#prepare to die rickie

[thefatalmarksman]

@litoredeem sent: Whenever Xigbar is being annoying just keep standing in his blindspot.

he doesn't need to see you to know exactly where you are

[teaxeee]

Perv Ricky who reader catches getting off with your panties over his face so you decide to give him the real deal (face sitting and stroking him at the same time his hands gripping your thighs cuz poor kitty gets addicted)

Oh my...perv Ricky I think I'm gonna die 😣

Just him sneaking into your room and rummaging through the laundry basket while you were busy in the kitchen, preparing a snack for the both of you to share. He managed to find your used panties, he felt desperate as he sniffed your panties, taking in your scent. It didn't take long for you to hear moans coming from your bedroom once you were done with preparing the snacks. You went to your bedroom, the door left slightly open as you peeked through it, catching a glimpse of Ricky laying on your bed, his face covered with your panties as he jerked off, his cock leaking so much pre-cum as he moved his hand up and down, your name slipping past his lips with every moan he let out.

You quietly entered the room, getting a closer look at him. He didn't notice anything, too busy trying to get himself off while he held your panties against his face with his free hand, sniffing and licking at the fabric, getting it more damp than it originally was. He was so close to cumming, his hips bucking against his hand as he tried to push himself over the edge, but that was quickly cut off with you clearing your throat, his hand stopping as he quickly removed your panties from his face and looked at you, seeing how you were eyeing him while you had your arms crossed, a small smirk forming against your lips as you moved closer and climbed onto the bed.

Within a few minutes you ended up on top of him, your thighs on either side of his face, gripping the soft flesh with his hands as he ate you out, his tongue sliding between your fold as he tried to lap up the juices, slowly getting addicted to your taste while you jerked him off, your hand moving up and down his cock as it twitched and leaked more pre-cum, his whole length soaked from how much he was turned out. Safe to say that: kitty got addicted <3

[cinnajun]

ᵕ̈ ೫˚∗: zb1 when you're sick

a/n: i love writing stuff like this, mostly because i think how someone takes care of u when ur sick means a lot :)) it’s very endearing to me!

notes: yujin is not included due to his age! just assume y/n has a nasty case of the flu or something lol, i didn't proofread so sorry for any typos!

wc | 2.8k

 from worst to best at taking care of you

gyuvin

i don’t think he’d necessarily be bad at it per say

like gyuvin’s definitely the type of guy to treat you a little bit like a baby when you’re sick

he feels really bad, and he doesn’t like seeing you all upset and unhappy :(

so for the first couple of days he’s good at supplying you with medicine and water, and he does his best to make you meals (most of them are bland convenience store soups and noodles put into bowls but it’s okay)

he also spends a lot of time with you, and, by extension, cheers you up a lot

he will amp his funny meter up like 97% because he wants to see you smile and laugh

even though you can barely laugh because you’re sick and your throat hurts

he also will be very loving when you’re sick which is nice because i don’t see him being extremely touchy when you’re going about your daily life

so you get lots of hugs and kisses even though you keep telling him not to because he will get sick

and that’s where everything goes wrong

the thing is. on day 3 he will wake up sick

no matter what, when you get sick, he will be sick within 72 hours

it’s because he’s clingy and annoying and will nap with you, get ready for bed with you, and eat food with you so there’s virtually no protection from your illness

and as much as he would love to keep taking care of you while he’s sick, he feels just as bad so now you’re BOTH rotting away while whatever sickness you have runs its course

you end up having to call hanbin over because neither of you want to do anything but lay there

so like

enjoy the two days of a very loving and doting boyfriend (more so than usual)

and make sure to tell hanbin when you get sick so he can be prepared to clear his schedule lol

under gyuvin’s (technically hanbin’s) care, it takes about a week to fully get better!

ricky

so sorry to the 04s for this slander

again i don’t think he’d be bad at it he’d just be a little clueless

i think when he gets really stressed out about something he shuts down a little bit too so when your fever is pushing 102 he’s kind of like a sim that can’t figure out how to get past a desk (if that makes sense)

you’ll be like “ugh my head hurts” and he’ll be like oh okay … then twenty minutes later he finally returns with advil and a cup of water

or like you’ll be napping and he’ll suddenly remember that you need to take more dayquil (he’s about an hour late)

and at the end of the day he will get done what he needs to get done just like give him a minute

ricky somehow makes a really good chicken noodle soup (it’s just canned soup) and you always ask him about it and how he makes it!! he tells you it’s a secret (he just slightly modifies canned soup)

i think he’s also pretty good at making sure he doesn’t get sick from taking care of you, too

like as much as he loves you and not being able to hold your hand makes him want to die, he doesn’t want to be like gyuvin and force hanbin to take care of both of you lol

so he’ll wear a mask and wash his hands pretty regularly, but he makes sure to reassure you that he’s taking the necessary precautions so that he can successfully nurse you back to health, and that he still loves you even if he can’t get too close right now :)

i think his main strength in this area is keeping you entertained, though

like he’ll make sure there’s always a movie playing or something, even if you’re asleep

he doesn’t want you to be bored and feel bad

also has an intrinsic belief that not being bored will distract you from the icky feelings

under ricky’s care, it takes a little over a week to get better!

matthew

same with ricky, i think matthew’s not necessarily bad at it, but he kind of shuts down when he finds out

he goes from like doting, loving boyfriend to oh god oh my god oh no oh god

if you give him a bit of time to gather himself he goes from panic mode to question mode

matthew will NOT leave you alone while you’re sick!!! he’s halfway convinced you’re living out your last days!!!! he has to make sure you don’t die!!!!

he also asks you 70 questions an hour

“do you need anything?” “do you want something to eat?” “do you need more water?” “do you want a massage?”

of the 70 questions, maybe about 3 or 4 of them yield the answer “yes” but that’s not 0 so he’s going to keep it up

he’s like baymax or something idk he’s just so stressed out the entire time

he’s like nigh unrecognizable the entire time

you are absolutely aware of the fact that sometimes he leaves the room to call his mom and ask for advice but you pretend that you don’t know for the sake of his dignity

although his constant stream of questions can be somewhat overwhelming at times, you’re very appreciative of his dedication because when you’re sick, you will get anything you need

he will also make any meal you desire even if he’s never made it before, and he really adores the way it makes you smile so then he’s all smiley afterwards &lt;;/3

if he needs to go out to the store to get you something, he will either enlist somebody else to do it or have someone stay with you while he’s gone

so you’ll get a lot of well wishes from jiwoong, hao, and hanbin while you’re not feeling well

when you get better it’s the best day of matthew’s life i’m pretty sure

he remembers what it feels like to not be terribly worried 24/7 so you watch him deflate like a balloon

and then he naps for like four hours

under matthew’s care, it takes 6-ish days to get better!

taerae

taerae’s pretty middle of the road in my opinion

like we learned during boys’ planet, he’s the youngest kid so he received a lot of affection and love when he was growing up

so, when you’re sick, he gives you a LOT of affection

you could be rotting away in bed and taerae will be like “you are the most beautiful person i’ve ever seen” with heart eyes

i think the thing that gives taerae a real leg up though is that his first thought is “oh let’s go see a doctor” and he can drive so you go pretty much immediately

that way, you get flu-specific medicine and get better quicker than you would’ve without

after that, taerae’s sick care is pretty run of the mill

i don’t think he’s too panicked about it because people get sick all the time, and so, unless you’re really, really sick he’s not going to be doting on you 24/7 like matthew would

he’ll still run errands and he won’t cancel plans unless you straight up ask him to (and if you ask he will without thinking about it!!!)

and he makes sure you’re taking your meds, drinking water, and eating three times a day

but life doesn’t stop, you know??

it’s nice because when you’re sick, sometimes all you want is to be left alone for a bit and that’s exactly what taerae does for you :)

also, because he’s continuing on with his life, he won’t get sick from you so you won’t have any of that guilt on your shoulders

one special thing taerae does when you’re sick though is sing you to sleep

sure, when you’re not sick, he’ll do it from time to time but he’s very consistent when you’re not feeling well!! he’ll get the guitar out and sing you a lullaby or two

he will also sing you awake </3 and he wakes you up to eat!!! so it’ll be a cute little made up jingle about it being breakfast time … it’s very heartwarming

under taerae’s care, you get better in 5 days!

jiwoong

i think he’s very similar to taerae in this respect, so he’s also in the middle (but a little bit higher up)

jiwoong is older and more experienced with stuff like this so he’s very businessy about it

when you wake up with a fever, you’ll head to the doctor and get your tamiflu or whatever

from then on it’s just a waiting game i think

the main difference between taerae and jiwoong though is strictly experience

he’s very routine when it comes to taking care of you

you eat breakfast, he gives you dayquil, goes out to get anything you ask for…it continues

jiwoong is also really good at knowing when you want him around and when you want him to leave you alone

but he’s always generally around, and will cancel plans (without telling you) so that he can make sure he’s available if anything goes wrong

he’s good at planning for the worst case scenario without being worried about it, too, so he’ll have a backup plan in place if you (for some reason) start getting worse rather than getting better

jiwoong is great to have around when you’re sick because he’s good at cooking, too

he will bring you the most delicious soup you’ve ever had in your life and will literally juice oranges so that you can have fresh orange juice

he doesn’t tell you but he’s a little manic about what you’re consuming when you’re sick because he doesn’t want you to throw up or get sicker because of what you’re eating

he also gives really good bear hugs when you’re sick

like the best bear hug of your life

when you trudge out of the bedroom in the morning to eat breakfast and open your arms for a hug he will gladly envelope you into the most comfortable thing you’ve felt in weeks

they’re obviously no different from his hugs when you’re not sick but for some reason they’re just so much better than when you’re not feeling well

under jiwoong’s care, you get better in 4-5 days

zhang hao

TOP 3!!

hao is so lovely to be around when everything is normal, so when you’re sick he’s like a saving grace almost

he actually notices you’re sick before you do

he wakes up one morning, looks over at you, and notices that your cheeks are flushed and you’re making a kind of unhappy face

he takes your temperature and is like >:0 oh no

so you literally wake up to him holding a gatorade and a bowl of rice and you’re like ??? what

“you’re sick”

“i am???”

and then a couple of hours the symptoms really kick in and you’re like “how are you a genius…” but he’s just observant lol

while you’re sick, he dials up the zhang hao charm like 7000% and makes sure that you know he loves you more than anything and that he will do/get anything you need until you get better

and he will ensure that you don’t feel guilty that he’s taking time off of his everyday life to dote on you

i think, in general, hao is so good at catching your illness before it’s really able to set in that your symptoms tend to be fairly mild throughout the time that you’re sick (thus, you get better faster)

and he’s good at making sure you’re staying clean too

he knows how awful it is when you get sick and you don’t have anyone to help you out, so you just end up feeling gross and disgusting all the time

so he makes sure you’re doing your skincare (he will literally do it for you if you need him to) and that you’re showering when you need to yk

and he gets “anonymous deliveries” of little treats throughout the time that you’re sick (he asks hanbin to pick some things up and put them at the door lol)

when you get better, hao will take you on a date to celebrate (and he lets you pay so you’ll truly crush any guilt you felt for interrupting his daily life)

under hao’s care, you get better in 4 days!

gunwook

this might be a hot take but i think gunwook would be so nice to have around when you’re sick

i also think, like hao, he picks up on it before it even happens idk

he’ll see that one of your friends got sick after you hung out and he just knows

he will preemptively make you take theraflu, and you think he’s being stupid but then you wake up with a fever

he’s like “i told you”

gunwook would be panicked in a way that you have no clue, so it’s out of sight and out of mind

but in all actuality he’s blowing up the zb1 gc like wtf do i DO!!!

everyone’s first recommendation is to make sure you don’t end up like gyuvin (sick and unhappy) LOL

but half the things he does are recommendations from jiwoong, hao, and hanbin so make sure to thank them at some point!!

because he takes tips from the pros he ends up being a pro you know

and he finds out ricky’s super secret (canned) soup recipe so he’s got that on lock too

essentially gunwook is the product of the rest of the group’s experience … like the answer to one big equation lol

the one thing he doesn’t listen to is everyone telling him to like not be constantly close to you

i’m a believer that gunwook rarely gets sick (his immune system is like on steroids) so he spends the entirety of this period hanging out with you

naps with you, goes to bed at the same time as you, watches whatever you’re watching, etc

obviously he’s washing his hands pretty often but he’s still hanging out with you, which makes you feel very happy and loved :)

afterwards, you’re very thankful and appreciative and gunwook will take all the credit for the techniques other people supplied him with

at some point you’ll probably catch on but you won’t say anything lol

if he’s happy, you’re happy!

under gunwook’s care, you get better in 3-4 days!

hanbin

i feel like this was obvious

this man is literally a mother

you feel like your mom is taking care of you the entire time you’re sick

when you wake up and tell him you aren’t feeling well he does the mom thing (puts his hand on your forehead) and can actually conclude you have a fever by doing that

and then he’ll tell you to go lay down while he makes breakfast lol

it’s seriously like your mom is taking care of you, i cannot overstate this

he’s giving you cold washcloths and handing you cough drops every 2-3 business hours

he asks what your symptoms are and goes “hmm” before disappearing from the room and returning with the exact remedy you need

hanbin quite literally hates the idea that you’re nothing less than happy, so he will do everything in his power to make sure you’re getting better while honoring your wishes at the same time

so if all you want to do is sleep, he’ll let you sleep

or if you want to try and still be productive, he’ll let you help with the dishes or do your own laundry if need be

being sick under hanbin’s care is so nice because you don’t feel like the world has stopped just because you’re sick, you know

the way he takes care of you keeps you feeling strong enough to do something other than lay about all day

and you don’t really get to the point where you feel like death is imminent (i assume this is a universal experience for everyone)

and he’s not too worried about you being sick as he’s worried about you getting better and not having any residual symptoms you know

also makes yummy and delicious food for you so that’s a big plus LOL

you get better so fast that it’s barely a bump in the road

you think god accidentally gave hanbin special powers and you’re glad you get to be the main benefactor of them

under hanbin’s care, you get better in 3 days!

thank you for reading!

[cerealforkart]

Dungeons and Daddies the Manga Lesson 16: Needlejuice

Read right to left

[first] [prev] [next]

[masterpost]

Bonus and transcription under the cut!

Unlike his dad, he does need his glasses, but his brother needed them more for their little switcheroo

Transcript reading guide / key [xxxx] =  identifier of text source

- =  break between panels

(xxxxx) = text outside of normal speech bubble

Follow the Leader (Page 61) [Link]: Scary, if it’s okay with you, I think Normal should be the leader for this part. (Because it’s his dad.) [“Sparrow”] Why don’t I show you how the pizza is made back here? [Normal]: Sounds good! - [Scary]: Of course it’s okay with me! I never wanted to be the leader. I’m the rebeller! [Taylor]: (Spoken like a true leader!) - [Link]: Those least likely to lead who want to lead are the best leaders. [Taylor]: (Exactly, yes. We all know that.) - [“Sparrow”]: The fuck did you just say??? [Normal]: Can you guys shut the fuck up so we can save my dad!

Parent Trapped (Page 62) [Normal]: I’m- It’s just so screwed up! And Dad, this is all your fault! [“Sparrow”]: (Uh…) Yeah, sure. It’s all my fault. I’m stupid. I’m not as smart as my brother, and I’m kind of a hippie, and I didn’t prepare you properly. - [“Sparrow”]: I am being judged? If it wasn’t for what your Uncle Lark did, you would have grown up here. [Effect]: Scratch Scratch Scratch - [Normal]: So that makes it okay? I mean, like-! And you-! [Effect]: Scratch [Scary]: (Woah) Your dad has a tattoo of his own name? That’s cool. [Normal]: Wait, what? - [Normal]: UNCLE LARK?! [Lark]: (Sigh…)

Surprise!!! (Page 63) [Taylor]: All right chefs. I need joy, surprise, unrepentant murder, and uh, mushrooms? (Ugh) [Link]: SURPRISE! [Dice roll, Link]: Dexterity 17 - [Link]: (I’m sorry) [Ricky Click]: That’s not where the memories are stored. No. You have to use it here. [Effect]: Same brain activating [Text on box]: Syringes - [Dice Roll, Normal]: Dexterity 6 [Normal and Scary]: SURPRISE! [Dice Roll, Scary]: Dexterity 9 - [Taylor]: What are you guys doing? [Effect]: Catch! Catch!

Happy Birthday (Page 64) [Tilt]: I see in time and space, and I saw that today is the day I died. I wanted to make sure I met the next generation and helped you as much as I can. [Link]: How do you die? [Tilt]: A heart attack from the pizza. - [Normal]: Don’t eat the pizza then! [Effect]: Munch [Tilt]: I want the pizza though! [Link]: But then you’ll die! - [Scary, singing]: Happy happy birthday, Today’s the day you die! I hate to say this very quick goodbye! You’re gonna have a heart attack, On a pizza pie! Happy happy birthday, Today’s the day you die! [Tilt]: (Hurk!) [Link]: (Help!) - [Taylor]: WAIT! Those memories might still be fresh though, we can extract them. [Scary]: Yeah! [Scene]: No! Stop! She knows everything!

Transcript provided by @confusedfoam​

[kittieshauntedourfantasy]

Bonheur Éternel

A Ride the Cyclone/Little Misfortune AU by @kittieshauntedourfantasy

I do not own "Little Misfortune", nor do I own Ride the Cyclone. I am merely combining these two things to make my own AU.

FANART AND FANFICTION ARE MORE THAN WELCOME! Other fanworks are totally encouraged, too! I'd love to see this grow and gain some interest.

More info under the cut.

For anyone unaware, "Little Misfortune" is an interactive story video game developed by Killmonday Games (the same people that made "Fran Bow"). It follows the tale of Misfortune, an eight-year-old girl from a household with an alcoholic mother and abusive father. The game begins with the narrator, "Mr. Voice", stating that Misfortune will die that day. He tells Misfortune that he has prepared a game for her, and if she wins she will get Eternal Happiness. Along the way, Misfortune repeatedly encounters a fox named Benjamin, whom she has a crush on. Mr. Voice is insistent on her staying away from him.

Characters/Roles

Noel Gruber takes the role of Misfortune. Although being intelligent and mature for his age, he still maintains his innocence and naivety. He is unsure how to feel sometimes, as he was never taught, and is easily irritated. He immediately jumps at the chance to get Eternal Happiness, as he'd like to give it to his mother, and he'd do anything for her (although that's not mutual). Although hesitant to comply at first in fear of getting in trouble with his abusive father, he gains more confidence as the quest continues.

The Amazing Karnak takes the role of Mr. Voice/Morgo. Dubbed "Claude" by Noel, Karnak is only able to be heard by Noel. Originally having chose Noel for the game due to his innocence and naivety, Karnak quickly regrets his decision, as he thinks that the boy is too talkative and an absolute mess. Despite this, he acts kind and parental to Noel in order to more easily trick the boy into blindly following him.

Mischa Bachinski takes the role of Benjamin. A lynx that Noel spotted in the trash one day, Mischa is a constant presence in Noel's life, but he never directly interacts with the boy. He runs away at most interactions with him. Karnak is extremely bitter towards him, and makes nasty comments whenever he's brought up. Noel, on the other hand, is completely enamored with him.

Ricky Potts takes the role of Hiro. He's the ghost of a missing child, and one of Noel's good friends. Despite their friendship, there's a language barrier between them – English and ASL. Ricky understands Noel just fine, but Noel can't understand anything that comes from Ricky.

Ocean O'Connell Rosenberg, Constance Blackwood, Penny Lamb, and Ezra Lamb all take the roles of missing children. They're kids from Noel's school, and he knows at least a little bit about all of them, even if he doesn't like them. They all disappeared one day and never returned, their fates unknown. Everyone in town knows their faces from the missing posters that are plastered everywhere.

If there are any questions, please ask me! I'd love to answer them! I've had this AU rotating in my brain for a while, and I'm happy to finally share it.

[lazanskywrites]

Glee Was Ahead of It's Time.

You either love or hate Glee there is absolutely zero in-between. It's like the "cilantro soap-tasting gene", you decide whether you like it or not in one try. In my opinion, Glee is a masterpiece and I am prepared to die on this hill. Here are my top five reasons why Glee is one of my favorite shows.

My controversial take though, Glee was only good until halfway through season five. With that being said, the first reason why Glee is my favorite show is because the original cast is iconic. The original Glee Club members slowly fizzle out of the show, having random cameos here and there. This is why, to me, the last seasons are hard to watch. No amount of new characters will top the original characters, they were funnier and had better acting.

The fourth reason Glee is my favorite show is because the comedy was ahead of its time. Countless skits in the show are similar to those in today's comedic world on TikTok or YouTube. But Glee is slowly losing popularity as other shows and movies are produced. The writing and comedic timing of these attached clips are another reason why I and plenty of others still watch Glee.

The third reason I love Glee is for their celebrity cameos. John Stamos, Neil Patrick Harris, Britney Spears, Ricky Martin, Olivia Newton-John, and Jennifer Coolidge, the list goes on and on. Every celebrity has an important role in the episode or the season they're featured in. For example, John Stamos' character was dating a teacher involved in the Glee Club. Ricky Martin was a Spanish teacher who taught the Glee Club about Latin music. And Olivia Newton-John was alongside Jane Lynch's character in a music video.

The amount of A-list celebrities the directors were able to feature in only six seasons is outstanding. It shows how popular this show became as more episodes were filmed.

Fourthly, Glee would be nothing without the music (literally). Were all the covers good? Absolutely not. But the good covers were good covers. Every character has a handful of songs that were praised in the Glee fandom, but Rachel, Mercedes, and Blaine had hit after hit. As much as I dislike both Rachel Berry and Lea Michelle, she can sing. Rachel's standout song for me was "Don't Rain On My Parade", it perfectly highlights her vocal talent and the attitude her character brings to the show.

Mercedes has just as powerful of a voice as Rachel and Mercedes does not hold back. Her character was hilarious and full of talent, but she often got overshadowed by her peers. There are songs her peers had performed I think she would've performed ten times better. This isn't a solo, but it's my favorite song of hers. The context of the song is hilarious and the music video is pure 2010s vibes.

Finally, Blaine Anderson. On TikTok, there is a joke being spread that any song Blaine has covered in Glee is better than the original. They call it the "Blaine Anderson effect". Similar to the "Kelly Clarkson effect" which is when Kelly Clarkson covers a song and outdoes the original artist. I listen to Blaine's covers like they're originals. I could go on and on about how many good covers he has in Glee. Today, Darren Criss still performs outstanding covers. My favorite Blaine cover has to be "Bills, Bills, Bills".

The fifth and final reason why I love Glee is none other than Jane Lynch. Without fail, she'll always be the funniest character in every episode. What I appreciate about her character is the soft side she tries to cover up with crass jokes towards students and colleagues. Realizing why she is protective and patient with Becky it makes you see her from a different perspective. I love Sue Sylvester so much that I dressed up as her for Halloween.

It takes a certain person to truly enjoy Glee so it's not surprising that I'm one of the only people out of all my friends who enjoy watching an episode or two every night.

You thought I was kidding about the Halloween costume?

[angorwhosebabyisthis]

so i've been writing up a lot of sdmi meta lately, sometimes pretty scathingly and sometimes with a lot of praise, and man it is a real whiplash to go from 'sdmi did a fantastic job showing how a marginalized person--a villain, even--being body-shamed even one time is Fucked, and a major signal that the person who does it is abusive and about to do him serious harm,' to

'so people in the show constantly make unnecessary, derogatory, degrading comments about the abuser's body. he is an extremely marginalized person who has been dehumanized from birth for having that body, up to and including being considered legal property; he has been tortured in a pressure cooker of abuse targeted at his minority status for a quarter of his life. this is Quirky and Witty and Whimsical, no one has a problem with it, and we are going to just skate right on by that without ever even acknowledging that he's oppressed. moving along now'

like, in pericky's case it's interesting to explore how ricky does say some genuinely extremely shitty, bigoted things to pericles that are presumably part of why he snaps and hits him, but he's doing that in the context of being abused, and pericles is reacting to it in the context of abusing him. ricky's not a great person and does not spend his time around great people, but he's trying to stand up for himself with the verbal and emotional vocabulary he has available. the person he's trying to draw on for the strength and the beliefs to do that with--the language to do that with--is his only real example of someone in pericles' life who has never, ever bowed to him.

......aaaaaaaand she's super fucking racist. and is the one who makes the bulk of the body-shaming comments about pericles in the show. so no wonder ricky turned around and incorporated that into trying to imitate her.

but see, she also has a reason to be racist/ableist to pericles: he preyed on and traumatized her and the people she loved, and ruined all their lives (and tbh, my personal read is that he was probably pretty emotionally abusive to her when she was a teenager). like, sure, that's a lot less of an immediate reason not to take someone to task over being shitty about their abuser than Currently Being Abused the way ricky is. cassidy's a grown adult who's had two decades of distance from him to heal, and has had plenty of opportunity in the meantime to unpack that hey! your abuser was one (1) shitty person from this extremely vulnerable demographic of people who have otherwise never done jack shit to you! maybe don't do things like call them 'it' and threaten to put them down because you're mad at that one guy! just a thought.

but still, she had a reason, right? right.

and when marcie uses the fact that he's much smaller and weaker than her to grab him and threaten to break his neck; tortures him in a way that can only be done to him because of the kind of body that he has; and intentionally calls him the wrong species to compare him to a nonsapient animal, with the connotation of preparing him to be cooked and eaten ('one wrong move and i pluck this ugly little chicken').... well shit, dude, you can't exactly hold that against her under the circumstances, can you? just, like, gestures at EVERYTHING that's happened, including the fact that he'd just spent god knows how long torturing her by keeping her trapped in a box, and she's a teenage girl who's doing this to hold the line with the knowledge that she's about to die violently. which she does. at pericles' orders. like, jesus, that's not exactly a situation to lecture someone about Problematic Language.

after all: she had a reason. right?

right.

this is something i see over and over, especially in sci-fi/fantasy settings where it's easy for the writers to make up their own social contexts, exaggerate Bad Things to the extreme, or both.

on the one side of this equation you have the hatebait: a minority character who's written to be Super Evil and Monstrous and Hateable, who says slurs and kicks babies into traffic and often as not is a sexual predator--the worst of the worst, and you'd never defend someone like that, would you? they deserve any bad thing that happens to them, don't they? anything they say they don't like about their situation (god forbid want to change) must just be an excuse, a sob story, maybe outright hypocritical given how they treat other people, right?

awesome, glad we've got that out of the way. now we can move on to the part where you cheer for brutal violence targeted at that minority, or at least go 'well, that's rough i guess, but they're a Really Bad Guy, so....'

(one of my least favorite examples of this ever is the trope where the villain in their True Form(tm) is physically small, weak, disabled, and/or Really Really Old, and when they're defeated they're stripped down to that state to hurt/humiliate/imprison/kill them. and/or watch horrific things happen to their body as a direct result of being removed from the source of their size/youth/power/basic fucking life support. it is DEEPLY distressing and i hate it so much.)

it is really fucking upsetting how well this works. i tend to get really invested in characters like this.

so we have our object of 'justified' bigotry, hatred, and violence. but then you have the other half of the equation:

the person who Always Has a Reason.

there's been a lot said about the appeal of bodice-ripper fantasies: they're popular in large part because in a sex-negative society women are shamed for their sexuality and for wanting sex, and there's catharsis for some people in stories about being Allowed to cut loose and enjoy it because you had no choice in the matter. nobody can blame you for that, right?

(in real life they can and will, because society is shit about survivors and hates us. but that's real life; this is the safety of your own fantasy to work things through, with no voices spouting bullshit at you except the ones you're allowing to talk for the express purpose of telling them to shut up.)

so there's that. and somewhere there is an excellent post about SPN, and similarly full-of-whump shows marketed to the same demographic of men, being maybe the same thing for those men in a different way: if Every Possible Terrible Gutwrenching Devastating Loss and Trauma and Torture happens to you, then surely it won't make you any less of a man if you cry and break down, show weakness and pain. nobody can blame you for that, right?

(i don't know where that post went. if anyone has the link to pass on i'll add it here, because it is a Really Good Post and worth reading.)

all well and good so far. understandable.

and then you get to the person who Always Has a Reason. and what they Always Have a Reason for is bigotry, hatred, and violence toward minorities. or representations of real-life minorities with a hasty oppression-swap fantasy AU slapped on.

they oppressed the character's people. they tortured them. they murdered their family. they genocided their planet. they're abusing them. they raped them. they ruined their life. maybe the character is a kid who's young and in over their head and going through enough shit already, and can't really be held up to the standards of an adult who's not currently experiencing War Crimes.

you wouldn't begrudge them defending themself, right? you wouldn't begrudge them hating their tormentors and lashing out at them when they get the chance, and savoring it when they land a blow (no matter how low)? you wouldn't expect them to be a hundred percent progressive and politically correct and careful of their language in the face of that?

nobody could blame them for that, right? right.

right.

(funnily enough: it doesn't go the other way. the minority hatebait is always a hundred percent responsible for any shitty thing they do in retaliation for what they're subjected to, or attempt they make to stop it. often as not, their actions mean that whatever injustice they were yammering about should be dismissed for everyone suffering under it, because this guy used it as an Excuse and that's why you can't have nice things (basic rights).)

anyway, yeah, this is. a Thing and i see it a Lot. and it does really chap me how extreme and totally unaddressed it is in sdmi, because if you don't let the framing get away with hatebait and Always Having a Reason, then pericles makes for a really really complex and compelling exploration of someone who's been dealt a shit hand and suffered terribly also happening to be the miserable, hateful old cunt who wrecked generations of your family because they desperately needed help and didn't get it.

[symphonxx]

Maybe death isn't that bad..

Noel Gruber has been running his whole life. Whether running from his work, running away from the bullies who had dedicated their lives bullying him or running away from Ocean since birth, he’d still run. But never would he have thought that running away from your handsome crush could be difficult. 

Mischa Bachinski, Ukrainian bad boy, the angriest boy in town, the guy who had managed to land himself in St. Cassians Chamber Choir for stealing three cases of communion wine, was the reason for his little runs. However, he knows there wouldn’t be a chance of getting with him. Despite standing next to him and being the only two Tenors in the choir, the two had never really interacted. The only times they did engage in a conversation, were when Ocean lectured him or when Mischa was talking about his fiance in Ukraine, Talia. 

His fiance. It hurt him physically to hear it come out of his mouth. No amount of bruises can compare to how painful it felt hearing that. The way Mischa talked about Talia was so sweet that he should’ve been given the title of  “ Most Romantic Boy in town. ” instead of him. 

Noel loved watching The Blue Angel and had dreamt of dressing up as Lola Lola sometimes during Halloween but fear gradually took over so, he went as C3P0. He’d imagine himself as Monique from post-war France, romanticising what should’ve been unhealthy right from the start. To be used, to be thrown away like nothing. He dreamt of it. But nothing could prepare him for the unrequited feelings. It hurt so badly that he began throwing up at the thought of him. 

Mischa. Him and his stupid accent. Him and his stupid tooth-gapped smile. His smug smirk whenever he or someone else laughs at his insult towards Ocean. His dumb curly hair that was always hidden underneath that idiotic black cap. His stupid way of speaking in Ukrainian. The dumb freckles that he isn’t afraid to show, unlike Noel. He hates them all. Even worse, he wasn’t even sure if Mischa would ever notice him. He was always glued to his phone. 

And finally, the fall fair. The only reason he was excited, was the Ferris Wheel. It had been his favourite ride since, forever. Occasionally, he’d hop into the bumper cars and attempt to demolish Ocean with it. Today was their competition. He was nervous but it was alright. He knows Mischa isn’t gonna sing at all, so he made sure to be a bit louder. 

It went wrong. Everything was a wreck and they knew that but well, it was time for them to enjoy their time. The kids all queued for their respective rides. Mischa heading to the shooting range, Ocean checking out the bumper cars with Constance and Ricky going to the Gravitron with the new girl that joined. They finished their little rides and immediately made bets on whether they should get on the Cyclone or not. 

Noel had a sense of fear staring at the rollercoaster ride. It was quite wobbly and looked unstable but it was Constance's favourite ride! How could he say no? With a huff, he agreed to get on and off they went, queuing for the ride. They asked for their fortunes a while before the ride. When they got on, he realised that he was sitting next to Mischa. Mischa was calm and Noel felt attracted to that for some reason. They braced themselves, pulled the safety bars onto their bodies and prepared for the ride. It was 6:17. 

6:19 pm, the front axle of the loop-the-loop broke, causing the entire coaster to derail, killing them all and successfully slicing someone’s head off. 

Which brought them to the warehouse now. They had just heard Ocean’s number and if Noel could choose to die once more, he would. Then, it was his turn. 

His lament, which was more of a ballad, was about his wanting to be a French hooker back in post-war France. When he had the chance to make out with Mischa, he was confused and most obviously ecstatic. The way his lipstick was smeared and stained Mischa’s lips. When he felt the other kiss his neck, he felt himself die a little more. 

His song went smoothly and he grinned when Mischa complimented his song. Ocean had an issue, Jane had spelt the word FUCK, Constance enjoyed the part where he and Mischa kissed while Ricky was glad he could play the accordion. 

Then it was Mischa’s turn. He was taken aback when Mischa unbuttoned his shirt but quickly brushed it off and continued to support his now-friend. After his autotuned rap, he quickly walked away with Jane, completely forgetting about the cap on his head, only remembering when Ocean pointed it out while they change. 

The next song was heart-wrenching. He sang about Talia, which brought more of his unrequited feelings back. He doesn’t even know who Talia is and he’s jealous of her, hilarious. The more he danced around with Ocean or Penny, he could feel his heart swell with sadness. Only then did he realise that Mischa was good at singing. He felt himself for more for the man he knew he would never get. When they spun around in a circle as Mischa danced in the middle, Noel could feel himself smile. He’d be happy for him, even if it meant never loving him. 

“ And I would vote for Noel. The world needs more poets.  ”

“ And I’ll vote for you! ” And with that, they bumped hands. 

“ AND THIS IS WHY YOU BOTH SUCKED AT MATHS! ” Ocean screamed, yelling at the two of them whilst they stare at her in annoyance and confusion. As she continued to scream at them, Noel shot a small glance towards Mischa before realising that he was staring back at him. 

Then it was Ricky’s turn. During one part, he pawed at Mischa’s body and while that wasn’t intentional, it made them both flustered at the movement. He laughed silently to himself afterwards. 

It's Jane’s turn. He must admit, the song was amazing. Jane was so good at singing it startled both him and Ocean, being the closest next to her at the time. The way she ascended and sang while spinning was enough to shock them all. The umbrellas were a nice touch. Then they sang the birthday song. It was honestly really sweet of Ocean to create an entirely new song for Jane.

After the whole thing, Noel found himself sitting at the crate near Karnak. Mischa sat next to him, a vodka bottle in hand. 

“ Drink? ” 

“ Where did you get that? ”

“ It’s birthday. ” It sounded a lot like borthday the way he said it but he didn’t mind, it was nice. He then let out a hum at that and drank. 

“ Noel. ”

“ Hm? ”

“ How did you know you’re gay? ”

“ I guess it just came to me? At birth? I’ve always liked oddly romantic stuff and felt attracted to guys more often than not so, that’s how I knew. ”

“ Oh. I like men and women. What term for that again? ”

“ Bisexual? ”

“ так, that! ”

Noel smiled at that, it gave him a small sense of hope that, maybe, just maybe, he’d be interested in him. That thought was immediately shut down. Of course, Mischa wouldn’t be interested in him. Up until the accident, he never really noticed the gay kid who sang in the choir and dreamt of being a French booze-hound harlot. 

“ Поете, ти така гарна, що я не знаю, що тобі сказати. ” mumbled Mischa. Mischa secretly begged Noel to not hear any of that but he wouldn’t know Ukrainian either way. 

“ Did you say something, Misch? ”

“ Misch? ”

“ Yea? I’m sorry was that weird-? I mean I can use Mischa for you- ”

“ I like that. Misch. Can I call you poet? ”

“ Sure. It's only fair if you give me one. ”

It was silent again, only the sounds of Jane and Ricky talking in the distance. They waited and Mischa drank a bit of his vodka. 

“ So- ”

“ Poet- ”

Silence once more. 

“ I mean- ”

“ You can- ”

They giggled at that but Mischa couldn’t help but listen to Noel’s sweet laughter. It was so sweet that he could get a rush from that. He felt himself blush more. When did these emotions come in? He never really noticed him, even during school. He just knew that he was the pretty guy who stood next to him in every choir practice. He glanced towards him and- Are those freckles? 

“ You have freckles? ”

“ Oh- Did my concealer rub off? ”

“ Why poet conceal? very pretty. Poet looks pretty with freckles. ”

“ It’s just another thing for me to be bullied over, what’s the point? ”

“ They’re jealous. You look very pretty. I will fight them for you. ” That made Noel laugh again, and Mischa felt proud of himself. 

“ У вас дуже гарно сміється поет. ”

“ I don’t speak Ukrainian, Misch. ”

“ You speak French no? ”

“ Yes but not Ukrainian! ”

Laughter echoed from their place and they quickly engaged in a weirdly sweet conversation, with Noel complimenting him in French while Mischa gave him sweet names in Ukrainian or Mischa telling Noel how tragic he was, making him gasp at it being the nicest stuff someone ever said to him. As he leant onto Mischa’s shoulder, Noel picked up his confidence and felt himself wanting to confess. So, with a heavy breath, he spoke. 

“ Misch, I- ”

“ OWWW ”

Perfect timing, Ocean. No amount of poetry would describe the simmering hatred he bore for her right now. 

It was Constance's turn. Her song was incredibly sweet to listen to and Noel enjoyed his time dancing around her. This was probably one of his favourite numbers. Everyone enjoyed themselves while Noel and Mischa were a bit tipsier than the others with the alcohol they drank, which made their dancing a bit sloppier than others. 

The two eventually calmed down and the voting began. Noel had forgotten about the voting and dreaded voting. 

“ Ocean O’Connell Rosenberg, you’re the chosen one to go. ”

“ What?! I thought that this was per a unanimous vote?! ”

“ I decided to go with the person with the highest grade-point average, which had turned out to be you. ”

“ If I went, it wouldn’t be fair to any of us! We’ll go back to the previous decision and vote instead. ”

It was all tied. Everyone voted on who they think is more deserving to leave. It all went back to Ocean, who in turn, started yelling at Karnak and chose Jane, whose name is revealed to be Penny. Penny Lamb. 

Her life carefully flashed in front of their eyes, all five of them watching it proudly. After that, Karnak was dead. They went back to doing their stuff. Constance and Ocean finally got some rest while Ricky went to practice his accordion skills. Noel and Mischa settled down on the crates near Karnak.  

“ So поет., ”

“ Yea? ”

“ What were you going to say before? ”

“ Oh! I uhm- ” His face was flushed now. The chances of him getting interrupted were low but Mischa had a fiancee too. It would be rude of him to just, do that to them despite being dead. He peeked towards Mischa, only to see him glancing back at him with his head tilted to the side. His heart melted instantly.

“ I wanted to say that, I liked you. Ever since you enrolled on St. Cassians. Sure, you seemed rude but you were the nicest person I’ve ever met and probably the nicest to me too. ”

“ I like you too. ”

“ What? ”

“ I like you to поет. ”

“ But your fiancee? ”

“ I still love her but I will never see her again. There is space in my heart for you, Noel Gruber. ” Mischa mumbled before pulling him into a gentle kiss. He was surprised but immediately kissed him back, pulling him close so that they’d share a crate. 

Maybe, just maybe, dying wasn’t that bad after all.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GOD FORBID I EVER KNOW HOW TO WRITE HAHAHAH. I suck at writing though and this might be the first time I’ve procrastinated on a fic lmao. I’m wondering if I should post this on Ao3 since I’ve never rlly done that before. Fun fact, when I speak English, I sound like Mischa speaking English. I stumble over my words a shit ton and I speak like a weirdo. 

BUT I DO HOPE YOU GUYS ENJOYED THIS SILLY WORK!! TQ FOR YOUR SUPPORT ON MY PREVIOUS POSTSS.

[triflesandparsnips]

Welp-- I'm awake and I shouldn't be, and I'll definitely be asleep by the time the season 2 finale of OFMD drops, so-- FUCK IT LET'S DROP SOME PREDICTIONS:

Stede throws some STARK REVELATIONS at someone (preferably Ricky)

Stede and Ed are back together by the end of the ep but our blond blorbo is still not actually, like, okay (gotta save some trauma resolution for season 3 shenanigans)

POSSIBLY they're back together in a relationshippy manner, but the episode ends with them deciding to split up and regroup later for tactical reasons

Ed = Disney's Little Mermaid, now a human girl, good for u babe, love that journey for u

Ed reads one of Stede's bottle letters and it's somehow the Sweet Weirdo He Fell In Love With (and possibly also finally tells his trauma background, because it's easier to write about than say)

Extremely timely seagull attack

Izzy kisses someone (and it's Definitely Queer)

Izzy doesn't die, but he gets seriously wounded and his survival is left as a cliffhanger

Maybe a big damn album-cover shot at the end of our remaining pirate gang: Spanish Jackie, Ed, Stede, Zheng Yi Sao, plus background folk

Episode ends with a threat to Those We Thought Left Safe Behind in season 1 (Ed's mom? Stede's family? Jim's brother? SURE) -- gotta prepare for the upswing of "oh shit" forward plot momentum toward the final season

One last Big Damn Kiss (gotta follow our rule of three vibes, we've only had two, cmon now)

...................STEDE DOES SOMETHING WEIRD WITH TOUCH

[sydneyofalltrades]

More than three RTC posts in one day? I must be delusional (yes, I am)

Anyway, here’s a prompt I had in mind for a “Full Choir Revival” scenario

Noel wanted to die. Again.

Was that entire performance about his dreams worth nothing to that damned machine? He had to go back to life working in minimum wage at the most shitty location in town: the Taco Bell in the Mega Mall.

But since his death never happened, none of their deaths did, he had no choice but to endure.

Until some “friends” decided to show up.

“Excuse me? What does it take to get some service around here?”

Noel sighed and walked to the cash register. “Yes, how can I-“

The choir, with their smug faces, were all looking at him.

“What the hell are you doing here?!” Noel was appalled, and it made the others grin.

“It’s Saturday,” Penny said, “We came to the mall and decided to get something to eat.”

“Yeah, Noel,” Ocean agreed, “We need to support our friend and fellow choir mate in his very egregious choice of a job.”

Noel scowled. “Fine. How can I help you,” he grumbled.

“I’ll take a Baja Blast,” Constance said sweetly, “If that isn’t too much of your time.”

“Oh, I’m good,” Ricky signed, “I had a full lunch at home.”

“We’ll take two-“

Penny held in her giggle. “Two Noel Gruber Hungry Hombre meals!”

Noel screamed in frustration. “You all know damn well those don’t exist! Stop interrupting me at work to remind me of my fall from grace!”

Mischa looked up from his phone. “Oh, sorry bro, I didn’t even know we got here. Uhh, I think I’ll just eat later.”

Noel charged Constance for her drink and prepared it angrily. Nearly spilling it on the poor girl, he handed it to her and seethed.

“Have. A. Nice. Day.” His anger was palpable, and the others knew it.

“Oh, we will,” Ocean said sweetly, “You should lighten up! Not everyone can get such a high-end job, you know!”

The others walked off, laughing as they did, and Noel had to remind himself that yes, poisoning them was an act of murder.

[okamirayne]

Hello lovely human whom I have loved for… 13 years? Damn. Silly question for you. Since I simply adore your writing, and that includes your answers to asks. I would love to see inside you brain regarding ships I have seen you re-blog about over the years. Like if you were to read a fic for that ship what would you want to see from it, from plot to dynamic etc. I’ve seen you post about Ricky’s, merthur, destiel, sterek—anyways that’s who I can’t think of at the top of my head… any secret ships?? :o anyways you’re amaaazzzinggg tha bessttttest. Patiently waiting for the day I get to finally throw money at you for whatever you publish. I’ll go feral for it. I owe you after 13 years ~ 🐝 (Oooh! Has the UK finally let you watch the new TWD content 😩)

Hello fellow Earthling (Little Bee 🐝) whom I deeply appreciate and am sending all the big love to for taking the time to write me this delightful message. 💖 So wildly happy to hear from you! Thanks for your patience as I get to messages. 💜

I would love to see inside you brain regarding ships I have seen you re-blog about over the years.

Like if you were to read a fic for that ship what would you want to see from it, from plot to dynamic etc. I’ve seen you post about Rickyl’s, merthur, destiel, sterek—anyways that’s who I can’t think of at the top of my head… any secret ships??

Ah, Rickyl...absolutely my OTP of TWD.

What would I want to see from a Rickyl fic? Plot/Dynamic etc? Well. It always depends where in the timeline, you know? I mean, for me TWD sadly lost it way plotwise (which can happen with long-running series) so I would love to just ERASE CHUNKS OF IT 🤦🏻‍♀️. There's what I'd write and then there's what I've read, you know? I tend not to read fanfiction when writing fanfiction, oddly enough. But with these two I'd love to see them navigate a slowburn connection through any given shitshow scenario depending on the timeline of the show (The Farm/The Prison/Govenor/Negan/TOWL)...it really depends on when and who is in the picture (at least regarding Rick, seeing as Daryl shys away from relationships) and what craptacular event the characters are having to survive...to say nothing of what struggle they might be going through mentally/emotionally. Daryl coming to terms that he's got feelings for a dude? Rick straddling the fence between crazy and stable and getting hit with a wave of "wait a second I'm feeling ten kinds of different about my ride or die best friend". 🫶🏼

That season Rick exited held so much potential after that fight 😭👇🏼

For me the relationship aspect is usually set against some backdrop of big story (oh god, you see what I'm like? I can't even manage a one shot - WHY AM I LIKE THIS?) because that fleshes out tension and emotional intimacy. I have various little plot bunnies that hop around at random when I see these two pop up on my dash.

Outside of Rickyl: I have big love for Donnie (Daryl/Connie)

…but that ship never left the harbour despite all the legit wind in its sails...so, so sad and waste of a beautiful character (Connie) 😭.

Oooh! Has the UK finally let you watch the new TWD content 😩

YEESSSS, my dear!!!! FINALLY! I literally just finished watching The Ones Who Live (sadly, i was never sold on the Richonne pairing, but I can appreciate the storyline, even if I don't feel the dynamic between those two at all - despite Andrew Lincoln's absolutely phenomenal acting, he's undoubtedly one of my fav actors). DARYL DIXON airs in a few days time (1st August), so I'm preparing myself and girding my damn loins for what might come bursting out of a burrow in my fangirl brain. If they don't have some kind of Rickyl reunion at some point in TWD-verse, I shall have to generate at least 10 different headcanons for myself. 😏

Merthur...

Oh god...this one HURTS. It will never NOT hurt. Huge potential for pre-ENDING and post-ENDING (can't even say it). I've enjoyed reading some post-ENDING scenarios in fanfic as well as those that take place before the ...ENDING....either way, there's so much deliciousness surrounding prophecy, Arthur's ignorance of Merlin's magic, Gwen and all that jazz. There's a lot of canon to support the ship, which is great as I like to stay in the canon world as much as possible when writing fanfiction. I'm not a massive AU fan. Ideally I try to get it to read like 'this could legit have happened' - with a lot of creative license, sure. Would definitely enjoy exploring post and pre ENDING. Two whole different worlds, especially a modern era fic. Dynamic? Their banter is awesome. The loyalty. The social challenges standing in the way (to say nothing of the whole 'oh by the way I'm a warlock' issue). Then of course a modern day setting brings with it its own challenges and delights. It's a pairing full of wonderful temptation.

Destiel....

Oh hell, it's a no-brainer with these two. From start to finish. Dynamic-wise? I cannot stand weak Castiel. So a strong, "I am the one who pulled you from hell and I can toss your ass back into it" Castiel rather than the fawning cas-trated Castiel is an absolute MUST for me personally. I can't stand the weak Castiel who takes shit from Dean...I lamented the death of his balls and self-respect. Dean...just a whole bag of angst and complicated homophobic issues. As with most ships I ship, certainly the m/m pairings, I personally need both males on an even keel. That's how I roll and that's what I look for in what I read on the occassions I'm reading fanfic. The Supernatural plot murdered my willingness to suspend my disbelief a few seasons in and totally lost me. But I would personally stick with the Lucifer threat and stay in that mythological playground if exploring a plot with these two. Cas would still be funny, he'd just not be a total wetwipe when it came to dealing with Dean's shit.

Sterek...

Big caveat. Reading/writing these two requires me to look a few good years POST Teen Wolf series -- so basically when Stiles is older and working his big brain badassery in some bureau or the other (FBI or otherwise)...this is the whole 'even keel' coming into play. He has more power (or energy) in the dynamic; same banter, but levelled-up chemistry and a bit rawer. So...older Stiles teaming up with Derek and let's go wandering into that delightful forest of possibility. So many paths the plot bunnies could go bounding down.

Okay...I'm not even sure if any of that properly answered your question about the pairings you mentioned, luv??? 😅 I hope so?? Feel free to let me know if not. I could write essays on my thoughts with these pairings and all the other ones sitting in their respective little burrows, deep in my dastardly brain. So sweet that you'd be interested in my rabid plot bunnies. Just need to teach them how to produce ONE SHOTS.

Patiently waiting for the day I get to finally throw money at you for whatever you publish. I’ll go feral for it. I owe you after 13 years ~ 🐝

I just...right in the heart. I can't formulate a proper response to this but I am prepared to teach an interpretive dance to someone who can masterfully perform it on ice. Because it deserves ice. There's too much nuclear-powered heat coming off my face. Thank you so much. You made my heart do some hardcore base drumming which counts as a cardio workout right now. THANK YOU for the love, fun ask, and support, sweetheart ❤️💜❤️

[drifting-pieces-blog-blog]

Breaking down the comics: Visions of the past (issue 32)

Moon Knight, Issue #32:  When the Music Stops (Part 2) 

Written by Doug Moench and art done by Kevin Kowlan and Carl Potts. 

Tag line: How many more will have to die before the final note is played, the grimmest of dance finally done? 

The end of the story also has a short: 

"Cancer" Written by Alan Zelenetz, Marc Silvestri, and Gary Kwapisz. 

Tag Line: Somewhere in the hospital there is a desperate man with a gun and the person he has to kill. 

We open on Moon Knight overlooking a block. 

"A slum stuffed somewhere in the gray miasma called Brooklyn. Directionless, its bleak streets are ruled by poverty, hopelessness, despair....and gangs." 

We have a mild recap of the last issue. 

A 17 year old boy named Lenny who paces Dough Row, heading back to the pawn shop to buy back a pawned dream, his old music box. 

As he walks he starts to get a higher point of view on what is happening. The thug life, the protection money racket, the gang wars, selling his mother's prized music box....

"But how, Lenny wonders, has it come to this?" He views himself trapped by fate, careening down a tunnel without a way out. 

He recalls his tossle with Lewis and Moon Knight. 

He views his gang in memory as they declared to make Lewis an example and asks why he volunteered to collect the money. Why he felt the need to come up with the money on his own. 

The music box was almost like fate handing him an out. 

A hysterical mother begs him to get the box back, thinking it was stolen. He promises to get it back. 

Now, as he walks the street, he holds the cash in his pocket. He has to use it to quell the Savage Studs...Or buy back the box. 

Shank, the gang leader spots Lenny and calls out to him, asking for the money. 

Lenny lies. "Uh...No...I ain't got it. I...I been thinkin' Shank and I decided..." 

Wrong thing to say. Shank is pissed and demands that they all go to the pawn shop now to get the money. On the way, why not also make example of a few other shops too? 

They grab Lenny and force him to come along. 

Back at Grant Mansion, Moon Knight prepares to take off. He confides in Marlene that he feels he was too hard on the shopkeepers, stopping them from standing up for themselves. He decides to go make sure things are alright and that they stay protected. 

They bust into the pawn shop and Lewis comes running. 

Shank sends Lenny forward and tells him to do his job and shake down the old man. 

"Don't fight it, Lenny-Not now--It's too late. I...I'll give you the money...But you still won't be able to buy back what you lost." Lewis tells him it's okay. 

It's not enough for Shank. He doesn't just want the money. Now he wants blood. 

Sometimes the quiet moments in comics speak louder than anything that can be said. 

Moon Knight arrives to find shattered windows. He's too late. 

The other shop keepers have arrived and are gathered around Lewis' body. 

The shopkeepers are angry. They yell at Moon Knight. 

"You! You're what happened! If you'da let us take care of it before it reached this point--" 

He argues that there would have been more dead if they had fought. 

He tries to make them understand, but they won't listen and they tell him to leave. He isn't welcome there. 

"And despite his protests...Their words sting sharply... Perhaps he is responsible." 

He walks to the wharf. There he finds the club house just as Gena's boys, Ricky and Ray, promised. 

Inside, the Studs are not happy with Shank. 

The other members are displeased with the death of Lewis and Lenny isn't there. 

You know who is there? 

Moon Knight kicks in the door dramatically and declares "The kid gloves are off, Studs. Now that it's murder, you've just come of age." 

These young thugs have nothing on Moon Knight's combat training. 

He takes the out so easily. An all out brawl and he doesn't hold back. 

The details on that glove are amazing. 

With the gang beaten, Moon Knight asks "All right, who did it? Who killed the pawnbroker?" 

Lenny walks in. "Leave 'em alone, Moon Knight. I did it." 

He tells Moon Knight that the other members of the gang have had enough. He wants them to get a second chance and he surrenders himself. 

Moon Knight tells him that it was an accident. That he could testify on his behalf. 

"Yeah, sure--And how 'bout another song and dance about the dreams bein' mended someday, huh?" 

"Healing is possible, Lenny." 

"Maybe, Moon Knight, but right now I don't believe it..." 

He asks Moon Knight for a favor before he gets turned in. 

Unfinished business for his mother. 

They return to the smashed up pawn shop where he turns in the cash. 

"You were wrong, old man--I am redeemin' the ticket." 

He places the money on the counter and picks up the music box. 

This particular two parter is very bitter sweet. You see Moon Knight struggling to help and talking about healing. He helps a young man that has similar views to what he once had as a young Marc Spector. Perhaps he feels that helping this kid can somehow help Marc.

Yet in the end, the pawnbroker is dead, the kids will not be able to afford putting on the big dance they wanted, the gang breaks up, and Lenny is going to jail. 

Moench does a lot of stories that don’t have clear cut villains. There are no evil big bad guys or super villains out to destroy the world. More often than not, it is just an average down on their luck person with no way to a clear cut victory. 

It’s these stories where you see what’s happening in the world in those times and what is still happening. You have small stories that are close to home. You also have what feels like closer stories to Moon Knight. You see him try and often fail to help. 

Moon Knight has always had a soft spot with the teenage punk. With the rebellious youth and the kids that feel they have nothing ahead of them but violence. 

Jake connects with Gena and her boys, knowing they don’t have a father and he works to keep them off the streets and away from drugs and gangs as best he can. The heart of the Moon Knight system will always remember their own pain and do what they can to help those avoid the same path. 

EVEN MORE SO. This story took a special interest for me because of a callback. A lovely friend and fellow Moon Knight enthusiast (FAR bigger fan than I ever could hope to be and that’s saying something) pointed out to me that The Moon Knight revival of 2014 (after Bendis' horrid run and before Lemire blessed us). We had Ellis, Wood, and Bunn take on Moon Knight in an effort to draw interest back in and bring the character back to how it was when Moench first started painting us the picture. 

You see, Moon Knight was in trouble at Marvel. Interest had tanked and he was in danger of getting dumped and forgotten about. As luck would have it, the Editor and chief of Marvel at the time, Joe Quesada, claimed to be a huge Moon Knight fan and was super hopeful about this edgy run, and then super disappointed in how badly it tanked. 

In a last ditch effort, Mr. Ellis stepped up and requested he have a crack at Moon Knight. 

Ellis is known for a certain style and Marvel shrugged and said "Why not". 

Ellis started his run by doing callbacks to original popular stories. 

In issue 3 of Vol 1 by Warren Ellis and the amazing Declan Shalvey, we find Moon Knight facing down a gang of ghosts. 

The title of this issue? "Box". 

Boy those punks sure do look familiar. 

This particular issue gave us the glorious Khonshu armor designed to kick ghost ass. 

And of course Moon Knight kicks the ghost butts. He hates ghosts. Chasing the ghosts down, he finds their main hide-out. And…. 

Moon Knight finds the music box. Inscribed on the bottom "Johnny, be good. Love Mom." 

Now, we know in the original run, the punk's name was Lenny. But Johnny Be Good is a reference to a song. 

Hard to say.

Look at those skeletons huddled together in the corner. Each a bullet in their heads. 

As Moon Knight leaves, he takes the box with him where the ghosts now reside. Flying away, he drops the box into the river to let it be buried. 

While most likely not the original gang of Studs from before, the reference is clear and so very appreciated. Most of the stories in Ellis’ run end on this note of sadness and a feeling of loss for the past. 

Honestly, it works because the past is now so bitter to him. His struggles have come to a breaking point and the peace here is far away. 

It’s just a little extra tidbit that I really appreciated once I figured out the reference. And Modern Moon Knight is still filled with references to Moench. You just have to know where to look. 

---

As a juxtaposition to the story of lost dreams, we now come to the short: 

"Cancer" by Zelenetz. We're going to see a lot of stories by Zelenetz. He starts to fill in for Moench when he's out and does a lot of the shorts.

We open on a doctor talking to another man. 

"Bilateral inoperable carcinoma of the lung. In Layman's terms, it's quite simple, Mr. Fixler. Your brother's dying." 

He tells Mr. Fixler he wasted a trip and should have just called. 

Mr. Fixler begs Dr. Steele to do something. He loves his brother and he feels Dr. Steele has just written him off. 

Dr. Steele brushes it all off. "Your fraternal devotion is commendable, but I'm afraid it doesn't concern me as a diagnostician." 

Mr. Fixler calls Dr. Steele out on his attitude. 

"You know, Joey may have cancer in his body, but you, mister, you have got it in your soul. You're the one oughtta be dying." 

Mr. Fixler leaves and Dr. Steele sips his coffee, not at all bothered. 

"Elsewhere, early that evening, at the Mansion owned by Steven Grant, Millionaire alias of the Silver and jet crusader known as Moon Knight..." 

We see Moon Knight returning to the mansion. Steven walks into the room, running late to get them to a fancy dinner set to help raise money and open a new hospital wing. 

He removes the cape, but puts the tux on over the Moon Knight suit. 

Marlene calls him out on it and asks why he feels he needs to wear it to a charity event. 

"Aw, c'mon toots. You know it's my security blanket. Besides, Moon Knight's as much of a philanthropist as Steven Grant. He just gives his charity differently." 

Back at the hospital, Mr. Fixler is visiting his brother, who is hooked up to breathing machines and IV drips, asleep in the hospital bed. 

"Hot shot doctor tells me to get a private-duty nurse. 'This isn't a hotel', he says. 'we don't wait on patients hand and foot'." He hates how helpless his brother is and how he seems so far gone. All the tubes and lines connecting to him just to keep him alive and suffering. 

His brother wakes up and looks over, but he is unable to say or do anything. 

In the grand part of the hospital, the charity event is happening. 

Dr. Steele is giving a big speech about why he's a doctor. Considering what we just witnessed, it's a little full of bull. 

Steven can hardly hold his tongue, making small remarks to Marlene about the level of corn involved. 

"You want me to pass him the salt and butter for all his corn?" 

The Doctor's pager goes off but Dr. Steele ignores it. 

Apparently Dr. Steele has a reputation of being cold and uncaring as a computer. 

Nearby, Mr. Fixler has decided to take matters into his own hands. He collects a gun and heads back to the hospital. 

Gunfire rings out and an announcement goes off over the loudspeaker. 

"There has been a shooting reported on the premises. Please stay where you are until members of our staff have given you clearance." 

Steven hulks out of his tux and bolts out as Moon Knight.

Yeah, he takes out the cops. 

"Don't worry though, I'm not in this for the bounty. Soon as I find our mystery sniper, he's yours." 

He races around the hospital where it looks like everyone else is just carrying about their business despite an active shooter. 

Not to say mass shootings weren't a problem back then, because they absolutely were, but the social response has absolutely changed. Perhaps with the more prominent availability of not just instant news, but of video, the reality of an active shooter would cause far more of a scene than what we see here. And this bothers me for a lot of reasons. Especially seeing a comedy of Moon Knight running around the halls causing chaos as he passes people standing and talking or at the water fountain or of nurses casually handing out lunches.

It really bothers me. 

The loud speaker alerts that someone's been shot up on the top floor and Moon Knight heads that way. 

Out on the fire-escape, he grapples up to the top floor. Mr. Fixler sits in his brother's hospital room. 

"I had to do it." He sits on his brother's bed as Moon Knight bursts in. Only to find that Joey is the receiver of his brother's bullet. 

"You can go an' arrest me now. Joey's out of his misery. I just couldn't leave him suffering like a dog anymore. The Lord wasn't handling it--Blasted Doctor didn't care...So I shot him, fast as I could. Didn't hurt him. Then I took off all them ugly tubes. Look at him. Isn't he the most peaceful guy you've ever seen?" 

The cops arrive and Moon Knight takes his leave, looking sad. 

Back at Grant Mansion, we see Steven in bed with Marlene, looking pensive. 

"It's a matter of heart, I guess, Steven. To end somebody's life for them." She tries to comfort him. 

This bothers me too. This line to this System. Considering everything they have been through. 

Steven accepts it. "I know. Still, Marlene, the whole sad thing--It kind of reminds me of one of those days you take out the flag, wave it, and throw it away." 

The next morning we see Dr. Steele at his desk sipping coffee as he signs a death certificate. He asks the nurse to remind him which case it was. He can't bother to care. 

It’s a story that we’ve probably all seen before. A doctor that can’t be bothered to care about his patients. The line of leaving our loved ones to suffer vs. putting them out of their misery. 

I’m not going to get into it. That’s a can of worms I’m not willing to open up here for some very personal reasons. 

If you really want to know what I think you are welcome to DM me. I’m also willing to discuss the social changes in America in regards to gun violence over the ages. Considering this was published in 1983 and we are reading this now in 2023, a lot has gone on. 

So the big question here is did the writer have something to say?

That’s what stories are about. A message to get across. A way to move the audience to feel something and to think about things. 

Probably not in the way it was intended, it is making me think about things and I do have a reaction to it. But was this told well? 

Again, we see Moon Knight reacting to something and arriving too late and once again feeling like he could not help. Not to mention wondering if it even a right act or not. A lot of times it isn’t clear cut what the right response is. 

Maybe this is unique to Moon Knight writing in particular. Something that’s always been there. An underlining of trauma and points of view that are not clear cut. 

What’s even more interesting is how this will ebb and flow as the years progress with different writers. Some chose to ignore it and take the more ‘heroic’ route and others dive into it so deeply that perhaps we miss the character response altogether. 

What do you think? A victim of the time or a shot in the dark that just didn’t land?

[izzyeffinhands]

🎲

28. A Kiss in Parting —- moving to become full thread.

War. It was all out war and blood now, something Ricky had started, that many others had tried and failed because the pirate heart was far too strong. All of their raids, all of the injuries, all of the deaths would not be for wrought and in vain. Life had become more fucking painful than it usually was thanks to this pompous rich fuck at the Brits. Enough was enough.

The final battleground? Nassau. It was strategically placed, a harbor the Brits had wanted for years, a pure pirate fucking Democracy. These streets all pirates knew. From the fort with its canons on the shore that kept the British at bay, to its little secret rum running passageways. Nassau was a pirate haven and if they wanted war? The final battle would be here. The line in the sand was crossed in blood and toil, and they had simply had enough.

It had taken some doing to unite other pirates and crews together because they were so vastly different and their loyalties were split but it had been done. For weeks Ricky had laid siege to the port, trying ti starve out its pirate rats, but pirates were too stubborn to just die. The main fort and it’s canons helped destroy and hold off the floatilla of vessels as long as she could. But with so much bombardment, even to the crucial fort the British didn’t want to destroy? They had no choice. Pirates were dead, the ships had come ashore. Their enemies were unleashed. This was it.

Izzy was frankly terrified for Stede. All of his training couldn’t possibly prepare him for *this*. The injured.. the ones who were low on rations and starving.. the brutality. There was only so much he could protect his husband from. Yes, husband. It hadn’t been the ideal wedding and they damn sure intended to do it right when this was over.. but neither man was just going to die in the sand without saying vows. And Ed.. fucking Ed. Ed had given him away. Even Ed had picked up a sword again to fight, abandoning his inn by the sea. He had been there, he had passed Izzy to Stede happily. Hell, they might not do their vows again.. but perhaps just festivities as now there was no time for that.

He could hear the gunshots and explosions. He could bear the screams. And he could see the frightened look in Stede’s eyes. Stede wasn’t a coward, but training.. the raids.. and this? They were all so very different. He even looked frozen in place like a statue, and that was when a soldier ran up from behind Stede with his sword for the kill. Unfortunately for him, even with a wooden leg Izzy was faster. He was on Stede in an instant, running the man through as his body fell lifeless to the ground. Already Izzy was smeared with blood, his hair wet from sweat. He snatched his shoulders.

“ Bonnet? —Honey, honey look at me. I want you to.. — “

He was cut off by a loud barrage of canon fire. Oh they were truly breaching the shore, more of the main infantry getting closer. Ed was shouting frantically to the man that in the past few weeks had become a leader on this island. Pirates knew Izzy. They knew Ed.. hell Stede had even gained infamy. But they listened to the likes of the duo of Blackbeard. Ed and Izzy.

Ed was now shouting at him. “ Iz!! Iz!! We need you toward the battlements, we’re dropping like files up here!! “

He nodded abs turned back to a seemingly still dazed husband, sheathing his cutlass and reaching up, holding his hands to cup his beautiful face. “ Now you listen to me, yeah? Don’t go trying to be brave and doing something stupid. Okay? Down. You keep your fucking head down. Remember the plan, right? If they cross by ‘Ol Market Way, have Wee John light the fuses. “ They’d blow them to hell, give the others a bit better chance to fall back and regroup.

Ed screamed again and Izzy turned, spitting and shouting back. “ JUST GO! “ He turned back to his dearest, his beloved. “ You stay with the boys, you don’t fight unless you have to. Try to stay with them, all right? I love you.. I love you so much.. “ His eyes were watering because this may be the very last time they speak again. He had to go, but he crushed his lips and body against his. One last kiss, he thought as tears rolled down his cheek. You’re dying for him. You’re dying for them, but you’re saving him.

[wilsweb-asientour]

Tag 24. 27.07.2023

Fuji-Vorbereitung. Heute standen wir früh auf, um den 07:57 Uhr Zug von Tokyo nach Mishima zu schaffen. Wir fuhren mit dem sogenannten Shinkansen Zug, der 320km/h schnell fährt und weltweit als “Bullet Train” bekannt ist. In Mishima stiegen wir in einen Regionalzug um und erreichten gegen 10:00 Uhr Gotemba, eine niedliche Stadt im Vorland des Fuji Berges (3.776M hoch, Japans höchster Gipfel). Im Hotel angekommen stellten wir unser Gepäck ab, packten für einen Tagesausflug an eines der fünf Seen rund um Fuji und liefen zur Bäckerei.

Die Bäckerei war gigantisch, wir aßen zum ersten Mal in Asien richtige Croissants, Baguettes und Brot. Im Anschluss ging’s zur Touristeninfo, wo wir einige Fragen i.B.a. den Fuji-Riesen hatten. Ganz zufällig fragte Wilson, ob eines der Hütten noch zwei Plätze für den 28.07 auf den 29.07 frei hätte, denn eine Eintageswanderung von unten nach oben, v.a. mit möglichem Aufkommen von Höhenkrankheit, wäre grenzwertig gefährlich. Der Mann an der Info rief netterweise in verschiedenen Hütten an. Die (meisten) Hütten nehmen nämlich nur per Telefon und auf japanisch Reservierungen an, zudem kommt der von der Pandemie verursachte Rückstand japanischer Touristen, die den Riesen besteigen wollen. Zu unserer Überraschung waren 2 Betten auf der 5. Hütte frei, es änderten sich also unsere Pläne - keine Seentour.

Wir fuhren direkt zur Outlet-Mall, wo wir zwei paar Wanderschuhe kauften (Turnschuhe sind natürlich ungeeignet, zudem brauchte Webster neue Wanderschuhe und Wilsons Schuhe hat derzeit Wenzel) und einen neuen Wanderrucksack (Webster braucht auch einen neuen, seiner hat schon etliches durch und wird bald in Rente gehen). Wir kauften auch zwei billige Kopflampen, am 29.07 stehen wir nämlich um 01:30 Uhr auf, um den Sonnenaufgang ganz oben mitzuerleben. Wir fuhren dann gegen 16:30 Uhr wieder mit dem kostenlosen Shuttle-Bus in die Innenstadt Gotembas zurück, schauten im Supermarkt vorbei und besuchten erneut die Bäckerei, wo wir zwei Baguettes für den Bergsteig kauften und eine kleine Tüte Nussbrot geschenkt bekamen - sehr nett.

Im Hotel ruhten wir uns aus, schauten Ricky Gervais auf YouTube, lasen die Nachrichten und lagen 20 Minuten im Halbschlaf. Daraufhin gabs im Hotel Abendessen, Reis mit Rindfleischsoße - eine kostenlose Mahlzeit, die gut schmeckte und satt machte. Schließlich packten wir, schmierten unsere Brote und gingen in die Hotelsauna (Japanese Bath - könnt ihr gerne recherchieren). Morgen gehts wieder früh los, um 07:35 Uhr fährt der Bus von Gotemba Richtung Fuji Talstation. Aufregend!

Day 24. July 27, 2023

Fuji Preparation. Today, we got up early to catch the 07:57 am train from Tokyo to Mishima. We traveled on the so-called Shinkansen train, which runs at a speed of 320 km/h and is globally known as the "Bullet Train." In Mishima, we changed to a regional train and reached Gotemba around 10:00 am, a charming town in the foothills of Mount Fuji (3,776 meters high, Japan's highest peak). Upon arriving at the hotel, we dropped off our luggage, prepared for a day trip to one of the five lakes around Fuji, and walked to the bakery.

The bakery was brilliant, and we had proper croissants, baguettes, and bread for the first time in Asia. After that, we went to the tourist information center, where we had some questions about Mount Fuji. By chance, Wilson asked if any of the mountain huts had two available spots for the night of July 28th to 29th because attempting a one-day hike from the bottom to the top, especially with the risk of altitude sickness, would be dangerously challenging. The man at the info center kindly made calls to different huts. Most of them only accept reservations over the phone and in Japanese, plus there's a backlog of Japanese tourists wanting to climb the mountain due to the pandemic. To our surprise, there were two available beds at the 5th hut, so our plans changed - no lake tour.

We went straight to the outlet mall, where we bought two pairs of hiking boots (sneakers are, of course, unsuitable, and Webster needed new hiking boots while Wilson's shoes are currently worn out). We also purchased a new hiking backpack (Webster needs one too, as his has been through a lot and will soon retire). Additionally, we bought two cheap headlamps since on the 29th of July, we'll be getting up at 01:30 am to witness the sunrise from the top. Around 4:30 pm, we took the complimentary shuttle bus back to downtown Gotemba, stopped by the supermarket, and revisited the bakery, where we purchased two baguettes for the ascent and received a small bag of walnut bread as a gift - very kind.

We rested in the hotel, watched Ricky Gervais on YouTube, read the news, and dozed off for about 20 minutes. Afterward, we had dinner at the hotel, rice with beef sauce - a complimentary meal that tasted good and filled us up. Finally, we packed up, prepared our lunchboxes and went to the hotel sauna (Japanese Bath - you can research more about it if you like). Tomorrow, we'll be starting early again; the bus from Gotemba to the Fuji Talstation departs at 07:35 am. Exciting!

[sparkedblaze]

OHHH THE BLAZE HAS ASKDED ABOUT RTC PREPARE TO BE AMAZED!

So basically these six kids—Ocean, Noel, Constance, Ricky, Mischa, and “Jane Doe” die in a tragic rollercoaster accident. They are brought back to a sort of purgatory by the Amazing Karnak, one of those fortune teller machines. They perform songs and stuff to eventually vote on who gets to live again

permission to summarize the songs and characters?

-🦡

I’M READY FOR THE RIDE

PERMISSION GRANTED ABSOLUTELY

[gummybugg]

Heads Up Seven Up

I was tagged by @mariahwritesstuff in here! I apologize this took a while since I was in the process of preparing my WIPs for my blog! I wanted things to have a bit of context. I am going to tag the first few people that show up in my dash: @my-cursed-prince, @writeouswriter, and @rickie-the-storyteller (totally optional tags, of course). If anyone else would like to participate then hop on in!

I decided to pick 7 lines from my WIP The Mice Come Out at Night. Although, I probably broke the rules a bit because some context was needed!

“My God, what is wrong with me? Am I sick? Do I need to go to the hospital? Am I gonna die?!” Morgana’s hands flew over his mouth as he fumbled for control of his nerves.

“Calm down, you’re not going to die.” The gentle spirit sighed. The teapot hovered above Morgana’s cup. “Now, drink some tea.”

“No, I don’t think you understand. I don’t even understand!” Morgana moved to get up, his knees catching the edge of the table. The loose silverware tumbled onto the floor, their clattering signaling the end of the tea party. “Of course, y'all would act this way. Y'all're all dead!” 

“Oh, I see how it is,” said the calculated one.

“But what about our tea party?” The youngest ghost asked.

“No tea party. I think I just need to rest my head.”

“Morgana, please don’t leave—this is important to the youngest!” The gentle spirit called after the young man, who had already made it halfway up the stairs.