#oh wait do you think if his burst is like 80 energy could I pair him with my raiden

[polrification]

I'm thinking again about those Alhaitham leaks we saw back in like. October (yknow the ones that mentiomed the forlorn lotus and the burst prism) and I'm thinking about the prism??

I don't have the actual leaked code and data tables an stuff but I remember every leaker reading the file as some variation of "the prism shoots bullet and has scaling based on the level of the forlorn lotus"

and before I'd get confused about that but now that I've had quite the time to think about it, I think that his burst might operate similar to Yelan/Xingqiu's?

If anyone knows where I can find the leaked files then I'd be willing to look into them and try analyzing more

[tobiosmilktea]

she looked like a virtue — kozume kenma

1.9k words | genre/s: fluff | warning/s: — | pairing: kenma x f! reader

↪︎ in which kozume kenma pines for his neighbor from beyond his bedroom window

okay, so maybe it was a bit creepy to watch someone through their bedroom window, but kenma truly didn’t mean any harm. really, he didn’t. if anything it was just a mere spur in the moment of serendipities that you—the girl who hated closing her blinds because it blocked out the pretty sunlight—was his cure for boredom.

whenever his eyes would burn from staring at the computer too long, or if he was just too burnt out to play anymore video games or even watch tv, his eyes would settle upon your windowsill. often times you were dancing in your room alone to 80s pop music or painting the landscape outside all cause you wanted to. it was enough to ease him into relaxation yet entertaining enough that he never got bored of what you do.

kenma despised how this immediately landed a target on his back if he were to ever get caught. ‘peeping tom’ would forever be hovering over his head if you were to ever notice his stares of admiration from afar. granted, you never really did like closing your blinds despite it’s dangers, but you weren’t dumb either. sometimes kenma would like to think that if he were ever to get caught, you wouldn’t be so blatantly creeped out as you both went to nekoma. besides, you’re well aware that he was your neighbor as well. it was just a matter whether or not you would notice how conviniently placed his mattress is to be in front of his window.

if you were to ever-so-slightly pivot your head by the inch, your eyes would immediately find kenma’s probing irises. perhaps you would scream and close your blinds for the first time ever, or maybe you just wouldn’t care.

maybe you liked the idea of being watched by him.

besides, kenma had his PSP with him just in case your lingering gaze would finally fall upon him and he would at least have some way of looking nonchalant as possible.

he didn’t have any cruel intentions. no perverted antics, no keeping track of secrets, no way of gaining intel for blackmail—it was all just pure fascination for a girl he had always found pretty.

this was something he would never verbalized even if he was paid a million dollars worth of cash. in fact, the only other person who knew about this hobby of his (god, that sounds so creepy, kenma cringed to himself) was kuroo. being his best friend, who else would he be able to tell this habit he knew he couldn’t keep to himself without bursting? he felt a bit guilty if he couldn’t at least tell the person he trusts the most.

“i still think it’s a bit suspect of you to be doing this so often,” kuroo would say whenever he was in kenma’s bedroom, twirling a disk of the game they were supposed to play earlier, but kenma was too caught up in watching your gracefulness hues of choosing which novel to read next.

kenma could only sigh as he forced his gaze to be ripped away from you. “i know. it’s become a habit, i think.”

“what?” the onyx-haired boy mused, “stalking?”

scoffing, kenma strolled to kuroo and took the disk out of his hand before placing it in the gaming console. “i think you mean admiration.”

“you call that admiring?”

“you can admire someone from afar,” kenma defends as the opening noises of Street Fighter emit from the television screen.

he swiftly hands kuroo a controller as they both settle themselves side by side in from of the screen. silence filled the void between the two volleyball players as they spent a good five minutes on the character selection screen. it was mainly kenma who could decide between Vega and Cammy, to which he eventually forced himself to toss a coin to choose.

“i think you should just talk to her,” suggests kuroo out of the blue as the first found starts.

the sounds of smashing buttons and joysticks filled the room as the virtual fight ensued. kenma kept quiet as eventually his efforts to focus on the game slipped, giving victory to kuroo.

kenma placed his controller down as he walked to his bed. plopping himself right onto the mattress, the boy quickly sighs. “i don’t think i can do that.”

furrowing his brows, kuroo stands as he sits beside his best friend. “and why’s that?”

“i think she’d be weirded out by it, honestly.” answered kenma.

“i mean... you don’t have to tell her that you’ve been watching her.”

the setter shook his head, “it doesn’t matter. knowing the fact that we’ve barely interacted in school outside of projects, i think she’d find it strange that someone she barely talks to even likes her.”

a hum of understanding leaves kuroo’s lips as he sighs. “i still think what i said stands. you don’t have to tell her how you feel just yet.”

kenma stares up upon his blank white ceiling, eyes blinking to a nonspecific beat. the sun’s rays shining through his window, his eyes adjusted with the amount of light entering his irises as he peered over to your window. you were sitting at your desk reading. oh how angelic you looked, in all your glory of serene silence. you were the cause of his quickening heart beat, yet you were his calming disposition in a mere juxtaposition.

“y/n has always been really into 80s films,” kuroo starts again as kenma’s gaze never left you. “in a lot of those romcom films, the guy usually throws something at the girl’s window to get her attention. maybe you could start there.”

a beat had passed as kenma considered the plan.

“i don’t think i would have anything to say if i were to do that.” he muttered lazily, “i’d be too stunned.”

how whipped, kuroo thought to himself as he inaudibly chuckles. “just say whatever feels right in the moment.”

“like?”

“flirt with her!”

“that’s not going to end well, kuroo.”

kenma hated how his thoughts were as restless as him. it was nighttime, midnight... maybe, but all he knew was that it was late and he had residual energy he needed to extrude. it wasn’t a form of adrenaline like during volleyball games where nekoma was at the cusp of winning—no, it was something else. his body was well beyond fatigued, but his mind was surging in endless obscurity.

perhaps it started the moment your dim bedroom suddenly lit up by the slightest illumination of your desk lamp. you stay at you desk doing something that kenma couldn’t exactly see as he was laying flat upon his bed. it was as though kuroo’s plan of potentially winning your heart over by actions primarily used in the 80s was causing his heart palpitations.

surely it didn’t help his situation the moment you lifted yourself from your seat and approached your window. kenma felt his heart jump into throat when you fiddled with your window lock and pushed your windows open.

“kenma?” you whispered loudly.

his usual relaxed eyes widened in shock as you continued to call out his name.

“kenma?” you said again. it was like music to his ears knowing that you did in fact know his name (how could you not? he’s literally on the volleyball team). “are you awake?”

as if the setter was paralyzed, he still laid there in absolute surprise. in his mind, his thoughts spiraled into oblivion. coursing through his veins was the possibility of him getting up was a good idea or not, but of course it was a good idea. kenma’s worries about starting a conversation with you was started by you! so why wasn’t he getting up?

hesitance pumped throughout his body as he continued to stare at you. you were waiting for his response, but you weren’t exactly optimistic on him answering. it was way past midnight and no lunatic would even bother waking up just because someone was at their window.

a disappointed sigh escaped your lips as you pursed them. perhaps tonight wasn’t the best idea of asking the setter for a favor that was totally out of his league. yet to both of your surprises, the sound of an unlocking window captured your attention. beneath the moonlight, kenma appears from the dimness of his bedroom with a nervous look on his face.

“y/n,” he almost whispers, “um. what did you want to say?”

your breath hitched at the realization with thousands of monarch butterflies tickling their way through your gut as you roughly swallowed. “i wanted to ask if you wanted to climb on our roofs and talk. it’s a full moon tonight too.”

kenma’s mouth ran agape slightly as he struggled to find the correct words to leave his lips. “i-um—”

“you don’t have to if you don’t want to, kenma.” you swiftly cut in, “you can go to sleep if you wan—”

“no,” the setter answers just as fast, “i’ve always wanted to talk... with you.”

you found his nervous chuckles cute as you two climbed to the roof of your respective houses. tokyo at night seemed utterly serene with the chirping cicadas and the silent streets. granted, you were in the suburbs and a ways away from the actual city.

your gaze lingered upon the moonlight reflecting off the city's skyscrapers far off into the distance, resonating and refracting off the infrastructure's angles until they shined luminous fractals upon your face and dosed in a baby blue hue. tokyo never seemed to rest unlike the near-silent nights in this area. the sight was breathtaking, to say the least, but kenma was looking at you rather than the city.

kenma’s eyes tried wandering elsewhere than you before him, yet he was locked in admiration at the moment of stillness of just you and him.

the spiraling skies above you two almost looked synthetic with lavender-candied hues sprayed amongst the painted heavens. it appeared unreal to the eyes of two teenagers of the busy and crowded streets of tokyo, where every corner you turn would be colored with neon lights. the scattering constellations and stars that playfully hovered above them were something you and kenma never really seen before (properly at least now that they were finally outside).

“you know,” you started, breaking the silence into oblivion, and yet your voice was still soft in the humming midnight breeze. “you’re not as slick as you think you are.”

kenma’s mouth ran dry as he blinked innocently at you. “what do you mean?”

you chuckled slightly, the corners of your lips curling into a smile that instantly filled kenma’s heart with warmth. “it’s always the quiet ones who are the most observant.

the setter gulped. he knew and it was game over for him.

“it’s okay, i don’t mind you looking at me sometimes.” you suddenly confess as kenma’s gaze snaps towards you, “which sounds weird, but it’s whatever.”

“you’re not mad?” he asks gently to which you shake your head.

“honestly, i’m just confused on how you find me so interesting.” you paused, “why?”

“because you look like a virtue.”

[sickadelia]

hey 'delia, it's me. eddedneddy. i've got a question for you.

so imagine this. there's a guy, right. he breaks into your house, gun to your head, asks you to pick 3 records out of your collection. just 3. the gun is real and it's an alternate reality in which people can just legally break into people's houses and make them pick records, so there's no loophole out of this. you get to keep those, but he's gonna stomp on every other record you own so the three you pick have to be worth the anguish.

I'm that guy right now. which records do you choose bestie

hi bestie eddedneddy!!!! as terrified as i am by this scenario, your interest in The Record Collection makes me want to scream and cry in the best way possible (insert paragraph about how much i love you here), so let's get into this because i have a gun to my head!!!! also, quick moment of silence for the 550 albums that are about to be stomped into oblivion.

(sorry this is mostly gonna be unedited rambles ecksdee. but thats just how i work)

1. xtc- white music (1978)

starting off strong, establishing my weirdo music taste pretty quickly. i have a weird thing for debut albums that are totally different from the rest of the band's discography, probably because they have a scrappy, unpolished charm. i feel this way about a lot of bands, especially cheap trick. btw, please listen to cheap trick self-titled, it's so good. oh wait i have a gun to my head-

ANYWAY, xtc. a british 80s "new wave" band who are best known for the song "making plans for nigel" and their stuff from 1979 to 1989. their sound during their peak is pretty guitar-oriented and bouncy, but little do many people know that they briefly had a- drumroll please- crazy post-punk keyboard phase!!! woah!!! from 1978 to 1979, they had a guy named barry andrews playing the lo-fi 70s keyboard, and they released two albums with him before he peaced out to form the band shriekback, which is also pretty cool. white music is the first of these two albums, and has sooo much of that scruffy "we don't really know what's happening" energy, i love it so much.

i was obsessed with xtc one summer a few years ago, and while i do love all of their stuff and own pretty much all their albums, their more successful 80s guitar stuff really can't compare to the barry andrews keyboard era. the guitar era is much more polished and professional, but andy partridge's scratchy guitar paired with andrews' squealy synthesizers gives it a very "sharp" feeling. to give you some imagery, this album sounds like what it feels like to walk on a pathway made of nails. in a good way of course. i dunno if there's a positive way to walk on nails, but humour me and imagine.

partridge, who is xtc's de facto leader and the primary songwriter, has said that his style was inspired by comic books, sci-fi, and pop art. ignoring how cool that sounds for a sec, i think that really shows the most on this album, whereas the rest of their catalogue is just "oh weird thingy haha", and is a little more restrained and, like i said, polished. but white music FEELS and SOUNDS like pop art, bursting with all this neon, bright-coloured energy and what have you. it's one of those "aesthetics" that you can't really describe, but you could easily make a pinterest board for. everything about it is so ECCENTRIC!! i feel like it's hard to find anything else like this out there, whereas their later stuff (WHICH I STILL LIKE BTW)

also, quick funny little story: during the "xtc summer" i was a stupid kid who had just gotten her first job and was weirdly loaded with cash, so i just spent all of it ordering random albums off discogs marketplace LMAOO. i managed to track down every single barry andrews xtc ep and album, and they were og uk pressings which took forever to arrive. and i kid you not, not even a WEEK after they all arrived, i saw copies of every single one of them in a record store 10 min from my house. for 10 bucks ea. i was about to burn the damn place down.

- favourite songs: statue of liberty, neon shuffle, i'll set myself on fire, spinning top, into the atom age

2. beastie boys- paul's boutique (1989)

a strange deviation from the theme we had going on there, but my music taste basically does not exist. if a song has a good beat then i like it........ unless it's country music. country sucks.

my love of the beastie boys is kinda weird, because i got into them when i had an utter distaste for any music made after 1985, especially rap and hip hop. this is because i was a stubborn little greaseball who knew absolutely nothing about what hip hop actually was, thinking it was just some lil pump shit or something. but when i heard hey ladies for the first time, everything about hip hop clicked in my brain, and it's been one of my favourite genres of music ever since. while i do like rap, the way that hip hop utilizes samples and how they work together with the flow of the MCs is actual art.

anyone who knows me well knows that i am absolutely obsessed with sampling and the work that goes into it, and this album is what got me into obsessively researching every single sample i hear on a song i like. before this, i had no clue that most of hip hop backtracks were taken from other songs, and that method of "stealing" cool parts of other songs and making it into one big song collage was so fascinating to me. some madlad on youtube made an "every paul's boutique sample" video on youtube, and i think i watch it once every month or something. the dust brothers are such fabulous producers, and the way they seamlessly layer and swap out samples makes my brain explode.

AND THE BEASTIES THEMSELVES!! *sighs wistfully* oh, the beasties. on their debut/previous album they were lowkey annoying (SORRY I DO LIKE LICENSED TO ILL, IT JUST GETS A LIL TIRING AFTER A WHILE!!!), but finding their footing and mixed with all the samples here, they just sound so effortlessly cool. they totally sell the whole thing, it's a nice mix of vulgarity and chill (if that makes sense). their flow and style of swapping from guy to guy is so well-done, i just!!! i love it so much!!! i've always wanted to make a beasties animation, cos their raps just have such strong flow and energy that are very well suited to that medium. they are just such huge balls of personality, and their strong friendship really shows in the music. imo they're underrated, idc if they technically aren't underrated, I AM DYING ON THIS HILL. also rip mca i miss you sm </3

i've been into the beasties for a while, and i think i've had a different fav album of theirs each year, but i think paul's boutique is my actual fav forever. it hypes you up and makes you feel super cool, whether you're driving with your dad to the grocery store or walking downtown wearing a super awesome outfit. you just crank the volume up to 11 and enjoy yourself babey!! GET FUNK-AY!!!!

- favourite songs: 3 minute rule, car thief, the sounds of science, shake your rump, egg man, b-boy bouillabaisse

3. todd rundgren- a wizard, a true star (1973)

saved this one for last, because this is the only one that i would pick to be saved without even thinking about it. if you were gonna stomp 552 of my records into oblivion and only let me keep one, it would be this one, and it's because i don't think i'd be the same person i am today if this album didn't exist. for REAL. todd rundgren (the world's most underrated producer, songwriter, guitarist, music video innovator, etc...) is my favourite artist FOREVER OF ALL TIME and i love all of his albums to the moon and back, but i have such a blatant bias towards awats that i dont really listen to his other stuff that much (LOL)

knowing all that i do about him (because ive read his wikipedia article 500 times and own two books about him, including his lowkey terrible autobio), i think the thing that draws me the most to todd is his absolute "i dont give a fuck" attitude. for his entire career, he's basically just done whatever the hell he wants and not really cared about what makes the most money or appeals to the most people. if everyone's eating bananas, he's painting a carrot green and then gluing googly eyes onto it. in short, he's the type of person who purely makes music- and content in general- for himself, and i really think that awats shows that in the best way. he had great commercial success with his prev album something/anything, and had a huge new audience of pop radio listeners that were eager to hear more sappy soft rock or whatever. and you know what he does? guess. yeah, you got it, he makes a bonkers psychedelic trip prog-electronic fusion album that completely alienates his entire new normie fanbase, and then goes on an unintelligible prog tangent for the rest of the 70s, to the point where you'd have to be a pretty dedicated fan to stay interested (i am. i love the prog era. todd and initiation fuck).

awats is just kinda... unapologetic. before this todd had "fuck it" insane moments on his albums, but they were kinda few and far between, this is entirely him just doing WHATEVER. the first side of the record is just random song fragments, completely unrelated to each other, but at the same time it's just so insane that it kinda makes sense i guess?? to a reg person this is probably all a bunch of random noises and screams, but to ME it is a cinematic, passionate work of art from one of music's most brilliant and creative personalities. getting into the specifics of why i like the music so much will get redundant and long, so i'm not gonna get into it. but lemme just say that the one thing this album has over the others is that i do not dislike a single song on here. not even a little bit. with white music & paul's boutique, there are songs that i'm just okay on, but awats has a ""song"" that is literally just dog noises and i still like it. everything about it is just... idk. hashtag perf.

even if the music sucked, or it had no artistic integrity, it would still be my favourite of all time because of the emotional significance it has for me. awats entered my life during a really difficult time, where i was miserable all the time and hated myself. i felt like i had no purpose in life or no friends to turn to, so having a cool album and guy to obsess over numbed the pain. the other two album picks have helped me thru some hard times too, but awats has so many memories and emotions attached to it, good and bad. i remember laying in bed and crying listening to sometimes i dont know what to feel, but i ALSO remember bouncing down the street singing along to you don't have to camp around. my all-time favourite record shopping experience when i was at my first record fair in 2019, anxiously searching all the huge crates, then magically finding a copy of it in all its glory.. with some random guy's name scrawled across the beautiful back cover. i actually gasped out loud and jumped all around the room, i could barely even contain my excitement. i don't think any other album i own or will own can replicate that feeling for me, just absolute glee and euphoria but also comfort and solitude. tl;dr... it means the world to me and it's my fave album ever. the end.

- favourite songs (EVEN THO YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO IT IN ORDER) : international feel/le feel internacionale, never never land, just one victory, sometimes i dont know what to feel, the medley, when shit hits the fan, zen archer

~~

forever appreciative to you for asking me this vezzie!! i love to talk about my records :> hopefully it won't be too hard to sift through this hell post!

[sugar-petals]

Hav u done predictive readings for who the boys will end up with & how their career will go etc?

a 2020 career prediction i’ll publish at the end of december! their future partner we’re doing now. i added some angel oracle cards today ♡ those describe the theme of their relationship.

Jungkook: QUEEN OF CUPS

Hallelujah! Oh yeah. That’s an ideal card, picture perfect. The Queen of Cups is quite possibly one of the best partner allegories to have because a) Cups rule smoothness of relationships and emotions and b) she’s a royal card which indicates a highly developed state of mind where things finally come to fruition unlike with the aces and pages. Jungkook will mean so, so much to his partner. That’s a twin flame or soulmate connection we’re talking here. A really beautiful and dignified person, a little touchy feely, but experienced with love. They can really depend on another. Maybe they’re from Busan like him or the shore generally, the sea plays an important role for the Queen of Cups. There are tiny little cherubs on the card, I’m thinking he’ll be treated like an angel. It’s a very healthy relationship that leaves nothing left to be desired. As for looks: It might be a blonde, taller person whose favorite color is blue. There are cliffs on the card that remind me of Cornwall’s coast. The English theme is pretty consistent in his readings lmao we’re dealing with an excellent speaker. And, because it’s a court card with quite abundant imagery, it’ll be a S/O of quite some status. I am sure the person will be known to us already, or at least a big deal within his or her family. It’s queen energy, so the mom friend is right on their way into JK’s heart. Another aspect is that his partner might be rather spiritually inclined — mind you, every person is spiritual, how aware you are makes the difference — or even psychic. Water signs ahead; Pisces, Scorpio, Cancer.

— angel card: “Playfulness — To bring about romantic feelings, allow your youthfulness to shine with delight.”

Taehyung: THE EMPRESS

Yet another powerful female archetype, this reading does not mince words.  And also a very wholesome outlook, it’s very similar to the Queen of Cups vibe, or Queen of Pentacles if we’re looking at other tarot suits. I was really happy when I saw this card come out. The Empress almost always signifies kids, the theme is fertility. Taehyung will live a very lavish life with this partner. The card has so much opulence and positivity on it. Nature, food, pillows, ample garments, jewelry, good weather, and harvest time. And, of course, the Empress is fairly curvy, so expect either Taehyung gaining weight in the future or his partner being chubby. It’ll be the good life, in a good place, with the right person. There’s a settled and satiated feeling there. Stagnation could be possible after a while because this card gets too cozy. However, loyalty and a ripe sexual life are like glue to the union so I don’t see Taehyung stress anytime soon there. The card gives me plenty of clues how his home will look like as well, it’s highly decorated and comfortable. Interestingly enough, we see a huge wheat field surrounding the Empress — hence the card symbolizes fertility — so I wonder whether Taehyung’s dream of getting involved in farming will play out. I mean… coincidence? The countryside will take on an important role in any case, maybe with photography as well. Tae marrying a farmer’s girl, who knows! Beautiful card, definitely. It’s a good prospect for him. The Empress is major arcana so, this state of happiness will last him for a giant while and it’s destined. The boy will shed a tear no more. 

— angel card: “Attraction — you receive love by enjoying the moment.”

Yoongi: KNIGHT OF SWORDS

It’s the fastest card of the tarot! The power of swords paired with a knight on his speedy horse is quite a combination. Yoongi’s future partner is not going to waste time to charge right into sweet honey boy’s life. We’re dealing with a hothead, athlete, extrovert. I don’t think Yoongi has to do as much as crook a single finger to get things going. In fact, he’s the one waiting it out. He’ll just lean back and poof there is his significant other bursting into his life. Though I gotta say, the Knight of Swords has a detriment and that is: He leaves as fast as he arrives, and you have to be sure of your boudaries. Major burnout dangers there. The relationship might be short compared to say Namjoon’s or Tae’s reading. It’s Yoongi’s part to make this last if that’s what he’s going for. It’s a sword card, there have to be efforts and mental clarity involved to solve the problem. Though, someone rushing towards their love interest with so much passion has a good reason why he or she does that. Yoongi could get snatched away by someone else, with so many people interested in him you really have to be determined. With the archetype being a knight I also know it’s going to be someone younger than him, there’s a certain rebellion to the card. It has military energy. Yoongi’s partner will be one outrageous and direct person. They are 100% unafraid to face off with Yoongi, they have better comebacks than the master of sharp remarks himself. When it comes to sex, Yoongi will probably forget his own damn name after that ride. This person is wild as hell. It’s not a fellow sleepyhead as we saw in the ideal type reading, but a S/O bringing him out of his dreamy world. There’s a strong encouragement for Yoongi to achieve a lot more when he enters that relationship, it’s a power up to be expected here.

— angel card: “Worth the Wait — Divine timing predicates your relationship.”

Namjoon: TEN OF PENTACLES

Nice! Wow. The tarot says Namjoon is blessed. This is the card of wealthy, happy old age. He’s headed right for it already. In all tarot suits, the 10 indicates fulfillment. E.g. the Ten of Cups shows relationship completion because cups stand for love, the Ten of Swords shows total defeat because swords symbolize conflict, the Ten of Wands signifies complete effort/exhaustion since wands represent impetus. So the Ten of Pentacles equals coming full circle in terms of material things as pentacles are responsible for all tangible value in life. He’ll be living blissfully with his S/O. Everything is cared for. We’re talking long-term relationship here. The card shows an old man settled in his favorite coat and spot. Namjoon has a kind of master plan to gently arrive in his 80s, 90s. It’s not a surprise, we know he looks ahead, the tarot is aware of it, too. And yes: He will finally be able to answer his question “Who the hell am I?”. Ten of Pentacles means: Identity found. I had to wipe away a tear for that one man. I think it has to do with the location. The setting of the card is like a polished type of town with castles. A bit Italian, Mediterranean. Not as modern as say Seoul, bigger cities. It could be him moving to a warm country where things are slow, antique, and indulgent. I once said Namjoon has a type of European mindset going on, if he moves there it with his loved one or his partner is European it wouldn’t be shocking. There are two dogs on the card so, Joon will have pets involved in the partnership. The 10 of Coins also shows a couple immersed in a chat. His S/O is primarily someone he can talk to about the world, it’s a very conversation-heavy union. Now, the old man on the card could also show that he finds another old soul— we’ve had that topic come up in the other readings as well, the tarot is sure he’ll meet someone on par. Earth sign energy here.

— angel card: “Love Without Fear — Open your heart to give and receive the highest of energies.”

Hobi: THREE OF PENTACLES

Even more pentacles. Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn is possible. His partner is a darn good team player, their friendship bond is strong. First thing that came to my mind, they’ll build a house together or get busy working around their home in some kind of way, that’s interestingly enough the central theme I get from the card. Distribution of chores and general tasks is a big thing, and they’ll be planning a gazillion industrious things from what I got through the imagery. There’s an abbot, architect/craftsman, and monk seen on that card working on a church wall embellishment. One gives directions, the other has drawn a sketch that illustrates what kind of decor the abbot wants to have on the church wall, and the third guy does the crafting, hammer and chisel in hand. It’s not a love-related card per see so it’s important to point that out. It could hint at some pretty huge artistic collaborations coming our way instead. If you combine that, it could happen in a way like… Hoseok gets with someone he collaborated/collaborates with sometime soon, or a little later. Yup. Chicken noodle soup with Becky G on the side! Their chemistry is amazing and she is so cute, it’s very much possible. Or, in a wider sense, it’s someone from an upcoming project. That’s interesting. It seems quite sure that Hoseok won’t retire after BTS even if he’s pretty damn rich already, he’ll stay in the industry and foster (=embellish) his career with a strategy behind it much like the abbot on the card. We’ll get to know his partnership(s) along the way, but the tarot says it’s not top priority. Pentacles are earth sign energy so Mercury, Saturn and Venus are what will dictate that union, it’s the overall pragmatic energy that’s taking center spot. Also, since the church is so prominent on the card, Hoseok is working towards marriage nine times out of ten. 

— angel card: “Fresh Love — A new person has stirred your romantic feelings.”

Jimin: FIVE OF SWORDS

That one is… sigh. The odd one out in this post. How do I put it. It’s a series that just doesn’t break. Jimin constantly gets the messy cards and not so love-friendly swords when I do relationship readings on him. There is something going on and I kind of hate it already. But the tarot is being adamant so we have to decipher what’s going on and see the resolution, there’s more to it than just the cards doing him dirty. The Five of Swords pictures a battle aftermath with a mischievous winner and two defeated parties walking away sore. The winner picks up the weapons left behind to hoard then. So when it comes to his future S/O, we’re talking someone wants to play win-lose with Jimin’s insecurities and will get away with it because they’re strong, sly, and full of themselves. They don’t have his best interests in mind, especially when quarrels go down. Lack of harmony overshadows the relationship. There’s some major bullshit and that’s scary. The partner is like a leech, leaving only Jimin pissed, it’s not a lose-lose situation, things are wholly unequal. Picking on Jimin leaves their ego inflated and intensifies resentment. Working against each other over working with another is going on. Jimin has to walk away from that situation and mend his wounds, and never return. It’ll be a period of growth in his life ahead where he becomes aware just how giving too much and being defeated by that does him no good, as well as learning how to spot douchebags who don’t care about him. The Five of Swords is among the quintessential breakup card, it’ll be what defines his future relationship unless or until he has the grit to stop the fight and search for equity and affection instead of put-downs.

— angel card: “You Deserve Being Loved — You’re worthy of love.”

Jin: SIX OF PENTACLES

Pentacles, pentacles everywhere. I see that the hyungs have some financial themes going on, Jin’s card is emblematic of that. First let’s have a look what’s going on with the imagery. A wealthy man holds a scale on this card. He distributes coins to poor men kneeling before him. It’s an interesting symbol for a relationship, if not for another more important area of Jin’s life which could very well be philanthropy. He is the wealthy man on the card, sharing in just ways as the scale indicates. That could be providing for his partner a lot or simply doing charity together with them. I do have to say, and that is similar to Hoseok’s card, I don’t see too much of a romantic theme here which is surprising, but the tarot knows its ways. Some members might be doing partnerships much later in life or eschew them. With Jin here, I get a sense that business relations and deals will be an overarching theme in the near future. It could be the situation with his dad’s business in Germany the card is hinting at, and if marriage is involved, there’s a major exchange of valuable ideals and things involved between parties. A recurring theme is class difference though, the same popped up in the last reading. Jin’s status will be much, much higher but he can tip things into balance with a fairness mindset, Libra energy. A huge gap will be bridged. Last but not least, mea culpa: I think I’ve been missing the obvious interpretation there. The signs are everywhere in the cards for his readings, and oh my god: Jin is the member who’ll get together with a fan. 

— angel card: “Children — Kids will have an influence on your love life.”

[cinamons-fucking-art]

Chapter 7: Calm Before the Storm

096 had found it unimaginable they would escape from the Foundations hands, let alone with a partner in tow, and yet here they were...

Countless nights sent running in the forest, Lawrence in tow on their back, the breeze and scenery keeping them going. Daytime was spent in the Pocket Dimension, hiding from the ever watchful eyes of the Foundation and allowing them to rest before continuing. The pleasant warmth of the dimension compared to the cool night air of the over world just wanted to make 096 keep running, but they know Lawrence would not want that, and for that they opted to rest when he wanted to rest.

They lost track of time as the days passed. It may have been weeks, maybe months, since their escape, but after all that time of running, the two of them had made it to their destination.

The Himalayas, home of 096.

When they set foot in the mountains, a sense of relief came over 096, finally returning to the place they called home, the blistering cold feeling refreshing on their skin and the feeling of snow on their limbs bringing back memories of their time in the mountains before being taken away by the Foundation. The mountain scenery and the happy feelings rushing over them had stopped them from realizing that Lawrence had gotten off their back and began speaking.

"Oi, Lanky, yah mind... lookin here for a sec?"

096 looked over about ready to complain about the nickname before realizing why Lawrence had gotten their attention.

The man was freezing; He was freezing quite literally. The black substance that coated his skin had began to freeze in the areas where it was lightest, and areas where it was dripping had frozen, forming small icicles made from the secretion across his body. Inspecting their own body, the areas where the liquid had been pooling had frozen over and came off with ease, taking some flesh with it.

"Oh... Larry, I’m... you're freezing." 096 then wrapped their body around 106, trying to warm them.

"Guess this man cant ta-ake the cold as well as he he was once able to." He chuckled slightly before leaning into 096, relishing what little warmth the being could offer. They sat like this for a few minutes, the only reason they didn't enter the pocket dimension simply being 106 didn’t have the energy to open it. The two of them sat with their thoughts, enjoying the company of one another, until a realization dawned upon 096.

Without warning, 096 scooped up their companion in their arms and began running. 106 didn't even have time to react before the wind hit their body as 096 began their run. All he could do was sit in their arms and let them take them where he wanted.

096 quickly approached one of the many mountains in the range, and began to speed up. They could hear 106s protests but only sped up, until...

The snow broke away as 096 ran through the large mass of snow, the only thing bothering them being how much it had built up over time. It took only a couple of seconds before the snow gave way to the inside of the mountain. 096 stopped, and marveled that perhaps their favorite spot in the entirety of the Himalayas remained theirs until now.

The area was illuminated by white and blue crystals, which pulsed to life with the movement of the two entities. Large crater-like structures made was for water, warmed by the Earth, while smaller, hotter pools of water made way for warm steam to fill the room. Some of 106s frozen parts already began to thaw with the steam as he eyes the array of warm water pools that lay before him.

096 set him down and began walking to the largest pool, situated in the center of the room. "This place... has been my own little secret for many years. Just a small spot to warm up and soak if I wanted. Nothing special... just a small natural sauna only I've know about until now!" With that 096 stepped into the pool and sat, the water going up to their chest.

"Come on in, Lawrence, this should warm you." 096 looked at him as he stood awe struck by the sight.

"I... don’t need to be ruining your place with my..." He gestured towards the corrosive substance that had recently dripped off of him and began eating away at a small rock it has landed on.

"Don’t worry... there are dozens of other pools in here I can use it I don’t want to sit in your rot. We can just... make this your pool.

"Its the biggest one here though... are you sure?"

"Its fine... I don’t really come here often anyways, and plus the water should dilute your secretions for quite a while."

106 hesitated before he finally stepped into the pool. The water around him turned dark as he submerged himself, the water goin’ up to his shoulders before he sat next to 096. A sigh of relief escaped 106 as the warmth of the pool seeped into his skin and to his cold bones. 096 smiled at this, seeing the relief wash over 106s face.

"I don’t remember the last time I had a warm soak this fucken’ nice. Probably before the Foundation got their nasty hands on me in the, what was it, 80s maybe?"

096 chuckled before wrapping his arm along 106s shoulder. "That just means I've had to wait longer for this moment than you have."

"Wait... how long have you been contained?"

"Its... been a long time. I remember one of the officers who was there during my capture mentioning it being a Thursday... and the 1960s was brought up in there somewhere, but I cant remember if I was contained during or after the 60s... and I don’t know if I ever will unless I can get my hands on those original documents."

106 gave a small nod. "I have one other question about you..."

"Go ahead, Lawrence." 096 leaned in closer to 106.

"What would’ve happened to you if... died?"

096s ears went down, and they looked away from 106. "I’m not sure, I don’t remember much about my past beyond maybe a couple of years from the before the Foundation got me. My best guess is that I’d just be reborn in some way, or maybe I would truly be dead... I cant say for sure.”

“Mmmhh...” 106 looked down at the water for a second, before looking up at 096. “Just know that... whatever form you take next when you ‘die’ just know Ill still love you. Unless you take the form of the person who ‘kills’ you next and act like an asshole, in which case Ill probably just cry in a corner or somethin’... not sure... might beat the shit outta yah with a baseball bat if the persons bad enough.”

096 blushed, pulling 106 closer. “I appreciate the gestures... though I wouldn't be surprised if 035 beat you to the bat before dancing a little before beating me to death and making out with 049.” 096 let out a slight chuckle at their joke, while 106 burst out in laughter.

“Jesus Christ I never knew you where so fucken’ funny dude.”

“Maybe its because I haven't been able to talk for, what, sixty years maybe? So many thoughts I’ve had can finally express... I know there’s one thing I've never needed a voice to express though.” With that a kiss landed on the top of 106s head, causing him to submerge himself a little further in the pool, blushing. 096 also lowered himself, allowing himself to continue comfortably cuddling in the warm pool of now dark grey water.

“You’re sure this is where they where last seen, Commander?”

“For the last time, Harley, yes, I am sure. Now shut up before one of them hears us.”

Commander Sam had found it beyond their realms of belief why two beings with such an unpleasant past had been out of containment for nearly six months, always spotted together before running off or slipping into the Pocket Dimension. Months of tracking, footprint following, and eye-witness reports had let her and Harley to the Himalayas. It didn't surprise the Commander at all, really, 096 probably considered the place home, and not being able to be home for so long could hurt anything, even the most heartless of beings.

They began lumbering on again, their foundation-made extreme-cold gear keeping them warm while hauling large bags on their backs carrying the essentials like food, water, and spare changes of clothing. The only personal belongings Sam brought were a scarf she was using to cover her face, Harley had herself a pair of hand-knitted gloves and a beanie.

The mountains were clear of snowfall, and it didn't take long for the two to find some footprints and frozen chunks of black liquid littering the area they were in. Harley tried picking some of it up, but quickly dropped it as its acidity burned away some of her glove, leaving her fingers exposed.

"Lets hope you have spares, hon, because you aren’t getting mine."

Harley sighed before she began digging through the large bag she had set in the snow, looking for her spares. Sam began tracking the footprints, following them. If they were gonna find the two entities, now would be the perfect time.

"Commander, I-"

"Will you be quiet, Cadet?! I don’t need one of the subjects knowing we're here."

"No its just... your following the wrong tracks, and I think I know where they are!"

The Commander looked down and, sure enough, the corrosive substance 106 produced was gone, and the tracks were simply of a barefooted man far too small to be 096s tracks.

"Welp, since I’m a dumb ass, show me where you think they lead too."

Harley began leading her Commander to the location, and it only took a few minutes of walking before they reached a large pile of snow, evidently tampered with. While the hole that was evidently there had since been collapsed, a singe footprint matching 096s had been buried halfway, showing the massive heel of the creature.

"Huh... good job, Cadet. You happen to have a shovel?"

"You know it!"

And with that they began to dig, Sam with her hands and Harley with a decent sized shovel. It took them two hours of straight dogging before the collapsed into a rather large opening, unilluminated. Harley flashed a flashlight into the area, revealing pools of water and crystal structures littering the area.

"You wanna us to go in ourselves or do you want to call backup first, commander?"

"Call backup, we might finally have 'em"

"Okay... nearest facility is is Kathmandu, correct?"

"Yes ma'am. When they get back to you get them give us an ETA."

With that Harley began speaking into her radio, giving their coordinates before signalling they believed the found the two missing subjects, requesting the necessary items needed for recontainment. Minutes passed before Harley gave a response.

"ETA is about 15 minutes, Commander."

"What will they be bringing, Cadet?"

"Two D-Class subjects, one to bag 096 and the other for the Femur Breaker. Backup will be about ten MTF units coming in with helicopters, being piloted by two of those ten men. The helicopters will have hanging containment units, 1.5 meters squared, with one of them containing the Femur Breaker. In case things get out of hand with them, they're also gonna be bringing the experimental Micro H.I.D for 106 and the strongest non-lethal tranquilizers they have at the base for 096. Anything else you need, Commander?"

"Patience... that’s all I need, Harley. Thank you, Harley.”

The two began readying their own firearms outside the freshly dug tunnel. All they had were small pistols and rifles low on ammo, and it wasn't long before they were standing in the snow, waiting for the sound of helicopters to approach. Sam watched the shy while Harley kept toying with her pistol, trying her best to make sure everything worked. The only thing that brought her out of it was the sound of her commanders voice.

“Hey, Harley?”

“Yes, Commander?”

“Promise me you wont end up Osprey, Rodger, and Woodrow. I need to lose you, too.”

Harley stared at Sam for a second before the names clicked in her mind. “I can’t keep that promise, but Ill try my best, Commander. Can you promise the same to me?”

“Can’t guaranteed that either, Harley, and in case I do end up not making out of this... thank you for finding that camera. It’s somewhat nice to know those three went out for a good cause.”

Harley could only give a small sound of approval before the helicopters began descending on them, the sound washing out any potential for further conversation. Out of the copters came eight men, the other two staying to keep the copters airborne.

It wasn't long before Sam was giving out orders, telling the men where to line up and giving the free D-Class the proper materials he needed to find the targets, if they where there.

“D-9606, listen to me carefully. Keep the radio on at all times, find the target, and when you do, put the bag over their head and get out of there. Depending on what we hear, we will give further instruction. Got it?”

“Fine... what does this thing look like?”

“Tall, white, skinny, long arms. If you see something in there that looks human, don’t bag that, we’ll focus on that one. Remember, tall, white, skinny, and long arms. Do you copy?”

“I understand...”

“Good, get in there.”

With that the D-Class descended into the tunnel, their breathing being heard through their radio. Snow was heard being knocked down, and the flashlight was clicked on.

“Its... warm, in here an- YO, WHAT THE FU-”

“What do you see, D-9606?”

“Nothin, there’s crystals... they’ve lit up the whole room. Hot pools of water. All of them appear normal... but... eugh. One of thems pitch black ewwOH GOD.”

Sams eyes widened at this. “What do you see?” She didn’t need the confirmation to know what he saw, the screams already rising from the cave.

“Remain calm, and remember, bag it and leave. Do it!”

“I-I cant, its got its hand on its face and-and I don’t wanna be touchin’ it!”

“Just fucking throw the bag on it, its too stupid to yank it off, just throw the bag on it and RUN!”

Shuffling was hear on the radio before the sound of them running was apparent, and soon after they were out of the tunnel, visibly shaking and crying. They took a second to catch their breath and control their emotions before they spoke.

“What... now?”

“Stay here. My squad and I are gonna keep watch on the copters.”

Suddenly, the figure she had been waiting to see came barreling out of the tunnel, with the bag still on its head, thank god. Sam covered her face as the warm blood of the D-Class shot onto her, with the sounds of tearing flesh and breaking bone accompanying it. It took everything she had to not vomit by the sounds. When it was done, she wearily uncovered her eyes to the pale figure sitting by her, with various extremities and gore strew around it.

It perked up, and then it began tearing at its mask, with what sounded like whimpering accompanying it. The sight horrified her; It had never done this before, why now?!

“Tranq it, boys!”

With that, several shots were heard, followed by the creature having ten or so darts in it. It only took a couple of seconds before it fell, unconscious, into the snow. The bag had been torn enough were, had it not landed face first, everyone there would most likely be dead.

“Someone get another bag and get this thing into containment. Someone else, get the Breaker and mic goin’!”

It took three men to haul away 096 into the vacant chamber, and another one to position the mic and prepare the Breaker. Harley was on standby, with the Micro H.I.D ready to fire. The men on the Breaker gave the okay, and Sam gave the okay back.

The sounds the D-Class made as the machinery crushed their leg echoed through the mountains, the sound sending chills up her spine as she had her firearm ready. It was only the soft laughter that she heard behind her that got her out of this trance of having to listen to two men die in less than ten minutes.

A warm, gooey hand grabbed her by the ankle and yanked her down. She shot at it twice, with neither of her bullets hitting. Fuck, 106 had gotten brighter too?

“Fire the HID NOW, Cadet!” One of the backup crew grabbed her and began pulling her away from the grasp of 106, him also shooting a few shots. One hit its wrist, only grazing Sam as she was pulled free for its hands.

It began to emerge fully from its hole, looking over at the containment cell the Breaker was in before looking at the helicopter taking off, 096 in tow. It stared at it, ignoring the whir of the Micro H.I.D. behind it. It let the intense light of the machine hit it as they watched the helicopter fly off. It too fell unconscious, the MTF going quickly to work wrapping 106 in spare blankets to prevent its corrosion from reaching their skin.

Sam and her savior began wrapping her wound, but she could already tell that the foot would need to be amputated, the sheer amount of corrosive substance that had gotten into it having already made her untouched foot go numb. Harley was quick to her side, helping her savior carry her onto the helicopter.

The remainder of her crew looked at the landscape as the helicopter flew off, relishing the view. As Sam sat, she pulled out her radio, tuning it to the Kathmandu Foundation signal.

“Mission Update: We’ve got the bastards. Only two causalities, both being D-Class used to bring out the subjects. Oh... and a foot, it that counts as one too.”

[sweetcatmintea]

Just another cabin in the woods WIP

I couldn’t finish this story in time but figured I’d upload what I have in the mean time. It’s not been edited and is subject to change later. With some luck, I’ll be done by next Sunday. Hope you enjoy! Feedback is appreciated! 

Words: 2505

Updated: 4102 (Still incomplete)

As is tradition, we start with a girl, Holly Roe, packing for a fun break with her friends. She busies herself around her room pulling out this and that, evaluating it, and putting it away again. Or at least, tossing it on her bed and promising to put it away in a minute. Her red hair stuck to her lip-balm in a ritual known to anyone with anything longer than a bob cut. So far, she’d decided on four shirts, undecided two of those for being too revealing, then replaced them with two more shirts with an almost identical floral print. Two more were stuffed into a backpack along with four pairs of jeans, a handful of socks, extra underwear, and her most appropriate pjs. Was that too much? Probably. The trip was a maximum of five days but what if she spilt food on herself every single meal? You know how it is when you go away. Her hands rested on a thick textbook. A future historian. There’s bound to be lulls while they’re there, perfect to refresh before classes begin again. She seems to have forgotten studying never happens on trips. It doesn’t matter what you think beforehand, it just doesn’t. If I may interject with my opinion, unless you’re planning on improvising a melee weapon, leave the books at home. They’re just so heavy. Pack extra snacks or something.

Before Holly could decide, a large German shepherd bounded into her room. His sopping fur disguising him as a darker, skinnier animal. Cries of ‘Catch him!’ rang out from the bathroom. Too late. With all the cheek of a dog knowing exactly what he was doing, he leapt onto her bed, rolling gleefully on the pile of clean clothes.

“Louie! Off!” Holly jumped at him but he was gone again. Dashing down the hall to find more trouble. She sprinted after him. Her mother had the same idea, narrowly avoiding a collision as they manoeuvred to corner Louie. If there’s anything anyone knows about dogs on a mischief spree, luck rarely falls on the side of the owner. Louie saw his opportunity and dog gamn, he seized it. All but bouncing off the wall, he bypassed the human barricade to head straight for the good couch. ‘No Louie, wet dogs can’t be on fabric.’ ‘Floor time until your dry Louie.’ Not today! He will be oppressed no longer! A powerful leap sent him flying. Only to be enclosed in arms before he could make contact. Blast it! Foiled again.

Tiffy, Tiffany to acquaintances, twirled with Louie’s momentum, coming to a stop in front of Holly. Laughing, she released him into Holly’s mother’s custody to be returned to the bath. “It’s always exciting at your house.” She flicked her arms to remove lingering moisture, adjusting her crop top in the process. Despite her slender body, she was quite strong.

Holly sighed, blowing her bangs out of her face. “Nice catch! Your timing is great, as usual.” The familiar hug greeting was postponed. There was no need for them both to smell like wet dog.

Tiffy winked. “As usual, yours is terrible. Are you ready to go? The guys’ll be here any minute.” She plonked her bags down, looking around for Holly’s. The sheepish grin she received did not inspire confidence.

“Oh please, you know they’re always late. Besides, I’m almost done. I was just trying to decide whether or not to bring a book.”

Tiffy’s face deadpanned. “If you bring a single textbook, I will murder you myself.”  

“I didn’t say textbook!”

She narrowed her baby blue eyes at Holly.

“Fine. I was thinking about bringing a textbook.”

“You’re such a nerd. Relax, take some time off. We’re on holidays for crying out loud! You’re gonna burst a blood vessel or something at this rate.”

Holly waved her off. “Yeah yeah, don’t pretend you don’t hit the books constantly. If you think I’m a nerd, you need to look in the mirror.”

“What, to see someone cute?” She fluttered her lashes at Holly. Holly just sighed again, taking her arm and directing them both back to her room. In fairness, Tiffy was studying to be a nurse. Reading was a requirement.

“Since you’ve got so much energy, you can help me pack.”

~

Thanks to Louie’s intrusion, it took another twenty minutes to finish packing, sort out what now smelled of dog and had to be washed (sorry Mum!), and then put away what was left. The guys, Ethan, Michael, Max, and Peter, for those wondering, had yet to arrive. Surprising no-one. Holly had managed to squash everything into two backpacks, left beside Tiffy’s bags by the door. The pure volume of which was equal parts admirable and horrifying. These girls would put a boy-scout to shame. Holly spent a further five minutes thanking her mother for looking after her dog and then fussing over Louie, telling him she’ll be back before he knew it. It’s always good to be optimistic about these things. He smiled at her in that blank way dogs do. Personally, I’ve always preferred beagles. They’re much more in tune with their people. There’s no accounting for taste, I guess.

The girls sat waiting on the front steps. A text assured them that the guys were almost there and the trip was still on. As the evening approached, lorikeets took up their screeching song. Tiffy’s fingers ran deftly through Holly’s hair, pulling the strands together into a neat braid. Her own honey locks were pulled into a pretty little updo. Well, it’s not like there was anything better to do.

Finally, finally, a beat up van rolled into view. The girls cheered, waving to the driver. Peter waved back, pulling to a stop in front of them. He was the third wheel friend. The friend called when no other friends were available. He knew this and was okay with it. He got on well enough with everyone, but no one knew who had befriended him in the first place. Ethan, much like Louie, barely waited for the van to still before bounding out, wrapping Tiffy in a hug and going in for a kiss. He was the Ken to her Barbie in more than his appearance.

“Oh barf.” Holly mimed throwing up before playfully bumping shoulders with Ethan. Well, bumping her shoulder to his pec area at least. Releasing Tiffy, Ethan feigned a hurt look.

“Aww, afraid you’ll miss out? Here, I can give you a kiss too.” He leaned down, comedically puckering his lips.

Countering with her palm, Holly laughed, pushing him away. “Haha gross.” While Ethan pressed his hand to his heart, she shouldered her bags and handed Tiffy hers. Fluttering baby doll eyes were all it took to convince Ethan to take Tiffy’s bags instead. He offered to take Holly’s but she declined. It was only two bags. Then, just because he’s a show off, Ethan picked Tiffy up as well. Ignoring her giggled protests, he sauntered to the car.

Max joined Holly for the two second walk. His black hair and grey eyes may give a dark and brooding impression, but he was usually awkward around her. Neither Tiffy nor Michael wasted an opportunity to speculate as to the reason why. He denied their teases of a crush whole heartedly. Lying doesn’t change the truth. Despite seeing Holly reject Ethan’s offer, Max offered to take her things. By the time the question was asked and denied, they were in the van.

Michael and Peter in the front, Tiffy and Ethan took the middle, that only left the back seats for Holly and Max. Tiffy grinned a Cheshire grin at Holly as she shuffled past. A punch to the arm was her reward. Holly shoved some random stuff out of the way so she could sit. The fabric was protected by a faux fur seat cover. Probably the worst possible choice someone could make for their car. Max squeezed in next to her. She suspected he sat closer than was strictly necessary. His deodorant was really strong. Interjecting again, it was the kind that’s advertised as the secret pheromone for attracting women. Did he think that layering it on would increase his chances? Poor sweet Summer child. No.  

“Everyone got their seatbelts on?” Michael leaned around to address them. A collection of ‘yeah’s and nods, then they were off. “Because of reasons, we’re behind schedule, but we’ll drive through the night and still reach the cabin by tomorrow. Hopefully before lunch.” Before anyone could voice their concerns, he continued. “Don’t worry, Peter’s only on first shift. I’ll sleep then swap with him so no problems there. We should be fine doing that. If we’re not and I get tired, I’ll just wake Peter up and we’ll swap again.” He flashed a cheeky grin. His brown skin contrasting nicely with his white teeth. “If you guys weren’t collectively useless and had licences, we could all take a short turn.”

“Hey!” A unanimous response. Wrapped candy rained down on Michael. He wasn’t wrong though. Tiffy lost her logbook at 80 hours, Ethan panicked and messed up on the parallel parking three tests in a row, Holly was putting off driving, and Max was still saving for more lessons. They may have been in university but that didn’t mean they weren’t hopeless.

“Better late than never!” Tiffy chimed in. The attack on Michael drew to a close. “I’ve never stayed in a holiday cabin before! Do you think it’ll be nicely furnished?” She put her finger to her lip. “What if there aren’t enough beds,” Holly could feel the smug look as Tiffy spoke, “and we have to share?” Because there can never be enough stories about that. Tiffy was not prepared for Ethan’s betrayal.

“I guess you girl’s’ll have to sleep on the floor. I dunno, maybe there’ll be a couch?” He popped a starburst into his mouth. “Or a tent.” Unable to maintain the charade, he started chuckling. He cracked himself up, launching into a full-fledged laugh and almost choking on his candy.

“Just for that, I wouldn’t have saved you if you really had choked.” Tiffy crossed her arms and turned her nose up at him.

“Aww Babe, you’re so cruel.” He leaned against her. She did not break her pout. “Ah well. Hey Max? Tiffy doesn’t want me anymore. Wanna be my gal?”

“Sure, pick me up at eight.”

Tiffy shoved Ethan, rolling her eyes. “You’re such an idiot.”

“Yeah, but I’m your idiot.”

She kissed his cheek. “Unfortunately.”

Not wanting to give them the opportunity to go overboard on the PDA again, Holly changed the topic. “I can’t believe you actually won something from that Maccas sticker game.”

Peter glanced at her through the rear-view mirror. “Yeah, it’s pretty lucky. Actually, I didn’t even notice at first, I almost threw the cup out. I thought it was going to be one of those,” air quotations over the steering wheel, “ “chance to win” prizes. But no, I called them up and they gave me the cabin for a week.” He shrugged. “Maccas monopoly came through.”

“It’s still kinda amazing. The best I’ve heard anyone get was a free macaron. What are the odds, right?”

Peter chuckled. “Would you prefer it if I suddenly inherited it from an estranged uncle or something?”

Max elbowed Holly. “I wouldn’t call it luck.” Nodding towards Peter, “If we look at it from a statistical probability standpoint, if anyone was going to win, Peter was.”

  “Are you griefing me for winning a holiday? From MacDonald’s? So help me, I’ll turn this car around!”

“No, of course not! I was just saying we shouldn’t be surprised that you won since you basically live there.”

The group chuckles died down as Peter pulled the car over. Had Max hit a nerve? Peter turned, green eyes capturing grey. “If you’re gonna be so ungrateful,” he jerked his thumb outwards, “you can ride the rest of the way on the roof.” His stony composure cracked with a smirk.

Realising no feelings were hurt, Max was quick to play along. “Oh no, not the roof. Oh great and powerful Peter, please accept my humble apology for my heinous transgressions against you.” He stretched his arms out, waving them in front of him in an over dramatic bow. “We thank you for your noble generosity in allowing us to accompany you.”

Everyone joined the bow. “Thank you! All hail noble Peter!”

Peter nodded graciously to them, returning to the road.

~

Time crawled as they travelled. Quiet murmuring was interrupted only by occasional requests for a window to be wound up or down again, and a single excited announcement of ‘Bats!’. The fact that the car moved at all was a miracle. Air condition was a luxury they had to go without. It may have been a blessing in disguise that they had started their trip so late. Boiling alive in the mobile rust bucket was certainly not preferable to night travel. Peter and Michael both kept their eyes peeled for kangaroos that felt like testing their luck on the roads. Old car, candy, sweat, deodorant, and ancient air freshener mixed together to form a certain Eau de Roadtrip. Max fidgeted beside Holly, seeming incapable of getting comfortable. He tapped his foot, bounced his leg, wiggled around in the seat. It was getting beyond his usual fluster. Holly poked his side as he shifted position for the thirteenth time in fifteen minutes.

“What’s up? Do you need to pee or something?”

He jolted, stilling. “What? Oh, no, I’m fine.”

Holly pressed her lips together. “Really? You’ve been tapdancing since we passed the servo.”

“You noticed that?”

“China noticed that.”

“Ah.” He seemed to look past her for a moment. “I don’t know. There’s just… Does something feel weird to you?”

She blinked. “No? Like nostalgia or déjà vu or something?”

“No, I don’t think that’s it.”

“Maybe there’s a storm in the air? My cousin sometimes gets weird feelings when the air pressure changes.” Whatever it was, it was bothering him. He shook his head, rejecting her guesses. “Why don’t you tell me what it feels like?”

  Max paused to think. What did he feel? It was hard to put his finger on it, let alone attach a name to it. “It’s kind of like, I guess, you know that feeling when you’ve been sick for a couple days, then you have a Vicks cough lolly and you can breathe in 4D out of nowhere?” Holly nodded. “It’s kind of like that, but everything. Like someone did a zoom and enhance on reality. Does that make sense?”

Holly bit her lip apologetically. “I get what you’re saying but I don’t really know why you’d be feeling like that. Did you have a strong coffee or a really good meal earlier? Maybe?”

“Yeah, that’s probably it. I must’ve overpoured the coffee this morning.” Noting her concerned expression, he added a cheerful ‘thanks’.

~~~

It didn’t take long for each passenger to fall asleep, lulled by the motion and gentle rumble of the car. Max was the last awake. The niggling unnamed emotion squirming in his mind. Maybe it was sitting so close to Holly? Or electricity building before a thunderstorm? On the lonely road there was no twinkling above them. Thick clouds dipped them into an inkwell, only the high beams to guide them. It was probably the weather thing. He closed his eyes. Maybe he was just tired.

Holly woke as Michael and Peter exchanged places. She offered hers to Peter, kindly volunteering to keep Michael awake through conversation. Peter was less thrilled to have Max leaning on him, but no reasonable argument came to him, so he concurred. It would have been terrible if Michael fell asleep at the wheel. We can’t have the characters die before we even get to the cabin. Actually, dear reader, I must apologise. I don’t really mean that at all. And we really should try to mean what we say. I’ve taken a rather blazé tone but my heart is heavy. I almost wish I could tell them the kind of tale they find themselves in. I rather like these people. We must carry on, the narrator has no place meddling in the outcome of the story.

~~~

The van eventually completed its journey mid-morning the following day. Harsh sunlight split the canopy overhead, sending crackles of light and shade over the moderately sized cabin. A pleasant looking two-story building that was a hodgepodge of timber and stone slabs. Large windows took up most of the exterior real estate. A thick stone chimney made promise of the luxury of a fireplace. Leaf debris scattered from under the tires, making a satisfying crunch as the group exited the vehicle.

“I thought it’d be greener.” Ethan mused, passing the bare trees on his way inside.

“We’re still in the middle of a drought.” Holly pointed out. Eager to stretch her muscles again, she made quick work of getting her things to the building.  

Tiffy hurried after Ethan, trotting to keep up with his long legs. “I guess we should be thankful there are plants at all. It’s so hot. I think I’ll cry if the lake is dried up.”  

Michael lingered at the back of the group arching his back to pop the stiffness out of his spine. “It should be fine. This place belongs to Maccas. They’re not going to risk giving a refund for a disappointing stay. I’m pretty sure the lake has never gotten past half empty.”

“Did you research the area before hand?” Peter shook his head. Half-hearted disbelief set in his face. “You’re such a nerd.”

Tiffy cut off Michael’s response. “Don’t start this again. It’s already been decided that Holly is a massive nerd.” She ignored Holly’s indignant response.

Michael sighed. “First, I’m not a nerd, I’m a hobbyist chronologist – there’s a difference! Second, we can’t ‘start this again’ because we weren’t there when you apparently had the same discussion. Get your facts straight!”

“That’s just fancy talk for ‘biggest nerd here’ but whatever. Help me get the rest of this stuff.” Peter nodded towards the boot, his arms occupied with a crate of something. Michael pulled a face at Peter but started unloading the last bags.

Despite racing ahead, Holly could not pass the wooden door. She had forgotten a very important component of entering a building. The key. Why was Peter the last person to even approach the building? He increased his ambling pace at her beckoning, throwing another joke over his shoulder to Michael in the process.

“Do you have the key?” She asked when he reached her.

He nodded. “Yeah. It’s in my back pocket.” Drawing attention between the lines, he rattled the crate.

“Really?”

A grin. “Really really.”

The key was snatched out before Holly had even raised her hand. Ethan twirled the keyring on his finger, winking over Peter’s head. Her hero.

Holly had thought quite a lot about what the interior of the cabin would look like. The nature of humanity is to avoid ambiguity after all. She never expected this. A smooth click and quiet creak and they were in. Everything was covered. The walls, the floor, the counters, even the table. Covered in… frogs. Small cement coloured amphibians had invaded the cabin, conquering it for themselves.

“What on earth…” The sound of her voice animated the frogs. At once, they scampered into motion. Bouncing in every direction, the halls were alive with the sound of frog popcorn. As suddenly as it started, the noise and the frogs, were gone.

“Probably cooler in here than outside.” Max broke the silence. “If you see any more, just toss them out. It’s fine.” He dropped his luggage on the table, prompting the others to do the same. Although the air felt dry and dusty, the place was pretty clean. Michael was right about Maccas wanting to maintain appearances. Peter found a freezer and shoved the crate inside. It fit, but barely. Rosemary and lavender drifted around them, humbly overpowering the eucalypt creeping in from the windows. Poking around the kitchen, they found herbs hung in clusters near a stack of baked beans in the pantry. That explained things.  The place was well stocked with all of the essentials for an easy holiday. The stove seemed to work, there was a TV in the main room (Tiffy immediately threatened murder on anyone daring to ruin the ‘cabin atmosphere’ by turning it on), comfortable couches, spare toiletries in the bathroom – everything. Except enough beds. Tiffy was glowing with the delight the grinch would experience if he discovered Hanukkah. It was cut short when Michael called shotgun on rooming with Ethan. She was not so selfless to volunteer to share with Peter to further her pairing goals. Instead, opting to call dibs on Holly, leaving Max and Peter together. The guys weren’t unhappy, but it was hard to miss the look of disappointment. What were they expecting? They’d be spending most of their time as a group anyway.

Rooms sorted, belongings unpacked, and lunch consumed, there was only one thing left to do. Time to check out the lake. Everyone took a few minutes to change into their togs, then a few minutes more to lather up the sunscreen at Tiffy’s insistence. Her skin was tinted gold thanks to the formula in a bottle, a fact she was not ashamed of. “Slip, slop, slap! Shirt, sunscreen, hat.” She said as she handed each group member a personal sunscreen roller. Max attempted to refuse but she narrowed her eyes at him. “Tanning is skin cells in trauma!” Defeated, he took the roller, sheepishly returning to his room. He may have been able to ignore the advice of a future health practitioner, but the government slogans were dyed so deeply into his psyche there was no way to argue.

It wasn’t too long until they were all tracking down the path that lead to the lake. Taking any opportunity to show off, or really to just be helpful, Ethan took responsibility for hauling the esky down. It would have been easier for two people to carry, but he insisted. Rather than argue, the rest of the group loaded up on towels, pool noodles, an inflatable flamingo, and a speaker set to pump music through. No one was around for ages so they shouldn’t get any noise complaints.

The land grew more vibrant and the air rang with bird calls. They heard the water before they saw it. It was beautiful. Clear blue water bordered by chalky white stones that intermingled with greenery more fortunate that the plants near the cabin. Fish darted between cracks in the rocky lake floor while lizards lazed about in the sun above. A waterfall gushed over the cliff wall that enclosed half of the area. The only indication that the droughts had reached this oasis was the rim stain suggesting more plentiful rain once upon a time.

“Last one in is a rotten egg!” Ethan dumped the esky, making a beeline for the water. The childish shout sparking a competition. Items thrown to the side and feet pounding the ground.

“Wait!” Holly’s shout brought her friends to an abrupt halt. They looked back at her quizzically. What could possibly be wrong? She huffed. “Haven’t you ever seen the news during schoolies?”

“What about it?” Peter inched closer to the lake. If he was discrete, he could probably push Michael in while Holly was talking.

She shot him a dumfounded expression. “Every year, there’s about a dozen reports of teens breaking their necks because they jumped blindly into a body of water. We’re in the mountains. You know how long it would take an ambulance to get to us??”

Tiffy was the first to agree, returning to find a good place for her towel since the race was cancelled. “Mum’s right guys. We should probably be boring responsible adults and not get grievously injured on the first day.”

The boys grumbled, but agreed. Tiffy and Holly set out the towels. Michael righted the esky – abandoned on its side – and set up the music. ‘Fun fun fun’ by the Beach boys was the obvious choice. The resounding groan from the rest of the group was clearly an indication they had no taste. Peter set to work inflating the flamingo. The water steed was a necessity for the days to come. Ethan and Max were the first in the water, circling the lake for deep drops and hidden shallows.

Again, this is the first draft, I’ll come back later to fix some of the clunkiness and add more flavour :)

Hopefully the formatting is easier to read now. 

Tag list: @inkovert 

If you want to be added, feel free to let me know ^u^

[nakamotoyutakemybreathaway]

Fireboy and Waterboy Chapter 2: On thin ice.

Avatar!Mark and the dream team go on a quest to save the world from an evil entrepreneur and some salty spirits.

“Hurry up, loser.” Jaemin panted, “If we don’t get to the ship on time, we’ll miss the sunrise.”

“What do you mean? The ships not about to go anywhere” Mark reasoned, looking at his cousin confusedly. Before he could even take his next step, Jaemin pelted his face with a small snowball.

“No, but the sun is. It only rises once a day and I am not waking up early twice in a row just because you made us late the first time.” Sometimes, Mark wondered why he chose to hang out with this loser outside of family gatherings. Oh right, it was because no one else lived in their village.They continued walking as the old, abandoned ship came into view.

About 80 years ago, a bunch of fire nation merchants got lost on their way to Kyoshi Island, bypassing the southern air temple and ended up in a small bay in the southern water tribe, where their ship froze into the icy water.  The elders don’t let children come here because the ice on the lake is thin, but also because they believe that the crew still haunts the ship. If the elders knew they were out here, they’d be sentenced to spend the rest of their lives shearing buffalo yaks. Jaemin stopped short just in front of the ship, and Mark thought it was the perfect opportunity to return the favour, using his foot to hurl a snowball into Jaemin’s butt.

“Hey! I swear next time your clumsy arse slides across the ice, I won’t even heal you” Jaemin threatened. Mark felt small pulse of regret, because usually when he got hurt, Jaemin would heal him and their parents would never find out what they got up to. He couldn’t just go and ask his dad to get rid of the bruises and not explain to him how they got there.

The pair walked up the gangplank and around the cabin to the other side, being careful not to lean over the crumbling handrails. Mark breathed a sigh of awe as the morning sun gently rose over the ocean, giving off a pale golden glow which reflected majestically off the ice. Nowhere else in the southern lands could a sunrise be observed with such a breathtaking view, and mark believed that the fire benders that lost their lives on this very ship were the reason why the sun was attracted to it. He recalls when he and Jaemin would be sat around the table for family dinners, listening to his uncles stories of the time he spent as a hunter in the isolated villages of the true pole, where it was dark for half of the year, and light for the other. Lucky we live here, he thought. Their village was on the coast of the southern water tribe, far enough north for sunrises and some seasonal difference in temperature, about 3 degrees warmer in summer.

“You know, I’d never thought of it as lucky that we live here, but this view is one good thing to come out of this place” Mark said to Jaemin, still lost in thought. Its not like the south pole was a bad place to live, there just wasn’t much going on. It was snow upon snow upon ice, and if you’ve seen a bit, you’ve seen it all. Only because the village was so boring were they up here now, on a dangerous ship- the one place they were forbidden to go- longing to go somewhere with lush forests, sandy beaches, rugged mountains; they craved adventure.

Mark absentmindedly shifted where he stood, leaning to grab hold of the guard rails around the stern of the ship. That was a bigmistake. The rail he was gripping suddenly gave way, the rusted bolts freeing it from where it was once firmly planted, falling with a crack onto the thin sheet of ice below. Without Mark even knowing what he was doing, he extended his arms as if to cushion the fall that was sure to kill him anyway, but instead his back slammed against the cabin of the ship behind him. It was as if a strong gust of wind had propelled him backwards and prevented him from falling.

“I’m not sure if this cold is making me hallucinate that I saw what I just saw,” Said Jaemin, looking concernedly at Mark, “but we should get back to the village before the elders notice we’re here. This ship isn’t safe for your clumsy arse”. Jaemin gripped Marks wrist firmly and started back towards the gangplank, pulling Mark who was still too in shock to make a move on his own along with him.

After having regained his equilibrium, Mark started to feel a sort of negative energy seeping out from the ice. This had always been a talent of Mark’s, when they were ten years old he had told Jaemin that he felt like he had some kind of connection to the spirits; he always got strange feelings when in close proximity to spiritual activity. Of course, Jaemin had told Mark to stop being silly, the spirits never involved themselves with humans. Over the years however it became harder to deny, Mark always got butterflies when an unseasonal blizzard hit the area, and after having spent a summer in the northern tribe learning advanced healing techniques Jaemin learnt that some injuries just couldn’t be caused by natural means.

Over a mound of snow that barricaded the view of the village from the ship, they observed what looked like a regular penguin waddling toward them, only that it couldn’t be. The creature was twice the size of a regular penguin, and a soft blue glow emanated off its otherwise translucent body. Just as Mark and Jaemin were about to ask each other if they knew what it was, it spotted them. The negative feeling in Mark’s stomach amplified tenfold, and a streak of pale blue light shot rapidly in their direction. This was definitely not a regular penguin. It had 4 eyes and housed rows of sharp teeth between its small but sharp looking beak. It was flapping wildly and aiming right at Jaemin. He luckily reacted quickly enough, and a jet of water shot up out of the ice to form a kind of shield between himself and the ghost penguin. It was  not enough however to repel the full force of the creature, and Jaemin was flung sideways, skidding to lay limply on the ice ten metres away. It immediately turned its attention to Mark.

Now Mark’s immediate reaction would normally be to try and restrain it with water tendrils or something of the sort, but his instincts unconsciously told him that this thing probably didn’t like fire. The penguin was a mere few feet away when Mark was finally able to snap out of his thoughts and act. He raised his fists and pushed them outwards from his chest and, much to Mark’s surprise, bursts of white hot flames shot out. By the time the flames subsided, the creature was thoroughly disgruntled and had clearly decide to retreat, zipping away from the boys to slide away on its burnt belly.

“I think it’s time we discussed something I’ve suspected for a long time now” stated Taeyong, the village elder and Mark’s father, as he held his skilled hands over Jaemin’s body on the table. Following the fight with the penguin creature, Jaemin was left rather bruised and weak and Mark had to support him over his shoulder to walk back to visit their parents. When they’d entered the council building, Taeyong was immediately up with a worried expression on his face, coming to attend to his nephew. Thankfully, Taeyong was the best healer in the south pole, except for maybe Jaemin who showed a lot of promise, and managed to have him back in commission within minutes. Mark on the other hand could barely mend a paper cut within an hour. As Taeyong was working on Jaemin, Mark explained all about their early morning adventure to the ship, the terrifying ghost penguin, and Mark’s strange abilities, ready to face the consequences of breaking the rules, but the guilt of disappointing his father still weighed heavily on Mark’s mind.

“Thanks, uncle Taeyong” Jaemin thanked, standing up to stretch his long limbs. Even now, at only 17 and 18 years old they were both significantly taller than Taeyong. “but more important than me, I think Mark might be the next avatar”.

“Don’t be silly! The avatar is supposed to protect the world, I can’t even protect you from a silly penguin…it can’t be me!” Mark cried, riddled with doubt despite all of the evidence.

“Come on think about it Mark! Avatar Taeil the air nomad died 18 years ago and no one’s heard from the new one since. Going by the avatar cycle, the new one should be an 18 year old boy from the water tribes, and there aren’t too many of those”. Jaemin was right, the world had been without an avatar for 18 years too long.

“You may not remember this Mark, but when you were 4 years old, when you were told to blow the candles off your cake, you blew so hard you took out the fire burning in the hearth on the other side of the room.” Taeyong informed him. “The other elders and I had suspected you would be the next avatar ever since then. I also have reason to believe there is an imbalance in the spirit world. Something is causing them to stir, and if the issue isn’t rectified they could wreak some serious havoc”. So he knew. Both Mark and Jaemin’s parents, Taeyong and Jaemin’s mother being brother and sister, and a quiet, bookish man named Jungwoo who was the youngest of the elders had known all this time.

“But if I’m the avatar, why would my other powers only surface now? Don’t most avatars start training when they’re still children?” Mark questioned his father, as if he could possibly know the answer.

“I expect it is because the world needs you now. You must go to it.” Taeyong breathed a sigh as though this statement physically hurt him. “You two should go collect any personal belongings you will need for your journey. I will inform the other elders and have some of the villagers prepare a ship and supplies. You will set off for the earth kingdom this afternoon. When you arrive you should head to the great city of Ba Sing Sei to find an earth bending master. Only once you have mastered all the elements can you put the spirits at ease, as is your duty as the avatar.”

“Wait. The two of us? Why does Jaemin have to be involved in this?”

“Well, you’re not about to travel the world alone. Jaemin is a skilled bender and healer, you still have much to learn about your native element from him. Besides, he’d go insane here alone. So long as you are together, you will both survive.” Taeyong said with a sense of finality, and ushered them out of the council building and towards their houses.

They stepped into Mark’s house first, gathering a few extra clothes and some animal skins for sleeping. Mark didn’t normally carry any personal effects, but as he turned to leave his room something caught his eye. Glistening from a shelf above his bed was a small silver ring, engraved with the emblem of the water tribe. It had been his grandfathers, who had then passed it on to Taeyong, who had gifted it to Mark after he’d learnt the water whip. Mark slipped it onto his finger and left, collecting Jaemin from the kitchen where’d he’d been talking to his aunt and heading next door.

At Jaemin’s they also didn’t grab much, only some clothes and Jaemin’s spear. That was Jaemin’s prized possession. At first glance it looks like an unsuspecting staff, but a latch near the top allows Jaemin to flick it forward, and about 5 extra inches and a sharp spearhead emerges. A year ago it was taller than Jaemin, but now it only reaches up to his chin, seeing as the tip is hardly ever extended. It was carved with delicate images of flowing waves and fish swimming beneath them, in the middle was a depiction of two koi fish, swimming at each others tails in a circle around a round, full moon. It was also a gift, from Jaemin’s extended family (his father hails from the northern tribe) whom he stayed with when he went North for a while. That had been the most boring few months of Mark’s life, but at least Jaemin had fun and extended his skills far beyond what he could here in the village. Jaemin never usually went anywhere without it, and perhaps if he had had it this morning’s events may not have happened. After collecting the essentials, the pair said emotional goodbyes to their mothers, who couldn’t bear to see them off on a ship and would rather pretend they were just going outside to throw snow at each other as they had when they were children. It was midday by the time they finally headed off towards the bay to board their ship.

As they approached the jetty where their ship had been docked, they seen both their fathers come in to view, along with Jungwoo and some other villagers that they recognised. They were met with several hand shakes and claps on the shoulder, as the men took their stuff and put it on the ship with the other supplies, a series of “good luck”s and “congratulations” being hurled their way. They walked to the edge where their fathers stood. Jungwoo stepped forward first, holding a large book out to Mark.

“This book has complete maps of every region and details the types of flora and fauna native to each area, including which ones are edible or have other uses. I think you would find it quite useful” Jungwoo explained shyly, stepping back and looking down as soon as the book was securely in Mark’s hands.

“Thank you”, he responded “I will use it well”.

At last he turned to look at his father, who was trying and failing to conceal the tears threatening to burst out of his eyes. All at once he was swept up in a tight hug, with Jaemin being pulled in beside him, and Jaemin’s dad coming to surround them all in his vast arms. For a moment, Mark stayed, wishing it could last longer, before they finally broke away and jumped onto the deck of their boat.

“Please… just be safe, and do what is right” was Taeyong’s final statement as they pushed away from the jetty with a bit of a water bending boost and started northeast, towards the earth kingdom.

At a glance, they had enough food to last them about 4 days, and according to his uncle, it should take them 3 days to get there, so long as they stayed on course. After that they will either have to hunt and forage for food as shown in Jungwoo’s book, or try to make money somehow, probably by doing odd jobs for little old ladies. After about 4 hours of travel, they were in the middle of the ocean with no land in sight in any direction and exhausted from the effort of speeding up their trip using water bending, so they decided to tie down the sails and go to rest in the small cabin in the centre of the ship. Mark fell asleep to thoughts of both home and what lay before him, anticipating the moment when they touch land and their adventure truly begins.

[italicwatches]

I Couldn’t Become a Hero, so I Reluctantly Decided to Get a Job - Episode 01

I regret nothing. …Well, I say that now. I’m not entirely sure if this show will be any good, but it’s one whose title has had me curious for a while. Will it be silly and fun, or will it, I don’t know, turn super rapey or something? You never really know when you go down this road. So join me, won’t you? it’s I Couldn’t Become a Hero, So I Reluctantly Decided to Get a Job, episode 01! Here we GO!

-We begin with fire and brimstone. A volcano erupting! And then, to a temple ruins! It’s a scene right out of an incredibly anime version of Jason and the Argonauts, as our armored hero fights against a batch of skeleton w…knights, only for a harpy to come swinging in! He’s saved by a woman…in…

-Okay it’s one of these.

-Because that wouldn’t even qualify as Sexy Samurai in a decade-old shitpost video. So our hero, Raul Chaser, is willing to rely onYUP THERE GOES HER ARMOR. So she’s like Darkness but without the joke that she’s into this kind of treatment. A small army of skeletal archers pour on the arrows…When lightning comes down from the skies, brought by their other companions! Fight, war, and reach the giant leading this army! Strike him down, and they pass the exam! The woman races in, sprints up the giant’s arm, rams her fucking sword into his EYE…

-And Raul backs her up with his RAUL SLASH, carving deep through…

-Hard cut to the light of day. The hero school has been shut down. Demon Lord got defeated(probably by some fucker from another world), sooooo they don’t need to keep training brave heroes. They’re all fucked. They’re fuuuuuucked.

-Episode 01: I Couldn’t Be a Hero, so I’m Working the Register

-Hard cut to the Leon Magic Shop, where Raul has to sell suburban couples on enchanted washing machines. Magically guaranteed to remove even the most stubborn stains! But they’re not interested.

-TITTIES.

-Meet a perky bubbly young lady, Nova, who does not realize how sexualized she is. I’m sorry. Anyways, Raul is in a bit of a bind, too, since he hasn’t gotten a raise and his credit card bill is coming up this week…When a nerd comes in looking for some vintage cassette tapes. You’re in luck, they have some…! And suddenly the store is mobbed by vintage audio enthusiasts here to buy out the entire stock. Then they’re gone as fast as they came…

-And you know what, I don’t think those tapes are super vintage. I just spotted totally-not-Kodak film behind the counter. I think this is just set in the 80s-90s equivalent of this world. Plus, after a hoodie-clad blonde comes in, the CRT television in the corner plays Conveniently Timed News about how the cassette maker I-ONE has gone out of business! They just couldn’t hold their own against cheaper, ‘good enough’ cassettes and equipment from the competition while still making a profit. It’s a legitimate tragedy whenever that happens.

-And the blonde is getting mad and wants them to get the manager right now…Which is when Nova runs off to handle inventory. Escape, Nova, escape while you can! So Raul is forced to do it…Which is when the blonde slams a resume down. And is here for an interview. When the blonde forgets the resume…And so Raul’s able to read it, and holy shit.

-Raul bursts into the interview room with the resume, because you cannot seriously be thinking of hiring the demon lord’s child, right boss? HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT?! You literally wrote it on your resume. W, Well, you’re supposed to tell the truth on those, aren’t you?! Anyways, busty lady boss has decided that Fino here will be joining the shop. It’ll be a good experience! Fino, Raul. Raul, Fino. Please get along.

-So soon Fino’s in the store, looking at all the stuff, and there’s some really cool things that humans have made. Like magicvision, and magic cassettes, and magic…You know what I’m just going to spoil it for you now. It’s 80s-90s level tech, made with magic. I’m not going to bother to specify anymore. It’s a fuckin’ TV, it’s cool that it works because of fairy dust or whatever but I’m calling it a TV. Anyways Fino never had a personal TV growing up in the Demon Castle, and is all oooooh and aaaah.

-Well, you know what else you didn’t have growing up in the Demon Castle? A broom. Get sweeping, rookie. …Yes sir! And then Convenient News comes back on to talk about the anniversary event for the demon lord’s defeat two years ago. Quick flashback, to how that day totally fucked Raul’s life. A young man, two steps away from a degree in a job that literally no longer existed overnight. His entire party was shattered. They’re stuck in dead-end jobs and with crushing college debt, and nothing to show for it except broken dreams and a bitter envy of those who actually benefitted from the changing order…

-…Damn. That’s…Damn.

-Eventually it’s later in the day, and Raul is continuing to struggle with getting Fino to, you know, work like a proper employee…Also shocking twist Fino has long lovely hair. And that’s when a rough, tough…Dirty old man comes in off his slick dragon-pulled hotrod. And he’s here to peek up Nova’s skirt and grope that ass. Fino immediately decides this shit has to be stopped…When the old man reveals he’s gonna be buying a lightbulb. One lightbulb. Every time. The perfect excuse. And now Fino is…Shall we say, confused. Are humans like dogs? Is butt stuff just part of the communication?

-Does Fino need to bend over? Fino stop bending over. FINO NO. FINO PUT YOUR BUTT AWAY. NOVA DON’T ENCOURAGE THIS.

-Lunch break, at last. Raul is able to sit down and have some food from the convenience store…A place with some old friends who worry about the dork, and look after each other.

-Back in the store, the boss is talking to her assistant manager, Viser, and trying to explain her disinterest in bringing in another company into the shop…When they spot Raul working with Fino at the register, over the security cameras. And cut down to the actual register, where Raul’s decided that the actual core of Fino’s problems is a lack of respect. Rethink everything. Back to zero. This job means they are lesser than the customer. Yeah it sucks. Deal with it.

-…Fino doesn’t know how to do that. Well try on Raul. Okay! …Fino you’re being demonic again. This isn’t a battle, you stupid dork. Are you a chuuni or just stupid?

-Fino is just trying to copy how Dad used to talk! Your dad was, literally, a demon king. THE demon king. There is, quite literally, no worse example you could mimic for this lesson! …You know what, start with the manual. But first, come on, to the repair room. They also do repair work.

-Oooh, what’s that? It’s a toaster oven. And that?! A humidifier. And…And Fino touches the humidifier, and causes a surge of water, electricity and magical energy that knocks the poor idiot into the far wall! Raul’s stuck carrying Fino into the break room to figure out a plan that doesn’t involve calling a doctor and getting into trouble, and oh, great, a note from literally everyone else who works today listing their reasons they’re not here right now. Awesome. Just awesome.

-Right, first step, get these ruined clothes off of Fino. …Fino was not wearing anything under that hoodie. And that’s how a pair of big, bountiful, ladylike breasts come wobbling out.

-And that’s when Fino wakes up.

-So.

-This isn’t great for either party. And both of them are having a freakout, until the actual events that happened get all laid out. …Please put some fresh clothes on, Fino.

-And eventually, it’s the tail end of Fino’s first day, and she gets to have a uniform! Now sweep the walkway. By hand. With this broom. Welcome to working life, kid. When a sweet old lady passes by praising her hard work, and Fino thanks her, and the kid might just do okay in this world. Maybe.

-Night comes, and Raul stops at the convenience store for dinner, having a brief chat…But as he walks by the shop on his way home, the lights are on?

-Because Fino is in the back, washing down by hand in the sink?! What are you DOING?! She’s got no house, so this is her house now. …That’s not…That isn’t…You can’t just…Do you have any idea how terrible dish soap is for hair and skin? I’d question focusing on that angle over all the other things Fino’s done wrong here, but at the same time, I mean, there comes a point where you just have to find the smallest bite of the elephant.

-And as Raul helps her dry and generally make herself presentable, they end up talking about their own pasts. Raul, who came from a tiny village only to see all the great marvels of modernity in the city, and Fino who lived an even less modern life in the castle…Despite everything, there is a connection of friendship there, and Fino’s starting to learn human society. She might just do okay here yet.

-Credits!

-Aftercredits! Fino touches the turbo button on the hair dryer and…Uh…It makes a biiiiig boom. She has a scary amount of magic in a world that runs on the stuff.

Hmmmm. Well, it’s not so bad that I’m gonna drop it, but man, the fan service in this one is dense…And a lot of it is pure camera-work, too, not actions actually willingly undertaken by characters. It’s honestly a shame. There’s a lot of interesting conceptual meat in this. It really didn’t need big bouncing tits and panty shots everywhere to be a good show.

Oh well. Sometimes I watch super amazing stuff and my job is just to show that amazingness to you. Sometimes, I watch not-so-great stuff and my job is to separate off the good stuff and bring it together into a better piece. If this one’s more the latter, that’s fine. We’ll just have to get a better vibe on it next time, in episode TWO of I Couldn’t … Job! Wait for it!

[grimelords]

​My October playlist is finished, please enjoy it. From 14 minute 70s acoustic guitar instrumentals, Armand Van Helden bangers and Christian music I’ve had a lot of feelings about this playlist has it all in four hours.

Love Love Love - The Mountain Goats: Posting on the web about Mountain Goats songs you've had a moment with is about as universal as it gets, so here's mine for this month. I woke up one morning with the line about Sonny Liston in my head one day after not listening to this song in years. John Darnielle is perhaps the only person on earth I'd trust to write a song about Kurt Cobain's suicide and he does a very simple and beautiful job of it here. Ben's My Friend - Sun Kil Moon: I discovered Sun Kil Moon way after I probably should have via that guy who was doing parody songs of him last year. This song is fantastic because it takes so long to make its point, and like so much good art is just some middle aged guy recounting his every thought and movement for four minutes. You Were Meant For Me - Jewel: I was trying to remember how Dreams by Fleetwood Mac went and all I could think of was this song, and settled on singing it to myself instead. Sober - Lorde: Sorry to be a normie but listening to Lorde break down this song on an episode of Song Exploder was incredibly good and it definitely made me appreciate the way the brass sounds a lot more. Melodrama really does get better and better as a cohesive whole the more I listen to it. Night Moves - Bob Seger: We as a society need to bring back Power Voice I think. I've been obsessed with this song for months now and as far as I can tell Bob Seger has precisely zero other good songs, which is unfortunate because this one is so good. This also is another song about getting the Lamenting Night Hornies because you heard a thunderstorm that reminded you of the times in your youth that you Fucked and it's, in my opinion, very beautiful. Cairo - San Fermin: This is on the list not only because it's a good song but also unfortunately because of Podasts. San Fermin guested on an episode of Improv4humans and got absolutely roasted about this song so I highly recommend the ep. UFO - Sneaky Sound System: It's unfortunate that Sneaky Sound System's highest played song according to Spotify is the Nicolas Jaar remix of Big (an all time top ten piece of music) because it's really overshadowed the rest of their incredibly good singles. Do you remember 2006? What a time to be alive. UFO (Van She Tech Remix) - Sneaky Sound System: This is my absolute pick of the month and I have been raving to everyone who'll listen but nobody cares, I cannot get enough of it. Do you remember when Justice came from France to bless us all with the secret of bass and we betrayed them by inventing Skrillex not three years later? Van She remember. Charlie Chazz & Rappin Ralph - Duck Sauce: I believe there is a real argument to be made that any song that doesn't refer to the listeners collectively as Party People is absolutely worthless. Duck Sauce's album is a completely underrated classic in my opinion, it's a go-to mood elevator from beginning to end and for some reason has a subplot thoughout about aliens transmitting coded messages to influence human evolution, which is a big thumbs up from me. I Took Your Picture - Cults: Guess what Cults are still really really good. I haven't given this album enough time yet but this bassline has invaded my dreams so that's a good sign. Pavement - City Calm Down: The way this layers and builds into and through the chorus is so satisfying. I love this sort of thick synth production and the contrast between the different registers of his voice is so satisfying as the chorus comes back again. Pogo - Digitalism: Australian electronic music had a real moment around 2007 between Digitalism, Van She, The Presets, Midnight Juggernauts, Cut Copy and all them and I'm realising retrospectively that it was very, very good. Semicircle Song - The Go! Team: The world's best band are back and their new album isn't out until fucking January! This song features big horns and a bridge that's just a montage of children telling you their star sign so that's how you know it's good. The Garden's All Nighters - The Number Twelve Looks Like You: It's a real shame that #12 broke up after this album because it feels like they were really on the edge of something. Over 4 albums they morphed from a straight ahead grind band into some sort of math-prog thing approaching it from a whole different direction to everyone else. I love the idea of writing such an expansive, complex song seemingly just about living in New Jersey. The way it transitions into the groovy latin part is so nice and the solo is just beautiful; and unlike other bands in the same sort of sector they never make a joke of genre switches either, they just keep moving forward with a smile. Paris/Orly - Deux: I forget how I first came across this album but it’s easily the wankiest thing I absolutely love. An 80s French synthpop duo that only ever released a cassette and some singles that got reissued by a label called Minimal Wave a few years ago. It is absolutely the best. New wave mixed with Kraftwerk and synthpop except incredibly french and cool as well. I constantly have their song Game And Performance in my head but this one was my obsession this month. Walking Into Sunshine (Larry Levan 12" Mix) - Central Line: There’s something very authentic about disco songs that are lyrically all about working all week all day every day, and desperately needing a break to perhaps, dance your worries away in a new york discotheque. Cradle In The Crater - The Number Twelve Looks Like You: This is maybe my favourite #12 song because it appears to be about some kind of super child who came from space and perhaps wrought havoc on the citizens of earth, but told in a very real and emotional way like it’s a story about someone they really knew. It reminds me of Mother 3 and the good times I had as a teen playing that game with my best friend, so that’s an added bonus. Under The Ice (Extended Version) - Topo & Roby: Italo disco forever. This song is a duet between a woman and a robot where they relay the story of him coming from a distant planet in a spaceship and crashing on the north pole then getting trapped under the titular ice where he waits to I think murder me. Now that I think of it it’s world similar to Cradle In The Crater. It sounds so good, far better than a novelty song like this has any right to. There’s also a video with someone’s 80s mum dancing with an incredibly shit robot on youtube if you’re interested. Outta The Woodwork - Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett: I really love the covers they chose for this album because they both really make it their own. Outta The Woodwork really sounds like a Kurt song now and I love the strong piano giving the song the harder edge the lyrics deserve and Kurt just lazily soloing to hell any chance he gets Peepin' Tom - Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett: I think I almost like this version more than the original, making it just an acoustic thing but still keeping all the dynamics of the original is so nice. I love specifically the deep bass voice of ‘peepin’ to the high ‘tom’. It satisfies something weird in my brain. Mercury (12" Version) - Bloc Party: I can’t believe i’ve lived this long without ever knowing that there was a 12” version of Mercury out there. The song I always felt was way too short to contain the amount of energy it has has a 7 minute version that well and truly lays it out into a slow intense burn instead. Electric Feel (Justice Remix) - MGMT: Just to get my 2007 opinions straight Electric Feel is not a good song. Kids is a good song but Electric Feel isn’t. That said: this remix comes damn close to making it good. Justice figured out the secret sound and we’re all the better for it. Comin' Apart - Gary Wright: There’s no greater joy than tracking down a sample and finding out that the original song is also a banger. This pairs extremely well with My My My as a sort of extended intro. My My My - Armand Van Helden: I posted that playlist a couple weeks ago of songs mid-2000s bangers with extremely horny videos and this is a highlight from that. I'm always amazed with how much mileage great producers can get out of a relatively straightforward sample because this hums along for almost 7 minutes and only gets better. Laser Life - The Blood Brothers: The Blood Brothers are one of the few bands that scratch the brain itch I have for totally bonkers Mars Volta markov chain lyrics phrases like 'Oh dream machine I'm a pound of flesh inside a drum machine dream'. They're also the only band I think that can get away with having this sort of cabaret swing feel in a song with a lot of screaming and not have it be absolutely unbearable. Camouflage, Camouflage - The Blood Brothers: Where a lot of The Blood Brothers early songs were just chaotic bursts, they have a few songs that spread out into a long multi movement ideas culminating in very good final lines like 'I couldn't see the love and affection it was camouflaged as a jungle of erections, and I couldn't see the skeletal lightning it was camouflaged as a young machete' 16 Tons - Tennessee Ernie Ford: The mistake people make in covering this song is trying to match the extremely grim lyrics to the music, but this version succeeds exactly because it's on some upbeat Frank Sinatra shit with the clarinet refrain sounding like a children's song while still being very much about dying face down in the dirt from arsenic poisoning. Take This Hammer - Leadbelly: On the other hand you have a song like Take This Hammer from a guy who really worked on a chain gang complete with involuntary WAH sounds to time your hammer strikes to, and it's still so much more upbeat and positive musically than it has any right to be looking at the lyrics. San Francisco - Foxygen: There's something about the chorus of this song, and they way the phrases of the two voices line up where if it gets stuck in your head it just goes around and around and around forever and it is absolutely maddening so I thought I'd share that with you all. El Manana (Metronomy Remix) - Gorillaz: This remix reminds me of Studio to a degree with the way it just moves forward with no regard for regular structure. It's gutsy to remix a song and somehow restructure it so the chorus doesn't even sound like it's the chorus anymore but just another small part in a slowly winding up machine. Monkey Gone To Heaven - The Pixies: The way he's screaming that GOD IS SEVEN in this song I feel like if Black Francis hadn't made it in music he'd be running a very successful incomprehensible conspiracy website. This is a song I can get very lyrically involved in when I'm in certain moods, nodding my head like the creature in the sky DID get sucked in a hole and now there's a hole in the sky, and we're all in trouble because of it. Cannonball - The Breeders: I like this song because it feels like everyone in the band is working on their own unique structure. The clean guitar especially just comes and goes at will through the whole song, the lyrics start whenever, the rhythm guitar just keeps strumming along. It all comes together for the chorus and then they just go their own separate ways until it's chorus time again. S.A.D. - Kirin J Callinan: The production on this song just amazes me, especially as it moves into the later choruses the sheer weight of the chords is just crazy. The barest suggestion of guitars chugging in the background but blending into the huge synths chords. Combined with the vocals it's the most threatening pop song I've ever heard. Wrapped up in plastic thrown down the stairs feeling fantastic. Water Coast Blues - Honeyboy Edwards: I feel like Honeyboy Edwards has gotten a raw deal from history. When he died most of his obitaries made a big point of how he was one of the last living people to know Robert Johnson personally. Which is an important detail but it overshadows Edwards contributions in his own right as a guitarist and songwriter who had a 70 year career. The album this recording's from is a really good compilation that gives an overview of his whole career, mixed with interviews with Edwards and Alan Lomax that are just amazing. Anyway just listen to the playing on this song because it is incredible. The bass figure he switches into when he says 'when I had money'? Phenomenal. Another Leather Lung - The Sound Of Animals Fighting: The Sound Of Animals Fighting was a supergroup of a bunch of guys from RX Bandits/Chiodos/Circa Survive and bands like that coming together in animal masks to make the most pretentious band possible at the time. There's a lyrics on one of their other songs where he sings 'the artist! the true manifestation of struggle!' which is quite good. But outside of that they did make some very good music and the second half of this song where it takesoff is really something. Bone Machine - The Pixies: It's amazing Black Francis hasn't been linked to a string of murders in the mid 80s honestly. This whole song feels like evidence. Also the way he says 'I was talking to peachy peach about kissy kiss.. [incredibly long, awkward silence] ... he bought me a soda. he bought me a soda and he tried to molest me in the parking lot hep hep hep hep' is perhaps the most amazing verse ever. Stomping Tonight On The Pennsylvania/Alabama Border - John Fahey: This is John Fahey's best song and I've listened to it probably 4 times a week for the last 4 years. It is quite honestly an eternal mood. Ares - Bloc Party: War! War! War! War! I love the guitar in this, because it's just textural noisemaking more than anything else and mixed with the vocal manipulations in the chorus it's just absolute chaos. It's such a shame that everyone in Bloc Party either left the band or had their brain removed after this album because between this, Mercury and Talons it was truly an incredible moment. Special Rider Blues - John Fahey: I can't believe I only found out this month about John Fahey covering Skip James, and even that it took me this long for me to listen to the full version of his America album. Mark 1:15 - John Fahey: I also learned that on account of cds only holding 80 minutes of music, this 14 minute reissue version of Mark 1:15 is 2 minutes shorter than the original vinyl version and I'm completely riled up about it and demanding a second, definitive reissue to restore them. Regardless, this song is an absolute masterpiece and when it switches into the portion of When The Springtime Comes again about three quarters of the way through it's just amazing. Swim - Nicolas Jaar: Here's another quite long and involved piece of music from the other side of the spectrum. It has a very similar feeling to Mark 1:15 really, so if you liked that persevere through this. It's taken me such a long time to get around to listening to Nymphs for some reason but I'm glad I finally gave it a shot because this song especially is a real masterwork. Crimes - The Blood Brothers: A third Blood Brothers song for you, If you didn't like the other two there's a chance you'll like this one because it's much more sedate. This song is also a good first Blood Brothers song because the way the second vocalist sounds when he finally turns up is really funny if you're not expecting it. This is another on the long list of songs I seem to just always have in my head and sing to myself when I'm walking around. NRG - Duck Sauce: Are you ready for the most powerful 12 minutes of your life? It's the entirety of the NRG single by Duck Sauce. I like to think of it as a purposeful multi-movement work rather than a song and two remixes because that's what it feels like. Starting out we have the original, incredible instant power of NRG. NRG (Skrillex, Kill The Noise, Milo & Otis Remix) - Duck Sauce: and next we have the absolute peak of the work, the fever pitch. See if you can guess which part Skrillex was responsible for. I love the addition of miscellaneous woos and yeahs among the already busy main riff, I absolutely love the bass which sounds like some kind of steel drum pulled down four octaves. I love the distortion on the vocals in the second half as it slowly gives you time to catch your breath. NRG (Hudson Mohawk Remix) - Duck Sauce: The we move into the comedown, the HudMo contribution where the drums somehow sound like they're coming from next door like the party has passed you by and moved on to enliven your neighbours. I love the snare building and then splitting into triplets like it's going to drop before the peace of the synth gives way to the rolling thunder drums hafway in. On The Other Hand Baby - Etta Baker: I don't know what to say about Etta Baker. She's incredible and it's an absolute shame that she didn't really get recorded until she was about 70. This album was recorded when she was about 92 and her playing is still amazing. Crucible - Sleigh Bells: You have to give Sleigh Bells credit for still going strong four albums in if nothing else. Somewhere along the line they adopted this sort of corny rock chick thing that wasn't really there in their first album and I think it works against them but I really can't get enough of the instrumental of this song. The distorted brass and string amongst everything else especially. I feel like there's a much better song buried in here somewhere but I'll take what I can get. Pirate Blues - As Cities Burn: As Cites Burn are another good example of a metalcore band absolutely mellowing out into a indie rock band over the course of three albums, and the result Hell Or High Water has turned out to be one if my favourites of all time. This song especially is an obsession, and I love a band having the sense to no longer make metalcore, but learning enough from it to take a song to a a huge crescendo when they need to like this one does. Timothy - As Cities Burn: Between As Cities Burn, mewithoutYou and a couple of other christian bands I was very nearly converted in highschool and it still informs a lot of my uh theistic thought in a strangely unembarrassing way. This song, from their second album where they were sort of caught between their metalcore origins and the full fleshed indie rock of Hell Or High Water is one of their best. Yelling at god about your dead friend is a massive thing to write a song about but it's done so well and it builds and builds before dissolving into a sparse, thoughtful solo for a good six minutes into a beautiful ending.

listen here

[crescentcrona]

Hey if you’re doing those kiss prompts, how about 38. Awkward teenage crush kiss with Soul and Crona

this turned out so much longer then i fukin planned so consider this apart of your Christmas gift fml Soul’s leg could not stop twitching underneath the table he currently sat at, promptly ignoring the loud pop music and people rushing by him. He felt suffocated from the suit he was in, thankfully not wearing any type of tie to choke him. Honestly, he was at a GSA dance, how formal was he expected to get. Being 16 and Bisexual, he was supposed to be living out some of the best years of his life. Instead he watched in nervous energy as his even more so awkward crush came stumbling out the front door, tall and slender.  He watched as Maka pulled them in, turquoise dress swishing at her sides. So they must have been dragged in this by her, similarly how he was practically assaulted into going by Blake. (drag name blackstar)He pretended to scroll on his phone, while discretely glancing up across the room. Crona was only a year older then he was, dressed in black slacks and a silky white button up. Soul noticed their was a black bow around his neck, and he couldn’t get over how simply cute and refined he looked. Which was more of a rarity, considering the kid always had bags under his eyes, looking ready for death at any moment. Suddenly Souls back was slapped, causing him to juggle his phone between hands to keep it from shattering on the floor. “How about you go talk to him.” Blake asked, leaning down to Souls level. “What, who, I don’t know who he is.” Soul stuttered out, back still stinging. “You already promised Crona a dance, you might as well as deliver.” Blake said, recalling the week prier when Soul had asked if Crona was planning to attend the over rated dance they were currently at.He had promised them a dance, he remembers. He manged not to actually embarrass himself that afternoon, but he also remembers asking him in private, which kinda pisses him off. “How the fu-” Soul started before getting interrupted. “Look their coming over here.” Blake raised his arm,waving. As if his Gatorade blue hair wasn’t noticeable enough. Souls chair was pushed forward, forcing him to stumble into a standing position, which (un)fortunately faced him directly in front of Crona.    “I can’t believe you actually showed up Soul.” Maka greeted, heels giving her about an inch extra of height to her. “I’m here too.” Blake announced, nudging Soul out of the way. “Unfortunate.” Both Soul and Maka said in unison, causing Crona to stifle a giggle. “Oh come on Crona, not you too!” Blake cried, before instantly perking back up. “Hey Maka, I’m gonna request every Taylor Swift song they got!” “You are not!” Maka shouted, dread etched on her face as she ran after Blake across the room to the DJ’s. Soul silently laughed to himself, looking over at Crona. “Glad you showed up.”“Oh, I’m happy to be here. I had to lie to my mom about where I am though.” Crona answered. “Sorry to hear that. To be honest, I don’t think my folks would care for me being here either.” The white haired boy rubbed at the back of his neck. What a way to start the night off, talking about disappointed parents. “Did you still want to dance?” The question snapped the pink haired boy out of his sad trance, blinking. “Yea, I would like that.” Soul guided them to a secluded corner of the dance floor, away from the crowd that gathered toward the center. They both stood there, waiting for the other to start moving, do something. The moment was entirely awkward, and all Soul wanted to do was Die. “Have you ever danced before?” Soul asked over the music. “N-no, never. I don’t even know what to do.” They replied, gripping their bicep. “Here,” Soul grabbed the other boys hands, placing Cronas left hand on his shoulder, then placing his own left hand behind their waist.“This is a simple box waltz, I’ll show you.” It took a few stumbled attempts to get it right, staring at each others shoes to remember basic steps. Even after they manged to avoid stepping on misplaced toes, they both weren’t sure where to look. “Thank you, for inviting me.” Crona leaned into to talk in Soul’s ear, music switching from pounding pop music to the 80′s (most of been Kiliks request) “I didn’t really do much. Maka was the one who brought you anyway.” “I know, but still. I wouldn’t have came if you hadn’t promised to be here too.” Soul gulped, squeezing Crona’s right hand for a moment. He felt the other boy clutch back, and Soul swears his hearts going to burst from his chest its beating so hard. They gone to swaying back and forth, drinking up each others closeness. They never pulled apart when they had leaned to talk, and Soul can feel the shaky breath coming from Crona. He can probably feel his own, feel how hot his blood is. Soul nudges his face towards Crona, white and pink hair intertwining When he doesn’t pull away, Soul continues until his lips are centimeters apart. When his lips finally touch Crona’s, its as if the room itself disappeared. The music is a distant hum, the dancers and fellow classmates are gone. His chest is burning from holding his breath he wasn’t realizing he was holding, and he feels electricity shoot all the down to his toes.Their noses bump into each others, squished. Neither of them are very sure how to properly kiss, with more forced pressure then what was actually needed. To top it off, one of Soul’s feet was currently being broken by Crona’s own. When they pulled apart, the music came rushing back to them. They sighed into each other, before Soul broke the moment with a wince. “Ow..” The cotton candy haired boy looked at him questionably, then when realizing his foot placement quickly stepped away, while still keeping his originally hand placement. “Sorry! Sorry I didn’t mean too..”   “It’s fine. Do you still want to keep dancing?” Soul asked, hope lacing his words. He was received a shy smile. “Yea.” They ended up dancing to bad edgy punk music, content to dance the rest of the time together. That was until Maka interrupted, claiming it was ‘her turn to dance with her best friend at least once, dammit.’ The crimson eyed boy’s nerves manage to calm, but he still feels wobble legged. Before anyone knows it, its nearing the end with the few stragglers waiting for rides. Wes slowly pulls up to pick up both his brother and Blake combined. “Well, I guess I’ll see you guys Monday.” Soul can hardly finish his sentence before Patty embraces him, exclaiming goodbye hugs for everyone. Before Soul realizes it, hes giving out side hugs and fist bumps to a group of friends hes honestly apart of. He hugs Crona for two seconds longer then anyone else, his brother catching it from the tinted window of his car. Giving one last wave, the mischievous pair enter the car, falling asleep on the way home.

[mlpsimta]

Simta’s best games that he played in 2017

2017 has finally ended. I truly hope that everyone had a wonderful 2017 and that 2018 will be even better for any of us. As for gaming 2017 was remarkable. It started off really strong with games like Gravity Rush 2, Yakuza 0, Resident Evil 7 in January and was followed up immediately by amazing titles such as Nier: Automata and Horizon Zero Dawn. The year even got better with Nintendo’s highly successful new console the Switch. With an amazingly drop fed release schedule and top of the line quality of games it became one of the most seeked out system. Of course thanks to some companies who just couldn’t resist to spread some bullshit over the last months of this year we got some let’s just say underwhelming and disappointing titles too.

But this day is not for those games! Today I only intend to talk about the best games that I have played in 2017. There’s only one caveat. Because of the incredibly huge amount of amazing games that came out last year I just simply wasn’t able to play with all of them. Of course those games that I missed will have their own list. There are going to be some older titles because as mentioned before and my line-up is about the best games that I have played in 2017. So even if a game came out in the ‘80s but I only played it for the first time only now, it will be on the list. Let’s get started and see: what were my top games that I’ve played last year.

Dark Souls 3

I am a huge Dark Souls fan. Anything that is closely Souls Like I am going to jump upon it, but when Dark Souls 3 first came out I intentionally didn’t bought it. Mainly because I was waiting to get the inevitable GOTY edition of the game so I can power through all of that the title can offer in one or more painful weeks without touching anything else. So after a year of going completely dark and avoiding anything that is Dark Souls 3 I jumped into it knowing nothing and let the game surprise me. And oh boy it had quite the surprises! The whole game was a wonderful journey and not just in-game wise. I don’t know if it makes any sense but traversing through Lotrich showed also how the series evolved since Demon’s Souls. Meeting the Not Maiden in Black in the Not Nexus, fighting against the undead on the High Wall of Lotric, going into the Catacombs to get murdered by skeletons and every area of the game had that nostalgic feeling of you have been there, you have seen this. But From Software not just simply recycled previous ideas and maps from their games but evolved them, and learned from them, so the next time you came across something similar it won’t just be bigger and flashier, but better and more challenging too! And that is true for the game mechanics even! Every swing with my trusty Broadsword felt so right, every fight and even the spell casting felt for some reason better. No more gimmicky mechanics, no more overpowered stat, every build is viable! So it is only up to you how you are going to try and beat the game. Dark Souls 3 in short was a collection from the best elements of the Souls series, from Demon’s Soul, to Dark Souls and Bloodborne. The dev team picked all the parts that stood out of, and cranked them to eleven. It was a nice way to say goodbye to the Dark Souls series and I just simply can’t wait what they are going to come up with next!

PRAISE THE ART

Doom

You know whenever I see some YouTubers or other gamers talking about how their first game was Mario, Zelda, Sonic or Dizzy, I always find it funny when my time comes to talk about it and my response is: Doom. Yep my first game that got me started was Doom. So after the lacklustre Doom 3 I just kept waiting for a true successor and finally a true heir came in 2016! This game embodies everything that a Doom game has to be. It’s fast phased, filled with action and the story takes a backseat, because it knows that we are here not the get lectured or have life changing experience. We are here because we want to shoot, punch, blow up, and tear apart everything that stand in our way. This game truly understands what made the first two Doom games special and doesn’t shy away about it. It knows what we want to see and delivers on it with high octane! And you know what is funny? That it is able to deliver bombastic action while having one of the best story and main protagonist that I have ever seen. Doom Guy doesn’t say a word nor does he need to. You completely understand him simply by his gestures! Spoilers are coming up about the story so if you haven’t played it than please do so it worth your time. The whole plot is simply about your bog standard big evil corporation wants to get its hand on new ways to generate power for humanity. Obviously the best decision is to go to hell and use its energy to do so. Than shit hits the fan and that is when Doom Guy comes and saves the day. It is just so funny to see how your ‘boss’ tells you that you shouldn’t break some machines as those provides the power for humanity, and Doom Guy just takes a second to think and punches it and destroys it! These kinds of actions show that he not just simply doesn’t give a single fuck, but show that he understands hell the best. It’s bad, you shouldn’t touch it, okay you did it I’ll fix it by murdering everything that is demonic. I could go on and on about the game but I think that I have already carried away, so I just stop and you should go and play it.

I forgot to press the screenshot button during the whole campaing... So have this.

Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight

What more I can say about this game that I have already did in a few weeks ago in my review? Momodora is a true Metroidvania in every way or form. You play as a priestess armed to teeth with a leaf and your duty is to lift the curse of a city. With tight controls and a surprisingly deep customizable fight styles thanks to the items you found through the game you are in for a nice ride. It has a beautiful pixelated art style and an atmosphere remembrance of Bloodborne and the challenge you would see in games like that. You ought to yourself to play this little gem.

Read my review: http://mlpsimta.tumblr.com/post/168403269727/simta-reviews-momodora-reverie-under-the

Simple and beautiful

Persona 5

This year’s best game without a doubt for me easily. The Persona series always has been close to my heart and now after years and years of waiting I was finally be able to play a new one! I got this game just before the spring break and I completely no lifed it during the vacation. After exactly 108 hours later that took me one and a half week to achieve, I was looking at the end credits with a huge smile on my face and tears in my eyes. The game has an amazing cast of characters who you are genuinely care for and root for. The best designed menu system and visuals that you have ever seen! No joke! I often founded myself just moving from menu options from menu options to see every little detail that was purred into it. Also the game has a wonderful soundtrack too. From calm and relaxing music that plays during rainy days, to rock that just bursts and makes you pumped up during a fight! It has everything for every occasion and all of just clicks together so well. Now add all of it to a classic JRPG fighting system and you end up with turn based game that never feels slow. With the music mixed in, every battle can turn into a rhythm game where you try to keep up with the music, and paired all of this with the visuals it just simply looks and sounds amazing. I have to say it makes me really sad that I simply not literature enough to be able to make coherent sentences. Every time when I think about this game is just overflow with emotions of how great of a game it is. I just hope that everyone will get a chance to play it even if you are not a fan of Japanese games you ought to yourself to try this game and see through it. Believe me you are going to experience something wonderful.

YOU NEVER SEE IT COMING!

Tearaway Unfolded

While Sony tries to forget the PS Vita there are still some truly amazing games on that little machine that are begging for attention just like this one. Once a PS Vita launch title it got re-released on the PS4 so it can be finally played by more than a handful of people. The whole world of Tearaway from the trees to the houses, the animals even the water, everything looks like that it was handmade only and just only using paper. But not just the visuals even the controls have a unique twist to them too. You can swipe left to right on the controller’s touchpad to make the wind blow in the world, or press it to make everything jump. I’m not really into controller gimmicks because most of the time they just get into the way and make everything less convenient, but in this game this is not the case. Every function feels very natural and good to use. You can seamlessly move around, do your stuff, and interact with the world via the touchpad without you having to stop for a second, which is crucial as you have to use the wind during a lot of jumping sections to make you reach further platforms. The whole world is just filled with joy and happiness and it is simply a fun adventure that you should try. If you are looking for a third person platformer and for some reason missed Tearaway I urge you to try this one as it is one of the best that the genre has.

Read my review: http://mlpsimta.tumblr.com/post/158588857952/simta-reviews-tearaway-unfolded

Simply adorable and lovable

Undertale

Undertale became a huge hit in 2016 and while I was interested in it I decided to skip it. For some reason there are some types of games that I just simply prefer on a handheld device. Luckily the game got released on the Vita so I immediately purchased it, and I have to say it is truly as good as everybody says. With the premise of you can spare or kill anyone that you come across in the game which ultimately decides how every character will interact with you and the narrative to. Undertale has much more tricks up its sleeves, a game that remembers every decision of yours and adapts to it and judges you for them. It can deliver one of the most heartbreaking scenes that I have ever had the chance to experience. A well thought out world filled it loveable characters and truly unique game mechanics Undertale is tale that you have to hear. Go and play it!

It is possible that you should play this game

Wolfeinstein: The New Order

Besides Doom the original Wolfeinstein 3D was among my first games that I played as a child. While it had some good games since 3D for some reason I never really cared about them and ended up missing all of them (I should really play Return to Castle and the 2009 one) but not this one. While the game is old enough that a sequel just got released this year I kept putting this one into my backlog as one day I’m going to finish it. Well this summer I had a week off after my exams so I download it and decided to finally finish it, and it was a blast to play! Surprisingly this game just like Doom has an amazing storyline with a colourful cast of characters -who are depending on what timeline you decided to pick- and bombastic action that even takes you to a Nazi Moon base. This is another game that understands why we love this series so much and expands it. From one scene where you are planning with the resistance to another where Blatzko is silently taking out guards while monologing about his past, to another where you dual wield two automatic shotguns and mowing down even more Nazis, this game delivers in every way. Let it be story, a very well and tastefully done romance, sneaking or balls to the wall action this game has it all. If you love a good story, choosing your own play style (sneaky or loud) or just simply want to shoot some nazi bastards this game have you covered.

BJ is back!

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Last year I got my very first home Nintendo console a Wii. The main reason for buying the system was to try and show my family that there are games that even they can enjoy. While the system didn’t become a huge hit, and I am still the only gamer in my household it is still used time to time for some good old fashioned Mario Kart and Wii Sports which I consider as a success. But when it is not party time the Wii become a Zelda machine for me. Besides Mari Kart and Wii Sports I got a copy of Twilight Princess for it and as someone who has never played any Zelda games before was very excited to see what is all the fuss about. While I haven’t finished the game as of writing this (I think I am close to the end) I have to admit this is a really good game, and it is not just because I love games that have motion control gimmicks in them, but it has an interesting story that I want to see through to the end, and some brilliant level design. Maybe it will sound odd but I felt like I was playing a Souls game during my adventure. While the combat is not as unforgiving for errors as a Souls game would be, but traversing Hyrule and especially the dungeons made them feel like you are playing a Souls game, as you not try to beat the enemies (they are not challenging the least) but as you try and beat the levels itself. Thinking about how to use every item in your arsenal, how to combine them and what to look after is really exciting and keeps you engaged. Also the boss fights are stunningly good! The feel when you finally got the key to the dungeon’s boss after figuring out every little puzzle and looked under every pot, you go and open the final door to reveal what is the last obstacle, and go against it is the same that I have whenever I beat a tough boss in a Souls game. Twilight Princess is another extremely well put together game with clever level and boss designs with motion controls that don’t get in your way. I hope that Nintendo will port it to the Switch.

Image from: http://en.stargame.com/201511/0536855363.html

Doki Doki Literature Club

Doki Doki Literature Club is your basic visual novel dating game that you have probably saw countless times already. You play as a shut-in guy whose childhood friend makes him join a Literature Club. From there you are going to meet with four (j̨̛̛̀ù͘͘͜s̕͠t̨̛̀͟͢ ̴̸̨̛͝M͡҉o̸̵n̵͟i̧̕͡k҉̷a̸̴) girls who ask you to stay and help them with the upcoming school festival while learning the ins and outs of poetry and writing. On the surface level this might sounds boring but as you are getting to know the girls better (p̸̨ĺ̵̶͘è̴́̕à̕҉͠s͘̕͜͟͠é̵͘ ̢͟l͜͠o̵͜҉̴v̨̕͏é̸̵͡ ̸̵̸̸ḿ̴̷̷͢e͞͏̛ ̡͠t̶͟͢͠o̸̧o̸̴̢) you realise that Sayori, Yuri and Natsuki have some real problem not just accepting the other members opinions and viewpoints but also themselves too. So from here your job is to not leave them hͣ͊͏̱̜̼̹͇͚̥̞a͛͊ͤͤͤͭ͛҉̸̛̤̤n̷̬ͭ͒̄̋̓͡g͚̦ͫ̇̈́ͭ̒̾͑̉i̢̪̩̖̣̼̝̤͋ͫͫ̋ͦ̇ͯn̨̙̼͍̬͎̩̮͖̿̔͟gͩ͛̈́̆͗̋ͩ̑͏̪̼̮̻̙͎, try and c̸̛͇̖͉̏͒͡ǘ͕̜̜̗̌̅̊̌̂̀ẗ̵̹̠͚̉̃ͩ͐ͫ̚͘ͅ corners in your life while not b̨͚̊̌͆̔͛̽͠͞ŗ͙̣͓̖̔̌̄̔ͪ̽͝ͅe̫̞̗̜ͩ̓͢a̷̵͉̩̱̽̈̅́͂͛ͅk̮͔͚̖ͣi͈̯̙̩̱͉̗̎̇ń̪̗̣͖̍̀͟g̦̬͇̻͉̦͆͊̒ͥ͌̀͝ ̵̳̖̲̀̎͞��͙͎̣y̶̰͑̀͠ͅ��̮̙o̼̭͔ͥ̐̊u̴͖͇̭͔̬̯̞ͬ̊͆͒r̛̤̘̭̣̮̩̭̲̓́̎͐̈̈ͧ̍͜͝ ̰̻̞̪̫ͨ͂̀͛͒̄̅͡n̢̗̳͚̣̣̻͎͋̐͌̓ͫ͐́͟e͔̪̰̬͔̬̤͙͓͒͐͗́͒̄̅̎ͬcͭ̄̀ͧ̈̊́͘͏̗̪͙̣̯͙̞̟k̊̎̏҉̢͎̪̙̫̭̕ while helping them to make sure that not just the plans for the school festival but their lives too to get back on track. Doki Doki Literature Club while short is an amazing game that can delve into some truly horrific moments while you try and save each of the girls and unravel the mysteries behind their hatred.

What a cute and depressing game at the same time

Katawa Shoujo

This year I tried and played a few visual novels. This genre of gaming never really interested me as I found the concept of them is simply boring. How naive and stupid I was... Me! Who can love a well crafted story and characters enough to suffer through some janky game mechanics or grind countless of hours to make sure that I can see the best ending possible. So after some research and reading online what visual novel should I try out everybody pointed me towards this little free game. Just like in any other visual novel your main job is mainly consist of clicking next and reading while occasionally make a decision. Depending on your actions you can become closer friends to a girl or become her boyfriend, or achieve the opposite of it and you’ll start seeing her less and less again. As for the girls in the game I was surprised how well written they were! You see them how they interact with each other, how their own disability affects their relations, their everyday lives, and most importantly how they deal with them. And it is true for the main hero too! He who never had anything life threatening condition to care for suddenly finds itself in this new situation, and his journey is also remarkable. Seeing him interacting with the girls in the school as they teach him that just because he has a disability he shouldn’t let it get into him and he can still have a normal life. A truly beautiful game with important life lessons that everybody should at least give it a try.

Read my first impressions: http://mlpsimta.tumblr.com/post/156280048037/games-from-my-backlog-katawa-shoujo

I still love her

Splatoon 2

There’s gotta be a Switch title on the list. That little system became really popular and most wanted among gamers and rightfully so. While many people bought it to play the new Zelda (I really want to play it too) I was waiting how the system will hold its ground, but most importantly I wanted to see if Splatoon will be on it. Time moved on and summer came and with it Splatoon 2 hit the Switch. So in December when I was able to afford the console I bought a copy of it alongside my new console. Online shooters and any other kind of shooting games have been always amongst my favourite. So to see something vastly different that is not just simply about firing towards one and other got my attention. In most online shooters your only worth is mostly measured in K/D, but Splatoon 2 breaks away from that tradition by rewarding players the most who went after the objective. While players who prefer hunting down the opposite team’s members still will be appreciated as they make sure the keep the bad guys away while the rest of the team can peacefully paint the map. Just this little simple idea of using paint instead of bullets not only makes the game family friendly but opens up a lot of possibility game play wise. Painting the map not just gives you scores, but the more map you cover the faster your team will move around it. A simple but brilliant idea that turns every match into a game where map knowledge and controlling it is a must if you wish to succeed in the game. Not to mention playing for the objective also builds up your ultimate faster that lets you use powerful attacks that can turn even a losing match into a victory. A very fast phased, well balanced, fun game where you always have to keep your eyes open as in every minute the table can turn. Not to mention that all of this with regular free updates and events! So if you have a Switch and don’t have this game go and buy it! It’s well worth of your money. And for the others who already have I have a question for you: Are you a squid or a kid?

Why thank you Marie!

Stardew Valley

My go to comfort game of the last year. After a long day when I was really tired and I simply wanted to relax Stardew Valley was there for me on my Switch. A simple but somehow surprisingly deep game where your only job is run your own farm the best way you could. There’s just simply something calming for me to go over tiles and tiles watering the crops, cutting down some trees or mining, that helps soothe my nerves. While boring as it sounds wanting to see my farm grow and improve were rewarding enough that I truly felt some pride and accomplishment as I saw my homestead got bigger and better. You don’t also just improving your new home but your character too. On the first day maybe you get tired after watering a couple of plants, but as you go on and on you start to see how your avatar grows too. Simple task that were previously hard to do are becoming more and more easier, you learn new tricks how to make everything go smoother and easier as you start to understand the game mechanics and unlock new crafting recipes. I remember making my first sprinkler. I felt so proud that now I don’t have to manually water four tiles, only the remaining 100, because it was a long way to get there and quite expensive. But now half of my farm has a sprinkling system that saves me a lot of work and in so allows me spend more time with the villagers of Stardew Valley. Going into Stardew Valley you can find a lot of interesting people who occasionally ask you to deliver some farm product, and will offer their services for some of your money. Some will have a steady supply of seeds, some can patch you up, and others can build you new stuff and so on and so on. You truly feel like that you are part of a community, and as you start knowing the people better you understand them more and more and care for them. But not just plants can blossom in this game but friendships and loves too. You can get married and live together with your wife or husband (same sex marriage is completely OK!) and even can have kids too! There’s just simply so much more that I haven’t even see in this game that I can’t wait to go back and experience. If you are a fan of games like Harvest Moon, Terraria or Minecraft I urge you to check this one out and if you happen to have a Switch this game is perfect for it!

Me and best girl in the rain.

There you have it, the twelve games that I’ve played the most in 2017. Sadly a lot of games haven’t made into the list because of me not having the time to play them or the money to buy them. 

If you are interested in what games I want to play that come out in 2017 here’s a quick list for you to see:

-Nier: Automata -The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild -Mario Odyssey -Gravity Rush 2 -Night in the Woods -Ladykiller in a Bind -Yakuza 0 -Horizon Zero Dawn -I am Setsuna -Nioh -Rain World -The Sexy Brutale -LawBreakers -Sonic Mania -Cuphead -A Hat in Time -Xenoblade Chronicles 2

As you can see the list of games that are waiting for me to buy them and play them is quite huge and I hope that I can cover some of them in this brand new year.

I hope that you are going to have a wonderful and successful 2018!

For closing I want to say thank you for your reading my post and of course have a great day!

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