#rip lost party member aqua

[meganuzlockediary]

Pearl! Road to Veilstone

May the 2nd

I have been very busy so I have chosen today to race through to the next two gyms. First up I have to face Jupiter.

This fight is likely to be a pain. I have no perfect counters here so lets see what happens.

I reach the top of eterna headquarters and clearly I have to start with Luxio. A single spark is enough to take out Zubat before disaster strikes. In comes Skuntank. I assume I can take a few hits and get some chip damage... 'fraid not. A critical hit nighslash takes me out, I lose Luxio far too early into the run. It isnt the worst loss but it will make Wake and Fantina that little bit tougher. I end up doing far too many switches chipping away at the skuntank until it is finally taken down by a stomp from ponyta. This was a dangerously tough battle. I need to make sure I have proper counters in the future.

Next I head down the cycle road and head beneath it to catch a new pokemon. I manage to catch a Bronzor!!! I was initially tempted to use Bronzor but its low attacking stats just make it so difficult to use. So I continue on to heart home the location of the Barry fight.

I am a little unprepared for this I am hoping my three will do fine against his 4. He starts with Starly I start with ponyta. A few stomps later and I take it out. Double team is a pain though so I do take a little damage. Next in is Buizel, I switch to atlas (and take a bleeding pursuit!) and begin setting up curses. After about two I realise I need to start attacking, I razor leaf the buizel which brings in monferno. Atlas can't take a flame wheel so I switch to buizel and chip away at it with a mix of watergun and aqua jet. Now all three are pretty low and last in is Roselia. I have no choice to switch back into ponyta. Fortunately Ember manages to 2HKO as mega drain does minimal damage and it wastes a turn on toxic spikes. Overall another rough battle.

Clearly I need some new team members. There is only one that I currently have my eye on currently. Misdreavus! After going back to the old chataeu again to get a gastly. I race to the lost tower to get the misdreavus. I name him warlock and add him to the team.

With a great ability allowing a second immunity, being a speedy special attacker with a great tm based move pool I feel pretty good. It's annoying it doesnt learn as many cool moves as honchkrow but I see him being much more useful.

With that I train against as many of the trainers as possible heading to and beyond veilstone. I also catch an unown and a sudowoodo along the way that may be needed for the party at some point. But so far so good.

Badges won: 58

Pokemn used: 131

Pokemon Lost: 30 (RIP Luxio)

[whyarewecalledtheshipname]

Kingdom Hearts isn't that complicated

lol here's my no context tl;dr of kh. It'll be very vague, rambly, and impossible to understand which basically defeats the whole point of this but it seemed funny to me to try as like a crack post since i havent posted much in a while:

So basically, sora and riku are best friends. They care very much about each other and u mustt understand this to understand why tf anything else happens in this universe.

In the first game, sora and riku are separated by the evil forces of Darkness. Sora goes on a whole adventure to find Riku, except Riku falls to darkness on the way and betrays sora. In the end tho, they make up and reunite. Except in the fight to contain the Darkness, sora and riku end up separated again.

In the next gaem, sora is yet again looking for riku since they were separated in the first game. The Bad Guys lure sora into their Evil Lair by implying/telling sora that riku is there. Except riku isn't, sora falls for the trap, and gets "put to sleep" as a result.

The story continues on riku's end, who is now on his own quest to "wake" sora from his "sleep". Except a few of the Bad Guys are absorbing sora's power while he's asleep, so riku has to deal with them in order to wake sora up.

We're now at kh2, when sora wakes up, presumably thanks to riku. Except they're still separated, so sora goes on another adventure to find riku. They eventually reunite and defeat the leader of the Bad Guys from before, and they can go home, roll credits, in peace, yes?

No. Because the guy they just killed wasnt actually the Final Boss, and so now sora and riku train and take a pacer test that will give them a Special Ability that will help them defeat the Final Boss (if they pass). They're supposed to be taking the test together, but mysteriously, sora and riku are separated at the beginning of the test. But even separated, they manage to work together to finish it.

Except, towards the end of the test, the Final Boss reveals himself, and reveals that he's put sora under a spell, basically, and so now, sora's "asleep". (Yes, again.) Riku (and friends) get rid of the Final Boss (for now), and riku completes his test by "waking sora up". So now riku has completed and passed his test, and therefore gains that one Special Ability that will help him defeat the Final Boss. But sora had succumbed to the sleep spell, and did not pass, and therefore does not gain the Special Ability.

So in kh3, sora goes on another adventure to gain the Special Ability, while riku uses his to enter a Dark World to search for a lost party member. Yes, they're essentially Separated Again, until sora can get the Special Ability. But nothing seems to work, until riku runs into trouble in the Dark World and sora's determination to save riku grants him the Special Ability. They reunite, find the lost party member, yada yada, until the time comes to finally face the Final Boss. And sora defeats him not by using the Special Ability but, by just. Talking it out. I guess. Lol

So the Final Boss is taken care of, the world is at peace, and sora and riku can go home, roll credits, in peace, yes?

No. Because actually, before sora defeated the Final Boss, the Final Boss kinda maybe sorta killed e v e r y o n e . And so! Sora went back in time, and used the Special Ability to bring his friends back to life. And then defeated the Final Boss as not-explained earlier. And because sora misused his Special Ability that way— he dies! Dies.

So that's it? No, because surely sora isn't truly gone, he's probably just "asleep" as fucking always, and so riku goes looking for him. Wow, role reversal.

Except, sora kinda maybe sorta is dead. But where do anime disney boys go when they die? Apparently they end up in some alternate universe purgatory until their fate is decided by disney execs.

But how would riku ever even think to look for sora in some parallel universe purgatory? Thing is, he runs into someone who's from the parallel universe purgatory, or at least the world it's based in, and she leads riku to that world. Where riku continues looking for sora, presumably to wake him up for the tenth time. Who tf knows what sora's doing tbh. It's hard to tell from the trailer lmao

Lol so that was my kh tl;dr. I coulda totally summed this up in one sentence but i settled for summarizing some story beats/plot but with no context. This would probably be better in video form so i could actually use sound bytes instead of capitalizing every overused placeholder term lol

[magmagruntalayne]

Heart of the Sea

The Sharpedo's Den was like most bars on this side of the mountain; so dimly lit, full of alcoholics whose disease was born out of tragedy, and hazy with cigarette smoke. Very few of the patrons were talking, most of them too focused on their drinks or their thoughts to bother trying to make friends. Hell, nobody was interested in making friends anymore since it was just as likely that the bastard that was making you laugh tonight would be dead by Thursday. Maybe he'd drown, or his debts would finally catch up with him; of course, that's if he was lucky. Most just starved to death or became the victim of someone, or something, that was hungry enough to see if they liked the taste of human flesh. It was like the Arceus-damned Donner Party out here nowadays.

Team Aqua had certainly made sure of that.

When Alayne had first joined Team Magma she had thought that the team rivaling her own was fairly harmless. Just a bunch of trainer dropouts pretending to be pirates while using the thin excuse of trying to clean up the oceans and making it a safer place for all sea-dwelling pokemon. Harmless, disorganized, and annoying. The complete opposite of Team Magma, the cause she had sold her soul to, which was a well-oiled machine: ruthless, tactical, and organized to the point it was almost maddening at times. A team dedicated to cleaning up the environment so that people and pokemon could live in harmony without the clash over land that was happening more and more often as people began to spread into wild areas. On paper, it was actually rather surprising to learn that Aqua and Magma were not actually two branches of the same team but competitors. From what she gathered they were one team, at some point long before she took up her red cowl, but the rift came from infighting over resources. Money, after all, was just as much of a necessary resource to a cause as clean water is to a living creature. Either way, the teams split and when she was approached with the offer of bettering not only her own future but the future of pokemon, Alayne sided with Maxie and the rest of Team Magma.

That's why she was so good at her job. She had been clashing with the members of Team Aqua even before both leaders had gone off the deep end. It was hard remembering just where both teams had gone wrong because the changes had been very subtle at first. Hell, she couldn't even remember which team had started this suicidal plunge that would ruin the world forever. Her head always said it was Archie since he's the one who had ruined the world after all so he was obviously the most logical choice, but her gut always said it was Maxie. Not that it mattered much, somewhere along the line both men began the hunt for the legendary pokemon: Groudon and Kyorge. Creators of the land and sea respectively.

At the time she never actually believed that either team would find the legendaries. Yes, she had believed they existed but at the same time, part of her believed that they were either dead, or gone, or because they were literal gods that they would never be found, let alone be bent to the wills of mere men.

Arceus must have been laughing its ass off when she first laid eyes on Kyorge.

Somehow, despite the ragtag nature of Archie's group of merry-men they actually did it. They found and summoned Kyorge to the surface in an attempt to have the god of the ocean cleanse the water of all the toxins that man had dumped into it. They had won. It was a fucking shame that it would come at the cost of the whole world.

Now instead of the world being made up of about 70% water, the currently estimated percentage was closer to 80% water, because who could have foreseen that a drawback to summoning the god that created the fucking oceans would lead to the water level rising by way fucking more than the world could take.

The waves and wind had torn Pacifidlog to pieces, ripping the wooden structures off of the Corsola colony it was founded on and dashed everything against the other rocks and islands nearby. Dewport and Slateport were just swallowed by the tide, although Slateport's famous lighthouse can still be seen when the tide is low, apparently, Dewport wasn't as lucky. Nothing was left of the little seaside town, not any kind of infrastructure either above or below water. If it wasn't for the fact that it was still in the memories of any who had ever visited it could almost be said that the town never existed. Not that Alayne could speak from first-hand experience. Exploring ruins for the lost hadn't been part of her job when she was still apart of Magma. Instead, her job had been trying to protect those places that Kyorge hadn't finished sinking, places like Rustboro, Lilycove, and her hometown of Mauville. The last of which had basically lost its whole east side due to the water rising out of Route 118. It was in the wreckage of her old home that she had been approached for a second time by a man with a job opportunity- only this time it wasn't some misguided attempt to try to save the world.

The same job had led her to leave Magma and its attempts to save the world it just as easily could have destroyed, to sipping cheap whiskey in the Sharpedo's Den as she watched the blond at the bar order another round for him and the brunette at his side.

"Ya know, you don't have to do this, right?"

The only sign that Trey's voice had startled her was the slight ripple in her cup from the tiny jerk she had given and the way her eyes cut sharply away from the couple at the bar to her companion. They both knew that she'd gotten so wrapped up in her work and brooding that she'd forgotten he was there, but he wasn't the type to complain, at least not anymore. Before the end of the world, he would have given her so much shit for it. Teasing her relentlessly until she was forced to silence him either with a look, a drink, or a kiss. The last being his all-time favorite. Not that she blamed him since it had been her favorite way of shutting him up too. Not that she had kissed him since Kyorge had resurfaced. That had broken them like it had broken all things. It didn't help that Trey had been considered Aqua's golden boy before Archie destroyed the world.

"I know," She replies, speaking mostly into her glass to avoid meeting his too green eyes.  It had been a long time since she had been able to meet his gaze, even though he was trying desperately to meet hers now.

"Then don't. Nothing's stoppin' you from walkin' out right now. It'd be easier." He leans back in his chair, tucking his hands behind his head. He was trying so hard to sound nonchalant about the whole thing but Alayne wasn't stupid. She knew he was trying to talk her out of it. It was a neat trick that she always seemed to be able to do with Trey, most people had always told her that he had been hard to read. Always putting up a happy front that few people, if any besides her, could see past. He was deeply troubled under all the smiles and the party vibe he used to give off.

Right now, he was scared, which meant that her contact had been right, the couple at the bar were Team Aqua members- and Trey knew them.

"Easier would have been killing myself a long time ago." She shot back, a surprising amount of venom in her voice.

"Hey," He drops the nonchalant act and reaches across the table to grab her free hand, which had been resting on the tabletop, "Don't talk like that, Laney. Please."

Alayne wanted to fucking cry. She wanted to crawl across the tabletop, into his arms, and cry until there was nothing left to cry about. This is why they couldn't keep doing this. One little touch and she was back in the world before- before the world forgot what the sun looked like because the rainclouds had blocked it out. Back when she was happy for the first time in her life. Magma had given her a job, friends, Pokemon, and in its own way, it had given her Trey. Aqua had stolen all of that.  Faces flashed through her mind of all the people and pokemon that she had lost. Misaki and Kira to the first failed attempt to retake Sootopolis. Adrian, Anders, and Oz to the mudslides. Kanno, Abrus, and Blue to the plagues. Leo in the riots. Ever starved and Ethan killed himself soon after. Milo to the bandits. Maxie to an assassination. Courtney, Tabitha, Cole, Mary, Lori, Felix, Bryan, Sandy-

She physically recoils from Trey's touch, spilling some of her drink, but successfully ripping herself from the flood of memories that threaten to overtake her. She couldn't do this. This is why they had to stop. He reminded her too much of all the things she lost, and they both knew that he was in part to blame for the reason they were all gone. Yet, as much as she couldn't stand him touching her because it grounded her too much in her shitty reality, Trey was the one thing that kept her from actually killing herself. And she was pretty sure that keeping her alive was the only thing that kept Trey from being completely consumed by the guilt of being a part of the reason the world had gone to shit. It was as if keeping her alive was the one thing that could redeem him in the end. Two desperate souls that couldn't be together but couldn't be apart either. It was fucking pathetic but it got her through. So she'd take it.

"Laney? Are yo-"

"Don't touch me." Alayne couldn't look at him, instead focusing on a spot on the floor, ignoring the way her vision swam with unshed tears.

She could almost feel him withdrawal his hand from her personal space even though he never touched her. She could hear the squeak of his chair on the floor as he settles back into it. Alayne closes her eyes. She couldn't afford to do this. Not now. She still had a job to do. If she was going to fall apart she could do it later.

"…Laney, please don't do this," His voice was a strained whisper, like a ghost trying to communicate through the void. It made something twist in her chest painfully, "Not them. They don't… Kegan didn't have a damn thin' to do with anythin' that happened. Let ‘em go."

She sets her drink down on the table, it was the first time she set the glass down all night, asides from the two times she had made the bartender refill it. Alayne drops her head into a waiting hand, covering her eyes so she could discreetly wipe the tears away. She was glad that she had decided to forgo wearing any kind of eye make-up tonight; it was always a good idea on nights like this. Not that seeing a woman with smudge make-up was anything anyone paid attention too anymore; likely she was either a prostitute at the end of her shift or mourning another soul that was lost to the endless rain. Arceus, she was so fucking weak for him. "You know if someone else catches up to them, they won't be as kind. You may be condemning them to the same fate as Shelly."

"Yeah, but they at least get a chance if you let ‘em go."

Alayne was quiet for a long time. She hated this part of her job, especially on nights when Trey was with her. She already had to go through this moral dilemma every-fucking-time she caught up to an ex-Aqua member but Trey always added an extra ton of guilt whenever he decided to tag along. One would think that with her kill count these debates would fucking stop, but it felt like they were only getting worse. She could barely even justify to herself anymore that she was merciful compared to most other bounty hunters. Well, she was now. She was a lot more violent when she first started taking revenge on old Aqua members. Now the poisons she used were always fast acting and were so painless that sometimes her targets even smiled at her when their hearts finally stopped. Hell, the fact that she was going so soft was probably part of the reason Trey had decided to show up tonight. He saw who her targets were, and knew he could probably talk her out of this. Bastard.

"I fucking hate you,"

"It’d be easier if you actually did." He uses her own words against her. It was so sudden and out of character that it made Alayne lift her head out of her hand, and actually look at him for the first time that night. Trey was watching her with such sad eyes and a matching smile. Even though she knew she looked as rough as the rest of the patrons in this hole in the wall, he somehow managed to look exactly like he did before the end of days. Complete with that green t-shirt with the kecleon silhouette she bought for him on his last birthday. Looking as if he was unfazed by all the tauroshit around them- unless you were looking at his eyes. They were just as haunted as everyone else’s, only his seemed to corrupt every expression that crossed his face, even his smile. Arceus, what she wouldn't do to make him smile like they used to.

Alayne sighs wistfully and glances over her shoulder. The brunette was sitting alone at the bar. Looks like she had missed her chance. She had been planning on ambushing him in the bathroom, then catching the girl when she came looking for her friend. She stands, noting the way that Trey seemed to jerk like he was going to try to stop her until he noticed that she was already waving him off. She missed her chance, and she was pretty sure that if she killed these two Trey would make himself scarce for a while. She wasn't sure what either one of them would do with the silence. It had gotten so bad last time that they had stopped talking- she really had been close to killing herself before Trey appeared to literally talk her off the edge. She wasn't ready to chase him away again.

Grabbing her glass and her purse, the ex-Magma made her way over to the bar and leans the gap between the seat the blond had been sitting in and the brunette's spot as she waits for the bartender to notice her. She didn't miss the way that the girl angled herself away just slightly or that she was only drinking a soda instead of something a little more… alcoholic. The bartender appears in front of her, and instead of exchanging words, she fishes her wallet out of her bag and passes him her credit card. He nods, shuffling farther down the bar to close out her tab. She takes a sip of the last of her drink as she watches him head to the register. "You two need to get out of here."

The girl next to her startles, turning to actually face Alayne. She was adorable. All freckles, big brown eyes, and a pretty round face that probably lit up a room when she smiled. There was no doubt about it now that she could actually see the girl up close. It was, in fact, Kegan Roth, ex-Aqua grunt, and close friend to Trey. She hadn't been a hundred percent sure that this girl had been Kegan but she had just assumed the moment she laid eyes on Blake, that his companion had been the farm girl. It seemed that once again her instincts had been right on point.

"W-what?"

"You're being hunted. Or at least were, but people will figure out sooner or later that I missed my mark."

The blood drained from the girl's face and Alayne eyes her as Kegan reached for her jacket. She either had a weapon in there or was just going to bolt. Judging by the look of pure terror in her eyes, she was betting on the latter rather than the former. Funny, she had always thought Trey's old friends had more moral than this. Then again, she did have the poor girl cornered, and the gentleman who had probably kept her safe all this time wasn't around to protect her. Although he'd be back soon enough, and she'd rather be gone by that time. She glances up to the mirror behind the bar her subconscious telling her that she was being watched. Trey was still sitting at the table, staring at her, and when he sees her looking waves at her with that same tragic smile.

"Trey says hi, by the way."

This stops Kegan in her tracks. The country girl sits up straighter and twists to look around the bar. She had this look of excitement on her face that made everything in Alayne's chest twist painfully such a way that made her want to drop to her knees and sob. It had been so long since she had seen such pure hope like that. No wonder Trey wanted to protect her. She was so innocent and open. "Trey's here? But I thought he'd-"

"He did." Alayne cuts her off quickly, breaking her gaze from Trey's in the mirror. She closes her eyes and slams back the last of her drink. It burned as it when down, but it chased the taste of acid out of her mouth. The glass hits the counter with more force than she intended, and when she opens her eyes the bartender is standing in front of her with his hand outstretched. Waiting for her to take her card and receipt. Kegan had gone quiet and was bowing her head.

Alayne takes the paper and plastic, shoving it into her pocket. She nods at the bartender and turns her back on the two. "Good luck."

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Blake coming back down the hallway from where the restrooms were. She could feel his eyes on her and even though he moved out of her line of sight, she had no doubt he was already back at Kegan's side- being filled in about the current situation and how their lives were spared mostly on a whim. This would most likely be the last time she would ever see the two. Even if she was instructed to keep them as a bounty Alayne doubted that she would ever chase after them again. Somehow it felt right. Maybe because in a previous life, she had been expecting to be on the run like they were. Although she always expected it to be because Maxie had figured out that she had fallen in love with Trey, and by some twist of fate he had fallen for her too-not because she was at fault for ending the world.

She passes by their table which was empty, minus Trey's untouched beer. Without thinking she reaches out and snags the bottle, bringing it to her lips. It was warm and the taste made her crinkle her nose in disgust but she still drank it. Part of her was expecting the bartender to try to stop her as she pushed open the door to head out into the rain, bottle still in hand, but he didn't. Just another example of how much of a shit people gave now that they realized that the world was on borrowed time. Pausing under the tin awning, Alayne carefully swings her purse around and with her free hand began the dig for her umbrella. Like all necessary things it somehow seemed to have ended up at the very bottom of her bag, regardless of the fact that she had just used it a few hours ago.

‘Thanks.'

The voice was so quiet that there should have been no way that she heard it over the sound of the rain beating on the metal overhead. Then again she guessed that was the upside of having voices in one's head. No matter how softly he spoke, Alayne could always hear him.

For a long time, she's silent, just rummaging through her bag. Finally, she unearths her prize, still damp from her walk to the bar. With the press of a button, the travel umbrella unfolds, snapping into shape with a click that was drowned out by the rain. Alayne shoulders the umbrella, before bringing the bottle back to her lips to finish it off. One day, she probably would be able to enjoy drinking beer but for now, it was just another reminder of the fact that Trey… wasn't actually here anymore. Once the bottle was empty, she set it gently on the edge of the steps before stepping out into the downpour.

"You're welcome."

[kimmysfandomblog]

Kingdom Hearts for the fandom ask!

Thanks for the ask, Oracle!!! :DFrom here: https://kimmysfandomblog.tumblr.com/post/172504613077/send-me-a-fandom

The first character I first fell in love with: Definitely Roxas! He was accidentally the first character I came across because I started with the KHII manga instead of KHI the game :P That shaped my entire view of Kingdom Hearts, gotta say XD It is kind of interesting, because him having weird flashbacks to things he shouldn’t know was the same for me as it had been for him, since we didn’t have that prior knowledge, and then him turning out to not be real, a Nobody, was even more shocking! Especially so since I didn’t come out of Chain of Memories.

The character I never expected to love as much as I do now: Riku, maybe? He presents himself initially as kind of a jerk, but man, what a guy he becomes! He probably has the best arc in the series! 

The character everyone else loves that I don’t: Aqua, maybe? I guess I just don’t quite get it, her popularity pre KH0.2 that is, but it isn’t like I hate her at all. She’s okay! Maybe people like her because she is a powerful female, but she doesn’t get much of an arc on her own? Unlike with Terra, who is struggling with Darkness, or Ventus, who struggles with his Dark half, Vanitas, and a past that he can’t remember, Aqua didn’t have those struggles of self-reflection. I guess they may be starting to change that, though! KH0.2 BBS had her literally fighting her own image who mocks her with her own self doubts. Still, I hope we get to play more as her, or have her as a party member, or something, and get to know her backstory more (like how she got the keyblade, maybe?)

The character I love that everyone else hates: Who would people hate… maybe Terra counts? He is kinda too naive, but he means well! All he wants is to find and protect his friends! I feel like people get frustrated with him since he skirts so close to the villains in his story, and it may be very dumb since we know these are villains and there are obvious signs, haha. However, even Aqua and Ven fall for their tricks unless they were told to be wary.

The character I used to love but don’t any longer: I honestly can’t think of anyone… I mean I guess I loved Axel more back then than now, but I still like him a lot! There really is no reason why I like him less other than maybe him being revived and us no having a clue what he’s going to do.

The character I would totally smooch: You know it is a bit tough, but back when I was, like, early to mid teens, I really really liked Roxas, but now that I’m grown up, he’s too young for me to be comfortable with XD I guess I’ll just go with a kiss on the cheek instead of smooch :P

The character I’d want to be like: Tough question, because everyone’s lives kinda sucks, haha. I mean, people lose their hearts/souls, they have friends ripped away from them, they get betrayed by people they thought they could trust, they get lost in darkness, etc, etc, etc. I think the only ones safe are Queen Mickey and everyone in Disney Castle, honestly XD In terms of a personality, I like Xion! She is funny and intuitive and does try to take action to save her friends!

The character I’d slap: Xehanort, lol. He’d probably kill me or turn me into a heartless before I can do that though :P Also Maleficent, but I’d have a similar amount of success XD

A pairing that I love: Roku////Nami!!! Like I said, I started with the KHII Manga initially, so that’s the reason why, lol. They seemed attracted to each other somehow. And I get why people like Roku///Shi a lot, but I have nostalgia vibes with Roku///Nami. I also have a weird liking for Riku///Roku or Riku///Shi, but those pairings are pretty rare :P

A pairing that I despise: Isa or Saix with Xemnas or Xehanort, honestly. It gives me a very uncomfy feeling…

[disneydreamlights]

So, while most of the Norts in the MMO AU follow the rule of "personality traits through the filter of Xehanort", Terra-Xehanort would be different, due to Terra/Eraqus and Xehanort constantly struggling for control. That, combined with his amnesia, would result in Terranort developing a split personality. One is how Terra views Xehanort, which would later become Ansem, and the other how Xehanort views Terra, which would later become Xemnas. Extracting Terra's heart wouldn't fix this.

...Which would explain why neither Ansem SoD or Xemnas aren’t a lot like Xehanort at all. I’d imagine it must’ve driven Xigbar crazy though. (Good.)

So, what keeps the Dandelions from being total gamebreakers once they're freed is that they are, for the most part, pacifists. This means that they'd just serve the in-universe explanation for where the other players in Multiplayer come from, unless there is an in-universe explanation for them to be more involved in the plot. Additionally, I imagine most of them would hang up their Keyblades to live normal lives after being freed. And to be frank, I wouldn't blame them.

I wouldn’t either given all that the MMO AU puts them through.

As for the Keykids running the Ice Cream shop, they'd both be Dandelions due to being from different Unions and not wanting to have to fight each other. They would not wear their ice cream uniforms at the Dandelion meetings, since they're not on the job, and the ice cream is more of a hobby. They would both wield Sweetstack though, even when off the job. All the Sweetstack Materials would be Ice Cream ingredients. Strelitzia and Mog were their favorite customers.

As for how the fact that they're siblings would be revealed? After you ask them about Ven's whereabouts (which wouldn't be easy seeing as they change what World their located in every day), Black Hair would remark on how surprising it is that they get along despite being in different Unions, while White Hair would bring up that they're twins. Cue the flood of angsty oneshots about them fighting and killing eachother in the Keyblade War until they're revealed to be Dandelions.

As for why they're running an ice cream stand? It was the family business, and they both want to keep their family's legacy arrive. They open up the shop whenever they both fill their Daily Quotas. And I just now realized that I accidentally created two OCs with a cute yet angsty backstory while trying to come up with an excuse for Sweetstack to be in the MMO AU. Although I kinda wish I knew how to draw because I just realized my imagined uniforms for them aren't in the canon game.

Ice cream twins you’ve got me sold I am now invested in these characters.

As for where the Ice Cream Vendors would run their shops on what day? Dwarf Woodlands outside the mines on Monday, Wonderland by the White Rabbit's house on Tuesday, Agrabah's Bizarre on Wednesday, Olympus Coliseum by the stands on Thursday (In the Underworld near the entrance in October), Beast's Castle in the Courtyard on Friday, and Daybreak Town in the park on the Weekend. They'd sell ice cream to the spectators during your matches in Olympus Coliseum, just to give the tournament more flavor

Can we buy ice cream while we watch matches or is it just the NPCs and they’re just there to add more character to the Olympus Coliseum stands and as a cute Easter Egg.

You know, after COM put forth the idea that death was the best possible ending for Repliku and that beings like himself could never be happy because they're not real people, I'm REALLY glad that the future games that remember he existed treated his demise as something tragic and not some kind of "mercy kill". His death always made me so mad because it was ultimately POINTLESS to the plot and a great example of a WASTED character. There's a reason I NEVER go down the same route canon did with him

That’s because it wasn’t really a mercy kill. Repliku shouldn’t have existed, it’s true, but once he did he also didn’t really deserve to die. He deserved a better life than the one he got, and its why the fact that he had to face Riku and die all the more tragic.

You know what, can we just have an AU where Namine stops Riku and his Replica from fighting to the death so that Repliku has the chance to be his own person and go on a journey of self discovery? Although I feel like he'd be relieved if Riku got a Keyblade and he didn't just because that would be one difference between them both. He'd probably also style his hair differently from Riku as part of that "forging my own identity" thing. It would be difficult and painful, but at least he'd be alive.

So I don’t quite have that at my disposal, but:

How do you feel about a 500+ chapter AU in which we get to see Repliku saved on the brink of death and shoved into a completely new universe where he is the only Riku? Because I can supply that for you it’s basically the starting point of one of my favorite fics.

Okay so, in KH3, while Roxas would have grown alongside Sora, Ven would not have aged a day while he was in the Chamber of Waking. This means that Roxas would look older than Ven. Vanitas would also look younger than Sora, due to not aging while his Remnant survived through sheer force of hate. Poor Ven, he's ancient but looks younger than the 3 year old.

This is one of the most hilarious things I have ever heard rip Ven.

I imagine Back Cover would be where all the vitriol that was once directed at Brain would then be redirected at Lauriam. Because once you see a 14-15 year old flashback to how he lost his sight and friends just days after the fact, and witnessed someone murder their closest friend, it's kinda hard to not rethink things like that.

I mean all my hatred towards Blaine if I had any would be immediately redirected towards Lauriam once Strelitzia is dead so I don’t even think I’d need Back Cover to hate him, assuming she’s revealed before Back Cover releases at least.

Laurie would lie about Aced killing Strelitzia before 2.8 released. In Back Cover, the famous Case of Luxury scene would be shown when Ava asks Luxu if he's the traitor, and cut back with the implication that he told Ava what the Master told him. The fun-sized Chirithy Ava squeed over was totally Nightmare Chirithy. Invi and Ira would be fighting during Ava's confrontation we Luxu.

Hey Lauriam don’t blame my son for my daughter’s demise.

Anyways, I’d like that transition more. Tbh I kinda wish we did get to see the Keyblade War unfold. It’s one of the only things I don’t like about BC is that it doesn’t follow X to its conclusion.

Okay so, in the MORNING AU, I imagine that the Mango could continue past KH2 depending on why the Manga ends there. As such there would be a Manga Adaptation AND Novelization of KHX. The novelization would have the default male protagonist, while the Manga would have the default female protagonist, and have her be part of Anguis. They'd also be characterized differently, the novel protagonist being more timid and the Manga protagonist being more snarky.

So yeah, the protagonist of the Manga would have Lauriam and the Keyblade Wielders from the Neoshadow Arc as party members until the Neoshadow Trio become Darklings. She'd leave the party after Lauriam blames her for what happened to their three party members. The Novel protagonist MIGHT be an Ursus Wielder, not sure yet. Aced would terrify both of them, since neither could defeat Ava when she was holding back, and Aced would actually be trying to kill them.

SNARKY FEMALE MANGA PROTAGONIST I AM ALL FOR THIS SHIT.

If they’re part of Ursus, I doubt they’d be afraid of Ursus. If you ask me, I think novel protag should be a member of Leopardus though. Creates good contrast versus Ava, and could create a lot of interesting arcs.

Both would have Medals in the "Toon Medal" deal. The Manga protagonist would have a Power-type Medal while the Novel protagonist would have a Speed-type Medal. The first time we hear either say their names would be when Ephemer is introduced. Neither protagonist would talk much, though the Manga protagonist's thoughts would serve as narration. The first time the Manga protagonist speaks would be to tell off Lauriam at the end of the Neoshadow arc before leaving his Party.

So, the Novel and Manga protagonists would both have Medals in the "Toon Medals" deal. The Manga protagonist would have a Power Medal while the Novel Protagonist would have a Speed Medal (if in Ursus) or a Magic Medal (if in Leopardos), in accordance with the idea that all the Keykids are the type that their Foretellers are strong against. They'd be the closest thing we'd have to Medals based off the Player, though both would be treated as distinct characters.

I think there should be a KHUx Toon Medal deal later on actually, where you can get Player and the five Foretellers, since in Ux they’re dead and could be used as medals.

So, MMO AU 0.2 would be virtually unchanged, save for the more intense version of "The End of a World" cutscene that I'm already forming a new idea for in my head, but that's a story for another day. But there would be one other change. You'd actually be able to see what abilities Aqua has on the difficulty you're playing on. Aqua'd have Treasure Magnet on both Beginner and she and Mickey'd both have it on Critical. There still wouldn't be prize drops in Critical, it's only there to taunt you.

...Wow, that’s cruel. Good thing I don’t play Critical because I’d cry I think.

So, in the MMO AU, starting up Back Cover in 2.8 would play a "spinning heart scene" like in the game. Unlike the games, the little screens would depict moments from past Kingdom Hearts games instead of moments from Back Cover. The music that plays over the spinning heart would be "Ventus". The credits themes would be "Case of Foretellers" and "Cavern of Remembrance". I'd probably keep the cutesy recap opening, just without the annoyingly formatted text layover. That was just BAD.

Actually maybe "The Dream" would be more appropriate than "Ventus". Anyway as for how I'd change "The End of a World" from my original idea would be to have the Keyblade Graveyard get absorbed by Kingdom Hearts. THEN Kingdom Hearts explodes, vaporizing the entire universe save for Luxu who survives by hiding out in the Realm of Darkness before Kingdom Hearts can absorb him. I mean, escaping from that to fulfill his role would be kinda difficult.

Honestly please change the entire intro. Maybe keep some of it but that intro could’ve been done so much better than they actually did.

Wow, honestly poor Luxu. Hiding in the RoD to survive doesn’t sound like it’d be fun.

So, I've lost track of what all I've sent you over the past couple of weeks, but I did have one idea that could be cool: imagine if there had been a movie based off the fall of Radiant Garden. I imagine that Xehanort would start out as the main antagonist until he splits between Ansem and Xemnas, at which point one of them would take over the role. I don't actually have as many ideas here as I do for the MMO part of the MMO AU.

I don’t need as many ideas make it a full length movie collaboration between Disney and Squeenix and I’m sold.

So, Sora would be conspicuously absent during Strelitzia's solo game as well as during the Epilogue DLC is that for the final phase of the final battle against Xehanort, Sora would trap himself and Xehanort within Kingdom Hearts. While the final clash would only be about as long as the battle against Xemnas' final form, outside of Kingdom Hearts, an entire year would pass during that duel. Fortunately, Sora would escape as soon as Xehanort is defeated, unscathed save for losing his powers again.

Damn...Poor RIku and Kairi. THey’d probably be searching for ways to rescue Sora the entire time instead of doing anything involving the other characters.

I kinda can't help but notice something mildly amusing about the MMO version of Back Cover. Mickey Mouse (or rather, a holographic double of him) is basically a herald of the apocalypse. I mean, his appearance is what tells the Foretellers that the people in the Book of Prophecy's Holo Worlds can leak out into the real world, explaining where the Heartless came from. Lauriam and Ventus just confuse them, because they KNOW they're not holograms.

GUYS THE WORLD IS ENDING CAN’T YOU TELL IT’S BECAUSE OF MICKEY FREAKING MOUSE. XD

So yeah, Invi basically accuses each of the other 4 Foretellers of being the traitor throughout MMO!BC. First she accuses Aced when he tries to kill her for talking Gula out of their alliance. Then she assumes it's Gula upon learning that Ira thinks that's the case. Then she accuses Ava upon learning about the Dandelions. Then, upon learning of Aced's true role, decides that IRA must be the traitor. The fact that Ira intends to wipe out everyone who fights in the Keyblade War doesn't help.

Okay so, Invi is kinda like Aqua in her devotion to the MoM, save for the fact that she LITERALLY worships him. That's kind of why her last words implied she was okay with the World ending, she had pieced together that the MoM WANTED the apocalypse to happen, and who is she to defy his will? The MoM is, amused by her worship of him, and he probably could have told her his true goals without her lifting a finger to stop him. It's Ava he's worried about.

So yeah, the reason he's so uncharacteristically serious around Ava is because he needs her to get Ven and Lauriam into the Unchained State. He needs Xehanort's plans to end a specific way in order for his eye that he placed in his Keyblade to end up in Kingdom Hearts, while Xehanort needs to drop Ventus off at the Land of Departure to notice the darkness in Terra's heart. Ava and factors he knows he can't control (the Gazing Eye doesn't see everything), could make everything fall apart

You know given how Invi was meant to invoke appearances related to Aqua with color scheme the fact that she parallels Aqua is really fitting.

Him being super serious around Ava makes sense if she’s the biggest threat though. Taking her more seriously means she’s less likely to mess things up for him.

[recentanimenews]

HBO MAX and Crunchyroll Team to Bring Fans More Anime On May 27th

  The Crunchyroll team is excited to share details about our partnership with HBO Max!! Last week, the launch date for the new streaming platform was revealed: May 27th. On day 1, you'll be able to explore a collection of 17 of your favorite Crunchyroll series on HBO Max, bringing great anime to stand side-by-side with series like HBO's Barry (a CR staff favorite!), the upcoming Adventure Time special Adventure Time: Distant Lands, and many, many more! South Park, Konosuba, Doctor Who, and Re:ZERO all side-by-side? That's powerful!!

  Not only will HBO Max subscribers be able to watch launch titles like beloved classics Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood or the latest and greatest like the genre-blending mystery and Crunchyroll Original In/Spectre, but the Crunchyroll team will also be curating the best of anime to bring to the world of HBO Max each quarter. In addition to the 17 launch titles and new seasonal hits, we'll be adding great series like Death Note and Hunter x Hunter to HBO Max later this year.

  We couldn't be prouder to stand alongside our friends at HBO, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Rooster Teeth, and the rest of the WarnerMedia family to share anime we love so much with fans who are able to get their first taste of Crunchyroll and to long-time fans who are excited to be able to watch a curated selection of anime alongside their other favorite movies and TV. Please stay tuned for more information as we announce new titles for HBO Max in the future!

  Some additional information from our press release:

  Crunchyroll is the world’s leading anime brand, connecting more than 60 million registered users and over 2 million subscribers to the content they love, and building fan-favorite series into 360-degree experiences with events, games, merchandise, and more. Crunchyroll is available in more than 200 countries and territories and simultaneously translates simulcast series into eight languages around the world.

  "Anime is a celebrated, diverse art form with a rich culture rooted in imaginative worlds and vibrant characters. Crunchyroll has centralized these fantastic adventures for everyone to enjoy,” said Kevin Reilly, Chief Content Officer, HBO Max, President, TNT, TBS, and truTV. “This WarnerMedia family collaboration is bringing together an incredible collection of content with a passionate fandom and HBO Max is tottemo ureshiii to expand the reach of this inventive artistry.”

“The HBO brand is known for premiere content and innovative storytelling. By bringing series from Crunchyroll to HBO Max, we hope to introduce anime to a wider audience who appreciates compelling stories told through this dynamic medium,” said Joanne Waage, General Manager, Crunchyroll. “Together with HBO Max, we are delivering the maximum reach for these incredible anime series, and we can’t wait for new fans to fall in love with anime.”

        TITLES AVAILABLE ON DAY ONE, MAY 27th:

  Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood – Full Series (64 episodes)

  Disregard for alchemy’s laws ripped half of Edward Elric’s limbs from his body and left his brother Alphonse’s soul clinging to a suit of armor. To restore what was lost, the brothers seek the Philosopher’s Stone.

  Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- (Director’s Cut) – Season 1 (13 episodes and 1 OVA) Natsuki Subaru, an ordinary high school student, is transported to another world where the only person to reach out to him was a beautiful girl with silver hair. Determined to repay her, Subaru agrees to help the girl find something she's looking for.

  In/Spectre – Season 1 (12 episodes)

  In this Crunchyroll Original, an enthralling, fantastical mystery mixes with the supernatural and romance, as a duo sets out to solve a series of dark incidents plaguing their world.

  Keep Your Hands off Eizouken – Season 1 (12 episodes)

  Three high school students band together to create an animation club to realize the "ultimate world" that exists in their minds.

  Rurouni Kenshin – Full Series (94 episodes)

  Former government assassin, Kenshin Himura works to keep the peace during the Meiji Era in Japan, a time of troubled renewal after a long and bloody civil war.

  KONOSUBA -God's Blessing on this Wonderful World! – Seasons 1 and 2 (22 episodes)

  Kazuma Sato is transported to a fantasy world filled with adventure after a traffic accident. Now, along with the goddess Aqua, he is on a quest to solve many of this world's problems.

  Bungo Stray Dogs – Seasons 1 – 3 (37 episodes)

  Kicked out of his orphanage and on the verge of starving to death, Atsushi Nakajima meets members of the "Armed Detective Agency" said to solve incidents that even the military and police won't touch.

  Berserk – Seasons 1 and 2 (26episodes)

  Spurred by the flame raging in his heart, the Black Swordsman Guts continues his seemingly endless quest for revenge.

  Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress – Season 1 (12 episodes)

  At a time when the industrial revolution was carrying the world into the modern age, a horde of undead monsters suddenly appeared. The people of Hinomoto have built fortresses to help them survive this threat.

  Kill la Kill – Season 1 (24 episodes)

  Six years since their collaboration on the ground-breaking anime series, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, Hiroyuki Imaishi and Kazuki Nakashima are back to shock the world! Ryuko Matoi is a vagrant schoolgirl who enters Honnouji Academy to search for clues to the truth behind her father's death.

  Your Lie in April – Season 1 (22 episodes)

  Kousei Arima was a genius pianist until his mother's sudden death took away his ability to play. Then he meets a violinist named Kaori Miyazono who changes his life forever.

  ERASED – Season 1 (12 episodes)

  A young manga artist struggles to make a name for himself while living with a strange condition that transports him back in time before something life-threatening occurs. How can he erase the threats to stop this from happening?

  Kiznaiver – Season 1 (12 episodes)

  A secret high school group is formed with students from different cities who share one another's pain: a "Kiznaiver."

  Schwarzes Marken – Season 1 (12 episodes)

  In 1983, the East German Army 666th TSF Squadron, “Schwarzes Marken,” is a special-response force tasked with assaulting BETA forces.

  91 Days – Season 1 (13 episodes)

  During prohibition, the law held no power and the mafia ruled the town. This 91-day story follows men guided by revenge as they try to escape their tragic fates.

  The Testament of Sister New Devil – Seasons 1 and 2 (22 episodes)

  Basara Toujo is a high school student whose father has suddenly just remarried. Hijinks ensue as his father then departs overseas leaving Basara with two new beautiful step-sisters.

  Rokka -Braves of the Six Flowers – Season 1 (12 episodes)

  Legend says, when the evil god awakens from the deepest of darkness, the god of fate will summon six braves and grant them with the power to save the world. However, it turns out that there are seven braves who gathered at the promised land.

  TITLES AVAILABLE AFTER INITIAL LAUNCH WINDOW

  Hunter x Hunter

  Gon, a young boy who lives on Whale Island, dreams of becoming a Hunter like his father, who left when Gon was still young.

  Death Note

  Light Yagami is an ace student with great prospects and he's bored out of his mind. But all that changes when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinigami death god.

  About HBO Max

  HBO Max is WarnerMedia’s direct-to-consumer offering debuting May 27, 2020. With 10,000 hours of curated premium content anticipated at launch, HBO Max will offer powerhouse programming for everyone in the home, bringing together HBO, a robust slate of new original series, key third-party licensed programs and movies, and fan favorites from Warner Media’s rich library including Warner Bros., New Line, DC, CNN, TNT, TBS, truTV, Turner Classic Movies, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Crunchyroll, Rooster Teeth, Looney Tunes and more. Sign up for updates at HBOMax.com.

  About Crunchyroll

  Crunchyroll,a WarnerMedia company (as a subsidiary of Otter Media) and the world’s most popular animebrand, connects anime and manga fans across 200+ countries and territories with 360-degree experiences. Fans have access to the largest collection of licensed anime through Crunchyroll, Anime Digital Network (in partnership with Citel, a subsidiary of Média-Participations), and Anime on Demand video streaming services, translated in multiple languages for viewers worldwide. Viewers can also access simulcasts — top series available immediately after Japanese broadcast. Crunchyroll's services also extend to licensing of theatrical, TV, home video, and consumer product rights.

  Fans engage further with events (including owned events Crunchyroll Expo, Anime Awards, Crunchyroll Movie Nights, KAZÉ Movie Nights), consumer products through eCommerce and retail partners (Crunchyroll, KAZÉ, AV Visionen), Crunchyroll Games, KAZÉ Games, and manga (KAZÉ Manga, Crunchyroll Manga app, Crunchyroll Manga Store).

  Crunchyroll was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in Los Angeles, Tokyo, Paris, Lausanne, Berlin (AV Visionen) and Chisinau (Ellation). VRV (U.S.) and Eye See Movies (Germany) are also Crunchyroll brands.

  About WarnerMedia

  WarnerMedia is a leading media and entertainment company that creates and distributes premium and popular content from a diverse array of talented storytellers and journalists to global audiences through its consumer brands including: HBO, HBO Now, HBO Max, Warner Bros., TNT, TBS, truTV, CNN, DC, New Line, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Turner Classic Movies and others. WarnerMedia is part of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T).

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[gossipnetwork-blog]

March of the Juggalos: Inside the Faygo-Soaked D.C. Protest

New Post has been published on http://gossip.network/march-of-the-juggalos-inside-the-faygo-soaked-d-c-protest/

March of the Juggalos: Inside the Faygo-Soaked D.C. Protest

Without Insane Clown Posse and their fan base, the Juggalos, Moon Brown would probably be dead. So a 16-hour bus ride from Detroit wasn’t going to stop Brown from seeing ICP for the first time at Saturday’s Juggalo March on Washington. Brown, 25, wearing a brown felt hat, black pants held up by a Grateful Dead belt and shirtless with a black leather vest, came to D.C. on Friday with a few bucks in his pocket, and he slept the night before the march behind the Lincoln Memorial. Carrying an aqua knapsack that he’s had since his days hitchhiking across America, he wanted to be only a few steps away from the stage for the event, excited about the prospect of seeing so many others who are like him.

Brown is skin and bones, with his black, white and red face paint that he had applied a day before beginning to wear off. With a wild brown beard, locks of long, wispy hair and a green half-crescent moon tattooed on the middle of his forehead, Brown, whose name is a pseudonym, has never been big on going to ICP shows or attending a Gathering of the Juggalos, the subculture’s annual music festival. But he credits the horrorcore rap duo of Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope, and Juggalos in general, for a support system that eluded him – and had him contemplating taking his own life a decade earlier.

“ICP built a family for those who didn’t have one,” Brown says. “Maybe they didn’t realize what they were doing, but they did something great, and I have the appreciation and love for that.” He adds: “If they’re going to call us out to be at the March, then I owe them.”

This feels different than your regular ICP show or Gathering. Sure, about 1,500 people are passing around liters of Faygo, smoking cigarettes like they’re going out of style, and yelling their fraternal call – “Whoop! Whoop!” – at anyone who passes by. Men walk around in Jason and lucha libre wrestling masks, women are in schoolgirl outfits and toddlers are in face-paint and ICP T-shirts. It attracts all ages, from the older man in the wheelchair to the little girl with curly brown hair holding a face-painted doll’s head on a stick. But Gatherings don’t happen at the National Mall, and they certainly don’t have the political feeling this one does. You see signs of the day: “Juggalo Lives Matter.” “Don’t Shoot/I’m Just a Music Fan With a Really Big Family.” “FBI: Foolish Bunch of Inbreds.” “The FBI Listens to Nickelback.”

Since 2011, the Juggalos have been branded by the FBI’s National Gang Threat Assessment as “a loosely-organized hybrid gang” in four states – Arizona, California, Pennsylvania and Utah. The report, which was collected from data submitted by state and local law enforcement agencies nationwide, recognized that subsets exhibited “gang-like behavior and engage in criminal activity and violence” in at least 21 states. In 2014, ICP, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, sued the FBI. Though the initial suit was dismissed for lacking “legal standing,” an appeals court reinstated the case in 2015, on the basis that the gang designation has brought significant harm to Juggalos. (Oral arguments on the appeal are set to begin October 11th.) “You might not give a fuck about ICP, but how are you not going to give a fuck about the situation that’s going on?” Shaggy says.

Whether you sip the Faygo or remember ridiculing the kid in high school who wanted to wear a Hatchetman shirt, one thing about this case has united people: The move to designate ICP’s fan base as a gang is unprecedented. Never before has the U.S. government targeted a fan base of an artist or music genre, and labeled anyone associated with it, as part of an organized gang. Though the Juggalos were not specifically named in the FBI’s 2013 or 2015 National Gang Reports, the gang label is the stain they can’t remove. That’s why they’re marching.

“You now have people examining the issue and understanding how wrong it was,” says Steve Miller, author of Juggalo: Insane Clown Posse and the World They Made, on the gang classification. “That was the problem before – you didn’t have people seriously taking a look at this as a true First Amendment legal issue.”

Antifa members join Juggalos in their march. Rosie Cohe

Off in the distance is the Mother of All Rallies, a relatively small demonstration in support of President Donald Trump. Despite the online clamoring for the face-painted Juggalos to confront and pummel the crowd, the gathering’s focus is civil, focused and disciplined. Antifa make their presence known in case there is a problem with the pro-Trumpers, but they remain off to the side, not impeding on the Juggalos or the event. Most Juggalos tell me that this day isn’t about the red hat-wearing assholes over there. It’s about them. It’s about their rights. It’s about the future of an American subculture that, in their eyes, has been unfairly labeled by the federal government and affected their lives for the worse.

One by one, Juggalos of all kinds – military veterans, registered nurses, fast-food cooks, government employees – step up to tell their stories to this family of misfits and outcasts. Despite never receiving a negative work review, Jessica Bonometti says she was fired from her job as a Virginia probation officer last year for showing appreciation on Facebook for ICP. Because she saw an ICP show, Crystal Guerrero says she lost a custody battle for her two children in New Mexico, now only seeing them six hours a week. Ashley Vasquez recalls instances in which she was almost kicked out of the military for her tattoos and wearing clothes supporting ICP’s music.

“That’s the biggest misconception about people outside looking in, thinking that Juggalos are just a piece of shit, inbred, uneducated fuckheads, you know what I’m saying?” Shaggy tells me. “It’s the furthest from the truth.”

Talk to some Juggalos on this steamy September day at the nation’s capital and they’ll rattle off about every insult thrown at them for the last 20 years. Losers. Freaks. White trash. Rednecks. Meth addicts. Mistakes. Criminals. They’ve grown numb to the barbs, largely ignoring the constant ridicule that’s followed the marginalized fan-base. But one hurts more than any other: Gang member.

“What happened to us never happened to any band in the history of rock and roll that I know of,” J tells Rolling Stone. “Nothing like it.”

He adds: “You wanna call us something, call us a family, because a lot of us don’t have a family and all we’ve got is each other. This shit is real for us, man.”

ICP’s Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J visited Rolling Stone to discuss the march.

Like almost every Juggalo I spoke to about their life growing up, Brown’s childhood was pretty shitty. Living in the Florida panhandle, his drug-abusive parents caused Brown to run away from group homes and bounce around the foster care system in Pensacola until he was around nine. On the steps at the base of the Lincoln Memorial, Brown refers back to the time he had to pull a needle out of his mom’s arm, and how his dad sold crack and forced him to smoke weed when he was four. Time and time again, foster parents would take him in, only to make it clear they really didn’t want him and that they only took him to not separate him from his sister. The last pair of parents, he says, constantly punished him, forcing him to run away again when he was 12.

It was around this time that he found an MP3 player on a school bus. When he popped in headphones and hit play, he listened to a few songs from ICP. He was hooked. But even with his newfound love couldn’t shield him from what was happening at home. He says that shortly after his foster family dropped him off with his biological parents, he was left to fend for himself. Between the ages of 14 and 18, Brown was homeless, living on the streets. “Homeless at 14 is not a good way to be in Pensacola,” he tells me. During that time, he says he was taken in by a few different families of Juggalos in the area for stretches. When he was 15, Brown was told by a friend what he already knew deep down: He was a Juggalo.

“Meeting the Juggalos and hanging out with them, I saw how people had each other’s backs, just this blunt, honest attitude,” Brown tells me. “It was real. That gave me something to lean toward.”

Brown remembers the first ass-kicking he got for being a Juggalo. When he heard the “Whoop! Whoop!” call at a party, he instinctively responded with one of his own. But these 20-somethings he was partying with were instead talking trash about Juggalo culture. Quick to fight, Brown, then 15 or 16, says he was repeatedly kicked in the stomach, with the anti-Juggalo group furiously stomping on his head. By the time they were done with him, Brown left with a bloody nose, a ripped shirt and a reminder of how people simply enjoy picking on Juggalos.

A juggalo getting their face paint done on site. Rosie Cohe

“People don’t get us,” he tells me.

Brown’s journey to Washington hasn’t been without its setbacks. When he was 17, he says he was given nine months in a low-risk juvenile program for improper display of a firearm at school when he unknowingly had a gun in his backpack. And trouble would find him again. Not long after the firearm incident, Brown and a buddy would walk up and down Michigan Avenue in Montclair, what Brown calls the ghetto of Pensacola, in hope of selling drugs to the area’s residential junkies. When he was apprehended for resisting arrest after tripping a cop around 2011, police found a custom knife he found in a gutter in his waistband.

The possession of a concealed weapon charge got him 14 months in jail. When he was getting booked, he says police saw his tattoos and asked him if he was a Juggalo. He says he confirmed he was, and saw the official at the jail mark down that he was a gang member. Brown says he didn’t care about the label at the time and that he hasn’t let it impact him since then, but one thought has stayed on his mind: What the fuck?

Sitting inside a studio at the Rolling Stone office days before the Juggalo March, J and Shaggy say they knew a while ago they had to do something.

Initially, they joked that the FBI’s gang classification of their fan base was yet another reason why they proudly own the title of “most hated band in the world.” But the group’s outlook would take a sharp turn from glee to despair. When they’d hit the road for meet-and-greets and in-store signings across the country, they found that the FBI’s gang label had real-life consequences for Juggalos: Longer terms in jail for offenders. Parents losing kids in custody battles. People getting fired from their jobs. Potential recruits not being able to get into the military. And on and on.

Even with the increased attention on their cause, the duo say that it’s hard to do those meetups with fans nowadays, as the stories they keep hearing from loyal Juggalos affected by the gang label are heartbreaking. Yes, there are probably a few fans who are gang members, but, they argue, why isn’t that same flimsy standard of blanketing an entire group applied to people in gangs who like other artists?

“There’s fucking Bonnie Raitt fans that are in gangs,” J says.

While they downplay the effect the gang label has had on them and keep the focus on their fans, it has impacted their ability to earn, specifically from the venues that are skeptical of booking them because of the Juggalo designation.

“The more that spreads, the harder this shit is getting, and fuck, man, where does it end?” J says.

When reached by Rolling Stone for comment, the FBI reiterated to that the 2011 report was “compromised of information shared with the National Gang Intelligence Center and the FBI from law enforcement agencies around the country.”

“The FBI’s mission is to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution. We investigate activity which may constitute a federal crime or pose a threat to national security,” an FBI spokesperson said in a statement. “The FBI cannot initiate an investigation based on an individual’s exercise of their First Amendment rights.”

The duo knows that getting the FBI to rescind the label, or at least acknowledge the matter, is a pipe dream. Shaggy says he knows already that’ll never happen. That’s why ICP became the latest in a decorated history of political demonstrations in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

“Whether [the FBI] want to admit it or not,” Shaggy says, “they fucked up.”

By 3 p.m., the chanting, laughter and clouds of cigarette smoke have made this a full-blown party. This might not be a Gathering of the Juggalos, but it’s a celebration of the culture and the people who make it possible. There’s Richard and Stephanie Miller, a couple from New Castle, Delaware, that’s helped organize a Juggalo carpool system, coordinating rides for people from as far as California and Washington State. There’s Amanda Donihoo, whose husband, Scott, otherwise known as Scottie D., president of Faygoluvers.net, gives an impassioned speech of his life for the Juggalos that mentions how him and his wife, an IT professional and a registered nurse in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, respectively, reflect how the group is pigeonholed and criminalized because of the actions of a few.

“We are some of the most straight-laced people ever,” says Amanda Donihoo, 35. “But since we don’t always wear the attire you expect or perceive a Juggalo would wear, people don’t understand.”

Juggalo marchers in face paint holding a sign saying “Juggalo’s are a family not a gang. Those who think otherwise [middle finger]”. Rosie Cohe

ICP has no plans to make this an annual event, so the Juggalos are making the most out of the day.

Hannah Baxter drove seven hours from New York state to be at the March. Baxter, 27, has been to roughly 50 ICP shows and two Gatherings, but it’s hard for the former group-home kid to describe what she’s feeling while looking at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

“This is the first time we’re actually banding together as a family to show everybody that we’re not as bad as they think we are,” she says. “Just ’cause we like people that rap about something a little crazy, we’re normal people, too.”

By the time ICP take the stage around 5 p.m., the Juggalos are hanging on their every word. While they speak on stage, two Juggalettes yell at a guy with a camera wearing a backwards “Make America Great Again” hat, telling him he’d get his ass beat by a family of a thousand clowns if he didn’t leave now. He says, “Fuck you, bitch,” and flees. Aside from that, this moment is festive and positive.

“This is our day! This is our year! Are you ready?” J asks the jubilant Juggalos. “The Juggalo family and the Wicked Clowns will never die. Let’s march, motherfuckers!”

ICP is at the beginning of the procession, looking almost overwhelmed by the love of the unlikeliest of families. It’s from this love that they push forward to lift the Juggalos’ gang label.

“It’s scary because this ain’t a movie,” J tells me. “This ain’t something anybody’s been through. And you don’t know how this is going to end.”

Brown’s March starts, and ends, with him walking through the crowd, carrying his third clear trash bag of the day. In an effort to help turn around the perception some may hold toward Juggalos, Brown, who works with prototype car parts for Chevy and Ford back in Michigan, packed some garbage bags and vowed to clean up the trash left behind on the Mall. It’s his way of giving back to a subculture that’s given him so much. At the back end of the March around the outside of the Washington Monument, there isn’t a piece of trash that Brown doesn’t pick up. He’s in D.C. for the next few days before heading back to Michigan, unsure of what’s next or where he’ll spend the night. For now, he’s bottling up the energy and the positive feelings of the day the Juggalos took Washington, a day he met more extended members of his family.

“That was epic,” he tells me, flashing his biggest smile of the day. He then darts to every piece of trash in his path, saying to anyone who will listen at the tail of the March: “Throw your garbage away! Give me your trash!”

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