#voltaire diamonds

[palominodragon]

I think I've finalized my Solavellan playlist (had most of it for a while, but added some things to the beginning and the end after playing Veilguard).

Wake Up - Arcade Fire

Devastation and Reform - Relient K

Feathery Wings - Voltaire

Pompeii - Bastille

I'm Still Here - The Goo Goo Dolls

As The World Falls Down - Labyrinth soundtrack

Ordinary Day - Vanessa Carlton

Jaded - Aerosmith

Nightminds -Missy Higgins

Hallelujah - Rufus Wainwright

A Sorta Fairytale - Tori Amos

Kremlin Dusk - Utada Hikaru

Any Other World - Mika

Wolf and I - Oh Land

Without You - RENT soundtrack

Ever Dream - Nightwish

Your Wildest Dreams - The Moody Blues

Beautiful Disaster - Kelly Clarkson

A Thousand Miles - Vanessa Carlton

You Found Me - The Fray

Diamonds and Rust - Blackmore's Night cover

Savin Me - Nickelback

A Thousand Years - Christina Perri

So Far Away - Staind

(bonus silly track) Waterloo - ABBA

No spotify list because fuck spotify, sorry. You'll have to look them up individually.

I'm also making music videos out of two of these (Ordinary Day and Pompeii).

[midnightsun-if]

Can we have a drabble of Scarlett and MC celebrating her birthday? If it's not too much to ask ^^

Sure!

A rush of wind wisps over your head, sending strands of hair flying back, as Balerion lands; his great form looming over you, obsidian black scales, darker than night, glimmer like diamonds underneath the majesty of the sun overhead, offshoots of deep maroon making them glow even more. Crimson eyes, that remind of lava, stare down at you, his usually impervious expression etched across his reptilian face, but you can tell he isn’t completely bothered by your presence— not like he used to be in any case.

Small victories.

Shifting your focus from Balerion, a smile instantly catches your lips at the sight of his rider— of the woman that has so effortlessly captured your heart— Scarlett Voltaire, clad in leather pants, knee-high boots, and a simple dark red tunic, with a cloak thrown over her shoulders, to abate the chill of the air so high up, is a sight for sore eyes. One that you had missed greatly since waking up and realizing she wasn’t by your side.

“You weren’t in bed.” You call, in lieu of a greeting. “It was cold without you.”

A gentle smile curls Scarlett’s lips, feet softly touching the ground as Balerion lowered himself to offer her a bit more purchase, emerald eyes shone bright with adoration. “I apologize, my heart.” She steps closer to you, Balerion seemingly deciding to stick around for a bit longer. “I wished to catch the sunrise with Bale.” She tosses a warm glance to the dragon over her shoulder, her love for him clear. “It’s a tradition I don’t wish to miss. Not that he’d let me, of course.”

Balerion huffs at that, a light trail of smoke billowing out from his nostrils. His message clear: Never.

Stepping closer, a happy feeling settling within your chest at the immediacy to Scarlett wrapping her arms around your waist in response, you caress high cheekbones with a loving touch. “I just thought you were trying to run out on your big day,” you tease, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “I’m relieved to see that I won’t be spending it alone. That’d be quite pathetic to celebrate someone’s birthday without them.”

Scarlett’s eyes crinkle due to the force of her smile, a breezy laugh escaping her. “I’d never leave you alone for long, my heart.” She presses a kiss of her own to your forehead. “Though I don’t see the importance of celebrating this blasted day more so than it is already.”

You shake your head. “It’s your birthday, Scar. It’s a day that should be celebrated.”

“Not more than any of the others. It’s a pointless endeavor.” Emerald eyes flash in slight agitation, but you know it wasn’t directed towards you. “One that I’m only humoring because of you.”

A cheeky grin spreads across your lips. “Does that mean that you don’t want your present then? After all, only people who celebrate their birthdays get presents.”

Scarlett’s brow furrows slightly at that, clear confusion beginning to appear on her beautiful features. “Why would I need a present, my heart?” Her arms tighten around your waist, tugging you closer into her body. “I already have you.”

[phvntomess]

OK list time. This is gonna be long so hope you dont mind scrolling

Shoes: 

Anthony Wang - unique shoes. pretty sure they're somewhat anime inspired? sometimes at least.

YRUshoes - shoes. does collabs and has some nice shoes

Demonias - gothic shoe store. has that one super iconic boot

Irregular choice - personal favourite. does very unique shoes.

Virtualshoemuseum - not a brand or shop but does show off some unique shoes

strangecvlt - footwear brand. halloween themed. might be connected to yru shoes?

cityboots - focuses on cowboy style boots

fluevog - shoes! very cute and unique shoes 

Clothes: 

Demobaza - does kinda like… idk dune style stuff? apocalyptic? idk

cipoandbaxx - streetwear. focuses on jeans

Trippnyc - has the tripp pants that the scene kids have sometimes

oceanusthelabel - swimwear and some nice dresses

shopsolani - not a whole lot on display but what is on there is super cute

shoptrashqueen - plus sized clothing. says its inspired by harajuku styles.

minna.shop - does interesting and unique dresses that have a sheer element to them

teutamatoshi - does cute gowns. i think her and lirika are sisters? fun fact if im right.

lirikamatoshi - the person who did the strawberry dress! also has a lot of other stuff on her site.

workfrombeachbelike - site says they're not regular clothes. handmade stuff.

cyberdog - does clubwear and rave stuff

hagoromostyle - wheelchair accessible kimono!

maria rinaldi - does dresses and such. does mention plus-sized clothing

LOEWE - Luxury brand. does leather stuff plus perfumes turns out

nobody's child - responsible fashion brand. specialises in womens clothing

zadig and voltaire - another expensive brand. features knitwear on their website so

STACEES - Focuses on dresses for formal/fancy events

modakawa - labelled as doing kawaii fashion. also has that trendy twitter dress

fashionclosetclothing - another general womens store site. not sure what the style is called but it has a certain style

devilinspired - focuses on lolita and ouji style clothing but has other styles as well

kawaiibabe - another general kawaii style store.

aelfriceden - streetwear!

incerunmen - focuses on mens fashion though has quite a bit of variety. though is a little shady when it comes to shipping clothes out apparently.

Modcloth - vintage style or vintage inspired clothing

chotronette - mostly dresses. but very pretty dresses imo

spaceisland - very colourful rave/streetwear clothing. also a little on the sexy side.

ellenithelabel - does cool hats. focuses on berets but also has other styles of hats

lazyoaf - also a general streetwear brand. has a style that reminds me a bit of another thing listed here

yarnoverng - yarn clothing. handmade too!

prayingg - made that top charli xcx wore one time. very odd

altamontapparel - currently under rennovation it seems like. might be worth it looking it up on other clothes seller sites

deafmetal - hearing aid jewellery!

shopsoftcore - plus-sized focused clothing. cute styles.

agashishop - a clothing shop with a sewing and diy section!

incontrolclothing - streetstyle and maybe also kawaii styles.

arcteryx - just general outerwear tbh

apatico - gothic fashion harnesses and other accessories

violentdelights - does gothic, steampunk and apocalyptic style clothing.

blackout-techwear - does techwear. mostly black. self-explanatory

onlychildstore - handmade jewellery.

kodes - also handmade jewellery. has a geometric style

missoma - also another jewellery site. sustainability aspect. also lab grown diamonds! interesting

mokuyobi - does colourful clothing and accessories. like very colourful

liminalwork.shop - conceptual streetwear it calls itself. is the maker of that keyboard jacket. has some other stuff as well

snagtights - does tights n such. lots of different styles

shirtz.cool - sometimes see this as a youtube sponsorship. does very unique and very online shirts 

unjustjewelry - nostalgic jewellery and clothes. Made that one wii sports icon bracelet

studiocult.co - interesting jewellery. Mainly earrings and rings

vapor95 - vaporwave aesthetic style clothes

Sites that resell other brands clothes:

nordstrom - another one of those sites that resell other luxury clothes

julian fashion - sells luxury brand items from all sorts of brands

brandavenue.rakuten - another place that resells other brands clothes? think the original site is like. coupons.

fcmoto - focuses on motorcycle gear mainly from all sorts of places 

No genitalia but still general sexy styles. make sure you're not in any setting where it would be nsfw:

self-xpression - sexy cltohing!!! woah!

yihfoo - feaetures sexy clothing on the front page but has other non-sexy clothing styles as well if you look at the pages

fleetilya - lingere!!! sexy clothes!!!!

jivomirdomoustchiev - more avant garde. also along the sexy end

likeadrugg - bikinis on the front page!!! also has other stuff as well but they're not on the front page

honourclothing - latex and pvc stuff! also generally sexy

bluebella - lingere!!! 

technically not fashion-related but i like sharing links: siren-pearls - does fairy wings and mermaid tails

mermaidlucia - does mermaid tails as well as some cute corsets and apparently now mermaid style regular clothing

coolcrutches - does some cool colourful canes n crutches. just want others to be aware of this site ngl

halloweencostumes dot com - Halloween costumes!

cosplayshopper - sells cosplay stuff. also has a lolita selection but id be hesitant using it as refereces for the lolita style.

miccostumes - does cosplay costumes. though it also has some unique pieces.

OUUUGHH YESSS

IVE BEEN GIFTED THE KEY TO GOOD FASHION

ANYONE WHO WANTS TO FIND GOOD FITS TO PUT UR SILLY OCS IN CHECK THESE OUT !!! theyre rlly good :3

[welcome-to-ratterrock]

i wonder what music artists they would listen to!

i know DAMN well that Sorcha would listen to Lana del ray, Saorise would listen to chapell roan and i think that Rilla would listen to Laufey

GOODNESS, this took a while. Both Baji and I are ardent music lovers and aficionados, so music is veryimportant to us and to this story and these characters. So I wanted to make sure I got everything in order before answering these asks! 

Sorcha loves jazz and music that’s heavily influenced by soul and movement, so she loves hip-hop, pop soul, R&B, club music - stuff that’s sexy and feminine and full of confidence, like Janelle Monae, Rihanna, Beyoncé, HER, Doja Cat, Billie Eilish. 

She’s absolutely a Lana Del Rey fan, also loves Amy Winehouse, Paloma Faith, Clairy Browne, April Smith and the Great Picture Show, Laura Mvula. For more old school stuff she goes for Irma Thomas, Nina Simone, Peggy Lee, Julie London. 

Rilla loves fun energetic pop that she can dance to but also makes her feel free to - Kesha (the Rainbow album was DEEPLY important to her), Doja Cat, Dimie Cat, Sabrina Carpenter, Chapelle Roan, Olivia Rodrigo, Brittany Spears. She loves Laufey for a softer, romantic vibe, and even though she doesn’t listen to a ton of alternative she LOVES Molotov Jukebox. 

Also, girl ADORES Dolly Parton. She’s dressed up as her for Halloween, loves her endlessly. She got into Kacey Musgraves too, but Dolly has her heart. She likes some of Taylor Swift’s stuff, but she’s definitely not a die hard Swiftie. 

Lorcan unironically adores Kesha, very happy to jam with Rilla whenever their girlie’s music is on. In general he loves music that would be perfect for a barroom brawl - Dropkick Murphys, Flogging Molly, IDLES. Loves rock in general, especially Def Leppard and AC/DC, the Clash and the Black Keys. Likes Gaelic Storm and the Beatles for softer moods. 

Brig listens to a lot of metal and punk and rock music - she and Lorcan would definitely jam to AC/DC and the Black Keys. Also loves blues music, definitely a fan of Johnny Cash. Also likes Gin Wigmore a lot. 

Luella loves soft indie core songs and groups - the Wailin’ Jennys, the Oh Hellos, the Crane Wives, the Jane Austen Argument, the Hush Sound, Brandi Carlisle, Cat Power, Paris Paloma. She and Rilla both love Laufey. She listens to Florence + the Machine and P!nk when she wants to feel empowered. 

Locke is also into soft indie, lots of underground bands no one has ever heard of but have very intense poetic lyrics - Hozier, the National, Cigarettes After Sex, Florence + the Machine, Nicole Dollanganger, the Oh Hellos. There’s a lot of overlap between him and Lu, actually! He also loves viola music, he plays it and it’s a very healing, therapeutic passion of his. 

Regal…whoo boy, his taste in music covers such a wide and diverse spectrum. He loves operas and classic musicals, very much a devotee to classical music by artists like Debussy and Puccini and Bizet. One of his absolute favorite songs is “Danse Macabre”…

He’s a virtuoso with the piano and has described himself as his own favorite musician. 

But he does like some more modern music, he’s just VERY snobby about what he wants to listen to. Marina and the Diamonds (“Bubblegum Bitch” is a favorite), Queen (he is very fond of Freddy), Voltaire, Fish in a Birdcage, the Real Tuesday Weld are some examples.  

Bogdan is even more a snob than Regal, and stays away from most modern music. He’d much rather focus on composing his own music than polluting his ears with the dreck that passes for songs nowadays. Sorcha has her work cut out with him, but she’s more than up to the task…

Casimir, sadly, probably doesn’t listen to a lot of music because of his injury - it’s too much stimulation and he suffers from horrible headaches to begin with. Not all music does it, but too much stress and sounds would very likely trigger an episode. It’s incredibly tragic because music is such an important and treasured facet of his and Bogdan’s culture…

[rlainarin]

strike me down, crusader a Daeran Arendae playlist

tracklist + links to lyrics + highlights under the cut

Welcome to the Black Parade by My Chemical Romance I'm just a man, I'm not a hero Just a boy, who had to sing this song

Don't Stop Me Now by Queen I'm out of control I'm a sex machine ready to reload Like an atom bomb about to-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh explode

Walking Contradiction by Green Day I have no belief But I believe I'm a walking contradiction And I ain't got no right

West Coast Smoker by Fall Out Boy Don't feel bad for the suicidal cats Gotta kill themselves nine times before they get it right

GASOLINE by Måneskin Your ego is dangerous Your own blood is losing trust Neighbors left in the dust

Troubled Times by Green Day We run for cover Like a skyscraper's falling down Then I wonder like a troubled mind

Killer In The Mirror by Set It Off Let weakness disappear There's nobody but me here The killer in the mirror

Choke by I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME If I could burn this town I wouldn't hesitate To smile while you suffocate and die

The Sound of Silence by Disturbed And the vision that was planted in my brain Still remains Within the sound of silence

Kill All Your Friends by My Chemical Romance It's been ten fucking years since I've been seeing your Face round here And you're walking away and I will drown in the fear

Goodnight Demonslayer by Aurelio Voltaire Tell the devil its time you gave him his due He should go back to hell, he should shake in his shoes Cause the mightiest, scariest, creature is you

crusader by Stevie Howie You cast judgment on the ones who choose thought They pandered to the devil so they've already lost

Bouncing off the Wall by Green Day Cause it's all that I want And I want to be free I got Satan riding next to me

Suzerainty by Polite Fiction And masturbation's just not as fun If you can't cry when you're done

Are You Satisfied? by Marina & the Diamonds People like to tell you what you're gonna be It's not my problem if you don't see what I see And I do not give a damn if you don't believe

BABY SAID by Måneskin Baby said When you're talking I go dead Shut your mouth, give me your head

Who's In Control by Set It Off Living in fear, living afraid Hysterical every day All because I let your poison paralyze me

Honey, This Mirror Isn't Big Enough for the Two of Us by My Chemical Romance And it's hard to say I'm shaken By the choices that I make And well, I find it hard to stay

Sirens by Bear Ghost They say you oughta dance like no one's watching They're a telepathic chorus in my mind

Blood On My Name by The Brothers Bright Not a spell gonna be broken with a potion or a priest When you're cursed, you're always hopin' that a prophet would be grieved

Blame by Bastille Fall upon your knees, sing: "This is my body and soul here" Crawl and beg and plead, sing: "You've got the power to control here"

Tell Me It's Okay by Paramore And maybe it's been years since I wanted to be a part of anything But lately I've been good You know, I've actually been great

[astro-b-o-y-d]

Hayley's Completely Self-Indulgent and Borderline Ridiculous Bill Cipher Playlist (Part 1)

Just gonna go for it and make a masterpost of all the songs (video links included) I've got on my Bill playlist so far.

'So far' being the key words; I've added over a hundred songs at this point and will probably add more in time. Whether it's songs I think Bill would like, songs that just remind me of Bill, the most obnoxious songs to hear on a party playlist, songs connected to the side of himself he tries to bury in lies, or songs that I'll admit are a bit of a stretch but they still remind me of Bill so I added them anyway, I've got a little bit of everything here.

I do take requests for songs to add but also don't make fun of me for some of the more obvious and basic choices because I know. I know. But also I can do whatever I want forever.

I did put some small reasons/infodumps next to each song, to explain why I picked them. Or I'll just say that it had Bill vibes to me and leave it at that.

Anyway, for anyone interested (if you actually read all my little blurbs, massive props to you), the first chunk of songs are listed below. Just a heads up, it's LONG and this is only the first part:

Mariana & The Diamonds - Oh No! - Yeah, obviously. Obviously.

Taylor Swift - Death Note ｢AMV｣ Look What You Made Me Do - I said it before, I'll say it again; Death Note AMV creators can turn water into wine and every time I watch this one, I can't stop picturing the song from the POV of a manipulative, power-hungry bastard with a God Complex. So you know, Bill. But only specifically in this context, it doesn't hit as hard without the AMV.

Fall Out Boy - Centuries - Listen to the lyrics of the chorus. That's Bill. Like...that's Bill. The rest of the song has a lot of really good Bill lyrics as well.

Scissor Sisters - I Can't Decide - Shut up. SHUT UP. I knew about the song WAY before it was ever applied to Bill. Heck, I knew about this song way before Bill even existed so SHUSH. But like, come on. Sometimes a song choice is overapplied to a character for a reason; it works.

Creature Feature - The Greatest Show Unearthed - I think my teenage self would strangle me if I didn't put at least one Creature Feature song on here. Lucky for him, I've put more than one. But the other one comes later. ...Did I add it? I should check that.

Voltaire - Land of the Dead - Speaking of teenage Hayley's tastes, time for the Voltaire songs I've definitely just added because of the 'I'm 13 and this is Deep' vibes. But also Voltaire fucks severely and every Bill playlist should have at least one of his songs on it, in my personal opinion.

Voltaire - When You're Evil - Once again, I'm 13 and this is Deep, but also tell me you can't imagine Bill singing this to himself. No, not in a sexy way in a human body who looks like Oregonian Onceler, in the edgy teenager way where you thinks you're the most evilest evil in the entire world but you're really just going through puberty and also probably transgender, but you don't know that yet.

Voltaire - Death Death (Devil, Devil, Evil, Evil, Song) - Once again, edgy teen who thinks he's the most evilest evil in the entire world (I don't think Bill is actually irredeemably, unquestionably evil, he'd just really vibe with 'Ooh I'm so evil! I'm such a bad guy!' songs).

I'm pretty sure this is the last Voltaire song for now, unless I added Brains! somewhere down the line and forgot. (Also just a mild warning but this song DOES use the f-slur, if that bugs you)

The Greatest Showman Cast - The Other Side - Sighs. Look. It's a Bill and Ford song to me. I don't even mean romantically or anything, just LISTEN to it. That's them. If there were a Gravity Falls Musical, dedicated to recreating the entire show through song and dance, the two of them meeting for the first time would have a song exactly like this. I refuse to apologize for this choice. Also a Gravity Falls musical would rule, someone should make that eventually.

Italobrothers - My Life is a Party - Just the first of my many Dragostea Din Tei choices for this playlist. I really like the original, okay? And I usually end up attached to people who try to remix it/make a new song outta it. This one has the bonus of also being a fun party song.

David Guetta, Bebe Rexha - I'm Good (Blue) - Speaking of the first choice of a song I have multiple times on this playlist in some form. I don't care what anybody says, I think this song is a lot of fun and I think Bill would have it on one of his party playlists somewhere. Probably the Nightcore version, it's a lot quicker and makes for a better fistpumping song, in my personal opinion.

Set It Off ft. William Beckett - Wolf In Sheep's Clothing - Yeah, I'm not explaining this one, you get it.

Vocaloid (made by Fukase) - ‘Cause I’m a Liar - I actually don't like this one all that much, and I can feel everyone's judgment about having a fucking Kokichi Ouma fansong on here. But the lyrics don't lie. Or...I guess they do. It's a song about being a liar, that's the joke. (Also slight content warning but the video has a lot of flashy effects, so take caution!)

Kesha - Blow - Of course we've gotta have some Kesha. There will be more. She needs no explanation.

Kesha - TiK ToK - Once again, not explaining myself. It's Kesha.

Taylor Swift -【AMV】Death Note - Blank Space - What I said about the last Death Note AMV with a Taylor Swift song. It just works so well for a manipulative guy like Bill, but only when set to Death Note specifically. Why? I have no idea, it just hits different. It's like eating crackers with cheese whiz: not a healthy or fantastic snack by any means but sometimes I just want some junk food. Except this junk food manipulates people.

Kesha - Take It Off - Once again, will not explain my Kesha choices. You understand that Bill and the Henchmaniacs would be Kesha girlies or you don't.

Neil Cicierega - It's Gonna Get Weird - Giggles. Also funny enough, I don't listen to this all that often. Dunno why.

Gravity Falls Soundtrack - Is It Bottomless - Triangulum Entagulum - I mean, yeah.

Gravity Falls Soundtrack - A Very Tricky Triangle - I mean, yeah x2. I don't care if this might be cheating, I can do what I want. But also, isn't this such a FUN instrumental? I love the music they use for him in the show SO much. It's so sinister and otherworldly. Top-notch soundtracking.

Voltaire - Brains! - Oh, hey, I did add Brains! to this. Anyway, we can tell I was a Billy and Mandy kid so I'm gonna project that onto Bill. Also I'm 90% sure this is the last Voltaire song I have on the list. For now.

Trolls 3 - Mount Rageous [Extended Edition] - This is absolutely one of my most self-indulgent picks on the list, especially because I went straight for the one that includes the Sweet Dreams part of the song (because I guess the soundtrack doesn't actually have it?)

Anyway, it's a song all about faking it to make it, sung by people who have gone on to manipulate everyone around them by using others for their own abilities. So I think I at least have SOME excuse to connect it to Bill. Maybe? Possibly? I think so. Plus it fucks and actually got me to semi-care about the Trolls films again.

Alex Hirsch - We'll Meet Again - Giggles again.

Marina and The Diamonds - Bubblegum Bitch - Insert that post about always understanding whenever someone slaps Bubblegum Bitch onto a character playlist. That character's Miss Sugar Pink Liquor Liquor Lips now. Admittedly I don't have any other real reason for it to be on here, other than its extreme levels of cunt. Maybe Bill adds it to his party mix at Pyronica's request or something. Now THERE'S a Bubblegum Bitch.

Rihanna - Disturbia - Another song that gives me Bill and Ford vibes. Pretty self-explanatory, probably. Probably?

Malia J - Smells Like Teen Spirit - I also have the original version and the Weird Al parody down further on the playlist, and I tie them all to Bill in different ways. This one's for his more ominous and sinister side, where it's like 'I'm coming and I'm not leaving :)', whereas the original touches more on the 'teen/young adult revolutionary' side of things and the Weird Al cover is just because Weird Al. Also this cover is so pretty and chilling to me.

David Guetta ft.Sia - Titanium - This one's kind of a 'I could take it or leave it on here' song, admittedly, but also it gives me pre-Second Dimension-Destruction Bill vibes, in a twisted kind of sense. Like, he feels all powerful and like nobody can stop him...as he proceeds to make the worst mistakes of his life and destroys everything he knows. Might stew on this one and potentially remove it, but it can stay for now.

Ricky Martin - Livin' La Vida Loca - I feel like this one speaks for itself. He's insane. He's cah-RAZZYYYYY. Also it's a fun party song.

Freak Kitchen - Freak of the Week - This one just fucking rules. I'll admit connecting it to Bill outside of the title is a stretch, it's more a critique on people so desperate to achieve fame and fortune that they'll go as far as putting their own lives in danger to get it, whereas Bill is more likely to put others in danger to achieve his own goals.

But also he was willing to destroy the universe with himself inside it, for the sake of the most wild party imaginable. Also, desperate to seek fame and fortune without considering the dangers necessary to get there? Could always stretch further, say it's a Bill and Ford song. Either way, I'm keeping it on the playlist.

Christina Milian - Am to Pm - I've just really liked this song since I was like, ten, and it's a fun party song. Not all of Bill's party songs have to be super annoying, sometimes they can be bops. The bops make you lower your defenses. So when he drops a What Does The Fox Say? down the line, you're completely blindsided. Yes, it will be on here.

Viva La Vida - Coldplay - A human Bill song if I ever heard one. Another fairly basic choice, but again, I don't think it's a HUGE stretch to tie it to him. Plus again, insert that Top Forty Hits quote from Dipper here. They're in the top forty for a reason, they're CATCHY.

Eurobeat Brony - Discord (Remix) - Yeah.

Alina - When You Leave [Numa Numa] [Basshunter Radio Mix] - I told you this song was going to be all over the playlist. And we still haven't gotten to the original yet. Also fun fact; there was originally another version of the song before this one, but upon a relisten I was like 'Hmm, nah, it's good but I don't know if it's got that Bill energy.' Yes, I can and do compare Dragostea Din Tei covers for my Bill Cipher playlist like I'm comparing paint swatches at Home Depot. It's that important to me.

Switchfoot - Dare You To Move - I have no excuses for putting a song from a psuedo-Christian rock band on my Bill Cipher playlist outside of the sheer nostalgia factor, and I can't even pretend it's a one-off thing because there's another one of their songs further down the list. But CONSIDER; the Axolotl singing it to him. That's all I'm going to say. I will not apologize.

BB Cooper - Blame - To me, this is one of those songs about the feelings Bill probably tries to drown in lies. I realize it's a stretch, because we know he wouldn't actually stop and self-reflect in the way that the song does.

But at the same time...I could easily see someone making an animatic set to this song with Pre-Second-Dimension-Destruction Bill at the beginning and it switches to present-day Bill for the second half. I see the vision, even if I realize Bill would try his hardest NOT to see it.

Either that or he'll interpret it as a 'You see? I'm not the villain here. My tragic past is the real reason I'm like this.' song. But you know, there's always that thin thread that's tied to his past, before everything unfolded as it did. Where at some point, he really and truly wasn't to blame. Alas.

They Might Be Giants - Particle Man - Heehee hoohoo triangle man.

Tom Cardy (ft. Montaigne) - Red Flags UNO REVERSE - I added these two in reverse order, oops. Oh, well. I feel like it adds to the chaos.

Tom Cardy (ft. Montaigne) - Red Flags - Of course. Sidenote but this song is physically impossible to sing out loud in public unless you want some WEIRD looks from people.

Hudson Mohawke - Cbat - Tell me he wouldn't love this garbage.

Circus Music - Just circus music. Because he's a massive clown.

Earth Wind & Fire - Boogie Wonderland - Just a fun song, especially for parties.

Nicki Minaj - Super Bass - It feels so wrong to think of a party mix without it, and I feel like Bill would agree.

Toby Fox - Your Best Friend and Toby Fox - Your Best Nightmare - These two are tied together in that order, for pretty obvious reasons.

Simple Plan - I'm Just A Kid - I bounced back and forth with myself before eventually taking Teenagers by MCR off the playlist. I'm not doing that with this song. It just...it feels Bill, you know?

Maybe specifically my version of him, but also can't you imagine your own version of him blasting this at the age of like, fourteen? Am I wrong? I don't feel like I'm wrong. Also I might add Teenagers back onto the list, he needs more of those angsty teen songs.

Darude - Sandstorm - It's a meme, it's funny, it'd be a blast at parties.

Flo Rida ft. Kesha - Right Round - I wouldn't count this as a Kesha song but also I could easily see them bumping it in the Fearamid.

Sia - Chandelier and Toad - Chandelier - Once again, a two-for-one special. I feel like Bill would enjoy both for various reasons. He can interpret it as just another party song, while ignoring the obvious darker implications behind the song of masking your true pain and emotions through a wild and reckless lifestyle. He'd probably love to get as literal as possible with it and try swinging from a chandelier. The Toad once is ear-splitting annoying. I think they fit

Florence and the Machine - Cosmic Love - This one is just for Mina. That's the only reason it's here.

Weird Al - Polka Face - Funny Weird Al song.

Vanilla Ice - Ice Ice Baby - Drake suggested this one and it was right. I laughed and added it, then proceeded to get jumpscared by it when I shuffled the playlist this morning. So that was funny. Go, white boy, go.

Tim Rothrock & Jim Wise - Goofy Goober Rock - More Drake suggestions (this and the other Spongebob songs, along with a few others down the line), and this makes me smile extra hard because I've been in such a Spongebob mood lately :)

Spongebob - Jelly Fish Jam (4 Hour Edition) - Yes, the 4-hour edition specifically. If you're not jamming as much as the jellyfish did in the episode, you're doing something wrong.

Spongebob - Sweet Victory - Of course. Gotta honor the classics.

Weird Al - NOW That's What I Call Polka! - Another one of my personal favorite Weird Al polka mashups.

LMFAO - Party Rock Anthem - Would Bill be Team Party Rockers or Team Party Rock Is?

Cutting it off here because this playlist has over a hundred songs so far and I'm only at...57. How fun for me personally to stop there for the first part. Anyway, expect the next part in a bit.

[fandomanimatic-tournament]

Are there any more songs submitted so far that look like they're gonna be a guaranteed inclusion?

Here's the full list as of right now

Multiple submissions:

"There! Right there!" (Gay or European) - The legally blonde musical

"Therefore you and me" - Hatsune Miku (Or the E ve version)

"Soldier, poet, king" - The Oh Hellos

"How far we've come" - Matchbox twenty

"The other side" - The greatest showman

"Rät" - Penelope Scott

"Little Miss Perfect" - Written by Joriah Kwamé

"My whole family..." - Bo Burnham

"The Mind Electric" - Miracle Musical

"Ready as I'll ever be" - Tangled the series

Could use more propaganda (one or two submissions, or submissions with close to no propaganda):

If an animatic song you really like is in this category there is no need for you to submit it again if you have no propaganda, it will most likely be in. You can use the form to submit propaganda for them or you can wait until the bracket is revealed to submit propaganda for the specific poll it's in on the ask box (preferable for me ahah).

If the bracket isn't symmetrical on all sides there's a small possibility some of the lesser-known songs of this category could get chopped lol.

"Blue lips" - Regina Spektor

"Honey, I'm home" - Ghost and pals

"Brave as a Noun" - AJJ the band

"This is Home" - Cavetown

"No children" - The mountain goats (This one has multiple submissions but all the propaganda is a variation of 'I'ts no children, come on' or 'you'll probably have too much propaganda by now so I'm not writing any' and I find that extremely funny)

"My ordinary life" - The Living Tombstone

"Ordinary" - Written by Joriah Kwamé

"Villain" - Stella Jang

"I wish you liked girls" - Abbey Glover / "I wish you liked boys" - Cover by Jasper Isaac

"A Crow's Trial" (A [blank]'s trial) - Vane

"Hey brother" - Avicii

"OrderMade" - RADWIMPS

"Rewrite the Stars" - The greatest showman

"Allies or Enemies" - The Crane Wives

"Stronger than you" - Steven Universe

"Anything you can do" - Annie get your Gun

"Love like you" - Steven Universe

"Fish in a birdcage (Rule #4)" - Fish in a birdcage

"Tongues & Teeth" - The Crane Wives

"Open up your eyes" - My little Pony

"Everything stays" - Adventure time

"Curses" - The Crane Wives

"Escapism" - Steven Universe

"Devil's Train" - The Lab Rats

"Lemon Boy" - Cavetown

"How bad can I be?" - The lorax

"Oh No!" - Marina & The Diamonds

"My R" - KurageP / cover by Rachie

"Emperor's New Clothes" - Panic! at the disco

"Father" - The front bottoms

"Little lion man" (Not your fault) - Mumford & Sons

"Under my Skin" - Jukebox the Ghost

"Saint Bernard" - Lincoln

"Evelyn Evelyn" - Evelyn Evelyn

"No matter what" - Steven Universe

"W.I.T.C.H." - Devon Cole

"Cabinet man" - Lemon Demon

"When you're evil" - Voltaire

"Touch Tone Telephone" - Lemon Demon

"Left Brain, Right Brain" - Bo Burnham

"I won't say (I'm in love)" - Hercules

"You're gonna go far, kid" - The Offspring

"Ikanaide" - Mafumafu

"Turn the lights off" - Tally Hall

"Crush" - Tessa Violet

"oo is a receiver" ([blank] is a receiver) - Hatsune Miku

"I do adore" - Mindy Gledhill

"Self-inflicted Achromantic" - Hatsune Miku / Cover by JubyPhonic

"I'm the bad guy" - Wonder Over Yonder / Caleb Hyles cover

"Line without a hook" - Ricky Montgomery

"You'll be back" - Hamilton

"Promiseland" - MIKA

"Runs in the family" - Amanda Palmer

"Boys will be bugs" - Cavetown

"Who are you, really?" - Mikky Ekko

"Feelings are fatal" - mxmtoon

"I Know Those Eyes / This Man is Dead" - Thomas Borchert

"Once Upon a December" - Anastasia

"Achilles Come Down" ([blank] Come Down) - Gang of Youths

"Charlie's Inferno" ([Blank]'s Inferno) - That Handsome Devil

"I cut myself" (Shaving) - Talkshow Boy

"Goodbye" (Look who's inside again) - Bo Burnham

"Kiss me, Son of God" - They Might Be Giants

"Your stupid face" - Kayden Makay

"Nowhere King" - Centaurworld

"Sincerely, Me" - Dear Evan Hansen

"Wine Red" - The Hush Sound

"Everything At Once" - Lenka

"Good for you" - Dear Evan Hansen

"The Bro Duet" - Moment by moment musical (by Alexander Sage Oyen)

"Cupid" - Jack Stauber

"Eight Wonder" - Lemon demon

"It's tough to be a god" - Road to El Dorado

"Are You Satisfied?" - Marina and the Diamonds

"My time" - Bo en

"Pad Thai" - Jack Stauber

"Poison" - Cavetown

"Butch 4 Butch" (My sweetheart's piano) - Rio Romeo

"It Took Me By Surprise" (The anger in his eyes) - Maria Mena

"You, Me and Steve" (You, Me and [Blank] / Your best friend Steve / Your best friend [Blank]) - Garfunkel And Oates

"This guy is in love with you, pare" - Chito Miranda (and my friend is incredibly offended nobody submitted this one)

"Hayloft II" - Mother mother

"I know I'm a Wolf" - Young Heretics

"Hurts Like Hell" - Fleurie

"Poor unfortunate souls" - The little Mermaid

"When He Sees Me" - Waitress the Musical

"Christmas Kids" - Roar

"The dismemberment song" - Blue Kid

"The Moon Will Sing" - The Crane Wives

"Never love an anchor" - The Crane Wives

"Ghosting" - Mother Mother

"Two Birds" - Regina Spektor

"Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" - Set It Off

"A Sadness Runs Through Him" - The Hoosiers

I can't decide" ([Blank] can't decide) - Scissor Sisters

Limbo

I'll hold preliminary polls for them to see if they get in if I need spaces to make the bracket have the same amount of matches on every side. The amount of how many will get in will be decided by how many songs are needed once the submissions close. If too many songs are needed I'll chop some of the least popular songs from the "could use more propaganda" category instead.

You can submit propaganda for why they should get in if you want, but have in mind there's a small possibility it might not be used at all

"Don't you dare forget the sun" - Get Scared

"Lover boy" (Good old fashioned lover boy) - Queen

"Blonde Boyz" - Cyndago

"Seventeen" - Heathers the Musical

"Drop pop Candy" - REOL / English cover by Kuraiinu and JubyPhonic

"Rolling girl" - Hatsune Miku

"The Ballad of Sara Berry" - 35mm: A Musical Exhibition

"Painted smile" - Madame Macabre

"Willow Tree March" - The Paper Kites

"This is war" - Thirty seconds to Mars

"Say my name" - The Beetlejuice musical

"Sugar Song to Bitter Step" - UNISON SQUARE GARDEN (Blood Blockade Battlefront ending)

"Nobody" - Mitski

"Beautiful" - Heathers the Musical

"Again" - Araki

"Baby Hotline" - Jack Stauber

"REVIVED" - Derivakat

"Jubilee Line" - Wilbur Soot

"Pork Soda" - Glass Animals

"Mr. Blue Sky" - ELO

"A thousand years" - Christina Perri

"Mamma Mia" - ABBA

"Best Worst Mistake" - If/then: A New Musical

"Sk8er Boi" - Avril Lavigne

"The Phoenix" - Fall Out Boy

"Why is my song not anywhere?"

Either it was an animation meme/AMV Edit/MAP instead of an actual animatic thing, most animatics are vents / not fandom or OC-related, the song is literally 20 seconds long, or it didn't have enough animatics for me to count it. With this in mind, if you think there's been a mistake or that I accidentally skipped it (or that a song is in the wrong category) feel free to tell me so in the ask box.

The songs in limbo are exceptions because of any of these reasons:

there's a specific animatic/animation with the song that is so iconic for a fandom that it could get in even if it doesn't have the animatic amount required

The song reaches the amount required, and it has never been properly referred to as an animation meme, but a lot of the animatics are the exact same format (like an animation meme)

The song has a lot of animatics, but I could barely find any that were not animatics of the source material

The song is more popular as an animation meme, but also has some animatics

The propaganda provided was just good enough for me to give it a chance, even if they don't have the animatic amount required

I'm including all songs that check the criteria I have not had time to check the lyrics of all the songs I don't know, I've only checked that they have enough animatics; so just in case: I'll check everything when submissions close, don't worry. Feel free to tell me in the ask box, but have in mind that I'm only taking the song itself into account, not the artist, so please don't flood my inbox with the artist's entire crime list.

[juicydangler]

for your halloween playlist consideration:

The Man with X-Ray Eyes by Bauhaus, inspired by the 1963 science fiction horror film X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes

I Was a Teenage Werewolf by The Cramps, inspired by the 1957 science fiction horror film of the same name

Lotion by the Greenskeepers, inspired by the 1991 psychological horror film The Silence of the Lambs

How Do by Sneaker Pimps, inspired by the 1973 folk horror film The Wicker Man

Nosferatu by Blue Öyster Cult, inspired by the 1922 silent horror film of the same name

Frankenstein by Rock Bottom, inspired by the 1931 horror film of the same name

Frankenstein Rock by Eddie Thomas, about taking a date to see horror movies

Nasty by The Damned, about horror movies on VHS

Bela Lugosi's Dead by Bauhaus, about legendary actor Bela Lugosi not being alive anymore

Boris the Spider by The Who, about a spider called Boris

October Funeral by The Cemetery Boys, about a funeral in October

Cemetery Gates by Pantera, about the struggle to let go when someone you love dies

Cemetery Girl by ICP, about the struggle to let go when someone you love dies

Dig Up Her Bones by the Misfits, about the struggle to let go when someone you love dies

L.I.C.H. by Ginny Di, about a lady who doesn't want to die

Party In the Graveyard by Ghost Town, about knowing you will die and having a silly little time with it

thegraveneverfeltsonice by aWannabe, about knowing you will die and lowkey looking forward to it

Spirit Got Lost by Mental As Anything, about being dead and ambivalent about it

Zombie Crew by Send More Paramedics, about being a punk rock zombie

Nobody Likes You (When You're Dead) by Zombina and the Skeletones, about the social challenges faced by a young zombie

Re: Your Brains by Jonathan Coulton, about the social challenges faced by a white collar zombie

Mad Professor by ICP, about making friends

Ur-Ur-Enkel von Frankenstein by Frank Zander, about making friends (in German)

Hex So Heavy by Bambie Thug, about revenge, and how two enemies used to be friends

Nightmare by Brainbug, spooky techno instrumental

The Dead Eyes Opened (1994 remix) by Severed Heads, inspired by reporting around the real life 1924 murder of Emily Kaye

A Forest by The Cure, about a spooky forest

The Greatest Show Unearthed by Creature Feature, about a spooky carnival

Scaretale by Nightwish, about a spooky fairy tale carnival

Bury a Friend by Billie Eilish, about the POV of the monster under the bed

Boogie Woogie Wu by ICP, about the POV of the boogie man

Sunglasses at Night by Corey Hart, not about vampires (unless sound engineers count) but really kinda sounds like it is

I.C.U. by Caligula, about vampires

Night of the Vampire by Roky Erickson and The Aliens, about vampires

Transylvanian Concubine by Rasputina, about vampires

Vampires In Love by Marvelous 3, about vampires (in love)

Danse Vampyr by Inkubus Sukkubus, about vampires (horny)

We Suck Young Blood by Radiohead, about vampires but only as a metaphor

Teeth by Lady Gaga, about sex but sounds like it could be about vampires or maybe werewolves

Bare Your Teeth by Ashbury Heights, about going feral werewolf style

The Ones by Aesthetic Perfection, about nightmare creatures stealing teeth

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by the Damned, inspired by the 1886 Gothic novella The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

Nevermore by The Cemetery Boys, about the life and works of Edgar Allan Poe

Graveyard Picnic by Voltaire, about the life and works of Edgar Allan Poe

Mr Raven by MC Lars, based on the poem The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe

Legs and Tarpaulin by Cinema Strange, inspired by the story King Pest by Edgar Allan Poe

Pet Sematary by Ramones, written during a visit to the home of Stephen King and inspired by his 1983 horror novel of the same name

Cemetery by Silverchair, about ennui

Living Dead by Marina and the Diamonds, about ennui

Living Dead by Discordia, about being a disenfranchised young person (I think)

Black No. 1 by Type O Negative, about a goth gf

Release the Bats by The Birthday Party, about a goth gf

Tombstone by Peaches, probably about sex somehow lbr it's Peaches, but sounds like it could be about a goth gf

Every Day Is Halloween by Ministry, about being a goth

I Can Tell You Shop At Hot(t) Topic by The Gothsicles, about seeing a goth

You've Been GOTH BLOCKED by Stevie Ryan, about seeing too many goths

Mephiskapheles by Mephiskapheles, about what if Satan played ska

Des Satans liebster Klingelton by Soko Friedhof, about what if Satan sold ringtones (in German)

Janet's Potato Salad by Cupcake Television, about what if Satanists held a potluck

Satan by Orbital and Kirk Hammett, not about anything just a guy yelling Satan a lot (it's a sample of Gibby Haynes of Butthole Surfers from the song Sweat Loaf but let's not get bogged down in details here)

Creep in the Cellar by Butthole Surfers, about a weird scary guy

Abwärts-Nick Nack Man Now by Frank Zander, about being a weird scary guy (in German)

Gravedigger by MXMS, about being a weird scary girl

Innsmouth by Aural Vampire, about being a weird scary girl (in Japanese)

When You're Evil by Voltaire, about being an evil guy and having a silly little time with it

Skullcrusher Mountain by Jonathan Coulton, about being an evil guy and having an unrequited crush

Frankenstein Rock by Peter Thomas (no relation), about a scary guy called Frankenstein and the creepy parties he throws (in German)

HAUNT ME by Johnny Goth, about hoping to be haunted, sexually

Ghost of a Texas Ladies' Man by Concrete Blonde, about being haunted, sexually

Ghost Story by Charming Disaster, about being haunted, sexually

One Second Ghost by The Gothsicles, about retro video gaming

Flying Saucer Boogie by Eddie Cletro, about UFO sightings

Unmarked Helicopters by Soul Coughing (from The X-Files S04E18), about UFO conspiracies

Can't Get Abducted E.T. Don't Dig Me Blues by Bruce Brown, about getting swerved by aliens

Bugs by Pearl Jam, about being overwhelmed by bugs

March of the Sinister Ducks by The Sinister Ducks, about how ducks are sinister

the entire 1998 album Hellbilly Deluxe: 13 Tales of Cadaverous Cavorting Inside the Spookshow International by Rob Zombie

literally anything other than Zombie by the Cranberries

[chiyoda-division2]

“Truly, whoever is able to make you absurd is able to make you unjust.” —Voltaire

…

…

…

…

…?

Introduction ♦️

Aimé Usagiri (兎理エメ) is Wonder⇓anD Sound Systems’s Chief Operations Officer, he was the one running the company while Fusao was away for 8 years. Unbeknownst to many, he is also the 4th member of Fusao’s team for unknown motives.

He considers himself as Chiyuri’s chaperone not long after picking him up.

Link to picrew used

Appearance

Aimé is a taller than average middle-aged man, though he kept most of his looks from his younger days despite his age (p.s. the wrinkles on his eyes are more prominent than how it’s shown in the picrew), he is of a light tan complexion. He has albinism, giving him white hair and red eyes, these eyes hidden behind a pair of rectangular glasses. His messy white hair is cut down to his neck and he has bangs partially covering his right eye. There is a beauty mark at the upper left corner of his mouth. At the back of his neck is a tattoo of a queen chess piece, this is hidden by his hair.

There’s a noticeable scar at the back of his right hand right in between the knuckles of his middle and ring fingers, according to him it was from a stab.

Aimé is typically seen in a white dress shirt, a black vest and a cerulean colored tie, white dress pants and black shoes. Draped upon his shoulders is a white overcoat whose inner part contain a black and white diamond checker pattern. His company ID is fastened on the breast pocket of his vest.

Name Meaning

Aimé - in French, meaning beloved/love

Usagi (兎) - Rabbit

Ri (理)- Reason, logic

Nicknames and Aliases

MIRAGE BLANC

Shirou - Host name

Buddy - Fusao

Your Majesty (Sarcastic), fuckass - Raiden

White Rabbit/White ‘Queen’

Biographical Info

Gender - Male

Age - 49

Birthday - September 22

Star Sign - Virgo

Ethnicity - French-Japanese

Hair Colour - White

Eye Colour - Wine Red

Height - 6'0

Markings - Stab scar on his right hand, queen chess piece tattoo at the nape

Piercings - He is not wearing any, but there are holes implying he used to have them on lobes, helices, and conch

Family -

Mother

Biological Father (unknown)

Stepfather

Younger half sister (unknown)

Nephew?

A pair of rabbits

Voice Claim: Makoto Furukawa

Fun Facts

Occupation - Chief Operations Officer; secretary

Division - Chiyoda

Favourite Food - Champagne

Least Favourite Food - Carrots

Likes - Champagne, darts, gambling, things in order, the moon

Dislikes - His little sister, Raiden, The fact that Chiyuri looks like his sister, vegetables, his bad sense of time

Personality

Aimé is a stark contrast compared to his colleagues, being stoic and passive-aggressive. He is more uptight around Wonder⇓anD’s employees and others often read that as him being haughty. Although that is true, he does care about them and would offer them any help whenever they need it, even when he carries a threatening face.

Outside work, he’s infamously known to be a gambling addict as during days off, he’s almost always seen in a casino, it’s not that he plays for the money but rather the thrill and could care less about his losses, this comes off as a surprise to many considering his usual strict demeanor.

Nonetheless, even outside work, Aimé never lets his guard down easily. Even in his casino persona, he is quite threatening when looked at the wrong way and doesn’t hesitate to use his status against others who happen to provoke him.

He is just as enigmatic as his buddy, being even more tight around his own secrets, like how and why he picked up Chiyuri to the company. Could it be that he knows something about the young man that others don’t? or…

Trivia

His birthday is Michael Faraday’s birthday, who is known for inventing the first electrical motor

His MC Name translates to White Mirage, whatever that could mean

He was with the rest of the team during the recording of the first album but Fusao and Raiden drown him out on the group songs, much to his dismay

He’s known Fusao for a long time

He knows that Nishio finds Raiden “fascinating” and finds that absurd

He has contact with a certain “abandoned umbrella”, somehow

Sometimes, he is seen with Dice Arisugawa of Shibuya at casinos together

Because he frequently drinks, he tends to get late, yet he still gets the job done somehow

[rinwellisathing]

Get to Know My OCs: Top 5 songs:

They DO each have playlists, but I, in typical himbo fashion, did not realize that music from my personal library didn't just automatically play from a public playlist on someone else's computer so like...I'm in the very very slow process of overhauling them. So meanwhile, here's top 5 songs!

Sentry Ojeda: Sentry The Defiant- Coheed and Cambria

The Bottom of The Pit- The Living Tombstone

Why Am I Anxious?- Tom Cardy

The Creativity Song- Don't Hug Me, I'm Scared

Numb-Linkin Park

Jaina Thalassia: Daughter of the Sea (lullaby version)-Sharm (originally from WoW: Battle For Azeroth)

Touch The Sky- From Disney's Brave

How Far I'll Go- From Disney's Moana

Rhiannon- Fleetwood Mac

What Else Can I Do?- From Disney's Encanto

Octavia of Creche K'liir: Part of Your World- Disney's The Little Mermaid

I've Got A Dream- Disney's Tangled

Killer Queen- Queen

The Afterman- Coheed and Cambria

Float On- Modest Mouse

Kroger of Creche K'liir:

I'm Still Standing- Elton John

The Legionnaire's Lament- The Decemberists

Wait For It- Hamilton

Spooky Mormon Hell Dream- Book of Mormon

Sheep Go To Heaven (Goats Go To Hell)- CAKE

Jackal Silk: Culling of the Fold- The Decemberists

Jack The Ripper- The Smiths

Take The Pill- Emilie Autumn

Faint of Hearts- Coheed and Cambria (actually the entire Velorium Camper trio in general, but mainly this one)

Straight Razor Cabaret- Voltaire

Tari Valiente:

Dirty Paws- Of Monsters and Men

Bad Reputation- Joan Jett

HOT TO GO!- Chappell Roan

Fight Like A Girl- Emilie Autumn

Great Days!- The UNITS (Diamond is Unbreakable 2nd OP)

Teela Popsprocket:

Waiting On A Miracle- Disney's Encanto

The Wizard and I- Wicked

I'm Losing My Shit- from Tuca and Bertie

Iron Fist- Coheed and Cambria

My Freeze Ray- Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog

Alyce Ravengard: Where You Are- Disney's Moana

Into The Unknown- Disney's Frozen 2

Better Than You- Voltaire

By The Sword- Emilie Autumn

Never Love An Anchor- The Crane Wives

[andrewmoocow]

Steven Universe Snake Eyes chapter 6: Folie a Deux (originally published on October 2, 2023)

AN: And now, the moment you've all been waiting for. We've been building up to this for two years now, but at long last, Steven and Black Rutile finally go head-to-head once again. And this time, there will be nothing holding them back in their fight to the death, except for their own inner demons. Steven refuses to fight and kill for entertainment but deep down, he's resisting the urge to go all out. Meanwhile, Black Rutile is incredibly eager to kill Steven once and for all, but that doesn't stop her from having her own second thoughts about everything. This, I believe, makes their dynamic so well-written, though I might be bragging here since I was the one who created it. But enough stroking my ego, we're officially at the halfway point of Snake Eyes now, so let's begin!

Synopsis: Steven and Black Rutile have their long-awaited rematch. Meanwhile, Nosiop begins his plot for universal conquest.

Cast:

Zach Callison as Steven

Noël Wells as Black Rutile

Estelle as Garnet

Michaela Dietz as Amethyst

Deedee Magno-Hall as Pearl

Tom Scharpling as Greg

Grace Rolek as Connie

Jennifer Paz as Lapis

Shelby Rabara as Peridot

Uzo Aduba as Bismuth

Kimberly Brooks as Jasper

Lauren Ash as White Topaz

Della Saba as Aquamarine

Charlyne Yi as Eyeball

Christine Pedi as Holly Blue

Casey Lee Williams as Cat's Eye

Aurelio Voltaire as King Cobralan Jormagundr

Jason Marsden as Prince Nosiop Jormagundr

Keith David as Pyth

Shirley Millner as Queen Constricta Jormagundr

Henry Rollins as Captain Boa

Neil Flynn as Aescul

Patti LuPone as Yellow Diamond

Lisa Hannigan as Blue Diamond

Christine Ebersole as White Diamond

Ron Perlman as Inner Steven

Christopher Lloyd as Batsputin Vosania

Anna Akana as Dionna of the Sands

Peter Stormare as Reximillian

--

"Okay ladies, everyone into your cells!" one of the Bismuth guards at Revanche 666 yelled as the Rutile Rebels were ordered to their assigned prison cells in the aftermath of their attempted takeover of Little Homeworld. "This will be your home for as long as it takes for you to change your ways and finally accept that you lost."

"So that's how it is, huh?" Black Rutile muttered as she glumly sat down in her cell and gazed at her feet. Everything she had worked so hard from the moment Steven came out as the so-called son of Pink Diamond was all made entirely pointless once again. And even worse, it wasn't even Steven who ruined her plans this time, but instead his disgusting human friends. That was one of many things she hated about Steven. Despite how toxic he was towards others, Steven always knew how to gather allies, whether they were former enemies he convinced would agree with him or simple-minded creatures he could mold into his slaves.

Of course, Black Rutile wasn't any better, but at least she knew how evil she was and loved it. But now, her love of manipulating others to her whims had been used against her thanks to some choice words by the Crystal Gems to turn her allies' collective backs on her. And now, as she heard her subordinates converse among themselves, Black Rutile had one question to ask herself.

"Is this still worth it?"

--

"Status update on the Diamonds?" a Slytherophidian scientist said to his lab assistant as the pair watched over three massive gems in an equally large containment field meant to house the ginormous Diamonds they would soon reform into.

"Their vitals are normal, Dr. Heller." The female Slytherophidian said, gazing down at a tablet documenting the Diamonds' statistics. "They should return to their normal forms within a few minutes."

"Excellent work, Dr. Mercer." Dr. Heller said before the two scientists turned to find Aescul walking into the laboratory. "Oh, hello Aescul. Need anything?"

"Yes, I'm gonna need you two to leave for a bit so I can have a little privacy with our giant guests here." Aescul stated. "They're gonna need some catching up to do."

"Understood, sir." Dr. Heller said as he and his assistant left Aescul alone in the lab, just as the Diamonds regenerated their forms and found themselves in the containment unit.

"Oh, what happened?" Yellow groaned as she slowly regained consciousness from her fight with the Metals. "Where are those Metals?"

"Where are we? Some kind of laboratory?" Blue asked while looking around and tapping on the glass.

"You are exactly right, my Diamond-y friend," Aescul stated. "Hi, my name's Aescul. I'm a Slytherophidian spy who participated in the surveillance of your people and brought your little friend Steven to your planet. Nice to meet you guys."

"Hello there, Mr. Aescul." White Diamond politely greeted the spy in a somewhat awkward fashion. "Would you mind telling us where we are and why we're here?"

"Oh yeah, that." Aescul nodded. "You took quite a beating against the Metals, and I just wanted to see if you'll be alright in time for Steven's big fight with Black Rutile."

"Whose big fight with what?!" Yellow yelled in shock.

"Oh no, Steven!" Blue added, just as horrified at the decision, while Aescul remained stoic.

"Please, you must tell your masters to change this decision at once!" White begged Aescul on her knees like her life depended on it. "You have no idea how much Black Rutile hates our dear Steven!"

"Sorry, everybody, but rules are rules," Aescul said as he turned to leave. "You know, I can let you go so you're free to watch, ladies. You just need to keep your mouths shut since everybody hates you so much. Remember that cover-up?"

"Yes, we convinced the universe at large that all the planets we conquered were uninhabited to hide the fact that we committed genocide, we know," Yellow stated dryly as the Diamonds were released from their confinement. "I don't think I want to know how Steven would react to such news."

"Probably not well at all." White nodded fearfully while Aescul led them out of the lab. Little did they know was that Steven was having his own issues at the moment.

--

Meanwhile, Steven anxiously paced back and forth in the Crystal Gems' quarters at the Ouraborium as he contemplated what he had heard earlier. Queen Constricta had just announced that Steven and Black Rutile were due to fight soon in the arena, their first one-on-one battle since Black Rutile invaded the beach house while the Gems were in Los Diego. A lot has changed since the two last fought, but one thing that remained a constant was that Black Rutile utterly hated him and wanted every opportunity she got to knock him down a peg.

"Well, well, well, look who's all ready for his big day." Black Rutile declared sarcastically as she entered the room to speak with Steven one last time. "Don't get cold feet, old friend. The Slytherophidians wouldn't like that. Then again, they already hate you as is."

"So, what brings you here?" Steven said tepidly. "Want to gloat some more before we fight?"

"Quit reading my mind!" Black Rutile laughed before offering her archenemy a high-five. "Give me five!" Steven didn't answer, causing Black Rutile to high-five herself instead. "But in addition, I come here to inform you of a new plan I've come up with in cooperation with a new acquaintance I've made here with similar designs for the universe as I."

"Who are you talking about?" Steven asked quietly.

"I am, of course, talking about Prince Nosiop Jormagundr." Black Rutile stated. "You'll get to meet him soon, of course, but for now, to give you an idea of what we have planned." She played a holographic image of a tall, humanoid figure looming over the Crystal Gems and zapping them into poofing before the Gems reformed, looking like they had just emerged from a Kindergarten. "Nosiop and the rest of the royal family have connections with a being known as the Lapidarist that can revert all Gemkind into their base programming." She explained. "Meaning that we won't just force the Crystal Gems into being returned to what they were originally created to do, but the Diamonds and all of your little friends too! And maybe as a bonus, you might fall victim to the Lapidarist's powers too, thanks to you possessing good ol' Pink Diamond's gem."

"I knew you would do something like this to get your way!" Steven screamed angrily. "You're a monster!"

"Oh, I'm a monster. I haven't heard that one before." Black Rutile replied with a cross of her arms and a roll of her eyes. "What are you going to do about it? Shatter me? Oh wait, you can't because you're a pacifist! No, pacifist might be too kind for you. You can't shatter me because you're a coward."

"I am not!" Steven yelled back, only for Black Rutile to shut him up with a finger to his lips.

"Oh sure, try and deny it all you want, but let me make one thing clear." Black Rutile stated. "All of this was your fault. All of your friends were abducted by these snake people all because they've been watching you for months on end, and now they're all going to die because you don't want to fight!"

"But that's the idea." Steven tried to explain himself. "I told the king that I refuse to kill people for the entertainment of others, something I'm sure you would love to do."

"Oh sure, even the king is patting you on the back for your cowardice." Black Rutile sneered as she prepared to leave. "But remember that next we meet, you and the other Crystal Gems will finally learn your place under my heel."

"I'll see you in the ring." Steven said as Black Rutile left the room. Once again, she was plotting her revenge, but this time, her plan would involve transforming all Gems into her slaves, the Crystal Gems included. Steven couldn't stand for this. As much as he wanted to stay true to his guns, Black Rutile needed to be stopped once and for all, no matter what it would take.

"I said I've had enough of your bullying, Black Rutile," Steven yelled as soon as he heard another pair of footsteps approach him. "I'll see you in the ring!"

"I'm not Black Rutile, but I still think we need to talk about her," Greg replied in a firm yet gentle and fatherly tone while sitting beside his son.

"Please don't tell me she convinced you I'm a monster." Steven prayed that his beloved father wouldn't betray him.

"What, no?! I would never think such horrible things about my son!" Greg exclaimed. "Black Rutile's a monster, and your kindness aside, anyone else would've wanted to put her down for good with no remorse."

"Then I don't understand why you're talking to me when you barely know her," Steven responded.

"It would be the logical move, the safest move, the sensible move," Greg added.

"But?" Steven asked.

"It's not the Steven move. You trust people. You give them second chances, and they live up to your expectations the best they can." Greg explained. "I mean, Lapis, Peridot, Jasper, Bismuth, Spinel, the Diamonds, White Topaz, they all wanted you dead or out of the way, yet you believed they deserved a chance anyways."

"And here comes Black Rutile to refuse a second chance and live up to how evil she can be." Steven muttered disdainfully.

"No one can deny all the horrible things she did." Greg agreed with his half-human son. "I mean, she formed an entire terrorist organization to get revenge on you AND tried to destroy or conquer Earth multiple times!"

"But now she and Nosiop are plotting to reset the entire Gem race and use them to conquer the universe!" Steven exclaimed.

"True. And if I had your powers, I'd use them to take her down if I had no other option." Greg shook his head in agreement. "But I never thought I'd live to see you consider doing the same. You always find a way."

"Not this time." Steven declared as he got off the couch. "I've had to do a lot of growing up ever since I discovered my powers."

"And you did pretty great despite all you endured." Greg smiled pridefully, remembering all the ups and downs he and his son went through together as Steven grew up.

"For a while. But then I kept letting her get in my head and making me live up to her expectations. It's because of her that I had to leave everyone behind!" Steven exclaimed angrily, only for Greg to not answer him. "Aren't you going to argue with me?"

"Not when you're right, Schtu-ball," Greg replied somberly, knowing what Steven would do next.

"I've had fun, but I knew that when the situation gets serious, so would I!" Steven added.

"I'm not gonna argue with you, Steven," Greg said, not wanting to get into a fight with Steven. "I just wanted to make sure you really thought about this."

"I have, Dad. I'm sorry about what I'm going to do to Black Rutile; I really am." Steven replied firmly as he turned around and prepared to leave for the arena, his eyes briefly glowing a faint pink. "But I'm not a bright-eyed little kid singing songs about ice cream anymore. Playtime's over."

--

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, you've been waiting for this fight for ages now, but at long last, the moment has arrived!" King Cobralan announced to his cheering audience. "In this corner, you know him; you absolutely hate him, Steven Universe!"

As Steven marched out into the arena, he was met with booing and insults from the Slytherophidians, who were eager to see him killed in action. At the same time, the Crystal Gems could only watch helplessly as their human son was forced to fight against his will.

"Please do your best, Steven." Pearl silently prayed for Steven's survival.

"What are the odds of him making out of this alive, Garnet?" Amethyst asked the fusion.

"I'm calculating a 32.33% chance of Steven making this out with perfect mental health," Garnet replied, lowering her shades. "Repeating, of course."

"Well, that's better than he usually does," Jasper added.

"And in this corner, the Striking Shadow of the Rebellion, the leader of the Rutile Rebels, the little Rutile that could, the most wanted criminal known to Gemkind, BLAAAAACK RUTIIIILE!" The Slytherophidians celebrated Black Rutile's introduction, a stark contrast to how Steven was received, as Black Rutile strutted into the arena with her sword over her shoulder.

"You know what shall happen once I win this, right?" Black Rutile snidely asked Steven as she drew her sword. "You shall die, and there will be much rejoicing." To emphasize her point, Aquamarine and Eyeball gave a dry "Yay." from afar.

"I know, but I'm willing to try." Steven said as he nervously summoned his shield to defend himself as Black Rutile furiously charged at her archenemy and tried to stab him with her sword. Throughout the first part of the fight, Steven mainly defended himself with the shield from Black Rutile's attacks, all while she vented her frustrations and insecurities on him.

"Haha, you're just blocking!" Black Rutile laughed. "Typical Steven, never once raising a fist even if his life depended on it! You're just like your mother, just as weak and pathetic a brat as she was!"

"Seriously, pressing the mother button again?!" Steven yelled before he finally decided to throw a punch, but Black Rutile effortlessly caught it and threw him to the ground.

"Oh, what's the matter, little boy?" Black Rutile taunted. "Going to cry? Maybe soil yourself in front of hundreds?"

"So this is going to be our battle?" Steven muttered frustratedly. "Just you making speech after speech in between insulting me? Trust me, if I wanted to hear someone talk about themselves all day, I'd spend time with Peridot or Jasper."

"You know I can hear you, Steven!" Peridot yelled in offense before Jasper pushed her away.

"Come on, Steven, destroy her!" Jasper ordered Steven.

"No, this isn't just a battle. It's a message." Black Rutile replied while holding back tears of rage and sorrow. "A message about how you ruined countless lives with your worthless pacifism, but none more than mine. Before I met you, I was the ideal servant! Proud, ruthless, ruling by intelligence and charisma alone! Under my gentle guidance, entire armies of Gems made civilizations tremble before the Diamonds' might! But then you came along, a mere human boy from a pathetic little ball of dirt thought long abandoned by the Diamonds, a boy who stripped me of my honor and pride that I built my entire identity upon. It was at your hands that I suffered my greatest defeats and was forced to live life as a commoner after giving up everything I had worked for. You could not begin to imagine the disgrace I felt when I was exposed as a mere victim of White Diamond's sense of humor in front of everyone on your world!"

"But you still don't understand!" Steven exclaimed as he got back up and smacked Black Rutile in the face with his shield, making her tears fly free as she parried another attack and pressed her sword against the shield. "You were this way because the Diamonds gave you everything you could've ever wanted, and you still selfishly wanted more! Has it ever occurred to you that you're more like Pink Diamond than you think?!"

Angered by this accusation, Black Rutile slashed at Steven's shield as she began crying in earnest, something that Steven had never seen her do before, if she could even express such sadness at all. "Don't you dare compare me to that overgrown brat! I had suffered for centuries because of her, and now it's because of you that I lost everything!" she screamed tearfully. "I admired the Diamonds so much, but it's all their fault I'm reduced to a shell of my former self! Why do I have to keep chasing after a damned half-human rat who always knew what to do to ruin my life?! Why do you keep getting so strong and winning at everything, and even be acknowledged by the Diamonds as one of them, but why was I the one always getting pushed aside?! Why can't you just accept me for who I am?!"

Steven couldn't believe what he was seeing. Black Rutile, who had prided herself as a cunning, devious, opportunistic, sociopathic monster, was showing real sadness for the first time ever since they first met each other on that faithful day when she and White Topaz interviewed him for their fake news show. Everyone has seen Black Rutile laugh, but now Steven isn't sure if anyone has ever seen her cry.

However, Black Rutile quickly brushed her tears away and replaced her crestfallen frown with a psychotic grin. "But now, with Nosiop and the Lapidarist by my side, I can start anew with a new army, a new Homeworld to rule, and an entire universe at my fingertips to enslave! That's why I needed to come with you, to seize the opportunity like I always do! The Lapidarist shall free us of these petty attachments we have forged with each other, and I have to say, revenge feels pretty good."

"Not yet." Steven firmly stated as he stood his ground and awaited another attack from his nemesis.

"Too little, too late. Story of our lives, Steven Universe." Black Rutile smirked as her sadness turned into insane laughter as she lunged at Steven, ready to kill him once and for all.

--

"So, is this what Black Rutile is truly like?" Dionna of the Sands asked as she and the other Universal Lords watched the fight between the half-human son of Pink Diamond and the rebellious Rutile below their theater box. "I have only heard stories about her atrocities before now."

"Nay, as someone whose life was threatened by her before, this is utterly new to me." Batsputin added with a curious shake of his head. "Never before have I seen someone pour their heart out this much. Metaphorically, of course."

"It is extraordinary to see a Gem act this way." Reximillian agreed with Batsputin. "Is it normal for one of their race to be this emotional?"

"I'm not too sure." King Cobralan answered fearfully. "I'm afraid that should Steven Universe survive this, there should come a time for him to learn the truth."

"The truth about what, my love?" Queen Constricta asked.

"The truth about the origins of Gems and how they connect to us," Cobralan told his wife, making Constricta realize what her husband was talking about. "Captain Boa, inform our special friend at once."

"It shall be done, sire." Captain Boa said as he slithered away. "And I'll make sure to look for Princess Naja and Pyth as well. No one has seen them lately."

"Don't bother, Captain." Nosiop told Boa as he took a break from silently cheering for Black Rutile to face his uncle. "Naja is just in her room, nothing too serious. As for Pyth, wouldn't you like to know?"

--

While the Contest of Champions was going on, Pyth had retreated into his favorite hidden chambers within the royal family's castle with a torch in hand to search for something he hadn't checked up on in decades. Raising his torch to the wall, the Jormagundrs' royal vizier examined a series of stone wall carvings depicting what could come in the future.

They displayed images depicting what appeared to be figures resembling Steven and Black Rutile fighting each other in the arena, then shaking hands, followed by the two of them facing a large humanoid figure with hair resembling White Diamond's, and then them preparing to fight an even bigger snake creature.

"It is just as the prophecy foretold." Pyth stated ominously. "The sword and the shield shall soon reach an understanding after the shield learns of the sword's true inner self, just in time for Ragnarok."

--

"Dang, Black Rutile is really going all out." Greg muttered in surprise at Black Rutile's emotional outburst. "Never expected her to be that broken."

"She's lying, I just know it!" Connie yelled as she struggled to rush out into the arena and back up Steven against Black Rutile. "Black Rutile would never say something like that; she has to be faking it!"

"Connie, please calm down!" Pearl said while holding Connie back from recklessly charging into battle. "I know you love Steven, but I think he can handle himself here."

"Still, I've never seen Black Rutile like this before." White Topaz added. "I've been working with her for ages, and even I don't think she would get this emotional."

"Maybe it's because of how Steven ruined her life." Aquamarine said as she fluttered into view, with Eyeball, Holly Blue, and Cat's Eye beside her. "Think of it: she is only now venting all of her frustrations because, in this world, violence is both the only question and the answer."

"And the answer is yes!" Eyeball added cheerfully.

"Ugh, these guys." Lapis groaned in disgust. "What'll it take for you just to give up already?"

"In all seriousness, even we're questioning our loyalty to Black Rutile right now." Holly Blue declared. "We're so sick of her complaining about her losing; we almost selected a superior leader to replace her!"

"But unfortunately, Black Rutile and his new friend had to come in and ruin our fun!" Cat's Eye declared dramatically and swooned into Holly Blue's arms. "Now we are well and truly lost!"

"I'll believe it when I see it, drama queen." Jasper scoffed in disbelief as everyone turned back to watch the fight with bated breath. The battle between Steven and Black Rutile had just gotten more intense than ever, escalating from a duel between rivals to a clash of warriors. But who would make it out of this fight alive was left to the viewers.

--

"What's wrong, boyo? Too scared to keep fighting?!" Black Rutile snarled viciously as she threw her bowie knife at Steven's eye, only for him to block it with his shield and accidentally injure a Slytherophidian in the audience. "Oh, I get it; you want to go easy on me because you think I'm just so scared and misunderstood!"

"I know what you're going through, Black Rutile. There was a time when I felt scared and alone, too!" Steven exclaimed as he continued fighting back. "Of course, that was half because you made me feel like everything I did was for nothing!"

"Everything you did was for nothing, you pink brat!" Black Rutile responded as she jumped into the air and tried attacking Steven from behind. However, something began to change within Steven in the seconds before she would land the finishing blow.

"You're really just going to stand there and let her kill you?" a familiar voice in Steven's head asked. "Do you give up? Will you abandon their hope? Can you not feel their desperation?" Steven's eyes lit up in shock as the world around him froze, the only ones moving being himself and a being who looked just like him, only more muscular with pink skin and his hair in a pompadour. "Will evil forever rule the universe? HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN?!"

"You again!" Steven yelled at Inner Steven, facing him. "What do you want with me now? What have I forgotten?"

"I'm asking if you've forgotten what it means to stand up for yourself." Inner Steven said, turning Steven around to face Black Rutile, ready to stab him in the back. "Tell me, my friend, are you ready to surrender and let a monster like her claim the victory she craved for so long?"

"But what if she isn't a monster?" Steven asked his darker half. "Fighting her has given me a whole new perspective on Black Rutile as a person. She feels so lost and alone, and it's all my fault. Maybe if she stopped trying to kill me for a minute, maybe we can finally talk things out!"

"Oh please, she's probably lying as always to play with your sympathy." Inner Steven shook his head in disgust before he got an idea. "As a matter of fact, why don't I take the wheel for a bit? I've been wanting some action for a long time now."

"Well, if that's what you want, then by all means," Steven sighed in resignation before stepping away to let Inner Steven take hold. "go get her, tiger."

"You're too kind, my little friend." Inner Steven grinned happily as time resumed to normal, and Black Rutile was about to stab Steven in the back. However, she was quickly met with Steven grabbing her sword by the blade, not caring about the injuries to his hand it would cause, before saying one word in a very deep voice. "FALL!"

Steven's increased volume sent Black Rutile flying back into the arena walls, creating a significant dent in the wall as the Slytherophidians gawked at Steven's sudden change. Not even the two hecklers had any wisecracks to make because of how shocking this was.

"W-what is this?" Black Rutile stuttered in shock at this new development. "Who are you?! Where is Steven?!"

"He's gone." Steven, now under the control of Inner Steven, declared as his body became a pink silhouette with glowing white eyes and a pair of shields in his hands.

"What did you just say?!" Black Rutile shouted. "Answer me!"

"He's GOOOOOOOOOOOOONE!" Steven boomed loud enough to create a shockwave that rocked the Ouraborium and the entire surrounding city, causing everybody inside to fall over from the sudden yell.

"Wait, this is just like when I removed his gem!" White exclaimed hopefully while the other Diamonds trembled in fear. "If this is anything like that time, then Black Rutile is toast!"

"Steven, you can't do that!" Black Rutile yelled angrily. "This victory is mine!" With an angry battle cry, the Rutile charged at Steven with her sword, ready to kill, only to be grabbed by the face and slammed into the ground. "What happened to you, Steven?! Why are you like this? Answer me, blast you!"

"This is what happens when I cut loose and show you how powerful I really am." Steven announced before picking Black Rutile up and throwing her to the sky before zipping towards the airborne Gem with superhuman speed and striking her with everything he's got. "ATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATA-OWATTA!"

"Make it stop, make it stop!" Black Rutile screeched as she felt every last bit of hatred Steven had for her with every attack. But no matter how much she wanted to, she could never poof from the amount of damage she was taking, almost as if Steven wanted her to suffer all the pain she wrought upon others.

As Black Rutile landed on the ground in a cloud of dust while Steven descended from the air, the only thing she could do now was plead for mercy. "No more, Steven Universe! Grant me mercy, I beg of you!"

"You, who are without mercy, now plead for it?" Steven scoffed in disgust at Black Rutile's attempted surrender. "I thought you were made of sterner stuff."

"That's what you think!" Black Rutile briefly regained her bravado and drew her sword, but Steven deflected the attack with his twin shields before grabbing the blade and twisting it into a corkscrew shape.

"No need to wonder where your god is, Black Rutile, for he is right here." Steven declared menacingly, his threat sending shivers down the audience's spines. "And he is fresh out of mercy."

"Oh, how cute, he thinks he's a-." Black Rutile chuckled before she realized what Steven was about to do. "OH SHIT!" With another punch to the face, Black Rutile skidded to the ground so hard she was almost buried within Serpentes's surface. As she burst one hand out of the arena's floor to pick herself back up, Steven stepped on her face, and Black Rutile was forced back into the hole.

"This is where you belong, Black Rutile. Under. My. Heel." Steven coldly declared as Black Rutile continued trying to escape. "Had enough yet?"

"You know what? I give up." Black Rutile said, causing Steven to stop stomping on her as she exited the hole and onto her knees. "Go ahead, kill me. Kill me now." Steven was silent, as if he was hesitating to put her down. "DO IT!"

"FINISH HER! FINISH HER! FINISH HER! FINISH HER!" the Slytherophidians chanted as they beckoned the empowered Steven to shatter Black Rutile just as Steven returned to his senses and realized what he had just done.

"No!" Steven boldly declared upon regaining his humanity. "I refuse to kill someone who's already dead inside as is!" The Slytherophidians gasped in shock at Steven's announcement, but unlike the last time something like this happened, where they made him the scourge of Serpentes, they were willing to hear him out this time. "Just look at Black Rutile here. She's lost everything. Her power, her status, even her dignity. Everything she's been through has reduced my opponent into a pathetic shell of her former self, and I do not think shattering her would grant her any kind of sweet release she would be looking for. Why kill her when she's already killed herself?"

"So that's it? You're sparing me?" Black Rutile muttered in disbelief before she immediately grabbed onto his pant leg like an upset child. "Why?! Why can't you shatter me already?! I've ruined your life, turned you against your friends, and turned the whole universe against you! Why can't you just hate me like I do?!"

"Because after hearing you vent your anger," Steven coldly responded. "nobody hates you more than yourself." On that last word, Steven left the humiliated Black Rutile to be gawked at by the shocked snake people like she was some kind of endangered species. Perhaps Steven was right. No one did hate Black Rutile more than herself. And this made her very worried.

"Uh, this was certainly an unexpected end to such an intense fight." King Cobralan announced as he tried to ease the tension thick enough to be cut with the sharpest swords in the universe. "How about we go to halftime then?!" The Slytherophidians all cheered at the suggestion while their fearless leader wiped the sweat off his brow. "Oh geez, I do not want to know how the Lapidarist will hear about this!"

"Hmph, pathetic." Nosiop scoffed in dismay at Black Rutile's meltdown as a pair of Slytherophidian guards took her away. Regardless of her performance, she was still needed for his plan to succeed, but Nosiop knew she would need to be taken off the board soon.

--

Minutes later, Black Rutile was left to wallow in shame in her personal quarters at the Ouraborium, utterly humiliated by her defeat and how Steven refused to kill her no matter how much she begged him to end her suffering. But no matter what she did, Steven refused to cave into the pressure of others and stuck true to his ideals. "I thought this time, just this once, I thought I was gonna get what I was fighting for."

"Hey, Black Rutile, remember me?" White Topaz said as she entered Black Rutile's quarters to comfort her old master despite how much she was abused in the past. "I just thought I'd stop by and see how you were doing. Man, Steven absolutely destroyed you back there, huh?"

"Don't remind me." Black Rutile sulked angrily as she turned away. "The nerve of that boy, thinking I was more like Pink Diamond than I realized, and how nobody hated me more than me. Can you believe him?! Always projecting his own issues onto others!"

"But it's true, you are like Pink Diamond!" White Topaz agreed with Steven's accusations. "You got everything you could ever want, yet you still think that isn't enough, so you decided to become an evil megalomaniac bent on conquering the universe because you think you'd be a much better leader than any of the Diamonds combined."

"Because that's what I built my identity on! Or at least I thought I did." Black Rutile stated. "Until I learned that everything I worked for was because White Diamond found my dreams of greatness funny. I swear on my gem, once I learn more about the Lapidarist, I will restore everything to its proper order, except that only I shall be made leader of all Gemkind!"

"Then you truly are lost." White Topaz declared sadly, having now lost all hope in helping Black Rutile make a change. "Goodbye, my Rutile."

As White Topaz turned away and left Black Rutile behind, her former superior could only cry out for her ex-bodyguard to come back. "Topaz, get back here at once! Topaz!" The doors shut behind White Topaz, leaving Black Rutile alone in her room. "TOPAZ!" She fruitlessly pounded on the door with tears in her eyes, desperately trying to get White Topaz's attention, but to no avail.

What once was a proud, arrogant conqueror with delusions of grandeur was now a broken, lonely shell of her former self. Thus continues the tragic tale of the life of Black Rutile.

--

"What was all that for?!" Steven yelled at Inner Steven in the meantime. "You could've gotten Black Rutile seriously hurt or worse!"

"It's the least she deserves after all she's done to you." Inner Steven firmly retorted while folding his metaphorical arms. "Let's see, lying to you and all your friends, attempting to kill you, gaslighting you into betraying your friends, attempting to destroy the Earth multiple times, shall I go on? Going easy on her just wouldn't be enough if you ask me. Consider yourself lucky you made it out with your mental health intact."

Just then, there was a knock at Steven's door. "We'll settle this later, Inner Me. I think someone wants to see me." Steven said to the personification of his darker impulses as he opened the door to find Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl beside King Cobralan. "Oh hey, guys. Sorry, I got you all worried back there."

"Nah, we're not talking about how you utterly creamed Black Rutile in your fight." Amethyst shook her head morosely.

"We're here because King Cobralan wants to speak with you about something." Garnet added before nodding to Pearl.

"So, Your Majesty, what did you want to say to him?" Pearl asked the Slytherophidian king.

"I wanted to tell Steven that it's time he learns the truth." King Cobralan said forebodingly.

--

In Loving Memory of David McCallum

September 19, 1933 – September 25, 2023

"So many different ways to tell a story, but that's what makes them so interesting. You can never predict how they're going to turn out."

-Professor Paradox, Ben 10 Omniverse: "And Then There Were Ben"

So ends quite possibly the longest chapter of Snake Eyes yet, and how fitting that it's the chapter marking the halfway point. From here on out, Black Rutile has turned into full tragic villain, we get more hints on her big scheme with Nosiop and Pyth, and next time, Steven learns the origins of the Gems we've all been waiting for. And I can assure you, it'll be one of the biggest bomb drops I've written not just for Alternate Future, but for any of my stories in general. See you then.

[xluxsolarisx]

hiiii <3 i'm lucy, she/her, ita goth girl & a doll, music, baking, fashion, and critical thinking enjoyer in love with life and it's cool that you're here! i'm over 18 and occasionally reblog or post nsfw content, so keep that in mind when following me. talk to me about monster high, chicago (2002), the rocky horror picture show, repo the genetic opera, carrie, i have no mouth and i must scream (short story, audioplay and game!), fashion (especially vintage goth/lolita fashion), the roaring twenties & the harlem renaissance, goth, psychobilly, rock, heavy metal, rap, hip hop, r&b, pop and electroswing music (especially voltaire, depeche mode, lycia, the frozen autumn, type o negative, lowlife, bauhaus, the scary bitches, siouxsie and the banshees, dead or alive, the cramps, radiacs, the plasmatics, bitch, girlschool, cycle sluts from hell, the misfits, dead kennedys, the ramones, mcr, halestorm, jimi hendrix, nine inch nails, rob zombie, tupac, kendrick lamar, megan thee stallion, digital underground, biggie smalls, missy elliot, eve, boys ii men, janet jackson, the pussycat dolls, caravan palace, annella, alice francis, jamie berry, marina & the diamonds, britney spears, gwen stefani, rihanna, pinkpantheress, dua lipa and everyone else in those veins) or anything else you'd think i'd like and i'll love you forever. shine brightly, and have a wonderful day!

[longeyelashedtragedy]

july 2023 favorites

it has been a really really r e a l l y weird month for my music listening lol

i’ve been listening to pink floyd albums on repeat for reasons hard to explain??  (dark side of the moon and wish you were here really) which i haven’t done since like...junior year of high school

especially 

money (also...the demo which is fascinating...it’s always interesting to think that songs exist in drafts as well and to learn how they got from start to finish especially when the demo is so different from the final version)

shine on you crazy diamond

comfortably numb (i went to school for the kids of rich former hippies and “the child is grown, the dream is gone” was on everyone’s yearbook pages lol...i feel like i didn’t Understand this song in high school the way i do now tho)

and young lust

es fugt sich again but more toward the beginning of the month

ramble on - led zeppelin 

wouldn’t it be nice - the beach boys (confession: never liked this song because of that stupid slowdown at the end until like...last month when it gave me certain franko and jamie jamie jamie Vibes for some reason don’t @ me!)

pyretta blaze - type o negative

sensoria - cabaret voltaire (my fav music video...lol)

blooming conductor medley - the string sisters

idk what else there was probably something

oh! i just heard this one yesterday: insomiac - memo boy/chakra efendi (a real throwback sound lol)

[mywifeleftme]

65: Young Marble Giants // Colossal Youth

Colossal Youth Young Marble Giants 1980, Rough Trade

When I went to the record shop today, it was with the intention of picking up some interesting-looking, relatively obscure record to review later this year, but ended up going home with a physical copy of Colossal Youth, an album I’ve heard a billion times. For my purposes, this was kind of dumb: lots of people have written about Young Marble Giants, and I agree with the consensus. (Consensus: Minimal, quiet, mysteriously perfect post-punk with mousy female vocals and no drums.) Not least among these writers is Simon Reynolds, whose detailed liner notes from this 2007 Domino reissue also appeared in his essential book on post-punk, Rip It Up and Start Again, that introduced me to YMG in the first place. He does a superb job of evoking the post-punk (and adjacent) scene of the day—let’s revel in the list of artists who earn mention in Reynolds’ write-up:

Public Image Ltd., Talking Heads, Gang of Four, Cabaret Voltaire, the Pop Group, Scritti Politti, Throbbing Gristle, The Slits, Pere Ubu, Brian Eno, A Certain Ratio, The Residents, Kraftwerk, Ultravox, Can, Reptile Ranch, Desperate Bicycles, Swell Maps, The Fall, The Raincoats, Essential Logic, This Heat, Red Crayola, Kleenex, Joy Division, New Order, Cocteau Twins, Everything But the Girl, Stiff Little Fingers, Carmel, The Style Council.

Probably you know all of those bands (excepting perhaps Reptile Ranch and Desperate Bicycles? Both worth your time!), but it goes a long way towards establishing what a unique black diamond of a record Colossal Youth was to have stood out among that crowd. And Young Marble Giants did stand out—as Reynolds points out, on the strength of that debut LP and a pair of scant EPs Young Marble Giants immediately became Rough Trade’s second highest-selling act of 1980–81, behind only Stiff Little Fingers. The reaction to the 2007 reissue was similarly rapturous.

Let’s revel too in Reynolds’ use of language to describe them, the kind of ecstatic ekphrasis that has always excited me in rock writing:

“The individual songs have something of the ‘rightness’ of things found in nature—leaves, snowflakes, pebbles, sea-shells—that are at once miraculous and yet commonplace, marvelous and unassuming.” “…like an old fashioned pocket watch with its casing open to reveal the moving parts, the Young Marble Giants sound would be pared and bare, its meshwork of cogs and spindles exposed in all its intricate distinctness.” “…a feel that was dynamic and propulsive yet curiously suppressed, subdued, even furtive.” “The brothers’ instruments wound tight around each other like fibres twinning into yarn.” “[Allison] Statton sang with a plaintive simplicity and cool pallor of tone that bypassed all the mannered drama of the singerly arts.” “…the sheer emaciation of the sound…”

That’s the kind of writing I can read for ages, analysis that is gestural, pushing at the connotative possibilities of language to compass a pleasure as physical as it is intellectual—really, it’s generous they threw a pretty good record in with the liners. As to why I came home with this and not any of the dozens of other albums I held up for a squint and a sniff, it comes down to a certain satisfaction in finally sliding a record onto the shelf that I always knew I would eventually own. Young Marble Giants have a historical compactness to match their miniaturist sound. I suppose the real pleasure is in owning such a perfectly small and self-completed thing.

65/365

[kristabella]

Snuffbox

1775-1780 (made)

This box forms part of the group of snuffboxes associated with Frederick the Great of Prussia, who was a cultivated admirer of the arts. He maintained a lengthy, although sometimes heated, correspondence with the French philosopher Voltaire and was a gifted musician, composer and linguist. He had a passion for gold boxes, some of which he may have designed himself. He carried a box at all times; one is even said to have saved his life by deflecting a bullet during the battle of Kunersdorf in 1759.

Although the goldsmith who made the box is unknown, it is modelled on a design by Jean Guillaume George Krüger. Krüger was a London-born artist who was summoned to Berlin in 1753. Twenty designs for snuffboxes survive, all apparently made before the period around 1774 which he spent working in Paris.

Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.

Cartouche-shaped snuffbox comprised of seventeen panels of bloodstone mounted in a cagework of gold and set with a profusion of diamonds, some of which are coloured yellow and others foiled. The cover is set with a vase, coloured to resemble porphyry, in which is set a bouquet of stylised flowers comprised of emeralds, rubies and diamonds, with smaller flowers. This is bordered by diamonds set in gold and sprigs of flowers. The walls of the box are divided into six reserves set with sprays of flowers. The base is encrusted in a similar fashion with a smaller bouquet of cut flowers.

Depth: 7.3cm

Width: 9.5cm

Height: 5.4cm

Weight: 360g

The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London

[characternerdocs]

Tagged by: @icybreaths

Name: Eri Lorewright, you can refer to me as either! (or Eeri, like Eerie, Lol)

Star Sign: Cancer ♋

Height: 5' 7

Middle name: [REDACTED] cause I’m uncomfy revealing it as it’s really gendered, and I’d like to be a non-binary enigma.

Put your itunes/spotify/youtube on shuffle. What are the first 6 songs that popped up?

This is Home - Cavetown

Lonely Dance- Set it Off

Everything at Once - Lenka

Bubblegum Bitch - Marinana & the Diamonds

Poison Within from Headless 

Kill the Beast by Aurelio Voltaire

Ever had a poem or song written about you: Not that I am aware

When was the last time you played air guitar: Prolly a week, two weeks ago. And most definitely to Pick up the Pace by The Play Plays

Who is your celebrity crush?: Less of a crush, more gender envy for Scott Shpeley. He is the singer in the Play Plays and plays Edgar Allan in Catalyst’s musical Nevermore

What’s a sound you hate; sound you love?: Velcro, the hate the ripping sound. It makes my spin itchy. I love the sound of keys hitting against one another

Do you believe in ghosts?: Yes, though I don’t feel like I have any legit experiences. Others that I know have some stories. Other than that though I think building I work in is haunted. I repeatedly have the feeling someone was walked into the room while my back’s to the door, but when I look, no one is there.

How about aliens: Yeah, I figure if we can exist on our planet, why can’t other life exist on another planet?

Do you drive?: Yes, and once I was even licensed to drive a forklift!

If so have you ever crashed: Thankfully not.

What was the last book you read?: The Drowning Girls, it’s actually a play though by Beth Graham and Daniela Vlaskalic

Do you like the smell of gasoline: Eeh... sorta?

What was the last movie you saw?: 7 Women and a Murder

What’s the worst injury you’ve ever had?: I don’t know. Mostly it’s all minor stupid things. Like once I crushed a cone incense with my thumb only to find it had just burned out and severely burn my finger. I was trying to declog the dermal we use at work to 3-hole punch paper when it slipped and I punched a perfect circle into my index and thumb.

Do you have any obsessions right now?: Yes, It’s the Nevermore musical. I Love EVERYTHING ABOUT IT! I cannot rationally explain it. but the costumes and props being made primary out of masking tape, sticks, and landscaping fabric give Catalyst’s production such a unique and darkly quirky feel. It’s a part fact, part fiction telling of Edgar Allan Poe’s life birth to death, using lines and themes from his own stories and poems as the lyrics and lines. Which as a life time Poe fan myself is a fun little easter egg hunt to identify what is being referenced. The music is SO powerful, it just rattles round in my head all the time now, especially Dream within a Dream.  The setup and narrative style of the show had once of the best pay off I could have imagined; no spoilers but it was great. The cast is FANTASTIC! I love Scott Shpeley and I want to be his version of Poe, because honestly Nevermore’s Poe is just Goth boy Heath and I love that. But also I love Beth Graham, who yes wrote the play the Drowning Girls, but she is super funny and a great character actor. She plays three roles in Nevermore, including Fanny Allan, who I love, best mom. But Beth Graham does a great job of giving all three of her characters distinct voices. Love love love. The amount of love and creativity that has gone into this show is incredible. And I know that my passion and love for this show is crossing the line into unhinged, but E. A. Poe said it best, “I was never really insane except upon occasions when my heart was touched.”