

Probably how Katarina was, throwing the body in a suitcase and burying it by the apple tree.

Robby: I thought a lot about how most people's lives hinge on a few key moments. I think mine only had one moment, and then it was over.

Red in The Vehm. 

Red: I hurt people. I kill people. And each time I do, in that moment, another part of me dies along with them.

"Letting me die... won't make us even..." My god, this is powerful stuff.

"It... It was... business..."  And there's Tom Keen. "But for Tom, it was business."

I do believe both necklaces are gonna come back into story somehow.

Robby: And I knew I was the only person that could protect you, Don. From Tommy Markin, and anyone else like him who might come along. I had no choice..."

Robby & Katarina, the sin eaters having no choice.

Katarina: What would you do if you knew... knew... that as long as you drew breath, as long as you continued to exist, her life would be in danger? She would be hunted, and she would be killed. What would you do?

"I did it for you. For me. And for Daddy. In the end, all I was thinking about was you. I was protecting your future." That's Rederina in a nutshell. She did it for Masha, for herself, and for Raymond. "To the future." And it’s all there.  "Yeah, but why? Why didn't you tell me? What - Why keep this a secret all these years?" Sounds just like Liz in the motel in 4x22 lol. “Why didn’t you just tell me who you were? Why keep it a secret?” Sin eaters have their reasons. "I did that to protect you too. Whatever that night had done to you, it was driving you. I carried the weight. I never regretted it. Because it did exactly what I thought it would do. It made you the person that you are today." Carrying the weight. Again, Katarina acting as Masha’s sin eater. “He told me he didn’t want me to live with the weight of knowing I killed my father.” Liz and Don became federal agents thanks to their sin eaters. "How to be good, like him.” Their path to follow. “Be good, little one.” Robby just handed Ressler everything he needed to hear to discover Red's truth. Because Robby is the sin eater, just like Katarina. Ressler's gonna find out Red is Liz's mother.  

"Because it did exactly what I thought it would do. It made you the person that you are today."

"If you’re asking whether it was a surprise that you became an FBI agent, the answer is no."

What “Raymond” did to Katarina. What Robby did to himself. “We become who we are.” Becoming Reddington. Katarina becoming Raymond would be like Robby becoming Markin to protect his brother. Basically. As I said before of the pilot scene when Red turned himself in... Black and white, male and female. Rewatch those first few minutes of 1x1 before they cut to Cooper and Ressler. Ressler’s statement at Fagen’s paraole hearing. The world isn’t always black and white. There’s a grey area. Just like men aren’t always men and women aren’t always women. Rederina is that grey area.  

“Well, I think we can finally put this behind us and move on.”

Back to The Informant’s episode again. 

Red: Sins should be buried like the dead. Not that they may be forgotten, but that we may remember them and find our way forward nonetheless. I hope this will help you do just that. 

Onto Keenler lol. 

Ressler: Bad time?

This goes back to S6 lol. 

Red: Bad time?

it’s a “bad time” if you’re hiding someone in your apartment. Is it a bad time? ahaha So much focus to watches lately. Because Red told Liz in Ruin it’s just a matter of WHEN. One of these nights, she will lose sleep because she will not be able to breathe. 

Liz can’t stand still. Folding blankets, keeping her distance. Standing still would cause her the need to look him in the eye, allowing him to see what she feels. So much Keenler foreplay in this scene. Knucklehead & dipstick. Two perfect words for this pair, they’re both idiots, that’s why it works. There’s nothing like saying, “Fuck you, I love you.” As she talks about Ressler being her island of calm, her hand gesture is everything. Many hits back to 2x17, but I already posted the link to that gif set somehwere up top. 

“And somewhere in the middle of that FEMA disaster of a life... Somewhere is just a tiny island of calm. And if that weren't there, I would be swept out to sea.”

Uhm... yeah. Bad news is coming, and it’s gonna come on Ressler’s watch. Liz had her memory wiped, and they have no idea. Keenler baby. Her Djinn fantasy right here. Turned upside down, turned rightside up. Liz is an ocean, Ressler is an island. 

Disaster paths' aftermaths One splash To the ground And I'm at best an island And you're an ocean You surround And you came in like a wave Through the same pale grin, I gave I can just breathe

Their hit back to Lady Ambrosia. Liz breathing in Ressler’s arms. Under the same skylight she hugged Tom, welcoming him home. Under the same skylight Tom was stabbed by Garvey. Under the same skylight she hugged Jennifer goodbye. Under the same skylight she hugged Agnes, welcoming her home.  And under the same skylight stood the WIcked Wolf. Little Red Riding Hood. 

Robby: Okay, I'm sorry. I... I didn't know... Donald: What, Mom was gonna host a family reunion? Good call on that one.

Mother-daughter reunion with the addition of a Wicked Wolf. Not on Ressler’s watch if he’s laying quietly in Liz’s bed, and woman from Paris has no idea. But just as possible she gets kidnapped just like Dembe kidnapped Aram while Elise was in the shower. 

Liz: You’re not gonna stay for dinner? Red: And intrude on your mother-daughter reunion? I don’t think so. And we need to be someplace.

This episode basically supports my theory/belief that Ressler is gonna play a huge part in things going forward. Especially given the storyline between him and Robby. Ressler-centered. After all, he's Red’s future in-law. Makes me wonder if Red knows Robby acted as Donald’s sin eater just as he did for Liz... so he knows what kind of man Ressler is. What’s best for his daughter.  

Back to Tom and Ressler running opposite. 

“I know a great many things about you, Donald.”

“Tom was a man of many truths.”

[lovemesomesurveys]

What is the wallpaper on your computer screen? Why did you choose it? A gorgeous b&w photo from a photoshoot Alexander Skarsgard did. I chose it because it’s him and he’s gorgeous, duh.  Is there a pattern on the pants you’re currently wearing? Which one? Nope, they’re just plain black leggings. Do you like going to baby showers? Do you go only for the cake? I didn’t mind the few I’ve been to. I liked playing the games. Who is the person you text the most in your life? What relation are you? My mom or brother. Mexican food, Chinese food, Italian food, French food or American food? I like some foods from each of those.

Has there ever been a time in your life, you felt sexually undecided? No. Does your mother annoy you when the holidays come along in the year? No. What is the color scheme of your absolute favorite fast-food restaurant? I don’t have a favorite fast food anymore, honestly. I’m not big on it like I used to be. Do you think tattoos and piercings are sexy on the opposite sex? I don’t mind some tattoos or a couple piercings, but I’m not super into them. Do people ever ask you to do things they’re too short to accomplish? No, I’m the short one who needs to ask others for help. Do your siblings bring people around that your parents don’t approve of? No. Is there carpet or hardwood floor in your bedroom? Carpet. Do you check the texture of things first or the smell of them? Depends on what it is. Certain things I might do both. Have you ever broken the arm or head off of a trophy? How did you do this? No. Do you believe in superstitious things such as breaking a mirror? Nah.  Do you get sick of people who call themselves bi polar all the time? I don’t like when people just throw that and OCD around. Ever have an ultra-sound performed on you? What was it for? I’ve had several done in my life. I used to get my kidneys checked once a year. Do you like those ‘end of the world,’ ‘Armageddon’ movies? No. What color are the headphones you have at this moment in time? Black. Ever been choked severely on something during lunch at your school? This is worded weird, but yes actually. It happened in elementary school, but I still remember it quite vividly. I got a chip stuck in my throat. Do you remember who you sat next to in Kindergarten? Who was it? No. Has anyone ever compared you to an animal? Which one(s)? A monkey because of my long arms. Has anyone, including yourself, forgot it was your own birthday? Not anyone close to me, no.  Chocolate or strawberry birthday cake? Choose one. Strawberry, hands down.  Do you eat more vegetables or fruits? What’s your favorite fruit/veggie? Out of the two, veggies because I do eat spinach oftenish. And potatoes. I haven’t had any fruit in quite a long time. :X Do you abbreviate things way too often? Do you get called out on it? No. I only do “lol”, “lmao”, “wtf”, and “wth.” Ever been in one of those church Christmas plays before? Why/why not? No. What is the funniest conjunction you use throughout your day? I don’t think any of them are funny. Have you ever thrown a roll of toilet paper at someone before? No. Does the dentist calm you or does it tend to stress you out? I have never found the dentist to be calming. I get very bad anxiety when it comes to the dentist. It’s a real fear. If you had to choose, which is the worst movie you’ve ever seen? Hmm. I’ve seen a few shitty movies, hard to choose the worst one. Have you ever found yourself talking to an inanimate object? When they’re not working properly haha. Do you like movies that are originally based on children’s books? Sure. Is your hair more thick or thin? Is it more curly or straight? Thin and wavy. I really wish I could get extensions.  Something on the human body that grosses you out the most: Feet. Do you like meeting new people? What’s your most common greeting? I’m not very outgoing or social.  Ever think of what it would be like to be a mermaid or merman? Nah. If you had to choose, which celebrity would you date out of all of them? Alexander Skarsgard. ;) Do people feel sorry for you for no reason? Have they ever? I’m sure I look quite pitiful. What is something that bothers you about most surveys in general? The repetition of questions. Especially ones about marriage and children. Who would you take with you on a stranded/deserted island? Someone who could help get me off. Do you have your own personal boom box in your bedroom? A boom box, wow. No, I don’t. Haven’t had or used one in several years. Would you survive if zombies were to take over the world? Why or why not? Nope. What would you say is the worst part of high school period? The teenage years are a rough, pivotal time. What is your favorite color of apple? Red, green or yellow? I don’t care for apples. Ever want to be a doctor? Is it because of all the hospital shows? Noooo. What do you think of all these reality shows that try to alter personality? I’m not sure what kind you’re talking about. Where are your favorite pair of shoes in the whole world right now? My black Adidas with the white stripes. Do you live anywhere near a mall? Yeah, pretty close. Do you like drawing smiley faces or do you think they’re overrated? If I’m randomly doodling, that’s one of the few things I’ll draw. If you were dying who would you say goodbye to first out of everyone? I’d have my loved near me and talk to them. Are you someone who actually likes to babysit children? No. Do you ever have those ‘ah ha!’ moments? Do those annoy you? Yeah. I don’t think they’re annoying. It’s usually a good thing. Do you hardly ever remember where you put things at? No, I’m good about that. What’s your favorite lunch meat, if you even like any in the first place? Turkey, salami, and bologna.  When is the next time you’ll eat a cupcake, if you know when? I have no idea.  Where did you last buy socks from? What do those socks look like? I forget what the last pair I bought myself was, but I just received a few pairs for Christmas. Do you ever lay in the grass and look up at the sky, just because? Nope. I don’t want to lay or sit on the grass at all. It makes me itchy and there’s bugs. When do you normally go to sleep on the weekends? My sleep schedule is the same regardless of the day. I tend to go to bed around 5AM and wake up around noon. Have you ever met someone with the same ‘biggest fear’ as you? Yes, a few. Do you ever have movie nights with your significant other? I’m single. Would you rather write with a pen or a pencil? Why is this? Pen. Do you like candy bars? Are you trying to slack off of them? Yeah. I haven’t had candy in quite awhile, though. I’m not trying to “slack off of them”, I just haven’t had any.  What is your favorite number? Is it significant with your life? 8. It’s been my favorite since I was a kid. Are you afraid of being kidnapped if you go outside at nighttime? I’d be afraid of being attacked or killed. Has your mother ever called your school because of your grades? No. I always got good grades. In the next twenty minutes, what will you be doing and where will you be? I need to go to bed. It’s after 5AM now. Do you like showers or baths better? Why did you choose your choice? I only take showers. I haven’t taken a bath since I was a kid. Are you a controversial person? Do your views oppose others? No. I keep a lot of my opinions to myself. I mean, yeah I have opposing views. We’re not all going to agree on everything. Have you ever thrown a surprise party for someone? Who for? Nope. What would you say your average word per minute time is on the keyboard? I have no idea. I’m a very fast typer, though.  What is your least favorite class in school? Why is this? It was always math. I was horrible. Do you bite your fingernails or tap them on desks? I always picked at my nails in class. Have you ever wanted to be in a band? What position exactly? No. Who is your role model or hero in life if you have one? My mom. Do you ever call your cousins just to talk to them randomly? No. I used to text with them or Snapchat or something, but not anymore except for here and there. I’m not close with any of my cousins anymore like I used to be. :( Do you find any of your friends’ parents creepy or really mean? I never found any of my friends’ parents creepy or mean. Do you ever have to wash your clothes at someone else’s house? No. When is the next time you’ll go to the library? Why is this? I have no idea. I have no reason to. Do you like fiction or non-fiction books more? What’s your favorite? Non-fiction.  Do you constantly have to be told to shut up? By who? No. I’m not a  chatty person, generally. I do have my chatty moods sometimes where I want to tell myself to shut up, though. ha. Do you know how to play pool? Are you any good at it? Nope. Do you treat others as you’d like to be treated? Have you always? I try to. These past few years I haven’t been the most pleasant to around. I get moody, irritable, snippy, pissy, and short with my family and that’s not at all how I want to be. They don’t deserve it. I know I don’t like when people are that way to me. Were you a really mean kid or a sweet and quiet kid? Sweet and quiet. I was the “pleasure to have in class”! Are you someone who likes to get in arguments or fights a lot? Nooo. I avoid it like the plague. How do you make sure people know you don’t like them at all? I don’t have to make a big spectacle about it if I don’t like someone for whatever reason. I can still be polite and civil if I have to interact with them. Would you say you’re someone who likes to cuss a lot? Nope.  Do you keep secrets from your parents that you don’t keep from your friends? I mean, my parents don’t know everything. I tell them a lot, especially my mom, but I also keep a lot to myself. Not just from them, but from everyone.  What is your father’s best friend’s name? Do you know them personally? Donny. Yes, I know him personally. They’ve been friends all my life. If you had to, where would you get a tattoo at? Why? I’ve always thought my inner wrist, but I don’t know now.  How much was the cell phone you have at this moment in time? However much the iPhone XR is. Would you say you hang out with people the majority of your life? I spend quite a lot of my time alone, but I spend a lot of time with my family as well. What would you do if you woke up randomly with purple hair? Uhh that would be quite shocking. I also dye my hair red, so if I woke up and it was purple one day I’d be pretty concerned. Do you ever look in the mirror and name all of your flaws for no reason? I avoid looking in the mirror as much as possible, and when I do I keep it short. If I spend too long that’s exactly what would happen. All my flaws become magnified and intensified and they’re all I see. Are you getting sick of the reality show Survivor? Why? I never watched it, but I’m surprised it’s still on. Do you usually explain to people why you do the things you do? Not usually, no, but with some things I guess. Or at least try to. I don’t even understand why I do what I do. Ever submit a video to America’s Funniest Home Videos? No. I wanted to as a kid. What color is the closest desk to your body? What all is on it? I don’t have a desk in my room. The most painful medical procedure you’ve ever had? Any of the surgeries I’ve had. Are you someone who likes to eat Poptarts? What’s your favorite flavor? The strawberry frosted and the brown sugar frosted ones. Ever have a dream you’re being abducted by aliens? Was it scary? No. What would you say is the color of your favorite bra? I only like to wear black ones. Do you like people who are loud or people who are quiet? Quiet, generally. I mean, if they get animated and excited about something and get a little loud that’s fine, but not loud in general. That would give me a headache haha. It’s like, “why are you shouting???” Does personality weigh out the sense of ‘good looks?’ What. When is the next time you’ll see someone who is pregnant? I have no idea. Do you hate it when people copy the things you do? No one copies anything I do, nor should they. Where is your favorite piece of electronic equipment? I’m using it right now while sitting on my bed. Where is the person who ‘owns your heart’ at this moment in time? I’m right here. Has anyone ever told you that you’re good at cooking? Ha, no. I’m not a cook. Would you say you’re a fast texter, or are you pretty slow? I’m a very fast typer on a computer, but not as fast on my phone. What is your favorite flavor of Doritos? What do you drink with them? Nacho or Cool Ranch. I’d drink whatever I had at the time, which would likely be a Starbucks Doubleshot and/or water. I haven’t had Doritos or any kind of chip in a long time, though. Do you have any enemies who you think are dangerous? I don’t have any enemies. Do you ever try to squeeze information out of people? Uhh I might from my mom or brother about certain things cause I can be nosey with them lol, but no not generally. Does it freak you out when the police drive by your house? No. Are you someone who tends to take a whole lot of naps? I don’t take a lot of naps even though I’m always tired. Naps make me groggy and more tired, but sometimes sleep just wins and I give in to a nap. What is your favorite nickname you like to be called? Why do you like it? Sis. Do you already have your outfit for tomorrow planned out? No. I don’t plan my outfits unless I’m going certain places or packing for a vacation. What is the color of your favorite pair of pants? What brand are they? I like my numerous pairs of black leggings, ha. Has your favorite song ever been featured on a commercial? Yeah, a few have. Do you ever promise pc4pc on Myspace then never return the favor? Wow, I remember those days. I was good about keeping my end of the deal. What is one song right now that really gets on your nerves? Hmm. I can’t think of one in particular at the moment.  What would you say was the best year of your life? Why? My childhood. Do those annoying infomercials ever draw you in to buy things? I’ve seen things that were of interest, but nah I’ve never ordered anything from an informercial. I’m always skeptical about anything they try to sell. Have you ever been pulled over by the cops for speeding? I don’t drive. I can’t tell you how many speeding jokes I’ve received as someone in a wheelchair throughout my life, though. -____- Is anyone in your family a firefighter? Who is it anyway? Nope.

[pleaserelaxslowly]

Quarantined!

A 30 day song challenge from instagram that I decided to do. I didn’t post it though. As always, my playlists are for myself or for others as gifts. It’s not like I have anything else to do as I’m currently self-isolating due to COVID-19 trying to stay healthy and not carry anything if I’m infected but asymptomatic.

Day one A song you like with a color in the title: “Crystalline Green” by Goldfrapp A good start for a playlist

Day two A song you like with a number in the title: “700 Mile Situation” by Res A sadly underplayed song in my library

Day three A song that reminds you of summertime: “Resonance” by HOME Simpsonwave driving in the car in a summer sunset

Day four A song that reminds you of someone you’d rather forget: “Back That Ass Up” by Juvenile Mirna

Day five A song that needs to be played loud: “Horror Head” by Curve Driving in my car, volume all the way up to hear all the background and effects mixed low in the track

Day six A song that makes you want to dance: “Oranges” by Mark E Downloaded it and loved it. Boy Friend posted it on Facebook and captioned it “It’s the 90s!” Danced on ecstasy with several others at a party at Kassandra and Fatih’s apartment after I sneaked over to Fatih’s DJ setup and played it while he was away. Came over another day to find that Kassandra had been playing it on repeat

Day seven A song to drive to: “In the City” by Chromatics Driving after 4:00 in the morning through the backstreets of Detroit

Day eight A song about drugs or alcohol: “Heroin” by The Velvet Underground I did heroin once. It made me very sick and I never did it again. My very good friend at the time, Megan Cole (and another friend Melissa Nazarek), got addicted to it (and crack), and after leaving a crack pipe in my house, I was forbidden from seeing her again. After that we lost touch. I often wonder what happened to them, if they’re alive, where they may be now. Last time I saw, Megan had children and was married, living in the same city, working at a pizza parlor

Day nine A song that makes you happy: “Adult Oriented Cha-Cha” by Pizzicato Five Japanese cha-cha from the 90s. So strange. It makes me smile

Day ten A song that makes you sad: “The Spangle Maker” by Cocteau Twins The laying in a bathtub suicidal thoughts harrowing song. I wonder what they were thinking when they wrote this. I can only imagine

Day eleven A song you never get tired of: “Black Milk” by Massive Attack I’ve been playing this track since it came out. The first playlist that remains containing this track is the old “Karma Therapy” playlist from about 2000. The last time was when we took LSD on Büyükada in İstanbul (me, Fatih, Kassandra, Ubeyd, Mark and Annes) and Matt came along with a speaker and played our “The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, Part 2″ playlist with this song on it. We stopped on the way back from the woods headed to the AirBnB, and I was in a heavy head-space going through a low moment in the cycle. I sat on the curb with Faith, this song playing, and watched the stone gate across the street, each stone resembling a face twisting into a sinister expression

Day twelve A song from your preteen years “What Is Love” by En Vogue The first tape I ever bought was “Funky Divas” by En Vogue and I loved this track.

Day thirteen A song you like from the 70s: “St. Elmo’s Fire” by Eno I love Stereolab and found a great cover of theirs of this track, so I decided to check it out. No wonder they wanted to cover it

Day fourteen A song you’d love to be played at your wedding: “It Could Be Sweet” by Portishead I always imagined this song playing at the reception. I wouldn’t want the typical wedding garbage played at my wedding, more like low-key lounge-y stuff

Day fifteen A song you like that’s a cover by another artist: “Gruesome Castle” by Wild Nothing I almost chose “Sweet Jane” by Cowboy Junkies, but I love the original just as much. I opted for this one because I like it more than the original. My first summer in İstanbul with friends enjoying a full social life saw me leaving my apartment walking down the street to Kassandra’s house listening to this track

Day sixteen A song that’s a classic favorite: “Rhythm Is a Dancer” by SNAP! How sad that 90s tracks are now considered “classics”

Day seventeen A song you’d sing a duet with someone on karaoke: “The Closer I Get to You” by Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway I love love love this track. In high school, my friends Kristen and Stephanie (who are black) laughed at me and said I like the music their parents listen to (i.e. 60s, 70s and 80s R&B). I don’t even care, I like anything that’s good

Day eighteen A song from the year you were born: “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle” by The Smiths February 20, 1984. Very close to my birthday

Day nineteen A song that makes you think about life: “If You’re Feeling Sinister” by Belle & Sebastian Riding on the servis to work in the morning thinking deeply about the lyrics and imagining other possible lives I could live

Day twenty A song that has many meanings to you: “Sullen Girl” by Fiona Apple Lots of sad nights alone, but also once I was told that a gay guy that I was interested in sat at Denny’s with another friend and they drunkenly sang this song together. I bought this album one summer staying at my grandfather’s house for vacation in Oklahoma. I saw the “Sleep to Dream” video on MTV and went out to buy the album and “Supa Dupa Fly” by Missy ‘Misdemeanor’ Elliott

Day twenty one A song you like with a person’s name in the title: “Steve McQueen” by M83 From one of the playlists I made of people’s names. Love how gay and dramatic this one is

Day twenty two A song that moves you forward: “Everybody Got Their Something” by Nikka Costa Great hopeful inspirational lyrics. ‘People keeping score so better hurry up and gets yours because somebody else has got your spot before you even try... Busy holding on so the roof don’t fly’ really speak to me. I saw the video for ‘Like a Feather’ and loved the sound and her voice

Day twenty three A song you think everybody should listen to: “Vista” by iamamiwhoami Chris showed me this group because it’s sad electronic music with female vocals (which he knows I love). I instantly fell in love, and think Jonna Lee could be way more popular than she is. It’s hard for foreigners to make it in the US. I shared her with my friend Holly, and Holly fell in love, and Holly’s not necessarily living for sad electronic music with female vocals in particular. It shows the power to transcend taste

Day twenty four A song by a band you wish were still together: “Bocca della verità” by Boy Friend After SLEEP ∞ OVER broke up, two of the members formed this band. In fact, I almost chose a song from SLEEP ∞ OVER, but all the best songs are after Stefanie Franciotti was alone, so technically not a band. Boy Friend publicly showed support for the LGBTQIA+ community, which I love. Sadly, they are no longer performing together. More sad electronic music with a female singer

Day twenty five A song you like by an artist no longer living: “Miss Brown to You” by Billie Holiday Such a sad life, and an even sadder demise. That’s how it was for blues and jazz singers in those days

Day twenty six A song that makes you want to fall in love: “Without Your Love” by The Venus Transmission A long time ago, I made a delicious (sadly now lost) playlist of thick atmospheric deep tracks for Valentine’s Day. This was on it, a lost jewel from the days of MySpace artists that never really got to see any serious success

Day twenty seven A song that breaks your heart: “Walk This Earth Alone” by Lauren Christy How is this different from day ten (a sad song)? Anyway, I can’t even ever really listen to this song the whole way through. I can’t get past more than a few seconds. As I write this list, I listen to each track I’m discussing as I type. For this entry, I paused the track, I just can’t listen to it. It’s from when I was a paperboy and realizing I was gay and feeling the worst, most loathsome, darkest, most hideous and violent, dangerous feelings that I never ever want to feel again

Day twenty eight A song by an artist whose voice you love: “Paradise (Remix)” by Sade It’s always a tie for me between Sade and Seal. I decided on Sade. Such a smokey delicious voice. I always say if Sade and Seal ever had a child, it would be over in the recording industry

Day twenty nine A song you remember from your childhood: “Calling All Angels” by Jane Siberry featuring k.d. lang My mom used to have a compilation CD called “In Search of Angels.” My mom loves the idea of angels and guardian angels. Her home is full of angel-related art and knickknacks. She probably bought the compilation from The Hallmark Store or some awful place like that. Either way, it reminds me of childhood. I used to steal the CD and listen to this track. It’s super adult contemporary and super soft-serve, but I like it anyway. Like I said before, if it’s good, I like it

Day thirty A song that reminds you of yourself: “Immature” by Björk This one was the hardest one. No songs really remind me of me. I don’t relate to music that way, I think. Either way, this does take me back to a time when I might have tried to get back with my ex-boyfriend Dan Lopez. Good think I didn’t, we are NOT good together

[fanfic-inator795]

RotTMNT/Baron Jitsu fanfiction: Dating… With Children - BONUS DRABBLES

(Also available to read on AO3)

((Just decided to post both drabbles on one post even if they don’t relate to each other since they’re pretty short. Also, just as a Heads up: The first drabble gets pretty PG-13. (Though it's probably about as far as I'm ever going to go with my writing, since I'm not really a fan of writing smut). So yeah, enjoy!))

There were very few things in this world that were more satisfying than spending a warm Sunday afternoon in the arms of the person you loved. That's what Lou thought anyways.

The boys were currently over at April’s playing with some new video game console that her father had bought her, leaving the house quiet and peaceful. It was actually Draxum that had suggested laying down and stretching out some, after the two of them enjoyed a light lunch together. But while Draxum had assumed they'd be doing this on the loveseat, but with enough coaxing Lou managed to lead him upstairs instead.

“After all, the bed is much comfier,” Lou had told him, “And much more ‘tall-person friendly’.”

“I'm only about a foot or so taller than you,” Draxum lightly argued back as Lou had continued up the stairs, “and I'm within the average male height for men of my characteristics. You're the one who's a bit on the short side.” Lou’s light laughter echoed down the hall, unbothered by this fact at all.

Still, Draxum couldn't exactly argue with his boyfriend, the bed was indeed more comfortable than the small couch, as well as more private. One kiss led to another, and another, and a few more for good measure as they held each other in their arms. As they got a bit closer, each kiss being deeper and longer than the last, Draxum could feel Lou start to tangle his fingers through his hair, undoing his ponytail with little concern. It was an action that was quickly starting to become familiar to Draxum, yet it still managed to send shivers of pleasure up his spine.

Smirking a bit, Draxum decided to return the favor. Moving away from his boyfriend’s lips, he began to kiss his neck, one of his hands gripping Lou’s shoulder. Lou moaned, squirming at each touch and kiss.

Each time they caught each other’s gaze or saw the other smile, it just seemed to lead into another kiss. They hadn’t yet said it out loud, but there was love between them. Physical (obviously), emotional, platonic, romantic - you name it, they had it. And they wanted to enjoy every second of it. At some point during their makeout session, Lou had unbuttoned his shirt - or, maybe Draxum unbuttoned it? Neither one of them could really remember, nor could they care too much. All they cared about in that moment was each other.

However, love or no, they had a while to go before they made that big next step in the physical part of their relationship. Still, they accepted this, being more than alright with what they had and willing to be patient and take their time. But as momentary lust began to settle some and their kissing began to slow down a bit, Draxum remained comfortably on top of him, their arms staying tangled around each other. One of Lou’s hands was under Draxum’s shirt, rubbing his warm back a bit. Draxum pressed his forehead to Lou’s, and Lou hummed as he returned the gesture, lazily smiling at his boyfriend as he did so. “See,” he mumbled, “Told you it was more comfortable up here…”

Draxum sighed, rolling his eyes as he smiled back at him. “Yes yes, I know, you were right…” Lou chuckled, and lifted his chin slightly for another kiss-

His ears picked up on something - something close by. It was subtle, but still somewhat noticeable. The light thud of fast feet going up stairs, the slight squeak of the old floor, the voices of- Lou gasped. In one shift motion, Lou shoved Draxum off him (and, in his haste, completely off the bed) and sat up, forcing a ‘normal’ grin onto his face as the door opened.

“-Pop?” Raph asked as he and Leo poked their heads in, “Hey, what-?”

“AH! Yes!” Lou nodded, “Hello boys! Uh, a-aren’t you two supposed to be at April’s? You know we don’t like you kids walking around outside by yourselves!”

“We all started gettin’ bored with the video game she had and wanted to come play over here instead since we’ve got the bigger yard,” Raph explained.

“And her mom walked us over, so we can’t get in trouble for it,” Leo added, “Anyway, can we have an ice cream cup before we start playing again?”

“Oh. Uh, yes, that will be fine,” Lou nodded, “I will come down and get them for you.” After last time (the ‘frozen food avalanche’ incident as dubbed by his sons), he wasn’t going to trust his boys with the task. “A-Anything else you two need?”

“...How come your shirt’s unbuttoned?” Raph asked, tilting his head a bit as he pointed at his father’s open chest.

Right. Ignoring the heat now in his cheeks, Lou answered the question as he began fumbling over his buttons. “W-Well, heh, I-I was feeling a bit warm, you see? So I thought an open shirt would cool me down. But I am feeling much cooler now so now I am just going to button it back up before I catch a cold.”

“Okayyyy… And how come Draxum’s on the floor?” Leo asked, leaning over a bit to get a better look at the two feet that were sticking out from behind the bed.

“Oh. That. Well, uh-”

“I was doing sit-ups,” Draxum explained as he stood up, shooting his boyfriend a flat look before continuing, “I forgot about my workout this morning, so I figured I would at least get part of it done here. Exercise is important, after all.” With how even his tone was and how natural his words seemed, Lou might have actually believed him himself if he didn’t know the truth.

“Oh yeah! Our gym teacher at school tells us that too!” Raph agreed. His brother in blue took a bit longer to convince, not quite believing the explanation if his face was any indication.

But eventually, Leo just shrugged it off, deeming it not important. “So, ice cream?”

“Yes, I will be down there in a moment.” The boys accepted this, and as soon as they left the room, Lou breathed a sigh of relief.

“...Did you really have to push me off the bed?”

“I panicked, okay?!”

“...So, do you really think that’s what they were doing in there?” Raph asked as they went back downstairs, “Dad watchin’ Draxum do sit-ups?”

Leo shook his head. “Nah, they were probably just kissing or somethin’ and wanted to keep it a secret. Which is weird ‘cause we already know they’re boyfriends and kiss and stuff. ...Grown ups are weird.”

“Heh, yeah,” Raph agreed, the two brothers then sharing a laugh. Grown ups were DEFINITELY weird.

()()()()()()()()()()()

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“-It's just that, they don't always get it, you know?”

He didn't really, but Draxum still nodded.

Donnie paused, sticking his tongue out in concentration as he turned a couple screws. “They don't make fun of me because I like science, but I know when I try to teach them science stuff, they get super bored…”

Draxum nodded again, giving a small hum to let the boy in purple know he was still listening.

Donnie glanced up towards the kitchen window, where he could see his father and brothers playing outside. “I know Dad says it's okay that we all like different things, an’ even if I don't always like playing their games or doing what they like, there are still things we all like to do and play together, so that's good. Pliers, please.”

Draxum handed him the pliers. “It is good. Make sure there's enough room on each wire to avoid any short circuiting.”

“I know.” He carefully cut each wire, attaching them with precision. “Still, I guess sometimes I wish they liked the same stuff as me… They call my experiments cool, but they never really wanna help with the ‘boring’ parts that you gotta do to lead up to the cool ending. ...They don't say it's boring, but I can tell that's what they think.”

Donnie could feel a sympathetic hand on his shoulder now. “Unfortunately, some people can't always appreciate that there's a process to things,” Draxum told him, “You can't skip ahead to experimentation without the proper research and preparation.”

“EXACTLY!” If it weren't for the fact that he was trying to install the last few parts, Donnie would’ve thrown his hands up in relief that SOMEONE finally got it! ...In fact, Draxum got a lot about him, and he was very much thankful for that. “Oh well… At least I'm not the only one in this family who likes science stuff anymore. So… Thanks for that, Dr. Draxum.”

Draxum smiled back at him. “Of course. Now, it looks like you're about ready for the ‘eyes’.” He gestured to the small pile of Christmas lights light bulbs that he had brought over. “Which color?”

“Purple, duh!” Donnie answered, confident that there was no other ‘right’ answer to that question.

Draxum chuckled. “‘Duh’, indeed.” He handed Donnie the lights, and watched as the boy installed them. A few more adjustments to the circuitry, and it was ready to go.

The building of the little robot had been an easy enough process, and with Draxum’s help and the teaching from a ‘Koding of Kidz!’ site, Donnie had been able to write a simple code for the bot too. “Here we go,” Donnie mumbled. He adjusted his glasses, took a deep breath, and pressed a button on his tablet.

The little bit moved forward towards the salt and pepper shakers. Another press of a button, and the bot’s arms widened. Donnie pressed the button again, and the tiny arms closed around the salt shaker. He was grinning now as he directed the robot to take the salt over to an equally pleased Draxum. “It actually works! I did it!”

“Yes, you did,” Draxum nodded, “And it's working very well at that, no bugs or need for adjustments as far as I can tell.”

Donnie nodded, agreeing. Maybe he’d try to add more functions later, make the robot a little more exciting and cool. But for now, despite its simplicity, it was still a success. It was still his .

“So, what are you going to call your invention,” Draxum asked, figuring it would be christened with some creative name that only a child could come up with, like the Salt-Transporter 2000 or the Condiment Bot or-

“I think I'm gonna call him Shelldon,” Donnie answered after a moment, driving the bot back towards him.

“Shelldon?” Draxum repeated.

“Yeah, it seems like a good name for him, don't you think?”

Amused, Draxum had to agree. “Alright, Shelldon it is. So, are you ready to show it- Er, him to everyone then?”

“Yeah!” Donnie carefully gathered both the bot and his tablet into his arms before racing outside to his family, with Draxum right behind them, both of them confident that this likely wouldn't be the last time the two of them built something together.

[flowers-in-your-dustbin]

All the numbers again (second tag reblog)

1: When you have cereal, do you have more milk than cereal or more cereal than milk? More milk than cereal cause I like to drink it!

2: do you like the feeling of cold air on your cheeks on a wintery day? Yeah, but when I can get into the warmth after that's even better!

3: what random objects do you use to bookmark your books? I try to remember the page number instead so usually end on a multiple of 10 or 5.

4: how do you take your coffee/tea? Tea: Two sugars, milk, hopefully brewed by the gal. Coffee: I don’t!

5: are you self-conscious of your smile? Kinda!

6: do you keep plants? Nope!

7: do you name your plants? None to name!

8: what artistic medium do you use to express your feelings? Oils if I had the money for that so typically watercolours

9: do you like singing/humming to yourself? I am right now.

10: do you sleep on your back, side, or stomach? Typically side, but back is fine. Not stomach really!

11: what's an inner joke you have with your friends? Oh My Gouda.

12: what's your favorite planet? Uranus ;)

13: what's something that made you smile today? My gal surprised me with a beautiful orchid

14: if you were to live with your best friend in an old flat in a big city, what would it look like? Edgy expose brick aesthetic

15: go google a weird space fact and tell us what it is! Uranus’ blue glow is due to an abundance of methane which filters out red light.

16: what's your favorite pasta dish? Spaghetti carbonara probs! Especially cooked by the best.

17: what color do you really want to dye your hair? I don’t! I did want pastel pink in August.

18: tell us about something dumb/funny you did that has since gone down in history between you and your friends and is always brought up. I had a paddy fit in primary school because I used to always sabotage my meals so I didn't eat them but I spilt milk on something I legitimately didn’t mind having... I cried over spilt milk.

19: do you keep a journal? what do you write/draw/ in it? I do! I write the days events and my feelings, I draw key points or little objects. Not all the time tho.

20: what's your favorite eye color? A nice hazel-y to chocolate amber brown woop

21: talk about your favorite bag, the one that's been to hell and back with you and that you love to pieces. A grey Kanken Fjallraven, if Switzerland counts as hell, there you have it.

22: are you a morning person? Yeah! I’m straight too!

23: what's your favorite thing to do on lazy days where you have 0 obligations? Exactly that, nothing. With a side of music.

24: is there someone out there you would trust with every single one of your secrets? Only the one.

25: what's the weirdest place you've ever broken into? An abandoned slaughterhouse. Soz vegans

26: what are the shoes you've had for forever and wear with every single outfit? Black old skool vans hehe original

27: what's your favorite bubblegum flavor? Strawberry!

28: sunrise or sunset? Why not both in a day?

29: what's something really cute that one of your friends does and is totally endearing? I’m not sure!

30: think of it: have you ever been truly scared? I’m not sure, close calls/

31: what is your opinion of socks? do you like wearing weird socks? do you sleep with socks? do you confine yourself to white sock hell? really, just talk about socks. I like socks. Weird socks are fun. So are odd ones. I do not sleep with my socks, nor do I confine myself to white sock hell.

32: tell us a story of something that happened to you after 3AM when you were with friends. We had deep convos for the time, we probs cried, then probs went to sleep.

33: what's your fave pastry? Uh choux just cause I can remember that is one. Hahahaha.

34: tell us about the stuffed animal you kept as a kid. what is it called? what does it look like? do you still keep it? I had one called Baxter Bear which was the best, he was quite obviously a bear with a red scarf and his own passport. I threw up on him in the car and he was never the same again, he disappeared short after. Don’t ask about Scrubs the dog.

35: do you like stationary and pretty pens and so on? do you use them often? I do, I just don't use them often.

36: which band's sound would fit your mood right now? The xx

37: do you like keeping your room messy or clean? A healthy middle.

38: tell us about your pet peeves! Couldn’t possibly. There’s a fair few.

39: what color do you wear the most? Probably black? Emo ik.

40: think of a piece of jewelry you own: what's it's story? does it have any meaning to you? I own a necklace I got for my 16th its very cute and only comes out when I have heterosexual days to masquerade it. It’s nice.

41: what's the last book you remember really, really loving? The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde, it’s my favourite ever. I don’t read as much as I used to, sigh.

42: do you have a favorite coffee shop? describe it! There’s a cute local one. They do unreal Nutella pancakes and its quite central and very aesthetic-y. Yum!

43: who was the last person you gazed at the stars with? My gal, typically on the way to my car where I point out Orion or The Dipper. It’d be nice to do it properly sometime.

44: when was the last time you remember feeling completely serene and at peace with everything? Two days ago.

45: do you trust your instincts a lot? When I need to.

46: tell us the worst pun you can think of. Someone mentions a dog, then I normally incorporate the word ‘ruff’ as a homophone for ‘rough’ and get death stares. But I like it.

47: what food do you think should be banned from the universe? Gherkins.

48: what was your biggest fear as a kid? is it the same today? Abandonment/loneliness hahahah yes it is.

49: do you like buying CDs and records? what was the last one you bought? I do like buying records yeah! I can’t say until April the 23rd but I’ll have bought another by then.

50: what's an odd thing you collect? I don’t think I do have anything odd!

51: think of a person. what song do you associate with them? Uncomfortable by Wallows, as well as Fast Food by D.I.D and many many more.

52: what are your favorite memes of the year so far? The new Patrick one is doing pretty good.

53: have you ever watched the rocky horror picture show? heathers? beetlejuice? pulp fiction? what do you think of them? Nope, nope, nope and nope!

54: who's the last person you saw with a true look of sadness on their face? My dog. I didn't walk him.

55: what's the most dramatic thing you've ever done to prove a point? Hahahah you wouldn’t want to know. 

56: what are some things you find endearing in people? Feeling secure with them, if you get me.

57: go listen to bohemian rhapsody. how did it make you feel? did you dramatically reenact the lyrics? CAN YOU DO THE FANDANGO!?!?!

58: who's the wine mom and who's the vodka aunt in your group of friends? why? K is probs the wine mom bc I'd say A but she’s not as sensible, thus A gets the Aunt role.

59: what's your favorite myth? Bulls hate red, they’re actually colour blind lmao.

60: do you like poetry? what are some of your faves? I don’t mind a bit of poetry! Marking Time by Owen Sheers is noice.

61: what's the stupidest gift you've ever given? the stupidest one you've ever received? Me and mum put a fancy brooch in a pack of digestives for someone. I’ve received stupid spellings of my name on the birthday cards.

62: do you drink juice in the morning? which kind? Nope

63: are you fussy about your books and music? do you keep them meticulously organized or kinda leave them be? Rainbow order woop.

64: what color is the sky where you are right now? Black.

65: is there anyone you haven't seen in a long time who you'd love to hang out with? Yep!

66: what would your ideal flower crown look like? Cutesy and white and blue and stuff idk. But I wouldn't wear one haha.

67: how do gloomy days where the sky is dark and the world is misty make you feel? Serene! Albeit Silent Hill-esque

68: what's winter like where you live? Fun! Cold! Disruptive!

69: what are your favorite board games? The Game of Life/Monopoly/Articulate!

70: have you ever used a ouija board? Nope!

71: what's your favorite kind of tea? English Breakfast, brewed by the girlfriend.

72: are you a person who needs to note everything down or else you'll forget it? I've been known to be.

73: what are some of your worst habits? Overthinking. Nail biting.

74: describe a good friend of yours without using their name or gendered pronouns. Ginger.

75: tell us about your pets! A doggo! A beagle! and a fish...

76: is there anything you should be doing right now but aren't? Revising!

77: pink or yellow lemonade? Yellow

78: are you in the minion hateclub or fanclub? anyone in the fanclub needs natural selection to do its thing.

79: what's one of the cutest things someone has ever done for you? Surprised me at work with flowers.

80: what color are your bedroom walls? did you choose that color? if so, why? White, because I’d like grey but we haven’t got there yet or painted the house since its still pretty new.

81: describe one of your friend's eyes using the most abstract imagery you can think of. I don't have the time for that shit.

82: are/were you good in school? I was! I still think I am! Who knows.

83: what's some of your favorite album art? Smithsmithsmithsmithsmiths

84: are you planning on getting tattoos? which ones? Yeah! Quite a few. All tonal, but above all a Venus sign and more importantly the great wave off Kanazawa by Hokusai

85: do you read comics? what are your faves? I don't fun fact I used to read them start to feel sick.

86: do you like concept albums? which ones? I feel stupid for not knowing what they are.

87: what are some movies you think everyone should watch at least once in their lives? Donnie Darko.

88: are there any artistic movements you particularly enjoy? Not Gothic. Can’t go wrong with a bit of impressionism.

89: are you close to your parents? I think. Depends on the time of day.

90: talk about your one of you favorite cities. Starts with E, ends in Dinburgh.

91: where do you plan on traveling this year? Nowhere abroad really, just a couple of good cities.

92: are you a person who drowns their pasta in cheese or a person who barely sprinkles a pinch? Barely sprinkles, but I have a drowner with me to compensate.

93: what's the hairstyle you wear the most? Down. Full stop. 

94: who was the last person you know to have a birthday? My girlfriend’s. mum!

95: what are your plans for this weekend? Work, a party, a Harry Potter film, a sad Sunday.

96: do you install your computer updates really quickly or do you procrastinate on them a lot? I leave them for as long as possible

97: myer briggs type, zodiac sign, and hogwarts house? ENFJ/Pisces/Ravenclaw

98: when's the last time you went hiking? did you enjoy it? Hah idk.

99: list some songs that resonate to your soul whenever you hear them. Nude - Radiohead is the one I’m thinking at the mo’ and I can’t think past that.

100: if you were presented with two buttons, one that allows you to go 5 years into the past, the other 5 years into the future, which one would you press? why? Future. Don’t need to lament on the past when I hope I have a good one ahead of me. Then from there I'd click 5 back so I’m right back to where I am, cheers.

[princesseblade]

Look at me being late af to this, so between now and my last review @emezie​ decided to move episode releases to once a month, instead of the usual 2.5-3 months that means shorter episodes but more frequent updates. (Which tbh is the better deal I dunno about ya’ll)

Since I was behind I’ll be doing all the episodes I missed up too this point and from episode 20 and onward I’ll do two episodes a  review unless ofc Em goes back to the older format. At any rate lets get started.  

Review behind the cut:

Episode 17: Has us catching back up with Mai who’s you know been literally dead for like 3 episodes and if you  recall almost ended up killing her BFF and Brother hyuck. The episode is a bit of a catharsis for her and us the viewers  cuz you know... damn. Ayane’s gone to the laundry mat and ofc has only left one clean thing in the house a pink dress, one Ayane bought her awhile back

I mean it is what it is though and Mai puts her big girl panties on and wears the thing because she must locate her trusty weasel Jubei, which tbh I hope this Jubei and the Jubei in the older Weasel Song video don’t go the same route otherwise I might have to surmise that Em has an Araki complex where he kills cute animals because he hates us lol.  

The new Fanart Reel also works as a bumper/eyecatch like the kind you’d see in OS Sailor Moon which I love:

Afterwards Mai, ninja hops across town and eyes a rustling apple tree and thinks Jubei is there, well no ofc not it’s Mouse..not the rodent you were looking for Mai sorry(are weasels rodents? I don’t think so anyway...)

Both their shirts/dress get snatched off, we’re reminded that Mouse is clearly a contender for series biggest tiddies....andddddd she goes to jail. Meanwhile Mai is left to her devices which instead of being grateful she’s not going to jail she yells at the cop to arrest her too bc her tiddies were also exposed. Equality ya know lol. Ayane comes to collect her friend standing in the middle of a park topless, Ayane’s a good friend.  

Episode 18 and 19: Picks right back up with Ayane and Mai on the bus headed home I assume. Ayane comments on how cute the pink dress is on Mai, and Mai’s like anyway....then Ayane comments on the way she’s sitting is inappropriate for a lady in a dress and Mai goes “ANYWAy”  until:

(As I show my age reminds me of the scene in the very first TMNT live action movie where Raphael does the exact same thing to Donnie with one of his sai).  At anyrate Ayane gets her way takes a snap shot and sends the pic of Mai to her sister. Mai’s not to happy about it because why would she be? And attempts to fight ya girl but ends up  in a suggestive submission hold by Ayane. I’m starting to think Mai just wouldn’t stand a chance in an actual head to head because every fight they’ve had ends with Ayane being the winner XD.

So whether or not Mai’s enjoying this  or not (I’ll leave that up to the shippers interpretation), Bobby calls Ayane and welp she’s outta there with the speed of a 1000 winds.

Now for something completely new, the focus switches to Nutt whom we haven’t seen since he injected bobby with his ...uh demon juice.

He’s having a chat with his mom who’s in prison for some reason.

Wasn’t expecting him to be a mamas boy truth be told. I love his mom’s jackknife mullet btw thats a look very rockabilly lol.

After that bit of exposition we’re back to Mai who’s now run into Mina

Uh oh. She’s gone through a wardrobe change plus she’s just not in a good place after the last couple episodes as we’re all aware of. Doesn’t take long before Mina’s reminded that after keeping Mai’s corpse safe from Morrigan and co. That when Mai was promptly revived she ninja vanished with Ayane in tow ..ouch.

So instead of beating around the bush Mina straight up gives Mai an ultimatum her or Ayane(oh and this is after Mai makes the great decision of comparing Mina’s slappy slaps to Ayane’s and saying hers are better bloop)  

I’m not sure if this face Mina’s making is a south park reference or a parappa one, but it’s hilarious none the less lol.

Anyway Mai can’t answer her, so Mina takes her silence as confirmation..which you know it be like that sometimes kids. Also Mina you’ve been nothing but antagonistic towards Ayane this entire time I’m not sure what you were expecting here ya’ll was gonna ride off into the sunset or something? Girl anyway.

The fan preferred couple(yeah I seent the polls) makes a long awaited reunion via attempted murder by titty glomps. After that bit they both point out that they got a text from one another saying to meet up at school, ofc before either of them can make heads or tails of this we find out it’s a scheme setup by Mina and her squad.

With Bobby And Ayane captured(mainly because Bobby won’t hit girls, I’m sure that’ll be rectified going by the credits) and Mai..uhh incapacitated Mina tells her homies she’ll be there in 10 minutes.

sigh outta the frying pan into the god damn fire.

Overall thoughts? I mean perusal the pacing is flawless the frequent updates actually make waiting even more unbearable if that makes any sense. Em’s building up to some more pearl clutching drama and it almost makes me kinda sad these kids can’t catch a break can they XD. Mai got one episode to chill and then it was immediately back to the drama lord. 

[brightlotusmoon]

Cerebral palsy makeup application:

Revlon Teal eyeliner, NYX Sliver eyeliner smudged, It Cosmetics Confidence Compact Cream Foundation over Too Faced Born This Way Liquid Concealer, It Cosmetics Superhero Mascara, Too Faced Long Wear Liquid Lipstick in Bend Snap over It Cosmetics Buff Nude Lipliner.

Spastic Hemiplegia workaround: take a muscle relaxer, if not prescription then OTC or online bought like Magnesium with MSM, Passionflower, Kava, Kratom, Mucuna. After it kicks it, use fingers to apply moisturizer, let it absorb for a minute. Use fingers to apply foundation and/or concealer, blend with makeup brush or sponge. Keep elbow straight. Very slowly apply eyeliner to upper lid, mistakes can always be smudged. Same with mascara, if you feel confident gently press mascara to lower lashes. Very slowly swipe lipstick and rub lips together. Keep brushes and sponges nearby. Make funny faces to make sure makeup looks okay, plus, Face Yoga tones muscles. When taking selfies, consider lighting and angles. Depending on how your cerebral palsy affects your hands, you will need to modify this also applies to arthritis and fibromyalgia and other conditions that affect muscles, joints, fine motor control, physical focus, etc. My mother graduated from FIT with degrees in fashion illustration and design, plus anatomy and makeup artistry before becoming a painter and figure drawing master instructor whose clients include celebrities. I wasn’t interested in fashion or makeup until I was in college and let Mom teach me, learning how to see the skin as a canvas. Because of my disabilities my mother helped me modify and compensate. My Facebook groups for cerebral palsy are always looking for makeup tips and no two of us are alike. Remember: modify, individualize, compensate, compromise. You’re crippled so do it you’re way and make the most of you.

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And now for Related Random Rambling!

This makes me think of my fictionial characters, both Original and in Fanfiction.

My top major fandom, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, involves humanoid turtle mutants with human minds and humanoid anatomy who grew up isolated and seperate from human society until age 15. They began as an homage to gritty Marvel superhero stories and are directly tied to the origin of Daredevil. They also seem to pay some homage to the X-Men, with themes of isolation, forced hiding, being feared and hated. They never did meet Daredevil despite being covered in the mutagen goo that caused Matt Murdock’s blindness. Splinter was based on Stick and The Foot was based on The Hand. Anyway. I am getting off track. Stop that, neurodivergent compulsive writerbrain, get back here. I promise this ties into beauty and self confidence.

******

In the original Mirage comics, the Turtles identified as asexual boys, according to Eastman and Laird. But the youngest, Mikey, in every version, is so completely fascinated by human cultures that he doesn’t care what scraps of humanity he gets. GI Joe and Barbie dolls. Tiaras, body glitter, skirts, eyeshadow, whatever. And later versions changed things around and then the fandom did its own thing. However, Mikey and Donnie as the two youngers and the curious insightful minds, are always confident in their masculinity that they are confident in femininity. The fact that they grew up with no obvious gender roles should be meaningful.

Mikey loves gender play. In the 2003 series, Don and Mike did dress up as an elderly man and woman couple to trick some criminals and Mike joked happily about it.

Raphael: You can lose the dress now, Mikey. Michelangelo: Why? Does this dress make me look fat? C'mon, tell me the truth! I can handle it! Donatello: I’m just glad Mikey stopped referring to me as his husband. Mikey: …. Mikey: *shrug, smirk* Me, watching again after recently coming out as a nonbinary neurogender mid femme demigirl: LOL. I shall interpret that however I wish.

The Nick 2012 Mikey, with obvious neoteny in his round face, freckles, huge baby blue eyes, youthful immature behavior, and desire to stay cheerful, playful, wild, carefree, optimistic, and Zen despite the horrors of the world, is underestimated as too naive. But he invented his own kata for the kusarigama when it didn’t exist, he is a masterful master of the very difficult nunchaku, he is athletic and acrobatic with unnatural speed and flexibility, when he truly concentrates he is a force of nature, he can create chemistry without thinking, he is a confusingly good sociologist and psychologist, he is a powerful empath and natural raw psychic, he can assess his environment using all his senses, hinting at synesthesia. If he really wanted, he could become a master ninja. But he is sensitive and loving and compassionate until he is betrayed. His greatest fear is being betrayed, rejected, ignored, abandoned, turned away in anger, left completely alone in the stifling darkness with the monsters in his mind and in the world. His powerful deadly talents need to be backed up with feelings of love, acceptance, understanding, light, positivity. Not cultish positivity but basic positivity that allows for negativity that he can use to push himself forward to keep fighting.

When I wear my makeup, my silver or gold eyeshadow and my illuminating concealer and my shimmery red lipstick, I feel that power, that force. I feel positivity flow through me and I take my negativity and use it as a shield and sword, I use negative energy emotionally to push myself like my fictional characters. The cosmetics I wear are like war paint. Because I am a Fae warrior dammit.

[sightsoundrhythm]

ZACH DANZIGER

Zach Danziger is a drummer and composer originally from New York City. He has spent many years composing music for major Hollywood films, as well as working with a wide range of artists including Wayne Krantz, Donny McCaslin, Chaka Khan, and Primal Scream. He has also written music for a variety of his own groups including Aerobe, Boomish, and Bluth, though this is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of his creative output.

In the early nineties, Zach's interest in programmed electronic music led him towards combining acoustic and electronic drumming together, reimagining the role of the instrument within modern music and creating a truly unique vocabulary which has made him one of today's most creative and forward thinking drummers.

His main creative outlet for his own original music is Edit Bunker, which is a collaborative project with bassist Owen Biddle, who he also played alongside in the group Mister Barrington.

Edit Bunker uniquely combines acoustic and electronic drums and bass with live, improvised video sequencing, allowing the musical improvisation to manipulate the visual aspects of the performance in realtime.

SIGHT/SOUND/RHYTHM sat down with Zach before a Donny McCaslin show in Manchester to talk about his playing background, the role of technology within his music and what drives his exploration on the instrument.

Blow. by Donny McCaslin

How has the tour with Donny McCaslin been?

Well, it's over! This is the last date but the tour went well. 

You have Nate Wood playing bass with you tonight, is that right?

Yeah, Nate is with us. He's done the last few gigs. My friend Owen Biddle, who is part of the project Edit Bunker that I have, he did a chunk of dates in the middle. At the beginning of the tour we had Jonathan Maron for one gig and before that in the States we had Tim Lefebvre. So we've had four bass players over the course of a month and a half.

Do you remember the first time you played drums? Was it something you felt you had an immediate connection to?

I don't know that I remember the first time I played drums but it was at a very young age. My parents are both musicians and I grew up watching them. My mom was a professional singer and my dad was a piano player, and I remember going to see them perform in night clubs as a three year old and I eventually gravitated towards the drums. I don't remember exactly when but I might have been five or six years old, but as I was so young I sadly can't remember any of the feelings involved with that.

What were your parents like? Were they good mentors for you as a musician?

Yeah, they were both in the music scene, plus I grew up in Greenwich Village in New York City, so those two things alone were a big advantage and gave me a leg up. They had better judgement perhaps than if they weren't musicians, as well as an understanding of whether or not I had any talent.

Now, with the internet, it doesn't matter as much where you come from as we all have access to the same information. Everybody puts up everything that they've got and it's all there. Back in the day, when you wanted to hear good music or if you wanted to find good drum teachers, you needed to be hands on and that came from where you lived and who you knew. It's not like that anymore. It's much easier.

Did you study music formally at college?

No. I went to a performing arts high school for a couple of years but outside of that I took lessons at the Drummers' Collective in New York as a young teenager and that was kind of the extent of it.

People tend to go to college to figure out what it is they want do but I was already touring a lot as a musician throughout high school, so the advice I got from the musicians I was playing with was to just carry on.

You incorporate a lot of technology into your playing, across a lot of different projects. How does technology influence how you play or are you using it to mainly expand your sound palette?

These are questions that I think about a lot and I don't know if I have the answer yet.

Technology for me has had more of a production value means rather than a drumming means. Whether it was something I could use to augment my own drum sound for a particular aesthetic or if I had a production sound in my head when programming drums for sample based stuff. I'd then use it to figure out how to arrive at that.

So if I wanted to get an old school seventies funk drum sound, I'd figure out how they would mic the drums, what effects were used and what types of rooms they recorded in. It wasn't so much technology directly being used to augment stuff in a live playing situation. I mean, that’s something I now strive for but initially it was to get recorded material to sound and feel a certain way, not only from the drums but across the board. I used technology to get something in my head out that couldn't have been achieved without it.

How time consuming is it to create a single song for Edit Bunker? Does the process still challenge you?

The process is excruciating. There are times where I can write something that is ready to be performed in a matter of hours, and there are other times where I can sit for days and not even get out of the gate in terms of what I want to do with it. It's a constant struggle and the process takes a long time.

What software are you using for Edit Bunker?

Mainly Ableton. I don't want to throw any companies under the bus but I'm having certain issues with the new computer that I have where there are drop outs of audio. I'm trying to call each company, but neither is aware of the problems. So I'm getting sent a laundry list of things that I should try to solve some of these issues. It's frustrating but for me there is no option to turn back.

Right now in my life I have zero interest in not doing what I'm doing. I have zero interest in just playing the drums. I would sooner go into a different line of work. If someone were to say that I had to throw out all of my computers and just focus on playing the drums I would say no, because I can't fully express myself in that way, it'd be too frustrating. I'd rather not express myself at all and just go and open a restaurant.

There's a frustration that comes in knowing how much I'm having to compromise that pure drumming thing in order to see this vision through. What I do is the hardest, most frustrating thing but I have to do this. I feel like I'm playing drums with my hands tied behind my back because of all of the limitations of what I'm struggling with with the electronics. I want to be able to give the same amount of focus to it that my favourite drummers give but I can't. So that's where the frustration lies – but I won't give up the electronics. I'd rather suffer as the drummer right now.

Are you using any electronics with Donny McCaslin?

No, I'm not. It's funny because he asked me if I wouldn't mind throwing in some stuff, but it's like – it's all or nothing for me. I don't just want to sort of do it. It's got to be something that's fully fledged where I'm devoting a lot of energy to it, because if I just went up there with a pad with a couple of samples on it I'd be just half-assing it and I don't want to do that.

At what point did you become interested in incorporating technology into your playing?

1993.

Wow! That's pretty specific. What happened in 1993?

I bought a sampler and wanted to see that vision through a little bit more.

Was there anyone during that time who doing something in drumming that was interesting to you?

No, not in '93. I just loved sampling, and it wasn't even the influence of hip hop, which I loved at the time, I just liked recording sounds and being able to manipulate them, so that's when I decided that it was something that I wanted to pursue. 

The first thing that I did which spoke to that was a project called Bluth, which not a lot of people knew about in 1996. That was me and the bass player Tim Lefebvre, which was before our other band Boomish. It was a lot of sample based stuff which was humorous. People likened it to Frank Zappa, though we never listened to Frank Zappa. I actually felt that the Zappa stuff was over my head and I never gravitated to it, so that wasn't an influence on us. No doubt, if you hear humour in music you think about Frank Zappa pretty quickly, so to say that it doesn't sound like that wouldn't be true, but it wasn't a target for us.

So in 1993 I decided that I wanted to sit behind my computer more and make music that way, and again in '96 when I heard drum and bass - Aphex Twin and Squarepusher. That was where I heard something specific which made me sit up and say wow, but in '93 it was just an idea because I loved sampling, computers and sequencing and I wanted to do more of that.

Have there been any other points between 1996 and today where you've heard players that have made you feel the way that drum and bass did when you first heard it?

Yeah, I'd say more and more. The biggest one for me was when I met Mark Guiliana. We often joke because he claims that we met numerous times between 2000 and 2009, but I'm really bad with names and faces, like embarrassingly so.

We finally had a proper introduction and we met and spoke about a bunch of different things over lunch. He mentioned that he had some gigs coming up so I went to see him play and I thought, wow, this guy is playing the drums the way I'm hearing them in my head. His approach was more that of a beat maker and producer than a drummer. So I liked what Mark was going for. We became very close.

There's a new crop of guys within our network, where we'll hang together as friends and share different ideas about what we like. We all pick up things involuntarily from each other.

Nate Wood is playing bass in the group tonight and personally I would like to hear him play bass and drums on this gig at the same time, I would enjoy that more than hearing him just on bass. I'd rather hear him do both, but that's me. He loves the way I'm playing on this gig and we both sincerely like the other person's thing as much or better than our own stuff. It's very sincere and we both pick up things from each other. He's learning the wrong things from me, as far as i'm concerned. He should just stick to what he does because it's just way better than what I'm doing, but we do trade knowledge, and you end up having similarities in your mindset and in your approach.

I'm older than those guys so they came up listening to me just because I'm the older guy here, but I feel like I came up again, in an almost second incarnation, listening to them. I feel like that kid in the bedroom listening to these new players that I want to be like. We're all helping each other – or maybe not, I dunno, but that's what seems to be happening.

Well, that's a cool network to have.

Yeah, it is. It’s something that I value a lot.

What's the creative approach for writing with Edit Bunker? Are you starting with a particular piece of film in mind or does music come first?

It can be either way. We can have tracks written without any particular piece of video in mind but we can also see something on the web, or remember a movie that we loved as a kid, or even see something happen on the streets and grab a video of it to turn it into something.

We're doing some gigs soon and I want to have some new tunes for it so Owen said, 'Hey, I've been thinking about this one scene in a movie that's kind of cool which involves phones dialling, tones and spoken parts', and I immediately thought that we could segue into one of our Mister Barrington tunes called Wrong Number, which also has a similar concept. So now we have a tune from ten years ago which all of a sudden has the potential to be merged with this.

Sometimes the video starts and we wonder how we can write music to it, and other times we’ll write a track and have to think about what visuals could be used. So things don't have just one way in which to operate.

Are you improvising ideas to the films or are you working away from the rehearsal space and then coming in with new ideas?

I would say that we're writing them first and then improvising with them later. I wish I could say that there was one way in which we approach it but there isn't.

Do you still live in New York city or are you in L.A. now?

I would actually say that, at this very moment, I don't live anywhere right now. I'm bouncing between both but I really don't know where I'm going to end up.

I'm trying to make L.A. a base, at least for the near future. I have a rehearsal space out there but I don't officially have an apartment as I tend to rent through Air B&B. I'll leave a suitcase with clothing and things that I need when I'm there but I haven't signed that one year lease on an apartment because I don't want to yet.

I also honestly don't have the time to look for a place and to furnish it because I'm gone every other week. Being away gives me time to think, do I even want to be here?

If you were to move to L.A., what would prompt that move for you?

It would be based on my friends who live there and not a musical decision at all. It's also not necessarily a lifestyle decision either, because I like the New York lifestyle better - I like a real city where I can walk around. L.A. is different from New York and it feels like a little break that might give my brain the chance to think different things and to make different decisions, for better or for worse.

Again, I would look at it as something temporary. If great things happen there  and I start to have more of a settled life then maybe I'll think differently. But right now it's nice to have a rehearsal room there where I can work out ideas for my own projects.

What are some of the things that you've valued the most from being between the two cities?

Being in New York, I value the conditions of how the day is structured. You don't need a car. You can walk around and it feels like there's an immediate social impact. You're not alone in your car, isolated, like in L.A., because it's spread out. I mean, the weather is great there but I actually don't care about that. I don't love it when it's cold in New York but it's ok, you deal with it. So the weather isn't the draw for me there, it's friends. I like hanging out with them.

I haven't been to the clubs in L.A. as much as I've been to the clubs in New York, so it feels a little fresher in that way. It feels a little more unknown, even though I've spent a lot of time there over the years. Again, I do think that it would be a temporary thing for me.

I think that I would sooner consider moving to Europe longer term than I would moving to L.A.

Anywhere in particular?

Vienna, Stockholm, Barcelona, maybe Berlin or Copenhagen. Just cities that I like to be in, and not even musically speaking. London would be a smarter move professionally, so that's on my list by default, but I think I like places like Copenhagen more. I mean, I'm there for a few days at a time, and I might get bored if I were there for a longer period, but I like the way those places feel and I get a good vibe from them.

What have been some of the milestones in your playing that you feel have pushed you forwards creatively?

Oh, man. I don't think I've hit many.

An absolute milestone for me was playing with Wayne Krantz, but I don't love my contributions to the records that we did in terms of the execution. I can't listen to them because I don't feel like I played up to par for my own standards, but it was a milestone to have been a part of that, especially given what Wayne brought to it, and what his skill level and vision was. I feel like what it was, in terms of what we did, was beyond being up to par, but not what I did.

I wish I could do it over and do it better, and I feel that I could now, but back then I don't feel like I did as well as I would've liked to have but that felt like a milestone because I turned a corner.

Certainly the stuff I did with my own groups Bluth and Boomish, which is where the aesthetic in my head was realised, and again with a group called Bedrock with Uri Caine and Tim Lefebvre, and then for sure with the band Mister Barrington. I think Mister Barrington might be the only records that I can listen to without an ounce of regret on any part of it, where as with every other record it's like, turn it off, I can't listen to this. But I don't say that with those albums, at least not yet anyway.

That's been a very personal project for you.

Yes, we did three records together and every time I listen to them I still like it.

What's something that you've been paying attention to recently that's inspiring you, either musically or non musically?

That's a tough one. I would say just the commitment that I've invested in towards what it is that I'm trying to do, and the continuation of how much further I have to go as well as knowing all of the things that I want to do with the technology. I write everything down in a document, so whenever an idea comes to mind I have it there. The inspiration is in knowing how much more there is that is still to do. I see so much more beyond where I'm at, and not abstractly but very specifically. I know exactly what I want to be doing and I just have to do it. The reward of doing it will be worth it.

That's what keeps me going probably more than anything because you get to a point, or at least I do, where I get older and I like so many things but I don't like so many things for myself. I like very few things for what it is that I want to say, where I realise that I can only say a finite amount of stuff and still feel genuine, you know.

Knowing that I literally have it mapped out in steps of what I need to do, and getting better at the things I'm interested in, and allowing them to speak more clearly, that's what keeps me going.

Thanks so much for your time, Zach.

Yeah, man. Of course.

Interview by Dave Jones. 

Live photo by Julie Ann Rouquette.

https://www.instagram.com/zachdanziger/

https://www.instagram.com/editbunker/