#the disney parks have been a special interest of mine for almost as long as i can remember

[sureuncertainty]

i think the biggest things separating me from 'disney adults' is the autism and the poverty

[cheri-translates]

[CN] Victor’s Night Dream Date (Eng Translation)

🍒 Warning: This post contains detailed spoilers for a date which has not been released in English servers! 🍒

Disney Dates Collection: Gavin // Kiro // Lucien

The date begins with MC in another city to attend a Film and Television Culture Summit

She hasn’t had the time to look around the city

A random woman who got along pretty well with MC during the Summit starts advertising for Disney:

Woman: Want to go to the famous amusement park? No matter who you are, you can find your own form of happiness there. 

MC refuses because she finds it too lonesome to go on her own

The woman responds by pointing at Victor who's standing at a corner

Woman: Don’t you have someone with you?

After the meeting has ended, Victor finally has a rare moment of leisure. 

MC: Would Victor really be willing to accompany me? 

I lower my head and mutter softly, not noticing that Victor has already walked over to my side. 

Victor: What are you mumbling about again? 

While I was originally hesitant to ask, I decide to give it a try after meeting his eyes. 

MC: Victor, do you want to...

Victor: Do you want to go to the amusement park? 

MC: Eh? 

Victor: I guessed you would be interested. 

MC: Mm! I’m going, I’m going!

I hurriedly nod, as though afraid he would change his mind. I pull him and we leave the venue. 

Victor: What’s the rush? 

MC: This is such a rare chance, of course we have to grasp it. Also, we don’t know how long we’d get to play since a lot of the incredible attractions would have pretty lengthy queues at this time. Basically - every second counts! Let’s go, let’s go!

~

By the time they reach the amusement park, it’s already sunset

It’s completely empty apart from a few staff members

MC wonders if the park has already closed, but Victor just holds her hand and walks to the entrance

Ticketing staff: Welcome! This is an amusement park handbook specially created for you. We hope you can enjoy today’s dream journey to your heart’s content!

Upon seeing us, the ticketing staff enthusiastically greets us and allows us to enter the park. He also gives me an amusement park handbook.

Before I can make sense of what’s happening, a line of staff members walk towards us with an enthusiastic welcome. 

Before the last staff member leaves, he even helps me put on a delicate necklace with a heart-shaped pendant.

As far as I can tell, the two of us are the only visitors in the entire park.

The attractions, which always have long queues of visitors, are now waiting for us to enter and experience. 

MC: Am I dreaming?!

With a bend of his finger, Victor flicks my forehead gently. 

Victor: Does it hurt?

I cover my forehead and give it a rub.

MC: So it isn’t a dream! But there isn’t a single person here at this time... is there a special activity today? 

Victor: I rented the park.

The way Victor casually mentions this fact leaves me with no idea how to react. I’m frozen to the spot. 

Victor: Didn’t you say that the amusement park is very interesting, and that you wanted to play? Since we’re already here, why not ride your favourite attractions instead of standing dumbfounded? Who was the one who just said that every second counts? 

MC: You’re not wrong to say that... but this is too sudden, and since we don’t have to queue, I really don’t know where to start...

Victor: Dummy. There’s still a lot of time, so you can decide slowly. 

My mind still blank, I open the amusement park handbook to decide on a route. 

The handbook has meticulously marked out a suggested route. There is a strange sentence on the title page --

“The key to entering the dream is in the hand of the dragon. Adventurers who dare to embark on this journey may even find the dragon’s lost treasure.”

MC: Eh? Did you plan this?

Victor leans over to look at the handbook in my hands, then thinks for a moment. 

Victor: No. But the staff confirmed the prize for this small game with me beforehand. 

Hearing this, my interest is piqued.

MC: Does this mean you’re the “dragon” in the handbook? 

Even though the “evil dragon” is Victor, I, as the “Adventurer”, will do my best to see what exactly awaits. 

MC: I won’t be soft-handed. I’ll definitely find that treasure!

Victor: ...

Victor looks at me resignedly, as though he wants to say something. In the end, he actually doesn’t call me “childish”.

Victor: Since I've already brought you here, you can do what you want. 

~

The first place marked on the handbook is the Fountain Square

The hint: “Touch the stars and follow the river of light to take the first step.”

MC decides to walk through the water columns (the ones that spray water from the ground every few seconds) since they reflect light

MC finds a box

When she tries to go back, she realises the water columns have become more difficult to avoid

She almost gets hit by a water column and Victor steps in, taking her wrist and leading her out of the Fountain Square

Victor: Where else have you gotten wet? 

Victor helps me tuck damp hair behind my hair, then signals to me to take off my drenched coat. 

He’s always so prepared and at ease. 

Since this is an amusement park, can I do things that I wouldn't normally do? 

Emboldened for some unknown reason, I shake my head with force. As expected, water droplets splash onto Victor. 

Victor: You...?

MC: This is an amusement park. You’re not allowed to say that I’m childish. You’re also not allowed to say that I'm a dummy after I've been serious with my work and learnt a lot over the past few days. Rest and relaxation are necessities for a human.

Without waiting for Victor to speak, I’ve already spouted a ton of odd logic in a single breath. 

He watches me with knitted brows. After a long time, his expression smoothens slightly.

Victor: Sophistry.

Even though he says this, the corners of his mouth are curled upwards more than usual.

Opening the box, MC finds the next hint: “To ensure your safety, bring a present to meet the dragon.”

While MC is wondering where to get the gift, she spots a smaller hint: “I’m definitely not telling you that the present is in the souvenir shop at the next spot!”

In the souvenir shop, MC is struggling to figure out what she should get

She suddenly recalls the Donald Duck doll she bought a few days ago - she has been bringing it around because his expression looks exactly the same as Victor’s - 

Eyebrows furrowed, but with an incredibly tender gaze and touch. 

MC is about to hand the doll over to him but hesitates.

MC: I predict that you’re going to call me childish again...

I mutter softly, wanting to retract my hand. 

With a gentle laugh, Victor takes the doll from me.

Victor: It suits you more. 

He hooks the doll onto my bag. Even though he didn’t directly accept the gift, the smile on his lips is obvious. 

Perhaps due to the unique magic of the amusement park, everyone is able to immerse in its gentle, lively atmosphere. 

Come to think of it, even though Victor doesn’t look like he suits an amusement park, he has already cooperated with my “childishness” from the start. 

Victor: Look around more carefully?

He points to the merchandise shelf at the side. With this, I realise that next to the dolls, there is a card, as well as a box the shape of a golden apple. 

MC retrieves the card. In the golden apple box, there’s:

MC: Pudding?

Whether it was intentional or unintentional by the staff, this “meeting gift” is the thing that best hooks the sweetness in my heart. 

Victor: If you like it, eat it. It’s fine with me.

Guessing my thoughts, Victor releases an amused breath. 

MC: What about the gift for the dragon? 

He points at the doll from just now.

Victor: This is enough. 

I relax, using the spoon to give it a try.

The pudding is silky and tender, drizzled with just the right amount of sweet caramel. Coupled with the unique golden apple packaging, it is very delicious. 

MC: Even though your pudding is number one in my heart, this one is not bad... it tastes very good! Do you want to try? 

I ask with a smile, taking another scoop.

Victor holds my wrist lightly, leans over, and brings the spoon into his mouth.

Before the sudden heat from my wrist dissipates, the spoon trembles slightly. 

Eyes half-lidded, his eyelashes cast a faint shadow. 

I watch as he opens his mouth slightly, holding onto the spoon.

For some reason, watching his bobbing Adam’s apple makes my face turn red involuntarily.

Even though we aren’t standing very close, the surrounding air turns hot and dry. 

I tear my eyes away and force myself to think about something else. 

MC suddenly has a realisation

If I’m the “Adventurer” who is supposed to challenge the dragon, why has Victor been by my side all this time, even giving me hints from time to time?

Aside from containing a new clue, the small words on the card in my hand seem to be giving me a hint. 

“The mighty black dragon’s most prized possession is perhaps not the golden treasure, but the thing he cherishes the most in life.”

Victor: What’s wrong? Have you thought of something? 

I can only blink, continuing to share the pudding in my hand with him.

MC: Shall we go to the next location? 

Even though I have a rough guess, I decide to wait till I’m more certain before telling him. 

This guess makes me feel as though the temperature has risen by several degrees.

 ~

The final location is the Ferris wheel, which is lit up but not moving

The hint is: “Under the rotation of time is the treasure trove of the immortal black dragon.”

There’s a locked fence separating them from the Ferris wheel, but MC is unable to find the key

MC: I’ve lost this time, Mr Evil Dragon. Looks like I won’t be getting your treasure. 

I pretend to pat Victor “magnanimously”, a sense of disappointment in my heart. 

It’s so rare that we get to come to the amusement park together. I wanted to have a complete experience with him.

Victor laughs softly. 

Victor: Dummy. 

Victor comes closer to me, His forefinger, which has a temperature slightly higher than mine, trails along my collarbone and hooks the necklace the staff member had helped me put on just now. 

He flicks the pendant gently. With a soft click, the pendant opens. 

In it, there’s a small golden key.

MC: This is...

He hands the key to me. 

Victor: To make things equal, I should give this to you. 

The doll he hooked onto my bag earlier swings along with our movements, as though expressing its excitement and blessings in its own way.

The small golden key glistens faintly in my hand.

“The key to entering the dream is in the hand of the dragon.”

So this is what the handbook means. 

With the final obstruction removed by the small golden key, the treasure is closer than ever before. 

The Ferris wheel plays lively music and begins moving. 

Victor: Not bad. 

Victor pulls the door to the Ferris wheel open, and does a gesture of invitation.

The lights that are more beautiful than a dream, the gradually ascending Ferris wheel, and the final treasure box paint a full-stop on today. 

MC: Is this the treasure? 

I look at Victor. He simply lifts his chin, signalling that I should open the box. 

An adorable doll sits obediently inside it. There’s also an invitation card which reads: This is an invitation to Miss MC to enjoy tonight’s firework display, specially customised for you.  

The small font at the bottom leaves me feeling slightly confused.

“The Brave One has not yet appeared. The treasure is once again under the dragon’s wing: The end of the dream is a new beginning.”

MC: “The Brave One has not yet appeared”?

These two short sentences are the answers to the guess I had before. 

If I’m not the Adventurer...

If my appearance has made the treasure return to the dragon’s nest once again...

And since the key has always been with me from the start...

MC: If I’m not overthinking all of this, could the dragon’s treasure be...?

I hold onto the invitation card, unsure if I should ask. 

Victor doesn’t say a word, and seems to be waiting for me. 

MC: Did someone tell you about this game?

Victor: Yes. 

MC: You also know the final prize. 

Victor: You’re right. 

MC: So the “treasure”...

Victor: Is the dummy who walked right into the trap.

In a moment, his breath invades my senses. 

The Ferris wheel gradually makes its ascent, and the firework display is about to begin.

The steady movement of the capsule brings us to the border between reality and fantasy, and we enter a most magnificent dream. 

At the highest point, we don’t welcome the descent.

The Ferris wheel halts where the scenery is the most vast, and is facing the nearby castle. 

Our eyes soak in the night colours of the entire amusement park. 

The fireworks are like shooting stars, blooming around us, dyeing the sky in dazzling colours. 

I hold the doll up, putting it close to Victor’s ear. 

MC: I’ve been found by the two of you! Thank you~ MC wants me to tell you that she hopes you can find eternal happiness!

Victor: That’s all you want to say to me? 

I put the doll down. Although I feel slightly shy, I try my best to look at him seriously. 

The night colours in his eyes are a hundred times deeper and more magnificent. 

MC: Thank you. I’m really very happy today. I hope I never have to wake up from this dream.

He releases a light breath. He shifts the doll away slightly, and hugs me more tightly.

Victor: Didn’t you already confirm earlier that this isn’t a dream?

MC: I want to do something for you, and hope that today is a very happy day for you too.

I give my entire focus to Victor, wrapping my arms around his neck. 

MC: Even if it’s just by a little bit, I want to increase your happiness meter. 

My voice is very soft, and I’m not even sure if he can hear me. 

Victor: I already have everything I want. 

His silhouette looks especially tender under the sparkling lights. 

The midnight bell sounds, but the magic does not disappear. Everything in our surroundings halt. 

We’re the only ones left in the entire world. 

Victor tugs my hand lightly towards him, and plants a kiss on the back of it. 

This light touch is akin to a burning seal. 

I seem to have forgotten how to breathe. 

Victor: You’re really a dummy. 

He laughs, his warm breath brushing my fingers. 

In the next second, the soft touch is on my joints, between my fingers. 

The only thing I can see and think of are his eyes - they are calm, yet contain a faint flow of emotions. 

The black dragon protecting its treasure since the beginning of time, and who has left a mark on my soul, is the most important person to me.

This amusement park, where all fantasies are allowed and fulfilled, weave the most romantic magic to all who visit.

-

Victor’s Post: Looks like a certain person is very satisfied with this trip to the amusement park. 

MC: You were very happy too!

Victor: I don’t deny that.

-

Victor’s Post: Looks like a certain person is very satisfied with this trip to the amusement park.

MC: If there’s a chance next time, we have to come back again!

Victor: There will be many chances - it depends on your performance. 

-

Victor’s Post: Looks like a certain person is very satisfied with this trip to the amusement park.

MC: Satisfied! Very satisfied! What about you?

Victor: Seeing you running here and there was quite interesting.

[eternaliax3]

Just For Show

One Shot | AO3

Fandom: Frozen (Disney Movies) Relationship: Kristoff/Anna, Elsa & Kristoff Friendship Rating: T

Words: 10,647 Notable Tags:  Fake Dating, Coming Out, Lesbian Elsa, AU - College, Slight mention of mild eating disorder, Ice Bros, Kristanna end game

Summary:  Kristoff meets someone he becomes infatuated with at first sight, and wants to be with her. Too bad he was dating her older sister. Well, fake dating.

“I need to ask you for a favor.”

The hulking man sat in the library with textbooks open in front of him on the table, peacefully working on his coursework. He looked up to see his best friend Elsa look down at him, biting her lip. Kristoff leaned back and put his arm on the back of his arm with one eyebrow raised. He had never really seen her this nervous before.

“Yeah, sure. What is it?” he said nonchalantly. He actually really needed to get back to his work.

“I need you to be my boyfriend.”

“Excuse me?!” Kristoff’s indignant yell echoed through the library, the two being met with awkward stares and glares from the people scattered about. His amber eyes were comically wide as he stared at Elsa. “Last time I was aware, you weren’t even into guys,” he whispered harshly.

Kristoff and Elsa had always been friends once they met in college. He was studying business management to take over his adoptive parent’s ice trading business and Elsa happened to be preparing for law school. They had to take a general education course in their freshman year and got partnered up in a group project for which they had two other useless people who didn’t do nearly as much work as them. They bonded over the fact that they were generally anti-social, except for a select few in their lives. They both were diligent, but he always knew Elsa had more ambition than him. He appreciated her silent but fierce personality and they usually studied together.

He didn’t think much of her not dating throughout the years, even though she had a lot of attention from other guys. He thought she was stunning as well, but he never felt drawn to her romantically. So it became a normal habit for her to reject men on the daily. She was dubbed the “Snow Queen” for that very reason.

So it came as a surprise that she came out to him as a lesbian. Well, sort of.

“Well, that explains a lot.” Namely how she seemed to blush uncontrollably around a special person who went by Honeymaren.

And he nodded and they both went back to work. Elsa had a relieved smile on her face and he knew that she appreciated his nonchalance as a reaction. He wondered at her secrecy throughout her depression that she had during her teenage years and if that was how she and her sister had drifted apart. Kristoff had ever met her, even through all of these years. But Elsa had talked about her fondly and with so much love that her eyes glittered in the light.

Now two years later and they are both in their junior year. And he found himself in this strange predicament.

“I know, I know,” Elsa shook her head, the blonde tendrils that escaped from her braid drifting about. “But there’s a family gathering soon for Thanksgiving, and my family has been hounding me about getting a boyfriend. I’ll never hear the end of it if I don’t go with someone.” She nervously twirled a strand of hair. He didn’t think he had ever seen her this nervous before. Was she really that afraid of her family?

“And you know, they don’t really know about…that. And I’m afraid of telling them. They’re not really the open and accepting type. They’re really old school.”

“Elsa, this is a lot to ask.” He leaned his head back and sighed. Even though he felt bad for her plight and how crap her family members are, her sister possibly not one of them, he just didn’t think he could do it.

“I know, I’ll make it up to you though. You can use our family’s cabin in the mountains as a little getaway during winter break.”

“For how long?” Kristoff’s interest was piqued. He did love being in the cold woods, away from people and just with his dog, Sven.

“As long as you want,” Elsa smiled sweetly, knowing she almost had him hooked. “And afterwards, I’ll just tell them we broke up. No big deal, and you would never see them again. It’s just for two days.”

Kristoff pondered for a few moments. Nothing could really go wrong, could it?

“Ok, deal.” They both grinned. 

                                          _____________

Kristoff drove with Elsa back to her home. He knew they had money, but geez, a large home in the middle of the woods was really expensive. It was like they owned the entire forest.

“So, how much longer?” he asked curiously.

“We’re about a half hour away,” Elsa replied. She held up her head on the windowsill, watching the trees fly by.

“Hey, everything’s going to be alright,” He knew she was worried. “I’m not gonna care about what your family thinks of me.”

“And you shouldn’t,” Elsa’s stern gaze was fixed on him. “They can be a bit much, but I’ll try to handle them as much as I can.”

“Hey, I’m not worried. I’m doing this for you, Elsa.” He smiled at her.

“And for that, I owe you so much.”

“I know, that cabin is gonna be mine for the winter!” He thumped his fist on the steering wheel triumphantly as Elsa laughed and shook her head.

The rest of the ride was drowned in companionable silence. They both weren’t ones to talk much, and for that they were good friends.

He finally reached the estate. Whoa, it was really that big? What, you guys have a lake too? He put the car into park and got out, opening the trunk and starting to unload his and Elsa’s luggage. Elsa came around to help.

“Elsa!”

They both turned around to see a fiery redhead bouncing up to them.

“Anna!” Elsa exclaimed, and the redhead almost literally jumped into her arms.

“Oh, I’m so glad to finally see you again.” She had a bright smile, which Elsa returned. “Oh, and is this the rumored boyfriend?”

She turned towards Kristoff, who towered over her and she stared up at him, and wow. Her blue eyes were bright and shiny and seemed to pierce into him. He didn’t think he had ever seen eyes so blue, and Elsa’s were pretty much like ice. Her sister’s however, were like the comforting blue sky during summer. Kristoff had no words for a moment, and he coughed into his hand. He didn’t want to admit it, but he might have just simultaneously developed a thing for redheads. Her face was adorably dusted with freckles and seemed to smile with her as she waited for him to answer.

“Uh, yeah. I’m Kristoff.” He held out his hand for her to shake, and he couldn’t help but notice how small her hand was in his. He almost engulfed it.

“I’m Anna, Elsa’s little sister. It’s nice to meet you!” He smiled back at her. Her energy was somehow infectious.

“Elsa, you really have to tell me how you met him! He’s so handsome!” She gushed excitedly, and Elsa couldn’t keep the smile off of her face. He could tell that Anna had a very special place in her heart, the fondness in her eyes told it all. And he couldn’t help but feel a rush of pride at the fact that she found him handsome, but also a sinking dread. He almost forgot he was supposed to be Elsa’s “boyfriend” after all.

“I will, I will. Let’s go inside first.” Elsa took her hand in hers and lifted up some luggage with the other. Kristoff helped her to take the rest in, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in his stomach that was growing.

This just got a whole lot more complicated.

                                         _____________

“Hi mom! Hi dad!” The energetic redhead seemed to never be lacking in excitement as she ran over to give her parents a big hug. The tall blonde and brunette looked at both Anna and Elsa with happiness, and welcomed them back into their home.

Kristoff lumbered in after them, a bit of nervous dread building in him but mostly nonchalant as he stood behind Elsa. Was it bad to say that he wasn’t afraid of embarrassing himself in front of her parents but instead more of Anna?

“Oh mom, dad. I want you to meet someone,” Elsa said quietly. Kristoff could tell the slight tremor in her voice was from nervousness, and he tried his best to stay calm. “This is my boyfriend, Kristoff.”

He could feel their appraising eyes on him and he tried to match their stare. So these were the parents who Elsa were afraid of telling? He didn’t really understand how Anna could ever be so unaccepting of Elsa, she seemed to love Elsa unconditionally. He could feel the redhead giving him an encouraging and welcoming smile, even if their father was trying to burn a hole through him with his glare. Somehow it didn’t feel as biting as Elsa’s though. Maybe she got that from her mother.

He tried to not look at Anna throughout the ordeal.

“It’s very nice to meet you.” He tried to give a charming smile but it felt unfamiliar and awkward on his face.

The tall blonde man (who was glaring at him) stepped forward and held out his hand, now giving a smile.

“My name is Agnarr. And this is my wife, Iduna.” He gestured to the elegant brunette next to him who welcomed him with a kind smile.

“It’s so nice to meet you, Kristoff. We’re so excited, Elsa finally has a boyfriend!” She gushed.

Elsa groaned and put her hand to her forehead, and Anna laughed. It sounded like bells.

“Well let’s just go in and get you guys settled.” Anna saved the day and Krisoff mentally thanked her for ending the semi awkward (for him and Elsa at least) first meeting with their parents.

Just two more days to go. What was he thinking agreeing to do this? Oh yeah, Elsa was one of his best friends. Who had a beautiful younger sister—ok stop there, Kristoff. He thought to himself. At least break up with Elsa first.

He brought in his luggage and gaped at how expansive the house was, it somehow looked even bigger on the inside. How was that possible? Elsa and Anna walked inside, arm in arm, while Anna gushed about her classes. His ears picked up the fact that she had a new boyfriend, and he felt his stomach drop in dejection. Of course she would have a boyfriend. One that treated her like a princess, he would bet.

They sat at the dinner table and chatted amicably. He explained how he was doing in his classes, very well he might add, much to the impressed Agnarr. And they explained how they had met in class and started to spend more time together, which blossomed into their “relationship” now.

“Wait,” Anna stopped them. “This is Kristoff? Your best friend, Kristoff?” her eyes widened.

“Yes, Anna,” Elsa said coolly.

“Oh my gosh, why didn’t you tell me you guys were already dating? We could have had double dates with me and Hans! I had no idea, I mean, Elsa you had told me about Kristoff lots of times but you guys have been dating for a few months already!”

“Well, you know-” Elsa struggled to find the words as Kristoff mentally tried to catch up with her chattering.

“We’re pretty private people. We just didn’t want it to be public for a bit,” Kristoff supplied. Elsa looked at him gratefully.

“Oh, I see.” Anna nodded. She seemed to know her older sister very well.

“Where is Hans, by the way?” Iduna asked.

“Oh, he went back to the Southern Isles to visit his family,” she said, “But he’s been texting me everyday.” Her smile was bright with affection.

Kristoff and Elsa both sighed in relief as the conversation shifted over to other topics. Anna was studying psychology with the intent to become a therapist, which Kristoff thought was very fitting to her personality. Anna kept the tone of the conversation light and happy, and everyone seemed to be having a good time.

Kristoff and Elsa were walking back to their rooms, their separate rooms, and Kristoff wondered about the relationship with Anna.

“How come you haven’t told Anna yet?”

Elsa stopped in her tracks, her shoulders tense. She knew exactly what he was referring to.

“It’s hard, Kristoff. We haven’t...had the best childhood growing up. I was always isolated and didn’t want to spend time with her. I was so depressed I just locked myself in my room. I always felt different, and couldn’t bear to tell her in case she didn’t accept me,” she whispered.

“I don’t think she’ll be like that at all,” he said gently.

“I don’t want to ruin what we have now. I finally fixed our relationship together and we’re acting like sisters again.” Her stubbornness on the matter was clear through the set of her shoulders and he sighed.

“I think you should explain. I don’t think she’ll react the way you think she would.”

Elsa pondered his words, and he left her standing in the hallway to go into his room after wishing her a good night, to which she didn’t respond.

                                        _____________

The next morning, he woke up bright and early. The mattress he was sleeping on was downright heavenly, and the sheets were so silky. He didn’t even want to know how much they cost.

Anna had joined the rest of the family for breakfast much later, yawning adorably along the way. Elsa had teased her mercilessly about her sleeping habits, and Anna stuck out her tongue. Kristoff couldn’t help but smile at their exchange, to which Anna smiled back at him and he swore his heart skipped a beat.

“So what’s the plan for today?”

“Well, we have to prepare our Thanksgiving dinner, of course!” Iduna answered and Anna clapped her hands in excitement.

“And then we’ll play charades after!” She said, her eyes bright.

“Ugh, do we have to?” Elsa said with a groan.

“Yes! It’s our tradition, you can’t back out of it!” Anna retorted. “Besides, you just don’t want to play because you’re so bad at it.” She leaned back in her chair with a smirk.

“I’m not that bad at it.”

“Yes, you are.”

“Girls, that’s enough,” Agnarr laughed.

“I’m actually excited to play,” Kristoff said, sending a smirk at Elsa, who glared at him indignantly.

“Ugh, fine,” Elsa relented and Kristoff and Anna shared a triumphant look.

Cooking dinner with the family was much like cooking with his own family, chaotic and fun, and full of laughter. Mostly from Anna’s antics. She would chuck ingredients at others and at one point her and Elsa almost had a full blown food fight. Anna seemed to draw out Elsa’s competitive streak. It was Iduna who made them stop with a single glare. Ah, so that’s where Elsa gets it from.

The day was mostly enjoyable and he couldn’t help but laugh with Anna most of the time. She was the life of the party, it seemed. He didn’t mind that at all though. She had a way of making things seem easygoing, and like the world wasn’t so bad. Whoa, that was pretty sappy, he thought to himself. He reminded himself that she had a boyfriend. One that apparently was two years older and was studying political science. He tamped down on the jealousy that arose in him at the thought of this “Hans.” He sounded like a pretentious jerk from what Anna had said about him.

Elsa seemed to relax as well, enjoying the time around her beloved family. Kristoff felt a bit out of place, although Anna did her best to include him in their activities, as much as he wanted to be on the sidelines.

They sat around the dinner table, lit up with candles and the turkey as the centerpiece. Elsa and Iduna were the main chefs of the house, Anna and Agnarr seemed to have no culinary expertise. But they had done a great job, and the food looked, and smelled, delicious. Kristoff and Anna proudly presented their salad and mashed potatoes. They said they typically have a live-in chef, but Thanksgiving dinner was their own tradition.

“Agh, I’m absolutely stuffed.” Anna smiled and leaned back in her chair.

It was so endearing watching her eyes sleepily regard the rest of her family, as she tried so hard not to fall asleep there. Kristoff gave a small smile at the sight. He would miss her after this, although this charade he was doing with Elsa seemed to be falling apart anyway. They both tried their best to be “couple-y” and hold hands and hug each other, but it felt really awkward. He found himself wishing that it was Anna that he was doing that with, she would take his hand without hesitation and drag him along wherever she wanted to go, and he would follow.

Kristoff could see it so vividly, and it scared him.

Anna amazingly perked up with energy again once they cleaned up the dinner table and sat in the living room to start their game of charades.

Since they had an odd number of people, they decided to forgo making teams.

“It would always be Elsa and I on one team, and mom and dad on the other,” Anna had explained to him. “But this makes it more fun! It’s like a free for all!” Her smile was bright and happy.

He couldn’t help but laugh at Elsa since Anna was right, she was kind of bad at this game. Her actions were a bit awkward and stiff, and it took a while to get what she was doing guessed correctly. But it was fun nonetheless, as Anna was so enthusiastic. She had guessed his turns correctly most of the time.

“A bear! Oh, setting a table? Riding a horse!” Though her guesses could get more and more wild, he learned.

It was her turn and she made a grand show of arching her hands and arms and growling loudly. Almost like a roar. He was pretty impressed, she seemed like she was having loads of fun, and he was too. Even if he didn’t want to admit it.

“Beast! A bear!” He yelled. Anna shook her head.

Iduna guessed next. “Wolf?” Anna shook her head again. But the buzzer went off, signaling her time was up.

She let out a breath. “Villain!” she said.

“Oooh,” they all said in unison.

She went and sat down, giving a smile to Elsa as they sat next to each other. They played a few more rounds, and they went to retire for the night, as they had a long drive back to campus in the morning.

Anna would be going back in her own car a bit later, as she liked to sleep in. Kristoff realized it probably would be the last time he would see her, unless it was around campus. He hoped that she wouldn’t be angry with him once Elsa told her they “broke up.”

In the hallway, Anna got to her room first, but turned to Elsa and Kristoff to wish them a safe trip.

“Kristoff, you have to come back here for Christmas break!” she said, and he didn’t have it in him to turn her down. Not when she was looking at him like that—like she was so happy that he was there.

“Alright,” he said dumbly, and Anna’s grin widened as she said good night. He ignored Elsa’s quizzical look at him.

                                       _____________

The next week then passed without event, Kristoff not seeing much of both Elsa and Anna, as exam season arrived with a vengeance. He himself had a bunch of presentations and papers to sift through as well as research for them so he was also pretty busy. It happens.

As he was walking back to his apartment near campus he felt his phone ring in his pocket. He pulled it out and was shocked to see Anna’s name flashing across the screen. But he answered.

“Hello?”

Gaspy breaths and a sniffle came from the other side.

“Kristoff?”

“Anna? Oh my god, are you alright?” He couldn’t help but feel an enormous wave of worry for her as he heard her obvious crying, despite her trying to hide it.

“Yeah I’m fine.” A lie. “I was just wondering if you knew where Elsa was?” Another sniffle, but quieter this time.

“Uh, no sorry. I think she usually stays at the library until late at night during this time to study. And she usually keeps her phone off to not have distractions.”

“Oh.”

Kristoff’s worry for her grew as she stayed silent.

“Thank you for letting me know, Kristoff. I’ll see you around.”

“Wait!” He exclaimed before she could hang up on him. “Where are you?”

There was a small pause from Anna as she seemed to be taken by surprise by his tone.

“I’m outside of Elsa’s apartment,” she said quietly. “I thought she would be there.”

Kristoff immediately turned around to start walking quickly to Elsa’s.

“Alright, I’m on my way over.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yeah, really.” He quickened his pace. “Just stay there, alright?”

“Okay.”

“I’ll see you soon.” Kristoff hung up and started to run, it was just a few blocks away and getting there as fast as he could was his first priority.

He reached the large apartment building and ran up the stairs to the fourth floor to where Elsa’s apartment was. He found Anna slumped against the wall wearing a black dress and heels. She lifted her head up to look at him and he took note of her blotchy eyes and red nose.

“Kristoff.” She mustered up a smile for him despite her crying.

“Anna, what happened?” He frowned at her demeanor and was mildly horrified at the fresh onslaught of tears that question evoked.

“It's Hans.” He made out from her soft sobs.

“What about him?” He felt his own voice become low and threatening, but Anna didn’t notice.

“I found out he was cheating on me with some other girl.”

“What?” Kristoff exclaimed. “That asshole!”

Anna couldn’t keep eye contact with him and stared at the ground. Kristoff didn’t usually do any of the affectionate things, but he felt compelled to try to cheer her up.

“Come here.”

Anna tilted her head at him and he engulfed her petite frame in a hug. He tucked her head underneath his chin, the heels that she was wearing managing to make her tall enough to fit perfectly in his arms.

“Hans is an asshole, alright? He didn’t deserve you.” And he meant every word.

They stayed in that hug for a while, at least until Anna’s frame stopped shaking and her sobs subsided and her sniffles became less frequent.

She pulled away first and gave him a smile. It was at that moment he knew he was taken with her, for good.

“Thanks, Kristoff.”

“Hey, no problem.” He smiled back. “Come on, let’s go.”

“To where?” Anna followed him as he started walking down the hall to the elevators.

“I know just what you need to cheer up.”

                                        _____________

“A diner?” Anna stares up at the blinking sign and then at Kristoff who was smiling. By now she stopped crying and only had the slightly red face to show as evidence of it.

“Hey, they make the best breakfast dinner here, hands down.”

Anna couldn’t help but giggle at his enthusiasm. He must really like breakfast for dinner.

“Alright, alright. Let’s go!” She was the one to go inside first and she heard Kristoff chuckle as he followed her inside. The smell of delicious waffles, fried chicken, and something like doughnuts wafted into her face and she breathed in deeply.

“Wow, it smells so good!” She felt her stomach growl in response. After all she was supposed to have dinner with Hans today, but that wasn’t ever going to happen again.

“Told you.” Kristoff smirked at her. “Come on.”

He led her over to a table by the window and she sat across from him. She felt horribly overdressed in her dress and heels, but Kristoff smiled at her and she relaxed. There weren't many people in the diner at this time of day anyway, and it was near closing time.

“Is it ok to be here so late?” she couldn’t help but ask.

“Oh yeah. It’s no problem.” He shrugged and handed her a menu. His own menu laid unopened in front of him.

Anna took a look at the delicious options in front of her and she couldn’t help but feel an urge for curly fries but she shut it down.

“Kristoff’s here!” A loud voice came from behind her and her eyes widened as she saw Kristoff slump back into his seat. He had an endearing smile on his face though as a woman came up to their table. Her smile was wide and kind as she looked down at Anna, and turned towards Kristoff.

“You didn’t tell me you had a date!”

“Hey, ma.” Kristoff said. “It’s not a date, this is Elsa’s sister, Anna.”

“It’s very nice to meet you, Mrs. Bjorgman.” She hoped her face wasn’t blotchy still and that she still looked presentable. It turns out she had nothing to worry about as she watched her face brighten with happiness.

“Oh dear, none of that now! You can call me Bulda.”

Anna giggled. “Alright, Bulda.”

“Now what can I get ya?”

“Oh I’m not sure.” She bit her lip. “There’s just so much to choose from.”

Kristoff regarded her through pensive eyes and she looked towards him.

“Is there anything you recommend?” she asked him.

“Sure, the waffles and chicken are great, they’re my favorite.” He looked towards Bulda and she winked at her.

“I do make them pretty darn good, if I say so myself.”

Anna smiled widely. “It sounds delicious, I’ll get that then!”

Kristoff laughed. “Same for me, ma.”

“You got it, hun. Two waffles and chicken, coming right up!”

She grabbed the two menus and went into the back in order to put the order in.

“You mom is so nice.” Anna said.

“Yeah, she can be a bit much but she definitely is welcoming.” Kristoff grinned.

They both stared out the window, watching the cars drive by and people walking in the street.

“Thank you again, Kristoff.” she said quietly.

“It’s fine, Anna.”

“No, really. I don’t know of anyone’s boyfriend that would do so much for their girlfriend’s sister.”

Anna smiled brightly at him. She was still really sad at what had happened with Hans, and extremely angry, but she didn’t think she was going to burst out into tears randomly anymore. The sneer that Hans has given her when she found him kissing another woman at his apartment was enough to make her want to explode during the moment.

But being in the soft and inviting diner made her more relaxed. Kristoff was such a nice guy, despite his tough and quiet demeanor when she first saw him.

Now, watching him devour the waffles and chicken made her giggle, but when she took the first bite of it she moaned and dug in, shoveling bites and bites into her mouth as if she was starving for a year.

“Hey, slow down there. There’s a lot to eat and it’s not going anywhere.” Kristoff’s voice held a hint of laughter but she didn’t want to stop, it just tasted so delicious!

“I can’t, I haven’t had this in a few months!” she said with her mouth full, and she didn’t really think Kristoff understood her with it being all muffled by the food.

“Wait, what? You haven’t had waffles ever?”

“No, pay attention. I haven’t had it in a few months.”

“Why?” His face was quizzical and she found it kind of adorable.

“Well, I wanted to watch my figure.” She paused and remembered all the salads she would eat and while they were good, she remembered feeling hungry sometimes.

“Is this because of Hans?” He asked, his quiet voice coaxing her to slowly meet his gaze.

“Well…” she hesitated. “Yes. He said I wasn’t skinny enough.” Now that she admitted it to Kristoff, she realized how absurd she was being.

“That’s bullshit. Anna, you’re perfectly healthy.”

“I didn’t realize it when I was with Hans. I thought it was normal.” She felt her face fall, and she frowned. “No more of that though!” She shoveled more food into her mouth.

“Hey, I want some curly fries too!” Her eyes were probably wide with excitement and she thought Kristoff would be weirded out by being excited about some measly curly fries, but she hadn’t had them in so long and they were her favorite...along with BLTs, steaks, and so many others. Her mouth practically drooled with the thought of all these foods that she had kept away from.

To her surprise, Kristoff only laughed and shouted out to Bulda for an order of curly fries. An exuberant “you got it!” was yelled back to them.

She practically bounced in her seat as the delicious curly fries were set down in front of her. And she took a bite of them and absolutely melted in her seat. And another, and another. She was in curly fry heaven.

And when they were finished eating (she took the rest of the food to go in order to eat later), they walked in companionable silence back to her dorm.

“Thanks again, Kristoff,” she couldn’t help but say.

“How many times do I have to tell you, it’s no problem.” He jokingly scolded her.

A light laugh escaped her. “Let me know how I can make it up to you.”

Kristoff smiled and she felt her heart beat a bit faster. Oh no.

“Just go and have a good rest. You deserve it after today.”

“Alright. Good night Kristoff.”

“Good night.”

He didn’t leave until she went through the door.

Later, her phone rang as she settled into her bed, after a relaxed bubble bath and in her fluffiest pajamas.

“Hi, Elsa!” she said cheerily.

“Anna?” Her sister’s regal voice sounded into her ear, laced with worry. “I have four missed calls from you and three texts. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I was looking for you earlier at your apartment.”

“I was at the library studying, I’m so sorry I won’t leave my phone off anymore. What happened?”

“Oh…” Memories of him with the other woman floated back and she was hit with a wave of sadness again at the reminder. “I found out that Hans was cheating on me.”

“That piece of shit!” It was funny how similar Elsa and Kristoff were. No wonder they were dating.

“It’s alright, I was going to his apartment to meet him before our dinner so we could walk to the restaurant together, and I saw him with someone else.”

“I’m going to kill him!” Elsa growled in her ear.

“I’m so sorry, Anna, do you want me to come over right now? We can have a movie night and ice cream.”

“Nah, I’m good now,” she said happily. “Actually I called Kristoff to find out where you were and once he heard me crying he rushed on over and took me to a diner to cheer me up!”

A pause on the other end. “He did?”

“Oh, it’s totally fine though! There’s nothing to worry about, there wasn’t anything romantic about it at all. He was just being nice to me, please don’t be mad!” This whole thing sounded absolutely terrible and she didn’t want to be the other woman, especially since she knew how it felt. The pain was still there of the very recent heartbreak, even though it was a dull fade at the moment, but it was there nonetheless. She wouldn’t ever do that to Elsa.

A light laugh floated out of her phone and she relaxed. “Anna, it’s fine. I’m totally okay with that! I’m just glad he cheered you up.”

“Yeah, he’s a really good guy. I’m really happy you guys are dating.”

There was a slight cough on the other end.

“Elsa?” she asked in concern.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Well if you’re sure you don’t need me to come over…”

“I’m fine now, Elsa. You just concentrate on your exams.”

“Alright. I’ll text you tomorrow.”

“Okay! Night!”

“Good night Anna.”

She hung up and set her phone on her nightstand. She stared up at her fairy lights that twinkled and blinked at her and thought about how lucky she was to have good friends in her sister and Kristoff.

Exams came and went, and Anna didn’t see Elsa or Kristoff at all during then. She texted Elsa in order to find out where she was and remembered that she was typically in the library.

Walking down the aisles of books she passed by people with their heads down, either scribbling furiously or typing furiously on their laptops. She searched for a hint of blonde hair.

She reached the end of the library and found a table, with a familiar looking light blue tote bag. It was definitely Elsa.

Anna was about to call her name, but stopped as she heard furious whispers. She rounded the corner and spotted Elsa glaring at Kristoff, who was doing the same. She froze.

Elsa spotted her first and her eyes widened.

“Anna!”

“I’m so sorry if I’m disturbing you. I just wanted to see if you two were up for a little late lunch? But I see that you guys are busy! I’ll just go now you guys can continue or I don’t know, try to fix it—” she spitted out in a ramble while taking slow steps back from the awkward situation.

Kristoff broke her tirade.

“Hey Anna, wanna hang out with us?”

There was no way that Anna missed the glare that Elsa sent him as she asked that. Uh oh. She knew Elsa was mad at her for going to the diner with Kristoff!

“No, it’s okay, I was actually just gonna go! Yeah, I’ve got a lot of work to catch up on for one of my classes and I don’t wanna disturb you, so I’ll see you guys later!” And she booked it.

It was such an awkward situation and she did not want to escalate it further. She liked that Elsa was happy with him and didn’t want to do anything to disturb that. She made the resolve to no longer try to see them together.

                                           _____________

Kristoff glared at Elsa after he watched Anna twirl around and leave. He was met with one of her own and he rolled his eyes.

He didn’t think today would start off like this and he knew it looked like they were having a lovers’ quarrel. It couldn’t be farther from the truth. Although Elsa was happy and grateful for him cheering up Anna that one night, he brought up the idea of just telling her the truth. He was immediately met with an ice wall that was both chilling and stubborn. Typical Elsa.

“I mean, she’s your sister! She thinks the world of you and she would never judge you.”

“We’re not going to talk about this.”

“I can’t keep being your fake boyfriend forever.”

With that, her eyes softened and she looked down guiltily.

“I know,” she said quietly.

Kristoff felt his anger cool. Just a tad though. He didn’t like the situation she was in, but then again it was her idea in the first place. He won’t lie and admit to himself that he was angry because he felt himself more and more drawn to her little sister by the day.

“Listen, you have to go and tell her. Or I will.”

“You’d tell her my secret?!” she hissed, blue eyes flashing in indignation.

“No!” he started. “Just the fact that this is all fake.” He wouldn’t ever tell her that Elsa was a lesbian. That was Elsa’s business and Elsa’s business alone.

Elsa closed her eyes and leaned her head back.

“I know. And I will.”

“You’ll what?”

“I’ll tell her the entire truth.”

Kristoff waited anxiously for Elsa to give him the news that she admitted to everything. This fake dating thing was only supposed to be for a few days after all. But then Anna, sweet Anna came along. The cabin up in the mountains didn’t even matter to him anymore. He just wanted to see the two sisters happy and knowing the truth about Elsa’s secrecy and motives for the whole shenanigan.

But he knew it was ultimately up to Elsa. And he would stand by her decision no matter what. No matter how sweet and pretty Anna was. He groaned.

How did his life become like this?

Elsa texted him later that day. He was already studying for finals and he wanted to get a head start. Looking at her text saying we need to talk, he called her.

“Elsa?”

“Hey.” Her voice sounded troubled.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“Is this about Anna?” he asked.

A sigh. “No. And yes.”

What was that supposed to mean?

“Elsa?” His tone held no room for her hesitance.

“Okay! So my parents and Anna want you over for Winter break.”

“Winter break?!”

“I’m sorry! Anna just started rambling and I couldn’t get a word in since it was a video call with my parents in it. And I just wanted to tell Anna, not them so I just went along with it.”

“Ugh.” Kristoff ran his hand into his hair. This was just great. For all the times he thought about cool and nothing-fazes-me Elsa, he thought she sounded like Anna just then.

“How about I come along, and I help you tell the truth to everyone. That way it’s not just you. We don’t have to talk about you not being interested in guys, but we can just say that you weren’t looking for a relationship or whatever.”

“You’d do that?”

“Yeah. It seems like you’d need the support.”

“I do. I— thank you, Kristoff.”

“Anytime.”

Time to focus on final exams and then to a daunting winter break. Yay.

                                      _____________

Anna resisted the urge to text Elsa. She didn’t want to meddle in her affairs too much but she was absolutely dying to know if Kristoff and her made up.

She gasped with a smile. Of course! She could text Kristoff and give him some tips if he hasn’t won her back yet. She ignored the quizzical bump of pain in her chest as she pictured him bringing her older sister flowers and chocolates.

She shook her head as she shot Kristoff a text.

[Anna] Hey Kristoff! Just wanted to see if you made any progress in your lovers spat with Elsa?

A moment later her phone jingled, and she rushed to look at it.

[Kristoff] Nah, she’s still a bit mad at me. But it’s not something I can just ignore.

Oh man, it must have been big in order for the two most level headed people she knew to argue like this.

[Anna] Ok, so you guys need to talk. When you do though, she’s more receptive to you if you bring her something she likes.

It’s like you thought of her and want to make her happy even when you’re angry at her.

[Kristoff] yeah?

[Anna] Chocolates! Definitely chocolates. Dark chocolate truffles are her favorite!

Oh and an apology of course.

[Kristoff] Lol how do you know I’m in the wrong and she’s not?

[Anna] Excuse you sir, this is my sister you’re talking about.

[Kristoff] Ok feisty pants, chill out.

[Anna] I’m kidding!

In all honesty I think you both will get through this and I’m rooting for you!

It was a few minutes before his next text came in, and she waited anxiously.

[Kristoff] Thanks Anna

[Anna] Anytime!! Ask me for advice on Elsa whenever you want! Good night!

[Kristoff] Good night

Anna smiled at her phone and turned back to her open textbook. Now to finally stop procrastinating…

The next day brought a genuine smile of surprise and an excited wiggle as she saw that Elsa and Kristoff were sitting at their usual library table studying. She held the bags of takeout carefully as she went towards them.

Yeah, they weren’t supposed to eat at the library but this was a desperate time of cramming and they needed all the time they could get.

“Hey guys!” she greeted cheerfully.

Elsa gave her a tired smile in return. Whoa she must have really been crammed.

Kristoff’s was bright and wide as he saw her. He was probably happy she got them food, she thought. He also looked haggard and tired. But still good, as the sleeves of his shirt clung to his strong biceps—whoa, Anna. She felt guilty even thinking that, especially since she’s been thinking that a lot more lately.

As they munched on the takeout and poured over their books—or at least Anna tried to, she was never the type to learn from reading, she thrived on auditory learning and hands on training, she snuck a glance towards the two.

They seemed to be on good terms again, since they’re sitting next to each other. The tiredness is probably from just stress.

She found her chance to find out more as Kristoff excused himself to go to the restroom.

“Pssst, Elsa!” she whispered.

“Yeah?” she mumbled back.

“How did things go with Kristoff?”

Elsa stopped writing, her eyes frozen on the page.

“What?”

“You know! After your argument. Did he bring you chocolates like I said?” Anna gushed excitedly. She wanted all the details.

“Chocolates?” Her eyebrow twitched.

Anna rolled her eyes. “Yes! C’mon Elsa, don’t leave me hanging here. I wanna know everything! And is he coming to stay or winter break?”

Elsa leaned back in her seat.

“Yes, we apologized to each other and he gave me chocolates. The end.”

“Elsa!” she pleaded for more detail.

“And he is coming to stay for winter break.”

“Yes! It’s gonna be so fun!”

“Not for the whole time though. He has to go back to visit his own family too,” she spoke in a guarded tone.

“Of course, of course.”

“Just focus on finals for now, Anna.”

“Okay!” She was just so excited for the two.

                                           _____________

Kristoff sighed as he packed his things for this winter break excursion. Who knew that this charade would go on for this long? Well, it was ending soon. And he wanted to get home quickly after telling the truth to everyone.

It might mean that Anna hates him forever, but he hoped not. He really hoped not.

She was just so earnest about him and Elsa that he felt guilty for playing along with being the fake boyfriend. The text messages they shared when Anna was giving him advice about Elsa was almost too painful and awkward. He thanked god that he wasn’t in front of her in person when that happened, there’s no telling what expression he would have made throughout the ordeal.

He trudged onwards to his truck and mentally prepared himself for what was to come. But he knew that whatever he was feeling was nothing compared to Elsa.

The whole car ride was made in thoughtful silence and when he arrived he had no idea how to face Elsa. He decided to go with a supportive smile, and she returned it gratefully. Their friendship was stronger than this and he was thankful for that.

Facing Anna was easier than he thought it would be, seeing her cheerful face again made him happy. Elsa gave him a look that he did not want to decipher at the moment, but he definitely knew that she knew what he thought of Anna.

Her parents greeted them all with hugs and happy smiles, which he tried his best to return. He knew Elsa was on edge so he tried to make the focus on him so she could gather her thoughts and courage.

That was how he found himself being thrown into conversation with everyone at the dinner table. They had a chef prepare the dinner this time instead of them making it, and while the food looked absolutely delicious, it tasted bland and dry in his mouth.

“So, how did your semester go?” Agnarr asked.

Kristoff has food stupidly stuffed in his mouth and he coughed. Anna started talking in place of him.

“Oh, I’m sure he did great! Him and Elsa were always studying together and he was always working hard.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he said in between coughs. He threw Anna a grateful look. “It was pretty good. I did better than expected with my finals and I ended up getting good grades.”

Agnarr nodded in approval. “That’s wonderful to hear. After all, Elsa needs someone smart and strong next to her.”

Wow.

“Actually dad, there’s something I…”

“But it’s absolutely wonderful that you’re able to spend winter break with us. We have a lot planned for tomorrow and we should turn in early tonight.” Elsa was cut off by her father’s suggestion.

Dinner ended shortly after that, and the topics of conversation went by too quickly for Elsa and Kristoff. She headed off to her room in silence, and Kristoff wished her good night.

He went off on his own to the backyard, which is absolutely huge if he should say, and he sat down on the bench. There was a cozy little bonfire lit up in front of it and watching the flames dance drew him into his own thoughts.

“Hey, you look a bit troubled. Did something happen?”

He turned to look into blue eyes that were gleaming with worry, though Anna smiled at him encouragingly.

“Nah, nothing happened.” He tried to smile at her.

“So what’s up?” she asked cheerfully.

They went into a nice conversation, talking about their semester, aside from Hans, though she did mention that she wanted to go back to Bulda’s diner again. “Those curly fries were so good!” she had exclaimed.

He told her about Sven, and she cooed and awed over photos of him on his phone. She made him promise to let her meet him sometime. He knew Sven would absolutely adore her. After all, she could make even the coldest of hearts warm.

The evening air grew more crisp and biting, and Anna had wrapped her arms around herself in order to be a bit warmer. Coincidentally, they had started to inch closer and closer together, so that their knees were touching. Neither seemed to mind. Kristoff knew that he didn’t.

The little bonfire had slowly grown smaller over time, and the embers lit up their faces with a dim glow.

Kristoff noticed her tiny tremors and the shake in her voice, and he took off his jacket and laid it across her shoulders. Her eyes grew wide as he did so, and a blush bloomed across her face.

“Thank you,” she said quietly.

“No problem.”

His arm was still around her from when he put the jacket on her.

Their faces were so close, and Anna’s eyes were locked with his, wide with wonder and a hint of something else. Desire? He saw her eyes dart to his lips and he so badly wanted to kiss her. He vaguely wondered if she wanted to too as she licked her soft lips.

Then, she pushed him away.

“Oh my gosh, it’s so late already!” she said in a rush. Her eyes held the gleam of tears. Fuck.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? Good night!”

“Anna, wait!”

But she was long gone, her footsteps pattering on the cobblestone pathway, and past Elsa who stared at them with bewilderment.

Oh boy.

                                          _____________

Elsa knew that whatever had happened, it wasn’t good. Well, it might have been good for the two but since Kristoff and her were still “dating,” technically it wasn’t. How did things get to this?

She spotted Anna’s tears as they rushed down her face, and she turned to Kristoff with a glare.

“What did you do?” she hissed.

“Nothing!” She continued to glare at him.

“Okay, so maybe not nothing, we were getting closer and I gave her my jacket because she looked cold and our faces were just really close.”

“So you guys almost kissed?” She didn’t know whether to be elated for them both or to just smack him into next year because her sister was under the impression that they were dating. The latter. Definitely the latter.

“Ow!” She rolled her eyes.

“You deserve it.” She turned around and walked off to the stairway.

“Where are you going?” His voice called out after her.

“Something I should have done since the beginning.” Her voice was resolute, and she knew that he knew, that she was finally ready to tell her. Anna didn’t deserve this. Kristoff gave her a look of worry, as if to ask if she was sure about this. Her own stare said it all.

“Anna?” Elsa knocked lightly on her door. She winced as she heard her soft sobs from inside the room. It was funny how she herself had locked people out when she was younger, and now she found herself on the other side of the door. She didn’t like the feeling.

“It’s me, Elsa.” Anna didn’t answer. “I’m not angry, you know.”

Soft footsteps followed her words, and stopped in front of the door. Slowly, the door creaked open just a bit, and Elsa smiled softly at Anna from the small crack.

“Why not?” Anna asked. “I’m a terrible person.”

“No you’re not, Anna.”

The door opened fully now.

“Yes, I am!” Her face was full blown and crying. “I’m terrible because I wanted to kiss Kristoff and he’s your boyfriend! I’m the other woman and I hate that!”

“Oh, Anna.” Elsa pulled her in for a hug. She didn’t realize that this would happen, but that was life, wasn’t it?

“I mean it. I’m not angry at all.”

“You should be.”

“Maybe, if this relationship was real in the first place.” Anna went still at that.

“What?”

Anna pulled away and Elsa looked at her. She knew that she would never do that to Elsa and the fact that she was so torn over it meant that she felt so, so guilty. She didn’t have to be.

“C’mon. I’ll explain everything.” Elsa shut the door behind them and led Anna over to the bed where she snuggled underneath her arms, just like how they did when they were younger, and before Elsa had shut her out.

“I asked Kristoff to be my fake boyfriend in order to get mom and dad off of my back. They’ve been asking if I had a boyfriend for so long that I finally caved and asked him to come over for Thanksgiving.”

She took a deep breath and continued. Anna listened with rapt attention.

“The truth is, I was never interested in men.”

Anna turned towards her, to see her face. Her face held wonder and awe, but there was no judgement. It was funny to see how those few words were so easy to form mentally, but so hard to physically speak. She regretted keeping it a secret from Anna for so long.

“That...explains a lot, actually.” She finally said, and Elsa chuckled.

“Yeah, doesn’t it?” Memories of playing with figurines and dolls had sprung up, and Anna had always been the romantic one, wanting to have a prince or handsome rogue marry the princess. But she had always found it off-putting.

“But, I understand why you didn’t tell me, Elsa.” Anna smiled softly. “And it’s okay. I’m really glad you told me.”

Elsa wrapped Anna up in a warm hug.

“So, you see? You don’t have to be angry at yourself for almost kissing Kristoff. I’m actually glad that you did.”

Anna looked at her quizzically. “Even if he was your fake boyfriend, wouldn’t you still be angry?”

“We both knew it was fake. I honestly was going to let him stay at our winter cabin for free with his dog during this break if he went through with it.”

“Wow, the one up in the mountains that no one goes to?”

“That very one.”

“Somehow, it does fit him,” Anna said after thinking for a bit.

“Doesn’t it?” They both laughed. Elsa was delighted to see that Anna’s face was getting less red from crying. She lifted up a finger to Anna’s face to wipe her tears from her eyes.

“Kristoff is crazy about you, you know.”

“He is?” She blushed.

“Oh yeah. You should have seen him whenever you would show up to study with us or to bring us food as a surprise. He was always so happy to see you.”

“He is sweet.” Anna admitted. “But actually, I have a lot of questions for you.”

Elsa looked at Anna, the latter had eyes that were excited and filled with delight.

“Alright, Anna. I’m ready.” I’m finally ready.

And they talked throughout the whole night, laughing and gossiping and feeling themselves grow closer than ever before. It was when they were both almost asleep and yawning, that Anna had asked another question.

“Are you going to tell mom and dad?”

Elsa bit her lip. “I don’t know,” she admitted.

“Well, whatever you decide, I’ll be there to support you. Okay?” Elsa smiled down at her. Her support was all she needed.

“I know.”

Anna hummed happily and snuggled into her arms, finally falling asleep. Elsa rested her head on top of hers, and even if it was uncomfortable, she was more than happy to stay in that position.

The next morning, they awoke with the sun heating up their faces, and although Elsa was up and ready to get out of bed, Anna rolled over and put a pillow over her head. Elsa laughed quietly and pulled the blanket up to cover Anna’s shoulders.

And she walked out of the room to see Kristoff leaving his, with his duffel bag slung over his shoulder. She raised an eyebrow at that and crossed her arms.

“Leaving so soon?”

“I just feel awkward around here now.”

“Yeah, I understand.”

They both stood in silence for a beat.

“I told her.” Kristoff looked at her.

“Yeah?”

“And you were right. She didn’t judge me at all.”

“I’m glad you did.” Kristoff smiled.

“Me too. Now I’m going to tell my parents.” Elsa looked at him resolutely. Kristoff looked really surprised, but Elsa wasn’t going to back down.

“Seriously?”

“Yeah. Come on, I’m going to tell them in the study.”

Kristoff followed her and they both made their way to the study. Telling them was much more difficult than telling Anna, and that had technically held more weight than them as she had effectively shut her sister out for most of their teenage years. She had to go through a lot of therapy to get to where she was now, but now that they all know, she felt like she could be herself. Agnarr was, for what she expected, perplexed. But Iduna took it more in stride, saying that it doesn’t matter who she loved, just that she would be happy with whomever it was.

Elsa smiled gratefully at that, while Agnarr had coughed and awkwardly tried to change the subject. Iduna and Elsa shared a look that only women would convey, and Elsa knew that her mother would make him accept it. Or at least, not make degrading remarks or ask stupid questions. Thank god for moms.

Kristoff had apologized for deceiving them, and while they were perplexed and mildly angry that they were lied to, they still invited him to stay for the rest of the break. He politely declined, and Elsa knew he felt uncomfortable.

She followed him out to his car, and watched as he helped to load up his truck.

“Have a safe drive back home, Kristoff.”

“Yup, I will.”

“You sure you don’t want to see Anna and say goodbye?”

Kristoff looked back at the mansion, and after a moment shook his head.

“Nah, I think she needs a break from me. We did almost have a moment, I don’t want her to be confused or anything.”

“I don’t think that’s the case at all.” Elsa also looked back towards the manor, hoping Anna would bound down the steps to the car in order to talk to him.

“But seriously, get away from here and take a nice long break. This charade has gone on long enough.” They both laughed.

“You feel better after telling them?” He asked seriously. She knew that he was looking at her with worried eyes, that he would honestly throw hands with her dad if he felt that he needed to.

But she could honestly say that she did. Deep inside, she felt free, and that she could be herself now. Something that she couldn’t say she was for most of her life.

“Yes.”

“That’s all that matters.” He smiled as he shut the passenger side door of his truck. “I’ll see you next semester, Elsa.”

“Bye!”

And he went around and drove off, the dust trailing behind him. She walked back into the house and went back to the bedroom, smiling at Anna who was still in a deep sleep. She would tell her to meet him when they were back on campus, when she woke up. But for now, she felt a bit tired. So she was going to rest some more.

                                         _____________

Kristoff walked around on the first day of the new semester, finally sitting at the usual library table again. He didn’t really look forward to the new semester of classes, but it was a challenge and he wanted to get ahead. As per the norm lately, he wondered how Anna was doing. Was she back on campus yet?

He waited for Elsa to show up as she always did, she had let him know she would be free sometime in the afternoon. So he opened up a book, ripping off the plastic. God, he hated buying textbooks, they were so overly expensive. He turned the pages to the first chapter on macroeconomics and started to read.

But a brown bag was placed on the side of the table across from him. The smell of fries wafted over to him and he drooled. He didn’t realize how hungry he was.

“Oh man, you brought food, thanks Elsa!” He smiled, but when he looked up, he was met with Anna’s shy gaze.

“Anna.”

“I thought you would like it, I got it from your mom’s diner.” she said quietly, looking at him through her lashes and Kristoff coughed, a blush rising.

“I do, thank you.” Somehow Anna seemed even prettier today, her hair in waves and a cute blush showcasing her freckled cheeks. He couldn’t stop staring at her.

“Do you want to have a seat? Share the food?”

Anna smiled and nodded. “I got you a burger if that’s okay.”

“That’s more than okay, it’s terrific.” He munched down on it greedily and Anna laughed. She nervously picked at her curly fries.

“So…” she started.

“Yeah?”

“Would you like to have dinner with me sometime?” Anna asked, her eyes wide and excited, and also scared.

“Like a date?” Kristoff couldn’t help but smile. He was absolutely ecstatic that she asked.

“Like a date.” She nodded.

“I’d love to.”

Anna’s delighted smile warmed his heart, and he started to checklist potential restaurants in his mind. His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he looked at it to see a thumbs up from Elsa. He looked up to see her peeking out from behind a bookshelf with a wave and a small wink.

A second later, another text popped up.

[Elsa] Bring her sunflowers. Those are her favorites.

He smiled to himself. What a stroke of luck that being a fake boyfriend for someone would lead him to someone that he would be a real boyfriend for. They snuck glances at each other from across the table and he knew that he would treasure her forever.

FIN

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! :D

[leondaltons]

💘 + lottie & casper!!

where they first met and how

They first met back in high school!! Almost everyone around town knows the last name “Dupont'' because of how long the family has been there and with what they are associated but i’m guessing hadn’t put her face with the name until one day she caught him and his friends pranking her locker (you know that gilmore girls gifset where they are writing a phone number and then the dude says “write mine” when he sees Alexis bledel? well like that lol)

how long their ‘flirting’ phase was before feelings got involved

aksjasa Casper has been flirting with her since the moment he saw her and the boy hasn’t stopped even after all these years of rejection. She started to “flirt back” only some months before feelings get involved (her flirt back is calling him an idiot, sending him spicy pictures and then blocking him lol)

who fell for who first ( if applicable )

this one is easy, Casper ahahah. Boy has been wiped since he was a teen ahahaha

where their first date was and what it was like

first real date when they are like, officially dating? Casper took her out for dinner and some drinks to a small restaurant with a view to the beach where they would sometimes meet each other before dating, it’s small enough to keep it intimate but also casual. Second date he takes her to see his band play and honestly she goes 👀👀 Their first is a little weird at first, i mean they have known each other for years now and Lottie has a hard time being emotionally vulnerable, but she tries so things gets better once the food is on the table ahahaah

who asks who out and how ( with a sign? spelled out on a cake? just a simple ‘will you go out with me’? )

i think casper has asked lottie out in every way you can imagine, but one of the biggest was when he asked out for prom; he did this big public thing and it officially backfired

who proposes first

casper, hands down! I honestly don’t know if marriage is something that Lottie ever thought she needed in her life, like she would be happy without it but if he wants to then she would say yes without thinking ♥

if they keep / kept their relationship secret or let everyone know right away

well they started making out and sleeping together (before an official relationship) and they were done kind of in secret, i think? mainly because of Lottie and her refusal to admit she had feelings or was actually interested in Casper

where the proposal happens and how ( kiss cam at a baseball game? on a hillside surrounded by ducks? at a disney park? )

Casper proposes the same way he asked her for prom (the one that backfired lol) it’s really big and almost identical, his way of reminding her how long he has liked her. Lottie can’t believe she is saying “yes” to this but in a way can’t stop smiling and feels so lucky to have him in her life

if they adopt any pets together

My take is that they adopt another cat to keep lottie’s cat company!!!

who’s more dominant

In bed? definitely Casper hahaha

where their first kiss was and what it was like

I’m thinking their first kiss was either in the middle of the night in an empty street or in a really dark pub. It was definitely heated and angry; when things that have been building for a while inevitably explode (context: casper was probably teasing her and pushing Lottie’s buttons while they were arguing about something and she kind of snapped and kissed him)

if they have any matching couples stuff ( mugs? sweaters? pillowcases? )

Maaaaaaaaaaybe deep in the relationship they get matching mugs? I can’t really see Lottie wearing matching sweaters AT ALL nasbajkshajk. Oh and at some point she gifts him the same necklace she has with her birth stone

how into pda they are

I would say that once they are dating they are very into it. Lottie has no problem in making out in public or sitting on his lap

who holds the umbrella when it rains

Casper ♥

where their usual ‘date spot’ is ( if applicable )

I think they meet a lot in each other’s home, mainly because it’s the place they are more comfortable doing whatever they are doing. But there is also this small bar/restaurant with a view to the beach where they accidentally met a few times that Lottie really likes. It’s small and comfortable and their official first date was there

who’s more protective

This one is a really close one but I think i’m gonna give it to Lottie, I think? She doesn’t have too many people she REALLY loves but she would fight with claws and teeth for the ones she does loves

how long it is before they sleep together ( can be as in ‘had sex’ or as in ‘shared a bed’ )

after they finally kiss? jashajsa not long at all, maybe some weeks after it i’m guessing?

if they argue about anything

pre relationship? about everything lmao. Well mainly Lottie argues and Casper just pressing her buttons. In relationship they still do but not as much or seriously enough

who leaves more marks ( lipstick, hickeys, scratchmarks etc. )

Casper aksjasa (i mean that photo of Lottie with the hickeys👀)

who steals whose clothes and how often

she steals A LOT of his tshirts

how they cuddle ( spooning? facing each other? )

spooning!!!

what their favourite nonsexual activity is

mmmm I like to think that Lottie ends up asking Casper to teach her how to play the guitar, she finds it super sexy and she would really enjoy him teaching her. I think they would also enjoy sharing time together, she with a good book while he plays with his guitar in the same sofa

how long they stay mad at each other

Lottie can stay mad for weeks if the situation deserves, but a good number is probably some days and after that she slowly starts to let go. Casper gives me the vibe he can’t stay mad for too long ahahah

what their usual coffee / tea orders are

Casper likes his coffee with tons of sugar and Lottie orders one of those super sweet frappuccinos that are more sugar than coffee lmao

if they ever have any children together

Both Casper and Lottie are a little scared for being parents for different reasons, but after she accidentally gets pregnant and they kind of freak out at first, they kind of settle into it and are great parents

if they have any special pet names for each other

Lottie just calls him Casper or “idiot” lol

if they ever split up and / or get back together

once they get together they don’t split up again ♥

what their shared living space is like ( messy? clean? what kind of decor? )

I think it would be some kind of messy order if that makes sense? like clean dishes on the counter and maybe some clothes on the floor, probably a lot of things like books or paper over the tables but they know exactly where everything is. Definitely a lot of plants and candles

what their first christmas / hanukkah / etc as a couple was like

I think their first new year together is actually kind of nice? I’m thinking Lottie invites him to have dinner with her grandma and her! maybe he can bring his father if he wants too!! Her grandma is great at cooking and Lottie makes a delicious apple pie (honestly the only thing she knows how to bake lol). When midnight comes she doesn’t say anything but slowly and delicately interlaces their fingers; it's small and simple, but it means a lot. Lottie’s house is at the outskirts of town, so if it’s too late or there is too much snow, then he (and his father if he came) are more than welcome to stay the night……. 

what their names are in each other’s phones

Casper's name changed a lot through the years lmao, at first it was “??????” then it move to “Casper Nahm” to “C*****” to “Casper DO NOT PICK UP” and now is just “Casper” lmao

if they have any ‘couple traditions’ ( buying a new mug for their collection every year? baking every friday evening? )

Casper waits until Lottie closes the store and then walks her home talking about their day. Every Thursday they meet for lunch at the diner (maybe they also do it other days too but Thursdays is a must). And every anniversary, Lottie gifts Casper a guitar pick (plus his other gift)

who falls asleep first and who wakes up first

askjasa i think Lottie is the first one to fall asleep but also the first to wake up, honestly she can fall asleep everywhere ahahah

who’s the big spoon / little spoon

Casper is the little spoon!!! And Lottie is the big spoon and totally loves it!

who hogs the bathroom

Casper, I didn’t have to even think about it haahhaah

who kills the spiders / takes them outside

Lottie kills the spider with a lot of strength and passion hahahah

[emzaaaa]

I broke up with my 6 year relationship.

I need to talk about it.

I met my ex when I was 19 years old. I had just moved to Orlando, FL from a small midwest town. I hadn’t been in a serious relationship before and I honestly wasn’t looking for anything. We met working at Disney World under fireworks. We talked about music and instantly were hooked on eachother. I remember them asking me if I wanted to hang out and in my oblivious mind, I thought it was just that. A hang out. 

We went to this vegan kitchen and decided to walk in this cute little park across the street. All of a sudden I felt a hand grab mine. At that time is when I knew something was going to come out of this day. Damn. 6 years later and I’m a completely different person. 

The first year and a half was a dream. They constantly told me they loved me, we cuddled all the time, they made me FEEL loved and I constantly wanted to be near them. Nothing else mattered but them. 

Two years in is when they threw a bomb into our relationship. Something huge came to light that I wont share on this just because it’s not my story to tell. Before this, it was something that was apart of them but nothing came of it. Now they needed this. I was so excited for this bomb and I couldn’t wait to support and be there for them throughout the entire new chapter. 

Three years in is when we finally got our very own apartment together. The first two years we actually lived with their mother. You’d think that would be weird but I honestly loved it. She became my mom too. That’s honestly one of the hardest parts of this breakup. I have to separate her from my life and journey and that’s heart wrenching. This was a very exciting year for us. We experienced so many new things together with this apartment and learned and grew so much from it. Everything was so exciting. We were truly building a foundation. I remember one morning I woke up and they came into the room, taking a break from video games, and said “Let’s get married” Now, I know they werent being serious but I will always remember this morning. It gave me a glimpse of hope. This apartment was a tiny 500 square foot apartment but it was huge for our relationship. 

Four years in is when we decided to move out of Orlando.We both felt our journey was ending in that city and needed to start a new chapter. We set our eyes on Portland, Oregon. We had something to get excited about. We took a very spontaneous trip to Portland for a weekend and instantly fell in love with the area. We loved everything about it and just how liberal and chill everything was in that state... literally the definition of our relationship so far. A few months before we needed to tell our landlord that we werent resigning I felt our relationship start to crack. We started fighting more and more. We were getting annoyed with each other for silly things. We’d have fights but by the next day we were completely fine and comfortable again. I remember asking myself if I really wanted to sign another lease with this person. Ultimately, I felt my ex and I were endgame and were forever. So I pushed away all doubts and continued on with our plans. By this time moving to Portland wasn’t feasible but we still wanted to get out of Florida. Out of options, we decided to move to my hometown of Des Moines, Iowa. I hadn’t lived there for almost 5 years and my ex had never been there. So it was a new experience for both of us. 

Five years in we were moving to Iowa. From the outside perspective we were very excited. We were doing something new and unfamiliar to us. This was a turning point in our relationship. There was a reason I moved OUT of Iowa. I hated the Midwest. I was so miserable before... why would I move back. By the second month of living back in Iowa, all I saw was darkness. I didn’t want to be in that state anymore. I told my ex I wanted to move back to Florida but they didn’t want to regress like that. Their time in Orlando was over. Which I get.. it’s the same thing I was experiencing with Iowa. At this time my ex was also getting very depressed with their own shit going on. I felt like we were pulling apart from each other. Usually my ex loved to play video games but it felt like it consumed them. They use to tell me what they were doing online or something funny that happened.. all of a sudden that stopped. It almost felt like we were roommates. I’d go to bed alone and wake up alone. It felt so strange because on the other side of the wall there was my ex living in a completely different world. And I wasn’t invited.  Our fighting became more and more. 

Have you ever heard of jumping the shark? Where a tv show will do something crazy when they feel like the end is near... hoping to get more views and prolong the inevitable. Well... getting a dog was our jumping the shark. I had wanted a dog since two years into our relationship. It was never gonna happen in Florida.. just because the cost of living mixed with dog expenses would be insane. Living in Iowa, cost of living is nothing compared to Orlando. We finally had extra money in our pockets. Christmas came around and they got me my dream dog.. a corgi named Billie. She became my new love and she was all I wanted. I honestly don’t know why they got me a dog. Because thats all that happened. They never shared in anything else. I went to to all the vet visits, I bought her puppy training classes and taught her a few tricks, I bought her everything she has. To this day the only thing they have done is buy her and buy half the spay. They never tried to be involved at all. I wont lie though.. I’m so thankful for my ex because they brought Billie into my life. Billie saved my life. I had something to throw all my love and support to. 

Five and a half years in we moved again.. staying in Iowa. I wanted to move out of state but it just wasn’t in our cards. I went back to college, thinking maybe if I did something with my life I’d be happy again. That didn’t work. I hated everything and I brought that into my relationship, I’ll admit. This past November/December we were fighting every week to the point of us calling it quits each week. At this point we never cuddled, everytime I tried to kiss them they would put their cheek out for me to kiss, I didn’t even remember the last time they freely told me they loved me. They didn’t seem interested in anything I was doing or wanted to do and didn’t support me with anything either. We had no communication. 

At this point of the relationship I felt like nothing. I felt so unwanted. My self esteem was zero. I did everything for this person.. why didn’t they do something.. anything in return. 

One story. Valentines Day this past year. I was so excited for it. I thought I could finally put some romance back in this relationship and help fix it. I planned this day for weeks. I bought them a dozen red roses and left a cute note telling them how beautiful they were and how much I truly did love them. I had to go to work that day but I begged my leaders to be let out early. It was approved and I eagerly bought ingredients for a new recipe that I knew theyd love. I came home and nothing was said about the flowers. Totally fine. I was cool about it. They went to go get their car fixed which took hours. Thinking it was Valentines Day and we needed to be together.. I went with. After we got back I made dinner and we ate and drank a bottle of wine. We decided to watch a movie and they got angry with me because I interrupted the movie. I remember how my heart plummeted and I slowly got up.. grabbed the gift I was going to give them and hid that it in the closet. I went to bed early. They never once told me they loved me or did anything special. Never even thanked me for dinner or helped with the dishes. 

Exactly one month ago. I went MIA and ran to my parents house because I finally was realizing there was no relationship left. I should have ended things a long time ago but I never did. I didn’t want to be alone. I’m terrified of being alone. But one day at work everyone was talking about their partners and I just had a realization.. “I don’t feel the way everyone else does about their partners” That mixed with how my partner was treating me.. I ran to my parents for a night to get my head straight. I refused to text them.. I just needed to figure things out.

The next day I came home and we sat down and talked. I told them how I didn’t see us being together and that I felt like I was holding them back. They were about to completely alter their life and I knew how they had been confused on things within the relationship. It wasn’t fair to me. Their issues with themself wasn’t an excuse for them to be absent. I need someone to be completely sure about me. I’m a fucking catch. Together we realized the relationship was over. 

The next morning I didn’t believe it. We fought all the time and “broke up” quite a few times.. all ending the same.. us being completely fine the next day. The week after that we had serious talks for hours every night just hashing things out and just trying to understand what went wrong. My ex has huge communication problems. This week after the breakup is when they finally opened up their soul to me and told me everything that was confusing them.

I realized I don’t fit in with their life. I was the reason they stopped something that they needed in the beginning of the relationship and I will always hold onto that.. if they had kept with it.. what would have been of this relationship now? Cryptic, right? This whole thing is probably.. but I need this.

In the month of being broken up and being single.. I’ve learned so many things about myself. I realized it was the fear of being alone that kept me from truly ending things. I should have ended things a long time ago... honestly in Orlando. I saw so many red flags that I kept pushing away. I have so much love for my ex. I support them and I can’t wait to see what comes of their life in these next few years. 

This past month of being broken up has brought things out that I am not proud of either. I tried for almost six years to get my ex to open their soul and truly connect with me.. this girl comes into their life a few months ago and instant connection. To say Im jealous and to say that that ruined this whole breakup for me... yeah that would be true. I wanted to be loving and in their life still.. but now there is no room for that because this girl took my spot. Because of this I had done things I wasn’t proud of out of pure jealousy. After a week of denial and crying all day in bed I finally felt a new emotion: rage. I felt angry. Angry that my ex didn’t want to try and actually get down to the core and fix things.. they just wanted to throw it in the trash. I threw all gifts they got me away.. I said hurtful things.. I tried throwing away things I got them.. I was just so angry. I needed to feel something other than denial and sadness. The next day I felt so content and like maybe it would be okay. Don’t get me wrong I am completely humiliated on how I acted and what I did.. but it was so needed for me to be at this point in the breakup. If I didn’t have that night I would still be in bed crying begging them to fix things. I think I was in denial because it was my idea to break up the first night and then realized I was going to be alone the next day and regretted saying I didn’t think we should be together. But I’m so glad I did. I built up the courage to say out loud what I was thinking for months.. even years. Sure, things ending hurt my soul and I’m broken because of it... but things needed to end. I need to find someone who loves me the way I want to be loved and deserved to be loved. 

Whats happening now? I’m moving on to new things. I’m moving back to Orlando for myself. I’m excited to live in a city I loved and not have a relationship consume me. I’m excited to say YES to everything and not no because I want to go back home and be with my love. I’m relearning who I am. I completely lost myself to someone who didn’t feel the same. I have to fix my self esteem and outlook on life. I have to learn to love myself again. And I’m so excited to do so. I’m a fucking bad bitch and I’m so excited to see what I do next.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk. 

[belizedeservesbetter]

Hercules is Bursting At the Seams With Potential

or, It’s Roger Bart’s World and We’re Just Living In It

Short Version: Right now it’s good but not great HOWEVER with some work this could be really spectacular

Long Version:

The production of Hercules presented by Public Works did exactly what it was meant to do. It brought in crowds, put the entirety of the Public Works community (all 200 of them) onstage and showed producers this is a viable project worth pursuing, be it on Broadway, a Disney park/cruise ship or simply available for licensing. 

In all, I liked it. But I didn’t love it, which was a little disappointing to be honest, especially because Hercules is my all time favorite Disney movie. But it is easily (easily!) fixable and could be amazing if they put the work into it.

I’m gonna divide this review/commentary/whatever into three parts:

1. The Good

2. The Bad

3. What I Think They Should Do Moving Forward 

So here we go. And I guess I should say there’s going to be a bunch of spoilers here, but if you’re reading this I’m assuming you’ve seen/loved the movie so you already know the plot. 

1. The Good

Every moment of this show is filled with an extraordinary amount of heart. You can tell everyone involved with this production loves the source material and wants it to soar. You can tell the entire cast is having a blast and loves being there. The material itself is full of heart because that’s exactly how it was written. The leader of Public Works made a speech at the beginning saying how Hercules is about what it means to be a hero and she’s exactly right. That message is the beating heart of the show.

The length of the show was also pretty nice. My problem with a lot of these film adaptations, Disney ones especially, is that they take a relatively short film and fill it with filler songs/moments in order to fill a 2.5 hour show. Frozen suffered from this. It didn’t need to be that long. However, Hercules was only 90 minutes with no intermission! There was little to no filler! The story, while at times a bit clunky in the beginning, doesn’t take any scenic routes to fill time. This kept the plot moving at a mostly good pace and I was never bored or looking at the song list to see how much longer we had left. I could focus completely on the cast and show without feeling like it was dragging on forever.

And the cast was so good too. Krysta Rodriguez has always been a fav of mine and I was thrilled to see her playing this role. She was fun and spunky and was in great voice. If anything, she didn’t have too much to work with. 

Jelani Alladin was FANTASTIC. He was the perfect Hercules. If producers decide to move forward with this show and take it to Broadway, Alladin better stay. He was charming and fun and funny and sang the hell out of “Go the Distance.” But what really impressed me about him was the dramatic moments and how personal and impactful they felt. There’s this great moment when Hercules talks to Zeus and Hera after becoming the hero of Thebes where he breaks down and has his wonderful moment with Phil and that whole scene was so good. He really lets you see Hercules’ insecurities at that moment and the way he was able to be subtle but still project to an outdoor audience of over a thousand was remarkable.

James Monroe Iglehart was great as Phil, as was Jeff Hiller and Nelson Chimilio as Panic and Pain respectively. 

The costumes were really cool (with one glaring exception but we’ll get to that later). I especially enjoyed Hades/the gods costumes, because they looked enough like their movie counterparts while still being unique to the show. The way they did Hades’ makeup was super cool, like they pulled him right into the real world. Likewise, the Muses had some really cool costume changes throughout and they all looked amazing. 

One of the more impressive aspects of the show was the puppetry and special effects, which felt grounded in a more Greek theatre kind of style and I thought it worked very well. The puppetry of the monsters specifically was super cool. The Hydra looked fantastic, as well as the three Titans. This production of course wasn’t given a lot of money, but much like The Lightning Thief, they worked with it. They were in these cool pieces that different actors held and when they came together they looked great. They were bright and bold and drew on older theatre techniques which I liked a lot. The special effects, especially in the latter half, were also good. How they did the Underworld was simple but effective and made a wonderful stage picture, especially the moment when Hercules saves Meg from Hades. How they made his life string turn gold looked really cool as well. 

In terms of musical numbers, what worked best was the songs we all know and love. “Go the Distance” was simply staged, which made the emotion of the song far more effective. “Zero to Hero” was a blast and took all the best parts from the movie and put them on stage. “I Won’t Say (I’m In Love)” was divine, just as I expected it to be. “A Star Is Born” was genuinely uplifting and joyous, since they brought out all 200 members of the cast and everyone was so happy to be there and it was the perfect way to end the show. 

There were 5 new songs, and while I wasn’t a fan of most of them, I really really liked “Bolts of Thunder” and thought it was a fun way to musicalize the big fight scenes with the Titans towards the end. The Muses also wore these incredible 90s girl group inspired jumpsuits that were spectacular. 

Speaking of 90s girl group Muses, there were two moments when they heavily channeled this vibe and I wish they did more of it. “Bolts of Thunder” with the jump suits and the reprise of “Gospel Truth” after “One Last Hope” where they wore these late 80s/early 90s workout video outfits. Those moments were artistically bold and really emphasized what worked in the original movie, but I’m gonna talk more about that later in part 3. 

Of course my favorite part of this production was Roger Bart. He stole the entire show. Whenever Hades is on stage he has the best lines and the funniest moments and he just has a way of making every line feel both biting and passive aggressive. He was absolutely incredible and the perfect choice for Hades. This production gave us more Hades than the original movie, but I wanted even more Hades. Bart has always been an actor near and dear to my heart (Young Frankenstein was my jam) and I was so glad to see him onstage again. 

2. The Bad

Unfortunately, a good portion of the show feels clunky, both stylistically and in content. The book was perfectly serviceable, taking a good portion of its lines from the films. But it felt too slow in the first half and too fast in the second, which was also when things got more interesting. For example, there’s a whole song about Hercules not feeling accepted at the Agora and there’s a long scene after that song but later on when Hercules defeats Hades, that takes literally 2 seconds. Likewise, the show over explains certain exposition points (and is not subtle in any way, shape or form) and doesn’t explain other things. Though really there isn’t much exposition at all, as this show assumes you’ve watched the movie dozens of times. 

That doesn’t always work well.

I went with a friend who hadn’t seen it in a while and afterwards he asked about what happened to Meg that made her sign her soul over to Hades. I knew because I’ve seen the movie so many times, but the show kind of brushes right over it. If you’ve never seen the movie before, which will definitely be the case with some people, it might be a little difficult to keep up with. 

Stylistically, this show was all over the place. 

In my opinion, Public Works presented three versions of Hercules:

1. The gospel version

2. The 90s nostalgia version

3. The Greek inspired version

I’m going to go more into this later, but these three versions would have worked if they could have seamlessly blended into each other. As of now, it’s incredibly jarring and distracting and would sometimes take me right out of the show.

For example! Hercules wore a traditional toga. Meg wore this

Yes this is Mal from Disney’s Descendants and yes Meg wore basically this but she had shorter hair and purple heel boots instead of gray. Hercules’ toga and this together looked almost absurd to be honest. 

And side note: Disney has been on a kick recently where they think pants equals feminism? Someone needs to tell Disney that women can wear dresses and still be feminist

Anyways

The choreography was pretty basic, but it’s hard to fault them this when the choreography is meant to be for a crowd of 200 people with ages varying from 5 - 80. There were a lot of step touch and wave moments. There was one really cool dance break in “Zero to Hero” that made me think about how cool some of these big production numbers could be if they got some good dancers in there. 

I wish the Muses were better. They were so low energy during “Gospel Truth,” which made the evening start off on a lower note than it should have. 

The pop culture references were really weird and out of place, mostly because of their specificity. The pop culture references in the movie are purposely vague and more “modern” references than pop culture, which makes the movie timeless. The pop culture references here might date the show in the future. There’s two that stood out specifically, one being when Hercules says “I know the Wobble!” before doing it, the other when Panic starts doing the Hercules Mulligan rap (you know the one) from Hamilton when Hades asks him if he knows Hercules. 

The rest of the new songs weren’t great either, and I’m gonna talk about each of them separately

“To Be Human” - This one definitely felt like a first draft of “Go the Distance.” Interestingly enough, I feel that an edited version of “Proud of Your Boy” from the Alladin musical (also written by Alan Menken) would have worked a lot better. 

“Uniquely Greek Town Square” - bad

“Forget About It” - I’m all for giving Meg more songs, but this was decent at best

“A Cool Day In Hell” - I desperately want Hades to have a solo, but not this. It was cheesy and felt out of place. Roger Bart sold the hell out of it, but of course he did cause he’s Roger Bart and incredible and amazing

“Uniquely Greek Tough Town” - not to be confused with “Uniquely Greek Town Square,” this song didn’t feel uniquely Greek at all and was, well, bad

“To Be Human (Reprise” - fine, I guess. Jelani Alladin made it good but the lyrics weren’t great. They rhymed “fail” with “frail.” 

3. What I Think They Should Do Moving Forward

Like I said before, this show has so much potential! I think it could be so good! This is my favorite Disney movie so I really want it to go to Broadway! If they do, there’s a couple things I think they could benefit from.

The best Disney Theatricals productions draw heavily from the culture/country the story takes place in. The Lion King, which draw heavily from Kenyan culture and reinvents the source material is the best example of this. I think drawing on Greek theatre conventions/styles would work well here, especially if Disney threw some of that good Disney money at it. I’d also like to see them lean into the Greek myth aspect of it a bit more. 

However, what also made the original Hercules movie so fun was its modern flair that felt both timeless and very 90s, which was fun. In this way I think the Muses and all the supernatural characters should draw more on this 90s flair while the mortals draw more on the Greek theatre conventions. I think with incorporating some Greek into the 90s and some 90s into the Greek, this could work really well. During “One Last Hope,” all the ensemble members wore those fun workout video outfits. I think it would have been fun if they wore togas still, but with sweatbands and leg warmers. Something like that to blend them together more. A theatrical beauty blender, if you will. 

In all honesty, I just want something bold and inspired. Give me something interesting! 

The show would also benefit from heavy edits to the newer songs and a good troupe of dancers, but that would of course happen in a possible commercial transfer. 

Lastly, as with just about anything, throw some Disney money at it! Make it shine! 

Normally I’d end this with a “Go see it!” or a “Don’t waste your time on it!” but this run is already sold out and lottery winners have been predetermined. So if you’ve won the lottery and are going, you’re in for a treat! The show is so fun and so enjoyable. I only critique it so heavily because I love the movie so much and have been wanting a musical adaptation for a while now. But I also know it’s Public Works and it’s free and it’s in the park and it’s fun and you can eat ice cream while watching it. If you didn’t win but live in NYC, give the lottery a go! I saw the lottery crowd waiting for winners to be drawn and it was incredibly crowded, so be aware of that. 

Or, if you didn’t win the lottery/don’t win standby lottery, go over to the Belvedere Castle and you can listen in on the show. You’re only seeing their backs, but I saw a bunch of people there watching/listening the whole time! 

[ahmeddocuments]

Day 3, (Paris: Disneyland Paris/Midnight in Downtown Paris), 27-9-2019

Written by Ahmed Hassan, edited and corrected by Aya Ashraf.

The alarm went earlier today, it was set to wake me up at 6:00 AM. I gotta say, a busy day I'm having today. I've been alive for 28 years and I spent most of these years fantasizing about visiting Disneyland. It was all linked with my childhood, and how this place always looked like a sanctuary of my childhood fears, also a way to look up to a future built on fulfilling dreams.

I started to get ready, left the house around 7:00 AM. I was heading back to Charles de Gaulle Airport as Mohamed, a friend of mine, will join my tour for the upcoming two weeks. It took me like 20 minutes to get there, started looking for his flight and turned out I'll have to wait for like 45 minutes. I was extremely hungry actually but decided I'm going to wait for him till he arrives to make him have the full experience from day 1. It was his first time in France and Europe so he was pretty excited, in a way that made him buy us the two Disneyland tickets! I've known Mohamed since we were together in university, so we're talking about 11 years at least here, and Mohamed has always been a lovely caring and generous person.

After hearing the call for Mohamed’s flight, and it was a matter of minutes till he shows up. He finally appeared and it was an emotional scene full of mutual excitement about what we're going to witness later. Mohamed needed to have a french SIM card to use internet, so we made sure we got that at the airport. It was almost 8:15 AM and we're having two tasks before going to Disneyland: 1- to check-in in Mohamed’s hostel in Downtown Paris. 2- Start the journey to Disneyland!

We moved by RER and metro to Montmartre. At the hostel,  he left his luggage and changed his clothes quickly to more Disneyland-appropriate outfit. But no matter what he did, nothing would have ever topped my planned outfit for the day! It was just a few days before travelling when I was surprised by Ahmed Hamdy, one of my best friends, giving me this t-shirt as a souvenir from his south-east Asia trip, and I instantly decided that this is gonna be my Disneyland day t-shirt!

So that’s it, we’re ready to go. Before going, we had a sneak peak at Sacré-Cœur of Montmartre, and it really felt nice seeing that one year later. I really like the idea of an important building appearing in the middle or a regular city scene, like it’s just blended there making everything look beautiful.

We had the longest RER trip ever, around 70 minutes to reach Marne-la-Vallée–Chessy station, which is commonly known as the Disneyland station. For those who don’t know me well, a very important pleasure of mine is to introduce something I really like to someone and see their reactions to it. And that’s exactly how I felt guiding Mohamed around the RER system and how everything is operating, I felt good about myself knowing more about Paris and actually started guiding people there, or at least discover it together all over. I also felt good seeing him really excited and his eyes sparkling as the RER starts moving, as people go inside the train and leave. I’ve felt the same back in 2018 and I’m still feeling it to date!

We’re going up to the park entrance, and we were instantly overwhelmed by how long the queue looked like.

We had the one day, two parks tickets; which allows us to have best of both words: Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios Park. The queue we saw at the main security gate took only a few minutes to pass, and we decided we’re starting our day with the Studios park first as it closes a few hours earlier than the main park. Nothing feels like seeing the Disney sign at the entrance, as if you’ve voluntarily chosen to teleport two decades back to your childhood and enjoy what you've been missing.

We stepped our feet inside Disney studios, and suddenly we’re in a scene of Animaniacs. Everything looks so colorful like it was painted a few hours ago, and the Weather was just PERFECT!

I also loved the level of details, which is what Disney is all about. I mean, I’m literally inside the first building and I’m already fascinated!

The first thing we saw after passing through the main entrance was the Park’s main feature: The Hollywood Boulevard. It was basically a statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse greeting incoming visitors. I’m still shocked with how pretty that looked. Sometimes you just can’t help but recall moments like this just to feel you’ve done something right to yourself.

Both statues were followed by a replica of a typical Hollywood street, with multiple shops and stores that represent different styles. The street ended by what looked like a Hollywood sign in the horizon, which looked brilliantly real from far.

Using the Disneyland mobile application, we started to check the games with the least queues. The park was really busy that day, we had to go for the Hollywood Tower Hotel, which is one of the few rides I knew from before. I’ve always watched videos of how cool some of the rides were, and I couldn’t believe that I was actually waiting in line for it. (Later I couldn’t believe I’ve actually waited for 45 minutes, that turned out to be the least time spent in a queue for a ride that day)

The dominating style of the game, and most of the studios, is Art Deco. Which is one of my classical fantasies. It was a horror game in an elevator going speedy over multiple floors with very exciting free falls in the elevator shaft. It felt absolutely crazy being inside this game!

We later went for the longest queue of the day on Crush Coaster. It’s a one-car roller coaster that had Finding Nemo Theme. We thought it’s not gonna be an exciting game, but it turns out to be a great experience! We waited for 90 minutes, but it was worth it.

We stopped for a drink later and took a walk to freshen up. I’ve had the opportunity to take a picture that made my day, I’ve finally found my real match!

The Last ride we had at the first park was Studio Tram Tour: Behind the Magic. It was a 15 minute tour of studio effects, shooting stunts and special effects simulation in movies. I enjoyed every part of it, to the extent that I recorded the whole 15 minute ride, but I’m sharing below the most interesting part of it.

And like it couldn’t go more Art Deco, there was this restaurant that played live jazz music to attract customers and I absolutely loved it!

Now as much as we were sad leaving the first park , we were pretty excited about visiting the other park. We were going through the entrance of the main park and It’s passing through Castle Club hotel building.

Now nothing felt as great as walking down the main street and seeing the “Sleeping Beauty” castle up in the horizon, like yes, I instantly went back to when I was young, caring less about anything but beautiful colors and details.

As we started getting closer, surrounded by music and happy kids, the castle started getting bigger and bigger, revealing of course everything I've imagined when I was younger; pure happiness. It looked real not just an illusion, it actually existed and people are visiting it!

I had the opportunity to go around the castle, and even go inside. I never thought I’d find anything interesting inside, but it turned out to be even more beautiful. The interior looked like a huge hall with stairs and a very beautiful ceiling.. The second level of the hall was surrounded by beautiful glass windows, that let the light do the work.

We decided to end our fairy tale for a while since we still have a full park to discover. Most of the things we wanted to visit were really busy and required queuing for at least two hours. We found a ride called Phantom Manor, which was, as described, a haunted house ride. We’ve decided to give it a shot since it had a 30 minute waiting time only. The building looked as creepy as it should, making us feel excited cause we literally don’t know what’s going to happen next.

We went inside and discovered it was mainly inspired by The Phantom of the Opera, making it more creepy. It was mainly an underground carriages ride, telling a story of a marriage between the evil and the good. Everything felt completely real; the mansion interior, the theme, the music, the forced-marriage.

It was 5:30 PM already, and we wanted to get ready and save ourselves a spot near the daily fireworks show at 8:00 PM. So we moved to my most awaited ride of the night; Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain.

Not only for being a star wars fan, but for the sake of how I wanted to have that space mountain ride experience, I’ve watched multiple versions of the game and nothing made me feel lucky more than having the opportunity to have it in a Star Wars theme.

The queue lasted for approximately two hours, it even rained while we stood there. We knew it was worth it so we decided to wait. Later when we were finally in, we had the time of our lives! It was a really fun ride with so much adrenaline for being in one of the Star Wars’ galaxies with a very high speed! We were screaming like we have never done that day, we wanted to have another but that would’ve been a waste of time indeed. We saw one of our on-ride photos which described our excitement in a funny way!

That was followed by a quick ride that’s right in front of it, Star Tours, another Star Wars themed ride! Man, I was on fire today! The ride was a cinema simulation of a ride in the world of Star Wars. The queuing didn’t last 15 minutes, and it felt like nothing because it was all themed with everything I loved about this world!

I mean, Come on! I saw a talking R2-D2 and C-3PO!

The ride was just brilliant, I absolutely loved it and loved how real it felt. The ride has a separate Star Wars gift shop that felt like heaven!

It was 7:30 PM, we ran our way to the castle again to find a good spot, and we were very lucky finding a good place to witness the fairy show!

And now It was starting to get darker...

We waited for a couple of minutes before the beauty started. It was a recap of Disney’s well known movies and tales, made in a very beautiful way. The light system on the castle and the surrounding was just on point. It was accompanied by a very beautiful soundtrack, and most importantly: The greatest fireworks show I had ever witnessed to date! Here’s a small sample of my full 20 minutes video of the whole event!

After the show ended, everybody applauded and screamed like I had never heard before. That was the end of the day for what I assume to be everyone’s best day of their lives.

Everybody was leaving the park extremely happy, and as we welcomed the park by the same shot, we were saying goodbye the same way. It had all started only a few hours earlier, which felt like days ago!

Everything looked beautiful as it was the best way the park is saying good bye to us!

It was 9:00 PM , we were facing a nightmare trying to leave, as thousands of people were leaving the park at the same time. The RER station was packed with people. We could find a train of course but it was super crowded. I suggested that since we’re both starving, we might step out at the next station to have a meal at Val d’Europe. I had visited that mall back in 2018 because it wasn’t far from where I was staying, and I knew the whole mall would’ve been closed by now except for restaurants. We had to walk all the way around the mall till we found the food court and had MacDonald’s. The time we had our meals gave us the opportunity to wait for people to leave from Disney, and have a much emptier train for our long ride home.

I was extremely tired on my way back. I texted Islem to make sure he’s home and awake, and instead, he told me not to go home and meet him at Gare du Nord. Mohamed was heading to his hostel and I went up to meet Islem at 11:40 PM, just a couple of minutes away from midnight. I said, Okay that’s a good time to go home and rest, but no. Turns out He was with his Algerian friends, who I knew one of them from the year earlier. They had a car and they waited for me to do like a Midnight tour of Paris! That was an experience of a lifetime! We went through Rue de Rivoli, Place de la Concorde then passing to the other bank along the Seine. Then we parked right in the middle of Champ de Mars right behind Eiffel tower. The tower looked more beautiful at night, allowing me to see other side of Paris I haven’t seen before.

Somehow, such a scene brought me back to the movie Midnight in Paris. It was about all the fun starting when nobody is around. It was all about yourself and your thoughts, and how reality can be better than imagination. The tower was, as usual, well-lit. We parked the car and took a walk around it, had a very nice orange juice and then decided to leave.

I can’t remember pretty much what happened after I got in the car, because I was extremely tired. But as my google maps timeline shows, we went outside Paris to drop off one of Islem’s friends to his dorm. We then headed to our home which was a really long drive.

We arrived home at 2:40, I was dead tired in a way that I instantly wanted to just sleep and have no thoughts about what happened during the day. but as someone who’s writing that a few months after this day, I gotta say it felt priceless. Deciding to go through such details made me remember this all over like it was literally a few hours ago.

I’m grateful for everything that turned out to be well-planned, and I’m grateful for any pop ups or events that spiced it up and made it look the same way I’m documenting it.

[popculturespiritwow]

THE WICKED + THE DIVINE #33: YOUR DERIVATIVE SHIT (AKA TWIST AND SHOUT)

This cover. Black to me signals death, or something awful. And I was certain that we get all-black pages somewhat regularly in WicDiv, but you know, it’s not true. Both when Luci gets “killed” and Laura herself “dies”, we get pages that are black but for two tiny almost exactly duplicated comments.

The Underworld is obviously a land of darkness, and there are two moments – during Laura’s first trip down there and then when Persephone first gets her hands on Woden – where we get a splash page of endless black into which the character is falling.

But the only time in WicDiv that we’re given a non-dialogue-y black page is when Sakhmet takes out her dad in issue 17, and again in issue 28 when she massacres her party people after coming to believe they’re all laughing at her. That last one does give one tiny little glimpse of her, though.

So if there is a “language” to the all-blacks (non haka version) (love you Kiwis), it would seem to be something to do with violence and lost time.

But we’ve already done all the blood and nightmares in this arc, and this issue is instead filled with twists and reveals and honest soul-rending conversation and reunions and new friends and overall kind of a lot of reader satisfaction.  So a very different thing.

Another take on the all-black is this is what you put on your cover when you’re terrified anything else will give something away. But for as much anxiety as Kieron talks about in his notes about “keeping the secrets” of this issue (and also his sense of what nonsense that fear is), he and Jamie have never had any trouble obscuring  reveals before.

So here’s my thought: Maybe it’s like Disneyland. Disney theme parks are built in such a way that on the way in you have to go through a tunnel of some kind, and before you do you can’t really see inside to all the happy happy joy joy good stuff.

The idea is, Disney wants you to feel like you’re entering into a whole different world than the one you left behind, a better world where you can be happy and spend money and want to take the same picture in front of the castle that everyone else does and still feel like it’s special.  And part of that is creating a clear sense of boundary; there was where you were and there’s where you’re going, and the tunnel stands as passage in between.

Maybe that’s why you do a black cover: Not to hide anything or signal violence but to create a boundary, a sense of a passage into something new. 

PHALLUCIES

So we begin with the Vibrator as key. I want to say it might be the perfect Gillen/McKelvie image – it’s naughty and seems like a joke and has been sitting there for so long that we no longer think much of it when in fact it is absolutely essential.

Nothing in WicDiv is superfluous, minor or irrelevant. Everything is trying to express something important. (TELL US ABOUT THE VEILS KIERON.)

A bigger question: does the fact that Jon (and not only Jon but the truth about Laura) is released into the story via a phallic device that vibrates have even more to say? Is pleasure or self-care in a sense the key in WicDiv, a path to freedom and life?

Have I not mentioned already I was an English major?

READ ONLY MIMIRY (#SorryNotSorry)

After an arc that seems very caught up in how the characters are all caught up in/pinned down by stories, suddenly out of nowhere we have Jon, this breath of fresh air who sees that path for the garbage it is and refuses it. He will not fit the options Ananke poses, or any duality, thanks very much.

He is the one who builds.

Of course he is then force-wrapped into stories – the Pantheon (I love the horror of his reaction to his ascent), this weird Odin/Thor thing (complete with the nod to Thor’s alter ego Donald Blake) and also the biblical Abraham and Isaac story, the father sacrificing his son to God (now comes with beheading!).

And if I understand the father/son dynamic, as much as Jon sees the Mimir thing for the lie or trap it is, he still can’t quite help himself from being a builder. There are rules he can bend (see: vibrator) but he can’t quite enact a full break.

His call is really quite beautiful. “You walked among your foes for the sake of love,” the spooky Ananke heads say. “Struck down you are raised up, the Sky King’s grandest treasure.” It’s pretty much the absolute opposite of his Dad’s call.

How crazy is it that we’re 2/3rds done with the series, we’ve just been introduced to a major new character (okay we saw him once before but still), and he fits in so well?

Probably we’re being set up for betrayal and heartbreak, but for now I love it with all the loves. 

MACK THAT KNIFE

Can we just talk about the knife for a second? Like, how exactly does it work? Clearly it somehow enables the user to disengage the head from the body while keeping the head alive. But whereas with Jon that might have happened literally – put your elbow into it, David! – in the case of Luci, Tara and Inanna Ananke used her signature head pop. So what’s the deal? It’s enough to have the knife in your possession when doing with the murdering, or something else?

Also, post-beheading, we see Ananke referring to Jon as “it”.

Is this because he’s now “just” a living head? Or is this how she actually honestly sees all the gods?  It’s um, upsetting to say the least. 

Of course so is Woden’s take on things: Jon stole my life (by being born, you horrible human looking meat puppet), so now I get to steal his.

I don’t know how it would have been possible Woden could sink lower in my estimation than he has (#Dio4Vr), but in fact it is and he has.

CASSANDRA VS. THE DESTROYER ROUND II

As much as I love the Jon reveal, the thing that really rocked my world was actually not that but Laura explaining what she’s been going through. I just – this poor girl. And though we still have two arcs to go, in a way this moment is the heart of the series. Kieron seems to say as much in the notes, talking about how the artist lives in this awful reality of getting what they dreamed of, but it involves awful stuff happening to oneself and others. 

“I’ve talked about having mixed feelings about WicDiv’s success. Laura’s arc is it writ large. I hate that the definitive work of my career is this. If my Dad was not dead I would not have written this book. There is a guilt and anger that is hard to articulate directly there, and is the material I was mining for this.”

Art is built on suffering and loss—and that means on the back of horror done to others. To wish to be an artist is in a sense to sacrifice those relationships in a fundamental and sometimes literal way, in fact that seems a necessity to one’s success. Being a storyteller may be incredibly nourishing for others, but it’s built on harm done to those you love.

Jesus Christ this is dark. And we haven’t even gotten to the point yet of facing the question that society’s survival is supposedly built on those artists’, those children’s destruction. We love you so much, you inspire us, but what cements that for the century is your deaths.

What do you make of this follow-up moment where Laura suddenly turns it to 11 with Cass?

It only happens after Cassandra calls Laura Persephone for the first time, which seems like it’s meant as a kind of respect. Knowing what she’s been through, she is now worthy of her name in Cassandra’s eyes. She is an equal.

Except it seems to set Laura on the path of what – connection, for sure. But through sex, which is actually more escape than intimacy.

What is “The Destroyer”, in the end? Less a malevolence associated with Laura, it seems to me, than the character of all the gods when they get lost in their stories about themselves.  

(More to the point: What the heck is the Machine? Jon says it does nothing. Whuhhh?)

A STEP A HEAD/STOP MAKING SENSE

So, after quite some issues away from it, in the end we return to the heads. Lots and lots of heads. Jon’s head (god that’s a delightful reveal), then Sakhmet’s slice of head – and Minerva – and then finally, the big finish.

I would say my head exploded except I feel like that gag has already been played.

As he has mentioned often in his notes, Kieron loves to hide much bigger reveals within the reveal we know that’s coming. In this case, we knew there was this other Daft Punk member hiding in the darkness somewhere, and we knew there was something up with Laura we needed to hear about.

So we get that and say thank you, and then there’s still four incredible jaw dropping can we please do a happy dance for Luci pages.

Kieron goes into a ton more detail on this writing strategy here, and the particular nightmare challenges posed by this issue. I’ll post excerpts below, but you should read them in full. They are fantastic.

But if I can just ask one question: What the hell happened with Minerva? Am I to believe she did not feel bad about Sakhmet, that she’s that good an actor? Je refuse! And also isn’t the point of the Sakhead reveal that still-Minerva blew it with her fearfulness and lack of skill?

#CRAFTSERVICE: ON TWISTS

Okay… twists.

In reality, for me, it’s a case of once you’ve decided that this is the plot, the only way to do it is dovetail towards an issue like this. Any of these individual beats provide too much connective tissue to the other ones, meaning all must be revealed or none.

(You could argue about Minerva, I suspect. Maybe.)

It’s been strange writing a book like this – when so much is there early on. Seeing who got what and who didn’t, and how people reinforced people has been interesting. That the core WicDiv tumblr community has never really suspected Minerva was off is in some way a surprise – though I’ve had people talk about that directly and personally. Blake/Jon and Minerva-is-Off-In-Some-Way were the two twists I would guard, but their primary importance was in how they led to the Heads.

When Ray Fawkes told me “There’s a reason you’re doing all the decapitations, right?” circa issue 2, I suspected that I’d overplayed the hand by having a literal talking head in issue 3… but it turned out fine.

“Played the hand” is interesting phrasing, and telling. Writing something as intricate as this is like doing a slow-motion card trick, in public, constantly. It is a form of constant stress. I have been paranoid of fucking it up in stupid ways, and it’s impacted every single conversation I’ve ever had about WicDiv. Like just writing one name when I mean another or something. There was a hilarious panic when I added ‘Killer Queen’ to the playlist, just thinking of it as a quite funny Ananke song… and then realised there was only one character in the cast with a connection to the band Queen, and that was Minerva. Should I take it off the playlist? No, someone may notice that, and it’s against my rules anyway. I quickly added a few other things to camouflage it.

As if anyone is watching that closely, y'know?

That’s an extreme example, but an entirely characteristic one. I have lost sleep over it. Even a year ago, I wished I could just get to 33 and not worry about it. When 33 dropped, it was simultaneously excellent (the response was basically what we expected) and an anticlimax (The amount of emotional and intellectual effort you put into doing this is not worth it. It could never be worth it.) I’ve been telling friends that I’ll never write a story that operates like this again. Partially that is because I wouldn’t want to repeat myself, and partially because – as I said above – I think twists are less effective in long-form serialised work in 2017, but mainly as I don’t think I want to do this to myself again. I’ll find some other way to torture myself.

 So apparently Mini has been off all this time. I’m stunned by that.

#CRAFTSERVICE: MORE ON TWISTS!

I’d note that setting up twists that *are* easily guessable by the hardcore is part of the methodology. Having a nice big twist foreshadowed heavily is a good way to hide another twist behind it. “Hey – pay attention to this less subtle sleight of hand while I perform the actual sleight of hand over here.”

Oh you’re expecting a big reveal are you, cool cool cool here it is and also SURPRISE.

He talks about this again later, in response to the reveal that Mimir is just a talking head.

When thinking of plot structure, I talk about a few ways to disguise twists. Earlier, I mentioned a Big Twist can make people suspect the twists are over. This is something I tend to think of as a revealed move. As in, you create a machine of logic with a missing part. You add the missing part as late as possible, and then immediately move to what has been concealed before the audience is able to process the new information.

Oh you’re blown away by Mimir are you? SURPRISE, there are three other heads.  And also Minerva is not Minerva.

It’s a great insight, too – if you fear one bit of new information is going to naturally lead to others, drop it all right now before they even have time to think about it.

#CRAFTSERVICE: ON WHAT WRITING IS FOR

I know this is a lot of quoting the author, but hey it’s a big issue and the author has some great stuff to say and it is helping me. 

How do I actually feel when someone guesses something that’s going to happen? Well, this is long enough already. Let’s put the personal stuff beneath a cut…

I’d say you sigh “Oh, poop” and shrug.

And then you get over your ass, because you know all the above is true. Writers are often megalomaniacs who think they can control everyone’s response to their work. We don’t. We can’t control everything. We can barely control anything. We really have to let go. I’ve said WicDiv is a device to help me improve as a person, yes? It would include in this area. I have to learn to let it go, and internalise all of the above. If I can make most of my readership have the vague emotional response I’m looking for, I’m winning.

Certainly I’ve heard many writers talk about their writing as coming from a personal place. And as a writer myself I’ve had to learn (again and again) that having a sparkly fun idea is not going to be enough to get me up and writing every day, even if people like it. That I need what I’m writing to come from something more specific in me.

But I don’t know that I’ve ever heard an artist talk about their work as well, their work. The journey they’re taking to try and deal with something or figure something out or to let go and get free and be a better version of them. It makes so much sense, and man does it challenge me to have another think about my own work. Because I think most of the time I almost think of the journey as the thing that has to come before the work, the thing that prevents the work – Ima just get my act together and then write this script in fifteen years or so. And reading this it strikes me  oh wait, that’s just the thing I tell myself so I don’t have to do the work.

 There’s so much more to say about this issue. But it’s taken me the better part of a week to say this much already so maybe I’ll just leave it there. Suffice to say, it’s a giant of story.

(And yes, that’s my exhausted end of words attempt at a Mimir pun.)

I’ll be back next week with the two specials. And then, Mothering Invention!

[skeletonscribbles]

Wishes - Chapter 12

there was really no getting around including Star Wars Weekend.

Disney folks  - I KNOW you can't get specialty drinks at Starring Rolls but I'm too lazy to make them go to a kiosk, okay? also I haven't been to SWW in a minute. they probably have different food now, but all the Disney Food Blog entries I looked at were back from like 2015 so I'm operating under the assumption that the novelty shit doesn't change.

Anyways.

Chapter Title: “Cantina Song” (Stan)

Warnings: unintelligible memeing, “Luke Skywalker is gay” discourse, some discussion of discrimination

meme references: I Have The High Ground Now THIS is Podracing That's....why I'm here....  (Comment your fave prequel meme if you have one - mine’s Obi Wan’s “Hello There” but I couldn’t figure out how to fit it in to the chapter RIP)

READ ON AO3

Tag List:  @roobarrtrashmouth @jem-carstairs-is-perfection @tozier-club @aizeninlefox @stanheartsbill @imrichie @softeds @pretzelstoday @melancholypurple @wheezygreens @ayyyymichele @loser-marsh

STANLEY URIS FRONT DESK COORDINATOR, YACHT CLUB RESORT but more immediately DISNEY’S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS MAY 4TH 11 A.M.

“It’s not that I don’t think Star Wars looks interesting,” Stan explained for what felt like the zillionth time that day. “Aesthetically, I’m all about it. I saw a PBS special one time about how they painted some of the sets - that was really cool.”

“So the reason you haven’t seen any of the films is…”

“Purely meme-related, yes.” Stan sighed and rubbed at his eyes. “I don’t understand what’s so hard to grasp about that.”

“Everything, Stan!” Mike all but shouted (though there was a tell-tale wobbliness to his voice that suggested he was on the verge of laughter). “Everything!”

Star Wars Weekend was one of the more baffling annual events on property for Stan. Aside from his never having seen the movies, Stan also wasn’t sure why the entire shebang took place in Hollywood Studios (his least favorite park), especially because the Star Wars Land expansion wasn’t even finished yet. All Studios had to offer for the event was boring old motion-simulator Star Tours and the giant stomp robot it was housed in (“the AT-AT, Stan,” Mike had sighed at least 15 times in the past hour alone). That said, though, Mike loved Star Wars and had apparently been looking forward to getting his picture taken with the round rolling robot (“he has a name, Stan, call him BB-8!”) for quite some time now. Since February and the veritable relationship shitstorm they’d weathered, Stan had been extra determined to compromise wherever he could to show Mike that he was in this for the long run, and as compromises ran, Star Wars Weekend wasn’t a bad one by any means.

“Do you want me to watch the movies, Mike?” he asked, resigned.

Mike laughed and pulled up the bottom of his Rebel Alliance shirt to mop the sweat off of his face. Stan didn’t even bother to hide the way his eyes slid down to Mike’s newly exposed stomach, and made a mental note to ask a Cast Member how long Star Tours was so he could gauge whether or not it was feasible to fool around on the ride. (So far, they’d managed some light groping on the 11 minute ride through the Haunted Mansion, and would have gotten even farther on Pirates except that Stan had Richie’s voice in his head the whole time reminding him of “all the fuckin’ shit I’ve seen on those cameras, Stan, I swear to whatever Jewish God you pray to”.)

“I should have asked if you liked Star Wars, like...weeks ago,” Mike said sadly. “I guess I just assumed. I’m sorry.”

“No worries,” Stan assured him, putting a comforting and not at all lascivious hand on his bicep. “I love Star Wars Weekend. It’s like living in another country for two days. I don’t understand shit about what’s going on, but the food is good and it’s pretty fucking funny if you play your cards right.”

“Another country?” Mike smiled. “Another planet, more like.”

Stan laughed. “Now you’re getting it. Speaking of miscommunications, do we have word from Richie and Eddie?”

“Operation double date is a go,” Mike confirmed, pulling out his phone to double check his texts. “Eddie said they’d be here in like twenty minutes.”

“Cool,” Stan said, and was surprised to find that he meant it. Richie had been in the apartment less and less as his relationship with Eddie had gotten more and more serious, which had culminated in Stan seeing Richie maybe twice over the entirety of the past two weeks. (Stan hoped that meant that they were finally having sex. It would be such a relief to know that Richie had built himself back up to a place where he was finally ready to make that happen.) Stan would never admit it to Richie’s face, but he was starting to miss having Richie around. He was running out of things to clean in the apartment, because no one was around to leave dishes in the sink or leave toothpaste smeared across the bathroom counter. It should have been a relief, but instead it was weird. He’d had Richie around for so long that the idiot had become a central part of his daily routines, and while he was happy that his friend was finally getting his shit together, it was going to be tough to reimagine his life with less Richie.

But. That was a problem for Later Stan.

“So,” Mike continued, “I was thinking maybe we grab food and then head for character meet-and-greets once they arrive? I’ve been waiting to eat chocolate Darth Vader cake all day, and if we don’t do that before Richie shows up, he’ll try to steal off of our plates.”

“True!” Stan brightened at the idea of food. He’d seen people walking around with some kind of blue drink that he’d been dying to try all day. “I think they’ve got cupcakes and stuff at that bakery over by Sunset?”

Mike shrugged. “Sounds right. It’ll be deserted over there, too - no one wants to ride Tower of Terror during Star Wars Weekend. Wanna walk?”

“I do,” Stan said, taking up a brisk pace towards the Sunset Boulevard themed area of the park. “I might be wrong about the cupcakes, though. I really don’t know this park at all. I only come here with Richie.”

“Let me guess,” Mike said knowingly, following Stan across the park, “he takes you here because he likes to feel like he’s doing better than someone at the Toy Story Midway Mania game.”

Stan almost stopped in his tracks. “How did you know?”

“He took me here the first time we hung out solo, too,” Mike said, catching up with Stan during his momentary lull and taking his hand. Stan couldn’t help but smile a little bit at the gesture, even though he was sure he’d drop Mike’s hand sooner rather than later - May in Florida meant that things were already almost unbearably muggy. “I think he takes everyone here so that he can gauge their Toy Story shooting skills.”

“And you were better than him?” Stan guessed.

“I wasn’t worse,” Mike agreed. “His hand-eye coordination needs some serious work.”

“No, my hand-eye coordination needs some serious work,” Stan sighed, spotting the bakery he was thinking of and making a beeline for it with Mike in tow. “Richie just can’t see. He has to wear the 3D glasses on top of his regular glasses.”

“Well, if we ever ride that ride together, I’ll let you win, sweetheart,” Mike promised, and Stan reached up to pull his curls desperately down over his ears so as to hide how red they’d just gotten. Mike really was the least selfish person on Earth. How had he, Stanley Uris, gotten so lucky?

But...now wasn’t the time to reflect on selfishness, because that would just make both of them a little bit sad. Neither of them had reached out to Bill at all since early March, and while they’d admitted to one another that they felt a little bit like they hadn’t given him enough of a chance (although Mike still felt worse about it than Stan did - it was in Mike’s nature to hope for change, and it was in Stan’s nature to know that things were going to stay the same), their residual guilt hadn’t been enough to warrant a check-in with their ex-partner just yet.

It would have to be soon, though - they both knew that. The seven of them were booked to visit Anaheim in just two short months, and if they weren’t amiable by then, Bev would kill them.

Soon wasn’t now, though. They’d be ready when they were ready.

“Let’s just never ride that ride together, okay?” Stan suggested, stopping in front of the bakery and checking out the menu signs out front. “Is this the cupcake you wanted?”

“Are these the droids I’m looking for?” Mike joked, but it fell on deaf ears. Stan knew a fair amount of Star Wars jokes as a result of his longtime dedication to r/funny (and he was absolutely positive that they’d be made less funny by his actually having seen the films, he just knew it, which was the real, core reason why he hadn’t bitten the bullet and watched the goddamn movies), but he had long since resigned himself to the fact that there were some references he was just never going to get.

“Chocolate Darth Vader,” Stan continued, trying to save them both some embarrassment. “Or was it this Jabba the Hutt….thing?”

Mike squinted at the menu, paying special attention to what was apparently a new item as of this year’s Star Wars Weekend. “That is the ugliest fucking cupcake I’ve ever seen in my life.”

“Can’t be uglier than Eddie’s mom!”

Fuck. Eddie’s stupid homing beacon brain had obviously struck again. Sighing heavily, Stan smoothed down his navy polo and turned around to greet his roommate.

“Hello Stan!” Eddie was three steps ahead of Richie, beaming as he bounded across the red concrete towards them. The shirt he was wearing had really obviously belonged to Richie at some point - the first clue was that it was white with Han Solo silhouetted in black on the front (Eddie didn’t know shit about Star Wars), and the second was that Eddie was absolutely swimming in it. In spite of both of those things, Eddie was in better spirits than Stan had maybe ever seen him, to the point where Stan was almost afraid that Eddie was going to hug him when he got close enough.

“Eddie,” Stan greeted, raising a hand slowly to wave cordially at their two friends as Mike slowly shifted his attention away from the cupcake selection. “Richie.”

“Stanakin Skywalker,” Richie grinned, coming up behind Eddie and sliding a hand easily onto Eddie’s shoulder, “here with Pad-Mike Amidala.”

Stan stared at him, wondering vaguely if he’d actually forgotten that Stan had zero knowledge of the Star Wars films. “Who?”

“Never mind.” Richie waved a conceding hand. The motion of his wave drew Stan’s eyes to his shirt, which was the most hideous brown monstrosity Stan had maybe ever seen (modeled after that creature that was always with Han Solo whose name Stan always forgot), and he wondered: had he actually missed Richie Tozier, or had his mind just gone soft and nostalgic from being alone in the apartment?

“How’d you find us, Eddie?” Mike asked, smiling warily down at the top of Eddie’s head. “I didn’t text you that we were getting food, did I?”

Eddie shrugged. “Had a hunch. Richie saw one of those blue drinks and thought that Stan would like that, and I know you can get those here, so.”

Stan looked at Richie, who was smiling at his giant, converse-clad feet, and felt a little bit sad all over again. His empty apartment nostalgia brain had nothing to do with how big of a hole Richie’s semi-departure had actually left in his life.

But again - that was a problem for Later Stan.

“Come on, Rich,” Stan said, moving towards the doors of the Starring Rolls Cafe and beckoning to his friend. “I’ll buy you a cupcake.”

Richie’s resulting smile was enough to make Stan consider skipping the fireworks show - it was that much of a spectacle. “He does care!”

“I always have, dipshit,” Stan muttered, walking pointedly away from Richie and into the air-conditioned cafe. Immediately, he let out a sigh of relief - the Florida heat fucking sucked, and he could practically feel his hair going nuts with it at this point in the day. Behind him, he heard Richie following along and chattering enthusiastically, but he tuned that out in favor of locating the blue drink he wanted on the menu. Once he found it, he couldn’t help but scowl...there was no way he was going to be able to pronounce the name of that cocktail well enough to order it. Reluctantly, he turned back to Mike.

“Hey sweetheart,” he began slowly, “the blue drink....”

Mike glanced at the menu, and then he threw his head back and let out a long laugh. Embarrassed, Stan tightened his shoulders and turned around.

“Never mind, I don’t--”

“Alderaan,” Mike said, still wheezing with laughter. “It’s pronounced All - deh - rahn...although if you want to pay homage to that meme you like about the high ground, you should get the red Mustafar thing--”

Stan considered that. On the one hand, he was mortified enough at this point to be seriously considering just skipping the drink altogether, but on the other...he did love that meme...

“Richie?” He glanced off to the right, scanning the room for Richie, who had become suspiciously quiet since they’d entered the bakery. “Tell me what you want so I can ge--”

The sentence dried up in Stan’s mouth as he locked eyes with one Bill Denbrough, who was standing next to a sheepish looking Richie. Stan vaguely registered the presence of Eddie, Beverly, and Ben behind Bill, but it didn’t matter that they were there, not really.

Well, it did, kind of. He tore his eyes from Bill and quickly scanned each of their faces - Richie looked uncomfortable, Eddie looked kind of sick, Ben looked embarrassed, and Bev...Bev looked…

Stan turned back to the left to glance at Mike, and when Mike met his gaze, a small nod confirmed Stan’s suspicions: this was Beverly Marsh’s doing, most definitely.

Bill himself looked more gaunt than Stan remembered - as if someone had taken the face that Stan remembered and stretched it thinner, made it longer, made it sadder, almost. His blue eyes stood in stark contrast to the circles around them, and they looked scared.

Bizarrely, that detail was almost comforting to Stan. It was good that Bill was a little frightened. That was better than Bill being indignant, or having that Denbrough fiery conviction in his eyes. No...frightened, Stan could work with. It gave him leverage, at the very least.

Mike would feel bad about it, though - and Stan could see him already starting to feel bad about it, guilt was creeping across his face and sinking his shoulders. Damn it.

Bill spoke first. “You didn’t t-tell me they were going to be here, Bev.”

Oh. That was new. Stan knew that Bill had stuttered in his youth, but he hadn’t ever actually heard him do it. Was it a ploy, or was it legitimate? Was it shitty of Stan to even be thinking that question?

“You guys were never going to get here on your own,” Bev said cooly, and Stan felt a little spike of anger at her - who was she to dictate the terms of this revisitation? They weren’t ready. None of them were ready, and Hollywood Studios was the wrong venue for any kind of confrontation.

Before he could collect his thoughts well enough to voice his displeasure, though, Eddie was speaking. “Should we go, then?” he asked, twisting the hem of his shirt in his hands nervously. “We could get in line for Star Tours, maybe? Or the Luke Skywalker meet-and-greet?”

“Do you know the names of any Star Wars characters that aren’t Luke Skywalker?” Richie asked fondly, re-situating his hand on Eddie’s shoulder. Eddie leaned into the touch, smiling quietly to himself.

“I like Luke Skywalker.” Eddie defended himself without any real heat, sliding a hand up to cover Richie’s. “He’s gay.”

Ben half-covered his face with his hand. “Oh, Eddie…”

“We’ll go,” Bev decided loudly, grabbing for Ben’s hand and leading him towards the door. “Text me when you’re ready to join us, boys. We’ll be in line for something or other, probably.”

Bev, Ben, Richie, and Eddie swept out of the restaurant together, and all of Stan’s angry words were left to fester as the four of them disappeared into the crowd, chattering about the merits of meeting Princess Leia (Bev’s choice) versus meeting Luke Skywalker (Eddie’s choice).

For the first time since February, Stan, Mike, and Bill were alone together. It was almost funny that they were reconciling in a restaurant, Stan thought, except that it was really not funny at all. None of them had moved, so they weren’t even set up to have a private conversation - they were stuck just staring at each other across the bakery as patrons entered and exited.

After a long thirty seconds, Mike strode forward, and gestured to Stan to follow him. Stan clenched his fists and entertained the idea of resisting - he didn’t want either of them to be drawn back into the vortex they’d been in before, the last two months had been so good - but in the end, he followed, because this wasn’t about going back, not really. It was about moving forward.

How have you been, Bill?” Mike asked softly, offering out a hand for Bill to shake.

Bill stared at Mike’s hand as if it were going to bite him, but Mike held firm, and after an excruciating moment, Bill relented. Stan was surprised at how visibly Bill relaxed when his brain finally processed that Mike and Stan weren’t going to be hostile. He deflated like a balloon, sagging his shoulders and sliding his hand into Mike’s.

“Okay,” Bill said, and Stan could almost feel the way his face immediately synched up with Mike’s as they raised their eyebrows at Bill skeptically. Bill stared at them for a second, and then choked out a laugh, eyes widening incredulously. “Okay, not great, not really even okay, actually. Holy shit, you guys.”

“Sorry,” Mike said, at the same time that Stan said, “Now THIS is podracing,” and Bill let out another hoarse laugh.

“Is that a meme?” he asked, smiling up at Stan, and Stan felt his stomach clench upon seeing the little crinkly smile lines around Bill’s eyes. How fucking odd, to remember the things that you were attracted to in a person without experiencing the actual attraction.

“Yes,” Stan said, and found that his voice wasn’t nearly as sharp as he’d anticipated it being. “Of course it’s a meme. You know me.”

Bill looked like he had something to say on that point, but to Stan’s great surprise, he kept it to himself.

“Guest Relations still going okay? I never see you in the tunnels,” Mike continued, already grasping for straws as far as small talk topics were concerned. The conversation was going to have to get serious soon - Stan wasn’t sure why Mike was delaying the inevitable.

“It’s fine,” Bill shrugged. “Kind of boring. I see Richie and Eddie sometimes, but mostly it’s just the usual sitting at the window and fielding complaints. How’s Splash? And Yacht?”

“Splash is great, actually,” Mike said, smiling slowly. “I’m glad I transferred there. I’m having a lot of fun.”

If Bill was upset about that, he was doing a good job of not showing it. “I’m glad. And you, Stan?”

Stan nodded, trying to be as agreeable as possible. “We’ve got wings closed for renovation, so it’s pretty quiet. Once we’re full steam ahead again, though, I’m going to put in for Manager.”

Bill swung his eyes over to meet Stan’s, and Stan was surprised by how open his expression was. “Good. Sounds like you’re both doing well.”

Mike and Stan exchanged a nervous glance. “We’re fine, yeah.”

There was an awkward silence, exacerbated by Bill turning away for a few seconds to look at the cupcake case. Once he turned back, Mike spoke again.

“I’m sorry for what happened in February,” he said, and Stan straightened up. Finally, finally, finally they had reached the meat of the conversation - and the sooner they got through it, the sooner this terrible interaction would be finished. “I know I wasn’t fair.”

Mike turned his head after he was finished speaking and fixed Stan with a look that indicated that he expected Stan to apologize too...but Stan wasn’t quite there yet.

“Have you thought about what we said?” he asked instead, and he felt rather than saw Mike’s cringe.

Bill didn’t seem upset, though. In fact, he looked as though he had expected that line of questioning. “If I said yes, Stan, would you believe me?”

Stan didn’t really know what his answer to that question was. Fortunately, Mike was able to make a quicker judgement call.

“I would,” said Mike. “February Bill would have been pretty mad that we were doing well without him, I think, and you seem….you seem calm, Bill. Have you been talking to someone?”

“Just Bev,” he said, cutting eye contact with both of them and looking at the ground sheepishly. “We still live together for the moment, but I think she’s looking at moving in with Ben? Is that true?” He looked specifically at Mike for that question, and Mike nodded carefully.

“I think so? I’m pretty evenly split between my place and Stan’s, so I don’t know for sure,” he said, and Stan’s eyes snapped back to Bill’s face, trying to gauge his reaction about Stan and Mike spending time together. To his credit, he didn’t seem fazed at all.

Fuck. Maybe things had changed over the past few months. Maybe Bill was trying to self-improve after all.

“But I’m thinking about seeing a therapist,” Bill continued, shuffling his feet a little bit, “just to like, talk to someone, you know? And I’ve been thinking about what you guys were saying about the not listening, because...well, Bev said it too, and I’m not...I’m working on it.”

Mike smiled sweetly. “I can tell.”

“Me too,” Stan admitted, and Bill’s eyes snapped up at that. He had obviously not expected Stan to be kind.

“I have a question, though,” Bill asked, in a tone that quietly indicated that he only half-wanted to ask his question.

“Shoot,” Mike and Stan said in unison, and Bill shuddered.

“Fucking weird, you guys. Anyways,” he said, taking his time as if trying to word it perfectly in his head. “I just...what happened? Why me? I know that’s probably like...ignorant or something? Maybe? I don’t know, but...I deserve to know that, I think.”

Stan smiled thinly. The old Bill - the “deserve” Bill - was not quite dead, after all.

Mike, as always, was kinder than Stan, and launched quickly into an explanation.

“Well, the minority versus non-minority thing was bigger than you thought it was, I think,” Mike said thoughtfully, and Stan nodded.

“Yeah, ditto that. There are some things you just can’t understand unless you’ve lived them.”

Bill frowned and shoved his hands into his pockets. “But Stan’s white.”

Stan exhaled lowly. “Yeah, and that’s not the same as Mike and all the shit he deals with, I know...but the Jewishness, Bill. It’s a thing, even if I haven’t really practiced in a minute...it’s a thing.”

Sighing, Bill inelegantly pushed a hand back through his hair. “Okay, I guess. Was that it?”

Stan looked at Mike, and Mike nodded back at him, giving him the non-verbal green light.

“The dynamic was weird,” Stan said, willing Bill to look him in the eyes for this part. It wasn’t happening, but it felt like it was important to try, so Stan persisted. “You like to be in charge, and the two of us aren’t really people that like having people in charge of us.”

“Yeah,” Mike agreed. “We’re not Richie and Eddie, Bill - heck, we’re not even Ben and Bev. We’ve got a whole different thing going on, you know?”

Bill’s eyes were all but glued to the floor. “That makes sense, I guess.”

“You don’t like it,” Mike said flatly, and Bill hesitated for a moment before nodding.

“I don’t,” Bill agreed. “But. It helps to know.”

“We should have explained it better,” Mike said, and Stan nodded shortly - almost indecipherably, because part of him was still resistant to apologizing, but he nodded all the same. “It’s just so fucking frustrating in the moment, you know?”

Bill barked out a laugh. “Yeah, I definitely know.”

Another silence fell upon them, but it was more comfortable now. Stan could practically see the other side of the conversation, and he was desperate to get there. The staff was starting to be weirded out by their continued presence.

“Are we going to be okay, then?” he asked, trying to drive the other two to a more practical place.

They both looked up at him with matching fond smiles, and he felt heat curl in his gut. Fuck, that was...something else.

“I don’t know about hanging today, if I’m honest,” Mike said, more blunt than usual (and Stan knew that was for his sake), “but we could try another day and see? That’ll give us time to prepare.”

Bill nodded thoughtfully. “Time to prepare sounds good. Bev really threw us under the bus today, huh.”

“She really fucking did,” Stan agreed sourly. “Which day?”

“I’m pretty tied up this month,” Bill admitted, “but maybe beginning of June? Do you guys have Universal Studios Season Passes? I haven’t been on Kong yet.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Mike smiled. “Cool. You staying for the rest of this Star Wars crazy, Bill?”

“Nah,” Bill said, waving a hand dismissively across his face. “I’m more of a Star Trek guy. Bev knows that, so I was a little confused about why she asked me to come today...I guess I know now. Anyways. I’ll probably go home and watch reruns of Arrested Development.”

Stan nodded, feeling light. “Well, godspeed, then.”

Bill looked between the two of them, looking half pleased and half exasperated. “God, Stan, you’re so--”

“I know,” Stan said, reaching for Mike’s hand. To his great relief, Mike took it immediately. “I know.”

There was still more to say - the air was thick with conversation they weren’t having, but it was time for Bill to go, and he knew it.

“Goodbye, then,” he finally said, backing towards the doors of the restaurant.

“Goodbye,” Mike and Stan chorused, waving him away until he pushed his way out and back into the Florida sun.

They stood there like that for a moment, hands clasped, and then looked back at each other.

“How do you say the name of that drink again?” Stan finally asked, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

Mike opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, someone tapped Stan on the shoulder.

It was one of the Starring Rolls employees, holding his blue, blue drink.

“Couldn’t help but overhear,” she said quickly as Stan read her nametag (‘Patricia’, and she looked like one, too, all dark curls and dimples). “This is on the house. Sorry about your friend.”

Stan blinked back at her, too surprised to speak, and Mike clapped a hand on his shoulder, laughing softly.

“In another life, he’d be considering asking you to marry him right about now,” Mike informed the girl, who laughed in response.

“Sounds like it would be nice,” she said, beaming at the two of them. “Alternate universe Patty Blum is pretty lucky. But for now, enjoy, okay? May the fourth be with you.”

“Thank you,” Stan said, thirty seconds too late - she was already headed back to her post.

“Pull yourself together, sweetheart,” Mike chided jokingly, holding up his phone, which was lit up with new text notifications. “Bev’s wondering where we are. You up for doing more shit? I know that was a lot to handle.”

Stan looked down at his drink, and then up at Mike, and felt his face split into a huge, crazy grin.

“That’s...why I’m here.”

Mike’s responding groan propelled them out of Starring Rolls and all the way back to where Bev, Ben, Richie, and Eddie were waiting for them.

[zenkatki]

Pandemic Ironman 2020

I have been asked by a few people to write something regarding Ironman Florida, the first full 140.6 Ironman held in the United Stated since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. I have never done a race write up before and I am not sure where to begin. I will take it from training which started in March to the end of the race and the reader can skip around to the parts they find interesting.

Training

Ironman Florida was to be my tenth Ironman, a step on the road to Legacy. I started a training plan that I had used before in February and tweaked it a little with my Ironman Coach certification. I already had a good endurance base from the 2020 Dopey Challenge at Walt Disney World in January, so February was primarily weight training and short distance swim, bike and runs. I still had a pool this month at New York Sports Club in Smithtown.

March is where things got interesting and COVID-19 lock-down started. The gym closed. I quickly purchased a Thermal Reaction wetsuit from Blueseventy and found my gloves and booties. I am fortunate to live 2.5 miles from the Long Island Sound so open water swims started early March. It was freezing but a bit fun to channel my inner Wim Hof. The swim training for this Ironman was entirely open water, with one pool swim in July when my sister invited me to her Town Pool once it opened. It was a concern because I feel pool intervals are important but I learned to incorporate intervals in the open water which helped break up those sessions and gave me focus.

I was able to get weight training done at work, we have a pretty decent set up in our garage. Biking and running proceeded as usual with a mix of outside rides and runs and some Zwift workouts. With a ten month training period I worked a lot of Zone 2 heart rate training, I’ve become a big believer.

It was weird not knowing at this point if the race was even on, and training helped me deal with a lot of the unknown, the anxiety. It pushed me through the spring and summer feeling hopeful despite seeing all the races on the circuit being cancelled. I had a 70.3 planned for late August in Maine that was not to be this year.

Time passed and soon it was race time. Ironman sent multiple e-mails stating they were still looking to hold the race and how it would function. I kept a folder in my e-mail with all the correspondence from Ironman, the airline, the hotel and TriBike Transport.

Travel

For whatever reason this was a tough flight to find. I had to go American Airlines and the flight to Florida was out of LaGuardia to Charlotte to Fort Walton Beach, an airport that was about an hour away from Panama Beach City. Going home was Panama City to Charlotte to JFK. Out of all three airports, JFK in New York was the only one with the Department Of Health forms to fill out upon arrival.

Now the story I’m about to write is to show how important it is to remain alert and pay attention to detail when you travel. Hopefully you will learn from my mistake here.

I wearily got off the plane at Fort Walton and found a cab outside, a nice, elderly man named Bill who was willing to drive me over an hour to my hotel in Panama City. He was driving, we were chatting and he asked me if it was okay for him to stop for gas. Sure, no problem. At the gas station he asked if I wanted to get anything and I said yes, I’ll run in for a drink. As I exited the gas station I saw the taillights of my cab leaving the pump and proceeding down the road. Without me. I did my best to stay calm but my cab had just left me stranded and my bags were in the car, along with my wallet, shield, and ID. I wondered if I was on a television show. After a few minutes it became clear that I was not on TV, and I needed to do something to track down this car. I was angry at myself for not knowing the cab company name, or getting the vehicle’s plate. After getting nowhere on the phone trying to contact the airline I asked the woman at the gas station to call the police. It was at this moment my cab returned, and my friend Bill said he thought it was weird I wasn’t answering his questions anymore and when he turned around and didn’t see me, he remembered I ran into the gas station. I refrained from physically strangling this man and climbed back into the minivan, clearly shook regarding how this race weekend just started.

Hotel

I had booked the Boardwalk Beach Hotel & Convention Center when I registered for this race. It was originally the host hotel and the race was to take place right on the grounds which is super convenient. Due to COVID and the safe return to racing, the race venue was moved six miles away to Aaron Bessant Park so they could spread us out more. I kept the reservation at BBH to be fair and help with the hotel’s business. I did enjoy being there but it was far from everything. In retrospect I should have rented one of those kewl golf carts and used that to get around for the weekend. I spent approximately $100 in Uber fees going back and forth to Aaron Bessant and Pier Park. All my cab fees, airport runs included, came to about $250. A shuttle would have been super nice but I think the majority of the people racing switched their accommodations upon the announcement of the venue change.

The hotel itself was okay, I was on the ground floor so it was out and a short walk to the water and road. The cafeteria had coffee in the morning and some pastries but I only saw them cooking food my last day as I checked out. The people that worked there were nice, I’ll forever remember me cleaning my bike in my room with the door open and housekeeping cleaning the adjoining rooms. I had put some music on the Bluetooth and we had a great time.

Race Check In

About a week before traveling Ironman sent out an Active.com e-mail with a link to reserve race check in times. This again was to space us out and not have us standing in line, clogging up the area. I picked Wednesday night between 5-6PM. Bibs were given out first come, first serve so the lower your bib number was the earlier you checked in. I was #1038. I arrived at about 4:45 with my mask and was told I could go in. It was athletes only so if you were with someone they had to wait outside the Ironman Village for you. I had to answer a short survey verbally, get my temperature taken, and then was directed table to table, just like a regular race. For places where a line of people might happen there were tape marks and lanes were roped off with string and little ribbons indicating every six feet. I was able to pick my bike check-in time for Friday, they gave me a little card with 2-3PM on it. I actually really liked this system and I think it would be great even when racing goes back to its regular routine. I found it interesting that the swag such as the swim cap and back pack didn’t have the race name on it. The finisher shirt and medal had no date on it. I guess up until the very start of the race it was always uncertain if it would be a go.

I learned that Ironman Gulf Coast 70.3 would also be on Saturday, November 7th, with an 11:00AM start time. So both races would be going at almost the same time using the same course and staging area. I received an e-mail from Triathlon Wire with the numbers of about 1250 athletes for the full and 300 for the half.

After checking in I walked over to the TriBike Transport tent, picked up my bike, put air in the tires and rode it back to my hotel. It was dark when I got back so I walked over to Subway for a veggie sub.

Thursday was a day for me to ride a little, swim a little and look around a little. My calves let me know when I did too much walking. That happens to me often at Disney for marathon weekend. You’re in a great place and want to see it all but remember, there’s a race in a couple of days! I did what I could to find vegan food options in a very big seafood area. I remembered to bring food to eat later back to my room, I had a refrigerator and a microwave there.

I walked on the pier and saw a few of the swim course buoys set up. It always looks so far, doesn’t it?

Before bed I watched the athlete briefing on-line and reviewed the race packet I printed out before I left New York. I got my gear bags ready to be handed in along with my bike the next day.

Bike Check In

Friday I rode my bike and gear bags to check in at 2PM. For some reason we also needed to wear our timing chip which made me thankful I watched that briefing the night before, because they really weren’t letting people go in without them. Athletes only again, no one without a timing chip and an event race band could enter transition. In I went with my mask on again.

Bikes were placed every other space on the rack giving us a little more room. Gear bags stayed with the bike. I tucked mine under the rear wheel that was in the air. All items in the bags must stay in the bags even during the race. So the guy two spots down from me who set his area up like he was doing a neighborhood sprint complete with a towel mat had to put all his gear back in the bags. After taking a picture of my set up and saying good night to my bike (for real, I speak to it) I got out of there. I made sure I knew where I was regarding swim in, bike out/bike in and run out before I left. I picked up a veggie pizza before heading back to the hotel. I spent the remainder of that day eating, relaxing, reading, prepping my Special Needs bags. I usually apply race numbers (TriTats) the night before but there was no body marking for this race so I wasn’t going to use up the numbers.

I was slightly concerned about getting to the race start so early the next morning. The front desk had recommended a cab service, but I met an awesome man named El by the hotel pool. He needed a charger for his Garmin. I let him use mine and we started talking about the next morning. He had driven to Florida from Tennessee, had his car and offered me a ride to the start which I gratefully accepted.

Race Morning

Up at 3:45AM race morning. Made instant coffee, ate half a bagel, lubed, dressed, double checked all my bags and headed out. El and I drove to transition and he was able to park close to the transition entrance. Special Needs bags were handed off on the way in to Transition. Masks were on. I went to my bike, double checked the tires and filled the water and Gatorade bottles. They didn’t want us wondering around too much. I did see Chris Nikic walk into Transition. This race was his attempt at becoming the first person with Down Syndrome to complete an Ironman. I thought it was great to see him, a good sign. Now that I think about it at this point I just focused on that good thought and the cab ride from the airport wasn’t even in my head. Mike Reilly was there! I got ready to swim and tucked my Morning Clothes bag behind my gear bags, Morning Clothes stayed with us as well.

Swim

The forecast projected it being overcast most of the day and the morning was a bit cloudy. I picked goggles with a super light tint and it was a good choice. We were to stand with our bikes until our projected swim time was called out. I stayed put until I heard, “1:20-1:30 head to the swim start now!” Everyone thinking they were finishing the swim in that time started out and towards the beach, it was about a seven minute walk on the road and on sand. Some people had throw-away shoes on, I did not. The road had tape marks every six feet, they wanted you to try to stay on them when walk-traffic stopped. On the sand they had roped off lanes with pink ribbons tied on every six feet. We were to stay on a ribbon. There were spectators the whole walk. Eventually my lane made it to the water and they were letting four people enter every five seconds or so. Despite this great system guess what. Once we were in the water in was a traditional Ironman. It took some time to get passed the breaks but once I was in I was going. Two loops, clockwise in the Gulf. I saw fish and a sea turtle. There was a current pushing us sideways so it took some effort and a lot of sighting to stay to the left of the buoys. It wouldn’t be an Ironman if I didn’t get hit in the eye and I got it on my second loop. If you’re familiar with the Lake Placid swim it was like that only no cable though, sorry. Despite it being wetsuit legal I was getting hot towards the end. I really enjoyed the water though and had a swim time of 1:27:01.

T1

My transition neighbors were gone by the time I got into T1 so I had plenty of room. I was expecting to have to wear a mask in Transition but we did not. I had my bike gear in the bag set up so I could just pull it out and put it on and it worked well. I hung my wetsuit on the bike rack to dry hoping that was allowed. It was still there when I got back so I guess it was. Once I was bike ready I made my way out to start my ride. My T1 time was 10:39.

Bike

Because the swim had been warm I started my bike ride a little thirsty which was unfortunately a sign of things to come. To keep contact points down Ironman had reduced the amount of Aid Stations, so after drinking my water and most of my Gatorade quickly it was some time before I could refill. I ate every 45 minutes to an hour on the bike. Solid food was no problem, I had a lot with me and grabbed extra going through the Aid Stations. It was fluid I needed more often than it was available. If the sun had been out full force I think I would have had an even worse problem. It was about 80 degrees, humid, still overcast and windy which meant I was sweating and not really going anywhere when pedaling against the wind. I used the tail wind as best I could to make up time. I really think I need to be re-fit for my bike because at mile 30 I was already having terrible lower back pain. It wasn’t an easy ride and despite everyone telling me how flat the course is, it was over 3,000 feet of elevation. I had to get off to use the porta-potty and stretch early on. I guess at this point I should mention my race kit. I wore a one-piece tri suit from Zoot, the Autism Ohana kit. Google it if you have a chance, I think it’s great. Very colorful and for a good cause. I wore it to remember my friend Lizzie that I run with sometimes in Central Park as a volunteer for Achilles. But there are goods and bads of wearing a one-piece and the bads is definitely when you try to use the bathroom in it. It has little sleeves that are tough to find and get your arms through when they are wet. So there was a struggle in that porta-potty, no doubt. Finally I opened the door. The porta-potty was on an incline and I kind of stumbled out of it and cracked my left knee on the doorway. Then I bent over to grab my knee and hit my big, bike helmet head on the side. I felt like the Three Stooges was trying to do an Ironman, I really did. Shaking my head I got back on the bike and started to go. I felt my knee throbbing for about twenty miles. As I write this I have a wicked bruise. But back to the bike…This was a one loop course on the highways of Florida. There were wide shoulders and a bike lane that we rode in but in the back of my mind I kept thinking this was an active road way and any passing needed to be super carefully done. Cars were courteous enough not to use the right lane but if a driver wanted to be a jerk and use it they could. Any residential/business areas had spectators. As I said before it was windy. I did the best I could and had some good splits when the wind was with me but I needed to get off a few more times to stretch. I finished the bike with a usual time of 7:14:01.

T2

Again I had the area to myself so I sat to change shoes and get ready for the run. I was a little put off by my bike split and my stomach was not 100% but I thought I could have a strong run if I stayed focused. Removing sand from my feet was a challenge but it was important so avoid any irritation so I took the time to do that before I put my socks on. I stretched my back and drank more Gatorade before I left. I had a T2 time of 10:53.

Run

As I started my run I was greeted by just as many spectators as any other Ironman. Some had masks on, some didn’t. Some were dressed up, some played music. Everyone was encouraging and motivating. I started out so happy to be running. This course was an out and back two times along the highway parallel to the beach, passed all the hotels, bars and restaurants. The halfway turning point and the finish line were at Pier Park. For six miles I ran strong and thanked everyone for being out. A lot of people liked and commented on my race kit. It was great. But soon I knew I was going to have to do the run/walk, even as the sun went down and it started to cool off. I was unable to eat anything solid for the majority of the run. The thought of trying made me dry heave. I saw a few people really heaving in the bushes and was afraid I was going to join them. I took in as much fluid as I could, mainly water and Coke. I was sweating out a lot of salt, my neck and face were all gritty. I thought at first maybe it was sand but why would there be sand on my face, right? Out and back, out and back, using whatever I could in my brain to keep moving. I followed the cones they used to mark off the run area. Walk one cone, run five cones. My quads were shredded. I thought of my Mom and my Family. I thought of work and how I wanted to make everyone proud. I thought of the finish line and finally, FINALLY it was my turn to cross. My run took 6:25:20. Mike Reilly called me an Ironman with an official time of 15:27:52.

After crossing the spectator-less finish line I was given a mask and a masked volunteer guided me along, not touching me, to a table with plastic bags containing my finisher shirt and race medal. Someone with gloves and a mask removed my timing chip. I made my way over to Athlete Food and choked down half a veggie sub. I got my picture taken with my medal. (There were photographers out on the course too.) I had completed my 10th Ironman.

As I gathered my gear and dropped my bike back at the TriBike tent, Chris Nikic became an Ironman. I cheered from the parking lot. I started to walk back with the plan of getting passed the road closures to an area where I could call an Uber to get back to my hotel. But I started walking with a man named Dan who had volunteered in a kayak for the swim and at the finish line as well. He had just as long of a day as I had but when he heard of my plan to get back he ran into his hotel, got his keys and drove me to my hotel. And that really, really describes the Ironman atmosphere and Family to me. We all help each other, we all do what we can to get each other through the challenge. I am so grateful I found this sport, these events and have met some of the most amazing people.

I hope this write up helps someone with their goal, be it an Ironman or a first sprint triathlon, or a marathon or whatever. Please feel free to contact me with any questions if I missed something you wanted to know about.

Thank you to everyone for the well wishes, encouragement and congratulations. Thank you to Ironman and the Volunteers for having this race during one of the most hectic times in our lives.

Thank you for reading.

Kristen

SuperKat1029@aol.com

Instagram - @zenkatki

[titconao3]

that 11 question thing

i was tagged by @antarctic-echoes​ & @mametupa​, so here are my answers. Warning: i suck at these things. Sorry. tl;dr: i’ve been told several times i was too much of a realist, too down-to-earth and sadly unable to dream & leave what things actually are aside, and it shows.

1.  what’s your favorite hobby? Er, i don’t really know... anything where i can forget myself?

2.  What’s the movie you hate more than anything? there are several, and probably quite a few i’ve erased from my memory. i don't get why people like Love, Actually so much for instance - so depressing. And others, but i either don’t remember them or don’t want to get flamed, so.

3.  which would you rather be: Ninja or British Spy? And why? i teach English for a living, but i practised a martial art for a few years. No idea, you pick! If the British Spy thing means lots of sex, no thanks. If it means cool fun toys, why not. If the ninja thing means being able to do fancy moves, why not. If it’s about the training that allows me to do that, probably not.

4.  What’s your favorite book of all time? i don’t know. No, really. There are many books i enjoyed, but i’ve learned to be wary of picking them up again for a reread...

5.  If you could go anywhere, whether it be a real or fictional location, where would you go? no idea. Since i’m a very positive person who expects disappointment everywhere, well. Somehow, people think i’m pessimistic; i tend to see this as being realistic. It’s not that i don’t travel or like travelling, it’s just... i’m always keeping in mind it’s just a distraction that barely covers the emptiness of existence ;-) many places sound really great, but then when you’re there’s always that “gah i hate mountain paths” or “crap nearest toilets are far away” or “and now there’s the horrible trip back to look forward to” or “my feet are wet” or “those moving stairs are such a pain” or “the Pegasus galaxy is cool and stuff but i don’t have reliable access to AO3″... you get the idea.

6.  Which would you rather fight?  An angry horse-sized duck or a hundred angry duck-sized horses? depends on what tools / weapons etc i have at my disposal, i’d say? Do i have something that can incapacitate one large thing? or something to outrun small-legged animals for long enough i’d be safe?

7.  If you could have any dinosaur as a pet, which one would you have? i don’t want pets of any sorts. Not that i don’t like animals (i really do!), but i can’t properly care for them; i don’t have the time / space / patience etc. And, while dinosaurs are cool, they’d need a lot, and probably wouldn't be happy in an environment they’re not adapted to.

8. What is your favorite animated movie? er... i really don’t watch a lot of films, animated or otherwise. There are some i’ve enjoyed, and they’re definitely not Disney films. No shade on those who enjoy them, bear in mind i haven’t watched a Disney film since i was a kid, apart from the Lion King on a plane or something and the political undertones and how the way the lady lion’s role was downplayed made me angry (and why do so many of these end on “and they got married, the end”? not the more recent ones, from what i understand?) and also why do these people sing all the time? i... don’t like random singing??? i live in fear of the Lucifer musical ep, and i’m one of like 2 or 3 people who don’t like Lucifer singing stuff. I try to pretend he’s Freddie Mercury when writing him. Regarding anime, i’m probably supposed to say Miyazaki or something because everyone loves his stuff, and... it’s nice, sure. Really. Honestly, young characters have never been my thing - Ponyo was sure cute, i guess? i liked the Kenshin OAV because it mixed great music, anime, trope use etc? Or should i mention The Grave of the Fireflies because it’s all deep and stuff? It’s really good, but i’d never EVER rewatch it. Or perhaps Ghost in the Shell? great Kenji Kawai music there. Haven’t watched any animated film in ages. 

9.  What is your favorite dessert? i generally don’t really like sweet things - i can appreciate them, but one spoonful or two is enough; it’s not really my thing.

10.  what is your movie score? the... number of films i’ve watched? i used to be big on artsy cinema in my younger days, now i can’t stand being still for several hours, surrounded by people potentially munching on crunchy stuff. I’d probably not get a good score (HAHAHA) at most quizzes. to answer the question, the music i’m living to? i do enjoy some film scores - but i like silence more. 

11.  If you could go to dinner with any fictional character, who would you choose and why? no idea. i don’t have anything interesting to say to anyone. i imagine i can pretend for a while, but that’s what i already do most of the time i’m not home, so... i mean, there are many characters i find interesting / fascinating, but i don’t fit in their world or they don’t fit in mine. How would that work? Am i a lowly ensign on the (original) Enterprise? What am i supposed to talk about with Tony Stark and his buddies? i guess i could just stare moodily at a beer bottle while Methos looks all cool and liquid on the chair next to me, he’s probably one of those people who won’t mind silence too much? It would be rude to pester him about what he’s lived through. Maybe ask where he gets his sweaters, they look comfy. Not Lucifer, because i’m not the Detective (or in her orbit) / a pretty young thing / a good singer. I can drink? But i don’t know what to do with myself in a club, so.  and now from @mametupa​: 1. Which is your favorite holiday and why?  As a rule, i dislike holidays. It’s uncomfortable, i don’t particularly want to see most of my family, and it all feels forced. Of course i do know that for some people it’s a joyous time, but be it Xmas / Easter / birthdays whatever, it’s... not my thing. Sorry.

2. What is your favorite food to cook or eat?  i’m easy either way. A few years ago i used to cook with a friend. We became estranged, and now i don’t really cook anymore - i mean, i still cook everything myself everything i eat (including bread or yoghurts) but since then i’ve lost the taste and it’s all very utilitarian; fuel so i don’t faint at the gym or at work. i don’t really care, but i’m okay with or at least will try almost anything. Really.

3. If you had to live in the body of someone else, who would it be? Er, no one. Honestly, and that’s not a fun answer, but i’d rather not exist at all. Bodies are hard work (plus luck) to maintain reasonably healthy and, worse, in what is considered “good shape.” Besides, some that really look good are actually not good at all inside, not all diseases / pains are visible.

4. Favorite season? spring makes me sneeze, summer is too hot, winter is that horrible holiday period, so i guess autumn? i do like red colours on leaves (but i live in a city, so don’t see them much like on those nice autumn moodboards with pretty forests)?

5. If someone wrote a book about you, what would the title be? that won’t happen :-)

6. Favorite childhood book? i was a voracious reader until lit studies made me quit reading for a few years, so i read a lot as a child. I kept ideas, feelings, one little thing from many books, but i don’t think there’s ONE book that made me go THIS ONE. sorry.

7. Favorite smell? i don’t know. Wet forest? Fresh bread? Fireplace? What is one supposed to answer?  Definitely not perfumes or flowers, i’d sneeze and my eyes would become liquid or something.

8. What different languages do you speak or understand? French, English. I used to be good at Spanish, and i can (especially after a few days of resetting the brain bits) cope. My grammar and vocab are all shot to hell but i can definitely get by; i understand people enough to enjoy guided tours & stuff and get food and a hotel and get directions to park the car. For some reason i now have an English accent whenever i try to speak Spanish (i once said “nos quedamos ten minutos” sounding like a posh XIX lady and the friend i was travelling with was laughing like a loon. She had to repeat what i said to me). i’d like to learn Arabic, because it’s different and the grammar and sounds and writing and word etc are both alien to what i’m used to and yet a source of the languages i’ve learned before, so. i did Latin and Ancient Greek loooong ago, and well it was useful to read street signs in Greece and St Petersburg (i’d brushed up on the Russian alphabet just in case).

9. Favorite era?  they’re all interesting, past and present and future. The way some categories of people are / were treated tends to make me run away, though - women, sexual or racial or or or minorities, slavery, you name it. Nowhere, nowhen is 100% a haven.

10. What 5 things would you want to have with you if you were marooned on an uninhabited tropical island? i don’t know if the Internet counts, i guess i could tell people i’m stranded with it, so maybe not? If it doesn’t, no idea. i guess i should say useful stuff like, i don’t know. A fridge with electricity? A survival handbook? A fully-stocked house (with furniture) with electricity? or a means to kill myself as painlessly as possible?

11. One thing that you would never throw away? i don’t know. something useful? Or trousers, perhaps? i hate being naked. But a knife is always useful? Probably? i tend to not throw away stuff BUT i don’t *get* a lot of new stuff either (unless it’s polish, but even there i’ve slowed down because it has to be really special to catch my eye now). i don’t have 11 questions to ask people, but if anyone wants to pick among the many that have been asked before, feel free.

[bacomelon]

Gruvia AU - Oneshot

Title: Movie Night

Rated: M

Nothing would ruin Gray's good mood that friday. That must have been the first day of the whole week that did not turn into a complete disaster and, in addition, with the end of the college finals week, he could finally spend some time alone with his girlfriend.

At lunchtime he saw his friends in the cafeteria, already seated at one of the tables, and walked over there with a smile on his face. 

"Looks like someone's in a good mood today." Levy said when the dark haired boy seated next to her. 

"Yeah... What's with that stupid face?" Natsu looked at his best friend as if he were from another planet, and Lucy laughed beside him.

"Honestly, I'm curious, too. Gray Fullbuster, happiness and morning classes do not match at all." The blonde thought for a moment. "I'll bet Juvia is involved in this."

"Did you two kill classes for a quickie or what?" Cana looked at his friend with a big, malicious grin, and Gray just rolled his eyes.

"Loki is coming here, let's just ask him." The petite bluenette suggested.

They saw the orange-haired boy approaching their table - which took forever because he stopped several times to flirt with some girls - and as he sat down, all his friends were looking at him.

"What's it?"

"Loki, do you know why Gray is like this?" Lucy asked as she pointed at the brunet.

"I'm normal!" He said.

"No, you're not!"

"Oh, that's easy." Loki smirked. "Fridays movie night at home with Juvia." The Fullbuster snorted, but without the usual frown on his face. "They go to her apartment to "watch" a movie and then Gray only comes back on Saturday night. Sometimes even on Sunday morning."

"Thank you very much, Loki. You're an idiot." Gray glared at him, but Loki just shrugged.

"But he doesn't get happy like this every week, does he?" Levy asked, confused. 

"Gray must have been deprived of sex during the finals season!" Cana laughed out loud.

"You guys suck, you know that?" The brunet mumbled, but as soon as thin arms circled his neck and hugged him from behind, the smile was back in his features. He looked up and saw his beautiful girlfriend with a shy smile looking at him with affection. "Hey."

"Hi, Gray-sama." Juvia gave him a quick kiss before looking at the rest of the group. "Hi, guys!"

"Mrs. Fullbuster has finally arrived." Cana smiled at the blunette, making her blush deeply with her words.

"Did you come to lunch with us, Ju?" Lucy asked her with a big smile.

"Ah, Juvia can't. She promised Meredy that we would talk at lunchtime."

"Is everything okay?" Gray asked with a frown.

"Nothing to worry about. It's just a girl thing." She explained before stealing another kiss from her boyfriend. "Juvia just came to say a quick 'hello'. She has to go now."

"So.. Movie night?"

"Movie night! Sure." She gave him an anxious smile before kissing him for a few seconds. The whistles from his friends almost made him roll his eyes, but kissing his bluenette was much more interesting. "See you later."

"See ya."

"You two are so cute!" Lucy and Levy spoke at the same time when Juvia left, and Gray just ignored them as he felt his face warm up a little. It was for this reason that he did not like being romantic in public.

"Why didn't you ever call us to watch something with you?" Natsu suddenly asked in an offended tone, and everyone at the table stared at him blankly.

"Dear, they don't-" Lucy tried to explain that Gray and Juvia did not do just that, but Loki, unfortunately, had been faster.

"Natsu, they do nothing but fuck all night."

"We watched the movies.. At least the first three times." Gray spoke with an amused smile.

"Beginning of dating?" The orange-haired boy tried to guess and gave a convinced smile when his friend nodded. "I knew it! Never rush things."

"Never." Gray nodded.

                                                        #

After school ended, Gray walked into the parking lot with Josh Wright - one of his classmates - at his side, both talking about a presentation they would have to make together soon.

"Fullbuster, you really are a lucky bastard." The blond boy spoke suddenly, stopping in the middle of the parking lot and making Gray frown and look around in confusion.

That's when the dark man understood what his colleague meant. Juvia was leaning casually on his motorcycle, waiting for him, and probably unaware of how tight her jeans, low-cut blouse, and jacket made her sexy.

"I know. "Gray shrugged and laughed as Josh narrowed his eyes at him. "We'll talk later, Wright."

"Shall I call you over the weekend?"

"I'll probably be a little busy." The brunete nodded in the direction of his motorcycle.

"I hope at least you're going to be busy with the girl." The blonde said before walking to his own car.

The Fullbuster finally walked up to his girl, and when she saw him, she grinned.

"I think they traded my girlfriend for a very hot motorbike rider." He spoke when he was near her, making her laugh softly.

"Is Juvia looking like a bad girl?" She tried to make a threatening expression as she folded her arms.

"Yeah, you look badass." Gray tried to hold back his laughter. Your girlfriend was so adorable. "All you need is dark sunglasses and then you're going to be as scary as Gajeel."

"Gajeel-kun is not scary. He's a very sweet person inside."

"So.. About the movie. Your house or mine?" He flashed his more flirtatious smile. Juvia blushed a little, but then hugged her boyfriend by the neck.

"Juvia's. Gajeel-kun got tired of sleeping on the couch and decided to stay in Levy's house while not moving to his new apartment."

"So now you're alone all the time?"

"All the time." The bluenette smiled in a suggestive way. "Unless Gray-sama stays with her once in a while." She pulled him down for a long kiss, which the dark haired boy corresponded with great enthusiasm on his part.

"GET A ROOM!" They heard Cana's voice scream from somewhere.

                                                          #

Arriving at Juvia's apartment, she immediately went to prepare the treats so they could eat during the movie.

"Do you need any help?" Gray asked leaning against the kitchen doorway to watch his girlfriend.

"Juvia has everything under control, but thank you." She smiled at him. "Any special requests, Gray-sama?"

"Hmm.. What do we have so far?"

"Some snacks, soda, juice; and Juvia is making popcorn."

"If I'm still hungry, can we order a pizza later?" He asked hopefully, making the bluenette look at him with amusement. "Or we can forget all this and just ask for the pizza."

"How badly do you want this pizza, Gray-sama?"

"I could kill someone for one." The brunet shrugged.

"Fine!" She laughed. "Gray-sama can have his precious pizza."

"I knew I loved you for a reason."

                                                         ...

"Are you sure you don't want it?" Gray asked for the tenth time, taking the second slice of pizza to his mouth.

"Yes, Gray-sama. Juvia is sure. You can eat as much as you want." His girlfriend was focused on the TV; she was looking for a movie on Netflix. "What are we going to watch?"

"Anything but animation movies."

"Aw, why?!" Juvia sounded so disappointed. 

"Next week we can do a Disney marathon if you want. But not today." He spoke, irrefutable. Every time the woman chose a movie like that, she paid no attention to him. No kisses, not even a wandering hand here and there - and certainly no sex. "Deal?"

"Deal! Juvia will not forget that." She seemed excited to sing all the songs she knew from every Disney movie.

"Believe me, I know you won't." He snorted.

"Juvia found one! What does Gray-sama think of 'Sharknado'?"

                                                        ...

Gray was amazed by his girlfriend. She really seemed to be enjoying the Shark-something.

After nearly 30 minutes of movie, he put his hand on her knee and began to stroke her thigh over the jeans. His lips went to her neck and he felt her goose bumps as he nibbled the lobe of her right ear.

"Gray-sama never pays attention to the movies." The bluenette whispered with her eyes closed, and almost gasped when the brunet took one of his hands under her shirt and began to caress her stomach with the tips of his fingers, softly.

"I'd rather focus all my attention on you." He whispered back, cupped her chin, and turned her face toward him so he could put his lips on hers in a slow kiss.

When their tongues touched, Juvia put one knee on either side of his waist and straddled him, deepening the kiss and letting it become more and more hungry and desperate. She felt his big hands go up to her ass and squeezing it hard as they tried to pull her closer. Juvia brushed her sex into the bulk of the brunet's pants, making him moan softly, and he thrusted his pelvis a few times in response to continue the delicious rubbing.

She stood up suddenly, and licked her swollen, red lips seductively as she took each piece of clothing very slowly.There were a few sharks flying on the television screen behind her, but still, watching her undress without any shyness and with that feline look that seemed to devour him with so much desire, it was one of the most erotic visions for him.

"Juvia needs help to take a shower." Juvia took both of Gray's hands and guided them to her breasts - and she moaned loudly as he squeezed them immediately. "Gray-sama needs to help Juvia here." She took his hands to her ass. "Here." And at last she took only one them to her sex, where he massaged her clit with his thumb and felt her wet folds with his middle finger. "Ah! And here."

"Well.." He swallowed, feeling his pants get painfully tight as she moaned with his touch. "What are we waiting for?"

With that said, he put her over his shoulder and led her into the bathroom, locking the door next. The movie - which was still on TV - was long forgotten.

Hell yeah, fridays movie night at home were the best!

                                                     ****************************************************************************************************

AN: Hiii guys! How u doing? Er... This oneshot turned out to be a little more naughty (?) than I expected LOL! I hope you all enjoyed.  Kisses from bacomeloN! Ps: Sorry about any mistake (I’m not a english expert, sorry D: )

[ropedropnet]

News Nuggets from Around Disney World

There’s been a lot of Disney World news since we lasted posted an edition of the News Nuggets. (There’s also been a few other developments here at Rope Drop [dot] Net HQ, such as a trip down to the World for Elyssa and me, but that will be covered in a separate post.) Of course, as one would expect, there has been a lot of coverage about Pandora, but–again–I’m going to do something separate for that. So, with all that out of the way, on to the News Nuggets!

Disney’s Grand Floridian Holding Special Fourth of July Ticketed Event – $120 per adult ($59 for children 3-9) gets you steak, shrimp, drinks, and fireworks viewing from the Floridian. It’s an interesting option.

Tickets Now Available For Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party Visits – Tickets seem to be around $10 more than they were last year (thought that varies by date.) Here’s TouringPlans’ rundown of the lowest attendance parties.

Caribbean Beach Resort Introduces Breakfast and Dinner Buffet for Hotel Guests – Are they really going to scan people to make sure they’re staying at Caribbean Beach to eat the buffet? What’s the point of that? See also:

Temporary Dining at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort – Here’s a $75 gift card, go eat in the tent.

WDW News Today reviews the First Mobile Ordering Experience – It’s only available as part of the Pandora preview right now, but it should be interesting to see how things go as it expands to other places. I like the concept of ordering far in advance and then it recognizing when you’re close enough to the restaurant to start the order. I hope they can get discounts added to it soon, though.

The Market at Ale & Compass Counter Service Dining Location Opens at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort – I like this setup. I think I’d be fine with having this type of stuff as an option when Roaring Fork re-opens at Wilderness Lodge (in addition to some other “quick service” staples.) The Disney Food Blog has an extensive write-up about the details.

Disney Annual Passholder Bag Check Line For Pandora Preview – I’d be fine with them doing this all the time and at other parks.

Epcot Wine Walk Review in World Showcase – I’m glad that Josh did this review (so I can skip doing the walk-it’s just not my thing.)

Several Attractions (But Not) Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Will Be Closed for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party – Originally, Mine Train wasn’t on the list of open attractions. Personally, I think that was an error on the page, not something Disney actually planned on doing. If people get vacuumed up by the Mine Train during the party, I can’t imagine Disney has an actual problem with that.

WDW News Today Rumors of Paint the Night Electrical Parade Packed Up to Leave Disneyland – Sadly, after almost a whole year without a nighttime parade, I’ll believe Paint the Night is coming to the Magic Kingdom when I see it.

Disney’s Yacht Club Resort Offers New ‘Day Cruise Around the World’ – This is a weird one. I really don’t think I understand it, but I’m fine if it helps raise funds they can use elsewhere.

Celebrate Summer at D-Living in Disney Springs at Walt Disney World Resort – I’m not sure I’ll find anything I need to buy in this store, but I like the idea that Disney continues to flip this store into new concepts.

Stitch’s Great Escape reopens for the summer at Magic Kingdom – So much for those rumors that they’d already started changing this ride out.

Coaster Track Installed for Slinky Dog Dash in Toy Story Land at Hollywood Studios – I’d imagine that D23 will have an announcement about the opening date of Toy Story Land.

Phew. That was a lot of news, but there is still a bunch to cover. Let’s take a quick break to look at this picture of Baby Stella:

Baby Stella!!!

(Yes, Elyssa and I did do the Caring for Giants tour on this past trip. More information on that coming as well.)

Okay back to the Nuggets:

Refurbishment impact to water and fireworks views at Narcoossee’s – Keep this in mind if you were considering something like brunch here in the next couple of weeks.

Walt Disney World announces premium parking spots at Disney Springs – Weird. I always park in the Orange garage so no skin off my back.

Scammers Calling Walt Disney World Resort Guests – Well, this is kind of awful.

Splitsville Encloses Upper Floor Patio for New Dining Experience at Disney Springs – Splitsville always gets positive ratings, but I’ve never actually taken the time to eat there.

Sneak Peek: Margaritas Coming to Choza de Margarita in Epcot’s Mexico Pavilion – Elyssa seems to always want a margaritas in Epcot. Looks like this will be the new spot for her to get one.

Cheshire Cat Tails & Cold Brew Coffee Magically Appear at Cheshire Cafe at the Magic Kingdom – I’m fine with having more places to get a cold brew.

Disney World Cracking Down on FastPass+ Cheating, Will Begin Locking Guest Accounts Who Abuse System – This is a pretty inflammatory headline for the concept of “dummy bands”, but I have no real issue with Disney “fixing” this. See also:

UPDATE: Disney Automatically Locking All Accounts That Attempt to Cheat FastPass System Beginning Today – Again, I’m not particularly upset about this.

Walt Disney World Raises Prices on Memory Maker Photo Packages – $20 increase for “in advance” purchases and $30 for “same day”.

Tom Bricker’s Territory Lounge Review – No particular “news” in this post, I just wanted to point out a nice write-up of one of Elyssa’s and my favorite spots.

Toy Story Characters Woody, Jessie, and Buzz Lightyear Will Be Featured on New Apple Watch Faces This Fall – It’s debatable whether I’m a bigger Disney nerd or Apple nerd, so this hits right in my sweet spot. I’ve considered installing the watchOS 4 beta just to get this.

Celebrate Father’s Day at Disney Springs with Special Experiences, Gifts and Restaurant Menus – Worth taking a look if you’re going to be at Disney World on Father’s Day (though, you probably won’t be surprised by what is being offered.)

Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival closing for week long refurbishment – I’m glad this isn’t starting until I leave. I might have had to cancel my trip…

Rumor: Will Alcoholic Beverages Be Included on the 2018 Disney Dining Plan? – Disney has definitely been increaseing the opportunities to grab a drink.

Epcot Introducing “Frozen Ever After Dessert Party” with Fireworks Viewing and After-Close Attraction Ride – I enjoyed the previous Illuminations Dessert Party. $79 (at $30 increase) is a lot for a dessert party plus a ride on Frozen Ever After, though.

New Modern Style Value Resort Rooms Debut at Disney’s Pop Century Resort – The fold up bed is a nice way to deal with the small space.

FIRST LOOK! New Quick Service and Lobby Bar Coming to the Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel – The Dolphin definitely could use something like this, but I figure it will be more convention goers than people there for Disney visits.

Disney’s Wedding Pavilion shows off three new looks – If you can’t get the Italy Pavilion for your vow renewal, this might not be a bad option…

5 Magic Kingdom Restaurants Will Join Counter Service Mobile Ordering Program Next – The roll out continues. My main hope is that they figure out a way to have Disney Gift Cards stored in your MDE for these kinds of purchases.

Trivia at Martha’s Vineyard at Disney’s Beach Club – An interesting little option if you’re over by Crescent Lake while it’s being offered.

Disney World Offering Special Discounted Summer-Long Express Bus Pass for Annual Passholders – Sadly, in all my Disney trips, I’ve never bought an Express Bus ticket.

Our last News Nugget is Disney debuting the new “Disney Movie Magic” show at The Studios, a nice show to take up a little time before the fireworks. Speaking of which, let’s finish with a video of the show from The DIS:

The post News Nuggets from Around Disney World appeared first on Rope Drop [dot] Net.

from News Nuggets from Around Disney World

[citizenscreen]

Special guest post by Jeff Lundenberger @jlundenberger

I Found It at the Drive-In

My host, Aurora, recently shared a piece on this blog celebrating the 84th anniversary of the birth of the drive-in. In it, she mentioned a history.com statistic that there are less than 500 functioning drive-in theatres in the U.S. today. This bit of information sent me directly to the website of the Lynn Drive-In in Strasburg, Ohio, the local drive-in of my youth, and I was relieved to discover that it is still open. The website proudly proclaims its status as “Ohio’s Oldest Drive-In Theatre Since 1937.” It now has two screens – I think a summertime trip to Ohio for an investigation into that development is in order – both with double features every night of the week. “Come as you are in the Family Car,” the home page invites, and I’m happy for the Ohio families that are still able to patronize this fading American institution. Hopefully they are creating future memories like the fond, but dim, memories I have of going to the movies in the twilight outdoors of my earlier days.

How the West Was Won might have been the first movie I saw at the drive-in. It was released in February of 1963 and I probably saw it that summer. I have a distinct memory of seeing the film, but my parents don’t remember any of it, or any of the other films I recall seeing with them. That was the only time I’ve seen How the West Was Won from start to finish, at that trip to the drive-in, whatever year it was. At least I assume I saw the whole thing. I have little memory of the actual movie. I’ve seen parts of it since, catching it randomly on TCM now and then, and there are sparks of recognition, like waking in the morning and trying to piece together a hazy dream. The only thing I’m sure of is the song A Home in the Meadow, sung by Debbie Reynolds in the film. I was pleasantly haunted by that tune for days afterward. It seemed like a song I had known since before I was born. Later, I was happy, if a bit confused, when the same tune turned up with different words in the Christmas Carol What Child is This?

My aunt, uncle and six cousins accompanied us to at least one movie – this might have been it. I remember the two station wagons, Ford Country Sedans, parked side by side, both filled to the brim with children making faces at one another through steamy windows. This wasn’t the only outing we had with my mother’s sister and her family. Somewhere there is a picture of us at the Cleveland Zoo, looking more like a class trip than two families on a local vacation.

We weren’t poor, but with so many of us mom economized by popping batches of corn that filled a big brown grocery store bag, the outside speckled with patches of grease. There was pop (aka soda) in a cooler, but how I longed to get something from the concession stand (goaded, no doubt, by the on-screen prodding of the preview) that tempted from the little building that also housed the film projector. We were only permitted to go there to use the restroom, accompanied, of course, by a parent. I stared down the rows of candy as I waited for my mom and sisters to finish their business – surely mom would relent and buy me something. We returned to the car empty-handed.

As I look up the release dates for other films I saw as a child, I see that 1964 must have been a big year for me and the movies. I don’t remember going to see Mary Poppins, at the drive-in or otherwise, but I received the soundtrack record for my birthday, and I do remember being completely mystified by the Sister Suffragette scene and song. I remember standing in line outside a theatre for A Hard Days Night, taken there by a friend’s mother. It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World was released in November, 1963, and so it must have been the summer of 1964 when my uncle, as a birthday gift, took two cousins and myself to see it. The three of us were all born in the same year, one each in June, July and August. I was the oldest of the bunch, if only by a matter of weeks, and I wasn’t happy that I had to sit in the back seat. Chalk it up to the early diva in me.

It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, too, is a movie I’ve seen in its entirety only as a child and, again, my few memories of seeing it then are interwoven with the several times I’ve seen parts of it over the years since. I do remember Jimmy Durante, before dying on the side of the road, telling a group of people about some money buried underneath a big W. I remember Phil Silvers in a convertible in a river. I remember the palm trees that create the big W, men atop impossibly tall fire truck ladders, and Ethel Merman slipping on a banana peel. I think.

  Who would take their eight year old child (and his younger siblings) to see Alfred Hitchcock’s Marnie? Take a guess. My parents have never been review-readers and I’m sure they must have thought it was just another Hitchcock suspense film with an ambiguous ending. Were they surprised when they discovered that the film included sexual repression and violence? I asked – they don’t remember. I remember a yellow purse, black hair, the entire screen turning red, and a little girl killing a man with a poker under very peculiar circumstances. Like Marnie Edgar, I’ve had hidden memories jogged to life, not by the hysterics of my mother but by later viewings of this film. Fortunately, my hidden memories don’t carry with them a debilitating psychosis. Or do they? I admit, I have something of an obsession with Sir Alfred and his films. I blame – and thank – mom and dad.

I saw Woman of Straw at the drive-in. It, too, was released in 1964 and I’m guessing it was the first film of a double feature with Marnie. It would make sense, since both star Sean Connery. An online plot synopsis mentions Ralph Richardson in a wheelchair, and that revived my only recollection of that film: a wheelchair.

I think my parents took us to the drive-in to see the animated Disney version of The Jungle Book in 1967 and The Odd Couple in 1968. Funny, my memories of those two more recent films are less certain than those of the earlier ones. I watched The Odd Couple a few months ago and it provoked those recognizable flashes of familiarity. That must have been when I saw the trailer for Rosemary’s Baby, which left more of an impression than the feature. Mom answered with a firm “no” when I asked if we could return to see it. That also could have been the night we took to the open air to watch a film. It was a balmy summer night and we put a blanket on the hump of ground that raised the car to an optimum viewing angle. It was perfect for an outdoor sofa and it was bliss, watching a movie under the stars while the sounds from the tinny speakers echoed across the field.

The Ray Harryhausen films The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1974) and Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977), their thin stories made palatable by their charming, almost tactile stop-motion special effects, were perfect drive-in material. I saw both of them in the years of their release, with two different friends. My Golden friend shocked me when he took apart the speaker and unhooked its wires, a much easier operation than I would have guessed, making of it a bulky, metal souvenir. I was sure we were going to be arrested and couldn’t relax until we had left the lot and were on our way home. Tiger was much less stressful.

A double feature of Friday the 13th Part 2 and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre drew two friends and myself to an unfamiliar Ohio drive-in one summer night in 1981. This time out I was content sitting in the back seat, it being a hot and humid night. We laughed and talked throughout Friday – it didn’t take us long to figure out that most of the high and horny teens were going to get it, one way or another. Chainsaw was another story. Before the credits had finished I had crawled into the front seat. There we were, three sweaty, screaming adults, car windows closed because everyone knows that chainsaws can’t penetrate glass. It might be the most disturbing movie I’ve ever seen. Part of me would like to see it again, to see if it still as terrifying as I remember. Most of me says just let sleeping Leatherfaces lie.

I went to the Lynn for a XXX double feature with a couple of friends one year. Late at night, on weekends, cars lined up for a mile or so down the road for the after midnight porn. And that’s all I’m going to say about that.

I saw Blade Runner, in 1982, at yet another local Ohio drive-in. I loved the film and its evocation of a film noir future, and this was my second time seeing it. My cousin took us in his pickup truck, me and another cousin who he was dating… from the opposite side of my family. Ohio isn’t THAT bad. How was I to know that this would be my last trip to the drive-in? We enjoyed the movie, I visited the concession stand several times for snacks, he drove us home, and that was that.

Home and theatre collide at the drive-in. We face the big screen, surrounded by others, the extent of the public experience limited to the family and friends seated with us in the safety of our vehicular capsules, a communal isolation. It’s the best of both worlds. The images are larger than life. You can trek to the concession stand for snacks – or bring your own. The kids can wear pajamas. I guess you can too, if your sartorial concerns are less stringent than mine. And, if you have to shush someone, take comfort in the fact that you’ll be shushing someone you know. I had great fun at the drive-in and would happily go again if there were one nearby. Not for a film I was genuinely interested in, mind you. As much as I enjoyed the experience, it’s not the ideal atmosphere for watching a film with serious intent. But I would have appreciated Alien: Covenant, which I saw recently at the mall, much more if I had seen it with that spoonful of sugar that is the lowered expectation of the drive-in.

The magical appeal of that union of movie and night persists. A local hotel here in Asbury Park is now showing open-air movies on the roof, the rescued sign from Asbury’s old Baronet Theatre glowing proudly above the screen, and the last few summers have featured movies on the beach (Jaws being a big hit). Who knows? Maybe the architects who created movie palaces with ceilings of sky, stars and drifting clouds were anticipating a theatrical future that included the classic drive-in.

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About the author: Jeff Lundenberger is an avid classic film fan, was a TCMFF Social Producer and is active across social media sharing his love of movies. You can follow Jeff on Twitter and Instagram @jlundenberger.

I Found It at the Drive-In Special guest post by Jeff Lundenberger @jlundenberger I Found It at the Drive-In My host, Aurora, recently shared a piece on this blog celebrating the 84th anniversary of the…