#neo city tunes

[devilfic]

Idk if you have seen daredevil but in the case you have can I request a head cannon of you making a playlist for him and him talking about songs that remind you of him?

Like I was listening to The Marias and I felt that their songs give this feeling of how it would be to date him.

❝making a playlist for matt murdock❞

pairing: matt murdock x gn!reader. cw: established relationship, brief mention of sex. words: 1k.

a/n: I actually have seen daredevil and I love him a lot, this will be fun. shoutout to this post that confirmed the "matt murdock loves jazz" vibe he gives off

I wanna start off by saying that as soon as I saw "daredevil" and "songs" in the same sentence, I got a VIVID image of matt in a jazz bar

I can't recall off the top of my head if matt mentions any specific artists or genres he listens to in the show, but I personally think matt likes jazz, funk, maybe some soul/neo-soul, or anything you'd hear in a nice understated bar downtown

the thing is I think that matt really likes instrumental-heavy music because he appreciates being able to pick apart the melodies

I also imagine he's a stickler for his favorite genres and won't really relent unless you introduce something new to him by force

so, a playlist

you push an mp3 player into his hand as you walk past him and he thumbs over the buttons, twists a finger through the cords of the earbuds, and smiles, "what's this?"

he hears you land on the couch and makes his way over to sit beside you as you take one of the earbuds to put in your ear, stretching your legs over his lap, "I made a playlist for you!"

"yeah?"

"yeah. I know you like your vinyls but this is smaller, more compact. easy to put in your pocket and hopefully not break when you're running around the city at night. I'm serious. don't break that."

"I'm honored," matt tilts his head in your direction, inhaling the scent of your shampoo, listening for the parting of your lips as they break into a smile, "nothing too shocking, I hope?"

"I tried to stick to things I thought you'd like, and I did include some of the songs you've recommended to me over the years since you can't lug your vinyls everywhere. it won't sound as nice but... it's something. it's pretty romantic, right?"

it is romantic

matt imagines you hunched over his computer, tediously searching up mp3s of his favorite songs and putting together a playlist for him, trying your best to ease him into unfamiliar territory

he can also hear the nervous thumping of your heart as you wait for his reply, so he splays a hand over your ankle and squeezes, "yeah, you're pretty damn romantic. any particular order I should play it in?

"just hit play, handsome."

when the first song starts playing, he's transported back to hearing it for the first time in the bar where he met you, sharing drinks at a table as you humored him on your theories of who the devil of hell's kitchen really was

you were a few drinks past tipsy and had come to chat him up at the behest of your friends who—and you learned this several days later—he'd heard call him sexy at least four times

but it was you whose voice had caught his attention, who had sworn that a "man like him" had to be waiting for a date, that there was no way he'd be here all alone

and had promptly eaten your words when he chimed in to let you know that he did not, in fact, have a date

he was fuzzy on the details as to how you'd gotten on the topic of his alter ego, but it tickled him nonetheless how you presented your theories more confidently than you flirted

he countered each one but in good faith, playing devil's advocate if only so that he could hear how your mind whirred with ideas

after a few pretty well-articulated counterarguments, you'd snorted and asked, "what are you, a lawyer?"

and when you learned that he was a lawyer? the matt murdock of nelson, murdock, & page? oh, he was sure you lit up like a christmas tree

even after walking you to your place, matt was humming the tune of the song he'd discovered you to, a feeling in his bones that more than just it would be sticking around

matt takes you to a jazz bar for your first date, feeding you details about the musicians over drinks as you ask him about his favorites

he likes a lot of the classics: things his dad enjoyed, stuff he's heard at the jazz bars he's roped foggy into visiting with him during law school

he tells you he likes some of the new stuff but nothing beats the classics, all of which he has vinyls of at home

and you ask him about the newer artists he likes and he tells you he'll put some on for you at his place if the night is still young

that night, he brings you back to his and plays this while you make love

most of the songs matt thinks of when he thinks of you are wordless, often more abstract representations of how you make him feel

the few songs with words are quite literal. whatever the lyrics say is how he feels about you

you've learned—if you're not already a fan of the same genres—to appreciate his taste

and you've also learned to love the way he lights up as you describe what the music sounds like to him, the way he slips in a word here and there when you come up short and it always just fits

it's kind of like his love language

you've got some of these songs on the playlist too

you see him get a little stiff when a song comes on that he doesn't know, and so you watch all the minute expressions in his face as it plays, wondering anxiously if he likes it or not

you know he does when he replays it

he'll tap out the rhythm on your ankle like he's picking apart every detail of the song piece by piece, placing them layer over layer in his mind until it becomes whole and he turns to tell you he really likes it

while he usually likes to keep his ears open for anything in the city while he's out and about, he'll pop in an earbud and start your playlist and think about you

now, if only you'd add a recording of you singing to yourself every morning, it'd be complete. that's gotta be his favorite

taglists: @yikes-buddy @alexxavicry @theclassicvinyldragon @marina-and-the-memes

[teaableu]

WHAT IS YOUR EXILE AU LIKE....

I HAVE BEEN WAITING AGES FOR SOMEONE TO ASK ME THIS

Okay SO a LOT is up in the air right now because I'm doing Research as best I can between classes BUT here's what i got so far:

Lord Kogane is from a very powerful family that wants to take full control over Neo Edo. They think he's doing a poor job because the yokai are running free again and he's overall a pretty useless ruler. They step in and force him to enforce some pretty Messed Up Stuff that put all the people in danger (something to do with the Makkine tech probably). Usagi and his friends have a front row seat as to what he's up to and Usagi decides he won't let them get away with it. I haven't worked out the details but the Koganes' plans threaten the people and the yokai. BUT Usagi's not strong enough to take out the Koganes on his own.

My Usagi has a mystic power of sorts, which makes him very sensitive to spirits. All of the visions he gets through the Ki stone in the show, plus his ability to speak with Miyamoto stem from this ability. A simple way of seeing it would be like, he can see the threads of their lives. So he can read souls and connect with them, and sees ghosts when others cannot. I think the Ki stone sort of unlocked and amplified it when he connected with her. I'm still working on the details of his power but basically he can see and talk to ghosts with a little extra stuff sprinkled in

So the Ki stone encourages Usagi to seek help. Turns out the Koganes have a rich history of killing entire villages and armies that oppose them, dating (maybe) all the way back to Miyamoto's time. So he finds a couple of restless ghosts that are still waiting for vengeance and asks for their help. He strikes a deal that was supposed to help him fight Kogane while allowing the ghosts to avenge themselves their loved ones and their clans. I think he would amplify their power while they help him fight. But he doesn't realize who exactly he's making this deal with and ends up tethering his soul to very powerful VERY ANGRY ghosts that are WAY stronger than he is (I've been researching onryo and yurei for reference). They can take possession of his body, amplify his emotions to be in tune with their own, manipulate his power, and generally cause a lot of destruction. Basically, he becomes their puppet. I'm thinking it's a Venom or Little Shop of Horrors type dynamic between them. Also think of any poltergeist type film

He makes the deal and the ghosts possess him. When Usagi wakes up, he's killed Kogane (who really wasn't even the Big Bad behind the whole thing) and has to flee the city before he's caught and put to death for treason and murder. His friends are all imprisoned but he can't risk returning because he has lost control of his power and is unable to control the ghosts that are bound to his soul. The ghosts are starving for power and burning with hundreds of years of fury and anguish, and feed off of destruction (maybe the living?) It's sort of a pandora's box situation. The ghosts are just a whirlwind of chaos and use Usagi as a means to exact their wrath

I called it exile because Usagi can't return to the city without being arrested and killed for his crimes. The gang was the only one standing up to Kogane, and with his friends in prison, he's sort of stuck. He blames himself for everything that went wrong because he ran off without his friends and jumped headfirst into a situation he did not understand. He was reckless and cocky and now everyone is paying for it.

That's where EMD comes in, but the story continues after EMD season 2 as well.

Some extra notes:

- The timeline for srtuc would probably be a bit different so I can have more flexibility with the season one and season two events, since I wasn't sure when it would take place and I want there to be a pretty big time gap between Usagi leaving and returning. I also might use the Makkine invasion in the story

- I’m still working out Usagi’s backstory/past, but have pretty much decided that he has some history with the Kogane family

- I'm planning for Miyamoto to have a pretty big part in the story as well, acting as a guide for Usagi when he goes into hiding. I'm really interested in their relationship so I really want to take the chance to explore it.

- I'm thinking of adding someone as a nod to Tomoe Ame as well (descendant of her apprentice perhaps), since we got a representation of Chizu, Kitsune, and Gen in the tv show but not Tomoe (sad)

I wrote out the sparksnotes version of this here

In addition to the artwork there I have some other concept art

Blood warning under the cut

[tervaneula]

Yuichi hadn’t expected to run into two of his best friends from Neo Edo at the Hidden City markets and he definitely didn’t expect the direction the conversation had eventually taken. 

"You're dating a ninja?!" Chizu laughs so hard her breath wheezes and Kitsune stifles a snort into her sleeve. Yuichi's cheeks flush crimson under his fur. 

"W-what's so funny about that? You're a ninja!" 

"Yes, but I'm not dating an idiot samurai," Chizu says. That makes Kitsune burst into laughter, right in Yuichi's face. 

"Oh my gosh, Chizu is right. What does that guy see in you? Is he as big of an idiot as you are? When are you gonna introduce us?!" 

Yuichi resists the urge to pull his ears over his eyes and pretend this conversation never happened when he catches a glimpse of a familiar shade of blue against green on the other side of the street. Leonardo is tall and it's not hard to spot him in a crowd, even among yokai. 

"Well uh, you're just about to meet him," he mutters, desperately wishing for the heat on his cheeks to cool down. It’s not too obvious say, to a stranger, but Leonardo most definitely isn’t one and he can't have the red-eared slider see right away how embarrassed his friends are able to make him. "And he's not an idiot!" 

Kitsune just laughs but her eyes are sparkling with curiosity. Chizu seems interested as well and Yuichi thanks his lucky stars that she's quick to calm down, he doesn't know what he would do if both of his friends were unable to behave in front of his new boyfriend. Luckily (or not) he doesn’t have time to fully spiral into a flustered panic when a voice calls out to him. 

“Yuichi!” 

He turns towards the approaching turtle and can’t help but smile at the sight of him. The answering grin on the striped face is stupidly handsome and Yuichi forgets all about fighting down the blush on his face. He’s smitten, so what? If he wasn’t already flushed he certainly would be now and Leonardo deserves to see how much he likes him, actually. Something in him settles and the rabbit is certain that despite their teasing, his friends will love Leonardo. 

—

“Your friends seem nice,” Leonardo hums on their walk back to Yuichi’s house. The slider had offered to portal him home but instead, Yuichi had asked for a walk and invited him over for a cup of tea. He wasn’t quite ready for the day to end yet. 

“Glad you think so,” he smiles, “they really liked you. Not that it was a surprise.” 

Leonardo looks a little taken aback by that but he just chuckles and leans against the wall as Yuichi fishes for his keys. He looks a bit tired and the rabbit wonders if it’s the phantom pains again. Well, nothing a big cup of his auntie’s tea won’t help soothe, he smiles softly to himself as the door clicks open and he gives a little bow to the turtle. 

“Ladies first!” he jokes, and Leonardo laughs. He ruffles Yuichi’s hair on his way past him and the rabbit sticks his tongue out at him. He might be over forty but age will never stop him from being the impulsive little shit that he has always been. Leonardo, with surprising grace, pretends not to notice and slips on the guest slippers before quickly snatching Yuichi’s bag from his shoulder and disappearing into the kitchen to unload the groceries, humming a tune Yuichi can’t place. 

"You two seem like a good match." 

Yuichi turns to look at Chizu. She's looking at Leonardo and Kitsune squabbling over the last piece of mochi, a thoughtful expression on her face. 

"What?" 

"You heard me," she chuckles, shifting her amber eyes to Yuichi. There's a softness in them that takes the rabbit off guard. 

"He's a true leader. A brilliant strategist with charisma to match. I can tell. But there's also the burden that comes with it," she lowers her voice toward the end. "He's been through hell – don't look at me like that, he didn't say much but what he did say was enough for me to connect the dots – and this is where you come in. He needs to goof around and be stupid, things that were taken from him too early. He needs to be looked at with fresh eyes, to be loved for who he is now and not for the role he was born to fulfil – and who else is better suited for that than our very own silly rabbit?" 

Yuichi belatedly realises his jaw is hanging open and he closes his mouth with a click. Chizu has always been bright, brighter than anyone else in their little found family, maybe save for Karasu-Tengu, but despite the obvious parallels between the two he was not expecting her to jump right into analysing the mutant turtle to the core on their first meeting. As dense as he may be, it doesn’t slip past him how most of the things Chizu said were very true for her all those years back. 

"And how is he good for you, in turn?" the cat's eyes glimmer as her mouth twists into a smirk. "He can lend you some of those brain cells you so very desperately need." 

Yuichi groans and punches her on the shoulder. She doesn't even flinch, brushing it off with a grin. 

Yuichi closes the door behind him slowly, staring after his boyfriend. Chizu's words echo in his mind, I'm happy for you, and his chest feels odd. Full and tight and so, so warm. 

He takes a deep breath and feels the expected burst of butterflies settle into something new, calm and gentle. It’s a feeling he hasn’t felt before but somehow he knows what it means. 

He can’t wait to feel it more. 

[secretarysong]

word wall's worth of ramblings about the Grand Qwasa below...

anyone else ever wonder what the Grand Qwasa considers to be music (and therefore able to be turned into power)? this may or may not be a bold statement, but... the premise of transformation of music -> energy implies that, qwasascientifically at least, what can be considered music is NOT subjective; and there is a certain threshold within the world's never-ending valley of genres ... from spoken word/Ambience all the way to Harsh Noise ... that starts and stops being considered "viable music" . hmm.

well, this is assuming that the Grand Qwasa *only* reacts to music -- its own definition of music. and since music is such an unbelievably broad spectrum ... what if the GQ is more lenient, and it reacts to sound likeeeeee, in general? ... and the level of energy output depends on the "level of musicality" (whatever that might mean) and the variety of said noise... who knows!? what if 'sound' doesn't create *power*, but warrants something else...? what if there's a such thing as "harmful noise" that can potentially damage the Grand Qwasa? doubtful (even though it could make for an interesting plot point,) but it would be kind of hilarious if there were some sort of music-related rules and regulations put in place for Whatever Reason. or a list of blacklisted songs. i wonder what would be on there...

anyways... i will talk about qwasa scientists now! it is 11:39 PM for me right now and i can feel myself getting more scatterbrained by the second so Excuuuusee me i don't think it'd be too farfetched to imagine that scientists have Prrroobably ran experiments to see if different genres have different effects -- not just in terms of energy input, but also... like... environmentally. such as: does yinu's (neo)classical music have any effect on the growth of natural plants? (e.g flowers not willed into existence via prior plant manipulation magic) and if so, is it an effect of Yinu's (and/or her mother's) magic, or is it just a given quality of the genre she plays? and maybe they'd test it by having an unrelated pianist play an arrangement to one set of plants, and then they'd bring Yinu in and have her play the exact same thing . the music doesn't necessarily Have to be filtered through the Grand Qwasa in order for it to have special properties since music already seems to be deeply ingrained in most aspects of life. in Vinyl City, at least .

also, still in the realm of experiments, i could see something also having been done about the Grand Qwasa's relationship between live concerts/performances and prerecorded music. this half-related but I think recorded music does indeed count as a passive source of energy, albeit not as much... which is part of the reason why all of the radio towers around the city play that NSR promo tune that Mayday hates so much AAAALLLLL THE FREAKING TIME ...!!!! there's more in my head Which i will post tomorrow because 1. i'm tired and 2. this is already obscenely long but i Hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts Byyeeeee!!

[sylphid187]

Blue Lock Fanfiction Masterlist

Masterlist of all my Blue Lock works. Please do not repost/translate my works in other sites - especially without letting me know. ><

In case the links don't open for some reason, you can find a direct link to my AO3 in my description :)

- All Works are Rated T, unless stated otherwise.

- Almost all works, other than some Oneshot AUs, contain Spoilers until the current Manga content.

One Shots

A Reason to Celebrate

Written for Isagi Yoichi's Birthday, showcasing all the people who care about him and his Blue Lock family.

Let Me Count the Ways

Series of Oneshots written for AllSagi Week 2023. With the Love Languages as a main theme.

Pairings in each Chapter below:

Day 1 - BachiSagi (Giving and Recieving Gifts)

Day 2 - KaiSagi (Acts of Service)

Day 3 - NagiSagi (Physical Touch)

Day 4 - KuroSagi (Words of Affirmation)

Day 5 - ChiSagi (Feeling Known)

Day 6 - KaiSagi (Quality Time)

The One For Me

A NagiSagi Oneshot as my Day 7 submission for AllSagi Week 2023.

Nagi's Special Someone

Written for NagiSagi Day 2023

Nagi's apparently dating and in love. So, Manshine City decides to go on a manhunt to find out who it is.

You're Mine & I'm Yours

When Isagi is Jealous, while Nagi is Territorial and everyone else bears witness to the development of their relationship.

Multi Chapter Fics

My multichapters contain AllSagi or Isagi and Everyone as pairings as it expounds on his relationships (platonic or otherwise) with a lot of the other characters. 🤗

Last Song Syndrome - Complete

Summary:

Members of Blue Lock and the Neo Egoist League are suffering from a special case of last song syndrome. The tune? Isagi Yoichi and his apparently good singing voice.

Your Song, Our Stories - In Progress

Summary:

Companion piece to Last Song Syndrome. (Oneshots, Sniplets and AUs based on this fic)

Isagi's habit of singing has it's various effects on the memebers of Blue Lock. These are their stories

Challenge Accepted - Complete

Summary:

The JFA decides to hold a special exhibition match to boost Blue Lock TV's ratings. And what better way to do that, than to pit Isagi and some members of Blue Lock against the star player's old Highschool Team: Ichinan High School. What's more? They also throw Kira Ryosuke into the mix and gamble Isagi's spot in the process.

The Company He Keeps - Complete

Summary:

What is it that makes a person like Isagi Yoichi? His experiences? His family? Or maybe it's the company of the people he keeps? When Isagi gets an opportunity to bring his parents to Blue Lock for a day, the different people who have helped shape Isagi into who he is, get that chance to interact with one another. And they all come to realize that the apple really doesn't fall far from the tree. Because learning to love Isagi Yoichi comes just as easy as loving the people who raised him.

Our Promise - In Progress

Summary:

Years after the Blue Lock Project, Ego's trained strikers meet together as a from of tradition - brought upon by a promise to stay connected even after being miles apart. At the height of their careers, after the recent 2022 World Cup, each player find the time to attend their reunion, not wanting to disappoint the Heart of Blue Lock himself: Isagi Yoichi.

[chasingshadowsblog]

"I am Tetsuo." - Youth vs. Adulthood in 'Akira'

"School kids these days!" Throughout its high-speed opening sequence Akira wastes no time in establishing a distinct line between the young people and the adults of its city, Neo-Tokyo. The adults include politicians and police officers, a resistance movement, the military and a group of scientists working alongside them; the youths are represented by Kaneda and his biker gang, the strange, sad children whose minds and bodies have been manipulated and damaged by the very people they believe are looking out for them, and, most importantly, Tetsuo. A shadow of blame, misunderstanding and fear has been cast over the various youth factions by the adult world, only for them to then be surprised later on when the children retaliate. A mistake frequently made by the adults in Akira is the underestimation of these groups thought stupider, weaker and more vulnerable than them. It is a mistake that will inevitably result in the destruction of the adult world and the creation of a new universe by the small hands and great minds of those same children.

"Who the hell do you think you're talking to, moron?!" As well as establishing this theme, the opening battle between Kaneda's gang and the rival Clown gang also gives us a brief but clear glimpse of the relationship between the movie's two main characters, Kaneda and Tetsuo, the nature of which remains unchanged throughout the movie despite the rapidly moving events. Kaneda is a great character to look at in this context as not only is he a part of the childrens' world of juvenile delinquency, schools that offer no help or hope, "if you screw up here, it's the end of the road!" and vulnerability in the face of authority figures, he is also the adult foil to Tetsuo's child. Tetsuo is introduced to us playing with Kaneda's bike, listing in awe all of its special features, Kaneda bursts onto the street, catches him in the act and makes fun of him "…it's too loud, you couldn't handle it." The other guys follow his example, teasing Tetsuo as they hop on their bikes and take off after the Clowns, leaving Tetsuo to catch up, but, by the end of this sequence, Kaneda changes his tune. When the gang first leaves the alley he takes the lead, not looking back to see who follows. Later on, however, when the police join the chase, he is once again the first to get going, except this time he singles Tetsuo out, making sure he's following, "Let's go, Tetsuo!" Finally, after Tetsuo jets ahead of the gang and crashes into Takashi, causing an explosion, the entire group gathers around his body in panic and concern, even wanting to get him to a hospital. When the military shows up instead and takes his body away, Kaneda, pinned to the ground by a police officer, yells at them to stop, "You can't take him away like that!" Kaneda constantly flip-flops between hurting Tetsuo and caring for him deeply. We learn through flashbacks that the two boys have been friends since they were kids, with Kaneda having taken Tetsuo under his wing, creating the imbalance in their relationship that only grew with time - so much so that Kaneda believes that he can treat Tetsuo this way without any consequences. There is no indication that Kaneda is older than Tetsuo - if he is it can only be by a few months - but he certainly acts as if he is, an attitude that Tetsuo has cultivated a hatred for. It isn't so much the fact that Kaneda makes fun of him that drives Tetsuo over the edge, but that his friend, his best and oldest friend, treats him like a child. And, much as he tries to prove otherwise, Tetsuo is a child. He recognises this in himself, knowing Kaneda does too, and hates himself for it.

After escaping the hospital the first time, Tetsuo steals Kaneda's bike and goes looking for his girlfriend, Kaori, so they can run away together. He finds Kaori being assaulted by members of the Clown gang and in an attempt to rescue her (and be the hero for once) he ends up being attacked himself then saved moments later by Kaneda. Afterwards, Tetsuo beats up one of the thugs while Kaneda stands behind him and watches, as if he is letting Tetsuo do this in response to the attack on Kaori. Which is exactly what he's doing since, a moment later, he orders Tetsuo to stop and blames him for the fight happening in the first place, "Just knock it off now! This whole thing happened just because you took my bike for a spin." This, naturally, upsets Tetsuo, who responds in rage, "Shut up! Don't order me around!" then frustration and tears. Tetsuo wants desperately for people to see him as tough and competent, and Kaneda is surprised by this reaction. Saving Tetsuo has always been his job, that Tetsuo would be mad at him for it never occured to him.

Kaori is another significant relationship in Tetsuo's life. Like him she is on the younger side of their teen years; the other girls that follow the gang around are all dressed up and wearing make-up whereas Kaori appears without make-up in a simple tank-top and shorts. Kaori is well-matched to Tetsuo; he can relate to her youthfulness but her shyness and vulnerability allow him to feel like he is the strong one in their relationship, and Kaori shows genuine concern and love for Tetsuo, unlike Kaneda's inconsistent love-hate. However, Tetsuo often responds to her feelings as Kaneda has taught him, by needing her then brushing her off as it suits him. By the final sequence in the Olympic stadium, she is the first person Tetuso reaches out to for help as he loses control of his powers, inadvertently engulfing her in whatever is happening there, his childish grasping and carelessness killing the last person who cared about him.

Mentally and emotionally, Tetsuo is behind the other younger characters in Akira; even the ESPers are more mature than him, for all that they are trapped in the bodies of children. Tetsuo is sensitive but unable to control his feelings, when he gains his powers he prefers to threaten and intimidate those who have frightened and wronged him, and rejects all offers of help, as he has learned to do from the adult world. His childishness is evident to everyone around him, not just his friends but even people who have just met him. The second time he is confined to the hospital the children attack him mentally with a parade of toys that grow bigger and bigger, surrounding him in his bed. A giant teddy bear appears to bleed milk, a rabbit topples over, almost crushing Tetsuo under its weight, a toy car vomits milk, causing a flood in the hospital room and when he tries to escape through the door, the walls turn into plastic bricks and crash down around him. These images, traditionally of childhood and innocence, are exaggerated until they are grotesque; what should warm and comfort Tetsuo instead terrifies him. It is only when he breaks a glass in the reality of the hospital room, cutting his foot on the shards, that the children are thwarted (scared themselves by the sight of blood, an all too real concept in their otherwise safe and isolated nursery). In attempting to intimidate Tetsuo, the kids knew exactly which nerve to hit. Although these images initially frighten Tetsuo, by the end of the scene his fright turns into anger - at the attack, at being frightened in the first place, and at the reminders of his true nature. This anger is what drives Tetsuo throughout the rest of the movie and causes his powers to grow. The first thing he does immediately after this incident is kill two hospital workers, an action emulative of the violent grown-up world. Tetsuo is no longer going to be scared or controlled by other people, from now on, he is the one who will intimidate. Anger is a fuel for Tetsuo's powers and it is always after a spell of rage that he experiences them. After Kaneda orders him to stop beating up the Clown biker, Tetsuo explodes,"Why do you always have to try to save me? I could handle it on my own… I won't always be on the receiving end, you hear that?!" Tetsuo is enraged, and embarrassed by his tears in front of Kaori, prompting a slew of scary hallucinations he doesn't understand. If it is anger that causes his powers to expand, it is an anger at himself, his fear, his uselessness and his need to be taken care of. The conclusion of this scene encapsulates the vulnerability of the younger characters in the face of the adult world; as the military arrives on the scene to take Tetsuo away, Kaneda, Kaori and the boys can only stand by and watch it happen.

"They were too scared, so they hid it away from the public. They forgot all shame and honor, cast off the civilization and science we had created, and shut the lid of the Pandora’s Box they themselves had opened." The adult world in Akira, however it is represented, is purely antagonistic. Though Kaneda and the colonel often show concern for their charges, their respective relationships are wholly manipulative and abusive. Kaneda demonstrates power over Tetsuo in order to maintain their imbalanced dynamic; the colonel does so to instil loyalty in the highly destructive (and highly impressionable) children in his employ. However, where the colonel was successful, Kaneda failed; Tetsuo, in his power, became defiant rather than scared and submissive. Despite everything done to them, Kyoko, Takashi and Masaru remain with the military throughout the movie, deciding for themselves, too, that Tetsuo must be destroyed. Although Takashi appears to be fleeing the military with one of Kei's companions, after being tracked down again he returns to their home without a fight. It even appears as if the children are afraid of the outside world and have no wish to be a part of it, "You know we can't survive outside. We belong at home," a further example of the military's manipulation. These children (really adults by now) have known no other world than their nursery and are repelled by reminders of the outside world, "It's blood!" "I'm scared!" Kaneda, on the other hand, completely loses Tetsuo and doesn't get him back until it's too late. Unlike Takashi, or the student protestors we hear battling police in the news, Tetsuo does not try to run from or fight against his personal adult figure, instead he attempts to emulate it. "You see, Kaneda, I won't be needing you to rescue me ever again." After gaining his powers, Tetsuo tries to beat a rival gang member to death, murders members of the hospital and army, kills the bar owner and downs handfuls of capsules; all actions, flauntings of strength, that he has seen performed by adults around him all his life and that he never had the "strength" to do himself. In acting how he thinks a grown-up would act in his situation, Tetsuo ultimately causes his own destruction; he becomes overpowered and, without the knowledge and experience needed to control himself, is overwhelmed by it, killing himself and many others. When Kaneda realises that he won't be able to bully Tetsuo into submission anymore, he readily accepts that the only thing to do is kill him and insists that he must do it, "He's not your friend, he's ours! If somebody's gonna kill him, it should be us!" To Kaneda, Tetsuo is now a lost cause and cannot be reigned in by him or salvaged by him. The colonel's manipulation keeps the ESPers cowed; Kaneda's drives Tetsuo to self-destruction.

"It was too difficult for Tetsuo… of course, too difficult for us. And for Akira." Akira's world is dirty, seedy, ruthless and selfish; it provides no obvious hero for us to root for, so, by the final showdown in the Olympic Stadium, we aren't entirely sure what we want, only that we want it to be over. Akira's world has no room for heroes and villains, but it is a world where the weak (the young and vulnerable) suffer under and by the actions of those in power. And although the conflict in Akira is undoubtedly caused by adult hands it is the child characters who resolve it and it is those same characters who suffer the most by it. Kaori is engulfed by Tetsuo's growing body and dies. Takashi, Kyoko and Masaru, in saving Kaneda, sacrifice their bodies, joining Akira and Tetsuo in a new universe. Tetsuo spends the entire movie fighting the child in himself, turning everyone against him and ultimately killing himself. Still, however bad Tetsuo becomes, it is difficult to truly see him as a villain, even when every other character has a gun trained on his back. Instead we feel sympathy for Tetsuo, who, no stranger to mental abuse, loses his mind over the course of the film. Tetsuo performs actions that are wrong, but so do the colonel, Kaneda and the resistance movement. Yet, at the end of the film, it is Kaneda, Kei, Kai and the colonal who survive while Kaori, the ESPers, Akira and Tetsuo are dead. In this case, however, Tetsuo and the kids have come out on top, with a new universe to shape while back in the old one, the adults are left with the shambles of the bombed out Neo-Tokyo. If there is a positive note in Akira to end on, it is that now, after transcending to a new plane of existence, an uncorrupted world, Tetsuo can finally accept himself for who he is, "I am Tetsuo." It says a lot that he had to leave everything and everyone he knew behind to do so.

[kiseiakhun]

Kyle: and this is why durarara is neo-noir - are you even listening to me?

Hal who tuned Kyle out 20 minutes ago and is zoning out on his ass daydreaming about plowing into his hole like he's a 2011 freightliner M2106 and Kyle is an icy city street the morning after a 6 inch blizzard: uh huh

[neighborhood-cryptic]

not that anyone cares but. captain 3 has had a rough time getting back into normal life and didn't participate much in grand fest, however he did offer to help with directing and security. captain 3 joined team past because callie and marie have been there with him since he was 14 and just became an agent, he also misses being a kid and not having been traumatized from being an agent. agent 4 was team future, she hopes for a better tomorrow, a day that will be better than today, something bright and hopeful. agent 4s had a rough life, growing up in a small town and always wanting to be part of something bigger, and when she finally thought she had that being an agent, everyone seemed to ditch her. (it's better now though). agent 8 is team present, mainly because of pearl and marina, but also because he likes to live in the now. he stops and smells the roses, he takes time to appreciate the sunsets, even though things aren't perfect right now, there's always something to appreciate. neo 3 is team future, they grew up in the splat lands and have always had that city grit in them. they learn from the past and apply it today, then tomorrow they try even harder. anyway that's my rant on my splatoon agent ocs my headcanons and my lore sorry for yapping guys. i promise i will draw them soon. please stay tuned.

[usagirotten]

First Look at Neo Berlin 2087: Trailer Unveiled at Gamescom 2024

In an exciting reveal at Gamescom 2024, Elysium Game Studio has released the first official trailer for their upcoming action RPG, Neo Berlin 2087. This highly anticipated game promises to immerse players in a dark, futuristic vision of Berlin, blending third and first-person perspectives in a gripping detective thriller.  The trailer showcases stunning visuals and a deeply engaging storyline, set in a dystopian cyberpunk reality. Players will navigate a city divided by technological advancements, where the wealthy dominate and the poor struggle to survive. The game’s protagonist is tasked with unraveling a far-reaching conspiracy, making choices that will impact justice, friendship, love, guilt, sacrifice, and betrayal.

Key Highlights from the Trailer: - Cinematic Experience: The trailer highlights the game’s cinematic quality, with photorealistic graphics and detailed environments that bring the futuristic Berlin to life. - Gameplay Mechanics: Players can expect a mix of action, stealth, and role-playing elements, offering a versatile and immersive gameplay experience. - Character Development: The narrative promises deep character development, with complex relationships and moral dilemmas that will keep players engaged. Neo Berlin 2087 is set to release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, though the exact date remains unconfirmed. As anticipation builds, fans are eagerly awaiting more details and gameplay footage. Stay tuned for more updates on Neo Berlin 2087 as we get closer to its release. For now, check out the trailer and get ready to dive into the cyberpunk world of Berlin in 2087. Are you excited about Neo Berlin 2087? What are you looking forward to the most in this game? Let me know in the comments below!

Read the full article

[buwheal]

what are personally your favorite spamton headcanons?

OOooooh this was the wrong thing to ask me if you hate lots of letters on your screen. Get ready!!!!!! Here's my list :-) Its not organized by least to most btw im just typing everything i like lol :

puppetification theory.. AAUUUGHHH!!!!! this one is so much fun for so many reasons.

he's got a BJD (ball jointed doll) body

He's kinda an asshole

While a good chunk of his glitching is from puppetification, way more of it is from malware he's collected over like 20 years on the streets of cyber city

He absolutely feels and is aware of his glitches but he's so used to them it doesnt really bother him anymore. scratch that, it 100% does bother him that his body is actively defying him. but what can you do? :shrug:

he's like 5'1. I HATE HATE HATE seeing him the size of a toddler both because you can literally see his world sprite is the same height as kris, which is a teenager (His proportions just are unbelievably fucked up because of puppetification) and because thats just kinda weird. Something about making him so so small feels weird to me but im not sure, really. take it with a grain of salt.

He was an Email Addison. You see it everywhere. He was like a mailman or something.

He wasnt like four foot or something throuhghout his whole life, but i do imagine he was only slightly smaller than an Addison, which doesnt sound that bad except when you realize everyone else is normal height except him. Maybe it was a manufacutring bug, or maybe it was intentional for his job.

Addisons are like weird organic robots kinda. Cause everything in cyber city is made of code i imagine they are like basically sentient AI.

They (addisons) physically do not age unless their code is damaged. (Guess who's code is fucked up) They were "born" physically and half-mentally adults, and count their age based on their manufacturing date. I say mentally half because it quickly develops soon after while they do things like advertise. Their personality develops a time after.

HE IS OLD!!!!!!! HE'S AN OLD GUY!! HES GOT LITTLE WRINKLES N SHIT!!! HES GOT A GREY STRIPE!!!!!! Not really because of physical aging but its more of like a glitch tbh lol. Like a chunk glitch in minecraft. Whatever happened as his code got progressively more beat up caused a patch of his hair to register incorrectly and show up slightly wrong.

His hair is natrually white. He dyed it in his big shot era ofc, but it faded out. He keeps it colored currently with car oil and shit. Whatever he can find that will color it. It will and does wash out partially when he's drenched in the rain.

He completely refuses to acknowledge his physical changes. Glimpses he sees he ignores or passes it off as he's seeing things.

He prayed to the Neo robot because he saw the beginning of puppetification. He was praying for forgiveness or another chance. He believed it was a divine punishment because he had no other explination. He doesnt believe he changed much more than the very very early stages, and he thinks he's forgiven in his delusion. Which is why he wants the robot so bad.

When he gets mad he turns kinda red and steam comes out the side of his head in short bursts, train whistle sound effects and all. looney tunes type junk.

He has lips... but they're stretched so far because of his huge fucking brick ass teeth that it doesnt really matter at that point.

He's got a scraggly ass mullet.

he has little bitty dot eyes. Every other addison does too but they keep them closed for visual appeal. Theyre robots and shit they dont really need them to get around, even though they help a lot.

Thats about all i can think of rn!!!! ^_^ hope you enjoy that brick of text lol.

[bathoarchives]

Exploring Mpho Sebina's Artistic Appreciation of her African and Setswana Roots

By Atang Moalosi and Tefo Kosie

Hailing from the Kgatleng District’s capital Mochudi is Mpho Sebina, a singer-songwriter who has immersed herself in producing and creating the continent's best jazz, soul, and afro-fusion music. A self-proclaimed Pan-Africanist, Mpho's music has been a true reflection of expressing her African and Tswana roots through cognizant use of local rhythmic instrumentation and vocal progressions, to say the least.

The love and use of indigenous elements prevailed notably in her 2015 debut single 'Loves Light' which she explains was inspired by the song Tselane by BLK JKS which is loosely based on a Tswana folktale 'Tselane'. The song, produced by local legendary beatmaker Favi includes elements of the staple beats and claps of traditional folk music production fused with soul. The music video features a cameo of traditional dancers and showcases the landscape of Botswana from the luscious water basins to the barren semi-desert land with the soundtrack playing behind the eye-catching visuals laying a foundation of Mpho’s start to dominance in the music scene.

stills from the 'Tjuele' music video directed by Thina Zibi

It would take a whole two years for Mpho to return and release two songs leading up to the release of her debut EP 'Neo' with very memorable moments such as the song ‘Tjuele’ which is a rendition of another famous setswana folktale with the same name. The song features ATI, another local music giant who sings the chorus repeatedly in the background. This music video in contrast only features Mpho (Tjuele's mother) and a young girl (Tjuele). In the first scene, Mpho is seen caressing the young girl’s hair, both draped in white dresses. Behind them is a famous portrait of a black woman and her son, which is beloved among the black community directly linking to the thematic affectionate scenery painted by the song and the visuals. The song has this continuous click-clack sound, reminiscent of the tune of clapping hands and matlhoa or traditional leg rattles used as a part of uniform for typical traditional dance. Remarkably Tjuele is the only song in the project sung in Setswana.

stills from the 'Slip Away' music video directed by Mpho Sebina and Motheo Moeng

‘Slip Away’ is another beautiful 5-minute song from the Neo EP of Mpho harmonizing over a midtempo beat, the song was also accompanied by a set of visuals that captures the hustle and bustle of the city of Accra in Ghana. The video includes many beautiful shots including Mpho having her hair plaited in the streets, women dressed in beautiful African attire and women carrying their belongings over their heads which is a very common practice amongst African women.

‘LORA’

'Lora' album cover designed by Tebogo Cranwell and Neo Rakgajane

‘Lora’ is Mpho Sebina's debut album, released in 2020 five years after introducing the world to her very enigmatic sound. The album cover itself is quite a striking piece. With its shade of blue background, it only highlights certain parts of Mpho's half-bodily features. The first thing noticeable is the pink highlighted corn rows, her lips and some African beads which include cowrie shells deemed very valuable in most African cultures. This album is easily Mpho's most definitive record, both sonically and visually as it sets her among the most highly decorated singers the continent boasts.

stills from the 'Pula' music video directed by Yannis Sainte-rose

The lead single 'Pula' is taken from the setswana song 'Pula Nkgodisa' which translates to ‘Rain, help me grow’ and the “Rain Rain Go Away” song. She uses rain as a metaphor for pain and shows struggle with the lyrics 'Rain Rain Go Away, I wanna go out and Play’. Later in the song she employs rain as a metaphor for growth posing a divergent perspective with lyrics 'Pula Nkgodise, Pula Mphodisa'. This song reflects on times of struggle and hope as it was released in 2020 when the world was heavily gripped by the coronavirus pandemic and a worldwide lockdown. The music video includes shots of Mpho wearing an African print headwrap and cardigan along with her Bantu knots. The conscious use of Setswana lyrics and visual nuances further displays Mpho's love for making music that centers her heritage as a Motswana.

stills from the Melodi music video directed by Yannis Sainte-rose

The song ‘Melodi's’ music video features Mpho Sebina in a few shots where she is covered by cloth and some other noteworthy scenes with her in front of the backdrop of the abstract painting which matches the colour of her African headwrap. The constant use of African clothing and artefacts in and around her visual presentations accompanying the already Afrocentric sonics just solidify the passion behind the endemic standard she has set for herself.

stills from the Dumelang music video directed by Mpho Sebina

‘Dumelang’ is a very warm and welcoming song that pretty much highlights a very important aspect of Botswana's culture-the standard gesture of greeting. The song hosts a confident Mpho giving the listeners a brief tour of the beautiful country and her own experiences within the context of the song. It also boasts visual excellence, a highly decorated facet of Mpho Sebina as an artist by showcasing parts of Botswana's culture, including scenes of her dressed in clothing sourced from local brands, also sweeping with a traditional broom/ ‘lefeelo la ditlhokwa’ close to a three-legged pot which is quite reminiscent of a traditional home in a village. Other shots include local art persons cameos including Dato Seiko, Nature Inger along with Mboko Basiami the founder of Glotto, a pan-African clothing brand from Botswana. Notably, Mpho is also seen wearing Zulu female head attire called “isicholo”, and the Basotho hat known as “lekorotlo”. Throughout the video, Mpho is dressed in clothing sourced from local brands.

‘Ntsha Nkgo’ is another rendition of a traditional song with the same title, which is often sung during ceremonies. The song touches on aspects of typical traditional celebratory ceremonies, including the culture of sharing traditional beer among family and friends especially older men hence the line ''Ntsha Nkgo re kgaritlheng le bannabagolo''. The sacred events normally include the slaughtering of an animal to be feasted during the ceremony ''Ko Boseja go tlhabilwe Kolobe hoki''

Renditions of traditional folk songs remain a constant theme in Mpho's music as she also reworks 'Sananapo' a song from a well-known folktale in 'Sananapo's Interlude'. Folktales and songs are essential in traditional culture as they are often used as a form of entertainment and an opportunity for the elderly to pass on and teach the younger generation about customs and values which are indigenous to us. Mpho's modern twist to these songs helps revive the connection between Batswana and their culture especially in modern times where most of the older generation believes that our culture is being eroded.

As we await the release of Mpho's sophomore album, It is well evident that Mpho will always centre her African heritage on her music. Alkebulan, which is the name of the next album, is quite an interesting name as it is believed to be the original name for Africa according to the oldest nubian and kinetic texts. In her interview with Drum Magazine, Mpho reveals that her album will feature female artists from different parts of Africa to celebrate the women and their africaness. She also stated that she was influenced by the various sounds of African music. 

[tekdecksmtg]

Standard Showdown: “I’m All Ears!”

Following Prerelease Weekend, I decided to build a couple of “fun” decks to play with during Standard weekday events.

I’ve quickly put together a Rabbits deck with my available cards to see if I can go fast and wide to take some wins. Here’s my deck (which will still needs to be tuned as I just used what I had on hand) along with my experience at the weekday “Standard Showdown”:

This week’s event is interesting because Bloomburrow is legal but we technically aren’t past rotation yet, so it’s this strange middle ground where MID/VOW/NEO/SNC are still legal while BLB has been added to the format.

Match 1: L 1-2

Game 1 on the draw ended up being a super quick loss to mono-red aggro. The deck was already updated for rotation and contained some lizards and haste mice along with the usual suspects. He was able to get two Hired Claw out quick and pump them as well. Their pings each attack forced me into chump-blocking and I couldn’t build up a board.

Game 2 on the play I was able to get out Valley Mightcaller then Finneas, Arc Archer, followed by a couple of creatures on turn three which led to pumps and card draw advantage. I was able to get wide and big to win.

Game 3 on the draw and he got ahead quickly again. Brushlands forced me into giving up life that I really couldn’t afford to. A Beza, the Bounding Spring helped me stay afloat while he ran out of gas for a bit, but being at 3 life it was inevitable that he’d draw a burn spell to kill me, which is exactly what happened.

Match 2: L 1-2

Game 1 on the draw again and playing mono-red aggro again (pre-rotation version). Super fast Game 1 as he took out my creatures with burn spells while getting prowess triggers to take me out quick.

Game 2 on the play and was able to again get out some creatures early and pump with Finneas. I got him down to three life and then he pulled off an attack followed by a Brotherhood’s End to kill all my creatures. Luckily he was tapped out and I was able to swing in with my Restless Prairie on the next turn for the win.

Game 3 on the draw I was only able to interact a bit early with an Elspeth’s Smite but he flipped an Invasion of Tarkir and dropped a Urabrask’s Forge early that was putting on increasing pressure. His dragon was free to attack alone, taking out a creature per turn while hitting me for 4. Drawing land/land down the stretch led to the inevitable loss.

Match 3: Dropped - No incentive to keep playing as there are no rewards for 1 win

Overall: 0-2-0 (2-4-0; 8th place out of 8)

Reflection: I can’t tell if it was a coincidence but winning both games on the play and losing all four on the draw might be telling. Really hard to tell though considering the sample size and since I only played aggro during the event. Aggro is just so fast and it wants to be on the play. I probably need to sideboard some more removal if aggro is going to be a main component of the format (which it always has). I’m going to consider a few updates to the deck but will definitely plan to play with it again. The two games that I won showed a glimpse of what this deck could do and it was fun to play.

Brushlands really hurt against aggro; every point of life is so crucial - if I’m stuck with Brushlands in the opening hand in a similar match then I probably need to mull.

Beza really helped to stabilize a couple of times coming out of the sideboard with a big body, some chump blockers, and desperately needed life gain; impressed with that card in certain situations.

Three Tree City did nothing in aggro and was just a dead card, but I think I’ll keep it in there for longer match-ups where the creatures are coming out and I’m getting card draw to keep dumping out rabbits. That being said, I only have one Cavern of Souls in the deck right now; probably need to include a couple more in case I run into Control, and Three Tree City might take the hit.

Still a fun time all things considered and happy to be challenged by a key meta deck; it can only help me in the long run.

[yourkimjaejin]

Dizzying Thoughts

In Osaka

“Unnie-yah, You ate right? I didn’t see you grab anything.” Juno sat down with her full plate in catering. The younger barely missed the leader's wince. Moxy’s face snapped back into a neutral position when Juno looked up. 

“Yeah I had some food earlier.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In Madrid

“Migyeong-ah, I didn’t see you eat today. You’ve had something right?” Soonjae asked her charge while Moxy adjusted her mic.

“I ate a granola bar Unnie. You know how my stomach is before a show. I promise to eat after.” Before Soonjae could respond, The stage director started rehearsal.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In Paris

“What did you order last night, Gyeongie?” Hannah luckily was lounging on one of the beds in Moxy’s room while the aforementioned leader was finishing up her skincare in the bathroom. It’s lucky cause Hannah missed the flash of panic that racked thru older’s body while she thought of an answer. 

“Uhh…..I got a……burger?” 

“Really?” Hannah sat up, “I got one too but Kenji-oppa never mentioned getting you one too.” 

“He must have gotten mine earlier than you.” Moxy walked out the bathroom, praying her face didn’t betray her.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

The members of AG and their tour crew were crowded around two long tables with piles of food lining each one. The group was celebrating ending the European leg of AG’s tour with a final show in London tonight. While her members and staff sat around talking jovially and devouring the food laid out for them, Moxy sat hunched over. Moving the food around on her plate, illuding that she was eating. But Moxy had been doing quite the opposite for a while now. 

See, our precious leader has an anxious stomach. Sometimes things get so severe that the sight of food nauseates her. Leading to the rapper going on stage with nothing for her body to feed off of for three hours of vigorous dancing and exhausting singing. Nervousness mostly affects her before big moments in her career. Her first stage of Limitless. The first time she sang You Don’t Know Me. Her first recording session for Something Like A Party. You get the point.

It was never something she couldn’t manage. Once her worries were disproven, she’d take the time to eat and everything would be right with the world. Noone would be none the wiser. The first time it got real bad was during 127’s tour, Neo City - The Origin. Moxy was so nervous. Anxious over how each crowd would receive her. Everytime the boys offered her food she shrugged it off, promising to eat later at the hotel. Then she’d there and a whole new batch of fearful thoughts crept into her brain, taking her appetite with them. 

This went on for a weeks. Regretfully, all of 127 were just starting to get along. So the boys weren’t tuned into Moxy behavior until it was too late. After the group's show in Phoenix, Moxy collapsed as soon as she made it backstage. Nobody had a clue what was wrong so Soonjae made the decision to call an ambulance. She was diagnosed with low blood sugar and was forced to spend the night for observation. The managers knew they had to get to Houston. They all could tell getting them to leave would be like pulling teeth so they rebooked flights. Migyeong got the scolding of her life from Johnny when she came to. She proceeded to get smothered within an inch of her life between the arms of Doyoung and Taeyong. 

127 had a serious talk about what Moxy had been going through after the next show. Jaehyun and Doyoung paired up on ways to help the rapper get past her nerves before they got on stage and it worked. As the tour went forward, with her members help, Moxy was able to stomach small meals and snacks before performing. Anytime another attack came, she knew her members would be right there to help even when Moxy had to fly back to Korea for AG’s debut.

Before AG left for their tour, Johnny talked to her about keeping up with meals. 

“I’m seriously Migyeong-ah. I do not want to hear about you fainting while I’m here and you’re across the country.” Moxy grabbed Johnny’s hand. She felt the same concerns but she was better now. 

“It won’t get to that point and if it does I’ll tell Hannah. You know she doesn’t play with any of our health.” Moxy continued to pack. She missed her oppa’s concerned gaze. 

Now almost a month later and it was worse. Moxy was lucky to fly under Hannah's radar while the second oldest fretted over Aurora and her healing burn. As she looked around at the others happily shoveling food into their mouths, it nauseated her even further. Moxy pushed her plate away, ready to escape the stuffy restaurant into the sweet silence of her hotel room. But her actions caught the attention of her dongsaeng. 

“Unnie have you even eaten anything? Your plate still looks full.” Juno stole a piece of the elders chicken. The leader had to fight off the look of disgust. Then the question registered in her brain. If Moxy was in an anime, that one sweat drop would be right next to her forehead. 

“Oh! That's just because….. I grabbed more food than I can handle. Don’t wanna be too bloated before tomorrow.” She rubbed her stomach to sell the lie. 

“Are you girls excited?” Soonjae interrupted, “The crowd last night was crazy. I swear they’re the loudest we’ve heard so far.” 

Hannah snorted, “Yeah lets hope we don’t get another crying session courtesy of Aurora.” Aurora reached out to smack Hannah’s shoulder but the elder ducked out of the way. “YAH! I told you that was because my nanan was in the crowd.” Happy to have the attention off of her, Moxy slumped down in her chair.. The nauseous feeling dulling down. Maybe once she gets to the hotel, she’d be up to eating something. 

Yeah, she could do that. Just make it to the hotel. 

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

That hotel meal didn’t happen. After dinner finished, Moxy had every intention of ordering something small but the girls were called to the venue to do some testing and last minute rehearsals. They didn’t finish until 3am. By that time, food was the furthest thing from the leader’s mind. She crashed as soon as her body hit the bed. 

Breakfast and lunch didn’t cross Moxy’s mind either. Even after a flawless show yesterday, Moxy woke up worried. She didn’t want to underperform especially when their fans had paid money to see them at their best. The leader went through the motions all day. Time passing in a daze of anxiety. She blinked and the group were being ushered to their places. During the entire opening, Moxy fought off several bouts of blurriness. The rapper was lucky her spots were drilled into her brain. She could find a formation blindfolded. 

Nobody questioned if something was wrong……at least until the dizzy spells started. 

Come on….not now… Moxy thought as another wave of dizziness washed over her after the girl group cover section. The results of her mistake had been growing and growing all night. Honestly, the stories of adrenaline doing crazy things to the human body was a fact to her now. Moxy had no idea how she made it through this much of the concert with passing out. 

She couldn’t wait until the show was over so she could finally eat. 

In the middle of the cordi noona’s helping her change for the next stage, Moxy felt her legs give out for a moment before she caught herself. The noona’s around her shared a look but Moxy waved them off. “Just lost my balance.” reassuring everyone

Come on girl……two sets then you’re home free. 

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Everything was moving in slow motion. Every step felt like it took minutes. Moxy barley felt the hands ripping clothes off and replacing them with the ones she needed for the encore. 

The noise around her turned into sludge. The rapper was incapable of distinguishing what anyone was saying around her. She didn’t even notice when her members surrounded her. 

“Noona?”

“Moxy..can…..you…..hear……”

“Is…..-thing…..on.” 

The world around her felt far away. Like she was floating into a dark abyss. The arena’s backstage a small box as she lifted off. 

Moxy didn’t even register when she hit the ground. 

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Her eyes opened to the concerned eyes of Soonjae. 

Moxy’s brain caught up before her body. The memories of the night coming like photos in her brain. Skipping meals. Feeling sluggish just as the concert started. The dark spots in her vision as she looked out at the thousands of fans. The dizziness giving way to exhaustion finally taking her out. Confusion, recognition then panic rattled through her. She sat up but another sudden wave of dizziness almost sent her back down. Soonjae tried to push her back but Moxy twisted away. 

The director ran in, “I don’t know how much longer we can stall.” 

Hannah’s eyes snapped over, anger blasing, “You better find time. Migyeong’s not awake yet but when she does there's no way she’s going on stage yet.”

“Actually look who's joined us.” At Soonjae’s voice, three faces snap to Moxy’s place on the couch. All wearing different expressions: one pissed, one of concern and another of relief. They crowded around the leader but instead of assuring them she was ok. Moxy went against Hannah’s words. 

“Yes….I am.” Moxy was finally able to say after the dizziness faded. She tried getting up but Hannah pinned her with a dark look. 

“Moxy you just passed out. No way are we performing the encore.” Hannah was ready to argue back but Moxy glared. 

“Good thing you're not the leader.” Four pairs of arms reached out as Moxy stood up, wobbling a bit in place but quickly steadying herself, “I was only out for a couple minutes. We’re going out there and finishing this show.” Everyone tried to object but Moxy just held her hand up. “I’ll take it easy but we are going out there and that’s final.” Nobody said anything. Well nobody had the courage to. 

Hannah, Juno and Aurora worried over the leader's condition but they all knew she wouldn’t change her mind. Slowly everyone resumed their tasks. Three women surrounded Moxy to fix her makeup and clothes. Practically erasing the past four minutes from reality. 

The girls ran to reenter the stage while the music started up for Our Time Is Here. Several mangers followed behind the eldest, making sure she made it to the stage safely. Before Moxy walked out, Soonjae grabbed her hand. 

“Answer me one thing? Have you been eating?” Moxy’s silence was answer enough. She couldn’t even look Soonjae in the eye. 

If looks could kill, Moxy wouldn’t be walking into a stadium full of cheers from the crowd. She’d be in for an earful when they got back to the hotel.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Moxy stayed back to get checked by the doctor while her other members left for the hotel. Maybe I won’t get chewed out tonight Moxy though as the car pulled into the hotel's parking lot. The dread built as she walked through the lobby to the elevators. The leader dragged her body down the hall, feet sliding on the carpeted floor. She swayed on her feet, fumbling with the key to unlock her door. 

She could feel the embrace of her bed close by but instead of a blissfully cold bed, there sat Hannah with a full bag of food and holding a phone, Moxy sighed knowing what she was in for.

“Oppa’s on the phone for you.” Hannah held the phone out for the leader to take.

“Taeyong-oppa?” She said, hopeful. 

“No…..Johnny-oppa.”

“Shit…” Hope’s shattered, Moxy plopped down on the chair across from Hannah. The dancer focused on taking out the food while Moxy braced herself for a pissed off Johnny.

“Yeobeoseyo?”

“........Thea Marie Thompson.” 

“Oppa before you start—” 

“Don’t even try it, Thea.” Moxy’s mouth snapped shut. She could feel Johnny's anger through the phone. 

“I can’t believe I’m talking to you about this. You promised me we would not repeat what happened during Regular promotions. You promised me you’d eat, Thea. But now not only am I getting calls from Soonjae but from Hannah about you passing out and still going back on stage.” Hearing Johnny’s retelling of what happened tonight made Moxy feel worse than she already did. Maybe things had gotten bad and she just didn’t want to acknowledge it. 

“I did and it wasn’t going that far. At least I didn’t think it was. I…I was only skipping food before the show. I tried to eat after..…but things got hectic. And that's on me. My nerves have been getting to me and I felt like I couldn’t stomach anything. So I kept going because I had to” Both sides of the line were quiet. “I’m sorry for not calling for help.”

“Tell me why I shouldn’t fly out to make sure you’re eating before every show.” 

“Hannah’s already got food sitting in front me.” Moxy looked out at the impressive spread Hannah was able to put together between the ending of the show and the car ride to the hotel. 

“You should have told Hannah beforehand.” 

“I thought I could handle it okay! I’m not some little kid Johnny. I’m a young adult who made a mistake and went past her limits” She heard Johnny sigh on the other end.

“You’re right…..You’re right you are an adult. But can you blame me for being concerned? Last time this happened, you landed in hospital with no one knowing what was wrong. I never want any of us to go through that again.” Moxy didn’t like to think about her last stretch of not eating. All of her memories revolved around the worried looks of the 127 members as they surrounded her hospital bed. 

“I’m sorry Johnny. I promise to keep a closer watch on my food intake.” 

“And I promise to help her.” Hannah chimed in, making Johnny and Moxy laugh. “Don’t worry oppa, we’ll get our leader back on track.” Hannah placed a container of food in front of Moxy and a fork. Before he hung up, Johnny told Hannah to take photo evidence of Moxy eating and send it to him. To ease his worries. 

Moxy finally dug into the delicious food Hannah had ordered. It’s not weird to cry over really good food, right?

“So what happens?” Hannah asked between bites. 

“What do you mean?” 

“When it feels like you can’t eat. What runs through your head.” Moxy blew a raspberry trying to think of how to answer that.

“I guess….I overthink about everything. The performance and my vocals. I want everything to be perfect for the fans. I don’t want to disappoint them. Those thoughts…..they run through my brain like a hamster wheel. I get overwhelmed then my stomach gets queasy. You know what happens next.” Moxy took another bite of her food. 

The members of 127 set up a code word to help Moxy through these anxious moments. Code: Underwater. Anytime her emotions took over, Moxy could text one of the members at any time. They in turn would help calm her down and get a couple bites of food down in Moxy’s system. The more she thought about it. The more the truth behind her regression became apparent. She was AG’s leader. Calling her older members for help with her anxiety felt like she was being a baby. Someone that wasn’t fit to lead a team, especially when they were away from home. 

“Now, you got me to help. And anytime you feel nervous like that I’ll remind you that you’re a beast and one of the best leaders around.” Hannah shook her shoulders, getting a smile on her face. 

Luckily, she has the greatest members on the planet. Who would never think less of her for having anxieties. 

“Even if you made a mistake you could never disappoint anyone. Not us and much less the fans, okay?” Moxy nodded. It would be difficult reaching out at first. But she never wanted to worry her members again. Not when it can be stopped beforehand. Taking Hannah’s words to heart, The oldest began to eat with earnest, savoring every bite. 

As they ate, Aurora and Juno joined them with their own food. The four of them crowded around the small table, sharing what they had between them. Moxy knew the younger two wanted to be close after she scared them today. 

The members decided to screw bedtime and just stay up. They scrolled through instagram, played music, danced and even caught up with some of the members. They all needed a night like this. After all, the tour just started. AG had a long way to go. 

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Next up for tour angst.....Hannah ~ Author Izzy

[neocatharsis]

NCT 127 3RD TOUR ‘NEO CITY - THE UNITY’

📢NCTzens, are you ready?!

Stay tuned for NCT 127’s 3rd tour!💚

📍SEOUL ∙ NAGOYA ∙ JAKARTA ∙ BULACAN

∙ BANGKOK ∙ MACAU ∙ OSAKA ∙ TOKYO

[fancy-rock-dove]

Chapter Head Art for Maybe Sprout Wings (Full set)

I have had just, So Much Fun working on these. This story really is built on such a great concept, and with such fantastic worldbuilding, and with action so thoroughly in tune with its themes that it really does reward digging into. @moorishflower's writing kills me in the best of ways (and in the sleep deprivation kind of ways but I have no regrets), and designing them was a great time. And on top of that, everyone here has been just, so lovely, so I'm very excited to post the full set of chapter head illustrations!

Stylistic consistency continues to elude me, but hopefully these look like a matched enough set regardless. Cursive titles are the chapter titles, block print is my own title for the illustration. Just for fun, and in tribute to the (probably truly unhinged) amount of time I spent thinking about Symbolism while making these, I'm including one selected Fun Fact relevant to my thoughts on some part of each of these at the bottom of this post in case that interests anyone!

Ch 1: Baobabs are some of the oldest living flowering plants on the planet and can live up to two millennia. I have a lot of feelings about the sheer volume of life these trees can contain (both spatially and in time) and what that means for how we look at them.

Ch 2: If Abel were looking to avoid anachronism, he could still absolutely have left out books that were machine-printed with moveable type, but they'd probably have to have been in Chinese or Korean, from somewhere that had already widely adopted the technology by the 14th century.

Ch 3: Homer's works contain what is believed to be the first written mention of apples in Ancient Greece. Its writing is about as many centuries removed from the events of the Odyssey as the events of this chapter are from the first recorded mention of apples in England.

Ch 4: An ink quill is definitely more aesthetic, but graphite had actually been discovered in England and pencils invented in the decades prior to Shakespeare's first writings. It's entirely possible he could've been jotting down quick notes with a pencil like any stagehand today.

Ch 5: Though Corinthian style architecture is named for the Greek city of Corinth, with which it's associated, its inventor Callimachus is actually thought to be Athenian. The spiny, curling acanthus leaves used in its motifs are generally associated with long life, immortality, and rebirth. Go figure.

Ch 6: Symbolically, clovers are a sign that others are thinking of you. They're associated with good fortune, and apparently also male energy, and seen as a sign of protection. Excellent Fiddler's Green groundcover here.

Ch 7: Three-masted, fully-rigged ships became common in Europe by the 16th or 17th centuries during the Age of Sail because the extra space for sails became more necessary with the increase in open-ocean voyages. Making them the go-to type of vessel for both trade and exploration.

Ch 8: The simple but effective design of drop spindles is largely unchanged from their first documented use in the first century CE. there's evidence of their use for spinning (making a single, stronger thread from many disparate fibers) dating back at least to the advent of agriculture, some 10,000 years ago. Definitely what I picture Clotho using.

Ch 9: The fractal, branching structures of roots, lightning, and Lichtenberg figures are all self-similar: you can get much closer and they'll still appear very similar or identical to the way they were at a distance.

Ch 10: The throne room scenes of Sandman were shot in Guildford Cathedral. The Dreaming's Castle was intentionally designed to be a mashup of a whole ton of architectural styles, but the facade and throne room definitely feel gothic or neo-gothic. It's been a classic for centuries and the gothic-style window is definitely the kind I picture Hob's room having, at least on days the castle's feeling a bit fancy.

Ch 11: The item at the front left there is a weaving shuttle. According to Artemidorus, while dreaming of most kinds of looms indicates that you should expect rest, dreaming of a warp-weighted loom -- the kind which was common in bronze-age Greece and enables multiple people to work together on the weaving -- indicates an upcoming journey.

Ch 12: I feel like I've already talked about the symbolism of this one elsewhere, so for this one, instead of a fact, a comment (that I found fun): The binding circle in this only shows up in areas covered by the puddle of the Dreaming Sea, the means by which the nature of the "gilded ring" was elucidated. :)

Ch 13: Greek ships often had eyes on their bow, which among other things, was intended to imbue them with some will and ability to avoid obstacles. The Argo famously had eyes and also some innate awareness/intelligence, and could actually speak to the crew.

Ch 14: While Calliope, muse of epic poetry and eloquence (and the one invoked at the beginning of the Odyssey) is associated with a book, scroll, or tablet, Erato, muse of romantic poetry and love stories, is depicted in crowns of rose and myrtle. My title for this one was very nearly just (Invocation pt. ii). Also, I have a headcanon that Dream has only seen very bad performances of the Odysseyif ( he's seen any at all) since antiquity. Any show that literally begins by calling his ex is something he's not gonna stay for unless he's really sure she won't actually show up.

Whew! thanks to anyone who actually read to the end of my rambling here! Clearly this whole story has been really, really fun to just turn over in my mind. Cool stuff just keeps falling out of it! Since I would literally be two photos under Tumblr's limit on this post otherwise, how about a couple bonus alternate versions at the end here? Because why not?? I added some red accents to a couple of these for fun, and though it doesn't fit the for the chapter headings, I do think it looks cool!