#that plant is 12 years old and it got huge and everything

[running-in-the-dark]

oh yeah and also, I'm pretty sure all of my houseplants are dead. for some reason someone decided that outside would be a good place to store them. they've been there all of February and March. I saw them like a month ago but it stressed me out so much that I think I tried to forget about it. every time I see them now I feel like shit :)

[singemall-stayallnight]

It Was a Different Time - The Led Zeppelin Edition

Jimmy Page and baby groupie Lynn Koenigsaecker, AKA Queenie Glam, 1972. | Credit: Michael Ochs Archives

When the subject of Led Zeppelin and underage girls or "baby groupies" has been broached on here, I've usually seen responses along the lines of "it was a different time," "that's how things were in the 70s," "it was accepted/not viewed as wrong back then," or "put their behavior in the context of the times."

Contrary to oft-repeated claims on here, adults dating & having sex with young teens was generally not acceptable in the 70s, either. Not only that, but Jimmy Page and Robert Plant (allegedly) continued to have sex with underage girls after the ’70s ended, but we’ll get to that later.

"I just read an oral history of Led Zeppelin and was shocked to find out Jimmy Page had a long relationship with a 13 year old girl. Sable and Lori were pubescent LA groupies."

"I think the media covered up a lot of stuff. They knew it was going on. For instance, it was no secret what JFK was up to, but there was an understanding that certain things were not to be discussed and that "boys will be boys." I recall reading that Polanski was shocked at the reaction when his actions hit the press."

by Anonymous reply 3 January 26, 2014 2:38 AM

[quote] "'Fucking a 13 year old has been unacceptable for many years.'

It wasn't ever really acceptable. It was semi acceptable in 1960's - 1970's California with and among celebrities. The press didn't used to be what it is now. You hardly ever heard anything about the private lives of musicians. Just what little they gave out in interviews. There weren't really any paparazzi following musical groups. The only pictures the newspapers printed were professional pictures."

by Anonymous reply 13 January 26, 2014 4:23 AM

"It was not accepted in the average family lol Maybe it was accepted in hollywood for men to have sex with girls who were teens and barely teens but I doubt most of the public knew about it. These men are VERY lucky that paparazzi wasn't what it is now or they'd all be either jailed or shamed like Polanski"

by Anonymous reply 27 January 12, 2016 3:53 AM

"People had no idea he was screwing a 14-year-old and many would have been disgusted. The groupies who were showcased on TV were older women like Cherry Vanilla and Cynthia Plaster Caster."

by Anonymous reply 29 January 12, 2016 4:42 AM

"The obits are not going to be printing that David Bowie fucked a 13 year old Lori Maddox, that's for sure.

Back then, of course these men knew that the vast majority of people would regard them as perverted if they knew the rock star was having sex with young teens, this is why they kept it quiet, then as now. Page was very careful to keep Maddox hidden from view. The Beatles kept it quiet that they were fucking multiple teenagers on their tours.

Rock and pop has always been a genre that celebrates het male sexuality in most of its forms and gives extreme license to its most popular stars, whether their behavior is socially acceptable or not. Look at the lyrics of the Stones Stray Cat blues.

There's a recent blind about a singer in a huge pop group whose security invited a 13 year old back to his hotel room and when she got there she was told to shave everything as that's how he liked his girls. She freaked and left. Most guessed it was Zayn Malik."

by Anonymous reply 40 January 12, 2016 11:09 AM

"Wow the pedo apologist posters in here are pathetic. It was NOT socially accepted by most parents for their young teens to be fucking with adults. Just because someone is famous and maybe no longer goes after underage kids, that does not mean he/she is not a pedo. The idea that a lot of the rock stars mentioned in this thread did it for a period of time means they're disgusting pedos. Appropriately calling someone a pedo does not make me a SJW either. It doesn't matter whether the underage kid involved thinks it was acceptable then or now-it's still sickening."

by Anonymous reply 51 January 12, 2016 3:31 PM

"'It doesn't matter whether the underage kid involved thinks it was acceptable then or now-it's still sickening.'

It reveals a lot about these men, certainly. Bowie was born in a working class home in South London. If he had tried to fuck a 14 year old girl there, he would have had the shit beaten out of him by the men in that community and been labelled a 'kiddie fiddler'. These men used their money and their entourages to exploit these very young, uneducated kids with parents who either didn't give a shit about them or were star struck themselves.

Lori Maddox comes across as - to put it kindly - very low intellect. What were these men talking to her about? Nothing. It was a relationship based on them taking advantage of her sexually and then tossing her like rubbish when they were done. Nice guys."

by Anonymous reply 52 January 12, 2016 4:12 PM

"don't forget that pedo piece of shit manager guy of the Runaways who died recently."

by Anonymous reply 64 January 13, 2016 3:33 PM

Robert Plant, Lita Ford, and Jimmy Page. | Source: Pinterest

Jimmy Page, Kim Fowley, and Robert Plant. | Source: Flickr

"It was not considered normal by the kids themselves even back then. As a kid, I saw it as boomers getting old and bitter and not being able to handle not being young themselves anymore, so they sleeved on the young/junior highers like they still were peers. It wasn't just Led Zeppelin. (I was first wave Gen X although there wasn't a name for it then.)

There was also a wave of young teen girls, that no matter what their socio-Econ background, who had decided that being tough, drug-addled trash was a form of freedom to get away from their parents. The differences between parent and child then were really severe back then."

by Anonymous reply 66 January 13, 2016 4:07 PM

"And that post had so many errors I wish I could delete it! Well, maybe you can get the gist anyway. Anyway, Sable came from my neighborhood, though maybe 10-15 years ahead of me. Not considered normal."

by Anonymous reply 67 January 13, 2016 4:11 PM

"Joan Didion was writing about the hippy scene with a sharp eye in the sixties and seventies, she saw that huge numbers of the young hippy girls were teen runaways, fleeing incest and other types of abuse. Running away was a major thing back then.

So on the West Coast there were thousands of runaway girls, no money, no home, no parents who gave a shit about them. Men arrived in SF in 67, 68 with the specific intent to drug them and have sex with them , or rape them, it's in Slouching Towards Bethlehem and her article on the Manson Family. This scene is what was dressed up as 'Free Love'.

The Runaways stories that were covered last year showed the reality of how girls were treated in rock back then. Unless you were a Joni Mitchell* or a Emmylou Harris, smart and self-protecting, you were treated like shit."

by Anonymous reply 105 January 14, 2016 4:15 PM

Robert Plant at The Runaways’ Starwood show, West Hollywood, September 13, 1976. | © Barry Schultz/1stDibs

Robert Plant and Cherie Currie.

Robert Plant and Kim Fowley.

"Well-adjusted young women generally speaking wouldn't tend to hang around rock musicians hoping they'll be picked to give them a blow job, but an emotionally disturbed teenager would probably feel like she hit the jackpot."

by Anonymous reply 110 January 14, 2016 4:34 PM

"I knew girls in HS in the eighties who went after older guys - the most extreme I recall was a 15 year old girl sleeping with the driver of the school bus, he must have been in his thirties. But all the girls who did that came from broken homes or they never knew their dad. One girl's dad had died in a plane crash when she was really young and she was dating a 25 year old creep when she was 14 or 15. The girls from stable homes crushed on pop stars and wanted to date the boys in their year or the boy next door. They didn't want to start fucking till 17, 18."

by Anonymous reply 129 January 14, 2016 8:47 PM

"Underage boys and girls aren't physically or emotionally ready for sex on adult terms, which is why there are statutory rape laws. I understand how musicians on tour get a taste for fucking their little fans, since that's what's available to them for free. Also because any adult woman with sense would look for better options than clap-ridden** druggie monomaniacs with a recording contract."

by Anonymous reply 137 January 14, 2016 9:50 PM

"Still a lot of ignorance here. The defenders of these disgusting celeb adult rockers are idiots. Lori Maddox says in 1 of her interviews that Jimmy Page basically "kidnapped" (she uses that word) her the first time they met. She initially turned him down but he had his people physically put her into the car/limo. She said he said to her "I told you you were going to be with me". She only "fell in love" with him after their first night together. She was 15. They were together for a while and he even asked her mother for permission because he was worried about getting in trouble with the law. Lori said he "broke her heart" 1 night when she walked into their hotel room and he was in bed with Bebe Buell (the groupie who gave birth to Liv Tyler). Clearly to Lori, it wasn't just "casual sex" with Jimmy Page. She thought they were an exclusive couple. That shows that she wasn't emotionally mature enough for the situation she was in.

How can anyone argue that underage teens back then were so mature? That's complete bullshit. The fact of the matter is that these adult male celebs liked the idea of being in control and being worshiped. Teens like Lori gave them what they craved and had no idea that they were just used as sex objects. It's also very clear looking at her pics from back then that she was clearly underage. She certainly didn't look anywhere near 18

The way Lori continues to glorify her experiences from back then is really sad and embarrassing.***

BTW for the poster who asked, Lori said in an interview that she 'has a job in fashion' whatever that means."

by Anonymous reply 142 January 14, 2016 10:17 PM

"'Lori said in an interview that she 'has a job in fashion' whatever that means.'

It means she worked in a vintage clothing store on Melrose"

by Anonymous reply 147 January 14, 2016 11:23 PM

"R138, I've always thought it was interesting that there were never any famous or accomplished women linked to any of the Zep guys in their heyday, unlike the Stones or even the Beatles. It was all young groupies and bottomfeeder types. Easier to control, and to leave, I guess.

Pamela Des Barres and Bebe Buell have both expressed distaste for the baby groupie phenomenon, with Pamela intimating that a number of them, including Lori, were out there trying to snag a rock star at the behest of 'older women' - in Lori's case, her mom. In other words, they were essentially being pimped out."

by Anonymous reply 155 January 15, 2016 7:49 AM

"'unlike the Stones'

Mick and Keith are the only ones who chose women with some intellect : Faithful, Pallenberg, Bianca.

Bill dated a 13 year old Mandy Smith. Smith herself confirmed publicly that she was 14 when they first had sex, and her older sister had called for him to be prosecuted.

He married her when she was 18. He was 49." Offsite Link http://ultimateclassicrock.com/files/2014/06/WeddingFull.jpg

by Anonymous reply 158 January 15, 2016 9:41 AM

"Wow, that article says Mandy's 51 year old mother had a relationship with Wyman's son who was 24 at the time. It didn't say when the relationship started but it lasted until 1994. And Mandy has been celibate since 2002. I guess you could say that relationship affected her greatly. Sad."

by Anonymous reply 160 January 15, 2016 10:39 AM

To those of you unfamiliar with Datalounge, it's predominantly a gay forum, though there are lesbians and straight people who post on there as well. The words cunt and whore are used liberally on the site, for both men and women. I'm not condoning it. I'm just giving a heads up to anyone reading this who decides to visit the site. There's also a troll comment in the above thread about Jimmy and an alleged "cover up." Just ignore it.

Bebe Buell, Jimmy Page, and Lori Mattix at the Swan Song Party in 1974. | © Neil Zlozower

Users on the English site Mumsnet have made similar comments to the Datalounge ones posted above:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4148077-To-have-just-discovered-Led-Zeppelin-and?page=12

OhWhyNot · 01/02/2021 10:24

"It was certainly acceptable to sexualise 15 year olds for many

But it wasn’t acceptable for adults to be having sex with 13 years olds like Bowie and Page did they certainly were not sharing this as public knowledge it was then and is now rape and not acceptable

David Bowie and Robert Page are no different to Bill Wyman just considered cooler all are rapists of underage girls (along with a number of others)"

KathleenTurnerOverdrive · 01/02/2021 11:11

"'Teenage girls threw themselves at those guys, they’d have run a mile from someone fitting your description.'

And yet again, they were children who could not give consent and were sexually abused by an adult. 13 year olds were not considered fair game morally or legally not now not in 1971."

OhWhyNot · 01/02/2021 11:31

"It wouldn’t have been acceptable for any men above 20 in my family to be having a sexual relationship with a child under 16 In the 60’s 70’s or 80’s

We all knew girls with older boyfriends mostly it was kept quiet but disapproved of in gossip

To sexualise underage teenagers is one thing (thankfully less acceptable) it’s not the same as actually having a sexual relationship with them which is actually rape. It may not have been viewed as rape but the majority would have seen it as being inappropriate (though many would have still blamed the girls for tempting the weak men)

My friends were throwing themselves at Bros, young girls will be following whoever is famous now dreaming that they will be their girlfriends and that they will fall in love with them it’s always happened always will but what excuse is that for a man to take advantage and abuse or rape a child

Is it just a coincidence that these girls didn’t have protective families around them, just like the girls in my school that were targeted by predatory teachers no of course not they pick their victims"

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/4870401-teenage-girls-dating-older-guys-is-this-now-less-of-an-issue-than-in-the-90s

TonTonMacoute · 12/08/2023 16:38

"I guess I’m older than many of you but I don’t think there has ever been a time when most people would have thought this was acceptable. I would certainly have thought there was something very wrong about a 30 year old guy dating a teenager.

If any of you are old enough to remember Bill Wyman marrying 17 year old Mandy Smith you will know there was widespread concern.

Unfortunately teenage girls are not always open to wise words and advice from concerned adults!"

brassbuttons · 12/08/2023 16:44

"@TonTonMacoute Yes I remember the Mandy Smith Bill Wyman thing and I did think she was crazy as Wyman was a old man! I also used to read loads of rock biographies from the 60s and 70s and read about all the groupies bands like Led Zeppelin had who were often underage and I thought these girls were very cool and wished I could have been living in LA to meet these bands, I used to be like Oh I'm so sad that I'm too young for Jimmy Page to fall in love with me when I was probably the perfect age for that creep! I think I read recently that some of those groupies from the 70s had only just recently in the wake of me too started to reassess their relationships with these older musicians."

Jimmy Page and Lori Mattix, circa 1972. | Source: Vintag.es

MrsBennetsPoorNerves · 12/08/2023 16:46

TonTonMacoute · 12/08/2023 16:38

"I agree! I think it was more common back in the day, but I don't think it was ever widely viewed as "acceptable", even back then!"

CrazyArmadilloLady · 12/08/2023 22:02

"I also think the kids who are doing the so-called ‘cool’ / grown-up things, assume everyone thinks like them. E.g. they think everyone thinks being picked up by an older guy in a car has ‘kudos’.

But not everyone does think that carries any sort of cachet.

That sort of thing can be viewed by others through a range of emotions, from yes, envy, through to pity or bemused amusement.

As mentioned above, lots of young girls / women fully recognise from the outset that men who target much younger partners are a bit (to put it kindly) lacking."

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

I discussed this with a woman in my family, who is only one year younger than Robert Plant. She denied that adults having sex with young teens was generally acceptable in the 60s and 70s. She said, "People treat certain things as being normal back then, but they weren't. There are so many myths about the 60s and 70s. People talk about us like we all had long hair, we were all hippies and took LSD. We did get married at a younger age back then." (She got married at 19 to another 19-year-old.) In a scathing tone, she added, "You didn't hear about these activities (adults sleeping with young teens)."

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

Martin Amis was an English author who was of the same generation as the former members of Led Zeppelin (born in 1949). In 1979, he interviewed Roman Polanski. Amis rightly condemned Polanski's mindset and behavior regarding adolescent girls at the time.

https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/2722570-martin-amis-interviews-roman-polanski

"Looking 16, of course, does not entitle you to go to bed with adolescents. Despite what Polanski says – contra Polanski – not everyone wants to fuck young girls. One cannot hide behind a false universality: one cannot seek safety in numbers. Most people who do want to fuck young girls, moreover, don't fuck young girls. Not fucking apparently willing young girls is clearly more of a challenge. But even Humbert Humbert realised that young girls don't really know whether they are willing or not. The active paedophile is stealing childhoods. Polanski, you sense, has never even tried to understand this."

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

Also, Jimmy seems to receive nearly all of the criticism for having relations with underage girls in the past, but all of the members of Led Zeppelin are guilty of this.

The following quotation is from the Led Zeppelin Oral History book by Barney Hoskyns, p. 230:

"I'd be on the road with Hawkwind or whoever, writing for the NME, and Zeppelin would be there. And the whole place would be full of the stinkiest fucking groupies. There was something very unclean about the whole deal. Rod and the faces sort of kicked it off, but it went to some kind of zenith with Zeppelin. Moon actually blew up hotel rooms, but with Zeppelin it just seemed to be running in semen and beer and unpleasantness and old Tampaxes. They were number one on the groupie target roster, and Rodney Bingenheimer would be pandering to them as they sat in the back of his cupboard-sized discotheque getting their dicks sucked by thirteen-year-olds under the table."

-Mick Farren (singer with the Deviants and writer for New Musical Express)

That's an eyewitness account of the four members of Led Zeppelin engaging in sexual activity with underage girls, girls as young as 13. Oral sex is sex. There also should be no doubt that all four members of Zeppelin had other types of sex with underage girls as well.

Robert Plant (left) and Jimmy Page. | © Ian Dickson/Getty Images

This is a comment that was posted under this article: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/sep/06/stairway-to-heaven-led-zeppelin

"Sorry folks, I grew up in the L.A. area, and was 12-13 when Rodney's opened up, and there were more than one 12-13-14 year girl hooking up with Led Zepp, or other musicians in Rodneys,the Rainbow,etc. To be fair, these girls wore a ton more makeup, and could pass for 20-25 easy. Some felt it was no big deal to have sex with guys 10 years older then them,some wanted to get into Rock Scene magazine,or the other rock magazines that ran features on groupies,just like girls want to be on reality tv.One of my classmates even got a screen test for a film out of hanging out/putting out in the Hyatt House. My parents never would have let me go there, that's for sure. As for the music, I still preferred Hendrix…"

Note that Rodney's English Disco was in business from October 1972 to December 1975, when the youngest members of Zeppelin were in their mid to late 20s.

In the November 1973 interview, Rodney’s: Dali’s Holograph of Alice Cooper Could Not Be More Bizarre Than Rodney Bingenheimer’s English Disco, Richard Cromelin reported, “if you’re 18 you’re over the hill.” “Under-age groupies flocked around visiting British bands.”

Robert Plant is supposedly Sable Starr's favorite of the musicians she's been with, though I can't find a direct quote of her stating this:

"During her prime, she had associated herself with some of the biggest musicians in the industry. Claiming to have had encounters with the likes of Alice Cooper, Jeff Beck, Marc Bolan, Mick Jagger, and Jimmy Page. But it was Led Zeppelin’s frontman Robert Plant who was apparently her favorite."

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/31975351-warren-beatty-j-accuse!

"Morgana Welch, a common looking blond who was part of the 'baby groupie' LA scene, also fucked Led Zeppelin and other rockers. Morgana said she regrets not being wilder and fucking more famous men. What a claim to fame. Is that an actual ambition?

"There are photos of Morgana fucking Brit rocker Roy Harper included in his book, you don't see her face, but she has verified it was her."**** by Anonymous reply 372 February 14, 2023 10:19 PM

Morgana's stories of having sex with Robert Plant and John Paul Jones have been shared on here.

Sable Starr is on Robert Plant’s right, the two girls on Robert’s left are Tyla and Morgana Welch, John Bonham and Lori Mattix are in the far right of the picture, and Jimmy Page is in the background, in Rodney Bingenheimer’s English Disco, 1972. | Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

I've seen posters on here treat the fact that Robert had sex with young teen girls or "banged anything he could get his hands on - regardless of age" in the early years of Zep as no big deal because he was in his early 20s. That doesn't excuse it and it still would've been considered inappropriate in the 60s and 70s, as Mumsnet poster OhWhyNot pointed out in one of her comments quoted above. Men that age (21+) being with girls that young (12-15) wasn't generally seen as okay, even back then.

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

People have shared that Jimmy continued to pursue & have sex with underage girls well past the 70s.

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/16752239-my-aunt-fucked-eric-clapton-in-the-70s-and-other-stories-and-gossip

"Oh and this is actually tea from me for once. Jimmy Page is a pedophile (shocking!). Up until the late 90s he still had a posse of underage (think 13-16) year old girls hanging around him. People try to play off his 70s creepiness (baby groupies, Lori Mattix etc.) with it being normal but my mom was pretty adamant that any sensible person looked at a 30 y.o. and a 14 y.o. having a relationship with disgust. Their sycophants and hanger-ons, all the people who were in these tools private circles, put them up on a pedestal."

by Anonymous reply 54 April 13, 2016 10:07 PM

"No surprise about Page. I think that's pretty well-known. - maybe it isn't here."

by Anonymous reply 57 April 13, 2016 10:36 PM

"R57 I know it's well known on here at least but quite a few people on here think Page's involvement with young girls stopped when the 70s ended or when his daughter reached her preteens. Not true." by Anonymous reply 65 April 13, 2016 11:11 PM

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/page-plant-90s-reunion.1165682/page-9

"I thought the '95 tour was overwrought and Jimmy appeared to be in rough shape, being propped up by two other the guitarists. They also had the Egyptian players and a string section. A friend of mine's sister played violin in the latter and described Page as being drunk, a lot, and trying to pick up underage girls in the hotel bars where they stayed. They apparently thought he was 'gross' and were usually there to keep company with the younger openers.

Three years later they came back with the "'Clarksdale" tour. Four players plus Plant, a bright eyed brilliant Page played the only guitar. I was fortunate enough to have very close seats and I watched him play things with his two hands (and a foot pedal) that I swore had to be the result of studio trickery on the record. It was amazing and changed my opinion of the guy ever after. While the Page I witnessed had obviously cleaned up is act I heard he slipped later in the tour. Nonetheless it was great. They were almost Led Zep and played Zep songs that Led Zeppelin never played."

-rrbbkk, Jan 25, 2023 #203

Jimmy Page, aged 50, 1994. | © Mick Hutson/Getty Images

It doesn't seem like Robert ceased his sexual activities with underage girls after the 70s ended, either.

https://tenyearsgone.blog/2024/03/02/spin-09-1993-last-of-the-red-hot-rock-stars/

"(Robert) shared a wad of chewing gum with a 22-year-old, en route to a modeling job in Zurich, who claims to have known assorted members of the entourage more or less intimately since the age of 14 (and who, in the Interests of all involved, will hereby be referred to as Ms. Colorado);"

A 22-year-old in 1993 would've been 14 in 1985, and Robert was on tour that year. Since Robert was the only star in the band he was touring with then and the two were comfortable sharing a piece of gum together, I think we can safely assume Robert was one of the members of the entourage she was intimate with when she was 14. I don't believe for a second that the end of the 1970s was the end of Robert having sex with underage girls.

Robert Plant performing on his Shaken 'N' Stirred tour in 1985.

Another take/defense on this adults having sex with minors topic I've read on here is that it's not an issue because "teens/17-year-olds have sex, and they loved the person they were with." Of course there are teens 17 and younger who have sex. When it's with people their own age, it's fine. It's not fine for minors to be having sex with adults. Adults having sex with 16 or 17-year-olds may be legal in countries such as England, but just because something is legal doesn't make it right. The comment below from a Brit acknowledges this:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/feminism/4403955-Grooming-by-Famous-Men

MistandMud · 17/11/2021 13:22

"More than half of those relationships (all those with girls 16 and up) would be legal in the UK, though grim as fuck because of the power imbalance."

There has been a debate over raising the age of consent in England for this very reason:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-66872467 "There's a reasonable argument [that] individuals between the ages of 16 and 18 can have relations with people within that same age bracket," she told BBC Women's Hour. "You're allowed to make mistakes as a teenager, they should be with other people your own age."

People who were taken advantage of by adults when they were minors can remain very attached to said adults, and are sometimes never able to get over them. They may even remain in a relationship with them/marry & have a family with them. However, that doesn't justify it.

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

Obviously, matters such as statutory rape and grooming are taken more seriously now than they were in the 70s. The consequences are more severe. There's appropriately more recognition that underage girls in such cases are victims, not seducers, "fast," girls who "got what they wanted," or "knew what they were doing."

That said, adults having sex with young teens was still not accepted by society at large in the 60s or 70s. When Jimmy says things like this in interviews, he's just trying to cover himself:

"Now that his friend and fellow rock star Roy Harper has been accused of historic sex offences against one young woman (he has pleaded not guilty), and police are putting the spotlight on the behaviour of Seventies entertainers, is Page worried?

‘With due respect, I don’t want to comment on it,’ he says. ‘It was a lifestyle in the Seventies. There’s a lot of water under the bridge for everyone who survived that era. End of story.’"

Roy Harper and Jimmy Page at the Valentine Concert in Finsbury Park, London, February 14, 1974. | © Colin Curwood

Bill Wyman, Roy Harper, and Robert Plant at the Swan Song launch party in New York, May 7, 1974. | Source: Pinterest

I do believe (perhaps naively) that all of the surviving members of Led Zeppelin have modified their behavior for the better and are different people now. It's also quite possible they (Hopefully!) feel genuine remorse for many of the things they did in their past. Robert himself has admitted he has "a very hefty book of maudlin apologies and guilt," and "frailties you know you're carrying with you quietly." The intent of this post is not to rally for these guys to be 'canceled,' nor to scold anyone for being Zep fans.

However, it's untrue that adult men having sexual encounters with underage girls was just par for the course during the 70s. It was mostly seen as unacceptable and inappropriate back then. Therefore, that the LZ band members (and other entertainers) were having sex with and dating young teens was bad, even by the standards of the 60s and 70s.

As for the topic of judging those from the past by today's standards, I'm with Charlotte Riley on this one, "It is completely appropriate to critique those figures from the past whose morals fall short of our own values, as well as celebrating those who questioned, critiqued or resisted the systems and beliefs of their time."

*As an aside, Joni Mitchell is racist, anti-feminist (Jian Ghomeshi & '73 Marom interviews) & not that smart.

https://madamenoire.com/510752/joni-mitchell-need-stop-calling-white-people-disturbing-things-eccentric/

**Robert admitted in a 1988 interview with Melody Maker that, "I had the clap so many times years ago that I was almost immune to penicillin, and in music, subsequently, I’d ‘oooohed’ and ‘babyed’ so many times I couldn’t do it any more." He's made similar remarks over the years about needing penicillin and being immune to it.

***Lori no longer glorifies her groupie days:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/led-zeppelins-controversial-legacy-thievery-underage-groupies-and-the-mud-shark-incident

"Alongside stories involving Mick Jagger and Rod Stewart, Mattix would reveal that David Bowie slept with her when she was 14, and after Jimmy Page saw her at a show, he had his bodyguard “kidnap” her. She told The Guardian last year that #MeToo led to her reconsidering how she’d viewed her time with Page and other rock stars in the 1970s.

'I don’t think underage girls should sleep with guys. I wouldn’t want this for anybody’s daughter. My perspective is changing as I get older and more cynical.'"

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/31975351-warren-beatty-j-accuse!

"Lori's mom spoke to Jimmy Page, she assured him it was OK to 'date' her underage daughter. Page, at 30, sure knew what he was doing was wrong and that he could have served jail time. Because of that, Lori was never seen with him other than in photos where they posed at parties. They never left a hotel together, were never shown on a plane together etc. Lori was hidden from view. Lori was always escorted by someone else in his entourage, such as one of Page's female publicists.

Years later, Lori admitted they had little to talk about. You think? Also, years later, when Page reconnected with Lori, he told her, 'We were babies back then.' Lori said, 'Well, one of us was!' Seems Lori has sure changed her tune, she now says it's not a good idea for young teen females to fuck much older men." by Anonymous reply 370 February 14, 2023 5:56 PM

**** Morgana Welch said in an interview with Punk Globe, "I was thrilled when Roy wrote me a note that he had published a book of photos and lyrics called ‘Roy Harper, The Passions of Great Fortune, The Songs Explored’ and that he would like to send me a copy. I had remembered the time when I was with him at the Hyatt House when he was with Led Zeppelin and as we were making love the band broke down the door and walked in on us. Robert Plant picked up Roy’s camera and took pictures of us in bed. I had wondered for years if that photo survived. So when I opened this big beautiful book in the section with Led Zeppelin there are two pictures of us in bed. I was thrilled to see the pics."

[buckyscrystalqueen]

Winter Wolf: Part 15

Pairings: Bucky x Reader

Warnings: Swearing, fluff, angst

Word Count: 4,421

A/N: Finally got the muse to finish this story! YAY!

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 / Part 8 / Part 9 / Part 10 / Part 11 / Part 12 / Part 13 / Part 14

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I want it to look like a plantation house.” You said as you stood in front of what was left of your house between a general contractor, and Bucky as you bounced Ana on your hip, while you looked at another contractor that dealt with historic homes, specifically, and Tony, who was paying for the reconstruction. It had taken him a month of cutting red tape, but on the afternoon of your one year anniversary, he handed you the updated deed and a photo of the new metal arch across your driveway with the real name of your plantation and the real year it was established displayed proudly beneath it.

“I want the same wide wrap around porch, and the balcony on the second floor with all glass French doors. I want the white columns, and my stone fireplace in the parlor, and wood floors throughout. Oh, and I want to see my willow through my bedroom windows. Everything else, you can ask Bucky for. But the kitchen has to be in the back, left corner, and it has to have six bedrooms. Four up, and two down- one on either side of the first floor. Classic.” You finished as you switched Ana on your hip and turned to let her play in the willow tree. “Oh, and bathrooms. Lots of bathrooms. And air conditioning. And a swing in that oak tree over there.”

“Did you want to knock down that old workers house still, doll?” Bucky asked as you put your daughter down, and held on to her hands so she could stretch her legs.

“Yep! Get rid of it.” You called out with a nod. “That’s what we’ll do, Anastasia. When Daddy’s done, we’ll walk back and go look at the little river where you can sit and play in the water. You’d like that, huh? Better than being raised in a tower.” You sighed and sat down in the short grass with a small smile. “We’ve really come full circle here, baby girl.” You said as you shifted her grip on your fingers. “I really hope your mom would like us moving you here. I think she would. You’re gunna have a huge yard to play in, and your own room. And we can start a garden again, and we can plant some more apple and peach trees in the back. And I think I remember how to fish, but maybe Daddy does so he can teach us both. And maybe we can get you a little pool to play in on hot days…” You paused for a moment as you looked over at the distant sound of tires turning into your driveway. “James…”

“Yea…”

“That’s a government car.” You called out as you picked up your daughter, and walked out from under the willow tree to look over at the drive. You stopped half way to the small group as not one, but three black SUV’s with tinted windows and a massive armored car pulled up to stop in the parking lot area. “Shit… take her.”

“Babe…” Bucky said as you took the last few steps over to him and practically shoved your daughter into his arms.

“Take her.” You said as you stepped back away from him as men started to pour out of the vehicles and head toward you quickly.

“Doctor (Y/N) (Y/M/N) Barnes, AKA (Y/N) Scott, née (Y/L/N)…”

“Ross!” Tony yelled as you mentally battled the decision to run for your life or accept your fate.

“You are under arrest for the murders of Howard and Maria Stark, John F. Kennedy, Jasper Sitwell…”

“No, no!” Bucky shouted as you were nearly tackled to the ground by four guys nearly twice your size that were trying to get you into cuffs and shackles as quickly as possible even though you were not resisting what so ever in front of your child.

“Ross, you are making a huge mistake.” Tony said as Ana started to scream for you as some of the men kept your husband and daughter back at gun point.

“Babe, don’t you fucking listen to her!” Bucky roared over everyone as he watched your whole being shift into something he barely recognized when he saw you register the face of the man that had a gun pointing at your innocent one year old. “Don’t give in to her! Stay with Anastasia and me! Stay with us!” You met his eyes for a moment with a look he had only seen in old HYDRA photographs as you were lifted off the ground and unceremoniously thrown into a cube shaped jail cell.

“You’re all gunna fucking pay for that.” You said evenly with an evil smirk as you let them chain you to the chair before they all stepped out of the truck and shut you in with a single pair of heavily armed guards. A dark laugh you normally hated to hear, but that you absolutely welcomed in that moment started to echo in your head as you looked directly at the man who had no idea what was coming to him. “You have no fucking idea how much you’re gunna pay for pointing a gun at my daughter.”

——

You were locked in a room, a half mile below ground at least, in a bulletproof glass and metal box similar to the one you were held in the last time the American government had captured you, and left completely alone in a small room with multiple armed guards keeping watch outside the only door. For an entire month, you were given barely a meal twice a day, and allowed to use the “restroom”, which was really just a bed pan shoved under your ass after two guards held your hips up and yanked your pants down for you, twice daily as well, but you were given no other privileges other than those. You didn’t get to shower or get clean clothes; it was “too risky” to uncuff more than the lower part of your right arm for you to eat and wipe yourself. 

But you couldn’t complain. You didn’t say a word or move a muscle unless you were told to, because every time you did, they shocked you. Everyday for that entire month, you lost just a little more hope that this would one day come to an end, and the Wolf developed her plan of escape just a little bit louder in your head for when the part of you that made you ‘you’ finally gave up. But on the very last day of the month, the entire wall in front of you lifted up and a large group of armed men filed in ten bodies wide, and at least six bodies deep.

“Let’s move her!” The man in charge called out, which made the guards split down the center so a fork lift could be brought in to pick up the cage. You wanted to ask where you were going so badly, but you didn’t dare say a word as you were carted out of the room, on to a massive platform, and brought out of the pit of your own personal hell.

‘You can break out now!’ The Wolf said as you were transported to an armored truck. ‘It’d be easy. You know I can do it. We can go far, far away from here where no one will ever find us again…’

‘I’m not leaving my family.’ You told her as you slowly and carefully closed your eyes and leaned your head back on your chair, despite every other ounce of your being being poised and ready to attack at a moments notice like it had been for weeks. ‘I won’t leave my daughter or my husband.’

‘Weak.’ You mentally agreed with her as the truck stopped, and the back doors were opened so that the cage could be removed. You opened your eyes again and looked up at an impressive federal courthouse in Washington DC. Your guard led you inside and through the halls, and some how, it took you until were just outside the court room to realize what was happening. (Which was probably from lack of sleep, but you weren’t quite sure of that or anything anymore.)

“Oh, my God!” Bucky and Wanda screamed simultaneously as the pair of them, the rest of the Avengers, and a man you assumed had to be your lawyer jumped to their feet the second you were carted into the room.

“What are you doing to her?!” Tony screeched as he looked over at General Ross, who was sitting front and center behind the prosecution with a smug yet straight look on his face.

“Have you even let her change her clothes or shower at all?!” Bucky chimed in as tears welled in his eyes as he searched the dead look in yours.

“Is this the reason you’ve refused to let me see my client?!” A man said as he turned toward the other side and pointed back at you.

“This is inhumane!”

“She’s a mutant.” The prosecutor said with a shake of his head. “And she’s dangerous…”

“Get my wife out of that box…!”

“Alright, order! Order!!” The judge said as she slammed her gavel down and looked over at you. “OK, everybody hold on!” She yelled over your lawyer, and your large family as they all screamed at the government officials responsible for your mistreatment. “Has this been her living conditions since she was arrested?” She asked as she looked over at you, and the Wolf responded before you could stop her.

“I haven’t even used a toothbrush…” You shrieked and seized when the box shocked you once again, and Wanda and Steve instantly leapt over the partition.

“Get her out of that box!” The judge and your lawyer roared as Wanda ripped the front and the side of the box away so Steve could get your restraints off. Everyone in a thirty foot radius recoiled from the smell as Bucky pushed past Steve to pick you up out of the chair as gently as he could.

“She needs a medic!” Steve yelled as your lawyer told the other that he would be filing law suits against every single person responsible for your mistreatment as the judge scrambled to get the jury out of the room.

“I got the jet on the roof ready…” Tony said as he came over with a shake of his head. “Jesus, I didn’t know it was possible for her to be so thin.”

“Court officers…”

“If you so much as think of taking her out of my fucking arms right now, you will see what the Avengers are capable of for one of our own.” Bucky said evenly as he looked up at the woman on the stand.

“Can you please bring in a monitoring bracelet for Dr. Barnes so she can be confined to Sibley Memorial…”

“Can you make that the Four Seasons here in DC?” Tony asked as he tapped the ear piece in his ear to hang up his phone call while Steve ripped your dirty jeans away from your ankle so the monitor could be attached. “My personal physician is already on the way.”

“Fine.” The judge said with a nod as she sat up in her spot. “Dr. Barnes, you are not, under any circumstances, allowed to leave your hotel room once it has been established unless it is to come to court, do you understand what I am saying?”

“Yes ma’am.” You nearly whispered as you looked up at her.

“OK then. We will reconvene in one week for trial.” The prosecutor and General Ross both shouted ‘what’ as Bucky hiked you up in his arms to carry you out, which made the judge whip toward them. “As for you? You should be ashamed of yourselves. Mutant or not, you just violated every single one of her civil liberties…”

“Bucky?” You breathed as you reached up with your metal hand and brushed your fingertips across the scruff on his cheek. “Anastasia?”

“She’s at the hotel with Pepper. We’re gunna go see her right now.”

“OK.” You said as you laid your head down on his shoulder where the Wolf finally let you fell asleep in the safety of his arms.

——

“Mama!” Ana screeched when you got out of the shower in your much nicer jail cell after your extensive check up with a doctor that worked for Stark Industries. You stumbled the slightest bit and looked over at your daughter, who toddled toward you all by herself on her impossibly more chunky legs. You stopped in the doorway and Bucky nearly ran over you from behind when you teared up and sat down on the carpet since you had missed her first steps.

“Oh, my baby girl!” You cried as tears filled your eyes when your little angel threw herself into your chest and hugged your throat tightly.

“Sorry, I didn’t realize you two were showering.” Pepper said softly, but Bucky shook his head as he held his towel tightly around his waist and stepped past you.

“No, it’s OK.” He said with a glance back at the two halves of his heart. “We all just a little out of sorts right now.”

“I know what you mean.” Pepper said with a nod. “I’m gunna tell Tony to have Michael come and speak with her the day after tomorrow about the case. She needs you and Ana and she needs to eat something first.”

“And we all need some real rest.” He said as he turned a bit to watch you lay down right on the floor to play with the toys Bucky had brought with him to entertain Ana while he was in court. He could see the sheer exhaustion in your eyes as you watched Ana lay down just like you to put her hand on your cheek, and he startled the slightest when Pepper touched his shoulder.

“She’s gunna make it through this.” She said softly with a nod. “You both are. We’re all in this together, OK? And we will make it through this trial…”

“She won’t make it if she gets convicted…”

“She won’t.” Pepper reassured. “Especially after today. The jury saw her get shocked in that box, we can use that to our advantage…”

“Bucky?” You called out softly, which made him whip around toward you. You sighed heavily and looked up at him with a small shake of your head. “If I get convicted, I’m letting the Wolf out, and going to Wakanda. I won’t spend another minute of my life in a box like that again. Just get Anastasia there before I’m sentenced…”

“OK, we’ll worry about that later, doll.” He said as he walked away from Pepper and carefully laid down on Ana’s other side facing you. “Let’s just talk to the lawyer first. He has a pretty good plan for us. We’re all pretty confident anyways, OK?” You nodded your head against your arm and reached out to hold his hand as Pepper left your room for the night.

“I love you, Bucky. You and Ana are the only reasons I didn’t break out already.”

“Well you’re here now.” He said with a small smile. “I love you, (Y/N), and I will never stop doing so. No matter what happens.”

——

“Well you look much, much better than the last time I saw you, Dr. Barnes.” The judge, Stacy Benson said as she took a seat in her chair. “How are you feeling?” You glanced over at your lawyer, Michael Young, almost seeking permission to speak, before looking up at the judge with a small nod.

“Cleaner. But I’m a mother so I think I’ll forever be tired.”

“As the mother of three kids myself, I can tell you that never goes away.” She said with a small laugh as she organized the paperwork for your case. “Now, I assume you’ve had a chance to meet with your lawyer this past week?”

“Yes ma’am, I have. Thank you.”

“And you come to court today understanding all of the charges against you and are prepared for the trial against you to begin?”

“Yes ma’am, I am.” She looked up for the papers for a moment and nodded her head before glancing over at the bailiff.

“Let’s bring in the finalized jury.” You nodded your head, took a deep breath, and glanced back at Pepper, who was one of the only Avengers that wasn’t testifying which meant she was the only one allowed to hear the trial from beginning to end. She gave you a reassuring nod and reminded you to breathe and to sit up a bit more as the jury all took their seats. You turned back around and folded your hands in your lap the way your lawyer had told you so that your metal hand was ‘out of sight and out of mind’ until the ‘perfect moment’. You sat almost perfectly still and started singing the ‘Good Night Moon’ song on repeat in your head the way Bucky had suggested to try to drown out the Wolf as both lawyers started the trial with their opening arguments. 

The prosecution’s was almost stereotypical. Mr. Everett Ross kept his voice raised and his tone angry as he used big hand gestures to make his argument feel much larger than it was. But unfortunately, he was so convincing, hell, you yourself even believed for a moment that you- the normal, pre-brainwashing you was the one who committed the sixteen murders they had proof for out of the ninety-seven actual murders the Winter Wolf had done. When he was finished, even the Wolf sat back in your mind with an agitated huff.

‘Well we’re fucked.’

But then Mike stood up for his turn.

“Ladies and gentleman of the jury, this case is going to be one for the books. I have been practicing law for almost thirty years and I have never in my life seen one like this. Especially because what I am about to say is going to contradict itself completely. My client did commit these murders. She doesn’t deny it, there is plenty of evidence to support it, some of which, I’ll even be bringing up myself. But at the exact same time, my client is completely innocent. And I can prove it.

Over the next few days, you are going to hear plenty of eye witness testimony from witnesses that saw first hand what the Winter Wolf is capable of. You will see videos, and photographs the prosecution as procured to support the fact that the Wolf, which is what I will call the murderer from here on out, is the one that committed these crimes. But then it will be my turn to show you why Dr. Barnes, the woman sitting directly to my left here, is not the same person.

Please know in advance that the images, and testimony will be brutally graphic as we reveal the torture and agony Dr. Barnes went through at the hands of HYDRA from 1939 to 2014 when she was able to escape their control. And yes, my dates are correct because Dr. Barnes is a mutant, and one of her mutations is that she is not capable of dying. Which is also something else I will be able to prove as well. So while you sit here, and listen to the facts, I beg of you to keep an open mind through it all. Look at all of the facts and really see that the Winter Wolf and Dr. (Y/N) Barnes are two different entities in the same body. And prepare yourself now; like I said, this is not going to be pretty.” You looked up at him in awe as he nodded at the jury and came back around the table to sit down as Everett stood up and called his first witness. “Just remember what I said.” Mike said softly as he reached over and pat your back as an elderly man came in and sat down at the witness stand to be sworn in.

“Mr. Jones, how are you today?” Everett started with a smile.

“I’m fine, thank you.”

“Now Mr. Jones, can you tell me where you were on November 22nd, 1963?” Your mind instantly flashed to that day, and you knew exactly where this man was on that date.

“I was in Dallas, Texas at Dealey Plaza with my late wife to see President John F. Kennedy.”

“And where were you exactly, Mr. Jones?”

“We were sitting on the grassy knoll. I remember it like it was yesterday.”

“Now, refresh my memory.” Everett said almost sarcastically. “You were there, what happened, and what did you see?” You couldn’t stop your mind from following the man’s description as he led up to the moment the shots were fired, but from your point of view. You remembered getting off the way to advanced for its time jet, and heading through the packed streets to get to your mark. You remembered slipping into the shadows of a giant tree behind a picket fence and you could even feel the weight of your gun in your hand as you held it up and pulled the trigger. The faint hum of your daughter’s bed time song caught your attention though as it wasn’t part of the memory, and you shook your head and glanced behind you at Pepper, who simply smiled and nodded as she hummed a few more notes and stopped.

“So you saw the shooter?” Everett asked with a slight tilt of his head. “What can you tell me about her... or him.” He clarified, quickly before Mike could object.

“It was a woman.” Mr. Jones said with a small nod. “Caucasian, roughly five foot five like my wife, dark hair, wearing all black.”

“Anything else?” He asked as he oh so subtly adjusted his watch on his wrist, but Mike immediately jumped on it at the same moment you realized exactly why Tony and Bucky had insisted you wear the shirt you had on under your suit jacket.

“Objection! Leading!”

“Councilor, I will only warn you once.” Judge Benson said as she looked down at him as he raised his hands in innocence.

“Wasn’t leading...”

“She had a metal arm!” Mr. Jones said over him as if he had just remembered the award winning answer on a television game show.

“Your Honor, can you ask council to instruct his client to remove her jacket and roll up her sleeves.”

“Against my better judgement...” She started, but you had already stood up to take off your jacket anyways. The black metal stood out spectacularly against the light pink, sleeveless, backless, collared halter top button down you had on, and nearly the entire room gasped at the sight. You purposely turned around to hang your jacket on the back of your chair so that every single member of the jury could see your scars, and you went out of your way to use both hands to collect your loose hair to pull it over your right soldier so that the jury had no choice but to see what HYDRA did to you.

“A metal arm like that?” Everett asked as he turned back to the witness with a victorious smile, not realizing that every single thing he was doing was just setting himself up for failure.

“Yes, just like that.”

“No further questions.” He said with a nod as he walked back over to his table.

“Mr. Jones, you said you remember that day as if it was yesterday, correct?” Mike asked with a smile as he stood up from his spot.

“Yes, sir. I do.”

“Wonderful. So you can remember if the shooters metal arm was black or silver, correct?” You could see the subtle hesitation in Mr. Jones’ eyes as he glanced at you for a moment before looking back up at your attorney. 

“It was black. Matched her outfit.”

“And, how was the killer wearing her hair?” He continued as he leaned back against the table. “Down like it is now? Up in a pony tail? Do you recall?”

“It was...” He started as he glanced over at his lawyer, who no longer had a smile on his face. “It was pulled back. I’m not sure what the style was called back then.”

“And her outfit. I know you said it was all black, but could you describe it further?” You could see the slight panic in the witnesses eyes, before he jumped to the defensive.

“Are you calling me a liar, sir?!”

“Not at all, sir.” Mike said with a shake of his head as he turned around to grab something from the file he had sitting on the table. “Merely asking for more details. Defense exhibit one, your honor.” He said as he pulled out a stack of paper to give to the judge, to the jury, and to the witness since the prosecution had already been given the photographs. “Now Mr. Jones, would it surprise you in any way to know that up until 2018, Dr. Barnes had a silver metal arm with a giant red star on the shoulder as seen in photographs recovered from leaked HYDRA files from 1932, and 1967, photos from government files from 1974, ‘81, ‘91, ‘96... all the way to personal photos of her in Stark tower up until 2018 when it was exchanged for the current arm she has now?” He paused for a moment so that Mr. Jones had a chance to look through at least some of the photos, before continuing. “And would it also surprise you to know that the uniform she has on in those HYDRA and government photos was the official quote ‘uniform’ for the Winter Wolf, and that it never deviated?”

“Objection!” Everett snapped as he finally got to his feet. “How is he supposed to know that?”

“Just simple questions, that’s all.” Mike said as he took the photos back from the witness and walked back to the table. “No further questions.” As he sat back down at the table beside you, he put the photos back in their file before glancing over at you with a smile. “Don’t worry. I’m just getting started.” A smile pulled at the corners of your lips as Everett got up and called his second of fifteen witnesses, realizing at that moment that your lawyer was going to win this case.

Part 16

[clementines-writing-corner]

🚨new project just dropped *sighs in wip hell*

Hello friends!

So… if any of you happened to see that last post I reblogged (and had a peek at the tags) then you’ll have an idea about what this post is going to be about. Unfortunately, it will not be about my original high fantasy story project, as I had hoped last week. It is about something entirely different. Huzzah!! (I mean that in the most semi-sarcastic way possible– I am excited but also annoyed lol). 

I completed and turned in my first creative brief writing assignment for any of my writing classes this semester (and am currently halfway through my second for a different class) and, long story short, ended up getting kinda hooked on the story that happened to develop while I was writing. So… new project. Yay. ᕱ__ᕱ

For the assignment, I chose to try to combine two stories from the weekly writing prompts that we do for the class and imagine how the characters I created in them would interact with a slightly larger story rather than 2-3 pages of chicken scratch character development scenes. I ended up succeeding in this goal, one may even say superseding it, in fact. The plan was to write them into a short story with a little more plot. What ended up happening is that I created a whole new character, slapped them and one of the original characters in the middle of a huge plot, and wrote an entire chapter (+ some change) for a novel involving them. And not even like the first chapter of a novel. Noooooooo. I had to skip ahead and write like chapter 10 or something. 

So… (promise it’s the last time I’m doing that) yeah. That’s what has taken over my brain this week. An entirely new project. (I can never get anything actually done around here I swear!!) A couple more details about it before I give you a little taste of my draft because why not:

It will probably by a middle grade novel (unlike high fantasy project)

Speaking of – this story is definitely more low fantasy, as in it takes place in a version of our world in which magic exists (which will make it 10 million times easier to write because I wont be creating everything from scratch ha ha ᕱ__ᕱ)

It will take place in the modern day and age (perhaps like a few years old, but definitely after 2000)

Plot so far is vaguely based on the story of the snow queen by hans christian andersen (which is what disney's frozen is loosely based on btw)

The main character is around 12-13 years old (right now anyway)

And, as promised, a little snippet of this project. Let me know what y’all think!

**

A branch snapped to my left. 

My back straightened and I took a step towards Ms. Cattell, before slipping on a patch of wet leaves. I would have face-planted into the tree roots in front of me if Ms. Cattell hadn’t caught my arm. Her hands were very soft. How she got the few paces back to me so fast, I didn’t know. Magic?! My inner Paxton squealed. Shut up, my inner me shot back, not now Pax!

Crack! Another branch fell victim to whatever was creeping towards us.

My heart started pounding against my ribcage. I looked up at Ms. Cattell, my eyes wide and panicked, only to see a soft smile on her face as she stared off in the direction the sounds were coming from. As if feeling my gaze, she directed the smile down at me and patted my arm where she had grabbed it, before letting me go and crouching down, looking back into the forest and holding her arms out.

Suddenly, a blur of brownish-gray fluff hurtled out of the brambles and into Ms. Cattell’s open arms. She grinned down at the fluff, now cradled to her chest, before standing and turning her gaze back towards me, clicking her tongue. “Now Alvin, look what you’ve done!” Ms. Cattell gently scolded the fluff, still smiling. “You’ve frightened the poor dear. And after the day she’s had too, you should be ashamed of yourself!” 

**

But yeah. Like I said earlier, I’m pretty excited about this project. I haven’t been able to really develop another project in years since my mind has been stuck on my high fantasy story so for me to come up with a new project like this completely out of the blue (or so it seems) is actually really refreshing (if not really annoying because I wish high fantasy story stuff would come as easily). 

^ me @/myself right now (especially that eye twitch fr)

I will still most definitely be working on high fantasy stuff, do you worry, but occasionally this story might make an appearance as I continue to post on this blog. So… (ha ha I lied earlier) buckle up folks because, as it often does, my creative writing goals just got a bit messier lol. ᕱ__ᕱ

And whatever you're working on, don’t forget to cross your j’s and dot your t’s!

~Clementine J. Quincey 🪷

[yuukei-yikes]

You make me want to rewatch the anime...wonder if i can force my husband to watch it with me(he showed me it but it was like...highschool its been sooo long)

Since everyone has autism/hj? Do u have any headcanons for special interests?

I FUCKING LOVE THIS ASK also husband?? HUH?? KAGEFANS ARE MARRIED ALREADY??? huh...well...kagepro IS 12 years old HUH...HAHAHA *holds head* (happy late kageversary, btw)

everyone is autistic. yeah.

ayano's is 1000% all the superhero shit. comicbooks. i like to think of her as a huge spiderman fan. i think she'd love the guy. BUT YEAH comicbooks, superhero franchises in general lol

kido's is music! i imagine them as the kind of person who basically studies a whole album when it comes out LMAO i also think theyre the kind to be embarrassed abt talking a lot so theyre probably online a lot and is instead active in there. they rotate hyperfixating on different bands but music in general <3 also i think they hyperfixate on cooking sometimes and they will just cook and cook and cook one thing after another. it used to be a problem when they only lived with 3 other ppl but now there's like 10 more and also haruka so <3 no more wasted food!!!!

fuckgn. seto. animals. ANIMALS. ANIMALS. ANIMALS. i love ppl with animal special interests bc its literally the fucking BEST thing to talk about ever. and mary is plants. theyre both into each other's things too so their talks are so awesomely autistic i think seto and mary just talk for hours and hours and are always asking each other questions and if seto had a long day marys just like tell me abt why birds are fun colors like blue but not other animals :) and seto's like :DDDDD

momo and kano..... hmmm.. everyone else's seems so obvious. but them... like i see momo getting hyperfixated with a ton of different shit always rotating from lets players to toy collecting to makeup to lost media and etc etc but i cant think of like the One thing. kinda same with kano i feel like his thing is that he doesnt know who he is or what he wants so he wouldnt even Have his one thing. i think he'd be super into makeup tho. bc thats awesome but not only cutesy makeup but like special effects insane kinda thing. hes like whoa ppl change so much without any powers......... lol special effects makeup artist kano real

takane. lol. god theyre all so fucking obvious. coding. and i love takane but programmer ppl are SOOOOOO ANNOYING god this bitch would be insufferable. but the autism makes it awesome so its ok theyre not annoying <3 obviously videogames too. UGH harutaka indie game developers is so real to me. also this one is more my hc but erm technician takane is real he is real to me <3 the dan out of wifi bc this bitch took apart the router AGAIN just bc they like looking at the insides. the dan is complaining until the wifi is back AND its faster bc takanes improving and hacking shit. she helps shintaro build his epic pc

shintaro ohhh mygod have u ever met a more autistic bitch than this. he is everything. music!!!! like kido!!!!!!!!! i think kido and shintaro are an underrated duo. in the novels they hang out so much. wait im getting off topic ERM pianist shintaro is real to me idc. also super into collectibles of anime figures lol. also videogames!!! and lost media. i think he'd be one of those people super excited that a secret burgerking commercial never translated from english was found (momo too, they bond over it)

hibiya with the doll making shit. doll costumizing. also psychology post-shitshow bc hes 12 and hes like whoa. this wasnt normal *studies abt how this will affect him and his friends* i talked abt this in a hibiya ask i got lol but yeah also his whole thing abt making dolls. ofc it comes from something creepy but i still think its a cute thing he knows how to do i think he'd love using his new smartphone to find out abt doll costumizing communities and he sews mini mekakushi dan for everyone <3

i bestow to haruka the autistic honor of dinosaurs. FUCK YEAHHHHHHHHHHH also art/drawing ofc. and cartoons/animation. ppl who like to draw like cartoons okay. he'd be into that. idk if into animating himself i rather see haruka as a painting kinda girl. AND OFC VIDEOGAMES. srry to harutaka again but harutakas autism coexists so harmoniously ...domestic harutaka... these bitches have NO real schedules and are staring at their computers drawing/coding for days. it stinks in there. they make an autistic game together born from their autistic and disabled love. heart<3

i cant think anything for hiyori so hiyori experts feel free to add. maybe idols n stuff!! back to music heh

[teiasviago]

Omg this reminded me so much of myself being asked what my favourite part of the school trip to Iceland was when I was 15, and whilst everyone else said the blue lagoon or climbing a glacier or the Black Sand beach or walking around the crater of a volcano, I said the visit to the thermal power plant, and my teachers were like…’was there something wrong with how we planned the trip? Why didn’t you like anything else?’ And I had to explain that it’s not that I didn’t like anything else, everything else was fun I guess (apart from dying of an asthma attack half way up the glacier and not having my inhaler on me. Less fun) but that I really, really enjoyed learning about the power plant. To this day, the only photo I keep from that trip is me at the power plant.

Long story short, power plants are very, very cool.

The falls are so close that the vast majority of us on the 7th grade field trip (mostly 12 year olds) had already been, but who goes to a natural wonder to see the power plant? Not many people, so it was new, but not the ponchos and the ferries up to the falls in the gorge. (Plus all the fun stuff that kids can do is on the Canadian side and I think crossing the border would require too much money and paperwork. They’ve got like a whole butterfly exhibit IRRC! 😂) Honestly, I think most of the others were just excited to run around and not have classes, but I’m a huge science nerd, lol.

[hopesofawallflower]

November 12, 2024

Hey... It has been a long while. There is so much to share, but so little at the same time. I just... don't really know where to start.

The past two years of my life was...hell. I completed my military service and had pretty much stayed at home for the past two years playing video games. The first year was recovering from the leg surgery I had, and... the second year was just... I don't even know. My family labels it as 'laziness', while I call it 'depression'.

There were multiple fights, big ones, with my brother. He seems to struggle to understand my emotions. When I refuse to open up to him about anything going on in my life, he assumes the worst, then calls me a liar for actually trying what little I can put an effort in. When I do open up to him in the heat of an argument, he then claims I'm using my mental illness as an excuse to be lazy since I don't physically display the tell tale signs of someone going through depression. It was exhausting. Between the big fights, small fights, the gossiping with my parents behind my back... it really felt like my life was not worth living for. Family? What family? Family don't call each other names. They don't say you're a good-for-nothing. They don't shout at you, while talking politely with my brother even though he's in the wrong in certain situations. These two to three years made me realize that I'm done with my family. I'm absolutely done.

My brother got his own place and moved out in October. We kept things cordial until he moved out which meant we're still roughly on talking terms... and I guess without the constant close proximity in the same living quarters, it's just a little more tolerable.

My relationship with my parents is the same old off and on bullshit. We get into huge verbal fights from time to time... but my mental state is so messed up I'm actively trying to not speak with them. I don't think they noticed, but soon they might, which will probably spark up another argument. It does not matter though. I'm done. No conversations means there's nothing they can find to spark up any further arguments.

In lieu of my brother moving out, I get a larger living space. It's not huge by any means, and I'm still sleeping in the living room which meant my privacy is almost non-existent since my parents can just walk out of their bedroom and get a view of everything. Not to mention the noise and light they produce when I'm planning to have an early night. It's much less of a nightmare after my brother moved out, but still a nightmare nonetheless. I'm trying to transform this living room into a more conducive environment for myself. I'm planning to get some new furniture, maybe some table potted plants to spruce up the space. I need this. I need this badly.

I have also gotten a job. I started 4 months ago in June. I work at the backend of a Bank, just simple stuff, not too complicated, but doesn't mean that it isn't tedious. The sheer volume of work makes me question life sometimes. Getting a job means i have much lesser time to play video games, but have money to do things I want to do. Like get a professional camera, and travel the world. The latter will have to wait though.... I also built a new PC. Costs a bomb, but I'm pretty satisfied with it.

Work has been... all right so far. I am currently 'on loan' to another department and that department has been working me to my bones. I have started to overtime and I just can't get a breather during work. Paperwork just keeps piling up, the colleagues in that department seems extremely judgmental and just yesterday, I stopped myself from lashing out at something ridiculous that was said to me by a colleague there. I just need to be cool and ignore the people there until the end of the year since that's when I am scheduled to go back to my original department. The colleagues there are much nicer.

Sorry if it seems I'm rushing through everything. My mental state isn't the best right now.... and there's just so much I want to share, but there's this massive mental block so I'm just speeding through whatever comes into my mind.

So right now... I just spend majority of my time at work on weekdays and after getting home from work, I will be on my PC until it's my bed time. The weekends are pretty similar... I just spend the entire day on my PC and then go to bed.

There's not much going on in my life.... I just feel really... lonely, unsatisfied and it seems like every little thing triggers this gnawing and insatiable rage in me. Nothing makes me happy and there are some afternoons I just stare at the wall, thinking about everything, yet nothing at all.

I don't know what to do. I don't know what I can do. I just... feel so lost.

Good night, world.

[galaxity]

His backstory:

TW: SELF HARM AND DEATH

One day, on a planet in a distant galaxy, when Paz was around 12 years old, he was so excited about his powers manifesting soon, that he had to ask his older brother Alek everything about the day that his powers manifested. Alek had acid powers. (In Paz’s species you will know your powers have manifested by the glowing of your horns and tail as those are the primary source of the magic, and they will feel an sensation)

While walking in the park, Paz and Alek were holding hands so that Paz would not wander off, and Alek was talking about his experiences with Paz. They played and had fun and Alek was the best big brother Paz could ever ask for.

But as they were walking home, hand in hand, something happened. All of a sudden, Paz wasn’t gripping Alek’s hand anymore. He was holding nothing. As Paz turned to find out why he wasn’t holding his brothers hand anymore, he looked to the ground, seeing a pile of dust on the ground, where his brother should have been standing. Paz was in shock, he couldn’t believe it. What was that? Did he do that? Did he make his brother turn to dust?

Paz sobbed over the pile of dust, and frantically tried to grab it all before the wind started kicking in. He was only able to save a handful of his brothers dust before it all blew away.

With tears, Paz ran the rest of the way home, his disintegrated brother in his hands. He got lost a little bit on the way and it was cold and getting dark. He eventually found his house and ran inside, in a panic and frantically trying to explain to his parents what had happened through tears.

The news somehow spread like wildfire and after that, someone else must have seen or known what had happened. Paz was never able to make any more friends, he had lost everyone. The only ones who stuck by his side were his parents. Everyone at school started to fear him, calling him a monster, for not being able to feel or control his own powers, and killing his brother. They didn’t want to be next.

Paz thought it was a bit better this way, to stay alone and isolated, because he wouldn’t be able to hurt anyone anymore.

Paz had to bear through the agonizing pain of going to his brothers funeral, and they were only left with what dust Paz had managed to save of Alek.

Ever since then, he had been isolating himself, pushing friends away, pushing his family away, and yet he still was hurt by the many rumors and allegations against him, being called a monster and a freak everyday did not help.

Paz had gone through various episodes of panic and disarray, and during these he conducted many different types of self harm. Some more subtle than others.

He had cut his wrists, thighs, and tail before, had scratched and picked his fingers till they bled, and he event attempted to cut off his own horns and tail, only being able to saw half of his left horn off.

During all of this his parents had always been supportive and there for him, but after this huge episode where he attempted to cut his horns and tail off, they decided to get him to the best therapist, who lived on earth. They decided to move to earth as well. They also treated Paz with an emotional support animal, a ferret which Paz had named Alex, after his brother.

After being sent to a new school for many different creatures, located on earth, he started to get better. He made friends, his two close ones being Socks and Asher, a demon and a vampire. They are an odd trio but yet they get along well. He had made many human friends as well at this school. And he eventually found love, with a human boy named Onyx.

For those two rings on his right horn,Those can keep his powers under control- his other horn is too broken to work. And for his tail- it’s weak enough from all the cuts and scars that he can control it now

(On earth everyone has a power of some sort, here’s a list.

Air- air manipulation

fire- fire and heat manipulation

water- water manipulation

earth- rock and plant manipulation

Ice- ice and cold manipulation

dark- shadow manipulation

light- light manipulation

force-Telepathy/portal making

gravity-Telekinesis/invisibility

(There’s a whole side story that I have a rough plot of where someone tries to get revenge on Paz for killing Alek, because they don’t understand that Paz didn’t do it on purpose. If you’d like to hear what I have for that as well)

HEY GUYS SAY HI TO MY FAVORITE OC HES SO GREAT

AND HIS EMOTIONAL SUPPORT FERRET ALEX

Yes he has a really sad and long back story but he’s healing!! Healing era!!!

I love him

[rosemaryandarsenic]

do u have any hc's for domestic life w/ gareth ..?

DO I! Oh my god, too many haha. Both fluff and NSFW HC’s to follow so minors, this is your warning lol.

- firstly, Gareth radiates dad vibes. He’s always watching for deals on new tech, I feel like he’s the kind of person to get an in home computer and he’s SO EXCITED about it.

- he absolutely has a VHS collection that turns into a CD collection. Even as they lose popularity he keeps those CD’s and tapes, still has a huge stereo even though he could just use Spotify.

- he hates mowing the lawn, def a cool weather kind of guy. Loves the fall and winter, enjoys going out and shoveling the driveway then sitting outside with a mug of coffee or tea.

- goes all out for Halloween and Christmas, wouldn’t be caught dead with Easter themed anything. It took him awhile to get into Valentine’s Day but now he buys you flowers every year in excess. I could see him getting you one of those lego flower sets so you can save them.

- can’t keep plants alive to save his life. Literally manages to kill everything except one pot of violets his sisters got him one year. He guards them with his life. They froze one year and he literally cried and has never forgiven himself for letting them die.

- drinks black coffee, prefers tea to coffee though. A big fan of Irish breakfast tea. Thinks Starbucks is a waste of time. Secretly goes for pumpkin spice season though. Will deny that like his life depends on it. I just know he’s the kind of dad that would take his girls though, wouldn’t let anyone call them basic.

- speak of dad, he’s def the dad that has the treat tax. Like he gets his kids treats and surprises all the time but he always gets a piece of their candy or a bite of whatever. Yknow that meme where the dad is reaching back while driving? That. The dad tax.

- owns a frankly ridiculous amount of socks, none of them match and he doesn’t even know which ones are his at this point. Like, you’re at the store and he tosses a pack in the cart and you’re like, “again?!” And he’s just like, “listen-“

- he’s def messy but if there are dishes in the sink or coffee mugs on his desk he will freak out. ADHD clean if you know what I mean.

- hates typical sports, will not watch them and will not play them. One of his kids asks to join the football team and he’s like, “why don’t you take a dance class instead?”

- he’s the kind of husband who signs you both up to learn salsa and then proceeds to nearly break both of your legs because he simply cannot dance. It’s okay though because he tries so hard and it’s fucking adorable.

- enjoys slow dancing with you whenever possible. When you two started dating he’d play Top of the World by the Carpenters or Our House by Cosby and swirl you around his parents kitchen. His mom caught you one time and nearly cried because it was so precious.

- this man loves his mother. Like, would do anything for that woman. When he met you, it was exactly the same. Huge family guy but has daddy issues so male authority figures are not his fav. If you’re family though, he’d guard you with his life.

- got bullied a lot in HS obviously. If Eddie came back alive he’d tell him about what Jason did and apologize profusely for spilling even the tiniest bit of info. Eddie forgives him completely but Gareth never really lets go of it and feels horrible about it to this day.

- if he ever found out one of his children was getting bullied he’d literally lose it. Like, irrationally angry and has to go smoke in the garage to calm down so he doesn’t kick some 12 year olds ass.

- teaches his kids D&D.

- always wanted kids, but never wanted you to feel pressured. If y’all got pregnant anytime, teens or later he’d literally drop everything to prep for being a dad. Gets scared alot about not being able to provide for you.

- I feel like he’d take up piano as well as his drums, so he would have something he could practice quietly. Finds peace in creating things whether it’s music or art. Literally gets lost in the rhythm.

- so many good flannels and sweaters

- can’t sing for shit but likes to sing to you

- doesn’t know how to do “manly” things because his dad was not around so he asks Eddie to teach him how to fix cars and build shit. He’s really good at sewing and mending things, likes to cook too. Can’t bake for shit but he’ll try if it’s important. Ended up getting really into cars and bikes, never owned a motorcycle though.

- big breeding kink. Like. Aggressively into it lol.

- he rips your underwear a lot because he’s needy and just pulls them off lmao

- has broken two bed frames of yours, once in college and once in your first apartment. Now you just have one of those box frames with drawers that holds the mattress because he can’t be trust haha

- fucks your on top of the dryer while the kids are asleep, or sneaks you into the garage to smoke and fuck in the car.

- begged you to get some type of pet like a cat or a dog when you finally have your own place

- has always wanted a pet snake

- major pediatrician or English/history/music teacher vibes

- took him three years after high school to go to college because he wanted to just find his own way and HS really burnt him out.

- stops drinking around 25, just not into it. Says he likes being more present. Maybe would have the occasional beer or glass of wine on special occasions but really hates hard liquor.

- played with the band into his 30s! They have a couple albums and quit after Eddie had his second kid.

- Jeff and him are life long friends, they still play video games together once a week even if they’re 60 and retired lmao

- does not like being outdoors much but is really good at camping and swimming. Has a big connection with nature when he’s in it, it’s just not very often.

- takes you to drive ins all the time

- gets headaches a lot

- steals your clothes. Like you’ll wander into the kitchen in the morning and he’s wearing your sweatpants that say Juicy or PINK on the ass with rhinestones. Will also wear dresses with you and skirts. A fashion icon really.

- he takes up the entire bed when he’s sleeping, steals all the blankets and talks in his sleep.

- the kind of guy who lifts up his leg when he farts and laughs at it, idk what to tell you about that one

- he loves bubble baths

- literally cannot work blinds for the life of him. Like, he’s always pulling the chord wrong and then getting really mad when they come down lopsided and he has to come to you begging for help because he just can’t do it.

- opens pickle jars on the first try every single time

- smells really good, somehow always sweet but in a natural musky way.

- hates the sound of people chewing but also chews really loudly himself

- one time during sex, you were on top and he grabbed your boobs and yelled, “what’re thooosee.”

- makes jokes at the wrong time, all of the time.

- people think he’s angry all the time but he’s just quiet until he trusts you and then he talks your ear off and gets so fucking loud

- watches TV at full volume with no awareness of his surroundings like a heathen lmao

- collects comics

- will not go within 10 feet of spiders

- constantly dehydrated, chugs water all the time and it’s still not enough

- he’s really good with animals. Y’all have chickens, and he always wanted to work on a farm. Teaches your kids 4H stuff, but doesn’t like the idea of scouts because it “encourages kids to romanticize the military instead of helping the community”

- he loves rock collecting

- buys lots of crystals

- superstitious as fuck

- really good at running but hates working out, he only does it so he can perform on stage and keep up with his kids.

- really into yoga and Pilates, but can’t meditate at all, gets distracted too easily.

- he’s a causal enabler, if you want something he buys it then and there and if you’re debating something he just does it for you. Can’t say no to his partner or his kids.

- he goes to therapy on and off again, practices coping mechanisms and reads a lot of workbooks. Hates the mass produced self help books but wants to stay self aware so he’s always looking things up or calling his therapist to talk about it.

- still has his stuffed teddy from when he was little.

[my-simp-land]

You Cheeky Slink

Bucky comes to you in the night to tell you about his latest google dive and maybe something more. Bucky x reader fluff. 1508 words. This is highkey self indulgent so get ready to read the fantasy thats been living in my head lately. Thanks :))

“Doll?”

Bucky stands at my door with just his head stuck into my room.

“Bucky, what are you doing? Where’s your shirt? You’re going to catch a cold wandering around with no clothes on,” I mumble from my pillow and plushie covered bed.

He smirks. He always does that smirk when he’s about to give some smartass response. That stupid lopsided smirk with he petal pink lips surrounded by the beard he’s been growing out. It’s kinda gangly but in a good way.

“Well, I guess I’ll have to come in then, so I don’t catch a cold in this freezing hallway. You know, you don't actually catch colds from being co-”

You had to stop the groan from falling past your lips. “Buck, love you and all, but now isn't the time to drop some of your newly found knowledge on me. It's...what time is it? Bucky, it is past midnight. Please tell me why you’re in my room at 12:38 a.m. talking about colds.”

Peter and I have been teaching Bucky how to use the internet and his phone, and We introduced him to Google a few days ago. Ever since then, he’s been catching himself up on most of what has happened in the last 70s years. It’s really heartwarming to see his interest in aerial technology and space exploration. We’re all glad that Bucky is adjusting well, but he’s been bombarding us all with random knowledge he’s found on the internet.

“Well, in all fairness, you were the one that invited me in, angel. I’m just doing what you said.” The smirk again. It’s too dark now that he's standing in my dark room, but I know the smirk. It bleeds into his voice. It makes him sound more...confident. Or cocky. “But dollface, we’ve explored more of space than we have the ocean. We don’t know what all is living in the deep parts of our ocean, but we know that you’ll get spaghettified if you go into a black hole. Some people think black holes are portals and some think they’re dying stars.”

“Wait, what? Buck, where are you getting your info?”

“Google, of course. Can I sit?”

“Sure.” The heavy weight of a giant man and his absurdly heavy metal arm rests on the corner of my bed. He almost seems hesitant to sit. I can immediately feel his warmth through the blanket. Despite me keeping my area freezing, Bucky always stays warm. “But Bucky, you went to a site to read these things. You used google but from there, what did you do?”

I can hear the wheels turning in his head. “Uh...the interesting looking ones?”

“You can’t believe everything you read on the internet, Buck. Anyone can put whatever they want out there. When you’re doing this research you’ve got to use reliable sources.”

“Reliable sources? Can I lean against the wall and stretch my legs?”

“Sure. Friday will help you with that, but Peter and I, and even Dr. Banner could help explain that to you in more detail tomorrow at a reasonable hour.”

Bucky shuffles his way across my bed to rest against the wall. He’s cautious of my legs as he makes his journey. It’s almost like he goes into assassin mode. Even though I know he’s moving, he tries his best not to disturb me.

“Well, did you know the footstep on the moon will likely stay there for at least 100 million years? There’s no wind on the moon, so it can’t be blown away. And did you know space is completely silent? There’s no air, so the sound waves have nothing to travel through so no sound.”

Bucky carries on with his space talk. Not long after we became friends, he shared that as a child he was interested in planes. He wanted to be a pilot growing up. That quickly became an awkward conversation. Now, Bucky is learning to fly with Sam, but once he learned our travels expanded into space, his dreams were out of this world. Bucky would start his google dives asking about some random thing, but without a doubt, he would end up on space exploration. Peter and I want to see how he’d do in a Wikipedia race. Peter thinks he would be amazing at it, but I know he’d get carried away and go down his own rabbit hole.

“Doll, Neptune has storms big enough to swallow the entire Earth! Can I get under the blankets?”

I hummed my approval and rolled over. Bucky’s voice is deep and raspy, and something about it can lull me to sleep. Usually I can’t sleep with any noise but Bucky is different. He could probably do audiobooks. Steve’s school videos and Bucky’s audiobooks. That’s quite a pair.

Bucky carries on with his space dump until I ask him. “Bucky, Russia got a satellite in space first. Sputnik. Would you have had anything to do about it? Idk. That might be a rough question but…”

He thinks, and he thinks hard. I can imagine his brows would come together, and he would bite at the right side of his lower lip. His Neptune blue eyes would move like he’s reading words off an invisible piece of paper laid before him. He would usually run his fingers through his hair, but Sam mentioned hair loss and that made Buck a little self conscious. I told him not to worry, but I’ll catch him catching himself.

“I’m not sure, angel. I don’t remember anything being about space, but maybe i just didn’t know it was about the space race. That is bizarre though. I was around when we made it to the moon, but I wasn’t. Can I get under the blankets?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Buck starts to talk again as he pulls the blankets over himself. He worms his legs undermine. “Bucky, get your popsicle legs off me. Go put those things on Steve.”

He lets out a small laugh before he continues his ted talk of everything. Bucky has been taken with space, but he’s interested in cooking too. He loves to sit and watch The Great British Bake-Off or MasterChef or Top Chef. It was quite sweet and funny when he tried to recreate one of the meat pies from season two of TGBBO. He was so confident, and his bottom was so soggy.

“We should grow a fruit salad tree. We’ve got to do something to a fruit tree, but we’d be able to make it grow up to 6 fruits! You could have peaches, Steve gets apples, Sam gets...I don’t know, and I get plums. We’d have to think of something for Pete. But imagine it, a huge fruit salad tree orchard behind the compound!”

“If it’s an orchard, why don’t we just plant a whole bunch of different trees?”

“Bragging rights. Can I lean on these pillows? I’m just gonna lean here.”

“Sure Buckbeak.”

“Hmph. Us having a fruit salad tree would be like the animals in Harry Potter.”

“Yeah?”

Bucky carries on, but his closeness and warmth are enough to lull me to sleep.

I woke up not too much later. Bucky has slowly made his way to fully laying between me and my pillow mountain. He’s pulled me in close to him and nuzzles his face into my neck. He somehow got his arms fully around me with my noticing. Our legs are intertwined, and thankfully, Bucky’s feet have warmed up. I can hear his heart beat in this position. Despite the torture and darkness he’s witness, his heart still beats like a young bird’s wings. His body and mind is old, but his heart is young. A young man from the 40s thrust into the 21st century. It is a cruel fate, but I know Bucky is strong enough to carry this burden. A heart is a heavy burden to carry.

I wake with the sun; a curious beam has made its way directly into my eyes. I go to grab a pillow to cover my face, but I seem to be in the death grip of a certain super soldier. I’m able to shimmy my way around to look at him. He looks at peace. Bucky always carries his anxieties and burdens, but in this moment, he looks youthful. He isn’t a super soldier who lost himself for 70 years. He isn’t a man who is widely hated and has to redeem himself. He isn’t a man with blood on his hands. He’s just Bucky; a great guy that will hold you when you cry or share a big bellied laugh with you.

“See something you like, dollface?”

“You slithered your slinky way into my bed.”

“No, no, no. You invited me in, so I wouldn't catch a cold. I just made myself not cold.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. You were obviously the best solution, cuddle bug. Your heart is so full of love and compassion that it’s gone hot.”

“You’re a big sap.”

“Only for my best girl.”

[plant-flwrs]

plant-flwrs masterlist!

updated immediately after a new fic is posted.

requests are temporarily closed

some guidelines: 

pronouns 

no incest/george x fred x reader

 no professor x student pairings

i write for just about any character in the hp universe, but if you’d like to make sure, just send an ask!

smut is marked with an asterisk (*)

HARRY POTTER - golden trio era

Fred Weasley:

House Unity: Dating a Ravenclaw would be a great stride in house unity, wouldn’t it?

Smiling Kisses: (requested) Your flirtatious friendship with Fred is taken to the next level after he tries to kiss you at breakfast.

Roller Skates: (requested)  The American transfer student draws attention to herself with her accent, but Fred is drawn to something else about her.

The Missing Piece: (requested) Fred with a bookworm, introverted reader

Rivalries As Old As Time: (requested)  Fred and George are usually united on everything, but Fred’s crush on Draco Malfoy’s sister is definitely something they disagree on.

Heart Of Glass:  (requested)  Fred broke up with you just before the war, and when he couldn’t find you after the battle cleared he thought you died. You’re alive and well, living as a celebrity among the muggle world. One night reunites you two, and neither of you can deny the feelings that spark.

Never Too Old For Fun: (requested)  Fred is caught in your snowball fight, and he can’t stop thinking about you afterwards.

Insecurities: (requested) You and Fred are hopelessly in love with each other, but you don’t believe him when he finally admits it.

The Bookshop: (requested) Fred discovers a quaint little bookshop with a gorgeous owner, who happens to be a Longbottom.

Bets Off: (requested) Fred makes a bet with George that entails fake dating you for at least a month. He never expected to fall in love with you.

Weasley Family Christmas Photos:  You’re included on the traditional Weasley family Christmas pictures.

The Map’s Findings: (requested) Harry and Ron think they’ve discovered a secret relationship between you and Fred. Little do they know, they’ve just been clueless to the obvious romance all around them.

Undetachable: (requested) Fred protects you during Bill and Fleur’s wedding

Lacquer: Fred asks you to paint his nails

Ruined Parties: Draco is a relentlessly overprotective brother who ruins all romantic opportunities for you.

Romeo and Juliet: Fred reads Romeo and Juliet and can’t help but fall in love.

George Weasley:

Sweet Treats: (requested) Stumbling into the kitchens late at night, thinking he wasn’t looking for anything in particular, he came across you. George realized you were exactly what he had been looking for.

Budding Romance: (requested)  George needs a tutor for Herbology, but has no plans on learning.

The Yule Ball: (requested)  “You didn’t want anything to do with this ball if George wasn’t with you, hell you didn’t want anything to do with life if George wasn’t with you.”

Drama: (requested)  You and Cho Chang never got along, and when push comes to shove, George gets to see just how angry you can get.

Studying: (requested)  Exams are stressing you out, but George always seems to be there to help you relax.

Mischief: (requested)  George falls for the mischievous pureblood Slytherin who couldn’t care less about blood status.

Family Is Complicated: (requested) The Weasley’s have never liked George’s girlfriend, and one snide remark makes George finally lose it.

Similar Shadows: (requested)  Living in the Malfoy shadow conditioned you to behave a certain way, avoid certain things. But, once your able to use the Quidditch pitch to finally prove you are something different than your last name, everything seems to fall into place. You even catch a certain Weasley’s eye.

Flushed: (requested)  George’s girlfriend never blushes, and it’s all he wants to see.

Essays Can Wait: (requested) George is just too cute to ignore, even if he’s trying to distract you from two huge essays.

Coward: (requested) George asks Alicia to the ball when he really wanted to ask you, but he makes it up to you.

Cat Person: (requested) You tell George you’re an animagus

*Late Night Rendezvous:  You and George sneak off to the library for some privacy *

A Secret Santa Proposal: George gets you the perfect secret Santa gift

Hedonism in High School: George Weasley joins your study group, even though he doesn’t need the studying.

Draco Malfoy:

Cologne: You smell Draco’s cologne in your Amortentia, and he notices your reaction.

Three’s a Crowd: sequel to Cologne! Cedric Diggory takes notice when Draco hasn’t officially asked you to the Yule Ball. Cedric only wants to make sure you don’t go alone ;)

Peachy:  Draco has always liked you, he just didn’t realize how much until you turned up to class with a hickey he didn’t give you.

Drunk: (requested) You and Draco are enemies until one drunken night leads to a confession of secret feelings.

Christmas Parties: You help Draco through his nerves about one of his parents’ Christmas parties.

Ruined Parties: Older brother Draco! (not romantic) Draco is a relentlessly overprotective brother who ruins all romantic opportunities for you.

Ginny Weasley:

Sun: Six years of being in love with Ginny Weasley. Watching her date boys and capture the attention of Harry Potter. Eventually, confessions are the only things left.

Luna Lovegood:  

Picnic:  Luna surprises you with a picnic.

Exploration: (requested) Luna helps you explore your feminine side.

Hermione Granger:

Library Confessions: (requested)  Hermione overhears you confessing your feelings about her.

Neville Longbottom:

Secret Admirer: (requested)  Your secret admirer also turns out to be your Herbology tutor.

Misc:

The Teenage Girl at 12 Grimmauld Place: Sirius has an overdramatic daughter who can’t help but interrupt The Order’s meeting.

Hermione Granger/Ginny Weasley:

Dreams Come True: Hermione felt like her feelings for Ginny wouldn't be a problem. She could manage. Until she had to spend the summer at the burrow.

HARRY POTTER - marauders era

Remus Lupin:

Under The Mistletoe: (requested)  Staying at Hogwarts for the holidays seemed like the best way to avoid distractions, but with the Marauders there, distractions are guaranteed. Especially when your crush on Remus proves to be incredibly distracting.

Wolfstar (Remus Lupin/Sirius Black):

Will The World Burn?:  Remus and Sirius and their blissful life surrounded by books, tea, rain, crumpled bedsheets, and each other.

Eternal Spring (Series Masterlist): Remus was fine being alone until a mysterious and loud man crashes his motorbike into Remus’ life.

Misc:

New Years Eve at The Order of the Phoenix Headquarters:   The Order of The Phoenix celebrates the new year.

Puppy Dog Eyes: James uses Padfoot in a failed attempt at flirting with you.

[singemall-stayallnight]

Positive Encounters With Jimmy Page & Robert Plant

"When I lived in Brighton, in the late seventies and early eighties, I met Jimmy Page and Philip Hale at a private musical event in Hassocks where I played piano for a small invited gathering. I chatted to Jimmy and briefly to Philip. I was invited to Jimmy's home at Plumpton shortly afterwards where an engineer was mixing Robert Plant's vocals on the album "In Through The Out Door". It was lovely, atmospheric; a truly beautiful place. There were guitars everywhere, even nine in the tiny WC. It was a charming place and Jimmy was a gentle, compassionate host. I recognised Philip Hale's photo in a local paper a short while later and recognised him immediately. It was so sad to read of his passing." Reply

Anonymous25 May 2017 at 13:15

A shot of Jimmy Page at his home, Plumpton Place. | Source: Pinterest

Jimmy Page with his Stratocaster at Plumpton Place. | Source: Pinterest

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/29920183-who-are-the-nicest-rock-stars-classic-rock-edition#29920857

"Jimmy Page was nice when I met him."

by Anonymous reply 6 December 19, 2021 4:05 AM

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/34120072-have-you-ever-embarrassed-yourself-in-front-of-a-celebrity-

"Yes, and I worked in Burbank (Hampton’s) which was an industry restaurant so met many, many celebrities and never acted a fool.

But when I met Jimmy Page in London ten years ago, I mumbled some gibberish, rolled my eyes at myself, then we stood staring at each other for what felt like an entire minute then I said, “anyway, I’m a really huge fan” and he yelled, 'awww!' And gave me a big, tight hug.

He was actually so sweet and I’m sure he got that idiotic behavior all the time but I was just the biggest dork."

by Anonymous reply 7 March 14, 2024 12:09 PM

"Wow R7! That's so cool. I probably would have reacted the same way. Who goes to work expecting to meet Jimmy Page!"

by Anonymous reply 8 March 14, 2024 12:37 PM

"R8

Oh, sorry. I didn’t write that properly - was still waking up, I think.

I didn’t meet Jimmy at Hampton’s in Burbank but in London where I was on vacation. I saw him walking with another guy and introduced myself."

by Anonymous reply 17 March 14, 2024 7:44 PM

This quotation by Pamela Des Barres about Jimmy is (partly) positive. Jimmy was a player. While we're on the subject, Robert was a player too.*

https://www.loudersound.com/features/pamela-des-barres-my-stories-of-alice-cooper-robert-plant-jim-morrison-and-more

"Jimmy Page

'My other true love that I thought I was really, really in love with. And he sure led you to believe it, man. I found out later from three other girls that he said the same things to all of us. But the best lover, the best talker, the best line giver, the best everything. He was it. He was the supreme catch if you were a groupie because he took you on the road, he bought you things, he whispered sweet nothings all the time. He led you to believe you were the one. And it really felt good.

He was the epitome of British royalty. I haven’t seen Jimmy in years. Although, you know what I hear now, he’s let his hair go grey and he’s sober for years. I think he’s a completely changed guy.'"

Here are a few threads with nice stories about coming across/interacting with Robert.

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/i-met-robert-plant-last-week.709197/

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/robert-plant-30-years-ago-1988-now-and-zen-album-poll.747966/

"I'll post since may be interesting for some of you guys who like this album.

I was assistant engineer on the recording. I was just 18 years old at the time. It was recorded at the 3rd Studio I worked at, Marcus Music, Kensington Gardens Square, which got demolished to make way for the rebuilding of Whiteleys :(. That was a great studio. I also assisted on ABC's Alphabet City there.

I loved working on this album. I volunteered because I had grown up with Led Zep. My best friend's uncle was Led Zep's roady and then did some live sound for them, IIRC. Led Zep IV was my fav album when I was 14. So, I volunteered for the Robert Plant session when I knew he was coming in. I hit it off with him straight away because of the indirect connection. Such a great guy. I got to sleep at normal times since he started at 10am and finished at 8pm, which is unheard of. He would buy us all curry EVERY lunchtime. I got to record some of his vocals in the upstair studio, which was a real privilege as a trainee engineer.

He would mercilessly tease Tim Palmer who was the producer/main engineer. Tim had done work with Texas. We took days getting a drum sound and RP was really digging TP that they recorded Led Zep IV in a week, or whatever it was, and the drum sound then was way better than he was getting now!

I remember Doug Boyle, quite a young guitarist, buying this supposedly super-duper guitar amp from the States. Trouble was it just sounded **** in the studio. Plant really gave him good teasing on that as well. Of course the great guitar amps are Marshalls and Vox AC30's.

The real icing on the cake was when Jimmy Page came and did some guitar over dubs. I was, and still am, such a fan. He used Vox AC30 amp and Les Paul. The sound was just amazing, and the way he played just had that great sound. When he bent just a single note that guitar just sang.

So, working on that album was one of the BIG highlights of my career. RP gave me £200 at the end too!! That's unusual. Assistant engineers/Tape Ops got a pittance, so it was well appreciated. RP's knowledge of music was amazing. He was playing REM, who I hadn't heard of at the time."

-Timbo21, Sep 2, 2018

Robert Plant performing on his Now And Zen tour in 1988. | Left photo: © Sheryl Chapman | Right photo: © Timm Chapman

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/1271389-to-be-wondering-a-lot-what-Robert-Plants-first-date-with-Liz-Jones-would-be-like susiedotcom · 02/08/2011 13:26

"I'd never heard of Liz Jones before now, but I do see Robert Plant out quite frequently in Worcester (well, DH does now that I never go out after dark…) He's the loveliest, coolest, friendliest guy ever and I can't believe he'd go out with the woman I've just been reading about. I'm quite pleased (and a bit surprised) to see so many RP fans on here though."

There seems to be a good amount of positive and negative experiences posted online when it comes to Robert. Here's a few of the negative ones:

This one in particular is from a Q&A thread hosted by men who work in the Nashville music business.

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/16819213-country-music-gossip-ii

"NG1 here. I know the engineer who has worked on many of Allison Krauss' records. I love how natural and unforced her voice sounds. He said that is partly because she barely whispers when she sings, and they have the volume tuned up high to catch her voice. Her voice is beautiful."

by Anonymous reply 319 June 12, 2016 5:05 AM

"R 319 take a listen to Alison's first couple of records -- she was singing in her "real" voice then. Her current whispery, throaty, style, while lovely, isn't natural and has lead to a few bouts of vocal rest and forced time off the road. And while she can be charming, she can also be, shall we say, difficult. That second album with Robert Plant will never see the light of day, she drove him nuts in the studio."

by Anonymous reply 326 June 16, 2016 4:40 AM

Alison Krauss and Robert Plant performing in 2008. Credit: Getty Images

"NG1 here.

Patty Griffin is not a Nashville artist. She's from Maine, and started in the folk scene in Boston. She moved to Nashville for a very brief time, where she recorded her first two albums, them moved to Austin, where , I believe she still lives. I see her around some, but I don't think she spends that much time here. She and Robert Plant live together -- or at least used to, I don't know if they still do -- which seems like the strangest couples. I've met Plant many many times, and he is the world's biggest ass."

by Anonymous reply 344 June 18, 2016 4:04 AM

"To NG1

Thank you for mentioning to us about Robert Plant. I always thought he was an ass. He thought his crap didn't stink. I wouldn't be surprised if Patty Griffin kicked him to the curb.

Like you have said on here before is Country music is where any artist can be forgotten or be pushed to the side at any time. Dang, that sucks."

by Anonymous reply 345 June 18, 2016 10:02 AM

"Oh, and Patty and Robert split up more than a year ago." by Anonymous reply 347 June 19, 2016 6:37 AM

Robert Plant and Patty Griffin with Robert Plant and the Band of Joy at Bonnaroo. | © David Oppenheimer

https://forums.ledzeppelin.com/topic/15152-robert-plant-band-of-joy-tour-2011/

Posted February 16, 2011

"The Show Must Go On?

Locals comment on the Band of Joy turmoil in Tennessee:

dropshadow 8:50 AM on February 14, 2011

'Try waiting on him sometime, and you'd never buy another ticket to one of his shows. He's a complete ass.'

There was also a thread on Datalounge that had a comment about how wait staff members working in various restaurants in Austin "hated" Robert, but I can't find the thread, nor do I remember the title. I'm pretty sure the thread was from the time he lived there with Patty or shortly after he'd moved back to England.

Here's more DL threads on LZ, for anyone interested:

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/14519026-led-zeppelin

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/25295397-let-s-talk-about-lez-zeppelin! (Lez is just a typo, it's not a reference to the cover band.)

There's other mentions of Jimmy and Robert in non-LZ threads on DL. You can use the search feature on the site, but theirs is not the best. Another option is to type a name and site:datalounge.com into a search engine. There have been other LZ threads & threads that contained LZ stories on DL, such as the one below, but they've expired.

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/8208701-rock-roll-royalty-70s-style!

Random Robert stories:

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/robert-plant-solo-recommendations.953836/

"Dreamland 2002: would get my vote. Saw him on that tour. Small venue of less than 2000 people. I was standing about 4 deep as there were no seating except the balcony. He kept smiling at this hot girl off to my right. As the show drew to a close, security came out and escorted her backstage. Guess a good time was had by all."

-JFSebastion, Dec 14, 2021

Robert Plant in 2002.

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/robert-plant-solo-recommendations.953836/

"Jimmy (Page) had an upward curve until LZ IV,followed by a downward spiral from there on. This point of view was confirmed to me by none else than Robert Plant at Copredy in 1995 when discussing LZ! Twenty years later I still hold to this opinion."

-joachim50, Mar 4, 2016

"I actually did not like to be misunderstood and misquoted:

Please note that there is a difference betweeen curve and spiral.I will not elaborate on either. I described "the upward curve until LZ IV,and the downward spiral as a "point of view that was confirmed (to me)by Robert Plant at Copredy in 1995 when discussing LZ.

So this was MY opinion at the time which I put across to Robert Plant,and he agreed to MY opinion.So I label it as his confirmation.

The background is that I got into talking with him at the bar at Copredy when I was chatting with Dave Pegg and Simon Nicol and was introduced to Robert Plant.During the course of our chat he(RP) asked me for my opinion about the albums of LZ to which I replied,that I regarded the" First Four" as monuments having an upward curve especially as Jimmy Page's contributions were concerned,and that afterwards an increasing number of cracks were to be noticed until ---in my opinion---the whole thing collapsed with Presence.

Robert Plant looked at me and told me that he agreed,and gave as reasons "too much money,too many birds,too many hard drugs,and too many personality clashes."

He also said that during the last 5 years of LZ his heart had not been in it anymore,and that he had been coerced by management to continue.He also said,that he regretted not having stopped working with LZ since especially the qualities of Jimmy Page and John Bonham had vaporized more and more dramatically due to their complete immersion into the Rock'n Roll lifestyle."

-joachim50, Mar 4, 2016

Led Zeppelin in 1971. | © Chris Dreja, Courtesy of Proud Galleries

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/robert-plant-the-early-solo-career-1982-1993.1194809/

"I really enjoy all the albums up to and including Fate Of Nations, with the exception of Manic Nirvana, which is okay, but not much more. I have to be in a 1980s mood for Shaken ‘N’ Stirred, but when I am, it’s a real blast. I saw RP on the tour for his second album and I remember a girl shouting out, 'I love you Robert', to which he replied 'You wouldn’t like the real thing at home.' That gig was a lot of fun."

-The Bishop, Feb 8, 2024

Robert Plant sings on stage during his ‘Principle of Moments’ tour on September 3, 1983 in Detroit, Michigan. | © Ross Marino/Getty Images

There are a lot of Zep threads on the Steve Hoffman Forum, as well as specific ones on Page, Plant, Jones and Bonham.

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

Does anyone know which interview this poster is referencing?

This is a comment from a thread on the Steve Hoffman Forum but I can't remember which thread. I copied the comment but forgot to copy the link:

"Occam's Razor - Okay, thanks. I get it now. To tell you the truth from my perspective, I think Robert thought Alison was more capable in a wider genre of music and could adapt to more of his style. I knew the first time I heard/saw the "Please Read the Letter" video it wasn't exactly right. He was restaining his voice to match her style and adapting to her style. I knew it would only be a matter of time. When I read, remember this, that he wanted her to "moan" on a particular song, and she responded with "I'm not black", she just blew it. That statement was wrong on many levels even if she couldn't "moan" as he wanted. Totally "ignorant" thing to say in my opinion. Anyway, I DO love his current project very much and think Patty is just perfect. I think Robert finally found it. Also, LOVE the fact that he's doing more of a SOLO project rather than "duet" style. I do think though that Patty's voice and ability to adapt to Robert's style enhances his singing in a very positive way. His voice is sounding amazing.

BTW when you are a talent like Robert, yeah, four days is enough time to KNOW just where the thing is going or not going. I totally agree with him on that."

That response from Alison was indeed wrong. I'm curious to know who told this story. If it wasn't Robert, it was probably T Bone Burnett. If anyone can link to the interview that mentions this, or remembers anything about it, please let me know. I'd appreciate it.

*Just to give one example of this, from Lisa Robinson's Vanity Fair piece on Led Zeppelin, "Robert's tour amours were girls he managed to convince that he was, at any given moment, about to leave his wife, Maureen, the mother of his two young children."

[athenasbloodyspear]

Don’t Make Me Beg Now Baby

CHAPTER ONE: EDGE OF DARKNESS

Hello fellow Greta Van Freaks. This is my very first Greta fic! I hope you enjoy.

MASTERLIST

Note: This fic contains mature themes, discussions of past non-con (no members of GVF involved) and drug use. Minors DNI. 18+ only and please take care of yourselves. (See Ao3 for full tag list)

You can also read this fic on Ao3 if you prefer!

Jake Kiszka x Original Female Character

Picture this: The boys are in Northern Michigan to write the new album and they meet a wild young woman who works at a local record store who has a rough history with rock bands.

She doesn’t want to fall into the same traps she fell into before. He doesn’t want to hurt her.

The rest of them just want them to figure their shit out.

Note: While this fic is based on the members of Greta Van Fleet, I obviously do not know them personally (lol) and nearly 99% of this is a fever dream I decided to write down. Some tid bits are based on things said in interviews/photos/songs but please do not come for my neck if you dislike my portrayals as this is a STORY that I have entirely made up.

This will be a slow burn, overly dramatic, cliché fest of me missing my Mitten State and wishing more than anything I could move back home. Their music makes me homesick and for that I’ll never forgive them. ;)

Chapter Under the Cut

CHAPTER ONE: EDGE OF DARKNESS

The tiny bell on the door to “The Edge” clanked as Jake pushed his way in, followed by Josh, Sam and Danny. The afternoon sun streamed through the slats in the windows at a harsh angle, illuminating the swirling dust. The boys all immediately took a deep breath. They all loved the smell of this place. A mix of dusty old vinyl's, incense and weed. 

The Edge was the shop owned by an old friend, Levi, who had been a longtime family friend of the Kiszka’s. The boys had made the near three hour drive to the shop whenever they had a spare weekend in their younger years. They bought Levi out of his guitar strings and drumsticks and always looked through the boxes of vinyl's hoping to find treasures. Levi sold an eclectic mix of music equipment, records, books, home goods and comically horrific coffee. 

The Edge is where they had each bought their very first instruments, had their first beers and even smoked their first joint. It was a special place for them. 

The old wood floors creaked with every step, the wood walls were covered with old articles from Rolling Stone, photos Levi had taken and autographs from the artists who had cycled through the place over the years. There were stacks upon stacks of vinyl's. Shelves of old autobiographies and music theory books. There were speakers stacked from floor to ceiling, and the whole right side of the store was jam packed with basses and guitars. The back corner had a few keyboards and a drum set, but plenty of catalogues to pick even more instruments from. There were cases of drumsticks and guitar picks and strings. The middle of the store had tables full of incense, candles and interesting home goods. There were tables where local artists sold jewelry, art pieces and furniture. It was full to the brim, most shelves rising way up to the ceiling. Most needed a ladder to reach the top. The basement had a sound studio with even more equipment set up to be used to record, or to test out. 

Levi had inherited the place from his father, who had built up quite a legendary roster of friends over his years. The shop was just off Front Street on the main drag of Traverse City. Levi’s father had made a name for himself as a great host to bands looking to escape to northern Michigan to hole up in cabins and write albums. Levi continued the tradition and took it a step further by buying the space next door and turning it into a club with live music on the weekends. 

If you were lucky, you could catch some super huge bands playing for only about 100 people in the dark side room of The Edge. 

“You bastards finally made it!” Levi called out as he came sauntering out of the back room. Levi looked the exact same as the last time the boys had seen him. Tanned skin from his days paddle boarding and hiking along the Lake Michigan shore, sandy blonde hair that was brighter in the summer, perpetual 5-o-clock shadow because he just couldn’t be bothered to shave, shell necklace around his neck, light wash jeans low on his hips with the same old cowboy boots he’d been wearing since the boys were 12. 

“Is that grey hair I see Levi?” Josh leaned forward with an exaggerated squint. Levi laughed, snagging Josh’s head to give him a noogie. 

“I may be older than you punks by a few years, but I’m not greying yet.” Levi released Josh from his headlock and gave him a shove. 

“I’d say 37 is more than a few years older than us, grandpa.” Sam snarked. 

“You’re makin me regret extending my hospitality, kid.” 

Jake felt himself relax fully for the first time in a really long time. It was just like old times. Exactly what the boys needed. 

“Welcome back dudes. I’m surprised I’m still cool enough for you Rockstar types.” Levi crossed his legs and leaned back against the front counter. 

“We’ll never be too cool for The Edge. This place will always be way cooler than we could ever be.” Danny piped up, walking forward to wrap Levi in a hug. 

“It’s been too long man.” Levi commented as he smacked Danny on the back. 

“We know.” Sam said “Way too fuckin long.” He hugged Levi next. Josh and Jake followed up with hugs next. The room was heavy with a tinge of melancholy. Old friends who had missed each other finally reunited. 

“Well, have you guys been to the house yet?” Levi stepped around the counter and started pouring four cups of the famous nasty coffee. 

“Yeah we dropped our bags off before we headed into town.” Danny spoke up. 

“Isn’t it sweet?” Levi asked enthusiastically. 

“It’s wicked man. Thanks so much for getting that set up for us.” Josh grinned as he snagged a cup off the counter. 

The house was a mid century modern cabin right on the east bay shore. It came equipped with a huge garage studio, front deck and a dock out into the bay. Levi had bought the house in foreclosure and along with help from a bunch of locals (in exchange for beer of course) they turned the house into a perfect getaway for any artists looking to come take a break up north. The place had five bedrooms and three bathrooms with a giant living room with overstuffed couches and velvet chairs. The walls were covered in art and the shelves were full to bursting with plants. It was a kaleidoscope of colors and textures,  with mix matched rugs and lamps. It was Levi’s pride and joy. 

“I’m so glad you guys like it.” Levi smiled even bigger as he passed coffees to the rest of the boys. “Once you’re a little more settled, feel free to send me a list of equipment you want me to set up downstairs and you can start coming in whenever to work. But also, I think you should probably take a week or two off first. You all look about two seconds away from collapsing.” 

“Yeah we’re pretty fuckin beat dude. But we’ll send you a list ASAP.” Jake said, taking a burning sip of the coffee. It singed his nerve endings and he couldn’t have been happier about it. 

Levi opened his mouth to speak again, when a voice filtered through the window to the loft above the store. 

“Yo Levi!” the person shouted “Can you please get off your fuckin ass and pick music to play? I know Wednesdays are your day to pick but if you take forever I’m just gonna put on whatever I want and you can suck it.”

All four boys' heads snapped up to the window to the loft, but whoever was up there couldn’t be seen. All they could see was that the loft had clearly gotten a makeover. What used to be an upper level where Levi stored surplus supplies now looked like it had a plush velvet couch, lava lamps and plants in it. 

“Alright alright! I’ll get on it.” Levi called back up, shaking his head and chuckling to himself as he walked toward the central sound system behind the counter to scroll through Spotify playlists. 

“Who the fuck is that and what have you done to the loft?” Josh asked, hopping up to sit on the counter. 

“That would be the very best thing that’s ever fallen into my lap. A.k.a my new store and venue manager Maven. She moved back to the area after living in Hollywood for a few years managing bands and she completely changed my life. We finally have consistent stock, a longstanding line up at the club and I have had the time to start photography again. Truly a godsend, if not occasionally a pain in my ass. She turned the loft into a breakroom of sorts.  There’s a couch and table up there now. She practically lives up there sometimes.” 

“Damn she must be some woman if she finally got you to get your shit together with that club.” Sammy piped up. 

“She’s hellfire, I’ll tell yah that.” Levi chuckled, finally hitting play on a playlist. The first bars of Surfin USA by the Beach Boys came on the surround system and matching groans came out of Jake downstairs and Maven upstairs. 

“Not this shit again!” Maven yells. Jake chuckled to himself. Hellfire indeed. 

“It’s my day to pick so suck it!” Levi called back before faux stage whispering to the boys “I mostly just play this to piss her off.”

Levi clapped his hands together once “Well boys, It’s close enough to five o'clock and I owe you a beer. Let’s head over to Little Fleet for some grub and beers and we can catch up.” 

Josh grimaced as he sucked down the last bit of his coffee before lobbing the empty cup into the trash at the end of the counter. “You still make shit coffee Levi.” 

“It’s the one thing I wouldn’t let Maven fix.” Levi said with a grin as all five men exited out the back door. 

                                                           ~0~

The boys took a week to relax, as per Levi’s request. They spent the days hiking the shore, kayaking and drinking beer around the fire. It had been way too long since they’d done this. The release of The Battle at Garden’s Gate had been exhilarating and the fans' response had been everything they’d hoped for. People seemed to love the album and they were all so proud. But with press interviews and touring, they hadn’t gotten more than a day or two to relax at a time. And they certainly hadn’t gotten a chance to get back to their favorite old haunts in years. 

They stopped by the store almost every morning for a cup of coffee strong enough to jumpstart their hearts. Sometimes Levi joined them on their escapades, and sometimes he stayed behind to help out at the store. The boys spent a few afternoons sifting through albums and strumming on some of Levi’s vintage guitars. 

Mostly they caught up on each other's lives. The boys recounted their more personal lives that happened outside the coverage of the album and Levi talked about the past few years of his life in Traverse City. Levi told them all about Maven and how she was practically his little sister. They laughed. They drank. They had a blast. 

The boys noticed Levi was a little on edge occasionally, typically when they heard someone shuffling upstairs or equipment moving around in the backroom of the shop. They assumed it was Maven but weren’t sure, since they had yet to see her in the flesh. A week from their arrival they were all sitting in lawn chairs in the alley behind the store, smoking cigs and drinking their coffee when Sam finally asked. 

“So, why haven’t we met your precious Maven yet? Hiding her from us or something?” 

Levi shifted a bit in his chair. “Um..” he coughed out a laugh. “I am actually. Yes. But it’s the other way around, I’m hiding you from her.” 

“Afraid she’ll fan-girl or something?” Josh commented as he ashed his cigarette.  

“In… a sense.” Levi coughed. “But in quite the opposite way you’re imagining.” 

“She’s a fan then?” Sammy piped up.

“She loves your music. A lot.” Levi sniffed and coughed again. “It’s a real safe haven for her. When she’s having a bad day I catch her upstairs laying on the floor smoking a J with sound cancelling headphones blasting your albums as loud as she can.” 

“Exactly how it’s meant to be enjoyed. With a joint in hand.” Jake chimes in.  

“Yeah..” Levi toes the asphalt a bit with his boots, but doesn’t continue.

“Soooo” Sammy drawls “Why can’t we meet her? We’re no stranger to super fans. I’m sure she’s cool.” 

“Um, well. It’s a bit complicated.” Levi heaves a sigh before flicking his cigarette butt into the coffee canister at the center of their little circle. “I suppose I can trust you guys. You’re friends. Do you remember the huge lawsuit that the band Undercover Heart went through last year? The one about the um” He coughs again, “Rape of one of their staff members by the lead singer Ryan?” 

“Yes. That shit was horrific man.” Danny spoke up. “I read all the details I could. They kept the poor girl's identity private but goddamn I felt so bad for her. She was a badass for filing that suit though.” 

“Yeah. She was.” Levi breathed. “So, this is strictly off record and if you repeat this to anyone I will skin you all alive, famous rock stars be damned.” 

“Jesus Levi.” Jake said. 

“It was her.” Levi choked out. “Maven. That’s why she ran back from Hollywood and ended up here. That dude messed her up and she just… she struggles with meeting famous bands now. You know how many people cycle through this joint writing stuff. She just… has a really fuckin hard time with it sometimes. Particularly bands she likes. I think it’s because once you meet someone, and in her case, discover how much of a monster they can be, their music isn’t… safe anymore.” 

“Fuck.” Jake said, flicking his cigarette into the canister. 

“Well I feel terrible for joking about her being a fangirl.” Josh mutters. 

“She just genuinely loves you guys a lot. I never really told her I was an old friend because I didn’t want her to be worried about y’all stopping by. I just know that if she knows you’re here she’ll take off and avoid coming by the shop as much as she can and not only do I need her here, but I think she needs the safety of the shop too. I didn’t want to wreck it.” Levi sighs again. “I know she’ll find out you’re here eventually, it’s inevitable. I just was a coward and didn’t want to break the news to her.” 

“She was a pretty well known band manager wasn’t she?” Danny asks. “She like… completely made Undercover Heart what it was. Before they hired her they were slated to be a one hit wonder but she hauled them into relevancy basically by her will alone.” 

“Yeah. She basically built that man's career for him. She gave him everything, and he took everything from her. If I ever see the man I’m liable to get my ass thrown in prison.” Levi mutters.

“I’ll help.” Danny says immediately. 

All five sit in silence for a few minutes, smoking the last of their cigarettes. When they’d all finished, they stood and stretched to head back inside the shop. 

“So yeah. Anyway, If you see her that’s fine, just… well now you have context for… her.” Levi says as he yanks open the door. 

A few steps into the back hallway, Levi suddenly halts, causing all four boys to nearly bash into each other. The front door to the shop had crashed open and there were footsteps stomping across the store toward the front desk. 

“Listen Levi,” Maven’s tense voice carried down the back hall. “I know Wednesdays are usually your day for music but I’m having an absolute shit fucking day so I’m playing Greta all day and there’s absolutely nothing you can fucking do about it, kapeesh?” 

The very opening chords of Edge of Darkness scratch through the speakers after she finishes her sentence and the boys all exchange a slightly amused look, grins spread on all of their faces. 

“Kapeesh.” Levi calls out to her. He spins and silently nods to the boys to head toward the back door. The boys attempt to be as quiet as they can as they creep toward the door. 

“Also, Levi?” Maven calls again. Everyone halts in their tracks. “You said there was a band coming in soon. Are they here yet? Do you need me to set up the backroom?” 

“Uh, yeah they’re here.” Levi squeaks. All five men share nervous looks. “They’re uh… up at the house.” He cringes at his lie. “I’m getting an equipment list from them today and then you can get started. 

“Cool cool.” Maven calls back. “Do you think I’ll like their stuff?” 

“Uh. Yeah.” Levi grins then. “I think you will.” 

“Wicked.” Maven calls back. 

All five men repress giggles as they skedaddle out the back door and into the alley. 

                                                        ~0~

The next morning the boys wake up to a group text from Levi. 

COME BY THE SHOP ASAP. COME IN BACK DOOR. HEAD DOWN THE STAIRS TO THE BOOTH. BE AS QUIET AS YOU CAN. 

A weird request, but they did as they were told. They all piled into the SUV they had rented and headed to the shop. Danny peeled open the back door as quietly as he could, and Sammy opened the door to the stairs. They tiptoed down and through the door at the end of the stairs that opened into the booth of a sound studio. Levi sat in front of all the mixing boards with a cup of coffee to his lips. He glanced over at them and softly said “coffees on the table.” 

“Why the weird text?” Jake asked. 

“Because of that.” Levi responded softly, pointing through the dark glass into the soundstage. 

The sound stage was littered with mismatched rugs, and a few milk crates that doubled as tables. There was a gorgeous seafoam green drum set toward the back wall and stands full of various guitars and basses. Along the left wall was a piano and a Mellotron set up exactly to the specifications Sam sent over. However, with all these beautiful instruments to look at that would normally catch their eye, it was the woman sitting on stool in the center, cradling a dark purple Fender guitar that made Jake stop in his tracks. 

Maven, Jake had to guess that’s who it was, was wearing checkered distressed pants, with a ripped up old band t-shirt cropped at her ribs, revealing a sliver of the rounded part of her stomach. Over top she was wearing an orange leopard print cardigan that ran down to her thighs. Around her neck was a series of long necklaces, and her wrists were adorned with interlacing leather bands. 

She was plucking out a melody with her eyes closed, rocking back and forth on the stool. Jake had seen countless numbers of people playing the guitar before. On the road, in the studio, studying old masters on YouTube. There was nothing overly special about the way she was sitting or playing, but he felt a little bit like he couldn’t breathe. 

“She never fuckin plays anymore man.” Levi whispered. “It felt like magic hearing music coming out of the basement this morning. I just felt like you should see it.” 

The melody she was playing was sad. Haunting is a better way to put it, and Jake couldn’t look away. Not even when Sammy placed a cup of burning hot coffee into his hands. She was moving her head along with her playing, the strands of her dark messy hair shaking back and forth. The group watched in silence as she played out the riff a few times, Levi cranked the volume of the mics in the space and they could hear her humming softly. 

“She has a strong presence.” Josh murmured. 

Maven suddenly stopped. Everyone froze as she heaved a sigh and stood from the stool to put the guitar back on it’s rack. 

“You in there Levi?” Maven said then. The boys still didn’t move a muscle. Jake’s head was spinning, having finally seen the face that went with the voice he’d heard in the loft for a week. She was beautiful. He couldn’t even really put his finger on why, but he couldn’t take his eyes off her. Even seeing her through the thick dark glass of the studio. 

Levi hit the button to the mic in the booth and responded “Yah.” He paused before adding. “Sounded good.” 

Maven snorted in a self-deprecating way and said “Thanks.” 

Levi hit the mic button again and said “You should play more.”

“Don’t push it Levi.” Maven snapped back. Levi released the button to his mic and let out a heavy sigh. “Can you check some levels on the lines for me? I think I have everything pretty good but I want to make sure before they get here today.” 

“Sure.” Levi replied. 

Maven pulled the amp cord out of the Fender she had been playing on and plugged it into another guitar, one more similar to the guitars that Jake regularly used while they wrote. 

“Are we looking for a punk or a rock-y sound?” Maven asked. 

“Um.” Levi hesitated. “Rock. Their sound is like…” He tossed a small smile over his shoulder at the boys. “Like Greta’s actually.” 

“Dope. I hope they’re not just copying the boys. They’ve got a mellotron in here and everything.” The boys smiled. She pounded out a few chords on the guitar. “Good?” 

Levi looked over at Jake for confirmation. Jake, who still had not taken his eyes off Maven, nodded. 

“Yeah, that should be good for raw sound. They can play with stuff too. They’re a pretty well educated bunch.” Levi called back.

“Thank god.” Maven snorted. “Not like that indie punk bunch you booked last month who needed me to do fucking all their sound mixing for them.” 

“Maven, I don’t think they kept asking you down here because they need help with their sound.” 

Maven just rolled her eyes at that.  

They repeated the process with each instrument, Levi silently asking for confirmation from the respective Greta member until they were sure the sound lines were all functioning properly. 

“Great work kid.” Levi called into the studio. 

“Ew don’t call me kid. I’m a 27 year old woman.” Maven called back. 

Levi chuckled. “You’re a kid to me.” 

“Whatever.” Maven muttered. “I’m gonna go take a walk along the beach. Smoke a little. Text me if they need me.” 

“Will do.” Levi called back. The boys all tensed, looking for places to hide, or to run up the stairs and back into the alley. Luckily, Maven took the back door out of the studio and up another hallway instead.

“Well boys, it’s all you.” Levi said. “Text if you need anything.” 

Sam piped up and said “Yeah actually, can you pick my brother’s jaw up off the floor?” 

“Jake see pretty lady play guitar and Jake brain break.” Josh teased. 

“You guys suck.” Jake grumbled. 

Levi cackled. “I thought you’d like her.”  

                                                        ~0~

Maven walked along the coast of the bay and absentmindedly smoked a joint. It was an overcast and drizzly day which meant there was no one around, which she preferred anyway. She was feeling on edge. The drizzle was very slowly building a small sheen of water on her arms and hair, but she didn’t mind. The cool water and gentle breeze combination was perfect. 

Maven sat her butt down in the sand and stared out at the waves. She normally wore headphones on her walks, her world was a near constant stream of music, but she had opted for silence today. 

Levi was being weird. He was edgy around her all week, sending her out every morning for tasks and disappearing without saying where he was going around 4:30 every day. She had come to the conclusion that whatever band was in town this week was a pretty big name. Or big enough that he was nervous about her being around them. She sighed. She hated when he tiptoed around her. Maven didn’t blame him. When she first started working at the shop she had had a couple pretty bad PTSD episodes that had scared the shit out of him. She owed him everything for staying with her, talking her down and making sure she was fed and had water when she got into one of her states. 

Levi was her best friend, to put it mildly. He cared for her, kept her safe and in return she busted her ass at his store making sure they had the best products, the best shows and that their artist getaway was something that people would go back and tell their friends about. She loved Levi like an older brother, and he cared for her like his little sister. She would forever be grateful to whatever power in the universe made her stumble into The Edge two years ago. 

She had been high out of her mind, as she had been most days after she came running back to Michigan with her tail between  her legs, and Levi had been struggling with an amp in the shop. She had walked in, spotted his struggle and didn’t even say a word to him, just walked over and fixed the wiring so that it was functional again. Levi had looked up from where he sat on the floor and said “You don’t happen to need a job do you?” 

The rest was essentially history. It only took two months of seeing him every single day, and him not letting her sour moods go by unnoticed, for her to spill her guts over some bourbon one night. About Ryan and Undercover Heart and how badly the whole situation fucked her up. How after she’d recorded her testimony she’d boarded the next flight to Grand Rapids and hightailed it up north. She came crash landing into Traverse City because she’d always loved it as a kid, and figured it would be a great place to start over. The small town she’d grown up in had too many people who knew her. 

He was extra careful with bands for a while. Never letting her be alone in a room with too many male band members, and carefully vetting everyone who came through. Eventually she told him off about treating her like a porcelain doll and he backed down a bit, giving her free reign over lots of the equipment set ups and giving her plenty of hours in the shop by herself. She was happy to do so, so Levi could focus on fixing up the artist house and starting his photography again. 

But he was still very gentle with her sometimes, and she’d always love him for it even when it pissed her the fuck off. 

Once she’d smoked the joint down to the roach, she tucked the end into her pocket. It was sacrilegious to litter near the lake. It was too precious to be fucked with. She meandered back toward the shop. Her plan was to grab her bag and head back to let her Pitbull, Stacy, out for a walk and pee. The girl had been cooped up all morning and Maven felt bad. 

She threw her whole body against the front door, as the latch often stuck, and the loud sound of the chimes clanged in the empty space. She rolled her eyes. Of course Levi left the shop unattended and unlocked. It was Traverse City, no one was gonna rob them, but what if someone wanted to buy something? 

She was humming softly to herself as she made her way around the edge of the counter and plopped down on the stool by the register. She whipped out her phone to ask Levi where he was. She had the message halfway typed when the door behind her, the one that led to the staff restroom, popped open. 

“You know, crime is especially low in this town but that doesn’t mean someone wouldn’t come in here and try to steal your precious coffee maker.” She tossed over her shoulder. 

“Oh.” Was all that came back. It was decidedly not Levi’s voice. Maven spun back quickly. 

“Sorry I…” But that’s as far as she got. She was suddenly face to face with Jake Kizska and all thoughts quickly left her brain. 

They both stared at each other for a long moment. Maven couldn’t quite figure out why he looked just as shocked to see her as she was to see him. He also almost looked afraid for some reason that Maven couldn’t figure out.

He was dressed in an outfit she’d seen him wear plenty of times. A black button up, half unbuttoned, loose fitting light wash jeans and a pair of well worn boots. His wrists were full of bracelets and his hair was longer than the last time she’d seen footage of their concerts, well past his collarbones at this point. 

“Hi.” Jake finally broke the silence. “I’m Jake.” He reached out his hand for a handshake. 

“I know.” Maven replied, and then coughed. Why did you say that you freak? 

Suddenly the front door bell chimed again, and Maven whipped her head to see Levi coming in the front door. She stood abruptly from her stool, skirted around Jake’s outstretched hand, and out from behind the counter. She scooped up her leather satchel on her way. 

She headed straight at Levi. He glanced over his shoulder and saw an apologetic Jake looking forlorn and lowering his hand back to his side. 

“Oh hey Maven-” 

“Hey dumbass, don’t leave the store unattended again. I’m going home to check on Stacy. Probably won’t be back for the rest of the day.” Maven spit as she stormed past him toward the front door. 

“Maven wait-” 

But she was already outside, the hinges bringing the heavy wood crashing back into the frame. The chime of the bells rang through the space. 

“Sorry.” Jake muttered. 

“Not your fault. I knew she’d find out eventually. Right now she’s probably just pissed I didn’t tell her. Which she has every right to be.” Levi sighed. 

After a few more beats of silence Jake spoke again. “Who’s Stacy?” 

Levi huffed a laugh. “That would be her Pitbull.” 

“Oh.” Jake said again. He felt crazy because his brain couldn’t come up with anything else to say. She was prettier up close. She smelled like the Lake and weed and sandalwood. He really wished she’d taken his hand. He shook his head trying to find his brain in it somewhere. 

The other three boys came clambering up the stairs and into the store. They all looked between Levi, who was still standing in the middle of the shop, and Jake behind the counter. 

“Are you two playing freeze tag or something?” Sam quipped. 

“Jake met Maven.” Levi responded. The boys' heads whipped toward Jake. 

“And… I’m guessing it… went well?” Danny questioned.

Levi finally walked back toward the counter. “She left for the day. This is on me. I should have told her y’all were here.” He snagged his keys from below the counter and walked toward the front door to lock up. “I’m closing early, boys. Let’s go get a beer.” 

“Kowabunga baby.” Josh said with a grin.  

                                                     ~0~

Maven sat curled up on her velvet couch, Stacy was her little spoon. There was incense burning, a bottle of wine open on the side table and a lit joint in the ashtray. She had changed into a giant t-shirt and boxer shorts. The soft sounds of John Denver playing off her record player. 

However, none of these things were easing her mind. 

She was pissed, mostly. At herself. At Levi. She was pissed he didn’t tell her they were coming. She was pissed that he felt he couldn’t tell her. She was pissed that she had acted like a freak in front of Jake. 

The anxiety was an endless pit in her stomach. She couldn’t go back there tomorrow. She couldn’t see any of those people. Not when she felt like this. 

She whipped out her phone and quickly shot a message to Levi, before chugging her whole glass of red wine and snagging the joint out of the ashtray. 

                                                        ~0~

Levi’s phone dinged on the table where all of the guys sat drinking beers and chatting. Levi glanced at it and quickly picked it up when he saw her name. 

“It’s Maven.” He said. 

“What did she say?” Jake asked, sitting up a bit in his chair. 

“Fuck.” Levi said, tossing his phone on the table, still unlocked. 

All four boys leaned in to read the screen. 

CASHING IN ALL MY VACATION DAYS. I’LL BE OUT FOR TWO WEEKS. 

“Fuck indeed.” Josh said, pounding back the rest of his beer.

[angeli-marco-writes]

Sam Holland - Don't Tell

A/N & WC - This is not meant to glorify or condone adultery in any way. I do not know Sam, nor do I claim to, this is a work of fiction. This was written before Sam posted about a new girlfriend: no disrespect is meant towards her. I do not believe Sam would do this: it is fictitious. 3.5k.

Warnings - Adultery, explicit smut, unprotected sex, swearing, reader is the other woman, swearing, brief allusions to SA. 18+.

Summary - When Sam booty calls you, you can't deny him, but will sexual satisfaction be enough? Or will you always want from him what you know you can't have?

THIS WASN’T HOW YOU’D PLANNED to spend your Saturday afternoon, but Sam called, and who were you to deny him?

‘Come over at 3.’ He texted you. ‘She’s leaving then.’

No kisses, no emojis, no frills, no sign off, nothing. You’re just a nameless number in his phone. You knew what it meant. You’ve done it plenty of times before, so you know the drill, it’s just not exactly pleasant.

With ample time, you left your house, your new place only a couple of streets over from the Holland household, and you walked as inconspicuously as possible. Your coat wrapped tightly around you, you refused to make eye contact with anyone on the whole walk there.

You know the drill so well by now that you know not to stick to the front of the house, but instead to head around the back—straight into his bedroom window—via the bins. Theoretically, with no one home and Sam in the living room, you could walk in the front door, but his room is safest since she has always refused to enter—’just in case.’

Your heart thuds against your chest while you hold your breath, praying not to be heard downstairs the second your feet land on his floor. You press yourself flat against the wall behind Sam’s door, lips pursed and eyes squeezed shut, every muscle in your body clenched to the maximum. You’ve trained yourself to stay so quiet that the only sounds are your pounding, racing heart and the blood rushing in your ears.

Thankfully, before cramp can override you, you hear the words that give you the all clear.

“Bye, love!” he calls down the driveway, followed by a half hearted air kiss, a deafening crunching on the gravel driveway, and the front door at last clicking shut.

Your body finally relaxes, limbs falling loosely around you while you release one of the longest held breaths you’ve ever had.

You creak open Sam’s bedroom door, ready for him to meet you, and shrug your coat off, throwing it on the floor alongside your converse when you hear him coming upstairs. He gets like this, heavy steps and heaved breaths like they’re a strain on his body, and it usually means he’s extra horny.

“What took so long, lover boy?” you tease, standing scantily clad in his door frame, leaning against the painted wood.

His eyes darken with lust as he approaches you, his shadow from the landing already overpowering.

This isn’t like any sex or ‘relationship’ you’ve ever been in before. It’s risky, and that risk makes it so much hotter. Always leaving the door open just a crack so that the two of you could be found only by those closest to Sam, the chance of being caught together in the street on the off chance you go for drinks; after all, your reputation precedes you. But it’s the adulterous element of your relationship that makes it so fun. The fact that it’s usually after his girlfriend leaves that you’re called over to relieve his not-so-little ‘problem’, the little marks you trail across the hidden parts of his body, occasionally being risky enough to plant one on the juncture of his neck and shoulder just to test the waters.

After being together for over two years, she still refuses to do anything with him. Of course you respect such a thing: if she wants to wait till marriage and is able to resist Sam for that long, props to her. It’s just not always ideal for all party members. Sure, they’ve kissed, a little groping, but by this point, with how little Sam's lass has done with him, he’s immensely riled up.

He really likes his girlfriend, of course he does, and he’s spoken to her about this time and time again, asking why they couldn’t just do something more than a PG-12 touching session. She simply shook her head and smiled every time, “I’m saving myself for marriage, Sammy.” This infuriated him hugely. He’s been with a girl or two (or ten) before her, so is very expectant, but being twenty-two has its burdens. He isn’t anywhere near ready for marriage, but is increasingly sexually frustrated. So after an insane year of getting by with absolutely no action apart from the rare lap dance and make out, he knew he had to do something besides use his own hand to relieve the tension that was making him a complete prick.

He respects his girlfriend enough not to pressure her. Sam isn’t a bad person and so he isn’t going to coerce his girlfriend into sex she doesn’t want, seeing it as utterly immoral, so he did the only thing he could think of, and turned to the girl next door, quite literally. Not that it’s any more moral, but here you are.

As soon as he reaches you, the smirk etched upon his face is perfect, just what you expect, and his hands grip your waist tightly.

“You think you’re so cheeky,” he smirks, and his lips crash onto yours the next moment, his hands spanning your sides. His affection halts as he smacks the side of your ass. “I’ll show you cheeky.”

You don’t let him get another word in before you’re kissing him again, furiously this time, hooking one leg around his waist as the other flies to his neck, your clasp anything but gentle.

You’ve known of the Holland family for a while, living a street away, going to school with the boys and your mother having ‘neighbourhood meetings’ with the family. You, however, had had nothing to do with them, never getting involved in their ordeals, not really.

Keeping a resolutely ‘good girl’ demeanour all through school was difficult, especially when you wanted to rebel so earnestly. The first step was house parties, beginning when you were in year ten, everyone getting shit-faced and ending up giving sloppy hand-jobs in someone’s downstairs loo. That much you weren’t a fan of, so you waited until the end of school, A-Levels secured to be who you wanted to be. Trench coats, docs and chucks at every turn, short shorts and fishnets. Lots of hair dye came next, followed by a ‘scandalous’ collection of piercings, and a significant body count for someone your age, or so conservative old women perceived. Fuck them, your body your choice.

Times changed in a year and a half, though not that much. Mid way through your rebellion, you got a good job, your own place, and became a call girl, essentially. Sam’s call girl only, considering your regrettable soft spot for him.

You couldn’t care less though, even though it’s adulterous, Sam is incredible in bed. He frequently tells you the same.

“I think you’re rubbing off on me,” he murmurs, ���even when she was kissing me I could only think of you.” His lips are inches from yours with your breath mingling in the confined space of his doorway as you pant.

He hasn’t touched you yet, or even moved you to the bed. You feel yourself blush a little, scared fractionally by what he’s saying but mostly flattered. At least that’s what you’re telling yourself. It makes you feel like your old self is creeping in again, the girl next door that no one fell for.

“I like it when you get all shy on me, really naïve, shows me you’re a human and not just a sex goddess. My sex goddess.”

You pull his lips to yours with a burning passion, desperate to feel him up against you. Your palms settle this time on Sam's cheeks, angling his face to get the most out of the kiss, and your hold remains resolute so that he can’t pull away easily. This isn’t your dominance though, simply a ploy to hide your flushed cheeks from his prying eyes, the blush that’s been caused by his kind words. You want to keep him here long enough that you can claim the blush is from the breathlessness and the actions of his tongue slipping inside your mouth with an urgency you haven’t felt with him for a while. Is this the day that changes everything?

He backs you to the bed, walking unsteadily, and pushes you down onto the springy mattress. It pitches beneath you as he joins you, sitting by your side, his hand gravitating towards your thigh.

“Hey, what is it?” you ask, a slight hesitant stammer to your words.

“Nothing,” he sulks. “Just dunno how long I can keep doing this.”

His baleful eyes hover over your decolletage, and before you can protest and try to get him to open up about the whole situation, discussing the fact that maybe you should just quit while you’re ahead and come clean (because to be fair, it’s beginning to weight on your conscience too, even though you’ve never met said girlfriend), he kisses you, pinching your nipple through your bra until it forms a pebbled bud.

“Gonna take it all out on you,” he hisses, moving his kisses to your jaw. “All this pent up need from missing your body. God, feel so good beneath me.”

He swings a leg over to straddle your legs, and begins a ferocious attack on your neck with his teeth. You’ll have fun at work tomorrow, trying to hide them from your co-workers, one of them (on a temp basis, at least) being Sam’s twin. Harry cottoned on pretty easy, and won’t say a word, because he doesn’t want to deal with Sam’s temper when he’s been denied sex for too long. He likes Sam’s girlfriend, sure, but she doesn’t compromise on anything and looks down her nose at the lot of them, so he considers it fair play. And besides, with his track record, he really doesn’t have a leg to stand on.

Unwittingly, your hips buck up to meet his, feeling his throbbing need pressing against your pelvis, only for him to draw his body away from you, a bruising kiss being pressed to your lips the next moment. All in a flurry, your top is pulled down, your chest revealed to him.

“Bloody love your tits,” he purrs, a feral grin contorting his freckled face.

He rolls your pert bud between the rough pads of his fingers, palming at the other breast so as not to neglect it, only swapping when you’re beginning to writhe under him. His grin only increases.

“Sam… please.”

He knows what you want when you whine that way, so he sits up on his shins, and lets you tear his shirt open. Button by button, you watch as every inch of his pale chest is bared to you, his happy trail coaxing you lower.

“Get on with it, then,” he warns, clamping a hand around your hair in order to control your movements. He does this a lot, it’s his main power move. “They’re too damn tight now you’re around.”

You can definitely see that, the denim of his jeans pulled taut around his torso, the waistband of his boxers peeking above. He begins to pluck at your nipples again while you fumble with his buckle and zip, eventually tugging both items of clothing down at once. He stands, his lanky frame just a blur of white and freckles as he removes every last item, prowling back to you on the bed.

You, however, have other ideas, tugging him down with a grip on his shoulders until he’s helpless beneath you. In the time he was distracted with shucking his jeans off at last, you peeled your own shirt off and put your bra right. Sam’s a boob man, always has been, and takes great pleasure in fastening and unfastening your bras as much as he can, nestling into your chest for the time you spend together.

Since your last rodeo, you’ve gained some weight, and filled out a tad more, something Sam seems to notice right about now, especially as your chest hovers just inches from his face.

“Well? Are you gonna stare at them all day or take it off?”

This man… this man has the fucking audacity to lick his lips as one hand works on the hooks at the back of your bra, the other skimming the edges of the cups before it falls into his hands and he flings it across the room, knocking something off his dresser.

As soon as it's out of his way, he seems to forget everything apart from you, his eyes mesmerised by your chest, his mouth gaping a little, his eyes lingering on your hardened nipples for perhaps just a moment too long. You sigh to yourself, letting your knees dig into his navy comforter before your fingers wrap around his hand and place it onto your right breast. You know that, if you let him stare long enough, you’ll get nothing done. You need this release as much as he does. He takes the message, though, and begins kneading the flesh with a need you haven’t seen from him before. You even catch a wolfish grin when your face contorts into a silent ‘o’, overcome with pleasure. He tweaks your one nipple, and leans up to capture the other in his kiss-swollen lips, lavishing kisses around the sensitive area. You can’t help your nails leaving faint scratch marks in their wake over his freckled shoulders, tracing the silhouettes beneath his skin of muscle and bone, finding constellations within the freckles until he’s quaking beneath your delicate touch…

“Why’re you being such a tease?” he whines.

He has a point, you’re grinding down on his clothed cock in tandem with his playing with your boobs, your core hovering over his hard member, but it’s only fair with the stimulation he’s offering you. Just to shut him up, in one swift move you pull his boxers down and reach down to grasp him, stroking a couple of times before inching down, swallowing his aching length into your welcoming, warm walls.

Your moans create a heavenly sympathy, even as you stop for a moment to adjust to his size a little more, placing your hands on his pecs before grinding down on him. His hips begin to move, thrusting upwards and into you, finding a satisfying pace in tandem for you both as you ride him like there’s no tomorrow.

“Baby…” he moans, reaching out with his lips puckered to wrap them around your exposed nipple, suckling viciously, hard enough to hurt just a little.

“Stand up,” you command authoritatively, with a softness to your tone despite.

He grows harder inside of you, barely suppressing a groan, but his plan fails from shock when you bend over, clenching the foot of his bed so tightly your knuckles begin to turn white.

Casting a sensual glance over your shoulder, you bat your lashes and coax him the only way you know how, a wiggle of your bum added to help convince him; “Fuck me, Sammy…”

Your gasp is shrill and loud when he enters your craving core from behind, your knees nearly buckling when a stream of expletives falls from his lips once he grabs your hips, settling there. You’re sure to have hand-shaped imprints there tomorrow, but you don’t care, and apparently neither does Sam as he continues to thrust into you at an inhuman pace.

Breathy moans escape your lips as your nails find purchase in the sheets, now crumpled in your clenched fists. The only thing that fills your ears other than skin slapping against skin is the myriad of colourful words spilling from Sam in a groan, right down your ear.

“y/n… please…” he hums nonsensically, his lips finding their way to your shoulder blade and neck, kissing you, suckling.

He’s such a hypocrite: one rule for him, one rule for you, just because he’s got a girlfriend and is too pussy to break up with her even though his needs aren’t being met. For a brief moment, your body being used for his pleasure—and bringing you simultaneous heavenly satisfaction—you’re able to forget the consequences of your fornications.

They slip your mind once again the second one of his rough hands slowly makes its way down your front, finding your clit as he begins to rub harsh circles on it.

“Fuck…” you cry out, only for the heel of that hand to press into your pelvis, the other snaking around to your neck, applying the faintest pressure. Your walls tighten around him at the double stimulation.

His hips begin to move faster, blissful moans filling the room in symphony as you both near your highs, his tip grazing your special spot on every single thrust.

“C’mon,” he purrs in your ear, “can feel how close you are…” the pressure on your engorged pearl becomes a constant, and your body begins to spasm with unbridled pleasure. “Come.”

You do, and fireworks spark behind your eyes, setting off a train reaction in your brain, your walls clenching and your body collapsing, chest first, onto the edge of the bed. You must’ve cried out at some point, but your scream became but a gasp with his hand snug around your throat.

His thrusts slow, and he aids you onto the bed by your waist, but you roll away from him, aware that he hasn’t climaxed yet. He follows you down as your fingers link around his neck, but he’s not satisfied with that—as the smirk playing on his lips, causing dimples in his freckles, tells you—so he hovers above you on his knees. The hairs on his shins grate against the duvet cover so he shifts, but your hands move from his neck to his cheeks, pulling him closer to tangle your tongues together. His erection teases your wet folds while you’re lost in the movements of your mouths, and before you know it, he’s entering you again, and your hands are getting lost in his dark, silky locks, his one hand roughly kneading your breast. His thrusts recommence at a slower pace than before, his heels digging into the mattress as his groans overpower yours in the otherwise silent room.

“Shit… oh my God—” he hisses.

He begins to move faster, so you tug at his hair, revelling in the praises he offers, eliciting various heavy moans from his preoccupied mouth in between kisses. His warm breath and the resverberation of the moan vibrate across your lips, causing your hips to rock further into his, your legs wrapping around his toned torso to give him better access to your eager core. His movements become deeper as your breathing becomes even more escalated with high pitched moans tearing from your throat each time he hits your g-spot so perfectly. The knock-on effect sends him into an even more euphoric state, and before you know it, he’s groaning your name down your ear, and painting your walls white.

“Yes, Sammy…”

Your nails leave scratch marks all over his back from the sheer height of pleasure you’re experiencing, and that seems to be what sent him over the edge, his cum seeping into you as you milk his cock. He throbs inside you, his pelvis hitting you perfectly as he thrusts lazily while emptying himself. With one final press of his long, skilled thumb and digits over your sensitive nipple and a harsh bite to your pulse point just below your ear, the bundle of lust in your stomach becomes undone as you finish once again.

Before you’re fully recovered, he’s pulling out and leaving you empty as you lie together for a moment on opposite sides of the bed, no contact other than your pinky fingers linked and overlapping in between you. Except… despite the pleasure, you’re not satisfied. Not at all. And you know, in your heart, that this can’t happen again.

“Don’t tell anyone, please.”

“As fucking if,” you mumble.

“You ok?” he asks after a moment.

“Yes, just fine,” you snap, and roll off the bed, beginning to ferret around for your clothes.

“y/n, no…” Sam moves to grapple for you, “why are you leaving?”

“Because I’m done being treated like shit by you. Used as your fuck-toy when you’re too much of a pussy to deal with your girlfriend… I’m done, Sam.”

He’s up and off the bed, shucking his jeans on with great force that causes him to trip back onto the bed as you adjust your top and zip your skirt back up.

“y/n!”

“What!” you bellow right back at him.

He shuffles his feet on the carpet, and moves to speak, but his jaw just hangs open like a fish, nothing coming out.

“Yeah, I’m done here, Sam. Don’t booty-call me again.”

A weary voice from behind you calls out, “Sam?”

Shit.

This is bad. This is very bad. But what can you do? You’re the other woman, he’s the one choosing to commit adultery: why is that your problem? He can deal with his (clearly very angry) girlfriend, so livid she’s shaking, once you’re gone.

“Yeah. Your ‘don’t tell’ plan worked real good, Sammy. Karma’s a bitch,” you spit, spinning on my heels and waltzing out the door.

You mean it: you’re done. At least until he breaks up with her and undoubtedly calls back. You want him, there's no question about that, but you want him all to yourself: and that's a secret you won't tell.

[demonslayedher]

Ramble on the Limitations of Looking for KnY Interpretation based on Japanese Mythology

One thing I notice a lot in the Japanese side of KnY fandom theories is a lot of deep dives into religious and mythological reasons behind Gotouge's creative choices. It is super interesting stuff, and Gotouge borrows enough and does homage to enough that there is a clearly a solid knowledge base there. While I find historical details handy for interpreting the characters, ultimately, I find that the canon of demons and Breaths can be interpreted in a vacuum without relying too heavily on the uncanny coincidences lurking in deep dives. This isn't going to be a well-supported essay, this is going to be a ramble that may include a bunch of interesting nuggets. (And then she went on to ramble for 3249 unedited words...)

First things first: I'm a nerd. I like to say I broke the weeb scale a long time ago, but I'm not exactly a university professor or anything like that. That said, I do read a lot of stuff from experts who have jumped on the KnY trends to talk about how elements in KnY are taken from, say, the sword making traditions of the Okuizumo region that results in black swords or simply making comparisons to famous swords, or local legends of supernatural encounters that resulted in split rocks, or comparing specific oni with and the heroes who slayed them or at least comparing elements of specific characters to other famous oni legends, or that Hinokami Kagura is based on a specific Shinto legend and has 12 forms based on existing Kagura traditions, etc. And I love reading this stuff, because I wouldn't had learned about some of it without my interest in KnY leading me to those articles, or as I read it I cheer because they're making references to things I already (as a nerd) really enjoy and therefore it strokes my inner echo chamber bias, or I nod along and think, "oh, yes, why of course, that makes total sense, Hinokami Kagura must be based on the dance Amenouzume performed to enticed the Sun Goddess Amaterasu out of the cave, how silly to think it could be based on anything else" but I then also take a step back to think, "...but it also doesn't have to be." For as many similarities as there to existing legends, it feels to me that Gotouge made it a point not to make specific reference to any particular mythological or religious elements. As an example, Gotouge considered titles with reference to a Shinto fire god named "Kagutsuchi" but never made actual reference to any fire god (or sun god) by name in the finalized direction canon took. Granted, a lot of fan theorists have read into that, going so far as to say because Nezuko's fire powers she represents Kagutsuchi, Yoriichi represents Amaterasu, etc., but while I find the idea of borrowed elements makes for highly interested interpretation of canon, one-to-one comparisons really don't work for this series. By not invoking a name like Kagutsuchi in the title or otherwise, Gotouge succeeded in not being boxed in by the canon of any particular deity. (Granted, "canon" for mythology can vary significantly by whatever historical writings you're looking at, with standard interpretations going through many big changes throughout the centuries. It can be as loose as it is limiting, depending on what sort of historical/mythological/religious figure you're talking about.) I feel there's more evidence of this avoidance by never invoking Amaterasu as a deity, despite the emphasis on the power of the sun in slaying demons. Even looking back and trying to figure out who Akeno placed so much faith, it was only called a "god of sunlight" as opposed to a "sun god." It's as though KnY works with a generic approach to religion. Even if the use of Buddhist element, the Nenbutsu prayer is called such, and Himejima's repeated phrases are legit Buddhist practice, but there is a huge variety of Buddhist sects and practices and theologies, and throughout history, many of them didn't get along. Going back to Akeno and wondering if she might had been Buddhist, I went so far as to suspect she was influenced by Nichirin sect philosophy based on its emphasis on the "Nichi" (sun) representing Japan and incorporating Shinto gods into its philosophy, and for its likely influence in the Kanto area in Akeno's time period, and for its encouragement for the salvation of women and therefore popularity among women. I felt pretty satisfied that it was all lining up, but also, none of this is necessary for a quality interpretation of canon. If Gotouge wanted to say specifically what informed her religious conviction, then it would had been said. But that's not what was important, was it? What was important, and therefore focused on, was Akeno's feelings toward her son and wishes for his sake.

While KnY's worldbuilding feels richer with all the clear religious influence, the details are not actually important. If anything, I feel like Gotouge dove into the heart of the elements of, say, Shinto mythology, and played those core elements up. It's different, yet still familiar, to take sun-associated elements and used them in a way that serves the story without being boxed into existing traditions. The sun is clearly important, and once you start looking for it, you find subtle recurring references to it. Like, Akeno's name? The "Ake" is one way of writing "red," and there are all sorts of uses of other ways of writing "red" throughout the series, in everything from the sand used for making Nichirin blades to the way that Haganezuka calls Tanjiro an auspicious "red" child with a very rarely used kanji. Our commoner main characters, though, just use regular old ways of saying "red" when referencing Tanjiro's appearance without thinking deeply into it, like there's something special right in front of them but they don't recognize it. Similar to how something as special as Sun Breathing was hidden right in front of them in Hinokami Kagura, with a name so generic and simple that it's entirely unsurprising that the Taisho era Kamado family would interpret it as "fire god." The very lack of limiting real-life details is what allows Gotouge to sprinkle these deep touches around, cover them up with branches and leaves, and then sit back and wait for readers to stroll through and invitingly pleasant looking field and then trip and fall down a rabbit hole. This is also what I think gives Gotouge the freedom and malleability to work with the sun in a way that serves the story, especially in ways that tie it to fire. While I don't think there's strong ties for this is general Japanese culture, the way canon is written implies a close tie between fire and the sun as being a very closely related element, hence the influence on the Kamado family, Tanjiro's appearance, his suitability for Sun Breathing based on a history of tending fire for careful charcoal burning, and Tanjiro and Nezuko capability as demons to overcome the sun. Here is where I go into a bit of a tangent about the purification element. This, again, is not strictly tied to any particular Shinto canon (and Shinto does place heavy emphasis on purification), but instead is an example of Gotouge getting to the underlying heart of a lot of common religious elements. Fire is associated with spiritual purification in everything from Buddhism to Catholicism, it's very easy to apply Nezuko's fire abilities as something which burns away something evil (demon poison) so as to purify something good (human flesh, or even other physical substances). Maybe lesser known, but very deeply entrenched in Japanese culture, is the purification element of charcoal. While it may be known around the world for soaking up undesirable elements and therefore used in everything from fish tank filters to treating food poisoning, in Japan, there's a bit of a spiritual side to it as well. For something so closely tied to the way of life for citizens throughout hundreds of years of history for everything from cooking to heating the home, it's unsurprising that quality charcoal would receive as much emphasis as good water and rice. Japanese charcoal is especially known for not producing undesirable smoke or odor, making it appropriate for use in a lot of settings. Charcoal farmers have often not just been that; they've been caretakers of the forest. Keeping the right trees, at the right sizes (both for use as charcoal and for how you pack it together when making charcoal), and in the right numbers to ensure you have stock for coming years, requires management of the forest. (Other tangent side note: many of the other names in the Kamado family are references to plants. Sumire both has the "sumi" sound of charcoal and is the word for violet, Kie is in reference to hollyhock, Nezuko is in reference to red beans (and the asanoha pattern of her kimono is in reference to hemp leaf, an

auspicious symbol of strong and quick growth), Takeo is in reference to bamboo (ironically bamboo can be a problematic plant for charcoal farmers, because it may spread too fast and take resources from other trees--stop stealing all the takuan pickles, Takeo!), Hanako is in general reference to flowers, Shigeru is in general reference to (plants) flourishing, and maybe by the time they got to Rokuta they gave up and said "he's our sixth child, let's just call him 'Six-Boy', lolz." BUT I DIGRESS.) That means the Kamado family not only had careful management of fire in the actual days of charcoal production, but of a wide variety of natural resources to ensure the trees were healthy. Natural weather phenomena, clean water, pest control, minerals from rocks getting into the soil, hmm, so many elements to pay attention to. Hmm. These sure sound a lot like other Breaths. And Breaths all stem from Sun Breathing. That means there may be certain elements of Sun Breathing that have been emphasized in each of them, but none of them encompass so many qualities of the natural world. The natural world which Yoriichi saw with such clarity than nature accepted him with open arms, practically, in how well animals took to him. Sun Breathing, while especially using that all-important purification aspect of sunlight which burns evil demons, is like an all encompassing embrace of nature. While being closely tied with fire is hugely important, there's more to it than just flames. While Shinto is very much so closely tied with nature (the extent to which this is emphasized may vary from shrine to shrine, scholar to scholar), what I see in KnY is a clever use of emphasis on spirituality in nature as opposed to emphasis on Shinto mythology. And I think that was a smart move. While stories based more directly on various theologies, mythologies, and religious ideologies often use those building blocks often wind up having very creative takes on them (even and especially with the confines of them), ultimately, the story of KnY is whatever Gotouge wants to do with it, and it does not seem guided by the specific conventions of more specific religious elements. But again, those deeper elements are still everywhere. You know what color Japanese charcoal burns? It's a gorgeous jewel tone red, spanning many of those rare shades of red Gotouge make reference to. And, in wider Japanese culture, red is the color of the sun (as opposed to how other cultures may represent it as yellow or orange or white or so on). (Not as exactly a KnY tangent, just personal: Japanese charcoal is so freaking pretty, I had no idea until I saw it used in the tea ceremony at parts when guests crowd around to enjoy the sight of it as the host prepares it for boiling the water. I can stare and stare and stare, it is so so so so so pretty, but also this element of the ceremony has gotten rarer both as many places have made a more practical switch to electricity, and tea ceremony quality has gotten more rare both due to fewer producers and due to beetle-related damages to the trees used, and I will always state HOW DISAPPOINTED I am that Kanata and Sumihiko are not out there raising charcoal, because charcoal is precious and I'm always so terrified of wasting charcoal in my practices because its so precious, but seeing the amazingly beautiful burn of the charcoal is absolutely one of my favorite elements of the ceremony and this of course gives me an extra soft spot for Kamado Tanjiro BUT I DIGRESS AGAIN, I TOLD you this was going to be a ramble, but SERIOUSLY IT IS SUCH A GORGEOUS RED).

So anyway. My point is, as interesting as incorporating outside elements may be, I don't find them necessary in interpreting KnY's canon. Even if it takes tons of Taisho Secrets to do so, Gotouge presents the details necessary, and that's more than enough to work with. After all, despite all the care taken in historical details in building the setting, KnY takes place in a fictional universe, it can make its own rules when it comes to things that don't actually exist in our universe. Demons, for example, follow a chronology and power system with sources and limits that is unique to a this universe, as tempting as it is due to general cultural familiarity, it does not call for a one-to-one comparison with existing demon legends. Breath as well, as a power system, is very interesting. Again, this is because it has a lot of basis in core concepts of real life physical and spiritual training. It's presented as a method available to anyone who can pick it up, not drawing on a mystical outside power or summoning the actual superhuman elements of nature. Other stories that present their power systems like that are well and fine, but when it comes down to it, this is a story about mere humans doing everything in their limited power to wave swords around and defeat creatures that seem so likely to outpower them. This is a common, relatable basis of stories throughout history, and a lot of analysis I've heard of KnY's success says that it shows how classic this story structure is. Many Japanese demon stories have their origin in epidemics, and some people suggest that the world looks for hope in stories like KnY in times of seemingly insurmountable crises like coronavirus. I think that's an oversimplification of KnY's success, but again, because of Gotouge's use of core cultural elements, it can be applied easily. OKAY BUT ON THAT NOTE we can do some really interesting digging if we want. : D Gotouge does make some highly specific references, included religious ones (granted, not in ways that impact the plot). The example coming to mind is the Seventh Form of Thunder Breathing, the "Flaming Thunder God." In Japanese, this is "Honoikazuchi-no-Kami," the name of a lightning deity who had a very, very brief mention in the Kojiki and who appeared among a handful of other lightning deities named in reference to other aspects/phenomena of lightning, like the sound or the rumble through the ground. Honoikazuchi is not so much the lightning itself, but the fires started by lightning. Stick with me a bit longer, I'm building up to something here. You've probably heard of the twelve animals of the Chinese (poorly translated as) Zodiac, right? Well, the system is way more complex than that, and really, if you want complexity, skip Japan and go dive straight into ancient China. I laugh and cry at myself for having a graduate degree in Chinese studies, the extent of my knowledge is is pitifully small, I know nothing, nothing. Suffice to say, China has its own five element system of water/wood/metal/fire/earth, it's more a philosophical application than a more physicality-based four element system popular in the west (fire/water/air/earth, why hello there, Avatar), with attributes of these elements assigned to every about anything through Chinese culture, from medicine to, you guessed it, the Zodiac animals. Japan saw all this and said "cool, we'll do that too" albeit their sort of mixed and matched a bit and made their own take on it in Onmyodo. An Onmyoji, who keeps track of, like, really any other-worldly matter you might have on your hands as a Heian noble, is someone who is paid to know all this stuff (it was very likely an Onmyoji who told the Ubuyashiki clan, "yeah, you got an evil family member to blame for your curse, squash him"). Yours Truly is not an Onmyoji and therefore will not attempt to go into more detail, save the one that a handful of Japanese theorists in the KnY fandom love to bring up: The Boar is a water sign. This means that, especially in Shinto practice, boars are considered an animal that protects against

fire, hence, a lot of practices to protect against fires were done on days of the Boar, in the month of the Boar, etc. So? So-o-o-o-o-o? You see it? You see it??? Boar = Water, Honoikazuchi = Fire, Inosuke and Zenitsu are basically foils to Tanjiro? Yes, yes, see it, yessss??? Deep dive Kamaboko theory, yes?????? Hahahaha. Naw. It's just a fun coincidence. ^_^ Again, I find these details completely unnecessary, for we are already given so many details in canon to work with on its own, and I think Inosuke and Zenitsu as foils to Tanjiro works entirely well simply based on their personalities, not because of any supernatural elements that require a high level of nerdery to have any hope of appreciating. Besides, once you start reaching too hard for cultural details Gotouge might have used and clinging too tightly to those ideas, there's likely something in canon to make it doubtful. For instance, Inosuke more widely presented as a king of the forest who wears deer and bear hide as well, and the fanbook state that Beast Breath is considered a likely offshoot of Wind Breathing. Even if we rely more strictly on historical detail, there's still the question of, say, what one of the basic Breaths, Thunder Breathing, even was when it was but a thunder inspired sword form not necessarily powered by Breath, you know, back when swords were longer and it would have been harder to make the fast draws katana would later be better suited for. Maybe they called it Thunder because it was practiced by swordsmen who stomped around really hard, and then when they added Breath technique, they figured out "oh dude, we can use our strong legs to go fast"??

Those are the kinds of things I find more fun to play around with in interpreting canon by bringing in little outside details, because as a work of fiction, there are already so many fun details to work with already even when treating it in a vacuum. But, giving Gotouge extensive and subtle use of cultural elements, especially core elements, it sure makes a lot of outside details applicable. Which is all to say, it's all super interesting, and I think the more people realize these things, the deeper they read into it, to an extent more than canon calls for. As much as I like it, and as much as I've enjoyed pulling outside elements in to fanfiction (like Kagutsuchi and lightning god tidbits), ultimately, if Gotouge thought these things were necessary, they'd have been included. Since they are not, I try to stick to canon details and Word of God-touge in answering Asks (lolz, I didn't plan on becoming a meta blog, it just kinda happened). BUT ALSO, JEEZ, I AM SO EXCITED IF PEOPLE TAKE A DEEPER INTEREST IN JAPANESE CULTURE BECAUSE THEY LIKE KIMETSU NO YAIBA, YOU CAN HAVE SO-O-O-O-O-O MUCH FUN PLANNING A TRIP TO JAPAN AROUND KNY THEMES, DO IT DO IT DO IT, GO TO YAGYU AND POSE IN A TANJIRO HAORI AND STICK YOUR SWORD IN A SPLIT ROCK, THE LOCALS THERE LOVE IT, DO IT but also like maybe learn about the tea ceremony and appreciate how beautiful the charcoal is with me k thx bye

[deyondwashere]

Let’s Talk Graves (Part 2/3)

(Purple text means it has the chance to be changed or deleted)

Role in story

Y'all ready for this? This could get real incoherent real fast because I'm just gonna babble.

Relationships

Within the Transformation, Graves mostly keeps to himself. Id say the people he is closest to is the Ophelia Family (Ace, Mona, Desdemona, and Cecilia). A quick refresher, the family is the top of the top, literally the most important people you could talk to within the organization. In his old concept (more on that later) he was somewhat of an uncle to Mona and Cecilia. He was a little younger then Ace and he had spent the majority of his life with him so he thought of him as a brother even though Ace is a "only child." Since then I have changed his concept though. Now instead of being in his Mid-30s he's about 17. I'm still trying to play with the idea that he still calls himself an uncle to them but I'm not sure if it's gonna stick.

Graves has a older sister that I imagine is about 25. Her name is Melody, that's her nickname atleast. She's called that because she can sing like, really well. No like, really really well. She has the ability to make the words she sing become reality. Of course there are limitations, one thing she can do however is heal dead bodies. She can't bring them back to life, but she can restore their corpse. She can't do it to someone who is overly decomposed though. Graves and her have a deal. If she helps him with dead bodies coming in, then he'll revive their brother. Who died of "natural causes" a few years back.

At his time in the lab, there was one subject that particularly interested him. James. A boy with the powers to make vines with poisonous thorns. Of course everyone had interesting powers but James interested him for a different reason. He wasn't in control of himself- a spirit was. The spirit that gave the vessels their powers are called guardians, and normally when this guardian tries to take control over the vessel without permission, it makes the vessel go feral. Attacking anything and everything like a rabid animal. A subject went feral a few years back and that's how the 4 of them got out of the lab. So either James allowed his guardian, Lucas, so take over, or he was on the verge of going feral at all times. Graves takes “special” interest in James during Crystals.

The Transformation

Graves decided to join the transformation sometime after his brother died, he was maybe about 9-12. He got word from someone that they were hosting an experiment. It had to do with creating some sort of "weapon" using biological beings. Combining souls to create them. Graves, being incredibly interested in death (even from a young age) was instantly hooked. He was able to get to the human world and instantly began rising through the ranks because of his high level of skill and his impressive hold on his powers at such a young age. By the time he was 15, he was already beginning to get eyed by the Ophelia Family themselves. Once his first expirment was closed due to a lack of subjects he began working for the transformation full time. After some time he was scouted out for another big experiment, for most this would seem absolutely impossible, or completely out of their range. However graves wasn't "most" people. He almost instantly took the job. What was it you ask? Nothing too important, just create immortality.

Graves decided to start at the bottom, with plants. Since he wasn't quite ready to take on live human souls, he decided that "live" would have to be his starting point. If you've ever been to Graves' house, then you would know that in his backyard he has a huge compost though because his garden is always dead or dying. That compost pile started from those plants that he killed at the beginning. Try after try and he couldn't get them to come back. He eventually got fed up and decided to move to wild mice or other rodents. That was the other ingredient in his compost pile. He found the work awfully boring, and a pain to clean up. So eventually he requested a human subject. His request was granted and from then on he very rarely got to test on traitors to the transformation or people who were dying. Is his times of need he would resort to picking the homeless off of the street. He was and still is a sick individual, perhaps some would blame it on his childhood.

Childhood

As stated before, Graves is from the Amilian world. He spent the first few years of his life there. I can probably do a world building post in the future but for now just know that The Amilian world functions as a monarchy with a clear divide between the poor and the rich. Within the poor, many of them are part of the transformation. It's like a virus, and that world is where it's rooted. They prey for the weak and vulnerable to build their cause. At this point, they've lost the reason of why they started it and now they're just in it for power. One has to wonder how it got this bad Graves' family was well off, held in high regards for their history of incredible powers. As you can tell, him and his sister were no exception to the pattern. If you've ever watched The Owl House, I imagine their house sort of worker like the Blight family, but with no hope of redemption. His father was working most of the time, maybe coming home once a month. His mother was around but something about her was always vacant and absent. Graves described his mothers eyes as "the same as roadkill, dull and empty." This left their 3 kids basically home alone. Melody was the oldest, Graves was the middle child, and Zm9yZ290dGVu was the youngest. Graves was quiet and never interacted with anyone, he was in his own world. Meanwhile, Melody and the youngest had a relationship that was... less then ideal. She believed that it was his fault that their life had gone to shit. She never let him leave her sight and even at some points getting quite physical with him. One day, out of the blue, the family came out with the news that he had died of "natural causes." Melody felt absolutely awful about it, now regretting her past choices. (Fun Fact! The inspiration for this story line was the song "You are a Useless Child" by Kikuo) She almost immediately turned to Graves to bring him back, he refused. He was fully capable of doing so, but he didn't want to. She begged him and said she'd do anything. And so that's how they struck up a deal, she helps with his expirmemts, and he will “eventually” bring him back. God knows if he will pull through with his promise.

Morals

Speaking of god…let’s talk his beliefs shall we?

Coming soon lmao