#or anyone else’s if anyone wants to chime in!

[caramelpenguin]

Felice mouths a 'thank you' at Sara over the choir teacher's shoulder as she closes the door. This should hopefully give them atleast ten minutes, and if Sara can stall her for longer, maybe twenty.

She turns back to face the choir, her hands firmly planted on her hips. Felice isn't even close friends with most of these students, but right now, that doesn’t matter. If they’re going to pull this off, she needs as many as she can on board. Clearing her throat, she eyes them all slowly, "Do you all remember the song Simon wrote? That we performed once and never sang again?"

The room erupts in murmurs and whispers.

"You mean the one based on the school anthem?"

"Yes! That one."

Someone snorts from the back. "The one that's not even subtly about Wilhelm?"

"Exactly." Felice squares her shoulders. "What do we think about singing that version on the last day instead of the original? As a way of surprising Simon?"

There’s a pause, followed by a sharp voice from the front row. A girl with neatly braided hair and a skeptical expression raises her brow. "And why would we do that? There’s no real reason."

Oh, Felice is ready for this. She counts off on her fingers, her words measured but pointed. "First, this might be our last performance as a choir. Wouldn’t we rather do something meaningful for ourselves than just the boring school version? Second, we've all seen the horrible crap Simon’s had to deal with recently- it's awful. It’s the least we can do to show him we’re on his side." She pauses, letting her words sink in before delivering the kicker. "And finally—his version is way better than the original. You all know it."

The murmurs in the room shift, tinged with curiosity and a few nods of agreement.

Then, from the back, a new voice cuts through. "Yes," Felix says, his cheeks lightly flushed. Felice has noticed him glancing at Simon during rehearsals, expression soft in a way he probably doesn’t think anyone else sees. "I think that's a great idea."

His endorsement cracks the ice. Someone in the second row murmurs, "I mean, it is better than the original."

Another chimes in, "And Simon would definitely love it."

"He's a good guy. Amazing voice, too."

Felice thinks of the way Wilhelm talks about Simon - this boy who treats him with gentle touches and loves him in a way that he deserves, like he’s something precious. She thinks of Simon as a brother to Sara, unwavering and loyal and someone who's stuck by ,who's dealt with the harsh blows. She thinks of Simon with his loud opinions at the start of the year, unafraid to challenge what he felt was wrong.

That’s why this matters. This isn’t just about the song. It’s about Simon. About reminding him that he’s seen and valued and that what he’s brought to this group has meant something.

Felice looks around the room at the hesitant faces, at the whispers still swirling among the group, and lets her determination harden.

“Listen,” she says, her voice firm, “this isn’t about whether or not we get in trouble. It’s about doing something that actually means something. For Simon. For us. If you don’t want to do it for him, fine. Do it because this choir deserves to go out on a high note. And because we’re capable of more than just doing what’s expected of us.”

No-one speaks up to argue. Slowly, the students begin to shuffle into position, the energy in the room shifting. Someone hums the first note, and the familiar melody builds—hesitant at first, then stronger, richer.

[hksdlgsyappage]

Backburner

Spencer Reid x readet

C: Angst

Summary: After weeks of silence, you sit in a café, reflecting on the painful realization that Spencer Reid had never made them a priority, for always being second place.

I haven't heard from Spencer in days. It's been weeks, actually. Not that I expected anything different. His job has always come first—always. The BAU, the cases, the people who needed saving. And I was always the one waiting, lingering in the background, hoping that maybe, just maybe, he'd remember me.

But he never did. Not really. Not in the way I needed him to.

Flashback:

It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

I remember the first time I realized I wasn’t a priority to Spencer. We had spent hours together after a particularly brutal case, talking over dinner. We laughed. We shared things about ourselves that we hadn’t told anyone else. It felt real. And for once, I didn’t feel like I was on the outside of his world.

But the next morning, it was gone.

He was already back at the office, drowning in paperwork, absorbed in his work like he always was. I sent him a message, a simple one: “Good morning! I hope you’re doing okay.”

He didn’t reply.

Not for hours.

And when he did, it was the same as always. A few words. Casual. Polite. Nothing more.

I told myself it was fine. That I had to understand. That he was busy, that he was doing important work. But deep down, I knew what was happening. I wasn’t a priority. I was just the person who was always there when he needed someone to talk to, but never someone he would choose when things got hard.

Present:

I’m sitting in the same café where we used to meet—before. Before he pulled away. Before I realized that my feelings were just a shadow in his life. It’s almost ironic, really. I had told myself that if I was patient enough, if I gave him the time he needed, he’d see me. He’d come to his senses.

But that didn’t happen.

It never happens.

And so, I gave up. The final nail in the coffin was a week ago. I had waited by my phone, staring at the screen, hoping for a message that never came. And when it did, it was just another case update. Another report. Another moment where I wasn’t a part of his life.

I could feel myself slipping away, feeling like I was fading into the background of his world. It hurt more than I thought it would. It still does.

So, I walked away.

Flashback:

We were in his apartment, the scent of coffee lingering in the air. It felt familiar, comfortable. I wanted to stay there forever, nestled in the quiet of his presence. But I knew it wasn’t right. I couldn’t keep pretending like this was all okay when I knew, deep down, that it wasn’t.

"Spencer," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "I can’t do this anymore."

He stopped what he was doing, a frown forming on his forehead. "What do you mean?"

I swallowed, trying to find the words. "I can’t keep waiting for you. I can’t keep being your second choice. You say you care about me, but when it comes down to it, you’re always focused on something else. Someone else. I’m just here when you have time for me, but I’m not enough to be a priority."

His face hardened, his jaw clenching. "That's not fair."

"No," I replied, my voice shaking now, "what’s not fair is how I’ve let myself be treated like I’m not enough. I don’t want to be an afterthought. I don’t want to be on your back burner anymore."

He didn’t say anything after that. He didn’t try to fix it, didn’t argue. Just stood there, silent.

And I left.

Present:

The door chimes as it opens, pulling me out of my thoughts. My heart stops, and for a split second, I wonder if I’m imagining it. But no, it’s him. Spencer.

He’s standing in front of me, his face unreadable. I want to ignore him, I want to tell him to leave, but I can’t. I can’t just shut him out when everything inside of me is screaming for him to stay.

"Hey," he says softly, his voice quieter than I remember. "Can we talk?"

My hands tremble, the remnants of anger and hurt still fresh in my chest. The audacity of him to think that now, after everything, we can just talk. After weeks of silence, after everything I put into this... now he wants to talk?

I look at him, my mouth dry. "You can’t just walk back into my life, Spencer. You can’t just show up now like nothing happened. You left me. I waited, and I waited, and you never even noticed. And now you think that you can just... what? Make it better?"

He takes a step closer, his eyes searching mine. "I know I screwed up," he says, his voice breaking. "I’ve been... I’ve been a fool. You didn’t deserve that. You didn’t deserve to feel like you were second place."

I want to scream at him. I want to tell him how much it hurt. How much I still feel the emptiness of his absence. But I just stay silent, because I already know. I already know the answer.

"I’m sorry," he continues, his words almost a whisper. "I didn’t mean for it to happen this way. I was so focused on everything else, and I didn’t see how much I was hurting you."

I let out a bitter laugh, shaking my head. "You think saying ‘I’m sorry’ is enough? You think that makes it better?"

His eyes widen in pain, and I know I’ve hit a nerve. But I can’t stop now. I can’t let him off the hook. Not when I’ve been holding myself together for so long, waiting for him to notice.

"I don’t even know who I am anymore when you’re around," I whisper, my voice cracking. "I put everything aside for you, but you never asked me to stay. You never asked me to be a priority. I can’t keep doing this. I’m done being your afterthought."

His eyes search mine, desperate now. "I never meant for you to feel like that. You were never an afterthought. You—"

I stand up, cutting him off. "Then why did I feel like I was always on the back burner?"

I turn to leave, my heart heavy, my throat tight. I don’t know if he’s following me, if he’s even said anything. I can’t hear anything over the sound of my own pulse, the ache in my chest threatening to consume me.

But before I reach the door, I feel his hand on my arm. It’s warm, and I want to pull away, but I don’t.

"Please," he whispers. "Don’t go. I’m trying. I will do better. I want to be better for you. For us."

I look at him, my face wet with tears I hadn’t realized I was shedding. "You can’t just want to be better, Spencer. You have to actually do it."

I pull away from his grasp and walk out of the café, my chest heavy with the weight of the words I’ve said. And as I leave, I know something for sure: this time, I won’t wait.

[persephoneprice]

hey lily!! sorry i feel like you’ve answered this question before but i couldn’t find anything about it sooo..

do u have any thoughts on how the mentoring system operated after the 10th games? and/or maybe how the mentors from the 10th games reacted to the all the changes made over the years?

hello sol!!! thank you so much for the question because it’s actually not something i’ve ever really nailed down my thoughts on! so i’ll give you the different scenario’s i’ve considered:

they immediately went with the past victors as the mentors.

while it’s true that not every district had a victor (actually, i’m assuming the majority didn’t)- i don’t think the capitol would care that much. if anything, they would see it as a bonus way to 1.) punish the districts and 2.) make the games more of a spectacle because it would motivate the tributes to work harder so they’d have someone to mentor their tributes. technically, district 12 didn’t have a victor that could act as a mentor until the 50th games and i’m sure that they didn’t wait until them to establish the victors as mentors situation.

i think this would also explain why the stronger districts like 1 & 2 continued to have so many victors over the years because they started off on much better footing than the other districts by having the mentors on top of being well-fed.

peacekeepers as mentors

i’ve seen this suggested before and i suppose it makes sense. they’re already armed and trained so the capitol wouldn’t have to worry as much about them doing something stupid and getting themselves killed (looking at you arachne!). but honestly, i just find this theory to be kind of boring.

gamemakers (or gamemaker adjacent) as mentors

this could be interesting! and a good way to help make the tributes more of a spectacle. i don’t think active gamemakers, but maybe past gamemakers or people who have worked closely with them. they have the best knowledge of the games and would be able to help the tributes navigate the games unlike anyone else.

personally, i lean towards them immediately diving in with former victors. i don’t think there would be many of them but i think they would try to spin it like a huge honor to get more viewers (victors of the past- back again to prove they’re the best of the best!)

as far as how i think the mentors reacted- obviously i think that widely varies depending on which mentor. i think a lot of them would be relieved that students aren’t involved anymore because it was such a traumatizing experience (clemensia). some of them would feel special that no other students got to mentor (livia). some of them were possibly excited about the new changes and helping (festus). some of them were horrified to see the victors be brought back and essentially tortured more (lysistrata).

i think all of them were affected by their tributes on some level and i can’t help but think all of them had some form of guilt from it all- even if they don’t want to admit it to anyone, including themselves. watching the games over the years either made those feelings worse or it turned into such a spectacle for them that the feelings went away because they lost the humanity in it all.

[convenientalias]

Do you have a wuxia rec list? I really enjoyed mysterious lotus casebook from your posts on it where it was just relaxing to watch. I was planning to watch Meet you at the blossom next, but not sure what to watch after.

Sure, but tbh I haven't actually watched that many wuxia! Also if you finished Mysterious Lotus Casebook you're technically ahead of me there bc I never watched the last six episodes. I'm just really bad at finishing things sometimes lols. But I do love that show and maybe this will be what finally makes me finish it!

Anyway here is a quick rec list:

-Nirvana in Fire: If you've never watched Nirvana in Fire (have you? I can't remember) I'm contractually obligated to rec Nirvana in Fire. It's more political intrigue than jianghu adventures so it may not be as relaxing to watch idk. Nevertheless it does top my wuxia recs list bc it has the best plot and some of my favorite characters. and it is also very funny. IF WHAT YOU LIKED FROM MLC WAS: the whump of a guy with an incurable poison in his body or the identity porn of a guy who used to be kind of famous re-encountering ppl he knew a while back but now pretending to be someone else. then Nirvana in Fire is a perfect watch for both of those things.

-Ancient Detective: If you like a group of people just wandering around solving mysteries in the jianghu, this show is more purely that than MLC. It has a fair amount of whump and bromance but it's also largely a case-per-maybe-three-episodes show. However, sometimes that's what I want.

-The Flame's Daughter: This is a drama with a bunch of inter-sect war and intrigue. There's also a big love polygon going on and imo the winning side is the most boring. At its worst, the main romance had me going "whyyy" but at its best, there is some really good whump, intrigue, murder, and general jianghu travel and shenanigans. However, out of the list thus far I would say it is the least similar to MLC (if only bc of a focus on m/f romance).

-Handsome Siblings (2020): This is a show about twins separated due to some Nefarious Schemes and then raised by villains to Murder Each Other without knowing their siblings. The level of goofy jianghu shenanigans and whump is absolutely through the roof. Like every few episodes you meet some new villain who's like "Hi my name is Black Spider and I will tie you up and poison you". It is all a bit silly.

Tbh that's about it from me for "this is definitely wuxia" recs but I would like to add one more "this is not wuxia but it is adjacent and in 2023 it was my most similar to MLC watch" rec, which is:

-A League of Nobleman: It's just a historical mystery show set in the capital, with a heaping helping of political intrigue and revenge quest. Similar to MLC, there are mysteries investigated every few episodes, and each is tied into a larger scheme at work. Meanwhile our protagonist is seeking justice for his father, unjustly accused of treason many years ago, and having a (b)romance with at least three different guys. It's not wuxia, there's no real martial arts going on and not a ton of jianghu travel, but as far as MLC comp titles go, it's not bad.

Anyway I'm glad you enjoyed Mysterious Lotus Casebook! I really need to finish watching it lol. And I didn't mention Meet You at the Blossom bc you said you already intended to watch it but yeah I think that show's a lot of fun, it's rather sappy and whumpy and comedic and I enjoyed it a lot.

[dicktat]

Will anyone be interested with a DL+DL2 Halloween event? Im thinking a horror movie themed community collab where people are free to submit their piece (writing/art/edits) of their fav as monsters or horror movie icons and it’s just a giant interactive game

[camellcat]

I love spuffy as much as the next guy but ohhh my gawddd I really kinda wish it had been buffy wil and xand to finish the fight. they started it together, and while they've always had outside help, I just think it would've been so good if each of them had their own big important parts to play since this was the last we get to see of them

[ilovedthestars]

one more idle thought about Hands of the Emperor that's been on my mind as I've been reading it: I'm not sure I could recommend this to people who like Murderbot on that basis only. Sure, they overlap in that platonic relationships are central to the plot of both, and in some of the underlying themes. but they're vastly different in genre, style and tone. (Epic character-driven and political intrigue fantasy, vs short and often fast-paced, action-heavy sci fi)

However. I do think that Hands of the Emperor has a much better chance of appealing to people who liked Witch King.

There was a similar feeling to me, especially in the beginning of Hands of the Emperor. Reading Witch King often felt like the complex web of politics were going over my head, but the interpersonal relationships at the core of the story drove it forward and kept me following the plot. Hands of the Emperor does a similar thing—it drops plenty of names and places that it doesn't expect to make any sense to you until much later, but in the first chapters it pulls you in with a foundation of character relationships that carries you through all the politics that unfold in the rest of the book.

The worldbuilding also has a similar quality—very anthropological, very thought through, a wide range of cultures that have been invented and imagined in complex detail, with inspiration drawn from real life cultures but not leaning on coding as a crutch. Politics that span hundreds and thousands of years. As I write this down I'm also remembering that both worlds have suffered magical catastrophe—there really is a surprising amount of overlap in the details.

It's not a one-to-one match (as nothing could be). Witch King is shorter and leans more towards action and adventure, and has its two interlocking timelines. Hands of the Emperor is more straightforwardly chronological and lingers longer on the details of politics and relationships. But I think there's definitely enough overlap that fans of one might enjoy the other.

[sparrownnax]

one extremely specific thing i appreciate Shirt doing is the whole "dad technically coming from a racial minority but not being connected with the culture at all x mom whos fuckin obsessed with said culture" bcus yeah my dad and by extension me n my brothers r Metis but like we don't talk to any of that side of the family like for all intents and purposes we're white but my mom loves to bring it up at any opportunity

[wernerherzogs]

hi if i want to watch 911 for the gays do i need to start at season one or can i start at the newer seasons and just watch the important episodes from older ones (and what important episodes do i need to watch if i'm just going to start from, say s6 or s7)

hiiii i'm afraid i'm a You Gotta Watch It All truther!!! especially for buck buckley's journey. :( s1 is an Essential watch to get it...... but there are also important storylines there for every single one of the mains! and then when you get to s2 and eddie's finally there it HITS properly ☺️

[mysticalflyte]

so uhhh... should I watch the LOGH remake or the seventy-billion-episode original? What's your opinion on them? Is one better than the other?

Hey there! I’m no authority on this, but my personal opinion from having watched both to completion is that the original 110 episode OVA is better :D

Here are some reasons:

1) The Character Designs - the OVA has beautiful and distinguishable character designs, on top of voice acting, that will always remain classic to me. As a fan artist, I vastly prefer the looks of the cast in the OVA over the versions of everyone in DNT. For example, Walter von Schonkopf’s face in DNT looks more plain and generic than his OVA counterpart:

2) The Music - DNT has fine modern orchestral arrangements, but the OVA actually inserts lots of classical music throughout the show, adding to the grandeur of the experience! For example, there’s a particularly memorable part where a small fleet of fighter jet spaceships launch out into space to do battle with Spanish Dance from Swan Lake by Tchaikovsky blasting in the background that I’ll never forget 😆

3) The Story Itself - As the original source material is actually a series of novels, the story is adapted slightly differently between the OVA and DNT! DNT is arguably more accurate to the books in its order of events and pacing, while the OVA takes more creative liberties by adding more depth to certain background characters that are brushed over in the original material, while also slowing the pacing down a bit. I have talked to someone else who also has watched both and they said that they could Feel the passion and love that the OVA creators felt for each character more that way! For example, Admiral the Cat is totally an OVA invention and is so fun to watch! Yang Wen Li, my favorite character, seems less infallible and more endearingly dorky and tired of being pushed around in the OVA compared to his more perfect DNT counterpart. There are also so many more humorous verbal quips littered throughout the OVA that are very memorable. 😀

Ultimately I think it’s up to you! Keep in mind that the OVA is already fully complete while DNT has only covered like 30-40%(?) of the story at this time. Even if you were to start DNT, you would most likely have to hop over to the novels or OVA anyway later.

In all fairness, I’ll also give some more positive points on DNT:

1) Being Modern - it’s modern, so the animation quality is probably easier to get used to as it’s done by Production IG starting in 2018

2) The Battles and Ship Designs are Flashier - there is usage of CGI models for the space battles but honestly they do a pretty good job blending everything in with flashier effects not present in the OVA

That’s about it! Just my opinions, feel free to do with this information what you will :)

[captainjonnitkessler]

If Deadloch gets a second season what do you hope will happen in it?

I'd really like to see the Bushy murder investigation! I imagine it being something of a reversal of the first season - first season was focused on Dulcie's life and featured a big-city detective in a small town, second season would focus on Eddie's life and feature a small-town detective in a big city.

I also think it would focus more on corruption and incompetence in the police - I can't remember if it was actually implied that Bushy was shot by a fellow cop or if that was just a theory I had but I stand by it. So I think it would be interesting to see the investigation turn inwards, and that would keep the first season's murder-mystery "everyone is a suspect" vibe while being different enough to not just be a rehash.

[tsams-and-co-memes]

Hiiii

Uh

What are some things EaPS Moon tend to say a lot? I can't think of any-

I've seen that you compile character canon info so I'm just hazardin a guess you watch a lot of the stuff. I'm making yet another rp blog, and I don't know where else to ask this without spoiling the surprise

If you can't think of any either, I can just go watch through stuff- just wanted to try n ask somewhere first

Uhhhh right offhand, I know he talks about wanting to make games a lot. He's repeatedly talked about Project Zomboid, and I remember him saying multiple times in one video that he's not a monster. That's all off the top of my head though, and I can't really think of anything else at the moment ^^" hope everything goes well with this rp blog you're making!

[luxshua]

In terms of Protocol Head Canons no one cares about here is what Civil Service pay grade i headcanon everyone at (yes I am a civil servant, so this will be accurate and somewhat based on my own experiences)

Alice, Sam, Ceclia: AO/EO pay grade, still very much bottom of the rung, semi decent pay, but not anywhere near a managerial position

Gwen: HEO next step up from alice sam and cecila, team leader position desperately wants to be promoted into SEO but everytime she applies for either the EOI or the perment position her behaviour statements just get shittily graded

Lena: Grade 7/6 (grade 6 is above grade 7) in a higher managerial position likely in charge of them all at a departmental level

Colin: SEO expert in his field, only departmental tech person, is in a specialised field so essentially in control of himself (most of the time)

[goldendruid76]

it’s christmas eve, that means it’s time for the annual re-listen of Chimes of Midnight! it just wouldn’t be christmas without it

[sunray-screaming]

I’ve seen a number of posts lately referring to holi as “a south asian holiday” and it is AGGRAVATING because no!! no it’s not!!!

it has its roots in hinduism and yeah, it’s celebrated by other dharmic religions other than hinduism as well, but that does NOT mean it’s south asian!!

and it always stems from a place of ignorance or erasure. always always always. either from people being unaware (which. wikipedia exists fam. they’ve got it right. go look it up. I’m so tired of excusing ignorance too, it’s literally in the first sentence of the article) or from people trying to erase the hindu origins of the festival. hell I’ve seen it happen to diwali too and guess what!! SAME SITUATION!!

you wouldn’t call eid anything other than a muslim holiday, you wouldn’t call easter anything other than a christian holiday, you wouldn’t call yom kippur anything other than a jewish holiday.

treat us the same way. let us have our holidays.

[pyrosomatic-metamorphosis]

people can use this site however they want but there's something almost- idk, sad? about how few people are actually using their blogs. you can turn themes on and have skeletons dancing in the background. you can make everything hot pink. your blog is your scrapbook and you can put whatever you want in there. tags are okay at organizing things so you can have just a whole archive of cool shit to look at later. i know people complain a lot about people liking stuff about reblogging for engagement, and on one hand i get that- it is WILD to see a drawing i spent hours on get only 12 reblogs and 60 likes. Absolute culture shock compared to my previous fandoms. but i don't think you should reblog anything to make artists happy. i think you should reblog things so you can find them again. i think you should queue things to appear on the dash at specific times on certain days. i think you should reblog things so when you're talking to your friends about xyz post you saw you can look in your blog's archive and find it again. i think you should reblog things so that your dash is filled with one really sleepy cat. with the loss of reblogs there's the loss of engagement, which Does hurt the community-focus that makes tumblr so appealing, but idk i just wish people were more excited about the incredible amount of customization that tumblr allows and took advantage of that more