#seeing my writing shoot up in quality has been a nice surprise lol

[captainmullin]

🔥 Cain/Reinhardtzar, it can be headcanon or drabbles. As you prefer. Thank you!

reincain lives in my brain forever, thank you for this prompt!!! i tried so hard to work on these pride prompts all month and life said "no <3 get sick" so thank you everyone for waiting patiently!! 🔥 - How do they deal with each other's worries/fears?

It seemed like every day there was always something that happened in Idelva. Another crisis, another thing that needed fixing, another bandit attack; something, something, something. And it was always Reinhardtzar, right in the middle of it.

'Reinhardtzar, can you check this out?'

'Rein, there's another battle downtown.'

'Sir, we just got a report in that-'

"Enough," Reinhardtzar interrupted the soldier that was speaking, his voice hoarse from talking all day. There was migraine beginning to form behind the Draph's eyes, and he wondered why it hadn't arrived earlier. "I'll deal with it tomorrow. Go home."

"Y-Yes, sir." The soldier stammered, clearly uncertain of their position and twice as uncertain talking to Reinhardtzar. Their eyes darted around the room, as if to determine if they were allowed to continue speaking. Reinhardtzar stared them down, but made a motion to continue.

"Ah- if- if I may be so bold, sir, um... have you been on a vacation, recently?"

"A... vacation?" He paused, trying to think. "It... has been awhile. I'll think about it, thank you."

"Of course!" For the first time, the soldier beamed - they quickly gave Reinhardtzar a salute - and quickly walked out, the bundle of papers still in their hands. The Draph, on the other hand, looked out the window of his office in quiet contemplation.

It was only just starting to rain that evening; the water dripping down plants and rooftops alike as if it were the morning dew and the not the beginnings of a storm that seemed to always plague the island. Reinhardtzar continued his slow march back towards his room, ignoring the thunderclap in the distance.

"A vacation, huh..." He mumbled to himself as he looked over the paperwork in his hands. It might not be a bad idea. I definitely don't got the time for anything like that...

"There you are!" A familiar voice called out to Reinhardtzar from down the hallway. It was Cain - the young man was eagerly waving his partner over... and looking a bit too excited for Reinhardtzar's tastes.

"Cain?"

"Rein! I've been waiting for you to come off work. I have a surprise," Cain replied, an easygoing expression on his face. At Reinhardtzar's raised eyebrow, he chuckled and continued: "It's nothing big. Will you join me?"

"...Hm. Okay." Reinhardtzar took Cain's outstretched hand and allowed himself to pulled along by his companion, a small smile beginning to creep its way up his face. He was dragged into his and Cain's shared room; a quiet respite from the rest of the hustle and bustle of the castle.

"Cain, what are you doing?" Reinhardtzar stared Cain down, worry starting to pool in his stomach as they got closer to their room. Surely he hadn't done something dangerous again?

"You'll see. Don't worry so much about it!" Cain reassured him, patting him on the shoulder and opening the door: "See? All good."

Reinhardtzar blinked as he walked into the room; taken aback by a candlelit table with a wide spread of food on it. It had clearly taken Cain the better part of the afternoon to prepare everything, the gesture leaving Reinhardtzar to do nothing but... stare.

"Uh, you like it, right?" Cain said, shifting his weight from one foot to another. "If you don't, I can do something else, but I know you've been stressed-"

Coming back to reality, Reinhardtzar shook his head: "No, no. This is wonderful. Thank you, Cain."

"Oh." Cain paused, caught off-guard by the compliment: "O-Of course! Hah, yeah. I am wonderful, aren't I?"

Reinhardtzar just rolled his eyes and sat down, gesturing for Cain to do the same. Cain scrambled to sit across from his partner, and the easy-going smile spread across his face once again. Reinhardtzar's face matched; a thought going through his head: A vacation with him wouldn't be so bad. Let's go soon.

[miraculous-ninjabird]

Hey idk if you're still doing writing prompt requests, but if u are, I think polyninja movie night would be cute :0

Hello I loved this prompt so much it escaped me and I might have strayed just a little. Lol sorry.

It’s on Ao3 here if you’d rather read it there instead.

Title: A Much Needed Day Off

Words: 1293

Polyninja

No warnings apply, just pure fluff.

“Man, it’s been ages since we had a day off!” Jay groans, flopping onto the couch. “I am so ready for this.”

“I am looking forward to today as well,” Zane agrees. Settling on the couch, he pulls Jay over so his head is resting in his lap, and begins to work his fingers through the soft curls. “So, what do you have planned for us?”

“A movie marathon! Once everyone gets here, at least,” Jay makes a little pouty face that Zane can’t help but find adorable. “Cole gets a pass cause he’s going over stuff with Lloyd so that he and Nya won’t need us today, but Kai is taking forever in the shower! Why does he need to get ready anyways?”

“Because looking as good as I do takes time,” Kai’s voice quips back. Zane turns to see the fire ninja leaning against the open door frame. Dressed in his standard pajama set of a crop top and shorts, he doesn’t look much different than when they’d woken up that morning.

“You always look good. I think you just use that as an excuse to make up for your terrible bathroom hogging ways,” Jay teases. Kai gives him a mock offended look as he makes his way over.

“I’m going to ignore that second part and just take the compliment. Now. You.” He turns to Zane. “I can’t believe you are giving out head massages without me here!”

He just snorts. That was very typical of Kai. Never wanted to miss out on any kind of affection.

“Head massages are for people who get here on time. You will just have to wait your turn,” Kai gives him the same offended look, but nonetheless takes up the free space on Zane’s empty side. He takes a moment to press a soft kiss to Jay’s lips, and then another to do the same to Zane. The nindroid hums appreciatively in response.

“So we’re just waiting on Cole then?” Kai asks once he pulls away. Jay nods.

“Once he gets here, we can play rock paper scissors to decide who gets to choose the first movie.”

Cole choses that exact moment to walk through the door, as if summoned.

“What’s this about rock paper scissors?”

“You’re here! Now we can get started,” Jay sits up, gesturing Cole over. “Someone has to pick the first movie. Obviously, rock paper scissors is the only fair way to decide who gets that honor.”

“That checks out,” Cole agrees. They shuffle around so everyone is huddled in a small circle.

“Usual rules apply?” Kai asks.

“Yup. Me vs. you, Cole vs. Zane. Winners face off. Losers face off, and that will decide the order of decision making. Everybody ready?” Jay looks at each of them, and there is a collective nod. “Okay. Ready? Rock, Paper, Scissors, Shoot!”

Zane does not really understand the point of this game. There is no logic to it. It was, however, good as a fair randomizer. As seen by the fact it was one of the few things he couldn’t reason through, and therefore often lost. Just like now. Cole was grinning triumphantly, rock to Zane’s scissors.

“Sorry Frosty. Looks like you lose this round.”

“I will find a way to beat you at this game someday,” Zane vows, turning to Kai and Jay. “Who is my next opponent?”

“That would be me,” Kai raised his hand. They all prepare to play again, and Zane loses this time as well. He takes it from Jay’s excited whoop that he won his second round.

“Alright. Order has been decided. Me, Cole, Kai and then Zane. Get ready. I’ll set things up,” He hops up, heading over to start digging through the dvd collection.

Now that Jay wasn’t taking up 80% of the available space, Zane takes the chance to readjust himself. He scoots all the way to the end of the couch, which was his preferred spot. Kai moves to follow, only to have his spot stolen by Cole. That was a bit of surprise, but Zane wasn’t going to complain. Kai did though.

“Hey! That was my spot!” he whines.

“It’s my turn to cuddle Zane now. Sorry,” Cole doesn’t seem sorry as he makes himself comfortable. He takes his chance to kiss Zane, ignoring the sad noises their other partner was making.

“Nobody loves me around here,” He grumbles, crossing his arms across his chest.

“Don’t worry babe. I’ll cuddle you,” Jay reassures, returning to them. He and Kai get themselves settled as well. They end up with Cole leaning against Zane, Kai sitting on the floor between them, and Jay on his lap. “Alright. Let’s get this party started!”

He starts up the movie, and to nobody’s surprise, it’s a Fritz Donnagan action flick. They manage to get all the way through the movie without anyone needing to rearrange. Once it’s over, everyone breaks to grab snacks and stretch while Cole makes his decision. And that is what sets the pace for the rest of the day.

Cole’s movie was a historical drama. Kai sleeps on his lap the entire way through it. Zane takes advantage of the opportunity to play with his hair while it was free from its usual gel prison.

Kai picks romantic comedy, and Zane doesn’t really get a chance to watch it because Jay spends the entire time trying to steal kisses from him (and to a lesser extent, the others.) They take another break so Kai can take a quick call from Nya, and then resettle for Zane’s choice.

He has selected a nature documentary that looked rather intriguing. This time around, he ends up on the floor between Kai’s legs, and Jay on his lap. Cole sits just a little ways off, far enough to make it clear he wanted some space but not so far he is isolated. Things are comfortable. He isn’t sure when the last time he felt so relaxed was.

They finish up just in time for Zane to get started cooking dinner. Jay makes it clear he thought the documentary was boring, but it didn’t slip past zane how he’d clutched at a pillow and whispered ‘no, not the babies’ when they’d watched the section on sea turtle hatchlings.

“That was pretty fun. We should do that again sometime,” Cole says as the three of them follow Zane into the kitchen.

“Totally,” Kai agrees. “We deserve more than one day off together every couple months.”

“Zane, you should totally talk to Lloyd about seeing if we can make this a regular thing.” Jay pokes him.

“I don’t see why I should be the one to ask. Any one of you would be just as capable as I am.”

“Lloyd agrees with you more. I think it's because he still sees you as the smart logical one,” Cole points out. He is met by three pleading sets of eyes.

“I have the distinct feeling that I should be offended by that, but...I will consider your request,” He relents. Having more opportunities to spend quality time with his boyfriends did sound nice. “For now, let us make the most of the time we still have. Since you are all here, you can help me prepare dinner.”

There is complaining, but everyone listens when he gives out directions. As the four of them work around each other, joking and laughing, Zane is once again struck by how relaxed he feels. How long had it been since they had been able to be this at ease together? He hadn't thought about anything ninja related at any point that day. Maybe the others were right.

Tomorrow morning, he would ask Lloyd about organizing more of these days off in the future.

[cotncandyboifics]

1989 [High School AU]: Chapter 7

AO3 Link

Masterpost

Chapter 1 ~ Chapter 2 ~ Chapter 3 ~ Chapter 4 ~ Chapter 5 ~ Chapter 6 ~ Chapter 8 ~ Chapter 9 ~

Pairings: slight Logince, eventual Prinxiety & Logicality

Word count: 2,142

Story summary: Roman Prince is your stereotypical Jock, with everyone swooning after him. Every day a crowd of people follow him around, only to disperse at his personal whim. In reality, he's lucky to have such good acting skills that help him cover up the disdain he has for his life. He only wishes he could use his skills properly.

Patton Whitelock's always there to lend a helping hand, no matter who you are. If you need a favor or just need someone to talk to, go to him. In reality, he's been taught from a young age that kindness should be held above all else. No one suspects that he took it the wrong way.

Logan Montgomery is the smartest boy in the Senior class. He's stern, and most people are too intimidated to speak to him. In reality, he despises most all of his fellow students. He sticks to his studies and doesn't stray, for fear of being stuck in his father's shadow his whole life.

Virgil Black is the most emo kid in school, let alone 12th grade; everyone knows to leave him be. In reality, he's very fortunate. He has two parents who love him dearly. But everything beyond his life, everything within his mind, is utter chaos and turmoil.

what will happen when they're assigned a biology project together?

General CW: food, swearing, implied s-lf h-rm, non-graphic descriptions of s-lf h-rm scars, graphic and non-graphic descriptions of anxiety attacks and panic attacks, drug abuse, minor character intoxicated on heroin, non-graphic drug overdose description, sickness/description of sickness, blood, non-graphic descriptions of needles, (will be added to as I write more)

Chapter CW: food, implied starts of anxiety attacks, (let me know if i missed anything please!)

Author notes: whenever I reread this chapter I'm not sure whether the point of it is clear to the reader or not... but I'm not sure how to rewrite/fix it lol

...

Finally, it was Friday. Between classes, Virgil was pacing quickly down the hall when he noticed Logan exchanging things from his locker. He also saw Roman approaching the tall boy, adorning a mischievous smile. Virgil decided to slip out of sight behind the bustle of the hallway to observe their interaction, staying hidden near the walls.

Roman stood directly behind Logan and tapped him on the shoulder. Logan turned fully around, and upon seeing Roman, he opened his mouth to speak. He was quickly was interrupted, however, as Roman put his hand against the locker at Logan's side, and traced his other hand down Logan's button-up-covered chest. Logan was pinned against his open locker. Virgil couldn't make out the things Roman was saying to him, but Logan looked blatantly... caught off guard, to say the least. His pearly white cheeks were dusted pink. After a few moments, he pushed Roman aside and made to leave, but Roman grabbed him by the tie and pulled him back. They'd switched positions, Logan having put his pale bony arm out to stop himself from falling. Roman was still pulling his tie, smirking and looking into his eyes deviously. Virgil read Roman's lips and thought he saw "-if you're into that." Logan was clearly getting frustrated and forced his tie away, collecting his book bag from the floor and shooing Roman so that he could close his locker. Virgil saw Logan speak, and made out something like "I'll be late for class."

What a couple they made. Virgil felt something heavy growing in the pit of his stomach. Roman had left to go to his class as well, and the halls were becoming more and more empty as students filed into various classrooms. Finally the bell rang, and Virgil felt like he couldn't move to save his life. He started scratching his wrist and felt his breathing become uneven. No, not here, not now. He forced himself to breathe normally and made his way to his next class.

...

Later that day, Patton was lying on Virgil's bed, throwing a bouncy ball up and catching it in a slow rhythm. Virgil was seated at his desk right beside Patton, vaguely attempting to finish his French homework. Not like it'd be due until Monday anyway.

Patton and Virgil had been good friends from a young age, and usually hung out like this around twice a week. Every now and then they'd do something special, but usually it was just being together and talking.

Virgil knew a lot about Patton, more than most people do. He knew about his best friend's current... sticky home situation, and so he never questioned it when Patton came up to him later in the school day with a sorrowful glint in his eyes, asking if they could go back to Virgil's house that evening.

"Do you think they had a nice date yesterday?" Patton said after a minute or two of calm silence. Virgil looked over at him. He'd stopped throwing the ball, and was now inspecting its strange colorful surface, scratching at little flakes of plastic that hung off its seams. Virgil thought to himself how it was so strange that these types of bouncy balls always seemed to practically glow when exposed to light, even though they had no sparkles or shiny qualities about them.

"I guess I don't know. Roman might have ruined it with his overconfidence and ridiculous antics," Virgil finally replied, leaning back in his chair and staring at the ceiling. "Especially if he did something like take them to some 5-star family-owned Italian restaurant where you get kicked out unless you're wearing a waistcoat and you have to make a reservation a year in advance," he mused. Patton giggled a little.

"Yeah, that sounds like Mr. Prince," He offered a little quieter than he wanted to. Virgil eyed him with concern.

"You haven't really been thinking much of it, have you?" Virgil turned fully toward his bespectacled friend now, who was just staring blankly, clutching the bouncy ball to his chest. "I mean, I don't think it'll be much of a distraction to our project than Roman already is. And besides, I really doubt that Logan will go for a second round," Virgil dismissed the notion bitterly, and Patton wondered when Virgil had developed such a resentment against Roman.

"Well," Patton started, sitting up and pulling his legs into a criss-cross applesauce, "I'm surprised Logan wanted to in the first place. I don't think he has ever dated anyone, let alone someone so..."

"I know what you mean." Virgil got up to sit criss-cross applesauce with his friend on the bed. They looked at each other and giggled a little, remembering how they used to do this as little kids. They were just like brothers in a way.

Virgil noticed Patton pulling at his ring again, and knew something was up. "Hey," He said, taking Patton's hand. Patton looked up at him nervously from behind his big round glasses, his blonde curls hiding the top trims. "What's up?"

Patton made a noise that was something between a scoff and a sigh, looking away but not pulling away. "I just..." He thought for a long moment on how to begin what he wanted to say without saying what he didn't want to say... not yet, anyway. "I want Logan to be happy. He's a, good friend," A smile curled at the edges of his mouth. "I don't think Roman makes him... unhappy, per se. I think they could be really," Patton pulled his hand back and started fidgeting with his ring again, "close... but I don't know if, them being together will make Logan happy. W-will make either of them happy." He looked up at Virgil then, who was stoic. "I-I mean, i know it isn't really any of my business to worry about. I know I don't really know... anything about their date or..."

Virgil gave a somber smile. "I know what you mean. I feel it too. I mean, they don't seem to... clash correctly," Virgil meshed his fingers together as a visual metaphor. "They don't fit quite right into a relationship box together. And i don't think Roman is enamored with him in the way he says he is, or acts like he is." That bitter tone resurfaced in Virgil's voice again, and Patton took note of it.

He looked up, curls bouncing slightly. "What do you mean by that?" Virgil returned his eye contact, and Patton looked like he was hiding some emotion. Maybe... anger?

"Well..." Virgil thought about what he'd said. Specifically a certain song and a certain moment that had given him the notion that, as much as Roman acted confident, when he was truly falling for someone... he might act quite the opposite. Virgil felt his cheeks heat up, and Patton's expression changed.

"Is there something you know that i don't?" Patton pressed. Not maliciously, but curiosity dripped from his voice. Virgil brought his fingertips to his cheeks and wondered how they'd gotten so hot so quickly.

"Well, I, I just..." Virgil stuttered for a long moment. "I suppose it seems like, i don't know, like, maybe if Roman were really, um, that is to say, maybe, he would be, if he were really, you know, into someone, like that, like, um," He was talking with his hands too much, and Patton noticed his breathing becoming more like heaving. He took Virgil's frantic hands.

"Hey, take a sec," Patton's voice was coated in caramel. Virgil finally made eye contact again. "Breathe, bud," Patton said even calmer and sweeter this time. Virgil's attention suddenly switched to his breathing patterns, which he now noticed were getting rather erratic. He took a moment to reconcile himself.

"Sorry, I went off on a bit of a tangent there... but, as i was saying, or, trying to say," Virgil continued to stumble his way to his point, but with more purpose this time, "... Roman, strikes me as the type, to seem... like he wouldn't act the way he does with Logan if he were in love with him, maybe," He was fiddling with his own fingers now. "but i have a feeling that he might be... a bit of a softie. I mean, what i mean is, he... If he really likes someone I think he wouldn't be able to be his... y'know... confident, jock, witty-remark-shooting self. If that, makes any sense."

"huh," Patton said after a moment of consideration. "Well that's possible. I don't really know honestly. I haven't spent a lot of time with the guy, and whenever i do he always seems to be that same confident person. Well, except with you, sometimes."

"Huh? Me? What?" Virgil was blatantly alarmed. Patton hadn't meant to cause this alarm, so he replied gently.

"Oh, no no kiddo, i just mean like... Y'know how you two are always sorta, bickering or debating or poking fun at each other?" Virgil nodded. "Well, I've just noticed, that sometimes when you make certain comments or whatnot, he sort of... Loses himself. His persona. It kind of falls away, and he seems sort of lost for words." Virgil looked even more alarmed than before. "I-I don't mean that that's necessarily because of you, I just, it's just the only time i have seen him react in that way and... I don't know. It probably happens with him all the time when I'm not around. Or whatever. I don't know. I'm sorry." Patton spoke so quickly that Virgil hardly heard each word. He was just trying to calm himself. Was it so obvious?

"Well." Was all he could muster in reply.

"Anyhow, I think I agree, at least that something seems a little off... I hope it is anyw-" Virgil trained his eyes on Patton. "I mean- I, uh, I-I don't know where that came from! I don't hope, that- I don't hope anything bad for either of them! I didn't- I didn't think, I just-"

"You just have a crush on Logan?" Virgil was still staring at Patton, mischief peeking around the edges of his pupils.

"Wuh-- What!!!" Patton couldn't say anything else; he just grabbed the nearest pillow and shoved his face into it. Virgil heard an indignant "no I don't" from the pillow as he put his hand on his best friend's shoulder.

"Patton, buddy. It's okay." Virgil just awkwardly patted the shoulder of Patton's balled up form.

"Does everyone know!?" He looked up finally, his nose running slightly. He wasn't crying, but even so, sometimes when he got emotional or embarrassed his cheeks turned deep rosy and his nose started running. Just another little quirk about him that Virgil always kept close to his heart.

"Well, it is plain as day," Virgil started while Patton's eyes seemed so somehow grow larger, "But Logan and Roman have no clue, as far as I can tell. Logan wouldn't know you liked him unless... well, unless you asked him on a date apparently," Virgil chuckled slightly, remembering the bizarre interaction between Roman and Logan on Monday. "And Roman is always too busy bothering Logan to pay attention to what you're doing," Virgil propped his chin up on one of his hands. "But objectively, it is pretty obvious."

Patton was deflated, blonde curls doing their best to bashfully cover his eyes now. He put his face back into the pillow on his lap. Virgil heard a muffled "I'm sorry."

"What? Why are you sorry?" Virgil rubbed his back now.

"I don't know. I'm sorry to Logan mostly. And to myself." His shrunken form shook slightly. Virgil hoped he wouldn't start crying.

"Ohhhh come on," Virgil awkwardly attempted to comfort him. "No one knows, and besides, it's no big deal. You'll be alright. Most likely, nothing will happen, and you can just eventually move on with your life. And heck, maybe you'll get your chance with him."

Patton's curls shook again as he looked up, eyes the size of the moon. "You really think so????" He asked in earnest. clear snot streams ran down from his nostrils and over his lips now, and his whole face was like a tomato. Virgil laughed airily.

"...It's always possible," he said almost under his breath. He wondered if he was reassuring himself or Patton more.

They sat in silence for a short moment, Virgil shaking his slender fingers through his vibrant purple bangs. I should re-dye my hair soon. The roots are starting to show.

"Wanna get some ice cream?" Virgil asked eventually. Patton's eyes lit up.

"Yeah! Did your mom get Grasshopper Pie again??? I love that stuff so much!" They got up off Virgil's bed together to head down the hall to the stairs.

"Actually, my mom tried making some herself this time," Virgil shut his bedroom door behind them.

"Ooh, really!?!?! I'm so excited to try it then!" Patton squealed, overjoyed as a small child would be. It was as if all of his troubles had dissipated like seeds in the wind. Another thing Virgil admired about Patton.

He hoped everything would be okay.

[snkpolls]

SnK Episode 61 Poll Results (for Anime Only Watchers)

The poll closed with 164 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note that these are the results for the Anime Only Watchers’ poll. If you wish to see the results for the Manga Readers’ poll, click here.

Anime only watchers, beware of spoilers if you venture over to the manga readers’ poll results.

---

RATE THE EPISODE 142 Responses

Episode 61 received even better reception than episode 60 did for anime only viewers, with all votes leaning 3-5 on the rating scale, none of our respondents seemed let down by the episode! 

AMAZING!! not action heavy this time, but the information i gained  was a big insight on what’s to come! lots of things are gonna go down and i’m s c a r e d. ready for next sunday 😈🔥

It was fire 

I really loved this episode, better than the last episode. Animation quality was on par with movie quality. MAPPA is giving us their best, ALL HAIL MAPPA.

1 word. Awesome

I love the pacing on this episode and the small details in it. 

Give me more!!!

bruh

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING WAS YOUR FAVORITE SCENE/MOMENT? 142 Responses

Reiner monologuing about the 104th at the dinner table took front and center seat this week with 43% of viewers favoring this scene the most. Trailing behind, 16.9% enjoyed the scene where Reiner meets up with the Warrior Cadets, and 9.9% enjoyed seeing the human forms of the Cart and Jaw titans for the first time.

WE FORGOT TO ASK LAST WEEK D: WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING SCENES/MOMENTS FROM EPISODE 60 WAS YOUR FAVORITE? 142 Responses

Last week, the highest percentage of people (at 30.3%) enjoyed Reiner’s, “I’m sick and tired… of walls.” 19% favored the scene of Zeke’s scream turning Eldians into titans. 17.6% were most hyped up over Reiner and Galliard wrecking Fort Slava.

MAPPA WENT ALL OUT WITH THE CINEMATOGRAPHY IN THIS EPISODE. WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE CINEMATIC PANS AND ROTOSCOPE ANIMATION? 142 Responses

Overall, 75.4% of the total vote went in favor of the animation this week, with 33.8% of viewers stating they felt as though they were watching a movie, 32.4% enjoying the fluidity, and 9.2% enjoying the upgrade from the stiffer animation in the previous season. 10.6% felt the rotoscoping and cinematic shots were a little too over the top for an anime, and 10.6% are indifferent. A small handful aren’t enjoying the cinematic animation at all. 

Hated the rotoscope, loved everything else.

It was a bit off-putting at first but I've grown to really like it

it was different but i liked it! it was cool. reminded me of some anime movies i’ve seen, though unique in it own sense

Thought it was great and fluid just at some points like the scene with udo on the docks felt a bit choppy.

Beautiful work, it honestly felt like I was watching a movie. From cinematography to shot framing to the animation. A dialogue heavy episode felt exciting, which is amazing.

I really liked the animation

The animation is so glowy

NOW THAT WE’VE GOTTEN TO HEAR A LITTLE MORE OF THE NEW OST TRACKS, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE SOUNDTRACK SO FAR THIS SEASON? 142 Responses

People are overall enjoying the new music so far, with 41.5% feeling it really compliments the change in atmosphere and 35.9% REALLY enjoying the songs and finding their usage very good. 9.9% feel they’re just ok while 7.7% miss the music being composed solely by Sawano. A smaller handful aren’t enjoying the new music.

They DEFINITELY bring the right vibes lol. again, different, but i like it!

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE CLOSEUP OF ZEKE’S MOUTH? 141 Responses

In our first of a series of unnecessary crack questions, 31.9% find Zeke’s mouth closeup to have been pretty cool animation. 24.8% are very concerned about Zeke’s treatment of his lungs (do shifters get lung damage?). 20.6% didn’t care about Zeke’s mouth at aoo, while 14.2% would welcome a smooch from him. A handful of people just think it’s gross, lol.

Fucking hate zeke smh 🙄

He smokin a spliffy 😂 not no ciggy 

what chapstick using??lmao.  it was a cool scene

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION ABOUT ELDIAN ASSES? 140 Responses

Eldian asses didn’t turn out to be too controversial, with the majority (42.1%) just wanting to know the details of Zeke’s secret ass wiping technique. 10.7% just think Eldian asses are neat, and another 10% are more enthusiastic about some nice Eldian asses. 25.7% are confused about the question’s inclusion, and 11.4% don’t understand why this was asked at all.

DO YOU WANT REINER TO GIVE YOU A HEAD PAT? 140 Responses

In a close race, 42.1% of respondents would be thrilled to get a nice head pat from Reiner! 41.4% apparently don’t, and just wanna know what the heck the pollsters are smoking while writing up these questions. 11.4% do NOT want Reiner head pats. :(

ZEKE SEEMS TO BE KEEPING HIS ROYAL LINEAGE A SECRET FROM MARLEY DESPITE HIS LOYALTY TO THEM. ANY IDEAS WHY YOU THINK HE IS? 139 Responses

Zeke, the “wonderboy” (as General Calvi puts it) who sold out his own parents, has never been doubted by Marley in terms of his loyalty. Yet, for some reason he seems to be keeping his royal bloodline a secret from them. When we asked why that is, over half of respondents (56.1%) state that they are suspicious of Zeke and his real motives, believing that he is plotting something under Marley’s nose. 25.2% feel that he doesn’t want them to know he’s royal so that they can’t abuse his power, and 12.9% think he simply doesn’t let them know so that they won’t kill him. 

I forgot he was royal 

maybe they will force him to continue the bloodline through children, or maybe he will get used or killed

Well if they dont know hes got a hereditary advantage over both his predeccesors and succesors, he'll always be recognised as the best beast titan and heaps better than my boy Colt.

WE LEARNED IN THIS EPISODE THAT FALCO’S LAST NAME IS “GRICE.” DO YOU THINK THIS WILL HOLD ANY SIGNIFICANCE? 139 Responses

32.4% of respondents don’t remember anyone named Grice. To recap, “Grice” is the name of the person who recruited Grisha Yeager into the Restorationist group, and is the one who was kicked off the wall for the restorationist titans to chase after once they were transformed by Marley. For those that did remember this seemingly random person, 52.2% feel that this relation will be brought up again and have importance to the story, and 12.9% feel it doesn’t really mean anything other than being a neat little detail. 

I feel like you asking this implies that there’s something to it

Not sure yet. But, Falco and Colt seem to be really caring and aware of how the Marlyeans treat Marly-Eldians (at least compared to the other warrior candidates). Also, when we saw their parents they seemed kind too, showing lots of concern for Colt. Maybe they learnt what the former restorationist/other Grice was doing and his cause of death and sent their kids to the warrior program for the same reason Grisha and Dina did Zeke? My bet is Colt & Falco are the restorationist Grice's nephews?

YOUR REACTION TO THE CART TITAN BEING A CUTE WOMAN? 140 Responses

Pieck deserves a colorful pie chart, and she got one! 25.7% say she’s best girl, 22.9% think she’s utterly adorable. 13.6% of viewers already knew about Pieck before getting to this point and were unsurprised. At a tie, 11.4% of voters think that it’s amazing, or they were shocked to find out that the quadrupedal nightmare titan is really just a short, cute woman.

I worked it out last episode since the armbands appeared to indicate the 'type/status' of Eldians, but I was a bit surprised last episode I thought from the trailer the red bands may be special lineages i.e. Ackerman, Oriental clan, and Riess/Fritz. Still think she may be from the oriental clan though since the only characters we've seen with a similar appearance to her are Mikasa and her mother.  

she kinda shawty 👀 but she looks scary too

WE WERE FORMALLY INTRODUCED TO MORE CHARACTERS THIS WEEK, SO WE WILL ASK AGAIN… WHICH NEW CHARACTER IS YOUR FAVORITE SO FAR? 143 Responses

Last week, Falco was the most favored of the new cast with only 40% of the vote. This week, he shoots up over 10 percentage points, with 50.3% of viewers feeling the most positively toward him. Pieck comes in second with 17.5% of the vote, and Gabi is hanging on with just 12.6% of the vote. Colt and Galliard are trailing just a little bit more behind them. 

Gabi best girl

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE FATE OF YMIR? 144 Responses

While we did get teased about Ymir’s fate in Season 3, seeing the scene in full can definitely have more of an impact. 37.5% of respondents have accepted the notion of Ymir dying, and feel that it was a decent end for her character, all things considered. 22.9% are in complete and total anguish over her fate, and 20.1% are simply just disappointed and had hoped to see more of her. A very small percentage think that this is actually a red herring, and that Ymir is somehow still alive somewhere.

Already saw this in season 3

Appropriately grim and realistic given what lengths Marley will go to in order to protect themselves 

I am in so much pain please euthanize me that’s my wife

i didn’t really like her anyway so it’s fine(but it was still a bit sad) 

Kinda hate crimey considering shes the only OUT (@jean) charcter. Nah jk. Like wasnt shocked tho coz we saw Galliard last ep

Let's fucking GOOOOOO

Galliard will NEVER replace Ymir, I already hate his bitch ass

So Galliard really is a replacement scrappy eh? I already hate him JUST for that.

TURNS OUT THAT GALLIARD IS MARCEL’S BROTHER. DO YOU THINK THIS WILL BE SIGNIFICANT? 143 Responses

Over half of respondents (52.4%) believe that Galliard’s relation to Marcel will have significance at some point. 32.9% think that it might, but don’t want to say either way. A small percentage feel it’s just a detail that won’t matter. 12.6% have completely forgotten who Marcel is (to refresh your memory, Ymir ate him before RBA attacked the walls).

DO YOU THINK THE MAN WEARING THE ARMBAND INCORRECTLY WILL BE IMPORTANT? 144 Responses

At 73.6%, the majority of viewers are eyeing the random amputee soldier who Falco briefly helped out, believing that he will be important in some manner moving forward. 13.9% believe that it’s just a random soldier, and the scene maybe meant more in terms of showing Falco’s kindness. 12.5% aren’t sure what to make of the amputee soldier at all.

LAST WEEK, WHEN ASKED WHO WILL INHERIT THE ARMORED TITAN, THE MAJORITY PICKED FALCO. AFTER THIS EPISODE, WHO DO YOU THINK WILL INHERIT THE ARMORED TITAN NOW? 143 Responses

Falco is still the most favored to inherit the Armored Titan from Reiner with the percentage of people believing he will jumping from 37.6% to 48.3%. 21.7% are still confident that Gabi will ultimately be the one who gets to eat Reiner. 28.7% believe that neither of them will inherit Reiner’s titan at all.

DO YOU THINK THAT REINER REALLY BELIEVES THE PARADISIANS ARE DEVILS? 143 Responses

The overwhelming majority of respondents don’t believe that Reiner really means what he says when he calls the Paradisians “savage, heartless devils.” Only a small percentage feel he does really means what he says, and a handful of others aren’t sure.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT REINER WITH WHAT WE’VE SEEN IN THIS ARC SO FAR? 143 Responses

The majority of viewers feel very positively about Reiner and are enjoying seeing more of him, with 46.2% stating that Reiner is really starting to grow on them, while 26.6% already liked Reiner from the start. 18.2% are beginning to feel more empathy for Reiner, although they still aren’t huge fans, and a smaller percentage don’t like him and haven’t been swayed by the narrative as of yet. 

Always seemed like there was lots to him, enjoying the furthered development into his psyche :) 

he’s so hot omg. i feel so terrible cause he’s clearly suffering from ptsd and his disorder too. he seems torn. i do like how he is playing a major role so far. 

I’m in love with Reiner and always have been

Meh

Reiner became 1000% hotter after his life fell apart

REINER AND GABI ARE REVEALED TO BE COUSINS. THOUGHTS? 142 Responses

36.6% of respondents were genuinely shocked to learn that Gabi and Reiner are cousins. 21.8% feel more invested in Gabi’s character arc after knowing this information. 19% were already spoiled on this, and 15.5% don’t really care about it at all. 

Kinda thought she wanted to fuck her cousin lmao

Makes me horrified how casually they talk abt eating Reiner

They had the same last name so I figured they must have had some relation.

Yee haw

GABI QUESTIONS REINER AFTER HE TALKED ABOUT THE 104TH, ASKING IF PEOPLE ON PARADIS WERE ALL BAD. DO YOU THINK SHE CAN OVERCOME HER BRAINWASHING TO SEE THAT PARADISIANS AREN’T EVIL? 143 Responses

The majority think that there is a possibility for Gabi to see things from a new perspective over time. 40.6% aren’t completely sold on it yet, but also believe that it’s within the realm of possibility. 32.9% are very confident that this is the direction her story arc is going to take, and 26.6% think that nothing will be able to undo years of brainwashing for her.

THE TYBURS ARE SAID TO BE AN AFFLUENT FAMILY THAT HOLDS THE WARHAMMER TITAN, BUT HAVE NEVER BEEN INVOLVED IN ANY CONFLICT. WHY WOULD THEY WANT TO GET INVOLVED NOW? 139 Responses

While we still don’t know much about the Tybur family, we thought we’d check in and see what preconceived notions viewers may already have about them. 27.3% believe the Tybur family feel the same as Marley and see Paradis as a threat. 30.2% think that the only reason they’d want to get involved in the conflict is if they get something about it. 41.7% think that the Tyburs are super sus and ultimately will have their own agenda for attacking Paradis. 

They got the good life already, why battle?

WITH AN ATTACK ON PARADIS BEING IMMINENT, HOW DO YOU THINK REINER WILL REACT WHEN HE RETURNS TO THE ISLAND? 139 Responses

We’ve seen Reiner struggle over the weight of his sins in previous seasons, with Ymir even pointing out that he has developed a type of “split personality” to cope with the horror he forced onto the people of Paradis. With the prospect of returning to the island, we asked how you think Reiner will handle the situation. With the highest percentage, 32.4% of respondents feel that Reiner’s mental state will make him completely ineffective if he returns to Paradis. 28.8% think he may even completely switch back to his “soldier persona” once he faces his former comrades again. 26.6% believe that he will keep himself together and stay focused on the mission handed to him. 9.4% think he will find a way to avoid going back altogether. 

Honestly, don't know.

I wouldnt say ineffective, probably just ina daze of sorts. Like hes not fully in the moment.

Idk if he is even gonna go

Not Sure

I hope my boi Reiner makes it through!

REINER FLASHBACKS NEXT WEEK! ARE YOU EXCITED TO FINALLY GET THE WARRIORS’ BACKSTORY? 142 Responses

The vast majority are happy to be finally getting the Warriors’ backstory in the next episode, with 69% feeling overwhelmed with excitement about it, and 19.7% just happy to finally be getting to this point. A smaller percentage don’t really care about learning their backstory and a handful of people are actually dreading it. 

I loved the baby warrior flashback and can’t wait for next week.

ON A SCALE OF REINER TO ZEKE, HOW EAGER ARE YOU TO GET BACK TO PARADIS? 141 Responses

While there is a handful of people who are enjoying the new perspective and getting to know these new characters in Marley, the majority of viewers are (unsurprisingly) eager to see what’s going on with the original cast after the 4 year time skip and the cliffhanger at the ocean in season 3. A message from manga readers: we know your pain, just hang in there!

This arc isn't really doing it for me. The story is only interesting when it focused on the 104th.

If their goal is to make me sympathize with the Warriors it ain't working, I frankly don't give a crap about their sob stories and want to see Eren and friends wreck shit for them

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE EPISODE?

Animation and graphics quality is amazing. The sea was CGI too which feels a bit too detailed compared to other things. The plot and vibe is amazing. I like the WW2 style of things. There are so many interactions coming just the thought makes me hyped up. I can easily rewatch it and notice new details and i enjoy it too. Feels really packed and intense.

Solid, loved the animation props to MAPPA, cant wait to see Reiner's character development.

Kinda just people walking around with HELLA ptsd.  Overall kinda vibey Very reminiscent of seas 3 part 1. I will say kinda tgf about these knew kids accept Colt, just wanna see the ogs and Jeans side part. I also HATE Reiner but.........dare I say.....he's growing in me???? Not gabi tho 

Great episode, the trailer's beginning to make a lot more sense now. I didn't expect that guy with the long blonde hair declaring Eren as the enemy (from the trailer) to be part of the Tybur family (maybe I'm wrong here but he looked identical to one of the Tybur family members in the photo Zeke showed.) I assumed he was maybe the Marley leader haha. I think he may be the warhammer titan but it's hard to tell at this point. Regarding the Tybur family, another curious thing is how they are celebrated internationally not just domestically for their help during the great titan war. I am curious whether Marley only treat the Tybur family well because if they didn't that would create issues globally? It seems like the Tybur's have lots of power. But, I wonder if the war hammer titan will be a letdown... I thought it would be the 'big boss' of the titans but after learning that titan doesn't go through training like the other titan shifters and never fought I feel like it's a 50/50 on whether the shifter will be strong or not... I also feel like the guy Falco spoke to was Eren, and this could hint at Eren noticing and possibly trying to indoctrinate Falco? and he was possibly watching Reiner talk to the kids? That was probably Pieck though. Curious how Pieck's father was shown but not mother, he also didn't look like he was from the oriental clan maybe we have another Mikasa on our hands (half Ackerman/Oriental clan) that would be cool, maybe a little bit fanservicey tho.

I like that the focus is on world building right now

I’m just so excited to see what’s coming next

It was friggin awesome but I’m curious on who fell off the roof 🤔

Who is the guy who jumped and died ? :(

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 138 Responses

Thank you again for participating! We’ll see you again next week!

[yossariandawn]

fanfic asks: 1, 4, 6, 9, 15, 20, 50, & 51!!

1. What was the first fandom you got involved in? Honestly, FDTD is the first fandom I’ve done anything approaching real involvement in! I was a long time lurker of many different fandoms, but this one is where I actually made accounts on the different platforms for myself, created stuff past a one off here or there (that mostly never saw the light of day lol) and actually interacted and even made friends in! However, if we are going for the first fandom I discovered, that would be Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

4. Do you regret getting involved in any fandoms? Since I’m only counting this one, nope! Though I will admit, several months ago I did start to see some of the rude or even nasty stuff that is scattered throughout probably all fandoms, directed at real people, normally over characters or ships. And I did make me think real hard about how much time I was putting into this, and whether it was something I wanted to continue to be a part of, even if it is pretty rare overall here. I decided to stick around, and I’m glad I did, but I definitely am trying to be much more conscious with disagreeing publicly when it comes across my dash.

6. List your OTP from each fandom you’ve been involved in. FDTD SethKate. Shoot, the only other kind of involvement in fandoms that I have OTPs in are Falling Skies Hal/Maggie. The Punisher’s Frank/Karen probably get in on just a technicality, since as much as I love them together, I could see them being happy with other people, but ONLY AFTER the events of the show and the impact they had on each other. I did make some vid requests waaaay back in the day for Life With Derek vids, since I couldn’t make any myself at the time! Here is one I found, but it’s not great quality anymore for some reason, and isn’t shippy, lol It’s Casey and her supportive therapist Paul, which is something I loved (VERY MUCH IN A NON ROMANTIC WAY) And I shipped Derek/Casey pretty hard, but I’m not sure they really reach OTP levels.  And a fandom I am very much not in does hold the only other OTP slot I currently have (General Hospital’s Jason/Sam) which I talk about for question 20. The truth is I’m not really normally an OTPer, most shows I watch I couldn’t care less about the ships by themselves as long as I think everyone is acting in character and in interesting ways. Which is a prerequisite for me liking a show in the first place, so 🤷‍♀️

9. What are the best things about your current fandom? The people and the talent. AND THE SHOW, which I adore, for all its faults! But the people have really made this into something special.

15. Is there an obscure ship which you love? Hal/Maggie from Falling Skies probably qualifies for obscure, as there is shockingly little stuff for my favorite badass alien invasion resistance fighters duo.

20. Any ships which you surprised yourself by liking? OK, so this one may also count as obscure, they have a big presence on youtube but basically nothing on tumblr. Jasam aka Jason Morgan/Sam McCall from General Hospital. I don’t watch soaps as a general rule (not knocking them, by any means, they just rarely have stuff I am interested in, and the nature of the format makes it hard for me to stay invested) and when I first got cable I started catching glimpses of the late night reruns on the SOAP Network of some of the weirder ones, like Passions (haha thanks Spike for referencing it enough to catch my interest) and Port Charles, General Hospital’s confusingly related (but not really?) spinoff show. And then one day I noticed one of the Port Charles actresses (Sam!) was now on one of the big deal soaps, but was playing a different character! IN THE SAME TOWN?! but during the day, with less/no vampires and more/all mob antics. ANYWAY, end result is I got increasingly sucked into her storyline, and THEN THE JASAM STUFF HAPPENED, which it was so my kind of thing it’s not even funny. PARTNERS! IN CRIME! AND IN LOVE! BADASS SOFTNESS AND TRUST AND PEOPLE WHO LOVE AND PROTECT EACH OTHER AND THEN REALIZE WHOOPS WE’RE IN LOVE OH NO WHAT WILL WE DO. And the downside of loving a soap opera character or pairing is you just have to accept the fact that at some point they will become completely UNRECOGNIZABLE, either through characterization or actual recasting. 🤣 So while I did stop watching after the god awful “Sam sleeps with her stepdad and Jason has a secret love child” arc, I did tune back in for both their Mexico Road Trip Reunion and their (First) Wedding! And I still rewatch their 2004-early 2006 storylines on youtube, and I will always scan the supermarket soap mags for little glimpses into how things are going for them, which seems to be pretty well actually! They are definitely a real Legacy Couple now, and Jason the Original is apparently back too, which is nice.

50. How did you get into reading and/or writing fanfiction? Spuffy 😂. I don’t know how I found the first fanfic I read (other than clearly way to much free access to the internet)  There’s a chance I was watching fanvids first, which led into finding out about fics. AND IN MY DAY THERE WAS NO YOUTUBE, so fanvids were much harder to find! RIP Buffyverse Database (i think that’s what it was called lol) But Spike was my favorite character on Buffy, and  I fell so hard in love with the IDEA of Buffy and Spike having a romantic connection and acting on it, right up until it started actually happening in Season 6. It was a wild ride for twelve year old me, but I learned a ton about what kind of things I like in relationships, and want kind of things I VERY MUCH DO NOT LIKE. And for anyone who likes Spuffy, this is completely a personal preference, not a dig at the couple. I do understand the appeal, it’s just didn’t end up being what I wanted it to be.

51. Rant or Gush about one thing you love or hate in the world of fanfiction! Go! Ok, so this is a bit of advice with some rant mixed in! If you send anon stuff to a writer, please remember you are talking to a real person, and someone who has put themselves out there in some way enough for you to comment on. If you choose to go anon, the very fact of your anonymity means that the only information they will have are the contents of that one message you’ve sent, and that you’ve chosen to not take the risk of putting yourself out there in the same way the person receiving the message has. And if all you are sending in that message is a correction, or disagreement, or (in more extreme cases) even an attempt to police your fandom by telling someone else that they are participating wrong (meaning not in a way you agree with) then your message? May not be given the good faith extended to people who DO put themselves out there, however imperfectly they do it. Good and effective communication is so hard, I really understand, and it’s a skill that all of us are still learning and sometimes failing at. I’ve been really impressed by how I’ve seen people handle messages  I know I would not have been able to do with such grace! Personally, at this point the cons of anon stuff outweighs the pros for me, but everyone gets to make their own choice on how they handle their inbox thankfully! (anon asks can be toggled off and on, and you can even block anons instead of answering them!) But anon or not, we should all treat each other kindly, even people we disagree strongly with. And if you do, you may even change someone's mind or learn something new yourself. I know from personal experience it’s way more effective than the alternative, which doesn’t make it easier, but does make it worth trying.

Thanks for sending these in @alwaysupatnight! 💖💖💖

[foolgobi65]

Mahabharata (any characters or pairing) + college au + meet messy + “alexa, play wonderwall.” (at this point im just picking things at random lol)

play wonderwall : you’ll see lol  basically used this as an excuse to write a version of the scene u and i both acknowledge as our favorite. the single most iconic scene in the entire epic, bar none. for our sake, i really hope that you like it!! also the “meet messy” is basically random people in the crowd meeting this trainwreck of a family in all of its glory. also i think rhea’s modern au krishna goes by shyam yadav??? i tried to use a different first name at least but none of them sounded as nice so i gave up lol sorry rhea. 

--

“Are you fucking kidding me?” 

It seems like the entire university is gathered on the front lawn to watch the swearing-in ceremony of new Union President Dharamraj Kuru after what many reported to be the nastiest student election season perhaps ever seen. Jarasandha Magadh, after years of refusing to graduate, had at the last minute been put in the hospital and, apparently, sustained injuries so extensive that it had effectively argued that his already completed coursework should be all that was counted when factoring in his final mark. 

“Especially given said student’s...extensive history...with this institution,” Shyam had apparently said when arguing Jarasandha’s case to University Administration, Jarasandha himself completely unaware and apparently furious when he was brought out of his medically induced coma. 

Jarasandha’s party’s hastily promoted candidate Sahadeva was wildly acknowledged to be weak, young, and meant to be nothing more than a rubber stamp on business as usual. Dharamraj, whose upstart campaign effectively communicated how poorly “business as usual” had treated the student body, was suddenly flooded with factions of students seeking an alliance so that their respective organizations might be allocated larger portions of the budget everyone assumed Dharamraj would soon control. 

Everyone was right. Dharamraj won in a landslide, and now here everybody is, watching him deliver his maiden speech as their new President. 

“Shisupal,” Dharamraj sighs, “what exactly is your problem?” 

“My problem,” Shisupal shrieks, walking up to the dais from where Dharamraj stands, surrounded by his friends, family, and his girlfriend Yagna. “You’re asking me what my problem is, Brother?” 

“Brother?” someone in the crowd asks, too low to be heard at the front. 

“I think they’re related on their mother’s side,” someone else responds. “Both their mothers are sisters, but Pritha was adopted out to a friend of her father so was never close to her biological siblings.” 

“Jesus,” another laughs, “are they all just cousins?” 

A wide assortment of Kurus stand on stage, jubilant after so many years of them trying and failing to win elections at the university their fathers had once ruled. Yagna, from a prominent family herself, at Dharamraj’s side. Shyam Yadav, whose sister Subhadra is in love with Dhananjaya and whose father was like a brother to Pritha when she was lonely in Kuntibhoj and Vasudev not imprisoned with his wife. 

Yes, they really are all just cousins. 

Vrikodara steps in front of Dharamraj, arms crossed and looming nearly half a metre taller than Shishupal. Yet, Shishupal is not cowed -- though many men more intelligent than he would have been. 

“I’m not afraid of you, asshole. Everyone knows you’re just the gun in Dharamraj’s hand, and your brother is a pacifist. You won’t touch me.” 

“You would be surprised,” Dharamraj says mildly, smiling slightly as the crowd laughs at the thought of violence from the slightly frail Dharma, always seen in the library or sitting under the tree outside it, smoking cigarettes as he argues with professors twice his age about obscure legalities and wins. 

“You wouldn’t hurt a fly,” Shishupal spits, “you’re too much of a coward to hit a person when they know it’s coming. That’s why you’re just stabbing us in the back, selling us out on the first day when we put our reputations on the line to back you for President.” 

“Shisupal!” Vrikodara roars, Dhananjaya striding to stand next to him, Suyodhana and Radheya on either flank despite what is rumored to be their own tensions with Pandu’s sons. The family is closing ranks at this attack from one their own, it seems, but then what is University politics if not a way for people to find some entertainment from other people’s drama. 

“What,” Shishupal retorts, “you expect us all to shut up while you commit to sinking half of the budget into that wastrel’s pathetic fund? You plan on just giving our money away to anyone who spins a sad life story and begs for cash?” 

Well, University politics is about this too -- the eternal question of which students should be helped, and how much. The fund in question is the brainchild of Shyam, a way for individuals to apply for rapid monetary relief in response to uncontrollable circumstances, and be granted what they need with almost no questions asked. 

“Shisupal,” Dhananjaya steps forward, sensitive as always when his best (and only) friend’s name is brought up. “We’ve let you get away with more than we should because you happen to be our mother’s nephew. If you continue to embarrass us in public it won’t end well.” Shishupal laughs. “For you or for me? As far as I can see, you’ve all been duped by that street-trash pretending to be Vasudev Yadav’s son.” 

Dhananjaya glares. “Uncle Vasudev is more our mother’s brother than your mother is her sister. Slander his name at your own risk.” Again, Shishupal refuses to cower despite what the crowd acknowledges as fierce odds -- Dhananjaya doesn’t actually attend the University, only visits frequently from the Indian Air Force Academy to spend time with Shyam, and his brothers sometimes as well. The man is licensed to shoot a gun, for god’s sake, but Shishupal continues to stand firm. 

“Even now, you’re all standing in front of him,” Shishupal taunts, “Dancing to his tune and protecting his reputation when you know as well as I where he came from. He didn’t even speak English until he left that shithole after killing his own uncle, and you idiots are planning to sink my money into his scheme? Not on my watch.” 

“No,” a voice comes from the back of the group on the dais, “there’s no need to make that face. I can fight my own battles, Dhananjaya. Especially against an absolute clown, like Shishupal.”  

“A clown,” Shishupal shouts, “you’re calling me a clown?” 

Shyam rolls his eyes, having pushed his way to the front. Behind him Vrikodara is grinding his teeth, Dhananjaya’s fingers hovering at his own waist as if wishing for a gun. 

“Well I could have called you a motherfucker,” Shyam shrugs, “but I’m quite fond of your mother. In fact, she was the one who’s begged me to forgive you every time you’ve done something like this.” 

Shishupal snarls. “My mother doesn’t beg, street-trash, and she certainly wouldn’t lower herself to beg from you. People like you are only demanded from.” 

Shyam shrugs again. “Suit yourself. But consider this your last warning -- say another word, and I won’t let you go like I did before.” 

“Before? Before?” For some reason, Shyam’s threat has only made Shishupal angrier, face turning purple where it was red. “Before, as in that time last year, when you stole my wife from the wedding hall at gunpoint. Is that what you mean by before?” 

The crowd goes still at the reminder of the biggest controversy to rock their collective social circle. 

Shyam raises an eyebrow. “The whole point of that was that she wasn’t your wife when we left.” His lip curls in a sneer of his own, eyes suddenly cold. “You were treating her so poorly that she asked what to her was a complete stranger to kidnap her on her wedding day. I wouldn’t talk so loudly about before.” 

Nearly a year ago, Shishupal was to be married to Rukmini Bhoja after years of forcing her to stand attendance at his side during all campus events, despite her not actually being enrolled as a student. Both of their families were rich, well connected, and sought increased prestige through connection with the other. It was, people remarked, on paper the perfect match. 

Of course, Rukmini was intelligent, witty, kind, and one of the most beautiful women most people had ever seen. Shishupal passed classes off of sheer intimidation, threw rocks at the college cats, and supplemented these qualities with his insistence on growing a patchy, horrible, beard and kept his oily, stringy hair long. Worse, there were rumors that Shishupal was even meaner drunk than he was sober, and that once Rukmini had been seen walking away from him clutching her arm and had returned with a scarf wrapped around her shoulders to cover where otherwise might have been a visible pattern of bruises. 

The wedding, everyone had agreed, was to be a tragedy, and would only serve to make Shishupal even more insufferable. When the nightly news had aired the extraordinary report of a young woman staging her own kidnapping, apparently begging one of the groom’s family connections to attend her wedding and hold a gun to her head as they walked out, it was widely agreed to be answer to their prayers, and above all a job very well done by the erstwhile bride to be. When it was revealed that the “kidnapper�� was Shyam, well, that just made the whole thing even funnier. 

When classes restarted, Shishupal prowled with a whole new look -- clean-shaven, and short hair. Rukmini Bhoja was noticeably absent from campus events, but a few months in Shyam had been seen getting off the bus at the station near campus and kissing someone who looked just like Rukmini goodbye. 

It seems the rumors about that last bit had found Shishupal too. “Stranger,” he scoffs. “Is that what we’re calling it these days?” 

Shyam’s entire body, always loose, always slightly in motion, goes completely stiff. More than Dhananjaya, more than Vrikodara, it is Shyam who now suddenly looks like an apex predator. The crowd, not even the one facing Shyam directly, finds itself taking a step back. 

“What exactly is it that we’re calling,” Shyam asks softly -- sound only heard because it’s being picked up by the microphone on the podium awaiting the rest of Dharamraj’s long-forgotten speech. 

Shishupal rolls his eyes, sneering. “I’m glad that bitch made such a spectacle of herself when calling off the wedding. I wouldn’t have wanted to marry a whore, you know. Why take seven rounds to get something she sells, no?” He smirks, as the entire group on the dais -- the whole horrible writhing mass of Kurus and their assorted friends and family -- advance as one. “Or, I guess she was the one who was buying,” Shishupal laughs, looking at Shyam who appears to be frozen in place, his face a perfect picture of overwhelming rage. “She paid you to take her, didn’t she? Poor bitch didn’t even think you’d fuck her for fr--” 

“SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU SON OF A BITCH!” 

Shishupal’s eyes immediately roll up into his skull, as a result of Shyam Yadav’s fist colliding with Shishupal’s jaw. No one bothers to catch the body. 

Silence reigns for entire minutes as everyone watches Shishupal, crumpled on the ground. Watches Shyam Yadav, standing over him wild-eyed, with his right hand still in a fist.

“Oh Alexa,” a gentle female voice calls out from the crowd. Everyone turns to stare, open-mouthed, at Rukmini Bhoja standing in the front row, absolutely grinning at this turn of events. She gazes back at them, turning towards Shyam again and laughs. “Alexa this is so sad. Play ‘Mmm Whatcha Say.” 

[darriness]

Ranking Professionally Record Darren Songs!

Absolutely no one asked me to do this but I felt compelled to do a personal ranking of all the songs Darren has professionally recorded and released. For the sake of my sanity I left out any song that is ‘in character’ so there are no Blaine songs and there are no songs from any of the Starkid shows (Not Alone is there but it doesn’t REALLY count as a Starkid song anymore in my opinion). I also left out the Christmas song he did with Lea because...it’s not Christmas and he was more backup for her than anything else.

To qualify for this list the song had to be professionally recorded (not live), sung at least in part by Darren, and not been a song performed as a character.

Some songs I added a favourite line for but only if I felt compelled to do so (I didn’t make up what line was my favourite just to have one for each song) and I didn’t include a favourite line if the song was a cover.

Did I forget some songs? PROBABLY. But it was fun either way. So now, without further ado: my completely unprofessional, personal rankings of Darren’s professionally recorded music from worst to best.

21. Sami

Human EP (2010)

Sorry for those of you who like this song but it is by far my least favourite Darren song. It BORES me. Also, who is this Sami? I feel like after all this time I should know why he wrote this song…wait, this was the song he wrote for AVPM and he changed it from Ginny to Sam,i wasn’t it? Why Sami though? Because it rhymed with Ginny? Did he know a Sami? I feel like there needs to be more of a story to that one that I don’t know but yeah…this song just bores the crap out of me. I don’t even have a favourite line lol.

20. I Dreamed A Dream

Independent Elsie Fest Release (2017)

Homework EP (2017)

This one is…fine. I think I liked it a lot more before he ‘cheated us’ out of a new song on his Homework EP and just added another recording of this song which he had already released a recorded version of. This song is fine, he does a fine job of it, and I like the fact that he said when this song comes on the radio it’s a good day for his mom and Mia. But I just can’t really get behind it.

19. The Joker/Sweater Song

Scary Pockets (2018)

He looks drop dead gorgeous in this video but I just don’t…get this song. I usually skip past this one when it comes on my shuffle. I probably wouldn’t be so fast to skip past it if I could watch the video every time lol.

18. New Morning

Chimes of Freedom (2012)

I like that he did this one with Chuck. I like the video. I’m just sort of meh about the song itself. I have never been a Bob Dylan fan so that could be why.

17. Wonderwall

Scary Pockets (2017)

I’m actually surprised how low this song is on the list. I actually love this song but when compared to the ones I put above it, it’s just a song. He sang it well, the original song is a classic, the arrangement is pretty good, and he looked adorkably hot in the video but it doesn’t really stick with me as an amazing song when compared to some of the others on the list.

16. The Day That The Dance Is Over

Homework EP (2017)

I WANT to like this song more than I do. I think maybe I’m missing something but it just never…lands with me as well as I want it to. It’s good, well written, and he sings it well it’s just not one I go out of my way to listen to (I usually skip past it actually). I do love the live version from the Teragram show where he forgets the beginning and has to ask Chuck though (also the very very beginning of that version is one of my two favourite ‘fan’ moments where a girl sighs ‘I can’t’ all emotionally lol). Much like Sami, I don’t really have a favourite line in this song.

15. We Like It

Lost Boys Life (2017)

Meh. It’s not fast enough to be a dance song but it’s not slow enough to be a ballad. It’s a weird in-between kind of song that always confuses me a little bit and then makes me angry because songs shouldn’t confuse people so much for those reasons lol. It’s okay, I don’t HATE it, I just don’t really LIKE it either. No favourite line here!

14. I Still Think..

Little White Lie (2009)

So I know I wasn’t going to put in any character or show songs but I feel like this one has become enough of a ‘Darren’ song for me that it counts. I really like this song and it’s got a nonsensical quality to the lyrics that is pleasing to the brain but it’s not as complicated or as well done as some of the song higher on my list in my opinion.

Favourite Line: “It’s okay though, the jokes on the television make me laugh.” (only because when he sings it live he usually goes ‘HA!’ after this line lol)

13. Lost Boys Life

Lost Boys Life (2017)

I struggled with where to put this one, because while I feel like it’s a better song than We Like It, I still don’t think it’s a great song. Turns out I don’t have the greatest love for Computer Games music (this is news to me! lol). Nothing really more to say about this song except no favourite line here!

12. Human

Human EP (2010)

I love this song and while it’s admirable that he wrote it when he was like 15, it’s too… simple to be higher up on the list. It’s cute and well written and nostalgic but it doesn’t really have any WOW factor.

Favourite Line: “I feel like an artist whose lost his touch” (because I love how he plays that line live)

11. Dress and Tie

Dress and Tie (2011)

This song is my jam when it comes on my shuffle but it’s also one I forget about CONSTANTLY. When it comes on my shuffle I am always surprised it’s a thing. That’s mostly why it’s as low as it is on the list. Because otherwise I really like the lyrics, the video (the SMILE?!), and it’s got a good groove to it. I just…forget about it all the time.

Favourite Line: “No, I haven’t known you for a lifetime but somehow I’ve never been more sure that you’re for me. Baby, please, don’t, don’t leave just come and dance with me tonight.”

10. Don’t You

Human EP (2010)

We’re in the top ten! I feel like this song is a simpler version of I Don’t Mind. Maybe because they both have ‘don’t’ in the title? I don’t know lol But either way, this song is cute and makes me smile. It doesn’t have a really big impact or leave you feeling any large emotions but it does make me smile every time I hear it. Side note: It’s not my favourite line but every time I sing along and get to ‘Sure…I’ll admit that I’m…’ I ALWAYS sing ‘a whore’ at the end even though the actual line is ‘the same’. With the way he says ‘sure’ it just feel like ‘whore’ should be the end of the line *shrug*

Favourite Line : “The sun. Telling me the night is done. Well I refuse to let it stop our fun. Close your eyes, we’ll make it dark again.”

9. Every Single Night

Lost Boys Life (2017)

It’s fun, it’s danceable, it’s a bop! I like that there is a ‘dance’ for the chorus and I think the video is fun and adorable. This song makes me happy, makes me smile, but it’s not the most impressive song I’ve ever heard in my life. It serves a purpose but that purpose is really just to allow me to bop my head, do that stupid dance at the chorus, and picture Darren in those colourful turtlenecks lol. I also think it’s funny that while shooting this video he had to leave and get tested for what duct tape would be best to wrap around his head for ACS. No favourite line here!

8. Going Nowhere

Homework EP (2017)

This song is…soothing. That's the best word I can think to describe it. It calms me down to listen to it. It doesn’t wow me or demand I listen to it, but it’s pleasant and sweet and relaxing to listen to. It’s…nice.

Favourite Line: “Another October, I’m sorry I know you’re, expecting a less than sober call” (It just…rolls off the tongue even though it’s not a happy line)

7. Crash Into Me

Crash Into Me (2019)

I really really like this version of this song. I love the drop and the danceability. I spend a lot of time listening to this song jumping around. This song suffers for me in the live performance of it. Darren’s never really been able to sing it live and while I love him…he’s not really an EDM type in my brain so he always seems out of place. But the recorded version is awesome.

6. Dancing In The Dark

Scary Pockets (2019)

I’m pretty sure I love this version more than the original. It’s got such a good groove to it and I love his deep voice and the WOO he does in the middle and then at the end? LOVE. I know he didn’t write it and probably had very little to nothing to do with arranging it, but I love his vocals on this and I adore this version of this song. I also thought the video was fun.

5. Jealousy

Human EP (2010)

This is my favourite song off his Human EP (besides Not Alone but I feel like that is in a different category now). I love the lyrics and it’s just…pleasing to listen to. There are a lot of ‘ee’ sounding rhymes and I appreciate that lol I don’t really have much to say about this one except I love when he does it live and you get to play the ‘will he go up for the ‘the bitch just keeps telling me no’ line or not?’ game.

Favourite Line: “Now let’s be real I feel just like a child, man, someone could be takin’ all my toys. So call me dumb, call me wild, see that’s the thing with little boys.”

4. One Fine Day

Independent Elsie Fest Release (2018)

So his version of this song is better than the original. I will fight anyone who disagrees lol It’s got such a good vibe, the video is so fucking hot (he’s just standing their playing his guitar…WHY IS IT SO HOT?!) and the guitar solo is just…yeah *chef’s kiss* I also ADORE that he doesn’t change the gender in the song (a fact that still confuses and doesn’t sit right with my mother no matter how many times she listens to it). This version is definitely a winner.

3. Not Alone

Human EP (2010)

Not Alone (2015)

Classic Darren. This song will always hold a special place in my heart because it’s the song I sing to my oldest nephew whenever I get to put him to bed. It’s got a great message and received the star treatment to become a fully realized recorded version (though I do love the original Human EP version as well). It gets this spot on my list because it’s just around ALL THE TIME lol It’s a go to for him, kinda like Teenage Dream, and while it’s good to lean into what works, I gave higher spots to the ones I love that aren’t so overdone.

Favourite Line: “And nothing’s ever gonna bring us down cause nothing can keep me from loving you and you know it’s true.”

2. Foolish Thing

Homework EP (2017)

I MUCH prefer this song live so it suffers a little because it’s recorded version lets me down. When this EP came out I was SO excited for this song but then it got a little clunky (with the random clang of ‘pots and pans’ at one point) and strange (with the children singing backup). That being said, I am SUCH a fan of the lyrics in this song. They’re nonsensical in a way that really works for me (like I Still Think but better!) Also you can never go wrong with horns I feel!

Favourite Line: “But a prince in distress needs a damsel to test what he always feared”

1. I Don’t Mind

Homework Ep (2017)

This song just makes me so fucking happy. I love how jaunty the guitar is with the picking, I love the swell of the string instruments (string instruments in songs are ALWAYS awesome), I love the video (short hair for the win! And I love that he shot it in their house at the time), I love the lyrics, I love the message. There is nothing about this song I don’t love.

Favourite Line: “Babe it ain’t no thing, that viper venom sting. Cause even if it got your goat well I’d kiss you with the antidote.”

So there you have it! Do you agree with my choices? Let me know :)

[datingintampafails]

Chapter 11: Darren*

Disclaimer: a multitude of events/details have been left out of this chapter, both for increased anonymity of myself and the gentleman in question, as well as I started writing this two months after this all happened, so apologies.

Darren* is actually someone that I work with at one of my jobs, of which I have three. Upon starting my position there and meeting him, I was immediately attracted. He is from a Scandinavian country originally and just comes with that natural Scandinavian good looks. He acted a little immature, in a way that is just everything is sexual, a natural flirt. For a few months, I had an innocent little crush on him, purely infatuation. 

Often we would say hi in passing and he was always really helpful when it came to patients. He got along with everyone and despite his lewdness, I really enjoyed working with him. There were multiple times that we would walk and talk in the hall, he would express embarrassment to me over him having acne, and would openly announce that he was switching what side he was on because he didn’t want me to see it. I, in my thinking he was out of my league and I was secured in the friend/coworker zone, would be super transparent, and as well complain about my acne, and described in detail the acne patches I would use.

All seemed platonic until one day out of the blue he just leaned in close to me and asked me if he could have my Snapchat. I immediately was like oh yeah of course! From there, we talked throughout the days daily for about a week. 

I let him and my coworker in MRI know that I’m gonna bring in food on the weekend since I got a huge crockpot meal from my Home Chef meal kit boxes and wanted to share the love. When really, although I did do that, I was on purpose making sure I did it on a day Darren* was working. I made sure to wear an outfit that would get his attention without trying too hard: well-fitting yoga pants and a tank top. I arrive and I call their department to let them know I’m here with food. Darren* answers the phone and there’s video chat so I also see him. I say “hey I’m here! Chicken tacos in the break room.” He says “Are they hard or soft?” in the innuendo way he does. What he doesn’t know, is he’s met his match since I’m also kind of a perv. I respond “what do you think?” seductively and with a wink. He laughs and just goes “oh alright.” I say “Nah but seriously they’re soft tacos.” He says “my favorite! We’ll be over soon.” The cavalry arrives and everyone eats their food and thanks me. I’m not really getting the quality time I was hoping for but I’m still happy. Finally, everyone starts to kinda make their way out until it’s just Darren* and I. We just chat. This is when somehow or another I find out he has a tattoo in a more rated R area. I laugh. He asks me about my outfit and if I am going to the gym. I say no that I was just trying to be comfortable but still look good enough to be outside of my house. He says he should probably get back to work and will snap me later.

Late that night, I ask him more about his tattoos, and I tell him about mine. I send him photos of a couple of my PG tattoos, he sends me his PG tattoos (yes this does imply we both have rated R tattoos). I think this is a moment that is kind of exposing but could also just be innocent as well. 

The next week, we again worked together, and he would come by, a little more than usual, saying hi to me and chatting before returning to work. The last time he stops by before he leaves for the day, he gives me a hug. Now, this hug wasn’t like a normal hug, it was super awkward, incredibly on my part.

You see, I did not expect this to happen and I was sitting down so he approached me for the hug while I was sitting. In attempts to make this less horrible, which backfired, I decided to begin standing up during the hug. Not only did I do this, no that would be still not horrible, but I then put my arms around him diagonally. Yes, that cringy one arm on the shoulder/neck and the other around the waist. At this moment I am well aware of what terrible state I am in, but am surprised and pleased that regardless of how awkward I have positioned myself that he is still holding onto me. He is in fact at this moment squeezing me tightly, comfortably. 

Somehow this embrace lasts for probably a good twenty seconds. I’m sure I am red in the face but he says bye talk to you later and leaves. Immediately, I Snapchat him and say “I’m so sorry that was such an awkward hug. I need a do-over please.” His response is something along the lines of, “It’s all good I live for the cringe” with a laughing face emoji. Otherwise, we continue to talk as we were.

I offer him my number, thinking like we are getting along well and are maybe at that point. He says that he actually prefers Snapchat, as his cell service isn’t very good with his provider (which I shall not name), so he communicates a lot more with Snapchat anyway. We somewhere too in this time say we’re going to hang out on Saturday, and I’ll cook him some food.

Oh and now is your first preview of me being sneaky and retrieving Snapchat screenshots via taking pics of my phone screen. Step One, send a thirst trap. 

Step Two: He responds to the thirst trap. I remember also saying something after that, despite not having it in the screenshot, where I say, “Is that why you don’t wear a dress to work?” Which is what he is responding to in the third photo.

I’m also still wondering, is he just being a flirt, or is this man interested? Soon I would get my answer. 

Now, it is the weekend, Friday night. I mention to him that I’m walking to my friend’s house and I’m going over to drink some wine and eat pasta. I send him Snapchats of my friend on Hinge swiping, and us playing “Tinder March Madness,” a game I saw on Tik Tok and thought was funny. Essentially, you right-swipe on all of the men, no matter what. Give it some time and wait for the matches to roll in. Then there are certain point values that go along with certain dating profile tropes. The person with the most points “wins” each round until the “Ultimate Tinder Guy” is found. Anyway, I send these to him half to be like LOL look at this stupid stuff, half to see if I get a rise out of him/he gets a little bit jealous. He is also with friends, so I don’t necessarily get in-depth answers or quick responses. I do mention to him that I’m leaving my friend’s apartment soon, and will be walking by myself. At this point it is nighttime. We do live in a relatively nice area, but it’s still a little scary to walk by yourself in the dark. I give him a call via Snapchat, he doesn’t answer but I know he’s with his friends, so it’s all good.

I arrive home and almost immediately after I walk through the door, I get a Snapchat call back from him. He asks me if I’m okay and if I got home safely. I am honestly surprised he called me back. I tell him I’m fine. He continues to talk to me on the phone and even puts me on speakerphone. The one part that hurts my soul is he does say that I’m his “friend, Mandy,” but hey, a friend is better than a co-worker. I talk with his friends about gaming, drinking, say I’ll drink some Everclear with them, go really hard. Darren* then says he’s gonna find somewhere more private to talk to me, takes me off speakerphone. We shoot the shit a little more, then he says he had just gone running and is gonna take a shower and will talk to me later. I end the call.

Literally one minute after ending the call, I receive a Snapchat from him. This is a picture Snapchat. It is a photo of him completely naked. Where his package would be is conveniently blocked by the level of the counter in his bathroom. Highly suggestive, though not a complete nude. What is my response? Something along the lines of “oh my!!!!” Any confusion I had was gone. Like alright, this man just sent this photo to you because he is into you. It’s late and I’m going to sleep anyway, so I figure I’ll just message him in the morning to clear things up before we hang out.  

Before I can even confront him in the morning, he messages me. I, unfortunately, don’t have a screenshot for this. But he says whereas he isn’t exactly looking for a relationship at this moment, that he wants to see where things go with me and see what happens. I tell him that how I feel is I don’t like to put expectations on anything anyway and that I’m happy to do that and just follow where the vibes go between us. We’ve come to an agreement! With that, he says he is super hungover and is going to take a nap, and will let me know about coming over later. By the early evening, he says he wants to reschedule since he still feels like shit. I’m on call a lot, so we just schedule it tentatively for next Saturday and I see if I can get my call covered another day sooner so we can see each other before then. 

I’m able to contact my manager the next day and I let him know I now have Wednesday free for him. I’m on call at our workplace the day I let him know that, and I jokingly tell him he is in charge of calling me in. Of course, I actually do get called in, though it isn’t him that lets me know. I arrive and hang out in the area he works in while I wait for the patient to be ready. He is not there and is off doing other stuff. He comes in and is surprised to see me, which checks out since I did tell him I was coming in, but he hadn’t opened that Snapchat yet. We hug hello, not awkwardly now, and he talks about his hands being cold. Essentially then we are holding hands. While the other coworkers are off tending to patients, we stand close together and chat. My patient arrives, and I ask him to help me move them. I observe him with a patient and he really is a great caregiver, it’s attractive. He helps me then says he’s gonna run back to his department and will be back. When he returns he says he is actually leaving for the night. My patient’s scan is more or less on autopilot, so I position ourselves away from the window that looks into the room. I embrace him and say I’m looking forward to seeing him next time we work together and on Wednesday. I think back and know I probably should have kissed him, but I didn’t, probably the thought of being at work and although no one was there and watching, still felt inappropriate.

I finished my work and returned home. Monday we spoke throughout the day, flirtatious and excited. We worked together Tuesday and when I walked in for the day, I immediately happened upon him in the break room. I sat down next to him and discussed timeframes for our hangout the next day. He is happy and upon another coworker walking in, I briefly say hey and disperse. Darren* comes into my department, as he does often, and is talking with everyone. One of our coworkers mentions to him that they want to talk to him about something. I’m not sure what it is about, but I do get a hit of anxiety wondering if he had told them about me, and it was regarding our relationship. Work goes by and they do go off and talk. Afterward, he is kinda brief in saying goodbye, which makes my anxiety increase. 

I send him a message just again mentioning a timeframe for our next day’s plans. An hour or so after he left he responds saying that he is actually starting to talk to someone and didn’t want to do the next day because he didn’t want to jeopardize that, as he thought if he came over the next day he didn’t know what would happen. His phrasing was “is it okay” if we don’t see each other. So I say something like, “well I wouldn’t want to complicate things, I’m not happy about it but I understand.” He also expressed he was worried about work, though, at this point, I was about to start my new job and had told him about this. He mentions not having a “crystal ball” and that he doesn’t know what will happen in the future, blah blah blah. That we could still be with each other someday.

I am beyond confused. Literally three days before this, he had been the one to initiate things and asked for us to see where things go, wasn’t interested in a relationship, when suddenly now he is, albeit with someone else, and is interested enough to be afraid something romantic would happen if we were alone together, but not enough see where it goes.

In response, I give into a TikTok trend where you ask people what your type is. I did this that night. He did not take kindly to it. His response was kind of like, what is this? I was angry and thought this was a good way to have some self-deprecating humor. Essentially “douchebag,” “extroverted gamer,” “emotionally unavailable,” “guys with girlfriends,” and “Trump supporters,” were mentioned in this. Many of those descriptions which could describe Darren* at that moment. 

I was still very hurt days afterward and didn’t know what would happen once we saw each other again at work. Come next workday together, he was starting to be on temperature check duty at the hospital. I did not know he was though, and stumbled upon him as I was going out to say hi to another co-worker I knew was out there. It was very awkward at first but we became more on friendly terms. Toward the end of the night, we were alone back inside for a moment. I asked him some questions about his life and such. As the night went on we did embrace a few times and were very close. It was more confusing but he did still seem into me. We left at the same time and he walked me to my car where we lingered and talked and held each other. I did feel pretty bad, as I would sometimes see his phone, see him talking to this other girl, and sometimes I would just happen to see his messages with her and could tell that he did care for her. And in character, it was on Snapchat, so he may have been completely honest regarding using Snapchat as his primary communication method.

Basically a similar scenario continued on for the next four weeks, each time it becomes more and more difficult/intimate. One week we took a walk around the campus and cuddled in the grass, watching the stars. The bugs made us move, but we had a closeness. We just barely kissed one time. He would grab my hips and touch my body when we were alone. Constantly he would resist, I was just as confused as he wasn’t dating this person. Another night, we are walking together doing rounds through the hospital, when one of his close coworkers casually mentions he’s uncircumcised. Which was just some bizarre information. It was funny to see him embarrassed.

Finally, after four weeks of this “what is going on” scenario, I have him call me. I tell him essentially that if he and this woman are still not exclusive, that we should still give this a shot or at least hang outside of work and see what is truly going on. I reiterate his crystal ball thing. I am truly speaking in our both interests, as we have been playing a dangerous game. He says he will talk to her that night and figure out what is going on, as she has been kind of putting off/delaying that conversation. He says he will let me know what she says and will think about it if they don’t become exclusive, as he admits that he doesn’t see the point of staying with her if she doesn’t want to become official. I follow up the next day, asking how it went. He says it didn’t come up and apologizes, though saying he will soon. A few days after that, I find out that they must have had the conversation, because “Darren* is now in a relationship” appears on my Facebook news feed. I message him in Snapchat and congratulate him. I do truly wish them the best, and take the situation as a lesson learned.

A couple of months later, present-day as I write this, I notice a name that looks familiar on a patient’s chart. Casually I bring it up to my coworker, saying “isn’t that Darren*’s girlfriend?” and it is confirmed. I become infuriated and text my friend immediately, explaining the situation I have just uncovered. This new information does add to my displeasure, as I realize that this guy’s now girlfriend also works here and that it is quite possible that he could have been seeing her on any of those days that we had become so close. This disgusted me. I did see him a couple of days later and casually mentioned to him, “I didn’t know your girlfriend worked here.” He hit me with a “yeah she does.” I felt it important to let him know, I know. I try and remain cordial, but it is extremely difficult when I learn more and more about how scummy he is. Later that day that I let him know, he told me it was “good seeing me” and I literally responded with a vomit noise. Even if things don’t work out with his lady, and I’m still single, that “crystal ball” will not do him any favors.

[achieveandhunt]

live typing extra life 2019

part 2

warning: this was a mistake and i’m in the grapes

this starts right at Facilities vs AH. link to first post

let’s fuck some shit up babEY

oh what the fuck they’re playing a prerecorded video

last year was a fuckin doozy, nobody forget that

“legends of the under achiever” i didn’t know someone wrote my biography

why do i hear geoff screaming “FIVE FUCKIN FOUR” in my head, like in the legends of the hidden temple minecraft videos

jeremy looks. so dead inside on this fine november evening

ryan buzzing while they’re trying to explain the rules

my video quality went down so much that i thought i was watching someone playing roblox for a second

ryan “salty mother fucker” haywood has made a lovely appearance. he’s my favorite

michael and lindsay looking so domestic makes me so happy,, they’re my parents

someone donated under the name “ryan goes feral” uh??? yeah? you say that like it’s a bad thing??

oH FUCK MICHAEL GO DRIVE WIN PLEASE

jeremy HAS BROKEN OUT THE GLASSES SHIT’S SERIOUS

NO THEY’RE LOSING GOD DAMMIT

ʳʸᵃⁿ ᶦⁿ ᵗʰᵉ ᵇᵃᶜᵏᵍʳᵒᵘⁿᵈ, ᵠᵘᶦᵉᵗˡʸ: ʰᵉˡᵖ

JEREMY IT’S TIME TO TEST OUT THAT NONEXISTENT GAG REFLEX AND SWALLOW THE OPPONENT’S CONTROLLER

oh nvm they’re winning again lmao

OH FUCK thEYRE LOSING

oh nvm

OH FUCK

oh nvm they unplugged his contoller lol

OH FUCKING TH EY LOST MICHAEL JONES MY HEART IS BROKEN

the amount of people watching has gone up from 32k to 40k in the past fifteen minutes

michael “hurry up you dumb cunts” jones

“oh don’t worry about destroying our cabinet, it’s essentially matchsticks”

“how are you feeling john? are you ready for this?” “MM M M Mmm mM”

TEAM NICE DYNAMITE IS NEXT AND IM READY FOR PERMANENTLY RINGING EARS FROM ALL THE LEET DONATIONS

oH god here we go

“hopefully they haven’t been saving them all day” oh honey. you’ve got a big storm coming

if xavier slaps gavin i think gav might go up in a puff of smoke

i did the math, they went up 45k+ within five minutes of team nice dynamite showing up on stream

GAVIN AND MICHAEL ARE GOING TO DIE

THERE’S GONNA BE A MOONBALL SIZED HOLE IN GAVIN’S CHEST

ryan and lindsay both donating a grand during this segment... so good

the day gavin free successfully gets a tattoo is the day i drop dead

lindsay saying she didn’t want the TND tattoo on michael but she agreed because gav is michael’s boi :((( 

i’m too sleep deprived for this i might cry

oh god michael’s punching the floor

i’m too sober for this

EIGHTY EIGHT LEET DONATIONS IN TWENTY MINUTES HOLY FUCJKIGN SHIT YOU GUYS ARE GONNA BE THROWING MOONBALLS FOR FUCKIN SIX YEARS

on a sentimental note- i love how much collective love we have for gav and michael,, they deserve it all

milk boarded has some not-so-great connotations attached to it

gavin “the bullshit bitch” free

a mark nutt reference?? in my 2019 extra life????

this just in: sarah is going to obliterate gavin

oh. oh my god. that was the sound of a wet fish smacking a wall

why is jeremy the liquor goblin walking like a crab that has a bird attached to its back??? see: flapping arms

that beer and milk concoction... gag

“drink that milk yard”

“YOU GOT MY TOES MILKY”

no. nO MICHAEL NO YOUR INTESTINES NOO

michael “the milk’s in my brain” jones

“stop pouring it on people!” “iT’S HARD DICKHEAD”

lindsay is now. taking a milk shower

*caiti brings a small roll of paper towels* *gavin gently places a single paper towel on the massive puddle of milk*

no LINDSAY NO THINK OF THE CHILDREN

gavin: this has gotten way out of hand. she’s... she’s swimming in an inch of milk! everyone knows you should swim in at least two!!

the fajita seasoning will solve everythinG everyone calm down

fiona: yeah this is my first extra life. jack: and what were you expecting? fiona: this. exactly this.

ah yes. the bunny suits have arrived and michael is ready to tackle gavin

aaaand here comes the AH fanfic. it can only get worse from here so buckle up fuckos

“holy fuckeroni”

“re-reanimated trevor”

michael is so fucking smashed and god i wish that was me

“cum-ductor”

fiona “this is a white man” nova

“bone-ating” *leet donation* *leet donation* 

“ready set blow” made me genuinely bust a lung laughing

aaaand michael’s licking the floor which is to be expected

jeremy “i’m gonna actually harm you” dooley

IF ONE MORE PERSON BRINGS UP RANCH IM GOING TO WALK TO AUSTIN AND PROJECTILE VOMIT ON THE OFF TOPIC SET

no JEREMY NO YOU WERE THE CHOSEN ONE I THOUGHT YOU WOULDN’T DO THIS GET OFF THE F  L O O R

don’t get close ups on jeremy’s tongue. don’t do that to me. i don’t want nightmares

“fuck root” “let’s just fucking fuck”

1 2 3 CONSENT

michael has gone full gerkie

alfredo’s look when larry is reading the part about trevor choking him is how i feel about everything that’s happened in the past twenty minutes

almost 300k in less than an hour 

fiona saying “i don’t want this” overlaying michael humping a trash can

“TAKE THE TACO CHAD”

aaaand michael’s in the trash can

nO why is there a triangle is this a POETRY READING ALL OF A SUDDEN

oh thank god it’s over

OH FUCK THERE’S A N EPILOGUE

aaand trevor’s dead again. poor treyco

DUSK BOYS DUSK BOYS DUSK BOYS EVERYONE PUT A CUP IN YOUR PANTS

people singing along... what goes on

why am i downloading this fuckin song asap

jeremy turning his phone flashlight on and waving it like he’s at a concert god dammit i love these people so much

those are my BOYS

oh my gosh they’re still singing the song. why is my heart so happy from this i need to get slapped

“come on you’ve never been waterboarded before gavin?”

everyone standing in a circle shining their flashlights at gavin

someone surprise them and instead of a moonball just yeet a whole gallon of milk at them

actually, on second thought, no

OH god GavIN Is GOING to Die 

gavin “i forgot to breathe” free

several milk explosions

gavin “my brain is cold” free

michael has milk dripping from his ears

i’m about to pass out i don’t know what’s happening

michael is in the grapes right now man

how many moonballs? oh, only 107. :)

i’m not writing this part- you guys have to watch the moonball segment yourself, if you didn’t watch it live!

team nice dynamite finishes up with over 300k!! holy shit, that’s so cool! this community is awesome

werewolf is up next!

xavier is such a gentleman can we keep him

alfredo: *chooses to kill miles* trevor in the audience: *silently freaking out*

xavier is about ruin another man on stream

miles has no self preservation instinct

barbara is now smelling fiona

this just in: i love alfredo and 100% would have done the same thing

trevor running up to film alfredo getting smacked. what an icon

alfredo SCREAMING oh my god i felt it in my soul

the high-five of the backs in solidarity of intense pain

miles choosing alfredo is so fucking good

and also, i feel so bad 

his heart might shoot out of his asshole this time guys

oh NOOO HE’s so bruised :(((( fredo nooo :((

oh my god it’s gotten to the usual point in the stream where you start to question whether someone is going to die this time

rip blaine but at least i think he can take the hit

he can but ouch it still hurts me 

barbara “i’m participating in the game” dunkleman

yo miles might win this game

the crowd when someone needs to shoot barb: TREVOR TREVOR TREVOR! trevor, with the strength of a thousand suns: N O

people are now chanting about shooting an unprotected trevor. the man already died once this stream god dammit

alfredo is about to throw hands for fiona

that’s a big F in the chat for miles, but his loss is well deserved

xavier’s hands could serve as a defibrillator

alfredo showed jeremy his chest and jeremy shied away as if he was looking at the sun

 --- i’m taking another break to finish an assignment---

i’m barely alive and it’s ready set show time 

oh god please no more shock collars

i’m so fucking tiiiiredd please take thge res t of this post  wigth  a grain of salt lbecasue i can hardly type at this ponitn 

“do you want to control the shock collars” “will there be repercussions” “no” “fuck yeah i’ll do it then”

“smother the children. steal the baby” “DONT STEAL THE BABY TREVOR”

lunging forward “s c a r e  t h e  b a b y” “OKAY I’M PASSING THIS ONE”

“you can’t bake popcorn????” jeremy hits the floor

alec and matt clearly = dream team

oh thasnk god the shock collars are on their arms now i was stressed out for chris earlier

this stream does not promote recreational nyquil usage 

i don’t even know how to explain the pure insanity of what ready set show has become

alec has become this whole segment

i would write more but i have no thoughts because my brain doesn’t work

larry “makes people fuck other people besides their wife” insert last name that my brain can’t come up with

anyways. marbles

oh. no marbles

i’ve blacked out idk what happened during backwardz compatible

i mean i was awake but does that really mean anything at this point

SPPOKU PSOOKY SPPOKKKY SPOOOKY !!! FUCL YEAH 

cole is so good during this segment

oh so many 1337s right away 

the real scariest thing during the segment: being genuine

oH my god the scream being pitched up. i have fucking dogs outside of my house now

i don’t fuck w/ ghosts no thank you

“aba-jail” wow if u guys weren’t gonna get haunted before you will now

okay i’m about to pass out i have to take a nap

oH fucking I SLEPT until thirty minutes before the en d  fuck

conclusion: this community is incredible and raised an unimaginable amount of money for charity. the fact that rooster teeth does this every year is awesome, and honestly, it makes me feel hopeful in times when things aren’t so great. so yeah! for the kids & stuff 

[vrainsrewatch]

episode 8 thoughts

i was gonna watch later, since i’ve got other things to do, but i burnt the shit out of my hands making hot chocolate like an idiot so i watched an episode first LOL. 

this episode starts out with that really strong fairy tale scenery i absolutely adore, with yusaku and ai trying their hardest to get blue angel to wake up.

i seriously could talk about the imagery in this scene for days lmao. i love the sleeping beauty aesthetic, but i also really love the colors. LV goes through so many different color palettes through the series, but i love the purples and blues of this area here. i’m not sure if the intention was to make blue angel seem like she was meant to be there, while in contrast playmaker stands out due to his hair, but i seriously replayed this section twice because it looked so nice. 

i have a lot to say about this episode, and it will also be my most screenshot heavy post so far lol, so once again, buckle up! 

this episode starts to really build up yusaku as a character - his sense of justice, his core values, etc etc. on top of that, it takes its time to flesh out akira, and to show his worse qualities, which we’ll get into in a minute.

first, though, is one of my favorite awkward exchanges in the series lmao:

i’m surprised he even caught onto what akira was getting at, tbh with y’all. vrains started out ship teasing yusaku/aoi really hard these episodes, but drop it almost completely up until the minimal tease we get in s3, which i find really funny. i was always really invested in them becoming friends, though, so while i’m happy we had that happen in s3, i would’ve really liked to see it happen earlier. not this early, though - yusaku’s nowhere near ready for that.

I HAD TOTALLY FORGOTTEN VYRA WAS HERE. yugioh hair makes it known that she’s going to be an important character, but i had really completely forgotten she was working as one of aoi’s doctors during this part lmao. i love this so much, actually.

moving onto everyone talking shit about blue angel on forums and stuff. this kinda shit:

would be really awful to deal with. it’s very real, though - cancel culture, anyone? but seriously, this is so brutal. on top of that, does this imply that she’s never really lost before? she is the number 2 charisma duelist in LV, so i wouldn’t be terribly surprised if that meant that she hadn’t really lost since starting to make it big as an idol. once again showing off how good of a duelist aoi actually is, even if the show makes her lose a lot. tbf, her loss/win ratio isn’t that bad looking at the other main girls - 5 wins, 5 losses on screen, and considering the kind of opponents she faced (soulburner, bohman, ai), that’s seriously not bad.

next up we get the chess pieces again, and boy howdy, does this conversation make me seethe.

i understand it’s partially a cultural difference thing, but i can’t help but get angry about it LOL. 

i didn’t remember how often the chess pieces were actually utilized in these first few episodes, either. i guess i can understand why people were irritated they were just dropped, but i don’t really see them as a plot point, more like... just a kind of weird way to run a company? just show your faces and have normal meetings like everyone else, y’all don’t have to be so extra.

the akira/emma meeting is nice because it shows you more of emma’s character, but it also gives you more of akira’s stupider (and ruthless) side.

you don’t see him like this very often, but honestly, when you think about all the unsavory jobs he was doing to keep him and aoi afloat way back when, it kind of makes sense. even if he was originally a gentle person, you don’t last doing... any of the jobs he’s done, being that way. even a higher up in a company like SOL tech would have to be a bit harsher to get to that point imo. i don’t see a lot of people talk about this side of akira’s character tbh which makes me kind of sad.

also, seriously, he’s an idiot. how did he arrive at this conclusion? when he saw that it was aoi who was baiting him into the duel? no matter what direction i approach this from, i can’t understand how he ended up on that conclusion lol.

also, the worst father ever award goes to....

seriously! i hate that man so much lmao. to say that directly to your own child, on top of everything else...

it’s a nice look into revolver, too, though you wouldn’t know it at first glance. his reply says everything, though. he fully accepts his role in his father’s life and has an incredibly toxic attachment to him, and wants his approval more than anything. we never see him get physically abused by kogami or anything of the sort, but you can’t deny the mental anguish he must’ve been going through in order to keep on his father’s good side. 

i know a lot of people like to say that revolver is kind of not a great guy, seeing the tower of hanoi arc, and how he probably should’ve went to jail etc etc but really, he was manipulated hard core. and extremely suicidal. i could really talk a lot about this all day, but i’ll cut myself off and instead say how much i love how vrains sets up revolver as a character. this, combined with “i’ll fulfill your wishes, father” from episode 3 gives you his motivations nice and clearly, but this specific scene also gives a bit of a hint as to where his character arc goes and what he has to work through. just thinking about this makes me so excited to get to 116 again lmao.

anyways, though. another excellent exchange comes up. seriously, lmao, ai being like “waaaah that’s illegal !!!!” and kusanagi’s just very casual 

makes me laugh every time i see it. they are criminals, even if what they’re doing is for the greater good. they’re not exactly innocent here lmao.

then there’s the talk about the virus infecting her, and it’s a nice way to bring up how that works before the another arc comes up in.. a couple of episodes, right? tbh it’s the arc i remember the least about, so i’m looking forward to rewatching it.

actually though, the idea of viruses in LV being able to infect someone’s body is so, so interesting. i really, really wish they had done more with the whole LV/rl merge idea, but guess i’ll just have to write more fanfic instead lol.

i mentioned at the beginning of this post we get into yusaku as a character more here, and this is one of the lines that really made him interesting to me originally:

he has such a strong sense of justice, but what sets him apart from other ygo protags is that he is not defined by it. he’s not the classic, stereotypical do-gooder who gets caught up in something and has to make it right, his justice is more so that he is not okay with seeing other people hurt because of what happened to him. his justice is driven by his trauma, almost entirely.

revolver even brings it up this episode:

where he talks about how some rando wouldn’t have done them any good because it wouldn’t have been public enough. yusaku doesn’t really care about the little people, not in the same way, say, yugi would. it’s not that he wants them to be hurt or see them get hurt or anything, it’s just that unless it effects him directly, it’s not on his radar. but once he gets involved, he feels fully responsible.

while he didn’t plant the hanoi virus into her, he probably knows it was to intentionally draw him out thanks to ai (and the fact that he beats them up all the time). he feels fully responsible for what happened to her, and he’s prepared to do what is needed to make it right again.

i really like yusaku for this. i find those kinds of characters really interesting, and yusaku is no exception. 

we get the whole emma/blue angel/yusaku scene, which is pretty sick tbh looking at it again - just shoot a church straight up from the ground for dramatic effect! - and i’ll bring up more of akira’s ruthlessness here.

seriously, this is not a line from someone who is just angry about his sister. and it’s also him being fuckin DUMB. playmaker willingly lets himself get caught into your trap, and he tells akira straight up what he has to do to save his sister - no sugar coating it, no trying to make it cryptic or difficult despite being caught in that hand and in that trap. he’s incredibly honest, and akira still does this lmao.

then it’s probably the wildest turn of events in all of vrains:

where’s that post that’s like, “remember when playmaker gets caught in a gothic looking church while he’s getting tormented by a giant demon hand controlled by his classmate’s brother and then his rival who he hasn’t met yet shows up in a lightning bolt to save him”? bc really LMAO what the fuck. it was so hype watching it the first time, and it’s still awesome watching it back.

and why is this never really??? brought up again later???? and when he leaves in that datastorm to go prepare to fight playmaker LMAO i know it’s supposed to look cool but the animation is so dorky, i love it. 

more on yusaku, though. before playmaker goes to fight revolver, who he’s been gearing towards for awhile now, we get this exchange:

to which playmaker responds with “i don’t hate you. i only hate the knights of hanoi”. which is another really good moment for his early characterization and very, very consistent with his backstory that we find out in about 12 episodes.

everyone who wasn’t involved in the LI in any way just... exists to him. they’re completely neutral. if something happens to them because of him, he feels directly responsible, because he feels like he got them tangled up in a mess that nobody should be in. i mentioned that briefly earlier, but this really drives that point home.

he doesn’t even hate akira for torturing him mere minutes ago. because he’s been through worse. because akira was doing what he thought was right by his sister, no matter how stupid he was being.

and even more so than that, he’s not seeing this as fighting for akira. he feels responsible for blue angel, but also, here’s his chance to fight revolver. it’s a two birds one stone situation here for him. 

anyways, i’m gonna stop myself there lol this is really long OOPS. gotta take care of a few things, and then onto the first rev vs playmaker duel!

[sweet-steddie]

Safety Mode (g.d. & e.d.)

Summary: @zoenighshade555 and @zealousllamawolfknight each more or less requested that I write about the reader being uncomfortable or scared and the twins going into safety/overprotective mode, so I combined those requests and this is the result! I hope you both like it!!

A/N: Here is my actual fifth (5th) imagine on this account and I can hardly believe it! I have been having such a wonderful time filling requests and I’m so glad that people actually give a damn about my writing lol. Without further ado, here’s imagine # 5. Enjoy! And please send in requests if you have them!

3.2k+

I’m busying myself in the kitchen, making sure that the fridge is equipped with plenty of refreshments, then I’m raiding the cabinets and pulling out all the snacks that I’d purchased earlier in the day. Just as I’m emptying some chips into a bowl, a hand clasps lightly around my wrist, effectively stopping my actions.

“You don’t have to do this, babe,” Ethan insists softly over my shoulder. I crane my neck to look up at him and he looks mildly exasperated, but there’s a hint of a smile tugging fondly at his lips. “You’re a guest too, ya know,” he teases, smile now stretching helplessly across his face. I close my eyes and sigh out, leaning back into his chest and surrendering to his touch, my hand coming to rest on the counter top as I give up preparing the snacks.

“I know, I know,” I relent, opening my eyes to peer up into Ethan’s soft, droopy, brown ones. He blinks down at me patiently and my heart lurches in my chest for a moment. “I just want everything to be perfect for you guys. There’s some important people out there and I wanna make sure they have no reason to complain about this party,” I explain for the umpteenth time today. Ethan and Grayson had decided to host a party for their team and, naturally, plenty of powerful YouTube execs had been invited as friends of friends. In short, this party is a potentially wonderful opportunity for the boys to make a good impression and I want to make sure that nothing goes wrong.

“I know you do, love. But you’ve been running around all day and everything already is perfect,” he pauses to kiss my forehead lovingly before breathing out, “thanks to you.” I grumble unintelligibly in protest, knowing he’s right but worrying nonetheless. This pulls a laugh out of him and he throws his arms around me, walking us backward from the kitchen counter. “Mhmm, you know I’m right. Now chill out before I get Grayson in here,” he threatens playfully and I roll my eyes. Not a moment later, the man, himself, comes strolling into the kitchen.

“Why are we getting Grayson?” Grayson plays along, grabbing a chip from one of the bowls before casually gripping my waist and pulling me away from Ethan. I hug him around his middle as he settles his lower back against the counter.

“She won’t stop freaking out,” Ethan supplies bluntly and I chuckle into Grayson’s chest against my will. Grayson smooths a hand down my back.

“Baby we told you, everything’s okay. We want you to enjoy the party, too. You’ve been helping us set this thing up for days; you deserve to relax now,” he pecks the top of my head and I look up at him, at which point he rests his forehead against mine, our noses nearly lined up. “Can you promise me you’ll relax? Hm?” he murmurs sweetly, eyes searching mine for any sign of surrender. And at this painfully close proximity with his cologne wrapping around me like seductive vines and his cute little nose mushed up against mine, how can I ever say no to anything he asks of me? I sigh, physically deflating, a nonverbal agreement to his terms.

He rewards me with a dimpled smile and a kiss to my cheek, murmuring a “thank you,” against the skin before kissing it again.

“We should probably get back out there, Gray,” comes Ethan’s voice from behind us and Grayson begrudgingly loosens his hold on me, nodding his agreement.

“Yeah, probably,” he sighs out as I spin around to face Ethan, who’s already fixing me with a gentle smile.

“You be good, alright?” he teases, raising an eyebrow challengingly in my direction. I roll my eyes at him for the second time tonight, giving him a sarcastic thumbs up of agreement. “You’re feisty tonight,” he observes, but he doesn’t sound particularly put off by it. I crack a smile at that, accepting the hand that he holds out for me to take as we begin to stroll back out into the crowd of people, Grayson in tow.

No sooner than we set foot back into the living room does someone demand their attention. Ethan nods his head in acknowledgment at the person speaking before giving my hand a squeeze and then letting it drop. He drops a kiss to my forehead, throwing in a muttered “have fun,” for good measure before heading over to the person who had called for he and Grayson’s attention moments ago. Grayson waltzes from behind me to follow his brother, landing a quick, playful slap to my ass that seems to go unnoticed by everyone but me. I feel a pleasant flush creep into my cheeks as I go to mock-scold him, but he’s already out of arm’s reach and I decide, instead to bite the inside of my cheek to ward off the ear-to-ear grin threatening to split my face.

As I collect myself, I take the time to observe my surroundings for the first time this evening. I had been so busy bustling about in order to maintain perfection that I hadn’t had the time to see how my many preparations had payed off. By the looks of the attendees around me, they paid off quite well. There’s a calm buzz of chatter surrounding everyone and the faint bass of music thumping over the speakers provides a nice ambiance while paired with the chattering voices. I breathe my first relieved sigh in several days as I calmly snag an hor d’oeuvre from a nearby tray and settle myself onto one of the plush, unoccupied couch cushions before me.

I make polite small talk with a few people here and there, all the while mindful to keep the conversations topical, at most. I want to make as little of an impression as possible; it’s the twins’ night, not mine. This flurry of exchanges takes up about a two hour block of time and I’m surprised to witness the night passing by without a hitch. From my spot on the couch, I watch as Grayson and Ethan mingle effortlessly. Their energy is unmatched within the room and all eyes are on them as they dance from person to person, from party to party, and do so with ease.

This is, without a doubt, the boys’ element. Socializing with people and -  from what I’ve seen of them tonight and what I see with most of their interactions with others - leaving them alight with adoration and yearning for more comes naturally to them both. I smile to myself as I watch my boys work the room. Every once in a while, I’ll catch either Ethan’s or Grayson’s eye and they’ll shoot me a wink or blow a little kiss before continuing to network and charm their way around the area. I conclude that the night won’t be wrapping up anytime soon, so I decide to pass the time by playing around on my phone for a long enough time that I can later excuse myself from the party and retire to one of the boys’ bedrooms in seclusion for the remainder of the party.

As I aimlessly thumb through my phone, the sounds around me seems to fade away into a pleasant buzz of general background noise. I’m so immersed in my screen that I’m startled to feel the couch dip next to me. My head shoots up quickly, eyes comically wide at the interruption before I put a palm over my chest. “I’m sorry, you scared me!” I exclaim through a laugh and the man who had sat down reciprocates the sound.

“No worries. I didn’t mean to frighten you,” he apologizes, eyes crinkling a bit at the corners as he continues to smile at me. We chuckle off the moment and I look back down at my phone as a means of transitioning from the awkward incident and back into my own bubble. My eyes are having trouble focusing on any one thing on my screen as I force myself to process the words and images before me instead of having to face the man again. “So, how did you hear about this party?” the man asks, causing me to look up at him again. I lock my phone at set it in my lap, figuring that it would be rude to continue ignoring him at this point.

I scan over his features as I go to respond, observing his casual, but quality attire and his slightly graying hair. He looks to be at least in his mid-to-late-40s. “Well, I know the boys. Ethan and Grayson, I mean,” I clarify, smiling politely as I continue my explanation. “We’ve known each other for several years and I’ve gotten to watch them grow as entertainers and I’m just so proud of them and so impressed with how influential they’ve become,” I can’t help but brag. Any chance I get to ramble about the boys’ accomplishments is a chance I take wholeheartedly. The man nods along as I speak.

“Yes, they’re extremely talented. My daughters are just,” he gestures around dramatically to find the words, “they’re just absolutely crazy about them. So needless to say, I’ve seen a lot of their videos. Very cool guys,” he praises and I laugh at the anecdote. A comfortable silence befalls us for a moment before the man speaks again. “Ya know, living here in L.A., being a single dad and all is, well. It’s interesting, let’s say that,” he says and I give him my attention, ready to jump into yet another boring attempt at small talk.

“And sometimes, it’s refreshing to see a young, pretty face like yours,” he continues and that’s when an alarm sounds off in my head. The mood has shifted drastically and it has my heartbeat speeding up uncomfortably in my chest. I choose not to address his comment and instead, give a tight-lipped smile that doesn’t even begin to reach my eyes. I become fidgety in my seat, preparing to stand up and walk away in a way that won’t invite Ethan’s and Grayson’s suspicion. I’d rather vent about this creep later on than have the boys loudly defending me in front of their company.

“Would you wanna get outta here? Business parties are so boring,” the man presses and I scoot over to the edge of the couch furthest from him, keeping my eyes downcast, not that he seems to be taking the hint. “My place is a lot quieter and my daughters are out for the night. We could,” he pauses to scoot a bit closer to where I’m sitting and my stomach lurches out of discomfort, “get to know each other better.” he propositions suggestively. Before I can muster up a quiet, venomous response, another voice beats me to the punch.

“Do we have a problem over here?” Grayson’s voices slices through the tension and I don’t think I’ve ever been happier to see him in my life. He’s standing beside where I’m sat on the couch and I immediately stand to my feet, grasping his hand in both of my sweaty ones. His jaw is set, nostrils slightly flared and eyes are hard as steel, a stark contrast to the way that he softly encompasses my hands with his big fingers. The man sitting on the couch looks, for lack of a better word, caught. Caught in the act of creepily advancing on me moments earlier as I so obviously portrayed my unease. He doesn’t reply right away and that isn’t good enough for Grayson. “I asked you a question,” Grayson presses impatiently.

My eyes suddenly land on Ethan, realizing that he’s standing opposite of Grayson and I, arms crossed and jaw equally set as he stares down at the offending man. Together, Ethan and Grayson have the man flanked and he looks like this is fact hasn’t escaped him as he nervously splutters out a response.

“I don’t really think that’s any of your business,” he defends weakly, but he refuses to meet either boy’s eye. “I was just having a private conversation with this lady and I don’t appreciate you eavesdropping-“ he goes on, but he doesn’t get a chance to finish.

“No no. No. You being a fucking pervert and making a lady uncomfortable is absolutely our fucking business. And especially when it concerns this lady,” Grayson emphasizes, referencing me. “And especially when you’re at our fucking house. You have some nerve, showing up here and acting like this,” Grayson fumes and I can tell that he’s fighting to keep his voice down.

“It’s time for you to leave,” Ethan cuts in firmly while stepping closer to the man, arms now dangling at his sides menacingly. The man on the couch actually has the audacity to look affronted.

“You’re overreacting a bit, don’t you think? It wasn’t that big a de-“

“Leave or I call the police right now. I’m not fucking kidding, you need to go,” Ethan doesn’t allow him to finish that sentence. The man scoffs, narrowing his eyes, first, at Ethan and then at Grayson as he slowly rises to his feet. He glares at me briefly before I feel Grayson physically tense up.

“Don’t you dare ever look at her like that. Get the fuck out,” Grayson spits and I free one of my hands from his grasp so that I can run it soothingly up and down his tensed bicep. His eyes never leave the man as he makes his way pitifully to the front door. If he had a tail, it would be tucked between his legs. It’s not until the door closes behind him that Grayson’s body relaxes a bit.

In realize, all of a sudden, how silent it’s gotten around us since the event unfolded. I dare to take a peak around and notice that most eyes are on the boys and I. One brave person takes the opportunity to speak up, a woman who had been here since much earlier in the evening.

“Thank god that creep is gone,” she announces amidst murmurs of agreement. What follows is a general chatter, likely about the drama that just ensued, but the atmosphere soon returns to normal. I take some solace in that just as Ethan grabs my attention again.

“C’mon. You wanna hide out for a while until the party dies down?” he suggests softly, but he looks like he’s still on edge from the interaction.

“Yeah, actually. Thanks,” I agree, following Ethan as he turns on his heel and heads in the direction of he and Grayson’s bedrooms. Grayson’s grip stays secured on my hand as we follow Ethan through the house. I notice that he’s yet to speak since he had banished the sleazy man from the house. When the three of us reach Grayson’s bedroom, he closes the door behind us and leads us to sit on the edge of his bed, Ethan sitting on my other side. The three of us are silent for a moment.

“You guys didn’t have to do that. But I’m glad you did anyway and I just want you both to know that I really appreciate it,” I start softly, caressing Grayson’s large hand with my thumb and reaching out my free hand to grasp Ethan’s, giving him the same treatment. “This night was supposed to be all about you guys and I’m sorry that creepy fuck ruined it for a minute,” I express, my anger flaring up at the mere thought of the slimy man that had aided in causing a scene earlier. Grayson releases a heavy breath through his nose before speaking.

“If I’d had it my way, I would’ve beat that guy’s ass to a pulp. How dare he make you feel like that,” he seethes, eyes closing out of pure frustration. When he opens them again, they hold a considerable amount of concern. “Are you okay? How are you feeling, baby? What do you want me to do?” he questions in quick succession, eyes searching my face. I free my hand from his to run softly through his locks. I could kiss him silly right about now.

“You’ve done more than enough, Gray. What I really want you to do is go back out there and enjoy the rest of your party,” I insist, turning to Ethan. “I want both of you to enjoy your party. Don’t look at me like that,” I softly chastise as Ethan begins to pout, obviously feeling just as sour as Grayson about the whole situation. I could kiss that pout away, easy.

“I think Grayson will agree with me when I say that the only way we’ll enjoy the rest of the night is if we get to spend it with you,” Ethan declares and I watch as Grayson nods immediately.

“Yeah. Yes, that. It’s already been over five hours, I think we should call it a night anyway,” Grayson says and he looks right into my eyes as he continues, gaze never wavering. “I don’t wanna leave you in here. Please?” he asks my permission to cut the party short, knowing how much I’ve fussed over it. My initial reaction is to argue with him about it, but then I really look at him and, honestly, he’s already won. He has those droopy, puppy dog eyes trained on me just right and I’m putty in his massive hands.

“Okay,” I relent easily enough and Grayson smiles out of relief and I’ll do anything to make sure that smile stays there, I decide. He looks past me to address Ethan for a moment.

“E, get rid of everyone. I’m gonna stay in here with our girl,” he says that last part while looking back at me with a pleased smirk. I shake my head at him fondly before turning to face Ethan. Our hands, that have since been clasped, separate and I use my fingers to brush through his loose curls.

“Yeah, E. Get rid of them,” I playfully repeat Grayson’s command, giving him the go-ahead and he smiles down at me.

“Yes, ma’am,” he affirms, pressing his lips briefly to my cheek before standing up from the bed and making his way out into the living area to clear the house out. When the door clicks shut, Grayson wraps his arms around me and forces us both to fall down on our backs, causing me to erupt in delighted laughter. He scoops me up so that I’m halfway on top of him, head resting on his chest and knee bent with my leg thrown over top of his. The bass of the music playing in the living room has stopped and I hear the front door open, meaning that Ethan must have successfully brought the party to an end.

“I’d never let anything bad happen to you. You now that, right?” Grayson speaks up, hand caressing soothingly over my leg that’s propped on top of his. “Ethan wouldn’t, either. You’re always safe when we’re around. Always. Okay?” I look up at Grayson as he finishes talking, catching his searing gaze and using a hand to cup his pretty face. I don’t doubt a single word that he’s said.

“I know, Gray. I know.”

[borisbubbles]

ESC2019 Preshow #19

19. SWEDEN John Lundvik - “Too late for love?” SemiFinal 2, #08

As we speak journalists from all over the Euroverse are flocking around John Lundvik to ask very ancamfartable question to him: “Bigger Than Us really is your song or”? Poor man he probably doesn’t even remember that the demo was submitted to the BBC <3

ENTRY ANALYSIS

After the disaster that was last year’s Melfest, Christer VOWED to reinvent the competition and bring ~Quality~ this year. He... kept his promise I guess? He said it contained two songs which could WIN ESC and one of them won (after wiping the juries lmfao - Christer never rigs, ever). "Too late for love” nothing but an excellent showcase of Sweden’s musical expertise, but I’ll pass on dissecting it  because a of all, I know very little of music theory and b of all, I don’t care what instruments are used in which order and in whether the clef is in C-minor or D-Moll or WHATEVER. The song isn’t nearly as important as what you do with it. 

So I settle for an easy comparison and the netizens apparently loooooooove comparing  “Too Late For Love” is “Nobody but you” for some reason (🌚). I can see why, but I disagree. They’re not that alike. “Too late for love” is better in every single way imaginable: It’s cheerful, it has a more consistent storyline, with a performer who isn’t dressed like your mom’s pilates instructor and doesn’t have awful tryhard arty-farty staging :-) 

However, TLFL’s excellent use of musical theorems (I guess?) is also why I don’t love it. I like it, sure, why wouldn’t I? It’s a good song. However, that’s also *all* it is and Eurovision is so much more than a summation of perfectly executed technicalities.  It’s about having *IT* and Lundvik doesn’t have *it* for me. TLFL lacks an identity beyond “This Is A Good Song”, which others in this category such as “Mercy” and “Running” had. BUT IS IT TOO LATE FOR LOOOOOOOVE? IS IT??

NF Corner

Mello was good this year!!! It’s nowhere near the level of 2012-2016 (definitely THE golden age of Melfest, at least for the years I’ve seen), but there was a lot of variation and it’s easy enough to find songs to root for. 

(In a way I resent that John won because it’s *way* more rewarding to sink my teeth into any the other songs because they have more to offer in terms of camp and humour, but w/e that’s just me)

Starting off our batch for today’s NF corner is LINA HEDLUND of Alcazar fame:

A perfectly lightweight, timeless campy schlager anthem sung by a ~Glamourous Cougress~. We at BorisBubbles WORSHIP OUR COUGARS AND HAGS (Tamta <3 Tamta’s song </3) especially if adorned in a salmon-pink cape and a giant halo.

Even some of the NQ-fodder had merits: Meet Oscar En Lestat:

Lol he looks like he ran out of the set of “Interview of a Vampire: The Remake”. 😂 “I love it” has a pretty dope beat, and that’s without considering the plot twist that this song is about Oscar’s century old girlfriend. Like, seriously,

THAT’s where the styling ideas come from, right? He even uses her nail varnish lmfao stop I am DYING.😂  Anyway, is it any surprise to you this song finished LAST in its semifinal lmfao. Not even Sweden could get into it because they were too busy laughing their asses off <3 Hatrið mun sigra!!

But there was ONE entry I was absolutely smitten by. I don’t think any of you would disagree when I say that I absolutely ADORED Anna Bergendahl: 

They say Anna was a broken arrow... well watch her as she shoots!!! There’s a fire on the horizon and this song is the spark: In three minutes it ERASES all of the festering dislike I had for “It’s my life” and makes me feel EXCITED whenever I hear the name ‘Bergendahl’. Like a top of the mountain, like a wishing well fountain, we were the luck of the draw to have witnessed the Anna Renaissance, fighting her way though Andra Chansen like a beacon before a fire, like a boxer before a fight, topping charts and coming out as her own here, only to be PAINFULLY jury snubbed. But she’s gonna live, she’s gonna die and she’s gonna BURN!!! ~Ashes to ashes and dust to dust and ashes to ashes again~

It would’ve been PERFECT had Anna been the bun of this decade’s Sweden Smörgås (preferably by qualifying and redeeming herself). There were several other entries I could potentially showcase here but this write-up is already getting way too long for my tastes, so let’s move on to:

Qualification Odds: Guaranteed Qualifier

Yes, obviously this qualifies? lol. I mean, it’s not even the name “Sweden”. TLFL would qualify for fucking Slovakia, that’s how good it is. It’s well-produced and well-performed [by a man], ergo it advances. Period.

Having said that, "Too late for love” lack of a concrete identity raises my concern. Most people, myself included, are lukewarm to it, which is nice not what wins Eurovision. You need to make people love you and well, I don’t think it’s too late for love (is it?), but Sweden need to something and they need to do it fast. I really want Sweden to do better than Robin and Frans now that they have an entry I actually LIKE but ugh how can I win when I lose? :sob: Notice that their odds haven’t shortened once since Lundvik won Melfest and that indicates to me they may not do as well as advertised...

Projected placement: 3rd-5th in the semfinal. After he qualifies, he’ll place between 5th and 10th in the Grand Final. 

Link to the masterpost

[esteliel]

Les Mis Tecklenburg

Okay, the long overdue Les Mis Tecklenburg review, which might not be of much use to anyone else but I immediately forget things if I don't write them down so here's more than you probably wanted to know about this production.

The stage itself was amazing and so impressive, because it was HUGE, and they had built actual houses on it with basically two levels for people to stand/sing on. It was really impressive to look at though I'm not sure if it really added that much to the show, because it mostly meant that characters spent a lot of time running from one end of the stage to the other, and that it put characters on different levels when I feel like their actual positions don't reflect that (i.e. Javert spending some time surveying the town below from the highest point up by the cross when he is explicitly NOT above society but below/outside it, and Valjean as Madeleine dealing with the entire Fantine/factory girl fight while standing on the first floor of the factory above everyone else, when I feel that even as Madeleine he never was above people/never distanced himself via authority, but rather tried to keep his distance via escape by walks etc.)

At the front of the stage, there was a huge gap for the conductor, and both at the beginning, when Valjean receives his yellow passport, as well as during their encounter in the sewers, Valjean and Javert stood to each side of it, divided by this insurmountable gap as they faced each other, which on the other hand was using the stage symbolism perfectly! <3

As to the cast, they were generally good, I don't have complaints about a single actor (except for the kids, who were terrible with the exception of Sunday's little Cosette. I don't understand why professional productions don't go for slightly older kids. I don't even expect the quality of Broadway children, but these children were for the most part so horribly wooden that it was painful to watch. If you can't find a seven-year-old with at least a small amount of singing and acting experience, I promise that a twelve-year-old Gavroche will work just as well. :/)

The most important thing, I really, really enjoyed both Valjean and Javert. Valjean especially brought so much into it acting-wise, especially his first Soliloquy - he is so stunned by the bishop's compassion that there's a moment of genuine anger at the bishop for claiming that Valjean's soul exists/is important, and it was just one of the most emotional soliloquys I've ever seen. <3 He's also super cute with little Cosette, and after the Thénardier's inn, they stole that trick where he's dancing with little Cosette, and then behind a wall switch her with adult Cosette who continues to dance with Valjean to show the time skip, which made people laugh. Also Valjean brings little Cosette a red dress to wear instead of a black one, which adult Cosette is also wearing.

Javert was also fun - very focused, very driven, but without falling into that common trap of resorting to shouting or Angry Hammy Javert which was mainly what I got to see lately with Hume and Thaxton. It's just... so nice to sort of wipe the slate clean and see what sort of acting choices someone makes in a non-replica production, because it sometimes makes you realize that bits you hate but which you feel are unavoidable given the book are actually not. Like the Karlstad Thénardiers, who were so good and completely avoided that slapstick comedy route. Anyway, it was really refreshing to watch Kevin Tarte's Javert. I don't even think he did anything unusual acting-wise with Javert, but it was really solid and convincing acting and not a single moment where he took the easier path of Shouting instead of Acting.

Marius was very cute looks-wise, perhaps even a bit too cute because he didn't come across as awkward at all for the most part, but he was enjoyable to watch. Cosette looked way too old on the photos I'd seen but came across as perfectly fine on stage. Fantine was REALLY good, it's rare that I'm surprised by a Fantine's acting ability these days because they mostly tend to go the safe and boring routes, but Milica Jovanovic really pulled it off. I wasn't wowed by Eponine either but she was good too, just not anywhere close to my top 2 Eponines.

Even the Thénardiers were generally entertaining, though I feel like their slapstick routines would have grown boring just as quickly if I'd seen it more than twice. Thénardier had this bit which was hilarious my first evening, where during their negotiation with Valjean, he tries to sneeze into Valjean's coat, only Valjean pulls his coat away and so Thénardier sneezes into his own hands and then tries to wipe them first on Valjean, then on Mme T.'s boobs, but both give him such withering looks that he just gives up.

It was a bit less hilarious the second time around, and if I'd seen it thirty times, it probably would have ceased being funny pretty quickly, but alas that's not going to happen. (I did end up wishing I'd booked a third date...)

Random observations in a list because I've had this doc open for way too long already:

- OMG they sing it SO SO SLOWLY I'm not used to that any more! It was nice in parts, but in other parts it felt super unneccessary and drained scenes of their energy. This also meant that instead of the usual 3 hours running time this ran for 4 hours including the lengthy bows. On Saturday, the show ran from 7:30pm to 11:30pm (and then I was waiting around at the stage door until 1:30am because apparently the cast was inside playing poker, lol. But it was worth hanging around because I got a nice signed photo of a bare-chested convict Valjean showing nips. Not my own, mind you, Patrick Stanke brought those out himself. Clearly he knows what Javert his fans want. :D Made the long wait in the cold worth it though, and I made stage door friends for breakfast the next day yay.)

- There was applause in the weirdest spots? Like, applause for all the Amis dying on the barricade...

- Silververt shoots himself! This is only the second production I've seen after Sweden 2016 that makes Javert commit suicide by his own gun, and I love it - way preferrable to the awkward Broadway suicide staging (and obviously Wattsvert's joyful ascent to chair heaven). During his Suicide, Javert climbs all the way up to the third level of the stage and stands at the foot of the big cross up there. Then he shoots himself at the end of his song and falls down to somewhere hidden behind the small wall. Apparently there's a mattress placed there for him to fall on, and he told us that night that after his Suicide, he just kept lying on his mattress for a long time, listening to the show go on below and soaking in the atmosphere. By that point it was definitely past 10pm, it was completely dark, there were huge trees gently swaying in the wind around the stage, and it was such an amazing atmosphere that I'd have done the same. (Also, during his Suicide, there was a bat attracted by the light that kept fluttering around him while he sang his final verses by the cross, which made all the Tanz der Vampire fangirls around me very happy. I, on the other hand, was happy because I still love Shoujo Cosette's Vampirevert a lot and Javert should totally turn into a bat and suck Valjean's virgin blood more often. <3)

- After the show, we got to walk out across the stage and I feel like they should totally do that at the Queen's because it's such fun to get all close and personal with the set. :D

- Then during bows they teased the hand kiss!!! >:( Argh, I've never been teased more in my life. Very unfair!

- That first evening with the show starting at 7:30pm, Stars took place during actual twilight! So so gorgeous. <3 I love open air theatre (except for my ongoing love-hate relationship with the Globe).

- During the Prologue, Javert just lets the yellow passport drop to the floor, which I've admittedly seen many Javerts do, but here there were several meters between them which added an extra level of derisiveness to it which I've never seen before. And then Javert nodded to his guard underling to hand Valjean his bag, who also gave Valjean a disgusted look and dropped the bag right where he stood to leave with Javert.

- Fantine's death happens in this room which has four wooden pillars and gauze curtains in between, and when Javert comes in for the Confrontation, he's hidden behind the gauze curtain at first, spying on Valjean. And he's wearing leather gloves which he slowly tugs off finger by finger while singing his first lines. <3 Thanks for catering to my kinks.

- Then at the end of the Confrontation when they're facing off, standing almost chest to chest while panting with manly resolve to kill each other if neccessary, Sister Simplice who was watching all of that steps forward and gives them a Look and shakes her head at Javert, and they both awkwardly retreat. (And then scene change so I guess here it is indeed Sister Simplice who helps Valjean escape! <3)

- Oh and also Fantine's Death Room turns into Valjean's Death Room, and this time it's Fantine who gets to approach from behind the gauze, and then later watch Cosette and Marius from behind it for a while until Valjean dies.

- Also in Montreuil after Runaway Cart Javert also brings Valjean his coat, and he helped him into it and on my first day gently smoothed it down his back. <3

- Gavroche has the most ridiculous death. OMG seriously, there's no need to slow everything down so much. Gavroche has already made it back to safety atop the barricade, and remains there for an eternity while triumhantly singing his final two lines, and then is shot. It makes literally no sense that he wouldn't take cover for an entire minute when they've already been shooting at him.

- Also their Enjolras, wtf? I actually liked him, he was charismatic and generally fine and his singing was okay, but then both times, absolutely out of nowhere, he turns his final "is free" into this rock scream. On the other hand, he's the last to die on the barricade, which is always enjoyable to watch.

- Also they have both Javert and the Thénardiers join the cast for the Finale which I neither like nor think makes sense in any way at all, even if you believe that it's supposed to be 'heaven' because the Thénardiers aren't dead. Also except for Valjean, none of the characters even believe in Paradise as Reward for a Virtuous Life - the reward the amis are fighting for is very much about the situation of the living, sigh.

- Anyway, a fun production, I hope I get my boot of this because I need to watch Silververt shoot himself again with company, and definitely worth all the travel. (I should have seen it three times, honestly. <3)

[mermaeids]

Hi! I actually liked The Greatest Showman, but in my country he isn't even mentioned in history books (we care only about rulers and wars and big social movements, not some asshole who started circus) so when I was watching this, it was just nice story with guy who was a bit idiot, but finally ok, songs were about accepting true self... as I said, just nice story with amazind Efron&Zendaya duet. But then I googled him and I think it would be better if it was just story about random guy.

lol generally our history classes only care about those things too? i think the only reason he’s in american history books is because his story is very indicative of the time he lived in, and he was the first to really start a circus in the US. i think i learned more about him because he’s literally from southwestern connecticut where i live (i know his descendants) but our area HATEs him!! we learn about him but we don’t gloss over anything that he did because he was a piece of shit. we have pride in many of the historical figures that lived here, but NOT him. so naturally i was surprised and confused when i found out that hollywood was making a movie about him?? do they live in an alternate reality?? one important detail that the film conveniently left out was that his first act wasn’t the museum: it was a slave that he rented in a time where slavery was illegal in new york. ugh.

i went to go see the film because i was hoping that the musical elements would make up for the blatant lack of historical context or accuracy, but i was disappointed. the songs were unoriginal, repetitive, and cheesy, and the choreography SUCKED. who did the choreography?! let me google it. okay it was ashley wallen. i’ve never heard of him? i can think of five well known choreographers off the top of my head (some of whom i’ve studied under) who could have done a MUCH better job... but maybe they had too much self respect to do a film like this one. here’s a quote from wallen himself that has me rolling my eyes: “The way we shoot those dance numbers is very much the same as what we do in commercials.” FUCK!! WHY. sorry the more i write about this film the more frustrated i become. why do a musical if it SUCKS?

the story wasn’t even good. it was cliché, boring, and downright juvenile. maybe it was so poorly done because the writers had to leave out SO MUCH HISTORICAL INFORMATION IN ORDER TO PAINT BARNUM IN A FAVORABLE LIGHT!! talk about plot holes. damn.

to their credit, he wasn’t completely idolized within the narrative. they brushed upon some unfavorable qualities in the film. but i have a problem because they should have been the main focus because that’s who he was!! he wasn’t a good guy with some bad qualities; he was a bad guy with some good qualities (and even those were arguable).

the scenes with zendaya and zac efron’s characters were the only scenes that i enjoyed. i don’t think it’s a coincidence that they both played entirely fictional characters that were made up for the film.

i actually hope that people who live in other countries or who don’t know anything about pt barnum read up on him!! i don’t want this terribly inaccurate and idealized depiction of him in this film to be considered at all a reliable source for american history. he was not a great guy.

[lizacstuff]

7x04 Anons

I have a ton of asks so I’ll answer a few under the cut.  A lot of them deal with negativity over the ep and season so be warned and don’t click if you don’t want to read that.

Anonymous said:Liza, have you watched tonight's episode? What did you think of the Rumbelle send off? And of Alice being Roger's daughter?

I had zero emotional reaction to Rumbelle’s story in this episode. None. It’s been too toxic and gross and I have never really cared about it so it didn’t make me feel anything at all. I was curious what they were going to do. Now I know. 

As far as Alice being WishHook’s daughter. Eh. So they take the only interesting character and now she’s a fake Wish person too?  I just can’t with this nonsense. I’m having  a lot of problems with WishHook, so I’m not thrilled she’s tied to his story. 

Colin is still hot and an awesome human being and a terrific actor, but the plot... it’s a no for me.

Anonymous said:Sometimes I think Adam and Eddy believe they are the most clever people to ever write, and that everyone else are simple minded peasants. Like that one post-7x04 interview where the interviewer asked if Alice is wish Hook's daughter. "You're very perceptive." Uh, no, Adam and Eddy. You just have all the subtlety of a freight train. You had Alice and Rogers play chess. Wish Hook and his daughter played chess. It's obvious. Don't talk to people like they're stupid for figuring the obvious out.

This show has always been pretty obvious about some things, but they used to pull off some twists. I remember a time when fan speculation was way more wrong than it is right.  

However, season 7 is just really obvious in terms of some of the “big twists.”  Take Alice being the LGBT character, the entire fandom speculated that from the first second she appeared in shooting spoilers based on stereotypes. I have been hoping it’s not her because of those stereotypes, but nope! They had no surprises up their sleeve with it. Then most people immediately assumed she was Roger’s daughter the second we found out he had one... and apparently no twist there either. 

I guess the days of the entire fandom being shocked by finding out Hook is the Dark One and Dark Swan did everything for Hook... are over. 

Of course we should have known this reboot lost all subtlety in the second episode when everyone and their mother kept asking Henry if he was in love with the random woman he just met.  

Anonymous said:I know the promo pics didn't spell anything good for Belle, but I'm still surprised that they actually had her die. I kept thinking that there would be some twist to it.

As I was just saying... no twists, no turns. It’s exactly as everyone predicted. 

Anonymous said:I didn't watch the ep, but shit Henry and ivy have so much more chemistry than the other girl. Cinderella I think lol damn talk about epic romance also I saw comments that also agree with the Henry and ivy

If you haven’t watched how do you know they have more chemistry?  Seriously, that’s kind of ridiculous. What are you basing that on?

Anonymous said:ouat is a weird show, it requires you to pay really pay attention but not to close of attention or you will notice all the plot holes

100% accurate.  This reboot is creating so many more plot holes with all the magic mcguffins that are suddenly in play.  I guess you either have to accept it and go along for the ride, or recognize it for what it is. 

Anonymous said:hey liza, who are your favourite characters from the new cast? some of them don’t really impress me but i quite like ivy and tilly.

Both of those characters have some interesting aspects to them.  It may have a lot to do with the performers.  I haven’t been impressed with Gabriel, Dania or Mekia’s choices so far, but Adelaide and Rose have interesting screen presence. 

Anonymous said:Drizella really is a Mean Girls version of Regina. I'm between finding her general attitude annoying and finding her somewhat sympathetic considering she has to deal with Tremaine all day.

You mean Regina when she was a girl and under Cora’s thumb?  I could see that comparison.  Lets hope Drizella doesn’t follow in Regina’s footsteps and become the mass murdering rapist in town.

Anonymous said:Did Rumbelle build the house in Storybrooke?

Um... I’m not sure I understand this question.  In the show I believe that Up-inspired cabin where they were living isolated from everything and everyone else (do people really find that a happy ending?) was in the edge of realms. 

Anonymous said:I'm almost mad that we got to see more of Belle and Rumple's story than we did of Captain Swan. We all know they are living their happy ending but it would still be wonderful to see a little clip of Emma sitting on the beach with their daughter waiting for Killian to show up and join their picnic. Just some good ole domestic Captain Swan on scene would make me so happy. *sigh*

I have a number of anons like this, and just NOPE.  

First, we did not see more of Rumbelle than CS on this show.  Rumbelle was a backburner story that was most often characterized as a cautionary tale of abuse and manipulation and the pair were mostly apart and had very little focus through the run of the series. 

The showrunners decided that going forward they needed viewers to feel good about Belle and RB so after making them a gross, toxic mess for seasons now (it was just last year that Rumple was fucking the Evil Queen while Belle ran and hid for her life as he stalked and threatened her) they gave fans a bunch of twee scenes of her growing old (a life she lived isolated from everyone but two people) and dying in order to get rid of her and give Rumple motivation for this idiotic S7.

You’re jealous of that? Seriously? Fuck no. 

Also you need to understand that 7.02 and 7.04 were very different episodes.  7.02 was still really Henry's story and a moment in time where he called for help and got to see his parents for a few minutes and we all found out that Emma and Hook are doing great and gonna have a baby and living a blissfully happy life together.  It was just a check in where it was confirmed for us that Operation Happy Beginning has been a success and things are amazing. Also it spun off WishHook and completely separated the plot of S7 away from CS.  7.04 was 100% Rumple plot and his story. It explained why he's there and what is motivating him in Hyperion Heights.  Very different.  For 7.02, CS were not the focus because they didn’t need to be. Nothing in S7 requires knowing exactly what is going to happen to them minute by minute.  I'll take less screen time and my OTP being completely disentangled from this mess any day of the week.

Anonymous said:Lol my jealousy of Rumbelle having more focus than CS has dropped to 0%, that episode was eh. CS is expecting a baby, and Belle is dead after spending her life trying to fix rumple's. Nice.

Yep.  Look, I’m happy for any fans of Rumple or Belle that are happy about this episode and found peace in Belle’s life, but the writers did too much damage to this pairing over the years for me to care about it at all. 

Anonymous said:While I can't stand rumbelle I feel for the shippers. They did get some happy scenes but their ship is going to spend the rest of the season apart and in pain until the half alive dies.

Yeah... I would not like that, I don’t think. It’s just kind of creepy and icky and ew-ey. However, to each her own.  

Anonymous said:Agreed with that anon, there some good moments, but this was definitely not even close to one of the best episodes of the series. I have to respectfully disagree with Colin on this one. (Actually season 7 in its entirety lol)

Oh dear sweet Colin. Just trying to do his job.  So many cast and crew and media have shot their hyperbolic wad with this episode. Calling it the best EVER!!!!!  What will they say for the rest of the season?  “This is the second best episode EVER!!!!!” Or will they keep one upping every time they have to promote an ep?

No one with an economic interest in S7 can be trusted when talking about the quality of this season (and I include Mitovich and NA in that.) 

Anonymous said:I didn't watch the episode but I'm curious: are we supposed to believe that when Belle dies Emma and Killian are old too or was there some timeline glitch and Emma and Killian are still young in Storybrooke at the time of HH events? 

Who knows. Belle and Rumple were off living at the Edge of Realms for the last years of her life.  Rumple said something about time standing still there except for Belle??? I think. (my mind kept wandering duiring those scenes becuse they were so boring) Then after she died he opened a portal thingy to go to the time and place where the Guardian (the deux ex machina that is going to cure him of the Dark One curse) lives and Rumple was then transported to the newEF (that looks exactly like the old, I mean couldn’t they have given this new storybook’s fairy tale land some stylistic differences???)  on the night of Cinderella’s Ball and we see Henry drive by on his motorcycle. 

So yes, I think some of the flashforwards could have been from far in the future, and some could have been not all that distant because they were in a weird realm with weird time mechanics. 

However, I think Rumple and Belle left Storybrooke well before Henry did (they talk about it at Gideon’s first birthday and Henry still would have been about 14 at that time) so by the time this Hyperion Heights stuff is happening they would have been off in Fairy Tale land “traveling?” (ie living their lives in dusty libraries searching books for a way to cure Rumple.)

It hurts ones head to try to sort it all out. 

Anonymous said:After watching this episode, all I think is how sad it is how far this show gone from greatness. Going back 3 years, I would’ve never imagined ouat would be like this now. Sorry for being dramatic, it’s all just so jarring.

I think one of the most unfortunate things about this is that I really think OUAT could have been a valuable and viable franchise for years to come.  However, they tried to reboot it too soon.  As I’ve said since last spring, I think it would have been much better to let it rest a year or two and then come back with 10-13 episode event series for ABC.  

However, this experiment will probably negate any opportunity for that.

Anonymous said:I think it's a little sad that in real time, Belle died like 5-10 years after the s6 finale. I know it was longer for her but to everyone else that knew her, it'd be like she died young.

Yep. I’m not sure if in Hyperion Heights or Storybrooke in 2017 if Belle is dead, dead, or still living out her life at the edge of realms or wherever and Rumple traveled back in time???  

I don’t know. 

Anonymous said:Do you think killing Belle off is going to decrease the ratings more?

Nope. If ratings do decrease, I don’t think that will have been a factor.

Anonymous said:They lost viewers even with the episode they promoted the most wow 

They did and yes, other than the premiere, this has been the most promoted episode.  As I’ve said since the premiere, ep 5 ratings should be the most telling. I’m guessing that will be the baseline for the rest of the half season. At that point anyone in the audience who was just curious if they would preserve our favorites happy endings from the first 6 season will know and there won’t be a bump from that.  We’ll see. 

[ajokeformur-ray]

Matchup Request

Hello! May I please request a matchup for Black Butler, Death Note, and Naruto YOI added as per request? I’m a heterosexual girl. I’ll get my physical description over with: I’m 5'5" with an hourglass figure, a natural 34H chest (mentioning because BACK PAIN and self consciousness), pale skin, short dark purple (dyed) hair, and color-changing eyes. I’m introverted with social anxiety and low self esteem and confidence; I don’t like my appearance, and sometimes I hate my personality and interests. I’ve been told I’m attractive many times by non-friends and non-family in a not-creepy way, but I never believe it ;-;. I do MMA, weightlifting, fencing/bladework, gun shooting, and other sports, but I’m pretty lazy unless it’s MMA/fighting, weights, weaponwork, or ~the do~ lol. I love reading, writing, watching television and movies, drawing (well, attempting to), psychology, playing piano (RACHMANINOFF :D), success, cats (explanation as to how much after list), music (heavy metal and classical especially), trying new foods, baking, chess, teasing (sfw and nsfw both ways), and PDA. I love cats so much that in fourth grade, I convinced my parents to get one. My dad is allergic and doesn’t really like cats, and my parents and younger sister prefer dogs, so I made a large spreadsheet and a PowerPoint explaining why I needed a cat. They told me we could get one if I read the entire Cats for Dummies book in four days during the school year, so I did. We got a cat. 

Anyways, as a person, I’d say that I’m sarcastic, funny, quick-witted, logical, analytical, passionate about things/people I love, a bit of a loner, quiet around all but a select few, salty, highly intelligent, fun, unpredictable, ambitious, badass, a procrastinator unless I’m inspired/I like whatever it is/it’s a big deal, reliable, easily flustered, hard to manipulate, and honest (almost to a fault in some cases). I’m the kind of person people go to for advice, which always surprises me tbh. I can also be impatient sometimes, and I can be reckless, but I’m never bratty. I’m very mature, apparently. I’m not very good with people who are “too nice”, like happy rays of sunshine all the time, and I’m fairly cynical, though I’m also realistic. Thank you so, so much! :) @shingeki-no-julchen

Sebastian

- Sebastian’s about five inches taller than you so he isn’t likely to tease you for your height. When you get back pain, Sebastian would know straight away and would offer you a back massage or some pain reliever, even if he doesn’t quite understand why your back aches. When you question your attractiveness and your golden personality, he would be indignant on your behalf and would likely lecture you on the rareity of your soul and, why, you should treasure your soul. It’s the only one you have, after all, my lady. *smirk* but he’d never push you to accept it, part of him is amused by that.

- You’re pretty active and Sebastian is naturally impressed by how many hobbies and interests you have. Even fir a human, you’re incredibly varied in what you enjoy and you have both active and relaxing hobbies, regulated and self-expressive ones. He’s not so big on PDA unless propriety accepts it or even demands it in social situations, at which point he’ll do what is necessary in order to maintain his pristine butler aesthetic. He would delight on teasing you in an NSFW way (I’ve written headcanons on this before, DM me if you want links) and would likely make baking a couple activity for the two of you. The way you were so determined to get a cat is one thing he adores about you and will definitely let you see his thirteen cats stuffed away in his wardrobe, as well as the multitude that walk on the grounds, prefering to spend the rare free evenings with you and your kitties.

- You’re pretty well suited to Sebastian, if I’m honest and totally not jealous and the fact that you’re independent, highly intelligent and your unpredictability will keep him on his toes, which means that he’s going to be invested in you, a rare gift from a demon, and will protect you at all costs. He’d likely manipulate you into doing more work when you’re procrastinating, using… Rewards ;) when he thinks you need to get more done. You’re honest so advice is always to the point and that’s probably why a lot of people come to you for it, because they know you won’t sugarcoat it. At least once, Sebastian has pointed out that realism and cynicism are often the same thing in a world such a this.

Light

- Light is all about appearance and that’s really what grabbed his attention about you… Your hair is a stark contrast to your skin and the way your eyes aren’t one set colour definitely intrigues him and he finds himself wanting to know all of the colours your eyes can be. Your differing confidence levels would be ad odds but eventually, through carefully timed compliments and the like, Light would almost show you how to be more confident.

- Aside from basketball, tennis and walking, Light doesn’t physically exercise much, but you do so many different activities that he’s almost shocked by how many you have an interest in, especially the weaponwork. You’re highly intellectual and that sets off with Light from the start and he’s happy to have finally found his equal (excluding L for the time being - sorry, panda boy). You were so determined to get a cat that you got one (kudos by the way omg that’s what I call dedication) and you obviously work hard for what you want. When you told Light about how you got a cat, he’d chuckle. You often relax together doing your own thing, curled up on either of your beds, Light’s arm around your shoulder and your head on his chest as you both read or he’s on his laptop doing work or whatever… It could easily lead to NSFW (also done headcanons on this).

- A lot of your qualities, Light has too, so you get on like a house of fire. You’re unpredictable and just when Light thinks he has you pegged, you take him by surprise and he’s back to square one. Your sarcasm, eye for detail and your ambition all make him want to ask you to be the Goddess of his New World, but you’d have to be together for so long for that to hapen. But somehow… I can almost see it. It’d also be quite a loving relationship, because Light is just so impressed by you and all that you are that he can’t help but be affectionate when it’s just the two of you, as he’s not so hot on PDA.

Itachi

- Itachi is incredibly perceptive so if there’s anything you can’t, won’t, want to or even have said, chances are he already knows and already has a response for you. He would know when you’re feeling especially low and when you need an extra boost and he’d be that for you. He’d compliment you as often as he feels the need to and when he does compliment you, he wouldn’t appreciate a denial as he rarely, if ever, compliments people with utter sincerity.

- You constantly take him by surprise. You have so many active hobbies but an equal number of introverted ones, all of which require some degree of thought or concentration. Your intellect is vast and Itachi finds himself opening up to you about his own hobbies and for sure, he may even observe you partake in them from a distance or offer to do them with you, wanting to spend time with you as his own time is sparse because of his duties as a hinobi and a mmber of ANBU. The length you went to to get a cat is astounding and he’d probably analyse your motives behind it. It’d likely become a point of motivation so if he wanted you to do something especially well, he’d offer up something you’ve wanted for a while, even something as simple as a bar of chocolate. It’s not manipulation it’s more…. delayed gratification.

- You’re both quiet people who are analytical, passionate, intelligent and cynical so you barely talk and are the ocuple who can communicate with a glance or hand gesture, able to understand each other perfectly. Both of you support the other and neither of you sugarcoat the advice you give to each other and it really is very private and loving.

Yurio

- Yurio understands what it means to dislike yourself and to lack confidence and self-esteem; he’s battled with himself and others for almost all of his ice-skating career, trying to be the best but always being overshadowed and it takes a toll, so he’d understand and would make sure to always give you his undivided attention, competition or training permitting of course, though he’d invite you to watch him train or compete. As such, he’s always very complimentary towards you and tries to help you in subtle ways, too. He’s a cute grumpy cat but we all love him anyways.

- Yurio has ice skating and ballet and you have… Well, what don’t you have? Fencing is quite heavy on footwork, or it can be (if I remember rightly) so you’re matched in that and he loves watching you exercise, if there was a means to. He would listen to the music you do, if only because he appreciates the heavier genres, and when you go on dates he takes a double headphone port so you can both jam out at the same time. You work for what you want and so does he, though perhaps you come out the other side better for it whereas Yurio just seems to get beaten all the time.

- You’re both snarky as all hell and you’re both quite passionate. Yurio can shut people out when he’s down or angry, and when he’s angry he’s very passionate and motivated so perhaps you get to know him when he blurts out secret feelings or thoughts in anger, only to regret it as soon as his brain catches up to his mouth. Angry sex is definitely a thing though the anger is rarely directed at you - how can he be mad at the person who brings out the best and the worst in him but loves him all the same? You’re honest to a fault so when Yurio’s being a dick you’re not afraid to tell him and he’ll go sullen for a time but will eventually pull through and really, you just support and love each other unconditionally, providing unknowing entertainment for those who overhear you sassing each other.