#there are some absurdly talented and kind people here

[chainofclovers]

This was my first Ted Lasso post. Saturday, February 6, 2021. We started watching the night before and finished the series that Saturday. I don't know why I wrote the post in that style, but I vaguely remember pretending to pretend to be flippant while already knowing there would be no turning back from the path of being very into this show.

It's actually kind of wild how much Ted/Ted has been in my brain since then. I'm no stranger to being obsessed with things, but this experience has felt unique because it's been A) unusually social and B) unusually suspenseful!

So many things have happened to me since February 5-6, 2021! I have a different job! At that time there existed family members whom I hadn't met (COVID, different countries, newborn baby, etc.) who I now know! A lot of other stuff happened! But chugging through my brain literally every single day since then, alongside all the things that actually happened to me in three-dimensional life, have been the same questions and my multitudinous reactions and predictions and rollercoastering feelings:

Will Ted and Rebecca get together romantically, and/or (and) what aspects of their soulmate connection be things they understand with their own minds?

Where will Ted live at the end of the series?

What's up with Beard and his Ted-devotion?

These are probably the only questions that have truly been there since the beginning—I'm not some kind of savant. But still! Every day! Even on really busy important days! I was thinking about these questions and I still am! And even as the series ends (whatever happens in the future, I'm figuring that since this is the end of the arc and the end of anything planned, it's probably nicest to my brain to just process this as the end) and I feel all the attendant anticipation, I can't really wrap my brain around having the answers. To be in purely reactive/interpretive mode after having all these unanswerable questions bopping around for so long.

The Ted/Rebecca thing is particularly !!!/..../??? for me, because yes, there have been plenty of show commentary/interviews/etc. that imply they won't be a romantic couple at the end of the series (I certainly don't feel baited or promised something) but there's also been plenty of stuff explicitly refusing to talk about what the end actually looks like (for what I assume are good reasons even if they aren't necessarily romantic ones), and there are so many symbolic connection points. I STILL feel like I really don't have a solid hold on what will actually happen between them, and this isn't something that makes me feel critical about the story even if the viewing experience has been a bit stressful. My biggest question is about the extent to which those connection points are realized not just in the text itself but in character conversations.

I've enjoyed nearly all of s3 and the last couple episodes have been particularly satisfying for me but also particularly crazy-making for me and it's just so weird to think about the suspense being over. I'm sad about the parts that are ending, but I'm also excited about not having the stress of unknowns anymore; I'm ready to process it as a whole. It almost feels like I've been planning a wedding or involved trip, and when it happens I'll get a lot of brainspace back. Just in time to write post-series fic. :)

[sith-shenanigans]

@commanderfoxtheshield There is a universe (read: SW5e server) where she basically is and it has caused so much trouble for everyone forever

Alright, reblog and tag with the previous person's OC that is basically a canon character to you

[inklessletter]

I posted this on X, and I feel kind of disloyal not saying anything in here, since I feel Tumblr as my main online residence.

I would like to expand here, where I feel safest, if you let me.

As I said, I'm not a writer. Not a talented one, at least. Maybe I could be if I work hard enough, but I have little free time and I have to diversify it since I've got plenty going on. I don't have like, the busiest life, but I work full-time and I have a little family, and friends, a dog and a house to keep. And when I'm not doing all of that, among all my personal individual hobbies, drawing is what takes most time.

And drawing--well, I can't draw a fanart without romanticizing the process. There is no fanart without a back story that I've got in my mind, that I always fall in love way too deep with it, and always have the intention to put into words, but English is hard for a non native speaker, and even harder for a impatient perfectionist. So it takes a lot of time and I am never satisfied with the results, which is massively disheartening.

So after more than a year making this fandom my home, and with, idk, twenty, thirty fanarts, that means that there are twenty or thirty stories that I've got safely and preciously stored in my heart that I barely shared with anyone.

I mean full fanfics, from beginning to end, maybe with a few loose strands that needs revisiting, but overall, completed stories. And I know I'm biased here, telling you that I love them, and maybe they're not good, but I do love them. I'm a romantic. Some of them explore the concept of home, or tropes like "the one that got away", or the survivor guilt, or keeping the balance between being who you are and acknowledging that you're wrong and rewiring some things. Some are just funny AUs, fluff or smut (I can't write smut for SHIT), some more basic, some not. Some are not even steddie.

But I love all of them, and I can't write them and they're dying with me.

So I've been thinking for a while, that maybe there is a writer out there that wants something to write but can't find inspiration, or a theme to talk about and if that's de case, and you feel like it, you can DM to me, that I will give you the whole idea, everything that I worked on and pass it on, so you can have an idea to work with.

It feels so silly being so absurdly emotional with this, since, well, it's just stories, I guess, about things and people that don't exist, and maybe they're not even good or worth to work on because it may be better works out there that treat those subjects more brilliantly, but I love them and they're important to me and if I don't do this, they're dying with me and I think that maybe those silly ideas deserve a chance.

So, well, yeah, if you are a fic writer that is looking for something to write about, you can reach me. Maybe we can help each other out.

Thank you for taking the time to read all this nonsense 💖

[pinkskytwst]

LION'S PRIDE, HYENA'S CACKLE - Part I

Savanaclaw - Leona/Prefect/Ruggie eventual romantic poly.

It was almost embarrassing to admit to themself when the Prefect fell for Leona Kingscholar, second prince of the Sunset Savana.

He was incredibly attractive, absurdly intelligent, highly skilled at magift or any sport he attempted really, a Housewarden, and a literal prince.

It was like admitting you fell for Vil. People would roll their eyes and laugh at the audacity that someone would have to think that someone so amazing would like them. A nobody with no magic, no status, and no real skills or talents to speak of.

It was why they stayed silent.

Or at least they tried to.

The Savanaclaw dorm had become something of a second home along side Ramshackle and more often than not their evenings – and nights when it was particularly cold – would be spent in the loud and active dorm. It was a nice change from the isolated and empty mansion that Crowley had put them in and even Grim was starting to become friends with some of the therianthrope students there along with Jack.

They had grown a lot closer to Ruggie too, even if the hyena boy thought that their friendship had originally been trying to get something out of him. Ruggie was friendly, smart and talented, and so it was nice to spend time with him and helping with his chores so that they could have some time to study together.

Jack would join them a lot too but with his early night routine often it was them left alone with Ruggie and a sleeping Grim.

It was actually the hyena who taught them more about therianthropes and the different cultures and norms to expect from the various species of students. How to avoid fights, how to read different body language and what to look for when a therianthrope was unintentionally misunderstanding how to interact with humans and just how to generally make being around them easier. Jack knew as well but he wasn’t as good at being able to articulate these social differences as Ruggie.

It led to the Prefect actually picking up some habits that their other human friends didn’t always catch or understand but were completely at home in Savanaclaw.

It also meant that even though therianthropes didn’t always catch onto subtle human expression and interactions, Ruggie was able to quickly notice the way their feelings started to shift towards his Housewarden.

They knew they were about to be roasted when, one evening after watching a rare magift practice where Leona had actually shown up, Ruggie was suddenly beside them with glinting eyes and a devious smirk.

“Sooo....” he teased, breaking them from their thoughts as they had finished passing out water bottles to everyone and handing a towel to Leona – who grabbed it and walked off without a word. “Going to be joining our leader’s fanclub?”

They felt their cheeks flare up and nudged Ruggie in retaliation, though the other just threw his arm around their shoulders and started dragging them back to the dorm as he hissed his laughs.

“Like I would have time for any kind of club.” They said, side stepping the question.

Ruggie just snorted, ears flicking in amusement and his tail swishing back and forth the same way Jack’s did when he was excited.

“That wasn’t a ‘no’, kitten.”

“Oi! Just because Leona-senpai calls me that sometimes doesn’t mean you can!” they pouted, sticking their tongue out at him. “Should I start calling you ‘puppy’?”

“I wouldn’t mind. I’ve been called worse. It would fit better for Jack, though, since hyenas are closer to felines.” He said with a shrug.

“Yeah, well then I’ll start calling you kitten back.” They said defiantly, earning another laugh.

“Now that would be funny. But I bet you would prefer calling a certain prince that instead.”

“Why are you the worst?”

“Aw, that breaks my little heart.”

“That would be more believable if you had one.”

“So cruel, Prefect, really, you are picking up some nasty habits around here.” He wiped a fake tear from his eye. “I’m so proud.”

The Prefect couldn’t completely hide the amused smile tugging on their lips, and glanced around to make sure that everyone was already far ahead and Grim was hanging off of Jack as he chattered his ears off. Seeing that no one would over hear them even with sensitive ears, they heaved a sigh.

“I know, I know. It’s kind of the most embarrassing thing ever.” They said defeated, dropping their head against his shoulder.

“Shishishi, yeah, pretty much.” Ruggie agreed gleefully, earning another groan and finger digging into his side, under his ribs where he was ticklish.

The hyena-boy yelped a laugh and danced away a step before returning and throwing his arm back around their shoulders, only this time to put more weight on them and pull them into a headlock.

“Watch it there kitten, I might just let it slip to Leona about your little crush.” He giggled.

“Uuuuugh Ruggie!” The Prefect complained, trying to wiggle away as he began to roughly mess up their hair. “I thought you were my friend! I want a refund!”

“Shishishi, not likely! I was on discount!” he cackled.

After a minute of squabbling – Ruggie won as he always did – the Prefect gave up again and just wrapped their arm around his waist as the hyena let up on the headlock and just continued as they were before.

They didn’t bother trying to fix their hair. No one in Savanaclaw cared after all and they were going to be getting ready for bed anyway soon and need to take a shower.

“I can’t believe I like Leona, I have the worst taste.” They complained under their breath after a moment, head leaning against Ruggie’s shoulder again. “He has the worst personality in existence and will literally fall asleep in the middle of me trying to talk to him! I don't think he even remembers my name! He just calls me herbivore to cover it up.”

They threw their hand up in the air exasperatedly before wilting just as quickly.

“It’d be easier if he was an actual asshole and not just a jerk sometimes.” They said. “I mean, he’s an asshole but not…ugh, you know what I mean.”

Ruggie chuckled and shrugged.

“Yeah, I get it. As much of an insensitive bastard as he is, he’s also a good guy.” He agreed. “And hot.”

“Exactly!” they exclaimed, throwing their hands into the air again. “He’s so annoying and rude but then he’ll do something like hold me down to take a nap with him when I get too stressed about everything. And he gave me money to get new shoes since my sneakers were tearing apart and he lets me ask him suggestions about homework sometimes! Why can’t he just commit to being an asshole so I don’t have to have a crush on him!”

Ruggie hissed another laugh but they both quieted down as they reached the dorm and began heading upstairs to his room. They typically roomed with the hyena since Jack woke up at like four am and the Prefect was never going to let him try and talk them into a morning run ever again. They refuse.

“Well, ya got two choices then, Prefect.” He said, leading them past the students that were still milling around in the main rooms and kitchen and up to his bedroom. “You can either forget about him and wait for it to pass, or you can try to win him over.”

The human gave a startled squawk at his words, almost falling down the stone stairs in shock and having to have the hyena pull them up the last few to prevent from breaking their face.

“I can’t do that!” he hissed flustered, elbowing Ruggie when the other rolled his eyes. “He’s-…I just can't. Why would he even want someone like me anyway? I’m still on like a third-grade level of understanding this world, I have absolutely no magic, and I don’t even have dazzling looks like the Pomefiore guys do as a backup!”

“Oi.” Ruggie said as they entered his room, shoving them over to his bed and shutting the door behind him. “I don’t wanna hear that shit from you. Leona would be lucky to have someone like you even put up with him let alone want to date him.” He said firmly, reaching out to poke their forehead harshly.

“I’ve listened to assholes talk about 'not worthy’ this, and 'not good enough’ that my whole life. I’m definitely not going to let you talk about yourself like that when you have literally saved lives and are braver and more badass than most mages in this school.”

The Prefect rubbed lightly at their forehead but wilted under the hyena’s harsh look and gave a nod.

“Sorry, Ruggie. You know I don’t think of you like that.” They promised softly. “It’s just…I mean Leona could have anyone. He’s been around royalty his whole life and probably has met people like Vil all the time. There’s probably a reason he’s never gotten with anyone and I doubt he would make an exception for me. He doesn’t even seem to care about that sort of thing and I don’t…I don’t want to be someone that forces their presence on him like that, you know?”

Ruggie watched them for a moment, hands on his hips and ears tilted slightly with an expression that they couldn’t quite decipher before he heaved a sigh and reached out to ruffle their hair again, pushing their head down.

“Yeah, yeah, alright.” He said. “I won’t say anything if you don’t want me to.” He promised. “But I still say you’re selling yourself short.”

They couldn’t help but smile warmly when they were able to lift their head again, leaning forward to wrap their arms around Ruggie’s waist and rub their face into his chest playfully.

“Thanks, Ruggie. You’re pretty amazing too.” They said before making a face and pulling back. “And you also stink like a warthog so go get a shower.”

They yelped as the hyena shoved them over on the bed and proceeded to tug his sweaty t-shirt off and toss it over their face with a cackle as they made a disgusted noise and flung it back at him.

“Stinky puppy!” the called after him as he grabbed his things and skipped out the door, cackling all the while.

Once he was gone they gave an amused huff and fell back on the bed to stare up at the ceiling.

Crushes really were stupid. They should just ignore it like Ruggie said and wait for it to go away.

A memory of Leona catching them around the waist earlier that day to keep them from tripping over their own feet and face planting into the wall flickered through their mind. How easily he lifted them and how warm he was as he set them back on their feet.

“Watch it, herbivore, or you’re going to embarrass yourself more than you usually do by being sent to the infirmary because you don’t know how to walk.” He said with a teasing smirk, ruffling their hair just as Ruggie always did before waking off to skip whatever class he was trying to avoid.

They had called a ‘thanks, Leona-senpai!’ after him but the prince didn’t answer.

UUUUUUUUGH.

They dropped their arms over their eyes as they tried to force the memory and dozens of other small things that made their heart stutter in their chest when they were with the lion.

They really should just ignore it.

-

“Oi, Leona.” Ruggie said as he entered the lion’s bedroom while the Prefect was currently showering, shutting the door behind him and crossing his arms over his chest. “We gotta talk.”

One of the prince’s ears flicked his way but the royal didn’t move from where he was clearly trying to sleep after cleaning up from magift practice.

“Fuck off, Ruggie, I went to practice like you asked.” He grumbled.

“This ain’t about that.” The hyena glared, ears tilted back. “Stop fuckin’ around with the Prefect.”

Leona’s shoulders tensed and he turned his head just enough to glare at the one person he could consider calling a ‘friend.’

“Watch it.” He growled lowly, making Ruggie tense a little more, ears flattening against his head but he didn’t back down.

“Don’t give me that, Leona!” he snapped, “I can see what you’re doing and I know you don’t got any plans on actually giving them a chance so stop being a prick and trying to get their attention when you’re not going to actually give it.”

“Back off, Ruggie.” The prince growled, sitting up now and leveling an dangerous look on the other. “You don’t know what you’re fucking talking about.”

“Like the Seven, I don’t!” Ruggie shot back, his shoulders tensing and yanking his hands down into fists at his side, claws digging into his palms. “Everyone can see that you’re soft on them but you fucked up and now they like you!”

That cut the prince off short, his eyes widened as he froze on the bed.

Ruggie gave a low, bitter laugh. It was nothing like his nice or happy ones.

“Yeah. They like you, asshole, and I know better than anyone what happens after that. You and I both know they don’t deserve the fucked up shit you’d put them through.” He glared. “So this is me telling you. Leave. Them. Alone.”

Leona’s expression closed off, his claws gripping the sheets so tightly Ruggie could hear the way they were beginning to rip.

Neither of them moved for what felt like forever before Leona turned away and dropped himself back down on his pillow.

“Get out of here, Ruggie.” He said simply.

Ruggie continued glaring at the lion for a moment before flashing a bitter, sharp grin as he turned to leave.

“Funny thing is, they actually think you’re too good for them.” He said softly, his words stabbing deeper than a dagger ever could. “Ironic, isn’t it?”

The sharp click of the door shutting behind him almost seemed to echo in the silent room.

====================

Look! I broke my Octavinelle streak! lol

I PROMISE THIS WILL HAVE A HAPPY ENDING! This is the first time that I've seriously written any of the Savanaclaw boys though so be patient with me as I try to feel out how best to write them.

Hope you like it though <3

[mediumstrength]

SXF MANGA REREAD: CHAPTER 1

The conclusion of the second season has left me alone and bereft please join me as I fill the void.

We start with some bitchin spy action

oh shit

Truly the first few chapters are why I think you see so many people upset about the series settling into a slow burn family comedy. You start off with some juicy Hollywood movie shit here. Assassination! Straight off the bat! Cars careening off bridges! Great stuff.

Now, it’s time for a little quick exposition. We got two countries, they don’t like each other, they are using spies, blah blah.

SHODDY WORLDBUILDING:

In Japanese they are straight up written Eastern Country and Western Country (with “Ostania” and “Westalis”) in furigana. Tatsuya Endo, please.

There is one spy who’s the best tho

Here he is!! It’s our boy!!

He’s bamboozled that bad guy out of those silly pictures!! Time to also be mean to the dude’s daughter.

lol what a dick

A NOTE ON FASHION:

“Robert” is not as fashionable as “Loid,” the double breasted suit was already on the way out in the early 60s (The SXF vibe seems to be early 60s? Except when it isn’t?) being replaced by the single breasted suits we generally see him wearing. Edgar also is wearing a double breasted suit, but he doesn’t seem like the type to worry about fashion trends.

Loid however does seem to really care about looking sharp, and I’m proud of him for that. It’s basically his only non spy-related interest. Maybe someday he will have two interests!

Loid gives Karen a new complex, and then waltzes out of her life. Onto the next mission!

SHODDY WORDBUILDING:

Berlint 😂

On the train to Berlint, Loid learns that he has to become a fake dad for silly bullshit reasons that are vital to world peace. This silly bullshit is called Operation Strix, and it is so, so important. The most important mission ever.

I wonder if there’s some significance to the name Strix? It’s a mythological creature, but also a genus of owl. In Japanese it’s written 梟, which literally means owl, so maybe the mythological part is not intended?? I want to know more.

The early art is weird at times

ON THE SPELLING “LOID”:

I hate it.

The real estate guy asks him if he has a girl or a boy, and he says he doesn’t know yet. I feel like I should hate these jokes where Loid says something mind-blowingly suspicious, but I actually love it every time.

Anyhow! On to step two: secure a child.

Tatsuya Endo has a real talents for making just the most detestable jerks. I love to hate you, drunk shitty orphanage guy!

It’s her!! It’s Anya!! The early art is, again, a little weird here.

The absurdly hard crossword puzzle is such a good gag.

Daughter acquired!

ON THE TRANSLATION “PAPA”:

I love it. There’s no real equivalent to “chichi” in English, so they went with something that means dad, but is also a little weird and a little baby talk-y. Perfect. I watched a couple episodes of a fan sub of the anime, and they translated it as “Daddy” which is cute but is simply not weird enough. Anya is a Weird Little Girl.

Anya immediately begins helping, by acting deeply weird and suspicious. We love it.

I love that Spy Wars is just always on somehow.

Onwards! They go out and do some shopping! Anya is a lot! Loid doesn’t understand her! He goes to his local library about it, which is kind of adorable? And gives an early glimpse into a fundamental aspect of his character. With enough information, Loid can accomplish anything. He is certain of this. He has built his whole life around this concept.

LOID HAS NEVER HAD FUN IN HIS LIFE:

You are accidentally playing hide and seek with your daughter somehow, with no idea that it is even happening. Amazing.

Anyhow he finally barricades her in the fucking house lol

It’s Franky!! I love you, Franky.

He tells Loid that his new kid legally does not exist, and has been returned to the orphanage 4 times, and Loid decides not to look further into any of that. Greatest spy in the west.

Meanwhile Anya is causing problems. I love her.

Edgar is back, which doesn’t make sense because the Edgar stuff was happening in another city, but I guess Edgar is just also in Berlint now for some reason.

We get a brief flashback to Anya’s time as an Eleven-style lab rat, which is sad. What does “studying” entail? I think we will all be sad when we find out ☹️

Loid returns and we are treated to a sick. ass. fight. Loid takes a guy out with a can of tuna. He breaks a chair over a dude’s head. I think there was some commentary from Endo (maybe in Eyes Only?) about how using improvised weapons just hits harder. We know more about cans of tuna than guns or whatever. We can imagine what taking a tuna can to the face would feel like.

What a dick.

Anyhow, Loid bamboozles the same guy with the same trick a second time, bravely rescuing Anya, and now it is time for a sad flashback

Don’t cry, little german boy.

Anyhow, the world where kids don’t cry thing should be so corny, but they really pull it off somehow.

For some reason he decides to walk back into danger and beat those guys up?

When did he have time to set these traps??

Sick

Loid kicks everyone’s asses, and then, there’s Anya waiting for him, and she wants to stay with him. This is the moment. This is the moment where he realized, subconsciously, that he loves her. Consciously is still a work in progress. But like, he already cares about her so much. It’s been been like 2 days, and he’s gone from “I hate kids” to “I can’t abandon this little girl who I callously adopted to use for my own purposes”

(…This is the plot of the Despicable Me, isn’t it?)

This little scene on the streetcar warms my heart. Papa is a cool liar.

Ok, jesus christ this chapter is long. I didn’t realize that we also have getting into Eden happening the first chapter??

Anya takes the entrance exam, her cheating plan, as usual, does not really work out, but she does her best and she passes.

Loid experiences a single moment of relief and collapses 😂 The man is so powered by sheer anxiety that his body doesn’t know how to react.

Anya gets the mail, there is a little cute cuddling, and then, the kicker! We need a mama!!

Chapter rating 4/5

A little too much stuff happens in this first chapter, on reread. The streetcar scene is such a logical ending! The Eden test, and then the subsequent complication of needing 2 parents felt tacked on, almost like that should have been padded out a little and made its own chapter, but also I am eager to get to my girl Yor so 🤷‍♀️

Looking back on some of their earlier interactions, Loid has not been thinking through Strix logically from the start. This kid has no birth certificate, and she has been repeatedly returned to the orphanage like a naughty puppy for no obvious reason. She is (allegedly) 6 and she solved a crossword where one of the words was “symplectomorphism” with no adult assistance?? There are some questions he should be asking here, but instead he’s buying her posters and snacks.

He hasn’t had anything to love in so long, you guys. He’s going to love this kid with everything he has, it’s just going to be a long, long time before he understands that it’s love.

[mixelation]

i think you mentioned a while ago that if kushina and mikoto weren't girlbestfriends, mikoto would try to seduce minato. i love that idea, how would it go?

yes yes, that post is here! basically, the way i write mikoto is like 90% headcanons because she doesn't do much in canon, but. what i went for was sort of a nadeshiko yamato type-- mikoto sees "marrying up" as her right as a talented kunoichi, a tried and true way to gain social power, and also she just finds powerful men attractive. so she saw clan heir fugaku* and was just like: that one. mine.

*a lot of people headcanon mikoto as clan heir, either because 1) girlpower i guess, or 2) she looks like sasuke and therefore izuna, so maybe she's descended from him. i don't have a problem with this headcanon, but i don't like when it's presented as "she's heir because feminism but fugaku is in charge because she lets him for some reason." so i intentionally went with the opposite lmao

minato is pretty, absurdly talented, and upon being announced as the next hokage, THE most socially powerful guy in the village. so she'd probably be very EYES EMOJI at him.

i actually don't think her seducing him would go as well as she'd hoped? despite being a jounin and therefore very skilled at combat, she intentionally projects an air of very traditional femininity bc that's her sort of bread and butter for social manipulation. so she's very conventionally pretty, kind and polite, easy to get along with, great at casual conversation, and all that usually has any man she wants wrapped around her finger......... but minato like women who have no problem screaming their opinions directly into his face. he likes mikoto fine but he's just not Into her.

also i think minato is a hopeless dopey romantic and if he already likes kushina in this scenario, no on else has a chance. she beat him up once when they were ten and he's been in love ever since. so if kushina is around, mikoto is basically getting nowhere and it will be very frustrating for her LOL

if kushina is NOT around, i think mikoto has a chance once mikoto wises up to what minato is into. all she has to do is trot out her inner Uchiha Crazy Eyes and explain to minato how if he poaches a mission from her ONE MORE TIME she's going to castrate him, and then he'll suddenly be confused and turned on. how exciting for her

[seriouslycromulent]

My rewatch of The John Larroquette Show (so far)

In my effort to keep my Larroquette obsession thriving, I've recently started a rewatch of The John Larroquette Show. Like Night Court (which I rewatched in 2022), I remember watching this show when it originally aired.

But unlike Night Court, my memory of most of the episodes is a bit fuzzy. I remember the main characters and their personalities just fine, but not so much what happens in terms of the storyline.

Regardless, I'm enjoying the rewatch, and I'm pleasantly surprised by how much the show holds up over time, how evergreen the topics are, and how strong the jokes are. Seriously. They are constantly telling jokes that I swear are as old as vaudeville, but they kill in terms of laughs from the audience and from me as well.

Example: In s2e8 "The Book of Rachel," Mayim Bialik guest stars as a young hippie-ish woman named Rachel who shows up in hopes of finding out if John Hemingway (JL's character) is her real dad. She's narrowed down the search to 3 men who knew her mom, who was living wild and free back in the '70s, around that time.

When John asks how her mother's doing, Rachel says, "She's doing pretty good. She's been clean for about 5 years now." John, a recovering alcoholic who's been sober for 1 year, says, "That's great! So no more drugs and booze, huh?" And Rachel says, "Oh no, there's still plenty of drugs and booze. She's just been bathing regularly for 5 years."

I'm not telling it very well in writing, but I swear to you, that joke is funny as hell, and Mayim and JL's delivery is perfection. Plus, it got a huge laugh from the audience, which speaks to its timeless nature.

Anyway, I just wanted to share a thought or two on the show so far. (I'm on episode 12 of Season 2, just in case anyone wants to know the context.)

Here are some random thoughts I've had so far:

Like Night Court, the show does a solid job of mixing comedy and drama. The first season is a bit more drama heavy because they dealt more with the recovery storyline, but I think it still worked and the whole concept is still pretty daring (i.e., revolving around the unglamorous lives of people who work in and around a bus station at night) even compared to today's sitcoms, which still tend to play it safe.

JL's hair in the first season is absurdly long. Or at least it gets to be absurdly long about halfway through the season. And it's not a good look. Not because he looks bad with long hair, but because it looks like it takes a lot of upkeep. And a man who is working 3rd shift at a bus station and lives in a halfway house/SRO building doesn't seem like he'd have a strict hair care regimen to make it appear perfectly tamed at all time. Seriously, at one point I had to ask out loud, "I wonder if they curl the ends with a curling iron or do they use rollers?"

This may be the first TV show I ever saw Chi McBride in. Despite seeing him on plenty of TV shows and films over the years, I never knew he had such a lovely singing voice. I'm glad they gave him a chance to share his singing talent. His version of "Danny Boy" in season 1 was very good.

The 2 corrupt police officers who blatantly flaunt their bias and awfulness are both funny and a great commentary on what was happening in America at the time (i.e., the Rodney King police beating, and the aftermath of the verdict was still very fresh in everyone's minds then). Sadly, it is an evergreen topic for the U.S., but I think it says a lot about the writers for TJLS that they attacked the subject so openly and didn't shy away of being critical of police or lampooning them. I don't think a modern American sitcom would approach the subject so brazenly and unapologetically today. JL has said in a number of interviews that the show was kind of ahead of its time. And I'm inclined to agree with him, at least in some areas.

It's so cool going back to watch old TV shows and catching actors who have now become bigger names in the business. I just watched an episode with Jane Lynch working as a mental health care professional. Of course, this was way before she found success on Glee and The 40-Year-Old Virgin.

Does JL manage to work in a reference to Samuel Beckett into everything he works on starting with this series? It's starting to function as his own career Easter egg at this point. I'm not complaining. Just wondering.

I know Don Reo created the show, but I suspect JL had a small amount of his life's adventures and details shape the John Hemingway character (like the Beckett references, his running commentary on anything that happened in the 1960s, his openness about being friends with anyone from any background, etc.). But the only way to truly know this is for JL to 1) tell us in Q&As or interviews, or 2) write an autobiography already, dammit!

In s2e1 "Changes," JL sits down in a chair by swinging his leg over the back of it, and I immediately thought of the Riker Maneuver. I know JL did it before Jonathan Frakes on TNG, but it will always be the Riker Maneuver to me.

Another way the show was ahead of its time was in its portrayal of sex workers and trans people. Most of the time, it's played for comedy on the show (I mean, it is a sitcom after all), but there's a very real attempt to share stories of Carly, Teddi and Pat that are humanizing. Teddi and Pat are trans sex workers, but they are accepted by most (not the male cop) and aren't just the butt of jokes. They even get included in simple things like group poker games and asked to watch the lunch counter when Dexter runs off to do something or other. That might seem like not a big deal, but at that time (the mid-90s), most inclusion of hookers and trans folks on TV usually involved heavy drama like trying to save them from their lives or begrudgingly acknowledging that they were a part of society with disdain and ridicule. And the overall acceptance of Carly as a friend and possible love interest without trying to save her or judge her was also a bit ahead of its time. And when there were moments of judgment, they were faced head on and challenged.

[positivelybeastly]

Do you think Xavier is a bad influence on beast and the X-Men as a whole?

"That is - that is pure - pure poppycock and balderdash! That is ludicrous! That is absolutely - how would you - "

And then Hank stops for a moment.

And thinks about it.

"I don't - think he's a bad influence, no. That's a ridiculous question."

*

So, I think it's important for me to state that I think Professor X as the secret bad guy/villain of the X-Men story is just. Dumb. The X-Men story falls apart if he is just evil, there's clearly enough good about him to justify why everyone believes in him and follows him and puts stock in his dream (and no, it isn't fuckin' telepathic control).

But.

. . . Okay, this is going to take some set-up and context, so bear with me.

I find that if you take just the original 60s run as fully, unaltered canon, which . . . some people do, then you're gonna end up hating Xavier because he is just such a massive piece of shit. But pretty much any characterisation past that point, especially Claremont's, takes much more care to depict him as still very much an authority figure, but with a strong caring, paternalistic (for good or for ill) side to him that's shot through with a strong, burning tendency towards manipulation.

I think a delineation does have to be drawn here, though, that Charles being manipulative is (usually) different to someone like Mr. Sinister being manipulative, because Charles I think genuinely does have people's best interests at heart, but he's got a tendency to believe that that means his idea of their best outcome is the correct one. And. It isn't.

You can see it with Scott most acutely, where he tried to give him something that would best utilise his talents and give him what he was missing from life, but he didn't realise (and I do think it's a case of realisation, rather than not caring) what that was going to do to him in the long run. Scott doesn't have anything other than the X-Men because Xavier didn't think to really give him anything other than the X-Men.

You can also see it with Hank, where he really should have realised that Hank was in the middle of a really bad behavioural spiral pre-Krakoa, and pushed him to be closer with his actual friends or get off the damn island, but because he was preoccupied with Krakoa and probably thought, well, Hank's one of us, we should try and help steer him back, he gave him X-Force.

Which was precisely the wrong thing to do. You don't give an emotionally compromised wreck of a man control over your intelligence agency. But I choose to think Charles tried to do it out of love, not wanting Hank to feel cast aside or useless in the new status quo.

Bobby, Warren and Jean don't have it quite as bad, mostly because I never got the impression Xavier connected with Bobby or Warren as closely, and Jean is so absurdly powerful that their relationship has been one of equals for a long time now rather than outright teacher and pupil, which was what Scott and him were for the longest time, and which Hank and him arguably still are.

I always liked the version of Xavier you see in Parker's First Class, which is a version that makes the O5 and the X-Men at large's loyalty to him make sense, but you can't ignore the paternalism and manipulative streak that really does run through his character. Even before a lot of the damaging retcons to his character like Deadly Genesis or Danger, he was still doing fucked up shit like erasing Hank from his parents' minds because it was 'safer.'

So, is he a bad influence on Hank and the X-Men? Yeah, kind of? But I don't think he intended to be. I think he genuinely had the best intentions for all of them, they just . . . didn't pan out, and he went about trying to actualise those intentions the wrong way.

I feel like that's a more compelling characterisation for him, to be the man who loves his children but who can't stop fucking up their lives, or turning them into (in a roundabout way) weapons in his fight for mutant rights. The good man who can't stop doing bad things because he can't just let go.

[thecoolerlucky]

Chapter 2: To Good To Be True

Contents (Warnings/Mild spoilers): Lynette's first day on the job, and her last? (Angst and Panic Warning)

Wordcount: 3,300+

'This is why the position was empty and why he said if I lasted a year!'

__________________________________________

Day 1 - (Sept. 8th, Thursday)

Lynette

I tiredly checked my text messages as I rolled over in my covers. 

Wicks: Hey, Lentils, I'll be home tonight to congratulate you on your new job! I love you and be safe! 11:54 a.m.

I sighed, let my phone slip from my hands and rest next to me. Wicks has been so busy since his promotion. 

I flipped onto my back and thought about our call yesterday. It sounded like he was in some kind of fight, I chuckled to myself and looked up at the glow stars on my ceiling, no longer glowing as the light from the outside shined through my curtains. The person he was fighting must have been very rude if didn’t have the courtesy to wait for him to finish our call. 

The humor faltered and my smile slipped. I shifted under my weighted blanket. He never really talks about work does he? 

“He always says: “I work with people, Lentils.” He never discloses anything else.” She mumbled to herself out loud. “Anytime I call him it sounds like he’s in a construction yard or a sound deprivation tank.” 

I shimmied the covers off and sat up. He always avoids me when I ask. I shook my head. What would embarrass him to talk about? Selling his body…? 

I squeaked, brought a bunch of scrunched-up covers to my face, and screamed into them. "STOP IT. HE'D NEVER DO THAT." I didn't want to think of my brother doing that to make money. 

I raised my head. "He's smart and has tons of talents. That’s not it!" I twisted in my bed and hung my feet off the edge. I tapped my toes on the soles of my fuzzy gray shark slippers and hopped off onto my small rug to put them on. 

I flipped back, searched my blankets for my phone, and texted him, I love you too. Then, stretched and got ready to make myself some lunch.

…

The metaphorical backpack of enthusiasm got heavier. I quit my previous job, not that my manager seemed to care. I know after I was out for that week, less than a month after being hired, she thought very little of me.

I expelled a few deep breaths while I waited in my car. Here's the plan: I will go in there, ensure all the employees and customers are happy, get employee of the month, and maintain that for the rest of the year. I giggled to myself about the last part.

Then I'll retire and make funtube videos of animated DnD sessions, or start a streaming channel so people can watch how dumb I am playing video games.

I thought to Wicks. He supported me in making a career like that. I'll waste his money. I'm not all that funny or entertaining.

My phone alarm buzzed. Ten minutes left to scan in!

I got out of my yellow punch bug and did a once-over. Badge, check. I patted my black jeans with extra big pockets. Phone, check. My shirt was facing the right way. Check. I quickly snagged my hat from the passenger-side seat, looped my curly locks tied in a ponytail through it, and closed my door. Okay, Sandra said the employee entrance is at the back. 

I walked up the ramp to the glass doors. I couldn't look through them. Are they similar to a one-way mirror? I studied the door rim and spotted the scanner nearby. I pressed my name badge to it and it unlocked.

When I pulled it open, the smell of pizza hit my face as strongly as yesterday. I can't wait to go home smelling like it. I thought sarcastically.

I stared down the long hallway. I looked at my hands and then back at it. It's not the nervous jitters making it longer; it's actually that absurdly wide and ongoing.

I let the door shut behind me. I inspected the walls, which were done with gray wood panels. My eyes traced them as I walked until I finally came to my first doors. There was one on the right and one on the left of me. They looked about three times my height, if not more, and were entirely made of glass.

My eyes lifted to read the sign above the one on the left and right: "Breakroom 2" and "Breakroom 4." Why are they so huge? It didn't sound like he had that many employees.

I jumped back when the Breakroom 2 door slid open. I realized its sensor caught my badge. That's neat. I held back my need for adventure and reminded myself I had to go clock in for work.

I rushed ahead, passing two more break room doors, "1" and "3", then slowed down as I saw the tall blonde guy with glasses who invited me, Alexander, across from another male. Did I see him yesterday? I felt like I had seen him before. I'm probably thinking of Edgar—he has black hair, too.

I overheard them talking about the game Olden Ring. 

"Hi," I said with a hand raised. Be friendly! "Are you guys talking about Olden Ring? I've been wanting to play it."

Alexander flinched like my pitch hurt him, though he didn't turn to acknowledge me. Was I too excited?

The boy with dark hair spoke. He was shorter than Alexander, a little shy of six feet. He had a clean, pale complexion and choppy bangs hiding his eyes from me. Are they red like Edgar's? 

"We haven't played it either; we were talking about when we should get it and play online…" He tipped his cap to me as he fitted it on his head, "And you're the fabled Lynette, right? Alexander told me about you."

I assumed he looked me up and down with the way his head bobbed after he said that. It's weird that I can't tell where he's looking. 

The friendly smirk he had been wearing this entire time dropped, and his head swayed curiously. "Huh…"

"Is something wrong?"

He turned his head to Alexander and then back to me, "No, not at all. Sorry." He anxiously laughed, and I tried to smile when he did. "Yeah." He jabbed at Alexander's side.

Alexander shifted his gaze to me. His blue-tinted gray eyes looked darker, with heavy bags under them. Unfortunately, his glasses did a poor job of hiding them. He looked fine yesterday.

His hair even looked a little disheveled, poking out from under his hat.

"Did you not sleep well?" I hesitantly asked. While I did not want to appear rude on my first day, I was concerned.

His deep, euphonic voice held little to no volume, "Yesterday was my birthday, so I was up, auwh," he yawned mid-sentence. "-night."

"I see, Happy late birthday!" I said with a grin. 

He nodded and said nothing more. Yet he remained fixed on me as if he had more to say. He acted like that yesterday too—maybe he has bad anxiety?

His friend's less intimidatingly baritone voice pulled me away from his intense stare, "And I'm Drake, by the way. Nice to meet you, Lynette." 

"Oh!" I looked at Drake. "It's nice to meet you, too." My eyes went to the time clock. "We should scan in if you guys work at the same time as me," I told them. I scanned my badge.

Drake and Alexander did the same.

They walked a little behind me.

Drake went behind the counter in the kitchen and gave us a wave. "I'm working at the Pizza's, so good luck, Lynette." Drake pointed at the blonde. "And don't be too hard on her."

Is he usually hard on people? 

We walked to the registers and got to work. For the pay, I expected a fast-paced and challenging experience. It wasn't. It was easy to handle the large number of customers who came in.

Alexander taught me how we'd usually greet customers, "welcome to the happy pizzeria," special and regular order type-ins, and a few other things like keeping the work area clean.

It all seemed relatively simple. However, during his explanations, Alexander refused to get too close. I wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't taken a few steps back when I moved closer to hear him better.

I knew I had showered and washed my uniform the night before. Does he just like his personal space?

I decided to wait to ask and continued until our first break.

"You go ahead. I'll handle the customers while you're gone." Alexander said.

"Thanks," I replied and went alone through the kitchen and to the breakrooms. I reached the first breakroom door on my right and saw a note, "Don't forget to scan your badge for breaks and lunch!" - Edgar

On the left side of the door to break room one was another time clock, different from the one near the hallway that led to the offices and kitchen.

After I scanned in, I went into breakroom one. Firstly, my eyes went up. It was at least sixty feet high, maybe more. The rest of the pizzeria building had high ceilings too. Did this place used to be a warehouse? Are all the other breakrooms this big and tall?

Scattered about were a few round tables with comfy-looking chairs. In the far right corner, there were a couple of rather large couches and a giant plasma T.V., and all the way in the back left corner, there was a fridge, cabinets, and a stove. All this for such few employees?

I sat back on the black leather armchair near the T.V. because the couch looked oddly bigger than it should have, almost like it was made for a "giant."

I looked at the T.V. "This would be a nice place to play something. I should bring my console at some point so we can all play together."

I slipped my hand into my pocket and took out my phone. Wicks had called me an hour ago. I sighed and called him back.

"Hey–"

"Lentils! I'm sorry. I forgot you were at work." His tone was super apologetic, "I wanted to tell you I got home safe and to ask what cake you wanted." He added, "Don't worry though, I winged it!"

I rested back on the chair, keeping my shoes off it. "You didn't have to buy me a cake!"

"Yeah, I do! You got a cooler job, right?"

I smirked, "Money-wise, yeah. From what I understand, I'm just cashiering and training under the guy who invited me…" I mumbled. "I don't think he likes me very much."

Wicks scoffed, "Who doesn't like you, Lentils? You have the charisma level of a puppy!"

"Thanks," I said with a slight chuckle. I'm doing fine, at least. "I don't want to mess this opportunity up." I accidentally said that aloud.

I heard him change his position on the leather chair in his room, which was funny because I also changed mine. Charletta does say we mimic each other when we talk on the phone.

"You're one of the most determined and hardworking people I know. You won't." He hit me with that positive conviction, "So throw those stupid thoughts away. And think about how good the cake's gonna be tonight!!"

My lips pouted. It was impossible to hold my doubt when I talked to Wicks. "You're the best."

We chatted until I heard a soft ding from the room. I looked toward the door and saw my name above it with a timer. I didn't know it timed my break, but I was glad it did.

I said goodbye, hung up, exited my seat, and headed out. On my way out, I noticed a sign saying something about lunch by the door. I didn't have enough time to read it.

It's probably the rules in the lunchroom. I put a small reminder in my head to read it later. I scanned back in and raced back to the counter.

Upon seeing Alexander, I smiled, "It's your turn, buddy."

His faint bluish-gray tint met my green hue. He nodded to acknowledge me but didn't say a word. He moved past me and through the kitchen out of my sight.

He's probably tired. I've got all the time to make friends with him and everyone else.

While I got situated, my eyes wandered to the girl I had seen running around earlier. She cleaned up the messes on the tables and floor. Once she noticed I was watching her, she gave a small wave.

She looks very fit, like Alexander. I glanced down at myself. I wasn't chubby or anything. I had some strength from rock climbing on my off days, not that I wrote home about it.

After another fifteen minutes or so, Alexander came back. The work isn't that hard? Why would anyone quit this position? I managed the majority of the customers while Alexander took care of cleaning the counters and fetching pizzas from the back upon request.

I failed to start a conversation with him. It was like he refused to speak to me. He'd either nod yes or shake his head no. And unless it was work-related, anything that required a longer answer, he ignored.

Why won't he talk to me? Does he not want to scare me off on my first day?

Before I knew it, Alexander spoke again after nearly two hours of silence. "I will get Viola to take over the register when we go to lunch. You go on ahead, I'll meet you back there."

I nodded. I watched him walk to the muscular woman from earlier.

I left the counter, scanned out for lunch, and went to the first break room. I looked back and over the door at the giant screen. My name and the time I had left popped up on it.

"That's so cool."

I flicked back to the seats. There were so many tables to choose from. Where should we sit? Wait. I exhaled in frustration. I hadn't even packed lunch today.

The door behind me slid open and I heard whoever entered copied my previous exhale. It was Alexander. I wasn't that much of a pain today, was I?

Turning on my heels, I faced him. He marched toward me.

I pointed over my shoulder at the well-spaced-out tables. "Which table did you want to sit at?" Should I have assumed we'd sit together? He might want to relax alone.

Alexander stood in front of me and shut his eyes. He groused though I couldn't hear what he said.

He must be thinking of a way to-

Without warning, he grabbed my right arm pointing at the tables.

I couldn't do anything but squeak. I pulled against him and my hat dropped to the floor in my struggle. He hunched over, lifted my arm, and did the unexpected. He opened his mouth and engulfed my hand completely.

I froze in disbelief.

I thought my heart had stopped beating. I was too stunned to react, speak, or move as I felt his tongue under my palm. This isn't real.

He snapped me out of it when he grabbed my other arm and did the same. Why is he getting bigger?! He got to my elbows and my pleading eyes stared up at his closed ones past his glasses. They were clutched tight.

No matter how “varnished” my arms were, I couldn't yank myself back. My shoes squeaked and slipped against the linoleum floor.

His throat muscles clamped down hard on the parts of my forearms already slipping down it. His shifted from what was left of my arms to my back, forcing me to get closer.

He keeps getting bigger. Please scream for help.

The drool streamed down my arms and dripped onto the floor below. He gulped, putting my face in front of his lips.

"Don't do this..." My voice was barely audible. There was no way he heard me. Even if he did, if he got this far, I knew he wouldn't have a sudden change of heart.

He consumed my head seconds later. My cries were drowned out by the pool of saliva in his mouth, and his tongue slathered every inch of my head. I thrashed until I felt his teeth on my collarbone and spine. He could snap down at any moment.

I didn't want to move after that realization and felt my weight shift. I wasn't on the ground anymore. My body was in the air, held above his head.

I fell further and faster into his expanding gullet. Soon, I couldn’t move an inch. His throat and esophagus stopped me from pivoting myself. As his muscles tugged, he pulled me deeper with ease, clearly used to this. He didn't gag, nor struggle, every gulp he took was effortless and efficient.

I strained to do something, until my hands and arms reached an "open" space.

Soon my head was pushed into it as well, while my fingers got comfortable with what I figured was the bottom of the pocket. I gasped out, getting pushed inside it.

After taking off my shoes and socks, he swallowed the last bit of my feet.

The rest of me fell fast. It forced my disoriented body to be pushed upright, or what I believed was upright. It was difficult to tell in the darkness. All I knew were two things: I didn't have the sensation of being upside down, and I was trapped.

My back was pressed against one wall of squelching humid flesh, and my legs were tightly nestled to my chest by the other. How am I alive?

My voice croaked out. This has to be a bad dream. I couldn’t see anything, only heard the sounds of a soft yet excited thumping of what I presumed was his heart, and my current surroundings groaning loudly. This isn’t possible.

I pressed my trembling hands and pulled them back when the folds nearly consumed them.

No...this is real.

I desperately pushed out my arms and feet. But I couldn’t hold onto the position for very long. His insides were too firm, like I was fighting against a hot, malleable steel wall.

The realization hit me. This is why the position was empty and why he said if I lasted a year! I yelled in my head. I shouted from within Alexander too.

There's no point in begging or reasoning with him. If he did this, he wouldn't listen. It seemed like there was a lot of flesh between him and I anyway, so I figured he couldn’t hear me, let alone would anyone else.

I squirmed about, hoping to upset his stomach and make him spit me out.

It didn’t work. In the end, all I did was make myself heavier and get covered in more of his stomach goo.

I’m not going to die like this.

The more I futilely pushed, the more his disgusting bumpy interior walls shoved me back. They're mocking me. I yelled out in frustration, punching with the last bit of strength my shaky hands could muster. I had no traction to gain.

I didn’t feel any pain, and there wasn’t really a smell—least one that I noticed.

I gasped again, trying to find my phone. I could call for help!

I was unable to move my arms and my eyelids were closing.

I grit my teeth. Why am I so tired? My head slumped over and my eyes closed.

I wanted to cry, yet refused. I didn't want him to have that satisfaction.

I wouldn’t last a year, not even six months... My consciousness dwindled, reminding me of ever regret. I didn't even last a day…

...

Thank you for reading! :D Have a Gouda Day!

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What I’d do for a Livable Income - Master-List!

[freakingoutthesquares]

Sleazenation interview, June 1999

Source: Mark Sturdy

Venini are Pulp guitarist Russell Senior's new band, and an attempt to rectify music's delineation between flashy but insubstantial pop and credible but drab 'real' music. "I think this single is a good start to achieving that, a taster of where we're at now. And I don't totally feel like we're having to rebel against what's happening at the moment. I can see new shoots emerging in the music which I broadly adhere to."

Venini's debut single Mon Camion is the point where the polar opposites of Sheffield's '80's musical heritage - effeminate futurism and Leppard's spandex glam - have combined. The Gallic theme and keyboardist Danny's synths hint at Stereolab pop, but are underpinned by the same absurdly rollicking beat which propelled The Sweet's Blockbuster. "It's a trucker's beat, isn't it?" admits Danny sheepishly. "The rock band's secret weapon. I think you can only get away with it about once every ten years though," advises Russell.

Both the beat and the band hark back to the days when the stout yeoman of the North could dress up to the nines, slap on the make up and sing about tiger's feet. "Going to see Gay Dad really livened me up," enthuses Russell. "I don't think they're the future of rock 'n' roll, but the audience were people dressing up again. I thought 'Crikey, there's some people here who might have got beaten up on the way to the gig,' and that's got to be a good thing. I don't want people to be beaten up on the way to the gigs anymore, but I do think that young people should be prepared to take that chance for a band that they love!"

Danny instantly proves his credentials: "I got beaten up outside a Transvision Vamp gig when I was 14. I'd gone to the wrong venue and 10 scallies jumped us." There is something to be said for the functionalism of youth culture that has been largely absent over the last 3 years, a time in which most people have become Carhartt man, a homogeneous mass of shapeless canvas. "I think being part of scene, you need that identity when you're young. And in some garbled form, that spirit is there in us, and is becoming a bit more apparent generally in music now."

Russell links this gradual re-emergence of separate youth culture to the recent problems of the music industry. "I like this bonfire that's occurred of these... vanities. All the pompous indie Britpop has died a death, and the music industry - in its panic - has got to go and find something new. They've been rather cowardly for a few years, and had their comeuppance. When the Stereophonics are important, that's the definition of a fallow period."

Having set up their own label Bikini "as a vehicle to get our own stuff out" Venini are aware of the problems of being on a 'true' indie and the current culling of rosters by the major labels. "I would hate to be a talented unknown group at the moment, because if you don't have 10 grand to it yourself it's really going to be really hard to break down the door."

Russell is scathing of those who adopt independence as an artistic statement and condemns wilful obscurantism as cowardice. "That is being scared that people won't like what you do, and so pretending that it doesn't matter if they don't. There's a very limited value in bands with that kind of mentality, people who have the temerity to release a record and then say 'We don't care if people like it or not.'"

He also proposes an alternative to the need for bands to become musically mainstream in order to satisfy their paymasters. "I like the idea of corporate sponsorship, as you end up getting associated with certain products anyway." Does that not reek a bit of Spiceworld endorsement overload? "It doesn't have to. It's acknowledging that the world has changed and that people going and buying seven inches is not the way that music gets listened to nowadays. It gets listened to in hundreds of different contexts. Also, they've got to run out of Republica and Lust for Life soon and start looking for new advert music."

As the interview draws to close, it transpires that the band turned down an interview with Loaded as, according to Russell, "We wanted a coffee table magazine not a toilet magazine. Singer Debbie adds, "It's half way to being a porn mag anyway, so if you're going to read it you may as well do the real thing." So can we expect to see Russell and Danny, legs akimbo on the front of Razzle in the near future, baring all? "It's good to have a bit of mystique - most personalities are nowhere near as big as their stage personas."

[aerislei]

Tagged by @prismaticpichu! thank you!

Are you named after anyone? ~ Not a person! My real name is Skye and I was named after the Isle of Skye (yes, Scotland). It's a fun bit of trivia. Everyone and their mother thinks my real name is Skylar tho and I actually hate it.

When was the last time you cried? I'm not sure! like i've teared up a few times in the last few weeks but actual full on crying... probably the last time I got deep into a rut re several things im not airing out on tumblr!

Do you have kids? ~ no! and I don't particularly desire children due to my particular mix of Mental Health Issues:tm:

Do you use sarcasm a lot? ~ Yes! sometimes unintentionally oops

What sports do you play? ~ Uhhh None tbh. I enjoy playing soccer and I gravely miss taking martial arts and horseback riding both but money and time are both things I do not have enough of.

What's the first thing you notice about people? ~ First thing? Probably what they're wearing and/or their hair color/style/etc. I have poor eyesight and have to be close to them to see details like eye color or jewelry.

What's your eye colour? ~ Blue!

Scary movies or happy endings? ~ Happy endings! I enjoy some suspense and action, etc. But horror is not my thing. I'll make exceptions to watch with people I care about who enjoy horror ofc! but if im hunting for me catch me watching something cozy or an anime.

Any special talents? ~ Not really. Okay if I publish it with not really I'll be growled at probably lmao. So! actually probably my ability to recall Very Specific Details of things, though not... necessarily things I want to be able to recall. Random factoid about a game/answer to a small question about lore/random quote from something I read? Absolutely. I have been tapped for this frequently by certain friends because I often just. Have the answer and if I DONT I'm absurdly quick at locating it if the answer exists.

Where were you born? ~ South Carolina, in the US.

What are your hobbies? ~ Writing, reading, and playing video games.

Do you have any pets? ~ I personally have a dog (black lab mix of some kind) and a cat (large, long haired. think maine coon esq.) We have several other dogs and another cat living here tho! (my partner has the other cat, an buff orange tabby and one of the other dogs, a brown chihuahua)

How tall are you? ~ 5'2''-5'3'', somewhere in there.

Favourite subject in school? ~ I loved science! it was my absolute favorite. (I LOVE reading! but I hated english class for Reasons:tm:)

Dream job? ~ I don't dream of labor. Uh. But like if I could do Anything I wanted and be guaranteed enough money to like, live comfortably (ahahaha) I would probably write and tell stories! aside from that I actually love the concept of customer service and helping people but people make that job actual hell so!

forgot to tag so uhhhhh tags, tags... if you see this feel free but i'm going to tag @zimithrus1 and.... @queenangst I think!

Thank you so much for the tag, @applescabs!!! 🥰💚

Are you named after anyone? After, of all things, a 15th century noblewoman (whom I always thought was a saint, but actually wasn't, I just found out!) My mom saw an amazing statue of her on a trip and loved it, and her name, so much that she named me after her.

When was the last time you cried? I teared up a little yesterday when I got my friend's wedding invitation in the mail. The last time I properly cried was... huh. I think a couple of weeks ago, watching TV. That's a fair amount of time for me to go without crying, so go me!

Do you have kids? No, and I don't want any.

Do you use sarcasm a lot? A bit less than I used to, and not a lot in general. Only when I think it will be funny, or when I need to make an underhanded comment about something that ticked me off but I can't do much about.

What sports do you play? None. I am a very inactive person, sadly. I hope I can at least start going on more walks as the season keeps warming up.

What’s the first thing you notice about people? If they seem friendly or not.

What’s your eye colour? A very, very dark brown.

Scary movies or happy endings? Happy endings all the way. I can't handle scary stuff very well at all. 🫣

Any special talents? I'm fairly good at languages (I learned them easily in school and I usually have a decent shot at figuring out what a word might mean if it's in a language that has at least some relation to the ones I know/have studied). Sadly, the only one I'm still fluent in (besides Italian, of course) is English, because it's the only one I use regularly.

Where were you born? Italy, smack dab in the middle of the top part of the boot, lol

What are your hobbies? Writing fic, reading fic, scrolling Tumblr, playing video games (mostly just Pokémon), playing D&D, and very occasionally drawing or weaving bracelets or assembling jigsaw puzzles.

Do you have any pets? My two cats, Sasha and Misha 🥹🥹 They're tabby-and-white twins, they're almost 5 years old, and they're the ones I come home to. 💚💚

How tall are you? 164cm, although sometimes when I'm in a hurry I just say 1.65m 😅

Favourite subject in school? All the sciences and Math, though I also liked English when I started having it as a subject.

Dream job? Writing a single novel, or a trilogy or something like that, that becomes inexplicably popular, gets a movie deal, and gives me enough residuals to potentially live comfortably while bumming around on my couch writing fanfic for the rest of my life.

I am tagging (but only if they want to answer, zero pressure, as usual!) @nicoroni, @imaginatorofthings, @zimithrus1, @thekuraning, @saltedpin, @horikoshi-secret-ao3-account, @damedanedameyodamenanoyo, and anyone else who sees this and wants to play! 💖💖💖

[vs-redemption]

This piece was written as a part of the anniversary event for the @konoblog-simps Discord server. Be sure to go to the MASTERLIST to read and support the pieces by the other writers for this event.

Historical/Bridgerton AU (Diluc Ragnvindr x GN!Reader)

Word Count: 3.9K Warnings: Strong themes of marriage

Diluc Ragnvindr was young, devastatingly handsome, absurdly wealthy, and most importantly, single.

By all accounts, he was the most sought-after and eligible bachelor in Mondstadt. He was the first and only son of the renowned Ragnvindr clan and owner of the lucrative Dawn Winery, which represented almost the entire wine industry in the country. Even with his obvious displeasure during social gatherings and open contempt for the city’s proud Knights of Favonius, mothers flocked to him whenever they had a chance, eager to impress him with the long list of accomplishments and talents their unwed children possessed. He could truly have the hand of anyone he wanted, yet each and every person that attempted to entice him was met with a polite but prompt rejection.

“How high must his standards be?” You overhear someone ask while walking about at the annual summer Windrise picnic event. It was a day everyone in the city always looked forward to. There were games and activities for anyone to enjoy, and it provided a chance for young people to meet outside of a ballroom. It was also the perfect place for families to eat and chat together while enjoying the fresh air. “I don’t think Diluc has even danced with a single partner all season.”

“Perhaps he simply doesn’t wish to marry,” you chime in, catching the gossipers off guard. They fluster and scramble for a reply, but you’re already bidding them good day and continuing your walk. Perhaps it wasn’t very nice to put others in such awkward situations, but it bothered you sometimes how they loved to spread rumors and talk behind other people’s backs. Your antics weren’t regarded fondly amongst the people of Mondstadt though and you also found yourself single after a few seasons of officially being out. It wasn’t the worst situation, but you certainly hoped you wouldn’t end up alone and stuck at your family estate your entire life.

You head away from the crowds and turn towards the stream, admiring the crystalflies fluttering gracefully around the statue of the seven before making your way to the water. The sounds of the current moving through reeds and over rocks was calming, and it was nice to have a moment alone, even if the solitude was a mere illusion. Drama thirsty members of society were always watching.

“Master Diluc, perhaps you’d like to join me and my family for a game of croquet? I’ve heard you’re quite skilled at the sport, so perhaps we could learn a thing or two from such an expert.” Glancing over, you realize you’d stumbled upon the heir to the Ragnvindr estate himself. He was talking with a lady you knew from the flower shop in town, but his body language suggested that he wasn’t very comfortable.

“That’s very kind of you to offer, but I’m not actually here to enjoy the festivities.” He declines and his attire suggested that he was telling the truth. He was wearing his usual dark colors which did not suit the summer theme of the event very well. “I was just returning from some business.”

“But it won’t take too long,” the girl presses, looking ready to latch onto his arm and plead shamelessly if she needed to. Diluc holds his ground though and shakes his head.

“Regrettably, I am already behind schedule.” He bows his head respectfully, his long red ponytail falling over his shoulder. “Perhaps another time.”

“Oh, but I insist.” The girl steps forward. “If your schedule is truly so full, do you not deserve a break?”

Diluc looked to be losing patience by this point, and you weren’t sure what made you want to step in but before you could second guess yourself you were making your presence known.

“Um...” You felt awkward once the attention was turned to you. “I believe Mr. Ragnvindr has… already promised to take me for a walk around Windrise.” Both the girl and Diluc looked shocked and a little outraged by your assertion. You probably should’ve thought of a different excuse. Of course, Diluc wouldn’t know to play along. He just assumed you were another suitor making a snatch for his hand.

“A gentleman never goes back on his word,” you remind him to give a little push. Even if he was unaware of your intentions, surely he’d pick the lesser of two evils. A walk was far less of a commitment than playing an entire game of croquet which could be drawn out purposely to keep him occupied longer. He seemed to deliberate his situation for a moment before giving in to defeat.

“A short walk,” he agrees, “but then I really must be on my way.”

He steps away from the lady and offers you his arm. You gladly take it and allow him to lead you off. Perhaps you would’ve felt bad about stealing him away from that desperate girl, but this was the way the game was played. People would stop at nothing in the pursuit to get themselves a suitable partner to marry, and your tactic could hardly even be considered underhanded compared to what you’d seen and heard in the past. You wait until you’re out of earshot of anyone else before speaking up again.

“If you were to need to leave suddenly in the middle of our walk for some urgent business,” you glance up at him with a small smile, “I should not be offended.” His attention snaps to you and his tired red eyes get wider. It was the first time you’d ever been this close to him, and you took note of the smoothness of his skin and warmth of his eyes. It was easy to see why people tended to swoon in his presence.

“I’m sorry?” He asks, causing you to smile wider and pat his arm.

“I’m giving you a chance to escape,” you reiterate. “No hard feelings. That girl was right about one thing, you look like you could use a break.”

“You can’t be serious.” His deep voice held a note of genuine surprise. You could also tell that he was wondering if there was a catch to this deal.

“I could always call that girl back over here…” you suggest.

“No! No.” His face takes on the slightest look of amusement and what actually sounded like a chuckle escapes his lips. “That won’t be necessary. If you’re quite sure, then I think I will take this lifeline. Thank you, truly.” You reply with a nod of your head while releasing his arm. He adjusts his gloves until satisfied and then looks around to make sure the coast is clear. After thanking you one more time, he hurries off, away from the picnic in the direction of Dawn Winery.

Only a week past before you saw Diluc again. Both of you were attending the same ball, hosted by Mondstadt’s calvary captain Kaeya Alberich. The two had grown up together, so it was probably the host himself that had strongarmed Diluc into attending the event. However, their relationship didn’t explain why half hour into the evening Diluc was suddenly crossing the room and headed straight for your location.

“Would you join me for a dance?” You’re sure that he can tell by your face just how surprised and apprehensive you are. He never asked people to dance, so what was going on now? He raises his eyebrows, encouraging you to agree. You figured it was only polite to accept since he’d blindly trusted you before.

“That sounds lovely,” you take his hand and let him lead you onto the dancefloor. Without looking, you already knew every set of eyes in the room was on the two of you.

“You must be mad,” you insist as he begins guiding you smoothly through the steps of the song. “I thought you were one to avoid being in the spotlight.”

“Normally, you’d be correct.” He hums, “But I was thinking that perhaps you and I can agree to an arrangement that might benefit us both.”

“An arrangement?” You voice held a note of annoyance. “Is that what counts as a proposal these days?”

Diluc clicks his tongue at the mere suggestion. “Of course not. But if people were to think I was courting you, I think we’d both find ourselves in favorable situations.” He continues to lead you through the dance, seemingly immune to the stares of everyone around you. “Having my attention will certainly spark the curiosity of the town, and soon enough you’ll have suitors lining up to win your hand.”

It sounded arrogant, but you could tell he was just being honest. Because of his status, his opinion was highly valued. So, if he were to be pursuing you, that meant you were worth pursuing.

“I understand,” you nod to show you were following his logic. “And if everyone thinks you have your sights set on me, they’ll know to give up the chase and leave you alone. Right?”

“Precisely.” Diluc confirms. “You’ll have your choice of suitors and I will be free from the constant pestering of every single person in Mondstadt.”

You take a moment to consider this suggestion. A ruse like that would most certainly work, and while you weren’t too keen on jumping into any old marriage, this wasn’t an opportunity you could afford to miss out on. Your chances of finding someone decreased with each passing season, and it would be even worse for someone with a reputation of being too outspoken like you.

“You do know that you’ll have to make this look convincing,” you tell him seriously. “You’ll have to show up to every ball, dance with me and give me your attention, and appear to be hopelessly in love with me.”

“Obviously,” he states confidently. “So, what do you say?”

“I’m in.” You flash a brilliant smile as if he’d just said the most charming thing ever. He smiles back, shocking you with how soft his normally stern face became with just a simple change in expression.

Even after just a single dance and a few exchanged smiles, the plan was off to an incredible start. When you awoke the next morning, your family informed you that you’d have several visitors to entertain throughout the day. It was a little pathetic actually, how suitors were suddenly clambering over one another to compliment you and bring you gifts just because Diluc had given you his approval. Still, he’d remembered to have a giant bouquet of flowers sent to your estate just to fan the fire a little more.

“You seem to be the talk of the town,” Diluc teases from across the table. After dancing together at a few balls and letting the gossip spread, he’d deemed it appropriate to invite you and your family to the winery for dinner.

“I’ve had no shortage of suitors sniffing around, that’s for sure.” You confess, “I should be able to secure a proposal from someone decent by the end of the season.”

“Someone decent?” He scrunches up his nose, a habit you’d come to find quite endearing. “Surely there must be someone of better quality than that.”

“In this town? I wouldn’t count on it.” You snort, gaining a sharp look from your family for making such a rude sound. You apologize politely, but as soon as they look away you hear Diluc chuckling at you. He clears his throat when you send a glare his way, but after a moment you both start quietly laughing again.

“Well, I’ve done as much as I can.” He admits with an amused smirk, “I can make you appear more desirable to them, but I cannot make them any more appealing to you.”

“You’ve done plenty,” you assure him. “I hope things have been just as successful on your end of the deal.”

“You’ve no idea,” he confesses. “It’s so nice not to have to worry about people trying to trick or manipulate me into marriage every time I walk out the front door. And if spending time with you is the price to pay, I must say it’s a small one indeed.”

“That almost sounded like a compliment, Master Diluc.” You grin across the table and he smiles softly right back.

“It was meant as one,” He promises. “I shall miss your company once you’re married.”

A bittersweet feeling stirs in your chest. You felt exactly the same way. Through all the dancing and fake flirting, you’d really gotten to know Diluc under all those stubborn walls he put up to keep others away. For as stern and intimidating as he tried to be, you’d learned that underneath it all was a kind, gentle, and attentive man. He’d even surprised you by showing you he had a sense of humor, albeit a dry one. It was actually quite lovely to be around him. He emanated warmth and safety. And somehow, he’d become more than just a man you’d made a deal with, but also a real friend.

“And I shall look back fondly on these memories,” you tell him before going back to your dinner.

Half a month later and it was nearing the end of the season. You knew it was time to devote your complete attention to a single suitor and secure yourself a marriage proposal. You’d dragged the ruse with Diluc out as much as you could, and you almost wished it was really him that you were going to marry. None of your options felt that spectacular when compared with him. Still, you steeled your nerves and made your choice.

“Yes, I’d love to dance with you!” You put on a fake smile and take to the dance floor at the next ball. It was hosted by none other than Jean Gunnhildr, so everyone in Mondstadt was sure to be in attendance. They’d notice right away that your first few dances of the evening weren’t with Diluc, and that would hopefully encourage your other suitors to be bolder in making a move.

“Oh, Master Diluc seems to be quite jealous.” You glance over at the man after overhearing some people gossiping. He really did appear to be glaring at the one you’d been dancing with. You give him a curious look when you catch his eye. He didn’t need to play his part that well. Evidently, he took your look to mean that he should come over because not a moment later and he was stalking over purposefully in your direction.

“What are you doing?” He hisses with a scowl on his face. Despite trying to keep his voice down, the aggressiveness of his behavior attracted eyes from all over the room.

“What do you mean?” You ask, feeling shocked at his accusatory tone. This wasn’t the kind of drama you wanted to start at a party like this and you didn’t see how it would benefit either of you.

“You can have anyone you want and that’s who you pick?”

“I… don’t see how that’s any of your business.” You weren’t sure what his angle was and you searched his face desperately to figure out how you were supposed to play along. Nothing about what he was doing made sense to you though.

“Dance with me.” He holds out his hand expectantly and you shake your head defiantly.

“No.” It was hard to know if it was the right or wrong thing to do, but Diluc had turned and stormed off again before you could second guess it. Part of you worried that you’d offended him somehow, but the other part of you worried that his bold stunt would scare off all the suitors that had only been interested in you because of Diluc.

Your fear was not unfounded. People seemed hesitant to approach you or talk to you for the rest of the evening, and who could blame them? Nobody in their right mind would reject Diluc Ragnvindr unless there was something seriously wrong with them. Too bad they didn’t know that the whole thing had been an act; one that quite possibly had just blown up in your face.

When you got up the next morning, you hoped the day before had simply been a bad dream. By the looks on your family member’s faces though, you knew it was just wishful thinking. Resigned to your fate, you find a spot in your sitting room and try to get lost in a book. Maybe if you were lucky, you wouldn’t be required to attend any more events for the rest of the season.

“A Mr. Diluc Ragnvindr is here to see you.” A household staff member bows from the doorway and you shoot right off the sofa you’d been lounging on.

“Uh, okay.” You hadn’t been prepared to face him so soon, or at all really. “I suppose we have to let him in.”

You quickly try to straighten up your appearance before he comes in, berating yourself a little in the process for even caring what he’d think. When he walks in though, you are reminded of just how handsome he really was. Perhaps that fact had gotten lost somewhere as you’d developed a closer relationship with him. However, now that the friendship had apparently dissolved, his strong intimidating aura had come back.

“Can I help you?” You knew you sounded cold and detached, but you weren’t sure how else to act. You heard your family members shifting on the furniture behind you and knew they were listening in and feeling just as curious about this visit as you.

“I’ve come to apologize.” You blink in surprise. It was the last thing you would’ve expected. If anything, you figured he would come to chastise you for making the both of you look foolish the night before. He takes your silence as a sign to continue. “The way I behaved yesterday was out of line. I know that.”

“Why did you do it then?” You ask, arms folded over your chest. “You completely sabotaged any chance I had of ever getting a proposal. The only person who benefits from any of this now is you.”

“It wasn’t my intention,” he presses on, avoiding your eyes and fiddling with the cuffs of his gloves. “I just… I was just overcome.”

“Overcome…” you let out a laugh, “with what?”

“Jealousy.” The answer is shockingly honest and you almost can’t believe your eyes when you see a hint of pink on his cheeks.

“What?”

“I…” He sighs in frustration, rubbing a hand over his face before addressing you properly. “I saw you dancing with those other people and I got jealous.”

“I’m going to need a little more explanation than that.” You were scared to make any assumptions at all. His jealousy could be childish in that he just wanted the attention back on him, or it could be more serious.

“When we were talking at dinner a couple weeks ago, I said I was going to miss your company.” He begins his explanation hesitantly. He clearly hadn’t rehearsed this meeting, but you were determined to hear him out. “I kept wishing we could continue this deal between us indefinitely. Then neither of us would have to deal with all the nonsensical drama and gossip we both clearly despise.”

So far, his speech was not going well. Not only had he just revealed the ruse openly in front of your family, but what he was suggesting was ludicrous. Keeping up the act that he was courting you beyond this season was not an option, even if you wanted it to be. Both of your reputations were at stake and you weren’t willing to shirk off your duty to marry just to enter a different kind of sham of a relationship. The longer it went on, the more suspicion and criticism the two of you would face.

“I know that would be an impossible thing to ask of you,” Diluc seemed to be following your same line of thinking, but there was still more that he needed to get off his chest. “But when I saw you dancing with those other people, I wondered if they really deserved you. I wondered if they would appreciate you the way I do.”

The speech had taken a sudden turn and there was no way to stop your heart from fluttering. Was it too much to hope that things might actually turn out all right?

“What do you mean?” You ask a little breathlessly, forgetting about your family’s presence in the room entirely as your imagination took off.

“Even though our courtship was staged, the bond we formed was not.” He explains, folding his arms and averting his gaze again. “Without the pressure of marriage looming overhead, I was able to relax around you and really get to know you. I learned that you have this incredibly disarming presence that can even put someone like me at ease. You’ve made me laugh and feel more carefree than I have in a very long time. And, somewhere along the way, I began to look forward to our time together. I found myself wanting to know more about you.”

“Diluc…” the confession left you a bit speechless, yet the man in front of you surprised you even more by stepping forward and taking one of your hands into his own.

“I can’t help but wonder if any other suitor would try to see more in you than just someone to decorate their arm. Would they even care to get to know the real you after asking for your hand?” He finally looks up to meet your eyes. “Because I would. I would cherish every moment with you and relish in the things we learn as we spend more time together. I would do my best to provide you the happiness that you’ve provided me this season and work every single day to be worthy of you.”

He releases your hand and takes a step back again, much to your dismay. By now your heart was racing in your chest and you felt as if you might just float away if he let go of you for too long. You heard gasps from your family when Diluc reaches into his pocket to pull out a little black box before getting down on one knee.

“Diluc…” you say his name softly, tears already welling in the corners of your eyes.

“Will you marry me?” He asks, his voice steady but thick with emotion.

“Yes.” It was an easy answer. Diluc was far from perfect, and both of you were bound to make errors along the way, but it would be a marriage that was real. You’d both be able to be yourselves, unhindered by social standards and able to explore love in a way most people never got the chance to.

“Really? Thank you.” There were tears in his eyes too as he stands back up and slips the ring onto your finger. You both ignore the clapping and cooing coming from your family. “I promise I won’t let you regret it.”

“I know you won’t.” You look down at the ring and then rush forward to wrap your arms around him tightly. It was an action that toed the line of what was appropriate, but you couldn’t find it in yourself to care. At the beginning of the season, Diluc had just been some antisocial rich man that was understandably critical of Mondstadt society and married to his work. And now? He was the diligent, attentive and honest man that would soon be your loving husband.

tagging my fellow Diluc lovers @kaysayshey and @meganwriteshq

[leaderoffestivals]

CROSS FIRE: Strength and Strength Ch 3

Madara: Fu~fu~fu~. Welcome... to The Muscle Mansion!

Scenario Writer: Kino Seitarou (with Akira) Season: Summer Characters: Kiryu Kuro, Mikejima Madara, Nagumo Tetora, Sazanami Jun, Otogari Adonis  Proofed by: @ryuseipuka, Skyress

< A few days later, on the date and time specified on the recruitment flyer.> 

Adonis: Is this the meeting place where those with ‘pride in their strength’ are being recruited?

I’m here to find out more after I passed by a flyer advertising it. What kind of people will be gathered here, I wonder?

I do hope to meet people who are both strong and kind… 

(Opens the door.)

Please pardon the intrusion. 

Madara / Kuro: … … … …

Jun / Tetora: … … … …

Adonis: Oh? What is… … this? There are some guys leaning against the wall with their arms folded. It looks as if they’ve been waiting for me… … 

Madara: Fu~fu~fu~. Welcome to… The Muscle Mansion!

Adonis: What? The Muscle… Mansion——!? 

What in the world did he call this place? This looks just like an ordinary meeting room to me, though… …

Kuro: Fer cryin’ out loud. Don’t take ‘im seriously, Otogari. This guy’s words are full of bull.

Madara: Whoops! ‘Full of bull’ is such a terrible way of putting it, don’t you think? I think what I said was accurate for the most part, though? 

Anyway, this ‘Pride in Strength Recruitment’ job seems to be for a ‘Shuffle Project’, the latest of a series that’s been popping up around here recently. Anzu-san will be giving us more details about it later. 

Adonis: Hmmm. A ‘Shuffle Project’... … ?

I’ve heard the others talking about it. It allows for the setting up of a temporary unit featuring idols from all over ES, without being restricted by one’s agency. 

Since you’re recruiting idols who have ‘pride in their strength’ this time, would that mean that the job has something to do with being muscular? 

Oh, so this is to be a collaboration with the newly-established Mixed Martial Arts programme, [CROSS FIRE]?

I see now. That was why you were using a flyer with such an eye-catching headline to recruit idols. 

Tetora: Mixed Martial Arts, you say~? If you’re searching for ‘The Strongest Man in ES’, then you certainly can’t limit it to any particular school of martial arts. It would be a showdown between fighters of different disciplines!

I’ve been watching matches like that on TV for some time now, so I’m really looking forward to being involved in this myself~ ♪

Jun: Ahaha. It looks like you can’t wait to get started, you know~, Nagumo-kun? 

No, it isn’t just Nagumo-kun, huh? All the other members here seem eager and raring to go too. 

A gathering of familiar faces from the Training Room, a unit made up of muscle training buddies… … That sounds kinda fun ♪

Tetora: Ossu! We’ve been doing muscle training together pretty often, so that’ll make us ideal companions for a Shuffle Unit!

Madara: Oh, I see! United by the bonds of muscle training, huh~!

Since we have ourselves a muscle-themed Shuffle Unit——Let’s call our unit “BUTOUKAI” (舞闘会) (1)! 

I think it’s an excellent name that suits us perfectlyyy~ ♪

Kuro: Nah, I’m sorry to say I disagree with all of ya. Just ‘coz our interests in workin’ out match up doesn’t mean that we’ll be able to work successfully together as a unit, right? 

Well, it’s better than havin’ nothin’ in common at all… … So, Little Miss. What’s it exactly that we’re supposed to be doin’ here? 

Since this is about Mixed Martial Arts, the range of jobs we could be doin’ is pretty broad, ain’t it? Are we gonna be promotin’ the programme, hostin’ first-hand experiences in the sport, or performin’ a song and dance fer it? Or are you gonna say that they want us to be paradin’ in the show as round boys (2), huh?  

… … Huh? They want us to be doin’ ALL of that? 

Ain’t that, like, an absurdly tall order? We ain’t jacks of all trades, y’know.

Since this Mixed Martial Arts programme is so spankin’ new, they want to use every bit of talent we’ve got as idols to hype it up as much as possible—you say? It’s a helluva reckless demand that’s just par fer the course for martial arts, I see!

Tetora: But since Taisho has been going through the daily rigours of the Karate Club, he’ll be able to do all that with one hand tied behind his back! Anything is possible through the power of muscles… … ♪

Jun: Your faith in muscles is amazing!

Well, ‘a muscular body does hide a multitude of flaws’ (3) or so they say; and having a well-trained body can solve a ton of problems—

But even so, seeing as we’ve got quite the number of jobs lined up for us here, wouldn’t it be better if we divided them among ourselves now~?

Tetora: EHHhh~! But that would mean that Taisho and I wouldn’t be able to work together, right? 

This Shuffle Unit is a rare and precious chance for us to work together, you know? I want to carry out unit activities together with Taisho!

I don’t care if the schedule ends up killing me; This has been my dearest wish for the longest time!

Kuro: I get it, I get it. Since Tetsu’s pushin’ so hard to make things happen, I’ll adopt a positive attitude towards everythin’ too. 

I’m just a newcomer at RythLin after all, and I’m not about to go stickin’ my nose in the air in front of the Little Miss who went and got us such a big-ticket job.

Madara: Well then, let us proceed to the Training Room for our first BUTOUKAI get-together, shall we~?

We need to get to know each other after all, and working out together would be a good ice-breaking activity for that, right?

Adonis: Indeed. I’m glad to have the opportunity to train with Mikejima-senpai again after so long.

I received many useful tips and technical advice from Mikejima-senpai while training in the Track and Field Team. I’m sure that I’ll be able to learn a lot this time as well. 

Tetora: Will you be joining us, Big Sis Anzu? I’ll draw up the training menu!

Jun: Ah. In that case, I’ll help with that too. 

This is a really rare opportunity for me to work with Anzu-san as my Producer, after all~? I wanna take this time to learn more about the profession through your eyes. 

Kuro: Haha! Maybe it’s cos’ everyone’s a muscle training fanatic here, but all of ya are just overflowin’ with energy, damn.

All the members seem to be champin’ at the bit to promote [CROSS FIRE], don’t they? That means the Little Miss’ recruitment flyer was a smashin’ success. 

I’d been pretty concerned at how busy things were gonna get, but with all the good vibes present here, this Shuffle Project’s off to a real promisin’ start after all ♪

—————-To be continued——————-

Chapter 2  /  Chapter 4

Translator’s Notes:

舞闘会 ぶとうかい (BUTOUKAI) is from 舞踏会 which means ‘dance party’. Replacing the middle character 踏 (which means ‘step’) with the character that has the same JP pronunciation, 闘 (which means fight, battle), → Dance Battle Corps, giving a name in line with the martial arts / idol theme. 

I can’t find a EN definition of ラウンドボーイ(round boy) but it’s probably a male equivalent of ‘ring girl’. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ring_girl) which is like, ahem. (pictures Anzu shaking the MMA executive’s hand)

The original saying is 色白は七難隠す or ‘A fair complexion covers a multitude of sins / hides all faults’, an archaic saying referring to how having fair skin is enough to be considered beautiful despite the existence of other physical flaws.   

Please enjoy this Twitter artist’s, 五郎 (@obaaaaap)  art.

[sangyeonsofthours]

COLLEGE STUDENT!SANGYEON

pairing: sangyeon x female reader warnings: this is just some dumb to lovers really.... and an attempt at comedy i guess... wc:  4.9k n/a: bullet points into the life of college student sangyeon! hope you enjoy it  ♡  plus, it’s barelly proof read so… will you forgive me for any mistakes? thank you (♡ﾟ▽ﾟ♡) now lets gooooo

so, our boy here is majoring in music at korea national university of arts

and he’s part of the dance club, after all the boy’s got talent (pun intended)

sangyeon is just that kind of laid back guy, who's super chill and has everyone wrapped around his little finger, really

he’s clever and responsible, always ready to help anyone who's in need, super good at leading

he's always the one with all the good ideas and also the one who's pretty good to put said ideas into work

oh, and he's absurdly handsome, has the most cute eye smile and is adorably clumsy (which adds soooo many points to his attractiveness)

he’s also known around the campus as a great music producer and songwriter

and he sings (like an angel, i might say) so he loves recording covers

and even some really good original tracks of his own

also he likes to play basketball in his free time

and to add to this enormous pile of the absolutely dreamy man he is

he has his own radio show

it's a calm show that he hosts at soft early hours of the dawn

it’s called sangsang night and he hosts it at thursday nights 

how did he manage to have his own radio? well since everyone loves him and he’s just a whole model of student of course the council gave him permission to use one of their empty rooms at the university's radio and tv building

they even offered some help with the equipment but most of it was paid by sangyeon himself (did I mention he works at a record store?)

sangsang night is like his relaxing time

it's when he's going to free his mind from his worries and play soft meaningful playlists he created 

he likes sharing songs with people, absolutely loves to talk about it too

always makes sure to read the messages his listeners leave for him and likes to have this super sweet period of his broadcast in which he'll give advices to the listeners who calls him

all that makes him kinda popular around the campus, you know? people know about him and both girls and boys have a crush on him

but he’s a shy guy when it comes to dating and hitting on people

so that's why you barely see him with someone that aren't his guy friends

(and also bc the boy barely has the time to get himself a girlfriend let's be honest, who tf manages to do so much stuff AND has a girlfriend?????) 

but let’s get to the day you and our musician prince crossed paths

so you’re new in college, you just got transferred from some art school

and despite the fact you're majoring in film, tv & multimedia, you share your history of art classes with kevin (the cute canadian guy from visual arts)

you soon click with him, pairing up to work on some projects

that’s how you end up visiting kevin’s dorm planning to get ahead with your assignments

it's all okay while you both are sat down on his living room floor, some books scattered around you and a soft playlist playing in the background

you were told previously that he had two roommates, but it wouldn't be a problem since they're chill so working at his dorm would be okay

but it's exactly when you drag your gaze from the sheets you've been scribbling on that you see him

i mean, you see sangyeon

and your tired brain makes you babble out the most stupid thing you could say in a moment like this

‘oh my god kevin i think i'm seeing an angel’

well we all can agree that a semi naked sangyeon with only a towel around his waist, wet hair and some droplets of water still gracing his overly worked abs may look like (a kinda twisted up definition, i might add, of) an angel

but you could've held that thought to yourself, right? 

you’re sure you could

but you didn’t

and kevin snorted so hard he swears he felt his nasal cavities move out of place

and poor sangyeon blushes so hard

he just wanted to get something from the fridge before getting back to his room

but kevin didn't say anything about having someone over and that's why he's standing at the corner of the hallway where it meets the living room

half naked and feeling like if a hole swallowed him he wouldn't mind it at all

and before the weight of your stupidity can fall over your shoulders sangyeon burst in a serie of apologies bowing many times before leaving to hide in his room

that’s how your first eventiful meeting went

pretty awkward right?

after that you tried your hardest to avoid going to kevin’s dorm, too afraid to meet sangyeon again

what if he thought you were a perve? or worse!!!! what if he hated you? after all you were some weirdo who basically lusted after his almost naked self at his own home

but kevin always said it was okay, that sangyeon was too nice to hold a grudge against you bc of something so dumb and (in his personally opinion) funny

but the thing is

as the time passed, even with all the avoiding thing going on from your part

you couldn’t help but… feel something about sangyeon

i mean, it was already mentioned that everyone would have a crush on him

of course it was just about time for you to fall in the trap of lee sangyeon

and like some kind of secret admirer you’d admire him from afar, listen religiously to sangsang night, but still avoid the hell out of him in any other situation

for god’s sake you’d stalk his instagram profile without even following it

pathetic

all that behind kevin’s back, of course

you’re sure he’d do something dumb if he knew about your slight crush on mr. perfect

not out of evil, but out of KINDNESS to be honest

kevin could sound too much like a jokester every time he had the chance, but he was a sweetheart

so he'd never let you pin after his friend without trying to help you actually to get to said friend

so that’s why you keep your crush as a top fbi secret

and it goes like this

until an eventful afternoon comes to you like… like an unruly horse… and it kind of runs you over

there’s this huge special extracurricular thing going on in your campus 

like, it’s a fair, there's workshops, conferences, special lectures, for every nerd who really likes it or for the desperate students who really need a push up into their extracurricular activities (since it’s almost the end of the semester and summer is right around the corner)

you’re on the nerd side

so is sangyeon, of course

AND

there’s this soundtrack workshop that you’re super excited to attend since it’s not just going to add extracurricular points to your grades

but because the work you’ll be making is going to feature a REAL short film

like this short film will be featured in movie theaters around the country!!!

and so you are basically bouncing up and down all the way to the building where the said workshop is

and it’s all going super smoothly… normal even (important topic: things going normal around you is pretty atypical since you’re always making a fool of yourself)

you just arrived the conference room for the first meeting of the workshop

and fortunately it's not so full of people, there's around 20 chairs around the room and still there’s some empty, waiting to be taken

and you’re just sitting there, quiet, waiting for it to start, enjoying the soft buzz of people making small conversation and the view of the few people that are still arriving the room

and that’s it

that’s when sangyeon enters the room in all his freaking glory

he looks so good!!!!

he just got a new haircut and he looks fresh and READY FOR SUMMERTIME

ITS SOOOOOOO YUMMY YUMMY (ok i'm losing my shit thinking about short haired sangyeon from thrill ride era)

and he’s wearing a white shirt, light blue jeans and black converse while holding onto his backpack and that famous college jacket from the basketball team

it couldn’t be more cliche

but still

he’s like the troy bolton from east high (like, he's perfect even when doing nothing extraordinary)

and you just don’t know what to do

i mean

wtf does that mean that you're bound to spend the next 4 hours with him

not literally with him bc there’s other people with you but

you’d be in his presence and WE ALL KNOW THAT YOU’VE BEEN DREADING IT SINCE THE INCIDENT™

and in a second you’re looking around thinking about ways to LEAVE the room as soon as possible without being noticed

but it seems like your body is working in a slow motion mode and your legs just won't MOVE

and when you least expect sangyeon is right by your side

he casually drops his bag on the floor and sits right. by. your. side.

“hey” he greets you with a bright smile

 and you just don’t understand how can he be so unbothered by you

“you’re kevin's friend, y/n, right?” he asks

and not a single word can leave your mouth bc you feel like FREAKING CHOKING

so you just nod your head like those weird dog ornaments that bob their head when you tap them

“it’s nice to see you again” he says and the smile never leaves his pretty full lips

you want a hole to swallow you right now HE’S TALKING TO YOU SO CASUALLY

but there’s is a buzz on your ear and you can feel your cheeks burning in embarrassment

you’re probably looking like a tomato

or like you’re about to THROW UP or maybe even PASS OUT

(neither one is good btw)

but you’re saved by the bell, when the head of the workshop start talking, gathering your attention

she’s giving some orientations but you can’t really get your mind to focus on her voice

how could sangyeon act so unfazed????

maybe kevin was right!!!! sangyeon doesn’t really care about the incident™

so you take a deep breath and try your best to listen to your leader who’s now saying she’ll divide the group so you all can work on pairs

and not just that

she has already chosen the pairs based on the previous subscription you guys made for the workshop

and even tho some butterflies dare to dance around on your stomach and something inside you wishes you’re paired up with sangyeon

your wise side tell yourself you shouldn't wish for that bc right now you have a real great chance to make a fool of yourself in front of him

A G A I N

but we all know that this story is going downhill wildly right into cliches right?

so of course you were paired up with sangyeon

well sangyeon is a music major while you’re a film, tv & multimedia major

and both of you have great grades and extracurricular credits

you’re like the best duo in the room

and sangyeon seem to be happy about being paired up with you bc he just whispered a small “yay” while giving you that beautiful smile where his eyes almost disappear forming two half moons in his face

he’s fucking adorable

your chest HURTS you want to pounce on him 

the head leader of the movie is walking around the room giving everyone their assignments while you just wait for your turn to receive your instructions

so something in you mind snaps

if sangyeon is okay with being around you, you can’t make the situation awkward

so you smile back at him and he seems very satisfied to see that you're okay with his presence too

the few hours you spent together went as smooth as it could go

you and sangyeon didn’t talk much about things other than what concerned to the work you should do

but by the time you arrived your dorm you accepted you should be true to yourself

and admit (on your own head) that you’d be lying if you said you weren't super happy for what just happened and were just as excited for the next day

(oh did i mention it was a three day duration workshop? well… now i did teeheee)

you already thought sangyen looked like the epitome of beauty when he arrived that room in a plain white t shirt and ordinary jeans

but the next day when you arrive the studio you’d be both working on together

you almost excuse yourself so you can go hyperventilate on the hallway

(ok y/n you need to stop being so exasperated about sangyeon GIRL GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER PLS)

he’s wearing a light blue button down shirt and specs AND HE’S ETHEREAL

“oh, hello, y/n” he smiles at you, getting up from the chair he was sitting

“h-hey” YOU’RE STUTTERING WTF

sangyeon gives you the heads up to what you should be doing by this second day of the workshop, since the head leader had showed up by earlier to give the him instructions

you notice that sangyeon’s easy and carefree manners make you feel really comfortable around him

and you enjoy everything about it

his sweet voice and musk perfume are super enjoyable

and he does really takes your ideas and abilities into consideration

his knowledge complements yours and if you’re right, by the end of this workshop, your work together will be BRILLIANT

and you don’t know that BUT

sangyeon kind of has a crush on you too 

he’s too dumb to notice that you have the fattest crush on him, so he thinks that your weird mannerism is out of embarassement bc of the incident™

and he thinks it’s adorable bc he doesn’t even care about that anymore, really

he just treats you well and try to be the gentleman we all know he already is

so you just enjoy eachothers company bc you have only this afternoon to do it

since the next (and last) day of workshop will be the short movie premiere

even tho you’re kinda sad it’s going to end soon you’re happier that you had the chance to spend such a nice time with sangyeon

sooooooooooooooo

the next day the premiere is incredible

the team made an incredible job at cutting and editing the scenes and audios for de short movie

and after the premiere everyone is so happy so the lead header and the director and some part of the cast invite all of you to go out to eat something

and of course you won’t let the opportunity to be with sangyeon just a little more just pass

both of you jump at the chance tbh

and you make sure to sit side by side by the table of this really nice place where the team decide to go

and even tho everyone is talking excitedly

it seems like you and sangyeon are on your own little world

everyone can see that

(i can even hear our fellow Greg Wuliger’s voice saying “Dude, you are so in there!”)

and when people start to leave, you and Sangyeon can’t help but feel some kind of awkward flusteredness

neither of you want to leave bc it means that it is really the end of your time together

you are too dumb, you know?

you could just ask for a phone number…….. maybe ask one another on a D A T E

but all you manage to do is bow and mumble a ‘see you around’

such a boner killer moment wtf

and tbh neither you or sangyeon can stop thinking about the other for the rest of the weekend

or the next week

and kevin can feel that there’s something happening to you when all you can do when you’re around him is sigh and look into distance with the look of a lost puppy on your eyes

and for the first time you open up to him about your crush on sangyeon and about the workshop and the good time you had with his friend

and this noisy bitch just yells a I FUCKING KNEW IT right in the middle of the library

and you’re like ?????

and he tells you that sangyeon told him that you were working together in the short movie, but he choose to be silent about it, bc he knew you were too sensitive about the incident™ 

and he also didn’t feel like intruding on your business, since you and sangyeon finally were having a moment…

but he didnt think you’d be dumb enough to leave your short interaction to DIE at the END OF THE WORKSHOP

he SIGHS

KEVIN SIGHS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU BC HE’S TIRED REALLY

why are you like this?????

but he can also see you’re really sad rn 

so he take matters into his hand and that night he strikes a conversation with his roomate when they’re having lunch together 

“sooooo… hyung…. what about y/n?”

“what about her, kevin?” and sangyeon seems curious about the question

and kevin just shrugged off, telling that he had a conversation with you about the movie of the workshop and suddenly remembered they worked together at it

and for a second sangyeon seems really disappointed

AND KEVIN JUST TAKE THE HINT YOU KNOW

HE SEES IT

HE HAS THE CLEAR VISION OF HOW MUCH HIS FRIENDS ARE DUMBASSES

it’s clear that sangyeon likes you too (or at least has an interest into you)

he doesn’t really understand why for god's sake you both just didn’t trade numbers just to text each other or even asked one another on a date

but he knows that sangyeon’s kind of a fool when it comes to it

and you’re stupid

so

he has an idea

“hyung, do you think it would be okay if we threw a party to celebrate the end of the semester?”

“hm, i'm not against it tbh”

“ok nice, what about next friday night? i think everyone's finals ends like tomorrow”

“right! who are you inviting?”

“well, the boys, some people from my classes… you can invite whoever you want, right? i'll talk to Jacob later”

“ok then”

and it’s cliche

again

kevin’s plan consist into putting you, sangyeon and a bit of alcohol into the same room

and he’s sure you’ll end up confessing (or the other way around

but sangyeon doesn’t drink too much and he can handle it pretty well

so he’ll count on your part

AND FRIDAY NIGHT COMES RUNNING AROUND THE CORNER AND YOU’RE DYING FOR IT BC IT’S THE FIRST TIME YOU’LL BE SEEING SANGYEON IN TWO WEEKS SINCE THE LAST DAY OF THE WORKSHOP

so you want to look REEEAALLY pretty, but you don’t wanna look like you’re trying too hard, you know?

just in case he doesn’t like you back… you want to spare yourself the SHAME…

so you go for some high waist black skinny jeans, a cute crop top and nice sneakers

the makeup is light, just to highlight your features. but you take extra care to the lip gloss

you want to make your lips look kissable aghjqweçqwelks

and there you go

when you arrive at the boys appartement you take a deep breath before ringing the bell

and you’re greeted by jacob and a slightly too drunk changmin (who’s attached to a weird chucky doll)

you’ve met some of kevin’s friends before, so the two of them are no strangers to you

you greet them with a smile and lean closer to ask for kevin

the music playing is loud enough to make you need to be closer to them to communicate

jacob nods to the kitchen direction and you just go

and you meet your friend, who’s not drunk, but is already too excited for someone who's totally sober

you stay around, sipping from some sweet drinks kevin and other two boys (chanhee and younghoon, you learned) prepared for you

it’s all fun and games and for some time you even forgot that sangyeon was probably at this party too 

kevin, on the other hand, keeps an eye around, ready to strike some moves just to try and make you and sangyeon interact…

well, at least for the first half hour

later he gets too cheerful and crazy, so he leaves you to go to the dance floor (actually their living room where the couch is put away and you can’t see the coffee table anywhere near)

and you’re okay with that really

you’ll just stay here chilling and enjoying the view

but when you finally land your eyes on sangyeon, something churns inside you

there’s a huge grin on his face while he talks to some girls

he’s talking, gesticulating with his hands, his eyebrows are raised and there’s a smile on his lips

and he’s having fun while telling whatever story he’s saying

gosh he looks so good wearing all black and a fucking LEATHER JACKET!!!

that should be illegal to look so good 

that genre of sangyeon should be illegal

sangyeon himself should be illegal tbh

the girls around him burst in a fit of giggles

the blond one who’s right beside him is touching his arms

batting her long eyelashes at him, tucking her pretty luscious hair behind her ear…… she’s shameless flirting!!!!

and you’re like 🚩🚩🚩🚩 oh 🚩🚩🚩🚩

you have no right to feel jealous about him, y/n, so stop right there

no hating on other girls for doing what you do not have the courage to do

you try giving yourself a pep talk

but you do feel a bit disappointed

even if it is crystal clear that sangyeon is THE CAMPUS OFFICIAL CRUSH

so you just take a deep breath and try and hold the ugly feelings to yourself

you shouldn’t let something like this just screw up your night

you came to have a good time!!! come on, it’s the first friday night of summer break! you aced on your finals!

it’s time to celebrate, not to cry over a boy you just have a tiny crush on

so you stay around the kitchen, preparing some weird drinks with a boy named juyeon

and after two younger boys (our dear sunric!!!!!) approached you, the four of you started some questionable drinking games

where you had to guess things about each other, if you guess wrong, you should take a shot

you’re not sure if you’re drunk by the time, but everytime sunwoo and eric called you NOONA (you don’t even know where this kind of treatment came from, you just got to meet them) you found it really freaking cute

time goes by quickly and you guys are immersed on your little game

but as soon as you notice your tipsiness is getting out of hand, you oblige yourself and the three boys in front of you to stop drinking

and a few minutes later you already feel better, just drinking only some apple juice

yes, apple juice… and it tastes disgusting, you just can’t stop staring at it on the cup thinking there’s going to pop out some weird alien from it at any second

when suddenly

“oh, hey there” at the sound of the familiar voice, you can’t help but look up with an oversized smile

you swear you see some weird motion by your side, as if eric was going to pounce on sangyeon, but juyeon and sunwoo kinda held him back

(later that night you got to know that he was really going to jump on sangyeon cause he wanted to hug and shower his hyung with love, but the other two FELT in the air that there was some unfinished business between you and sangyeon soooooo)

“don’t you guys wanna dance? let 's go dancing! bye y/n, bye hyung” juyeon says while dragging eric with him

“it was nice playing with you, noona” sunwoo speeds off the kitchen with an exasperated wave

“right, see you later” you say

and sangyeon giggles at the situation, before getting closer to you

“so you’ve been here for a while?” sangyeon asks

“oh, yes, for a bit, probably” you don’t know how to answer tbh cause you know your drunk blushy cheeks reveal everything even tho where you’re standing the light is slight dim

out there the music is still blasting and you’re feeling hot in anticipation cause sangyeon is looking at you so intensely

“it’s nice seeing you again, y/n”

you stare at sangyeon and he seems so sincere…

“i’m glad to see you too, yeon” you manage to confess

and you don’t know if it’s the alcohol or just some rush of adrenalin, but the only thing running through your mind the entire night is how attractive sangyeon looks

and in his presence seems to be so much stronger bc you can smell his perfume

IT’S INSANE HOW YOUR MIND IS SPINNING JUST BC OF A GUY

(oh but he’s THE guy, so we understand you, y/n, don't worry)

and you can’t stop yourself from staring

you look into sangyeon’s eyes, and his strong cheekbones, his tall nose AND HIS FULL LIPS THAT LOOK SO SO SO BEAUTIFUL AND SO KISSABLE

you're going to die here i’m being serious

but your mind is such a trap

and out of nowhere flashes of that pretty girl who was flirting with him earlier comes to your mind

and your smile falter in your face

now your mind is so full of doubts and insecurity

“Y/N?” he says your name and something snaps inside you

im telling you, no one knows what was it that spurred you into some action

(it was the alcohol lmao)

but before you can second guess yourself, your hands are already cupping sangyeon’s face, putting him down to your height, to press your lips firmly against his

YOU GO GIRRRLLLLLLL GET YOUR MAN!!!!!!!!!!!

you don’t even know what you meant for that to be

just a peck?

you Do nOt kNoW

neither do i

but you’re so MAD RIGHT NOW

you can’t focus in other thing than how much you WANT SANGYEON

YOU WANT HIM TO TAKE YOU ON DATES

AND YOU WANT TO KISS HIM

YOU WANT TO SPEND AFTERNOONS WITH HIM AGAIN

AND YOU WANT HIM TO BE AWAY FROM PRETTY BLOND GIRLS BC THE ONLY GIRL YOU WANT HIM TO THINK ABOUT IS YOOOOUUUU

(omg that was cheesy im painfully sorry)

but his breath is hot against your lips

he smells like some boyish musk perfume and tastes like mango flavored vodka

even tho you just caught him on surprise, sangyeon do not waste a second and kiss you back

both of you end up throwing all caution through the window (i mean, for a couple of idiots who were stepping on eggs around each other,,,,, a kiss on a party on a kitchen with other people around is kinda BOLD)

you’re freaking kissing sangyeon

(in my mind right now there’s an audience screaming and cheering up for this scene)

you’re really kissing him the way you’ve dreamt so many times for the past months

it’s kinda sloppy, it’s not thaaat great because LET’S BE HONEST you are both drunk

but you try your best to make it special

so you curl your hands around the nape of his neck and lace your fingers through his soft hair

and sangyeon’s hands go straight to your waist 🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️

he grips tightly at your skin and pulls you closer while he himself is melting against you

TF BRO AN HOUR AGO YOU WERE HOLDING YOURSELF FROM CRYING CAUSE YOU SAW A GIRL FLIRTING WITH HIM AND NOW YOU’RE MAKING OUT WITH HIM IN HIS KITCHEN

you’re completely absorbed on eachother

AND KEVIN IS LAUGHING MALEFICLY AT THE CORNER OF THE PARTY BC HIS PLAN WORKED OUT 

when you break the kiss, your hands stay wrapped around his neck and his hands stay firmly on your waist

you’re both out of breath and your foreheads are pressed together

and there’s this dumb little grin plastered across your face even tho YOU DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO NOW

WHAT DO YOU DO NOW?

but before you can let the panic control you

one of sangyeon’s hands comes up to touch your face softly

he kinda needed a moment to think too, you know?

and when your eyes meet his, you see adoration in it

“would you like to go out sometime?” he whispers

o mG F I N A L L Y HE ASKED YOU OUT (it’s easier now, right, you just did the hard part of KISSING HIM FIRST but okay we’ll let that slide bc he’s cute when he’s shy)

and you answer with an “of course”

and that’s how you both just turned into the “It Couple” of the campus

even tho some girls (and guys too humpf) get really jealous of you

sangyeon only has eyes for you

and he even dedicate some of his playlist at sangsang night just for you

and even tho some people think that being taken would make sangyeon less popular

it didn’t!!!!

it just made him a lot wiser about relationships

and now he offered some advices about dating and this kind of sentimental stuff

oh, and you’re always at sangyeon’s apartment now 

and kevin is really happy bc you’re good company to have around

its all really cute bro

-

n/a: would you guys like it if i did part 2? i was thinking about making something more focused on radio dj!sangyeon… feel free to hit my askbox if you wanna say something, alright? thanks for reading until here ♡

[daxieoclock]

Also because I'm Here and I've still got an essay to procrastinate...and bc people might ask about the other artists, let me get out ahead and post about em!

I'm not giving people starting packs for Paramore, Lemon Demon and Lil Nas X though. I've gotta draw the "google it" line somewhere.

Left at London How do I even describe her music. Transcendent. Experimental. Funny and dark and raw and beautiful.

Rio Romeo Handsomest voice I've ever heard. Piano-playing butch with an absolutely devastatingly gorgeous range. I might be a little obsessed shut up.

Anamanaguchi Chiptune band who you might know from the Scott Pilgrim video game or their contribution to the new Scott Pilgrim animated show or from the song they did about Miku. I also know them from the fact that Endless Fantasy is one of the best albums of all time.

CW FLASHING LIGHTS

Patricia Taxxon The most experimental and talented musician I've ever had the pleasure of listening to, like, ever. Her music is autistic and trans and furry and BEYOND good, but you've gotta find the tracks that are right for you. A lot of her songs veer into harsh noise territory, and almost all of them are loud in some capacity, either to create an engulfing resonant experience or play with our expectations of what can and cannot be enjoyable music. Overjissel is one of my favorite songs of hers and it's permeated with the sound of loud machine gun firing noises. I would recommend all of Agnes and Hilda to anyone ever though, if you can deal with occasional loudness then like. Listen To Her Songs. Do It.

CW Flashing lights and very loud metronome.

Good Kid This is for my inner child tbh. Good Kid is absolutely the higher quality end of the kind of poppy movie-adaptation-of-a-YA-novel-soundtrack dopamine-fountain feel good songs that I listened to as a kiddo. They're so fucking catchy.

Tom Cardy Yes he's a sillytime tiktok musician but Tom also CONSISTENTLY makes songs that I legitimately want to play on repeat for hours and sing along to and stim the fuck out alongside. He's a very funny man and a fantastic musician.

They Might be Giants No explanation will do them justice. Just listen.

Jhariah The man refuses to answer what genre his muisc is and like g-d I'm going to try and define it. What I do know is that it is the BEST theater kid music I've ever fucking heard in my life, it's dramatic and punchy and poetic and profoundly beautiful. It's also got some distinct big band or klezmer influences which I adore.

The Hoosiers Think "early 2000s UK pop rock" and then swallow your immediate cringe because these guys are actually FANTASTIC. Not all of their songs are a hit, but they've six or seven of the catchiest fucking tracks I've heard in my life.

OK Go They're best known for their absurdly elaborate one-take music videos, but their music is just catchy and fun too even outside of the "holy shit how many fucking props did they buy for this? How much TIME did it spend to set this up???" But don't get me wrong, the music videos are a huge part of their appeal.

I know most of the funny musics you've listed already, but I don't know willow and Yoko Shimomura and Danny Baranowsky and Shiro SAGISU and Masayoshi Takanaka and Lena Raine and Dios and Akintoye and Imogen Heap and Des Rocs and Sarah & the Safe Word and The Sonder Bombs and Rina Sawayama and The Beths and Silversun Pickups(?) and IDKHBTFM and Tancred and the three Starkid musicals(?) Where do you recommend that I start? Is there 1 song from each that you strongly recommend that I open my ears to? :-0

YOU BET I DO OMG OMG

Thank you for the excuse to Musicpost mwehehehehehe

Since it's so many artists, I will send one song each and give a lil bit of info.

WILLOW (aka Willow Smith) Sapphic and an absolute rock star. Her music is generally really high quality punky rock with a poppy appeal.

Yoko Shimomura Probably the greatest video game composer of all time hands down no fucking contest. She's the genius behind the Kingdom Hearts sountrack, and has also contributed her expertise to Final Fantasy XV, the Mario and Luigi games, Mario RPG and Secrets of Mana. Her music can be grand and orchestral or quiet and sweet or energetic and wiggly, and her use of character motifs is something to behold.

Danny Baranowsky Another video game composer, Danny B is known best for his work on Meat Boy, Binding of Isaac and Crypt of the Necrodancer. His tracks have an unmatched energy, from BoI's quiet melodic horror to Necrodancer's get up and boogie beats. And of course, Meat Boy's wiggletastic MOVE YOUR MEAT, BOY tunes.

Shiro SAGISU An anime composer whose work on Evangelion and Bleach is beyond description. And like, I wouldn't recommend either of the SHOWS, but his music is absolutely fucking unreal. Especially his heavy use of Spanish guitar in the Arrancar Arc of Bleach alongside his usual heavy orchestral violins and pianos.

Masayoshi Takanaka A rock and city pop musician in the 80s and 90s, whose music I've heard described as "surf-dude J-rock" which, yeah, accurate. But some of his later stuff is also really experimental, getting a bit into grunge or orchestral rock.

Lena Raine A composer who's made some songs for recent Minecraft updates, but most people know her best for the soundtrack to Celeste. Which is utterly fantastic, it's BEAUTIFUL, managing to capture both the grand scale of the mountain climb and the heavily personal emotional stakes of our protagonist Madeline. Heavy use of gorgeous synth alongside piano and drums and guitar makes the whole soundtrack SOUND magical and otherworldly, which fits the game well.

Dios I discovered Dios through their guitarist, Ichika Nito, whose riffs on Youtube are unmatched. Magic hands, I swear. But Dios's vocalist, Tanaka, also has one of the most unique singing voices I've ever heard, he's got almost an Italian or Spanish rolling cadence to some of his phrases. The guy's also just got a fantastic voice, and Dios's songs are extremely solid poppy rock.

Akintoye A fantastic lyricist with an incredibly fast and articulate voice, a great sense of rhythm and flow, he's also just one of the most charismatic singers / rappers I've ever heard. His energy is absolutely addicting, and he's got such catchy layered melodies it's SO hard to not wiggle my fingers off my hands when listening.

Imogen Heap Most people recognize her from OOO WHATCHA SAY, OOO THAT YOU ONLY MEANT WELL, WELL OF COURSE YOU DID and like. Hide and Seek is an underrated song tbh but Speak for Yourself and Eclipse are just in general fantastic albums. It's impossible for me to describe her genre so I'm just gonna say...music that my very white hippie mom listens to all the time.

Des Rocs A modern day classic rock star. Not much else to say beyond that he's unreal talented.

(Continuing in reblog)

[morrigan-sims]

Simblr Positivity Post!

So, I didn't get the anon about blogs that inspire me, but I wanted to shout out some of my favorite blogs on here anyways, because there's so many amazing people who I follow and who follow me, and give me inspiration to keep making sims content.

NOTE: I'm bound to forget people, probably a lot of people, because that's what my brain is like. If you're not on this list, and I follow you or have ever interacted with your content, you're still amazing!

List under the cut!

@vatorelilith / @pyregoth Wednesday is amazing and kind, and one of the best friends I've made on tumblr. They have a lovely story, and adorable gameplay, and make cool sims!! Also, she saved my ass when it came to needing a new sim for RTQ.

@smallcowplant Sam is amazing and lovely, and makes gorgeous sims, has an AMAZING story in the works, and has excellent taste, hehehe. Also, fantasy simblr!!!

@samssims Sam (another one) is one of the most inspiring people in the community! Her awesome poses, her incredible stories, and her fun monthly themes. And above all she's really nice!

@moonhze Becca makes some beautiful sims, and her aesthetics are top notch. Not to mention making an awesome server where I've met a bunch of amazing simblrs!

@simgerale Miranda, my beloved. Writer of a story that I am beyond addicted to, and maker of two amazing sims for my own story. Our conversations are a lot of fun, and I'm so glad to have met you. (and again, fantasy simblr!!)

@rebouks Becca (another one) is an incredible pose-maker and storyteller. Her consistency and quality of her posts blows me out of the water. And you make the most gorgeous sims. (But you're on thin ice right now with Cookie... /lh /j)

@gothoffspring You make some of the most amazing occult sims. They're all so beautiful and creative, and also you make adorable recolors!

@ghostputty Ky is amazing. Their editing skills are off the charts, and every post they make is gorgeous. Not to mention their sims, or their story that's in the works!!

@tartiish Yv is an amazing storyteller with gorgeous sims, and is very kind. He's saved my ass on at least one occasion with RTQ as well. And Beau and Kellen are both lovely.

@softpine Brandi, Brandi, Brandi. Your story is ripping my soul apart right now, and it hurts, but it's so good. I've been following you since Asa was a toddler, and I've never regretted it. She has one of the best stories on simblr, and is also so nice and awesome, and has made some very helpful tutorials!

@herbalpotions Ainsley, <333. They're one of my best friends, and even though they aren't just a simblr, I felt the need to give her a shoutout.

@teaprose A lovely writer and all-around awesome person who has been nothing but nice to me.

@ivyandink Cara is amazing, and incredibly talented. She does adorable historical gameplay with lovely sims, and is also in the process of writing and editing a novel!!

@foxsimthings Fox is the QUEEN of fantasy and occult sims. Every single sim she posts is gorgeous and blows me away. And I'm still desperately trying to find a way to fit one of her sims into my story.

@arcanewonder Sara posts the most absurdly gorgeous renders, and it blows my mind how anyone can be so talented, both in blender and with editing.

@seaslugsims Sage posts an amazing story, and is also one of the kindest most awesome people I've met on here. Their server is where I met some awesome friends, and made me consider the possibility of being Autistic.

I know for a fact that I left off a LOT of amazing people, but this list is so long, and my brain is an idiot, so I'm so sorry to everyone I didn't mention here. I love you all. Simblr has some incredible people on here, so don't let the shitty ones drag you down.