#she’s a lil clunky but still good. yeah. still good

[gallopinggallifreyans]

Aphrodite of the Venus Genetrix type by Ana on Sketchfab

Y'ALL CHECK IT OUT HERE SHE ISSSSSSSS

[rileys-battlecats]

👀 Wrentail was thw clan’s best storyteller?? What kind of stories did he tell? Could you mayhaps give us a little example? I mean I don’t expect you to have thought about the specific stories he told much but you got my curiosity so if possible I will take anything you’re willing to tell about this topic

I don't fully remember where the idea came from, but yeah I wanted Wrentail to actually have some kind of hobby outside of child abuse and rabid xenophobia HAHA, so with his special talent of Lying I figured he would've also been a good storyteller. Good at capturing imaginations, setting the mood through turns of phrase and gestures, and with a good sense for pacing in his story-telling. The stories told would vary, but they would probably range from personal anecdotes, to clan history, to folklore.

I imagine Micaclan as having a pretty rich folklore, with stories that impart lessons to their young members; practical lessons, but also moral lessons at the same time.

As for an example of a story Wrentail might tell, I was inspired to write a little snippet as an example!! I'm not a writer so this might be a lil clunky but I hope you enjoy anyway :P I'm putting it under a cut cause it got long haha

After a long day of training and hunting, Micaclan's apprentices and mentors gather close to discuss what they learned. Whitepaw shuffles nervously; he'd been so caught up in chasing a mouse, earlier, that he'd nearly careened off the edge of a cliff in his mad dash. Robinsong shakes her head at her apprentice, quietly disappointed and concerned.

She says, "You should know better than to chase so intently after prey like that—you weren't even looking at where you were going! Too focused on your prize. Haven't you heard the story of Pecanpaw's Tree?"

Hawkpaw snickers at the reminder of Whitepaw's earlier stunt, only to be quickly silenced as Puddlepaw's shoulder jabs into her side.

Whitepaw avoids looking at his mentor, and keeps his gaze fixed on his paws as he shakes his head, "No, I don't think so."

"Well, it's very applicable here. And that goes for all of you," Robinsong turns to look at the other gathered apprentices, "Hawkpaw, Puddlepaw, Mudpaw—This is an important story, an important lesson. Listen closely." Her eyes turn skyward, in apparent thought.

"Let's see... how does it start?"

Wrentail, beside Robinsong, lifts his head and touches the tip of his tail to her flank. She glances at her brother, before smiling and nodding. He straightens his posture, and begins speaking in a storyteller's lilt:

"It happened one day that a young apprentice, Pecanpaw, was readying for their assessment. The newleaf air was crisp and fresh, morning dew still clinging to the tender shoots of grass reaching up through the earth, and the pine needles under their paws were springy and soft, perfectly suited to cover the sound of their pawsteps as they hunted. All was calm, and the cool breeze carried with it the promise of abundant prey.

"Following the scent, they found their way to the base of a towering hemlock tree, so tall that the branches scraped the undersides of the clouds. And at its base, rummaging amongst the roots, was a squirrel. Not just any squirrel, either; from nose to tail tip, it was large enough to reach from the tip of their paw all the way to their shoulder. If they caught a piece of prey of that size, they would surely pass their assessment with no issue.

"Pecanpaw dropped into a hunter's crouch, and locked their eyes onto their quarry. With soundless pawsteps, they drew closer and closer to the squirrel. The air went still. With only the sound of their own heartbeat roaring in their ears, Pecanpaw readied themselves to leap—and then the wind changed. A gust coming from behind them alerted the squirrel to their scent, and it darted up the tree.

"Frustration tore through Pecanpaw, and they leapt up after their prize. Claws digging into the rough bark of the old hemlock, they kept their eyes locked onto the squirrel ahead of them. Up to the first branch, the second, the third—up and up and up. Always remaining just out of reach, the squirrel practically taunted Pecanpaw and their mission.

"With paws aching from exertion, they clawed their way higher. Before they knew it, the branches beneath them were willowy and thin, bending beneath their weight. Yet the squirrel continued to climb, and thus, so did Pecanpaw. They clung to the trunk of the old hemlock, continuing higher, higher, ever higher. Soon, there would be nowhere left for the squirrel to climb, and then Pecanpaw would have their prize.

"Finally, the end was in sight; only the thinnest of branches were left, and there was no further the squirrel could climb to. Pecanpaw, only a tail length away, could see the bristles of the squirrel's fluffy tail, see the twitch of its nose, its wide, glistening dark eyes. They could see it bunch its muscles, see it tuck into a crouch, and leap with reckless abandon to the waiting branches of the surrounding trees, hundreds of tail lengths below."

Wrentail pauses, taking the time to look at each of the apprentices in turn, before continuing.

"And as soon as their prize left their line of sight, Pecanpaw looked around them, and saw nothing but the tops of trees, felt nothing but the howling wind, smelled nothing but the cold moisture of the clouds. Their prey had been the only thing worth focusing on, they'd thought. Their prey had been the only thing they had focused on. But now, with the squirrel long gone, escaped into the branches below, they saw what they should have seen from the beginning. That the old hemlock tree reached into the sky itself, and that its branches were easy to climb up, but nearly impossible to climb down."

The apprentices wait with bated breath, eager to hear the rest. But Wrentail is already unwinding from the more formal storyteller's pose, lifting a paw to wash his face.

The tip of Hawkpaw's tail flicks from side to side, "So? What happened after that? How did Pecanpaw get down?"

Gullytuft, silent up until now, meows, "How do you think?"

A beat of silence.

"...They fell," Puddlepaw concludes, "They couldn't climb down. They were too focused on their prey and didn't pay attention to their surroundings, didn't stop to think. That's why it's a lesson, right? You're supposed to think about Pecanpaw before you start being reckless and chasing after prey without thinking. Or you might get hurt, like Whitepaw almost did."

"Spot on, Puddlepaw," Sandleap meows.

They preen a little at their mentor's praise, but sober quickly. Pecanpaw's Tree isn't a fun story, not when it feels so real. Any of the apprentices could've been Pecanpaw today. They promise their mentors that they will think before acting rashly.

[eskawrites]

not to get all up in my feelings about art and creativity but today (at work, not even as a fandom thing lmao) one of my friends went out of her way to tell me how much she liked a piece of my writing. and the thing is, i wasn't even that attached to this piece. it's small and written for a work thing and a lil clunky and a lil too personal and i almost didn't share it, but i decided to anyway because whatever

but after she told me that, the first thing i did was go back and re-read it, because i wanted to see what she saw in it. not in a self-deprecating, 'why do you even like this?' way, but just because it meant enough to her to say something about it, and i wanted to read it again through her eyes and wonder which phrases made her stop and think, or how the themes hit home, or what part made her like it enough to tell me about it

and i do that with my fanfic sometimes, too. when someone points out a certain detail or predicts what will happen next or even just says they read this at 2:30 in the morning with their cat on their lap. i read those comments, and i go back and look at this story i made, and i remember that i'm real and they're real and the things i create have changed the world in some tiny, ultimately insignificant way--but it was enough to affect what someone was doing or thinking in that moment

and something i've thought a lot about since covid happened and the vast majority of my social interactions started taking place online (it's a problem, i'm working on it, but it's true nonetheless) is that art really, truly is a love language. and not just when you gift it to people, or when you use it to show appreciation, or however else it can coincide with the traditional love languages. but because it's a way to share a little piece of yourself. and it might be silly and it might be sad and it might be fun and it might be meaningful but no matter what, it comes from you. a lot of the time, it comes from a part of us that we can't really effectively express otherwise. i mean, i can say 'i love x ship' in a thousand different ways but that's never going to compare to pouring my heart into stories or arts or edits exploring all my favorite things about those characters and their dynamic. that's why 'bad' art from writers or artists who don't really know what they're doing is still good--because if it comes from you, if it has meaning to you, it's special

but the thing about love languages is that there has to be a recipient. sometimes my writing is an act of love for myself, and that's good and lovely. but other times, when i share writing with friends or fandom or just strangers on the internet who have a thing or two in common with me, when you become the recipient, it really does transform the work. all these things that are so meaningful to me that i turned them into art are suddenly meaningful to you, too. it's like confessing a secret and having someone say yeah, me too. it's vulnerability and acceptance and kinship and community. it makes me see the things i create in a whole new light. it makes me see myself in a whole new light.

[helluvapurf]

-Oop, almost forgot about today being the debut of the newest HB episode "Unhappy Campers" lol Lets talk about it!~ :>

*Spoiler warning ahead for those who didn't see the ep yet-*

Soooo to start things off, lets get to the Positives!

*-M&M get to stand out more in the main A-story for a change, yay! 👏👏And even including a bit of drama for the couple to deal with as they started to clash over their roles in this "mystery"-solving; especially with Millie revealing to carry some insecurities over not feeling "appreciated" outside of a supportive role/killing-machine… poor girl :c Glad to see she was able to have her moment to shine on stage by the end while Moxxie "took care" of their suspect, the gal deserved that time to just let loose on her own, yknow? 🥺

*-The summer camp aesthetic was a fun change of scenery for the story here, and I liked the designs for characters like the blue demon client at the start, alongside Millie & Moxxie's human disguises ("Moxxine" & "Millard"), they were cute~ :3

*-While Blitz didn't play too big of a role here in the long run, his gentle coaxing to his sister Barbie Wire at the end to try and amend things was rather touching to see (not really seeming to mind her pronouncing the "O" in his name either, unlike with other characters)… even if ultimately tragic given her rejection at the end :(. I really hope we get more insight of their family background later, 'cause there's alot of story potential for Blitz to try and face the "shadows" of his past (outside of just general exes-drama), in a meaningful character building way imo 👍

*-Not quiiiite as strong on the humor aspect (which I'll get into in a sec-), but I'll admit there's still some good chuckle-worthy moments like the "kid-stuck-in-a-crater" gag, along with this one still-shot during the Blitz & Moxxie VS Barbie fight lol

*-Nice to see a return of those Asmodean crystals, ever since their cameo in "The Circus" I've always been curious to see them in-action given their role as another portal-making item :o the crystalline-looking portals made from them look so pretty too~

As far as the Negatives of this ep are concerned? …Ehhhh-

*-As much as I enjoyed the M&M spotlight… I'd be lying if I said I didn't find the execution a bit… "clunky" at certain points ^^; Mainly on Moxxie's end 'cause… oof did he feel rather cringey at times, getting randomly hung up about some camp kids not liking him over Millie? :| Like… okay sure, its one thing to criticize her not prioritizing the "investigation" mystery as seriously as she should've… but I mean, you're basically doing the same thing trying to win over everyone as this ditzy teen girl, Moxx so like… who are you to talk? :/ Thankfully he got over that by the end and made things right by his wife but still… smh, dude >>

*-For a character as hyped up as Barbie Wire's been by the fandom since the pilot… I'm surprised that her first-ever reveal is only in the last few minutes of a B-plot? .-. Like… this is the long-lost sister of our main character, mind you, and her presence alone through that one photo in "Ozzie's" was enough to shake up Blitz to the core… so, why wasn't she given more of a major story to come back into her brother's life? 🤷‍♀️ I don't even mind that she's not interested in making amends with him atm (esp. with his stalkerish behavior here I can't really blame her tbh, as much as I love the guy- ^^;), but still…more additional context in-general could've helped make her debut a lil more interesting imo (same with Stella's brother Andrealphus).

*-Humor wise… ehhhhh yeah, some of it didn't really sit right with me tbh :/ Like, okay I get HB's always been a rather "raunchy" show since its inception, and I'm all for some clever adult humor when done right…

…But I mean, did we really need bits like M&M pretending to be "siblings" while disguised (when… idk why they couldn't have just pretended to be a regular teen couple tbh? .-.), only to then having that big "steamy" moment in front of a crowd of campers…? :| Idk, humor IS subjective at the end of the day so, I guess your mileage may vary on some of these joke executions… 🤷‍♀️

*-Pacing felt a bit imbalanced (again), with moments like the big ending fight scene feeling rather… "stiff", in some parts? : o Idk, probably could've benefitted from adding in a few more minutes or something to make it flow a lil better .3.

*-Fun as it was seeing Millie getting her own song for a change (that's not just another love duet with Moxxie)… idk, it admittedly wasn't the most memorable compared to some previous HB songs (minus the lil lyrics popping underneath like a cheesy music video, that was funny lol) 🤷‍♀️That and Moxxie's own "solo" attempt at the campfire scene was… again, cringey (though I think that was the point lol) :P.

-----

…Aaaaand yeah, that about covers my initial first impression thoughts of the ep! If I had to give my own rating again… prooobably somewhere around a C-rank? Again, I still enjoyed the M&M (+mainly Millie's) spotlight overall, but with the rushed-over Barbie Wire addition & some of the cringier humor bits… Iiii just don't know if I'd consider it among my fave eps anytime soon, imho ^^;

[corpse-a-diem]

We See Dead People || Lil & Erin

TIMING: Two Weeks Ago (before Jonas' hospital incident) PARTIES: Lil (@the-lil-exorcist) & Erin (@corpse-a-diem LOCATION: A Latte to Love SUMMARY: Erin runs into her first medium and bombards a very gracious Lil. CONTENT WARNINGS: none

If there was one good thing about going out in public anymore, it was that if there was a ghost meandering along sidewalks or businesses, it was hard to tell–sometimes, anyway. They blended with the regular populous and if Erin had her blinders secured, she’d be able to ignore mostly everything else. But it’d been a while since she’d had a well-brewed cup of coffee, and despite the corny name, A Latte to Love had some of the best in town. The day had been long and the pile of paperwork on her desk promised an even longer evening. She didn’t know how her dad had done this side of the job for decades and she missed the days where she could hole up down in the mortuary and work to her heart’s content. Alone. Just her and the dead people that didn’t talk back.

Coffee in hand, she turned towards a free spot in the corner. Tucked neatly away from the busy atmosphere and surprisingly with a good view of the street. People walking to and from work, walking their dogs, but she was surprised to see the street quieter than usual. Must have been the cold Her eyes moved to a woman speaking with her hands to an older woman, more discreetly and off to the side. Erin wouldn’t have paid them any more than a second thought until the bicyclist zoomed through the alley. She stood back up quickly, like she’d be able to save the other person from getting run down from all the way over here. But the older woman turned, looked at the bicyclist–and let him run right through her. Literally through her. A ghost? But–the younger person moved. The bicyclist even acknowledged her, apologizing for cutting too close. 

Erin’s feet moved, darting to the pair before she even realized what she was doing.

--

Lil didn’t normally get to talk to ghosts. The side effect of her hearing meant that most communication was her looking at their lips and guessing what they were saying. Still, just like in life there were ghosts that did speak ASL - and if she had a soft spot for any it was for them. So, when Lydia - the kind old ghost lady who was near A Latte to Love started speaking with her hands a few months ago, Lil had always paused to talk to her. 

So when the bike came through she just moved back a little still taking to the older woman about her knitting journey and how she had a few more things to make before Christmas time. “Hey man - be careful about not hitting me.” She said knowing that he wouldn’t have seen the ghostly woman - a shame as she was pretty nice. She also was trying to move on, and Lil would give her a little of grace to do so. 

Lil turned a little as another person started walking down the way preparing to tell Lydia to move a little so she could still see her hands, unbothered by being perceived odd by other people. After all, she’d gotten used to it over the years.  Can you move over a little - So yeah I was thinking of a plaid pattern but I wasn’t quite sure -. 

--

Erin realized perhaps a little too late that she was very possibly intruding. And as she stood there between the two, dead and not dead, that she had absolutely no idea what to say here. She was also painfully aware that anything she said now, as she glanced at both women, was going to come off as either awkward or rude. The former wasn’t the worst option, she supposed. Though her eyes lingered on the dead woman, she forced herself to meet the other woman’s. “I’m sorry,” she started off immediately, clutching her coffee anxiously in front of her. She stood there for another moment before she realized she had to say something else instead of gawking like a freak on the sidewalk at this poor woman. 

“Do you–can you see… her?” The question came out clunky and unsophisticated–and probably rude if she knew better. It was at that moment she also realized the way the women had been speaking to one another. Regrettably, she had never learned ASL but did her best to communicate what she had just spoken, emphasizing the fact that Erin could also see the ghost that she was currently talking to. This was real, right? Another person who could see what she saw? Who had experiences like hers? All she could do was pray the swell of hope in her stomach wasn’t about to destroy her in front of this stranger. 

--

Lil didn’t expect the other to stop in front of her, her eyes turning to the other as she realized that maybe her private conversation wasn’t so private. Usually people just found Lil odd and left her with whatever ghost she was with and just glared at her. This person didn’t seem too, and honestly that was more surprising than anything else. “Uh hey - I’m not in your way or anything am I?” Lil said, tilting her head wondering. The other seemed pretty professional looking, but not like an authority figure. Surely she was allowed to sign to herself in the alleyway. 

At the question Lil blinked and too stunned to say anything else she said, “You mean Lydia? Yeah. - Oh you are a - oh gotcha.” Lil figuring out what was happening quickly and turning to the ghost she signed New Medium it looks like. She probably is going to need help. I know but what can you do. Sorry we can talk about knitting tomorrow yeah? 

“You see ghosts right? Guessing this is something you didn’t know other people could do?” Lil said waiting for the other to respond, “Oh that was a little rude. Hi I’m Lil, and I also see ghosts.” 

--

At the other woman’s hesitation, Erin was positive she was about to be dismissed, or even worse, she’d somehow gotten this situation egregiously incorrect. But the moment the stranger’s realization snapped into place, there was a profound sense of relief deflating the tightness in Erin’s chest. “Right. Lydia,” she repeated, nodding, glancing at the ghost who’s conversation she clearly interrupted. She added an apologetic nod and small wave but immediately turned back to the woman who had introduced herself as Lil. Lil, who could also see ghosts. Who, she clocked by her attitude, was much more comfortable with this than Erin could have dreamed to be.

“No! No, you’re not rude. I’m rude. I’m sorry. I just saw you out here and the biker just went right through your friend and I had to–” she didn’t know where she was going with this but immediately realized she was rambling and cut herself off. I also see ghosts. It was such a simple and simply stated sentence but it was all Erin could hear repeating in her head. She took a breath and started again, a small smile curling at the corner of her lips. “Hi, Lil. I’m Erin. And no, I didn’t know other people could see, uh–you know.” The g-word was stuck in her throat, like years of pretending they weren’t there had made it an unspeakable admittance. A bad word. “Ghosts. Yeah. I can–I can see ghosts.”

She shifted uncomfortably, that open vulnerability of that admission making her skin itch. That, and the eyes of the pedestrians she could feel on her back as they passed by on the sidewalk near them. “Are you busy? I don’t mean to bombard you or anything, and you can absolutely say no but, you’re the only person I’ve ever met who’s, you know–like me. And I have… so many questions.” 

--

Lil gave the other a smile waving to Lydia who had started to wander away. She didn’t seem to mind, just giving a small nod. After all, the other seemed excitedly wanting to talk to Lil. “No you’re fine. I know that if you’ve never met another one of us, you’d want to talk.” 

At her name she extended her own hand, chipped black nail polish and all to Erin and said, “Gotcha. Hello Erin. It’s nice to meet you. You’re fine.” Lil continued seeing the panic and nervousness of the other. 

It was the only thing she hated about meeting mediums that weren’t raised and it wasn’t their fault. Normally they thought that there was something wrong with them or that seeing ghosts was a curse. While everything else being even, Lil may have wanted to not be a medium - she wouldn’t have trained to be an exorcist- she didn’t think that seeing ghosts in of itself was bad. 

“Sure,” Lil said gently with a nod. In Spite of it all, she wanted this to be a good first meeting.  While Jonas would have been better at it, she would at least try. “I’ve got some time anyway, I’m not going to disappear either. Also what you are if I’m right is a Medium. Hey, why don’t we grab a coffee and we can talk, yeah?” 

--

Erin had to wonder if Lil had been through this before. There was a sense of experience there that guided her words and movements that Erin was, frankly, envious of, but glad for at the same time. She shook her hand, watching the ghost named Lydia start to wander off. “Sorry, Lydia!” She called out as she disappeared from view. Though if she was being honest, she wasn’t all that sorry. 

Lil was calming and receptive to her intrusiveness, which was more than she could’ve hoped for, even if she couldn’t properly verbalize her appreciation at that moment. Her brain was buzzing like TV static. A medium. She was sure Lil could see everything she was saying to Erin being processed right in front of her eyes. “Yeah, that sounds great. Thank you,” she nodded, a brighter smile reaching her lips as she turned to head back towards the coffee shop she’d just dashed from. Her things were still at the table she’d sat before, and she could only barely wait until Lil had ordered her own coffee before diving right in. 

“So… a medium? Is that what you are too?” Her voice was a little hushed despite the hum of the coffee shop. “And you said there are others?”

--

Lil tried to hide the chuckle her hand going over her mouth as she went into the coffee shop getting her coffee quickly. It wasn’t exactly what she had planned for the day, but it was one of the bits of when she was in the ghostbusters she hadn’t minded. She wondered what hunters did - if they saw each other in the wild and one didn’t know. She supposed it might be easier to just not know.

Certainly wasn’t the case for a medium. Sitting down across from the table she waited for the questions, which were fairly standard for her to start off with. At least Erin seemed to believe her outright that she should know. She knew after all she didn’t look like a typical medium, her punk clothing probably fitting better as a hunter than anything. 

“Yup, we are both mediums,” Lil said, deciding saying she had trained to become an exorcist was probably a bit more than Erin was going to understand at the moment. She also elected to believe Erin had a pulse, if only because she couldn’t remember what undead could see ghost. She was pretty sure it was zombies. Regardless, she decided the other would know more if she was one. “Also a yes. There’s not a ton of us, but maybe a few thousand in the world? There’s not really a census on it, but no you're not alone. It’s just pretty rare. There’s more here in town too. We’re a pretty big hot-spot for ghosts and mediums it seems. It’s something you were born with - even if you don’t remember it. I’m guessing something changed recently?”  Lil asked, mostly to lead the questions to what might be most helpful. After all, it didn’t seem like the other had ghosts hanging around her like they did for Winter. She could only hope she didn’t accidentally bind a ghost to herself. 

--

Erin hung onto every word and had zero interest in pretending like she hadn’t waited her entire life to meet someone like Lil, even if she hadn’t realized it until just now. And boy, had she. A few thousand? With a few more even just in town? This whole time, right in front of her, and she had no idea. The irony was almost cruel, in the Alanis Morrissette kind of way. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised at that. Given that Wicked’s Rest is Wicked’s Rest. It’s always been a little off.” 

Erin shook her head. “Not really. I mean–I don’t remember much from when I was little, but I’ve always seen things. People. My parents, and even I thought there was something wrong with me. I saw so many doctors and therapists and tried to just… ignore it? They–the ghosts–started to go away, sort of. For a while. But they’d eventually, always come back.” The confession spilled from her, old truths she hadn’t shared with absolutely anyone. But Lil believed her and she couldn’t help but trust this stranger who could see her more clearly than anyone in her life. “But then my dad died. And it was his ghost that told me that what I was seeing was real.” She scoffed, glancing down at the coffee in front of her, a bitter bite to her words. “Which sounds… pretty fucked up when you lay it all out like that, huh?”

She paused for a moment before eyeing Lil once more, more questions fighting for attention in the back of her mind. “Have you always known?”

Lil blinked a chuckle on her mouth, “ Yes I think there’s something in the water personally, but it’s probably ghost capital. At least as far as I can tell. I used to be on the road but I could probably spend the rest of my days here and see more ghosts than most mediums ever do.” 

Lil listened quietly, letting her tell her story a sympathetic ping in her heart as she heard the little tragedy of not knowing. “I’m sorry to hear that. It's not uncommon when you don’t know another medium to think that way - but no you were always seeing ghosts.” She paused for a moment and nodded at the question and said, “Yeah. It does. It must have been rough and I’m sorry that it took that for your dad to believe you - but if you deny that you see ghosts for long enough it gets easier to ignore them for a while. They’ll end up coming back though. I’m assuming no one else in your family is a Medium?” 

It wasn’t unheard of, although Lil never understood what made someone a medium to begin with. Some people were like here, one of dozens in a line. Hell, part of her felt like her parents had married because both of them were strong mediums. 

At the question Lil raised her eyebrows, surprised a little at the question being directed at herself. “Yes. My family is full of mediums. I’ve always known about ghosts.” She knew more than that  - a lot of things that bumped in the night, but well she would much rather Erin still believe her at the moment. “It’s not uncommon though, if you don’t have a Medium family member to not know.” 

--

God, this was so bizarre. Not that Erin was out here just confessing lifelong secrets to a stranger but the wildest part was that this stranger believed her. Whole-heartedly. She sympathized and understood her. The validation was overwhelming. A wet warmth prickled at the corner of her eyes and she grit her teeth to hold it together. She wasn’t about to start crying in front of this poor woman she was holding hostage in the coffee shop on top of everything too now. “Thank you. Took a while but I got there. But, still, thank you.” She cleared her throat, narrowing her eyes in thought. Most of her extended family had passed already, outside of a few aunts and uncles that lived out of town now. If anyone else was like her, she would know. Right? “No. Just me, I’m pretty sure,” she answered, though it wasn’t a question she ever had reason to consider. 

“Your whole family? Really?” To say she was surprised was an understatement, though she was starting to understand the question about her own family. “It’s genetic, then?”

Erin paused again, straightening in her seat as the sound of the cafe came back to her. “I’m sorry, I know I’m asking a lot of you. I know you said you understand, we were raised very differently and I just–thank you for even giving me the time of day. I don’t think you know how much this means or how much it helps. But it does. So much.”

--

Lil wasn’t sure how to help with the tears in the corners of Erin’s eyes - something she should have known could come but always surprised her. Still, the other medium seemed to want it to be ignored so she let it. “Hey, it’s hard thinking you’re the only one dealing with this. I’m just glad you found someone.” She wanted to say something like it wasn’t her fault, but well she didn’t know the other at all. She might not like that tidbit even if it was true. Mediumship wasn’t a curse as much as it was just a fact of some people’s life - for better or worse. 

Still at the idea she was alone nodded and said, “Yeah that would be really rough. Like I said it’s not unheard of. There’s others that are in your shoes.” It must be terrifying if Lil was being honest. No wonder it felt like such a relief that she had met someone like herself. Sipping at her coffee carefully she nodded. 

“I mean in my immediate family. I have cousins and stuff that aren’t. I don’t actually know. I think it can be? At least to some extent, but it’s also not uncommon for it to skip around families or suddenly show up in one.”

At Erin seeming to realize their surroundings Lil replied, “Not at all. What you're asking isn’t something that is particularly much or anything hard for me.” After all, people who weren’t even mediums asked a lot of the same things of Lil all the time without being even a little grateful. While Lil’s dark circles were related to all of this world, it was hardly because of Erin. Besides, even if she had been kicked out of the Ghostbusters, building and helping others wasn’t something she was ever angry about. 

If Erin needed someone to tell her she was perfectly fine, then Lil would do it. No strings attached. Just like she had done with Winter, and to some extent Jamie. With a gentle smile Lil said, “Like I said outside, I’ll answer anything you need help with. I’ll even give you my number if you want to answer anything you forget to ask. Funnily enough you picked a family of people who do this kind of thing a lot. You’ve got to have some luck. ” 

--

Erin didn’t know how or if she could repay Lil’s kindness and graciousness. She seemed to have the right thing to say for every turn she went down or a solid enough answer for every question Erin had. It was funny how for decades of her life, her mind had been filled with question after question. She knew she had more in her. She could feel them drifting around like feathers she couldn’t catch in her brain. But the noise seemed… satiated. The most important one had been given light–she wasn’t alone. This wasn’t some unique neurological flaw. There were other people out there that understood her and experienced the same things as she did, as Lil explained. 

Her eyes turned to the coffee in front of her and she did her best to quell the swirl of emotions that had taken over the logical side of her. A small smile turned the corner of her lips upward. “You know it’s funny, I thought I had a thousand more questions but I can’t really remember any of them right now so I don’t want to take up too much of your time right now.” A long sigh slipped from her. Relief in its truest form. She actually felt lighter. “That would–that would be really good, actually.” She pulled her phone out and handed it to Lil. She paused for a moment, watching the younger woman, who held herself and spoke about this whole thing so easily. “I don’t know. I don’t know much about luck if it took me nearly forty years to find someone else going through this. But I’ll take it all the same.” 

Erin started to stand, anxious energy still fluttering through her limbs. She needed to walk. To think. To absorb what had just occurred. But before she did that, she paused in front of Lil once more. “Is it–I mean, I don’t usually ask this and if it’s weird, I get that, but–can I give you a hug?”

--

Lil wasn’t exactly used to this, normally she was telling people bad news, but it seemed like Erin felt more relief than pain. She could understand that. Being seen and known was something Lil had wanted badly when she was younger, to be seen as her own person and not as an extension of her family. It was something that made her reach out to other still, even when the sting of being pushed away hurt. 

So, when the other laughed Lil gave a small smile, something very true and gentle. “That’s okay. I’m not going anywhere around here, and I’ll make sure to put you in touch with some others too if you want.” It was bittersweet knowing that Erin did meet other mediums, she would probably be disgusted by Lil - but well she was owed a community even if it was without her. Putting in her number, she made sure to send herself a text so she would know it was Erin if she got messaged. At the idea she shrugged and said, “Better now than never right?” 

Thinking that her questions were done for the day Lil stood up gathering her own stuff and new coffee she’d be taking with her to the haunting she probably had to get too she paused a little surprised by the question. “Oh - Yeah sure. I don’t mind at all. ” Lil said, opening her arms for the other thinking that while an odd gesture, it might mean something. 

--

Better now than never was right. Now that Erin had finally had this moment, she couldn’t imagine going through the rest of her life feeling as alone and confused as she had been. Sure, she would have managed, she had this far (sort of), but this felt like something she didn’t want to come back from. This community Lil spoke of was still only a distant concept but it was tangible, a goal to work towards, instead of her continued meandering through the dark. 

Erin smiled brightly at Lil’s consent, wrapping her arms tightly but briefly (she knew she was already making this weird enough) around her. She hadn’t realized how badly she even needed this, if she was being completely honest. But before she could let the torrent of emotions build up and spill out, she stepped away, though the little but so sincere smile on her face was still stuck there. “Thank you so much, Lil. And I promise I won’t spam you with questions but I will be keeping in touch. I’m going to be thanking you a lot too. Just forewarning you for my infinite gratitude.” She took a few steps back, slipping back into the anonymity of the coffee shop crowd, feeling lighter than she had when she entered. 

[foulbearobservation]

re: your tags, glad to hear the duretti bit was amusing, (curious though, was it the straight flag or the ph*lic symbol bit?) i wasn’t going to include him originally but then i had a metaphorical lightning strike moment ala duretti (albeit his was very literal) when i thought of what to out for his section

on mary, yes exactly she’s that meme, her not caring for nonbinary as a label is a bit complicated, because of stuff like finding a lot of the labels or terms used to talk about nonbinary experiences clunky or ill fitting (i,e a lot of people who are neither transmasc or transfemme being labeled transneutral regardless of if they actually present that way and/or id as such) and the frequent erasure of nonbinary people of color in too many chunks of communities, but mainly and mostly yeah it’s just that meme, i have a job i don’t need to worry about it rn, who cares

on adriel, idk? i just thought the vrigins were so that the fbc would like unlock a new steam achievement or the demon possession of vrigins would theoretically be extra powerful, human sacrifices, and/or adriel was like “what do you have there?” FBC with virgins they’re planning to do magic rituals with: a smoothie adriel: y’know what i’m not even gonna ask, carry on

thirdly it’s so cool to see a columbo fan, i didn’t realize before seeing your columbo posts th there was an actual fandom for the show beyond a good chunk of boomers, and having grown up watching it whenever my dad would play episodes, seeing posts have kicked off a good bout of nostalgia

but also mainly having watched it as a kid whenever my dad would play it means i don’t really have good memory of many episodes or anything, but i still wanna get back/get into it so what episodes would you say are the best and/or recommend?

obsessed with me getting the author's notes for this post 😭😭

the columbo of it all,,,, I love columbo. I love my lil detective. there's sooo many good episodes, here's an inconclusive list of my faves (since I haven't watched all of columbo, I'm only midway thru season 7 rn)

season 1:

murder by the book: any time jack cassidy is in a columbo episode you just KNOW it's gonna be good. the whole mystery gets undone by a horny grocery store clerk. I am not kidding. (also fun fact steven spielberg directed this one!)

lady in waiting: this woman is UNHINGED she is a GENIUS she is an IDIOT I hate her I love her she is EVERYTHING TO ME, DO YOU UNDERSTAND? she's the original evil girlboss

season 2: season 2 has like nothing but good episodes tbh you can't go wrong with a season 2 episode

etude in black: is so cleverly done, I love it I love it I love it.

dagger of the mind: is literally just macbeth. the shakespeare of it all is absurd I love it. the blocking of the final scene where it's the murderers with wax statues in mourning behind them like an actual greek chorus. it's insane. I'm obsessed with it. that's CINEMATOGRAPHY BABES

a stitch in crime: this one has leonard nimoy in it, which should be reason enough for you to watch it.

the most dangerous match: were you obsessed with chess the musical in highschool? this is for you.

double shock: columbo becomes the heartthrob of housewives everywhere after he appears on a cooking show. again, I am not kidding.

season 3: again, all hits! no flops!!

any old port in a storm: wine maker has intense homoerotic tension with columbo. columbo is a lil flattered by it.

publish or perish: jack cassidy. need I say more?

swan song: johnny cash is in this one!!

season 4: from here on out, ymmv

negative reaction: dick van dyke plays a very fun killer!

troubled waters: the BEST murder scene on columbo hands down

season 5: there's a rumor I think that this was supposed to be the last season, so they took some wild swings.

forgotten lady: the way this one resolves made me cry! one of the top columbo episodes of all time!!

now you see him: !JACK! CASSIDY! seriously this is one of my other top columbo eps of all time

last salute to the commodore: the last ep of columbo at the time. very self indulgent. it's so funny.

season 6:

old fashioned murder: I think the most clever murderer we've had? the end scene where he does the ultimate kindness of telling her family that he was lying. god. that gets me. lieutenant firstname columbo ur my best boy

season 7:

murder under glass: OH it's a tasty episode.

make me a perfect murder: I know she did a murder but I think the murder she did was justified like she deserved to go apeshit just this once.

and that's all the columbo I've watched! as with all the media I recommend, I can provide links / a google drive folder because I do so love sharing media

[girlwiththegreenhat]

have u heard of this ship called "queenkaard" i feel like it'd appeal to you

oh yeah i think i've heard of that ship it's okay i guess i don't really get what the hype is abo- explodes a second time

(also i saw the way you filled out yours It Was Very Nice and i opened photoshop instead of just making Boxes in ms paint 😳 so thank you for the insp i will go back and make the first one pretty later so it will match the rest of them)

is this my opportunity to scream about why queenkaard is so good? this is my opportunity to scream about why queenkaard is so good. even if they have literally exchanged all of like, 12 words thus far In Canon (hence the Better In Fanon box) and i have to base this all PURELY on the speculative 270k long fanfic that exists only in my head. but there are a lot of fun ways to read them, i will Continue to stand by that! they have a lot of different energies and i think all of them work. as for my Favorite one though...

it's about the found family. it really is. it's a slowburn if ever there was one. it's about wanting and finding purpose, it's about having the opportunity to love and have healthy relationships, its about Some Kid getting to have some Good Damn Parents For A Change. or at least, parents that love him and are trying their best, which is more than he had when he just had Parent (1) trying his best and the other guy decided not to try at a job he didn't think he could get fired from. it's about HEALING. it's about two people looking at some Funny Lil Guy and saying "my kid now" and accidentally uncovering the other's Closet Skeletons in the process that all fell out of their pockets when they leaned over to pick him up. it's also about the drama but we'll get to that one in a second,

i cannot talk about queenkaard without briefly bringing up lancer, without him there would Be no queenkaard, their commitment to him is why they hang out in the first place. their relationship, no matter WHAT it is, is based on the foundation that They Are Going To Care For Him. a friendship or romantic relationship is merely a branch off of that. caring for somebody will bring out a certain softness the wider public might not see so easily, because of him they not only form a friendship, but they get to know each other on a personal level Very Quickly. it's because of him that rouxls finds purpose in a place he didn't expect it, and queen gets to be a mom but what does that Mean? she was a mother Figure to noelle and messed that up pretty badly despite her good intentions. this is something else, though. they are all a little broken but still good, finding out what it means to Be a family at all and they have to- will, do it together, and despite being over the worst of it there's still a bit of a bumpy road ahead but these two are not only dedicated to their boys happiness, but each other as well.

i mean c'mon. rouxls is running around looking for somebody to validate him. and of course he crushes and latches onto queen at a somewhat superficial level at first, but beyond her rank and title she can be such a genuinely sweet, kind, funny, thoughtful person!! this boy caught feels and then he Caught Feels. and she latches onto him some too, it's fun to have someone kissing your ass 24/7 but cyber world is SO much different than castle town and card kingdom, she needs… a guide. she already has this little WIP Family she wants to get close to, and i am HERE for former tutorial master/teacher rouxls. she needs to learn some about lancer anyway!! she kinda needs him multiple times over 😳 and yes he's like the biggest loser in town and yes it's a little embarrassing even to her of all people to be Catching Those Feels Right Back, (and it made the transition from Friends to BF/GF Really Clunky And Weird And Confusing, All The Lines Are Blurry Help) but as absolutely unhinged and wackass as he is, he is good to their boy. he is good to her. he is doing his best. and so is she 💙 they are both such strange silly people from very different worlds and i tHINK THEY SHOULD KISS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I HAVEN'T EVEN GOTTEN TO THE TRAUMA PART YET. i said in the last one that sometimes you just need someone who has dealt with the same thing you have? they've both dealt with Spade. literally everyone here has beef with that bastard. there are beautiful Healings And Feelings to be had over making peace with it, understanding each other and moving on. we have hurt and comfort for days. weeks, even. months, perhaps.

also it's extremely funny, The Funniest Ever, that spades exes are both kissing now. like even if i throw out all the Secret Depth these two can come with and just go "yeah but what if his exes were kissing", it's still a god-tier ship. i just hate him and want him to live with the knowledge that his ex boyfriend and ex wife stole his son and are a happy little family of three Without Him.

so yeah it's an okay ship i guess 🤪 i'm normal about it

[red-archivist]

Not quite part of the liveblog but, lil post-092 hc fic :3

~~ 

As he leaves Elias’ office, Jon’s feet automatically take him down the stairs leading to the archives.

  It is a habit that his long absence hasn’t managed to break but he stops himself from walking straight into his own office.

To do so, he would have to pass the open space where the assistants work, and call him a coward but he just isn’t quite ready to see the state that Elias’ little reveal has left the others in.

  He retreats to the breakroom instead, keeping the lights off and taking a moment to take a few steadying breaths in the cool darkness.

As soon as he stops moving, the injuries he has been ignoring loudly make themselves known.

The constant ache of his burned hand provides a low steady hum of contrast to the staccato pulse of his throbbing throat.

He needs to clean them both up in order to avoid infection, and if he doesn’t want some concerned passer-by to call an ambulance on him when he leaves, he will have to bandage his neck as well.

He walks to the nearest press and begins rooting around for the first aid kit. It doesn’t seem to be where he last saw it months ago and a stumbling search in the dim light reveals nothing to him.

Jon is about to give up and just try to give himself a bit of a rinse in the sink when suddenly the door creaks open, and the lights click on behind him.

He whirls around with his heart in his bloody throat expecting something to pounce on him. Perhaps it is Tim come to take his weary anger out on him? Or Daisy aiming to finish what she started? Or maybe Elias with some other unsolvable puzzle to dump into his lap?

The fright only lasts an instant however, when he sees who is standing in the doorway looking even more surprised to see him.

“Martin,” He sighs with relief.

Martin’s mouth opens and closes a few times before he manages to find his voice.

“Uh, h-hi?”

“…Hi. Did you- Ah. W-Was the first aid kit moved?” Jon points to the mess he has made of the open presses.

Martin jumps in place before rushing forward.

“Oh! Uh, y-yeah, sorry!”

He crouches down to pull the kit out from under the sink and when Jon raises a questioning eyebrow, he shrugs meekly.

“Melanie moved it,” He says, “She said we all had to be able to reach it in an emergency.”

“Right.”

He takes the box from Martin with just one hand, keeping the bandaged one away from his body at an angle so it won’t bump into anything.

  It’s a heavy, clunky thing and hoisting it onto the counter makes his joints sting. Ignoring the pain, he flips the latch and starts rummaging through it. A thin roll of bandages, antiseptic cream, gauze and dressing are placed in a pile on the counter as he mentally goes through the half-remembered steps of cleaning an open wound.

Just as Jon starts to unravel the hand bandage, the side of his face burns with awareness. He looks over to find Martin staring at him.

  His gaze lingers on his hand, taking in the old bandages and his cracked nails, both still caked in grave dirt. Jon does his best not to squirm under the scrutiny.

 When Martin’s eyes dart to the mound of medical supplies Jon is compiling, he also realises he is taking up most of the counter space.

“Am I… in your way?” He asks, about to sweep it all to the side.

Martin starts, as if he just remembered where he was and stammers as he turns away from him

“N-No! Sorry, sorry!”

He fusses with the kettle, taking out mugs as it boils, and does not face Jon again.

Jon is glad for the privacy. He doesn’t want to look at his own hand any longer than he has to, no-one else needs to see it.

As he peels the rest of the dirty wrappings off, they catch on his ruined skin and he can’t quite hold back a pained hiss. The burn is still dreadful to see, blistered like bubbling wax and so red it’s almost black. It weeps a clear discharge, making the whole thing reek a fluid, animal smell.

  He rinses it off in the sink, pats it awkwardly dry, smears the whole thing in antiseptic cream and clumsily wraps it up again. It’s a messy, slow process and he barely remembers to clean his other hand as well.

Martin stays stock still as he works, standing guard over two brewing mugs and, as he glances at him, Jon can practically see the questions he wants to ask in the stiff line of his shoulders.

  Jon feels both grateful and guilty that Martin holds his tongue. He owes him answers but his mouth is so tired of talking.

Tentatively, he starts prodding at the cut on his neck. It is long but shallow, already clotting. He can feel the skin around it is tender with a blossoming bruise. Daisy wanted it to hurt.

Jon pries his mind away from that thought. If he thinks about how close he came to dying today, he won’t be able to keep himself standing, nevermind clean up.

He just needs to get through the next few steps, and then he can go back to Georgie’s, lay down somewhere quiet and try not to have a complete breakdown. Laying out gauze and dressing, he wets a clean tea towel. He is halfway to raising it to his neck before he realises his mistake.

“Damn.”

“…Jon?”

Martin is peering over his shoulder at him, concern drawn in deep lines around his face.

Jon blinks back at him. He had almost forgotten he was there.

“I… uh,” He waves the tea towel, “I need two hands, should have done this first.”

He is going to ruin the clean wrappings on his hand. He will either have to do them again or wait to get back to the house and hope Georgie won’t be too pissed off to help him. Clucking his tongue, he weighs up his options.

“Um… Do you…” Martin’s soft voice cuts across his thoughts, “I mean, I can… i-if you want?”

“What?” Jon turns and sees him holding out a hand for the tea towel, “Oh.”

“O-O-Only if you, y’know, you’re comfortable with…”

  Jon stares at him for a moment and regrets flickers across Martin’s face. He starts to draw his hand back.

“Uh, yes, no, I mean, I-I appreciate…” Jon stammers, “You don’t have to. I-I don’t want to interrupt… what you’re doing…”

The sheepishness fades from Martin as he chuckles slightly.

“I just came in to get a bit of a break from everyone else, really,” He immediately winces, “God, that sounded bad, didn’t it?”

“No… no, I understand.”

  Martin smiles slightly and Jon’s feels his lips twitch upward in response.

“So, uh,” Martin holds his hand out again and Jon passes him the towel, “Might be easier to sit.”

“Right.”

Jon brings the gauze and dressing to the rickety coffee table while Martin wrings out the towel in the sink. They sit facing each other, and Martin scoots close enough that their knees brush.

“Can you lift your chin?” He asks, “And please tell me if I hurt you?”

Jon raises his head and stares into the yellowing florescent light embedded in the ceiling as Martin starts delicately dabbing at the cut.

It stings, of course. He can feel the edges of the wound prickle with pain as the meagre scabbing that covered them is wiped away. He hopes he isn’t letting it show on his face.

It is a little uncomfortable, letting someone else touch his neck. Especially someone he hasn’t seen for over two months. He peers at Martin out of the corner of his eye.

  He looks exhausted. There are heavy bags under his eyes and the light from above washes him out terribly, making him seem even paler than usual. His hair has grown a bit, more from neglect than choice. His fringe droops over the frame of his glasses.

Guilt bites at the back of Jon’s mind. Without him here, he is almost certain Martin has been doing the lion’s share of the work in the archives. Melanie is only new to the position and Tim… Jon is doubtful Tim has been working at all.

  Martin mumbles a pre-emptive apology as he moves the towel slowly over the cut. His touch is soft but steady, gentle in a way that is completely alien to Jon.

Martin’s gaze is focused on Jon’s neck, intent on washing away every speck of pain scrawled onto it. Instead of the sting of the wound, Jon feels something in his chest ache.

He can’t remember the last time anyone was this careful with him. That thought, more than the pinch of physical pain, makes his eyes water.

He blinks rapidly and rattles his brain for anything that will keep his mind off of how tender Martin’s touch is.

His mouth runs ahead of his head and he tries not to swallow too hard as he speaks.

“Martin… ah…”

“Sorry, am I pressing too hard?” The pressure on his throat eases slightly and Jon wills himself not to chase after it.

“No, no, I just, ah, I wanted to-” Jon bites his tongue in his haste to speak, “H-H-Have you been getting on alright?”

The pressure disappears entirely as Martin reels back to gawk at him, his mouth hanging open in shock. Jon might be offended at his surprise if he wasn’t too busy kicking himself.

He keeps babbling before Martin even has a chance to respond.

“God, that’s stupid- stupid question, of course you’re not-!” He sighs, “Just- Ignore me. Apologies.”

He looks back up to the breakroom lights, his face burning hot.

Martin chuckles.

Jon dares to glance at him.

The surprise has faded into something softer, a not-quite-there smile lingering on his lips.

“Yeah…” He agrees quietly, “That… is pretty stupid.”

“Well-! Pardon me for asking,” Jon snaps.

Martin’s smile grows.

“I’ve… I’ve got a pretty stupid answer for it though?”

“Uh,” Jon leans forward in his seat, “Yes?”

“Despite um, well, all of it…” Martin swings a hand around the room, “It’s… It’s really good to see you, Jon.”

He stares.

  It’s Martin’s turn to try and hide from the scrutiny. Jon watches with fascination as he starts to turn a blotchy red.

He doesn’t understand. The last time they spoke, Jon gave him nothing but a weak apology after suspecting him of murder and invading his privacy for months. Martin should be angry at him, or maybe even afraid. Jon doesn’t want him to be, but he would understand if he were.

Instead, Martin sits in front of him with a shy smile and soft hands, helping him, missing him. Jon can’t possibly understand that.

He opens his mouth without any clue as to what to say.

“That… doesn’t actually answer my question?” He says weakly.

Martin laughs. Not a chuckle or a giggle but a full-throated belly laugh. It is a sound Jon has never heard from him before. His face feels even warmer.

As soon as he calms down, Martin shakes his head before delicately placing his fingertips on Jon’s chin and tilting his head upward.

“I guess not.”

He finishes cleaning and dressing the wound in silence. When he presses the dressing against the cut to make sure its smooth, Jon can’t help but shudder.

A frown crosses Martin’s brow.

“Don’t suppose I can convince you to see a doctor about this?”

“You suppose correct,” Jon sighs.

Martin clucks his tongue but doesn’t push him any further.

Jon is overcome with the sudden desire to sit in this chair for the remainder of the afternoon, resting in Martin’s half-joking disapproval with their kneecaps just about touching.

He is also keenly aware that that desire isn’t something he can afford to indulge in.

With a weary groan, he hauls himself upright.

  “I… appreciate the help.”

Grabbing the now-stained tea towel, he turns away to toss it in the sink.

“O-Oh, uh, sure, anytime,” Martin says automatically, “Well, n-no, not anytime- I didn’t mean- I don’t want you to get hurt again or a-anything!”

“It’s fine, Martin, I know what you meant.”

He puts the first aid kit back under the sink and pats his pockets to make sure he has all the things he came in with. It’s not much.

“Right, I won’t be back today, but I’ll be in the office tomorrow.”

“You’d better not be!” Martin exclaims, suddenly loud.

Jon blinks at him.

“I beg your pardon?”

“You’re hurt! You need rest!” Martin squeaks indignantly, “Proper rest, Jon not just a half-day off!”

“I- Wh- You can’t stop me coming to work!”

“I bloody well can!”

Jon boggles as a memory suddenly strikes him full-force. He had tried coming back to the archives early after Prentiss’ attack as well, hadn’t he? Martin had practically carried out of the building. At the time, it was just another reason for Jon to be suspicious of him. Now, he can see it for what it was.

  Martin cared.

  He still cares, whether that care takes the form of washing his wounds or scolding him for his poor work-life balance. It’s not a feeling Jon is familiar with.

Martin still sits at the coffee table, arms crossed over his chest, colour high in his cheeks. With a wistful smile, Jon decides to let him have his way. It’s paltry thanks for his ministrations, but it is all Jon has.

“Alright.”

Martin’s glare vanishes under his shock.

“Alright?”

Jon nods.

  “Alright. I’ll rest.”

“Oh! Oh. …Good!”

“It’s what, Friday now?” Jon says, “Maybe I’ll even take the weekend off.”

“Wow, let’s not go overboard,” Martin grumbles.

Jon snorts, hiding his laughter behind his bandaged hand. Martin smiles brightly and somehow, gets even redder.

“I’ll see you Monday.”

“Y-Yeah.”

Jon heads for the door. His feet are like lead weights and he already knows he is going to have to stop himself from napping on the tube. He can sleep properly once he is back at Georgie’s. It might even be nice to rest, for once.

He pauses in the doorway, glancing back.

Martin has stood up, his arms still crossed even as he flicks a hand up.

“See you.”

As he stares at him, Jon’s chest aches again. He is overcome with the urge to speak, as if that will ease it.

“For what it is worth… It is really good to see you too.”

Martin’s face goes slack with a look as soft and tender as his hand was on Jon’s throat. It makes the ache worse.

Jon turns away without another word, knocks once on the doorframe and walks away.

  As he heads for the stairs, his hand still throbs, and his neck still stings but it is the hurt in his heart that distracts him. The sound of Martin’s laughter echoes in his head and Jon thinks that this particular pain is one he doesn’t mind keeping.

[tiptapricot]

MK liveblog ep 2, Summon The Suit

The sudden pan up from sand FUCKS

The security footage scene is both so cute n sO embarrassing

Also I want JB n Steven to b bros they seem like they’d b rlly goofy n fun

“Larry in maintanence is going to absolutely shoot you”

MARC WALKING OUT ON THE TAPES WHAT A FUCKING SCENE

The Human Resources scene is rlly nice asmr

Steven having to give up his name n symbolically himself as he further journeys into his life falling apart makes me YELL

The guy at the storage locker place says he never forgets a face but isn’t put off by the accent, did Marc never talk to him?

Marc’s clothes being in the storage locker… gOd

Steven’s autistic interest blocking out any fear on a magical floating scarab

MARC STANDING INBTHE REFLECTION INBTHE LOCKER IS SO FUNNY

“Yeahr.”

“Idc how bloody handsome you are,” Steven that’s kinda gay :-/

Marc looks so worried n then Steven’s just like: lol you’re fuvking ridiculous lmao

Marc eyes on th gun

Khonshu walking down the hall w the lights is sO fucking creepy

The freeze frame my beloved💖

LAYLAAAAA

Layla’s intro is so good her character is like immediate

Layla don’t tap on the glass :-/

When Layla first sees the poetry book she probably thinks Marc was missing her but then Steven starts reciting a thing OiuhHhh

The music being soft n sweet but also unnerving n out of place

Marc’s already in the little door mirror in the background when the divorce papers come out lol

Layla baby I love you and you are so emotionally unstable this episode lmao

Also her jacket already kinda resembles the scarab stuff

Dialogue still hits clunky this ep idk why

This is why you never talk to cops Steven

Love that the Harrow goons that come after Steven r based off the Lemire orderlies

Steven head bonking on the car window for his life

Marc’s voice is so gentle but firm when he’s not angry, and he sounds so tired and I love him

Steven is just close to tears oh baby

Harrow stop touching him all caring like it’s creepy n I hate you

“KILL IM.”

“Wow beautiful 😌” (tomatoes)

God the cult is so…. Unnerving

Harrow as MK sounds so fucking creepy

The lil American man…

Confused and eating soup, the best way to be except in this case

Steven just slurpin soup n not listening. His lil “alright… 🤨” while he doesn’t listen to harrow n is so funny

“Gimmedabody”

I think you should actually kill Donna Steven. Get her ass.

Steven I love you so fucking much

“Then don’t”

Steven looks weird w his outer coat buttoned up

Layla walked into danger so confidently bc she was so used to always being able to trust Marc to b there n support her like breathing but Steven isn’t Marc n things r diff so they have to run

“Thatwasawesome”

Steven’s panic attack…. The overwhelm is done so well god being trapped between two ppl n the silence and the disorientation n Laylas distress n then her saying his name being what grounds him

The jackal hits on the door like a heartbeat

I love the mr knight suit being a real costume so bad the MCU has made me love cloth also it’s GORGEOUS

Marc ur accent ily

Layla seems so off her game this ep bc she’s being introduced to so much along w Steven n she doesn’t expect to fight monsters

ROLLIN UP HIS SLEEVES YEAH BABY YOU GO U ARE STEVEN W A VEE

Steven laying facedown in the middle of the street looks so goofy

“That was a hell of a punch back there” THIS SCENE MAKES ME BITE WOOD

MARCS MOON EYES AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HEAHHHHHH

oh I never realized bystanders actually got hurt in the background

THE CHASE SCENE MUSIC IM GONNA AHHHHHHHH

The vibes the vibes I’m I’m im normal

“Gotcha! >:-)”

Marc in Steven’s clothes looks so off

The way letting the suit off is like a release, like he can breathe

Then his paNIC

Harrow do u just judge that man to kill him for no reason I hate u

The shots of London r lovely

God Marc is so pathetic n tired n sad

SO THIS IS WHAT ITS LIKE BEING ON THE INSIDE YEAH ITS HORRIBLE ITS ALRIGHT YOURE ALRIGHT I FEEL LIKE INCAN SCARCELY MOVE ITS OK BREATHE THROUGH IT HOW LONG YOUVE B N DOUNG THIS I DUNNO LONG TIME I DONT LIKE IT I DONTBWANY IT

this scene is so

its so

its so

marc is still trying n his voyce is so fragile n steven is so angry n atbhis end point

oscar acts across fromnhimself so well

marcs growing anger n just just the arguneny n marc being so worn out and high strung

KHONSHUBI HATE UR BONY ASS LEAVE HIM ALONE

khonshu sounds so good in this scene tye VOICE ACTING HIS LAUGH

khonshu i hate you i hate you

Near and dear as she is to him indeed Jake lockley my beloved it’s what she deserves

STEVEN JN THE MIRROR THE LIGHTING THE WAY MARC IS TIRED N HAS TRASHED THE PLACE J LOOKS SO OUHGHHHUHHHHHNNN YELOW N ORANGE N THE MUSIC N YHE MUSIC N THE SWWELL N THE CURTAIN AHHHHHHH

I love the ending songs so much but this is probably one of my all time favs

Headbopping

The hallway flickers between Steven’s apartment, the storage locker hall, and the Duat asylum

[cloudsrust]

I feel like you'd draw Grimsley, Cynthia, or Elesa from Pokemon. Their designs seem to be right up your alley.

(Gonna answer all here since tumblr replies are a bit clunky,,)

All three are actually among my top faves! Grimsley especially with that style of his- especially his kimono look for which I just die for (which is apparently from Sun/Moon? Damn I missed so much not finishing it;;). Cynthia.. well she's just Cynthia- what's not to love? She gotta be one of the most pokèmon characters ever,, Elesa- absolutely loved her style in BW but I just fell in love with her B2W2 version- the contrast of that big, puffy jacket with her slimmer outfit is just.. *chef kiss* in my book. But- intimidated by such gender characters- I never attempted to draw 'em;; Been tempted to draw Grimsley for a while tho-

(Rest is underneath)

Omg how could I forget about them!! I think they were even my favourite elite 4 in HeartGold- heck shame on me for having to check who they were- (even though I think it was because names in italian are always different- poor guy named Pino.) With my love for masked characters I'm also surprised I never drew 'em.

(I already replied in the comments but yeah dfdsd)

As I said I only know Guzma as the "goofy bad guy who either isn't actually bad or had an hard past- oh also he loves his lil' Wimpod" that I usually see in fanarts- and if that's him, I love him :,> But since I never even met him in game I had no chance to draw him,,

Lysandre instead- other than him being an ass, I'd say he was unlucky to be in X/Y since it just didn't stuck with me :/ so I just- kinda forgot about him. He got so much style tho,,

Will I can see why some would think I drew 'em before- but.. why Chili? He even ironically was the only one of the twins I left out my tier list since I was just neutral about him dsdjsd. Never drew the fire waiter- that hair would be a nightmare to translate in my style too,,

Honestly? I think the only thing that stopped me from drawing him was the fact I just could not draw guys when I was obsessed with him;; (talking back when BW came out so- almost 10 years ago? Damn.). Absolutely adore him as a character and his story/theories still gives me the chills- should really consider doodling him sometime.

Oh I feel that honestly- I have gaps all over the place with both characters and pokemons, either because of memory or not having played that version ahah

But both of them, even though I haven't drawn either? Absolutely loved them,, both being stylish mysterious strangers that just decide to help/fight you on your journey- 10/10 in my book.

I'm extremely surprised that no one guessed the characters- I mean they were just 3.. with me not even saying from which games they were from so... understandable dfdjhf Two of them just seemed so obvious tho! Especially since I think I even talked about them a bit or even outright said I drew them but never posted it at some point-

But there were some really good guesses, my taste does actually shine through the characters I choose to draw as I thought then-!

[littlemisssquiggles]

We didn't get the rosegarden hug but Im still holding out hope for next volume and I think when everyone meets again we'll get the oscar an ruby hug

I’d definitely love to see that done anon-chan. But first I’m very curious to see where Ruby’s story will ultimately end for V8. On one hand, Ruby could end up falling to the void and winding up trapped in the mysterious Other World with her teammates while on the other hand, there is additionally the potential for Ruby being the sole survivor of her team after the Attack on the Central Zone leading to a more centric story about her being forced to deal with the pain and trauma of losing her team of close friends and family while her remaining ones do their best on the surface to be there for her emotionally and be lights of inspiration for Ruby after she lost hers following the fall.

Salem always said that she would snuff off out Ruby’s unquantifiable spark so it’d be interesting if Cinder Fall, as her apprentice and the one with the biggest grudge against Ruby (alongside Neo) is the one to achieve this feat in a single attack by eliminating the source of Ruby’s power---her friends. At least her closest ones though.

And if I had to pick one or the other, I’m starting to prefer the Ruby Alone Lil Red Headcanon. I just like the appeal of Ruby being a focal character again. Not to mention, this concept provides a lovely opportunity for Ruby to gain support from all the people she’s inspired over the seasons who all show up to be there for her during a time of great emotional struggle for her. This is inclusive of her dad---Papa Dragon Tai Yang who only got the chance to play an parental anchor for Yang back in V4 and of course, there’s the remainder of Ruby’s allies who survived to Vacuo. Oscar included.

Despite the “clunky” writing at times, the CRWBY showrunners have admittedly delivered well on selling Oscar as a terrific support character for Ruby especially during moments when she tries to repress her true feelings from others.

If Ruby Alone happens, what I’d love to see is Oscar becoming an emotional anchor for Ruby---A true blue loyal friend who she doesn’t have to hide her true feelings around and genuinely makes her feel at peace with herself because she doesn’t need to put on her traditional “Ruby Rose---Spark of Hope” façade around him since Oscar would see right through it and definitely call Ruby out on it. He has done so twice before and it has been shown twice before that Oscar isn’t afraid to be honest with Ruby about how he feels. He’s always straight and upfront with her which is another thing I appreciate about their dynamic.

I love the idea of Ruby and Oscar growing closer from her loss of her team leading to Ruby prompting Oscar to promise to always be there for her and remain by her side; a promise which proves more depressing than it is uplifting since Ruby’s growing attachment to Oscar clashes with his fears and acceptance of the Merge. 

How can the little prince promise to remain by his rose’s side forever when he isn’t even certain he has forever?

Maybe a few todays and a couple of tomorrows. But forever is a luxury Oscar isn’t certain he could afford to give to Ruby; no matter how much he might want to for himself.

I am here for that good cush Rosegarden friendship if something like THIS is done for them next season.

And in the event that Rosegarden were to blossom into a mutual romance, this is one way I could’ve seen Ruby falling in love with Oscar (since we already know he loves her).

This would provide a chance for Oscar to be a true close companion and support to Ruby, tying back to the analogy of the little prince being responsible for his rose and thus, making all of their past incidences where he has looked out for her emotionally in past seasons come full circle.

Buuuuuuuuuuuut…as always, these are all just thoughts and wants for the time being from this squiggly Rosegardening Pinehead.

Overall, yeah let’s hope for at least a Rosegarden hug for V9 anon-chan.

~ LittleMissSquiggles (2021)

[forasecondtherewedwon]

and the stars (they all aligned)

Fandom: Sex Education Pairing: Ola Nyman/Lily Iglehart Rating: E Word Count: 3887

Summary: Ola knows there's more to outer space than aliens with penis-fingers, and from their spot on the hill, gazing up at the night sky with Lily, it's never felt closer. They've never felt closer.

“Life can get small, you know?” Ola says sadly. The gravity inside her body still feels a little off, like her heart’s bobbing around, unsure whether to float or land. She’s sad, she’s elated, she’s aching for her mum, she’s grateful to have her girlfriend next to her on the grass.

“Like when I stopped writing my stories,” Lily suggests, frowning thoughtfully under her silvery makeup.

“Yeah. But the stars are so beautiful out here. I feel like, if I laid down and just looked straight up… blocked out the people and the lights from the houses… I could see really far into space.”

“You are seeing far into space, with some of these.” Lily points a pale, precise finger up above them. “The light’s coming from such a long way away that you’re basically traveling in time. And that’s real,” she quickly emphasizes, “not science fiction.”

Ola smiles widely.

“Cool.”

The other spectators are beginning to walk back to their cars and homes, but Lily and Ola lie back on the plaid blanket. Lily’s arm pulls her gently closer until Ola’s resting her head on her girlfriend’s chest. Just when it seems that the star shower has ended, another lone light flies past.

“They’re meteors, aren’t they?”

“Yes,” Lily says, but Ola can tell she’s held something back.

“If you want to say what you imagine them to be,” she prompts, “I’m here to listen.”

“Aliens,” Lily blurts, given permission, but then she adds: “Or angels.”

Ola lies very still for a minute, breathing, feeling the plasticky pink stripes on her girlfriend’s outfit pull on her cheek a little when she repositions her head.

“Angels?”

“Well, this was your mum’s favourite place,” Lily says, straightforward and unflinching, the way she explains everything that can’t possibly be real. “So maybe angels. Cosmic angels who ice skate on Jupiter’s frozen moon, Europa.”

“Aww, that’s lovely.”

“And hump the rings of Saturn.”

“That’s not really how I’d like to picture my mum’s spirit.”

“Sorry,” Lily says. Ola can hear the wince in her voice and gives her waist a quick squeeze to show she isn’t upset. “The cosmic angels could also be juggling moon rocks.”

“Tanning on planets that orbit three suns.”

“Riding spiral galaxies around like a carousel!”

“And when we see shooting stars,” Ola says with a smile, “they’re surfing.”

“Yes, I think that’s right,” Lily agrees, sighing contentedly beneath her. “You know—” She taps the nape of Ola’s neck like Ola’s seen her tap her desk when she’s writing and pauses to consider the next turn her intergalactic saga will take. “—you’ve got a really good imagination.”

Delighted, Ola lifts her head and smiles at her girlfriend.

“Thank you, sweetheart.”

“So do I,” Lily says while Ola nods, “but maybe I use it too much? If I’d been better at living in reality, you wouldn’t have gotten sick of me.”

Ola frowns. She’s big on showing affection through physical contact and instinct tells her to brush Lily’s hair back from her face or something, but it’s too slicked down tonight, the silky length of it twirled into a magnificent pair of space buns, wound through with metallic thread. Her girlfriend is so creative, and so many beautiful things come from her brain. Ola hates that Hope, their classmates, and even her made Lily believe her ideas and the way she expresses them aren’t valuable.

“Lily. I was never sick of you.” She reaches to adjust the gleaming pleather collar of Lily’s outfit, then leans down to nuzzle her nose against Lily’s. “And I never want you to use your imagination less, or try to turn it off, or anything like that. The answer might even be to use it more.”

“More?”

“Yeah.”

Ola drops her head onto her girlfriend’s chest again, hugging into her side as a chatting couple wheel a stroller up the hill past them. She thinks of the new baby while Lily mulls over what she’s said. Joy. They’ll have to sedate her dad if they want him out of the hospital tonight while that tiny girl slumbers there. Joy will learn, when she’s older, what a good dad she had from the very beginning—watching over Joy and giving Ola, well, space. She stares up at the sparkling scatter of stars.

“Because there are other ways for us to enjoy having sex,” Lily says a few minutes later, no preamble.

Ola nods, face shushing across her girlfriend’s costume.

“We’ve done so much together already, but I’m sure there’s loads we haven’t explored.” She shrugs. “I might never have tried any sort of alien roleplay if I hadn’t met you, and you come up with new things you want to try all the time. You inspire yourself, through your writing, and I think that’s amazing.”

“You do?”

“Yeah,” Ola says confidently. “I do.”

“Your mom must have loved you really well,” Lily murmurs, “because you love really well too.”

Ola is a box. A clear, plastic box with a hatch where her heart is. She is an incubator, like Joy’s, housing a very fragile thing, and Lily has reached inside to cradle that thing in her careful hands. Ola sniffs and the stars smudge into a big, messy glow up above. She blinks fast as her eyes brim.

“She did.”

“I wouldn’t want to be abducted without you.”

Ola laughs wetly.

“Thanks, Lil.”

Lily speaks some more, but it’s not to her. She mumbles and traces lines up and down the sleeve of Ola’s green jacket. Ola can tell she’s thinking out loud; the words ‘pulsing’ and ‘Glenoxi’ and ‘penis-fingers’ hum in the air over their heads. She’s prepared to flip off anyone who looks at her girlfriend strangely, but the final stragglers march by in their own wild costumes, dragging signs with hopeful and blatantly sexual pleas. Huh. Some of these really are Lily’s people.

Once they’re alone on the hill, Ola sighs and rolls fully onto her back, head on Lily’s oversized round belt buckle as she lies perpendicular to her girlfriend. She kicks her legs out, feet apart, and folds her hands over her stomach. Lily’s fingers creep over and toy with her rainbow pin. Smiling at the warmth of her girlfriend’s hand through her jacket, Ola’s finally ready to do what she said before: block out everything else and look up.

The dark is comforting and lovely. When she relaxes the muscles in her face, lets her gaze go unfocused and fuzzy, all of that celestial light becomes a soft background for her thoughts and feelings. She imagines that she (and Lily, of course) are someplace else, far from this hill and the wonderful, painful complexities of their lives. Would she be able to see Earth? She supposes that she would, diving back through her memories to her childhood treehouse, the telescope her dad hauled up there for her and her sister. Ser du det, Ola? Det är planeten Venus. She’d forgotten about that clunky old telescope.

From a distance, Earth would twinkle too, reflecting the light of the sun. Magic. There are so many incredible things, Ola thinks, that are true. Facts that inspire fiction, and are in some cases more wonderful than anything most people could make up.

She rolls onto her stomach, propped up by her elbows.

“I’ve… had a thought,” Ola says, gaze sweeping up Lily’s torso to her face, where wide eyes swivel to stare back at her.

“About what?”

Ola stretches a hand out to trace her girlfriend’s upturned nose with a fingertip.

“Something we could do,” she says slyly. She brings her finger down to cover Lily’s lips and Lily bites the end with faux-ferocity.

“Here?”

Ola nods, grinning.

Eagerly, Lily sits up.

“Well, tell me,” she says.

“We’re going to go on a journey,” Ola informs her. Lily smiles reservedly, waiting for more. “And you can narrate.”

“Where are we going?”

“Space.”

Lily glances from side to side, at the hilltop that’s darker now everyone’s left with their torches and camera flashes and glow-in-the-dark clothes. Only their candle remains.

“Where are we really going?”

“Nowhere, technically,” Ola says, scrunching her nose. “We’ll do it right here.”

“Ok,” says Lily gamely. “What is it we’re doing?”

Pushing up onto her hands and knees, Ola leans forward to kiss her. It’s quick, but when it’s over and her girlfriend inhales like she’s going to ask another question, Ola kisses her again, smiling against her lips. Sometimes doing is better than explaining.

Lily’s hand raises and cups her cheek. It’s when Ola feels the other hand curl around the back of her neck and flex as Lily presses more enthusiastically into the kiss that she knows she’s got it, she’s understood. They kiss faster and Ola’s hands skitter across Lily’s belt, searching for a piece to undo until she realizes its overlapping ends Velcro together in the back, hidden by the cape. The ripping sound of the strips unfastening makes them both laugh. Ola lays the belt out on the blanket before planting one hand on her girlfriend’s far side, bracketing her as she reclines slightly onto her elbows and they continue to kiss.

Lily’s cape is designed like a vest, with holes for her arms to go through. Ola tugs at one, then accepts that she won’t be able to get it off over the massive, padded shoulder spike on Lily’s bodysuit. Not without help.

“You won’t be too cold, will you?” she checks, sitting back to allow Lily to maneuver out of her cape.

“Not yet.”

“And if I want to take this off as well?” Ola asks coyly, sliding her hands along her girlfriend’s outfit, up from the waist to knead Lily’s breasts through the quilted fabric.

Lily smiles back and tips her chin up, encouraging the deep kiss Ola sinks into, already feeling her arousal climbing with the anticipation of trying out this new idea. Maybe she should have found a way to talk to Lily about introducing some variety sooner, because it’s been a while since she felt this level of excitement for sex. She always enjoys herself, but it has been a little hard, acting out one of Lily’s fantasies after another without ever taking the lead herself. Hopefully, tonight establishes a revised balance in this area of their relationship—a fusion that’s partly Lily, partly Ola.

Locating the zipper at the back of Lily’s costume, Ola pulls back.

“This is ok, right?” she asks, because Lily never said out loud that she wouldn’t be cold.

“I think so,” her girlfriend says. She looks down. “I can snuggle into the blanket as well, don’t forget.”

Ola scans their surroundings.

“And there isn’t anyone around,” she says, grinning. Could she be into the idea of getting caught? She’s never considered it before! Not actually caught, of course, because she very much wants to keep this about the two of them, but there’s a thrill surrounding the possibility that Ola didn’t expect.

“Five, four, three, two, one,” Lily counts down. “Ignition.” She holds Ola’s gaze and lifts her eyebrows, some sort of a cue.

“Oh, got it,” Ola says, beginning to unzip the silvery bodysuit.

Arms wrapped around her girlfriend from the front, her hands slide down as she exposes Lily’s skin to the air. She can tell through the material that there isn’t anything underneath it—no lines, no ridges but her spine, her shoulder blades—so when the zipper hits the end of its track at Lily’s lower back and Lily peels the front of the outfit down, Ola isn’t surprised to be confronted with her girlfriend’s bare breasts.

The shinier segment of the costume winds up being a sort of torso-less shirt—the sleeves connecting to the high collar that encircles Lily’s neck. That part stays on as Lily wiggles and hops, getting the sleeveless bodysuit over her hips and bum, and Ola sees that the shiny leggings are separate as well.

“This is really cool,” she notes.

“Thanks,” Lily says, working the bodysuit off over her nearly-knee-high boots. “The cape…?” she wonders when she’s done.

“You can put that back on.”

“And you want me to talk?”

“Yes please. Just not about aliens,” Ola adds, watching her girlfriend’s expression cautiously for signs of hurt.

But Lily’s face is open, unoffended. She shrugs into her cape.

“Alright.”

“I mean, if you find you have anything you want to say,” Ola clarifies. She smirks as she slips her hand between Lily’s thighs, cupping her and rubbing a bit through the leggings.

“I think the ship—the normal, regular Earth spaceship,” Lily clarifies, breathing slightly unevenly, “—is monitoring a disturbance. A buildup of energy.”

“Oh?”

Ola smiles wider, then bends over her girlfriend, running her mouth along her skin below where her sleeve-top conceals her collarbones. Gradually, Lily lies back. As Ola hoped she would, Lily narrates, easily spinning a science-fiction story that’s heavy on the science for once. Ola kisses back up her throat as Lily’s high voice speaks clearly of stellar nurseries, dense with dust and gas. In spite of her flowing words and dreamy descriptions, the actual subject matter doesn’t sound that nice to Ola, until Lily announces the mission of this particular spaceship. (“Mmm?” Ola asks wordlessly, kissing below Lily’s jaw; Lily nods to acknowledge that Ola’s mouth will indeed be playing the role of the spaceship in this scenario.) It’s closing in on this cloud of stellar stuff in search of the new star that’s about to be born.

“Passing between huge planets,” Lily says, while Ola hunches hungrily over her body and kisses down between her breasts. “Gas giants. Jupiter, maybe.”

Ola nearly starts laughing when Lily confirms one of the planets to be Jupiter by the fact of ‘the ship’ spying its Great Red Spot—Ola’s focused in on Lily’s nipple, dragging it tenderly between her teeth before sucking to deepen the colour; with the blue of the night, that’s closer to purple than Lily’s normal rosy pink.

She keeps going and so does Lily, infusing every lick and tug with the richness of her imagination, as well as actual knowledge of the solar system, about which she seems to know quite a lot. For a risky, romantic hookup under no roof but the sky, it’s rather educational.

The minute Lily’s bent knees go flat as she straightens to her full length, Ola swings a leg over to hover above her. She redoubles her attention to her girlfriend’s breasts and caresses her hands swiftly up Lily’s sides. Lily shivers and Ola thinks it’s the cold getting to her after all, but when she raises her head to check in, Lily’s eyelids are drooping with pleasure. So Ola continues to touch her. And Lily continues to unravel their tale.

She recounts the rushing of a meteor shower as smoothly as if she was up there when it happened, half an hour ago. Ola matches her pace with her mouth, skimming kisses down her ribcage. Lily’s imagination turns her own bellybutton into the deep crater of a moon which the ship sets down to explore. (Lily is very kinky about her bellybutton being probed by Ola’s tongue, and Ola’s not going to leave that out, even if they are going in a different direction than usual.)

Progressing, Ola hooks her fingers into the waist of Lily’s leggings and, undistracted, Lily makes the story sound like something she’s reading out of a book—the spaceship setting a course that will take it beyond the most distant line humankind has ever drawn in the universe, farther than it’s ever been before. For Ola, touching Lily below her navel is far from uncharted territory. And yet, she’s sort of enjoying the dramatics.

Lily keeps the story fertile with details another storyteller would make dull (spaceship maintenance, the sleep schedule of the crew), but which grow like lush, otherworldly flora coming from her. The human interest side of things accompanies Ola’s descent as she strips the leggings down. Although they only get as far as the top of Lily’s boots, the leggings are stretchy enough to let her girlfriend part her knees so Ola can kiss lower.

A little lower.

Barely.

“I don’t think this is going to work,” Ola says with a laugh, raising an apologetic hand to interrupt her girlfriend.

“I do think I might be cold if I take everything off completely.”

“Well… hmm…”

While Ola’s still appraising the situation, Lily’s face lights up with epiphany. Legs locked stiffly together, she raises them into the air. Ola climbs off of her to see what she’s up to.

“Are you sure you’re going to be able to stay like that?” Ola questions, watching her girlfriend’s legs waver at a 45-degree angle to the ground.

“I won’t need to if you crawl underneath!”

Thank goodness Lily isn’t shy with her. Instead, it’s funny for them both when Ola moves down to lie on her stomach. Lily parts her legs enough to hook the half-lowered leggings behind Ola’s head, Ola’s face poking between her thighs. Lily lowers her legs back down until they rest on Ola’s shoulders and, basically, they’re in business. Holding happily to the top of her girlfriend’s naked thighs, Ola peruses Lily’s body admiringly before ducking her head.

“The nebula,” her girlfriend breathes, as Ola’s kisses near the soft nest of Lily’s pubic hair. The boundary’s been made unnatural by the squiggly shape Lily’s attempted to shave into it (something Ola might have called silly before her resolution of open-mindedness), and Lily uses that as fuel for the plot, making the spaceship’s journey treacherous, full of objects to navigate around. In reality, Ola pecks a straight line down to Lily’s cunt. Honestly, she’s relieved at the extra evidence—beyond Lily’s expression, her readiness to undress out-of-doors, and the quick pants that’ve become part of her breathing pattern—that Lily’s into this.

Ola wraps her arms farther around the top of Lily’s thighs until she’s able to brush her fingers between them, thumbing her girlfriend’s labia apart. Gosh, they haven’t done this in weeks, which is ages for them. The last vulva Ola saw was iced onto the top of a cupcake.

With Lily held open, Ola licks deftly between her legs with the tip of her tongue. Her girlfriend’s voice trembles. When Ola’s worked her way inward until she’s ringing just inside Lily’s vagina, Lily’s hand comes down and lands on the top of her head. She doesn’t really want it there though, isn’t being forceful. Ola understands this reaction, a common one from her girlfriend when she’s being eaten out, and frees one hand, blindly offering it up. Lily links their fingers together. Their joined hands fall next to her hip.

“Closer,” Lily gasps, arousal seeping slowly over and under Ola’s tongue. Her other hand slips down Ola’s neck and into the back of her top where she’s warm, almost sweaty, with the heat of being turned on. “They’re getting closer to the star.”

The commitment to the story, every time, is something Ola loves about her.

And so she indulges her girlfriend, sliding her tongue higher, easing a finger into Lily’s vagina to perform an unhurried in-and-out while her mouth closes in on her clitoris. Ola’s own clit is desperate for a fingering, blood pumping strongly towards her groin inside her baggy jeans, but she can wait, get Lily off first. Whenever they pleasure each other in that order, Lily always comes alive after, flipping Ola onto her back and smothering her in enthusiastic kisses and caresses.

Picturing this as the likely near-future, Ola hums blissfully against Lily’s clit (Lily squirms and lets out one of her moans that sound like a ghostly wail—yeah, Ola kind of loves those too). She closes her eyes to intensify the sensations and does the rest by familiar feel.

Her girlfriend babbles now, about the spaceship orbiting the new star that’s forming while Ola teasingly orbits her clit with her tongue. It takes a lot of effort to separate Lily from one of her stories when she’s on a roll, but broad, firm licks to her clit are enough to pull even Ola’s one-foot-in-outer-space girlfriend into the present moment.

“Oh god, Ola, I can almost see the cosmic angels,” Lily whines, striving exquisitely towards climax. “I’m going to see cosmic angels.”

Ola believes her. She believed this hill was special, she will believe in aliens, and right now she believes that Lily’s imminent orgasm looks like a flock of cosmic angels behind her eyelids. Sure. Why not? Her hand clasps harder to her girlfriend’s. She doesn’t care that Lily’s rerouted to the fantastical right at the end. They’re real. The elements that got them here are real: Lily’s storytelling, Ola’s desire to feel close to her in a world that wasn’t only Lily’s, loneliness, love.

Without speaking very loudly, Ola knows her voice will carry to her girlfriend’s ears—this evening, silver and pointed.

“Glenoxi,” she groans rapturously against Lily’s clit.

Lily’s hips buck once, then her body buckles, fingers twisting with Ola’s. Her voice rises brokenly into the night and Ola is on fire with how much she wants her.

Ola wipes her mouth on the blanket while Lily catches her breath. She quit moving her finger when her girlfriend clenched around it and came, but now she begins to hook it shallowly inside Lily’s sopping channel, coaxing her.

“You wanna again?” Ola asks, grinning between planting gentle kisses on Lily’s inner thigh.

“Yes,” Lily sighs. She twitches their joined hands. “But come up here beside me so I can take your jeans off. I want—”

There’s a snapping sound and Ola jerks her head up as much as she can in her current position. Under a hundred feet from them, someone’s standing, raising the chunky green glowstick they must’ve just found, dropped in the grass by an Eighth attendee, and cracked. The person turns, looks their way. Freezes. They won’t be able to see everything in the dark. Not everything, but enough. Ola hears a noise of surprise.

“Um,” she says, thinking quickly. Louder, she calls to the accidental intruder: “The aliens just beamed down this human woman! Quick! Go find a scientist!”

The person spins and runs in the opposite direction, back over the crest of the hill.

Ola looks down at Lily, who stares curiously back.

“Do you think they’ve gone to find a scientist?”

“No,” Ola yelps giddily, “I think they’ve gone to call the police because they’ve just seen two people fucking on a public hillside.”

“Are you sure they’ll think that? Your cover was rather good.”

“Thanks,” Ola says, extricating herself from between her girlfriend’s legs, “but yes! We’ve got to go!”

They scramble to their feet, Lily yanking her leggings back up. There isn’t time to fuss with the rest of her costume, so she snatches it up, clutching it to her chest along with the sign she brought. Once Ola’s grabbed their candle and gathered the blanket into a sloppy bundle in her arms, they sprint for the road and onward to Lily’s house.

The glow of the candle and Lily’s cape, reflecting it, are streaks of light in the black.

A blaze of brightness and joy. Their own two-person audience of believers.

[f0xfordcomma]

Happy FFWF! Pick a fic, any fic! Choose a particular section that you're proud of, had the most difficulty on, etc. Why is it so?

Ooooh! Okay I think the scene I've had THE HARDEST time with so far is this one from (the as of yet unpublished 😅) third chapter of Realign. Here's a lil snippet, because the whole scene is working to transition the characters from one thing to the next and there are a lot of moving parts (both textual parts, and body parts) that I had to put in the right places... it was just tricky and kind of clunky to write. This whole scene also ended up taking up a lot more time w/i the text than I was hoping but I haven't been able to find much that is trimmable so 🤷‍♀️ it is what it is.

Honestly, Aang did not think he could walk back with her. He hadn’t tried standing yet, let alone fully sitting upright, but he was pretty sure it wasn’t going to go all that well. Still, he couldn’t bear the fear and concern he’d put in Katara’s eyes and he regretted how dramatically this evening had flopped from a fun outing with his new friend into what was shaping up to be a backcountry rescue mission with him as the rescuee. Not exactly the best first impression. So, he put on a brave face and lied through gritted teeth. “Uh, yeah… yeah, I think I’m fine. I just… I might need some help.”

Katara wrapped an arm firmly around Aang’s side as he draped his good arm over her shoulder. With her help, he was able to sit up, then, ever-so-slowly, stand. Although, to call what he was doing “standing” would have been a gross mischaracterization. Aang’s feet were on the ground, yes, but his legs felt like jello and his head was spinning so violently that he wasn’t quite sure if the ground truly even was the ground, or if, perhaps, he was actually in the ocean, being tossed this way and that by the crashing waves.

Aang was leaning heavily on Katara, his lanky frame towering nearly a head above hers and certainly weighing at least three stone more. Still, she seemed to stand firm on her feet and didn’t waver at all as she took a step forward, hauling a dizzy Aang along with her.

[legionofpotatoes]

black widow thonks with spoilers under the cut. because I'm a marvel retrospective blog now I guess

(being in cinemas again is exciting. leave me alone)

A Movie. fits right into that mcu sweet spot of better than I feared, worse than I hoped

better because the first half does seemingly functional dramatic setups, doesn't shy away from quiet moments of interiority, tries to establish a bespoke narrative to operate in, has a weird enough opening that you can chalk up to it being "good" until we see how it's all addressed later on

worse cause second half is an mcu's greatest hits bonanza with clunky payoffs and reverse engineered catharsis shoehorning emotional development into some sort of avengers-need-me endpoint like it's a fridge being pushed into a carry-on suitcase with "franchise continuity" written on it

yelena/florence absolutely delightful. if she's taking over the character that could be nice! I think that girl has very pretty eyes. her acting/humor/accent was very good and really the only functional relationship with natasha in this entire ass movie

adjacent thought: accents overall were good, but some "major" beats were delivered in straight-up russian and. eurgh. horrible pronunciation. weird how this stuff doesnt get vetted on big boy hollywood sets. meanwhile they have one actual russian actor and they're mute the whole time. baller

re: clunky payoffs. major dramatic beat in the end is "sorry I left you, sister" despite the opening showing us the exact opposite. natasha fiercely protecting her from shit dad. whereas the actual defection from the red room is explained away in words and pieces across the movie. "show don't tell" isn't a tired platitude, and would help a LOT here if we saw that moment fit in the dramatic coherence of their past relationship chronologically. feels trivial but catharsis really is just setups and payoffs and making them CLEAR to follow. feel confident complaining about this more than anything else tbh

lots of other examples but this one felt easiest to "get right" in existing framework. other stuff like relationship with rest of the widows/dreykov/his daughter all harder to wrap my head around despite feeling short-changed overall. and like I can't claim to be able to doctor movie scripts or anything

but the parents! what the fuck! way to waste david harbour and rachel weisz! how is his shitty psychology not interrogated/prodded in any way. I did nothing wrong because my daughters grew up into effective brainwashed killers. makes them sad when I say that for some reason. here's a lil song I remember from back when I was lying to you about everything. feel better and move forward please, need to brag more about being cool

mom was overall better handled but the double-triple-quadruple turncoating at the end with constant callbacks and timeline cuts let all the air out of any possible dramatic payoff. functionally speaking it all literally happened in that closet while they were swapping outfits I guess? and we see bits and pieces of it for the sake of plot and not emotion? Weird Choice. but that's just me. idk

you can really tell the exact moment an mcu script hits "fuck it" and throws hands in air as nonsense plot device meter hits peak readings. aggression cancelling man-pheromones was that moment for me. literally what the fuck lmao. I guess the writers room felt strongly about it cause it fits as a wacko metaphor? for a dude manipulating and abusing women? okay. you know. good choice in an espionage thriller. I think it's fucking stupid still! and at the very LEAST warranted some sort of setup/foreshadowing to be less jarring

I get this entirely unjustifiable schadenfreude when fan favorite characters are fucked with. I imagined angry nerds frothing at the mouth about taskmaster and it brought me so much joy. I am truly not gloating I know this is a bad feeling to have. it's evil and judgmental and says more about me than anyone else.

gotta hand it a lil bit to the nerds though, having the character at least be able to speak and articulate motives/relation to natasha/at least express interiority through physical moments would be nice (good nearby example: winter soldier in cap 2). set up your mystery character reveals ya ding dongs. and be a bit heavyhanded about them if needed I promise it's okay. but when did drama and story matter more than plot to marvel? I generally found taskmaster a great overall story beat on paper but it's all the clunky drama around them that failed the execution. more context around That Moment in budapest, a few insert shots of physical micro expressions, actual dialogue during the reveal, idk. probably not as easy to improve this and I'm being a bit flippant but it really does look good on paper to me but then it all feeling empty and pointless by the end is not something I can deny

the incredibly hot dude natasha keeps around for Spy Stuff Procurement. whose name I already forgot. would be nice to give him a Moment, yannow. he literally IS a plot device with no dramatic function around him. everything he did/motivated in the plot could easily be written into nat's pov to save runtime. so why include him at all? it's not like big corporations tend to chase after tokenism in their tentpole films right fellas

so. natasha. the actual titular person in the middle of all this. I can be a bit high brow with my semiotic dissection of these potato salad movies but the fact that your main hero should.. like. change somehow. by the end of a movie. isn't that the whole point of storytelling? flawed personhood goes through crucible of personal challenge and achieves meaningful change. I feel like drama needs to really be blasted at me full-force, because maybe I missed it but did natasha change?

her big mission statement in the end is something like. "turns out I have two families, time to fix the other one". but a) the current one is still fucked up (but okay, it's really about yelena, I'll give it a pass), and b) sort of implies that THIS movie is what spurred her to stop being on the run alone and decide to instead be on the run with steve. which is. a baffling emotional result because why couldn't she do it earlier. we need to know these reasons to make any of this mumbo jumbo work. why was she not with steve in the beginning? "I'm better off alone" throwaway lines probably, yeah. I don't remember. okay why then? interrogate her self-isolation motives a bit more? tie them somehow in her catharsis with yelena? fucking. setups and payoffs. riddle your films with them and make them CLEAR and I PROMISE it's so much more satisfying. I mean for me it is. if you got anything out of her declaration in the end, in all honesty, power to ya

...no sorry I can't get over the attack canceling man pheromones it's so fucking stupid lmao

[darthbecky726]

Bad Batch 1x01 spoilers

I've never done something like this before, but I figured I'd start. Reactions to the first episode of The Bad Batch. (This ended up being a lot longer than I intended, but whatever)

Spoilers under the cut

Red logo burning away starts strong

Yay narrator dude!!

Feels like clones wars

Animated rots scenes!!

And what grevious did after the rots beginning

HOLY SHIT DEPA!!!!!

And caleb right???

And we're in

Omg who voiced young caleb bc it sounds a lot like fpj but aged down and he def doesn't sound like the 14 I know he was when this happened

I like how we started out on familiar characters but not ahsoka or anyone from tcw. We started w young kanan and his master and we know what happened to them and all but if anyone watching hasn't seen rebels they wouldn't be lost as to who caleb and depa are, they'd just assume they're random jedi in o66

Good ol droid screaming as it falls off a cliff

Wow. Them.

I love crosshair

And wrecker

And tech

And echo

And hunter

B1's are so dumb

Lmao the salt from hunter

I feel like depas forehead pearls are a bit unrealistically large but I have no cultural standpoint to really know so...

Caleb's voice is too deep in the same way that jack frost from rotg's voice doesn't match his character model

Ah wrecker not really knowing what she means and echo, the one who has been trained to deal w people and hung out w ani and obi is just like 'thanks general'

Obes kenobes mention

Why is echo so pale

Depa and caleb feel a little too pale too tbh I wonder if it's the lighting or the whitewashing

Wow caleb is a lot like ezra, I can see why kanan wanted to train him lol

Is this what separates caleb and depa, leading to her telling him to run??? Do I need to read dume???

Oh no

Noooooooooo

Bb didn't get the order!

Oh caleb nooooo! Nooooooo they didn't receive that order, they can help you!!!

And he's gone

Oh I need an au where caleb stayed with bb and they helped him after depa died

Hunter sounds so much like rex it's weird like ik they're supposed to sound the same but it feels like wrecker is replacing rex or something. Even tho ik rex's story is over for the time being

Crosshair, no! Don't shoot at him! He's baby

Oh no did crosshair get o66???? It didn't seem to trigger anything in any of the rest of them, but is crosshair close enough to 'reg' for it to have triggered???

😭😭good soldiers follow orders

"sure thing, boss" "hey hunter got a sitch"

Crosshair acting sus

Oh I love watching padawans fight, they're so good!!

I hope that hit to the tree did a lil cognitive recalibration for crosshair, he was acting crazy

Caleb looks so scared!! He just watched his master get gunned down by his friends and now strange clones are trying to kill him/confusing him

Oh caleb

Oh no crosshair don't try to kill him!! Hunters trying to help!

Also hunter doesn't sound as much like rex w the helmet off, but it's weird bc most of the clones are distinguishable by voice even w helmets on. I guess it's the 'im in charge' voice

Star wars if caleb had gone w the bb

Oh hunter u sly dog lying to crosshair so he doesn't go after him. U gotta figure out why crosshair responded to o66 and no one else in ur unit did

Oh crosshair knows he's been lied to

I will always love coming-out-of-hyperspace shots

Ooh kamino, always nice this time of year

Echo is done w wrecker

Why hasn't crosshair taken his helmet off yet, lil bit sus

They better get his chip out on kamino, I don't wanna deal w this

Oof hunter 

Oh who’s that, giving me cloud city vibes

Extreme cloud city vibes wow

Never realized how many clones are just on kamino

Coruscant guard?!?! FOX?!?!

The vibes here, omg

‘The war is over’ wow

Oh no who was that

A female jedi, doesn’t appear to be shaak, couldn’t see any montrals but never know, we don’t officially know how or where she died

Ok wow none of the bb has their helmets on except for crosshair, who got the order. The regs around kamino all have their helmets on. That scene in victory and death when ahsoka took rex’s helmet off- 

And crosshair, he’s actins strange too

Oh tech, do u guys get bullied by regs a lot??

I love their barracks

Lol he finally took his helmet off only to stick a toothpick in his mouth, can he get anymore cliched?

Wrecker is seeming a lot more infantilized than he was in the s7 eps...

Yeah crosshair’s being sus

Ooh, he shifted his toothpick

Lmao ‘what programming’

Well documented my ass

Tech’s speech patterns are so stiff and robotic, it’s like he has to remind himself to talk in basic instead of binary or some shit

Tech throwing shade at crosshair

I can’t quite tell if we’re supposed to like crosshair at this point

Lmao we been knew

Oop ‘more machine than man’ the vader parallels are serving folks

Understatement.

Ugh sheev

Crusty ass bitch

Straight from rots wow

Who is the mystery child and why does he look mandalorian

Ooh he gone

Oh no, the beninning of the empire

Cheering?? Why?!?

That imperial march fade in tho

Thank you echo

Oh shit mystery child is female

Omega, I would not have guessed the pronunciation of your name by reading it wow

She def seems mandalorian

Ugh kaminoans

Oh the kaminoan pronounced it as it usually is, huh.

Omega’s character model def seems more masculine than female, I now headcanon her as trans

Ugh tarkin, I hate that crusty bitch

Empire politics ugh

I love how much shade is being thrown at tarkin and his stormtrooper proposal lmao

Why do all these clones have the standard haircut?? ik them boys like their variety, even if these boys are still under o66′s programming

Wrecker you’re being extremely loud

They’re all being loud in the mess, why

They remember, kid

Lol child

Oh my sweet summer children

The dad instinct was clearly passed genetically from jango lol all these clones got it

Why are background characters so mean? What about it, shiny? Why is ur hair regulation, reg??

The Sad Batchn omg the slander

Lol the food fight I’ve read about in the fics, its finally happening!

Is she.... australian??

The over-animation of character movements in this is reminding me of the looser style of rebels, as opposed to the more clunky style of tcw

Lmao he’s still got food on him

Food fight!!

‘Not again’???!!! Echo!! Wdym not again?! Food fights have happened before?!?? Wait. W bb or w torrent, bc I can see torrent having food fights on the resolute-

Crosshair’s just eating his food until someone messes

I like how echo still has his kamas

Oh no echo!!

Oh echo’s trauma, he doesn’t trust medical droids! Where’s kix when u need him, huh?

Lol, comically long name for a robot trope is alive and well, huh

Lmao the droid lowers his voice like ik this is a perceived bad thing, but I will not tolerate this slander, boys u need to get off kamino

‘The shock’ lmao whyyy

Lmao tech!!

Oh, echo recognized tarkin from the citadel!

‘When you blew up’ lmao

Oh they make me sad

Aaaaah fox!

Man the domino squad nostalgia

Those droids look cool

This is a neat scene, I like seeing them in action

Wrecker reminding me of hevy, but he’s got the training and success to back it up

Live fire???? No!!

Ugh I hate tarkin

Oh no wtecker

Did he just get shot!???! 

Oh no crosshair, be careful!

Tarkin’s trying to kill them!!!

Lol wrecker I love you

Echo using his mech hand as a weapon, truly an arc

Now I wanna see what happened on felucia

I like how tech’s just sitting on the droid’s shoulders

And hunter just had a knife

These boys, I love them

Oh no tech bby

Hot damn that was cool

Wrecher things so too lmao

Tarkin’s like “why didn’t that work??’

Oh new baby clones

No tf they could not, they would never serve the empire and those bitches

I love that they have a window apartment lol

Ugh tarkin u shifty

They all stand at attention, only after glaring at tarkin

Oh no onderon

I hate tarkin, he’s a bitch

How quickly could bitch lord and darth sad have replaced the armory on kamino??

Crosshair still acting sus

Neither does echo, kid

No.

I like omega.

Crosshair, with the sassy hand on the hip-

What does that even mean?? Or elude to??

Lmao tech messing w wrecker, they rlly r bros

Its prob the vegetation

Oh, I missed onderon, but not this much

Lol the put-upon sigh

Its clearly saw and his rebels

Saw! Looking sharp, what’s w the hair....

That’s a very geometric beard, saw

They didn’t kill any jedi!

That’s not what happened, tech

‘The clones’ bitch that was rex and ahsoka, check urself

Aw, I’ve always like the design of imperial probe droids

Thank you, echo

It seems like crosshair’s o66 programming and his mutation are warring w his morals

Lmao the shade

I knew she was an enhanced clone!

Oh, so she is (at least on paper) trans! She’s a clone of jango, and yet she’s female! That must be her modification, but it makes me wonder why

Lol *flicks toothpick*

Aw, they have a picture of themselves! Recent-ish, too, its got echo!

Oh no, AZI!

The difference between them arriving earlier and now, the lack of escort...

Creepy how they had to open the hanger door themselves

Oh no! Everyone!

The coruscant guard, I wish they had gotten better

Tarkin u dramatic bitch

‘The brig’ this ain’t some tallship

Lol echo that shade

Their blacks are different from the ones seen in the past

Crosshair, stop being a bitch

Oh, I don’t like that phrase!! And the fact that crosshair screamed it in echo’s face makes me uneasy. Did rex fill echo in on why fives died?? I hope so...

Crosshair, ur chip hurting??

This child, I like her.

No! Don’t hit hunter!

No crosshair!!!!

I dislike this immensly

So they do still have inhibitor chips!

Tarkin you monster

Oh poor crosshair

ihatethisihatethisihatethis

Lol tech I love you

Wrecker you sweet pea

Lol that’s adorable

I love how they form a “wall” its so suspicious 

He was about to say that, omega

Aaww, echo protective boi

Wrecker shut up tf

That was cool

Sneaky bois

This reminds me of rex and ahsoka sneaking around in v&d

Echo runs so stupid

Oh no they winter soldier’d him!

If he says who the hell is crosshar, I will lose my shit

Yes, he has. They took it from him.

The toothpick

I wonder how they’re gonna get crosshair back to normal

Not good that they nabbed the sniper

Oh, crosshair shot him in the same place he got hit during training!

Ooh, a kaminoan on their side!

I hope omega doesn’t die

Poor trigger etiquette, crosshair

Wonder if omega has any speciality training

They’re just gonna leave him there!?!?!?!?!

Nooooooooooo!!!!!!!

Omega reminds me of young boba 

Oh, so its in her dna

Go back for crosshair!!

Holy fucking shit that was amazing! I didn’t expect it to be that long, but I’m not complaining! This ended up being a lot longer than I anticipated, but I don’t feel like cutting anything out, so sorry for the long post but at least I put it under a cut.

[vaguely-concerned]

The Mandalorian season 2 ep 1 AGAIN! it’s the rewatch folks

- The entire last season reminder/intro scene is kind of clunky and we’re-hitting-you-over-the-head-with-this, but I think it’s important to note that it’s probably meant for the vast majority of people who watched this stuff once a wholeass year ago, and not for me, the crazy person who watched each episode at least five times lol

- 

I like the way mando & bb walk from darkness into brief light and back into darkness here... the directors keep finding such cool ways of using the armour cinematically, there must be some lighting considerations to be made when your main character is essentially a walking disco ball. I enjoy the mood of this planet too -- the distant lights, the way the sky isn’t quite dark like there’s a city providing some light pollution nearby (it’s a bit clearer as he walks further into the... town? that it’s not just sunset, the sky is lit up weirdly) 

also when din moves towards the camera and out of sight in this first appearance, the signet is the very last thing that leaves the frame! I just thought that was sweet, a clan of two :’)

- shotout to these two lads and their boldly absolutely inexplicable hat choices (I love gratuitous star wars crowd scenes you guys)

those tacky gold sequins on her sleeves... immaculate, beautiful, someone sat through like full body makeup application to be on screen a literal split second, that good good sw nonsense

- oh I didn’t notice before but I think those gladiator dudes are using vibroaxes! I guess they have the technology to portray it in live action now after the vibroblades in the first season

- the way bb glances up at din like ‘hey dad. dad what the fuck???’ as one gomorrean nearly chops the arm off the other fjaslfds

- when you look for it it’s comically obvious that those guys are working for the dude mando’s meeting, they’ve all got more or less the same dark uniform and don’t look much at the fight haha. they might as well have ‘hired thugs’ stamped upon their foreheads

- I like how pared down and spare the music is in this fight scene, it’s just the faint whine of the electric guitars under the thuds of meat hitting metal 

also still love how din fights, the fact that he doesn’t even try to not get hit a lot of the time, he’s just tanking through it waiting for someone to fling themselves at him in a way he can exploit to take them out

the bouncer seems to be holding something like sci-fi handcuffs when he grabs din and lifts him off his feet, so he probably meant to restrain him quickly. bonus: I didn’t notice it the first time around, but din really went straaaaaiiight for this dude’s gentleman area once he dropped him back on his feet lol (you can even see him taking a split second to orient himself and take aim first fhsdkfhas). good job space cowboy dad, sometimes fighting smart means fighting dirty

- leaving this awful dude hanging upside down to get eaten after employing some very deliberate phrasing so he’s not even breaking his word is the ruthless HEIGHT of mando’s hilarious petty streak and it makes me cackle, gives me life, waters my crops    

- oh, the palpable loneliness and longing in din’s voice when he says ‘if I can track down another of my kind’ ;_______; I’m sorry buddy

- may we speak for a moment about the fact that din carries his son around in what seems very much to be a saddle bag sdafjkhsa

- the way din checks in with peli (to see if she’s fucking with him? he’s very confused anyway haha) over the map before saying “I don’t see anything” is so precious. he already seems much more socially tuned in and responsive compared to the beginning of season 1, you love to see it, coming out of that freeze response baBEY

- I can’t get over how much the baby loves speed, this is coming back to bite you so hard if you’re ever going to have to teach this kid how to drive one day mando

- awwww the little patented mando finger curl as he enters the bar <3<3<3 that’s sort of his tell for being preoccupied/anxious; I think finding other mandos, someone to trust and to get help from, means A Lot to him  

once he sees the marshall in the armour his shoulders drop down and he stands up straighter :’) hope is a powerful thing (I guess all of this might add even more to how angry he is too)

the DEAD STOP when cobb takes the helmet off sdkfhkajsldhfsdk

- yodito putting his lil mouth on the lip of this jar thing is such a well observed little quirk of baby behaviour, I’m crying

(there is liquid of some sort in this thing; I’ve seen some people theorize it’s a spittoon but for my own peace of mind I’m going to forcefully declare that it is not thank you)

- so much stuff packed into that “He’s seen worse”!! dismissal, self-deprecation, sorrow, resignation, warning. 

- the contrast in this standoff of vanth’s eastwood eye twitch and the complete deadpan impassiveness of din’s helmet and general demeanor... wonderful  

- upon rewatching I’m actually wondering if some of these scenes with the baby on his own were filmed independently of the actors and that it might add to that slight distracting feeling of disconnect/distance you get through the episode. (it’s sort of odd to me that mando doesn’t even glance down at him as the whole place starts to shake, for example) there must be a lot of stuff that comes down to technical considerations with the baby; I suspect it takes a lot of time and resources to have him walking around too much, which is why The Waddle is kind of a rare treat   

what I’m saying is that they may be saving up dad & baby interaction resources for episodes where it’s more relevant or important

- so is this a one bantha town or is it just for convenient film language reasons it was all alone in frame like that lol

also cobb’s ‘mondays amirite’ look fdsakjfhsjk 

- since I think it every time I get to this part: this is a very neat hairstyle this person is rocking, suits them! 

- ah the stern pointer finger of emphasis. din TALKS, no, COMMUNICATES so much in this episode you guys!!!!! 

- rip this tusken, the bravest person who ever lived

- the delivery of “...they might be open to some fresh ideas” is the funniest moment of this entire episode don’t @ me

- oh the kotor-ness of it all lol

- jill (the girl who hands cobb the detonator) is so cute with her hat and everything ;____; 

- I suppose these tuskens are really the bravest people to ever live considering they saw what happened to the last guy (or gal I suppose I don’t know how sand people gender works)

- baby needs some goggles to protect his giant eyes from wind and sand Y___Y

- they’ve nailed how to make the jetpacks work in live action, it looks really cool and I suspect it easily could have uh. not 

- this poor sacrificial bantha... it even tried to get away

- ooooh the heart eyes -- cobb 100% has a crush on this man jfsdflhsad. (with it being sort of unrequited/’oh man I’m behind about 150 layers of dissociation too many to even really consider that one way or the other bud’ from mando’s side #personal headcanon disclaimer)    

- my take on why din doesn’t get dissolved in acid in there is that that stuff is released from a specific gland or something that the dragon can unleash at will and that the spit itself doesn’t have that quality on its own (or at least it’s a lot less potent) 

- seems pretty well confirmed by now that yodito is a carnivore huh hahaha

- I find it obscurely satisfying that cobb seems to be wearing exactly his old outfit under the armour -- he did just strap it on on top of what he already was. (there’s something there -- he’s a whole thing still without the armour, and at this time at least din would not be I don’t think) just some good narrative foil stuff going on here under the surface

also once again props to the costume design; without the armour he looks so vulnerable again, they have dressed him to emphasise his height and slenderness (especially compared to mando, who actually seems to have bulked up a bit? fatherhood suits him I guess)    

plus, the way the baby looks questioningly up at din while he watches cobb walk away? yeah, din is lonely, let this poor man have a friend who stays around soon T______________T

- heeey boba, nice threads! my guess is that he’s not going to be there for the armour if he does track din down, since he hasn’t seemed to be in any haste to get it back before (which is interesting!). he might also have been unable to go looking for it before because he was still recovering from being half digested, of course, they could play it a lot of different ways

I wonder if we’ll get more of him in the next ep or if they’ll let the tension ramp up through the season