#that interview awakened the beast lol

[ndostairlyrium]

And the reason I don't like warden vs Hawke decision is that it has no repercussions. You can pick the "x died be respectful" in a convo with Dorian and just hug Varric. One minute later you're just walking around Skyhold as if nothing happened

I'm sorry, you just left in the Fade one of the most valued wardens / a champion of the people. Why isn't there someone throwing a big scene in my courtyard? This is a decision that affects other people heavily

Shock value is the worst

[stray-kaz]

Elvis and Austin!Elvis Ask game:

Let’s start off gently shall we? Because this most definitely devolves into thirsty madness later, you’ve been warned…and also, we are all at various stages in the Elvis fandom, some of us have been suckling the gospel of EP from birth, others just had their sexual awakening with the 2022 movie, and then there’s the ones among us with frickin’ doctorates on the man. All are welcome, it keeps us colorful. Feel free to pick and chose which of these you want to answer 

•When and what was your first exposure to Elvis Presley? It would have been singing Hound Dog and Blue Suede Shoes in primary school.

•And what was your first impression? I honestly didn’t have an impression at, say, eleven years old. They were just songs to me.

•Lace shirts or jumpsuits? Lace shirts.

•You can steal one of Elvis/Austin’s outfits, what’s it going to be? The pink suit.

•C’mon, we know you’ve been watching/reading old interviews and random footage of the man, so what’s your favorite random Elvis quote? Goes something like: “If I ever thought what I did was hurting anybody, I’d pack up, go home and I’d never sing another note.”

•Did you find Austin Butler’s lips distracting despite them being in a movie about the King of plush upper lips? (Be honest now) No, but his hips were.

•What’s an aspect of Elvis’ character you wish more people appreciated? His striving to find and follow God.

•You meet Col. Tom Parker for the first time, forewarned with the knowledge of what a scumbag he is, what do you do?:  A. nothing, you’re a coward who doesn’t care about abused golden-hearted men B. you give the Colonel a stern telling off C. you encourage Elvis to leave him and break the contract E. you slap a legal document against that fat suit and declare “Mrs. Claus is bringing you a lawsuit” F. you waste no time with formalities, it’s a letter opener to the juggler for that piece of trash. C, and maybe D, too.

•What was your favorite aspect/scene from the Elvis 2022 movie? When he strides out in stage at the hayride and when he starts to “wiggle”.

•You can choose only one song or piece of media to convince someone to become an Elvis fan, what is it going to be? The 2022 film or the live performance of If I Can Dream in the ‘68 Comeback Special.

•How many children would you give Elvis Presley from your own -or theoretical- womb? (listen to the beast in ya, your feminism won’t serve you here) If I lived at the same time as him (as I am already married and have kids), I’d give him three.

Where are you hanging out with EP, his bedroom with the teddy bears, Club Handy, his private jet or Graceland? The teddy bears are freaky as heck, so Club Handy or Graceland.

•What is the peak Elvis era? warning, this says an awful lot about you… Boo to you lol, I will always say young Elvis era is my favourite, though I have never heard a voice more perfect than in If I Can Dream.

•How long have you been an Austin Butler fan (be honest now, God is watching) Since June 26th, the year of our Lord, two thousand and twenty two.

•What kind of Elvis chick are you? -a 1950’s prospective wife material that he’s already sampled, a 1960’s filmset fling or a Vegas torrid backstage affair? 1950′s prospective wife.

•Is Austin Butler an honorary southerner now? Answer options: A. hell no, California can keep his sweet cheeks. B. hell yes, he’s practically been possessed by the soul of the King of the South. B.

•Pick your poison in the fan-fiction realm: angst, fluff, smut, fluffy smut, angsty fluff, angsty smut?…or is reading about Elvis Presley an acknowledged health hazard? Anything fluff, maybe with a touch of spice.

•Spit or swallow for this man? (And if you don’t understand this question move right along) Neither. Gross.

•Would Gladys approve of you? Take your above answer into consideration. Oh, she would love me. Raised in church and a real daddy’s girl.

•Which of Elvis’ cars is your favorite? The pink or dark purple Caddy.

•What are your odds for besting this man at karate? Zero. Nil. Nada. None. Zip.

•If you could meet Elvis and have enough composure to tell him something, what would it be? I would hug him and tell him that he did lasting things, that people are raised on his music decades after he was gone and he did real good. And I’d probably ask for a kiss lol.

•What’s a hobby or pastime of yours you wish you could share with Elvis/Austin!Elvis? I would read with him.

•What’s the Elvis 2022 quote you’ve been mumbling to yourself ever since you heard it? I get lyrics from Suspicious Minds stuck on a loop, and “shove it up your nose”.

•What are your top 3 go-to Elvis songs? Polk Salad Annie, Little Sister and Return To Sender.

•If you could spare him one tragedy what would it be? Being squeezed and squeezed by the colonel until there was nothing left.

•Is there a modern artist that sorta scratches for you the itch that Elvis’ absence leaves? None really, but James Arthur is pretty dang smooth.

•How did you react at the end of the movie when In the Ghetto started to play A. I got up and fixed a snack because I have no soul, B. I left feeling alarmingly horny, C. I was impressed but didn’t realize how affected I was until days later when it was still with me D. I cried buckets they had to bring in a mop E. I may have appeared emotionless but in fact my soul was leaving my body and I don’t think it’s returned quite yet. Shocking to myself, B. And maybe a little bit C.

•If you’ve got a favorite gif or photo insert it here and bless us all

This is one of my all time favourite gifs ever, hands down. He’s so gorgeous. Pretty boy.

Thanks for tagging me, Jo! @karamelcoveredolicity​

Ok, now go and tag a couple mutuals

@foreverdolly​ @succsessions​

[kyidyl]

So I felt like writing today and I was taking a look at my writing folder and like....the number of unfinished stories I have might be getting out of hand.  I’ve got: 

The three stories that make up my main world.  The series is called The Broken Kingdom, and the stories are (in order of past, present, future): The Incidental Queen, The Lost Light, and The Time Lost Savior.  This is the one I post pics from occasionally.  

Spring - This is the massive GoT fanfic that I’ve been writing.  A post s8 fix it fic that I actually have open to reading by the public, which can be found here.

Several World of Warcraft fics that I’m not gonna post the titles of bc I don’t wanna cross the streams between Tumblr and my AO3 account.  

Happily Ever After a romance novel essentially about a brilliant physicist who meets a famous actor and falls in love.  It is 100% fluffy wish-fulfilment and practice in character writing for me.  And in the kind of romance novels I like - where the conflict comes from outside the relationship and it’s them v. the world, not them one v. the other.  No breakups.  Adult conversation.  Fun travel to cool locations bc rich actor.  It’s great.  The heroine is a black woman because I wanted to write the kind of story that I’d seen a lot of black women asking for - the one where they get to be the treasured princess.  She isn’t a literal princess, but she gets treated like one with no hidden terribleness in store for her.  The fact that she’s doing a PhD in a field where, according to my research, only 9 black women have ever been awarded a PhD is just icing on the cake.  Listen, I have feels about her, ok? Lots of feels.  And about him, but like I’m proud of her...he is a great but he was a lot easier to construct for me.  

Zombie, a post-apoc story that takes place about 100 years after, well, zombies.  A scientist has found a cure after all this time, but to help anyone she has to get from Martha’s Vineyard, MA to the CDC in St. Louis.  This shouldn’t be a big deal, as there are safe trains that criss-cross the country.  But when someone sabotages her ride, she and her marine escort are thrown into the wilds with the monsters, and now there’s a lot more between her and her destination.  She starts a hopeful scientist with no experience in the reality of the nightmare, and he starts as the biggest nihilistic grump ever because he has far too much experience in said reality.  Over the journey though they learn and grow and come to value each other.  

Immortal - an interview-with-a-vampire style story where the subject of said interview is an alien who was exiled to earth before humanity even evolved.  Over the course of several heat-soaked louisiana nights, she tells the story of humans from the perspective of a witness, giving long dead humans their voices once again.  She also tells the story of how and why she came to earth, and why she’s so long-lived.  

Ghost - A woman dies in a car accident, but instead of passing into the next world, she clings to the husband she left behind.  After figuring out how to communicate with him, the two of them are thrown into a whole dangerous world of supernaturals that they didn’t know existed.  Hijinks ensue, but it also includes an element of tragedy - after all, how can you move on if the person you love isn’t really gone? Is it better or worse to be able to communicate with them, even if you can’t touch them anymore? Is it really a relationship if the only thing you have together is dreams? 

Sunshine - This one is based on a dream I had.  Evangeline - Evie, thank you very much - is a cheerful, idealistic demon is beginning her first semester as a teacher at the Academy of Preternatural Excellence.  An intra-faculty competition teams her up with an equally sunny, smart angel named Lily (that woman was named after her, not the other way around, and you better not use that woman’s name in her hearing.  It’s LILY, not LILITH.), the god Thoth in the form a of quiet, kind librarian, the furie Tisiphone, the wrath demon Aeshma, and Lily’s brother Tamiel, who is a really grumpy, scowly angel.  Lily and Evie get on like a house on fire, Thoth’s quiet, understanding composure hides power the rest of them instinctually respect and treat as leadership. Aeshma and Tisiphone are in a centuries-long relationship that seems unbreakable, and together they aren’t anything you’d want to mess with.  Evie and Tamiel, well...she’s too sunny and he’s too dour, but over time they find a way to compliment one another.  As the semester grinds on, a threat from outside the school puts pressure on the team.  And once Evie explodes...well, there’s no stopping her.  This one is funny and I really enjoy these characters.  I liked the idea of a sunny, idealistic demon and a grumpy, mean angel interacting.  

The Eshaar - I can’t really give a synopsis of this one bc I yoinked some of the plot points for the D&D game I DM and I have a couple of my players following me, but basically the world in question has seven different species of humanoids on it, with complicated inter and intra species politics.  The story centers around one scientist, a member of a species called the Eshaar, re-discovering the history of her people and the planet, and the corruption that is once again threatening her world.  

The Season - This is a mixed superhero/horror story that I started way back in 2005 (at the time I was living in FL and this was the hurricane season that spawned Katrina.).  A series of cat 5 hurricanes devastate the east coast of the US in more ways than one.  The storms carried a virus, and everyone living on the coast was exposed.  Most became mindless beasts similar to zombies, but others? Others gained superhero-ish powers.  Once the storms have passed, the US erects a wall between the devastated areas and the rest of the country.  It’s an unseen wall made from sophisticated technology, stretching far into the thermosphere.  It keeps both the virus and the monsters it created out of the rest of the country, but trapped the survivors on the other side.  The problem is that all of the major east coast cities are on the viral side of the wall, so the rest of the country still depends on trade through the wall.  The story follows a superhero team as they come together and try to eek out a living, and eventually establish a new order on their side of the wall and incite a revolution.  

Dawn - An alien anthropologist is sent to earth on a routine monitoring mission to check in on the species that was seeded there by her people several generations previous.  On reaching earth, a malfunction keeps her in cryosleep, her ship cloaked and orbiting the planet.  Thousands of years pass, until she awakens years after the rise and fall of the humans on Earth.  She realizes that everyone and everything she knew back home is gone, and while still coping with this tragedy she is forced to go down to the surface of earth to find fuel for her ship so she can return to her planet and find out what is left of it.  While she’s down there, she can’t resist trying to find out what happened to the humans while she was asleep, and if there are any of them left.  

Ok well I don’t expect that anyone read all of that but the point is that I can’t choose so I wrote a list instead, lol.  

[nadziejastar]

Part 2: Axel

Saïx: You have changed…Something at Castle Oblivion changed you. Does the past mean nothing to you now?

Unlike Isa’s scar, Axel’s tear mark tattoos disappeared when Lea was recompleted. It implies that he got them after he became a Nobody, while Isa received his scar as a human. In the concept art, Lea was shown with tear mark tattoos and without them. Isa was shown with green and gold Norted eyes. It suggests that there was backstory that was going to show these characters before and after.

A teenage Axel probably gave himself the tattoos. KH3′s explanation for the teardrops was lame and I doubt that was always the story behind them. Saïx told him they’d stop him from crying? Well, Nobodies don’t cry. So are we supposed to believe that Isa was mocking Lea for crying before they became Nobodies? Why on earth would he do that? And why is Lea crying all the time, anyways? I thought they were apprentices, not test subjects? It’s pretty dumb.

Hearing his old name, Axel glanced up to see Saïx watching him intently. He remembered being human. Memories surged inside him, crowding the space in his chest. For Nobodies, memory had all the weight of a heart.

I remember. I won’t forget. But those sunsets with Roxas and Xion were part of his memory.

KH3 apparently forgot, but Axel was an assassin. And since he wasn’t trained to kill the apprentices, I highly doubt that was a profession he chose for himself, lol. The teardrops were almost certainly associated with that history. Axel had them before the idea that he was old friends with Saïx even existed. The teardrop tattoo can mean that the wearer has committed murder. It can also mean that one of the wearer’s friends was murdered and that they are seeking revenge. In Axel’s case, both are probably true.

In order for Sora—no, for Roxas to live, and also for us to accomplish our own goal, Zexion is in the way. And, if it’s for the sake of our own goal, we already decided what to do, that time.

Since Axel’s tattoos are upside-down, I’d say they represent fact that Axel couldn’t cry anymore even if he wanted to. And since that ability was taken away from him after he lost his heart, the tattoos symbolize him embracing his lack of emotion. When he gets his revenge, he will show no mercy and have no remorse. I think Axel gave them to himself not long after losing his heart. They symbolize that he will never forget what happened to him, Isa and all the other innocent victims lost during the experiments.

Zero Gear: “A powerful weapon that draws forth its wielder’s true worth.”

Lea was able to create a Corridor of Darkness even as a human. The apprentices couldn’t even do this, nor Riku after “Ansem” left him. 

Nomura: While only those known as beings of darkness and beings of between are able to create entries and exits, in rare cases even other kinds of beings such as the Beast and DiZ, who held strong sentiment or hatred in their hearts, have been able to open a path themselves. However, this means being near the darkness.

It’s rare to be able to do this and requires strong feelings like hatred in the person’s heart. I think because of their differing personalities, Lea was thought to be more capable of destruction, while Isa was seen as more submissive.

And so, Axel appeared in front of Sora. He threw a chakram at Vexen right then. It wasn’t that powerful, but it could kill in one hit if it got a vital point.

Lea seemed to be molded for his skills related to being an assassin, while they tried to turn Isa into an obedient robot with no ability to think for himself.

The members of the Organization each had their own distinctive weapons that didn’t exactly cooperate if someone else tried to use them, but Keyblades were even more particular. If someone else so much as tried to pick it up, a Keyblade would simply return to its wielder’s hand. Or so Xion had heard.

There’s a few interesting bits of info about Organization XIII’s weapons and abilities in the novels. This scene happens while Xion was trying to use Roxas’ Keyblade. First of all, the weapons of the Organization are formed by their memories. Second of all, the weapons cannot be used by just anybody.

Nobodies derived their personalities and abilities from memories of their human lives. But what exactly were those abilities? What gave rise to them?

The answer that came to mind was the presence of memory itself. They were chained by their memory, and in those bonds was power. So it was probably fair to say that Roxas and Xion were bound by the same memory.

And thirdly, Axel doesn’t even understand how he got his abilities. Just that they are related to “memory”.

There are also many things regarding Castle Oblivion that remain mysterious. Did Organisation XIII build that castle themselves, with Naminé the original subject of the experiments they conducted there? Please tell us the details of the experiments the Organization were carrying out. Also, was that pod that Sora entered something the Organisation built in relation to those experiments? Are they the same pods in Twilight Town?

The ultimate goal of the Organisation was to obtain a Kingdom Hearts of the hearts of people and become complete beings, and because Nobodies were a new kind of being beyond all expectations, said to be ‘nonexistent beings’, the lack of background knowledge made it necessary for them to collect information relating to their own condition. One major feature of the Nobodies is that they form personalities and feelings through memories without hearts. This means that ‘memory’ is a very important element to them. The creation of Castle Oblivion itself is still a mystery, but, as you can guess from the cutscenes added to this title, you may consider that the Organisation discovered the castle, which was there since before the Organisation was created, at quite an early stage.

And also, around the same time that Roxas woke up in Twilight Town, Naminé woke up in Castle Oblivion. This means that she was found by the Organisation after that. Just as each Organisation member has an attribute ability, Naminé possesses the power to manipulate ‘memory’, and they thought that this ability was the key to illuminating the truths of the condition of the Nobodies. This means that in that place that affected the ‘memory’ of those who entered they carried out experiments relating to memory. Above all, Xemnas, the leader of the Organisation, seemed to be searching for something important related to ‘memory’. Some of their experiments involved the breaking and rebirth of memories, and those pods were for that purpose indeed created by the Organisation. The pod that Sora woke up in in Twilight Town was the same one from Castle Oblivion. DiZ had moved everything as it was in order to escape pursuit by the Organisation. Also, as Xigbar says in a cutscene added to this title: when the time comes to reveal the details of ‘the true purpose of Castle Oblivion’, all the mysteries regarding Castle Oblivion will be solved.

These details are given legitimacy in one of Nomura’s interviews. Organization XIII carried out experiments in Castle Oblivion to understand themselves and their own abilities. Keyblades come from a person’s heart. You need a strong heart to wield one. So, it appears the weapons of the Nobodies come from their mind. You need a strong mind to form a Nobody. And their weapons are similar to Keyblades. So, the story of how each member got their signature weapons was apparently something that was planned to be revealed, especially if they are specifically tied to their memories. 

Many of the members had combat experience as humans which make it obvious how they got their abilities. Lea play fought with frisbees and his chakrams are based off of that. Others are not so obvious. Isa was not shown fighting, yet Saïx uses a berserker’s claymore. Berserkers fight in trance-like state with adrenaline coursing through them. Thus, I highly doubt this weapon had anything to do with Isa’s memories as a normal kid.

Mystery Gear: “A weapon that draws forth its wielder’s personality.”

In addition to their abilities, their personalities are said to be drawn from their memories. This is probably where the whole idea of the Mystery Gear came from. I was never really comfortable with Mystery Gear being labeled a “joke weapon” on the same level as the Casual Gear. Sure, some of the weapons seem silly, like Vexen’s Snowman or Xigbar’s Trumpet (and even those I believe are meaningful). But others are completely serious, like Xemnas’ Absolute or Roxas’s Aubade. So, my theory is that the Mystery Gear is the weapon that is created from the memories of the person the moment they lost their heart.

An aubade is a morning love song (as opposed to a serenade, which is in the evening), or a song or poem about lovers separating at dawn. It has also been defined as “a song or instrumental composition concerning, accompanying, or evoking daybreak”. In the strictest sense of the term, an aubade is a song from a door or window to a sleeping woman. Well, Sora chose to become a Heartless to awaken Kairi, who was sleeping. He did so out of love.  

The Heartless come from people’s hearts, as does the darkness. Is the core of the world’s heart the world of the Heartless? I will pursue the answer there and become all knowing. My path is set. I shall seek out the wielder of the Keyblade, and the princesses. My body is too frail for such a journey, but I must do this. I will cast it off and plunge into the depths of darkness.

Apprentice Xehanort wanted to become all-knowing. Xemnas’s Mystery Gear is “Absolute”. And trumpeters are harbingers of the apocalypse in the Bible. And that’s exactly what Braig signed up to be when he gave up his heart to Xehanort. Axel’s is called “Fuma Shuriken”, or Wind Demon Shuriken. It also has a Recusant’s Sigil on it. In the warring states period, the Fuma Clan were a group of outlaw ninjas, especially skilled at night raids and other sorts of sneaky surprise attacks. They were extremely strong, extremely deadly, and had a reputation for pretty much having no morals whatsoever. They would slash enemies in the back, set entire villages on fire, and resort to all sorts of violent and non-violent trickery. They were also said to be experts at the use of fire and smoke – including the smoke-shield practice known as Enton-no-jutsu.

“That Genie we met seemed really worried about his friend Al,” Xion remarked eventually. “But then he said he’d respect his friend’s wishes. I guess you can’t just jump in and do everything for them, even if you want to.” Xion bit her ice cream, swinging her feet.

Axel leaned his head to one side. “Your friend’s wishes, huh…” It feels like I have heard that before, a long time ago, when I was human.

“Inseparable” is the day Xion needs to rely on Roxas. Friends lean on each other. Axel says best friends can be together when they’re apart as long as they feel close. But he sadly said he didn’t have one. The description of this day says that Roxas learns about a friend’s resolve.

“He worries too much. Thinks he has to help Sora do everything…” Axel grimaced in irritation.

“But, Axel, aren’t you the one worrying about Riku and Sora?” Naminé giggled softly.

Axel said he’d heard that back when he was a human. Axel worries a lot about his friends, like Riku does.

“You have your own mission, Roxas,” Saïx told him before Xion could answer.

“I can’t trade with Xigbar or something?”

“What an extraordinarily childish notion. Do you need Axel to walk you everywhere now?”

Roxas bit his lip and looked at the floor. “That’s not it…”

Day 353 is called “Resolve”. Axel was worrying about how to save everyone and also respect their wishes. This is the day Xion left to sacrifice herself. Saïx said this on Day 353. He’s projecting. Lea probably always worried over Isa and tried to care of him, like Riku does with Sora. Saïx still has Isa’s “personality”---his memories, that is. He knows that he was clingy and dependent on Lea. And he can’t STAND it. It’s humiliating to him. He thinks Isa was a childish baby who needed Lea to coddle him.

“It’s the best thing for everyone,” said Xion.

Everyone? Everyone, who? For us? Or…for someone else?

“How do you know that?” Axel demanded. “Everyone thinks they’re right…”

“This is right,” Xion said firmly. “It’s better this way.” Axel hated that argument. Nothing was better any which way. All it came down to was what you wanted to do and what you didn’t. He’d learned that lesson back when he had a heart.

It’s heavily implied that Isa’s thoughts at the moment he lost his heart were related to love. In the story of the Moon Rabbit, the hare was a bodhisattva. The bodhisattva vow is the commitment to put others before oneself. It is a statement of willingness to give up one’s own well-being, even one’s own enlightenment, for the sake of others.

“Me, worry? You think I need to be worried about those two?” He stretched backward and rocked the chair back and forth, like a restless child.

Naminé returned to her sketchbook.

“Say, Naminé… Are you still going to try to meet Kairi?”

Her head snapped up at the unexpected question. Across from her, Axel met her gaze, grave and earnest.

“I have to help her,” she said with a sad smile.

He scowled. “Is that really the best thing?”

“The best thing…?” Naminé set her crayons down on the table, her gaze dropping as she thought for a moment, and then she smiled at him again. “It’s the right thing.”

In response, Axel only leaned back and rocked in the chair again. She took up her crayons.

No one could know what was right or wrong.

I think Lea’s last thoughts as a human were related to rage. The hare decided to offer himself up as food to a hungry stranger even though other food was available. It can be seen as foolish. And I think that’s how Lea felt when he realized Isa wanted to sacrifice himself for him. He was furious, like he was with Xion. He was mad at Isa for trying to destroy himself, when there HAD to be another way. He was mad at himself for being powerless to save Isa. And he was furious at the apprentices most of all for causing everything. 

He was probably waiting for me. Standing there against the wall with his arms folded was once my best friend—Saïx didn’t take his eyes off the ground to look at Axel.

“…You’re sure this is for the best?”

He HATES the idea that there is a set way that is “best”. And because of what happened, he’s perpetually stuck at the age of 15, unable to move on from his trauma. He’s actually compared to a child in the novels. He can’t control his anxiety and rocks back and forth like a child. He has severe abandonment issues.

“Everything is back to normal. Of course this is for the best, isn’t it?”

The reason I’m unable to answer Saïx is probably because I depend on him, thought Axel.

I enjoy seeing both the official localization and the fan translation translation of the novels. The fan translation can sound a little awkward sometimes, but it’s usually more literal which I appreciate. In the localized version, it says that Axel doesn’t want to alienate Saïx anymore. In the fan translation, it carries a heaver connotation and says that Axel depends on Saïx. And I think hearing him say that things were “for the best” is the exactly reason why. He remembers Isa as a selfless person. So even though Saïx is abusive to him, they are codependent. Axel totally relies on him to connect him to his past and we all saw how poorly Saïx handled Axel leaving him, even though he constantly pushed him away.

“Huh? Why am I a slap on the wrist?” Roxas asked.

“Well, they know how much I hate babysitting.” Axel let out an exaggerated sigh.

“Gee, thanks,” huffed Roxas.

Unlike Zexion, Axel had a very happy life as Lea. Then it was all taken from him relatively quickly. In the novels, the chapter titled “Inseparable” shows Axel’s playful and childish side. It gives you a better glimpse of what he was like as a teen and why he always longed to go back to the past.

“Watch this!” Axel threw a dart at the board.

“Hey! We have to investigate.”

“C’mon, it’s just a couple darts.”

Axel tossed one more, which neatly struck the bull’s-eye.

He hated babysitting because he would rather still be a kid. He had the most fun when he could act like a teenager.

“But what is all that stuff?” Axel leaned closer, examining the map.

“I guess we can’t just ask the one who hid it here… Pence, I think his name was,” said Roxas.

Axel shrugged. “As if. It’s probably the easiest way to find out.”

“As if. We still have to find him first.” Roxas imitated the gesture, albeit with considerably more drama.

“Ugh, okay, no more Xigbar impressions,” Axel said, cracking up.

“You started it!”

Roxas lost it, too, and it took a few minutes for them to recover from their fit of giggling.

He wanted to play darts and do Xigbar impressions.

“What should we do now, Naminé?” Riku asked as he reached for the little freezer under the computer. He removed a bar of ice cream and took a bite.

“…Aw, is it good?” Axel teased. “Seriously, you’re like a little kid. Even though you look like a mean old man.”

Riku made no response, keeping his gaze fixed on the computer screen. The comment did rub him the wrong way. But mentally, Axel was definitely older than him by at least a little. Not that you could tell from looking.

Riku said that Axel is mentally older…but only by a little.

As Riku sighed, Axel stole the ice cream out of his hand.

“There’s plenty in there. Just get your own. And you call me a little kid,” Riku grumbled.

At his irritation, Axel only shrugged and chuckled to himself.

Axel was definitely a case of arrested development. Socially and emotionally he was still stuck at the age of 15. It’s why he eats so much sea-salt ice cream.

Axel’s eyes crinkled as he remembered his own best friend—the only friend he’d ever had, in fact.

“If your best friend goes away, you’re sad, and if you get to be with them, you’re happy,” Naminé added. “Isn’t that how it is, Axel?”

“…That’s about the size of it.” Axel nodded and sat down on the remaining empty sofa, staring at the sea-salt ice cream he held.

“So you are capable of sincerity,” said Riku.

Axel only shrugged at the jab and finished his ice cream pop.

Axel took a particular liking to Sora and Riku, but became depressed by them, too. He acted like a kid, denying that Isa was ever his friend and eating tons of ice cream to make himself feel better.

In that world, Roxas was laughing.

Like he was having fun.

Like he’d always lived in that place.

It’s a place of lies Naminé made from his own memories, but, maybe, that’s the real Roxas. Not clad in a black coat, but playing with friends his own age, laughing, eating ice-cream, wandering around—like Sora.

He was jealous of Hayner, Pence, and Olette, especially when Roxas called their names when time froze during the Struggle.

“Then what did you wanna come with me for?” Axel flung his arms out angrily.

“Because… Because you seemed lonely.”

“What?” The irritated furrow between his brows deepened.

“You seemed lonely,” Naminé repeated, raising her eyes.

“Lonely? Me, a Nobody, lonely? That doesn’t even make sense!”

“You know, Axel… I wonder if we really do have hearts after all.”

“Yeah, well… That’s impossible.” He turned away from her.

I like that he wasn’t completely healed of all his issues as soon as he was recompleted. He still HATES showing vulnerability around people. And since he had lost the ability to cry for so many years, he cannot stand letting people see him cry. He formed his identity around being strong. He turned away from Roxas when he started tearing up and he ran away and dropped his ice cream when he cried in front of Kairi. He trusted her, but still wouldn’t talk about his past or why he still wore his black cloak with her.

[finickysquid]

A COMPARISON OF SHINHWA TO THE OURAN HIGH SCHOOL HOST CLUB

Recently, I became a fan of Shinhwa and since then I have been mixing up fandoms in my mind. It’s so annoying.

To unload some of my "burdens”, here’s something I’ve been thinking about for some time: if Shinhwa members were members of the Ouran High School Host Club (OHSHC), who would they be and why?

This was hard to think of because no one in Shinhwa is exactly like any of the characters in Ouran. So why am I still thinking of it? T_T

Here’s what I was able to come up with:

1) Dongwan = Haruhi

Haruhi is known for being honest to the point of bluntness. Dongwan is like that, too. He was the one who told fans (known as Shinhwa Changjo or SHCJ) that Shinhwa was not responsible for their lives. It was a shocking when he said that because he was basically scolding the Changjos for “wasting” their lives following Shinhwa. He lost a number of fans due to this but like Haruhi, he just didn’t care ‘coz it was the truth, anyway. This turned out to be a good thing in the long run because it managed to weed out the very crazy fans from the more-reasonable-but-still-a-bit-crazy ones. Other interviews show him answering questions so honestly (i.e. What is the secret of Shinhwa’s longevity? “The contract,” he said.) that other members look at him weirdly just like how the other members of Ouran look at Haruhi weirdly for her “commoner” ways.

The thing that sets Haruhi apart from Dongwan is that he is also known for being “Ero-wan.” Think of how Naruto calls Jiraiya “Ero-sennin” due to the latter’s womanizing ways. Now I don’t want to think too deeply on how Dongwan got this nickname but Haruhi is certainly no pervert. LOL.

2) Minwoo = Tamaki

These two are kings of fan service. Minwoo, like Tamaki, is the expert on delivering cheesy lines to fans. In the anime, Tamaki is the “king” of the Host Club. In real life, Minwoo is the co-CEO of the Shinhwa Company and its “front” leader.

However, Minwoo is also known by the nickname “Special Stupid” due to stuff he did on the group’s old variety show Shinhwa Broadcast. This is so much like how Tamaki is called an airhead due to the silly things he does. This doesn’t mean they’re really stupid, though. Tamaki is ranked first in their class in the anime. To parallel it with Minwoo, this guy is responsible for producing Shinhwa’s albums: from choosing and arranging the songs to choreographing the dances. He is very musically talented.

However, the big difference between these two would be their heights. Tamaki, if I’m not mistaken, is the second tallest person in their group. Minwoo is the shortest. Hehehe... Don’t worry, Minwoo makes up for this shortcoming (pun intended) with his incredible sense of fashion.

3) Eric = Kyouya

Eric is known as the leader of Shinhwa so designating him as Kyouya, who is the vice president of the Ouran High School Host Club is wrong, isn’t it? Shouldn’t Eric be Tamaki, the king and president?

Well, as mentioned earlier, Minwoo is a co-CEO of ShinCom. The other CEO of the company is none other than Eric. In fact, it was Eric who described Minwoo as the one leading from the front while he (Eric) led from the back. This is very much like Kyouya who is in charge of the behind the scenes activities of the club like handling the finances.

However, there is no denying that Eric also has Tamaki’s personality in him. In the anime and manga, it was Tamaki that gathered the members and held the club together. In real life, all the members consider Eric as the one most responsible for the group not breaking up even if they went through challenges such as their 4-year hiatus from K-Pop activities due to their military enlistment. Eric was the one who convinced them to get back together for their return to the K-Pop scene in 2012, which turned out to be a success. Interviews with the other members show how much work he has put into making Shinhwa the group and company that it is today.

The next thing I’m going to mention about Eric, though, shows that real people are so much more interesting than anime characters. Eric is known for being “4D.” This is a term I haven’t encountered before in my years of watching anime and reading mangas. In K-Pop, 4D people are those who are “off the wall” or “alien.” After watching various variety shows with Eric in them I think what they call as 4D is his love for pranking his fellow members (and fans) and for giving weird replies to questions in interviews. Well if that’s the case, then we go to the next section...

3 (again) Eric = Hikaru and Kaoru (The Twins)

Eric loves pranks so much that he must be channeling the twins. Hikaru and Kaoru are the masters of pranking in their club. They are also the masters of “skinship” with their “brotherly love” act that has all the girls fainting over them. "What is this skinship you speak of?” you might ask. Think of it as bromance. Now that we’ve entered the topic of skinship, I have to say that ALL of the members of Shinhwa are masters of it. There are a lot of pairings in Shinhwa. We have acronyms such as RicSyung, RicDy, RicMin, WooDong, MinDy, etc. One member has been paired with another at least once in their lives -- not that any of these are happening in real life (but you never know) -- in order to satisfy fans’ delusions.

Having typed that previous sentence, I now know why I couldn’t get the comparison of the anime with Shinhwa out of my mind. The Host Club existed in order to satisfy the Ouran High School girls’ delusions just like Shinhwa exists to satisfy their fans’ imaginations (aside from making music and money). Ooooooohhh.... My mind is shattered. LOL.

Going back to our main topic, while Eric has characteristics found in the twins, all of the members of Shinhwa also have the twins in them. They all love showing hints of bromance to their fans and they all love to play jokes on each other--so much that they were able to star in their own variety show entitled Shinhwa Broadcast (a.k.a. ShinBang). Korean variety shows seem to be full of pranks and games. ShinBang was very important in cementing Shinhwa’s place in the  Korean entertainment world not only as “music idols” but also as “variety idols” as well.

Moving on to the next Shinhwa member...

4) Andy = Hani (Hunny or Honey in some translations)

Cuteness overload!

Andy, being the youngest (”maknae”) in Shinhwa, and Hani (short for Haninozuka), being the smallest and most child-like in spite of being the oldest member of the club, are responsible for the cute factor in both groups. But don’t let their “aegyo” fool you. Both can be wise and ruthless at times. Hani-sempai, in spite of looking like an elementary student, has offered wise advice to the rest of the members when they needed it in the manga. On the other hand, Shinhwa members have described Andy as being the most mature out of all of them in spite of being the youngest.

Both have a dangerous side to them, too. Hani’s monster mode is awakened whenever something precious to him is threatened or when his sleep is disturbed. Andy has a Zomdy mode (Zombie + Andy) that is awakened when he gets too competitive in the games he’s playing in variety shows. It also looks like he uses the Zomdy mode on his hyungs (the older Shinhwa members) whenever they become too rowdy during dance practices.

Ouch, that scary glare... it burnsssss.

5) Jun Jin = Mori

Ooooh... that manly charm.

This part is a bit of a joke because how could talkative Jun Jin be silent Mori? Well, since Andy, the youngest in Shinhwa, became Hani, the oldest in the OHSHC, then Jun Jin, the second youngest in Shinhwa, now becomes Mori, the second oldest member of the Host Club. LOL.

Honestly, the only similarity I can see in the two of them are that both are the “jocks” of their respective groups. Mori is an active practitioner of various martial arts like judo, kendo and karate. Jun Jin is the most athletic member of Shinhwa. This YouTube video shows him being able to do wondrous sports and gymnastic feats: https://youtu.be/bkCD-26mic0. Mori and Jun Jin’s strength is probably why members of their respective groups like being carried by them.

Based on this picture, Eric has a bit of Hani in him, too. Coincidentally, Hani has been called an “alien,” in the anime by none other than his own brother.

As mentioned earlier, Jun Jin is very talkative and good at grabbing and holding an audience’s attention. This was how he was dubbed as the “variety king” of Shinhwa. This puts him at par with Tamaki who is the noisiest of the lot and simply loves basking in the attention of the ladies coming to the Host Club. Like Tamaki, Jun Jin also has a rather troubled and dramatic background story involving his father, mother and grandmother. In spite of this, Jun Jin is still able to maintain his smile. He is considered the sunshine or mood maker of Shinhwa just like how Tamaki is for the OHSHC.

Next up is...

6) Hyesung = ?

<Pout> Who am I?

Now we come to the most difficult Shinhwa member to classify based on the Ouran High School Host Club characters. Shin Hyesung is Shinhwa’s main vocalist and “Little Prince.” What does that term remind me of?

Ah, the princely Tamaki.

This was an image given to him by their first managers when they debuted back in 1998 that somehow is still stuck to him up to this day. Little Prince Hyesung is someone who does not want engage in the riotous acts of his comrades yet somehow always gets pulled into doing them anyway. Since Tamaki is always game for tomfoolery, this aspect of Hyesung’s character can be said to be like Kyouya’s.

C’mon Kyouya, you know you want to.

Hyesung’s involvement in his group members hijinks’ often leads to either or both of these reactions: extreme embarrassment and/or the awakening of beast mode.

Embarrassed Tamaki is embarrassed.

RAWR

The members (and fans) love him for these reactions. They all want to be in a “relationship” with him, much like how everyone wants to be with Haruhi, be it a bromance or looking for “mother”. One nickname of Hyesung is “Mama Bird.” Jun Jin is his “Baby Bird.”

Everybody loves Hyesung Haruhi. Is it because she looks like is a girl?

Sometimes, Hyesung is able to shed his Little Prince image. When that happens, he turns into Jung Pil-kyo (his real name). Jung Pil-kyo is a really cool guy. He holds a 3rd degree black belt in Taekwondo. It has been mentioned earlier that Mori is skilled in various martial arts. But those skills are nothing compared to what Hani can do when he’s on a roll. In the anime and manga, Hani is said to be the best martial arts champion in Japan. His prowess is such that he has been instructed by his family to never go all-out in a public fight. It really is too bad he’s so short and doesn’t actively practice martial arts anymore. Hyesung is one of the taller members of Shinhwa. So Hyesung’s got the best of both worlds, Hani’s prowess, and Mori’s height.

Now let us all pause for a while to appreciate the awesome-ness that is Jung Pil-kyo.

I’m so awesome.

When he gets into the zone, he REALLY GETS INTO IT. Without any traces of embarrassment, Hyesung is able to joke around with the rest of the group. And that is how I was able to claim earlier that ALL Shinhwa members have “The Twins” in them. Hyesung does not shy away from pranking and even skinship. He transforms yet again into another aspect of his personality, the master mistress of erotica, Lemon Syung.

So in the end, Hyesung = the whole OHSHC. Sweet.

To recap things, here are the members of Shinhwa and their corresponding Ouran counterparts.

Dongwan = Haruhi + Twins

Minwoo = Tamaki + Twins

Eric = Kyouya + Tamaki + Hani + Twins

Andy = Hani + Twins

Jun Jin = Mori + Tamaki + Twins

Hyesung =  Tamaki + Kyouya + Haruhi + Mori + Hani + Twins = the whole OHSHC

Leader-nim sends his “Like.” But aren’t you forgetting someone?

Huh? Who... Oh yeah!

7) Shinhwa Changjo = Renge-chan and the OHSHC Fans Club

Renge-chan is the self-proclaimed president of the OHSHC Fans Club. She started out liking only Kyouya but eventually fell in love with everyone else in the Host Club. Isn’t it funny in how that parallels most Changjos’ experience with the Shinhwa fandom? Personally, I found out about Shinhwa through watching Eric in one variety show, Three Meals a Day. And look at me now, making this write-up on Tumblr after learning about and liking the other members. Sigh... such is life.   

By the way, Shinhwa’s color is orange. Isn’t it funny how Renge-chan has orange hair?

So that’s it for now. Good night everyone.

---Gilliweeed---

[izloveshorses]

Alrighty so while I’m thinking about it here’s basically every element from Beauty and the Beast that I adored

can I say how surreal it was to be in a theater packed with young girls of all ages wearing yellow dresses with their Belle barbies 

not to mention all the adults and people my age who’ve been singing Be Our Guest for eternity were all so excited 

it was almost like when The Force Awakens came out and Star Wars was alive again and everyone, old and new generations of fans, gathered together.... ya know what I’m talking about? where everyone in the room is buzzing with anticipation

the CGI wasn’t as terrible as y’all thought, y’all need to have a little faith sometimes lol

the casting was excellent!!

i know people have mixed feelings about Emma Watson playing Belle but I honestly wouldn’t have casted it any other way. She’s always been a women’s rights activist, a bookworm and a thinker, and a strong role model for young girls. and her favorite princess was always Belle I mean come on. and her singing voice was so incredible!! that was what I was most looking forward to in this movie and it did not disappoint

she also said in a buzzfeed interview that she imagines Belle would open the Beast’s library to the public and start a school!!! How rad is that?? HEADCANON ACCEPTED 

shout out to Dan Stevens for waltzing in 10 inch stilts while wearing a 40 pound body suit 

ok Luke Evans and Josh Gad must’ve thought they were in Dirty Dancing because they had the time of their lives

and Luke was pretty attractive. just sayin

overall, the cast was really diverse! not one but two interracial couples! and in general there were a lot of poc in the village featuring a wonderfully sweet librarian dude

Everything about Belle’s character was fantastic I’m not kidding

i think the town had such a consistent routine that she could precisely time when the morning rush started?

despite the village blatantly gossiping about her she was still so nice and polite to everyone

so??? much??? sass??? it was unreal??? When Gaston asked why she wouldn’t go out to dinner with him he assumed she had plans but she was just like “No...” and she didn’t even explain further how freakin savage she shot that boy down

(a few more examples bc this girl was on fire) “Why would I be startled? I’m talking to a candle” and “Is that a joke? are you making jokes now?” and my fav “’Maybe you just haven’t met the right man?’ ‘It’s a small village Gaston, I’ve met them all’”

this is Elizabeth Bennet level Jane Austen would be proud

they touched on how women were expected to have kids in their late teens/early 20s and she’s like “screw that” yeah girl smash that patriarchy

how on earth did it take me 17 years to realize she’s considered odd because she’s the only literate girl in the whole village???????? how did I, a history buff obsessed with the French Revolution, never make that connection before???? this isn’t specific to the new film but still I applaud it good job disney

she was an inventor!!! i don’t know if i’ve ever been happier than when i saw her solving equations and tinkering and making a washing machine so she can read and get chores done simultaneously. emma totally had something to do with this decision absolutely no doubt

she doesn’t ride her horse sidesaddle and that was like a huge faux pas for ladies back then (again, smashing the patriarchy one step at a time)

SHE WAS TEACHING ANOTHER SMOL GIRL HOW TO READ!!! THAT’S SO IMPORTANT AND PRECIOUS I’VE BEEN UNABLE TO THINK OF ANYTHING ELSE SINCE THAT MOMENT

she planned to escape the castle from the beginning and was really creative about it, and no matter what she always found some sort of weapon lying around lol (a random stick, a chair, a pitcher Belle what would you do with that) but she was always prepared to defend herself with somewhat of a plan and attempt at thinking ahead

She was really curious about the curse and asked questions about it to figure out this mystery herself

she was always problem-solving and trying to find a solution to situations and that was so cool girls need to see that strong female leads aren’t always the ones that can fight, but girls with wit and bravery

there was lots of nice background info on characters that otherwise wouldn’t exist, like Belle’s mom’s death, why Maurice chose to stay in that boring village and Adam’s dad being a jerk and turning him into a monster (no pun intended)

Mrs Potts giving us a reason why the entire castle was cursed, not just Adam. They didn’t do anything to stop Adam’s dad from corrupting him and man that’s some heavy stuff

I feel like each character, especially the servants, were so much richer and stronger and more complex, and the stakes were higher bc each time a rose petal fell they became less and less human

even the enchantress had a name and she was gorgeous?

they went pretty dark in this one... like something caused that tree to fall in Maurice’s path and back into an upright position. the wolves wouldn’t cross the gates because of some boundary. the way the whole castle shuddered with each drop of a pedal. i could go on... and the added character depth really helped that dark stuff too

THE MUSIC!!!! WAS SO GOOD!!! I’ve had the album on repeat for.... four days now and I’m not sick of it yet?? please send help

seriously, they did an amazing job. it was perfectly balanced w both old an new songs, and neither of them overshadowed the other. each song got it’s spotlight, they honored the old ones while including new original ones that were awesome (cough forevermore cough cough)

Gaaaaaastonnnnnnnnnnnn omg that sequence was awesome. honestly i think everyone in the theater tapped their foot when he was stomping and dancing on the tabletops

Belle was really good too to me because i’m a nerd for that set design

Days in the Sun is extremely underrated!! but yes, Forevermore is breathtaking it’s growing on me more and more each day

lots of rotating cinematography and spinning i’m a nerd i love it

the costume and set design.... holy crAP it’s stunning

i read somewhere that Belle’s casual getup has large pockets for her books and she has part of her skirt pinned up so she can ride Philipe easier and that’s beautiful

each scene was packed with tiny details that most movie makers overlook and I’m so impressed???? not just visually but there were so many sounds that truly made it feel real like in the village I’d occasionally hear a crying baby or a dog barking or just constant chatter and that’s stuff you’d expect to hear in a crowded village square

the little twinkling lights during the ballroom dance was probably my favorite i may have cried

No one ever say anything bad about Belle’s dress again IT WAS SO GORGEOUS it floated across the floor like a bundle of sunshine

and there were so many details in that scene? did anybody notice her gold earrings she wore they were wonderful

her hairstyles throughout the whole movie were so cute (esp at the end with that updo!! and that pretty flower dress I need it)

the historical accuracies??? unreal??

so much baroque architecture with all of the elaborate gold designs ahhh i love it

half of it looked like a rococo painting, the other half a neoclassicism painting

girls weren’t allowed to be educated so that’s why Belle was hated so much--and so cool--and ohhhh my mind is blown why did i not understand this until now

lol a giant chunk of France was illiterate at the time too so LeFou realizing that halfway through trying to spell Gaston was hilarious

actually the mob song in general is scarily accurate. what starts with a small discomfort turns into irrational fear which turns into extremism in crowds and they did the stupidest things like “hey there’s a monster that we’ve never seen or heard of and it’s never attacked us before but LETS KILL IT” seriously the French loved mobs

they included a lot more intimate moments w Belle and the Beast to build up their relationship more carefully 

Belle almost in tears when she was in that library because honestly same girl

my favorite moment in the entire movie, although small, was when they were in the library during “Something There” and she just kept grabbing book after book and he was walking behind her holding this massive stack that was so cute

honorable mentions: when the Beast shook his head like the horse omg. and I freaking cackled when he threw that giant snowball at her face

when they were in Paris, and Belle figured out that her mother died of the plague and she said “let’s go home”

she just rode off while still wearing her ball dress

“no time to change gotta go save my pa i’m keeping this btw”

and then she strips down to her undergarments because they’re about to go after Adam and that’s the final straw nobody messes with him under her watch she has to save him and, sorry, but she won’t let a big bulky dress get in the way of that despite how beautiful it is

Belle participated in the climax fight scene she was not taking any of Gaston’s crap

and then Adam was like “stay there I’m coming” and she completely ignored him so she could step in if he needed her

“I am not a Beast”

the transformation scenes were amazing

LeFou’s character arc was surprisingly great! and I support him and his boyfriend

that one growl at the end... you know the one... I’m very confused why was that so sexy is that bad

there were so many moments where i got goosebumps and sudden tears from the swelling of the orchestra or a certain chilling line and i was just so moved by this movie

in every showing that i went to there was a massive applause from the crowd and i love it you deserve it disney

I'm running out of adjectives

There was hardly an aspect that I disliked. Maybe more of Mrs Potts would’ve been nice, maybe Belle asking Adam to grow a beard was a little strange, maybe Ewan could work on his French accent a little more (don’t get me wrong I love this man but it could use a little more work... other than that his acting was superb). my complaints stop there! I honestly loved this film so much and I’d been pumped since I first heard about it back in 2015. It didn’t disappoint! that means a lot coming from a person who had insanely high expectations for it.