#no one ever thought the animated movie had anything to do with actual history and they should have kept it that way

[snowandstarlight]

it annoys me that in the overture for the anastasia musical, her grandmother sings the words to "once upon a december"

the whole point of that song is that she doesn't remember more than the tune! the words are about her vague memories of her childhood! it makes no sense for her grandmother to sing them!

[honeyryewhiskey]

december

or, it's christmas tiiiime, and now dean is getting bossed around by his cupid to prepare the bunker for the holiday. he's totally loving it, just don't tell anyone. cw!! fluff! fluff! holiday fluff and wait—you do what under a mistletoe? heated kissing, strong language, 18+ 6.3k words

You’re sitting crisscrossed on the living room floor, barely a foot away from the TV, eyes glued to the screen.

Dean had left early in the morning for supplies, leaving you to follow Sam around the bunker like a shadow. You peppered him with endless questions about hunting, lore books, and the monsters they hunted until his patience started to fray. A tough feat with the ever sympathetic Sam, but somehow you keep managing to push that boundary with both the Winchesters. When the topic turned to his love life—your innocent curiosity fully unhinged—Sam had finally cracked. To remedy the situation, he popped in a DVD, and it only took a few seconds for you to become completely absorbed into the grinch who stole christmas. 

The sound of the bunker door opening and slamming shut breaks the movie’s spell for a moment. Dean’s heavy boots clamber down the stairs as he grumbles, “Unbelievable. Two other mouths this food is feedin’ and not a single hand to help unload the car.”

You don’t budge, the movie is far more compelling than whatever Dean’s annoyed about. What did not go unnoticed by the disgruntled man was your attention being on the screen, instead of on him. None of your usual circling around him asking what he got at the store like you usually do. The thought buzzed around in his brain as he put the groceries away. A pesky little feeling of wanting your attention setting him on edge. He couldn’t even help himself, peeking out of the kitchen a few times to look back at your hypnotized form. 

The vibrant hues of the screen reflected in your pupils as you watched each grumpy humph and retort from the Grinch. You found the oddly green and fluffy thing endearing, his antics making you think of another huffing, grumbling, dramatic man. 

Suddenly, a soft brown teddy bear appears in your line of sight. The stuffed animal disrupts your viewing, staring back at you with shiny black eyes and a stitched-in smile. You blink, eyes trailing up the arm holding it. Dean towers over you, wearing his usual grumpy scowl—an expression that contrasts so sharply with the stuffed bear in his hand that you almost laugh.

“Here,” he gruffs, shaking the bear slightly. “You wouldn’t shut up about wanting one on our last hunt, and the store had some, so��”

Your brows knit in confusion, raking your brain until you remember the bears at the gala. Cute and just begging for you to take home. Too much action of the night led to you leaving without a new plush friend, and you did bring it up to Dean at least once. Maybe twice, four or five times at most. 

Realizing Dean was actually listening to your spiels—despite his expressions making you think otherwise—makes your face light up with a radiant smile. You take the bear gingerly, cradling it like something precious. It’s plump, soft, and better than the ones at the gala. Settling it into your lap, you resume your movie watching, tucking the bear snugly as if it’s watching the film with you.

Dean’s frown softens—just a little—as he watches.

You lift a finger to point at the screen, peering up at him with furrowed brows. “Dean, this movie says Christmas is a holiday in December. It’s December now, but you and Sam haven’t said anything about this Christmas stuff.”

Dean shifts uncomfortably, his eyes darting around the room like he’s hunting for an escape route. “It’s… made up,” he shrugs. “Not a real holiday.”

“Oh,” you murmur, frown tugging at your lips as you look back at the TV. Holidays are becoming one of your favorite things these days. You were aloofly aware that humans had traditions, but there were so many over the course of human history that you never bothered to keep track. Now that the Winchesters have clued you in on some of these celebrations, you find it hard to believe the boys can be so lax about participating. And although you try your damn hardest not to be overly excited over learning new things, the joy that holidays brought you was a Pandora's box you’ve decided to leave cracked open. 

“Dean,” Sam’s voice cuts through the air as he walks into the room, a deep sigh trailing behind him. “Why are you lying to her about Christmas?”

“Lying?” You whip your head between the brothers, wide-eyed. 

Sam shoots Dean a look—one that says fix it—while Dean smiles coolly back, clearly unbothered.

“I’m not—” Dean starts, but Sam raises a brow. Dean groans, rubbing a hand over his jaw. “Okay, fine. I lied. But we’re not—”

“We have to prepare!” you shout, leaping to your feet. Screw containing excitement. The movie showed you the wonderful intensity of this Christmas thing, and you’d be damned if you let Dean grumble his way out of this one. 

The teddy bear tumbles to the floor, forgotten for the moment. “We need a tree, and presents, and cookies, and sweaters!” You list, recounting from the film. Your gaze falls back to the bear, and you scoop it up quickly, holding it close. Your eyes sparkle as you coo, “Grumpy Bear needs a sweater, too.”

Dean freezes. “Grumpy Bear?”

Sam’s brow furrows. “Wait—Grumpy Bear?”

“Uh-huh,” You nod eagerly, trying not to laugh at your own joke and ruin it. Jokes were hard and you’re still getting the hang of them. “I named him after Dean.”

Dean groans, pinching the bridge of his nose as Sam fails to stifle his chuckle. “You’re killin’ me, lovebird,” Dean mutters under his breath.

“Alright, then,” Sam interjects, clapping his hands together before pointing at you and Dean, “you two go out and get us a tree and what-not. I’ll stay here and get the bunker ready.” He’s sporting a smug grin, clearly satisfied with his swift evasion of having to do any of the brunt work.

“What? Dude—no.” Dean shoots back, his head tilting as he sighs. 

“That’s a perfect plan, Sam!” you chirp back, placing Grumpy Bear on the couch. You don’t give Dean the chance to protest further, darting to grab your shoes and jacket while the brothers bicker in the living room. 

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

The Impala hums steadily along the snowy road, but your focus is on the radio’s dial. Before you left the bunker, Sam had pulled you aside, helpfully informing you of the radio stations that play nonstop festive music this time of year. You memorized his quick instructions: Just turn the right dial, he’d said, until the static gives way to something jolly and christmas-y.

So far, though, all you’ve found is static—and the longer it drags on, the more Dean radiates a particular brand of agitation that’s starting to fill the car.

“Love,” he finally says, his voice tight with thinly veiled annoyance, “what are you doing?”

“Hang on, I just have to find—” You twist the dial a little more, and finally, success. The opening notes of have a holly jolly christmas crackle through the speakers, soft and cheerful. Satisfaction pools through you at the sound. A stark contrast to the usual sounds coming from the impala’s speakers: loud, crashing instruments with throaty vocals and a single song lasts for what feels like forever. Classic rock, he once told you, nothin’s better than the classics. 

Dean groans like you’ve just personally offended him and immediately reaches over to change the station, but you’re faster. You swat his hand away with a firm pout.

“No way, Grinch.” You shake your head, crossing your arms triumphantly. “It’s Christmas time, and we’re getting into the spirit.”

Dean’s eyes flick between you and the road, and though his expression starts off sour, you can see the amusement tugging at the corner of his lips. Sam had warned you this would happen. He’d even told you exactly what to say when Dean inevitably tried to kill the Christmas cheer: Just say something about getting into the Christmas spirit, and be firm, Cupid. You know how he gets. 

“Grinch, huh?” Dean mutters, throwing you a sidelong glance. “Alright, fine. I’ll let it slide this one time. But for the record,” his finger goes up in protest, “I am not the Grinch.”

“Oh, no?” You grin, eyes playfully scowling at him. “Mean, grumpy guy up on the mountain gets all gushy when someone’s nice to him for once? Sounds like someone I might know.”

Dean huffs out a laugh, finally giving in to the playful banter. “Grumpy, mean—fine. But I do not do gushy.”

Hearing his laugh makes your heart flutter, the sound feeling like a trophy when he’s usually at his wit ends with you. Dean was in general a pessimistic guy, that much you’ve noticed. And he was mean when he first met you, and wrongly assumed you’d be an annoying mouthpiece from heaven. But in the months you’ve spent following him around, you’ve started to figure out how to make that scowl melt into a big smile. 

It was hit or miss most of the time, but you always were a bit of a boundary pusher. 

“You do, too.” you press mockingly.

“Uh-huh,” he breathes, brows quirking, “Is that so? Well if I’m the grinch that makes you, what—my Cindy Lou Who?” His face squints with his words. 

“Exactly,” you chirp, practically glowing with pride. Without thinking, you reach over, placing a small hand on his chest. “And I’m gonna make sure that heart grows three sizes, Winchester.”

Dean’s eyes flicker between you and your hand. His mouth twitching into a lopsided smile as he shakes his head. “I bet you will, lovebird,” he murmurs, voice softer now as you retract into your seat and he focuses on the road again. “I bet you will.”

The playful warmth lingers as the Impala rolls on, the car filling with soft holiday tunes and the quiet hum of the engine. You nod along to the music, sneaking glances at Dean as he drums his fingers against the wheel in time with the song.

The scenery outside begins to shift, and Dean slows the car, turning onto a gravel driveway. The worn out sign on the left side gate at the entrance reads, The Ginger Family Farm – Christmas Trees & Reindeer!

Your gaze sharpens as you sit up straighter, a large red barn sits on the hill, surrounded by neat lines of snowy pine trees. It’s an old and faded structure, but the chimney bellows smoke and the doors are propped open. From this distance all you can see are the twinkling lights inside and movement from the people within. But it’s the pasture near the entrance that really catches your attention. A herd of reindeer grazes lazily by a fence, their soft brown fur gleaming in the afternoon sun. Another faded sign beside them reads: Santa’s Helpers Live Here!

Dean hasn’t even fully parked when you unbuckle your seatbelt and lean over him, climbing into his lap to get a better look out of his window.

“Dean,” you whisper, eyes alight with wonder as your nose grazes against the glass, “are those… reindeer?”

He glances down at you, an amused smirk tugging at his lips. “Yep,” he replies, reaching over your frame to throw the car into park.

“They’re real?” you ask, turning to him with wide eyes, equal parts skeptical and fascinated. “I mean, I knew they were real, but I didn’t think I’d ever actually see them.”

Dean chuckles as he pops his door open, an arm going around your waist to stop you from tumbling out of the open door. “Real enough. But don’t get your hopes up—they don’t fly.”

You slide out after him, giving him a mildly exasperated look. “I know they don’t fly, Dean. Our universe has exactly three beings with wings: birds, bugs and angels. That much I am sure of.”

Dean snorts, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets as he watches you drift toward the fence, your curiosity written all over your face. The way your head starts to tilt, lips popping open as your eyes start to squint. Dean has witnessed this look more than a handful of times now, and it still has that same damn effect of making him want to watch you explore new things all day. 

But it also makes his heart twist and strain as the pounding reverberates throughout his entire body. The kind of thing he does not want to think deeper about. You’re just cute, that’s all, and what kind of monster would say no to something so, damn, cute?

“You wanna go say hi?” Dean calls after you, his voice light and teasing.

You glance back at him, a shy smile finding your lips. “I can do that?”

“Sure, bet there’s some kid over there feeding them carrots. You can be next in line.” He teases.

The teasing goes over your head, as all you really heard was Dean agreeing to something. Without hesitation, you grab his hand, tugging him toward the pasture. “Fine by me, but you’re feeding them. I don’t do well with teeth.” you shutter. 

Dean raises his brows, his expression caught somewhere between confusion and amusement. He tucks that comment away for later, adding it to the growing list of your quirks that simultaneously baffle and charm him. But you’re tugging him across the snowy field, all bright-eyed and—oh god—giggly, you’re giggling. He can’t bring himself to stop you.

And if his hand stays wrapped in yours a little longer than necessary—warm and steady against the cold air—well, that’s between him and his not-so-Grinch-sized heart.

As you approach the pasture, the reindeer lift their heads, their large, black eyes blinking lazily in your direction. One of them—a particularly curious-looking one with a slightly crooked antler—takes a few cautious steps closer to the fence.

You freeze mid-step, tucking yourself closer to Dean. “It’s coming over here,” you hiss, half-whisper, half-excited gasp. You weren’t used to animals of this size, a nervousness you’re still getting used to feeling creeps up your spine. With your hand still intertwined in his, you use your free hand to clutch his arm and merely peek at the animal from the safety of Dean’s side. 

“Yeah, that’s kind of the idea,” Dean replies, deadpan, though the grin tugging at his lips betrays his amusement.

The reindeer stops a few feet away, eyeing you both with what you can only describe as mild suspicion. You tighten your grip on Dean’s hand and arm, big eyes peering up at him expectantly as you nudge him forward slightly. “Okay, go on, you first.”

Dean snorts, stepping forward to the fence. “It’s a reindeer, not a beast. Relax.” He leaves your side, the winter air hitting him a little harder without your warmth pressed against his side. Leaning against the wooden fence, he holds out a tentative hand like he’s done this a thousand times before.

To your surprise, the reindeer moves closer, sniffing at his fingers. You watch, wide-eyed, as it nudges Dean’s palm with its fuzzy pink nose.

“See? Not so bad,” Dean coos, glancing back at you with an infuriatingly smug expression.

You scoff, crossing your arms. “Sure, you’re the reindeer whisperer. But if I try that, it’s probably gonna bite me.”

“Doesn’t even have teeth to bite with,” he replies, rolling his eyes.

“You’re lying again, aren’t you?” you mutter, eyes sizing into slits from suspicion. Dean shrugs, but the smirk on his face instills your weariness. 

Hesitantly, you shuffle closer. Keeping close to Dean, so that most of his body is between you and the animal, you tentatively reach out. Dean’s large hands contrast yours when they’re side by side like this, and he impatiently moves yours to touch the curious snout. 

A quiet, nervous gasp escapes you, but the reindeer only leans into your touch. It’s nose is soft and velvety. The feel of it momentarily puts out your nervous flames. Dean gently maneuvers you in front of him to give you ample space for petting, leaning down to your ear he speaks softly, “There you go, little angel. Just be gentle, alright? Don’t wanna spook ‘em.” 

The words spook ‘em makes you jump back, but there’s little space to move with Dean being so close. Making you become a stumbling mess between him and the fence. Your harsh movements scares the reindeer, as the nimble animal darts back to it’s herd. Leaving you huffing with your heart pounding.

With your hands now safely back at your sides, you feel Dean’s chest rumble with laughter as you whip around to shoot him a scowl. “Not funny, Dean.” you whine, watching as he struggled to pull himself out of the laughing fit. 

A familiar sound, music like the kind you found in the car, turns your attention to the old barn. You take notice of the small cluster of families near the entrance, their arms full of freshly cut Christmas trees. The warm glow of string lights spills out from the open barn doors, illuminating the snow-dusted path leading up to it.

With one more flash of sharpened eyes at Dean, you march on towards the cosy atmosphere on the hill. Dean quickly falls in line, mumbling half-hearted apologies through the fading bubbles of laughter.

Stepping into the barn, the scent of fresh pine and hay wrap around you like a warm blanket. Inside, a few people mingle and look around the shop. A large wooden counter sits in the center, where an elderly man with kind eyes and a bushy white beard greets you with a wide smile.

Dean leans into your ear again as walks past, quickly murmuring, “That’s definitely Santa.” He pulls away with a glimmering smirk and shoots you a wink as he approaches the counter. 

“Looking for a tree?” The man in a buffalo plaid jacket asks, his voice warm and welcoming. Your thoughts briefly wonder if he is Santa. But if a spirit actually went around invading people’s houses on the same night every year, surely Sam and Dean would have done something about it by now. You settle on a quiet suspicion that you would not be asking Dean about. 

Dean glances at you, green eyes softening. “Yeah,” he says, his tone lighter than usual. “Somethin’ nice. She’s got high standards, this one.” He gestures to you with a big, charming smile. You nod back, not entirely sure what high standards for a tree would be, but you’re certain the bunker would need the best damn tree available. 

Dean starts talking about height, type, and price with mr-may-or-may-not-be-Santa—a conversation that makes your brain wonder elsewhere. The barn was warm and something behind the counter mixed a chocolatey scent into the pine air. Wooden shelves lined the walls, stocked with syrup bottles, boxes of pastries, and Christmas themed trinkets. You moved towards them to get a closer look and search for anything pie-like for Dean. 

As you muse around the small space, a basket of small, handwoven angel-dolls catches your eye. Curious, you step closer and pick one up, tilting your head as you inspect its delicate details. Each doll is unique, with different hair and skin tones, but they all share the same serene, closed-eyed expression. They look kind. Peaceful. So different from the angels you once knew in Heaven. 

The quiet shuffle of boots behind you signals Dean’s approach. His jacket brushes the back of yours as he leans over your shoulder, his gaze following yours to the doll.

“That’s what we put on the top of the tree,” he says casually.

“Why?” you ask, tucking the angel back into its basket.

“Uh, not sure, really. Maybe—”

A gentle clink, clink, clink interrupts him. You both turn toward the sound to see the jolly man behind the counter holding a silver bell high over his head. His grin stretches wide over his rosy face as he announces, “You two are the first of the season!”

Dean’s brows furrow. “The first what?” he mutters under his breath, while your own confusion mirrors his.

The man gestures upward with a wink, then turns back to his work. Dean follows his motion, his head tilting back, he sees it. “Oh god,” he whispers with a quiet groan. 

“What?” Your eyes trail up, finding a small sprig of green with red berries hanging over your heads. 

“Mistletoe,” he answers flatly.

Your head tilts with curiosity, still staring at the small fixture, “and that means?”

Dean hesitates, glancing at you before clearing his throat. “You’re supposed to kiss whoever you’re caught underneath it with. And if you don’t, you get bad luck.” 

Your lips twitch as you stifle a giggle. The thought of humans, for centuries, kissing beneath a little spring for the sake of good luck. Humans and their little quirks, never ceasing to entertain you. “How romantic.” you muse, that mischievous look, the one Dean has learned to recognize, is glowing in your eyes again.

He shifts uncomfortably, his hand rubbing the back of his neck,  “It’s a stupid superstition we don’t—”

You’re not even paying attention to the words coming from his mouth. Instead, you lean onto your tiptoes, grabbing his wide shoulders for support as your lips place a soft kiss against his. He’s warm against your skin, his hands instinctively finding their place at your hips, causing goosebumps to ripple along your skin. Hot and dizzying. The sensation is so exciting that a light bulb clicks on inside your mind. This must be why humans kiss under a damn sprig. 

It’s over just as quick, a fleeting touch, but enough to leave Dean frozen in place. When you pull back, his wide-eyed expression makes you bite your lip to suppress a laugh. You briefly wonder if kissing him when he’s grumpy would leave the same effect. A thought you’ll probably test, as it cements itself into the fabrics of your mind.

“You’re looking at me funny.” You say with a laugh. The innocence in your voice makes Dean’s head spin. Batting your lashes up at him like a kiss is as simple as a high five. 

He blinks, green eyes raking your face as he processes what just happened, “You just kissed me.”

“Mhm,” you hum nonchalantly, thinking nothing of it.

“But you’re an angel—cupid or whatever.”

You arch a brow, tilting your head as if the thought hadn’t crossed your mind. “And?”

“I don’t know, I just…” Dean falters, gesturing vaguely. “I figured you’d be… you know, above that sort of thing.”

The corners of your lips twitch as you suppress a smile, your voice soft but teasing. “Did you think that means I’m some sort of prude, Dean Winchester?”

“Well, yeah,” he admits, still too caught off guard to filter his words. “Kinda.”

You shrug, your eyes alight with quiet amusement. “I’ve never been afraid of a little sin.”

Dean stares at you, utterly baffled, his mouth opening like he wants to say something but can’t quite find the words. His mind spins in circles, caught somewhere between disbelief and the faintest flicker of something he refuses to name.

Finally, he shakes his head and mutters, “Lovebird, you’re gonna be the death of me.”

You grin, the playful spark in your eye only growing. “Maybe. But at least you won’t have bad luck now.”

Dean groans, running a hand down his face as he turns toward the barn’s open doors. “C’mon, let’s just find a damn tree and get out of here before you decide to test any more sins on me.”

But as he walks ahead, his heart beats a little faster, and he doesn’t dare think too much about why he already misses the warmth of your lips.

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

“Are you sure the Santa guy said you could do this?” You ask, your voice tinged with doubt as you glance between Dean and the awfully large axe slung over his shoulder.

Dean stands there, the very picture of confidence, one hand propped on his hip and the other gripping the axe like he’s posing for the cover of Lumberjack Monthly. His eyes rake over the tallest tree in the grove, a determined smirk playing on his lips. Somehow, he’d sweet-talked the man at the counter into letting him chop down the damn tree himself—a detail you’re still struggling to wrap your head around.

Your eyes timidly look over the rest of the trees. Some were already cut, bound in netting and propped against fences. Closer to the barn, a few families stand around men, dressed in matching plaid and denim, as they expertly axe down the pine—the way it’s supposed to go, a tradition you quickly picked up on. 

Dean doing it himself, when you assume he’s never taken down a tree before, does not feel like the right way to go about the tradition. 

“Cupid,” Dean sighs dramatically, still appraising the tree, “I chop vamp heads for a living. I think I can handle a little tree.”

You eye the towering pine skeptically. “I wouldn’t exactly call this ‘little.’”

Dean turns to you, his smirk widening as a glint of mischief flashes in his eyes. “That’s what—” He stops mid-sentence, recoiling at himself as he shakes his head. “Nope. Nope. Not doin’ it.”

You blink at him, confused by his abrupt backpedaling, but before you can ask, he’s already stepping up to the tree and hefting the axe like it’s a wonky baseball bat.

With a hefty swing, the blade lodges into the trunk with a solid thud. Dean pauses, straightening to inspect his handiwork, though his furrowed brow suggests he’s less than impressed.

Letting out a frustrated huff, he shrugs off his jacket and shoves it into your hands. “Hold this,” he mutters, already focused on pulling the axe free for another attempt.

You dutifully clutch the jacket, taking a tentative step back as Dean lines up his next swing. The follow-through chips a small piece from the trunk, sending it flying through the air. Your gaze tracks it as it lands quietly in the snow.

“Dean,” you whine softly, glancing around at the other families in the field who seem to be having a much smoother time letting professionals handle the chopping. “Maybe we should—”

A sharp crack interrupts you, the sound startling as it echoes through the crisp air. Your breath catches as you snap your attention back to Dean, who’s now whistling under his breath, clearly pleased with himself.

“Alright!” he cheers, his grin wide and triumphant as he puts more force behind his swings. The tree trembles with each impact, the gap between trunk and stump widening until, at last, the entire pine groans and falls with a muffled thud into the snow.

Dean chucks the axe to the ground, throwing his arms up in victory. His breath puffing visibly in the cold air. “That’s what I’m talkin’ about, baby!”

For a moment, you’re frozen, staring at the tree in awe. It’s not just any tree, you realize—it’s your very first Christmas tree. The thought sinks in, filling you with a fizzy warmth that bubbles up into a grin so wide it makes your cheeks ache. Without thinking, you hop across the snow to where Dean is standing, your boots crunching beneath you.

“You did it!” you squeak, your voice breathless with excitement as you fling your arms around his neck.

The hug catches Dean off guard, but his hands instinctively settle at your waist, pulling you closer and lifting you just slightly off the ground. He’s sturdy, like an anchor, and for a moment, the world feels perfectly still despite the crisp air and the snow swirling gently around you.

You pull back a fraction, your arms still looped loosely around his neck, and Dean looks down at you, his own grin softening. His chest tightens unexpectedly at the sight of you—eyes wide and sparkling, cheeks flushed from the cold, or maybe from something else entirely. The joy radiating from you feels almost too much, too bright, too... vulnerable.

He swallows hard, his throat suddenly dry as the warmth of the moment wraps around him.

“Oh, lover,” he murmurs, the nickname tumbling out unbidden, his voice low and almost reverent. “you gotta stop lookin’ at me like that. For my own sake.”

Your grin falters for just a second, confusion flickering in your eyes. “Like what?” you ask softly, your voice almost unsure, as if the words themselves hold a weight you can’t quite grasp.

Dean chuckles, shaking his head like he’s trying to brush off the way his stomach twists at your innocent question. “Never mind,” he mutters, his hands lingering just a moment too long before gently setting you back on the snowy ground.

You don’t linger on his words, too focused on the tree, and how it doesn’t make you feel jittery and nervous like the way looking Dean in the eye is making you feel. “C’mon, Dean,” you say, your voice bright again, “let’s get this Christmas tree home!”

Dean watches you bounce toward the tree’s trunk, your laughter dancing in the air like the snowflakes falling around you. His chest feels tight again, but this time, he doesn’t fight it. The way your smile lingers in his mind feels dangerous, but he can’t seem to let it go. 

Against his own better judgement, he lets himself soak it all in—the smile he puts on your face, the way your excitement feels like a kiss from the sun in the dead of winter.

He exhales slowly, his breath visible in the cold air, and picks up the axe with a quiet smile tugging at his lips. Watching you crouch to inspect the tree like it’s the most magical thing you’ve ever seen, he reels in the inexplicable warmth settling in his chest.

“Yeah,” he murmurs to himself, his voice soft. “Let’s get it home.”

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

Back at the bunker…

The living room feels much more cozy with all of the festive decor priming the room. The scent of pine mingling with the usual smell of dust and old books. The tree is nearly perfect—twinkling lights casting a golden glow, red and green ornaments catching the light in sparkling bursts. But the top remains bare.

The three of you are finishing up the tree, clad in matching sweaters. Dean let you pick them out, each adorning little reindeer and ‘oh deer’ written across the image with sparkling jewels. 

“You’re too far to the left, Sam!” you call out, hands on your hips as you stand beside Dean.

“It’s centered,” Sam retorts, utilizing his full height and wing span as he adjusts the angel at the top of the tree.

“No, she’s right,” Dean cuts in frankly, arms crossed. He squints up at the angel. “It’s a little crooked. Just tilt it—”

Sam groans. “You two are impossible.”

You nudge Dean with your elbow, grinning up at him. “Told you I have a good eye.”

Dean smirks, shaking his head. “You? A good eye?” He shakes his head, smirking.  “Please.”

With an exaggerated huff, Sam adjusts the angel one more time, muttering something under his breath about “backseat decorators.” But when both you and Dean gasp in unison, he pauses to look down.

“Better?”

“Perfect!” you both chime at the same time, your voices overlapping in synchronicity.

You glance at Dean, giggling at the moment’s absurdity, only to find him already looking at you. His grin softens, the teasing edge replaced by something warmer, deeper.

“Told you teamwork makes the dream work,” he gloats, but his voice is quieter, almost teasing.

You look away quickly, that funny warmth spreading to your cheeks again. The way he keeps looking at you today, all that warmth in his pretty green eyes—it’s too much. There’s a warm gooey feeling stirring in your chest, the intensity of new emotions is always exhausting. But this? You’re not even sure how you’re still standing when your knees keep going weak. 

Your hand brushes against the weight in your pocket, the mistletoe you had swiped earlier suddenly feeling heavier. The memory of the earlier kiss flashes in your mind, and your stomach flutters nervously. What if—no. You can’t just stand here thinking about it. God, no. You have a thought to chase down and explore.

“I, um… I’ll be right back!” you blurt out, spinning on your heel before either brother can question you.

Dean blinks, caught off guard. “What? Where are you—?”

But you’re already halfway down the hall, moving faster than you probably need to. Sam and Dean share confused looks, the younger brother shrugging before turning back to the tree to adjust some of the ornaments. Dean tries to let it go, but he’d actually enjoyed having you so close to him all day, he couldn’t just shake the annoyance he felt at your absence. 

Meanwhile, your quickened pace comes to a harsh stop at your room, heart racing. Clumsily pulling the small spring from your pocket, you fasten it to the doorframe with a piece of tape.  You step back to admire your handiwork, a sly grin spreading across your face despite the butterflies in your stomach.

“Dean!” you call out, your voice light and sing-songy, “can you come here for a sec?”

His boots are heavy against the floor as he approaches, stopping just short of the doorway. His eyes narrow as they take in your giddy grin and the way you’re practically bouncing in place. 

“What’s going on?” he asks, suspicious.

You point upward, your smile widening as his gaze follows your gesture. The mistletoe dangles above him, and his expression shifts—part amusement, part exasperation.

“Seriously?” he drawls. “You stole that, didn’t you?”

You press your lips together, suppressing a giggle. “Borrowed,” you correct innocently.

Dean shakes his head, his lips pressing together in a way that barely hides his smile. “You’re somethin’ else, you know that?” but it’s so quiet, as if he’s only speaking to himself.

You shrug, your playful tone impossible to hide. “I’m a cupid,” you say sweetly, as if that explains everything. “And you’re under the mistletoe.” You remind him. 

He sighs, leaning against the doorframe. His eyes take their time looking you up and down. Like he’s trying to measure you up, your mischievous nature making his head spin once again. 

And Dean really hates getting his mind frazzled, especially by a little thing who’s so goddamn sugary sweet.

 “Uh huh, you got me there.” 

You nod, reeling in the way he’s giving into you. “Rules are rules, Dean.”

There are about a million and one reasons why he shouldn’t entertain this. Getting caught under the mistletoe at the barn was one thing—a moment of bad timing, easily brushed off. But this? This cheeky little stunt of yours, this deliberate invitation—it’s another story entirely. You’re an angel, literally, for God’s sake. There’s gotta be rules around this growing connection that he’s been so stubbornly ignoring. That much he’s sure of. Nevermind the fact that you’re pure, a true beacon of sweet curiosity and everything he is not. 

Dean knows damn well his rough hands would quickly break something so delicate if put in his grasp. 

But you’re excited, staring at him starry-eyed. And it’s just a kiss. Hardly a real one if there’s a mistletoe commanding it, right? 

Surely, this sin can be forgiven… twice. 

For once in his life, Dean lets go of the ever-tight grip he has on his better judgment. He silences the screaming voice in his head, loosens the chains on the flickering desire he’s tried so hard to bury. His body moves before his brain can catch up, his hand lifting to your face.

His thumb presses into the soft skin of your chin, his fingers firm but gentle as they tilt your head up toward him.

Your breath catches. He pauses, leaning in close enough that the peppermint-laced warmth of his breath fans over your lips. The hesitation lasts only a heartbeat, just long enough for that voice in the back of his mind to beg him to stop.

But he doesn’t.

Dean closes the distance, his lips pressing against yours. It’s firm but not harsh, sure yet somehow keeping a tenderness he’s finding harder to deny around you. Your world tilts, heart hammering so loudly you’re certain he can feel it in your chest. For a moment, the edges of everything blur—time, space, all of it—until there’s only him.

His hand slides to the back of your neck, pulling you closer. The other finds your hip, anchoring you to him in a way that feels as much like a need as a want. Your hands move instinctively, planting firmly on either side of his neck, fingers curling into his hair for stability.

The kiss deepens, unhurried yet consuming, his lips leading and yours eagerly following. The lingering scent of pine clings faintly to him, grounding you even as the dizzying heat of his touch threatens to sweep you away.

When he finally pulls back, his chest rises and falls heavily, breaths mingling with yours in the narrow space he leaves between you. His lips linger close to yours as he murmurs, voice low and rough, “Happy now?”

It takes a moment for you to find your voice, still lost in the haze of what just happened. Your cheeks burn, but the giddy smile spreading across your face is impossible to contain. “Oh, I don’t know,” you tease breathlessly, tilting your head. “Maybe. I think your Grinch heart might’ve grown at least one size today.”

Dean snorts, the tension breaking as the corner of his mouth lifts into the grin you’ve been pulling out of him all day. “You’re impossible,” he says, though there’s no real bite to it. Not this time.

Even as he steps back, as he forces himself to put distance between you, his eyes stay locked on yours. Jade green and conflicted, they linger for a beat too long, like he’s trying to figure out what on god’s green earth he’s just gotten himself into.

this was so long im sorry, i got a lil carried away

[cookiescribble]

First Day

A/N: this has been in my head for a long time because I have random trivial star trek knowledge and whenever they show spencer talking about star trek in the show i go all heart eyes so I wrote a little blurb 🫶🏻 also I had fem!reader in mind when I wrote this but I realized I didn’t actually make any references to gender so 🤷🏻 - mod angel 

Pairing: Spencer Reid x GN!Reader

Summary: Spencer bonds with his new coworker over Star Trek. 

~~~

It was my first day at the BAU, and I was a little… intimidated being here. I had been mostly keeping my head down and staying quiet, since social interaction wasn’t something I was great at. I was okay just watching the others interact with each other for now. 

“Hey, kid,” Derek called out, beckoning Spencer. “I need your help with the crossword.”

Spencer walked over to Derek’s desk, which was next to mine. “What’s up?” he asked. 

Derek pointed to the newspaper with his pencil. “7 across: James _ Kirk (Star Trek). 8 letters.”

Tiberius, I thought instinctively. I considered saying it out loud, but he hadn’t asked me, so I decided to stay quiet. 

“Tiberius,” Spencer said, almost as fast as I had thought it. 

I smiled to myself. I was always the only one who knew about geeky stuff. Until now, I guess. 

Derek finished filling in the crossword. “Thanks. I knew it was always James T. Kirk, but I didn’t know what it stood for.”

Without thinking, I spoke up. “Actually, in the third episode of The Original Series, someone who’s fighting Kirk prepares a gravestone for him and it says James H. Kirk.”

Everyone turned to look at me, staring at me with open mouths. I blushed. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything. But now I felt uncomfortable sitting in this silence. 

I cleared my throat. “Um. So. Yeah. It wasn’t always James T. Kirk, as you said. They didn’t mention his full initials until-“

“Episode 13: The Conscience of the King.” Spencer cut me off, his eyes lighting up like he had been dying to talk about this. He walked over to my desk and leaned on the front of it. “The first time they mention it is when Spock is checking his background and speaks it into the computer.”

I nodded, smiling. “Yeah, and they don’t mention the name Tiberius until the 6th movie, The Undiscovered Country.”

“Oh my god, there are two of them,” I heard Emily say. 

Either Spencer didn’t hear her or he was purposefully ignoring her. “Actually…” he started, sitting on my desk. He was bouncing a little. “The first time the name Tiberius is mention is in The Animated Series episode BEM.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that.” I admitted. “I’ve never actually seen The Animated Series. Actually, I’ve only ever seen part of The Original Series…”

That only made him sit up straighter. “Do you want to watch it? I have every episode on DVD. I’d be happy to show it to you sometime.”

I smiled. “Yeah, I’d like that. I’ve always wanted to finish watching it, and watch the other shows too. If you don’t mind me imposing…”

He shook his head. “I don’t mind at all. Not a lot of people I know are interested in Star Trek, so I’m happy to show it to you if you’re interested. You can come by my apartment sometime and we can watch it.”

I nodded. “That sounds great. I appreciate it.”

I heard people whispering in the distance. 

“Did he just-“

“Shh, don’t say anything, you’ll jinx it. I think this is the first time in history that this has ever worked.”

“And probably the last time it will ever work. This is definitely a unique circumstance.”

I blushed a little as I heard everyone talking about us, but I continued chatting comfortably with Spencer for a while before everyone was interrupted by the news that we had a case. But I was really relieved that, despite feeling so overwhelmed about starting this job, I had been able to make a friend on my first day.

[danjaley]

Adventures in Reading

The Hobbit - An Unexpected Journey

My first encounter with the Hobbit was when I was about ten years old and on a train-journey. My mother handed that pink edged book to me and said this was a good one, I'd enjoy it. So I looked at the cover and wondered which of these unpleasant-looking creatures was supposed to be the "Hobbit". To make things worse, the name Bilbo reminded me of a puppet-play by the Augsburger Puppenkiste "Bill-Bo und seine Kumpane" (about a gang of robbers), which I didn't enjoy. Although I usually think the world of the Augsburger Puppenkiste, and if they'd adapted the Hobbit, it would have been perfection.

Then I read the first few pages. A dwarf rang at the door of the "Hobbit". Then another dwarf. And another. And another. I did not notice anything humorous about it. I handed the book back and said it was a stupid book.

I don't have that copy any more - these are covers reprinted in the German Annotated Hobbit. It was only there that I found out, the cover art was originally supposed to look like the one on the left. Which at least has a unifying concept. But I have to confess I never liked anything by Klaus Ensikat.

The first thing by Tolkien I thoroughly enjoyed were the Father Christmas Letters, as an adorable tiny boxed set.

In my early teens, the Lord of the Rings movies came out, so it became common knowledge that this work existed, and The Hobbit was a prequel to it. My mother loves boxed sets, so of course we also have one of the Lord of the Rings+Hobbit. When I was small I always wondered why they put a small figure there instead of 0. Because I had seen those spines all my life, declared "a book for grown-ups" I never thought of them as something I might actually open and read. Since my best friend at the time "read Tolkien", I wanted to give him another chance, so I read Tuor's Arrival in Gondolin. Which is not exactly the best thing to start with.

There came the day my mother played a CD in the living-room, which I wanted to hear, but without anyone noticing I was listening. My relationship with music was even more complicated then, than it is now. So I picked up the first volume of The Lord of the Rings, which was lying about, and that was when I finally got it.

After this revelation I did read The Hobbit, but again I had tackled it wrong. Directly after The Lord of the Rings, I found it rather disappointing. It had one thing in common with Wuthering Heights: At 50% I thought, okay, all the famous quotes have been delivered, what on earth are they going to do with the rest of the book?

As an aside, my mother also owns this extraordinary English copy, which came out with the old animation-movie. That was my first read-through in English, but nowadays I have a reading-copy with all the appendices.

Then came the year 2012, in which the world did not end, but it was one of the worst years I ever lived through. It was also the year the first Hobbit movie was released. I remember thinking at the time, if I have nothing else to look forward to in this life, at least I can look forward to another two films like this. Gawd, I'm glad I was wrong! I hated part 2 and 3!

But that was when I finally got into reading The Hobbit and enjoying it. I remember how amazed I was how much the dwarf-scene made me laugh (with a clear memory of that train-experience). I had discovered that the university-library owned an old edition of the Annotated Hobbit, and I could read this in my breaks. Thanks to the movie, there was also an affordable, and much updated edition of that work in German (on the right).

But actually I also own it in English now, because the German can be all over the place, trying to squeeze poems and their translations into the margins. But then the German edition has an extra focus on the Hobbit's printing history in Germany. And that's how I discovered the beauty of annotated editions. It's a story-book, but with lots of stories about the story. I particularly love when stories in books develop after they have been published, like the famous riddle-scene between Bilbo and Gollum.

And so I wrote my own annotated edition of a book (currently secret, hopefully to be published over the next years).

[h-worksrambles]

I haven’t really spoken much about Sonic x Shadow Generations here since it came out but I have to say, I absolutely loved it. It’s the most fun I’ve had with 3D Sonic since…well, the original Generations in 2011. It has brilliant levels, fixes most of my problems with Sonic Frontiers and was an all round delight of an experience. In addition, it’s the first time in a long time that a Sonic story has genuinely impressed me. In a series where the narratives tend to either be a hodgepodge of badly executed anime tropes (sometimes in campy charming ways and other times not) or barebones excuse plots, this one (especially factoring in Dark Beginnings) was focused, cohesive and well presented in a way Sonic stories rarely are. I don’t have to add any qualifiers like ‘it’s camp!’ or ‘it’s a good idea’ or ‘it’s got some good moments’. It’s just legitimately well done.

And a big part of that was how well the game captured the character of Shadow. So I thought it would be fun to look back at the turbulent history of this guy, why the concept of him getting his own game this year had me both excited yet worried, and why the result so pleasantly surprised me.

Shadow first debuts in Sonic Adventure 2 and he’s a really entertaining character, here. Aside from having an aesthetic and music presentation designed in a lab to be the coolest thing a 2000s kid will have ever seen. He’s just smug and confident enough to bounce off of Sonic in an amusing way, but he has enough pathos to his character and backstory to remain endearing. There’s a lot of surprisingly thoughtful concepts regarding identity, memory and revenge that his story touches on. Couple that with his backstory that gets into darker territory than anything in the series prior and he’s easily got the most going on of any Sonic character. The only real critique I have is his story feels like it tries to do too much in such a short game (with a wonky translation). It asks a lot of big questions about the nature of memory to an artificial life form but doesn’t have much in the way of answers. Plus, his heel turn to the heroes’ side definitely feels a bit rushed. It effectively comes down to his true memories coming back a narratively convenient moment, and doesn’t give him much agency to make his own decisions. Like, nothing Amy says to him really gets through to him, nothing in his experiences over the game prompts a change of heart. Amy conveniently just happens to say the right thing to jog his memory. Shadow starts the game wanting to honour Maria’s memory and dies the same way. He’s just remembered what she actually wanted now, But his death is still pretty effective in the moment.

Is he basically just Mewtwo from the first Pokémon movie with the serial numbers filed off? Yes, but he’s the perfect encapsulation of SA2’s appeal. It’s a game that is camp and brave enough to own it. Even at its clumsiest and most derivative it’s consistently charming, and plenty of moments of unironic sentimentality shine through.

Unfortunately, he got so damn popular that Sonic Team refused to let him rest, so the next game, Sonic Heroes, saw him immediately revived and given amnesia. Which is a huge shame, as there was a lot of potential in Shadow coming back, reflecting on his actions in SA2 and actually having to put the work in to redeem himself and find a new purpose after clinging to revenge for so long. But we skate over that with a lot of pretty undercooked intrigue about how he survived that goes nowhere til the next game. Partnering him up with Rouge and Omega to create Team Dark is a good idea, even if this game gives them very little to do. But it’s the next two games where Shadow’s prominence would really peak, and where I have the bulk of my criticisms.

Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic 06 are two of Shadow’s most prominent showings in the series and to their credit, they do in some ways rectify that lack of agency I mentioned in Adventure 2. Shadow’s own game is all about an amnesiac Shadow’s search for answers while everyone around him puts pressure on him to be where they want: be that a hero, a weapon, or the villain of their story. The game then ends with him renouncing the expectations everyone else has placed on him. Not just Black Doom but even Gerald and Maria, renouncing his past entirely and so forging his own path, which carries neatly into Sonic 06. As much as I find reviving him with amnesia to be a trite and frustrating direction for the character, this is probably the best thing you could do with that premise. Making the new Shadow distinct from the old Shadow and so, in a sense, keeping that character dead.

That being said, there’s a big issue Shadow runs into here: He starts to become really boring. Maybe it’s just being in two Sonic games with bad writing and voice direction but Shadow loses so much personality here. There’s none of that cocky charisma that made him such a good rival to Sonic. In his own game, his amnesia reduces him to a blank slate, whose demeanour and motivations change in a dime depending on the last person he talked to because of the game’s botched morality system. Meanwhile, in 06, he suffers the same character writing issues as everyone else, droning out the plot in flat monotone delivery. While he makes out a little better than most of the cast as he gets an actual villain to face off against and more meat to his story, the presentation really hurts it. 06 tries to confront Shadow with a character who wants to tempt him back to his old vengeful ways, in the form of Mephiles, thereby cementing how far Shadow has come. Unfortunately, that temptation was pretty much Black Doom’s deal in the last game, so once Shadow rejects Mephiles outright, there is no conflict. It’s a case of like…two good scenes amidst three hours of nothing. There’s a fine line between stoic and dull. As compeling as the idea of making post amnesia Shadow effectively his own character is, these games struggled to give him a personality distinct from his SA2 persona. Now his personality is just ‘does cool shit’. I think Takashi Iizuka and Shiro Maekawa both got a little too fond of Shadow, and he really started turning into a creator’s pet. Cartoonishly badass and hyper competent in a way that upstages every other character. Shadow basically dominates 06’s plot and upstages every other character, but so much of his charisma has been lost at this point that he still ends up feeling dull. It’s played so straight and framed as ‘sooooo cooool’ but is so overwrought that he already feels like a parody of himself (think Legolas in The Hobbit movies).

After that, Shadow took a huge backseat from the series for over 15 years. With his backstory put to rest and with the series skirting away from the kind of dramatic or complicated plots that would give a character like Shadow a meaningful role, he’s left to hang in the background. And as much as I love Sonic Unleashed, Colors and especially Generations, this didn’t really prove a long term solution. Execution has always been the Achilles heel of Sonic writing and switching from clunky melodrama to clunky jokes ended to just being a short term bandaid, that worked fine for a few games but led to diminishing returns in the long run. A lot of people criticise this period of Shadow being ‘written like Vegeta’ more concerned with his rivalry with Sonic than anything else, with no time given to the pathos and relationships with other characters that kept him relatable. But that’s a mostly a product of how minimal his role is here. In something like Sonic Generations, where Shadow’s role is to be a boss fight and his motivations have to be understandable in two lines tops, that flanderization is the unfortunate result. Aside from a decent showing in Sonic Forces, where he serves a simple but serviceable role, there’s not a lot to say in comparison to when he dominated the franchise. And while I think that overexposure was a problem, I never wanted him to go away. I just wanted something that reminded me why I liked him in Adventure 2 to begin with, where his edge and ‘badassery’ didn’t make him feel like a parody of himself.

Then comes Shadow Generations. Shadow Gens borrows from both aspects of him. It walks back on the idea of post-amnesia Shadow being wholly distinct from SA2 Shadow, which some might not like. But it’s worth it for the story it tells. Shadow’s rejection of his past is reframed as him effectively running away from the trauma of it all because it’s simply too painful, nearly demonstrated in the final scene of Dark Beginnings. Providing him with a chance to meet Maria and Gerald again draws out some vulnerability from him without being overdone or too cloying. There’s a nice arc about Shadow learning not to run away from his past, to accept the good parts while still renouncing his ties to Black Doom. The result is that it simultaneously feels Ike both a tribute to Shadow’s 2005 spin off and a do-over, revisiting those concepts with a clearer head and more time to cook. His overall characterisation is also closer to that stoic confidence mixed with pathos that made his SA2 self so likeable, especially when you factor in Dark Beginnings. Yes he’s framed as so cool that it starts to get a bit ridiculous, but it’d easier to embrace the campy fun of that when he’s also legitimately sympathetic. His arc feels more focused and tighter executed than past attempts to develop him, but it still builds on those older concepts despite their hit or miss execution. And it all builds to an ending that is just the right mix of earnestly sweet and restrained to end the whole game on a genuinely touching note.

It’s also nice to see the Team Dark dynamic be used in a less…cursed game than 06 where it can shine a bit more. Rouge and Omega aren’t in the game a ton, but the optional conversations with them, and especially their role in Dark Beginnings, gets the to heart of what makes this found family of badass messy bitches so appealing. It takes a lot to draw any emotional frankness out of any of these three but it hits hard when they do finally open up to each other.

Shadow as a character is sort of a perfect encapsulation of the good and bad of Sonic storytelling. It’s admirable that the series tries to tell bigger stories, but the writing often isn’t strong enough to carry it. But walking back that scope and energy doesn’t really fix the issue, as it simply leaves the series feeling vanilla and only brings those fundamental issues of poorer execution into sharp focus. And Shadow Generations’ ability to recapture that energy while avoiding the common pitfalls is what makes it so refreshing.

The last few years have seen Sonic as a franchise experiment more with storytelling than they have in years and the results left me decidedly mixed. While Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog was a delightful reminder of just how charming these characters can be with good writing, Sonic Frontiers felt like a return of all the series’ bad writing habits. Overwrought, derivative, tonally dissonant trend chasing that reaches for big ideas that it can’t do justice, with poor presentation, rushed, forced execution and a general sense of thinking it’s way more profound than it actually is. It really felt like 2000s Sonic was back in the worst way, moments of promise amidst a hot mess that felt both over and undercooked.

But that just made Shadow Generations even more of a delight. It didn’t feel like it was intentional downplaying itself to avoid scrutiny like Sonic Forces or Lost World did, but not did it feel like it was constantly chasing after trends like Shadow the Hedgehog or copying frantically off its anime cheat sheet like 06 or Frontiers. It kept a clear consistent focus on exploring and celebrating Shadow’s character, with good pacing, a refreshing attention to continuity, solid emotional beats and well done cutscenes.

This feels like the sort of thing the Sonic series often wanted to be, but regularly fell short of. A campy, exciting action romp focused on its likeable characters. And it was the capstone on an already really fun campaign that made for a brilliant addition to what was already my favourite 3D Sonic game.

I’m delighted that Shadow Generations got me excited about Sonic again, but I’m just as happy that it made me excited about Shadow again.

[misakarose]

Voice acting 👀👀👀👀 can we get a story please?

jdfhglxdjfhgfdlxh I've touched on it before, but I'll go a bit further into it, sure!

back in 2012-2013, I was a part of an online fan animation studio that produced fan animations for my little pony: friendship is magic (yes, I was in that fandom back in the HAYDAY of bronies). originally, a casting call went out for a fan movie for the show, and on a whim I decided to audition for the role of twilight sparkle, since I thought I could do a pretty good impression of the character.

welp, I got the part and joined a group of other fans to produce this fan-made movie. SHIT HAPPENED. I won't go into details cuz it's legit insane, but long story short, the movie fell through (cuz yeah of course it wasn't gonna get finished lmao) and the main "director" guy dropped out of the group due to circumstances as well as a few other people. but the main core of the group, which included pretty much all the voice actors and some artists/animators, had all become super close friends and we decided to stick together as our own studio and put out smaller projects. we were actually really successful within the brony sphere, although we did put out a few videos that had nothing to do with mlp when we started growing out of the fandom.

I did a LOT of voice acting back within that time frame, both within our studio and in other little projects outside of it. nothing was ever on a professional level, I never made money, it was all hobby work, but I absolutely loved it and had so much fun. our studio got invited to a few different conventions and got to attend as guests, we hosted panels, got to meet professionals in the industry, it was seriously like living the dream (I was 17/18/19 around this time).

FUN FACT THAT I'VE DEFINITELY MENTIONED BEFORE: I dated the english VA for aki hayakawa from chainsaw man (reagan murdock) for a little over a year during all of this. he and I met when we both landed parts for that fan movie and joined this studio. of all the voice actors that were a part of it, I'm pretty sure he's the only one who moved on to doing it professionally, which isn't even a surprise cuz he's SUPER talented and there was no way he wasn't going into the professional space.

our little studio doesn't really put out content anymore, not as a group at least. a few of us do solo stuff nowadays. but we're still really close friends, we still have a discord chat that we talk in regularly, and they are legitimately some of the best/closest friends I've ever made. and it was all because of my little pony lmao

I tried putting together a demo reel once upon a time, but I never actually finished it or put it out there at all. not pursuing that line of work while I was still in my hayday and had several professional contacts is one of my biggest regrets tbh. I do still have very loose footholds in the industry, including successful contacts, but it's been so long since I've actually done anything that I don't even know where I'd start.

SO ANYWAY that's my history with voice acting lmao thanks for asking~

[tragicromanceisland]

Obey Me Dates- The Brothers

Imagining the types of dates the demon brothers take you on.

Some are shorter than the others, but I tried.

Lucifer- would out due his brothers on whatever date they took you on. Expect his date to be the most thrilling you ever had and trust him when he says that. He won't allow them to outshine him. He will be the only one you want to go on another date with. One took you to see an opera? Well, he will take you to a symphony. You went on a joyride and had ice cream? Expect a luxury car ride and luxury doesn't exclude speed. Not only are you having dessert you'll have dinner on the beach under the moon light. Your date ended with a kiss or a steamy make-out? You're staying in his room tonight he will pull out all the stops until you are fully seduced.

Mammon- Anything from card games, casino visits, car rides, parties, and the movies. Mammon will pull out all the stops but expect him to make a fool out of himself in the process of trying to impress you. Oi! Stop laughing! It ain't funny. Now his cheeks are full of color it could be because he just ate the floor or he is actually embarrassed. You knew it was both. Thing is Mammon didn't need to over do it to impress you. You liked him just the way he is and when you told him he was flustered. You were so kind and nice to him. He couldn't help but love you. Can he give ya a goodnight kiss? You kissed him first? D'aw you turned him into a schoolboy crazy about you. Not that he already wasn't whipped by you.

Leviathan- Please say yes, please say yes, Please.Say.YES! He was a bundle of nerves, his hands shoved deep in the pockets of his pants. His thumbs sticking out as he couldn't even look in your eyes right now.

"It sounds like fun."

His eyes flit to yours and his eyes dilate.

"Huh?"

You give a coy smile. "I said yes."

His heart was going to burst. Is this real life did you actually accept going on a date with him? Oh he is so happy. Wait...or are you joking? Please don't tell him your joking it would crush him.

"Levi, when is the concert?"

Ok, you do mean it! He can feel tears at the corners of his eyes as he covers his face with the sleeve of his hoodie.

"Two days from now! Thank you, thank you ______!!"

Before you say anything he ran off to his room. He didn't mean to leave you hanging like that but he was so happy he couldn't hold back his tears any longer and that would have been embarrassing if you saw.

The day of the date it goes way better than he could have ever imagined. You even took a picture of him with his idols!!! He passed out after that. He came too. He thought he was dreaming but it was real life. It really happened. At the end of the night, you gave him a kiss and his brain malfunctioned. Instead of saying good night he said thank you you too!! He kicked himself for saying it. Why did he say that?? He was going to die from embarrassment. He liked you so much he began telling Henry 2.0 all about his amazing date with you.

Satan - He was determined to expand your knowledge of the arts and knowledge in general. Of course, he wouldn't force it down your throat. Unless....? Nevermind. Now he is embarrassed though you aren't sure why. It starts as a coffee date and evolves into going to a museum and somehow you're at a pet shop across the street from the cafe after your compelling conversation about history and artifacts. You both continue conversation about animals and at the end of the night, you both find yourself at the Devildoms garden. Walking under the night sky you somehow change the subject to the stars. Satan explains of the legends about the stars of the Devildom. At the end of the night, Satan walks you back to your room. It's still in the house of lamentation as you both study the other. Satan had a wonderful time he would love nothing more than to kiss you. You must have been thinking the same as you both leaned into each other and Satan closed the distance. His lips firm against yours before breaking away. His cheeks burning, one kiss was not enough.

Asmodeus- Shopping and Spa dates as well as staying in and snuggling while watching horror movies were Asmo's thing. Of course, be aware every time you stayed in for a date it was inevitably going to lead to make-outs. He couldn't get enough of your soft lips or the taste of your flavored lip gloss. To say he was addicted was an understatement. Asmo would make sure you both were pampered even if you stayed at home. As much as he did those things with you he also invited you to the parties he was always invited too. These parties gave Asmo a bigger reason to dress you to his liking and often he would coordinate your colors to match. You were both often the talk of the party for fashion but also for your already-known reputation for making pacts with all seven demon lords.

Beelzebub - He asked you to come to his games and afterward he would treat you to dinner. Sometimes he invited you to new places he hadn't been and sometimes he would carry you around to various places and just talk and sometimes it was silent time just enjoying the view being beside you.

Beel also used the time he had to walk Cerberus as a way of spending time with you. He would invite you to work out with him, but...that more often than not, he ended with you distracting him and vice verse. Most of the time, it ended in a make-out. He would take you out for the best meals. Sometimes, even a picnic. He would try not to eat the food before he could share it with you. It would definitely end up with you feeding each other food and enjoying each other's company. Beel would love for you to rest your head on his lap as you fed him. He would also sneak in some kisses.

Belphegor - Stargazing to naps. Your dates with the twins happened to be some of the most peaceful. Belphie would take you to all the best spots to view stars. He would pack a picnic for you both. He had to make sure Beel didn't find out you were going on a picnic he would eat all the food. He would bring some demonus with him as well. While having a picnic you would feed him and he would feed you back sometimes he would nip at your fingers and your retalliation would be to lick his when he fed you. Of course, it made him hard, he had to keep himself in check for a little bit. However, you were quick to notice the bulge in his pants, and more often than not he fucked you under the starry night sky of the Devildom. Afterward, he held you close as he began to tell you a tragic tale of two lovers who were destined to be together yet, an envious man found out about the lovers, and because he adored the one he refused to allow the other man to take what should rightfully be his. Out of jealousy and rage, he killed the lovers. If he couldn't have the one no one could. He then explained how the lovers became entwined in the starry night sky to be together for eternity.

[jellybeanium124]

actually you know what the more I think about that taika cameo in that shitty simpsons episode the more pissed I get. because taika and the simpsons could be so fucking good. like, early simpsons, and I mean early early, like s1-3, and taika waititi movies are like, in the same family. super early simpsons have this sort of slowness to it, this reality, this mundanity. the family struggles financially compared to the inexplicably financially comfortable simpsons of today. there's a lot more focus on childhood stories. "lisa's substitute" could be a taika waititi movie. so could "moaning lisa." "three men and a comic book," even.

and lisa? lisa would be the ideal taika protagonist. not the pop-culture-worshipping holier-than-thou-ing, zombified little-miss-know-it-all of the HD era, the real lisa simpson. this 8 year old girl who's sensitive and smart, but still a child. her father's a drunk and her mother, a kind, beautiful soul, and brilliant painter, had all her hopes and dreams crushed and remolded into homemaking and child-raising.

give! me! a! simpsons! episode! where! lisa has to come to terms with the real world at the tender age of 8!!!!

I mean like, I understand that they probably can't just let taika guest write an episode of the simpsons. or direct. directing an animated project is going to be super different from directing a life-action one anyways, who knows if he'd want to.

but the simpsons has done clever and thoughtful homages before, even recently with "barthood" (released 2015, fuck that's 9 years ago). they could've done an homage. they could've parodied his style. they could've made something thoughtful. homer and lisa stories have been some of the most touching stories on the show. or, they could've just focused on the kids and done a bart and lisa story.

but they didn't do any of that. they didn't write anything thoughtful, or creative, or even good. they wrote drivel, and racist drivel at that, with two jokes around the asian-caricature character kumiko that were genuinely painful to sit through (and this show has a history of being racist towards asian characters).

they wrote taika as a hyperactive egomaniac with no attention span and gave him 0 direction. his performance in this episode is undoubtably the worst acting performance I've ever seen from him. and like, you know, not all actors are cut out to voice act, but I don't think that's the problem here. I think the problem here is that taika read a shitty script, and it was season 35 of the simpsons so who gives a flying fuck, and he read the lines because this was a paycheck. why bother giving this project effort if nobody else was putting any effort into it either? why bother giving this project effort when they write you as the worst version of yourself, a persona that probably gives you a sense of comfort and control when you're choosing to do it, but probably doesn't feel that great when writers who don't know or care about you write it for you.

and, to be clear, I don't mind that he's the villain of the episode, or even that he wasn't written exactly as himself. like, of course it should be a persona of him on the simpsons. all celebs get a simpsons persona when they guest star as themselves. I think I just hate the fact that it's pushing a narrative that he's a shitty guy that's similar enough to his real life persona at a time where people are violently attacking him for no damn good reason. and the fact that it's poorly written with no love or care for anything. not taika, not the simpsons, not tv, not art, not anything.

[chloecherrysip]

Hey.....remember when I said I wasn't gonna go see the Mario movie in theaters again? WHAT IF, HYPOTHETICALLY, THAT WAS A FLATOUT LIE AND I WENT AGAIN EARLIER TODAY???

AND what if I had more thoughts to share somehow, even though I could have sworn I was tapped out and would never do another longform post like this?? Wouldn't that be so very silly of me????

WELL, FUNNY THING

LOOK, I just really wanted to get out of the house and there was a showing in 3D five minutes away from me and I hadn't seen it in 3D! I have seen maybe ONE movie in 3D in my whole life and it was several years ago so I'm not too used to what that's like - and honestly, the effect is pretty cool! Maybe I'm easy to please but I liked the way the rain/ocean spray/ice in the beginning/etc actually seemed like it was in the air around me! (Also, I got a legitimate jolt when the Dry Bones popped out of the ground, I just didn't expect it to seem so CLOSE lololol)

Also, it was pretty delightful that we are several weeks into this movie's release and there was still someone dressed up fully as Mario in the theatre who walked by me. I love people! :D

I am at the point where just NINTENDO'S OPENING LOGO ANIMATION makes me emotional, with Mario and Luigi together and Luigi hopping playfully on Mario's head before running off with Mario jumping after him. They're just the LITTLE RETRO SPRITES and still!!! Brothers!!!!!!!!

During this viewing, I got really into thinking about the lore of the movie!universe specifically and the history of Bowser and his and Peach's conflict. My main question: what is UP with that castle in the Dark Lands? From the brief glimpse we get of the inside, it looks pretty abandoned with stuff littered all over the ground, not like Bowser just left it to go on his crusade. And yet, everyone talks about the Dark Lands as though that is where Bowser currently is and it's also where he lives when he's NOT in a floating airship. Maybe he abandoned that smaller castle years ago and the airship is actually his new and improved castle and it was a part of the Dark Lands before Kamek/magic in general just lifted it into the air at some point? But then why are there Shy Guys actively living in and/or patrolling the old castle still??? HMM

Also, Bowser says he had to spend YEARS searching for the super star! That's a lot of time!!! Have the penguins hidden it away from everyone all this time just to keep it safe? Has Peach known about it all along/done anything to help protect it herself? Is there only one star in existence? Does it regenerate after being used and if so, how long does that take??? I like thinking about all these little details, haha.

ALSO x 2, I'm just interested in Bowser and Peach's interactions before the movie in general. Bowser mentions that they've been "sworn enemies" for quite some time and the way he says "Princess Peach! Brave as ever!" just feels like something you say to someone you've spoken with before/have a little familiarity with that ISN'T just creepy spying/pining from afar, lol. Has Bowser tried to invade in the past? I almost wonder if, in the beginning, Peach was her charitable self who tried very hard to reason with him/strike up a peace treaty but it's just always gone wrong or she's VERY MUCH MISREAD all attempts at flirting on Bowser's part or she has just seen too much evidence of him being cruel/willing to kill to get what he wants in the process and that's why she's like "nah fam we're gonna annihilate this monster and leave not a trace behind, i'm DONE with all that peace stuff" now. She is NOT HAVING IT any longer and honestly? I respect that. Bowser is the worst.

(Slightly related: someone remind me that once I'm done with my fic, I need to go into more detail about another alternative movie scenario I've been thinking about where Mario is able to get rid of the Bomber Bill without the Brooklyn stuff ever happening and a furious Bowser grabs both Peach and Luigi (because every time I'm reminded that they never pay off Bowser's threat to use Luigi to hurt Mario, I become a little more insane) and flees in a smaller airship back to the Dark Lands with Mario & company in hot pursuit, and it's basically a more traditional Mario game finale but maybe there's BOWSER BACKSTORY regarding the Dark Lands castle and also Peach & Luigi being kidnapped together lets them bond and eventually become Breakout Buddies and look, it would be a fun time and I want to flesh it out more, OK)

This movie has GOT to come out on digital soon because I NEED to gif so many things (and I don't want to use camrips!!!) and one of those things is every instance of Mario awkwardly waving hello to strangers. HE DOES IT LIKE 5-6 TIMES, HE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT ELSE TO DO. IT'S SO CUTE

Also, I love that Mario calls Cranky Kong "sir" when agreeing to the DK fight. THE MOST POLITE MAN IN THE WORLDDDD

I adore how genuinely touched Mario seems by Peach saying that him not knowing when to quit is a great thing. His little, gentle "thanks" in return makes my heart SOFT. Just makes me think about the vibe of him being the "impulsive" son, the "troublemaker" son in the family and how people like his dad have maybe been tough on him about that quality, and for Peach to just be so excited and look so HAPPY at the concept is so surprising to him -maybe she's the first person outside of Luigi to act like that!

me to me: you have seen this SO many times, do NOT tear up again when Mario sees the commercial on the cracked TV!!!

also me to me: CAN'T HEAR YOU, ALREADY TEARING UP

Also forever emotional about the fact that Mario and Luigi have absolutely NO context for what the star is or what it can do when they decide to grab it together - Peach told Mario to go for it, and that's ALL the information available. But the manhole cover is melting and Bowser's flames are literal seconds away from engulfing them. And even so, they're not afraid, because they're together again and whatever happens next, they'll face hand in hand, side by side, and it's that trust, that unbreakable bond that truly makes them invincible at the end of the day, and DON'T MIND ME, I'LL JUST SOFTLY WEEP OVER HERE

LUIGI WIPING A HAPPY TEAR AWAY AS HE AND MARIO HOLD ONTO EACH OTHER AT THE VERY END ;_______; HE MUST FEEL SO RELIEVED ;_______; PROTECT HIM ALWAYS

I made myself laugh as I was leaving the theater by thinking about the person that had to write that newspaper article at the end about what happened. What must that article read like???? How would you ever begin to be able to describe the events that took place here without sounding like an insane person???? Are the people who didn't see it in person reading this like "uhhhh is this April Fool's Day???" I WOULD HAVE THAT REACTION. I DON'T ENVY THAT PERSON'S POSITION lolol

[demyxdancer]

Anime Summer 2023

Overall I thought this was an enjoyable season with quite a few high quality shows in it and a few surprises.

Here's my thoughts on Summer 2023 anime, from most favorite to least.

Bungou Stray Dogs Season 5

How could anything else be at the top? While I think overall this was a little weaker than S4 for me -- I really like some of the character work in S4, particularly Ranpo and Yosano's pasts -- this was an absolute roller coaster ride from start to finish. I can't help but admire BSD's ability to throw absolutely ridiculous and over the top plot points one after another and still make it all work. It came to a reasonably satisfying conclusion as well. BSD in general has shot up to become one of my favorite anime of all time and this season didn't disappoint at all.

Highlights: Ranpo saving everyone's asses. Sigma just wants a home. Bram just wants tunes. Aya is the MVP. Chuuya and his Spirit Halloween vampire fangs. You can't kill Dazai in a way that matters.

Complaints: I can only hope we're getting some light novel movies or else we're going to be waiting a long time for more BSD.

My Happy Marriage

Romance in anime tends to be hit or miss, but this one was incredibly refreshing. Far too many romance stories just don't do a good job of showing how the leads are meant for each other, but this show was delightful whenever the leads were on screen. I loved how they were able to talk to each other sensibly and how gently Kiyouka treated Miyo's trauma. Plus, it was beautifully animated.

Highlights: Kiyouka burning the Saimori house the fuck down. Any time Miyo wore a new kimono. The exchange of the hair cord and the comb. Miyo finally getting to protect Kiyouko.

Complaints: The first arc was stronger than the second. The abrupt turnaround by the Usuba family was a little strained.

Jujutsu Kaisen

The art change has made JJK more beautiful than ever. The production values and the OP/EDs of this show don't miss. The Hidden Inventory arc was so intense and featured some stunning fights. While I think the last few eps have been a bit rocky, I'm looking forward to seeing what's going to be cooked up.

Highlights: Pulling on our heartstrings with the girl's sudden death. Gojo's revenge rampage. Geto tormented by the clapping of hands. Yuuji's friends teasing him about a girl.

Complaints: JJK's commitment to never slowing down means we never get to spend as much time in the character moments as I'd like. I think this hurts arcs like Hidden Inventory where Geto's turn to the dark side would be better done if they slowed down a bit.

Undead Murder Farce

This season's big surprise for me. This show was incredibly entertaining and had everything you could want. Vampires! Werewolves! A phantom thief! Sherlock Holmes! Lesbians! The supernatural creatures in an alternate history late 1800s Europe thing did a little bit to fill the Vanitas-shaped hole in my heart. I really appreciated how solid production values and creative visuals spiced up episodes that were really mostly just talking. There had better be another season of this. The story's just getting started!

Highlights: Phantom Thief Lupin and his dramatics. Literary characters showing up one after the other. Vampire murder mystery.

Complaints: The second arc was definitely the best one, and the following werewolf arc dragged a bit and couldn't quite compare.

Saint Cecilia and Paster Lawrence

This show just doesn't work as a romcom, which it ostensibly is trying to be. Lawrence is just too dense and the development is excruciatingly slow even by anime romcom standards. Thankfully, this show does work nicely as a charming slice of life. It's consistently cozy and heartwarming even if nothing ever actually happens. The village full of supportive townsfolk looking after these two reminds me almost of Stardew Valley.

Highlights: The trip to the city where we actually inched along the plot a bit. Cecilia's outfits -- she really does look cute in anything. The scene with Cecilia and Lawrence in the attic.

Complaints: Nothing ever happens. Ending on Lawrence confused about whether or not he thinks of Cecilia as family was kind of a downer.

Sunshine in the Mirror

I haven't watched Love Live! Sunshine (which this show is a spinoff of) but I did watch Superstar and it's not like it's difficult to follow a Love Live show. This one started out promising with a cute enough premise, but kind of fell apart halfway through. The cute slice of life content wasn't bad, but the plot itself was poorly done with unclear stakes. The magic badness engulfing the town was primarily shown as fog with a few angry deer in it. That's just New Hampshire, I'm not scared of that.

Highlights: While all idol music sounds a little samey to me, this one was on the higher end of enjoyability. Cute outfits and consistently colorful and fun to look at. Lailaps plot was cute enough.

Complaints: The overarching plot was really badly written, and that killed a lot of the momentum of the series.

Bang Dream! It's MyGo!

This show has one thing going for it compared to Love Live, and that is willingness to show actual teenage drama and teens being petty and selfish. I loved the lead singer character and her awkwardness and her bandaid collection and wished the show were more about her, but I guess not all shows can be Bocchi the Rock. While the writing had its good points, I ended up dropping this due to pointless drama overload and the fact that I couldn't tell the girls apart.

Highlights: Lead singer character was endearing when she got to be on screen.

Complaints: CGI animation was stiff and poor. Characters impossible to tell apart. Teen drama maybe a little too realistic and hard to watch as a result.

Zom 100

This had an outstanding first episode but quickly went down the tubes for me. I'm not a big fan of zombies in the first place, so bouncing off the show is probably on me. I dropped it after the first handful of episodes.

Highlights: First episode is well worth watching on its own. Colorful animation.

Complaints: Unfunny humor. Production quality drops significantly after the first episode. Treatment of female characters made me uncomfortable. Guilt over watching an anime about exploitative companies knowing how many production delays this has had and that the people making this are also being exploited.

Fall 2023

Fall 2023 is looking absolutely slammed! Dr. Stone and Spy x Family are back. Frieren, Apothecary Diaries, I'm in Love with the Villainess and Tearmoon Empire are high on my list of shows to try. And we'll have the second cour of Jujutsu Kaisen.

[sunflowerandstrawberryspice]

Zane: cause y'all really seem to like him!

Okay so as you all can probably guess Zane is pretty much my favorite character and I don't see this man getting enough love so how would you like some of my head cannons and such (reminder I've only watched through season nine + one episode of season ten)

-He's a really smart idiot like he can do extended algebra in his head, recite the entire history of Ninjago and analyze any problem with ease, but at the same time he'll forget not everyone can just do a google translate in their head and he'll casually say things like "Salt sugar same difference "

-He built in the appearance changer thing cause people (especially kids) were afraid of his really robotic look

-To go along with the last hc he only really shows what he really looks like in front of people he's really comfortable with

-He's either a really good or really bad flirt, it differs from day to day like one day he'll be like "Dang and I thought fire was hot" and the next he'll be like "You have very colorful eyes"

-He and Pixel have more of a sibling dynamic than anything else, people thought they were dating but they're both just like "Ew no that's my emotional support borhter/sister" (cause honestly in the show the last relativly romantic thing they did was in season three with the whole "comptable secen" and after that they're just kinda been buddies, like literally all hugs and fits bumps, it's honestly really sweet)

-He and Pixel dare each other on pretty much a daily basis to eat things that they really shouldn't, this ranges from small pieces of paper to literal glass, they do it purely to scare everyone else (I just learned it's Pixal btw, but I'm honestly not changing it I'm in too deep now)

-Zane often has trouble verbally displaying his emotions even when he has strong feelings about things, so most times it results in him doing something to show it whether it be stomping off, giving the silent treatment or just generally trying to display his emotions in other ways (the other ninja and co are pretty good at getting the signs)

-He has to be really cautious when freezing people because surprise surprise if you entrap someone in a full block of ice they WILL suffocate and die

-His power makes it so he can freeze or unfreeze most things so he could potentially freeze the water in someone's body, kinda like a water bender in avatar (cause honestly I feel like it would be more likely he had powers over temperatures since ice isn't really an element, but over time maybe people forgot what the power actually was, idk yo)

-He's probably stronger than your average person due to being a robot , not as strong as someone with super strength like Cole but still impressively strong

-He likes animated movies, and he's irritated by the notion they're only for kids

-He likes rock and metal music, in fact him and Cole share a lot of music taste and no one really understands how Zane likes that kind of music but they're not inclined to question it

-Lloyd has called him mom/dad on multiple occasions, he's honnored

-He never came out to anyone cause for him he just kinda existed and didn't really think much of it (for reference I'm a fan of the pan/trans hc's that I've seen around)

-He's the tallest member of the group and he's no allowed to join when they compare heights cause he towers over everyone with Nya being the closest

Zane's a plant mom, simple as that

-He has the coolest socks ever, like patterns colors you name it

-Ever since season 4 he's been terrified of loosing his memory cause it happened when he forgot his father than again in season 4 and so now he's terrified of loosing his memories again, in fact getting hit in the head or back (where his switch panel is if I'm remembering correctly) is something that stresses him out a whole bunch.

-Zane is literally the worst car driver ever, like seriously there's a reason he's always got a mech or the ship or literally anything other than a car

-He doesn't get hot or cold so it'll be the middle of the winter and he'll be wearing shorts

-Zane couldn't dance but Cole most definitely taught him

-He and Cole go on dates to museums cause Zane's a nerd and Cole's really nostalgic for it

In conclusion I think robot man deserves more love and affection and I have more head cannons for more of the characters cause this silly little ninja show has indeed become my hyper fixation.

[unhingedhearties]

Sometimes A Photo Is Just A Photo

Erin and Ben are apparently back in Canada and were hanging out with Chris and his girlfriend/ fellow Hallmark actress.

Let's see how the infants handle it.

The "I'm Done With The Show" brigade is still stalking WCTH related posts.

"Damage Control". Boy, I hope a certain group of Hearties don't latch onto that phrase and repeat it over and over on this post like they tend to do when they can't come up with an independent thought.

This feels like it should be common sense, but don't ever "love" someone you've never met with "all your heart".

Oh look who it is. foxyinspiration right on cue to prove she doesn't have a thought in her head. Sadly I've already referenced the movie Screamers on this blog so I've got nothing besides hoping she ends up like Private Ross.

God forbid a woman do anything, right? Seriously, you're going to look at a photo where Ben's making a face like that but focus on Erin laughing "too hard".

Also, there are still people who don't believe Erin and Ben are a couple. Amazing.

37 freaking responses. Ugh… let's break these down. Without cheating, guess how many times they claim "damage control".

Private people are never allowed to go out with friends or show up in pictures on someone else's social media site. Are Chris and Julie actually private people or has the unhinged section of the Hearties fandom driven them to be more reserved and distant on social media? Just my opinion-thanks for your feedback though.

Some sanity prevails.

I try really hard to not make comments about people's grammar. I come from a large family of people who's first language isn't English. I learned English at a young age but it's still my second language. I get it. Having said that, what the hell are you trying to say? Also, judging by your profile picture, you're a middle aged woman. You are way too old to be speaking in hashtags. Grow up.

I don't know, maybe one of these two couples are new parents and have a small child at home that limits where/when/how they're able to go out? Maybe one of these two couples live in another country and only meet up when they have a movie that's filming near the other couple? Maybe… wait a minute. Hasn't Chris been in group pictures with Erin and the other actors? I don't obsess over the actor's personal lives so I don't know when he started dating Julie, but maybe they weren't together at the time so that's why she's not in those pictures. No that makes too much sense. Surely the reason Chris and Julie haven't been in a lot of photos with Erin and Ben is because… something to do with their character arcs from the last five seasons… but those seasons had different show runners… Look, none of this makes sense right now but I'll figure out a way to make it work. I'll start with my own conclusion and work backwards to justify it.

Stop making sense, you're upsetting the zoo animals!

Damn, I might be clairvoyant. markrymill said almost the same thing I said. Aaaaaaand of course she ignores all those points to accuse Erin of hiding comments. If Erin was actually wasting her time hiding comments, why are yours and all the other mindless parrots comments still visible? Maybe they got reported for being spam or harassment.

Say the line, Bart!

"a Governor's position that doesn't even exist in Canda!" Oh no! A historical inaccuracy in When Calls The Heart!? Wait, are we in favor of that or against it? Fans keep changing their opinion on that point. And like any of the people watching WCTH care about Canadian history. "Supposedly given a hero's arc yet he doesn't get the girl?" Women are just trophies for men to collect. Lucas is set up to maybe have an actual exciting storyline where his character does something for the greater good of society, but who cares. He didn't get the pretty decoration. It's amazing that these people will complain about the quality of the stories and writing but then say dumb stuff like this. Chris might have the chance to do something really good with his character besides look over a balcony and sip tea from a dainty cup but his own fans want to stop that.

Listen up Team Smooth-Brain. I want you to follow along so grab a safety pencil and a circle of paper: For this to have been set-up, Erin would have had to fly out to Canada, taking Ben with her. She would have then had to call up Chris and Julie, hope that neither of them were working that day, convince them to not only go out to lunch, but tell them to get a baby-sitter for their however many months old baby. Instead of picking a restaurant with decent lightning she picked this florescent nightmare for her staged photo. She then told everyone to smile, took the photo, and posted it to her Instagram page to… what exactly? What was her plan to control people's reactions? Because the people who are fine with WCTH were going to write the same generic "lol so cute to see you guys be friends" comments they were always going to write and the people who stomp their feet like toddlers who didn't get the toy they wanted were going to write the same "this is all fake damage control trying to control the narrative Chris is being forced at metaphorical gun point to smile in these photos" CSI bullshit they post on every one of her photos.

I hear Chris was offered a roll on a new show called Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies. He should quit WCTH and devote all of his time to that instead.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! :D

"they are trying to manipulate us again. Not gonna happen 😢" I didn't know Hallmark had MKUltra agents on their marketing team.

#AnyoneButNathan

I hope When Calls The Heart gets another show runner and I hope they break Elizabeth and Nathan up and pair Elizabeth with a woman. Any woman*. I hope this show keeps going for however many seasons it takes to get a lesbian relationship with a major character.

*Except Fiona or Faith because those two are destined to be together and you can't convince me otherwise.

"Erin you're posting too many Kevin photos. It's rubbing salt in the wounds of heart broken Lucabeth fans who have PTSD just like those people currently in warzones and it's totally not tone-deaf of us to say that." "Erin you're posting all these photos of Chris to try and manipulate us into watching the next season. It's very cruel and sadistic of you." "Erin you're not fooling anyone by posting both Chris and Kevin photos. We're not falling for your damage control."

[nectaric]

GET  TO  KNOW  THE  MUN.

what made you pick up the muse you have? i'll pick a few: zeus was because i was obsessed with greek mythology thanks to percy jackson and other books i had read, but specifically with hades. when i stumbled across a group rp waaay back in the day that seemed cool, i wanted to join but hades wasn't available so i went "i guess i'll give zeus a shot" and the rest was history. i added athena bc i watched age of ultron for the first time, saw lizzie olsen and went "THAT'S ATHENA!!" i added demeter bc there were no active dem's at the time and i missed her :(

is there anything you don't like to write? there is very little i won't write, i think, under the right circumstances. i find super mundane stuff boring after a little while, but that doesn't mean i don't like it period. i guess i don't like writing things where my muses feel like punching bags *coughszeuscoughs* but i mean otherwise, i'm game for most things!

is there anything you really enjoy writing? FAMILY DYNAMICS are like. my number one. i love dads getting to bond with their kids. i love sibling shenanigans. i love family taking care of each other, i love family arguing, i love family opening up about their pasts and painful experiences. i. love. family dynamics so much, FOUND or otherwise! i'm also a fan of intense angst situations, too.

how do you come up with your headcanons? pure vibes, man. once i really get a feel for a character as i write them, the headcanons kinda just write themselves. some of my more in depth ones come from a lot of thought and speculation, usually done by talking to myself in my room lol, but i really just... imagine them up. sometimes it comes from talking with others, but that's slightly rarer.

do you write in silence or listen to music? usually without music, unless i actually have a space to myself and can throw on some instrumental stuff. but yeah, its usually just with the ambient sounds and chatter of my house.

do you plan your replies or wing them? sometimes i plan them when i first read them because i have a good idea, but for the most part, i wing it when i get to them.

do you enjoy shipping? for the most part, yeah. i can sometimes find shipping a little... repetitive. so i really do need a strong connection between muses and some exciting stuff to throw in to keep it interesting. i much prefer platonic / familial ships, but i do love a good romantic one, too!

what's your alias / name? renee! which is just my middle name but its a vibe, i like it better than my real name.

zodiac sign? aquarius babyyyyy!

birthday? it was back in feb

favorite color? i am such a sucker for green rn, in all shades, but i also really like baby blue n yellow.

favorite song? i think rn its superstar by lilyisthatyou

last movie you watched? MOVIE? i think it was barbie actually

last show you watched? sword art online kdjfhnd

last song you listened to? life itself by glass animals

favorite food? oh my GODDDDD okay listen up. my favourite food ever is a very specific taco from a tiny hole in the wall shop in san jose iturbide, mexico. its a chorizo taco con cebollas and some salsa verde and i DREAM OF THOSE TACOS. i ate those like four times a week for four months. they're incredible.

favorite season? i'm an autumn girlie at my heart, but canada rarely lets me have a NICE autumn :((

do you have a tumblr best friend? @aetheryic is my literal bestie of like 11 years or something and was the one who ran the group rp where i discovered my love of zeus so :///

tagging: all of you!

[abel-oc]

Doing a questions post for Lyos so I can figure him out! I'll do Micah next. Who reads these I don't care this is for me ! 😈 Taken from blog jovishark

1. Are they happy with their body?

Yes! He can shape shift anyway as per standard incubus lore. But he likes how he looks how I've been drawing him most. He would give himself big boobs even though he's gay in succubus mode though

2. Do they have any secret piercings or tattoos?

Not secret but his ears and tounge are done! Maybe his belly button I'm deciding still. I am toying with the idea of womb markings but they are very stupid maybe a tramp stamp

3. Do they collect anything?

Not really as he doesn't have anywhere to put them, probably leaves knickknacks in Abel's house though ( he wouldn't like this )

4. What is their favorite music genre?

Rock / techno!

5. What music genre, if any, do they hate the most?

Pop and church choir music it's probably cringe to him

6. What is their phone background/lock screen?

No phone! But if he got one probably a selfie

7. What is their shoe size?

He can extend it if he wants .big

8. Do they have a favorite fabric or texture?

Not fussed but ended up with mainly leather

9. Do they have a favorite professional sport?

He probably gets into most of them he would watch sport on TV and get heated about it

10. How do they decorate their living space?

Male living spaces

11. Are they messy, or do they clean up?

Messy! Even without having stuff he manages

12. What’s their preferred sleeping position?

Big spoon

13. Did they have a favorite comfort item as a child?

I don't know if he ever WAS a child. Bigger question

14. Do they have a favorite period in history?

Thought humans used to dress super funny in the 1800s

15. Can they cook? What’s their favorite thing to make?

Doesn't really need to but probably tries, he's ok at best. Frozen pizza

16. What food do they hate eating?

Fish he's not used to it

17. Do they have any allergies?

Maybe like. Holy water

18. What was their worst injury?

Probably bent his dick doing reverse cowgirl or something

19. What movie is most likely to make them cry?

He cries easily I think. I haven't seen many movies LOL idk titanic was popular at the time of the setting

21. Can they dance? Do they like to?

He is probably just ok like he doesn't make a fool of himself but not much further than that

22. What was their favorite birthday gift?

Whatever Abel gives him for the first one they've met for is probably the first thing he's received for it

24. What kind of cake or birthday treat would they prefer?

Ice cream cake

25. What is their favorite animal?

Dogs! Big ones

26. Do they wear perfume/cologne? What is their favorite scent?

Doesn't wear it, thinks Abel's is nice. Likes food smells like bread or beer

27. What smell do they hate the most?

Fish as well

28. What sound do they hate the most?

Nails on chalkboard type noises

29. What video game would appeal to them the best?

If he had exposure to them probably FPS. I think he would like doom

30. How would they relax on a day off/rainy day?

Post coming to human world, would probably go bother Abel with whatever he's doing, maybe he's learning guitar he might play that too

31. Are they combative? What is their fighting style?

Yes, would punch people. Short fuse

32. Would they be the one to start an argument?

Yes. Would insinuate someone was chicken

33. What is their personal style? Favorite outfit?

Kind of bdsm ish punky clothes. Likes wearing as little as possible

34. Do they have a dream job?

No way! He does not dream of labour

35. What do they do if they can’t fall asleep?

Wank !!!

36. Do they wear makeup regularly? If they don’t, would they consider wearing any?

His red eyeliner is actually permanent I'm thinking he got someone to do it in hell like they must have body artists there / some kind of magic thing. He wouldn't put it on every day. Would wear it if Abel or someone else put it on him, wears lipstick in succubus mode if he has to

37. Do they prefer to be really cold or really warm?

Warm! He hates the cold but also won't wear extra clothes to avoid it

39. Can they drive? What vehicles are they licensed to operate?

He has not learnt, probably wants to ride a motorbike

40. Do they believe in true love? Have they experienced it?

He would but only if he was in love, that would be true love. No one elses would be. Has a somewhat warped perception of love though

41. Are they married? Do they want to be?

Would want to it seems fun as long as he can still sleep around

42. If they have siblings, do they like any of them? Would they rather be an only child?

I need to come back to this if he did they would be sort of distant

43. What do they think is their worst quality? What is their actual worst quality?

I think he knows he's too quick to start a fight. He's too easy to make mad in general

44. Do they lie often? Are they good at it?

Doesn't need to often, would be fine unless he forgot some intricacies like for a convoluted plan etc

45. Are they good at keeping secrets?

Probably not!

46. How do others see them? How accurate is it to how they really are?

I think they are pretty accurate he is very much the same outwardly as he is inside

47. What kind of first impression do they usually make?

Wow this guy is loud

48. What are they most afraid of?

He doesn't want to be alone or die hungry

49. Would they ever kill anybody?

Guarantee he has done this

[cryptidsurveys]

Monday, September 9th, 2024.

Have you ever had the chicken pox? Yes, but I was too young to remember the experience.

How often do you do laundry? Something like 2-3 times per week.

Have you ever been evicted? No.

Would you grow your own garden? I have in the past. I was too busy (or at least honest with myself and my priorities) to bother with it last year. However, depending on what my life looks like next spring, I might consider growing some tomatoes.

Do you know anyone who snores? My dad.

What is your favorite font? I'm not sure… I'm struggling to choose between fonts that look nice and fonts that are easy on the eyes (probably a symptom of getting older because I used to love teeny tiny little fonts; the kind you needed an electron microscope to see).

Do you know what a wombat is? Yeah.

Would you make a good movie critic? Naw. I'm just not that insightful or analytical. I also don't feel like I have enough experience or background with films to make an informed critique. My thoughts typically boil down to whether I personally liked it or not and have little to do with any broader context, etc.

What goal are you aiming for this year? I want to find a comfortable work/life balance, and I want to learn how to be more effective in terms of setting boundaries, managing my time, etc.

Are you currently reading any books at the moment? A Short History Of The World by H. G. Wells. I needed something I could read during my lunch breaks at the shelter, and that's what I ended up grabbing.

When I say ‘foxy lady’ what comes to mind? Mostly just this new kitten who came in from ISO the other day - her name is Foxy and her sister's name is Tofu.

Would you have liked to have lived during the Victorian times? Naw mate.

Would you own a Siamese cat? We have in the past - four of them, in fact.

Do you like deviled eggs? Yeah.

What tends to upset you? Many things, but lately it's been when genuinely kind and decent people speak up about negative shit and are made to feel as though they are the problem.

What’s the farthest you’ve walked? Something like 13-14 miles.

What is your favorite horror movie? I don't have a favorite atm. In the past (I know it's really basic, but) probably the Saw films. I think I've seen all but the most recent one.

What does your favorite shirt look like? I don't have a favorite shirt.

Is your life like a daily routine? Yeah. I wouldn't say it's entirely dictated by routine, but it's heavily influenced by it.

Were you ever told as a child if you eat carrots you’ll have pretty eyes? I was told that they were good for my eyesight.

What career are you most interested in? It's not really a "career," but a kennel tech at the animal shelter.

Have you ever seen a rooster? Yeah. Most likely at the State Fair.

What time do you usually wake up? 5:30am-5:45am. Well, that's when I get up on most days. I often wake up about 30-60 minutes prior to that.

What made you feel most accomplished in your life so far? Getting this far in terms of recovery/mental illness. Volunteering at the animal shelter. Learning to drive again. Getting back into art and actually sticking with it.

Have you ever seen a lunar eclipse? Yeah.

What are you allergic to? I supposedly have a "sensitivity" to gluten (not celiac), but aside from that, nothing that I know of.

Do you ever feel like people hold things you do or say against you? Only certain people. I hold things they say and do against them in return, though, so…fair is fair…?

What can’t you afford but wish you could? Home repair/renovations. My own apartment (or idealistically - a cabin in the mountains). A trip to Japan.

What is your favorite Daft Punk song? I don't have one.

Do you know anything about Watts? Watts who…? Or are you just talking about the unit of measurement…? Lol I had to look this up, but the watt is named after James Watt; except that doesn't answer the "Watts" question. The only "Watts" I can think of is Alan Watts.

How many miles are on your car? Approximately 65,600.

What is your favorite scent to smell around this time of year? Autumnal spices, baked goods, rain, smoke from nearby fireplaces…

How many lamps are in your room? There are two salt lamps if those count. No regular lamps, though.

Do you own a flare gun? I don't.

What is one thing you usually have in common with some people? Just some people? We're just hangin' in there, just tryin' to get by, just tryin' to have a good time.

What is your favorite number? 19 has this strange significance in my life.

What is your favorite type of museum? Lol I really want to go to a Bigfoot museum.

Have you ever been inside the Statue of Liberty? No.

Ever felt like you were being held hostage? Not exactly. But stuck somewhere against my will? Yes.

What is your favorite candy bar? As a chocolate candy fiend, that's tough. I'm honestly not that picky, but anything with cookie wafers, nuts, caramel…

What is your favorite book you’ve read this year? Dune or House Of Suns. I think I read them both within the last year anyway.

If you had children or do would you tell them the truth about Santa Claus? I don't plan on having children. I can only speak from my own experience to say that I loved the whole Santa Claus thing.

What color are your slippers? Dark blue, maroon, and gray/white.

[servin-up-surveys]

survey #205

Would you rather have another job? I don't have a job to begin with.

Did you ever live in a house with more than one story? No.

What room of your home do you spend most time in? The spare room, which I tend to just call "my room."

Have you ever given yourself a tattoo? No.

Do you own any clothes you wouldn’t wear in front of your mother? No.

Why did you last take pain medication? Menstrual cramps.

Do you drive an electric car? My mom's car is an ancient white Kia with the bumper held on by zipties and duct tape. No.

Do you like facial hair on guys or do you prefer the clean-shaven look? It depends on the guy. Some look better (to me) with it, some not so much.

Who was your first celebrity crush? Jesse McCartney.

Who is your current celebrity crush? it's so embarrassing to say Richard Kruspe he could be my fucking dad he has kids older than me help

Are you good with kids? I definitely don't think so, but I've been told I'm better than I think I am with them.

Do you have your national flag hanging up anywhere outside your house? ew no

Do you look older or younger than you actually are? I've heard quite a bit younger. The last time I was in the hospital (I was like, 26?), my peers thought I was a teenager.

When is the next time you’ll be up on stage? Probably never.

What was the last show that you watched a full episode of? Naked and Afraid with Mom.

Were you ever a boy or girl scout? As a child, yes.

Do you take your medications in the morning or at night? I have meds I have to take both in the morning and before bed + with dinner.

Do you like thrift stores? YES!!!!

Do you know anyone who has ten cats? My sister's parents-in-law own WELL over ten, they have an infestation inside and outside.

Have you ever had a cat? I grew up with cats; as a matter of fact, we also had an outdoor infestation growing up. I hope that doesn't make anyone think ill of my parents, obviously that is a very serious issue that I now have very strong feelings about, but my mom didn't want to devastate us kids by taking them away. This eventually did happen when I was a teenager, and it was one of the most heartbreaking things that has happened to me. The cats were there one school morning, gone when I got home because our neighbor complained. It's because of this history that I try to treat Ashley's MIL with understanding and compassion regarding this topic, but it's hard when the cats are suffering, too.

Have you ever had a dog? Yes, we've had a good few. We have a rescued chihuahua now, she's a sweetheart.

Have you ever any other kind of animal? Oh yes, loads other. Guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, mice, rats, ball pythons, a Chinese water dragon, iguana, a rabbit, fish, hermit crabs, possibly more I'm forgetting. Pets have always been in my life.

Have you ever had a pet rock? I suppose possibly as a child, but not to my memory, and certainly never seriously.

What were you voted in the senior class polls? I wasn't voted anything.

Do you organize your clothes by color? No.

Do you have any significantly older siblings? Yeah, both my parents have children from relationships they had prior to each other.

Which parent do you feel the most affection for? My mom, pretty easily. She raised me and has provided for me unending, even into my "I should be taking care of myself" age. My dad did not raise me.

Who do you care about the most? My mom and Girt, I just care in different ways.

Do you tend to speed when you drive? I don't drive.

Do you get bored with relationships quickly? No.

Do you have an online game that you play often? Yeah, World of Warcraft.

How long does it take you to normally take a shower? In the shower itself, not even 10 minutes. I don't understand long showers, get yourself clean and get out.

Was the last person you kissed younger or older than you? Older.

Do you always wear your seatbelt? Yes, without fail. I don't play about this.

Would you rather watch a movie, watch a TV show, or watch a YouTube video? YouTube video, easy. I'm always doing that.

Do your pets chase after bugs? Yeah, Roman especially.

When you get married, who will be the maid of honor/best man? My mom.

When you go to McDonalds, what drink do you usually get? Coke.

What was the last thing you threw up? Doritos lmfao

Are you someone’s best friend? My boyfriend's.

Would your childhood self be disappointed? She'd be devastated and I can't stand thinking about it.

Can you lift your significant other (your best friend if you’re single)? No, I'm not strong enough to lift like, any adult.

What’s your opinion on the legalization of weed? Legalize it.

Have you ever hit a girl? I hit my sister once as a kid.

What was your New Year’s resolution? To progress as a freelance photographer. I hope by the end of the year, I'll be able to have an actual product, even just ONE print up for sale.

Do you like watching music videos? Only Rammstein's, lol. I've seen all theirs.

Are you happy with your looks? Big fat nope.

Do you have any pets who will bite anyone else out there, besides you? No.

Are you someone who really likes to cook? What’s your favorite meal? No. I WISH I liked cooking, or especially baking. It's something I wanna be into, I'm just... not.

Anal sex, yay or nay? I have never tried this and never plan to, I am very Not into butt stuff.

Have you ever dated a fat person? Once or twice, depending on if you count one experience as truly "dating."

What is truly attractive to you? Compassion, for one.

You see a spider web in the corner of your room. What do you do? Leave it be.

Name a song that reminds you of a past relationship: "Another Life" by Motionless In White can be very painful to me with how aggressively it reminds me of Jason.

Do you think anyone hates you? I can name one person who probably does.

What do you think your last ex would say about you? Oh, nothing nice at all.

Do you still talk to the first person you fell in love with? No.

Have you ever been punched? No. I'd like things to stay that way lol

Do you care about what’s happening in other countries? No good person can not care. I mean that. No one who can pride themselves in being a "good" person can look at evil transpiring outside of their home and NOT care.

Do you believe in the afterlife? I believe there's some spiritual plane, but I don't pretend to know the details of it. I do believe in the human soul, but I do know I don't believe in some traditional heaven and hell BS.

What is your greatest achievement? Still being alive, like that's deadass my answer.

What kind of bottled water do you drink? We don't drink bottled water; we have two filters we use instead.

What’s the most you’ve ever lost gambling? I don't gamble.

Have you ever waited in line overnight for something? No, I do not have that sort of patience for literally anything.

Do you watch porn? No, the idea really doesn't appeal to me.

If you don’t, do you have a moral reasoning behind that decision? No. The porn industry is capable of being extremely harmful, but I don't believe all porn is made immorally. I'm just not into watching random people bang.

Do/did you ever attend church regularly? I went semi-regularly as a kid, but not by my will. My mom forced it. I would literally cry if she decided we were going after Sunday school was out.

Do you have a godmother/godfather/both? Not to my knowledge.

Do you watch Supernatural? I haven't watched it in many years. Only with Jason for a while. I think we stopped after (SPOILER) Castiel became god.

Do you go to a firework show every 4th of July? No, I don't endorse the usage of fireworks.

Are you diabetic? No. I was pre-diabetic for a while, but the last time my A1C was checked, it was 100% normal so I am no longer considered pre-diabetic!

Are you allergic to gluten? No.

Are you lactose intolerant? No.

If you have shoplifted, are you afraid of getting in trouble? I've never shoplifted.

How long have you been single? (Or dating your current interest) Girt and I have been together for two and a half years.

Do any famous people follow you on Twitter or Instagram? No way.

Name all the people you know that you’ve seen today. My mom and her mom's widower. He was driving through and stayed the night here before setting off again.

Have you ever read a book about a character in a psych ward? Not to my recollection.

Have you ever been in a mental hospital as a patient? Somewhere around seven times, I lost count years ago.

Do you take birth control pills? Yes.

Do you like soy sauce? No, it's gross.

What’s the name of the most recent baby a friend had? Harper.

Would you ever wear real fur? No.