#we lost a legend fellas

[silverdewwy]

woke up today and found out violet flowergarden passed?? what the hell rest in peace vi

[karioke13]

[deitripper]

I was one of the Chilean winners to meet Paul McCartney and go to his soundcheck. My experience.

Well fellas, it's been a long time since i posted here and what can i say, i just wanted to give u the good news! As u read it, i had the chance (next to other people, 9 great fellow fans) to hug paul and share few minutes with him (As i write this all what i experienced feels unreal) I'm the one wearing the sgt pepper's suit btw!

I don't remember too much about the whole day, but the soundcheck was AMAZING, he played temporary secretary, mrs Vanderbilt, Let em in and Coming up!!it was CRAZY. Bf the soundcheck was over we were taken to another place in the stadium where we waited few minutes, and we talked with Stuart Bell (((((i joked a bit with him about he having the dream job and the possibility of k1ll1ng someone to be part of Paul's team and he told me 'HOW!? IT WAS A SECRET I TOLD U! ))))😂 Stuart is Paul's tour manager and we met his photographer and cameraman.

To be brief, let's jump right into meeting Paul, where do i start??? HE'S THE MOST ADORABLE MAN EVER, as soon as i saw him my eyes turned into waterfalls, my heart skipped a beat and all the memories of me binge watching videos and interviews of The Beatles crashed in my head. He greeted all the other winners and i didn't notice i was almost the last one, i was so shocked, too paralyzed to even say something, other winners told me Paul said something like 'Oh darling come on' and i just went slowly as i could to be near him and get a hug. I swear won't forget that moment. I HUGGED A BEATLE LIKE WHAAAAAATTT THE ACTUALLL HECKKK!!!! He share few words with everyone while the cameraman recorded everything. I feel that we were with him like 5 minutes but they -believe when i tell you- FELT LIKE 2 SECONDS. Then we took an official photo with Paul (which i'm kinda sad to receive bc i know my sgt peppers suit was totally hide behind two other girls who won, but hey, i'm in the same pic with Paul and that's enough!!) and lastly i had the chance to show him a bit of my work, i ordered some badges and stickers with my Beatle illustrations that i put on my suit and explained him stuff that i can't remember right now :'( But this is what finally made me lost my mind (internally bc for everyone is was just crying) LISTEN LISTEN, HE SAID MY WORK WAS """IMPRESSIVE""" AND HE TOUCHED THE STICKER WITH THE JOHN LENNON PORTRAIT I HAD ON THE SUIT, HE- TOUCHED- ONE- OF- MY- PORTRAITS AND HE RECOGNIZED THAT IT WAS JOHN READING SPANIARD IN THE WORKS. FFS, as i write this i start to sob. Then in a rush we sang the spanish version of 'Besame Mucho" a.k.a Cha Cha Boom song 😂 and then we all said goodbye as we could, waving, screaming, and in my case, crying hard af.

I really really hope to have a chance too see him in concert again, i know that the chance to be THAT near to him again, a literally walking legend, is almost impossible (as impossible as it feel the first time) i know i'm a lucky girl, and my life changed just having the chance to be in the same room with him. I won't be over this, there's now way this feels less exciting over the years. I was one of the few people that had the opportunity to be to his side -even if it was for a minute- and nothing is going to change that.

I have big dreams ahead, and i hope i'm able to accomplish every one of them. After hugging Paul everything feels possible.

If you like my art, know that i feel more inspired than ever before and i hope u can follow me on this journey🩷

Love, Dei.🩷

Ps, all the winners and i are expecting the video of everything, so as soon i as get it i'll try to share all the bits where i'm interacting with Paul (i hope with my soul that our hug is recorded and that his team doesn't cut that while editing the clips)

[middlingmay]

German Gale AU Part 5

Links to Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

The story of John’s return becomes something of a legend around Thorpe Abbotts.

Downed and presumed dead, he comes storming back onto base, interrupting a meeting between the brass without a single ounce of shame or hesitation, and demands a favour from a Colonel who barely knew him before he was shot down.

When they hear what happened, they immediately pull Bucky into interrogation, but he kicks up a storm, refuses to say anything to anyone until they find out what happened to Gale. Says they can go ahead and throw him in lock up when they’re desperate for good pilots in the middle of the war, but he won’t fuckin’ budge.

Harding had heard of Egan from Huglin, and none of it had been complimentary. But after he went down, the men shared stories which painted a much different picture: a man quick with a joke, a drink, and a good time. He knew how to lift spirits. He had the backs of all the men in the 100th that he could, even against COs (a likely reason for the poor reports from Huglin).

So he’s kind of taken a liking to Egan before he meets the man. But when Egan barges in demanding a favour with all the authority of a Colonel, it’s pretty much confirmed.

He has a friend in the Office of Strategic Services, who has a friend in the British Special Operations Executive. And Harding calls a favour in up the train. But he only gets so far before a door is firmly snapped shut in his face.

“What do you mean to OSS have him? What, like in prison?”

There’s something mildly hysterical to Egan’s tone, and something sharp in his eyes, and Harding has to hasten to reassure him that if Gale was in prison, they would have just told him.

“It’s far more likely they’ve recruited him,” he assures Egan. “But it’s not like they’ll confirm that either way.”

That doesn’t make it better.

“You mean they’ll fucking send him back?!”

Harding allows the slip, just once, because he doesn’t know what Egan went through when he went down but the docs had told him that Egan bore some nasty marks of one hell of a beating.

“Major Egan!” It’s the most reluctant stand to attention he’s ever received. “There’s nothing you, me, or even my superiors can do. Other than do the job we came here to do. Am I clear?”

There are several beats of silence, and then: “Yes, sir.”

In the absence of John Brady (and Benny and Crank and Murph and Ham and so many more), Crosby and Rosie become a bit of a lifeline for him. Crosby, well used to his moods and highs and lows, reads him like a book and helps direct his energies to where they’re needed.

Rosie however is the one who keeps him from delving too deeply into the bottle. He likes long talks and aimless walks and appreciates things like sunsets and flowers. When all John wants to do is bite and bark and drink until he passes out, Rosie is placid and implacable. And when John gets the look in his eye like he’s finally about to push back against this relative stranger, Rosie reminds him that he flew Munster. And John is not alone in surviving when so much else was lost.

Out of all of them, Ken is the most excited to see him. He orders the ground crew to pay special attention to John’s new fort, oversees the final checks himself, and hovers at John’s shoulder when he inspects her.

When John tells him he’s certain the bird won’t be the reason he goes down again, Ken beams and slaps him on the shoulder before running off.

They’re accompanied by the fighters now, and their losses int he air reduce dramatically, and John tries not to get too furious about it, about the fact it took them so long to decide they’re worth protecting.

They drop bombs and hit targets, and the months drag on, and John never forgets about a blonde haired, blue-eyed German fella who looks like he belongs in the movies, but risked everything to get him back on friendly soil. On the worse days, not even Rosie and Crosby can pull him away from his quart of whiskey.

One day after more than a quart, John is nursing a rather brutal hangover when his name is yelled during mail call.

He thinks it’s a mistake but a very slim letter with precise script is placed down in front of him.

It’s not writing he recognises. He opens it.

John. A friend told me where I could find you. I hope you can forgive the delay in writing to you. Unfortunately, I’m travelling at the moment, so I have no return address. But I just wanted to let you know I’m still thinking of you, and I hope we will see each other again, when everything ends. With affection, Gail.

John buries his face in that letter. He sleeps with it under his pillow at night and keeps it in a pocket close to his heart during the day. He reads it over and over and the guys tease him over his secret girl he’s never said a word about.

“Tell us about her, Bucky!” They jeer. “Yeah, tell us!”

So he tells them about a long-legged, blonde beauty. With eyes like the morning sky, full lips, and a waist a fella just wanted to grab. He tells them about a heart as big as a B-17—bigger—and a brave woman who stands up for what she believes in. And who helps others when she can.

“She sounds like a keeper, sir!”

It makes John smile sad and rueful. “Yeah, she does.”

[between-the-pages-ofa-book]

1989 Ranking

Is It Over Now?: You dream of my mouth before it called you a lying traitor

Clean: Just because you're clean don't mean you don't miss it

Say Don't Go: Why'd you have to twist the knife?

Out of the Woods: The monsters turned out to be just trees

Blank Space: Darling, I'm a nightmare dressed like a daydream

How You Get the Girl: Remind me how it used to be; pictures in frames, of kisses on cheeks

All You Had To Do Was Stay: People like me are gone forever when you say goodbye

I Wish You Would: We're a crooked love in a straight line down

Now That We Don't Talk: Remind myself the more I gave, you'd want me less

Slut!: In a world of boys, he's a gentleman

Wildest Dreams: Someday, when you leave me, I'll bet these memories follow you around

Style: When we go crashing down, we come back every time

I Know Places: Loose lips sink ships all the damn time

Suburban Legends: And you kissed me in a way that's gonna screw me up forever

You Are In Love: And you understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars and why I've spent my whole life trying to put it into words

Wonderland: You searched the world for something else to make you feel like what we had

This Love: In losing grip, on sinking ships, you showed up just in time

New Romantics: Cause baby, I could build a castle out of all the bricks they threw at me

Bad Blood: Band-aids don't fix bullet holes

Shake It Off: And to the fella over there with the hella good hair, won't you come on over baby, we can shake, shake, shake

Welcome To New York: Took our broken hearts, put them in a drawer

[callgespenst]

It wasn't a hugely eventful convention or anything but I should probably still write up my Matsuricon 2024 report.

Thursday: Had a friend stay over at my place for the weekend. Pregamed the con by watching a few more episodes of Legend of the Galactic Heroes.

Friday: Cosplayed Soujyurou from Mahoyo, made the jacket and safety pinned my Robin plush to my shoulder. Showed up, grabbed my badge, ran our Lupin III panel for the first time in...four and a half years? Went out into the hallway to chat with people who attended the panel. Then suddenly it was four hours later and we went home.

Saturday: Went home early on Friday to be awake and in a panel room at 8 AM on Saturday to talk about robots for two hours. Midway through the 90s we realized that, despite getting the longest possible timeslot, we were still almost out of time, and had to blast through the last three decades. Haven't done that panel in a while either (haven't done too many panels in general since the pandemic).

Got lunch and looked around the dealer's hall for a bit. I got a rubber charm of Bocchi (of Rock) from a gachapon machine. Not a whole lot else I was interested in, but that's objectively a good thing. Then it was off to the YGO tournament!

I'd revamped my deck (again) because I had made a few key realizations. First, I don't know my opponents' decks well enough to effectively use hand traps to shut down a combo. Second, many modern decks are relatively unprepared to handle a board-clearing spell. Monster effects are simple to negate and counter with a full board. But spells, maybe not. And third, and this one is the most critical part: having a balanced deck of 50/50 monsters/spells and traps no longer matters. I was taking out a bunch of monsters that would never, ever actually be played to the field, their only point in my deck was to be discarded as a counter; to switch in three copies of Raigeki, three Dark Holes, and two Lightning Storms.

It wasn't a huge tourney, there were eleven other players, for what would end up being three rounds of single elimination. My first game, I played a guy who had some kinda deck full of Dinosaurs and counter trap cards. It was an interesting playstyle I hadn't seen before, but I won that 2-0. Second game, Kashtira. Won the first duel, lost the second, won the third. Third and final game, which I sure didn't expect to get to the finals, was vs Ancient Gears, another deck that prefers to go second. Lost the first game, won the second, and I might have been able to win the third if I hadn't let myself get psyched out. But I'm still pretty pleased with my performance, considering I've lost just about every other match I've played with my new deck 0-2.

The second place prize was a bunch of tournament packs, and first place was as well, plus a free badge for next year. The first place winner let me have his pack pulls, which was nice, I'm still building back up a selection of trades to have available. I didn't really need a free badge for next year anyway since I'm planning on paneling again, and my opponent getting a free badge means we can rematch next year! So honestly, I'm kinda glad I got second.

Also while everyone waited for the tourney to start, everyone was ribbing on one guy for his very expensive deck he was keeping in the world's most basic $3 deckbox, so that was entertaining. Reminded me of the fellas I used to play YGO with at the local library, where there was always some friendly banter back and forth.

After that I hung out with a few more friends, played some Melty Blood, and went home.

Sunday: The traditional day at a con where I play mahjong with the homies until we pack up and go home. I got in one whole game before we took all the tables back to our organizer's car (that took half an hour to find). That wrapped up the event and then I got home and conked out early Sunday evening and most of Monday too. I didn't even do a whole lot of running around or anything, I was just tired.

Also my last few conventions have been so overwhelmingly positive on the whole that I forgot that these events are also frequented by people who are weird in not-fun ways. That last mahjong game, had a fella start spouting off about he hates being referred to as cis, despite being a cis hetero male. I hit him with the "I hate the cis because they are led by the treacherous Count Dooku" and that worked surprisingly well at changing the subject, but it was still, terribly awkward there for a second, especially when another of our club's regulars at the same table is one of the most Gender individuals I know.

Anyway that's probably my last anime con for the year, but there's a new event coming to the area in April I think I'll hit up, excited to see what that's like.

[sayhwaet]

[ Gossip ] there exists about this man a quality that eludes odin: an aura dangerously bold, a presence ensnaring. and yet, he seems to garner favor frequently—the mage has lost count of those who flit by the stranger's side.

he corrects himself. beowolf. odin has heard of this knight, the name thrown about frequently tonight. it stokes him with a flicker of envy, for it is a name of grandeur, something straight out of the annals of epic and legend.

odin observes him a while longer before deciding to seize fate with his own hands. he advances with a swagger, donning a mask of amiable composure as he approaches. "hoy there, brave knight!"

a hand extends in greeting before creeping across his face. "beowolf. your name hath made the rounds, falling upon mine chosen ear. know that we are both warriors, though divergent in our chosen paths, for i am tethered to the shadows." odin scrutinizes him, a hint of disquiet knitting his brow. "pray tell, which adversary has wrought such havoc upon you? what tempestuous battle has left thee so...bared, chest to the wind, in a place like this?"

Oh, he'd heard of this fella.

Or rather, had heard him, plain and outright - there were plenty'a flashy folks at the monastery, but surprisingly few who shouted so damn much.

"Hoy hoy!" Beowolf greeted in kind, tipping into a jaunty bow, before rising and cocking a salute, "Masterful, er, maelstrom. Hah, ain't a man o' words like yer fine self, hoping you'll pardon. You seem t'know me a sight better than I know you - you an instructor for this joint?"

Tethered to the shadows indeed - flamboyant as a bird in flight, wasn't he? Beowolf had to admit he was liking this guy. There was a touch of humor to him, but he mostly seethed sincerity, in spite of his slightly-left-of-center behavior.

"Y'mean this?" Fingers flicked disdainfully at the neckerchief, before he grinned and tugged the hood of that little mouse's capelet up over his head. "Or this? Ain't no foes here - only friends, hey? Sweet kids, the lot, ain't they? Though you don't seem like you can speak much about a bare chest, can ya?"

His grin was pointed, and he slapped a hand on the other man's shoulder.

[interstellarwizard2019]

The Legend of The Ancient Cookies the Musical: Act 1, Scene 2, 3 & 4: Hollyberry Kingdom

Yeah...this is where things start to get crazier and where OOC-ness really amps up.

Enjoy~

Scene 2: Hollyberry kingdom. A vibrant jungle biome sprawling with every type of berries and jellies imaginable. A massive party was taking place and many highly inebriated revelers were dancing around, drinking, and just being overall disorderly.

[Enter GINGERBRAVE, STRAWBERRY, and PURE VANILLA looking on completely baffled by the sight.]

Gingerbrave : Is this really the Hollyberry Kingdom?

Pure Vanilla: Eeyup!

Strawberry: I never thought that an ancient hero’s kingdom would be so…lively. It’s like a massive party’s going on here everyday!

Pure Vanilla: Well…Hollyberry did like a good party, but I don’t think she ever partied this hard; I can’t even see her!

Gingerbrave: Let’s ask around to see if anyone knows where she is!

[GINGERBRAVE, STRAWBERRY, and PURE VANILLA approach the nearest drunkards to them]

Strawberry: Um…Excuse me, sir. But do you know where we can find Queen Hollyberry?

Drunkard 1: Hollyberry? -Giggles- haven’t seen her in years! Guess she couldn’t handle the pressures of being Queen anymore!

Gingerbrave: Do you know where we can find Queen Hollyberry?

Drunkard 2: Nope! Haven’t heard a peep outta her! Not since she accidentally lost one of her granddaughters while she was babysitting them!

[STRAWBERRY & GINGERBRAVE gasped]

Pure Vanilla: What?! B-But Hollyberry would never do such a thing! She’s never been so…so reckless! Please we need to find her urgently!

Drunkard 3: Sorry, magic cookie. Don’t know where she is! She’s probably too drunk to care about anything anyways! But ya might wanna ask that real buff cookie over there, pretty sure he was once her Bodyguard or somethin’.

[Enter WILDBERRY, holding up a clipboard in one hand and carrying a passed out drunk in the other. The drunk cookies stopped what they were doing then he entered.]

Wildberry: Okay everyone one, last call! You all know the drill! Pack it up! Also, someone get this poor fella a cup of water and some food to sober up.

[WILDBERRY tosses the unconscious cookie to one of the drunkards and the partygoers flee the stage. PURE VANILLA approached him cautiously, GINGERBRAVE and STRAWBERRY hid behind his shoulders in fear.]

Strawberry: Um, Excuse us, sir. But do you know where Queen Hollyberry is?

Wildberry: I’m sorry, but I cannot tell you of her highness’s current whereabouts. For I, Wildberry Cookie have made it my sworn duty to defend the remaining members of the royal Hollyberry family! Only those worthy can speak to her.

Pure Vanilla: But we need to speak to her urgently! We’re on a mission to reunite all of the ancient cookies to save everyone!

[WILDBERRY pulls up his clipboard and flips through a few pages]

Wildberry: And your names would be…?

Gingerbrave: Gingerbrave!

Wildberry: Nope! Not here.

Strawberry: Strawberry!

Wildberry: Sorry, but you're not on here either.

Pure Vanilla: Pure Vanilla Cookie!

[Wildberry paused and dropped his clipboard as he looked at Pure Vanilla in disbelief.]

Wildberry: Pure…Vanilla Cookie? THE Pure Vanilla Cookie?

Gingerbrave, Strawberry & Pure Vanilla: Yes!

Wildberry: I’ve heard of many great deeds you’ve done for our land from Queen Hollyberry…from the rare times she’s actually sober…There is none more worthy to see her than you. However, if you plan on bringing your companions as well, then they need to pass a test first.

Strawberry: Sure! What do we need to do?

Gingerbrave: We’re ready for anything!

[WILDBERRY clears his throat.]

Wildberry: The test is simple; it’s a sonar endurance test.

[WILDBERRY turns to the group and lets out an ear piercing screech for approximately 10 seconds.]

Wildberry: Very well, you can find her in a pub inside a nearby cave in the jungle. But be warned, many Cookievourus beasts lurk in there, many of which will gobble you up in a single bite!

[STRAWBERRY & GINGERBRAVE gasped and quivered in fear.]

Strawberry: Cookievourus beasts?!

Gingerbrave: That could gobble us up in a single bite?!

Pure Vanilla: My friends, don’t be afraid! As long as we have each other, we can survive anything the jungle throws at us!

Strawberry: But what if something tries to eat us?!

Pure Vanilla: Not to worry! The light of truth will keep us safe. Now, onwards! To find Hollyberry!

Gingerbrave & Strawberry: To find Hollyberry!

[The trio marched off into the jungle. Exit stage left.]

Scene 3: Cranberry jungle, an untamed rainforest filled with Cookievourus plants, the eyes of hungry animals hiding in bushes, and a massive cave with two openings.

[Enter PURE VANILLA  along with GINGERBRAVE and STRAWBERRY, both of whom were hiding behind the ancient cookie.]

Strawberry: Th-This place is scary!

Gingerbrave: I wanna go home!

Pure Vanilla: Be brave, my friends. There is nothing in this jungle that we can’t hand-AAH!!!

[PURE VANILLA screamed when a rabid Tiger Lily Cookie hopped out of a bush. The group moved away from her only for a sabertooth butter tiger to jump from a different bush causing them to yelp in fear, finally when they moved away again a Cookievourus plant springs out from the ground making them scream again. They run to the first cave entrance holding onto each other while trembling.]

Strawberry: M-Maybe we should be afraid!

Gingerbrave: Hey look, a cave! That must be the one Wildberry cookie told us about!

Pure Vanilla: Then that means Hollyberry is in there!

Strawberry: I don’t know, guys. This cave feels…wrong. Like something bad is in there waiting for us in there!

Gingerbrave: But we’ve been walking around for HOURS, This has to be it! FOR EARTHBREAD!!!

[GINGERBRAVE rushes past his friends and runs into the first cave opening.]

Strawberry: No wait! Gingerbrave, come back!

Pure Vanilla: It’s dangerous to go alone! Wait for us!

[STRAWBERRY & PURE VANILLA run inside the cave to catch up to GINGERBRAVE. After a few seconds, the lights begin to flash like thunder, animalistic roars and screeches came from the cave along with the horrified screams of the cookies. One by one they ran in and out of both ends of the cave screaming and occasionally covered in bugs, snakes, or even rats. Finally, PURE VANILLA trips on a rock in front of the cave causing GINGERBRAVE and STRAWBERRY to fall on top of him. All three actors were exhausted and terrified from the whole ordeal, but they did not notice WHITE LILY when she exited the cave with them.]

Gingerbrave: O-Okay, th-that was definitely Not the right cave!

Pure Vanilla: Maybe it’s somewhere else then.

[The three actors slowly get up and dust themselves off STRAWBERRY points at WHITE LILY.]

Strawberry: Um, guys? Who is that?

[PURE VANILLA & GINGERBRAVE turn to look at WHITE LILY. Suddenly all three of them scream at the top of their lungs, WHITE LILY starts to scream too.]

White Lily: Why are we screaming?!

[They all stop screaming.]

Strawberry: Wh-Who are you?!

White Lily: I don’t know! I can’t remember anything! I’m not even sure how I got here! Where…is here anyway?

Pure Vanilla: Wait…White Lily Cookie? Is that…Is that really you?!

White Lily: White…Lily…Cookie? White Lily Cookie! That’s my name! I’m White Lily!

Pure Vanilla: You remembered again! I’m so happy to see you again, White Lily!

White Lily: And I’m happy to see you too, Ice Cream Cookie!

Pure Vanilla: It’s Pure Vanilla Cookie, silly!

White Lily: Pure Vanilla Cookie! When did you get here?

Pure Vanilla: Oh dear…you're a bit more forgetful than you used to be…

Gingerbrave: White Lily, do you know where we can find Hollyberry Cookie? We need to reunite all five Ancient cookies to save earthbread! 

Strawberry: And we’re lucky to have found you all the way out here!

White Lily: Hollyberry? Hmm…Hollyberry Cookie…

Pure Vanilla: Y’know, The buff cookie with pink buns!

White Lily: Ooh! Hollyberry Cookie! I remember her! I think I know where she might be; follow me!

[WHITE LILY leads the group back into the cave, they hesitate for a bit but quickly walk back inside. Another roar sends them running out the other end screaming.]

Scene 4: The heart of the cranberry jungle, there is a cave with a pub inside of it. Colorful lights were strewn about, several tables have been set and filled to the brim with empty cups, the sound of drinking songs and laughter could be heard coming from inside the pub.

[PURE VANILLA, WHITE LILY, STRAWBERRY, and GINGERBRAVE enter the scene completely exhausted from running.]

White Lily: We’re here!!!

Pure Vanilla: Phew! This…This must be the right cave! But then where’s Hollybe-

[Suddenly, a random cookie got thrown out of the pub’s window, accidentally shattering the glass.]

Bartender: That’s it! Last call was at 8 but for you lot it’s now!!!

[A crowd of drunk cookies rush out of the pub laughing and carrying kegs of juice and a juice funnel. Finally, HOLLYBERRY gets pushed out by the bartender hiccuping and laughing to herself.]

Bartender: That’s enough berry juice for you! Seriously, I can’t afford to keep replacing that window, every time you start a brawl!

Hollyberry: Whaaaat? He tried to take my drink, he had it coming!

[the bartender shoved her down the steps, HOLLYBERRY almost tumbled down the platforms but managed to catch herself with the railing. She then proceeds to shug what’s left of her drink and then smash the container on the ground.]

Hollyberry: Ah, screw you! You’re no fun anyways! 

[HOLLYBERRY turned to the drunk cookies and took one of the drinks they were holding and chugged it down without a second thought.]

Hollyberry: Anyways, let’s not let that curmudgeon ruin the party, shall we?

[The crowd of cookies cheered and started to party once more, the music began to play again and HOLLYBERRY began to dance around in ballet while the other drunks clapped to the rhythm of the music, she twirled around the round the party area hopping on top of one table to another, doing cartwheels over the railing and even doing a keg stand which caused her skirt to fall over her head and expose her bloomers. Finally, her hand slipped and she fell onto a wooden table and broke it in half. PURE VANILLA  gasped and ran over to her.]

Pure Vanilla: Hollyberry Cookie! A-Are you alright?!

[HOLLYBERRY laughed as she sat up and dusted herself off.]

Hollyberry: Ah, don’t worry about me, I’ve been through much worse than that! Wait a minute…Pure Vanilla Cookie…? Is that…Is that really you!?

Pure Vanilla: As real as sugar cubes!

White Lily: And I’m real too!

Hollyberry: My old friends! It’s so good to see you two again!

[WHITE LILY and PURE VANILLA pulled HOLLYBERRY back onto her feet. STRAWBERRY and GINGERBRAVE bow down to her.]

Gingerbrave: Queen Hollyberry Cookie, what are you doing aaaaaall the way out here so far away from your kingdom?

Hollyberry: Isn’t it obvious? To PARTY!!! A Queen’s gotta live it up from time to time!

Bartender: Psh! More like running from your job! Honey, you’ve been in this jungle for YEARS! At this point, you’re the Queen of beer guts and liver damage!

Hollyberry: Shush up! No one asked you, barkeep!

Strawberry: Queen Hollyberry, you’ve been here for YEARS?! Why haven’t you gone back to the palace? Don’t you miss your family?

Hollyberry: No not really, they probably don’t miss me either. There’s not much reason for me to go back home anyways. From what I heard; they’ve been taking amazing care of everything since I left!

Gingerbrave: But there’s been nothing but non-stop partying ever since we came here! 

Strawberry: Surely there’s more to this kingdom than just parties!

Hollyberry: Well, if there is then I don’t know it.

[PURE VANILLA pondered for a moment and suddenly came up with an idea.]

Pure Vanilla: Say, you still like a good brawl right, Holly? You were one of the best fighters in Crispia!

Hollyberry: Heh, still am! I can still send that silly pink dragon crying back home!

Pure Vanilla: Then how about you help us fight for earthbread? You’ll get to kick loads of a-I mean, butt!

Hollyberry: I’m not sure…I am quite happy with the party cookies in the heart of this jungle!

Strawberry: You’ll get to drink as much berry juice as you like if we win!

Hollyberry: Really?! Then in that case-

Raspberry: Not so fast!

[The group turned their attention to a horse drawn carriage that was steadily approaching them and from it, RASPBERRY jumped out wielding her sword]

Raspberry: Queen Hollyberry, your endless carousing have dishonored the Hollyberry kingdom and sent its denizens into a life of endless debauchery and indulgence! So I, RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRaspberry Cookie of house RRRRRRRRRRRRRaspberry have come to set things RRRRRRRRRRRight!

[HOLLYBERRY cracks open another drink and drinks it in one sip.]

Hollyberry: I take it that you wanna fight me, yes?

Raspberry: For the sake of this kingdom, yes! Your endless carousing has plunged this land into an endless cycle of partying, you’ve neglected your duties as our Queen for decades! You abandoned your family and left them to deal with Pitaya Dragon Cookie’s wrath alone! What do you have to say for yourself?!

Hollyberry: Calm down, would ya? You’re making it sound worse than it is!

Raspberry: Oh, that’s it! Time to duel! Engarde! *She pulls out her sword and gets into a fighting stance.* 

[RASPBERRY begins preparing to attack HOLLYBERRY by doing over-dramatic basic fencing techniques while shouting catchphrases at her. When it’s finally HOLLYBERRY’s turn, she simply struck the top of her head with her shield. RASPBERRY dramatically falls down in defeat while HOLLYBERRY raises her shield in victory as the drunken cookies cheer for her.]

Hollyberry: Ah ha! Success! Victory once again belongs to Holly-*burp*-berry!

[PURE VANILLA cautiously approached HOLLYBERRY and coyly cleared his throat.]

Pure Vanilla: Hollyberry Cookie, will you help us fi-

[a mighty roar emanated from the jungle, the drunken partiers ran off in fear as a massive dragon’s shadow loomed over them. HOLLYBERRY readied her shield while her friends cowered behind her.]

Strawberry: Wh-What was that?! A beast? A monster?!

Hollyberry: No…an old foe…

[The dragon loomed over the group, inching ever closer to them. HOLLYBERRY reddied herself and wielded her shield as a weapon, she swung it at the shadow, revealing a tiny baby dragon that roared at HOLLYBERRY and attempted to charge at her only to be knocked away and sent crying when HOLLYBERRY spooked it with a loud “BOO!”]

Hollyberry: Heh, that oughta show ‘em!

[GINGERBRAVE slowly approached her]

Gingerbrave: So…wanna help us fight?

Hollyberry: Eh, sure, why not?

Strawberry: Yay!

Gingerbrave: Hurray! We’re one step closer to saving everyone!

White Lily: So…we only need to find King Cacao Bean and…Queen…Cheese Flakes!

Pure Vanilla: I think you mean Dark Cacao and Golden Cheese, White Lily. And…if not mistaken, our next destination will take us to…the Dark Cacao Kingdom!

[At that moment, a powerful gust of cold wind blew a massive mound of snow onto the jungle floor.]

Strawberry: Wait…isn’t Dark Cacao’s domain ridiculously cold…?

Hollyberry: That it is, little one…but we’ve no time to waste; ONWARDS!

[HOLLYBERRY plowed straight through the snow pile, scattering it everywhere.]

Pure Vanilla: Well then, let’s go!

[With That, The remaining cookies followed after Hollyberry as they headed towards the Dark Cacao Kingdom.]

[mamamittens]

Been having funny thoughts about ToTK and BoTW. Every so often I consider making Nikia in each race just for funzies but I'm really bad at non human characters so I end up trashing the idea.

That and I honestly can't recall a single female goron besides the really old goron lady from Majora's Mask (at least... I think that was a woman??? Deeply titties out with big lips I think?? Hold on... Googling now. Well, if there is, no one knows who they are! So that... Was not a woman?!? It's been a long time so maybe I just don't remember them well enough...)

Anyway! Just for fun, here's some little headcanons about what race random OP characters would be!

Marco, I think, would be a Kokiri! Specifically an unusually tall one! Seemingly ageless with magic abilities, perhaps even a sage for a strange land!

Ace would be a Gerudo who pretends very hard not to be on account of male Gerudo historically being Just Ganon Yet Again. He's not and would never be, but the suspicion he'd revolt and throw the world into darkness would persist anyway. Obvs, his mom was a Gerudo warrior and Roger a Hylian Pirate, or perhaps just a man from another country besides Hyrule.

Izou is clearly a Sheikah with little care for the ninja stuff or gender binary dress code. He can still pull it off just fine, but prefers long range weapons to get it over with.

Luffy? Ngl, I really want him to be a little tree Korok just waddling around like he's swallowed bells. He fits the vibe so well! Maybe he has a 'Hylian' disguise but it usually ends up bursting in a cloud of smoke when he gets jazzed up.

Zoro is a Hylian and probably the only person in history to get so lost in the Lost Woods he perfectly navigated to and from the Great Deku Trees every time. A sort of 'so wrong you looped back to being right again' sort of fella. Hopefully he's not this incarnation of Link or Zelda will have to wait a very long time for him to find the castle, regardless of the size Ganon is circling it.

As tempting as it is for her to be a Gerudo, I think Nami is just a Hylian who lives in a coastal village. She does bullshit Gerudo heritage to scam people though and who knows, she just might have a Gerudo ancestor, but she'll never get that height and cheese shredder abs. Sorry bby.

Robin? Oh, Sheikah. So very Sheikah even though she does more history than ninja work. Undoubtedly the one that knows every legend and scrap of lore by heart and thrives in it all.

Ussop is also from a coastal village but definitely has some mixed heritage from... Somewhere. Unclear where, but he's got too many weird skills for just some fisherman's son. Yossop being Sheikah himself is of course, where all that bullshit magic invention shit comes from, not that Ussop didn't make it his own in due time. Though I wouldn't be against him being Rito! It would be an interesting change and excellent addition to his preference for long range weapons! I don't recall them having magic tho so idk... only downside I suppose.

Brooks? Well... I think he'd make an interesting Twili who found just enough magic spells to live in the daylight but... Looks like a skeleton. Whoops. Can't have everything I suppose! He makes it work, though!

Chopper would make a cute little Goron, honestly! If he wasn't just a reindeer with magic sentience. Wouldn't be out of the question given the shit we see elsewhere! Why not a Korok? Actually... Korok would be super cute! No disguise, just baby! I'll workshop it, there's a few good options!

Sanji would clearly be a Yiga who abandoned the Yiga clan and now pretends to just be a regular Hylian who loves cooking. Certainly wouldn't be the strangest thing out there!

Jinbe's so easy it's almost boring, clearly he'd be a Zora. An unusual whale shark Zora, but a Zora nonetheless! Most Zora seem to be shark based anyhow.

Sabo is a Hylian noble, obviously, and very done with aristocracy, preferring to rough it out in the wild.

Thatch is also a Hylian, one of many who love cooking but is also not dumb enough to poison himself in the name of experimentation... Looking at u, master chef weirdos. Seriously, what the shit?!

Whitebeard is absolutely a Goron though! Massive mountain man who breaks mountains with his fists! Old as shit! It's a great fit!

If I had to choose a race for my OC, Nikia... Imma be a fucking cheat and say Fairy. Great Fairy? Somewhere between the bottle fairies and Great Fairies at least. Their design changes each game honestly and the recent version has them be sisters implying there's a family structure somewhere? Idk, she's still getting the hang of her magic and doesn't want to sit in a pocket dimension via flower portal, so she's not as strong as the Great Fairies yet. Prefers to hang around isolated ponds and tends to attract smaller fairies to her side. I imagine their size/immobility from an area indicates strength, usually, baring Wind Waker where the Great Fairy is literally child sized and implied that the other Fairies you see are puppets... Weird reveal ngl. So she's capable of some interesting stuff in her own right. Almost wanted to say Rito cause I like their designs (even if the idea of an open house like that wigs me out lmao, what a fucking drafty ass house to have!) but no, Fairy works for me. Maybe she gets small when traveling outside of a sacred area to conserve power and safeguard herself.

She would not be naked though, absolutely not lmao, very modest for her race. Another oddity I guess you could say.

[the-firebird69]

Watch "Legend The Devil conversation" on YouTube

And his son and daughter will be president and vice president and this is the Devil and his wife Lilith is present and it's not Chrissy and it is done on purpose because she is constantly bird dogging me you can see Lilith there though you can see her hand and if she sits on the seat she'll transform back into the form that her husband is in that's what they look like and he's also got a role in The Lord of the rings it's the line that gandalf delivers you shall not pass and he's dragged to the depths with him and he actually stops gandalf from dying.

Zues

It is what happens and he is a lava Drake that's what they're called he's also called el Diablo in Spanish and his name is the Devil. A lot of people think that JC and Mary made it happen as part of their plan to blame it on them and blame it on my husband and I we rather think we made him to start controlling demons as it go between so you have someone to look for other than us

Hera

See what I told you it's them and they know about it and they know where they are and people are going out there right now to seek them out and there are so many that worship them and it's not even funny and it's going to help me out

Dracula

Well it's all about family and it's about helping each other and there's nothing I like better than help Dracula out but really I know you as The Rock in either form and it's because you're solid and these people aren't it's like look if you have a plan to try and be a decent fella you know that's still if you have one it's a little bit more terrifying

Zues

That's great I'm more horrifying than him and he's a stone giant by the way that's what the big fellows are and it's because they throw big head Stones they explode and destroy armies and I've seen it in the past and these are horrendous adversary you don't want to fight them you don't want to keep waking them up it's a giant you're waking up and literally

Dracula

Yes okay we're supposed to leave you down in the basement in the coffin but things are different now it's the modern era. And we'll have them become president and vice president and you guys will still have jobs and it's going to be the way it is

Hera

We know something he's running a lot of stuff with these guys and we kind of fit in with this particular genre they're particularly nasty to humans but we do have some ties to them and we can't do exactly what they want it's true too they're not really my race where humanoid

Dracula

Well that's fun these people here are having a lot of problems and they're forced into things by the idiots and possibly a computer and it's going way out of control and we also need help but we have to fight them we don't want them putting in the damn hospital again and have a tantrum this stuff has been sitting there for a long time we're going to find out it's true I've had enough of this talk and things going on like this but it's real stuff and Trump played the character and he's a hokey a****** and he knows he's not him and our friend and daughter actually it's a Hera and she's not a daughter she said niece-in-law she says that he goes in and out of the roll in the movie they look almost the same but they're not and we did catch it too you would be surprised he's in most of the scenes if not all of them no he's in almost all of them and that's what our friend said and he sort of knows for a very strange reason

Mac Daddy

Olympus

So you're sitting there saying stuff to her I'm telling you to stop talking with my mouth practically and you can see me saying it and then you're going then what could I say and you're asking me and I'm telling you what the lines are you're saying that's what I'm saying kind of out loud so I said keep doing it matter I'm getting more and more angry and I want to get her and she frees the horse like we wanted and the dimwit started fighting you and he sort of what he says but he really lost and it's where he stabbed you that's important it looks like JC so people check now and they check after and they're wondering if maybe he was buried there it's a huge deal what's going on now it looks like him when he's in giant form it's really not

Hera

Wow this is ridiculous it's not really my character and the headless horseman if that one's a hard one to play so I played this one think I'd take over I really felt more like the devil and I understand something this creature is real and he's been around in the past some people have seen him in this pictures of him paintings hahaha and it's a joke but he's making a joke it's not a joke it's a joke we're laughing at is Dan and his pennywise character and they show him in the midst of crowds and paintings really their brand they're really new paintings and he says it's not really he's in the old paintings it's because he's imitating his son of mine and it might be Dave's son so we're moving on this is hell this particular creature might be my father may have made me or may have had me made and I don't know how so I do understand something I may have been possessed by an end and the last of it was used to make a head I'm getting the hell out of here that's so weird but he says it's something like that I can't stand it anymore

Trump

[fouramradi0]

SCOUT NOOOOOOOO

we lost another legend today fellas. Fly high

happy birthday grimace

[asktherejectsau]

💥🔪Exclusive interview with actor, temporary Gorillaz band member, and current bassist for the Rejects — Ace D. Copular🔪💥

Ace: Ayeee!

Interviewer: Oh! Hello there, Mr. Copular. [shakes his hand]

A: Ah, no need to call me ”Mister.” [sits down promptly] Just call me Ace, man.

I: Alright then, Ace. Before we get to talking about The Rejects, I think everyone wants to know, what was it like being the temporary bassist for Gorillaz?

A: I still can’t believe half the stuff I went through was even real… It all feels like I’ve been stuck in a dream and haven’t woken up since. [laughs] Seriously though, it was really fun! Everybody was super nice and welcoming and gettin’ to perform with ‘em was whole ’nother thing. Truly one of the best experiences of my life.

I: How did you first meet Gorillaz?

A: Well, me and Murdoc go way back, since the start of film production for the Powerpuff Girls movie. I knew he had a band but, to tell ya the truth, I had no idea about Gorillaz. Didn’t even realize they made Clint Eastwood and I love that song. But when he called me from prison, telling me I should try and audition to be his replacement for his band, I took it in a heartbeat. Once I got accepted, I had to fly from California to Kentucky in order to meet ‘em at the Derby and… yeah! The rest is history.

I: Now where do you know Murdoc from?

A: Uhh… I’m not gonna go too deep into that as there’s some personal stuff in there, and I’d expect Murdoc wouldn’t want me blabbin’ on about it. But what I will say is that we’ve known each other for a long time. About 18 years now, I’d say. We have a good rapport, y’know? We can relate to a lot of things. We both have screwed up childhoods and we managed to make the best of it through our stardom. We used to write letters to one another but we kinda lost connection back in ’06. I mean, he got back to me eventually. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have helped his band out while he was in prison, amirite? [chuckles awkwardly]

I: Hmm… alright. How did you first get into music? A: It was a little after I finished working on the Powerpuff Girls movie. I was supposed to get more screen time on there, but I got injured during filmin’ so neither me or the Gang could continue bein’ on set. I don’t blame ‘em though. I mean, ya can’t have the Gangreen Gang without Ace, right? So while I was in the hospital for recovery, I started playin’ guitar but I didn’t start playin’ bass until Mudz waltzed into my life. I only started taking music seriously because of him actually. [chuckles to himself, bouncing his leg] Ooo boy, that’s embarrassing to admit, saying that out loud… I probably sound like some hyper fan or somethin’. I: Oh, there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. I think it’s rather sweet! It sounds like he meant a lot to you. A: Yeah… he did. [rubs the back of his neck, deep in thought] I: Now, how did your friends and family react when they found out you got into the band?

A: [perks up] I don’t got much family anymore but the Gangreen Gang? They’re the only family I’ve ever known aside from ol Muddy Duddy. When I got the email from Gorillaz’s business manager, Jamie Hewlett (real nice fella by the way) that I was in the band, I showed it to the boys and they all freaked when they saw it. Jumping up and down, screaming and yelling with all of us in a group hug. We hadn’t hung out together in a really long time since we all moved on and had our own lives after the OG Powerpuff Girls ended. I mean, the only other times was for filming in the reboot but that was just work, y’know? Although, when I got back to Townsville, it was surprising to see the amount of people who came to congratulate me. I guess kinda became a local legend since I joined the band. Even the Powerpuff Girls came by to say how proud they were. The OG girls not the reboot ones, they were still busy filming. I: What’s it like filming for the 2016 reboot anyway? A: I don’t wanna talk about it. I: I see, you can’t talk about it due to an NDA? A: Um, sure. Yeah, let’s call it that.

I: Oh, uh, okay… Umm, how have you been since leaving Gorillaz?

A: Thanks to them, I’ve been able to actually live a life for once. Like, since I left… I’ve been to Mexico with fellow bassist, Seye Adelekan, I got to write some memoirs, performed many-a-gig since then, and have even been able to get my own place aside from living in a shitty studio apartment. Not rent it, but actually buy it. I not only could afford a new place for me, but I had enough cash to buy places for the rest of the Gang too! Gorillaz has forever changed my life for the better and I couldn’t be more grateful.

I: Speaking of the Gangreen Gang, what are they up to these days?

A: Well, they certainly ain’t kids no more. [laughs] Big Billy owns his own tattoo parlor while his wife is a vet tech. Heard they’re expecting their first kid soon, in which whoof! God, I feel old. I didn’t think I’d live long enough to see my friends have kids. Grubber went on to be a lawyer. Dunno what kind, I wanna say he works civil suits? Arturo is working 9 to 5 at a Seven Eleven up in Townsville City Square with Snake but he’s trying to start up a music career on Soundcloud. Snake, aside from working with Lil Arturo at the gas station, also is an entertainer at a nightclub downtown that goes by the stage name, Ivy. I’ve been to a couple of their shows actually, real top notch stuff! They told me they’re trying to save money to go to art school so they can become a stop motion animator. I have high hopes for them, I just know they’ll make it far someday. I have high hopes for the whole gang actually. I just hope they know how much I still think about ’em. If they’re reading this though, I miss you guys!

(Picture of Ace and the Gangreen Gang after he was accepted into Gorillaz. April 20th, 2018 from Lil Arturo’s Snapchat)

I: Have you been in contact with any of the other Gorillaz members?

A: A little bit, mostly to Noodle though. Haven’t heard much from Russ but we’ve said hello once or twice while I was on the phone with her. Strangely enough, Murdoc’s been calling me a lot more than normal. Mainly to ask about 2-D. I dunno if it’s some midlife crisis thing, just to make up for lost time, or what but I don’t mind it. I like talkin’ to him! Always comes with lot of stories. Although sometimes when he calls me I can’t help but worry about him. I dunno why, but sometimes I get this gut feelin’ like he’s not tellin’ me something or that something’s wrong. But that might be me worrying too much about it. I mean, he just got outta prison and the band’s all on their own separate vacations right now, much like how 2-D is. They deserve the break anyways with all the tourin’ they’ve been doin’. Yeah, it’s probably just me bein’ too wound up.

I: I heard from Gorillaz lead singer and now the Rejects’ co-producer, 2-D that you two were in a relationship. How’s that working out for the both of you?

A: W-Wait, he said that? To you?

I: Yes… Is something wrong with what I said?

A: [starts to get flustered] Oh no, no! Not at all. There’s nothin’ wrong. I-I’m just happy he’s finally mentionin’ that publicly, that’s all. [covers his face with his hands] Sorry. Ahh! I’m blushing so bad… [giggles] I probably look ridiculous right about now. [laughs loudly]

I: Oh, it’s okay! Is this your first time in a relationship like this?

A: Not my first time with a guy, if that’s what you’re askin’. Now first time with a celebrity? Yes. And lemme tell you, it is amazing so far. I’ve had many different partners in my lifetime but him? He’s somethin’ else. He’s the only one who’s managed to capture my attention immediately. I thought that whole ”love at first sight” thing was nothin’ but a hoax but then he came around and changed my whole worldview. Now, it was a bit rocky at first but we managed to patch things up. [sighs] I’m so glad that he said that we’re dating. Oh, I feel like I’m 16 again with how happy he makes me!

I: What do you mean by that? “Patch things up?”

A: Well, back in September last year when Murdoc came back and I left to take the subway back to the airport, Stu had um… given me something to take on the way home. At first, I thought maybe it was just some European thing but nah, he… he kissed me. Like really kissed me. I think some kid captured it on camera too but me and ’D just told ‘em to keep it outta the press and that was that. The problem was he didn’t talk to me for two whole months later when we ended up bumping into each other in Townsville. I was just… I dunno, confused? Like, I couldn’t tell if he liked me or not and I was too embarrassed to ask, which was kinda stupid the more I think about it. But by the time ‘D came to Townsville and we hung out at my place, he said he wanted to maybe start somethin’ with me. Not fully dating just yet but umm… y’know… [clears throat, blushing] “experimenting.” I was really excited cuz like ”holy shit, a singer from a Grammy nominated band is in love with me” but then he was actin’ so distant. Like, he’s more open with me now but before he used to be so nervous about us doing anything normal things couples tend to do, like kissing or holding hands. He even flinched whenever I’d touch him like he thought I was gonna hit him, which really hurt me cuz I didn’t know why he was seemed so afraid of me. I thought, “Why does this guy wanna be in a relationship with me if he doesn’t even want me near him?” But after we talked about it, he finally admitted to me that he had some pretty bad relationships in the past. One cheated on him, the other left him, and his last one was a douchebag who not only beat him for years but told him to stay in the closet for “the sake of his career.” Now that pissed me off cuz I’ve been told that by other agents before when I was tryin’ to come out as bi. That last one really stuck with him though and he became so afraid that our relationship could possibly turn something like that, that he thought maybe keepin’ some distance between us was the better option. Needless to say, I completely understood what he was goin’ through and I know now he wasn’t tryin’ to hurt me by doin’ that. I love him and I wanna make sure he knows that. So we went slow, felt the waters for a bit, and here we are. I know I’m not gonna fix him overnight but I swear, if I ever find that fucker who hurt him, I’m gonna make sure he’s in for a world of pain when I’m done with him. People who hurt their partners like that deserve to be thrown under the jail.

I: Where did you two first meet?

A: We actually met at the Kentucky Derby. I’m not too big on fancy shmancy events like that plus I couldn’t drink at the bar due to my contract, so I walked around the venue for a bit. We bumped into each other, I fell to the floor, didn’t know who he was so I was gonna yell at him to watch where he was goin’ but then I met his eyes. And just… wow. What an image. For a second I thought I must’ve stumbled onto Olympus cuz there was no way this guy wasn’t some sort of god with how pretty he was. As fans swarmed around him like bees to honey, he just took me by the hand, ran with me to a secret spot outside the venue, and we talked. As we were waiting for the race to end, I realized that he was just a normal guy. Well, as normal as a singer in a famous band would be. Sure he was a bit… off but he was sweet and kind and clearly passionate. He’d get excitable whenever he talked about his favorite horror movies and it was fun to be with someone so… I dunno, filled with life, I guess. We ended up talking that entire day. He even gave me a handful of several month old Lucky Charm marshmallows he found from his pocket when he led me to my hotel room. [sighs] He was so adorable… Still is too.

(Picture of 2-D and Ace at the London Underground on Sept. 25th, 2018)

I: Aww, how sweet. How would you describe 2-D as a partner?

A: Since we’ve started dating, he’s grown to be pretty affectionate. He’s not as physically affectionate as I am, but he always makes sure to tell me that he loves me. He’s still getting used to saying it out loud, but every time he does, he gets real stoked about it. It’s almost like when a little kid starts learning a new word and gets all happy when they say it right. He’ll say it at the most random times too. Like, he’ll look at me while I’m working and just go. “Did I tell you I love you today? No? Well, I do. I love you. I love you a whole lot.” and I… oh, it just makes me melt, man…Sometimes, he forgets that he already asked me so then he asks me multiple times a day if he said that he loved me or not and it just makes me so giddy every time he does it. He also likes to tell me he loves me in his own unique way too. Like, he’ll make me a cup of coffee or he’ll sit down to watch me work while he spitballs song ideas. Then, he’ll just give me knick knacks he found from some store he was shopping at. He used to do in order to celebrate some small milestone in our relationship but now he just does it to say he loves me in the corniest ways possible. One time, he slapped down a pack of blunt shaped birthday candles on the table and straight up asked me, “Are you made of weed? Cuz I think I’m getting high off you.” It wasn’t even my birthday. Like, how the hell am I supposed to respond to that? How can I not smooch the guy all day long? I mean, c’mon! That’s just too much for one guy to handle. I swear to god, at this rate, Stuart’s gonna end up givin’ me both diabetes and a coronary with how sweet he fuckin’ is. Ugh… I can’t stand it!

I: Well, it seems like the two of you are very happy together.

A: [hums happily] Never been happier with anyone else…

I: Now, onto talking about the band you’re currently in. How did you come across the Rejects?

A: Well, it’s kinda embarrassing. About a month after I left Gorillaz, I went on this huge spending spree. [scratches his chin, laughing nervously] I admit, the popularity went to my head a lil bit. I mean, back in the ‘90s, I was a teen star from some popular reality TV show. I’d never seen that much money before in my life! Mainly cuz my ma kept it all until I turned 18 but that’s besides the point, this is about how I met the band. Thankfully I wasn’t too broke yet so I started going to all kinds of concerts that month. One day, I went to this one event Snake really wanted to go to. We went together and that’s when I met the Rejects. They were initially supposed to perform at Demon Dayz LA but I heard from somewhere their performance got cancelled due to tech issues and instead they performed at this festival to fill in an open slot. They turned out to be fuckin’ sick! I loved their punk rock, indie rock vibe and I later met up with the robot girl afterwards. She and her bandmate turned out to be pretty cool. We found out we both like the same indie musicians like Little Dragon, Jack Stauber, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, even Florence and the Machine. We partied with them all night long but as they were about to leave, I found out that they were living from their van in order to make ends meet. I felt band cuz I knew what that life was like in my 20s. Now I couldn’t exactly afford two roommates at the time with all the spendin’ I was doin’ but I knew at least by next month I would’ve been fine as long as I didn’t go overboard. So I invited them to my place as my roommates. They refused at first but after a few days they took up my offer and we’ve been roomies ever since. I: How did you end up becoming the bassist for them? A: When they were just staying at my place, I kinda became their business manager. Not on purpose, just mainly out of knowing my way around Townsville and some of the more popular spots in LA so it just kinda happened…? I don’t remember when exactly I later became their bassist officially but there was this one time I performed at Townsville Park’s open mic night and performed with my friend Archie Sutton and his band, Some Other Guys and they flipped out. Cynthia especially was freakin’ out cuz she so hyped to know that I could play bass when she struggled for years to do it. She asked me to play on a few their songs and that’s how I became their bassist. I: How would you describe your experience with the Rejects so far? A: It’s been really fun so far! I glad that I’m playing music again with the people I care about the most. I can’t wait for people to hear our stuff once the EP comes out. I: What is your favorite track from the EP by the way? A: Definitely “runaway.” Has probably one of the best bass lines I’ve ever done aside from Sorcererz on the Now Now. The track has this very ethereal sound to it that just ties the whole thing together, in my opinion. It’s eerie but soothing, y’know? Cynthia and Lenny told me that the track was inspired by the Satoshi Kon film, Perfect Blue while thematically, it’s all about finding yourself and the fear of not knowing if someone will still love you in the end of this long, hard journey. Although I feel like that message is only heightened thanks to 2-D’s synth work and all the little flairs he put into it. I think the way did it turned this song into a… horrifyingly beautiful lullaby. I’m just more amazed by how well it turned out in the end.

(runaway. Promo Cover)

I: Well we’ll certainly check it out once it’s released. Now I’ve asked this before with some of the others but how would you describe your bandmates? A: They’re cool. I: …Um, i-is that it? A: Well, I dunno what else to say other than that… they’re cool. I think… I: Right… Well if that’s all then I guess we’re— A: Actually, no. Sorry, that’s a lie. I guess, if I could go on a bit of a tangent it’d be that Cynthia kinda reminds me a lot like Buttercup. The OG one not the reboot clone. I: I’m sorry, the what-? A: I know that’s a weird thing to say but really, she does. She’s spunky, outspoken, and has absolutely no filter. We’re probably the only two band members that butt heads. It’s all in good sport though, nothin’ truly hateful or anything. Although she does smack me with a stray cable from time to time. Also, was no one gonna tell me that she was cyborg version of Noodle? Noodle? Like, how much more badass could you get? With a mouth gun, that’s how! Also, Lenny’s pretty chill. He’s kinda like Russel but instead of giving infinite words of wisdom, he’s the whole mom friend package. He makes sure we always stay on schedule, he packs us snacks occasionally during practice… He also has a pretty good sense of hearing too. It’s insane what kind of tones he’s able to pick up just from listening to me play. He’ll give me pointers on what notes would help improve the song and even encourages me to riff more which I was never confident in doin’ before. Overall, pretty swell guy. I: Okay then, I think that’s all we have for today. Is there anything else you’d like to add? A: Umm… nope. Not really but thanks for having me! [shakes interviewer’s hand, door heard opening] Hmm? Oh, hey ‘D. Ready to go? 2-D: Yep. I found a new skatepark we can go to if you wanna try out rollerblading with me. A: Eh, I’ll try. Can’t make promises that I’ll be any good though. 2-D: Oh don’t worry about that, Ace. You’re still learning! You’ll get the hang of it someday. Now let’s get going. Cuz I dunno about you, love, but I’m famished. A: [laughs] Okay, ‘D. Shouldn’t you tie your shoes first? I don’t want you trippin’ over yourself aga— Hey, wait a minute are those the new slip ons I gave you? 2-D: Yeah! You were right, they are pretty comfy. I Thank you, I like ‘em a lot. A: [gets flustered] Uhh, good! Yep! I’m glad. Mmm-hmm, that’s great. 2-D: Oh no, you’re gettin’ all pink again. Need me to get you some sunscreen? I: Tune in next time where we’ll be interviewing the forth and final member of the Rejects, “Lenny.” What are his origins, who is he really? See you soon!

[the-black-bulls]

Magic swap at the Black Bulls hideout! Everyone woke up with the magic of a squadmate and no one was happy about it: They would need to immediately identify whoever had Henry’s magic and disease/condition, for everyone’s safety (on the bright side, poor Henry would get SO MANY hugs). Asta and Liebe count as 2 separate people, with another poor Bull getting antimagic WITHOUT the muscles to lift even Slasher/Zanma, while someone else ended up magicless, without muscles and without Ki reading (unless it was Yami).

Who would get who’s magic?

Who would turn into an accidental person of mass destruction?

Who would (somewhat) control their new magic?

Who would have fun?

Grey started it all. It was probably a rough day and she was stressed more than usual. Who would've known that her magic can swap and switch magic? Well the bulls know now... for the sake of some more action, let's say that there was a bunch of unlucky thugs decided to choose this day to attack the black bulls hideout.

So we have:

▪️ Asta and Liebe, same as usual and they're not part of the mess, no mana = no magic, sorry boys, but it's up to them to keep an eye on everyone. Each one of them look out for seven members which didn’t turn well with all of them (just imagine Liebe chasing after Luck or Asta trying to keep Noelle from killing, like REALLY killing, her friends).

▪️ Noelle with Gordon's magic (Poison Magic)... thanks the heavens Asta was there when she shot a "Sea Dragon's Roar" cause no one but him would survive such a deadly attack from an equally deadly magic, she spent the rest of the day close to him, "n-not that I want to be with you or anything, bakasta!"

▪️ Gordon with Luck's magic (Lightning Magic)... spent all the time dazzling like a bulb so everyone would look at him, at same point his hair turned a chilly white and his eyes became a dazzling red, must be a side effect of Luck's fiend spell... it was a bit terrifying with his smile, but otherwise he was surprisingly harmless.

▪️ Luck with Henry's magic (Recombination Magic)... oh boy you know this would not end well when Luck started messing up with everyone while, instead of Magna, Henry was the one chasing him around, RIP to all the thugs who thought they can attack a castle controlled by a fighting freak though... and then he just kind of lost control and forced all the bulls to team up and stop him lol.

▪️ Henry with Nero's magic (Sealing Magic)... at last, homeboy finally could turn himself into a bird and chat with his songbirds without any care in the world... that's it until Luck turned the base into a labyrinth ruining Henry's years worth of careful designing.

▪️ Nero with Yami's magic (Dark Magic)... Nero cut people with a cool katana, 'nuff said, (may or may not imagine herself cutting Zagred as well... or his ghost in her head, "take that bitch!").

▪️ Yami with Nacht's magic (Shadow Magic)... who doesn't like the idea of Yami bonding with the little four devils and go gamble around with them with his new unlocked cheating ability? Nacht doesn't.

▪️ Nacht with Charmy's magic (Cotton/Food Magic)... depressed boy made himself a good sleeping place with warm food, the rest of the squad can go to hell for all he cares (including his devils, "the damn traitors!"). He also had a wonderful conversation with Charmy's wolf, what an educated fella!

▪️ Charmy with Gauche's magic (Mirror Magic)... that day, poor Yuno woke up to 50x mirrors of Charmys Lala~ing him a melody to sleep and following him everywhere, nobody knew how she managed to enter the mirror world and hunt the kingdom like an urban legend, but she did because she's Charmy, duh! (Gauche felt very insulted).

▪️ Gauche with Finral's magic (Spatial Magic)... went to meet Marie, Theresa chased his freak ass out with a fire machete (dude you do not break in an orphanage), run away only to ended up in spade due to miscalculation and was stuck there, Yami had to pick him up later with shadow magic. He's never going to live it down and neither the bulls will stop reminding him of this embarrassing story, especially Finral for understandable reasons ("Who's the useless now?").

▪️ Finral with Vanessa's magic (Thread Magic)... first, he got suck on his own threads and trapped everyone around him, then after some time of getting used to it he ended up scared shitless when Rouge saved Asta's life fighting the thugs' bad boss because the mere idea of controlling someone's fate, as romantic as that might sound, just made the hair on his neck stand... perhaps a witch's magic can only be handled by a witch.

▪️ Vanessa with Grey's magic (Transformation Magic)... on one hand, Vanessa is smart enough to figure out how to un-swap everyone's magic, on the other hand... she was half drunk and bored, so cut to her making up more chaos by turning everyone into random things ("Finral with Yami's muscle *screams*, Nacht with white hair-oh my that suits you, child Luck awww, old man Magna hahaha")

▪️ Grey with Magna's magic (Fire Magic)... the same magic as her stepsisters have, Grey felt a little sick inside from the thought and from starting this mess and spent the day going through a mental crisis 'till the others cheered her up, she even made a few fireworks with Gordon at the end of the day.

▪️ Magna with Zora's magic (Ash Magic)... he had fun with it actually, like making up his own traps and their effects was more enjoyable than he thought it would be... it was thanks to him that Luck was stopped from going nuts with Henry's magic cause he knew damn well how to handle Luck's mischievous side.

▪️ Zora with Noelle's magic (Water Magic)... this is some kind of a sick joke, right? HE, of all people, got the royal's magic, a WATER magic at that, the opposite of his dead father's magic? He couldn't do a lot with his mana comparing to miss royalty right there ("Hey!"), but he did teach her one or two thing to better handle her magic cuz that's Zora for ya!

The end!

This was so much fun, anon. Thank you for giving me the chance to share this dumb scenario! I hope it's worth the late response.

[labarch]

Spells written in the stars: a WHA theory on the origin of magic

My latest theory is that the cover illustration for chapter 47, beyond representing the start of a poem and of a legend, also hides information about the origin of magic in plain sight. It’s not the first time that constellation maps are represented in official wha artwork (it also features on the cover of chapter 36), and they are rather reminiscent of magical glyphs, aren’t they?  

Constellation patterns being linked to different types of spells would help to explain the mechanics of magic, especially magical sculptures. I have been wondering for a while how spells can “interpret” the intention of the witch: in this drawing by Beldarut at the end of volume 6, how does the spell know to produce a smoke dragon and not, say, a bird? Clearly the goal is not to produce a photorealistic rendering of the animal; perhaps the condition to a successful spell is to reproduce exactly the pattern of the needed constellation.    

This mysterious Lord Restis fella from the end of chapter 45 seems to agree that, to gain access to new magic, you need to look up to the night sky. Interestingly, in the French translation of this volume, the line reads something like “Witches of old used to pray to the stars”.

The theory also provides a metaphorical explanation for the myth of the Star who fell in love with the Silverleaf tree and gave magic to the world: magic comes from the “union” of the star (knowledge of the glyph patterns, given by constellations) and the tree (magical ink).

However, at this point in my evidence-gathering, I bumped into a contradiction: if studying the constellations is integral to finding new spells, how come we never see witch apprentices learn about astrology? Why aren’t the sages spending their days poring over celestial maps? Why isn’t there an observatory in each atelier? Why are most witches living at the bottom of the ocean, to the point where some children there have never seen the sky at all?

Oh.

It's not a contradiction at all, is it? Hiding the stars is exactly the point of the Great Hall.

Because, if spells are written in the stars, then ALL spells are written in the stars. Including the forbidden ones, mind magic, transformation magic, healing magic, war magic, you name them. If witches start researching astrology again, it’s only a matter of time until lost spells from before the Conspiracy are rediscovered. The Day of the Conspiracy didn’t just erase the knowledge of forbidden spells, it wiped the origin of magic from everyone’s memory, save, maybe, a select few (the Librarians like the members of Agott’s family, for instance).

The Brimhats we have met so far all express contempt towards the Pointed Hats, and this theory gives further context for their disdain. They think of the Pointed Hats as phony witches, who can tinker with existing spells by recombining and altering keystones, but who have cut themselves from the possibility of true innovation and are doomed to stagnate.

Let’s see wait and see what the upcoming volumes have to say about magic, lost knowledge and stars!

[iron-sparrow]

Daoism, Dragons, and Queer Mythos 🐉

Hello, friends! I hope you've all been enjoying the new Final Fantasy XIV content. Today is when rainbow capitalism calms down a little as corporations remove their colorful profile pics and themed packaging, but hey, the queers are still here ⸺ as we always have been.

Buckle up for more of Iron's unsolicited TED talks. I got bit by some motivation to talk about queer spirituality and mythology.

I know how much many of you FFXIV enjoyers like to think about banging dragons. Know that people in ancient/medieval China definitely had similar thoughts. Gay rights activist and academic Xiaomingxiong 小明雄 wrote of Chinese mythology concerning the divine serpents and their preference for sexual relations with older men; not always caring for consent.

Animal spirits and fairies, on the other hand, notably preferred to woo younger fellas. The xian, written as 仙/僊 and typically used as an umbrella term for immortals and spirits from Tao/Dao mythos. One variant were masculine (and mischievous) spirits who preferred the company of men. Stories involving mortal men and xian were typically melancholic, however, thanks to the easily-jealous xian lord.

I want to note that these stories are included in Cassell's Encyclopedia of Queer Myth, Symbol and Spirit. Published in 1998, the encyclopedia compiles over 1,500 entries documenting queer spirituality across human history. The book is, sadly, rather hard to get a hold of at this point and is only listed by third-parties online at steep prices.

Another tale nearly lost to the annals of history and queer suppression is that of Tu'er Shen 兔兒神 (literally "rabbit god"), the deity who inspired the Chinese slang, "rabbits," for gay men. According to legend, Tu'er Shen, also known as Hu Tianbao, was a soldier tortured and executed for peeping on a handsome official he was attracted to.

Following his death, he appeared to a man from his hometown in a dream in the form of a hare, requesting a temple be erected to honor his love. Due to the nature of his "crime," his demise was deemed an injustice by the underworld, and Hu Tianbao was made into a deity and appointed the guardian of gay love.

The worship of Tu'er Shen was heavily suppressed, and some Tao sects frown upon same-sex relations. However, no scripture explicitly condemns it.

In 2006, a Daoist priest founded a temple dedicated to Tu'er Shen, in Yonghe, Taiwan. The temple is named the Hall of Martial Brilliance 威明堂 and remains the only shrine dedicated to Tu'er Shen as of 2020.

Pride Month is officially over, says the Gregorian calendar. But, as I've reminded myself (and my moots) again and again, the end of these celebratory months targeted at raising awareness does not mean we should stop learning.

We don't stop being Asian outside of May. Trans+ history does not vanish after just one week. Liberation continues beyond Juneteenth.

Queer and many other forms of cultural erasure persist. All the more reason, then, for us to also fight and persist. As always, remember to keep learning, to keep growing and being better. Education and celebration are a lifelong endeavor.

ദ്ദി(˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧

PRIDE MONTH 2024 ˖⁺‧₊♡₊˚⊹

THE FIRST PRIDE WAS A RIOT

On June 28, 1969, activists Miss Major, Marsha P. Johnson, Silvia Rivera and Stormé Dulavarie led the the Stonewall Uprising ⸺ a five-day clash between patrons of the Stonewall Inn and NYPD. Prior to this, the police had raided the bar, and began assaulting and arresting people.

This wasn’t the first time the Stonewall Inn or other establishments for queer people were targeted by police. This time, however, hundreds of people decided to fight back.

On the one-year anniversary of Stonewall, activists walked from the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village to Central Park, in the first ever Pride March. Today, Pride has grown into an international celebration of LGBTQIA+ culture. Despite growing visibility, we must always remember the roots of this celebratory month and remain aware of the continued attacks against our community ⸺ to protect our progress and push for safety and equality for all.

[cjsinkythoughts]

Ocean Eyes, Cherry Lips, Ivory Keys

Pairing: 40s!Bucky Barnes x Reader

Word Count: 2747

Warnings: Cursing, mentions of alcohol, I think that’s all

A/N: This is a headcanon I’ve had for a while that I’ve been wanting to write about 40s!Bucky, pre-War. I kinda want to write a series about it, so that might happen. For now, enjoy this little tidbit I’ve written, with the prompt of Occasion for HBC’s Lucky in Love Day 18! (This isn’t beta’d so please excuse mistakes.)

He’s something of a celebrity. A living legend. A God amongst humans. Starting as a kid in Brooklyn, his fanbase rapidly grew, expanding to Queens, Manhattan, even parts of New Jersey, just in the past few years.

You don’t get it. So what if he’s got cool blue eyes, soft chocolate hair, and a charming smile? Who cares if he’s got smooth moves and even smoother words? He’s just a man - a human being - with flaws just like everyone else. A talented and gorgeous man, who has all of New York wanting to fall to her knees to please him, but still just a man.

James Buchanan Barnes.

Most everyone knew his name, but there was a lot of mystery surrounding the actual character. 

You just don’t see what all the fuss is about. You’ve never personally met him, or even seen him, but you know people who have. Your friend’s cousin even claims to have danced with him once. Not that that would be hard. You hear he’s never danced with the same bird twice, and, considering most start dancing in their teenage years, that’s a lot of dames.

It’s not that you’re not curious about him - if he’s actually as dashing as they say - but you’re not about to stop your life for him like some of your friends. They’re obsessed with getting his attention. With seeing if they’d be the one. The one to finally chain him down and tame him. The one he’d go steady with.

It feels like that’s all you ever talk about anymore. It was amusing at first, but now it’s just getting annoying. It’s been three years since that day in March of 1938, when your roommate ran into your room, plopping down onto your bed, before ranting and raving about the new ocean eyed piano player at her favorite bar. And since then, he’s been in your life without actually being in your life.

Speaking of, here you are. Listening to Lucy, MaryAnne, and Jean gushing over the man, trying to enjoy your milkshake.

“I heard from Sally that Thomas said that he knew the brother of one of his friend’s in high school!”

“That can’t be true! I heard from Billy, who heard from Martha, who was told by Ben, that he only had, like, one friend in high school.”

“You’re kidding, right? There’s no way a man like that had only one friend.”

“I hear he does boxing and that’s why he’s got a body sculpted like a Greek God.”

“Oh my God! MaryAnne!”

You rub your temples, resisting the urge to roll your eyes as the three burst into fits of giggles. If you have to hear one more word about-

“I heard he’s going to be playing at Georgie’s on Friday!”

Gasps echoed around the table. “No way! Georgie’s?”

You raise an eyebrow, this actually intriguing you. Georgie’s is a popular little hole in the wall, on the edge of being a speakeasy, which doubles as a pub and a dance hall in Brooklyn. It’s one of the best hang outs for kids like you and your girls, but it isn’t very high class. Maybe that’s why it’s one of the best. “Isn’t Georgie’s a little…cheap for him? He’s been playing at the best bars and restaurants for a while now.”

“It’s a classic in Brooklyn. Near his home, probably.”

“Do you think he lives near there?!”

“Ooo! Maybe we could find out!’

You scoff. “That,” gesturing to Lucy with your glass, you take a sip of your milkshake. “Is called stalking, my friend.”

Jean waves towards you dismissively. “I think he lives near Tin Pan Alley. That’s where he plays the most, after all. Georgie’s was probably just an old hang out for him and his pals.”

“Wait, wait,” you shake your head, a thought popping into your head. You turn to Lucy, confused. “How’d you find out he’s playing at Georgie’s anyways? Isn’t part of his whole act not telling anyone where he’s playing?”

Giving you a smirk and a wink, Lucy shrugs. “I’ve got my connections.”

You roll your eyes again, turning your attention back to your milkshake. “So?!” MaryAnne squealed. “We’re going on Friday, right?”

“Hell yes!”

“Absolutely!”

“Not.” You mumble, causing the other three to stare at you incredulously.

“Not?!”

“I’m not wasting my Friday night going to see some fella you all have a crush on. Especially when he might not even be there.”

Your friends groan, exchanging glances. “And what’re you gonna do?” Jean crossed her arms with a pointed look on her face. “Sit down and read a book like you always do?”

You huff. “I like reading, sue me. I don’t get a lot of time to myself. You know that new girl’s been gumming up the works and I’ve had to stay late to fix her mistakes all week.”

“This is exactly what you need, then! Come out, have a drink, jive a little-”

You look up at that, an amused kind of smirk on your lips. “Jive? Me and my clumsy ass?”

You all laugh. “Okay, so maybe not dance, but c’mon! It’ll be snazzy, you’ll see!”

“Fine, fine.” Standing up with a sigh, you collect your things, smoothing down your dress with your hands. “I’ve gotta scram.”

“We’ll see you on Friday, right?”

You give a small smile, shooting them a wink. “I guess I can make it.”

***************

Friday comes a lot faster than you anticipate. You dress up; a navy blue dress going to your knees with white, heart shaped buttons and a bow around the waist. The shoes you’re wearing are your nice black and white Mary Janes. Lips painted deep red, and hair pinned back in loose curls, you glance over yourself in a mirror. You’ll admit; you look damn good. You don’t wanna go, but you might as well try to have some fun since you are.

It’s a cool evening, early May meaning the summer humidity hasn’t hit just yet. You didn’t even think about bringing a coat, but you start to regret the decision as you start walking. MaryAnne, who you actually room with, already left, being way too excited to stay put.

It doesn’t take you long - you live on the border of Queens and Brooklyn - but your feet are more sore than you’d like when you arrive.

“I knew you’d come!” Lucy grins, coming up besides you and linking her arm in yours. MaryAnne comes up on your other side and does the same to your free arm.

“Where’s Jean?”

“Where do you think? She already found a Joe to swing with.”

You laugh. “Of course she has! So is your dreamboat here?”

The grins that are immediately on their faces answer your question and they quickly drag you inside.

It’s hot and crowded and dim. Skirts with their beaus, guys with their broads, swinging and dancing to the lively music of the band on stage. Smoke from cigarettes, pipes, and cigars is evident in the air as they neared the bar portion of the building, mixing with the boisterous sound of laughter and chatter.

“Everyone’s talking about it! He’s here, but he hasn’t played yet. We’ve been trying to catch a glimpse of him, but we think he’s in a back room.” The dramatic sigh MaryAnne gives makes you laugh a little.

“Okay, khaki whackies. Let’s get a drink.”

You, just as you thought would happen tonight, are left alone at the bar by your friends who quickly found partners to dance with. A few men asked you, but you have never been a good dancer.

You’re lost in thought, running a finger gently around the rim of your cup, when a voice sounded besides you, pulling you out of your thoughts, a slight rasp to the otherwise mellifluous voice.

“You gonna drink that, doll, or just stare at it all night?”

You raise an eyebrow at the jest, turning your head, only to have your breath hitch. What a specimen. Ocean blue eyes, fluffy brown curls, cherry pink lips. A white dress shirt is pulled over his broad chest, gray dress pants hugging thick thighs, matching suit jacket across wide shoulders. He has a blue, black, and white plaid tie around his neck and you can see the edges of his blue suspenders under his blazer. He’s put together, but it’s nothing special, a normal Sunday best suit, that much you can tell.

“Uh, not all night.” You look back to the drink, before looking at the clock with a hum, tilting your head playfully. “Maybe another hour.”

He chuckles, gesturing for the bartender. “Tell me this, sweetheart. What is a beautiful dame like yourself doin’ drinking alone?”

“I’m not very good on my feet, I’m afraid.” You laugh nervously, taking a sip of your drink.

“Don’t come here often, then?”

“Only for special occasions.”

“What’s the special occasion this evenin’, sugar?”

You shrug. “My friends dragged me here. They’re practically in love with this guy who’s supposedly playing the piano tonight. James Barnes. Have you ever heard of him?”

He chuckles, a grin pulling his lips upwards. “Yeah. Yeah I’ve heard of ‘im. Not a big fan yourself?”

“I’m sure he’s fine. I just don’t understand the fascination with him. Let the man be.”

“I agree.” He hums with a nod, grabbing the glass of whiskey the bartender set in front of him. “I actually know him.”

“Really?” You look at him in interest.

He tilts his head with a smile towards you that makes you melt. “Yeah. He feels the same. He just likes playin’. That’s all. He didn’t want all the attention. He gets enough without that.”

You raise an eyebrow, finishing off your drink. “Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. I’m Bucky by the way.”

You eye his hand, grabbing it after a second, letting him bring your knuckles to his lips. “Y/N.”

“It’s very nice to meet you, mama.” He shifts his body more towards you, running a hand through his hair. “You said you ain’t fond of dancin’?”

Shaking your head, you quickly defend yourself, “no, no. I like dancing. I’m just not very good. Got two left feet.”

He smirks, tongue poking out to run over those plump lips of his. “Well, with the right partner, it doesn’t really matter.”

“Are you asking me to dance, Bucky?”

“Not if you’re gonna say no.” He responds with a toothy grin, leaning his elbows on his knees.

You sigh and shake your head. “I’m afraid tonight’s not your night, pal. I just can’t seem to get myself in the mood.”

He hums, leaning back. “Is it the music? Too fast for you?”

“I wouldn’t mind if they slowed it down some, I suppose.”

He smiles cheekily. “I can help with that. Hold on.”

You grin at him, nodding. “I’ll be here.”

Watching him stand and make his way over to the stage, you quirk an eyebrow. He seems to know the band well, if the handshakes and the claps on the back have anything to say about it. He says something to the lead, who nods with a grin, shooting him a wink. Bucky laughs, but you can see a tint of pink dusting his cheeks, making you wonder what they were saying.

He makes his way back over as the band shifts tones, the animated swing changing to a slow jazzy number. Bucky beams at you, holding out his hand as he approaches. “Care to dance?”

You purse your lips, narrowing your eyes, but taking his hand anyways. “How’d you do that? Do you work here?’

“Uh…somethin’ like that.” He states vaguely, leading you to the dance floor with the other swaying couples. Pulling you as close as appropriate, his hands resting politely on your waist, he starts moving you side to side. 

“That’s not ominous.” You place your hands on his shoulders, following his lead as you stare at your feet.

He chuckles, hooking a finger under your chin to lift your gaze. “I’ve gotcha, doll. I won’t let you fall.”

“I’m going to step on your feet.” You explain.

“Nah. You’re doin’ great. You just need to get outta your head. Relax a little. Tell me something about yourself.”

You hum. “Like what?”

“Anything.”

“Uh, okay…I have a roommate who is one of the girls who begged me to come, I’m a secretary - I know, boring - and…I dunno. I like reading.”

His eyes lighten at this. “Reading? Whaddya like to read?”

“Different things. Depends on my mood. I’m re-reading The Hobbit for, like, the twentieth time right now.”

“I love The Hobbit.” Bucky grins, making you smile back. “I read it almost as soon as it came out.”

“Me too! I was planning on reading it tonight but,” you gesture around. “Here I am.”

Bucky lips pull up softly, his hold on your waist tightening ever so slightly as he pulls you closer. “Well, as much as I love that book, I’m glad you came out tonight.”

Giving him a little tease, you tap your chin thoughtfully. “Eh…I think I’d rather be at home.”

He pinches your side gently, making you squeal and squirm. “That hurt, sugar. That physically hurt me. C’mon, mama, your gonna say you aren’t havin’ a good time?”

“I just met you ten minutes ago.”

“Well, sweetheart, if you think we’re movin’ too fast, I won’t introduce you to my folks just yet.”

You laugh, blinking up at him. “That’s very thoughtful of you, Buck.”

The two of you rock for a little while longer, before the band stops, announcing they’re taking a break and a special guest is going to play a little something.

“Maybe James Barnes is here.” You say, a bit of intrigue lacing your tone, trying to see through the crowds of people who started gathering around the stage to catch a glimpse of the charming pianist. “I see why he would be over the attention.”

“Yeah.” Bucky sighs, almost sadly, giving you an apologetic look. “Listen, I’ve gotta go work for a bit, but I’ll be right back.”

You smirk. “So you do work here?”

“Um…kinda. You’ll see.”

You raise an eyebrow at his words, but he’s kissing your knuckles and walking away. You frown, but can’t think more on it when three young women are on you, babbling about their dates.

“Who were you dancing with, Y/N? He was cute!”

You roll your eyes, feeling yourself heat up, and not because of the many bodies in the vicinity. “Just…some guy.”

“C’mon, c’mon! We’ve gotta get a good spot to actually see him!”

You huff, letting the drag you through the crowd, shoving their way towards the front just as a familiar deep voice spoke. 

“Thanks for comin’ out, everyone. I hope your havin’ a good night. Let’s get this hop started, yeah?”

Your eyes widen when you finally catch sight of the man sitting at the piano with a polite smile on his features. He catches your eye and shoots you a wink, before his fingers start flying over the keys. The beam that he gets while tickling the gleaming ivories, his azure eyes lighting up, and you can’t fight the smile you get. He looks so relaxed, so invigorated, that it makes you happy just watching him.

“Oh my God! Weren’t you dancing with him?!” Lucy shook your shoulder obnoxiously, but you couldn’t bring yourself to care, mesmerized with the way he played like it’s the only thing he wanted to do with his life. Which, as you remember his words, ‘he just likes playin’. That’s all.’ you figure it is the only thing he wanted to do with his life.

You just danced with James Barnes…and he’s just as perfect as everyone says.

You’re still trying to wrap your head around it, your friends jumping around you, trying to get every little detail of him from you, when your heart skips a beat and your brain malfunctions. Bucky had started up another song, slower and more intimate, and he’s looking right at you. 

You find yourself doing something you never thought you would; you’re swooning over James Barnes, smiling like an idiot, heat blooming up your neck and flaming your face. And yes, he’s just a man - a human being - with flaws just like everyone else. But he’s a talented and gorgeous man, who has all of New York wanting to fall to her knees to please him.

And now that includes you.